In only one short year as an expat living in London, I have already noticed a blur in the line of my identity. Although my American accent and citizenship are still intact, I now find myself minding gaps, moaning about the weather, queuing, apologizing, burning, embracing new sports and spelling like a true Brit! Below are a few of the quintessentially British things that I have picked up in my stint here thus far: Learning to navigate London’s intricate and sophisticated public transport system is one thing, but understanding and adhering to British public transportation etiquette is imperative if you'd like to avoid contemptuous stares. After learning some of following rules, the hard way, I am now proud to say that I am a protocol-abiding passenger: Always allow all passengers to exit the train before you begin boarding Always allow all passengers to exit the train before you begin to board Give up to your seat to the elderly/disabled/pregnant (you'll know they're pregnant, because they'll most likely be wearing a button) On the Tube escalators, you MUST stand to the right and walk on the left Above all else, avoid eye contact with any other passengers at all costs. If your eyes happen to meet in the window reflection, look away immediately. No, seriously, don't even pretend to look at anyone. Regardless of the weather being too cold or too hot, it is inherently British to complain about it. According to the Daily Mail, ‘The average Briton whinges about the climate four times a day, for a total of eight minutes and 21 seconds.’ I find that I am talking about the weather more these days than any human ever should. I even find that I an now guilty of beginning conversations with statements like ‘Lovely weather today’ or ‘It’s meant to rain this weekend’ Of course it's meant to rain; it's England! Queuing (or as we call it in the US, lining up) is a famous English ritual that is taken very seriously. In the US, long lines often lead to chaos and shoving, but not here. The British are renowned for their polite and patient queuing techniques. At Wimbledon 'queue cards' are handed out, with strick instructions. This is for the benefit of the foreigners, as Brits are well aware of the queuing laws. This is no joke, people. If, god forbid, the high queuing standards are ever breached, the Brits will moan about it, but only to their friends, never directly to the delinquent. If the British made anything other than queuing a national pastime, it would be apologizing. Typically, Brits don’t like to ‘make a fuss’ about things, so they commonly apologize for every small infraction or perceived wrongdoing. It’s not uncommon to hear an apology for things that are out of their control (‘I’m sorry about this rain’) or things that are not their fault, like saying sorry when someone else steps on their foot. Sentences often begin with sorry, even when unnecessary (‘sorry, is anyone sitting here?’). I wonder if a Brit could go a whole day without saying sorry?! Although I haven’t fully adopted the over-apologizing yet, I do find that I say sorry more frequently when I’m in England. It just feels right. Pale skin is a stereotypically English trait. There simply is not enough sun, most of the year, to get a natural tan. Before moving here I would say that I had an olive-colored skin tone. Somehow England has managed to suck it all out of me though. I went to buy new make-up a few months back and nearly cried when my new color was called alabaster. On top of it all, I now burn. I never used to burn. Give me my pigment back, England!!! One of my favorite parts of living in London are the various sporting events...and the drinking that inevitably accompanies all of them. The mainstream sports here are not baseball, basketball and (American) football. They vary quite drastically in fact and I have found that I definitely prefer the British options. In my time here, I have been to see several rugby matches, football (soccer), cricket, the Oxford vs Cambridge boat race, the Royal Windsor horse races, polo, the America’s Cup Sailing World Series and Wimbledon. For the sophisticated spectators over here, apart from the sport itself, the focus of all these events seems to center around champagne, Pimms or a bottle of Rosé. My British colleagues take great pleasure in pointing out my Stateside battering of the English language. When communicating via email during working hours, I’ve had to learn to replace z’s with s’s (i.e. realise, summarise) and throw weird u’s in words (humour, neighbour). Math is now maths, centre is not center any longer and traveling has become travelling. Sometimes it’s just easier to succumb, rather than to fight it. I'm intrigued to see what other English traits I pick up, in the upcoming four years that remain on my visa. Stay tuned for updates... #english #british #american #queuing #apologizing #paleskin #sports #expat #london #unitedkingdom #weather

After recently spending a lovely weekend in København (AKA Copenhagen), Denmark’s capital, I can say, with full confidence, that the Danish are the tallest collection of people I've ever mingled amongst. Officially, the world's tallest people are the Dutch (average 6’1” or 1.85m), but the average Danish adult is only slightly shorter (6ft or 1.83m). I have never felt short in my life! In addition to being blessed with height, the Danes are also extremely happy. Denmark is ranked third on The Happiest Countries in the World list. Everyone, from waitstaff to hotel receptionists to fellow bar patrons, were smiling and exceedingly friendly (and all spoke perfect English). If you're planning to visit Copenhagen, bring your wallet - and make sure it's full of Danish Krone! Denmark recently placed seventh on the list of The World’s Most Expensive Countries to Visit. Below is a list of my personal recommendations on where to stay/eat/drink and what to do/see, if you find yourself in Copenhagen or are planning a trip there: Stay I would strongly recommend staying in the Nyhavn area of town. I was at a hotel called Scandic Front. It was fine for what I needed - great location, friendly staff and a comfy bed, but there wasn’t anything particularly brilliant about the hotel itself. It would have been nice if they had mentioned that the whole area outside the hotel was under construction before we booked (below is a view from my room) and also if they hadn't initially given me a key to a room that was already occupied. I’d recommend also looking into 71 Nyhavn Hotel as an option. I can’t speak to when the weather isn’t great, but on beautiful days, like I experienced, there were loads of people out and about on the streets in Hyhavn. Open container laws don't exist, so everyone was sat around with their friends, drinking adult beverages, chatting and enjoying the sunshine. Eat If you're a foodie, you have no doubt heard of Noma, which has been voted third on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list. If you want spend a small fortune, be sure to book several months in advance. As an alternative to Noma, try Amass, which is ranked #66 on The World’s 100 Best Restaurants list. The former head chef of Noma, Matt Orlando (who is coincidentally from the same town where I formerly lived in San Diego), has branched out and is now the owner of this eco-friendly, organic, sustainable restaurant where they grow their own herbs out back. It’s far easier to get a reservation here and about a quarter of the price of Noma. The space was very cool, the sunset was phenomenal, the wine was excellent, the Scottish waiter was adorable, the food was creative and the owner (who came over and chatted with us for about 15 mins) was absolutely lovely. Copenhagen Street Food (AKA Papiroen) is an old warehouse, on Paper Island, that has been filled with a wide array of international food stalls. We didn’t have an opportunity to eat there, but it looked amazing! Drink Ruby Cocktail Bar is a bit like having a drink in your grandmother’s sitting room. 1105 is an intimate cocktail bar, which is worth a visit. I don’t recommend ordering wine there though. See/Do Put on some comfy shoes, acquaint yourself with the city and wander around. It’s a flat, very walkable city. Don't miss the following: Church of our Saviour - With it's external winding staircase, it has views all the way to Sweden on a nice day. Freetown Christiania - A self-governed, hippie-commune of about 850 residents, which is technically not part of the EU and where marijuana is legal. Take a canal tour - For views, from the water, of sites like the Little Mermaid Statue (unimpressive, but famous), the Copenhagen Opera House, Dome of Visions, etc. Carlsberg Tour - I didn't have time to do this, but I heard good things. Skip Tivoli Gardens unless you’re in the mood for an amusement park. Rent a bike and get lost - Cycling is the most popular means of transportation in this city. Shop on Strøget.

A top requirement of mine, during the planning phase of my recent Iceland adventure, was to set foot in the Arctic Circle. Luckily, my parents, whom I was travelling with, accommodated my request without too much convincing and my wish became a reality. The only inhabited territory of Iceland within the Arctic Circle is a very small island called Grímsey. It’s about 40km north of the mainland and is only 5.3 square kms in size. Grímsey can be reached by either ferry or air, originating from Akureyi. The ferry takes about 3 hours and, from what I understand, can be a very unsettling journey. Alternatively, the plane takes 30 minutes and is about the easiest flight you’ll ever take… We arrived at the Akureyi airport about 40 minutes prior to our scheduled flight. We walked up to the ticket counter where we were asked our names. The Norlandair representative handed us 3 printed receipts as boarding passes, without ever asking for identification. We went and sat in the gate as we waited to board the plane. There was no security at all – no show removal, no liquids restrictions, no metal detectors, nothing. The flight was delayed slightly, due to weather, but eventually we were called to board. We walked through a door, onto the tarmac, without displaying any ID nor boarding passes. We climbed the ladder to a Twin Otter 19-passenger plane and sat wherever we pleased. The plane was tiny that there were no overhead compartments. Instead, bags were placed on your lap or set on an otherwise empty seat. There was no door to the cockpit and the pre-flight safety announcement was delivered by the pilot simply turning around and speaking to the 5 passengers on-board, without the use of a microphone. During this safety briefing, it was recommended that seatbelts be worn. Emergency exits were not pointed out, life vests were not mentioned and nobody ever bothered to state the smoking was prohibited. I then noticed that the props, which should have been used to deliver the safety demonstration (seatbelt and oxygen mask), were in the seat pocket in front of me. I, momentarily, considered standing up and improvising my own safety presentation, but then reconsidered. We arrived 30 minutes later at the tiny Grímsey Airport and were greeted by a woman named Gagga. In a speech, which I’m sure she repeats daily, it was indicated that the Arctic Circle monument was about a minute walk to our right and the town was to the left. We made our way to the right, to cross into the Arctic Circle and to take the compulsory photographs. Once the pictures were snapped, it started raining quite hard. We decided to walk into ‘town’ and see if we could find a place to escape the elements. We noticed a car coming towards us that seemed to be slowing down. It eventually stopped right in front of us. Gagga rolled down her window and asked us if we’d like a ride. She offered to show us the town church (which is the smallest, cutest thing ever and is used about three times a year). She then dropped us off at the local grocery market. She instructed us to be back around 5:00pm for our return flight, but not to worry if we were late or got lost because she’d come find us. We bought a candy bar in the shop and then started walking in the direction of the airport. Once back at the airport, Gagga handed us certificates authenticating that we had reached the Arctic Circle. These had been hand-written, by Gagga, in calligraphy, and they doubled as our boarding passes. Gagga – greeter, chauffeur, tour guide, calligrapher and airport security - was the only person whom we came in contact with in our short time on the island. It’s said that Grímsey has a community of about sixty inhabitants, but I’m not convinced. #arcticcircle #iceland #grimseyisland #akureyi

As you can see in the map above, quite a lot of Icelandic territory was covered during my 10-day road trip. I won’t bore you with the daily details of the entire trip, but I thought I’d share my favorite bits, along with some photos and general tips. *Since Icelandic words are very long and contain some odd letters, I'll start off by sharing a few word parts that might make the things listed below a bit clearer: foss = waterfall jökull = glacier fjörður = fjord Below is my list of the top 14 things to do/see if you find yourself in Iceland. You will note that about half of them are waterfalls - Waterfalls are amongst Iceland's most recognizable attractions. As you drive around, you see them everywhere - essentially, the whole country appears to be leaking! 1. Blue Lagoon: It seems everyone has heard of the Blue Lagoon and it’s on every must-do Iceland list that you'll read. In all honesty, I didn’t expect to like it very much, as I anticipated it to be a tourist trap. I’ll be clear here, it is in fact a tourist trap, but that said, it’s also pretty great. You must book in advance, online. You cannot just turn up and assume that you’ll get in. 2. Gullfoss 'Golden Waterfall': This is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Iceland. It’s located in the canyon of Hvítá river, in the southwest. It’s been set up really well for viewing, as you can walk along paths overlooking it and also get sprayed by the mist from the top of the falls. 3. Seljalandsfoss: This waterfall is situated in the south region of Iceland. It can be seen from the main road (Route 1). The best part about this waterfall is that you can walk all the way around it. 4. Gljúfurárfoss: To the left of Seljalandsfoss, there’s another waterfall which is often overlooked. It's hidden within a cave and is magical. If you're willing to brave the ice cold water, you can climb right in there. Your efforts will be rewarded. It's amazing! 5. Snowmobiling on Mýrdalsjökull: It was about a 30 minute, VERY bumpy, drive from the Arcanum headquarters up to the ice cap. The snowmobiling portion of the tour is about an hour. All the gear is provided and the tour guides are excellent. 6. Vik & neighboring Reynishöfn: Vik is the southernmost village in Iceland, located on the Ring Road. It’s famous for its black sand beach and puffin sightings (if it’s the right time of the year). Nearby, on Reynishverfi Beach, you can climb on the basalt column rock formations and explore caves. It's like a playground for adults! 7. Svartifoss: A waterfall in Vatnajökulsþjóðgarður (say that 10 times fast...or even once) National Park. It’s a fairly easy hike to get to this foss. The waterfall is nicknamed ‘Black Fall’ because it is surrounded by dark lava columns. 8. Jökulsárlón Glacial Lagoon: This is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. As huge blocks of ice fall off the glacier, Breiðamerkurjökull, the icebergs float into this lagoon. You aren’t allowed out on the icebergs here, but if you cross the road, there’s a black sand beach where you can climb amongst the glaciers for an iceberg photo shoot!! 9. Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon: Located in the southeast area of Iceland, not far from the village of Kirkjubæjarklaustur. This easy hike, along the top of the canyon, affords you continuously changing views. I’ve read that you can walk through the actual canyon too, but you’ll need to be prepared to wade across the river. 10. Skógafoss: This is one of the biggest falls in Iceland. There are 377 steps alongside the falls that you can trek up. Once at the top, there are some hiking trails and a lot more waterfalls. If you’re really adventurous, fit and properly equipped with the right gear, you can hike all the way to Landmannalaugar (about 55km). 11. Hraunfossar: This is a beautiful series of waterfalls. There was a rainbow across the top when I first arrived, which was spectacular. The water is usually a glacial blue, but it was pretty brown when I visited. ​12. Husafell Ice Tunnels/Caves: This tour takes your through man-made tunnels inside one of Europe's largest glaciers, Langjökull. The ice chambers are backlit with LED lights and there's even an ice room that can be rented out for weddings/events. 13. Whale Watching: I can't say enough about this excursion! Ambassdor has had 100% whale sightings every day since May 2015. Since the whales are found in a fjord, called Eyjafjörður, and the waters are calm, seasickness is very rare. Also, you don’t have to go that far out before you start to see whales. The humpbacks get so close that you can almost touch them. You might even get splashed by one, if you’re lucky. 14. Grimsey Island: This island is about 40km north of the mainland, and is the only part of Iceland that lies within the Arctic Circle. There are about 60 inhabitants in the winter and up to approximately 100 in the summer months. The flight from Akureyri is 30 minutes. There is not much to do once you get there, but you do get to leave with a certification acknowledging that you’ve been to the Arctic Circle. Below are a few tips and pointers for a road trip in Iceland: Everyone speaks English and the Icelandic people are very friendly Wifi is available just about everywhere Iceland is more expensive than you would ever think is possible Credit cards are widely accepted, even at toll booths Tipping is not customary and not expected Food there is very good, but there isn’t a ton of variety – try meat soup and a reindeer burger The butter is to die for Radio stations are few and far between and are not typically in English - bring an auxiliary cord so you can play music from your phone/tablet With such a high number of tourists, all year round, I'd advise that you book everything in advance – tours, hotels, etc. The weather in September is cold, windy and rainy. Northern Lights are possible to see during this time of year, if the sky is clear enough Beware of nature! There is a very good chance that you will get attacked by a herd of sheep and your car might get munched on by horses! #iceland

