How to spend a weekend in Dublin!

I have just got back from a lovely weekend in Dublin with one of my best friends and whilst we had an absolute blast, we also learnt a lot about what to do when visiting the area, some things to possibly avoid and of course, the dreaded tourist traps, how we fell into them and how you don't have to!

First off, I feel as though it is important to say that Dublin is a beautiful city and one which we both agreed we would definitely go back to, we'd just do some things a little bit differently next time.

We got the bus from the airport and stayed in the Temple Bar area which I found out after arriving back is seen as one of the biggest tourist traps in Dublin. You're looking at paying six or seven euros for a pint, which is a little bit on the steep side. We even found ourselves paying 2 euros for a can of coke in some places. We was warned that Dublin was an expensive city but was gutted to learn that if we had ventured a little bit further out it could have been cheaper.

Although a statement of the typical tourist, I did feel that the open top bus tour which was hop on, hop off was one of the best things that we did during our visit. We both were classed as students so it was slightly cheaper for us but even without a student card (or being under 17) it is still great value for money, particularly if you haven't been to the area before. We found out about where everything was in Dublin, even managed to get some discounts on the booklet that came with the tour and had a very busy day exploring the various areas (I think the last bus for us was about 7pm so we managed to see a lot in the 24 hours the ticket was valid for) definitely a great experience for exploring the area and was also something that was recommended to us prior to visiting. We used the DoDublin bus tour but there are so many around the area to choose from.

Whilst there we also visited the natural history museum and the art gallery is positioned right next door which makes it very convenient to do both in one trip and we also visited the castle. We managed to pack a lot into our two day trip before heading for our flight back to England and I honestly can't wait to head back and hopefully explore more of Ireland at the same time too!

Jess x

Olly Murs at Market Rasen!

Hey Guys!

So this is a slightly delayed post as I did see Olly Murs in Market Rasen quite some time ago now! However I thought it would still be a good experience to document on the blog!

For Christmas I got my mum tickets for ladies day at Market Rasen where Olly Murs was going to be performing in the evening. We had all been excited for months!
We went down early to enjoy some of the racing but unfortunately for that period the weather wasn't on our side! We wasn't very lucky on the betting side of things either but we all kept our smiles on and had a good time

 

Olly put on an amazing performance in the evening, barely stopping for breath throughout the two hour show! I loved getting all dressed up and being able to experience the day with my lovely family! I can't wait to see who's going to be performing next year!

 

J x

 

Exploring York!

I have just returned from a lovely few days in York with my mum! York is a city which I had only been to a couple times before and that was when I was very young so it was great to go back and take in the sights. It is a beautiful historic city and we found that everything was within about a ten minute walk away which made it easy to fit in everything we wanted to do!

We stayed at the stunning Middleton's Hotel, which despite having a country charm, is just minutes from the city centre making it a unique hotel and perfect to get away from the bustling city as it feels so peaceful and homely.

 

 

 

 

 

Our room was a lovely family size room with three single beds, one of the main benefits about our room was how spacious it was compared to many of the other family rooms I have been in. The beds were really comfortable and we both got a good nights sleep on both nights that we was there. There was a separate dressing room within our room where we could hang all our clothes which was very useful and added to the spacious feel. The room was equipped with a fridge and we thought it was such a lovely touch that it was stocked with a few bottles of water for us. It was lovely to have a drink when we came into our room to refresh us from the journey and it was a very nice thought that not many hotels would think of.

 

 

 

 

After checking into the hotel we decided to have a short walk to explore the local area, we ended up going on a boat trip which showed us some of the sights of York and told us about the history of the area, luckily the weather was on our side and we chose a sunny afternoon to go on the trip!

The following day we started with breakfast at Middleton's which was delicious, I had the salmon and scrambled egg whilst my mum went with the full English. This was something that I wouldn't normally go for so it was great to have the opportunity to try new foods! Before we left on the Friday I even tucked into an Eggs Benedict which isn't something I've ever had before but tasted delicious! The breakfast was a great way to start the day off and the staff were so friendly and helpful throughout our time at the hotel.

We then visited the Castle Museum which was a great morning out, I actually took so many photos there that I'll be writing a separate blog post soon all about it! I really enjoyed the Shaping the Body exhibition which showed how aspects of our body has changed through the years focusing on fashion, food and life and the York prison was a great addition and something I really enjoyed visiting within the museum.

After that we took a short walk up to see the York Minster. This is something we was recommended to do and it is definitely worth seeing! It's an amazing building and one of the key aspects of York's history, definitely not to be missed if you're heading to York anytime soon.

 

 After our day out in York we headed back to the hotel for a much needed rest and to pack some of our stuff so we wasn't rushing to get ready on the Friday. On the way back home and after a final walk around York to take some last minute photos, we stopped off at York Designer Outlet for some retail therapy, the perfect finish to a lovely break away!

J x

We can strongly recommend staying at Middleton's if you're visiting the York area. Visit their website or follow them via Twitter or Facebook for more details.

*We worked with Middleton's for the purposes of this review, however all opinions are my own. 

If travel is the answer, what is the question?

For so long I have had a passion for travel, a passion that comes in waves. I have always known that one day I wanted to travel the world but when I am going through difficult times this passion becomes so strong that I begin to feel that it is not so much a passion anymore but a need to get away.

What I need to get away from I am not really sure. I have always felt so free when I have been travelling before, like the world is just such a big place with the opportunity to explore anywhere the heart wants to take you. I think it is just the stresses of life that makes me keep persisting with wanting a life of travel, always feeling held back by something and becoming so stressed and caught up within the life I am currently leading that I feel I will never be able to jet off somewhere for a break, thus making me more stressed.

I have never been lucky enough to find someone that would be willing to travel the world with me, someone that shares the same passion for travel that I do which is sad but at the same time provides a lot of new opportunities if I can be brave enough to take them.

The question is, can the girl that could barely put her hand up in class, now have the confidence to travel the world solo? There's so much that I want to see and I feel like if I just keep waiting my life will fade away before me, that's probably my worst fear actually, the fear of not living.
I've thought about couchsurfing and staying in hostels as a way of meeting new people along the way and sharing experiences with them, I hope that soon I will be brave enough to take the plunge and just go for it.

Life is too short for settling.
J x