Vacation

Little White Dress

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For the first part of our trip to Sardinia we stayed in the beautiful Hotel Relax Torreruja. Located on a rocky outcrop in the north of the Island it’s surrounded by stunning views – but be warned it can get a little breezy up there!

It’s a moment away from the small-but-perfectly-formed town of Isola Rossa. There isn’t a huge amount to do, but quite honestly that didn’t seem to matter as the days slipped by easily. I spent them laying out in the sun overlooking the sea, reading a few good books and slipping into the sea to make friends with the fishes whenever I needed to cool off.

I packed a lot of summer dresses for the trip and the Topshop one below is an oldie but a goodie. It’s very girly and flirty – perfect for sunny summer evenings. As it’s one from way-back-when it’s no longer available in stores but there are similar options here and here.

Vienna: Schonbrunn Palace

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This is my final post on Vienna, but I saved the best for last. We were staying a little way out from the city centre, but the upside to this was that we were within walking distance of the Schonbrunn Palace. This was formerly the summer palace of the royal family but is now a museum and park. The park and gardens are free to visit – but there is an entry charge for the rooms inside the palace as well as some other parts of the grounds, including a zoo.

I’ve never seen anything like this before. The gardens took hours to explore and there were surprises round every corner, but the palace itself completely took my breath away. We loved it so much that on our last day when we had a couple of hours spare before we had to be at the airport, we went back for more. 

I wanted to experience a classical concert whilst I was in Vienna so I opted to go to one of the nightly concerts held at the Schonbrunn in the Orangerie – where Mozart himself once performed. It was a little pricey, but an unforgettable experience.

Cream Top: Zara
Cream Shorts: Warehouse
Navy Playsuit: Vaudeville and Burlesque via Urban Outfitters
Sunglasses: F&F
Shoes: Primark
Bag: Jane Shilton at TK Maxx

Vienna: A Walk Around Town

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There is so much to see in Vienna that we could never have hoped to fit it all in with just 4 days there. So here are a few snapshots of things we saw while walking around town. We took in the up-market shopping district (where I did much window-gazing), followed by some beautiful gardens. Then the Rathaus (town hall), the Austrian Parliament building and the slightly controversial Liberation Monument. We tried to fit in the Belvedere as well, but sadly ran out of time.

After all that walking we were pretty hungry so we headed to Cafe Diglas for dinner. Tucked away down a side street near to Stephansdom it wasn’t as busy as other eateries, but I would definitely recommend a visit. The cafe dates back to the fifties and we noticed many locals visiting for a slice of cake and a natter. We ate traditional Austrian dishes and relaxed while the pianist played some of my favourite songs. (One thing to note if you are lucky enough to visit – they don’t take card payments, only cash.)

Top: F&F (previously seen here)
Vest: Primark
Shorts: ASOS Tall
Sunglasses F&F

(Side note: Any photos of me were very kindly taken by my lovely travel-buddy.)

Vienna: Stephansdom and Sacher Torte

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There are many, many delicious cakes on offer in Vienna. However, I was most looking forward to trying Sacher Torte – which was invented in the city.

Sacher Torte is a chocolate cake made to a secret recipe and sandwiched using apricot jam. As a girl who has eaten a LOT of chocolate cake over the years, I’d say this is definitely worth the hype.

After exploring Stephansdom (and a nearby bavarian market) we headed to The Hotel Sacher to try out Austria’s most famous cake in the place where it was first conceived.

Vienna: The Spanish Riding School and Hofburg Palace

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There was so much to see in Vienna that it would be impossible to fit it all into one post so let me start with showing you guys The Spanish Riding School and the Hofburg Palace.

The Spanish Riding School was #1 on my list of things to see in Vienna. We were lucky enough to book tickets to one of the last shows before the stallions have their annual summer break. It’s a place steeped in tradition and it completely lived up to all my expectations.

The Museum’s quarter in Vienna was formerly the imperial stables, but the horses are now stabled across from the Spanish Riding School. There is so much to see and do in Vienna, but with the weather being so glorious we spent most of our time outdoors taking in all the beautiful sights. (I have every intention of going back one winter to explore inside the many museums and palaces.) The Spanish Riding School was pretty much the only time we spent indoors – as well as the show we also booked onto the Behind the Scenes Tour of the facilities, which is worth doing. It’s prohibited to take pictures of the horses at any time (for good reason) but I did manage to get a sneaky shot of the stable cat!

