30 for 30: Trips Still to Do

I love planning holidays almost as much as I love going on them (almost). My smythson notebook is continually updated with new trip ideas, and all it takes will be overhearing someone in the lift at work talking about a recent holiday to make me furiously start googling. I don't think there are many (any?) places in the world, danger-of-death withstanding, that I wouldn't be interested to see, but there are certain places that are permanently on the list. These are the ones that if I haven't done by the time I'm on my deathbed, well, I'll be very cross with myself. In no particular order:

1) Slovenia - Maybe 3 nights in Ljubljana and 1 night in Lake Bled?

2) Texas Road Trip - Houston, San Antonio, Marfa, Dalas, Houston. Maybe Austin? Need to research this more.

3) New Orleans.

4) Mexico.

5) Boston & DC - and everywhere in between?

6) South America - Buenos Aires, Mendoza, Uspallata Pass, Los Andes, Santiago, Laguna Verde.

7) San Francisco, Portland, Hawaii - honeymoon???

8) India - incorporating the Mumbai - Goa train.

9) Inter-railing - initially planned for this year, put off due to money. Munich, Salzburg, Vienna, Bratislava, Prague.

10) St Petersburg - I totally want to stay at the W there.

11) Baltic Countries - when I was younger I went on a baltic cruise with my parents and I would love to go back to all the countries we visited and explore them properly.

12) Bath - staying at The Pig, and OBVY visiting the spa.

13) Cornwall - only been as a youngster, find this weird.

14) Scotland - as remote as possible.

15) Dublin - never been, find that weird.

16) Girls only trip - Tenerife?

17) Vegas, San Diego, Palm Springs.

18) St Barths / Maldives / Mauritius / somewhere super lush. Just once in my life.

19) Rural France - house, bread, red wine, done.

20) Thailand / Cambodia / etc.

21) Fort Lauderdale / South Beach.

22) Yoga retreat - not really my thing but maybe if I went on one it would become my trip?

23) Somewhere with a plunge pool. Somewhere, anywhere!

24) Revisiting Australia and doing a proper, all-encompassing, trip round the whole place.

25) Canada - roadtrippin'.

26) Iceland - I feel like I'm the only person in the world who hasn't visited that blue lagoon.

27) NY at Christmas.

28) Belgium - it was a family hotspot when I was younger so I feel I owe it to go back and visit again as an adult.

29) Skiing. Don't care where, but I haven't been in years and would like to go again.

30) Palm Springs. I know it's on here already, but it's my absolute fave and deserves a second mention.

NOTE! I started writing this a couple of months ago and then forgot about it. I finished adding to it today, then noticed that the first trip on my list is the one I recently went on. Good motivation to visit everywhere else on it!

What would make your list?

30 for 30: Favourite Travel Memories

Next week, I will turn 30. I'm going to be on holiday when it happens (OF COURSE) but to celebrate this "milestone", here are my 30 favourite travel memories.*

* i.e. the first 30 that popped into my head.

In no particular order...

1) Being far too drunk at the Sunset Marquis in West Hollywood

2) Spending an entire day in Santa Monica with new friends and no plans

3) Climbing to the top of Arthur's Seat on my 29th birthday

4) Watching the sunset from the viewing point on the tallest hill in Laguna Beach

5) Dancing on the beach at Barasti Beach Bar in Dubai

6) Using the Virgin clubhouse for the first time

7) Pegging it through a ridiculous rain-storm in New York with the family

8) Having an Aroma Bath outside at the Rasa Sayang Shagri-La Hotel in Penang

9) Skiing above the clouds on my 16th birthday in France on a school trip

10) Being chosen by my school to be one of the 20 or so pupils to go to Canada on an exchange program

11) All and every minute spent by the pool at the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs

12) Playing Sissy Bingo with Linda at the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs

13) Forgetting what the handbrake is for, while stopped on a very steep hill in West Hollywood

14) Hanging out at the Cafe Arabe in Marrakech on a sunny afternoon

15) Indulging in a little wave machine pool time in Las Vegas

16) Enjoying the excellent water park Aqualibi in Belgium

17) Everything about the weekend I spent in Paris with a, now-ex, boyfriend

18) Visiting the stunning Santa Barbara City Hall

19) Being so much more awed by the whole Vatican experience than I thought I would be

20) Skydiving onto the beach in Australia

21) Camping in California

22) Being completely over-awed by the amazing deal we'd swung with Expedia on arriving at the Hotel Maya in Long Beach

23) Eating chips and soup for lunch whilst skiing in Austria

24) Gambling in Vegas. By gambling I mean playing Bingo...

