My Happy Place

This weekend just gone on the sunniest day of the year so far I visited my happy place which is Barmouth.

I have so many memories relating to holidays in Barmouth with family and trips there with friends. It is by far one of my favourite places with nostalgia everywhere I look.

I thought I would share with you some of my favourite traditions and things about Barmouth.

A Week in Dublin

Back at the beginning of April I visited Dublin for a week with a friend, this was the first time either of us had ever been to Ireland and we planned to make the most of it.

We booked a sweet little Airbnb room just up from St Stephens park giving us a short walk into the centre every morning through the park. St Stephens park had beautiful arrangements of flowers and I can imagine sitting in there while it's sunny with a good book is a fantasic way to relax.

Prague: The Charles Bridge

While in Prague one of the sights that you have to go see if the Charles Bridge, it is a stunning piece of architecture. While pretty much all of the architecture in Prague is stunning this bridge can not be beat in terms of beauty and history! The bridge crosses the Vlatava river in between the new town and the old town.

Travel: Prague Astronomical Clock

 Back in February I visited the beautiful city of Prague! As everyone has said time and time before it truly is a fairytale city!

There are beautiful buildings and architecture everywhere that you look, no two buildings are the same.

There are so many different sights to see and behold and the one that I was most looking forward to was the Astronomical Clock.

All the photos I had seen of this prior to going were stunning and when in person it looked even more fairytale-esque.

Travel: Prague: An Overview

 Back at the end of February I visited Prague, I had heard so many people rave about the beauty of the city, its buildings and how cheap it was to visit.

Me and my friend booked to go happy with our destination, we stayed just outside Prague in Andel and we were unfortunately booked into the wrong hotel (that's a story for another day.) Despite this our holiday was not ruined and we saw some breathtaking sights!

Travel: Nice

I visited Nice in October and I have delayed making a full post about my trip because to begin with the experience was down right awful.

This was not due to the city itself or any of the sights, rather the hotel that we were staying at to begin with. On the day we arrived the first evening we went out for food someone went into our room and stole from my friend. (I thankfully had all of my valuables on me).

Travel: Italy: Ventimiglia Friday Market

As Nice is so close to the boarder between France and Italy we decided to hope over for the day and visit the Friday Market in Ventimiglia. This was probably the closest tourist attraction we could find that would mean it was a day trip only.

Tour of Galimard Parfumerie

One of the tours we had while in Nice was a trip round the Galimard Parfumerie in Eze-village on the way to Monaco.

While here we were given a tour round where they explained how different perfumes were made and we were shown the process.

Nice: Day Out in Monaco

Another of our many day trips out was to Monaco, this was something we had booked in advance as part of a guided tour.

They took us to Monaco ville and Monte Carlo, no sights were included but we had time in the tour to go visit them.

A Day in Cannes

While in Nice we took a day trip out to Cannes known for the glitzy film festival and stunning scenery.

We lucked out and the weather was sunny and incredibly warm. We were hoping to have a tour of the Palais des Festivals but happened to visit while there was a business conference on.

The Worst Holiday Experience I Have Ever Had

I want to do a wonderful post about my holiday in Nice and talk about the culture, the food and the stunning views, but before I can do that I feel I need to get this post out.

There was one major thing that put a dampner on the whole holiday, there are many ways it could have been avoided but the main thing is that it is not what you expect staying in a 4* hotel.

If you were looking for a happy holiday post this is not the one, wait for the next one.

I want to note that this was purely my experience and if you have been there before you may have had a different far better one.

Travel: Yosemite National Park

Another stop on our trip was Yosemite National Park which is located in California's Sierra Nevada Mountains. 

The park is stunning and absolutely massive we were put on the tourist trail in the valley which wasn't long and there was no chance of you losing your way and getting lost, you could just follow the crowds. The weather was sweltering but the trees gave off some much needed shade and you got sprayed with water from the waterfalls while walking by.

Travel: Disneyland California

You can't visit California and not go to Disneyland! While on our two week tour this was a must! This was one of the last few trips on the tour, you know what they say save the best for last!

We were lucky that when we went it landed on the 60th Celebration and they had exclusive merchandise and special parades going onto celebrate.

I had never been to Disney before and I am a massive fan, so of course I was like a kid in a sweet shop when we went and what better one to visit than the original Disneyland park?

(Please note: Ignore my outfit in these photos, it was a 2 week trip and towards the end of it stylish was not a look I could go for.)

Travel: The Grand Canyon

Over a year ago now I visited America for the first time, one of the places that was at the top of my travel list! I went on a two week tour around California (This included Arizona and Nevada.) 

I realised that while I blogged about the trip I did not do any specific posts related to the different places we visited or the sights that we saw.

