An Update

This is long overdue. My laptop battery is currently at 5%, giving me a slender amount of time to post this before my darling Chromebook dies on me, but I think we can make it. Hopefully.

Firstly, a lot has happened, hence why I haven't found a spare moment to update my blog. I really wanted to start this as a means of keeping myself on track with my life, yet as you may have realised that didn't quite go as planned. At least I'll have at least one New Year's Resolution: be more organised.

I personally find Evernote very useful. If you haven't already downloaded it on your smartphone (it also comes as an app on your laptop), I'd highly recommend it. I use the free version and it does the trick - it enables me to keep reminders of all the things I have to do and any little memos I want to give myself. I've had plenty in the last couple of months, some which I'd like to tell you all about!

The major news is that I've received a university offer from my joint top choice: Warwick. I was really fortunate as I sent off my UCAS application on the Friday (the 13th! Good one Mél) and received the offer on the Monday! It's my dream university so I really hope I get in. 

Second biggest news is that I'm finally an adult!! It doesn't feel real and it still shocks me a bit that I can no longer get 'child' fares on buses anymore, but I feel like I'm pretty much prepared for the rest. I called up my Dentist to make an appointment, for Goodness' sake, I've definitely taken well to adulthood.

Third biggest news was that on Wednesday I went to my school's Winter Ball which was very exciting for me as afterwards I went out clubbing for the first time! (I now no longer count my Aruba experience as a 'clubbing experience'. What. An. Embarrassment). Anyway, my favourite photo is the one I attached along with this blog post of me and my boyfriend Daniel*. 

Hopefully, I'll be updating my blog a bit more over the Christmas period, but if not, I hope you all have an amazing Christmas and a Happy New Year!

* All names in this blog are fake in order to ensure the privacy of my friends and conceal their identities. However, the characters are all real people and the events actually happened

The Cumberland Hotel

Firstly, I sincerely apologise for the lack of posts. I've been so bogged down by coursework that I've been unable to find enough spare time for myself, let alone to write a review!

A lot has happened since I last posted. I've visited several unis, I've been to several parties, and next week I'm planning on sending off my UCAS form. A couple have my friends have already received offers (including an unconditional!) and I feel that if I tweak my personal statement anymore I'll just ruin it... Can I attach Nobody's Perfect by Hannah Montana to my UCAS application, please?!

In less than a month, I'm turning 18 - something which is a shock to everyone since I still look around 12. On a side note, does anyone have any 'top tips' of things to do before passing this threshold into adulthood? I've yahoo.answered it (as you do) but I can only find pointless gibber gabber such as 'love your friends'... Mate, it'll help if I had any of those. Anyway, this weekend I was invited to three 18th birthday parties, but without a doubt, Yin's* was the classiest and most sophisticated. Nowadays people tend to have house parties just to get drunk and get with your crush, but this birthday party actually consisted of Afternoon Tea at the Cumberland Hotel. It overlooks the beach and had a lovely fresh feel to the place. It has a smart, sophisticated hotel with an aesthetically pleasing lobby, where I was pleasantly greeted by members of staff on reception. I was welcomed graciously and lead into the private function room, where my friend held her gathering. The room was lavishly decorated, with balloons, oversized canvases and dim lights which all added to the wonderful atmosphere.

Afternoon tea cost £13.50 pp, and included French pastry, fresh cream and scones, and the best sandwiches I've ever tasted (..or maybe I was just hungry). There is also a choice between Costa coffee and traditional English tea. I started off with English tea, yet also treated myself to an Iced Latte which was very sweet, but thoroughly enjoyable. Unfortunately, I couldn't take many photos as there was such poor lighting so I can't show you an array of photos which I'd really like to have done.

* All names in this blog are fake in order to ensure the privacy of my friends and conceal their identities. However, the characters are all real people and the events actually happened

Fall Out Boy

Truth be told, I have about five drafts which were typed out all before I even went to the gig expressing my excitement, so you can probably already tell how much this meant to me.

I love Fall Out Boy - a lot.

I really, really do.

But first things first (I'm the realest). Let's start at the very beginning. You may want to get a drink because this is going to be a really long post... 

About two days before the concert, I thought I had lost all chances of going. My friend Lauren* had printed off the ticket online, and guess what?! I lost it. She casually handed it to me at school and I must have misplaced it or left it in a classroom and lost it. My worst fear was that another student found it, picked it up, decided to save themselves £29.50, and went to the gig. You may be thinking that I could easily just, say, print another one off but NO, oh no, that bar code is a one and only and not only would I have lost a small fortune (gigs at the BIC in Bournemouth normally cost around a fiver but since it's FALL OUT BOY then it was undoubtedly dearer), but I would have missed the opportunity of seeing one of my favourite bands. smh. Thankfully, this didn't happen, and on the 10th of October, the day had finally arrived.

I went to the gig with Jane and Charlotte*, later meeting our other friends there. We didn't queue for long (despite arriving at 6:45 pm when doors open a quarter of an hour before) and we were within the main arena by half seven. As a side note, Lauren queued since 9 am!!! She's such a diehard fan, I love her. 

