My favourite thing I did in…

My favourite thing I did in Munich

Without a doubt, my favourite thing in Munich was Neuschwanstein Castle. Although it’s technically not in Munich, Munich is the closest city. As I’ve said before, seeing the castle was the reason I wanted to go to Munich and it certainly didn’t disappoint. It really is a fairy tale castle and is just as impressive in person as it is on Pinterest! It made me squeal with excitement when I first saw it. We did it as an organised day trip. You can visit it independently, but it gets very busy! I’d definitely recommend this to anyone.

 

My favourite thing I did in Copenhagen

I love it when I have unexpectedly brilliant experience. The street food hall on Paper Island in Copenhagen was one of those experiences. We read a brief sentence about it when we arrived and then found it on one of our wanders around the city. It was fab! I’ve spoke about it before but in case you missed it, it has loads of street food stalls inside from every corner of the globe! Thai, Indian, Middle Eastern, South American, Australian, British… literally all cuisines are catered for here. Definitely worth a visit if you love food.

 

My favourite thing I did in Sydney

To be fair, we didn’ really do much in Sydney besides wander the city and see the Blue Mountains (which are impressive and beautiful!) but my favourite thing I did was just to see the iconic bridge and opera house. I got loads of photos of them from all angles, including very blurry first glimpse shots, but the view from Mrs Macquairies chair is my favourite.

My favourite thing I did in Rome

 

I’ve got to cheat here and have 2 favourite things because I just can’t choose! I equally love The Colosseum and the view from the top of St Peter’s basilica. I love both for different reasons and both are very different attractions. The Colosseum is an amazing feat of engineering and architecture, especially when you consider that it’s over 2000 years old. It’s truly incredible. Whereas, the climb to the top of St Peters basilica is tiring and claustrophobic, but it’s certainly worth the pain. I love views and the view from the top is arguably one of the best views I’ve ever witnessed.

 

My favourite thing I did in Florence

Another view! This time it was the view from Piazzale Michaelangelo, which gives the most incredible view over the city and even includes the Tuscan countryside. Another good thing about this is that is free! The walk up is steep but it’s not too bad. To go one better, you could climb up to Abbazia di San Miniato al Monte where the views are even more stunning. It certainly gives you a perspective of how big the duomo and church are!

 

My favourite thing I did in Edinburgh

This was a surprise to me, as visiting Royal Yacht Britannia wasn’t on my agenda for Edinburgh. It was actually the mothers choice of activity but I loved it! I found it fascinating and was really excited to see the Queen’s bedroom! As I said, it wasn’t something that I was particularly bothered about but when I think about my trip to Edinburgh, this stands out. I was impressed with how they had literally everything you could ever need in life on board, from dentist and doctors to laundry and post office. It was incredible. Definitely worth a visit.

 

My favourite thing I did in Melbourne

I have been a huge Neighbours fan since I was born pretty much. When I found out you could do a Neighbours tour it went onto my life’s ambitions list where it has stayed until I finally did it a few years ago. In fact, it was a huge factor in deciding to visit Melbourne and was without a doubt my favourite thing. You probably have to be a Neighbours fan to appreciate this, but if you are then you should definitely get yourself on this tour! I even met Sonya!!

 

My favourite thing I did in Budapest

I love Budapest and think it is now one of my favourite places! The whole city is lovely and there is loads to do and its mega cheap. It’s hard to choose because I liked so much, such as the views from Fisherman’s Bastion and catching the funicular, but I think my favourite was having cake at Gerbeaud. I love dobosz torta, which is a traditional Hungarian cake so it was a real treat to go to the posh patisserie and indulge!

 

My favourite thing I did in Milan

I really liked Milan as it was cool and stylish without trying too hard. It doesn’t have as many big attractions as other Italian cities and it may not be as pretty but it’s still worth a visit. In my opinion, it’s quite liveable. My favourite thing was spinning on the bulls balls in the Galleria! Such a fun touristy thing to do! You put your heel in the groove and spin 3x for good luck!

 

My favourite thing I did in The Lake District

My favourite thing about the Lake District is how stunningly beautiful it is. Seriously! The whole area is just gorgeous. The photo above was taken at Lake Coniston and has not been edited or filtered in any way. It’s just that beautiful. The area we stayed was around Ambleside and Coniston, and it was simply gorgeous. My dad and I went on an early morning walk, which was when I took this photo, and I think that was when I fell in love with the place.