Positive Vibes

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1) First things first, I am buying this t-shirt.

2) I’m visiting Vienna right now but I’ve already started planning my next adventure and I’m sure this guide to booking cheap flights will come in very handy.

3) Crossing my fingers that we have a great summer and I get to experience one of these alfresco restaurants in my favourite city.

4) Being inspired by The Tall Mama to help the Wrap with Love cause.

5) The fact that Ben and Jerry’s now have Cheesecake Brownie Ice Cream.

Scotland: Argyll & Bute

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Today is my birthday – so naturally I took the whole week off to celebrate. What better way to spend it than a trip to one of my favourite places? The west coast of Scotland boasts some truly spectacular scenery. I’ve been a few times now and I can never get tired of it.

Links to all the places we visited are below (I whole-heartedly recommend a visit to all of them) but this post is going to be quite picture heavy so I’ll shut up now and let the images do the talking.

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Hat: Levis | Coat: Mango | Scarf: unknown | Jeggings: M&S | Boots: Debenhams

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Jodhpurs: Unknown | Sweater: ASOS | Body Warmer: North Face | Trainers: Reebok

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Where we stayed: The Galley of Lorne Inn in Ardfern

Day 1:
Where we ate: Brambles (Inveraray) & The Galley of Lorne Inn
The Castle: Inveraray Castle (One of the locations used in Downton Abbey)

Day 2:
Where we ate:  The Lord of the Isles (Craobh Haven)
We went riding with: Lunga Stables (Craobh Haven)
Where we explored: Craignish Point & Ardfern Marina

Day 3:
Where we ate: The Oban Chocolate Company (Oban)
Boat trip (not pictured): Sealife Adventures (Seil Island)

 

Corsica

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Holiday Aug 2014 145

Shirt: Mango | Shorts: Warehouse
Bikini (worn underneath): F&F | Sunglasses: F&F | Earrings: Miss Selfridge

So here’s the deal, if you want to visit a Caribbean Island, but you live on the wrong side of the Atlantic, got to Corsica instead.

If you’ve never heard of it before, it’s a French Island in the Mediterranean – just off the coast of Italy. There are various ferry services from France/Italy/Sardinia or if you can’t be faffed with all that (like me) EasyJet fly there. Once you reach the south of the island it really looks no different to Antigua. There are beautiful mountains that stretch all the way down to the white beaches and turquoise seas.

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Top: Rare (previously blogged about here)

We stayed in a villa near the tiny town of Propriano – where the food is to die for. (If there’s one benefit of this being a French island, it’s that everywhere you go you can get Crepes. Yum!) It’s also close to some of the best beaches on the island as well as some of the main tourist attractions, such as the medieval town of Sartene, or the prehistoric site of Filitosa.

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Propriano Harbour

If you asked me what my favourite part of the trip was though, I would have to say Bonifacio. The little town perched on the cliffs is one of the most famous images associated with Corsica, but the only way to see it properly is from the water – because it really does look like some parts are held up by magic. Boat trips aren’t expensive and car parking is included in the ticket price (if you can find the car park – it took us a while!).

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Bonifacio

It’s a steep climb up to the town, and I wouldn’t recommend doing it in the midday heat. (I also wouldn’t recommend attempting to do it in flip flops – my feet really didn’t thank me for that!) But it’s worth it to explore the gorgeous higgledy-piggledy town.

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The prettiest beach side restaurant (at Piantarella).

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The Pretty Dress Guide to Packing for a Beach Holiday

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It’s surprising how much goes into packing for a holiday. I’m not one of those people who can just throw a few things in a bag and go, I like to plan.

Lets start with the shoes: One pair of trainers, one pair of nude-goes-with-everything heels, one pair of wedges, one pair of sandals and one pair of flip-flops. I nearly always end up sticking to sandals and flip-flops once I’m there, but I like to know I’ve got all the bases covered.