Many of the budget airlines, particularly in Europe, limit passengers to one piece of carry-on luggage (which also must be within the confines of specified measurements and weight restrictions). Many of these airlines, absurdly, do not allow you to bring on an additional small, under-seat bag (i.e. handbag or laptop bag). And this rule is often strictly enforced. I try to pack lightly for several reasons: 1) I don’t want to deal with the possibility of lost baggage, 2) I’m uninterested in paying extra to check a suitcase and 3) I don’t want to waste time standing in line to initially check my bag and then waste more time on the other end retrieving it. I do have the good fortune of wearing mini-human-sized shoes/clothing, so I can get away with only a one piece of cabin luggage in most scenarios. But even I struggle without the option of that additional personal item. This is especially challenging because I typically travel with a large DSLR camera. However, I’ve discovered a loophole in this luggage limit that I'm prepared to share with you, because I like you! In my experience, even the strictest of budget airlines will allow you to bring on one duty-free bag, in addition to your one carry-on. I’ve also learned that duty-free shops are typically not fussed about giving you an empty bag if you ask nicely, especially if you tell them that you’ve experienced a toiletry explosion incident (that’s the excuse that I always use, but feel free to be creative here). Once the duty-free bag is obtained, I put my purse in it and voila - the extra carry-on bag solution that you’ve been looking for!! How's that for a nugget of wisdom? The other, more random option, is to wear as much of your luggage as possible. I know it sounds a bit ridiculous, but wearable luggage is actually becoming a real thing and is increasingly becoming a way for people to beat the strict luggage limitations. Happy travels!!

In under 2.5 hours, you can fly from London to Portugal’s capital city, Lisbon. With such a quick flight, it's easy to enjoy a weekend in this charming, hilly, coastal city with mild weather, colorful buildings, amazing food and welcoming people. But don’t take my word for it though...The Portuguese love to throw around the odd superlative - some documented and some seemingly self-imposed. Lisbon is one of the oldest cities in the world and the oldest in Western Europe. This is Google verified. However, while I was there, I also walked by the oldest operating bookstore in the world, ate at the oldest hotel in the Iberian Peninsula, had a wine at a bar with the best view of Lisbon and ate the best ham in the world. I’m less convinced that some of the latter claims are verified. Regardless, it was a wonderful 48 hours! Below are my recommendations for how to fill your time, should you find yourself in Lisbon for a weekend. Friday Evening: I stayed at the Sheraton Lisboa Hotel & Spa. It’s a beautiful and modern hotel with perhaps the best views of city from the bar at the top. It’s a little less central that I would have liked, but with Uber readily available, it’s easy and cheap enough to around town. After checking into your hotel, head to Guilty by Olivier for some casual food (burgers, salads, pizza, etc.). Be sure to order the Guilty Roll. It will not disappoint. I am still salivating when I think about it. Following dinner, head to the ‘Pink Street’ for some libations. You won’t find it on a map because it’s actually called Rua Nova do Carvalho. Here you will find an outdoor party on a street that is literally painted pink. I understand it used to be a seedy place, a former Red Light District, but has now been cleaned up and is frequented by young bar-goers most nights of the week. Saturday: A day trip to/around the magical town of Sintra (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) is a must. Its fairy-tale-like feel comes from the vast surrounding forests, gardens, palaces and castles. A taxi/car will get you from there in about 25-30 minutes, from Lisbon. Alternatively, there is a train that takes about 40 minutes, followed by a bus which runs up the hill from the railway station. Be warned that the whole park is incredibly hilly. Buses are an option, but we opted to walk. If you plan to walk/hike, be prepared with sturdy, comfy shoes. Also, it gets chilly and windy at the top, so have additional layers with you. While there, visit the trifecta of enchanted places, with lunch between, as detailed below: Palacio da Pena – This colorful castle is situated on the top of a steep hill and looks like it’s straight out of a Disney film. You can go inside the actual palace if you buy the right ticket, otherwise you're limited to the grounds (which are still worth the trek). Castelo dos Mouros – A few hundred meters away from Palacio da Pena, you will find this medieval Moorish Castle. It requires a separate entrance ticket (€6.50). From here, you’ll have beautiful views of the Pena Palace as well as Sintra. Make your way down the steep hill (either by bus or on foot) to the town of Sintra and have lunch at the Restaurant Lawrence, in the oldest hotel in the Iberian Peninsula. Be sure to order the ‘green wine’ which is a grape that grows in the north of Portugal. Spoiler alert - it isn't actually green. After lunch, head to Quinta da Regaleira, which is about a 5-10 minute walk from Sintra City Centre and is another UNESCO World Heritage Site. I didn’t actually have time to visit, but the palace has its own chapel, park, lakes, fountains, wells and tunnels that you can explore and is meant to be spectacular. Make your way back into Lisbon and get ready for an exceptional dining experience at Jose Avillez’s Minibar (make a reservation in advance). As the menu states, nothing is what it seems, so show up with an empty stomach, an open mind and an adventurous appetite. I sat at the bar, which was really fun as the staff are super friendly and engaging. Sunday: In many European cities, most establishments are closed on Sundays. Lisbon is no exception. However, TimeOut Mercado da Ribeira is open and is a great way to spend your Sunday. Eat and drink, but be sure to save a bit of room for pastéis de nata at the famous Pastéis de Belém. If you're feeling a little full from the market, don't worry, you'll have plenty of time to digest whilst you wait in the long queue for these Portuguese egg tarts sprinkled with cinnamon and powdered sugar. Other Tips: Dinner time is around 8:30pm/9:00pm in Portugal; it’s not quite as late as the Spaniards eat. Be prepared for smoking in bars and restaurants. That still exists. Unless you have fancy dinner reservations, Lisbon is a pretty casual city. No need to be too dressed up. Ladies – wearing heals is near impossible with the uneven stoned streets and hills. Don’t even bother. There is a 5% discount for the sites in Sintra, if you book online.

In the UK, both Good Friday and Easter Monday are public holidays. With 4 consecutive days off, it seemed silly not to get out of town and explore new land! So, while everyone else celebrated the start of Spring, I headed to Helsinki, Finland and Tallinn, Estonia where kids were still wearing snowsuits the Gulf of Finland was frozen solid. The long weekend started off with a late night arrival into Helsinki on the Thursday night. I went straight to the hotel (Hotel Kamp), which I'd highly recommend. It was very nice and very centrally located. Because the next day was Good Friday, almost everything in Helsinki was shut. Given the nature of the holiday, it felt appropriate to spend a good portion of the day searching for Jesus statues in a series of churches/cathedrals. Church Tour 2016 included: St. John's Church, the Helsinki Lutheran Cathedral and the Uspenski Russian Orthodox Church. After the religious venues were exhausted, the rest of the day was spent wandering around, getting acclimated with the city, ducking in and out of wine bars to avoid the hail and snacking on various Finnish treats (like reindeer and pickled cucumbers with honey). On Saturday morning, I boarded the Linda Line ferry (right around the corner from Hotel Kamp). In about an hour and a half’s time, I disembarked in Tallinn, Estonia. It was a 10 minute walk from the port to my hotel. I didn’t stay right in the Old Town, but I would highly recommend doing so. Here are some hotel options that looked cute: Merchant’s House Hotel, Cru Hotel or Savoy Boutique Hotel. Old Town is the historical city center of Estonia’s capital, Tallinn. Its medieval feel and cobbled streets make it incredibly charming. You can quite easily spend two days wandering around, popping in and out of museums, churches, restaurants, bars and souvenir shops. One of the highlights of my time in Tallinn was dinner at a place called Peppersack. It’s touristy, but the food was very good, the service was great and there was even a sword fight! Yes, a sword fight! I recommend booking in advance and requesting a seat on the balcony so you have a front row viewing of the duel. On Sunday evening, after another full day in Tallinn, I got back on the ferry and crossed the (still semi-frozen) Gulf of Finland to return to Helsinki and the comforts of Hotel Kamp. Most venues were closed again on Easter Monday so keeping busy was a challenge. The city is pretty compact and I had already explored a good deal of it on Friday. So, to keep busy, I decided to visit Helsinki’ sea fortress, which is only accessible by boat. The ferry takes about 20 minutes each way and costs €2.70. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage site, but I have to say, it’s one of the less interesting ones that I have visited. I only lasted for about an hour over there before returning to the mainland. All in all, the trip was fun and it was great to check out a few new cities, but I don't foresee any trips to Helsinki in my near future. Noteworthy: Both Finland and Estonia use the Euro Everyone speaks English in both countries Finland is quite expensive, whereas Estonia is very affordable The Finns are very heavy drinkers but booze cannot be purchased in supermarkets Tipping is not expected in Finland Be sure to dress appropriately. It was very cold and wet when I visited - even the doggies were dressed to keep warm and dry. #easter #helsinki #finland #tallinn #oldtown #estonia #easterneurope #scandanavia #nordics

