Saturday 23 August 2014

Pack up your troubles (& suitcases)

So as I said in my last blog post, I am going TRAVELLSKING!
Whilst this is super douper trouper exciting, it also means the joys of packing await. So, I thought I would share some (amateur) pearls of wisdom that I have picked up on this subject matter. You're welcome ;)

1. Make yourself a list!
Anyone who says they don't love lists is lying.
The neat freak in me came out and I decided to sit down and make a checklist of everything I needed, before attempting my scavenger hunt to find all these items.
Plus, this means I get all Monica from Friends and award myself a "check!" for every item I successfully put in.

2. Don't leave it until the last minute!
When I packed, I did it about a week in advance.
Since I'm massively lazy about washing clothes and usually just leave the pile in my laundry basket to grow until I realise I have no knickers left (and have to wear a bikini bottom for that day) I figured I'd probably find most of my favourite clothes that I'd want to take were dirty. Therefore, this gave me plenty of time to kick myself up the butt and get things clean :)
It also means that all the things you realise you need the night before leaving (facewipes are my usual ones) you actually have time to go and buy!
You can thank me later when your face is refreshed.

3. Be organised about it.
Just knowing where everything is can be very helpful.
Also, I would always recommend taking a plastic bag so you can separate used clothes from clean ones. Makes life a whole lot easier when you get to the end of your trip and you're frantically trying to remember which knickers you have and haven't worn.

4. Be practical
If you're going to be exploring new cities, what shoes are going to be comfy to walk around in all day?
No matter how much you want that tan, will having painful sunburn be worth sneakily leaving the suncream at home?
If it rains, do you think you'll have wished you'd just stuck an anorak in?
Consulting a mother on this step can be very useful... or if they're like mine, ignore this step as you'll get it without asking anyway.

5. Don't take what you don't need
Before I go away I make sure I have ONLY what I need and no pesky extras. For example, my purse is usually chocka block with various loyalty cards. Do I really need my Nectar card when I'm travelling around America? No. The way I see it, if my purse got stolen I'd rather only my bare necessities were lost.
Also, only take what you feel comfortable taking. If you don't want to take your big camera and all it's big boy lenses, don't take it. No matter how nice the selfies might have been!

6. Don't forget to take a spare pair of underwear.
For no other reason than it's wisdom that mothers have been passing down for centuries. In case of 'emergencies', they say.
Let's not go there. Just pack them.

I am bound to forget SOMETHING which when I'm on the trip will seem like the end of the world (like oh no my pink vest would have gone so well with this outfit, why on earth didn't I bring it?!)
But, I figure as long as I have my passport then I will manage ;) That is my non-fussing pledge, and I am going to stick to it. Or try to, anyway.

What are your must-do travel tips? :)

Thursday 14 August 2014

I'M GOING TRAVELLING!

A week today, I shall be donning my (very sexy) enormous backpack and heading off to mainland Europe for a couple of weeks!


My boyfriend could only wangle 2 weeks off work so we have had to plan our trip with military precision in order to fit in as many sights as possible!

Our plan is as follows:

Fly into Amsterdam
Get the train to Berlin
Get the train to Prague
Get a train overnight to Krakow
Get the train to Vienna
Get the train to Budapest
Fly home


To seasoned backpackers I am sure this whole trip seems like a breeze, but a seasoned backpacker I am sadly not. To me, this is a whole new experience, which I am 1% nervous about but 99% fizzing over with giddy excitement!

I've never been to any of the countries I'm visiting before, so I have absolutely no idea what to expect from any of them - or the whole experience really. I should imagine the amount of time spent whooshing along on a train will be pretty exhausting, but luckily if there's one thing I'm talented at it is sleeping. :)

Overall, I'm super mega ridiculously bloody EXCITED. I've been working hard all summer pulling double shifts to fund my trip, and it's absolutely amazing feeling like I've really earned it!

If anyone is from/ has visited any of these places, or has interrailed around Europe before and has some tips, I'd be very grateful! :)

Sunday 10 August 2014

The Liebster Award!

