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Brighton: #MyHomeTownIsYourVacation

Sometimes it’s easy to forget, when you’re sitting in the office with grey clouds filling the skies, that you actually live in a travel destination. To you, the streets you walk each day and the cafés you nip into for coffee on a Saturday morning are just standard, mundane even. But for those venturing on a European road trip or world tour, visiting your town or city may be a huge highlight of their time abroad.

As a travel blogger it’s easy to get stressed and bogged down about not having content to write about when you’re not out gallivanting the globe (you can tell this is an issue of mine with my huge content gaps!), but it’s important to remember the best bits about where you live and use your insider knowledge to improve someone else’s travel experience, just as you’d expect when trying to find tips and advice for your next journey.

With this in mind I obviously want to focus on my amazing (current) city: Brighton!

Based in the south of the UK, Brighton is a fun, eclectic, colourful city that is well worth a visit when coming to England. Although, just an hour from London by train (and even less if you come directly from the airport on the Gatwick Express), Brighton is worlds away from the big smoke. Being on the coast, the air is fresh, spirits are high, fish and chips are never far away and there is much fun to be had!

There are plenty of classic tips for any visit to Brighton so I will of course highlight these, but I also want to mention a few of my personal faves having lived here for a few years so that you can do something a little different during your time in the city and (hopefully!) have a memorable trip :-)

Classic Must Dos

Visit Brighton Pier – Cash in your pounds for buckets-full of 2ps for hours of enjoyment at Brighton Pier. No trip to the English seaside would be complete without enjoying the merriment of 2p machines, sticking your head in a cut-out signs, having chips stolen out of your hands by seagulls and going on rides where you have to hold on for grim death. Okay, okay, I know this doesn’t sound like the most appealing activity but once you get past the tacky lights and sticky carpet and embrace that piers are a quintessential part of British holidays, I guarantee you’ll have a good time!

See Brighton Pavilion - The mini Taj Mahal, enigmatically placed slap bang in the middle of the city, is a must-see for anyone visiting Brighton. Beautifully designed and steeped in history, the Brighton Pavilion is a great sight for architectural lovers, history geeks or anyone simply looking for top-notch photograph for Instagram! If you’re lucky enough to visit on a sunny day, head up to the tea rooms on the balcony for a relaxing pot of tea and a scone (again quintessentially British!).

Wander round the Lanes/Laines – The “Lanes” and the “North Laine” are very different places, and the confusion between the two is a classic bug-bare for traditional Brightonians… However, both are filled with unique and interesting shops that are well worth a wander. For high end boutiques, antique jewellers and the famed ChoccyWoccyDooDah, head to the Lanes found just metres from the seafront. There are great eateries here like Food For Friends, Curry Leaf Café and Brighton Burger so you can easily spend an afternoon relaxing in this area. For hipster cafes, vegetarian shoe shops, flea markets and quirky bars, the North Laine is the one for you The Office is known for its fantastic selection of gins, Kooks Café is great for an early evening glass of wine and The Mash Tun is perfect for a pint.

As you can probably tell, I like to eat and drink my way around every destination I visit, and living in the city is no different! 

My favourite finds pretty much focus on bars, cafes and restaurants but I’ll throw in a couple of other mentions too so you don’t think I’m completely food-obsessed.

Brunch – You may already have it in your head that you want to enjoy brunch overlooking the sea, but strangely enough this can be somewhat hard to find in Brighton. The New Club just on King’s Road offers buttermilk pancakes and a first-rate bloody Mary (the dream!). That will set you up nicely for the day before you pound the seafront in search of the uber-photogenic beach huts of Hove.  

Graffiti – Brighton has some amazing street art adorning bars, restaurants, electricity meters (basically anything that will stay still long enough to be painted!). Some of my favourites are the in the North Laine where you can also enjoy a spot of Geocaching. Don’t miss the famous mural on the side of the Prince Albert pub (just under the train station) and see if you can name all the celebs.

Cheap Eats - For cheap and cheerful Asian cuisine, Pompoko and Shogun Ramen are hard to beat. For less than £10-15 you can be filled to the brim with delicious yet fairly healthy tucker. Why not go to both over the weekend and let me know who you think has the best gyoza…!

Duke of York’s Cinema – If you’re just visiting Brighton for the weekend you may not want to waste your time inside the cinema, however, if you’re travelling for a longer stint the cinema is a bit of a luxury every now and again. Leaps and bounds better than an Odeon or Cineworld (no offence), at the Duke of York’s on Preston Circus you can slump back on a comfortable sofa with a glass of wine in hand and watch award-worthy films.

Fine-dining – Although Brighton is yet to gain its first Michelin Star, there are a number of restaurants who should certainly be in the running. Top of my list would be the incredible 64 Degrees. Seasonal ingredients, creative chefs and an intimate atmosphere all add up to an unforgettable dining experience. Silo too, with its zero-waste policy and home-milled bread is also a contender. Head here for a homely brunch or a delectable plant-based dinner and beer brewed on-site. Finally The Set at The Artist Residence offers exquisite tasting menus and The Cocktail Shack is the perfect place to have a tipple such as the delicious Green Tea Phone Home.