On the morning of 8th June, I awoke at the ungodly hour of 3am, dusted off my tiny green shoes after a two-month travel hiatus, finished packing my carry-on bag and headed to the airport. It was off to Dubrovnik for me, to meet up with a few girlfriends for a four-day road trip around a small portion of the Balkans. I knew I was going to like Dubrovnik even as I arrived into the airport. This colorful city in southern Croatia, with endless orange tile roofs juxtaposed against a stunning turquoise coastline, certainly deserves its nickname: the Pearl of the Adriatic! The Old Town is a traffic-free, pedestrian zone, encircled by high stone walls. Within the perimeter of these walls there are infinite shops/restaurants as well as a multitude of steep staircased narrow alleys (I’m told there are 4,343 total steps within these ramparts). The five of us quite comfortably stayed in a three story/four-bedroom apartment, perfectly situated in the heart of the Old Town. After checking into the accommodation and meeting up with the rest of the gang, the first thing on the agenda was a long, boozy lunch and a catch-up sesh. Whilst eating, we started discussing our next meal, as you do. Konoba Dubrava had been recommended by a colleague for traditional Dalmatian food. After a bit of research, we learned that this restaurant received many accolades, including ‘best restaurant in Dubrovnik’ and a 4.5 star rating on TripAdvisor. And so it was decided. I called to make a reservation. It turns out that if you want any of the house specialties, you have to order them well in advance, since they are slow-cooked for three hours, under an iron bell. Seeing as I was not prepared to choose my entrees at the time of booking, I panicked and ordered for an army. Full of sustenance and sorted for dinner, we decided to hike up the stairs to the top of the famous city walls, which have earned themselves a UNESCO World Heritage designation. We had to hurry along a bit because the wall walk was shutting at 7:30pm and we had intentions of taking the cable car 412 meters up Mount Srđ in time for sunset (which was scheduled for 8:24pm). In the end, we missed the cable car and all had to squish into a cab instead. The driver was lovely though and stopped several times along the way for photos ops. We arrived at the top of the mountain right before the witching hour, just in time to snap some scenic pictures, share a bottle of rosé and mingle with some goats. From there, we walked half way back down the mountain to the restaurant. The venue itself had an open seating plan, sort of barn-style. The staff was very attentive and friendly. Upon arrival, we received complimentary shots and a tour of the oven area where our dinner was already cooking. We then ordered a bunch of starters and wine while we waited for the main course to finish being prepared. It turned out that my pre-order of three lambs and two octopus was FAR too much for the five of us. Even with all that food though, the bill was incredibly reasonable. The next morning, we wandered around Old Town a bit more and grabbed some breakkie before all piling into our giant van and heading to our next destination: Blagaj, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Since Dubrovnik’s airport is about 30 minutes south of Old Town and we were headed on a northern route, we made the executive decision to save time by collecting the rental when we landed and then parking it overnight in the Hilton’s garage (which was only about 270 meters from the Pile Gate entrance to Old Town). Three hours and three border crossings later, we arrived at the village of Blagaj. It was tough to park our monster vehicle, but our very capable driver managed to tuck it nicely into a tight space in a parking lot that cost us only €3. Blagaj is a quaint place located on the Buna River, surrounded by mountains and known for its mystical Dervish Monastery (AKA Blagaj Tekke). Just as we arrived, it started to rain. We managed to escape the showers my ducking into Restaurant Vrelo. There we had a wonderful waiter named Adi who taught us about traditional Bosnian food and booked us a reservation at his buddy’s new restaurant in Mostar for that evening. Just as we finished up our lunch, the rain dried up and the sun reappeared. We each paid €2 to enter the monastery, which was not worth it. Plus, you have to be dressed appropriately, which we were not. The real money shot, from a photographic standpoint, is free and should be captured from the opposite side of the river. From Blagaj, it was about a 20 minute to drive to Mostar, a city in Southern Bosnia and Herzegovina. Our hotel was in Mostar’s City Center, which was poor planning on my part. We should have stayed in Old Town, which was about a 30-minute walk from City Center. It was a nice stroll though and we got to see a lot of the visible destruction that still exists, post-Bosnian war. Mostar was the most heavily bombed Bosnian city during the war. Although the city is now mostly rebuilt and beautiful, it’s not without its issues. We had been warned about thievery and pickpocketing, so we were careful, but we never experienced any trouble. Mostar’s Old Town is small, cobbled and full of stalls selling all sorts of tchotchkes. It’s situated right under the famous Ottoman-style bridge, called Stari Most (also a UNESCO World Heritage Site). The bridge was destroyed during the war, in 1993 and then reconstructed in 2004. We dined right along the river, at a new place called Divan, which had only opened one month prior. Since our waiter from Blagaj, Adi, had made the reservation for us, we were treated like royalty. The food was excellent and plentiful. The service was impeccable. When it got cold, blankets were supplied. When it started to rain, shelter was created and umbrellas were provided. When we closed the place down and there were no taxis, the owner drove us back to our hotel. Talk about service! The following day was rainy and cool, but we were not bothered because our next stop brought us to Kravice Waterfalls. The drive took about an hour from Mostar and it cost 4 Bosnian Marks (BAM) each to enter. The falls were absolutely gorgeous and very secluded. Perhaps it was due to the rain, but there were only a handful of people there when we arrived, and even fewer when we left. The water was fresh and freezing, but we decided to get in and frolic anyway. It was magical! Soaking wet and happy, we then carried on driving to our final destination: Split, Croatia. That portion of the road trip should have taken about an hour and a half, but was prolonged due to numerous stops made, in various Croatian villages, to try to find food. There were no shortages of cafes and bars, but zero restaurants. It was bizarre. We only spent one night in Split. That felt like enough. The next day, the rest of the troops headed off sailing on Yacht Week whilst I stayed on dry land. I passed the hours before my flight exploring Diocletian’s Palace and hiking up Marjan Hill, which were both beautiful. It's worth noting that the food in both Croatia and Bosnia was incredible. Although menus were somewhat limited and seemed to be similar from place to place, everything was organic and fresh. From lamb cooked under an iron bell for three hours to freshly caught fish and savory donuts accompanied by soft cheese, these countries have both nailed things from a culinary perspective. But, if there’s one thing Croatia and Bosnia have absolutely mastered, it’s the placement of restaurants. Everywhere we ate was outdoors, in cute narrow alleyways, built into the side of a cliff where you could actually feel the spray of the sea or basically in a lake/waterfall. And everything is very reasonably priced on top of it all. I will definitely be back to explore more of the Balkans. It’s a wonderful part of the world and I highly recommend a visit. #croatia #dubrovnik #split #dalmatia #bosniaandherzegovina #mostar #blagajtekke #kravicefalls #starimost #roadtrip

Due to its mellow vibe, Menorca (or Minorca) is considered low-key compared to its hedonistic Balearic Island neighbors, Mallorca and Ibiza. What Menorca lacks in nightlife, it more than makes up for in beaches. Believe it or not, this tiny island has more beaches than the other two sister islands combined. And these beaches are stunning – with white sands running into the crystal clear Mediterranean waters that range in color from deep blue to bright turquoise. Some of Menorca’s beaches are easily accessible, but the best ones are more secluded and can only be reached by hike or boat. Should you ever find yourself in this area of world, below is a list of five things I would recommend that you don’t miss… 1. Cova d'en Xoroi. This beach club is found in Cala’n Porter. Hours vary by season, but when open for business, you can visit during the day, for sunset or at night, when the cave bar turns into a disco. The venue is cut into the cliffs and overlooks the sea. My recommendation is go for the sunset session. It costs €12.50 for a general admission ticket. This will get you access from 5pm until about 11pm. If you’re feeling fancy and you have a group, I recommend going for one of the VIP options. They range in price, but all of them allow you to skip the queue at the door, gives you your own private area with white comfy couches (for up to 8 people), and includes a bottle of cava. 2. Cala Mitjaneta and Cala Mitjana. These beaches are regarded as some of the best on the island. Get a picnic together in the morning and then grab a taxi to Cala Galdana. From there, you can hike to Cala Mitjaneta (on the left in the picture below) and Cala Mitjana (shown on the right). It’s a 2.2km hike from the bottom of the Melia hotel, but you can get dropped off much closer if you tell your taxi driver where you’re going. Cala Mitjaneta is reached first when entering by foot. It’s a clear blue cove surrounded by high cliffs. If you keep walking along, you’ll get to Cala Mitjana, which is a slightly bigger of an area, but just as beautiful. Don’t be surprised if you see people tanning nude, as it’s perfectly acceptable. Be sure to bring all rubbish back with you, as there are no trash bins. 3. Hire a boat or book a boat tour. We used a tour company called Don Pancho. They were wonderfully helpful in helping us arrange the boat day, but they also let us store our luggage whilst we were out at sea and even arranged for a taxi to be waiting for us when we got back, as we had to go directly to the airport. We had about 4.5 hours on the boat, in total. We brought our own wine and snacks along with us. They had cups and towels for our use, which was handy. We were able to see about thirteen beaches along the way and swim at many of them. Most of these beaches are virgin and only accessible via sea. 4. Visit Ciutadella. This is the second of the primary cities on the island, situated in the western end of the island. It’s a quaint little walled city, a cathedral, cute shops and lots of good seafood restaurants surrounding the marina. If you stay in this area, consider Can Faustino as a hotel option. Also, I highly recommend eating at S’Amarador. 5. Monte El Toro (AKA Toro Mountain). I’m not sure this could quite be considered a mountain, but El Toro is the tallest peak on the island, standing at 1,122 feet. On a clear day you can see the whole of the island from up top. #menorca #minorca #spain #ibiza #mallorca #europe #beach #cavad39enxoroi #cala39nporter #calamitjana #calamitaneta #calagaldana #boat #donpancho #ciutadella #eltoro

Perhaps romance was in the air because since trip was arranged around a wedding, but five days was all it took for me to fall in love with the Amalfi Coast. It's an enchanting place, with a stunning coastline and excellent food. I challenge you not to also give in to the magic of this place, especially if you tick off the below recommendations. 1. Accommodations: If you find yourself staying in Ravello, and price is inconsequential, I highly recommend the Belmond Hotel Caruso (pictured below). If Caruso is out of your price range, have a look at Villa Maria. If you prefer a more basic option, but still clean and comfortable, try Il Ducato Di Ravello. It’s just steps from the main piazza and the owner is very attentive. It doesn’t really matter where you stay in Ravello though; everything is quite close and walkable (as long as you don’t mind some steps). 2. Gardens: The Villa Cimbrone gardens in Ravello are a must see and are well worth the €7 entrance fee. If you haven’t gotten your fill of gardens after Cimbrone, make your way across town (about a 10-minute walk) to Villa Rufolo. 3. Yachtzee: Hire a boat and cruise the coastline, explore the grottoes (Emerald, Blue, White and Green), swim in the Mediterranean and visit Positano/Sorrento/Capri. We booked a private boat for 12 of us through Amalfi Boat Excursions. They made arranging the trip east, answered all my questions promptly, were incredibly flexible/accommodating with the booking and all the staff members were absolutely lovely! Not only was our captain knowledgeable and capable, he also served us snacks and drinks. We even stayed out at sea a whole extra hour, for no additional cost. Amalfi Boat Excursions also offers shared boat tours, if you’re after a more affordable option. 4. Guzzle: As with any trip to Italy, be sure to get your fill of Prosecco. It’s so good and generally quite inexpensive. You might also want to try some local limoncello (lemon liqueur). If you fancy some wine tasting, head to Wine & Drugs in Ravello. They will let you try everything in the shop, for free. Where they get you is if you make a purchase. Their wines are double, if not triple, what you would pay anywhere else. 5. Sustenance: Eat all things lemon –risotto, spaghetti, gelato, cake, jam, olive oil, etc. Amalfi Coast lemons are giant, have intense flavor and are higher in vitamin C than other lemons. You will find dishes that contain lemon in most Amalfi Coast restaurants, but the following are my recommendations: Cumpà Cosimo in Ravello is not much for ambiance, but the food is simple and excellent. If you make your way to Capri stop at Torre Saracena for fresh seafood and a beautiful view. Lastly, La Gavitella can be reached by boat from Positano. They will provide free water transportation if you call them in advance. #amalficoast #italy #positano #capri #isleofcapri #ravello

