Wow, haven't blogged in a while...and that's because I've been in hibernation! It has felt like a very, very long winter and I have confirmed my suspicions that I am definitely not a winter person. But good news, today the sun has finally come out and for the first time in months I was able to go outside without a coat on...hooray!
Just had a really good weekend. On Saturday I went out with my housemates Hayley and Clare for breakfast at a cafe called Brew to celebrate Clare's birthday. We then went on to a pottery cafe where we got crafty and made our own mugs...so much fun! They are now going to the Kiln and we can pick them up in a week.
After pottery, I headed off to Waterloo to catch up with two of my old work colleagues from Perth- Louise who lives in London too, and Kath who is here visiting with her husband and gorgeous 8 month old baby. It was so good to see them both and to meet and get cuddles off little Owen!
After that I headed to Oxford St to meet my old housemate (from Perth) Gen who is on holiday here at the moment. We went for a bit of a shop then went out for dinner. So good to see her too!
Loved this weekend, spending time with old and new friends. It's getting to the time of the year where ppl from Perth are travelling to London so I have quite a few friends coming over to look forward to!
Things are looking up and I'm very much looking forward to the upcoming summer and all it's adventures.
In other news I've started a new job about a month ago. And for Easter I went away to Bath- will try to a blog update about it soon!
X
Monday, 15 April 2013
Friday, 22 February 2013
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow - London- January 2013
On the 18th Jan we had our first heavy snowfall in London. It was really exciting! I went to work in the morning, but was sent home around lunch time as the snow was getting quite thick meaning the trains would likely shut down. This meant.... snow play time!!
Here are some pictures of fun in the snow in the following days. London looked so pretty and the parks were incredible all covered in white. Definitely a great experience. Had a big grin on my face the whole time ;)
Here are some pictures of fun in the snow in the following days. London looked so pretty and the parks were incredible all covered in white. Definitely a great experience. Had a big grin on my face the whole time ;)
Back in London with Emily - January 2013
We still had one full day to go until Emily flew out so we packed it with as many things as possible. Started with Harry Potter Studio Tours- a tour of where the movies were filmed with a heaps of sets and props. They even had the great hall still set up. There's only 2 places in the world that serve Butterbeer...now I've been to both! (The other is Orlando, Florida). Definitely recommend the studio yours for any Harry Potter fans out there.
We followed this by a Mad Hatters High Tea at the 5 star Sanderson hotel. It was incredible. Great set up (see photos)
We then headed to Oxford street for a bit of a shop for a couple of hours before heading to our final destination for the day "Dinner by Heston Blumenthal". Heston is a celebrity chef that cooks all sorts of amazing and incredibly quirky foods. We could only get a 9:45pm booking, but got there early for a cocktail at the bar. Such an amazing cocktail list...but very pricey so we just stuck to one.
The dinner was delicious and worth the money for the experience. We had the famous 'meat fruit' for our entree. I then had a beef steak for the main and Em and I share a delicious 'tipsy cake' for dessert. Accompanied by a nice bottle of red. Such a fantastic day and great way to spend time with Emily before she left the following day. It was so good having Em come to visit and so sad for her to leave!
We followed this by a Mad Hatters High Tea at the 5 star Sanderson hotel. It was incredible. Great set up (see photos)
We then headed to Oxford street for a bit of a shop for a couple of hours before heading to our final destination for the day "Dinner by Heston Blumenthal". Heston is a celebrity chef that cooks all sorts of amazing and incredibly quirky foods. We could only get a 9:45pm booking, but got there early for a cocktail at the bar. Such an amazing cocktail list...but very pricey so we just stuck to one.
The dinner was delicious and worth the money for the experience. We had the famous 'meat fruit' for our entree. I then had a beef steak for the main and Em and I share a delicious 'tipsy cake' for dessert. Accompanied by a nice bottle of red. Such a fantastic day and great way to spend time with Emily before she left the following day. It was so good having Em come to visit and so sad for her to leave!