I hope you’ve enjoyed my tips and if you’re planning a visit to Brighton don’t hesitate to get in contact for more top tips :-)

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Overheard on Easyjet:

So, as you know, I thoroughly enjoyed my people-watching at Gatwick but the next level up in entertainment value is eaves-dropping. I know this isn’t a very virtuous pastime but when you’re piled into a plane and delayed for an hour with no headphones (cheers Easyjet…) it’s a little difficult NOT to listen to the conversations going on around you!

As I was travelling solo I had plenty of time to pretend to read and one particular conversation was absolute gold it would be rude not to share it!!

As I was a lowly fly-on-the-wall I’ll call the parties involved A and B:

A: I’d like to go back to America and go somewhere other than Disney…

B: Yeah? Where would you want to go?

A: Umm, I’d like to go to LA and ... Los Angeles... and umm what’s that gambling place?

B: Las Vegas

A: Yeah there… I’d like to go to LA to go to that prison… umm what’s it called? On an island…

B: Fort Boyard? (At this point I was smirking to myself trying to not laugh)

A: No… they did a film about it… Oh yeah Shiraz. That’s it, Shiraz!

B: Hmmm don’t know it…  

By now I’m thinking do I butt in and tell them it’s Alcatraz and San Francisco but risk sounding like a pretentious dick... Nope, I’ll just keep quiet and carry on smiling!

The conversation carried on in the same vein, repetition of wanting to visit LA AND Los Angeles (neither of them realising it was the same place) and incorrectly naming a variety of other US place names while I I struggled to keep the smirk off my face and not bust out laughing!

It was probably one of those #HadToBeThere moments but I thought it was too funny not to share!!!

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Travellers vs. Holiday-makers

Having just returned from a relaxing week on the beach in Greece it’s time to get back into the swing of blogging and recount some of my experiences and observations!

As my boyfriend was able to fly out to Greece a couple of days earlier than me (the joys of being self-employed!) I had the “pleasure…” of travelling solo from London Gatwick to Kos. Luckily, it’s not the longest flight in the world and I had plenty of books and magazines to keep me entertained. However, perhaps the most enjoyable part of this experience is simply being able to sit and people-watch.

This is a pastime that everyone dabbles in every now and again and is often hilariously entertaining – even if you do look a little strange when you sit smiling or sniggering to yourself in a café!

One of the main observations that sprung to mind was the differences between travellers and holiday-makers. I flit between both of these statues throughout the year depending on what adventure I’m heading on and I do find that I’m guilty of slipping into each of these stereotypes…

1. What to wear to the airport:

Traveller: The comfiest outfit possible – you can tell if someone has previously been on their Gap Yah (99% of the time their outfit will entail a pair of “travelling pants” – primary-coloured for African travellers, elephant printed for Asia-lovers etc.) or if they’re just setting of on their first adventure (probably wearing a money-belt their mother insisted they take)!

Holiday-maker: A well thought-out outfit, jewellery and all – if you’re heading to the airport during the summer period I can almost guarantee you will see girls in bejewelled sandals and floppy sun-hats or if said holiday-maker is going long-haul they may even have donned the heels in the vain hope of being upgraded! This idea always blows my mind. Although I usually take my shoes off as soon as I get comfortable on the plane (sorry!) some of the gates at airports like Gatwick and Heathrow are bloody miiiiiiles away and I can’t imagine anything worse than tottering all that way in 4 inch heels!!

2. Buying snacks and beverages:

Traveller: You’re in one of three positions at the airport if you are a traveller:

1: You are just starting your journey and have therefore been saving every penny for months/years

2: You are mid-way through your travels and have experienced the joys of $0.25 beers

3: You’re at the end of your travels – either because your liver has given up the ghost, your bank roll has dried up or you are reluctantly heading back to reality

Whichever of these may be the case, you do NOT want to be spending £6 on a glass of vino at the airport or a tenner on a Pad Thai which you know won’t be as good as the one you got for about a dollar on a street corner of Khao San!

Holiday-maker: Yes, you have been saving for months for this holiday but that is exactly why you can now splash out on the extortionate (and minuscule) beers and wine on-board your Easyjet flight. You’re living the dream right now and reality can wait – even if your Facebook status will include the *tears* emoji when you realise how much you spent in those mere 2 hours at the airport…

3. Waiting in queues: 

Traveller: If you’re just starting your travels you’re probably farrrrr too excited to be bothered about long queues spoiling your experience. Conversely, if you’ve been on the road for a while it’s likely you’ve already been stuck on numerous broken down modes of transport, overnight buses and have heard phrases such as T.I.A so much that time isn’t even a thing any more!