The support acts weren't that great. Charley Marley and Matt and Kim were both trying their hardest for audience participation, and admittedly I did enjoy trying my hardest trying to touch one of the balloons that were thrown vaguely in my direction (cons of being short at a gig), but all in all it didn't really work.

Professor Green was the main support act for Fall Out Boy, which I think everyone was shocked by. They're not even the same genre, and personally I don't think it was a great move. Might contact Bob McLynn to have a quick word. Anyway, my boyfriend Daniel* suddenly got into Professor Green about a week before the gig and forced me to listen to him, which I'm fairly grateful for as it got me quite pumped before seeing Fall Out Boy. We kind of went a bit crazy when Pro Green whipped out Monster and it was nice to have everyone sing along when they played Read All About It as it was probably the only song people knew there. Not that any real emo ever listened to pop radio, ew.

NB: Tap water at the gig cost 40p. If you didn't get charged, the waitress must have either been a b*tch or prejudice against my gay best friend who went to get me the drink. Let's sue them.

NB: If you're small and Asian like me, getting back into a crowd after getting water during the interval is really easy. 

NB: Finding your friends after leaving the arena isn't as easy as you may have expected. 

I guess it's more than you bargained for because I've been dying to tell you about wHEN FALL OUT BOY CAME ON STAGE! You may have guessed that they played Sugar We're Goin' Down, first of all, and then went on to Irresistible, then the Phoenix. I think it was around this time that Patrick spoke for a little bit, something about how great it is that Bournemouth is by the sea, but nobody really knew what he was on about, bless. Anyway, it quickly moved on and Daniel and I acted like that annoying couple at gigs who kissed in between the songs when the lights were off and moved our arms in time to the music. Go get that bucket if you need it.

After their 8th song, the screen came over the stage and a video clip was played. In hindsight, we should have all guessed that something spectacular was going to happen, but I assumed they were just getting some water. Patrick, Pete, and Joe all suddenly appeared on a platform at the back of the arena!!! They played an acoustic version of Immortals and everyone joined in the singing and waved our arms and it was all very cute. After that, they went back on stage through a secret underground channel (or so I assume) which Andy had a very intense session on the drums when everyone thought his arms were going to explode from the pressure.

The 12th song was American Beauty/American Psycho. Everyone knew that the gig was sadly coming to an end, and I secretly wished someone would just crowd surf or something exciting. AND GUESS WHAT MY BOYFRIEND DID?! HE OPENED UP A MOSHPIT. As soon as the chorus came in, everyone jumped in and started moshing, and all-in-all went a bit crazy. It was such a release of energy, and since our friendship group was quite big, we all dragged each other in and ran about and pushed and shoved and screamed at the top of our lungs. It was so amazing, I don't think I've done it justice in words. I guess you just ought to have been there.

By the end of the night, we were all exhausted. The crowds cleared, and we saw a few more friends who came running up to us in floods of tears because Pete touched their hands. (But would I have queued over 10 hours for Pete Wentz to touch my hand?! Probably.). I genuinely believe going to a gig should be considered a work out, because I genuinely sweated more last night then I do when going to the gym. Oh well, Thnks Fr Th Mmrs Fall Out Boy! 

* All names in this blog are fake in order to ensure the privacy of my friends and conceal their identities. However, the characters are all real people and the events actually happened

Manchester Open Day

Eek - my second uni visit finally done! It was a long trek from Bournemouth up to Manchester (roughly seven hours each way with only a couple half our breaks to stretch our legs and get a Costa) but it was worth it.

Friday afternoon, Grace* and I drove up to Manchester and had to spend the night at The Chancellor's. We were fortunate as this was only a few miles away from the University, and the next morning we caught a Magic Bus into the centre, which to our delight only cost us £1.

In total, I went to three talks. I guess I ought to have gone to more since I travelled all the way up there, but I just didn't have enough time! The language building named Samuel Alexandre (pictured above) was very grand and I really liked its interior. Despite dating back to 1919, the building had a very fresh atmosphere and the lecture theatres which I went to were ones which I could easily imagine myself studying in...

One talk that really intrigued me was the IPML presentation (Integrated Professional Masters in Languages). If anyone reading this blog has studied it or has heard about it, please comment below as I'd love to hear first-hand experience of it!

For lunch, Grace* and I went to the Univesity Place for lunch. I think its official name was University Place... Everyone around us called it the 'tin can' - I won't state the obvious and explain why. Anyway, we had beefburger and chips and the portion was absolutely massive and for £4.50 it was definitely worth it! I wish I had taken a photo but I was so hungry that I scoffed it all before I could whip out my camera..ooops.

I think this sums up my blog post! Apologies for not posting a lot recently - I've been overwhelmed with coursework of late and settling into Year 13.