Wednesday, 20 February 2013
Paris, France - January 2013
We caught the train for a quick 2 hr trip from Brussels to Paris. Wow I love Paris, it is an amazingly beautiful city. Em and I stayed at Perfect Hotel, in the Montmartre area. It was basically a nice hostel, good location walking distance to the moulin rouge.
The first thing we did when we got there was find a restaurant for lunch. We found one close by and ordered champagne! It was delicious.
That night we went on a Montmarte walking tour which I would recommend. It meets out the front of the moulin rouge and takes you for a 3 hour tour around the area where all the bohemian artists used to live and also up to the Basilique du Sacre-Coeur, an impressive church on the top of a hill that has great views out over Paris.
We spend four days in Paris. Highlights were going to the Moulin Rouge for dinner and a show (wow wow wow!), the louvre, the musee de orse, a walking tour around the city, going up the Eiffel Tower (it was so high I was scared on the lift!), a trip to the Palace of Versailles and of course shopping and champagne. And practicing our French ;)
We caught the Eurostar back to london which goes through the Chunnel- so quick and easy ill definitely be making more trips back and forth!
The first thing we did when we got there was find a restaurant for lunch. We found one close by and ordered champagne! It was delicious.
That night we went on a Montmarte walking tour which I would recommend. It meets out the front of the moulin rouge and takes you for a 3 hour tour around the area where all the bohemian artists used to live and also up to the Basilique du Sacre-Coeur, an impressive church on the top of a hill that has great views out over Paris.
We spend four days in Paris. Highlights were going to the Moulin Rouge for dinner and a show (wow wow wow!), the louvre, the musee de orse, a walking tour around the city, going up the Eiffel Tower (it was so high I was scared on the lift!), a trip to the Palace of Versailles and of course shopping and champagne. And practicing our French ;)
We caught the Eurostar back to london which goes through the Chunnel- so quick and easy ill definitely be making more trips back and forth!
Thursday, 31 January 2013
Brussels, Belgium - January 2013
What can I say about Brussels besides...food! We ate so much food. Being winter all the walking tours weren't running, so we caught a bus tour around the city, but besides that we ate. Belgian waffles, Belgian chocolate, frites, mussels in Brussels, etc. the Christmas markets were still on too so checked those out and ate a bunch of market food. Brussels was nice, but lucky we were only there for 2 nights otherwise we would have become fatty boombahs. The best chocolate ever there! Yumm :)
Thursday, 24 January 2013
Copenhagen, Denmark - January 2013
Em and I flew from Edinburgh to Copenhagen for a 2 night stay. We got there on New Year's Day and it seemed the whole city was recovering from the night before cos everything was closed and the streets were empty. We got there in the evening so as no restaurants were open we decided to get a cheap dinner from the 7/11....a few snacks later and we had somehow spent about 400 kroners there! Copenhagen is an expensive place.
The next day was much more successful. We had heard the best way to see Copenhagen is by Segway, so we walked into town and booked a 2pm segway tour. We spent the morning cruising the shops, streets and eating Danishes.
We had heard of an area called Christiania - according to Wikipedia... " Christiania, also known as Freetown Christiania (Danish: Fristaden Christiania) is a self-proclaimed autonomous neighbourhood of about 850 residents, covering 34 hectares (84 acres) in the borough of Christianshavn in the Danish capital Copenhagen. Civic authorities in Copenhagen regard Christiania as a large commune, but the area has a unique status in that it is regulated by a special law, the Christiania Law of 1989 which transfers parts of the supervision of the area from the municipality of Copenhagen to the state. It was closed by residents in April 2011, whilst discussions continued with the Danish government as to its future, but is now open again." Basically a major hippie community. We went walking through it, pretty interesting, you're not allowed to take photos and not allowed to run!