Holiday-maker: Queues are where English people come into their own. We know what to do and cannot fathom why people don’t understand how to stand politely in a line. You know there will be holiday-makers in every airport across the UK huffing and puffing and tutting at those who can’t use the e-passport lane! 

These are just a handful of differences between rough and ready travellers and peppy and prepared holiday-makers. I’m sure there are loaaaads more and I’d love to hear your people-watching comments!!

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Ana Desetnica Street Theatre Festival - Ljubljana, Slovena! 

The Slovenian capital, Ljubljana, would be a great one for a scrabble board, if they allowed proper nouns (which they don’t) or if there were nine letters in your hand (which there aren’t)… so actually scrap that…! But you have to agree, it is an amazing name for a city! 

If you haven’t had the chance to experience Ljubljana yet, let me tell you, it is a pretty cool place.

This city was only really part of our inter-railing itinerary because it linked Croatia and Italy together nicely, but it turned out to be one of the most memorable stops of all!! However, I will warn you, although it seems to make sense to head up the Dalmation coast towards Slovenia, when you're relying on train travel you actually have to go from Zadar all the way back to the Croatian capital, Zagreb (overnight - sans beds!) before hopping on another train to Ljubljana. So bear that in mind when making your plans otherwise it makes for a fairly inconvenient journey!

Despite all that, once we arrived and found our hostel we were pleasantly surprised! 

Ljubljana is an absolutely beautiful city with a stunning castle, outdoor cafés galore and, of course, the Ljubljana River meandering through the middle. You can spend hours wandering through the lanes and admiring the architecture but if you're lucky enough to be venturing through Slovenia during the first weekend in July you're in for a real treat! The Ana Desetnica Street Theatre Festival. This eclectic festival is a feast for the eyes, ears and much, MUCH more! I can guarantee you will see and encounter at least one thing you have never experienced before!!! 

During our weekend in Ljubljana in 2012 we stumbled across some brilliant, brave and outright bonkers acts. Some were free, some asked for nominal donations but all were worth it.  Here's a little run through of some of my favourites:

Djuggledy is a German street performer who throws a diablo like a madman! He was absolutely incredible, put on a show with so much character and blew us away. You can check out his moves here: http://www.djuggledy.com/

This Mexican trio were hilariously entertaining and sang their hearts out as they roamed the streets of Ljubljana:

Aaaand this.. well this was just something else:

This group of street performers wanted people to release their emotions and my did they have a way of getting it out of you...

We also took part in the bizarre - "Le grand big tour (with cheese)" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sW8aoYq3IKg, saw incredible circus performers and went inside the mysterious Luna Park. I would tell you what goes on when you enter Luna Park, but if I did... I'd have to kill you! 

All in all we had a fantastic experience in Ljubljana and although I'd also like to go back and experience the city at another time of year to see it without the nutty performers, I'd highly recommend visiting Ljubljana during the Ana Desetnica festival!

From Ljubljana we headed up to Lake Bled, but that will be another post.

Until next time...

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Why volunteering makes a great first trip

Why I think volunteering is a great way to start off travelling solo.

My first real solo travel experience would have to be my month volunteering in South Africa in May 2011

Despite having lived abroad in France for 7 months as part of my university degree, saying goodbye to my parents, getting on that plane and venturing off to volunteer for a month was a pretty nerve-racking experience!

As I had visited France so many times before on childhood holidays and knew it was just a short plane hop home, moving away didn’t feel as much of a daunting experience as this did, even though they spoke another language in France! I had some great friends around me which of course helped ease the nerves of my year abroad and this time I would be jetting off to spend time with people I had never met before!

What if they didn’t like me?! What if they weren’t ‘my type of people’??  What if, what if, what if…?!

The Journey

Tears pricked my eyes as I clutched my luggage at Heathrow and waved goodbye to my parents ready for my first solo long-haul flight.

As I was going on a photography trip I had some pretty expensive camera gear and my bulky laptop with me as hand luggage so I didn’t really feel comfortable wandering round the shops at Terminal 5. I patiently read my book while waiting for my flight announcement to grace the Tannoy.

Once settled in my seat I felt right as home with my headphones in and my selection of films all lined up – that’s the best thing about flying! I’m usually so set on my films that I don’t converse with my family much on flights anyway so this part didn’t feel too different…

After a fairly relaxed flight from London to Johannesburg I had my next big challenge – to collect my baggage, lug it from one terminal to the next and check back in to my subsequent flight to Durban. This was the part I had been warned about and my heart was pounding as I collected my bags and struggled my way through the terminal. I assertively (or at least I was trying to feign assertiveness) fended off all the offers to carry my bags and made it with plenty of time to spare. While waiting at the gate for the onward flight I glanced around at my fellow passengers to gauge whether any of them could be possible volunteer cohorts… not so sure…

My Arrival

Arriving in to Durban the nerves set back in – this was it, the moment I would meet my soon to be friends (hopefully!). *Please let my baggage arrive!* I wandered through arrivals seeking out the African Impact sign – phew there it was! At least I hadn’t spent my year’s savings on a phoney company! We “checked-in” with the volunteer coordinator and went to meet the rest of the group where everyone was waiting for the new arrivals. We all seemed to be fairly similar ages, mostly English-speaking and the conversation flowed easily from the get-go.

