Year in pictures!

Wow, what an incredible 2013 it has been! I would like to thank all my clients, I am so grateful for a memorable year. I cannot wait to work with you all again. A special thanks to my amazing girlfriend for teaching me so much, being so patient and understanding and to my family and friends for posing for many of my projects!
Here's to 2014!

Antwerp, Belgium!

A day trip to Antwerp began like a segment from The Amazing Race. We arrived at Rotterdam Centraal only to be told we needed our passports for the train ride to Antwerp, which I cursed was incorrect the entire cab ride back to the hotel.  I was sure we did not need our passports to travel into Antwerp just for a day trip. With only 20 mins until our train departed, we rushed the cab driver back to our hotel. 12 flights of stairs later and we were on our way back to the station with only 2 minutes to spare. We ran the entire station and got on our packed seatless train ONLY TO NOT need our passports. It was great craic altogether and a complete waste of 20E.
Antwerp is gorgeous, absolutely stunning. From the moment we stepped foot off the train at the glorious Antwerpen Centraal to the streets of Antwerp the architecture is just amazing, very different to Rotterdam. We spent the day around Old Town and skipped down a lot of small side streets filled with cobblestones.  We hit up their friday farmers market and got to see one of their antique markets which looked like a lot of chaos to be honest. We managed to fit in one museum during the short trip, The Plantin-Moretus, a museum honouring the famous printers. The museum has a huge collection of typographical material and some of the oldest working printing presses in the world. If you are ever around Antwerp, it is worth a visit. And finally, the coffee shops are to die for!
Next time Belgium, I promise to try your moules et frites!

Farmer's Market

Christmastime reminds me of home!

Kerry, Ireland from Alison Slattery on Vimeo.

SLATS BBQ!!!

In this post, I would like to introduce you to the many members of my family and friends. We all know Irish families are big and so ours is no exception. Big families make for amazing bbq's, Parties, lots of laughs and stories to be told. Before the end of our vacation, mom arranged a bbq at the house and the family to come on by. The photo above is my immediate family but missing is our sister Claire, who is currently waltzing around South Korea. There is a space for here there next to Patrick, so we might photoshop her in someday. We were cutting and hauling wood in my grandmother Slattery's fields.

The Brother: Also known as Patrick, Pat or Paddy

Rotterdam!!

Welcome to Rotterdam!! We headed to Rotterdam after our trip to London for a friends wedding. I was excited for our 5 day vacation in a new city.
Above and below you can see photos of the cube houses. A 3E entry fee led us inside for more views. It was super interesting and we found out that these houses sell for about 200,000E. We walked carefully around Rotterdam that day, doing our best to dodge cars, bikes and trams. That evening we hit up a local Tiki Bar. It was really cool inside, I doubled my money on a slot machine, which I did not know how to play nor could I understand, due to it being in Dutch. I guess that was luck of the Irish.
The next morning we found an amazing cafe  near our hotel called Memory Lane and down the street was the most gorgeous off licence I've ever seen. Later that day we headed to old town via water taxi. What a crazy ride, we were holding on for dear life, even though we were at our destination within 6 mins. Walking around Rotterdam, I noticed that most of their architecture is new and modern as most of the old did not make it through the war. Old town is basically two streets, so after a beer and a game of pool later, we were on the move again.
When we left old town we took the Tram back into town and then walked across the bridge and headed for sunset at Hotel New York. This hotel lies on a lot of history as this is where the Holland America Line started. Emigrants looking for a better life in the promised land embarked here to escape poverty and persecution and headed for New York. It sailed its last voyage in 1971 after transporting passengers for over 100yrs.  It was turned into a hotel/cafe in 1993. We sat outside in deck chairs drinking beers and watching the sunset over the city and the Maas. What a beautiful way to spend the evening before heading for Asian BBQ that night.
On Fri, we took the train to Antwerp for the day which will be my next blog posting.
Saturday was the wedding but before the wedding we went to the farmers market down the street. So many people and so many stalls but we ended up buying a table cloth for next summer.
Rotterdam, we hope to see you soon!!!

You sound like you're from London!!!!

Our five day trip to London was an enjoyable one. The weather was perfect, so Farah and I decided be royal tourists. We visited the usual suspects such as Buckingham Palace, The Changing of the Guard, London Eye, Trafalgar Sq, Westminster, Little Venice and Notting Hill Carnival which you can see more photos here.
London is super expensive, my wallet thought my hand had gone mad. However there are a bunch of things that don't pull on the pocket strings. Freebies included a stroll through through Little Venice, which I loved. Someone pointed out Richard Branson's house boat along the way and yes it is massive, it's even got a little second floor. No matter what city I'm in, I always head to Chinatown. London's Chinatown is pretty epic, we ate at an absolutely amazing Japanese Restaurant. The markets were another pull. We had to see Camden Market (I wish we had more time here) and Covet Garden, whose antiques were to die for. We avoided the long lines of the the London Eye (£20 P.P), instead opting for a stroll by it and back over the Bridget Jones bridge. Buckingham Palace was jointed as usual and if you plan on getting a close up view of the changing of the guard, then get there early. Another must see freebie is the Soane House Museum. This museum/former architects home is jam packed with his projects, collection of paintings and models. It was truly fascinating. On a rainy day, The British Museum was a saving grace, giving us a chance to see the Rosetta Stone and a lot of Mummies. St Paul's Cathedral is also worth a visit. The detail is amazing, but watch out for service times, once you sit down they do not like you leaving until the end.

Rose Of Tralee

I was home for the Rose of Tralee festival in August for the first time in two years. Below is a small collection of my photos from The Parades, Meeting the Roses, The Fashion Show, Birds Bazaar and Sharon Shannon. The festival takes place every August in Tralee, Co. Kerry. Enjoy!