Loch Lomond

I'm lucky enough to live just over half an hour from the beautiful setting of Loch Lomond and I love to explore this area on any rare sunny Scottish days. Loch Lomond and the Trossachs has been a national park since 2002 and covers over 700 sq miles. It is just over half an hour from Scotland's largest city Glasgow and is easily acessible by road and rail.

Loch Lomond is the largest body of freshwater in the UK and has many islands, some of which can be visited, for example Inchmurrin which has a hotel and the ruins of a 7th Century monastery on its shores. The huge expanse of water combined with the steep hills and munroes which surround the loch make this a truly stunning place.
 

View of the loch from Loch Lomond Shores

Loch Lomond Shores at Alexandria is considered to be the gateway to Loch Lomond and is a great place to begin exploring this area of Scotland. Here there is plenty of visitor parking (including parking for caravans etc) and there are great shops and restaurants to enjoy including department store Jenners and one that I love- Misty Glen, an independent shop selling jewellery, toiletries and lots of other individual trinkets. There are also a few cafes (and a shop selling tablet ice cream- it's to die for!) and on the upper tier there is great restaurant Kilted Skirlie which offers spectacular views across the loch as you eat and even has an outdoor decked area for dining on warm summer days. The Sea Life Centre can be found here too where you can see a giant turtle, otters and sharks amongst many others.




Lots of ducks swim around the loch

There are also many other more active pursuits to be enjoyed at Loch Lomond. Whilst I was there I saw a group of people exploring the area on segeways which looked really fun! During the summer there are also plenty of activities to be enjoyed on the loch itself such as canoeing, pedalos, power boating and so much more. Walking is another great activity to be enjoyed in this area, the beautiful views of the loch and the hills around make it the perfect place for a long walk to fully enjoy the rugged scenery.


Near to Loch Lomond Shores there is the pretty village of Luss on the west bank of the Loch. Again, Luss has a large car park for visitors but can get quite crowded on nice days in summer. From the beach at Luss the views out over Loch Lomond towards Ben Lomond are gorgeous and it is the perfect place for a picnic in summer. Luss itself is full of quaint cottages and has that small village feel to it, it's definitely a great spot to spend an afternoon wandering through the little streets and taking in the views at the lochside.

The view from the lochside at Luss in summer 2011

Hogmanay in Edinburgh

Hogmanay is the Scottish term for new years eve and this year I decided to bring in 2012 in Scotland's capital city of Edinburgh with friends. Edinburgh has a street party every year which is a ticketed event and we decided instead to go to a flat party and then head to The Meadows (a gorgeous big park in the Marchmont area of the city) to watch the fireworks at the bells.

Sadly my camera broke just before midnight so the only pictures I have are poor quality ones from my phone which don't do it justice as the fireworks were amazing. They are set off from Edinburgh castle which sits elevated above the city and provides a stunning backdrop to the main street, Princess Street and Princess Gardens. Around 2,800 fireworks were set off within about 6 minutes and they were great to watch. My friends and I also began a rousing rendition of traditional Scottish song Auld Lang Syne after midnight (I'm not sure anyone who heard it would have enjoyed it quite so much but we certainly had fun!) whilst the fireworks sparkled above us.

If you want to experience hogmanay in Edinburgh without the crowds (an estimated 80,000 people were there this year!) then I can definitely recommend The Meadows as a great spot to watch the fireworks and enjoy the atmosphere without being overwhelmed by people. It really was a fantastic way to welcome the new year.

Edinburgh Castle

So, happy new year everyone! I sincerely hope that 2012 is your best year yet!

I would love to hear from anyone who has already made travel plans for 2012...I'm always looking for inspiration!

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

Stockholm City Hall, Sweden

Lutheran Cathedral, Helsinki, Finland

Peterhof Palace, St. Petersburg, Russia

Tallin, Estonia

Oslofiord, Norway

Copenhagen, Denmark

Warnemunde, Germany

Sailing under the Great Belt Bridge (third largest suspension bridge in the world!)

Bruges, Belgium

Monaco and Monte Carlo, France

Me in a Ferrari, Monaco!

Newcastle, England

Rome, Italy

Santa Maria Cathedral, Murcia, Spain

Villefranche-sur-Mer, France

Albufeira, Portugal

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!

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

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 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!

Gorgeous finishing touches

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! 



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.

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...!