Monday 26 December 2011

My Year in Travel

With 2011 drawing to a close I wanted to take a look back at my year in travel. This year I’ve been lucky enough to visit twelve different countries and I wanted to share some of my favourite pictures from the places I've been. 


VASA MUSEUM, STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN
Vasa Museum, Stockholm, Sweden
STOCKHOLM CITY HALL, SWEDEN
Stockholm City Hall, Sweden
LUTHERAN CATHEDRAL, HELSINKI, FINLAND
Lutheran Cathedral, Helsinki, Finland
PETERHOF PALACE, ST PETERSBURG, RUSSIA
Peterhof Palace, St. Petersburg, Russia
TALLINN, ESTONIA
Tallin, Estonia

OSLOFIORD, OSLO, NORWAY
Oslofiord, Norway
COPENHAGEN, DENMARK
Copenhagen, Denmark
WARNEMUNDE, GERMANY
Warnemunde, Germany

GREAT BELT BRIDGE, BELGIUM
Sailing under the Great Belt Bridge (third largest suspension bridge in the world!)

BRUGES, BELGIUM
Bruges, Belgium
MONACO AND MONTE CARLO, FRANCE
Monaco and Monte Carlo, France

FERRARI, MONACO
Me in a Ferrari, Monaco!
NEWCASTLE QUAY, ENDGLAND, UK
Newcastle, England
ROME, ITALY
Rome, Italy
SANTA MARIA CATHEDRAL, MURCIA, SPAIN
Santa Maria Cathedral, Murcia, Spain
VILLEFRANCHE-SUR-MER, FRANCE
Villefranche-sur-Mer, France
ALBUFEIRA, PORTUGAL
Albufeira, Portugal
GLASGOW UNIVERSITY, GLASGOW, SCOTLAND
Glasgow University, Glasgow, Scotland
2011 has been an amazing year of travel for me. My favourite place I visited this year is St. Petersburg without a doubt. I had such an amazing two days there and would love to spend more time there in order to be able to explore further.

My favourite travel experience this year was being surprised with a ride in a Ferrari F430 Spider in Monaco in March. I'll never forget this experience as I'm a massive car lover. Thanks to my lovely parents for this!

I have lots of travel plans for 2012 already (including Portugal and a Mediterranean cruise) and I can't wait to see what the year will bring.

Happy new year everyone, lets make it a good one!

Thursday 15 December 2011

My Return to Murcia

Once again I travelled to the city of Murcia, in the south-east of Spain to visit a close friend who is studying there for a year. I flew from Glasgow to Alicante and caught the local bus from the airport to Murcia which takes around 50 minutes and costs less than 5 euros for a single trip.

As a region Murcia is one of the sunniest places in Spain yet, despite this the city of Murcia itself is relatively free from tourists, who instead tend to flock to the coastal towns such as La Manga on the beautiful Mar Menor. Although it was the middle of December during my visit the temperatures were relatively high, around 20degrees in the middle of the day, and the sun shone throughout.

SANTA MARIA CATHEDRAL MURCIA
Santa Maria Cathedral


SANTA MARIA BELLTOWER MURCIA
The belltower on the Santa Maria Cathedral

One of the main attractions in Murcia for me is the tapas. The city of Murcia is littered with tapas bars, ranging from small, cafe style bars to more upmarket and therefore expensive restaurants. There are places to suit every budget and because the city is not a major tourist destination in general the prices are very reasonable for the quality of food which you receive.

One place which we visited that we really enjoyed was Bar Togo II. Here the tapas was presented together on one dish, instead of on separate dishes, as is generally typical of tapas. The food was presented beautifully and looked almost too good to eat! Despite the sumptuous food and wonderful presentation the price was very reasonable, costing just 15 euros for lunch for 3 people.

TAPAS MURCIA
Tapas at Bar Togo II

If you are thinking of visiting Murcia and wish to research possible restaurants online before your trip, you should be aware that many of the online reviews which I have found myself have been very out of date and the places written about have either changed hands or disappeared completely.


I discovered one of Murcia's hidden gems Pequeña Miss Cupcake- an adorable cake shop which specialises in handmade cupcakes, cookies and biscuits. The shop itself is located in the bustling area around the University and is beautifully decorated in pastel colours with perfect finishing touches, such as fabric bound menus. It is definitely the perfect spot to relax and have an afternoon nibble!


LITTLE MISS CUPCAKE
Gorgeous finishing touches

Pequeña MISS CUPCAKE
Pequeña Miss Cupcake

There are lots of great bars in Murcia to relax and spend an evening. One of my favourites is Cafe del Arco which is just steps from Plaza de Santa Domingo. It's a very modern bar with seats outside which are great for a spot of people watching! Another of my favourites is Kano which is a restaurant and bar in Plaza de Santa Domingo. It too is great for people watching and serves great tapas and paella. If you're looking for a club to head to after a few drinks then I can recommend Boutique. It plays a great mix of R'n'B, Spanish music, Reggaeton and Indie so there's something to suit everyone. It can get super busy in here and drinks are quite expensive but it has a great atmosphere and is the perfect place to get your dancing shoes on and party till 7am! 



CAFE DEL ARCO BAR MURCIA
Enjoying a cocktail at Cafe del Arco

Murcia really is a great city if you want to experience the 'real' Spain rather than the large tourist towns and especially if you want to improve your Spanish as almost none of the locals speak English. There are hotels, restaurants and activities to suit every budget and its proximity to the coastal areas of La Manga (can be reached by local bus in under an hour) make it the ideal destination for people who want to enjoy the city but also visit the beaches of the surrounding area.

If you want to read my post from my last visit to Murcia you can find it here.

Friday 9 December 2011

Glasgow Christmas Markets

Nothing gets me in the mood for Christmas more than a walk through the Christmas market at the St. Enoch’s Square in Glasgow. Traders from all over the world gather here for the month of December from 10am-7pm everyday (11am-6pm on Sunday). The traders come from places such as Germany, France, Holland, and Russia which makes it a very international and cultural market. The few flakes of snow falling around us made for a very atmospheric visit and left me feeling suitably ready for Christmas.



There are lots of stalls selling gorgeous scarves, gloves and hats to keep you warm in the harsh Scottish weather. There are also traders selling miniature Christmas trees and reindeers of varying sizes which I think would look great in a snowy garden.

There is a covered bar at the centre of this market which is open till 7pm every night and specialises in German beers, ciders and mulled wine. Perfect for getting into the Christmas spirit!

Santa guarding the bar!


However, it is the food that is the real attraction of this market. There are traders selling an amazing variety of food such as macaroons, crepes, German sausage, ostrich, crocodile and kangaroo burgers, paella, French delicacies, pastries and a huge selection of sweets. Of course it would have been rude of us not to sample something so a crepe and a hot chocolate to heat us up on a freezing cold December day!



If you're in the area and looking to get into the mood for Christmas, (or you're just in the mood for some amazing food!) then you should definitely visit these markets.
Now I guess I better start writing my list for Santa...!