After the hippy village we headed back for our segway tour. It was awesome! We turned up and found out we were the only 2 ppl booked, so we ended up having a private 3 hr segway tour with just us and the guide. So so much fun - riding a segway is a definite must do! And a great way to see the city too, we even segway'd past Princess Mary's house :)
The next day was much more successful. We had heard the best way to see Copenhagen is by Segway, so we walked into town and booked a 2pm segway tour. We spent the morning cruising the shops, streets and eating Danishes.
We had heard of an area called Christiania - according to Wikipedia... " Christiania, also known as Freetown Christiania (Danish: Fristaden Christiania) is a self-proclaimed autonomous neighbourhood of about 850 residents, covering 34 hectares (84 acres) in the borough of Christianshavn in the Danish capital Copenhagen. Civic authorities in Copenhagen regard Christiania as a large commune, but the area has a unique status in that it is regulated by a special law, the Christiania Law of 1989 which transfers parts of the supervision of the area from the municipality of Copenhagen to the state. It was closed by residents in April 2011, whilst discussions continued with the Danish government as to its future, but is now open again." Basically a major hippie community. We went walking through it, pretty interesting, you're not allowed to take photos and not allowed to run!
After the hippy village we headed back for our segway tour. It was awesome! We turned up and found out we were the only 2 ppl booked, so we ended up having a private 3 hr segway tour with just us and the guide. So so much fun - riding a segway is a definite must do! And a great way to see the city too, we even segway'd past Princess Mary's house :)
Friday, 18 January 2013
Edinburgh, Scotland - January 2013
I love Edinburgh! Up there with my top favourite cities I've seen so far. It's so pretty...and old, and beautiful.
Hayley, Erica, Emily and I took the train up on the 27th Dec. Em and I stayed at St Christopher's, which I would recommend for anyone visiting Edinburgh, great location, central and right next to the train station. On our first day there Em and I headed out on a 3 hour free walking tour (tipping system) which was great. We were shown around the 'old town' and given a lot of history of the town. We quickly found Edinburgh is full of pubs, so at the end of the tour we went for a drink at Maggie Dicksons pub on the grass market. We hung there for a bit then got in touch with Erica and Hayley to meet for dinner.
For dinner we went to a restaurant on the High Mile called 'Angels with Bagpipes'. It was really nice. We tried the whiskey (ouch!) and the Haggis which was surprisingly nice.
The next day we checked out the 'new town' and went for a bit of a shop! Emily bought some bagpipes :) I got a new coat from topshop. After shopping we went to the cafe where JK Rowling wrote the Harry Potter books, The Elephant House.
Hayley and Erica got their nails done and we ended up having big chats with the beauticians who recommended a place for dinner in the Leith area, so that night we caught a cab out to a tapas restaurant (called Tapa) and had a delicious and very filling dinner.
The next day was the last day that Hayley and Erica would be in Scotland. We decided to do the underground tour- The Real Mary Kings Close. It was pretty cool to go down and see what remains of old Edinburgh below the surfaces! Not too scary luckily.
We then went up to the castle, the weather was getting terrible at this point so didn't spend long there and didn't go in. Soon enough it was time to say goodbye to Erica and Hayley so we hung out with them until they caught their train back to London.
That night Em and I headed out on a night ghost tour...we are so brave! We went into a graveyard and into a crypt. It was scary because it was a full moon so lots of creepy shadows around! The tour was really good though, we also went to the top of a really big hill that overlooks Edinburgh and had some great views looking back over the city.
On the 30th Em and I headed out on a Highlands Tour. This was a full day tour that took us all the way to Loch Ness. It was snowing in the highlands!! But we didn't get a chance to play in it. When we got to Loch Ness we went on an hour boat cruise over the huge lake. Didn't see Nessy, but from the stories who knows what's living in those lakes!
We got back to Edinburgh just in time for the Hogmanay Torchlight Procession (the start of the new year celebrations). Basically everyone is given a huge flaming stick and you all march from the town centre to the top of the hill to burn a boat....crazy! Em and I grabbed some torches that some ppl were putting out and joined the procession. There were so many people all with huge flames, it's a surprise no one got hurt. Even kids were holding them! We only got to the bottom of the hill but they had a big screen everyone could watch, and they lit the boat and played fireworks to the song 'Light Up' by Snow Patrol...it was awesome!! Great vibe in the crowd.