* All names in this blog are fake in order to ensure the privacy of my friends and conceal their identities. However, the characters are all real people and the events actually happened

image link: x

Bristol Open Day

If we ignore my Year 10 visit to Exeter's Campus and my 'for the yolo' tour around Bournemouth Uni (no offence to anyone who goes there, it's just not got the best reputation for my courses..or many others...), Bristol Uni was my first so-called 'proper' open day I've ever been to.
I stayed over at Kasetty's* house the night before and had an early rise the next morning to drive all the way to Bristol in time for my 10 o'clock talk. My first impression was that it was a lovely city. As we drove through, I noticed the wonderful architecture, the diversity of the people, and most of all, the Banksy work. I think that if I were to apply to Bristol Uni, the city would be a big reason which would sway my decision. I did really like the talk given for Modern Foreign Languages (what I hope to read at university), but after the talk was over, I got the chance to really explore and look around.
Being a city uni, I had to trek quite a bit to get from one department to another. I'm sure that after a few weeks being there, I would get used to this, but it was quite tiring for a first-timer such as me. After looking around the Student Union (which has undergone refurbishments), Kasetty and I had a little tour of the city. There was a huge range of shops and little cafeterias (including a vegan bar which pleased K no end) - I would have really enjoyed spending a weekend looking around. I remember going to the Old Vic to see Jane Eyre with my friend Grace* a couple of years ago and I really liked the layout of the theatre, so if that's what you're into I would recommend seeing a performance there one day. 

Above is a picture from one of the quirky vintage shops Kasetty and I visited. I'm really disappointed that I can't recall the name of it, but it was along the main street heading towards Waitrose (wow, good one Mél). Anyway, this little boutique was by far the best shop that we visited. The downstairs part of it was a caféteria whilst the upstairs consisted of a mix of a bookshop, vintage clothes shop, and all round need-to-have goodies. The whole place gave off a young feel and I could have spent hours roaming around and spending more money than I own...

Another place we visited was the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery. I dragged my friend in here because a) I love art b) I love finding meanings to bland pictures and c) it was free. I'm fun to spend time with, I promise... My favourite floor was the second floor with all the art pieces where I finally got to see Noah's Ark by Jan Griffier the Elder which was a wonderful experience for me and I greatly enjoyed it.

If you're also considering Bristol Uni as one of your options, please don't hesitate to comment in the section below - I'd love to know what you thought of it!





* All names in this blog are fake in order to ensure the privacy of my friends and conceal their identities. However, the characters are all real people and the events actually happened

My First (proper) Time At Aruba

For those who thought that this would be a holiday post about the island off the Caribbean sea - sorry, I deceived y'all. Aruba is a restaurant/beach club overlooking Bournemouth beach and pier. I believe it's open to all ages up until around 8-9pm when it turns into an over 18 club, but up until then, it's a nice place to chill and drink over-priced drinks whilst looking out to sea.
The reason I said that this was my first so-called 'proper' time here was because I had previously gone there once before with my Spanish Class but we were all so intimidated by the over-crowded bar that we didn't order anything. We had walked up the stairs, sat on the sofas for 10 mins in a confused and flustered manner, then sneaked out in pairs to not look too suspicious and in case anyone realised that we had not ordered anything... I'm ashamed to say that this was less than 3 months ago.
Thankfully, this time was a little less awkward. It was my close friend Mae's* 18th birthday and we had booked a table in the far corner overlooking the sea (which I thought was kind of pointless as it was already dark when we had arrived and the doors let in an unwanted draft..but this was besides the point).

Above is a picture of my Aruba Caeser Salad with anchovies & Parmesan cheese, Crisp Cos lettuce with seasoned croutons (£8.95). I also got a cheeky bit of shredded chicken on top for an extra two quid, but I was quite disappointed in this as you can see it was just dumped on top of my salad very ungracefully. I would have preferred it to look a little nicer, and my friends' salads (Summer Salad, £9.95) weren't that aesthetically pleasing either. And, yes, we are those annoying white girls that go out to restaurants to eat and order salads. 


We stayed on a bit after we finished our meal and gossiped over Mae's birthday cake (first photo). Whilst at our table, this balloon artist came over and after some of my friends rudely questioned how much he would charge us for his unwanted service and sexual innuendos, he produced a lady bug headband for Mae! I asked him about himself and he said that Aruba paid him (and not us - phew), and that he used to just make balloon shapes as his 'party trick' but his friends encouraged him to start charging people as his skills developed and he became more proficient. At first, he dismissed their comments as he never really believed that anyone would pay for them, but then when he started to charge a small fee, his name got passed around and how he goes to different bars and clubs around Bournemouth. I really like finding out how people got into the jobs that they are in, and Balloon-Guy is just one example of someone who managed to turn his passion into a business!





*All names in this blog are fake in order to ensure the privacy of my friends and conceal their identities. However, the characters are all real people and the events actually happened 

Jet Pack Blues

It hasn't even been a week but I'm already nostalgic about France. I miss the country air, the scenery, and my best friend. She's off to uni this year and as I'm probably not returning to that area of France again, we may not ever meet again like goddamn vegans (Tyler please, this isn't the time).

I thought it would be nice to share with you some of the beautiful views I saw during my summer in France. They range from local lakes to the views across the valley - enjoy!

Our little village from the mountain top

View across the valley from a chambre d'hote

The lake of Puivert

Puivert Castle

Views from blackberry picking

Les Trois Piques

Another blackberry picking view

View from our veranda

Forest 

Le Toucan

When driving back to England, I had the opportunity to stop off and have a little walk around the town of Saint-Lo. I really like how friendly the people are in the North of France, and everything seems very clean. By searching on TripAdvisor, the Toucan had received very good reviews and my parents and I ventured there to try it out. It's a crèperie and therefore their dishes are based around pancakes, however they appeared to use a different batter for their main meals (a thick, savoury batter) to their deserts (a lighter, more delicate batter). Just the look of these photos make me want to go back!