25) Crying because I didn't want to leave Florida / Crying because I didn't want to leave a baltic cruise / Crying because I didn't want to leave Canada

26) Going to Cannes for work

27) Everything about Wales. Just, everything.

28) Relaxing in the Szechenyi thermal baths in Budapest
29) Arranging a great hen-do in Stratford-upon-Avon
30) Every single time I've booked something, ever.

Weekending: Edinburgh (March 2015)

Edinburgh is one of my favourites. I've been there with friends and with boyfriends, for romantic trips away and to the festival. I have been there enough times to have my favourites that I always visit as well as always having a list of new places to try. On our most recent trip we (me, my boyfriend, my friend, her husband) were there mainly to visit a friend, but my boyf and I decided to make a long weekend of it to get the most out of the city.

Travel

We got the train there and back - going up at around 11am on the Friday and returning about 2.30pm on the Monday. My friends who joined us got the sleeper train up overnight arriving Saturday morning and then flew back Sunday evening. Like most UK cities, Edinburgh is easy to reach via a number of travel options, and if you book well enough in advance then it's more than affordable.

Accommodation

Once again, we stayed in the Nira Caledonia hotel - one of my favourite hotels in the world. This was my third stay there, and we definitely had the best room I've stayed in there so far as our bathroom had a bath with jets rather than just a shower that I've had in previous stays. The bed was as big and comfortable as I remembered, and I gave the huge bath a go (and used the jets, though be advised to not try and figure out how to turn them on until the bath is full) which was delightful. The hotel gifted us a bottle of wine as well which was a lovely touch. We ate there for breakfast all three mornings during our stay, and also ordered some room service on Sunday night, and each meal was exactly what we were after. I cannot recommend the Nira Caledonia highly enough - with the lovely staff and relaxing rooms I can't imagine staying anywhere else in Edinburgh.

Food

Friday night - burgers at Red Squirrel - one beef and one chicken. They were awesome. We also shared a beetroot salad which was deffo in my top ten salads.

Saturday morning - breakfast at hotel (I believe I had poached eggs on toast, followed by some fruit and yoghurt)

Saturday evening - Hanams. We left it until that afternoon to decide where to eat, and after some googling I came across Hanams, which serves Kurdish and Middle Eastern cuisine. It's also BYOB with no corkage fee, which definitely made it a cheaper meal. Definitely one I would return to if I was in the mood for that type of food.

Sunday morning - breakfast at hotel (think this was my scrambled eggs and smoked salmon day)

Sunday lunch - Set-menu at Wedgwood. This was delicious, and such good value! I'd eaten there before on my birthday last year, and the food was just as inventive and interesting as I remembered. I believe I had goats cheese with curried lentils to start, then sooomething for my main (i'm annoyed I can't remember this) and then sticky toffee pudding. The food here is delicious, and the set lunch menu costs £12.95 / £16.95 for 2 / 3 courses. You can't really go wrong!

Sunday evening - room service. I had a smoked salmon and cream cheese sandwich, with some chips. Obviously.

Monday morning - final breakfast at the hotel.

Monday lunch - train picnic!

Sights

As we had all visited the city before, we didn't feel the need to do any of the touristy sight-seeingy bits this time around. Instead, we did a few geocaches along the Leith River Walk, and visited the Camera Obscura museum, which, although pricey, I would definitely recommend.

Shopping
The main shopping street in Edinburgh is Princes Street, which is full of all the standard high street shops. A couple to look out for though are Zara, which has a huge section upstairs of their child and baby clothes; Russell and Bromley, which has a great selection particularly from their mens range; and HMV, which has a really awesome vinyl section (I picked up Purple Rain and Blue whilst I was there).

