Posts

Showing posts from 2017

Christmas trip to Lisbon, Portugal

Image
At the end of September, my friend and I decided to book a Christmas trip to Lisbon (it was a toss up between this and Vilnius- but Vilnius was more expensive and colder so we decided it would be more of a summer trip). So at the end of first term, we jetted off to the land of custard tarts, liqueur and seafood. As soon as we stepped out of the airport it was warm and sunny- and I instantly regretted not bringing my sunglasses. The metro was easy to work out, and on our first journey a family started playing Mans Not Hot. Wow, we Brits just bring our culture wherever we go... Anyway, we stayed in a hotel near Martim Moniz called Pensao Nova Goa which  was really cheap so I wasn’t expecting very much - and it wasn’t very much. The room was old fashioned, with not very nice sheets but was clean and we got breakfast so I guess we can't complain. The location was great as we were only a few minutes walk from the city centre. We arrived late afternoon so spent the even

Winter Wonderland: tips to make the most of it

Image
Happy December! And what better way to break in the season to be jolly than with a trip to Winter Wonderland? 'It's good but cold and expensive' is the response I got from every person who has been there so far- and I have to agree. But I'm going to share some hints to make your cold and expensive evening a little more special. First of all, there are 3 entrances to get into Winter Wonderland. Hint number 1: go through the MARBLE ARCH entrance! This is the way to go if you want to be greeted by the classic Winter Wonderland sign and feel the magic as soon as you step in. The other entrances aren't as good, and you have to walk a little way in before you get to the main attractions.  GET THE CHURROS. Freshly made and piping hot. The particular stall we went to had an option of chocolate sauce and Nutella- Nutella was more expensive and arguably tastes better but don't be fooled- if you choose chocolate sauce you actually get more  ;) Ther

A day in Budapest, Hungary

Image
So my summer 2017 travel posts have come to an end, with my last post on my day trip to Budapest. Budapest was about 3 hours by coach from Vienna, so it was a really early start. We decided to go with a tour company, because they picked us up from our hotel, and because we had only a day we thought it would be better as they could show us the main things. This was a total mistake though! As soon as we got to the Pest side (as Budapest is split into Buda and Pest by a river), they had booked us into a restaurant for AN HOUR AND 15 MINUTES, without making it clear that they were doing that. So we'd essentially lost almost an hour and a half, which is quite a lot considering we only had a day there. But anyway, at least the food was good. Paprika is a big thing in Hungarian cuisine, so we had some pretty tasty paprika chicken. Thank fully, a lot of the rest of the day was given as free time, so we managed to salvage and day and see as much of the Budaful (ha ha ) city as

A day in Bratislava, Slovakia

Image
Continuing with my summer 2017 travel posts, I present to you..... Bratislava! Now,  Slovakia isn't really a place your mind springs to when you think of where to go in the summer. But it was only 2 hours from Vienna, so we decided to do a day trip there whilst we had the chance, because really, when were we going to be in Slovakia again? And it was honestly THE most amazing place. Probably one of the nicest places I've been to. If there was a word to describe the city, I would say unspoilt. Or maybe charming. Or medieval. I just fell in love (can you tell??) We had a tour from a local guide, who spoke good English and was really knowledgable about the history of the wonderful city. She took us around Old Town, which is the historic centre of Bratislava. The whole place was so picturesque, and there were loads of interesting things to see along the way. There are quite a few little statues in the town, all with their own stories. My favourite was 'Man At Work'.