The next day was New Year's Eve! We spend the day chilling in Edinburgh, went to the Museum of Scotland which was really good, and then shopping in the old town. For New Year's Eve we got tickets to the street party but headed to a pub called 'the last drop' first. It's the pub that prisoners used to be taken to to have their last drop of alcohol before being hung! We went for our last drop of 2012 :) Stayed there til about 11 then braved the cold to head to the street party. It was huge! So many people partying in the streets. We got a good spot with a view of the castle and at midnight they had an incredible firework show off the castle...awesome! Another great NYE.
Looking back on the year I have had, it has been absolutely incredible, so many adventures and opportunities. I'm so glad I made the choice to move overseas - as much as I do miss my family and friends (was great having Em fly over to celebrate Xmas and NYE!). I haven't made any New Years resolutions besides to keep enjoying life, making the most of it, and aiming to have a year as good as the last one :)
Hayley, Erica, Emily and I took the train up on the 27th Dec. Em and I stayed at St Christopher's, which I would recommend for anyone visiting Edinburgh, great location, central and right next to the train station. On our first day there Em and I headed out on a 3 hour free walking tour (tipping system) which was great. We were shown around the 'old town' and given a lot of history of the town. We quickly found Edinburgh is full of pubs, so at the end of the tour we went for a drink at Maggie Dicksons pub on the grass market. We hung there for a bit then got in touch with Erica and Hayley to meet for dinner.
For dinner we went to a restaurant on the High Mile called 'Angels with Bagpipes'. It was really nice. We tried the whiskey (ouch!) and the Haggis which was surprisingly nice.
The next day we checked out the 'new town' and went for a bit of a shop! Emily bought some bagpipes :) I got a new coat from topshop. After shopping we went to the cafe where JK Rowling wrote the Harry Potter books, The Elephant House.
Hayley and Erica got their nails done and we ended up having big chats with the beauticians who recommended a place for dinner in the Leith area, so that night we caught a cab out to a tapas restaurant (called Tapa) and had a delicious and very filling dinner.
The next day was the last day that Hayley and Erica would be in Scotland. We decided to do the underground tour- The Real Mary Kings Close. It was pretty cool to go down and see what remains of old Edinburgh below the surfaces! Not too scary luckily.
We then went up to the castle, the weather was getting terrible at this point so didn't spend long there and didn't go in. Soon enough it was time to say goodbye to Erica and Hayley so we hung out with them until they caught their train back to London.
That night Em and I headed out on a night ghost tour...we are so brave! We went into a graveyard and into a crypt. It was scary because it was a full moon so lots of creepy shadows around! The tour was really good though, we also went to the top of a really big hill that overlooks Edinburgh and had some great views looking back over the city.
On the 30th Em and I headed out on a Highlands Tour. This was a full day tour that took us all the way to Loch Ness. It was snowing in the highlands!! But we didn't get a chance to play in it. When we got to Loch Ness we went on an hour boat cruise over the huge lake. Didn't see Nessy, but from the stories who knows what's living in those lakes!
We got back to Edinburgh just in time for the Hogmanay Torchlight Procession (the start of the new year celebrations). Basically everyone is given a huge flaming stick and you all march from the town centre to the top of the hill to burn a boat....crazy! Em and I grabbed some torches that some ppl were putting out and joined the procession. There were so many people all with huge flames, it's a surprise no one got hurt. Even kids were holding them! We only got to the bottom of the hill but they had a big screen everyone could watch, and they lit the boat and played fireworks to the song 'Light Up' by Snow Patrol...it was awesome!! Great vibe in the crowd.