Writing this all up now it doesn't seem like we did much aside from eat. But that's the great thing when you visit a city you know so well - you can just relax and wander and have a lovely time without feeling like you have to be go-go-go all the time. For me, that's what Edinburgh is all about.

#ExploreTheElements Thomas Cook Travel Challenge

I'm not usually one for entering competitions on my blog, but when I saw this on Angie's I suddenly found a load of ideas popping into my head. The idea of this competition is to present four photos that represent the four elements. The photos I ended up going with don't take the themes too literally, but I really enjoyed reminiscing and writing about them.

Water
Represents the fluid, flowing, formless things in the world. Associated with emotion, defensiveness, adaptability, flexibility, suppleness, and magnetism.

Apparently, in part due to origins in greek mythology, the jellyfish is associated with the idea of feminine wrath. Being feminine myself, I can definitely say I can be defensive and emotional, but more importantly I can be adaptable. When I was looking for a photo to represent the element of water, I found myself inundated with pictures I had taken of various beaches (I love a wave shot) and waterfalls, rivers and lakes, but then I came across this one and it struck me as the perfect accompaniment to water element because the focus is on the jellyfish, rather than the water, one of the most flexible and supple creatures there is, along with the connotations mentioned above. Although needing it to survive, a jellyfish will also of course use the water for its own purpose, moving smoothly (and dangerously!) around it at its own will without a care in the world. [Disclaimer: I don't actually know if jellyfish have many cares, but I suspect if they do they're quite minimal.] Jellyfish have that combination of being beautiful to look at but risky (!) to touch, and I think they symbolise this element perfectly.

Picture taken in the Monterey Aquarium, California, USA.

Fire

Represents the energetic, forceful, moving things in the world. Associated with security, motivation, desire, intention, and an outgoing spirit.

What represents fire better than a massive, flaming ball of it? Everyone loves a sunset picture, but what I love about this picture - taken in Dubai - is that it captures all the elements of the city that make it what it is. What first stands out in the background of this picture are the outlines of all the super-yachts, however there are also some smaller fishing and tourist boats there - showing the contradictions Dubai represents. On the one hand you have the huge global businesses occupied by ex-pats, and on the other you have the smaller businesses of the local population. What they both have in common though is their motivation and desire to thrive and succeed in a place that has changed so much in the last 50 years it is almost beyond comprehension. When we talk about energy and moving things in a travel sense, the history and legacy of a place like Dubai must be included in that conversation. While it's definitely not for everyone, it's definitely a sight to behold.

Picture taken in Dubai, UAE.

Air

Represents things that grow, expand, and enjoy freedom of movement. Associated with will, elusiveness, evasiveness, benevolence, compassion, and wisdom.

This picture was taken in Jemaa el Fna in Marrakech. We'd visited the square earlier that same day when it is pretty much just an empty space (minus the tourists) and returned that evening to see the spectacle of it once it had grown into the enormity that it is at night. There are so many things I love about the pictures I took that night - the steam in the air from the heat of all the people and smoke of the cooking food; the blue lights in the left of the picture in the crowd that aren't smartphones but locals selling light up toys to tourists; the sheer amount of people moving freely, and the fact that you can only really appreciate everything that's going on when you're sitting above it all looking down. I think this picture is a great one to symbolise air, as you can tell by looking at it that the air is thick with smoke, steam, heat and anticipation. Marrakech was somewhere I felt really out of my comfort zone, but at the same time felt like it was somewhere really important to see. The market really highlighted these parallels to me - understanding and feeling compassion for the people working there, at the same time as being an elusive and different world to my own.
Picture taken in Marrakech, Morocco.

Earth

Represents the hard, solid objects of the earth. Associated with stubbornness, collectiveness , physicality and gravity.