When flying commercial, the official liquid/gel allowance for hand luggage is one transparent, quart/liter-sized, resealable bag. There is no cap on how many bottles can be contained within this bag, but each must be limited to 3.4 ounces/100 milliliters and all the contents must fit comfortably within so the bag completely zips shut. If you're like me and despise checking luggage, read on to see what's in my always-packed toiletry kit and to learn a few tricks that will help maximize your carry-on cosmetics allotment. First and foremost, I HIGHLY recommend that you go online right now and get yourself a BlueAvocado Travel Quart Bag. Although it technically satisfies the airline regulations (I haven't had a single issue with it yet), it buys you a heck of lot more space than the plastic bags they hand out at airport security. It's also reusable, washable and durable. Scroll through the slideshow images below to see how the same set of toiletries fit into the BlueAvocado versus into a standard zip bag. Two other refillable items that you’ll find in my flight bag, which I fully endorse include: Perfume/cologne mini-bottle: Easy to fill, takes up next to no room and isn’t glass/breakable like most eau-de-toilette bottles. I actually have a black and a and silver one, so I can bring multiple scents and can identify them by color. Toothpaste: How many times have you had a travel-sized tube with too little toothpaste for your whole trip, but too much to throw out? Then you end up having to purchase and carry several tubes. With this refillable system, you can avoid packing multiples, all whilst doing your small part to offset your carbon footprint. In addition to the items already mentioned, below is a complete list of the other supplies that I carry with me when I'm on the move: Face Lotion: BareMinerals Smart Combination Smoothing Lightweight Emulsion is what I use when I travel. The bottle is narrow and is 50ml/1.7 fl. oz. It lasts for months. Deodorant: Solid antiperspirant sticks are neither liquid nor gel, so don’t need to be included in your toiletry bag. If you find that you need a bit of extra room for other products, store the deodorant elsewhere in your luggage. Shampoo: MoroccanOil’s Moisture Repair Shampoo is 2.4 fl. oz/70ml of scrumptious-smelling, color-safe, sulfate-free, phosphate-free and paraben-free goodness! Since I also use this shampoo when I’m not traveling, I refill the bottle as necessary from my stash at home. MoroccanOil also have loads of other great travel size versions of their products. Conditioner: Since my youth, I have never been able to determine when conditioner has been fully rinsed from my hair. During my high school years, this issue lead to unnecessarily long showers and tardiness to class. After reprimand from my teachers and parents, I switched to leave-in conditioner and have stuck with it all these years later. I use Dove Intensive Repair Leave-in Conditioning Spray at home and then refill a Dove mini hair spray bottle that I keep in my on-the-go cosmetic bag. Body Wash: Again, I use this same product at home, so I just refill the travel version as and when needed. Baby Oil: To keep my skin hydrated, I use Johnson's Baby Oil in the shower, after I wash. I do a very quick rinse after applying then pat dry with a towel. The bottle isn't refillable, but it’s inexpensive. Body Lotion: I haven’t found a travel-sized version that I love yet, so I mostly just steal minis from hotels. At the moment I am using a starter size cream that I got at the Blue Lagoon in Iceland. Face Wash: I store my Jurlique Replenishing Foaming Cleanser in a Bliss face wash bottle that I took from a W Hotel, rinsed out and refilled. Sleep Enhancer: I always keep Deep Sleep Breathe In roll-on travel companion in my cosmetic kit to help with disrupted sleep patterns/jet-lag. During the summer months, you’ll also find the following in my BlueAvocado: Bug Spray: Pardon my bragging, but mosquitoes LOVE me. I get bitten more than anyone I know and my bites swell so much that they become painful, so insect repellent is a must for me. I recently bought Autan Tropical Spray in an emergency situation in Italy and it worked great. Before I stumbled upon Autan, I used to carry around Skintastic OFF! Towelettes. These are individually wrapped wipes that can be stored in a purse/wallet, smell pretty good and don’t cut into your liquid quota. Tiger Balm: For those times when the insect repellent fails me and the bugs win, the ONLY thing that provide relief is Tiger Balm. It smells medicinal, but works wonders and a small jar lasts ages. Lip Balm with SPF: I prefer Palmer’s Cocoa Butter Formula. Sun Cream: Nivea Protect and Bronze Face Cream SPF 30 is what you’ll find if you were to search my toiletry bag. Although it's designed for the face, I also use it on other small areas of my body which are prone to burning, like my shoulders. Aloe: I refill a small plastic jar with aloe vera, as necessary and bring it with me on sunny vacations. The tips below should help you fit everything you need into your travel kit thereby avoiding you having to check your luggage: Minimize your contents and only bring what's entirely necessary Use powders instead of liquids where possible Replace sprays/removers with wipes/towelettes See if there are solid versions of your products that won't cut into your liquid ration Use refillable travel bottles to avoid waste and unnecessary purchases and fill them up with the same products you use at home Look for two-in-one, multi-purpose products If you are staying in a hotel, consider using the shampoos/conditioners/lotions that will likely be provided It's a risky strategy, but you can technically fill two clear plastic bags with toiletries. If you put them in separate bins on the conveyor belt for x-ray screening, it is often unnoticed that both belong to you. You have to be a bit sneaky about this method and be prepared to check/dump the products should you get caught. Please note that medications, special dietary supplements and baby food can be exceptions to the 100ml rule. There you have it! I hope this helps you circumnavigate the liquid/gel restrictions a bit better and allows you to breeze through security with hand luggage only. Happy packing! For other helpful luggage travel loopholes, read this post. #tips #tricks #hacks #loopholes #liquidsandgels #packing

In keeping with the tradition of visiting countries beginning with the letter 'I', my parents and I embarked on our second annual European road trip, where we spent 10 days touring Italy (last year's Iceland trip review can be found here)! This was my fifth time to Italy, but I had never been to most of the places on our itinerary (prior, I'd visited Sauze d'Oulx, Sardinia, Tuscany and the Amalfi Coast). We began our adventure with three days/two nights in Rome. From there, we took the train to Florence for a pair of nights. We hired a car in Florence and drove to Lucca, passing first through San Gimignano then Pisa. After one night in Lucca, it was off to Cinque Terre for a few nights, via Borgo a Mozzano and the Alpuan Alps. Finally, we spent the last two nights at Lake Como before departing out of Milan. Below you'll find my recommendations for where to stay, what to do and where to eat/drink in each location: ROME Where to stay: We stayed at Hotel Scalinata di Spagna. It’s more of a bed and breakfast than your typical chain hotel. The location, right at the top of the Spanish Steps, can not be beat! The included breakfast, that was enjoyed on the lovely rooftop each morning, was a great way to start off the day. And the staff was very attentive/helpful. Things to do: With all the architectural treasures and historic landmarks in Rome, it’s hard to fit everything into just a few days, so below is my condensed list for those of you trying to tick off the highlights in short span of time. The Spanish Steps reopened on 23rd September 2016, after a €1.5M restoration that took nearly a year to complete. As you can probably imagine, when we visited only 8 days later, there were a great deal of others also there with us. These steps are open day and night (after much controversy). Two warnings when you visit: 1) beware of selfie sticks and 2) if you pick up a sandwich/gelato in your wanderings around Rome, don’t even think about enjoying it whilst seated on the Spanish Steps (unless you’d like to pay a €25-€500 fine). ​The Colosseum Underground Evening Tour ranks very high on my suggestion list. If you’ve never been to Rome before and you arrive later on in the day, it’s a good start to familiarizing yourself with the city. The tour starts at Trajan’s Column and ends inside the Colosseum with only about 20 other people. About ~4 million people visit the Colosseum each year. The volume of daily visitors varies, but it's overwhelming. Since we had already visited the previous evening, we opted to avoid the masses and instead walk around the outside of the Colosseum to snap (far too many) photos. Below are some ticketing tips that help you better maximize your time: Entry is free the first Sunday of each month, but tickets are still required. If visiting almost any other day of the year, I strongly recommend that you buy and print your tickets in advance. What you’ll save in time is well worth the small booking fee. You’ll need to go to the special pick-up window for internet tickets to swap your printed voucher for an entry ticket. *Note: the advanced purchase of tickets will exempt you from standing in the long line, but not from going through security. A ticket to the Colosseum also includes entrance to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, and is valid for two days. If you are unable to pre-buy tickets for whatever reason, I suggest that you buy your ticket at the entrance to Palatine Hill, which has much shorter lines. From there, make your way down to the Roman Forum and exit through the one-way gate that spits you out right next to the Colosseum. Ta da! As noted above, I suggest visiting Palatine Hill and then the Roman Forum. This will eliminate some uphill climbs and will afford you a bird’s eye view of the Roman Forum before getting into the thick of it. Altare della Patria, Monumento Nazionale a Vittorio Emanuele II, Il Vittoriano, The Wedding Cake or The Giant Typerwriter. Regardless of what you call it, it should be visited. Entry is free, but to take the elevator to the top, it costs €7. The panoramic views from the top are well worth the fee. Stroll around town and see the Pantheon, Piazza Novana and Trevi Fountain. All are walking distance from each other. Visit Vatican City (which is its own country, but doesn't require a passport). If you're like me and would like to avoid the crowds, I strongly recommend that you a) don’t visit on a Sunday and b) purchase Sistine Chapel express entrance tour tickets. The tour starts early in the AM, but you get to visit the Sistine Chapel with only a handful of fellow tourists. With this ticket, you also get access to all the Vatican Museums and can connect to the St. Peter's Basilica without having to buy a subsequent ticket. You're technically not allowed to take photos inside the Sistine Chapel, but rules don't apply to my mother, so here's one of her snaps! Where to eat/drink: I don’t have a great deal of recommendations here, but if you have time, I strongly suggest that you get a drink/dinner in the garden at Hotel de Russie. FLORENCE: Where to stay: La Casa del Garbo could not be better situated in Florence. It is literally ON the Piazza della Signoria. The rooms are spacious and the showers looked like spaceships. Things to do: Florence is not as large as Rome and feels less city-like, but there are plenty of things to do to fill your time. Also, it’s possible to find works by all 4 of the Renaissance artists that the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were named after (Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael and Michelangelo). About a five-minute walk from La Casa del Garbo is the famous Ponte Vecchio - a Medieval bridge over the Arno River lined with jewelry and souvenir shops. Once you cross over the Ponte Vecchio, you’re not far from Palazzo Pitti. I didn’t visit the museum and wasn’t all that impressed the area, but it’s found on most Florence must-see lists, so I feel compelled to mention it. I do wish that I had visited the Boboli Gardens behind the museum though. Next time! Definitely visit the Galleria dell' Aacademia to see the infamous “David” statue, by Michelangelo. I strongly suggest that you buy your tickets in advance so you can skip the line. You will be required to pick a specific date/time, but it sure beats standing in line for over an hour, like we did. I also recommend buying tickets online, in advance, for the Duomo. If you are unable to do so, there is a ticket machine in Piazza San Giovanni (number 7, I believe), directly across from the Duomo Cathedral entrance (see the Google map below for reference). We bought tickets there for both Giotto’s Bell Tower and the Dome, for €15 each. When you buy the tickets be sure to scan the passes so that you can skip the queues. It doesn’t cost anything additional, but it will save you valuable time. At the time of purchase, you have to select times. We opted for 11:00am at the Bell Tour and 12:30pm for the Dome. In between, climbing the Bell Tower's 414 steps and the 460+ steps at the Dome, we had just enough time to grab a sandwich. Where to eat/drink: If you want to eat delicious Italian food/drink lots of wine on the water, I suggest dining at Signorvino. It’s predominantly a wine shop, but has some indoor and outdoor seating right on the River Arno, overlooking the Ponte Vecchio, and the food was deeeee-lish! SAN GIMIGNANO: After hiring our car in Florence, we drove for about an hour to San Gimignano. It’s a delightful Tuscan town, with an old town center, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There are well marked parking lots all around the town center, but parking lot #2 is the most convenient, if you can get a spot. We didn’t spend an inordinate amount of time in San Gimignano, but long enough to climb more stairs at Torre Grossa (Great Tower) and have some lunch. PISA: From San Gimignano, we drove another 75km to Pisa, for the obligatory, silly photos. By the time we arrived, it was nearly 4:00pm. Despite the beautiful blue skies, it wasn’t overly crowded at that time of the day. We found a parking lot about 5 minutes away, which I have mapped out for you below. LUCCA: Lucca is only about 30 minutes from Pisa. It’s a sleepy, but really quaint, town. Where to stay: Hotel Ilaria is located within Lucca’s Renaissance walls and is very lovely. They have bikes that you can borrow and offer parking for a fee. Thing to do: Stroll/jog/cycle along the top of the walls that formerly guarded Lucca during the Renaissance-era. Where to eat/drink: We only had one dinner in Lucca and choose Port Ellen Clan. It was very good and reasonably priced. If you’re looking for other recommendations, see my colleague’s blog on this topic (she’s from Lucca). DEVIL’S BRIDGE: About 30 minutes northwest of Lucca is a small town called Borgo a Mozzano. Within that town, there is a very photogenic bridge that's worth a visit, if you’re interested in that sort of thing. If you catch it in the morning, at low light, the reflections are tremendous. APUANE ALPS: After Borgo a Mozzano, our next destination was Levanto. We had two options to get there 1) backtrack through Lucca and then head up the coast for 120km, or 2) drive for a bit longer, on the less traveled route, through the Apuan Alps and marble mines, with endless switchbacks. We opted for the latter. CINQUE TERRE: Cinque Terre is comprised of five villages: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore, all connected by rail and hiking paths. Levanto is not technically one of the ‘terres’ but it is just north of Monterosso. We decided to stay in Levanto because parking was easier (parking is forbidden in the other towns). Where to stay: La Guiada del Mesco is where we opted to stay. Although they don’t have a restaurant, they do still offer breakfast with a spectacular view. They also provide shuttle service to/from the Levanto train station, which is really handy. Things to do: Since the five lands are in a national park, visitors need to buy a trekking card to hike between them. However, the hike from Levanto to Monterosso is exempt. So, on our first day, we decided to hike from our hotel’s doorstep into Monterosso. Everything we read indicated that this was to be an easy 4-mile hike, which should take about 1.5 hours. WRONG! It was steep, almost volcanic, unpaved and had uneasy footing. We took our time and finally made it in about 4 hours. The next day, we opted to buy the all-day train pass (€16) and see all five villages by rail. All are picturesque in their own right, but I think Manarola and Vernazza were my favorites (pictured below). After seeing the towns of Cinque Terre by land, we hired a boat to see them all from the sea. Stefano, our captain, was very knowledgeable and lovely. Check out his boat service here, if you are considering a boat hire in Cinque Terre. Where to eat/drink: Even in the off-season it’s necessary to make reservations for most restaurants in Cinque Terre. Since we were unaware of this, we missed out on some places that looked really tasty. However, we did find one place worthy of a recommendation: Miky. It’s much bigger inside than it appears from the street. The staff were all wonderful and the food was great, especially after that 4-hour hike. LAKE COMO: Where to stay: We stayed in Como proper, at Hotel Metropole Suisse. It was right on the water and I have no complaints about it, but if I were to do it over again, I’d stay at the Hotel Metropole in Bellagio instead. Things to do: Unfortunately, we had grey and rainy weather the entire time we were in Como, so there wasn’t a great deal to do. We managed to make the best of it though. Below are a few ideas for how to kill time if you find yourself in Como on a dreary weekend. We took the funicular from Como up to Brunate. The views are meant to be amazing from up there, but it was not a clear day. The houses there are pretty spectacular though, if you’re interested in being a bit of a Peeping Tom. We took the Rapido boat service from Como to Bellagio, explored the narrow streets there, bought some playing cards for our evening entertainment and then took the ferry back to Como. Where to eat/drink: Villa d’Este was voted the World’s Best Hotel by Forbes Traveler 400 in 2009. We didn’t make it over there, but from what I hear, it’s well worth a visit for drinks/dinner. The Locanda is another place that I had researched but didn’t make it to. It’s on an island in the middle of Lake Como and has the same prix fixe menu each night. So there you have it. Happy road tripping! #italy #roadtrip #florence #lucca #sangimignano #pisa #cinqueterre #rome #borgoamozzano #devil39sbridge #alpuanalps #lakecomo #bellagio #milan