The next day was New Year's Eve! We spend the day chilling in Edinburgh, went to the Museum of Scotland which was really good, and then shopping in the old town. For New Year's Eve we got tickets to the street party but headed to a pub called 'the last drop' first. It's the pub that prisoners used to be taken to to have their last drop of alcohol before being hung! We went for our last drop of 2012 :) Stayed there til about 11 then braved the cold to head to the street party. It was huge! So many people partying in the streets. We got a good spot with a view of the castle and at midnight they had an incredible firework show off the castle...awesome! Another great NYE.
Looking back on the year I have had, it has been absolutely incredible, so many adventures and opportunities. I'm so glad I made the choice to move overseas - as much as I do miss my family and friends (was great having Em fly over to celebrate Xmas and NYE!). I haven't made any New Years resolutions besides to keep enjoying life, making the most of it, and aiming to have a year as good as the last one :)
Thursday, 27 December 2012
An Orphan Christmas - London- December 2012
Merry Christmas everyone! Festive spirit has hit London. Emily arrived a few days ago and is staying at my place in London which is super exciting. On Christmas Eve we went to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park which was fantastic.
For Christmas us Aussie girls in the house had our friends over for a big Christmas feast (all the other housemates are away). We spend the day cooking, eating, sharing presents, listening to christmas music and watching christmas movies. The feast was amazing...including a huge roast turkey! Way too much food for 5 girls but we stuffed ourselves and have plenty of leftovers. We all wore Christmas jumpers too.
I skyped my family in Aus which was really nice (its now my second christmas away from home) and was showered with lovely gifts from my friends back home (brought to England with Emily). So lovely and so grateful to have such amazing friends and family :)
Merry Christmas xx
For Christmas us Aussie girls in the house had our friends over for a big Christmas feast (all the other housemates are away). We spend the day cooking, eating, sharing presents, listening to christmas music and watching christmas movies. The feast was amazing...including a huge roast turkey! Way too much food for 5 girls but we stuffed ourselves and have plenty of leftovers. We all wore Christmas jumpers too.
I skyped my family in Aus which was really nice (its now my second christmas away from home) and was showered with lovely gifts from my friends back home (brought to England with Emily). So lovely and so grateful to have such amazing friends and family :)
Merry Christmas xx
Friday, 21 December 2012
Stockholm, Sweden - November 2012
The best part about living in London is the ability to jet off for a weekend to a completely different country! On the 23rd November, I met with 5 other girls at Gatwick Airport after a friday at work and we took a plane to Stockholm! We got an airport tranfer and arrived at our hostel at about 11pm.
The following day we headed out to check out the town, starting with a walking tour. The tour was ok, got taken around the new part of town, learned about heaps of things that come from Sweden, but ditched it halfway to go do our own exploring.
We went up to an outdoor park called
Skansen and spent most of the day there. It's like an outdoor museum/animal park with old homestead and Scandinavian animals including reindeers and wolves! Pretty cool. In the centre they had Christmas markets set up so was very festive.
After Skansen we took a ferry back to our hostel in old town and got ready for a nice dinner. We were staying in a big 12 bed dorm and make friends with a friendly Spanish guy who ended up joining us for dinner too.
We went to a restaurant called Pelikan- recommended to us for its traditional Swedish food. It was great. The local specialties are Elk and Herring, so tried them out, very nice.
After dinner a few of us went out for a few drinks at a local bar. It was here we realised just how full Sweden is of students! The bar was ok, bit sleazy, so headed back to the hostel shortly after.
On Sunday we went for a shop, watched the changing of the guards at the castle, had Fika (the best!), and checked out the Christmas markets in the Old Town Centre. Lovely.
We then got our airport transfer and caught our flight back to london, about a 2 hr flight. Great weekend trip! Sweden is very clean, very friendly and definitely worth a visit. Would like to see more of it if I get a chance to get back there :)
The following day we headed out to check out the town, starting with a walking tour. The tour was ok, got taken around the new part of town, learned about heaps of things that come from Sweden, but ditched it halfway to go do our own exploring.