My final picture in this series was actually not taken too far from my own home, but to me this is what makes it the perfect picture to represent earth. To me, the earth element means being grounded in knowing who you are and where you come from - after all, it's only when you know these things that you can really start to think about where you want to go. Home is where I feel most together, there is a physicality to knowing your place that is hard to find elsewhere. In this picture we are cycling from our own village to the next, riding through country lanes and woods - the hard, solid parts of the earth that I always associate with being close to home. It is this part of the world that I truly feel I can connect to the stubbornness, collectiveness, physicality and gravity of the earth.

Picture taken in Kent, UK.

As part of the competition, I have to now tag five other bloggers in to complete this themselves.

Rainbow Roadtrip

Beatravelling 

Orange Champagne

Peony Rose

Unica & Tigris

If you want to enter, you need to…

1) Publish an Explore the Elements post on your blog with an image for each element
2) Spread the word and nominate five of your fellow bloggers to take part
3) Let Thomas Cook know you've entered by tweeting @ThomasCookUK
4) Keep an eye on the Thomas Cook twitter account to see who's won!

2015 Travel Plans

So following on from my post on my 2014 Travel and Events Round-Up, I figured I would write one detailing my plans for the rest of the year seeing as we are now at the start of it. It will be interesting to see how many of these plans actually pan out before the end of the year, and also I LOVE writing a list.

* My first trip isn't too far away - I am going to Rome for a long weekend in early February with a couple of friends. None of us have ever visited before so we are planning carefully to try and cram in all the sightseeing-y bits as well as check out some awesome restaurants and bars - I have been given the last two as my research responsibilities so if anyone has any recommendations please do let me know! We are also fitting in a six nations match - I've never been to the rugby before so I'm definitely looking forward to that. Will probably need a few thermals though I reckon?

* Not long after that my boyfriend and I are going to Edinburgh with another couple we know. We are staying in the Nira Caledonia (one of my favourite hotels) and I can't wait - I'm excited to re-visit some of the great places we ate and drink at on our last visit. As well as this I want to fit in a visit to the Camera Obscura museum as I have never been, and MOST IMPORTANTLY! Visit our dear friend who has just this week had a beautiful pair of twins. 

* In April I have a birthday. To detract from the horror of this we are going to New York for 5 nights, incorporating the dreaded day itself, and I'm so looking forward to it - I have been to New York an handful of times but not for a few years and I can't wait to get back there. I've already got a few bits planned (such as a basketball game on my birthday) and we're staying in the New York branch of the Ace, so I can't see how this is going to be anything other than awesome.

* Next on the list is our summer holiday. We've decided to have a bit of an adventure this year, and are hoping to go interrailing in June, taking in Munich, Salzburg, Vienna, Bratislava and Prague. I need to really start planning this, but I've got the basic schedule down (including train times from place to place) and so the next step is looking at accommodations. I'm thinking a mix of cheap hotels and airbnbs, but any recommendations for this for any of these cities would be welcomed! I've never been to any of these cities before and am definitely excited to explore some new areas.

* In one of the blogs I read - Emma's Travel Tales - she mentioned staying in the Citizen M hotel in Glasgow. Not having Glasgow near the top of my destination list (sorry Emma!) but intrigued by the hotel I had a look at the other locations they have, and Rotterdam caught my eye. I haven't been to Holland since I was young but Amsterdam has never really appealed, and so we're thinking maybe a little weekend away later in the year may be in order?

* My school friends and I all have big birthdays this year (hence the New York trip I am taking) and so we have been talking about doing something to mark the occasion. At the moment the current favourite looks like a little weekend break to Whitstable in September before it gets too cold - beach, fish and chips, pubs and walks. Sounds right up our streets!

* At some point last year I read a post in What Joanna Ate about a stay she had at The Pig. It sounded lush so I got googling, and saw that they have a few hotels in various places. We're thinking about maybe doing a little pre-Christmas trip in December to the one in Bath, probably mid-week to avoid as many people / tourists as possible!

Now I just need to stop spending money so I can afford it all...

My 2014 Travel and Events Round-up

So, this is a bit delayed. Sorry about that.