We went to many places on this trip, I gained so many amazing memories, saw many amazing tourist attractions but the one that was near the top of my list had to be the Grand Canyon.

It was a stunning experience!

New York: Times Square

My final New York post - this means I'm going to have to accept that the holiday is over. Even though it technically has been for months 'inserts sad face emoji' 

This blog is all dedicated to Times Square. Of course when you go to New York this is one of the first sites you will go see.

New York: The Met Museum

One of the other sites that I really wanted to visit whilst in New York was the Metropolitan Museum of art.

I will admit this was mainly from watching Gossip Girl over and over and wanting to get a picture on the steps of the met. 

Once we arrived there the building was magnificent! It's just a donation to get a ticket and inside it is absolutely massive, like a maze. 

The section we browsed around was on the Egyptians there were so many artefacts! Mummies, sarcophaguses, Egyptian jewellery and even a temple. 

Everything on display seemed so grand and magnificent and they had a wonderful room where one wall was basically just a window, then there was a water feature. It was blocked off here I think they were setting it up for a wedding reception. 

I imagine it would make a stunning venue!

Unfortunately as all we had done that day was walk round everybody was overly tired by the time we got to the met. Which meant we only went round the section with artefacts from Ancient Egypt and then went back to the hotel.

I would love to go back and peruse some of the other exhibits, I don't think you'd get round all of it even if you spent a whole day in there!

I've included some of the photos I snapped above and below. This includes the mandatory picture on the steps of the met Gossip Girl style.

Have you visited the met Museum or New York in general? What did you enjoy the most?

Thanks for Reading!

New York: The Plaza and The Rockefeller

While wandering around New York we saw some iconic building from history and media. The two I got rather excited about were: The Rockefeller and The Plaza.

Unfortunately the Rockefeller was closed when we walked past but I did get a lovely photo of it at night all lit up. They even still had some Christmas trees out front as it was February at the time.

                                             

New York: Central Park

While in New York the one place that had to be visited, that is constantly mentioned in films and TV Shows is Central Park. We chose to walk through the park while on the way to the Museum of Natural History and it did not disappoint it was massive!

Having only seen glimpses of it from films I had no idea what to expect, I thought it would be a normal park that just consists of grass. How wrong I was! The park had its own roads for cyclists, those horses and carriages, lanes for people running. There was a park, a rocky area, a water fountain, a few lakes.

It made the parks in England look like mere gardens!

It was so relaxing to take a casual stroll round, if I lived there I would definitely be there every day in the summer when the weather is nice. 

Somewhere you can go sit relax and have a moment of calmness in the middle of the bustling city life!

Of course with such beautiful backdrops there was a need to take a few selfies.

Definitely a site that I would go back to again and again.

Have you ever been to New York? What did you think of Central Park?

New York: Statue of Liberty and The Brooklyn Bridge

As part of our trip in New York we went on a boat ride around the Statue of Liberty and Under the Brooklyn Bridge. We were originally going to get off at Ellis Island but thankfully we did not and that gave us extra time for other sights.

The boat ride was only 30 dollars and gave you a good view of the shoreline and the sights! We were very fortunate that on the day we went it was sunny and the sky was a clear blue!

I had expected the Statue of Liberty to be bigger than it was but overall it was one of those sights that if you're in New York you have to see.

We were stood at the side of the boat so had a fantastic view.

Sadly we did not stop at Ellis Island and visit the museum or go to the top of the Statue of Liberty, as we were only there for 5 days time was short and we wanted to see as much as we possibly could.

Have you ever seen the Statue of Liberty? What did you think?

Thanks for Reading!!

New York: Ground Zero

While in New York we also visited Ground Zero the site where the twin towers used to stand.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this and hadn't seen any photos of what the memorial looked like. When we got there I was stuck for words, they have made the site where the buildings used to be into one giant water feature with all the victims names carved around the edge.

The day we visited was sunny there wasn't a cloud in the sky, I was struck by how haunting the area felt. Something so serene in the hustle and bustle of the financial district.
It moved me to the point of near tears a feeling I will never forget! I certainly didn't expect to be as affected by the site as I was.

We took a few photos but overall just stared at the memorial, time felt like it had stopped in this one section of the district.

The memorial is such a strong symbol taking something that was such a tragic and horrific event and turning the area into something that is hauntingly beautiful. While at the same time making sure that what happened is not forgotten and that it is a tribute to all those innocent people who were taken far too soon.

It humbled me in a way I didn't expect and made me thankful for all the small things I take for granted.
I was about 8 when 9/11 happened and being so young did not grasp the enormity or reality of what had happened and this out everything into perspective for me.

Have any of you visited the memorial? How did it make you feel?