Logistically speaking, my 13-day India/UAE/Egypt trip was executed nearly flawlessly. This was a remarkable accomplishment considering it was inclusive of 6 hotels, 5 flights, 3 continents, 2 full-day tours, 2 visas and 1 photography workshop. It took a lot of planning, but it also helped that there were no airline delays/cancellations, no visa issues, no clerical errors, no illnesses, no electronic mishaps and that the weather even cooperated. After a very comfortable 7.5-hour flight from London, on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, I touched down at 10:30pm in New Delhi. By the time I bypassed passport control, exchanged a bit of currency and was requested/located my Uber, it was well after midnight. Within 30 mins (and for a mere £4.07), I was dropped at my hotel, Le Meridian Gurgaon, which was slightly outside of the city proper, but was perfect for my purposes. I was fast asleep the moment my head hit the pillow, despite the 5.5 hour time difference. Driver India Private Tours collected me from my hotel, at 6am the next morning, for my full-day tour to Agra. The thick fog had visibility at basically zero. Since there was nothing to look at apart from a wall of haze and my internal clock was all jumbled up, I used the 4-hour car ride to catch up on some sleep. Once in Agra, my driver and I were greeted by the local tour guide and didn't waste any time heading to the Taj Mahal. Since it was Christmas Eve, there were very few Westerners visiting, but quite a few Indian tourists. *Fun fact for you – Taj Mahal entry tickets for locals cost 40 Rupees. For foreigners, the price was 25x that, or ₹1,000 (which is still only about £12). Pictured below, to the left of the cow, was where the entry tickets were purchased. :-) The main entrance (known as the Royal Gate) is a multi-story, perfectly symmetrical building made of red sandstone, with Arabic calligraphy from the Quran and inlaid semi-precious stones. From inside this gateway, I got my first glimpse of the beautiful Taj. The Taj Mahal was every bit as magical as I expected and was truly deserving of its New Seven Wonders of the World and UNESCO World Heritage designations! This mausoleum was built by emperor Shah Jahan to house the tomb of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. With the help of 20,000 workers, it took 22 years (1631-1653) to construct. The photos below show the intricate carvings and gemstone inlays within the white marble. We then drove about 2.5km to Agra Fort, which was more of a walled city than an actual fort. It was the main residence of the emperors of the Mughal Dynasty until 1638. It is also another of India’s 27 UNESCO World Heritage sites. We had a quick lunch, which was not worth any more than a mention, and then hit the road. On the way back to Delhi, the fog had lifted so I was able to witness the chaos known as driving in India. The roads were shared amongst cars, trucks, busses, motorbikes (with up to 4 passengers, all without helmets), tuk tuks, carts, cows and even pedestrians. To Westerners, like me, it was absolute mayhem; to the locals it was everyday life. Lanes do not exist and honking was incessant. At intersections, vehicles stopped within single digit inches of each other, in all directions. Unfortunately, I don’t have any photos/videos that do it justice, so you’ll just have to take my word for it. On Christmas Day, I flew from Delhi down south to Kerala to meet up with my photography workshop group. I had to show my passport and proof of booked flight before even being granted entry into the airport. I then had to present my boarding pass and ID at least eight more times before takeoff. The security lines were separated by gender, which I had never witnessed before. The next eight days were dedicated to a street photography course in Kerala – between Kollam and Cochin. It was gruelling at times and had me out of my comfort zone to start. Street photography was very different to the landscape and travel photography that I typically shoot. Aspects of it were hard, but it definitely opened my mind to seeing photography in a different form. Overall, it was very rewarding and I learned a lot. Below is a slideshow, featuring some of my work from the week: New Year’s Eve was spent in Fort Cochin (or Kochi), Kerala. On Kochi Beach, at midnight, fireworks light up the sky and a 37-foot ‘Pappanji’ was set on fire, marking the end of 2016 and the beginning of 2017. There were nearly 100,000 people in attendance. I’d wager that about 96% were men and less than 1% were drunk. There was loud music and lots of dancing. It was very festive, but also very different to my New Year’s Eve celebrations over the past few decades. Cochin Carnival is hosted the last week of December every year and culminates with a New Year’s Day parade through Fort Kochi. There were so many spectators at the parade that I couldn’t walk alongside it. I thought to myself, ‘if you can’t beat them, join them!’ So, into the parade I went! Security nor the entertainers seemed to mind my presence. Below are some pictures I snapped from my short time as a parade performer. January 1st was not only my first time marching in a parade, but also my last full day in India. Spending time in India was an eye-opening experience. In my time there, I witnessed large disparities in almost all aspects of Indian life - economics, gender equality, education, service and particularly cleanliness. The ground was their trashcan. Below was one of the beaches I visited. Fancy a swim anyone? India was captivating, inviting, dazzling, polluted, stifling and repulsive all at the same time. Everything that surrounded me caused sensory overload - crowds, noises, colors and odors. Smells everywhere were overpowering – whether from spices, tea, incense, onions, chilis, fish, laundry or sewage. My eyes were constantly watering and I was sneezing uncontrollably. There were times when I found India to be difficult, but just when I thought I’d reached my threshold of patience, an adorable child would smile at me or hold my hand and my heart would melt. The people of India, no matter how little they had nor how hard their life was, were warm, hospitable and curious. They seemed to have a keen interest in white faces, asked a lot of questions, loved to have an excuse to practice their English, shook your hand and sincerely wished you well, wanted to take selfies with me and were quick to offer a head wobble after I took their picture. One other thing worth mentioning about India, because it was so fresh during my time there, was the currency crisis. On November 8th 2016, the Prime Minister declared that, effective almost immediately, all ₹500 and ₹1,000 banknotes would become invalid. This was done in an attempt to stop counterfeiting, to crack down on ‘black money’ and to reduce corruption. This policy was great in theory, but it was lacking in implementation. A severe cash shortage occurred as a result of too few replacement notes being printed. For foreigners, this meant that only $80 could be exchanged at the airport, upon arrival into the country. The exchange rate was poor and most of the exchange was provided in the new ₹2k notes, which establishments refused to accept. Banks and ATM’s had long queues and limited hours. It could take hours to retrieve money and there were daily caps of around ₹2k (£24). So, when Booking.CON advertised that a hotel accepted credit cards as a form a payment, but you learned otherwise upon arrival, it was a real problem. From Kochi, I flew to Dubai, where there most certainly was not a cash crisis. It’s amazing how economically and culturally different two places that are only a 4-hour plane ride apart can be. It had been 9 years since I last set foot in Dubai and although I only had about 12 hours to explore, it was quite obvious that a lot had changed in that time. The city was a lot more built up, there was more glitz, more glamor, fancier cars and bigger malls. I enjoyed some sunshine at my hotel pool before meeting up with a friend to go to the top of the Burj Khalifa (the tallest structure in the world). Some have called the tower a modern-day wonder or even designated it as an 'Eighth Wonder of the World'. It's 2.6 times higher than the Eiffel Tower and is so tall that, if you time it properly, you can watch the sunset on the ground, take the lift up to the top and then watch the sunset for a second time in the same evening. It was a foggy evening when I visited, so the views from the 148th floor weren’t as epic as I had hoped, but the sight of the Burj, from the outside, was eerie and very cool - almost Gotham City-like. After the 'At the Top' experience and the '50 years of James Bond' exhibition, we had dinner in the Souk Al Bahar area, in downtown Dubai. This area did not exist the last time I visited Dubai. After dinner, it was back to my hotel for about an hour and half before heading to the airport at 2am, for my 4:35am flight to Egypt. I touched down in Cairo at 6:35am, for long layover number two (11-hours this time). For security reasons, most airlines refuse to check bags through when a layover lasts more than 6 hours, but I got lucky and Egypt Air was kind enough to check my luggage all the way through to London. Cairo does not have lockers in their airport so this was a huge win! I had originally booked a group Pyramids/Sphinx/Museum/Citadel/Mosque tour (for $85) through Egypt Air’s tour agency, Karnak. I sent an email to confirm a few days before, but never received a response. Since I did not notice anyone holding up a sign for me when I got to the gate, where they claimed they’d meet me, I proceeded through to customs and passport control. Although visas are available upon arrival in Egypt, for Americans, I had obtained mine in advance, making passport control a breeze. There were so few tourists in Cairo that I’d probably have gotten through quite easily either way though. As I was exiting the airport, I was approached by a tour company offering private excursions. Since I had limited time and really wanted to see the Pyramids/Sphinx/Museum of Antiquities whilst there, I took advantage of this offer, for $120. Although a pricier option, it was a private tour and I didn’t really have an abundance of other options. By 8am, I was in a car, being driven to the Giza Pyramids. Despite popular belief, the Pyramids are not in the middle of nowhere. They are only about 40km (25 miles) from the airport. If you get lucky with the traffic, it could take as little as 30 minutes to get there. But who am I kidding? Rush ‘hour’ in Cairo is a bit of a joke as traffic spans most of the day. In addition to being congested, Cairo is dusty, dirty and run down. Everyone is trying to sell you something/extort money from you. They pretend to be nice at first but then ultimately end up trying to swindle you and then getting angry if you refuse payment. I found it incredibly off-putting and annoying. The Pyramids however, did not disappoint. They are mysterious and truly a wonder of the ancient world! Not only were the pyramids themselves much bigger than I expected, each stone used to construct them was enormous. How on earth did they build these things so long ago? The experience was made better by the fact that there were only about 50 other people with me at the Giza complex. Although the lack of tourism was terrible for Egypt, selfishly, I enjoyed that I could take photographs without millions of strangers in them. The Great Pyramid of Giza (AKA Pyramid of Khufu) is the oldest and largest of the three. You can enter it for an additional fee, but I was dissuaded from doing so by my guide. He told me that there wasn’t much to see, I was not allowed to take photos inside and that you have to nearly crawl at certain points. It was the only time in my 11 hours in Cairo where a local convinced me NOT to spend money. After visiting all three pyramids and getting swindled by Mohamed for the photo above, on his camel, Daisy, we moved along to peep at the Sphinx. Then it was off to the Museum to view the extensive collections of ancient Egyptian antiquities and to learn everything I could ever want to know about King Tutankhamun. A lot of the artefacts lacked descriptions, but my guide was super helpful where signage was absent. Not shockingly, it cost extra to take photographs at the museum and/or to enter the mummy room. By this time, it was about 2pm. I was told it would take about an hour to get back to the airport and that I needed to be back by 3:35pm for my 5:35pm flight. I was exhausted, hungry and all the relics were starting to look the same, so I asked to be driven back to the airport a bit early so I could grab some grub before the final leg of my flight home. When I arrived back in London, the chill of the cold weather served as a very real reminder that my wonderful, hectic, exhausting but gratifying trip had come to a conclusion. Below, are some helpful tips for each country that I visited, in case you are thinking about a visit. Tips for India: If you’re checking a bag, I suggest that you have it wrapped in plastic film at your home airport. It’ll get filthy when it arrives in India otherwise. The online eVisa is super easy, if you are eligible. It took about 15 hours for mine to be processed and approval to be granted. When you arrive in India, separate queues exist for eVisas. Make sure you get in the right line. Bring US Dollars. They are accepted in some hotels and offer the best exchange rate. I was only allowed to exchange $80 at the airport, though that may change soon. Bring print out versions of all flights – international and/or domestic – that are originating in India. In order to enter India airports, you must show your passport and proof of a flight. Bring your own sheets if you plan to stay anywhere other than a 5* hotel. If you plan to stay in shared hostels or take any overnight trains, bring a cable/padlock so people can’t pinch your bags. In your first aid kit, pack rehydrating salts, sterilizing tablets, Pepto Bismal, probiotics and Imodium. Better to be safe than sorry. Also bring bug spray/cream with Deet if you plan to be in any area with mosquitos. Bring tissue packets with you in case you find yourself in need of a public restroom. Toilet paper was rarely provided. It's also good for nose blowing if you find yourself sneezing as much as I was. Do not, under any circumstances, drink the water. Bottled water only. Brush your teeth with it. Don’t open your mouth in the shower. Don’t eat anything raw that might have been irrigated with the water (veggies, fruit, etc). Tips for Dubai, UAE: Book tickets in advance if you want to go to the top of the Burj Khalifa. They sell out. Uber is prevalent there. Almost all Ubers are Lexuses. Tips for Cairo, Egypt: If you only have a long layover like I did, try to check your bag all the way through to your next destination. They do not have lockers in the Cairo airport. Bring USD’s; they are accepted nearly everywhere. There was no need for me to exchange them to Egyptian Pounds. #egypt #cairo #dubai #uae #unitedarabemirates #pyramids #middleeast #africa #agra #indiatajmahal #india #tajmahal