TRAVEL

* My best friend and I travelled to Dubai to stay with a friend who was living there at the time. As this wasn't our first visit there we had a better idea of what we wanted to do and we allowed ourselves a bit more down-time this time around. We still, of course, managed to get a few of the Dubai must-dos packed into our trip such as a Friday Brunch, eating at expensive places, and drinking in nightclubs surrounded by slightly awkward people. We also spent some time this visit though meandering around, reading, and sitting on the beach. I definitely won't be visiting Dubai again any time soon (as we no longer have a free bed there!) but I will always have fond memories of our visits. I have written a bit about some hints and tips for it all in my Guide to Dubai.

* I turned 29 this year, and my boyfriend and I decided to go away for the occasion. It was our first trip away together and seeing as he had never been on a plane before (I know, ridiculous) we decided to stay in-land for this trip as I didn't want to have a nervous wreck ruining my birthday weekend!! We didn't really need much time to decide where to visit, as I was super keen to visit the Nira Caledonia in Edinburgh again after staying there for one night for a wedding about 18 months before. The hotel was just as lush as I remembered and it was just a lovely way to spend to celebrate (or not!) On my actual birthday we climbed Arthur's Seat, hung out in our room, and then went out for a super lush dinner. You can read all about it here. We're going back in March and I cannot. wait.

* So, as I mentioned, previous to 2014 my boyfriend had never been on a plane. When we got together I made it clear that this would need to be rectified, and so we decided to plan a mini-break with a short-haul flight. I, obviously, have a ridiculously large holiday list but my better half doesn't. On pressing him to a ridiculous extent he finally said that he'd quite like to visit Norway. Done! I said, furiously googling Oslo. And so it was done - we visited Oslo in June for a long weekend and had a great time. As I said in my write-up, the only reason I wouldn't put it top of my list again is just because it's so pricey. As a city it really has it all - it's clean and friendly with great restaurants and bars and loads of culture and it should definitely be on people's lists for some point in their lives.

* In July I went to Wales with my boyfriend and parents. Everyone who knows me knows how much Wales is deeply (deeply) embedded in my heart, and so a visit is of no surprise to anyone. This time we stayed at Aberglasney Gardens (my second stay there) and you can read all about it in my post on A Week in Llandeillo.

* For the first time in my life, in 2014 I travelled abroad for work. I was asked to join a couple other members of my team for a trip to Cannes, and going in September meant we had a few belated days of gorgeous sunshine. Although we were there 3 nights, most of the time was spent in non-blog-worthy meetings, and so I decided to combine the best parts of our trip into a 24-hour experience there. You can read all about it here. Fingers crossed I get asked to go again this year...

* Needing a bit of sun towards the end of the year the boy and I decided to book a November holiday. All we wanted to do was read, sleep, sunbathe and eat, and so an all inclusive seemed like the best option. We eventually decided on a Thomsons Egypt package after much deliberation and the whole holiday (staying at the Jaz Aquamarine in Hurghada) was exactly what we were looking for. I didn't write it all up in the end as most of it would be "today: I sunbathed" but there are definitely a few things you should know in advance about etiquette and visas (Sharm is one of the only two places in Egypt you don't need a visa for - Hurghada you do but purchase at the airport upon arrival) which are definitely worth googling before you leave.

* During my week in Wales earlier in the year my mum and I visited The Corran hotel. I loved it so much I told the boy that we should visit ourselves at a near point in the future. As the end of the year started to draw close we started to think about staying for new years, and as soon as the idea was in our heads it was basically booked. I only recently wrote about it so I won't go into it all again, but the trip was exactly what we needed to give ourselves a rest from the world and relax before having to go back to work. I love that part of the world so it's an easy sell for me, but for those who haven't visited before I would say: go, go go. You can read about my reasons for this in my post A Food-Heavy Few Days in Wales.

EVENTS

I am a planner. Even when I'm not planning anything I'm planning something, and this year was no exception.

* The main thing I arranged this year was a hen-do in Stratford-upon-Avon for my oldest friend. There were 14 of us and so I booked a cottage within walking distance of the town and we all had a stupendous time. This was such a big event of my year I wrote two posts about it; one on the weekend itself, and one on how to Plan the Perfect Hen-Do. It was definitely one of the best things I did last year.

