Cardiff Adventures.

This week I went to Cardiff for a couple of days to stay with one of my best friends. We always have so much fun when we get together and this time was no different!

I arrived on the Monday and after a quick pub dinner we went straight out to GLAM nightclub which was hysterical. For some reason we got given VIP wristbands and were let in for free and throughout the night they kept handing out cakes, sweets and CDs! We had such a great time dancing that we didn't want to leave...

After bacon sandwiches the next morning we set off into the city to do a spot of shopping (which I'll do a different blog post on) and then went out for a lovely lunch/dinner at Wagamamas!

We shared the chicken and prawn Pad Thai and the chicken Katsu Curry - both were delicious...

On my last day just before I got the train home we found a cute little restaurant called Cittas and had the most amazing Italian food! It was all freshly made to order and I would definitely recommend eating there if you are ever in Cardiff.

It really enjoyed going to Cardiff for the first time, despite the fact that after wondering why the train went through the longest tunnel I'd ever been in, I was informed that it was because the train was going under the sea!

 

xo

Cocktail Celebrations.

I've finished my exams!
As a celebration of the end of first year and to mark the official beginning of summer, I went to a pub called The Imperial (or The Impy) with a few of my course friends.
We had celebratory pitchers of cocktails and enjoyed a lovely afternoon in their orangery!

The cocktails were all such beautiful colours and I especially loved the Blue Lagoon... which tasted exactly as it looked - blue!

It hasn't really sunk in yet that my summer has now started and I no longer have to sit in my room revising or working! I can't wait to do lots of fun things with my friends and make the most of my ridiculously long summer! Bring on the BBQs and Pimms...

xo

Snazzy Stationery.

Nothing excites me more than getting new stationery at the beginning of a school/university year.

Now I'm in exam period this excitement for stationery has returned as I spend the majority of my days staring blankly at my desk and there is nothing like bright stationery to cheer you up!

These are three items that I particularly love:

1) My pink highlighter - there's something about it being pink that makes it much more exciting than say a yellow highlighter, but maybe that's just me...

2) My little sticky labels - I love these for dividing notes or marking something I want to go back to later, the fact they are multicoloured makes for a lot of fun too!

3) My diary - I don't know what I would do without this! It organises my lectures, my revision, my social life... everything.

xo

Lovely Lavender.

I love the smell of lavender and so my mum made me these beautiful lavender bags...

The lavender is wrapped in a pretty floral patterned material which is tied with a ribbon - so simple and easy to make but I think they would be such a lovely gift!

               


xo

Finally Summer.

Summer's here! The last couple of days in Exeter have been lovely and sunny and actually really warm!

I can't tell you how excited this makes me. Summer is by far my favourite month, the sun (and a tan) makes everything a whole lot better!

Having a 3 month summer after I finish my exams on Tuesday is the craziest thing and I have no idea what I'm going to do to fill it... I'm sure I'll find ways to fill it up pretty quickly though!

I only have just over a week left in Exeter now before I fly home to Guernsey so I'm going to make the most of it and spend as much time outdoors exploring and with my friends as possible.

xo

Italy Dreams.

My all time dream is to go to Italy.

I went to Venice with my parents and my sister when I was younger and it was so beautiful. However I don't know if I truly appreciated the beauty of it and recently I've been dreaming/wishing/wanting to  go again, along with visiting other places in Italy such as Florence, Verona and Rome.

Italy has a certain beauty about it and I feel drawn to it even through pictures and photos.

Hopefully I will be going next year with a family friend and perhaps our sisters too... if everything goes to plan! I think it would be so fun to interrail/travel around Italy with friends I've known since I was born. Our parents went to university together and so we often go on holidays with them anyway and we all get on really well.

But for now all I can do is lust over photographs and dream about it...

until next summer

xo

Exam Nightmare.

I've just come out of my second exam and I am pleased to tell you it was probably the worst exam I have ever taken. Everything I possibly didn't even know I didn't know came up and anything I did know was asked in such a way I still couldn't answer the question!

