Madeira and the Canary Islands

Our first four port days were spent in Madeira, an autonomous nation of Portugal, and a few of the Canary Islands: La Palma, Tenerife and Gran Canaria. 

Madeira was our first port of call and a welcome venture for someone who isn't used to staying in one small space for days at a time. Although there are hints of the tourist industry creeping in, as in most Islands with a tropical-esk climate, it has not yet completely taken over. Whether pottering around the more central area or exploring a little further out, you could really get the authentic Portuguese flavour of the region. New builds are sandwiched between older constructions and it is easy to wander from one of the bright and spacious main squares into the higgledy-piggledy maze of winding side streets, giving the whole place a rather homey feel, as opposed to the common clinical and uniform feeling that is slowly encroaching on many major cities.

I just love this pic :)

The fish market that Stephen insisted on visiting... ew ew ewwwwwww!

Chilling with the Aurora.

My favourite street was a little way out, on which each resident had painted their front door with various different images. It seemed to be in celebration of something, since they were all signed and dated around the same time, but unfortunately we couldn't work out what it was. Here are my top three...

Oh and I don't know if you were watching the news around 15th August, but Madeira was actually on fire on that day we visited. It was kinda crazy actually, I couldn't help worrying about the locals as we watched the flames growing and spreading throughout the day.

Pretty scary eh?

The siblings, Grandad and I spent very little time on shore in La Palma because we're massive wimps and just couldn't take the intense 38 degree heat. All we could manage was a little while on a volcanic beach with BLACK sand (which was kinda cool but extremely hot underfoot!) before heading back to the ship to cool off in the pool. Dad and Stephen did report that it was quite a lovely little place, less touristy than the other Canaries and insanely cheap. I also got told off by a good friend for not exploring the volcanoes in the area at all, apparently they make for some really interesting excursions.

My one picture from the beach in La Palma, not too shabby really.

My absolute favourite day of the entire holiday was the day that we spent at the Siam Water Park in Tenerife. I'm a big fan of water and swimming anyway, but this park was just fantastic. There was absolutely no stone left un-turned when it came to attention to detail and the slides were perfect for an adrenaline junkie such as myself. There was even one where you went under a shark tank in a dingy! And the wave pool was EPIC. My only complaint was that we didn't get long enough there, which really isn't much of a complaint at all.

Aren't we just the coolest?

It was SO BIG. That slide in the background was literally like 40ft high!

I think I'm correct in saying that Gran Canaria is my Dad's favourite place in the world. It's where he and Stephen want to retire to and I can see why. It wouldn't be my first choice, it's a perfect spot for people who just want to chill out in the day and party at night. Plus although the new part of town isn't particularly unique or exciting, the old bit really is beautiful and the weather is apparently fab all year round.

We went to visit the Cathedral and paid just €2.50 to climb to the top of the tower. The view of the city was pretty incredible and really colourful. I like me a good view, so we spent quite a while up top taking pictures, though the top of the tower was rather a tight squeeze, so maybe plan your visit before a meal time ;)

This picture doesn't really do it justice, but you get the idea.

'Let's do a silly one!'

After that we strolled around a few of the shops, spending a little too long in a children's toy shop because the air conditioning was just that good. Us Brits really aren't built for extreme heat. Honestly, I found myself praying for rain at this point, much to my Dad's disapproval. I don't even burn like my ginger relatives - heh heh heh - I'm just not a big fan of skimpy clothing (see above) which makes for some difficult compromises on extra warm days.

I rather enjoyed all these taster sessions, it gives me an idea of where I'd like to revisit in the future. On to another sea day before the day I am most anticipating... our final stop in Lisbon!

Cruising

It seems that being at sea makes it incredibly difficult to connect to the internet, thus causing problems on the blogging front. But never fear, I have been writing about my experiences as the days went by so I can share them with you now I'm back. You simply have to pretend that I've only just gone away, ok? Brilliant.

I should probably start off with pointing out how cruising (if you haven't already guessed) wouldn't usually be my first choice for a getaway, owing to the restraints on time for exploring and the excessive amount of organised fun. However when my grandad asked if we'd like to go away with him, I was hardly going to turn down the chance for some quality family time, let alone a free trip to five places I've never visited before.

The Aurora! My temporary home :)

After an extremely early get up we finally arrived in Southampton to set sail at 4.30. I've quickly had to adjust to the importance of promptuity during sea travel. Not just for sailaways but also for on board activities and meal times; my fashionably late-ness isn't so fashionable on here it seems. 

