Showing posts with label Travel. Show all posts

Tucked away, London's little cafes

First post of 2017! It's crazy to think it's January again, the winter blues are starting to kick in and school is becoming oh so stressful. This week was mock week so stress levels have been high and all I've been doing is revision (what a fun life I lead). The latter end of the week did pick up though as we got some snow! For the first time in forever we were blessed with a little flurry, which although didn't stay around for long did bring out the five year old in most of us. To celebrate the end of mocks however, my best friend and I decided we'd trek into London and find a pretty little cafe, have some brunch and enjoy the city.

We'd had a little look online and came across The Watch House, which seemed like a picturesque little eatery, quiet and tucked away from all the hustle and bustle of London. Quite quickly we set our hearts on it and so come Saturday morning we made a start up to the city. Taking lots of pictures along the way it wasn't long before we were face to face with the cutest cafe I'd seen, our appetites were at their peaks so we hurried on inside where it was so cosy! We ordered food which came at an exceptionally speedy rate, the only issue being that because it was so small and because it was a cold Saturday morning, it was quite full. Nevertheless, we did eventually get some seats and then it was time to get stuck in to some AMAZING food. Honestly for the price it was, it was so worth it! We left feeling so satisfied, and definitely up for going again in the (very) near future. 




The rest of the day was spent walking around, taking in the beauty of the cobbled back streets of London, finally making it up to Oxford Street for a little shop.






It was the most ideal way to end a stressful week, appreciating the hidden gems of such a beautiful city and I enjoyed it so much that now I'm hoping to make these little exploring days a semi regular thing! 



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The Pearl of Africa

Hello everyone!!! It's lovely to finally be back, and blogging again!! I decided to hold back on posting whilst I was away so I could do a summary post afterward, so I could really reflect on how amazing my trip was. Four weeks away was bliss and it was lovely to spend ample time with my family, but now I'm back I can get back to blogging!!

What I love about being in Africa is the change of culture, there are so many things to do of which are both different and similar to home, but being in another country just makes everything so much more intriguing! From weddings to jazz shows, sushi to mocktails I had fun from start to finish, making the best of memories with my larger than life family. 

One thing I just adore about going on holiday is the change of scenery, sunshine almost all day every day made for amazing photos, really beautiful places that just made me appreciate Uganda so much more, it truly is an extraordinary country!! I tried to take as many pictures as I could, capturing all the moments that I knew I'd want to keep with me forever (believe me, there were very many of those).

I went on holiday with the plan that each week I'd want to do at least one thing that was really fun and interesting and I'm glad to say that we really did!! 

Here are some of the highlights from each week:

WEEK ONE: my first week was concluded with my uncle's amazing wedding, it was nice to get dressed up and go on a long road trip to the venue where we had delicious food and beautiful scenery.





WEEK TWO: this was a big family outing, one of my favourite things to do when I'm with them! We all pile into cars and mess about, sing songs and make up stories as we travel to our desination which this time round, was the wildlife centre. I love animals and it was nice to see them in enclosures that were big and spacious, and as close as possible to their natural habitats. After a nature lesson it was off to a cafe for a big lunch.





WEEK THREE: this was a week of great food and amazing music, we were able to visit an authentic Japanese restaurant where I had some deliciously indulgent sushi. And of course being the big children that we are we got a little creative with our plates and cutlery (we apologise to the restaurant). The Jazz show was also great, lots of classics songs were given some interesting renditions and the atmosphere was electric! By the end of the night we'd all had a a little shimmy.




WEEK FOUR: This was the saddest week as it was full of goodbyes however we did try to make the most out of it by spending time together! I also made sure that I had one of my favourite treats for the last time, frozen yoghurt. I honestly can't get enough of the stuff over there! As the week drew to a close it was time to think about the journey home, four weeks spent in bliss were truly over! 


Until next time, Uganda!! 






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Summer essentials

Hello everyone! My summer holidays have officially begun, as I'm writing this I'm actually on a plane feeling slightly guilty about not giving you guys a post last week (I'm sorry, last minute packing is so hectic in my house!!) but I'm hoping that being abroad will give me lots of inspiration for blogging. Unfortunately in not sure how predictable my wifi will be so my ability to provide you all with posts depends on how the router is feeling (I promise I'll treat it nicely).

As a person who has gone on many holidays I've learnt to be tactical with my packing- at least as tactical as I can be, taking 15 different outfits for a 3 day holiday is tactical right?- trying my best to take as little as I can but also making sure I take exactly what I need because you are going to be away from home and you do want to make sure you're as comfortable as possible! I thought I'd do a summer holiday essentials just to share some of the things I can't live without!

1) Electricals
This is pretty much a given, whether it be your phone, laptop or tablet all of us want to make sure we have a means to connect with the rest of the world whilst tucked away on an island, sharing snaps and typical holiday statuses like the tourists we are. Also don't forget chargers and always check whether the country you're going to have the same plugs as you may need an adapter.

2) Clothes
Now this is the point where things get difficult. Not only do you have 101 things you want to wear abroad that you don't get to at home (shout out to British weather) but around summer time the sales are at an all time high and all you want to do is buy every item of clothing that you make eye contact with. So now you find yourself in a situation where you have to play favourites with your clothes, the best thing to do is first sort your clothes into actual outfits so you know you won't be looking for those shorts that go with that top. Next is get rid of outfits that are just that bit too similar, you want your photos to double as a look book therefore they should be as different as possible!

3) Toiletries/Health
Make sure you have enough of everything!! Maybe even spares because the worst thing is running out and having to go out and look for more. Make sure you also have sun cream and take any medication you could need so you have it on hand!

