Rome: The Ancient City meeting the Modern World

“Rome is the city of echoes, the city of illusions, and the city of yearning.” Giotto di Bondone (Italian painter and architect. Died 1337)

Leaving Venice our next stop was the legendary city of ‘Roma’.

Everyone knows something about the magnificence of Rome and the Roman Empire, it is ‘shown off’ in movies filled with action, adventure and romance, depicted in books and taught at schools all over the world. So it comes with no surprise that Rome is one of the worlds most iconic and ‘bucket-listed’ cities in the world.

Rome, once the hub of a legendary Empire is now known for its history meets modern city landscape, fashion, religion and of course food. We were here to explore it all – okay, maybe not the fashion part, but window shopping counts, right?

Venice: The Floating City.

“I stood in Venice, on the bridge of sighs. A Palace and a Prison in both hands”.

In the air, on approach to land in Venice it’s hard to believe that these (sinking) islands can sustain such a bustling and influential city. The dream city that is famous on postcards around the world.

Who decided to build a city on (floating) islands? They sit in such a way it looks as though one wave would engulf them all – and this plane was about to land on one, we hoped.

Venice is a city of dreams, where imagination comes to life and is begging to be explored, I was so excited to finally, be arriving with my best friend to experience the whole thing and to begin our fleeting love affair with Italy.

Other than the city itself, I was attracted to the city to visit one of my very good friends I met while travelling and volunteering in Nepal. I hadn’t seen her in years, but we had kept in touch (by writing gorgeous letters) and I had always promised one day I would be back – and here we were.

How to Stay Friends After Travelling;

“Friends forever,
Never Apart,
Maybe in Distance,
But never in Heart”

Travelling is a beautiful thing. It opens you up to new cultures, new loves, new friends, extended families, new experiences and gifts you with some amazing experiences.

It is never hard to meet people and find those that you connect well with. In two-week vacations I have met some wonderful people who I connected better with than friends I had known for years back home – crazy huh?!

The famous saying applies often here, you don’t realise what you’ve got till it’s gone.

These can be some of the hardest goodbyes and I often find myself saying ‘keep in touch’ – add me on (insert social media of choice here) – but finding it all to easy to get lazy and lack the effort needed to sustain a friendship.

Here are my top tips on How to Stay Friends After Travelling;

My Enchanting African Adventure Part 3: Kruger National Park

“Every morning in Africa, a Gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a Lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest Gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn’t matter whether you are a Lion or a Gazelle… when the sun comes up, you’d better be running.”

We all have unreachable dreams. The ones we long for. Long to touch, see, feel, hear, smell, experience with our whole body but we won’t. Why? That dream is on a pedestal, priceless. It would be more terrifying to have the dream become a reality and disappoint you than to try to attempt that dream in the first place.

Kruger National Park – African Safari – and the big five, was a dream i thought i would never experience.
There are no words that could form a well enough sentence to portray exactly how BIG this dream was to me, it was the experience of a lifetime – I was about to experience what i grew up watching on David Attenborough’s Shows.

Why Travelling Was Never a Choice…

“The time will pass Anyway, You can either spend it Creating the life you want or spend it living the life you don’t want. The choice is yours.”

Life doesn’t seem all that real until you are spat out of School, University, College – education, the only constant in your life has wiped it hands of you – and you hit the ‘real world’ with a thud.

We are ‘conditioned’ throughout our lives – from the minute we are born – that we will go to School, University, Graduate, Get a Job, Work – Work your life away – Vacation, Get Married, Have Babies, Teach them the same, Retire, then die.

‘Life’ described in this way sounds like a conveyor belt, while I tried to push my way through the ‘stages’ expected of me, I couldn’t help but constantly think – This can’t be it, surely life will offer me up something else? I don’t want to be like everyone else. – Get me off the conveyor belt.

My Enchanting African Adventure Part 2: Zimbabwe..

“In Africa you have space…there’s a profound sense of space here, space and sky”  –Thabo Mbeki

Pulling away from Victoria Falls the next stop was the Zambian/Zimbabwe border crossing… 

My experience of border crossings have normally been at airports – organised, structured, strict and sometimes quick – I expected a similar situation, but what I was met with was what mothers would call ‘organised chaos‘.

Thankfully, as were part of a tour the process was slightly quicker as our tour guides could speak Africans and hurry things a long slightly – working seems to be a leisurely activity, patience is a virtue – we may have been there all day otherwise.
The queues came from all directions, merged into one, split again and eventually met someone who would stamp and sticker – love the stickers – your passport.

Zimbabwe was a land I had looked into a lot, the place fascinated me. It was so large and fast but there was so much empty space.
It was an area the ‘Bushman’ Tribes still wandered freely (almost), where Rhino protection and research was strong and people were trying to rebuild after the economic crash.

How To Survive Long Haul Flying

For once you have tasted Flight, you will walk the earth with your eyes turned Skyward, for there you have been, and there you will long to return. – Leonardo Da Vinci

Flying conjures up a different feeling in everyone. Some people – like me – get overly excited, daydream about daydreaming out of the plane window, while looking forward to the rush of taking off and the thrill of the landing.

Others – like many of my friends/family – have the dread. Flying is the obstacle they have to suffer through to get to the next destination. It will be sleepless, uncomfortable and stuffy.

Whatever your feelings are about flying, I think we can all agree, Long Haul travel is a breed of its own and comes with its own pro’s and con’s.

After numerous trips abroad – many being long haul – here are my top tips on surviving long haul flying.

How to Get The Best Deal: 5 Top Travel Hacks

“Don’t settle down and sit in one place. Move around, be nomadic, make each day a new horizon”

Travel is exhilarating, picking out a new destination, researching it – becoming completely obsessed by it – and finally booking the plane tickets is an adrenaline rush. It’s something to look forward. It gives you a real dream. It gets you through the daily grind.

With travel now being cheaper (you wouldn’t think so, but trust me) than ever before it is often hard to know where to start when booking a trip. There is a lot to think about – travel agent vs. internet, local shops vs international companies, package deals or book individually. It is a minefield out there. 

I have worked in the travel industry for the last two years – here are my top tips on how to get the best deal.

Nepal: My Top 10 Adventures (Photographs)

Nepal, the country that leads you into the Himalayas and the magnificent Mount Everest. 
This is a Magical country filled with surprises at every corner and some of the friendliest people i have ever met.

I spent six weeks in Nepal in 2012, it was the the spark that lit the match, it lead me to where i am now. Everything about this country is beautiful, the scenery, nature, landscapes, people, food – everything. It is filled with adventure and is yearning to be explored. Here are the Top Ten Adventures i had while travelling throughout Nepal… Enjoy!

When The Lightbulb Exploded

What inspired me to this, travel I mean? Why did I decide to give up a relationship, a flat, a job and move back home to my mom’s house. Move to a city I hadn’t lived in since high school, using the excuse (for other people, not myself) of ‘further education’ but with the knowledge I would never stick it out and that I would leave before the first assignment was due.

It was a long time coming, I’ll tell you that.

I have no idea when the lightbulb exploded in my brain and the decision happened but one day, over a tearful phone call, it all felt right. I realised if I wanted my life to turn out the way my ‘dream-life’ was living, a change was needed. Sacrifices that terrified me had to be made.

“We just have to have the courage to turn against our habitual lifestyle and engage in unconventional living…. It is simply waiting out there for you to grasp it, and all you have to do is reach for it”