Spending the 2017 Easter break in the enchanted floating city known as Venice couldn’t have been more appropriate, with its pastel buildings and purple wisteria clusters dangling over the blueish-green canals. If I didn’t know any better, I’d have thought that the Spring color palette attributed with modern-day Easter was inspired by these Venetian hues. Although charming, this city is Easter egg-fragile structurally. Venice is actually a cluster of 118 tiny islands linked by 177 canals and 409 bridges and it is in fact sinking. Its walls are crumbling and tides are eroding building foundations. Tourism here is both an economic stimulant and an environmental detriment. With less than 60k residents living in Venice and over 20 million estimated tourists visiting annually, there are two decidedly different faces of Venice. There are over-priced restaurants, grocery stores and souvenir shops as well as luxury stores near the popular sites (namely Piazza San Marco, the Grand Canal and Rialto Bridge) where it's literally jam-packed with tourists shoulder-to-shoulder. If you step away from the main attractions, you'll find desolate alleyways to get lost amongst, authentic food, downright cheap booze and inexpensive leather goods. And THIS is where the magic lies. A Bellini at the famous Harry’s Bar, where Bellini’s were invented, will cost you €23. Whereas, if you go to Barcollo in San Polo, for example, you’ll get a spritz, prosecco or the like for €2.50 and can even grab some delicious cicchetti (Venetian version of tapas). The non-touristy bits of Venice are absolutely delightful and should absolutely be added to your wanderlust list. Below are some of my recommendations/tips to note for your next trip here to make it even better. Bars: My favorite bar in Venice was Osteria Ai Pugni. The drinks were cheap, the people watching was grand and the late 1990’s hip hop made you want to get up and shake your booty. It’s not cheap, but if you’re feeling a little swanky, the Skyline Rooftop Bar at the Hilton Molino Stucky is worth a visit for a sundowner drink. Hilton offers a free water shuttle from San Marco to their property. Nightlife: Despite reviews online, and not for lack of trying, I did not find that there was much of a nightlife in the main historic centre of Venice, where most tourists confine themselves (myself included). But after drinking prosecco all day long, a late night out wasn’t necessary for me. To Do: The infamous gondola rides around the Venetian lagoon can’t be described as anything other than tourist extortion. The cost is regulated and is officially €80 for 30 minutes, but it ends up being more like 20 minutes. Although a little on the pricey side, I am not suggesting that you don’t partake. No Venice trip would be complete without trying it once. Getting There: Venice is built on water and only accessible by boat. If you arrive from the airport, follow the boat signs to ‘Vaporetto’ within the terminal to the water taxi dock. I’ve never seen this before; it’s really cool. The pier is actually part of the airport. Above and beyond this, I’m afraid I am not much help. Best of luck to you trying to figure out which water bus/taxi/boat/company to take. The staff was not helpful and prices seemed to vary quite dramatically. I wish I could provide you with some guidance but I struggled to figure it out myself, even after doing it twice. I did find this blog though (after the fact, which might prove to be helpful) Accommodations: I stayed at this Airbnb, which was situated on a quiet-ish dead end close enough to all the attractions to be appealing, but far enough away to be able to avoid the hordes of people. It was a great place for two people and pretty affordable as well. #italy #venice #UNESCOworldheritagesites #europe #gondola #prosecco

Dreaming and Working Together is a group of medical volunteers who travel, from the USA, for a week each year, to provide various types of surgeries, dental care, prosthetic and rehabilitative services to the people of Lima, Peru. The organisation began in 2005, and I’m very proud to say that my mom has been one of the attending physical therapists since inception. For years I’ve been meaning to meet my mom, post-mission, for some South American adventures. It never panned out though…until this year. My dad was able to join as well, making this annual family trip numero tres (links for recaps of the previous two can be found here: Iceland and Italy). 12.5 hours after takeoff from London Gatwick, the pilot announced our final descent into Jorge Chávez International Airport in Lima. I passed through immigration with no issues, and then literally walked across the road to check into the Wyndham Costa del Sol Lima Airport Hotel. The next morning, mom, dad and I caught the 9:50am flight from Lima to Cusco. We were met at the Cusco airport by Martin, our guide, who accompanied us on our transfer to Sacred Valley via back country roads. Along the way, we visited Moray and the Maras Salt Pools. Moray is an archaeological site, approximately 50 kilometres northwest of Cusco, on a high plateau at about 3,500 metres, consisting of various ringed ruins. The purpose of these depressions is uncertain, but it is believed that they may have acted as an Incan agricultural experiment. Just east of Moray, you'll find the Maras Salt Pools. This Peruvian canyon is filled with geometric salt pools that have been being harvested since the Incan empire. We spent that night (and the following night) at Casa Andina Premium Valle Sagrado Hotel & Villas. Beautiful hotel. Highly recommended. Sunday morning was rainy, but we didn’t let it stop us. We bought ourselves some ponchos (which made us look like Teletubbies, according to Martin) and slogged around Ollantaytambo Fortress. This is the most common starting point for the Inca Trail so I imagine it’s usually quite busy, but the rain washed out most of the other tourists. We didn’t hike too high because it was quite slippery, but we still managed to get some mystical views. The rain stopped around mid-day and we made a few stops for photo ops, en route to lunch. Lunch at Tunupa was lovely. I’m not usually a fan of buffets, but the setting of this restaurant was lush, there was live music and the llamas out back dined alongside us. After lunch, we were taken to a textile tourist trap in Chincheros. They gave us tea, demonstrated their traditional weaving methods and let us feed alpacas. As we were leaving, with our wallets slightly lighter (total suckers), they sang us a farewell song. The remainder of the afternoon was spent swinging in hammocks and relaxing, in preparation for our Machu Picchu adventure which kicked off the following AM. Bright and early on Monday morning, we took the two hour Vistadome train from Ollantaytambo to Aquas Calientes (Machu Picchu Town). Our luggage had been pre-arranged to be dropped at Casa del Sol Machupicchu Boutique Hotel, allowing us to head straight to the shuttle bus station at the south end of town to transfer up to Machu Picchu AKA the “Lost City of the Incas” (the bus takes about 20 minutes on switchback roads). Upon arrival, we had a two hour, very informative tour. Lunch was at Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge. A rain storm whilst dining cleared away all the peoples, so after filling our bellies we had Machu Picchu pretty much all to ourselves. For a place that sees as many as 5,000 visitors a day, it’s a real treat to be able to take photos without hoards of people. *Be sure to have both sunscreen and bug repellent, both the sun and the No-See-Ums sneak up on you. We spent the next day hiking the Sun Gate trail and exploring Machu Picchu at our own pace. As we exited the Machu Picchu gates for the last time, I noticed a little stand where you could stamp your passport with Machu Picchu. Don't mind if I do! Silly, but still cool. Around 3pm, we took the bus back down to Aquas Calientes, collected our bags, headed to the train station and caught the Vistadome back to Ollantaytambo. Here’s where we went wrong in terms of logistical planning…We should have spent a third night at Casa Andina Premium Valle Sagrado Hotel & Villas in Sacred Valley, just minutes away from the train station. Instead we were transferred, several hours, to Cusco, only to head back to Ollantaytambo the very next morning to go river rafting on the Urubumba River. Then, after rafting, we, again, drove back to Cusco. In the wise words of my very wise 3.5-year-old nephew, ‘FAIL!' Apart from the unnecessary additional hours spent in the car, the our river rafting was one of the highlights of the trip. My mom’s 65th birthday wish was to go white water rafting, so she happily got to tick that off the bucket list. Carlos and Manolo, our very capable guides, were terrific and took very good care of us. Most of the rafting was pretty calm, but there were some level 3-4 rapids, which were good fun. We also rafted past the Natura Vive Skylodge glass pods, suspended 400 meters above Sacred Valley, known as ‘The Edgiest Hotel in the World’. This is definitely not the hotel for people with a fear of heights. That evening, we dined at Chicha in Cusco, which is said to be one of the best restaurants in Peru and was indeed excellent. The next day, we were meant to be flying from Cusco to Pisco Airport, on STAR PERU, for our final three days of the trip. The flight ended up being cancelled indefinitely, so we rearranged some plans, which resulted in spending an extra day in Cusco and then flying back to Lima and driving 4 hours to Paracas. Such is Peru! We had a difficult time filling our extra day in Cusco with interesting things. We did a Lonely Planet walking tour, which was a misadventure. Then we seeked out the famous 12-sided stone. I’ve got to be honest, if a stone that happens to have 12 sides is a highlight, you're in a pretty underwhelming city. We then went to Saqsaywaman (pronounced similarly to 'sexy woman'). The climax was the fornicating Rastafarian alpaca (pun intended). We finally made it to Paracas, by way of a flight to Lima followed by a four-hour car journey, and checked into the DoubleTree Resort by Hilton Paracas just in time for sunset. The next morning we were collected at the hotel and brought to Pisco Airport for our Nazca Lines flight tour. It became clear, once at the airport, why the flight from Cusco had been cancelled. This airport was brand new and completely desolate and unused. The check-in desks and the whole baggage claim area were still wrapped in protective plastic. STAR PERU never had any intention of ever making that journey from Cusco to Pisco. I don’t know why they even let us book it. After making all six passengers go through the motions of a real airport (check-in, passport control and security), we sat at the empty gate until they, unnecessarily, announced our flight departure over the loudspeaker. We then walked to the tarmac, climbed up the stairs into our tiny private plane and took off. The Nazca Lines are a series of large, ancient geoglyphs in the Nazca Desert that can only be viewed from the air. There are more than 70 human figures and animals and 10,000 lines and the largest figures are up to 370 meters long. They were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994. The lines remain one of the world’s greatest archaeological mysteries. Some say the lines represent a giant astronomical calendar, a ceremonial center, or even an alien landing strip. It was very cool to see them, but the repeated 60-degree banking turns of the plane left me feeling fairly ill. The final day of our trip was spent touring the Ballestas Islands and then Paracas National Reserve before making the four-hour journey back to Lima in time for our redeye flights. The Islas Ballestas is often called 'the poor man's Galapagos'. It may not be Ecuador, but we saw a wealth of wildlife including sea lions, crabs, a bunch of birds I can’t identify and my personal favorite, penguinos. Paracas National Reserve stretches over 827,803 acres, 35% of which comprises dry land and islands, and 65% of which is sea. I wish we had been more prepared and had rented sand buggies. They would have been great to cruise around in. Oh, well. Next time! The airport is where the family parted ways. Mom and dad went back to the USA and I flew to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to meet up with a few friends for what was supposed to be one week but ended up being three. Subsequent posts to follow… Know Before You Go: All our guides were very knowledgeable, globally informed and spoke excellent English. Peru uses both continental European outlets as well as North America plugs in most hotels. The altitude can be a real issue for some people. Take proper precautions including drinking lots of water, laying off the booze, getting plenty of sleep and chewing coca leaves. The pisco sour is Peru’s national drink. Three-quarters of the world’s alpacas live in Peru. Carry toilet paper with you in case you need to use a public restroom. Do not throw used toilet paper in the toilet. It goes in the trash. Do not drink the tap water under any circumstances. Do not use it to brush your teeth. either and keep your mouth closed in the shower. I wore my tiny green shoes to hike around Machu Picchu, but I would recommend hiking boots. Wear layers at Machu Picchu, it gets hot when the sun is out and chilly when the sun goes in. Don’t let your personal belongings out of your site and ladies, keep your purses close. #peru #lima #southamerica #cuzco #machupicchu #pisco #paracas