This might just be OK… 

As we arrived at the volunteer camp we were shown to our huts and given our designated roomies (big shout out to Kristen <3 !!). I was pleasantly surprised by the rooms and surroundings - large living areas, 2-bed room with ensuite, swimming pool - what more could I want?! We were given the general rules and regulations then it was time for dinner. This is always a communal affair which gives you a great opportunity to get to know each other. 

Your volunteer coordinator is always on site as well as plenty of other staff members, so if you have any questions or worries someone is always on hand. Some of the other vols had been there for a few weeks already but most of us were all in the same boat - don't worry, you won't be the only one who has never done anything like this before! Being thrown into the deep end with the volunteer work and having the others to show you the ropes helps you settle you straight in. 

The first evening or so I was tucked up in bed early and had no idea how the others managed to stay up chatting until almost midnight when we had to get up at 5am to get cracking?! As the days and weeks went on I tried to power through each night and ended up getting used having less sleep and I was having so much fun I didn't want to go to bed!!!

My four weeks at Thanda Game Reserve were absolutely incredible and I would recommend volunteering to everyone! We spent time working, relaxing, partying, taking excursions, learning about local culture, eating, taking and editing pictures and so much more! I met some great people along the way and I wouldn’t change a thing.

Saying Goodbye

As is with most travelling experiences, you get to know everyone 10 times faster than you would normally as you're living in each others pockets 24/7. And although this may seem a bit daunting, once you get involved time flies past and before you know it you'll be having to fly home!

This time, when I arrived at the airport, tears of sadness, not nerves, pricked my eyes. I was saying goodbye to my little vol family not knowing when I would see them again.There were songs, sayings and smells that would remind me of my time here forever and, of course, a few thousand photos to jog my memory!

If you’re thinking of volunteering - just go for it!!!

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How to get into the travel industry?

1)      TRAVEL!

Although some roles in the travel industry won’t require a wealth of travel experience, most are keen for you to prove your passion for the position by giving examples of places you’ve been, things you’ve seen, encounters you’ve had etc. Of course, this can be an expensive hobby, and if you’re just starting to find your way in to the industry it can be tricky. However, not all travel has to break the bank! If you have time (e.g. if you’re a university student with long holidays or you are doing a flexible day job) make the most of travelling outside of the peak season by bagging cheap flights. If you’re an intrepid explorer (or more importantly, want to be) think outside the box and visit places that will make you stand out – rather than just hopping on cheap flights to Barcelona, head to Ljubljana, Bucharest or Riga. Want to go further afield (and have the money to) check out new upcoming locations that will give you the edge on your fellow applicants when it comes to bagging your choice position (think Uzbekistan, Ethiopia, Guatemala…).

2)      READ

Knowing about whatever industry you want to get into is always important, but as travel is such a varied and interesting topic it is easy and enjoyable to learn about what is on offer (WIN!). Having a genuine interest is essential - but most applicants will have that anyway – so having extra knowledge that you can drop into an interview will be beneficial. Make sure it doesn’t sound too forced though! It’s much more fun for both you and your potential employer to have a candid conversation about things you both love. Check out travel blogs, follow people on Twitter, read magazines like Wanderlust and National Geographic Traveller – there is an abundance of amazing content and to be in with a chance you should at least be reading some of it!

3)      APPLY

If you’re not sure exactly where your place lies in the travel industry yet (but know definitely does) then apply apply apply! There is no shame in being rejected from jobs – it has happened to the best of us and it happens in all industries – but the more you apply for, the more chance you have. I started as an intern (earning less than minimum wage!) but this gave me an invaluable insight into all sides of the tour operator as my role was split between sales, operations, marketing and product. No other entry level position will give you that understanding at such an early stage. OK, the money can be a major issue but if you’re sure travel is the one for you (or really want to give it a go) then getting your foot in the door is your best bet!

4)      USE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS

There are so many social media platforms out there these days it’s harder not to be part of them that it is to be! Whether writing is your thing and you’re already a keen blogger or not, you should be using at least one platform to demonstrate your passion for travel. If you’re a photographer – use Flickr, more of a point-and-shoot kinda guy/gal – Instagram’s the one, love sharing/reading news – go for Twitter. Whatever you choose, just be present. Even if that is just pinning your favourite wildlife/destinations/travel shows to your Pinterest boards that’s a start! Don’t forget to put these links on your CV though – how else is the interviewer supposed to know if you don’t tell them?!

Once you’re in the travel industry most people tend to be hooked and either stay with the same company or move between similar businesses depending on the role they are looking for. The industry can offer great travel benefits so make the most of them as soon as you can! Network with ground agents, grab last minute flights, offer to write blogs or reviews for discounts - the list goes on!

