Month: November 2015

Girl wearing matador hat

Don’t Tell Me to ‘Be Careful’…

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I’ve been planning my round-the-world trip for almost a year now, and without fail, the first thing anyone says to me when I tell them my plans is ‘Ooh, be careful’. Not ‘wow, that’s amazing’, ‘have fun’ or simply ‘why?’, always a warning about the dangers that await me out there in the big wide world. I have no proof but I could bet my bottom dollar that a male announcing a backpacking trip wouldn’t get the third degree. At first I wasn’t annoyed by all the negative ninnies but after the 100th time I just told the person expressing concern for my safety to f*ck off. It’s boring. It’s rude. It’s xenophobic actually. There are dangers everywhere, of course, but when someone tells me they’re going on holiday I don’t tell them that their plane could crash, they could get robbed or they could trip over, bang their head and die. If I did tell them that I’d be called many things, but definitely not caring. Though not the same, this faux-concern reminds me of …

CitzenM Hotel, Bankside London

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If you want a truly unique hotel experience then I think I’ve found just the hotel for you. There have been a recent crop of trendy hotels in the capital of late that are all amazing but have the same (and I hate this word) ‘hipster’ credentials. The CitizenM is all about great design, good service and a big dose of cutting-edge technology thrown in for good measure. I took my sister and my iPhone down to London’s chic Bankside to check it out. What’s the vibe? Cool, modern, European. The hotel lobby is one of the most serene and relaxed I’ve ever had the pleasure of visiting – not in a way that’s boring at all, it was a delightfully relaxing experience. I checked in using the touch-screen stations, which on the day did actually have a technical glitch, so it took a while. I’m sure when they’re fully functional they’re a breeze to use and there was staff on hand to help me complete check in. There are things to look at everywhere …

Beauty Bits To Take in Your Backpack 

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There are the obvious things and then the not so obvious things…. A caveat to this article is that you may require different bits to me. You will certainly need more than the items on this list, but the lesson to take away from this, is to think outside the box. Just because someone has told you to take certain bits, you need to truly tailor your packing to you. If you have annoying baby hair and use a certain gel to tame them every day, than by Jove, take it with you (and a spare). If you have skin that burns particularly easily then take your favourite SPF, they might not have a high enough factor for you in Sri Lanka or wherever. So the following are examples but also represent a savvy way of thinking when it comes to beauty. Hairdressing Scissors Am I a hairdresser? No. Could I be? …Nooooo. Is my hair a bit mental? Yes! On a level, though, you’re not going to shell out for a haircut on your travels, …

Photographs of Coober Pedy, Australia by Abigail Varney

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I’ll be visiting Australia for the first time in a few months and alongside about 1000 other places, I really want to see the small town of Coober Pedy. A tiny town 800 miles north of Adelaide, it is home to fewer than 2000 inhabitants – some of them the indigenous Australians descended from the Nomadic peoples that lived there for centuries. Famous for being the main source of Opal gemstones in the world Coober Pedy is a place full of eccentricity and authenticity – due to the isolated location and small population. Melbourne-based photographer Abigail Varney has captured the town in a series of photos entitled ‘Rough & Cut’. They show the sun-bleached, almost desolate Coober Pedy in an eerie light, there are no inhabitants in the photographs to add to the sense of a forgotten land. It’s certainly a place like no other – definitely one for the bucket list! Rough & Cut by Abigail Varney

Movies to Get You In The Mood For Travel

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I’m currently in that wonderful (sense the sarcasm) no-man’s land of waiting to jet off on my one woman trip to the world. Of course waiting means saving, and saving means no shopping, no Pret and no beers down the pub lest I drink away my air fare. So, what’s a girl to do with all this spare time? Netflix and Chill TO THE MAX of course. Here are my top 5 flicks to whet your appetite for travel… The Beach Firstly… WHEN IS LEO GOING TO WIN AN OSCAR?! Seriously, give the guy an award already. Anyway, this early Leonardo Dicaprio movie, directed by Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) shows off the Thai backpacking experience wonderfully; the squalor, the noise, the new friends, new crushes, music, blue skies, blue seas, white sand… murder. Sorry for the spoiler. If you can watch the first three quarters of The Beach without wanting to book a one way ticket to Bangkok then you’re a stronger person than me. The Darjeeling Limited You’d have to be a cold-hearted, unromantic dullard to …

The 7 Best Money Saving Tips for Backpacking

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Chances are, you’re not that well off… don’t get offended, I say this as a fellow pauper. Also, in Sherlock Holmes fashion, I have deduced that if you were ‘in the money’ then you wouldn’t choose backpacking as your method of seeing the world. If I had the dough it would be Kardashian-type excursions to the Maldives, sippin’ on yak, and wearing Roberto Cavalli kaftans. As it stands, I’m a mere mortal; travel – even on a shoestring – requires cold, hard cash and quite a lot of it. So you’re going to have to save those pennies, something I have realised is hard, so here are some tried and tested tips to help you fund that trip. Please bear in mind that I’m from the UK and lived in London, one of the most expensive cities in the entire world, so my tips come from that perspective. If you’re an Ozzie or from the US or Western Europe you’ll still probably find they apply to you. 1. SET A GOAL Before you depart you …

The Stylish Guide to London

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London is an amazing city with something to do and see on every corner but it can be slightly overwhelming with that much choice. So here are eleven of my personal favourite places in LDN, enjoy.  WHERE TO EAT SKETCH Sketch was once the most expensive restaurant in the UK and a Brit-pop celeb haunt; those days are thankfully over but the amazing aesthetic that made Sketch famous remains. Glasgow-based artist and illustrator David Shrigley is the latest artist to lend his talents to The Gallery dining room there, turning into a pink paradise. It really is very pink and is home to the largest collection ever of Shrigley’s drawings – afternoon tea here will leave you with a huge smile on your face. Sketch, 9 Conduit St, London W1S 2XG  JAGO The trend for delicious Middle-Eastern and Ashkenazi cuisine is going nowhere and the latest opening serving this food is Jago in London’s Shoreditch. Headed up by the ex-head chef of Ottolenghi, Jago serves food all day from breakfast and brunch to a late …

Amazing Photos of Los Angeles and Coney Island

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Singapore-born US-based photographer Nguan describes his photographs as ‘ordinary fantasies’ which I think may be the most heartbreakingly perfect couplet of words I’ve ever heard. His projects ‘Coney Island’ and ‘City of dreams’ beautifully capture big city yearning in dreamy candyfloss hues. I love. Coney Island and City of Dreams by Nguan CONEY ISLAND CITY OF DREAMS