Top Restaurant In Figures, Spain

For my parents' wedding anniversary, we decided to spend two nights in Figures, Spain, so that we could celebrate the date at our favourite restaurant, L'ou Dor. (LINK). It was a lovely occasion, and it's wonderful feeling when the waitresses remember us and the manageress comes and says a little "buenas tardes".
However, we've been to the restaurant more than a dozen times, and we decided that it was time we tried something new. Father searched up for other restaurants in Figures, and I was shocked to discover that L'ou D'or was ranked the 59th on Travelodge - 58 restaurants BETTER than L'ou D'or?! Impossible. Therefore, just to try it out, the next day we luncheoned at the top restaurant in Figures.
The outside appearance was nothing to rave about. In all honesty, it looked a bit like a coffee shop rather than a top restaurant. Whereas L'ou D;'or was in the town's backstreets, we had to travel slightly out of town to get to 9 Suprem. Thankfully, its location had its advantages as there was free parking everywhere.
I was also advised that one books a table in advance, and in hindsight I strongly recommend this, but us being us, we didn't and just turned up #yolo. But seriously, the first time we went there (yup, there was another occasion too!), we arrived just before they started serving for lunch, which was probably the only way we could have gotten a table since a few minutes later, the restaurant was packed. It was a pleasant surprise to note that 9 Suprem's customers were mostly locals. It just emphasises the fact that they weren't a typical "tourist" restaurant that charge extortionate prices for food which is obviously bought from the Carrefour down the road.
Despite the menu being in Catalan, (thus making it harder for me to translate since I only speak Spanish), our very kind water translated it for us. The next day, when we returned for a second time, he did this without hesitation, which was very nice of him.

I can't remember the exact names of each of the dishes, notably because they were in Catalan, but I had a salad with melted Camembert, followed by grilled chicken kebabs and then....the best tiramisu you'll ever taste. No joke, I had the exact same the next day and I do not regret it in the slightest. It was light, creamy and home-made. It was heaven in a jar, honestly.

I think the best part about the meal was that it was only *drum roll*, 10 euros each. 10 euros?! I know, I know. This included the amuse-bouche of olives and bread, as well as water and the house wine (a choice between red and rosé). God only knows how they're making a profit. It's hard to believe that the top restaurant in Figures is so cheap! If you ever have the chance to visit, please do, and order the tiramisu. And bring me back some too. Mhmm...

Ramblings #2

The smell of freshly ground coffee wafts through the morning air as I sit on the veranda looking listening to Frank Ocean. Sweet, sweet life - is it not? Agreed, at the beginning of summer holidays I'm somewhat of a pessimist as I see the blank calender endlessly stretch out, but a blink later and I find myself two weeks' away from re-starting sixth form. I'm going to be in upper-sixth, which despite being one of the 'top dogs' of school, also means that it'll be my last year at the establishment. Time flies like an arrow (...and fruit flies like a banana).

The Uni Prospectuses currently cover the living room floor and Mother keeps complaining how messy it looks. They're flooding in at the moment, and it amuses me to wonder what the postman must think they are as he stuffs four more packages into the tiny slit of our letterbox. Maybe this is what Harry Potter felt like in the Philosopher's Stone when he got hundreds of letters from Hogwarts... or not. Anyway, the majority of the summer has been spent highlighting and comparing each of the courses. The marketing departments have all done such a great job in promoting their unis that I've ended up very confused and wanting to apply to all of them. It's such a joke that 17/18 year olds have to choose a career path at this age. I can't decide what type of cereal to have in the mornings, let alone what I'm going to spend the majority of my adult life doing. Some courses, such as the Liberal Arts and Sciences course at Birmingham, enables students to basically 'pick n mix' their own degree courses. Whether one would want to do a bit of Maths alongside History of Art - whatever, you could do it. I thought that I had finally chosen my course until I saw the Entry Requirements of A*AA *cue for audience laughter*.

I mean, one doesn't /have/ to go to University. It's just the general route everyone goes down because it's what expected. As Felix Dennis says, 'keep to the track, to the beaten track'. But, but what about 'YOLO'? Okay, hear me out and don't think I'm going to go all Drake on y'all. Think of the concept of 'YOLO': You Only Live Once. Personally, I think that the term may be tarnished from young teens' misuse of the phrase. It doesn't justify doing immoral or illegal things, it just means that that you should do things that make you happy and not live in regret for not doing them (then again, if doing immoral and illegal things make you happy.....well, that's for another post). Let me give you an example. The majority of people have 'go skydiving' on their buckletlist. Why? Just like I wrote about here, it is one of those so-called 'sports' which give you a rush of adrenaline. However, when you ask Joe Bloggs in the street if he's ever fulfilled his dream, he'd probably say no. Why? Because he doesn't YOLO. He goes to his 9 to 5 job that'll keep his bills paid, but when he has free time, he sits at home watching Youtube videos of other people skydiving. Go out there, Joe Bloggs; save up and go fulfil your dream of throwing yourself out a moving plane 12,500 feet off the ground.

