Barcelona 2014 | City Break

After finally all having finished our degrees, we decided it would be nice to have a girly city break, and seeing as we wanted to be near a beach as well we decided Barcelona would be the perfect place.

We booked a couple of weeks beforehand through Expedia, where we sorted flights (Monarch), transfer and hotel (Confortel Barcelona). The aim was to do Barcelona relatively cheaply and get to see as much of the city as possible in a short space of time, we definitely achieved this!

Leaving early in the morning meant we arrived in time for lunch, after problems with our transfer not turning up (we ended up waiting for 2 hours!) we were lucky enough to be able to check in early. The hotel was lovely and our rooms were clean and spacious. We headed out for lunch on Rambla del Poblenou which is a street full of restaurants, shops and cafes at reasonable prices, we stayed outside the main city as we wanted to be close to the beach. The rest of our first day consisted of a walk to the beach and down to the harbour, cocktails on the beach at a really nice beach bar, Chiringuitos and a picnic from the local supermarket back at our hotel. We sat on our roof top to watch the sunset.

The next day began early as we got up ready for a walk down the quiet Las Ramblas in the morning, it gets very busy just before midday so we wanted a chance to look round properly. We found the Gothic cathedral and the Gothic Quarter which was amazing, and went to the Barcelona History Museum, which was 5 Euro as we are all students. This ticket enabled us entry to many other attractions in Barcelona, so we would have been able to use this if we had been staying longer. For lunch we found an Italian restaurant which was very reasonably priced for high quality food. I would definitely recommend this restaurant as the service was great and food was so yummy.

We headed to the Sagrada Familia after lunch and rather than going inside we walked round the exterior and found a place across the lake looking straight at the Cathedral which was lovely. We decided upon going to the Casa Batllo and Casa Mila afterwards, however didn’t go inside either. Unfortunately the Casa Mila seemed to be having building work done as it was completely covered by a sheet! But at least we got to see it!

Up until this point we found everyone to be highly friendly and helpful, however on the metro home we experienced our first (and only) look at the pick-pocketing we had been warned about. Although it was quite scary, everyone on the Metro ensured the pick-pocketer didn’t escape with the bag that she had taken which was quite reassuring.

We had a picnic dinner on the beach and spent the rest of the evening on the beach followed by at a beach bar with Sangria.

Exciting News!

I am very late with this news, but about a month ago I found out that I had got a place on the Disney College Program and I am so excited! 

It means spending two months in Florida working for Disney, I am a character attendant so my role is looking after the characters which I am really looking forward to. 

I applied back in August and since then have had two interviews, it feels like it has been a long wait but it has all been very straight forward. Loads to do before I go to America, and I feel I may need another spending ban before then as I need to save up lots of money for Florida, I am just very excited and cannot wait to go. I leave on June 10th, so 6 months and counting!

Also... Recently in Primark they were selling Disney tops for £3 reduced from £8, so I had to get this Mickey Mouse one... 

Imagine Day Spa

I had never been to a spa before for a full day before, the only time I've been in the past was Runnymede spa for a teen facial ages 16 where I didn't get to use any other facilities, so when a deal came up on Groupon, my Mum and I decided it would be lovely to book a day together for her birthday.

The spa in the deal was the Imagine Spa at the Hilton Heathrow Airport Hotel. It is a '5 star luxury day spa' as quoted on the website and I found that it definitely lived up to this.

We had a treatment booked in the Serial Mud Chamber, but we were able to use the facilities alongside this. There were many different facilities to choose from and they were all located around a central hydrotherapy pool. The facilities included a mineral grotto, which wasn't very warm but had special minerals in which were suggested to relieve headaches and colds, a sauna, which was eucalyptus scented and a steam room which was chamomile scented. This area was much smaller than I had imagined from reading the website, and at times there were lots of people around and not enough seats, but it was highly relaxing and there were many things to choose from.

Upstairs was mainly a chill out and relaxation area, and this was also the place in which we had our initial consultation and our lunch (croissants with brie, ham and tomato chutney - amazing!). Up here you could also order herbal teas and iced water at no extra charge. 

The treatment itself was really relaxing. We had to cover ourselves in mud, and then sit through a series of steam, mist and rain to help the mud soak into our skin and to really relax us. I found the experience highly relaxing and it definitely has made a difference to both my Mum's and my skin. My skin is so soft now, and the feeling has lasted a long time so far!

