All posts tagged: Travelling

Alchemy Ubud – The Best Smoothie Bowls in Bali

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I can’t believe I found this place, it’s actually thanks to a guy I met on Tinder in Ubud who ultimately ghosted me but initially took me on a breakfast date here. I had breakfast here 5 days in a row, it’s that good. It’s also super chic and modern despite being in the middle of rice fields. You definitely need a scooter to get here but it’s so worth it. The decor, the vibe, the food of course… The build-your-own smoothie bowl is beyond delicious. My favourite combination is: the Spirulina smoothie, dragon fruit, strawberry, banana, apple cinnamon granola, lemon and turmeric dairy-free whip, bee pollen, cinnamon, lime and mint. You will glow after this. They also do a fantastic salad bar featuring everything from capers to kimchi, pumpkin seeds to pesto. There’s a huge selection of raw, vegan cakes and chocolates and lots of scrummy teas and coffees. Alongside all this glorious food you can shop organic vegan cosmetics and accessories, I picked up some virgin coconut oil for my frazzled tresses. Anyway, …

Koh Samui – My Thoughts

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Full disclosure, I kind of went to Koh Samui for a boy… which went tits up, but the airport is here so you may end up needing to go too. It’s a disgusting place, but despite this I did have fun, but I would never, ever go again, even if you paid me. If you’re British let me say this one word to you ‘Benidorm’, or another one ‘Magaluf’ . It’s a chavvy old place in Koh Samui, with a lot of fat, sunburned families with braided hair walking round eating McDonald’s. And it kinda smells. I first stayed in a beach hut (Free House beach bungalows) in Bosphut because it was right next to the hotel of a boy I’d been on a date with in Chiang Mai and we’d arranged to meet. It was super boring and dull there, full of couples, with literally no entertainment but I was cool with that as I just wanted to turn my little hut into a loveshack. Sadly I got blown off come date time (the …

Koh Phangan & Why You Should Skip The Full Moon Party

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When I was first planning my trip to Thailand The Full Moon Party was high on my bucket list, despite hearing more horror stories than glowing reviews, I mean it’s a big party on a beach, how could that not be fun right?! My trip to Koh Phangan started interestingly when the hostel we’d booked (Wild & Wandering) was completely closed when we arrived, like chains-and-a-huge-padlock-round-the-front-doors closed. We waited in the blistering heat for 20 minutes and then went next door where we were told the owner had done a runner. Great. Now, accommodation during the Full Moon is way more expensive and hard to come by so I was lucky to find Lazy House Shenanigans (don’t let the name put you off) which is such a cool hostel with a pool and great sound system. You also get a free bucket everyday you stay, free entrance to the water park (which saves you £20) and a free BBQ on Full Moon day.   Koh Phangan itself is really pretty but there are a lot …

Koh Tao I Love You

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Koh Tao was the first time I saw the sea in Thailand having spent half a month up north in the wonderful Chiang Mai and Pai, so it was exciting for that reason alone, but also it’s a flipping wonderful little island. Read on for my hot tips. Where to stay I stayed in GoodTimes Hostel which is *right* on the beach, and when I say ‘right on the beach’ I am not kidding, it took me all of 10 seconds to run into the ocean each morning. The dorm rooms here are pretty luxe and have balconies overlooking the beach. It’s a little pricy for a hostel at £11 a night but worth it for a couple of nights as a treat. Where to party Sairee Beach is full of great bars and clubs and if you walk along the shore then you’re bound to find somewhere to party. Personally I loved Rock Bar, and if you walk by outside enough you’ll get a ton of free shot tokens which can all be redeemed …

G-Adventures ‘India on a Shoestring’ Review

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Overview G-Adventures offers tours for young travelers all over the world including several tours through India. The ‘India on a Shoestring’ tour is 20 days traveling around Rajasthan or the ‘golden triangle’ and takes in many of the most famous sites of the area starting and ending in Delhi. Highlights I personally enjoyed the lesser-known (to me anyway) places we visited such as; Pushkar, Bikaner and Udaipur. As they were smaller it was easier to head off alone and do some exploring. The trip into the Thar desert was pretty amazing, and the food the local people cooked there was so tasty it’s hard to believe they cooked it in the middle of nowhere, without a kitchen. The river ganges was beautiful too and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. What’s right with it… The itinerary ensures you take in lots of things you wouldn’t if you were traveling solo, such as visiting the tiny village of Tordi Sagarh, eating at a Sikh temple and staying at THIS amazing hotel. The pace is quite fast and you get …