The average age of the passengers is probably around late 40s/early 50s, so as you can imagine, me, Rach and Josh are in a bit of a minority (Rach being 19 and Josh, 17). We're trying to convince Josh to give the kids club a go, though maybe calling it the 'kids' club isn't the best persuasive tactic we could use... Luckily we are all quite introverted at some level and get on pretty well, so really I have no quarms about whether or not we meet other passengers. Usually I love to make friends and get to know other people's back stories etc, but since everyone on this ship is English and rather posh, I'm happy spending time in the company of my own family :)

Our first three days have been at sea, the majority of our time being consumed by swimming, sunbathing and eating far too much. Unlimited buffets are both a blessing and a curse (specifically on my waistline). At first I found it quite difficult to relax, as I'm not particularly good at doing nothing, but it's fair to say I'm starting to appreciate the break from the madness that is London. I've also enjoyed being able to catch up on recent film releases, since I haven't really seen many in the past two years.

Why are we all so fit?

Tomorrow is our first port day, I'm itching to get off and explore! First stop, Madiera.

Hideout; LET'S JACK

Since my last post I've been partying continuously and sunning myself at Hideout Festival (a house music festival on the Isle of Pag) hence the lack of much to write about. Staying in the same place for six days should have been a nice break after moving so quickly but thanks to a week of podium dancing, boat parties, one too many cocktails and watching four sunrises back to back, I can safely say I haven't felt this tired in an incredibly long time.

(Instagram @gracelund1)

I didn't expect it to be so picturesque... I'm so sorry for the British Invasion, Pag.

(Instagram @taneli_uk)

Four tet at sunrise at our favourite club Kalypso. This is where Pete told me I 'dance like a black girl who grew up in Detroit'. I don't think I've ever been so flattered. *blushes*

I went with the Preston lot who are all very much into their house music and that whole scene, so I was a little apprehensive about what I was getting myself into, being a bit of a rocker myself. (Especially Danny i.e. Taneli who is a bit of an up and coming DJ himself - I'd highly recommend checking out his tunes: http://m.soundcloud.com/uktaneli)  ;)

However after a week of being fully immersed in 'the vibes' I can unashamedly admit that I am a house music convert. I never really understood it before - sounds a little cheesy I know but it really is something you have to experience to understand. And as someone who likes to boogey like crazy I fit in pretty easily.

(Instagram @gracelund1)

I wanted to do this SO BAD but unfortunately I had to be sensible/boring with funds. Maybe next time... SIGH.

(Instagram @ljcowgill)

Ste enjoying the Numbers 10 pool party with Jackmaster. Hannah 'God IS the beat'... 

The crowd were a rather colourful bunch; 90's get up and high heel trainers to teeny tiny bikinis and netted vests. I'm quite into my fashion quirks and creating my own style, so I'm not one to judge on other's outfit choices, but let's just say some were a little extreme even for me. Each to there own though, life would be boring of everyone was the same.

(Instagram @taneli_uk)

Boat party!! So much fun but it seriously takes in out of you.

(Instagram @taneli_uk)

Some of the crew soaking up the sun.

I'm now chilling in my hostel in Zagreb waiting for the others to recover at theirs so we can meet up and explore. Since they just crashed last night, I spent my evening with a group of guys from London who turned out to be super chill and lovely, which was a rather welcome atmosphere after the madness of the past week. 

Aaaaaaaaaand there's not much more to say really, just that this week has easily been the highlight of my year so far. Oh and I found out I passed my first year with a 2:1!! Who'd've thunk it eh? 

Budapest Round 2

I call it round 2, as this was actually my second trip to Budapest within the last year, however I was lagging on the blogging front last time and unfortunately didn't actually write about it. So this is a convenient way to fill in what I missed out (as we did a lot of the same things as last time) and add in the extras.

On the first day I was rather exhausted, so whilst the others headed out to explore I stayed in at our hostel (Home Plus Hostel, defo recommended!) writing postcards and blogging. As I said I'd been before so I wasn't too bothered about missing a bit out. That evening we headed out to a Hungarian/Italian restaurant near the basilica, which had tasty food but the slowest service in the universe and was drastically overpriced. I'd recommend heading a little further out of the main area if you'd prefer cheap and cheerful, especially if you don't want to wait two hours just for the main course.

We spent the whole of Sunday at the baths. The others had gone out to a club called Traffic the previous night, so it made for a good hangover cure/chill out day. At only 4300 HUF (a bit less that £15) it's a great day out, with saunas and loads of different heated and chilled pools. It's the second time I've been and I'd definitely go again! I did however forget to top up my sun cream and severely burned my back... Well done Em.

(Instagram @smutimer)

Picture from last July with the lovely Lauren :)

En route back we took a detour through Heroes Square which looked beautiful in the sunshine. 