 

My favourite thing I did in Croatia

This was a lazy, relatively relaxing holiday so there isn’t too much to talk about besides sunbathing and reading, however, in Split, we took a walking tour of Diocletians Palace. This was really interesting and I learnt loads of facts. I always enjoy taking a walking tour and learning about places this way.

 

My favourite thing I did in Venice

The colourful island of Burano is well worth a visit. This island is often featured on places to visit lists and its easy to see why. Famous for lace making, there isn’t a great deal to do except wander and admire the pretty colours! As with Venice itself, Burano is very photogenic so make sure you have plenty of battery on your camera!

 

 

My favourite thing I did in Thailand

Thailand was my first experience of backpacking and using hostels, and I absolutely loved it! I had such a fun few weeks there that it’s hard to choose a favourite thing. Mainly because all I did was sunbathe and drink! Of all the places we visited,  I had the most fun on Phi Phi, but I thought Ko Pha Ngan was the most beautiful. We stayed well away from Haad Rin but did venture in for Full Moon. This was the fastest night of my life and I’m still entirely sure what happened! My favourite thing about Thailand is a toss up between the food (watermelon shakes, Thai curries & spring rolls come at me!) and the gorgeous beach we lazed around on all day at Ko Pha Ngan. Tough call!

 

My favourite thing I did in Naples

As you may have gathered, Naples wasn’t my favourite place. We made lots of effort to see attractions around the area such as Capri and Mt Vesuvius, but my favourite was Pompeii. In fact, Pompeii was the reason I wanted to go to Naples. I’m a bit of a history geek and have always wanted to go since I first heard about Pompeii at primary school. It was so interesting but I still feel there’s loads I need to see there! I didn’t realise how big it is!

 

What’s your favourite thing or place you’ve ever visited?

 

Milan, you surprised me…

Our first stop on our Italian adventure was the city of Milan. I didn’t really know much about Milan other than it’s the Italian fashion capital. When I was younger, I desperately wanted to visit Milan as I was going to be a designer, then I changed career ideas so Milan went out of my head. When I told people I was visiting Milan, I was met with a mixed response. Some told me it was a good place to visit or they were jealous whereas others told me there’s not much to do and it’s boring. With this is mind, I really didn’t know what to expect. I was looking forward to my visit but I wasn’t overly excited by it as I was with Venice and Florence.

After spending 3 nights there, I can honestly say I loved it! Sure it doesn’t have the same history as Rome or Florence, it’s not as unique as Venice and it may not have as many attractions as other major cities, but that’s part of the charm. Milan is chic, it’s stylish. I may even go so far as to say it was my favourite place that we visited. I would say it’s very liveable. In fact, since we’ve been home, I’ve been keeping a cheeky eye out for jobs in Milan!

Milan cathedral in the rain

Let me backtrack and explain my trip.

I was flying from Birmingham and my friend was meeting me in Milan as she was flying from Heathrow about an hour after me. I boarded my plane fine, flight was fine, got my baggage fine. When I switched my phone on I had a text from her saying there was bad weather over London so her flight was delayed by about half an hour. I text her back to let her know I’d arrived. As I didn’t get a reply I assumed she’d be somewhere over France. Unfortunately, after half an hour of waiting, she replied saying they were still at Heathrow. Great! That meant I had at least 2 more hours of waiting in Milan airport! I think I read nearly a whole book in that time. Also whilst I was waiting, a stupid poodle walked past my suitcase and cocked its leg up over it! Luckily I moved it out of the way before any real danger occurred! Who the hell lets dogs wander around airports???

Anyway, my friend arrived so that was good. Next task was to master Milanese public transport. We had several options available so decided to get the Malpensa Express train to Milan’s central station. It’s a flat fee and cheaper than getting a taxi, I recommend it, tickets are 12 euros for a one way journey, only takes about half an hour and the trains run regularly throughout the day.  The trains are nice and spacious with plenty of room for luggage. Remember to validate your ticket on the platform before you board the train. You have to validate any ticket for public transport before you travel, if you don’t you could get thrown off and fined.