Backpacker Fashion: The Headscarf

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Main photo credit: Giambatista Valli copyright Vogue Runway If you take one item backpacking with you… make it your passport. LOL. But do take a fashionable scarf. It can be used as , well, a scarf, to tie around a bag. as a neckerchief, bracelet, bandeau and as a headscarf or hairband. This will protect your hair from the sun and hide cray cray hair from strangers too. Plus it looks super cool when teamed with some big sunglasses and you don’t need a stitch of hair or makeup either! Check out this tutorial on how to tie a headscarf:   ASOS has a fab range of scarves HERE

Chiang Mai, Thailand – What to Do & See

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Chiang Mai in the North of Thailand is a definite must-do on your Thai backpacking trip or holiday. Plus it’s a pit-stop on the way to wonderful Pai (more on that later). To get there from Bangkok you can fly but there’s an a/c overnight train for just £18 which is very comfortable. Chiang Mai is a super cool, chilled town and full of backpackers and ex-pats read on to see what’s the sitch up in CM. BARS & CLUBS Because we all need a Chang now and again, right? One note, all the clubs and bars in CM close at midnight but they’re all a short walk from each other. Zoe’s Zoe’s is a sprawling indoor/outdoor complex of several bars to suit all but the most niche music tastes. Great for chilling out in the evening and catching up with friends. Zoe’s in Yellow, Rajvithi Road, เชียงใหม่ 50200 Spicy This club opens a little later most nights so you can dance away to floor fillers until 2am. Lots of talent here too. Chang Moi, …

What To Do in Bangkok

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Let me start by saying I wasn’t immediately sold on Bangkok, and I’m still a little unsure – it’s busy, hot and sprawling and did I mention relentlessly hot? Seriously, it’s the only place I’ve visited that somehow manages to get hotter at night. Anyway, I gave it a fair crack and here’s what I suggest you do with 2 or 3 days in BKK. Don’t stay any longer or you’ll go cray. STAY AT NAPPARK If you’re backpacking in Thailand you’ll probably start off in BKK and you’ll most probably wanna stay around the backpacking mecca that is Koh San Road, however it is very mental there. So stay just round the corner at Nappark Hostel which is a luxe alternative to really scuzzy traveller digs. It has great bathroom and shower facilities, which you’ll need and is under £10 a night. Nappark Hostel, 5 Tani, Talat Yot, Phra Nakhon, Bangkok 10110 JJ GREEN VINTAGE NIGHT MARKET This was far and away my favourite thing in BKK, a huge, sprawling night market much like Streetfeast …

Backpacker Fashion: The Crochet Crop Top

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There are certain items of clothing that you just can’t get away with wearing in ‘real life’, one of those is crochet anything. It’s just not aprops if it’s not on the beach. However when backpacking, anything goes, so make sure you’re not left out and nab yourself a crochet crop top. You can get them for as little as £3 and they’re so cute. Be sure to do a few abdominal crunches before you rock one! She Made Me do amazing crochet clothing  

The Dreaded Delhi Belly and How it Nearly Broke Me…

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Call it hubris, cockiness or just plain stupidity but I *honestly* thought I would avoid Delhi belly while travelling. I’ve never been ill because of food, I’m the person who eats with a group who all get food poisoning and remain unscathed, my stomach is legendarily strong.   That’s not to say I wasn’t careful, I didn’t eat meat for a month while in India, avoided tap water and religiously sanitised my hands – seriously, what more can you do? And I thought I was safe, I lasted one month feeling fantastic, so on the second to last night (in an expensive western restaurant, it’s never the street food) I indulged in some chicken. On the afternoon before my flight to Bangkok I began to feel *really* sick, I was sweating, nauseous and confused and just had to go to bed. Then the vomiting started. Now, before that, the last time I vomited was 2 years ago after the Hotbox London launch party where I drank 435 free cocktails and ate a whole cow, and …