Most importantly, enjoy it! You know you’ll meet people with similar interests from the get-go and we really are a fun group to be around :-)

If you have any questions about working in travel just drop me a line and I’ll do what I can to help!

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Xi’an Street Food Market - Muslim Quarter

After drooling over my street food choices in my last blog post it got me thinking about all the other scrumptious food I have tasted on my travels and how I should definitely share some more photos and tips with the world!

When in China last year for work I only had one day when I was completely on my own which was spent in the city of Xi’an. At first I was worried about how I would survive on my own in a city where I spoke none of the language other than “Hello” (I had previously learnt “how much?” but as Chinese is a tonal language, dialects make so much difference and my “how much” in a Yanghsuo accent wasn’t going to help me much here!). However, me being me, I thought what better way to understand some of the local culture than to check out the shopping and the street food! Xi’an has one of the most well-known market areas (in the Muslim Quarter) and the array of sights and smells had me hooked right away! After being offered about 20 Louis Vuitton purses and numerous other “genuine fakes” at special prices (of course!) I got to the good stuff – the food…

As I was on my own I wasn’t too keen on sitting down in a restaurant somewhere anyway so roaming the street tasting the local delicacies was the perfect option for dinner, but what to try first?!

I saw plenty of people hovering around the skewer stands so thought that would be as good a place as any to start my feast. I went for lamb (as chicken isn’t always the safest option when eating at street diners) and watched as it sizzled away with spices and smoke filling the air. I sat down on some of the plastic chairs out the back of the stand to give it a taste. If I hadn’t wanted to try so many other snacks I could easily have eaten plenty more of these delicious skewers! But I did – so on to the next thing…

Next up on my street food dinner was some spicy new potatoes. When you think of Chinese food, potatoes are probably one of the last things that spring to mind, however, they were in the Xi’an market so they were on my list! I have no idea what was sprinkled on them to make them taste so darn good (so if anyone know pleeeease tell me!) but boy, I wish I could cook like that. A cardboard tub full of these mouthfuls of heaven cost a mere 8 yuan (approx. 80p) and filled a nice little hole after my lamb skewers.

At this stage I could have probably done with some fruit or vegetables of some sort… but when there are delectable spiced/fried/steamed savoury dishes everywhere I looked it was pretty hard to say no. So to add to my meat and potatoes I decided to have some more protein and carbs in the form of the famous Xi’an ‘Chinese hamburger’! This was basically a Chinese version of a pulled pork sandwich in a steamed bun with heaps of juicy, spicy meat piled in. #devine!  

I was then gasping for a drink so grabbed some water and watched the world go by while sitting at the edge of the street. 

One of the fascinating sights was the traditional method of hammering candy brittle with giant mallets. This was unlike anything I’ve ever seen and was going on all down the street. Listen out for the thumping when walking round the Muslim Quarter and then seek it out to try some tasty confectionery! 

If you go to Xi’an, of course visit the Terracotta Warriors and see the Bel Tower but don’t miss out on this incredible market either!!!

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My Top Five Street Eats

One of my main incentives to travel is so I can eat my way around the world. There’s no better place for street food than Asia (of course, I’m biased as it’s my favourite continent) but I think many would agree with me! It’s a good job I walk plenty when I’m on my travels that’s all I’m saying…!

I’m not sure I can actually put these in an official order as they are all so good but I’ll just say these are some of the greats:

1)      Chilli and coconut chickpeas in Sri Lanka – We headed to the main market place in Kandy for a quick snack after walking the Three Temple Loop. These are not for the faint-hearted or those with delicate tongues but they are delicious.  They are likely to blow your head off for the first few mouthfuls but once you get past the fire you will be able to taste many layers of flavour. I have tried to replicate this at home but never managed to get it quite right. If anyone has a good recipe for me to try I’d truly appreciate it! (Unfortunately I didn’t get a picture of these as they didn’t hang around long enough)

2)      Chicken satay in Malaysia – Where better to get these flavoursome peanut-y skewers than the home of satay itself?! I’ve tried a fair few satay in my time and I’m not sure I’d be able to choose where was best between Penang and Kuala Lumpur as they were both incredible! Penang was probably the place that first started my love of travel and food so let’s go for that! Served in a banana leaf with plenty of sauce covering the freshly cooked chicken – belissimo (or whatever the Malaysian version of that is…)!

3)      Duck larb in Laos – When searching for recipes for this online I came across various different names larp/larb/laap/larb – to be honest I don’t really care that much how to spell it as long as it tastes as good as it did that first time! The balance of sweet, salty, spicy and sour is absolute perfection and served with sticky rice in the cutest bamboo basket ever gets me every time. I’m pretty sure my biggest regret of travelling was not buying those little rice baskets (if anyone knows where to buy them in the UK let me know! If not, I guess I’ll just HAVE to go back to Laos…). I’ve pretty much nailed the cooking of this dish at home now but that won’t stop me returning to Luang Prabang to have it again.