My friend Harrison* and I used to muse with the idea of truly 'YOLOING' our lives. He had this crazy idea, this crazy, crazy idea, of not going to Uni and just moving out to America, living on a farm, and livin' off of the fatta the lan'.. Living like a hermit, I suppose; being split off from the world and just being content in one's own little world. I mean, why go off to University just to write down on your CV that you have a degree in X? Isn't ignorance bliss? Obviously, when Harrison presented me with this idea I turned into a Geraldine's character from the Beautiful and Damned and replied "Cra-azy". He must have undoubtedly felt like an intellectual among a spoilt and callow youth. After all, he once wrote me a 1,500 word essay (or seemingly so) about a mule. Yeah, you read it right (luv u rly bby). In all seriousness, it was very interesting, and he made the analogy of how that mule didn't know about climate change nor about 9/11, nor any world problems for that matter. It would just go about its day, hell, its /life/, not knowing all those draining issues - but it would still be happy. Maybe we should all be like mules.

Anyway, my coffee appears to have brewed. After I pour it out, I'll no doubt go back to meticulously reviewing university prospectuses.

Mediterranean Markets

Call me cynical, but to me, most Mediterranean markets are the same. There's the same old pointless junk sold in each of the stalls, with overly-eager sellers (or, seemingly laid-back sellers who glare at you from afar) who are just gagging for your money. Plus, they can literally smell tourists from a mile off and bunk up their prices when they see yo' skinny white ass approaching. Have you not heard of bargaining, darling? I must admit that I used to be a bit fearful of doing so, perhaps after my first experience when I was 10 and my Father pushed me to ask for a lower price for some tacky hair band that most 10 year olds want, and the woman merely pierced her lips together and said "Non, petite. Allez, va t'en". This was condescending, and psychologically damaging as I didn't try to push market prices down for about 4 years until my ego recovered.

Nowadays, I rarely accept the suggested price on items I find at markets. After all, the price on an item is called an 'Offer to Treat', to give it its legal name. This means that the price that they place on the item isn't necessarily the one you settle upon. It is just an 'offer', as the name suggests. Occasionally, and this just goes to show how low my life has become, I enjoy bargaining with market sellers on items I don't necessarily want to buy; I like bargaining just to see how much percentage I can get off. Then again, this can go awfully wrong. The other day I felt like Johnny English trying to escape the crazy cleaner lady because I had to run away, literally run away from this guy who didn't get the hint that I didn't want to buy his tacky faux P'tit Marcel bag. I used the common excuse of "Oh, I'll be right back, I just have to get my money" but the idiot wasn't street wise enough to get the hint and followed five paces behind me until I escaped to some public bathrooms and stayed in there until I 100% knew he was no longer waiting for me outside. Tragic, I know.

Every time I go to markets, it's like I can already tell what is going to be there. There'll be the fruit section, the clothes section, and the trinkets section. I mean, c'mon, here's a check-list of people in markets that you can use to play 'I Spy' with.
 - a stall with tons of bracelets attached to cardboard poles
 - a fruit stall with melon samples which is covered with flies, but nobody seems to know the definition of hygiene as they happily stuff their face with the bacterial-ridden fruit
 - a mysterious white haired woman selling spiritual books and crystals
 - a guy with amazing dreadlocks, tattoos and piercings selling intense and Buddha statues (he often seems really, um, /high/ on life)
 - a token English couple selling some weird English stuff eg. scones, which nobody really wants bar other English people, who are often friends of the couple and who only buy their products out of pity
 - a stall with huge woven baskets in pretty colours, pretty designs and pretty big sizes
 - a stall with all the varieties of 'saucisson' there is, which includes tasters and is probably one of the most popular tables in the market until a little kid screams because there is the option to buy some little horsy meat too... which, by the way, is delicious
 - an organic honey store with tasters of bread and spoons to spread the honey on... again, very unhygienic - but who cares apart from the tourists?
 - a mobile pizza van which nobody really goes to
 - a stall selling bread that looks like rock hard plastic which would 'kneed' a strong set of teeth to eat, let alone a good deal of stomach acid to digest
 - a dench old guy who attends a surprisingly huge book store who insists on reading you Voltaire in a deep, calming voice... and thus convincing you to buy an anthology of French poems (true story)
 - second hand clothes 'stores' which looks like a bomb exploded in a teenage girl's wardrobe and then taken to the market and set out on a tressel
 - overly eager Moroccan men ready to sell you imitation leather bags and belts (reference to the story above)
 - and finally, the most random store which sells stuff ranging from mattresses, to kitchen utensils, to loom bands to zips...

If you've ever been to a Mediterranean market, did you recognise any of the people I mentioned above? If not, do comment others that you've seen so that I can add them to the list. This post has quite a negative view of markets, but there is a part of me, deep deep down, which actually likes them. I guess I like their ambiance, which one can't really get in England. I like the chaotic cries coming from the loud fruit sellers, the rush of people as they go from store to store, but what I love most of all, is spending my money buying all the pointless junk I find there.