I can still distinctly remember the bar in Bocas del Toro, Panama, nine year ago, where I fell in love with a Brazilian underwear model. Barco Hundido it was called (meaning sunken ship). True to its name, in the middle of the open-air bar was an actual sunken banana boat. I was sat with my feet dangling above the wreck, in the Caribbean waters, sipping on a Balboa pale lager when I first met eyes with the gorgeous creature across the way. I channeled all the supernatural powers I could muster to influence him to approach me. When that tactic failed, I marched over his way and bought him a drink. We got to talking and I learned that his name was David, he was from Rio de Janeiro, but living in Miami, and was modelling to support his surfing habit. I immediately declared my love to him…Out loud. Sadly, David and I did not keep in touch after Panama. Some years later I found him on Instagram and started following him because I remembered that I loved him. He eventually closed his account (not because of me) and, devastatingly, slipped out of my life for a second time. One month prior to my trip to Brazil, I had a dream that I was in Rio and I bumped into him. I told one of the girls who I was going to be traveling with, Pia, and she said, ‘Don’t be absurd. There are six million people in Rio, and you don’t even know if he actually lives there.’ Fast forward to Monday, 1st May, when I arrived in Rio, after a 10-day tour of Peru with my parents. The girls I was meeting up with (Pia and Victoria) had arrived in Brazil two days prior to me. They had a big night out in Rio on the Saturday previous and then went to Iguazu Falls for Sunday and most of Monday. We all convened at my hotel (the Sheraton Grand Rio Hotel and Resort) on that Monday night. Drinks were ordered to the room and we took turns sharing stories of the happenings from the preceding days. During this chat, I learned that on Saturday night Pia met the man of her dreams. She caught this handsome human yawning at the end of the bar, which sparked a bit of banter. Unfortunately, no numbers were exchanged, but he would live on in her fantasies. Pia already knew of my great Panamanian love, but I filled Victoria in on the story above, bringing up some of his modelling photos on my mobile for emphasis. Victoria took one look at David (who’s name I had not yet uttered) and said, ‘That looks like David.’ Long story short, we worked out that my love from Panama was Pia’s dreamboat from the Saturday night! What are the chances? Clearly, we both have excellent taste. The next four days were spent hunting for David (in between eating, drinking, changing hotels and/or pretending to sightsee, of course). #FindDavid. After checking out of the Sheraton on Tuesday, we wandered through Leblon, Ipanema, the Botanical Gardens and Santa Teresa before making out way to our next hotel, (Mama Shelter). When we checked in, we were warned that there would be no water at the property the whole next day, due to maintenance, but we somehow managed to overlook that piece of information at the time. That evening we started with sundowner drinks at the Hotel Santa Teresa. There, we met an international group of guys who knew each other from an MBA program in Singapore. We ended up joining them for dinner at Aprazível and then going to a 'rap' concert in a dilapidated house bar in the Bohemian neighborhood of Lapa. I am fully aware that these next few sentences will make me sound like an old lady who says things like ‘kids these days’ or ‘when I was your age…’, but it was not rap. It was shouting into a microphone, to a hip hop beat spun by Snoop Dog’s 10-year-old cousin twice removed. And the house? Well, it was worse than any fraternity house I have ever frequented at any US university. It might have been a crack den. It was seedy and crumbling, with graffiti everywhere, broken windows and sticky floors. On Wednesday morning, we were somehow surprised when we woke up with no running water. Not being able to brush our teeth nor have a shower was unacceptable so Mama Shelter kindly called us a car and moved us and our belongings to Hotel Santa Teresa for the day. We showered up there and then spent our morning eating acai and Pão de Queijo (Brazilian cheese bread balls) before riding the tram from Santa Teresa to downtown Rio (Centro), passing over the Lapa aqueduct arches along the way. From downtown, we walked back to Lapa and took photos of the famous Selaron Steps. Having had just about enough sightseeing that day, we hiked up the hill to Santa Teresa and plopped ourselves down beside the hotel’s lovely pool. In the late afternoon, we packed up our stuff and moved hotels again. This time to the Caesar Park Ipanema. We had a drink on the rooftop at Caesar Park and then decided we hadn’t seen enough Rio hotels yet, so we went to the beautiful Fasano for another few sunset libations. Dinner that night was at Zazá Bistrô Tropical and was divine. By Thursday there had still been no sign of David, so we decided to splurge and took a panoramic helicopter tour of the city with Helisul. It was incredible to see aerial views of Christ the Redeemer, Sugar Loaf and the coastline. After looking down on Cristo from the sky, we decided to look up at this cultural icon from Corcovado Mountain, where he stands at an imposing 98 feet tall (excluding the pedestal). This statue was included as one of the New 7 Wonders of the World in 2007 (of which I have now visited all but two, in the past two years). We battled the crowds to snap the obligatory arms out photos and then went and sat on Ipanema beach to get hassled by every person who walked by, trying to sell us everything from water and adult beverages to snacks, trinkets, soccer balls, cocaine, flip flops and bathing suits (in case you forgot to wear yours to the beach?). In the early evening, we had a few drinks at the hotel’s rooftop before we had to bid Pia farewell. She had a wedding in the US to attend. Feeling abandoned, Victoria and I decided that we'd have a mellow night, so we went to Bar Astor for some delicious gin & tonics and oysters. We woke up feeling fresh on Cinco de Mayo, so we decided to get a little exercise and walk from Ipanema to Copacabana. We attempted to catch some rays on the beach, but it was a touch too chilly and cloudy. Since suntanning was out of the question, we decided we really should visit this place called Sugar Loaf that everyone kept talking about. We took two separate cable cars up to the top, grabbed some photos and promptly came back down to escape the wind and cold. With all that touristy stuff ticked off the list, we felt we deserved some cheese balls and rosé, so we stopped off at the Belmond Copacabana Palace. We hadn't yet hit our quota on Rio hotels so we then hit up the rooftop at the Pestana Atlântica for two more bottles of champagne before heading back to get cleaned up, ahead of our romantic final supper at Casa Vieira Souto. After dining amongst newlyweds and googley-eyed couples, we headed to Bar Stuzzi in Leblon. This is where my dream came true...Literally. Victoria spotted David and before she could finish saying ‘There’s Da…..’ I had already bee-lined over to him. I was grinning from ear-to-ear and talking a million miles per minute, trying to explain to David (but failing in my excitement) how we had met nine years prior, in Panama. He had no idea who I was and I was making an absolute fool of myself. This meet-up went so much better when I dreamt it. Once Victoria ordered and paid for our drinks (thanks, lady), she came over to where David, David’s cousin (who miiiiight have been just as hot as David, if not hotter) and I were standing. David still didn’t know who I was and was even more confused as to how Victoria and I knew each other (apparently he had no problem remembering her from Saturday...I wasn't bitter). About five mins passed before David said to me, ‘Wait, we met in Bocas del Toro, right?’. Score! He did remember me! I then awkwardly hugged him and stroked his abs before he made an excuse to leave. Fair play to him. I was a creep. But I was a thrilled creep. Victoria managed to capture of photo of us before he dashed off, which I shared with just about everyone in my iPhone contacts. Sadly, that night took a turn for the worse when Victoria and I were involved in an automobile accident. I ended up spending another two weeks in Brazil…More on that in my next post… #riodejaneiro #brazil #rio #hoteltour #southamerica #leblon #ipanema #sugarloaf #christtheredeemer #cristo #santateresa #lapa #selaronsteps #copacabana #panama #bocasdeltoro

As I sit here writing this blog and going through my photo album, all the ‘feels’ from Greece have come flooding back. I can see the beautiful white-washed architecture set against the turquoise waters and the vivid sunsets, I can feel the winds and the belly laughs and I can taste the tomatoes and champagne. On this trip, a few friends and I visited three of the more well-known islands in the Cyclades archipelago. The adventure began chasing hedonism in Mykonos, notable for its gay-friendly vibe and never-ending beach party rave scene. We stayed at The George Hotel, in an area called Platis Gialos, on the southwest part of the island. It’s about 4km from Mykonos town and a short water ferry from many of the famous beaches. It’s important to choose your location wisely in Mykonos because private transportation is difficult to come by. There is an Uber-like app that we found mildly helpful. Recommendations to pass the days and nights in Mykonos Include: Nammos – Book a table for a scrumptious lunch, but plan on staying until dark. Wear a swimsuit under your clothes if you fancy a dip in the sea. Scorpios - Book in advance for dinner and then rage until closing time. Interni - Go for the appetizers, stay for the club vibe. If you like the music as much as we did, you can buy it on a flash drive for €180. Caprice - A dinner option in town. Pinky Beach in Super Paradise - Lay claim to a sunbed, enjoy a massage, eat and drink whilst listening to some tunes at this beach club. After our four nights in Mykonos, we were sufficiently broke and broken. From there, we took about a one hour fast ferry to Páros, where we enjoyed two nights of low-key luxury. Páros is quiet and chilled compared to its neighbors. It’s famous for traditional architecture and lovely beaches. Parikia and Náoussa are the main villages. We stayed at Minois Village Resort & Spa. There were far too many children around to enjoy the pool in peace, but the hospitality and attentiveness of the staff was top notch. Our first evening, we dined at Barbarossa Restaurant, in Náoussa, where we witnessed a spectacular sunset from the outside seating area, whilst enjoying fresh, delicious seafood. The next day was spent on a private boat, leaving out of Aliki Port. On our journey at sea, we first visited Panteronissia (AKA the "Blue Lagoon"). We swam in the crystal-clear waters amongst volcanic remnants. Like mermaids, we emerged out of the water, on a small island and joined some young locals in a game of beach soccer. Losers had to do a shot of Tsipouro (ick!). Our next stop was a beautiful cove where we had the option of swimming, paddle boarding, snorkelling and/or cliff jumping. Here our captain prepared a delicious snack, consisting of all locally sourced foods. We enjoyed another beautiful Páros sunset before heading back to the port for a yummy seaside dinner. Our Grecian journey ended on the beautiful island of Santorini. The ferry took about three hours from Páros. We were met at the port in Santorini by a driver who took us to our villa in Oia. It turns out that there are over 1,000 hotels on the island and only 36 taxis, so it’s imperative to organize transit in advance and/or hire a car. Our tri-level villa slept eight. It had its own private pool and hot tub. Oia Sunset Villas also arranged our Jeep Wrangler hire (drop off and pick up at our accommodation) as well as a chef for the first night. The villa was slightly father out of Oia proper than we’d have liked, but it was lovely, secluded, tranquil and away from all the tourists. Having the Jeep was wonderful and allowed us to see a lot of the island. Below is a list of places that I would recommend based on what we saw/did: Red Beach – It’s a bit of a hike to get to this scenic beach. The the tiny stretch of beach is overrun with tourists, so go early in the AM. The Black Beaches – We went to JoJo in Perivolos, which offers sunbeds for hire, music, full service bar, food, beach volleyball and water sports. WARNING: The black sand will burn the soles of your feet. Enjoy a champagne sunset at PK in Fira. Book in advance. Mezzo for dinner in Fira – They claim to have the best Greek salad in Santorini! Chill out at Le Moustache's infinity pool for the day (book beds in advance). The view is killer. Take the hundreds of steps down from Oia to Ammoudi Bay and dine at Sunset Taverna. It’s worth the walk, but maybe take a car back up the hill afterward. Greece was an incredible visual and edible feast of a destination, but it left us hungry for more. I hope to see you again soon, Greece! Know Before You Go: During high season, book everything in advance, from accommodations and transportation to sunbeds and restaurants. AMEX is not widely accepted, so be sure to have a Visa or Mastercard on hand. Greeks are known for their hospitality and friendliness. I found this to be accurate. The food is incredible! I never felt unsafe on any island and there was no obvious theft. We regularly left our stuff unattended on the beach when we swam. It's very windy, which was refreshing in the daytime but made for some chilly evenings. There were not many mosquitos, but the ones that did exist managed to find and feast on me. The drinking water in Santorini was salty so we stuck to bottled water. It seemed to be fine on the other islands. #greece #mykonos #santorini #paros #aegeonsea #nammos #scorpios #interni #thegeorgehotel #oia #fira

