MY LIFE | Vegas, because why not?

The day after Christmas, I joined my family on a trip to Vegas as a last-minute add-on. My sister had a softball camp out there, so it wasn't your typical Vegas vacay, but I had a pretty good time. It was relaxing, which was a change f'sho. I climbed some rocks and took some majestic photos of a random dog, I spent lots of time admiring the palm trees, and I got to see Britney Spears live at Planet Hollywood.

Take a look!

Peace out 2014, it's been rad.

At the start of 2014, I had no idea what to expect for the year ahead. Little did I know that I was in for a ton of amazing adventures and surprises that would take me to where I am today. I was open to new things and was ready to challenge myself in ways that I never would've imagined. Here's a look into this year's highlights:

THE PEOPLE
I've always known about the importance of surrounding yourself with the right people, but I think this year it really stuck with me. The people who I've had the pleasure of knowing and meeting this year have brought experiences, opportunities and memories that will last a lifetime. My family and friends have always been there for me and their positivity and encouragement really keeps me going. Sorry for being a cheese ball, but I had to say it at some point. I'm honestly surrounded by the most talented and passionate people who inspire me on a daily basis.

 

MY LIFE | NYU Journalism In New Orleans

Only a month into my program at NYU and already I've gotten to travel on a reporting trip. On October 9th, a group of 10 of us went on an adventure to New Orleans, each covering a different topic to explore. I chose to focus on the music.

It was an interesting start to the journey. I went from NYC to a connecting flight in Charlotte, NC, where we were told that the plane was having issues—so we were delayed a bit before finally making it to our hotel in NOLA.

MY LIFE | NYC Week 7

Photo by Christina Dun

This week was a busy one. Class field trips ranged from throughout the city all the way to New Orleans. What a week. [October 6 - 12]

For my reporting class, we had a special guest teacher for a hands-on photojournalism lesson. It was really cool to have award-winning photographer Lori Grinker show us the ropes (she was boxer Mike Tyson's personal photographer!) - she took us to the Aperture Foundation gallery in Chelsea for a field trip and a photo walk along the Highline.

MY LIFE | Vegas 2014

I haven't been to a wedding since I was a little tot in a pouffy flower girl dress so I was feeling pretty rusty when getting prepared for attending a wedding at 22. I was already pretty excited when I found out my aunt was getting married, but as a bonus, she was getting hitched in fabulous Las Vegas. I've been to Vegas before when I was younger, but there's only so much you can do as an underage tween.

In addition to my aunt putting a ring on it in Vegas last weekend, there were also tons of other big-time events going down at the same time (Academy of Country Music Awards and Michael Jordan's Celebrity Invitational, aka hello celebs!).

So I got to escape Toronto for a much-needed weekend vacation. I couldn't wait to see my family and take a break from school. Check out my Vegas experience:

We stayed at The Cosmopolitan hotel, which was more fabulous than I imagined. I went into the room to this view, so naturally, I felt like I was in heaven:

TRAVEL | Ace Hotel in NYC

For the longest time, I've heard wonderful things about a place called the Ace Hotel. And over my many stays in New York City, I had never gotten the chance to make a visit. So during my latest adventure out the the Big Apple, of course I had to stay at least a couple nights.

The first thing I see when I get to my room? I was welcomed by the face of the wonderful Amy Poehler in cat ears. It was a superb start.

 They're just so witty at the Ace.

TRAVEL | Vancouver Visit

As soon as I finished my last (and only...) exam for the semester, I took the opportunity to fly home back to the west coast for a quick visit. As much as I love my city life in Toronto, I do enjoy going over to BC for its relaxed, laid-back vibe - not to mention, it's also nice to go home to my old bedroom and a kitchen that's always stocked with food... I always act like such a tourist when I'm in Vancouver, wandering downtown taking photos (like the one above: Gastown is so pretty). And plus, I lucked out with the weather; it was gorgeous!

Anyways, I just thought I'd share some of the highlights:

I love thrift store shopping in my hometown, so of course I made a trip out to my local Salvation Army (they were having a 50% off sale one day, perfect timing!). My finds:

- Grey tailored trousers with leather detailing
- Floral silk blouse
- One Day by David Nicholls
- The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards
- Pale pink heels
- FRYE leather/wooden platforms

All for a whopping $12

I was invited back to my old high school to be a guest teacher for two dance classes one day. I used to be super involved with the dance program back in the day, so it was really nice to go back and see what it's like now. I taught two hip hop choreography pieces: "Thrift Shop" by Macklemore and "Bomb" by Chris Brown.

I was actually invited a second time back to my high school, but this time I got to be a guest speaker for a Creative Writing class - I loved meeting students who love writing and are interested in turning it into a career! And of course I brought copies of Faze Magazine to show them as well :)

Like in any other Canadian household, hockey is huge. And since it's playoff time, I thought I should probably go to a game. So I went to a Canucks game (thanks Dad!) and actually got pretty into it. Sadly we lost, but the highlight for me was definitely the drunk guy sitting next to me who caught a free T-shirt and gave it to me.