4)      Kottu Roti in Sri Lanka – considering my boyfriend and I were only in Sri Lanka for two weeks we managed to eat plenty of kottu roti (probably more than our fair share). This is a traditional dish we heard and read much about before we left for Sri Lanka and we can definitely see why. The dish is prepared by chopping up roti into tiny pieces and then stir-frying it with chicken and vegetables. It resembles a noodle/rice dish but is SO much more..! The roti adds a whole new texture to the stir-fry and as it has a matte coating plenty of the spices stick to it meaning you get the full flavour in every mouthful! We had amazing kottu rotis in The Garden Café in Kandy and The Roti Shop in Mirissa.

5)      Dumplings in China – When in Yangshuo we were heading out to our guide’s home village and we took a detour on the way to see the amazing landscape on the back of the 20 yuan note. Right near there was a little town (I can’t for the life of me remember the name of it) and after visiting the market our guide showed us down a little backstreet to get a snack. This was an amazing dumpling shop which served a whole basket full for a mere 30p! They were full of flavour without too much spice so everyone in the group found them delicious. We didn’t want to fill ourselves up though as we had dinner to get to but next time I’ll be buying bucket loads at 30p a pop!

OK, so even after writing about only five street eats my tummy is rumbling and I’m salivating at the thought… get me back to Asia!!!

No doubt I’ll write some more about food soon but now I’m off for dinner!

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Appreciating the smaller things on safari

Sometimes, when surrounded by rolling plains and majestic animals it is easy to forget that there is a whole ecosystem of tiny creatures out there too.

Of course, the famous Big Five, herds of zebra and ungainly yet beautiful giraffe all make for an exciting photographic safari, but when looking through my holiday snaps on my return I am always quite proud of the smaller creatures I have managed to capture.

The little birds and bugs are all vital to the maintenance and longevity of the eco-systems that we choose to visit.

Birds are a particular favourite of mine as I like the challenge of photographing them while in flight (not that I actually get as many usable photos as I’d hope!). Even just getting them to stay still in a tree for long enough to get a snap is hard enough! However, when you edit out the blurred-winged photos and shots where you have just captured a beak you can be left with some great images.

Here are some of my favourite bird shots:

Another creature of choice when out with my camera is the lowly insect. Taking the time to seek out and appreciate these little creepy-crawlies takes a little more effort and concentration than spotting the bigger beasts, but some of the colours and intricate details you see when you have captured a brilliant macro shot can be fascinating!

From dung-beetles to praying mantises and plenty of butterflies in between I have taken a number of insect photos that I am proud of.

Here are a select few that I hope you’ll like:

Don’t forget these little beauties when you’re out on safari as they can be some of your best pics when you get home!

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Why take a gap ‘year’ – NOW

The sound of endless Saturdays sounds like a dream, right? So why don’t more people take the plunge and go on their trip of a lifetime?!

The main reasons are usually:

Can’t afford it

Have no one to go with

Worried about not getting on/moving up the career ladder

Or just plain scared…

These things don’t always have to be barriers to stop you travelling though! If I’ve learnt anything from working in travel, it is - you can do it too! Gap years don’t always actually have to be full-on 12 month trips – some people just don’t wanna be away from their family, their own bed, or a roast dinner for that long! So an alternative is what I’ve come to know as a “snap-gap” to use the industry lingo. This could be anything from a few weeks to a number of months.

So why take one?

1)      You will meet LOADS of people! Even if you travel solo you are bound to meet plenty of people in the same boat as you. If you stick to the fairly “well-trodden” routes you will be able to tag along with others heading in the same direction as you. If you’d rather not head off into the world on your own there are hundreds of group trips you can book before you go to explore new countries and make new friends!

 2)      You will learn so much: When discovering far flung places you will not only learn facts and figures about these countries and their history but you will also find out things you never knew about yourself! Whether it’s what you like to eat (or don’t!), that you do quite like your own company, or that you can push yourself to limits you didn’t know existed, these are all a learning curve.

 3)      It doesn’t have to be SUPER expensive: As part of your travels there are various ways you can make your money go further. If you are an English speaker you can tutor or Teach English as a Foreign Language alongside your travels to earn a bit of extra cash (make sure you check the visa situation in the country you’re looking to teach though – wouldn’t want to be working illegally!). Alternatively you can get Working Holiday Visas for Australia, New Zealand, Canada etc. which give you the opportunity to get paid casual work while you travel. Thirdly, if you have plenty of time to travel, staying in one place for a longer period of time can cut costs dramatically! Instead of booking hostels and hotels you can rent apartments on a weekly/monthly basis which will get you a cheaper rate!

 4)      It can actually help you on the career ladder! Many companies actually look favourably on travelling. For one, it gives you an extra thing to talk about during interview and makes you a more rounded person. Two, if you have worked or volunteered as part of your travels then you will have gained more experience which is always a good thing!