Way back in 2006, I watched a program called Passport to Europe, on the Travel Channel. In this particular episode, Samantha Brown took me on a tour Cornwall. Everywhere she went in the region looked utterly magical. Cornwall was promptly added to my mental ‘places to visit’ list. Until this past weekend, an opportunity to visit never presented itself. I only had the pleasure of visiting for a few days, but it was every bit as fairy-tale-like as I anticipated. From walking on water, hiking above azure waters, visiting a cliffside open-air theatre and castles, to meeting reindeer and seeing rainbows, a full moon and fireworks, the only thing that could have made Cornwall more whimsical would have been a blessing of unicorn. As far as basic travel logistics go, there are three ways to get to Cornwall, from London: 1) Car - This option requires approximately 6 hours each way, 2) Train – Similar timing to driving and costs about upwards of £65 each way, 3) Airplane – Flybe takes off from Gatwick and arrives into Newquay in about 40-minutes, for around £120, roundtrip. From a timing and monetary perspective, it seems like a no-brainer to me, but everyone I told that I was flying thought I was a maniac. I arrived into Cornwall on Friday evening. My friend was kind of enough to come collect me at the airport. It was about a 40-minute drive from Newquay Airport to her place in Portreath. Since it was already late by the time we got settled in, we just had some hot chocolate and caught up before hitting the hay. Saturday morning we got an early start, kicking off the day with a winding-road drive from Portreath to Marazion. There, St. Michael’s Mount beckoned. This castle island is accessible by a man-made causeway, at low-mid tide. Normally, you'd be able to take a boat back as the tide comes in, but this off-season, extensive building work was being undertaken and boats were not being operated. We made very sure to keep an eye on the tide times so we didn't end up stuck there with no open facilities. In photos, the causeway appears to be quite a long journey, but, in actuality, is a fairly short walk. We arrived around 11am. The water was receded and all that surrounded the causeway and island was sand and seaweed. After walking across and back, to kill time before the tides swelled, we went to get some lunch at Ben’s Cornish Kitchen in Marazion. Absolutely delicious and highly recommended! If you don’t fancy a full lunch, stop and treat yourself to a tea/snack at Godolphin Arms, with unobstructed views of the castle. Our bellies overfilled, it was time to burn some calories, so we walked about half way back out to the Mount. However, the tide started to come in quite quickly, so we snapped some photos and then made a run for it. After St. Michael’s Mount, we drove to the far west of Cornwall, to an area called Porthcorno. I would not have believed that a Caribbean-esque sea like this existed in Britain if I hadn’t seen it with my own two eyes. There is a path up the cliffs from the beach that you can climb to reach the Minack Theatre. This world famous, open-air theatre is carved into the bluff, towers over Porthcurno Beach and has the sea as a dramatic backdrop. From May to September, for the past 85 years, the Minack Theatre puts on plays, musicals, comedies, concerts and operas. The history of the theatre is as interesting as the theatre is magnificent. Rowena Cade, who moved to Cornwall after the First World War, built a house at Minack Point for £100. She decided that the cliffs below her dwelling would be the perfect setting for a theatre, so she and her gardener hauled granite boulders themselves to build the seating and stage. Shakespeare’s The Tempest was the debut performance, in 1932. All the names and dates of the shows that have run are carved into the seats. On the drive from Porthcurno back to Portreath, as the clouds rolled in, a light sprinkling of rain began and we had the pleasure of witnessing a handful of vivid rainbows. I was unsuccessful at capturing photos of any of them through the windshield, but I promise they were there. Our next stop was Feadon Farm to see a pair of reindeer, pleasingly named 'Merry' and 'Christmas'. Merry is not pictured here as she was snoozing in the other corner. We also got to see some pygmy goats. Knowing full well that they wouldn’t respond, I couldn’t help but ask the mini goats if they were full grown. In fairness, they were probably looking at me thinking ‘Are you full grown?’ That evening was Bonfire Night (AKA the night before Guy Fawkes Day), so there were fireworks going off all over the place. There was also a full moon. The sky was lit! Cornwall really couldn’t get any more enchanting! I look forward to going back again and seeing what other things weren't, but should have been on Samantha Brown's 2006 itinerary.

Spending 7 hours and 16 mins at a cruising altitude of 31k feet, surrounded by ~279 other passengers, with no access to the world wide web tends to make a mind wander. Below are the travel-related ponderings of my Prosecco-infused brain, in-between bouts of narcolepsy, en route from London to New York City today: 'We are now going to attempt to fly to New York' - Words I'm pleased my captain did not kick this transatlantic flight off with! Why am I startled every time I flush an airplane toilet, even though I fully anticipate the forceful suction? Who is responsible for selecting Indian food as a cuisine choice on a long-haul flight? I'd like to have a word with them! I'm very lucky I'm small enough to curl up comfortably in Economy. It must be dreadful for the rest of society to have to sit in these tiny seats with limited legroom. If staying awake for intervals greater than 30 minute is a job requirement for flight attendants, I would not make a suitable cabin crew candidate. Will we ever master teleportation? I get why this can't happen, but wouldn't it be cool if the windows on the plane opened so we could touch the fluffy clouds?! Thank goodness I got a flu shot! Between the symphony of coughing, sneezing and sniffling amongst the hundreds of other breathers and the fact that the seat recline buttons nor tray tables have never properly been wiped down, this plane is a breeding ground for germs. Why oh why do the airline gods and/or the computer-generated seat allocation systems refuse to ever sit me next to an attractive, good-smelling, available man? Do we all agree that demonstrating how to operate the seat belt during the safety briefing is no longer necessary? I'm sure there are some first time fliers on board, but surely understanding the 3-1-1 liquids rule is more difficult than figuring out how to insert a metal fitting into a buckle! #travelmusings #thoughts #ponder #usa #unitedstates

With a population of 1.38 billion people, I expected China to be congested, overcrowded and hectic. I thought I’d be jostled, shoved and suffer from endless invasions of personal space. I anticipated complete chaos. As it turned out, I completely misjudged China! Considering that China is the most populous country in the world, there were not nearly as many people out and about as I thought there would be and I found the country, as a whole, to be quite organised and orderly. In Shanghai in particular, I was surprised by the quiet tree-lined streets in the French Concession, the general lack of noise and bustle, the amount of green space/parks, how wide roads were and how systematic public transit was. Additionally, Shanghai Pudong was one of the most efficient international airports I have ever gone through. It took me a mere 30 mins from landing to being in a taxi, including going through immigration and baggage reclaim, withdrawing cash and clearing customs. Where I did find things to be a bit insane was on the roads. Traffic was horrendous in both Shanghai and Beijing. Driving was questionable and pedestrians certainly did not have the right of way. Motorbikes dangerously served around people on the streets and often even drove on the sidewalks. Walking around anywhere was like a game of Frogger. Apart from being recklessly operated, motorbikes are also one of the contributors to the stifling air quality in China's big cities. It's a serious problem and it's likely that pollution will become China's biggest health threat in the very near future, but I was quite lucky on my trip in that I didn’t experience any smog at all. I had nothing but beautiful blue skies. Another idiosyncrasy that I expected to encounter a whole lot more than I did was public spitting and clearing of nostrils. Although I did witness these acts from time-to-time, there was far less phlegm spewing than I was prepared for. Us Westerners find these habits vulgar, but I learned that the Chinese are equally as disgusted with our taking our snot with us after using a tissue. Patience is a virtue that will serve you well in China. Many signs were in English, but I did not find that many people actually spoke the langauge. Despite not being able to communicate easily, the Chinese were quite a friendly people. This trip validated what I've learned on other travels - a smile translates similarly in every language. Below are the highlights that I'd recommend in Shanghai and Beijing, and some helpful tips in case you fancy a trip to China. Shanghai The Bund is a waterfront area in central Shanghai where an innumerable amount of Easter egg-colored skyscrapers line the Huangpu River. It's particularly striking at night, when everything is lit up. Yuyuan Garden, known more simply as Yu Garden, is located in the northeast of Shanghai's Old City. It is believed to have been built more than 400 years ago, in the Ming Dynasty. Here you will see classic Chinese architecture as you wander along the zigzagged bridges over a large koi pond. If you're lucky, you'll get to witness a feeding frenzy amongst the koi fish as tourists drop crumbs in the water. The Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum commemorates more than 13,700 Jewish refugees who were welcomed into Shanghai during WWII. I located four family members on the Wall of Names who claimed asylum in Shanghai after fleeing Europe to escape the Holocaust. The Grand Hyatt (in the iconic Jin Moa Tower) is an 88-story hotel with a dizzying atrium. Below is the view from the 87th floor, looking down to reception on the 54th level. Below is a view of Shanghai's Financial District (Lujiazui) and the Bund, from Cloud 9, the bar at the top of the Grand Hyatt. Surprisingly, Shanghai is only 5th in the world on the list of cities with the most skyscrapers measuring at least 150m. Hong Kong, NYC, Dubai and Tokyo rank ahead of Shanghai. There are fake versions of everything in China - from fast food chains to watches and currency, even meat. In Shanghai there are whole markets dedicated to knockoffs. It's a cultural experience to visit these labyrinths of stalls filled with fake versions of everything you can imagine. Also, it's a great place to work on your negotiating skills. Bargaining is expected and encouraged. As a foreigner, your initial prices will be higher, but if you haggle hard, you can negotiate as much as 80-90% off. Beijing Jingshan Park is an imperial park. Pictured below is an elderly woman doing some morning stretching, with a view of the Forbidden City in the background. The Beijing Olympic Green was constructed for the 2008 Summer Olympics. The National Stadium, nicknamed the Bird's Nest, is shown below. It cost $428 million. It will be used again in the 2022 Winter Games. Also within the Olympic Green, sits the 'Water Cube' (the National Aquatics Center) where all the swimming competitions for the 2008 Olympics were held. The facade of the building was designed to look like soap bubbles. The Summer Palace is on the UNESCO World Heritage list. Three quarters of it is a lake and the rest is made up of gardens, temples, bridges and palaces. It would have looked a whole lot more 'Summery' if the lake wasn't frozen. It's said that the longest corridor in the world is at the Summer Palace. It is aptly called the Long Corridor. The Temple of Heaven is an imperial complex of religious buildings that was visited by the Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to Heaven, for good harvest. The coolest part was the Echo Wall. The eaves and hermetically laid bricks of this wall make the refraction of sound waves possible. As a result, people can communicate, wirelessly, from opposite sides of the complex, when only speaking at a whisper. Tiananmen Square is located in the center of China's capital, Beijing. It is most well-known for the protests that occurred in 1989, resulting in the massacre of thousands of civilians. The Forbidden City is a palace complex, just over the road from Tiananmen Square, perched below Jingshan Park. It now houses the Palace Museum and the Imperial Gardens. The highlight of Beijing was the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall of China. It was very cold, which probably contributed to fewer tourists, but this part of the wall is often less congested anyway. We took the cable car up at watchtower 14 and hiked around to some of the other watchtowers. It was magnificent! If you walk to the left when you get on the wall, it's quite steep and hilly. However, if you go to the right, it's downhill and then you can take the Alpine slide down. I didn't get to do it because it was so cold, but I'd love to go back and try it another time. Eat at Dali Courtyard. The menu is strictly prix fixe and you won't know exactly what you'll be served, but we had dishes like grilled goat cheese, grilled chilli fish, spicy stir-fried mushrooms, Yunnan-style dumplings, noodles, fried shrimp and stir-fried wild vegetables. This restaurant was voted “Outstanding Chinese Restaurant of the Year,” "Outstanding Outdoor Dining" and "Outstanding Yunnan" in the Beijinger’s 2011 Reader Restaurant Awards. Know Before You Go: The visa process for The People’s Republic of China can be a bit confusing and I found the website slightly convoluted. Since I had limited time before my trip and had to get things right the first time around, I ended up paying a bit extra to use a visa service company called VisaHQ. I have used them in the past and they are pretty good. I paid £180.80 for a what I thought was a single-entry visa and it took 4 days to process. I believe I ended up with a multiple-entry visa that’s good for 10 years, however. The photo requirements for the Chinese visa are very specific. Both ears must show, you must wear a neutral expression and no jewelry is allowed. Make sure you read the instructions carefully to avoid delay and/or declination. The Great Firewall is real. Be sure to sign up for a VPN so you can access blocked sites/apps, including, but not limited to Facebook, Instagram, the whole suite of Google products, many media outlets, Netflix, etc. I used Express VPN and had no issues. It was easy to set up and to operate. I also downloaded Didi, the Chinese ride-hailing Uber alternative app, before I left the UK. Unfortunately, I never got it to work properly. Maybe you’ll have better luck. Taxis were difficult to hail at times, so it would have been handy to have had this app working. China is generally quite safe, with relatively low crime. There are some scams and pickpockets in touristy spots, but be vigilant and you’ll be fine. Taxis were very inexpensive, but make sure you are in a licensed cab and that the meter is running. Also, this didn’t happen to me, but I’ve heard of taxi drivers scamming foreign passengers. When you hand the driver 50 or 100 yuan notes, at the end of the ride, they secretly swap out your real bills for fake notes, give the bogus ones back to you and demand that you pay them in real bills, leaving you with the fraudulent bills and double payment. To avoid this, pay attention to the serial number on the top left corner of your note and learn how to identify fake Chinese currency. The currency is officially the Yuan Renminbi. People call it Yuan or RMB. No other currency is accepted in China. Tipping is not expected in China. Credit Cards are not accepted in many places. Be sure to have cash on you. For the best exchange rates, withdraw cash from ATM’s, not at the airport. WeChat is the most popular messaging service in China. It’s got a lot of cool functionalities. Download it before you go. ‘Ganbei’ is how you say cheers in Mandarin. The language barrier is difficult, but the Google Translate app can provide some aid. Be sure to also bring a printout or have a screenshot of your hotel’s name, written in Chinese, to show taxi drivers. Public toilets are often holes in the ground. Be prepared to squat and always carry tissue/toilet paper with you, just in case. The food was VERY salty. Be sure to drink lots of bottled water to stay hydrated. Power sockets in China hotels accepted Continental European (type C), US (type A) and Australian (type I) plugs. The standard voltage is 220V and 50Hz frequency. #china #asia #shanghai #beijing #greatwallofchina #huangpuriver #bund #yuyuangarden #yugarden #jingshanpark #beijingolympicgreen #bird39snest #watercube #summerpalace #UNESCOworldheritagesites #sevenwonders #templeofheaven #tiananmensquare #forbiddencity