4) Entertainment
Take a good book along with you when travelling, just to have something to do if you have a rogue day stuck at 'home'. A good playlist is also essential, make sure you've chosen the music you want to have with you for the duration of your trip well!

5) Comfortable shoes
This is probably one of the most important essentials, something that can really ruin a holiday is having shoes that aren't comfortable, the likelihood is you'll be exploring a lot and the last thing you need is to be coping with blisters. Trainers are always a great option!! 




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Five friends, three days

Hello everyone! I am so sorry for the delay, the latter end of last week was just so stressful I just wasn't able to write a post of good enough standard. I'm also back to school now and it's exam season so I'm not entirely sure how I'm going to manage my time effectively but I guess I'll just have to work with it!

So as some of you may know if you follow me on Twitter, just over a week ago I took a three day trip to Denmark. The back story as to 'why Denmark?' Is a long one which I've been through many a time so I'm not going to do that again. Anyway so the long awaited Tuesday 5th of April arrived and I excitedly got up at the crack of dawn to meet three of my best friends whom I'd be travelling to meet up with best(est) friend number four. The journey to the airport was quick enough, we checked in (it was quite strange doing all this for the first time without an adult!) then had breakfast, shopped a bit before it was time to board. I'll skip the plane journey, it was standard, an hour and a half or so was all it took to get us onto Danish soil. Fast forward we met up with my best friend and her mum and started off to her house. The rest of that evening was nice and chilled, we took a walk to the local shop to buy a few things and then spent the night playing cards against humanity.

The next day was by far my favourite, we got the chance to spend a couple of hours doing various (challenging and strenuous) tree climbing activities which is something I'd never experienced before and did enjoy! There were varied heights you could climb at and we worked through them all (although I found I'd developed a minor fear of heights at the 20m mark and dropped out of the very last course). We got to spend the night in a cabin, just us five cooking and cleaning for ourselves- the epitome of freedom right? Highlight of that evening was having a prank pulled on us which resulted in a very loud scream and my life flashing before my eyes. The rest of the night passed without any more terror (thank God) and due to irresponsibly sleeping at 6am we woke up at 11am. Fuelled on five hours sleep we gave the cabin a clean and had pancakes for breakfast. Back 'home' we showered and packed up all our things- I couldn't believe it was almost over already!- and headed off to the mall to ramble and pick up a few things before dinner at Restaurant Flammen which was amazing!! 

The drive to the airport was nice and long, it kind of felt like a mini road trip with that "nothing ahead but the open road" feeling. Obviously the airport getting closer and closer and I realised the trip we'd been planning for months was coming to an end. At the airport, fooseball and trying to get to the front of the boarding queue was what the next hour or so consisted of. Then it was the plane journey back where us girls gossiped from take off to landing, taking a few cheeky pictures of the boys which I won't include as I value my life quite a bit. Getting home was nice for one reason only- my bed. Other than that I could honestly have had a few more days over there in Denmark, it was the nicest thing to just come away from school work and spend some time with best friends and making amazing memories.


Photo credit for this lovely picture goes to my friend @jbishop169 (on Instagram)



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Cyprus, an escape to the sun

As a lot of you probably don't know (due to my lack of updating) I spent Valentine's weekend in the south of Cyprus with my family this year as a little break from school and the awful English weather. For three days we stayed in a beautiful apartment and drove around the amazing city, randomly picking pre-programmed tourist attractions in our sat-nav and letting it take us anywhere! It was the perfect adventure, having your own car to drive around in meant you could pack as many different location visits into one day, don't like where you've ended up? Totally fine just drive somewhere else! Being able to do this meant that in the short few days we'd been there we saw more than we could have dreamed of, from beaches to zoos and quaint little rock pools- which I may or may not have fallen into.. Each day held a new surprise and although it wasn't hot enough to use the outdoor pool (and sadly we only discovered the indoor one on the last day) we still managed to be busy from dawn to dusk!

We went to a mini cliff type thing, rock pools and the Tombs of Kings on the first day which were all so lovely! Just taking in the view of the sea and hopping from rock to rock was enough to satisfy me for ages and the tombs which could date back to 4th century BC were so quiet and serene, I really love archaeological sites!











The second day was the zoo which although I was hesitant to go to as I've been to the zoo multiple times at home I was far from disappointed! I think we all revert back to our five year old selves when surrounded by animals, my inner Snow White came out as I tried to communicate with them all. The zoo had a little show they did mainly with the most talented Parrots I've ever seen in my life but also some beautiful owls (one of which was in Harry Potter!). Weirdly enough our favourite part of the zoo was actually feeding the Goats, who were very aggressive when it came to eating the leaves! We also came across the cutest baby Goat and I was tempted to pick it right up and take it home with me. We also visited the mall, where I couldn't resist going into Zara and having a mini top haul as Cyprus really know the meaning of 'sale'.








That evening we went on a bit of a drive around to the harbour and stumbled upon a castle which we hung around until the sun completely set, listening to the sea (I swear I would've stayed there forever).



On the last day we came across the indoor pool, so naturally we spent a good hour in there soaking up as much chlorine as possible. Clearly we couldn't get enough of the water as we went on to visit the beach. I don't know how many beaches it'll take for me to not be in awe as I gaze off into the horizon where see meets sky *and a few other cheesy quotes*. After that it was back to the mall where I picked up two blouses for school again from Zara and we returned back to the hotel content with how we'd spent the day. The evening was packing- and sneaking back into the swimming pool again- before watching the sunset and having an early night ready for our early flight.





Three days was definitely not long enough for this trip! It was gutting to land back home, facing the mountain of work I'd so casually left 'for later', not realising 'later' would come a lot faster than expected!

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