We went up to an outdoor park called
Skansen and spent most of the day there. It's like an outdoor museum/animal park with old homestead and Scandinavian animals including reindeers and wolves! Pretty cool. In the centre they had Christmas markets set up so was very festive.
After Skansen we took a ferry back to our hostel in old town and got ready for a nice dinner. We were staying in a big 12 bed dorm and make friends with a friendly Spanish guy who ended up joining us for dinner too.
We went to a restaurant called Pelikan- recommended to us for its traditional Swedish food. It was great. The local specialties are Elk and Herring, so tried them out, very nice.
After dinner a few of us went out for a few drinks at a local bar. It was here we realised just how full Sweden is of students! The bar was ok, bit sleazy, so headed back to the hostel shortly after.
On Sunday we went for a shop, watched the changing of the guards at the castle, had Fika (the best!), and checked out the Christmas markets in the Old Town Centre. Lovely.
We then got our airport transfer and caught our flight back to london, about a 2 hr flight. Great weekend trip! Sweden is very clean, very friendly and definitely worth a visit. Would like to see more of it if I get a chance to get back there :)
Thursday, 13 December 2012
Iceland - November 2012
Sorry, haven't blogged in a while! Have been caught up with real life. But going to use my train commute time to catch up on my blogging in the next few days. So first of all....Iceland!
Hayley and I took a 4 day trip to Reykjavik from the 15-19 November. Iceland is an absolutely incredible country and I would recommend it to anyone...most beautiful scenery and so different to anything I have ever seen, ever.
We flew in on Thursday afternoon and got a transfer straight to our hotel. Because Iceland is so far North there isn't a lot of sunshine in November, so by the time we got to the hotel around 4:30pm it was already dark. We checked in, then decided to wander up to the city centre to check out shops and restaurants. For a capital city, Reykjavik is very small and quaint but there were a few places open and a few people out and about. Whilst we were walking along the main street an amazing thing happened...it started hailing...and then the hail turned into sleet, and after about 10 mins of that it turned into fluffy snow!! I was so happy :) My first real snow experience beside the Swiss Alps (where I walked out at the top of a mountain into a blizzard for about 10 seconds). We had a delicious dinner at a restaurant across from the hotel, fish and couscous.
On the Friday, we went to the Blue Lagoon. No words can describe how beautiful it was. The Blue Lagoon is a natural hot spa, heated by volcanic hot springs. Walking up to the lagoon it is surrounded by black volcanic rocks which were all covered in snow.
We walked into the changing area, hired some robes, threw on our bikinis (so weird wearing bathers when it was snowing!) and walked out to the lagoon. It was big, blue, icy, warm and all around amazing. There wasn't much time to stand and admire the view as our toes would have frozen off so we dropped the robes and quickly got into the lagoon. The temperature was just perfect. There are springs where the water comes out at 100 degrees so it was very well naturally heated.
The lagoon has a bar, sauna, water fall, and is lined by natural silica which you can use as a face mask. We spend half the day soaking up the goodness and enjoying the face masks and bar. We tried to book in some massages to treat ourselves too but they were all booked out.
After the lagoon we headed back to Reykjavik and went out for dinner. We chose a delicious restaurant that Hayley had researched (can't remember the name...something Grill). Enjoyed a marmalade cocktail first then when our table was ready had a delicious dinner. I had the lamb and it was perfect. All the meat in Iceland is produced locally, they don't import anything so it was all very fresh.
That night we hopped on a bus in the hope of seeing the Northern Lights. We drove for about an hour, sat in the middle of Iceland in the freezing (freezing freezing) cold at midnight, only to find it was too cloudy to see anything, so headed back to our hotel. It was a shame, but just means I will have to come back or go somewhere else to see them!
On Saturday we had our adventure day. We did an all day tour which took us to see the Gulfoss Waterfall, the Geysir water spouts, and to a glacier in the mountains for Snowmobiling! It was such a fantastic day. The guide took us to amazing places and told us so much history about Iceland. But definitely the best part was the snowmobiling.