On our final day we discovered an all you can eat and drink Hungarian buffet... So naturally we spent almost the entire afternoon eating and drinking ourselves silly. I think we had five bottles of champagne between the four of us. I tried so many different dishes: venison (which was divine), duck, veal, shark (not nuts on that one) and ate so much cake I felt like a little kid who scoffed their party goody bag a little two quickly. Had someone presented me with a wacky warehouse I'd have been raring to go. I think it was called Trófea and it got TripAdvisors top place to eat last year, so it's definitely worth a look in if you fancy treating yourself.

Stumbling out the restaurant Steve decided to give his flip flops a 'funeral' by chucking them off the side of the bridge so in solidarity as good friends we all decided to wander barefoot to the park in the middle of the river. Oh champagne logic. Unfortunately the musical fountain that I visited last time was under construction...

...and we were a little bit too betrunken to rent bikes...

...so despite the weather starting to turn we decided to lie in the rain listening to Disclosure and Taylor Swift drinking a bottle of wine we'd opened on a rock because we're just that classy.

I was supposed to be getting a train to Brasov in Romania that evening but the taxi that was supposed to pick me up cancelled at the last minute because it was spitting a bit (no exaggeration, I was so mad) so I missed my train and eventually decided to join the others going to Belgrade rather than risk being stranded. I met three English lads in the station who were lovely enough to let me share their cabin since I was too late to bunk in with the others. Although it wasn't a particularly comfortable journey or fruitful in terms of sleep, I actually quite enjoyed myself since we stayed up chatting for most of the night. It's so nice when you click with strangers :) 

The only things we missed out on this time was the trip up to the castle which gives you a fantastic view of the city...

...and the ruin bars which have an incredible vibe. But I've enjoyed this visit just as much, Budapest is definitely my favourite European city. Luckily for me, one of my besties is moving to Budapest for his year abroad, so that means this visit wasn't my last!

Now we're in Belgrade, dying from liquid cocaine induced hangovers (it's a shot, not a drug, don't worry Mum) but that's for another post! Also my head might explode if I have to concentrate on writing anymore...

Siegburg, Cologne and Bonn

Since Friday I've been staying with my friend Mani, who I met in Cusco, in a city called Siegburg which lies between Cologne and Bonn and having an absolute whale of a time. Not only has it been great to see Mani again and be back on the road, I'm also loving the feeling of knowing exactly what I'm doing (sort of). Although my first big adventure was exciting in that I was constantly learning and having to figure out how to do this thing called 'backpacking', it's nice not to worry about the little things that bothered me last time.

Despite having had only two hours sleep in the airport lounge the night before, as soon as Mani came to pick my up from the airport we headed out into Siegburg. I'm just so hardcore. After wandering around the centre and climbing up to the Convent at the top of the hill to see the pretty view (still being hardcore obv.) and sleeping in the afternoon, we headed out to a lake in a nearby town called Hennef, where we had beers and cake and bubbles and music to celebrate Mani's friend's birthday in the sunshine :)

On Saturday we visited Cologne. En route to the Cathedral we wandered across this really cool bridge which was COVERED in love -locks (I think that's what they're called...) There's literally thousands and apparently they're getting so heavy specialist people are starting to worry about damage to the bridge. I love it though!

We then climbed the Cathedral which was FLIPPING high, something stupid like 523 steps. But it was totally worth it, the view was really something! The inside was kinda cool too, you could see the huge bell and all the graffiti on the walls which has been there for years. Usually I'd be apposed to drawing on the walls of a church but I think it gave it character in a weird way. You could see the thousands of names of those who'd visited the church in the past and I personally love to think about where those people are now... does Ole still love Christina? How did Dave's 'eurotrip with the lads' end? I suppose I just like to let my mind wander.

That night we went to see Die Ärtze with two of Mani's friends. IT. WAS. AWESOME. I seriously recommend you check this band out.

I reeeeeeeeally hope this wasn't a real tattoo...

We decided to have a lazy Sunday, which consisted entirely of eating McDonalds, drinking beer, swimming and drinking more beer. Oh and a party in the kitchen where Mani and I learned to catch popcorn in our mouths and I tried and failed a juggling apples.

Today was my first day as a lone ranger as Mani had to go to work. I spent my time getting lost in the centre of Bonn - I'm telling you that city is like a maze, I kept on going round and round in circles. I bought some wool to make a headscarf with to give myself something to do on the train (its like 12 hours long tonight, which admittedly, I would have been ecstatic with in South America, I've just gotta get back into the swing of things!)

I leave Mani's at like 9 o'clock tonight for the station and then it's off to Poland, which is a new country for me which is all very exciting. I'm also meeting up with Mitch, Josie and Steve once I reach Krakow, which suggests to me that tomorrow could be a rather messy catch-up night.