We made it to Milano Centrale train station easily, the next challenge was finding our hotel. Our hotel was slightly out of the city centre. We were determined to get a bus rather than pay for a taxi. The first obstacle was finding where to buy bus tickets. It turns out you buy them from tobacconists, we eventually found one in the station and the lady didn’t seem impressed by my lack of Italian and knowledge of what I wanted! We ended up with a 24hr bus ticket.

Next challenge: finding the correct bus! After walking around in circles and asking several Italian men, we discovered we needed either the number 64 bus or 92 bus, which we caught from over the road. We also remembered to validate our tickets on the bus! Our hotel was a 10-15 minute bus ride away. After a couple of missed stops and struggling with our cases (why didn’t we take backpacks?) we arrived!

We had a quick change, unpacked slightly then caught the bus into the city centre. We’re now experts on Milan public transport! As long as its the 64 or 92 bus! By the end of our 3 nights, we’d caught that many buses, we were practically locals!

The dome of Galleria Vittorio Emmanuelle

Arty instagrammed Milan spires shot

I loved Milan city centre from the moment I first laid eyes on it. Clean, stylish, modern yet still historical and packed with Italian charm. We walked into Piazza del Duomo and marvelled at the famous cathedral and it’s spires then headed to find dinner. I had been dreaming of Italian food for months before! What to eat? Pizza or pasta?? I went with pasta and had bruschetta to start. Mmmmm belissimo! On the way back to the hotel, we stopped for an obligatory ice cream as well! When in Rome and all that.

The only bad thing about Milan was the weather. It rained every day we were there! On the first night there was a massive downpour which ruined my shoes. Trust me to bring Primark shoes!

Our first full day was spent exploring the city. We went in the cathedral, went to the roof (note to self: cover your shoulders if you want to be allowed in churches!), spun on the bulls balls in Galleria Vittorio Emmanuel II, walked to Castello Sforzeco and found Santa Maria delle Grazie. My biggest regret is that we hadn’t prebooked tickets to see The Last Supper. I definitely recommend you do this, especially if you’re visiting at peak season or are on a short trip. Next time…

Castello Sforzesco

Dramatic instagrammed cathedral

Bulls balls

Parco Sempione selfie

I discovered there is a hell of a lot of stuff to do in Milan, it’s just Milan doesn’t shout about it and show off. She knows she has plenty to see and do and lots of hidden gems as well. There are no end of churches, museums, the royal palace, theatres and with Expo 2015 happening, there really is plenty going on!

My impression of Milan is that it’s cool, chic and stylish. I’d say Milan’s word is style. It’s like the cool, underrated cousin to Rome or Venice. Doesn’t try too hard but doesn’t disappoint. It just gets on with being it’s fabulous self. It definitely surprised me with how much I liked loved it. Definitely a city I recommend and hope to return to!

Have you been to Milan? 

My favourite travel photos from 2014

2014 saw me take 2 trips: Italy and Cornwall. Both were very different but equally beautiful. Also, within Italy, the cities I visited  were all different. Milan was stylish, Naples was rough around the edges, Rome was traditional Italian, Florence was classic Renaissance and Venice was just in a league of its own! Cornwall was quintessential Britishness, all green fields, rugged coastline and cute country cottages!

To sum up the year, I have picked my favourite pictures from each of the destinations visited. I found it hard to choose just a few from each place! Some are straight from my camera, others have been Instagrammed! All of them are my own photos.

Milan

Milan Cathedral in the rain

On the roof of the cathedral

Castello Sforzeco

Love this picture of the cathedral that has had filters applied. So dramatic!

The dome in Emanuel Vittorio

Cathedral Spires

Lake Como

Instagrammed Lake Como

No filter Lake Como

Bellagio

Cute balcony

Venice

Gondola’s

The Grand Canal

Love locks – adding to the romanticness of the city!

From Ponte Dell’Accademia

Street light

Dusk by the canal

From the Rialto Bridge

Ponte dell Accademia

So picturesque

Murano

Murano

Burano

Florence

Santa dell Maria Fiore at sunset

Piazzale Michaelangelo

The view!

The dome of Santa Maria Fiore from Giottos Bell Tower

The Ponte Vecchio

Inside the dome

One of the street signs transformed by street artist Clet

Naples & around

Beautiful Capri

Capri harbour area

Pompeii with Mt Vesuvius in the background

Naples area from top of Mt Vesuvius

Sorrento and Amalfi Coast from top of Mt Vesuvius

Rome

Inside the Colosseum

Pope’s balcony

The Pantheon

Elefantina statue

Crossing the river to the Vatican

View from the steps of St Peter’s basilica

The River Tiber

River Tiber

Cornwall

Lundy Bay

Port Isaac

Doc Martin’s House

Polzeath beach

Love the pink cottage!