The easiest and best way to pack shoes is using a plastic carrier bag. I usually line the bottom of my suitcase with shoes and then pack smaller items around them, leaving a relatively flat surface for the clothes to lie on.

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Converse trainers from BrandAlley

The next staple is the little white dress – dressed up with wedges for the evening or down with sandals in the day.

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Dress: Topshop | Wedges: ASOS

I like outfits that can go from day to evening just by changing up the accessories. (Small hard-case clutches are great for hols as you can also use them for transporting jewellery – or anything else that might get damaged in transit). These are also some of my favourite combinations…

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Dress: Zara | Sandals: Oasis | Clutch: Next

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Playsuit: Jovonnista | Shoes: H&M | Clutch: Textile Federation via ASOS

At the beach I prefer light dresses that you can just throw on/off – maxi dresses are great but the best thing I ever bought, I got years ago from Orion. Their kimono dresses are incredibly light and the material doesn’t wrinkle so they can be chucked in your beach bag with no fuss.

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Orion

I love getting out on the water in a boat (motorboat that is… I can’t sail but I like to pretend I can by looking the part) so I’m a big fan of breton stripe tops.

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Top: F&F | Shorts: Warehouse | Sandals: F&F

And lastly: The Bikinis. I live in these things on holiday. You can never have too many right?

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Clockwise from top left: F&F | George | F&F | ASOS | South Beach via ASOS

When In Rome

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I’ve been meaning to do this post for the past 3 months – but every time I sat down to write it I struggled to do justice to this amazing city.

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St Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican City
(as seen from the top of Castel Sant’Angelo)

Two years ago I decided I wanted to go to Rome. I bought a guidebook and everything… then I bought my house. All plans for adventure had to be put on hold whilst I spent my time traipsing to solicitors, banks and building merchants. So this year, as a birthday present to myself, I decided to make it happen.

I flew out on my birthday (word to the wise: if you book a flight on your birthday, make sure it isn’t at the crack of dawn – no one remembers it’s your birthday when it’s that early in the morning!) and I got my birthday wish to stand in the Colosseum. Though I quickly learned that I’ve been calling it by the wrong name all my life – it’s proper name is the Flavian Ampitheatre. It got the nickname ‘Colosseum’ from a statue of the god ‘Collosus’ which used to stand outside the entrance. True story.

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The Flavian Ampitheatre (or Roman Colosseum as it’s more commonly known)
When I showed my dad the photo above he thought it had been empty on our visit – but then I pointed out all the people stood around the edges – they’re just so dwarfed by the scale of this amazing place.

Here’s a little tip though: the Colosseum is amazing, but the Imperial Fora is something else. It’s like walking around a film set. There are literally dozens of palaces, temples, buildings and ruins which have accumulated over thousands of years. It’s mind boggling to think they were created by sheer man power alone.

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Wandering the Fora with my sister.

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Skirt & Top: Zara | Sandals: Primark

The most important accessory for Rome is a pair of comfy shoes. There is a metro system but why spend your time underground when there’s so much to discover on each street? We stayed close to the colosseum – in the very lovely Hotel Duca D’Alba. (The hotels near the train station are cheaper but much further away from the historic sights.) All the main tourist attractions were within 30 minutes walk.

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The Trevi Fountain

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The Vatican City

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The Pantheon was by far my favourite building. When we rounded the corner and came face to face with it, the first thing my sister said about it was ‘There should be music playing, like we’re in universal studios or something.’ Standing in front of it, it really does feel like you’ve just walked onto the set of Gladiator or something.

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Rome is full of amazing things to see, but it’s also shopping and food heaven. We neglected the shopping part of our trip a bit, but not so with the food. La Tavernelle, a restaurant around the corner from our hotel, kept us fuelled with pizza, pasta and award-winning Panna Cotta (seriously – you have to try it!) but the thing Rome is most famous for is the gelato.

There’s a gelataria on almost every street but very few places sell the real-deal. Most gelato is made from powder these days but you can taste the difference – look for gelato made with 100% natural ingredients. This place was my favourite – their dark chocolate and orange gelato made me the happiest girl in Rome.

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View of Rome from the Villa Borghese