Andorra La Vella

Personally, I find that the views in Andorra are breathtaking. When driving to the capital, you get to go through many tunnels within the mountain and come up in a valley with the mountains towering either side of you. I've always dreamt of skiing there, however the closest place I've been skiing was Les Angles, which is more towards the French boarder.

I did intend to take some photos of the views, but as we left early in the morning to drive to Andorra, I fell asleep in the car journey. Oops, sorry about that.
As you can tell, we chose a beautiful day to travel. If I recall correctly, the temperature rose to about 33 degrees Celsius, which enabled us to walk around town without it being unbearably hot. We found one of Dali's sculptures in the town centre (pictures below) which was a pleasant surprise as he's my favourite artist. I wrote about a restaurant he used to visit here, if you are as big as fanatic about him as I am. I've often visited his museum, as well as his house and Gala's palace, if you'd like me to recollect and assort a post for you about there, please leave a comment below.




For lunch, we went to a Michelin star restaurant which received dazzling reviews on TripAdvisor. Its name was Bodega Poblet and was quite hard to locate as its outward appearance is very closed off. The restaurant gives off a very rustic feel, with home-like decor and about a dozen tables, which only added to its allure.





The service is what I loved most about Bodega Poblet Our waitress, as we discovered, originated from Lisbon, Portugal, and had a very charismatic persona. I informed her that I came to practise my Spanish, and she kindly helped me translate the Spanish Menu into English for my parents, even though she could have easily done so herself as her English was flawless. (On a side note, English spoken with a Portuguese accent is so charming). At the end of our meal, she made a special point of thanking us for choosing the restaurant and wished us a good and happy life. The whole experience - from the wonderfully prepared food to our waitress' loveliness - makes me want to recommend this restaurant to anyone who plans to go to Andorra la Vella any time soon!

Ramblings #1

It is typically when scrolling through a teenage girl's social media feed that you're likely to find an inspirational picture with the caption 'GOALS' attached to it. The photograph may be of a model she desires to look like, a couple in a relationship she might find cute, or even an appetizing looking meal. It all seems very nice, but what does it all mean?

There is no real evidence of where this trend started. I presume it is yet another American influence which has swept over the rest of the world via the World Wide Web. If you want to see what is often perceived as 'goals', searching up Kylie Jenner on sites such as Tumblr is a great way of reminding yourself how pathetically mundane and unlavish your life really is. I doubt that you'll be able to resist being envious of their possessions where they get paid for..living, basically. But the Kardashian's lifestyle is only one aspect which these girls call 'goals'. The seemingly 'everyday girl' is flawless, healthy and beautiful; her boyfriend is model material, gentlemanly, and respectful; their apartment is fresh, clean, perfect. Girls have become accustomed to sharing these kinds of pictures on social media, and it is hard not to feel envious. 'Goals AF!!' wrote one girl under a picture of Cara Delevigne, 'I want her body, she is literal goals' commented another. The list of, I must admit, superficial comments go on and on. 

At one stage, I had even jumped on the bandwagon. Admittedly, I had to urban-dictionary what it all meant, but after that was done I was posting pictures of my ideal 'perfect' body, my 'perfect' apartment, my 'perfect' life. But then something clicked in my brain. The part of your brain that has been taught to question everything. That little, God-sent voice called my conscience pipped up one day, and asked 'What are you going to do about it?'. This had never occurred to me, nor do I believe that it has occurred to many of the other girls who are part of this 'trend'. What am I going to do about it? I've seen the way I want my life to be like, realise that my current life is not like that, so what am I going to do about it?

There are copious amounts of books, articles and posts written about 'Getting the life you want'. I've read them and reread them, and it all boils down to one fundamental concept: Focus on your goals, and your goals will be achieved. This doesn't mean staring at that photo of the girl with the perfect body and moping about how you don't look like her, it means getting off your back side and hitting the gym. If you want to get into Oxford, study hard. If you want that big paying job, work hard. If you want to own that Lexus, save hard. Nobody is preventing you from doing what you want to do, bar yourself. You can be successful and achieve your goals if you put your heart and soul into it. So girls, there is no point whatsoever posting a photo on social media showing us your 'goals' if you don't go out and chase them. If you want it, go get it. 

The Military Diet: My Experience

I've never been on a diet before. There didn't seem much point, if I'm honest. Up until now, I believed the propaganda fed to me by my school, my parents, reviews in magazines: "Be healthy but don't be stupid" was the bottom line. You should eat everything in moderation, stick as close as possible to your five-a-day and not be a couch potato. There seemed to be no use in forcing yourself, making yourself even unhappy, by going on a diet as they never worked. That's what they said, anyway.

I'm not particularly large, nor particularly slim. I'm 17 and have a petite build, but I can't run up three flights of stairs without puffing and blowing. I hope you're getting an idea of what I'm physically like by this... Anyway, it's summer and I have time on my hands. After reading some #justgirlythings on tumblr and getting motivated to get fit, I bought myself some exercise gear which I found on Pinterest and decided that I was to go on daily walks in order to build up stamina and tone up. However, I asked myself, why not go all out? As mentioned previously, I had the time to search up and plan a diet. The search for a short, easy diet which worked wasn't hard to find and Google quickly brought me to The Military Diet.