Looking forward to collecting travel photos in 2015!

Which is your favourite photo? What was your best photo this year?

My Italian ‘to do’ list

It’s now less than 36 hours until I embark on Bella Italia 2014! That is the official title of my trip! I’m starting to freak out slightly as I haven’t got any Euros or insurance yet. I also need to do all my washing and ironing, clean my house, finish packing and finalise my lift to the airport! This is my first trip where I am leaving my own house (as opposed to my parents) so I need to remove any food from the fridge and make sure I empty all my bins and turn plugs off! (Just not the freezer!)

Anyway… I’m very excited and have read numerous blog posts and travel guides for inspiration. I have several things that I MUST do but I also enjoy just wandering around and exploring. I like to have a balance between planned days and ‘free’ days!

Here’s the list of things I intend to do on my Italian adventure!

Milan

• See The Last Supper at Santa Maria della Grazie
• Climb the Dumo
• Shop!
• Visit Galleria Vittorio Emanuelle II
• Stalk George Clooney at Lake Como
• Eat lots of ice cream

Venice

• Go in a gondola
• Visit Piazza San Marco & St Mark’s basilica, Doge palace etc
• Visit Murano and/or Burano
• Go up the campanile
• Visit the Peggy Guggenheim collection
• Eat lots of pizza

Florence

• Go up the duomo
• Shop!
• Visit other Tuscan cities (Siena/Pisa/Lucca)
• Pitti Palace
• Get lots of nice photos of Florence, the rooftops, the Arno River and Ponte Vecchio
• Eat lots of pasta

Naples

• Eat pizza!
• Visit Piazza Bellini
• Visit Pompeii and Mt Vesuvius
• Visit Amalfi coast (if time)

Rome

• Villa Borghese
• Piazza Navona
• Eat lots of pizza, pasta and ice cream

In fact, I’m open to suggestions for Rome. I visited just over a year ago and did all the tourist things such as Colosseum and the Vatican etc. I’m looking for more obscure attractions that may not be so popular this time of year!

Also, if you have any suggestions for any other of the cities I’m visiting, I’d love to know! Please leave a comment!

Advice wanted: What to do in Milan?

In 8 days time I shall be in Milan! Yay! I’ve never been to Milan before but have always wanted to visit. With me having an interest in fashion & dressmaking, (I also studied fashion buying at uni) Milan is a place I have always had an urge to visit.

We shall be spending 3 nights here and want to fit as much in as possible. Obviously, we’re going to see the Last Supper mural and the cathedral. Definitely want to see both of those. We also have plans to get the train to Lake Como for the day. It’s only an hour or so from Milan and it would be great to see the Italian Lakes. I’m also planning on doing some George Clooney spotting/stalking!

What else can we do? I’m thinking a trip round Teatro alla Scala and some shopping. I’m asking anyone for any recommendations about what else to do. Where’s good and cheap to eat? Anything that’s off the beaten track?

10 days, 8 hours, 55 minutes and 15 seconds…

Until Bella Italia 2014!

I am unbelievably excited! I cannot wait to return to one of my favourite countries. I’ve been brushing up on my Italian, learning all the very important phrases such as:

Would you like a drink (prendi qualcosa da bere?)

Can I take you home? (posso accompagnarti a casa?)

Leave me alone (lasciami im pace)

Kiss me (baciami)

Cheers (salute)

I’m pissed (Ho la ciucca)

I think I’ve learnt all the important things here!

Here is my route:

I’m spending 3 nights in Milan, 3 nights in Venice, 4 nights in Florence, 3 nights in Naples and 3 nights in Rome. I’ve been to Italy several times before, this will be my fifth trip, making it my most visited country! Unfortunately, I won’t be adding to my 40 before 40 list, however, I will be adding to the UNESCO world heritage sites that I have visited list! Yay! I’m also excited because it’s my first time in Milan, Venice and Naples.

If anyone has any recommendations for any of these cities, please leave me a comment! Anything for first timers or more off the beaten track sights!