And then there was the food. I love Vancouver restaurants.

Left: Red Robin (downtown Vancouver) - oh how I love their 'Freckled Lemonade' | Right: The Hemingway (White Rock) - I could eat breakfast ALL day. What made this awesome meal even better was the price; $8.40 for this delicious plate of wonderfulness! | Below: Burgoo (Main Street, Vancouver) - LOVED this place; comfort food at it's finest.

Overall, I had a great two-week visit at home. But now that I'm back in Toronto, it's back to work!

- Christina
Follow my adventures on Twitter: @christinaaa28

TRAVEL | The Pod Hotel 39 - NYC

I had the pleasure of staying at The Pod Hotel 39 during my most recent visit to New York City and I absolutely fell in love. From the decor, staff and overall atmosphere to the amazing price, I could not have chosen a better place to stay. As a young, solo traveler, I wanted to stay in a place that would meet my needs but also not make a huge dent in my wallet. Thus, when I came across The Pod, I wanted to give it a try.

Located at 145 East 39th Street, The Pod 39 is conveniently only a couple blocks away from Grand Central Station and is walking distance to some of the city's main tourist spots - Times Square, Bryant Park, etc.

For roughly $100/night, I stayed in a room on the 11th floor that featured an en-suite bathroom, double bed, flat screen TV and a desk. Although it may be considered extremely small by some travelers, it was honestly perfect for me. Did I mention free WiFi?

Take a look at my room:

 

After settling into my room, I wanted to explore the rest of the hotel and boy, did I find a gem. When you go up to the highest floor (17th), you walk into a cool lounge with a South American feel. It was like a hidden paradise on the roof.

Then I went outside...and wow, I was amazed. What a great space - I definitely want to be here in the summer - It was a bonus that it was a gorgeous, sunny day outside!

The view:

And back downstairs on the main floor, there is a restaurant/lounge area, called Salvation Taco. The decor is so cool, from huge, comfy leather armchairs and stacks of colourful books to antique wooden furniture and ping pong tables. Yes, there are two rooms with ping pong tables for your enjoyment.

Another reason why I loved staying at this hotel was the people. It has such a young, hip, trendy vibe and the staff/other guests all seem to fit that description. I chatted with the two different concierge staff and they were both so stylish (one had bright blonde hair and wore a fur coat and the other reminded me of Jessa from HBO's Girls, aka the coolest person ever) and clearly knew NYC - but all from a perspective that was super relatable to me.

Overall, I was thrilled find such a perfect place to spend my reading week vacation. I definitely recommend giving it a try if you're heading to the Big Apple! They also have The Pod 51, located at 230 E 51st Street.

For more information, check out www.thepodhotel.com
All photos taken by me. | Please contact for use.

- Christina
Follow my adventures on Twitter: @christinaaa28

TRAVEL | My first time to Los Angeles

The year 2013 has definitely started out with a bang.

On January 3rd, I got a phone call from a California number, answered with a confused 'hello?' and was told that I'd been selected to be a part of a special on-stage audience at this year's People's Choice Awards. In LA. Was this a joke?

I had applied a couple weeks prior to the phone call after seeing a tweet from Gotham Casting - I always apply for things, it's like a reflex. Anyways, so that happened and I obviously said yes to the opportunity. But this meant basically putting everything else on hold for the time being...which I was okay with, since school wasn't going to be starting up again for another week - talk about perfect timing.

So this is going to be a two-part blog post - this first one being about my trip to LA as a whole, featuring the food, places we explored and all that touristy stuff. THEN I'll get to the excitement of the PCAs in part 2.

My Cali adventure began on Sunday, January 6th and I brought my friend Brittney along. We flew into the airport in Orange County (yes, The OC theme song may have been playing on my Ipod as we flew in....) and then made our way to our hotel in downtown LA. We chose a hotel that was close to The Nokia Theatre, since that was the main area we had to be in for the awards show; little did we know that other than L.A. Live, there really wasn't much in the downtown area. But we did get an awesome deal on it, so we were okay with it.

We didn't have time to do much when we first arrived, but our first meal of the trip was at Wolfang Puck and was delicious, take a look:

The next day we had the morning/early afternoon to explore downtown LA before a PCA rehearsal. This is what we found:

Grand Park - cute pink furniture!

Bottega Louis (above & below) - Such a cute restaurant and bakery!!!

Then at the PCA rehearsal, we met some locals who recommended we check out The Standard hotel so we did that night and it was so cool!

Funny face menus and yummy desserts!

Gorgeous rooftop and view of the city!

The next day we had a whole day to roam around so we did checked out The Grove and Venice Beach.

 Got to be in the audience of an Extra taping - Sighhhhh, why can't they just hire me already?!

Venice Beach - so nice!

 Stunning.

I loved getting to escape the cold Toronto weather for a bit and to set foot on a beach in January!!

I know I've overwhelmed you all with tons of photos, so that's enough for now. Up next is part 2, featuring my experience on the People's Choice Awards stage.

- Christina

Follow my adventures on Twitter: @christinaaa28

All photos taken by me | Please contact for use