* For me, summer equals planning parties and barbecues. I wrote a bit about some of my go-to BBQ recipes (simple ones, natch) here, and also wrote about The Importance of a Playlist at such events here.

* My boyfriend's birthday is two days after Christmas and, as such, he hasn't really ever got into the whole idea of a birthday party. This year I decided that was all going to change and so we had a little party. I cooked a ham (delicious, if I do say myself), whacked on a playlist (of course!), created a birthday cocktail, and welcomed too many people into my house. The perfect way to spend a birthday.

A Guide to... Dubai

I have visited Dubai a couple of times to visit a friend, and so when another friend of mine asked for a couple of recommendations for an upcoming trip I quickly jotted down the below. This is by no means an exhaustive list, and is geared towards the type of thing I think her and her boyfriend would enjoy, but for a basic overview I think it suits!

* Dubai is HOT

* Dubai is EXPENSIVE 

* Dubai is CONSERVATIVE [cover your shoulders and don't smooch in public though and you will be fine]

Dubai working weeks are Sunday - Thursday, and a mega tradition in Dubai is the Friday Brunch. This is something you HAVE to do whilst you're there - even if it's just for the experience of seeing all that gluttony on display. It is pricey, but the concept is all you can eat and drink for the afternoon, and the ranges of food on offer are so ridiculous even the fussiest of eaters will be able to find something to suit.

Last time I was there we went to the Bubbalicious brunch at the Westin hotel - this costs 390 AED for the alcohol-free brunch, and 490 / 650 AED for the brunch with free-flowing sparkling or bubbly respectively.

Pretty much every hotel in Dubai will have their own version of brunch so have a look at what your hotel is doing as you may get a discount as a hotel guest.

I repeat - this is a must.

The Dubai Museum is situated in the old-town, which is also worth a wander around. The museum is pretty basic but is worth a visit, especially for all the models of camels and the video at the end that seems to predict dinosaurs will be in Dubai soon. Keep an eye out in this area for places serving more traditional food - there are a couple of gems round here which will have delicious food for a very good price. In this area you can also get a boat across the river to various markets (spice, gold, etc), and also make sure you stop off for a mint-lemonade at one of the cafes with tables on the river-bank. You can get a lovely view of the river here, especially in the evening (also it's not so hot to sit in the sun then!)

The Dubai Mall is worth a visit, if only just for the giant aquarium in the middle of it. The mall is huge, and contains every type of shop right from the budget end to designer. The fountain show is also worth a watch (it's worth finding out beforehand what times this is going to be), and maybe try and time lunch during this as there are a few (not too pricey) restaurants from which you can see the fountains. You can also get a really good view of the Burj Khalifa from here. I think we might have eaten in a place called Madeleine when I was last there, but if you can't see the fountains from their outside area then that is incorrect!

All of the hotels have their own restaurants and bars (at least three in most hotels) which will be variably priced and cuisined. If you fancy a view then the bars at the Burj Khalifa and Burj al Arab may be worth a visit - both of the hotels have viewing platforms which you have to pay to get up to, so you may as well visit the bar instead!

Eating out in Dubai can be expensive. There are always a range of cheaper options but these are likely to be chains so keep that in mind. Last time I was there we ate at Fogueira in the Ramada Plaza hotel, which is a brazilian-style restaurant with, basically, an unlimited supply of meat. They also have a decent salad section so worth a look. A lot of the nice restaurants in Dubai like to look quite fancy - whether they are part of a hotel or an independent - so it's best to work out your budget beforehand and then take it from there.

Again, drinking is going to be pricey so be sensible with the evenings out you plan. Some places that are quite nice and perhaps worth the money are Buddha Bar (great for business-men spotting), The Palm at the One and Only, and Maya at The Royal Meridian.

Most hotels will have their own bar(s) and restaurant(s) so check out what these have to offer - and, of course, the concierge will be able to provide you with restaurant recommendations to suit your tastes.