For those who have not heard of it, The Military Diet is a three day diet which provides the dieter with precise meals which they should eat at breakfast, lunch and dinner. It's easy, and some websites even provide you with a shopping list to know exactly what to buy. The food isn't even that bad either! Mainly consisting of stuff I like such as tea, tuna and toast, I thought I'd give dieting a go...

At the start of the three day-marathon, I weighed around 48kg, which I've heard is average for a 5"3 teenage girl. I was motivated, and hardly felt like I was on a diet as I was eating stuff I enjoyed. Additionally, in the heat of summer one doesn't feel as hungry as one would say, in winter, therefore I think it was an easy transition from what I usually ate to dieting. All I had to do was cut out the fizzy drinks, the snacks in between meals, throw away the stash of food I have hidden under my bed for midnight treats...

It thus came as a shock to me that at the end of the second day, I had put on weight. I asked my Mother if that was the same for her, as she had kindly said she'd go on the diet with me for morale support, and she had had the same experience too. Admittedly I cursed the diet, the vloggers, and all those filthy filthy lies I had read and so gulliably took as gospel, but nevertheless I carried it onto the third day.

And it's finally over! By the third day I had really started complaining about my hunger - God forbid I ever went on a diet lasting longer than three days, I wouldn't be able to cope - so it was a relief when I had my last bite of the apple on the third night, followed by the vanilla ice cream*.

Anyway, I undressed and reluctantly stood on the scales this morning, and joy of joys, I've lost 6lbs. Not the promised 10lbs, but I'm still happy with the result. Now that I'm not cursing the diet and have returned to my senses (or something similar), I'd recommend this diet to anyone who wants to lose a quick few pounds. Also, I feel this is kind of a 'try before you buy' kind of diet which allows you to predict how you'd cope if you go for the full blown thing. Diets on average last a few months! Personally, I'm glad I've done it as it's another thing I could blog to you lovelies about, but on the other hand, I'll probably put on the weight during my oh-so-missed midnight snacks. If dieting is your thing though, just

*I never really understood why the vanilla ice cream and the peanut butter were part of this crazy diet, they seemed somewhat out of place. The internet explained that it was to counteract the other ingredients and cancel each other out, but Mumma said it was to appeal to the American Market. 

Image link: x

REVIEW: Kindle

I went to the dark side and bought myself a Kindle.

I know, I know. I've heard all the arguments about how it’s not the same as a good ol’ fashioned book - and I was one of those who used to preach the exact same thing. I used to frown down upon Kindles because it took away the beauty of reading a book. The process of going to a bookstore, fingering the covers and the bindings of tens of books, picking one up and feeling the texture of the pages, weighing the book in your hands as you flick through the pages before pressing your nose into the middle of the book to smell that comforting ‘book smell’. All those little pleasures are taken away when buying a Kindle, and that’s a very strong point that opposition have.

My rationale behind buying a Kindle was very simple. Due to the vast amount of work I am set at school, it is very rare that I get enough time to sit down with a cup of coffee and immerse myself in a novel. The last ‘actual’ book I read for pleasure was probably Lord of the Far Island, in Summer of 2014, which may give you a time-scale. However, a few months ago I bought Girl Gone on GoogleBooks for my phone. It was an impulse buy, admittedly, as it was on sale, but I devoured it within a couple of weeks (I am a fairly slow reader and this was during exam period so this was incredibly fast given the circumstances). I was amazed at how fast I read it, but in some ways, I’m not surprised. Being a typical teenage girl, my phone is in my hand 24/7 and in any spare moment (eg; on a bus journey, between lessons, when so-and-so goes on about their boyfriend…) I would open the app and easily pick off where left. It was that simple.

I knew that this means of reading suited me, however there was one major problem - I am shortsighted, very shortsighted. I knew that if I were to look at such a small screen*, my eyesight would get considerably worse and that was not something which I could sacrifice. Therefore, after a little investigation, I found the perfect alternative priced at £109.99: the new Kindle Paperwhite. Now, I don’t often buy the latest gadget on the market (in all honesty I often don’t find much difference between each generation and believe that it is only a way to sell more products *cough* Apple *cough*, but let’s not get into that), but this time I had my eye fixed on a product which still hadn’t been released. Therefore, there were no reviews to indicate whether the purchase would satisfy my needs, but the YouTube trailers sure did look good. Amazon also showed outstanding reviews for the previous generation, the Kindle Paperwhite 6, though there were a couple of complaints about the lack of backlighting, and for my eyesight’s sake, I didn’t even consider it (bearing in mind there were about 2 complaints out of 1000s, and it would have cost me considerably less but... it’s my life, Mum). And that was it. Item bought and dispatched the next day after I subscribed to the 30 day free trial of Amazon Prime in order to get free delivery.

Kurt the Kindle is now very much part of my life. Kurt, after Kurt Cobain, goes everywhere with me and fits perfectly into my handbag. I love him, I love him I love him I love him. As soon as I received him I ran upstairs to charge him and download books onto him.** One thing I must warn you of, dear Readers, is to search through the free books available before buying any. There are about 26 search pages of classic books which are included under the public domain and are free of charge. I myself downloaded around 50 of the free books, which range from anything from Great Expectations to Dracula. It’s as simple as one little click, and after signing in to your Amazon account on both devices (or alternatively plugging the Kindle into your laptop then connecting it to your WiFi), the books automatically sync in.