We took a hardcore bus thing with huge wheels right to the top of a glacier, where everywhere you looked it was completing white and ice. It was so damn cold! We got suited up in these incredible space like suits, which blocked all the wind and most of the cold. Then headed out on the snowmobiles. It was 2 to a vehicle so Hayley drove first, then we swapped at the halfway point and I drove back. So much fun hooning across the ice! The sun was just setting during our ride so it was just beautiful riding across the white glacier at that time of day. Only problem was my phone died with the cold so I couldn't take any pics, and my hands almost froze off completely, other than that...incredible!
On Sunday we checked out early and went to look through Reykjavik some more. It was so so sleepy, no one was awake or about on the Sunday morning! We went and had hot chocs then wandered some more, finding ourselves at the church. We went up to the bell tower at the top which had a great view of the city, again really pretty as the sun was rising.
Overall, Iceland was an incredible holiday, even just the 4 days was full of some amazing experiences! Would definitely recommend it to anyone...just remember to rug up!
Hayley and I took a 4 day trip to Reykjavik from the 15-19 November. Iceland is an absolutely incredible country and I would recommend it to anyone...most beautiful scenery and so different to anything I have ever seen, ever.
We flew in on Thursday afternoon and got a transfer straight to our hotel. Because Iceland is so far North there isn't a lot of sunshine in November, so by the time we got to the hotel around 4:30pm it was already dark. We checked in, then decided to wander up to the city centre to check out shops and restaurants. For a capital city, Reykjavik is very small and quaint but there were a few places open and a few people out and about. Whilst we were walking along the main street an amazing thing happened...it started hailing...and then the hail turned into sleet, and after about 10 mins of that it turned into fluffy snow!! I was so happy :) My first real snow experience beside the Swiss Alps (where I walked out at the top of a mountain into a blizzard for about 10 seconds). We had a delicious dinner at a restaurant across from the hotel, fish and couscous.
On the Friday, we went to the Blue Lagoon. No words can describe how beautiful it was. The Blue Lagoon is a natural hot spa, heated by volcanic hot springs. Walking up to the lagoon it is surrounded by black volcanic rocks which were all covered in snow.
We walked into the changing area, hired some robes, threw on our bikinis (so weird wearing bathers when it was snowing!) and walked out to the lagoon. It was big, blue, icy, warm and all around amazing. There wasn't much time to stand and admire the view as our toes would have frozen off so we dropped the robes and quickly got into the lagoon. The temperature was just perfect. There are springs where the water comes out at 100 degrees so it was very well naturally heated.
The lagoon has a bar, sauna, water fall, and is lined by natural silica which you can use as a face mask. We spend half the day soaking up the goodness and enjoying the face masks and bar. We tried to book in some massages to treat ourselves too but they were all booked out.
After the lagoon we headed back to Reykjavik and went out for dinner. We chose a delicious restaurant that Hayley had researched (can't remember the name...something Grill). Enjoyed a marmalade cocktail first then when our table was ready had a delicious dinner. I had the lamb and it was perfect. All the meat in Iceland is produced locally, they don't import anything so it was all very fresh.
That night we hopped on a bus in the hope of seeing the Northern Lights. We drove for about an hour, sat in the middle of Iceland in the freezing (freezing freezing) cold at midnight, only to find it was too cloudy to see anything, so headed back to our hotel. It was a shame, but just means I will have to come back or go somewhere else to see them!
On Saturday we had our adventure day. We did an all day tour which took us to see the Gulfoss Waterfall, the Geysir water spouts, and to a glacier in the mountains for Snowmobiling! It was such a fantastic day. The guide took us to amazing places and told us so much history about Iceland. But definitely the best part was the snowmobiling.