I'm a little bit late on the bandwagon for this (I blame work - SO MUCH WORK) but, I decided it's time I sat myself down with a cup of tea, and answer some questions :)

I have been nominated by a few ladies, which I am absolutely tickled pink by!

A huge thank you to...
 Kartonia
 - she is just a little bit hilarious, and her blog has an unwavering ability to make me smile :) I reckon we would be thick as thieves within seconds if we ever met!

Kristina
- she was the first person to nominate me, and I always marvel about how beautiful the pictures on her blog are. You go lady!

Sarah
- I could spend ages nosing on her blog, she has such a lovely style of posting and she is also freakin' gorgeous!

- Her blog is so refreshingly honest, and she has a great way of writing that hooks you in and makes you want to know errrrytang!

The rules of this little affair are as follows... but you know what, if you want to make up your own rules or adapt these in some way, then be my guest. I do love a maverick.

 1. Thank the blog that nominated you and link them
2. Post eleven facts about yourself.
3. Answer the eleven questions provided by the person who nominated you and then create an eleven-question set for the next group of nominees.
4. Choose eleven people to nominate and link them in the post.
5. Let your nominees know they've been tagged - and no tag-backs!
6. Nominate blogs under 200 followers


11 slices of information about myself.

1. I'm absolutely obsessed with clocks. I have about 5 in every room. I LOVE CLOCKS.
2. ...despite this curious fetish for clocks, I am invariably late for everything.
3. I like serious films, but funny TV shows. The other way round just does not work for me.
4. I have never had my nails done. I do far too many grubby things, like cleaning out horses, to justify blowing a tenner on my talons.
5. I am extremely empathetic, to almost unpleasant extents. Consequently I struggle to listen to the news because I will get oddly upset about any sort of horrible story I learn about.
6. I would absolutely love to be an author.
7. My alcoholic drink of choice is scotch on the rocks, which earns me strange looks in pubs. 
8. However, apart from my odd scotch, I don't actually drink much at all. In fact, the feeling of being drunk is actually one I find quite unpleasant (I know, I am a disgrace to students everywhere).
9. I like to eat a lot of food, a lot of the time. None of that healthy stuff either, I am a growing girl and I need my saturated fats.
10. On Pokemon Yellow I trained my Articuno to become level 97. She's a queen.
11. I have seen N-Dubz more times than is appropriate. Shame on 17 year old me.


So now I've bored you with some facts about myself, it's time to bore you with MORE facts about myself, cunningly disguised as answers to questions. ;)
Since I had a few lovely nominations, I selected a few questions that I had the most interesting answers to from each lovely lady. :)


1. What place would you like to visit the most?
I've always had a bit of a hankering to go to Hawaii - although, everyone I say this too says Hawaii is actually pretty rough, which scares me because I'm a massive wimp. So maybe I'd just like to go to cartoon Hawaii, like in Lilo & Stitch ;)

2. If you could live in any book (or film) which one would it be?
I'm thinking probably Alice in Wonderland. Who wouldn't want to live in a place where all the best people have gone round the bend? They had me at tea party, yum.

3. What is your favourite movie?
Tricky, tricky... I'm going to be greedy and bore you with 3. 'American Beauty', 'Moulin Rogue' and 'The Wolf of Wall Street'.
How's about THAT for an eclectic mix?!

4. What is your favourite quote?
"Get away from her you bitch" - Sigourney Weaver in Aliens.

5. Where do you want to be in 10 years?
I'd like to be the leading expert in the field of managing behaviours in children with Autism and Special Needs. I am nothing if not ambitious ;)

6. What is your best memory from last summer?
Last summer I have a whole mess of amazing memories as I spent it with friends in America.. but I'd probably have to say eating pizza with my friends Georgina and Karolina in a hostel in Texas, practically crying laughing (probably over nothing!)

7. How would you classify your style?
I'm a bit of anything and everything - I basically just see other people with great outfits, think OH HEAVENS THAT LOOKS SO NICE, and try and copy them.
Occasionally I'll think up my own outfits but... no, it's mostly all about the copying I'm afraid. ;)

8. What would be your superpower?
I think I'd invent some sort of time turner device, like in Harry Potter - this summer I've been working so much that I've barely had a chance to see my friendys, so ideally I'd like to have each day twice so I could do BOTH!
Either that or flying or something.