Kurt immediately introduces you to the How-To guide on how to use him and has Step-By-Step instructions in order to familiarise yourself with him. Once that is out the way, you can always go back to the Manual, which is kept in your personal ‘bookshelf’ as well as a Dictionary. Oh, one of my favourite things about Kurt is the dictionary. When reading a book, even if you’re offline, you can highlight a word and not only does it give you a definition, where the word originates from, the option to X-Ray or Wikipedia it (internet required), but it also automatically adds the unfamiliar word to your personal dictionary so that you can review and learn it! How awesome is that? If English is not your native language, there is also an option called ‘Word Wise’ which gives simple explanations of words above a complicated word whilst reading and you can select how many words you want Kurt to define (ranging on difficulty levels).

Being an English Literature student, I was worried about how I would make notes, however Kurt had the solution. I can highlight sections of any text, add notes, but more importantly, I can also see sections which other Kindle users have highlighted and depending on how many times they have highlighted it I can judge the importance of the quote. That is by no doubt one of my favourite things about Kurt. The mere simplicity and how easy it is to use him. I remember when I used to have ‘actual’ books and went through the grand deliberation of weighing up the consequences of writing in books. Whether it be for personal notes or for school, I think we can all agree that writing in a book feels like a crime, a violation. However, with Kurt I don’t feel guilty at all.

Apologises for the length of this blog post, I'm just really enthusiastic about Kindles. I hope that you can all understand, or at least, have some more knowledge, on how amazing Kindles are and that there is so much blasphemy surrounding them. If you have a Kindle, please feel free to comment your thoughts and if not, I’d love to hear why you’re a good ol’ fashioned book lover!

* I own the Motorola G 2nd Gen with the 5”5 inch screen but it is still comparatively small. Endless research has shown that due to the reflection/glare which screens give off, access use of electronic devices such as mobile phones is not recommended without pauses of 15mins of looking into the long distance in order to relax one’s eye muscles. Kindles are fitted with anti-glare and therefore doesn’t look or act like a screen. It gives the appearance and also feels like actual paper.

** The cable is included but with no plug that connects to a wall, so I normally just plug it into the side of my laptop or swap wires with that of my phone.

Spanish Cooking Course Taught By An Expert (BONUS: tomato contest!)

Me? Cooking? I know, quite unbelievable. But, I guess pigs really do fly, because this little piggy flew all the way to Tagamanent, Spain.
My parents and I were fairly apprehensive when we first arrived at El Follo. We drove up a narrow, windy path and when we finally arrived at the gates of the chambre d'hote, it was deserted. After questioning whether we had arrived at the right place, we suddenly realised our fatal mistake: we had arrived during siesta time. Therefore, whilst Father explored our to-be-home for the next week, I made friends with this little beauty named Micha.



It was not long until our host discovered that a stranger was poking around her pots (umm..Father?!), and came to greet us. Mercè Brunés is a Catalan chef who has a passion for food and a great understanding of gastronomy. She gave us a warm welcome and ushered us into the covered terrace for some drinks. Unfortunately, I am unable to recall the ingredients Mercè used to make this beverage, which is a shame since it was healthy as well as delicious.



I feel that I am very fortunate to have had the experience of seeing a great chef at work. My Mother and I often helped and overlooked Mercè in her kitchen and she opened our minds to some wonderful combinations which we would have never thought of! I was also able to try some foods which I had never tried before, such as grilled octopus and courgette fritters in a batter of rice flour and sparking water. As well as modifying dishes to accommodate our allergies, she kindly made her renowned peer and duck dish for us to try, photos don't do her justice.


On the third night, Mercè casually suggested that we should come with her the next day toa Tomato Tasting Evening with all the (FAMOUS) restaurateurs of the area. It was a annual event where each of the chefs presented a disk that they had made using a variety of tomatoes. We readily accepted this invitation and were very honoured and many other "foodie" guests had wanted to attend.
That evening, Mercè drove my parents and me down to the Vinomic restaurant where the presentation was going to take place. In some ways, I regret not taking more photos as I didn't want to show that I was a tourist (more that I already did, of course). We were shown to our allocated seats and given small booklets about a number of different tomatoes that we were about to taste, along with a scoring sheet where we had to rate their flavours, textures, acidities, etc.



Each chef gave an introduction before presenting the judges (eek, I was one of those!) their new dish. Their concoctions contained tomatoes (nah, you don't say) in a different form. We were given all sorts of combinations to try out, from bloody mary's to tomato coolies. The event lasted for a couple of hours and I managed to speak to several chefs and other judges about the dishes and how they were made. It was also very interesting to note that these people primarily considered themselves Catalan rather than Spanish, and made a point of correcting me each time I called something of theirs "Spanish". The evening came to an end around 10pm and we returned to our chambre d'hote.
I thoroughly enjoyed my time learning about cooking and having been given the opportunity to attend a local tasting event. Again, a big thank you to Mercè for the incredible memoires and such an inspiring adventure.