We took a hardcore bus thing with huge wheels right to the top of a glacier, where everywhere you looked it was completing white and ice. It was so damn cold! We got suited up in these incredible space like suits, which blocked all the wind and most of the cold. Then headed out on the snowmobiles. It was 2 to a vehicle so Hayley drove first, then we swapped at the halfway point and I drove back. So much fun hooning across the ice! The sun was just setting during our ride so it was just beautiful riding across the white glacier at that time of day. Only problem was my phone died with the cold so I couldn't take any pics, and my hands almost froze off completely, other than that...incredible!
On Sunday we checked out early and went to look through Reykjavik some more. It was so so sleepy, no one was awake or about on the Sunday morning! We went and had hot chocs then wandered some more, finding ourselves at the church. We went up to the bell tower at the top which had a great view of the city, again really pretty as the sun was rising.
Overall, Iceland was an incredible holiday, even just the 4 days was full of some amazing experiences! Would definitely recommend it to anyone...just remember to rug up!
Tuesday, 6 November 2012
Guy Fawkes Weekend - London - November 2012
This weekend I ended up working on Saturday to get some more ££. Saturday work was actually really good and very productive :) I have 2 days off next week and I don't get paid for leave so working extra works well for me.
On Saturday night after getting home from work we headed to Battersea Park to go to the Guy Fawkes celebrations- they lit a huge bonfire in the middle of the park followed by an amazing firework show. The fireworks were awesome and all synchronized to music...very cool. There are fireworks all over England to celebrate Guy Fawkes.
After the park celebrations we headed out- 1 pub, 1 bar and 1 nightclub later...home by 4am. These aussie/England buddies sure know how to party!
Sunday was spent sleeping, chilling out and relaxing at home.
Ps. I won something! Well I won a subscription to a FREE magazine. Not really sure how that's winning considering a few pages later theres an ad saying anyone can subscribe to it for free but anywhoo...winner?
On Saturday night after getting home from work we headed to Battersea Park to go to the Guy Fawkes celebrations- they lit a huge bonfire in the middle of the park followed by an amazing firework show. The fireworks were awesome and all synchronized to music...very cool. There are fireworks all over England to celebrate Guy Fawkes.
After the park celebrations we headed out- 1 pub, 1 bar and 1 nightclub later...home by 4am. These aussie/England buddies sure know how to party!
Sunday was spent sleeping, chilling out and relaxing at home.
Ps. I won something! Well I won a subscription to a FREE magazine. Not really sure how that's winning considering a few pages later theres an ad saying anyone can subscribe to it for free but anywhoo...winner?
Monday, 29 October 2012
Halloween weekend - October 2012
Another amazing weekend. Yesterday we went to the TNT travel show to go check out the deals/get holiday ideas. There were some amazing deals there and I ended up booking in two more holidays for next year....a 9 day tour of Turkey, and a 16 day tour of Egypt & Jordan. Yippeeeeee! Can't wait :)
That night a few of us girls headed to the TNT Halloween Party. We all got dressed up and ready in our Halloween gear and had a few pre-drinks at our house before getting the bus/tube to the party. Snuck a few sneaky beverages on to the tube.
There were heaps of people dressed up in Halloween gear on the streets of London. The party was a lot of fun. Lots of dancing, partying and good times.
We left before 12 so we could catch the last tube then headed to a pub closer to home. After the pub, went to maccas, walked our friend back to her place, then walked home in the freezing cold, down to 1 degree eek.
Sunday I spent chilling at home. Overall a great Halloween weekend UK style x
That night a few of us girls headed to the TNT Halloween Party. We all got dressed up and ready in our Halloween gear and had a few pre-drinks at our house before getting the bus/tube to the party. Snuck a few sneaky beverages on to the tube.
There were heaps of people dressed up in Halloween gear on the streets of London. The party was a lot of fun. Lots of dancing, partying and good times.
We left before 12 so we could catch the last tube then headed to a pub closer to home. After the pub, went to maccas, walked our friend back to her place, then walked home in the freezing cold, down to 1 degree eek.
Sunday I spent chilling at home. Overall a great Halloween weekend UK style x
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