 5)      You’re more likely to regret what you didn’t do! There are so many cheesy quotes about making the most of life and grabbing every opportunity by the horns (which I secretly love) but why do you think that is..?! Because they’re true! It is rare that people head of travelling and come back think – “wow, I wish I’d never done that”. At the very least you’ll learn something (like I said earlier) and at the most you’ll have the most incredible, amazing, life-changing, fabulous (*** fill in any more superlative adjectives here) and you’ll have the friends and photos to match!

From my personal experience I can’t recommend gap ‘year’ trips highly enough! I have done various trips from 10 days to 4 months at a time and have LOVED every minute! I have met people who will be friends for life, have bored my friends and family with streams and streams of photos and have eaten hundreds of delicious meals!

All I can say is GO TRAVELLING NOW!!!!

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Time for a new adventure!

Over the past few weeks I’ve had some BIG decisions to make, moved house and had my phone stolen… so it’s been eventful to say the least!

I am excited to say that I have accepted a new job (still in travel, of course) but I will be saying goodbye to my Real Gap and i-to-i volunteering family in just under 3 weeks! I’m looking forward to a new challenge with a small but developing company - Natural World Safaris. Onwards and upwards to my next adventure!

In light of this I thought I’d write a few pieces about gap years before I leave this fab community and move on to a different target market :-)

Watch this space  ---- >

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Victoria Falls

Looking out of the window on the one day we had set aside for Victoria Falls we were gutted to find complete cloud coverage and pouring rain. How on earth were we going to see the magnitude of this incredible Wonder of the World when we couldn't even see to the end of the road?!

In order to make the most of our flying visit to Victoria Falls, we had booked a helicopter ride and gorge zip-wire the evening before so we could get up and go the next morning. However, the “flying” side of the visit was not to be when the inclement weather scuppered all of our plans! 

After a delicious buffet breakfast (you have to look at the upsides!) at The Kingdom Hotel, we dashed through the rain to a local supermarket to see if we could find any suitable rainproof material. Absolutely no coats/ponchos were available so I had to go for an umbrella and just hope for the best! We trudged down the hill trying to keep our spirits high, despite the fact that the combination of high waters and low cloud were never going to make for a successful viewing of the falls. On arrival we joined the hoards of underwhelmed tourists trying to make the best of a bad situation. 

I unravelled my DSLR from it’s plastic bag at every available opportunity to attempt to get some snaps of the gushing waterfalls and prove that we had actually visited this world-famous site. As you can imagine, the grey-hued photos do nothing for the scene! Instead, we regularly just stopped to listen and feel our surroundings rather than trying to document it as the power of the falls was still significant even though we couldn't really see them. Hearing the force of the water and feeling the warmth of the spray on your face are complete “had to be there” moments.

The walk around the falls site took around two hours and despite our disappointment, the glimpses we saw were still worthwhile. We decided to head back to town and keep our fingers crossed that the weather would improve at some point so we could try again (in the 20 hours that remained).

Unfortunately the rest of the day remained equally as drab so we were thankful for our stunning hotel room and covered veranda so we could read our books and relax on our penultimate day on holiday.

As we woke on our final morning and tentatively opened the curtains we held our breath and hoped for clear skies. What we were greeted by was not so much clear, but at least it was clearer than the day before. That’ll do us! We rushed to the reception to see if there was any possibility that we could squeeze in a helicopter ride (bearing in mind that we had to be back at the airport for 11am!). Luckily, they thought they could fit us in, even though they had hundreds of other people with the same idea!

Difficult to see what is cloud and what is waterfall spray right?!

At this stage we were desperately hoping the $150pp heli ride would be worth it as it would be such a shame if all we saw was a crater filled with spray clouds...

But it did not disappoint!

Falls and microlight

Can’t even explain the size!

The historic sites of the falls

See more pics here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/hannahchamp/

So all in all, the trip was eventful and somewhat successful and I am so glad I have been (but will probably/hopefully go again one day).

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Unlikely best friends - Tatenda and Sisu

On my penultimate day  @Imire_Zimbabwe I had my final chance to spend time with the amazing black rhino Tatenda! Of course, when Sisu, the volunteer house pup, wanted to come for a walk, we couldn't say no! Seeing these two walking side by side, tails wagging, was such a beautiful moment. They sniffed each others’ ankles and played in the grass as if they were siblings of the same species!

The rangers at Imire shadow the rhino and elephants on the reserve, following them wherever they choose to roam, in order to protect these precious creatures from poachers. The animals are then safely tucked up at night with their hay bails to relax under the watchful eyes of the night guards before setting out for another day wandering, eating and exploring.

Every day longer I spent with the animals at Imire it made me even more confused and confounded as to how anyone could even think about harming endangered animals like the black rhino.

Is that money really worth it?! Why kill these animals when they have already been de-horned?! Do you just do this for bragging rights?!