9. Lipstick or lip gloss?
Most definitely lipstick.
I feel like lipgloss is for glossy, Kim Kardashian-esque people. Which I regret that I am not.

10. If you could eat one food for the rest of your life what would it be?
GIMME DEM OLIVES.
I LOVE OLIVES YOU CAN'T TAKE THEM AWAY FROM ME.

So there you have it, you now know me just a teensy bit better. :)
Now it's my turn to be nosy and demand to know more about Y'ALL.

So here are my nosy parker questions...

1. What's your most embarrassing moment?
2. What is your favourite possession that is in the room with you right now?
3. What is the best moment of your life... so far?
4. Which member of One Direction would you marry if you could/had to?
5. If you could have a celebrity family, who would be in it? (as your Mum, Dad, siblings, mad uncle etc..)
6. Did you enjoy school?
7. Tuna: a delicious snack or devil spawn?
8. What have you done that you are most proud of?
9. What's your favourite item of clothing?
10. Cooking speciality? (note, if it features asparagus, I'll be over at 7.)
11. What Disney animal would you most like to have as a pet?

To answer my questions, I nominate...

...and absolutely anyone else who wants to answer the questions! :)

Friday 1 August 2014

10 Inspiring Ladies

(...That is, ladies who inspire me, rather than me attempting to inspire other ladies. I'm sure that was clear anyway, but the English language is a funny thing.)

Meg from Hercules

Seriously, that level of sass is quite inhuman. Which probably makes sense because she's a cartoon character. Still.

Catherine Tate

Most British comedy sketch shows are made up of a pair, and usually a pair of gents - Matt Lucas & David Walliams, David Mitchell & Robert Webb, Harry Enfield & Paul Whitehouse, to name just a few.
Not only is Catherine Tate a lady, but she's a lady on her own, and what's more is she is hilarious. Particularly when dressed as 'Nan', who is scarily accurate to my own grandmother.
You go Cathy T!

JK Rowling

I don't like thinking about JK Rowling much, because when I do I get distressed that Harry Potter isn't real and have to sit down with a cup of tea.
But, the fact that the land of Hogsmeade and Hegwig was magic-ed up in her brain? UNREAL. The very fact that I desperately want her world to be real says it all really. 
She deserves every last ounce of credit for making reading cool.

Jessica Ennis

Because any girl who is that amazing at that many athletic events deserves my complete and utter awe.
Plus, you could grate cheese on those abs. She must never eat cake, which astounds me nearly as much as her skill.

Tracy (The Mother) from 'How I Met Your Mother'

I was obsessed with this show, and I was obsessed with Tracy (when we finally met her). 
How can a human being be that wonderful and perfect?! One of my worst days of 2014 was the series finale because.. well if you don't know I won't tell you. BUT IT'S SAD.
Seriously, she's gorgeous, kind, funny, an eternal do-gooder...
Can I find a way to be her, please? Or, failing that, marry her myself and make her the mother of MY children.

Marie Curie

The first woman to ever win a Nobel prize is definitely something I find very, very, VERY impressive.
This lady devoted her life to doing ground-breaking research on the curative elements of radioactivity in cancer, and I barely know what an atom is. Go figure.

Carrie Bradshaw

Anyone who can pull off some of the outfits in Sex and the City that she did is something special.
Also, I find her just charming, and I sometimes wish my life was that glamorous and magazine column-y.

Carol Vorderman

Proving that women DO get more attractive as they get older since 1960.

Rita Ora

For no other reason, really, apart from the fact I think she's astoundingly gorgeous, and should be congratulated on winning her genetic lottery.

Hazel Grace Lancaster

Hazel is a fictional character from John Green's book 'The Fault in Our Stars' which is one of the best books I've read to date.
If I could be as brave and retain that good sense of humour as she if that was my life, I would consider myself an inspiration too.


So there you have it! My list of 10 inspirational ladies, for various different reasons. :)
Who inspires YOU?