10 minutes into my hour long exam and I still hadn't written anything... I momentarily debated walking out and claiming an emotional breakdown but my conscience wouldn't let me.

So anyway it went very badly. However not as badly as the person whose phone went off repeatedly in the last 15 minutes of our exam and will now be charged £50...

I hope all your exams go better than mine did today - let's hope my one on Friday is better!

xo

Bluebell Woods.

A couple of weeks ago I went for a walk in the bluebell woods in Guernsey with my mum and gran.

The bluebells had just come out and the woods looked amazing! 

I love the colours in this photo, I think the bluebells give a really mystical and fairy-like effect to the woods. This photo also invokes adventure as I feel like it is inviting me to follow a pathway through the trees.

xo

A Revision Death.

I'm dying a revision death.

Slowly but surely.

Somebody save me from the boredom that is reading through notes I don't remember writing.

I'll admit, I probably should have started revising earlier, however revising over the Easter holidays was not my idea of a break. And so here I am again, wishing I had started earlier as I do every exam period! However cramming is my speciality as my brain seems to like it when I overload it just before an exam and then all the newly learnt information just drops right out again after the exam. Despite this, the amount I need to learn for my 2 exams this week is just overwhelming.


So for all those out there with exams, and there is A LOT of us...

GOOD LUCK!

xo

Tea Obsession.

I've never been a tea or coffee drinker.

I began to like coffee after having a couple of vanilla lattes but it is still the only coffee I can drink! Tea for me was something I was never interested in until recently... and now I can't stop drinking it!

I find it such a comforting drink and I love that you can drink it any time of the day, first thing in the morning to last thing at night. It has definitely been getting me through revision and I wish I had discovered it sooner!

I've been inspired to start trying new things as you never know whether it will become your next favourite food or drink...

I'm off to make another cup of tea, ciao

xo

Bring Back Our Girls.

What is happening in Nigeria with these girls who have been kidnapped by Boko Haram is heartbreaking. Despite many managing to escape, over 200 girls are still reported to be missing. I find it disgraceful that even in the 21st century people can get away with 'owning' and 'selling' others.

After celebrating Liberation Day yesterday for Guernsey, it makes me truly thankful for the freedom we have in the western world. However with our freedom comes a responsibility to help others who are less fortunate, living in countries of unrest and danger.

We can also forget how lucky we are that we have equality, the idea of education for women in Nigeria was enough for Boko Haram to kidnap hundreds of girls despite it being a basic human right.


My heart goes out to all the families who have no idea where their little girls are...

#BringBackOurGirls

xo

Liberation Day.

Every year on the 9th May the Channel Islands celebrate Liberation Day. This marks the day that in 1945 they were liberated from the German occupation and Nazi rule. As I was born on a little island called Guernsey, this day has always been special for me.

There are always events throughout the island and fairs and parades in town, creating a real sense of community. I have good memories of going to the fair with my friends and then going back to one of their houses and drinking Pimms in the sunshine... it's always a good day whatever you end up doing!

Being at university in England, it's weird not celebrating it in the same way. I've told people about it, but it's hard to care all that much about it when you aren't from the island. For us in Guernsey, the day changed so many lives after such a difficult 5 years under Nazi rule and so it's one of the most important days in our history.

So to everyone reading this, Happy Liberation Day! wherever you are from, as the importance of freedom is universal.

xo

Influences of the World.

I study Psychology at university and so learn a fair amount about social psychology and the way in which people interact. A greater understanding of how others shape our attitudes and behaviour is interesting, but also very scary.

It can be very easy to be brainwashed into acting and behaving a certain way, due to social pressures and influences. Our concept of who we are is shaped by not only who we feel we are but also how we compare ourselves to others.

It's quite easy to lose ourselves in trying to be accepted by the world. I love this quote as it sums up what this post is about...

"be who you are those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind" 

xo