I hope Imire and other conservation programmes in Africa continue to do their essential, fantastic work to clamp down on these vile poachers and boost numbers of fascinating elephants, antelope and black and white rhino!

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Livingstone Room - restaurant review

Livingstone Room - Victoria Falls

Having only planned a whirlwind trip to Victoria Falls, we expected to fit in the highlight activities surrounding the incredible Natural Wonder of the World itself, and that was about it… but when the heavens decided to open and jeopardise our plans we had to go back to the drawing board and come up with some new ideas.

Being massive foodies, perhaps even more so when we travel, my boyfriend and I got straight on TripAdvisor to see what the local area had to offer. With the rain thundering down outside, the location was high priority! Luckily for us, there were some great hotel restaurants in the vicinity to our hotel (The Kingdom Hotel).

One, Livingstone Room at The Victoria Falls Hotel was a matter of metres down the road so it seemed a possibility that we could make a dash for it and not look like drowned rats when we arrived. This was all the more important as we had just read that this high-end establishment had only just loosened its regimented dress code to allow males to go without their dinner jackets! Bearing in mind we had just spent two weeks volunteering on a dusty game reserve and lived out of rucksacks we weren’t really backing ourselves to be allowed in!

However, we scrubbed up in our finest attire and hoped they wouldn’t mind that I was wearing (god-forbid!) flat open-toed sandals and glided in to the restaurant full of confidence! As luck would have it we must have done alright (or more likely, the Maître d’ was just far too polite to reject us). We were seated immediately by Philemon who asked us if we would like an aperitif to start. Of course, to keep up with our surroundings (and because we love champagne) we accepted and toasted to our holiday, which was almost coming to an end.

What followed was an absolutely amazing 7-course taster menu, with wine pairings served by warm, attentive staff and a wonderful ambience. There was a relaxed atmosphere with a pianist playing throughout and a number of waiters and waitresses each with their own forte.

The menu below was $45 dollars pp, plus $35 pp with wine pairings, which in our opinion was an amazing deal!

MENU

Selection of breads (Olive, Wholemeal, Sun-dried Tomato and Thyme) with accompanying butters (Basil, Olive and Truffle)

Sparkling wine – Miss Molly Bubbly (only wine I can remember the name of I’m afraid)

Crocodile Amuse Bouche

Ostrich carpaccio and ostrich tartare with a quails egg and rocket

Scallop and chicken (the only underwhelming dish)

Tomato and basil essence ‘soup’

Zimbabwe fillet steak, mushroom, oxtail parcel

Selection of cheeses

“Chocolate egg”

Crêpe Suzette (flambéed at your table)

Petit fours

Despite the somewhat underwhelming scallop and chicken course the rest was absolutely delicious! Ant claims the desserts are up there with the best he has ever tasted and I have to agree. The ceremony of cooking up the Crêpe Suzette at our table just made it all the more dramatic and the citrus smells had us salivating before the food even touched our plates!

10/10 all round: effort, ambience, value, food, wine! We would highly recommend it if you are on a visit to the falls!

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Fly Africa

As my boyfriend and I ascended the steps to our Fly Africa flight from Harare to Victoria Falls we said to ourselves “I wonder if they have food on this flight?”, “I bet they won’t have TVs”, “Do you think it’s like easyJet?”

Little did we know this flight would really give us some perspective and make us realise how privileged we are to travel!

The answers to our questions were all confirmed as expected, but the fun really began when we started to take off. The gasps, giggles and glee from our fellow passengers touched us as we realised this was probably a lot of travellers’ very first flight! Children gawped out the windows, held their parents’ hands and were generally extremely giddy as we rose into the air before coming to a steady plateau. With Easter being a big celebration in the Christian country of Zimbabwe it appeared lots of families were splashing out on a long weekend to the fabulous Natural Wonder of the World, Victoria Falls.

Having already been on 8 planes between us this year, a quick, internal one-hour-hop seemed like nothing to us, but when the realisation set-in that these children were probably about to see a part of their own country they had never experienced before, we were instantly humbled and grateful for all the amazing trips we have been able to take.

Of course, visiting Victoria Falls was a fantastic experience for us too, and not likely one we will be able to do again soon, but that Fly Africa journey just helped us appreciate it that little bit more!

Travel is our passion so we save, save, save to experience as much as possible and we hope we always remember that journey to ensure we never get complacent about what we have and don’t take these special moments for granted!

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Sooo, I have to apologise...! I have been a massive slacker with the ol’ blog recently, so I’m really sorry ‘bout that!

I didn’t really get round to talking about Budapest which I went to in FEB!!! Aaaand I’ve now just returned from Zimbabwe too!

I promise I will get on it now!

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#BucketListWeek spot number 8 - Hiking volcanoes in Indonesia!

Just imagine getting a shot like that after a hard day's hike - well worth it!

This pic is from World Expeditions' inspiration trip: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/asia/tours/hiking-trekking/volcanoes-dragons-indonesia