I would definitely recommend this Spa! With nothing to compare it to, I feel that it was a lovely experience. My Mum suggested that it wasn't as relaxing as other spas she has been to because it is quite busy, but neither of us thought this business affected us, as we were together it was nice to have other people around. Yet if you were going on your own, maybe you would prefer to be somewhere a little quieter. It was a lovely experience, and I definitely would go back!

Has anyone else got any good recommendations for spas in the UK? I am desperate to try out some more now! (If I can find good deals...) 
If you are interested in the spa, follow this link.

Virginia, USA 2012

All my blogging seems to be so late as I got back from my holiday over a month ago, but as I said I would be doing this post, I didn't want to forget about it!

Lots of shopping bags! (Not all mine...)

I have been to the USA a few times before and often stay in Virginia as I have family there, and this time was extra special as it was my cousin's wedding. We had such a great holiday and the wedding made it even more special. 

The beautiful Russian Orthodox Church

Edible Confetti! So pretty. 

I went will all my family and we stayed at a hotel called Hyatt House. It was absolutely lovely, with really nice staff and such nice facilities. There was a pool and a gym, and there was also a dining area which provided complementary breakfast and dinner which was a bonus!

Comfiest bed ever...

The weather was great whilst we were out there which was really lucky as although it is usually hot it can get very stormy sometimes. As well as staying in Virginia, we also spent a little time in West Virginia which involved lots of barbeques, enjoying the sun and general relaxing out of the city. Whilst in Virginia, aside from the wedding which was just beautiful and such a great day, we managed to fit in lots of shopping, lots of sitting by the pool and a little sightseeing in DC. We had an open top bus ride which was great and highly recommended, and we also went to a few museums, including the Holocaust museum and the International Spy Museum. I thought both of these were really good.

West Virginia sunset

Swimming pool in WV on the side of a hill!

Overall we had a really lovely holiday and I can't wait to go back to America as soon as I can. I just love everything about being in America!

Washington D.C.

Sorry this is such a late post! Hope you enjoy the pictures,

USA Buys Part 2

This is the second part of my buys from America, most items were bought from Tysons Corner, but the Elf items were bought from target. 

• Abercrombie Stripy Top $10.14
• Hollister Burgundy Jeans $35
• Elf Makeup Brush $3
• Accessorize Heart Necklace $3.10

I couldn't believe how cheap all the elf makeup was! I usually order it on the internet when I'm in the UK, and had never seen it being sold in a store before, so I purchased a few bits really cheaply.

• Daily Brush Cleaner $3
• Blusher $3
• Eyebrow Kit $3
• Zit Zapper $1

I will try and do reviews of these products as soon as I have had the chance to properly try them out. 

On my last day of shopping I decided to purchase a few last items, including doubling up on flip flops and shorts.

• Abercrombie Long Sleeve Top $17.15
• Hollister Jumper $12
• Flip flops $7.75
• Shorts $9.75

So overall I am very happy with my buys! I'm glad I managed to buy so much for so cheap!

But now the spending ban in definitely in place to stop myself spending any more money!

USA Buys Part 1

Whilst I was in America we ending up going shopping a little bit... And I purchased quite a few items, so I thought instead of a massive post, I would spread out my buys into two posts.

I have been to America quite a few times, but never before have I seen such a massive sale! It was literally massive. Plus in Virginia where we were staying, they have a tax free weekend at the beginning of August, so we didn't have to pay tax on the items we bought. 

First we went to Leesburg Outlet Mall and I purchased...

• Aeropastale Tshirt $7
• Aeropastale Ankle Socks (pack of 3) $5.25
• American Eagle Grey Cardigan $14.99
• American Eagle Peach vest top $3.49

The second shopping trip we had was to Tysons Corner Mall, which is massive!

• Vans in Black $44.99

Items from Abercrombie... I don't ever purchase anything from Abercrombie in the UK, but it is so cheap in the US compared to England, so I decided to purchase some basic items which I know I will get lots of wear out of. 

• Stripy Tshirt $10.14
• Long Sleeve Top $23.80
• Shorts $9.75
• Jeans $34
• Flipflops $7.75

Everything was so reasonably priced, I was really happy with spending my money on such cheap clothing, which I know is such good quality! I will post part two soon! 

Majorca 2012

I had an amazing holiday in Majorca during the first week of July. I went with friends from Uni, and we stayed in Santa Ponsa, a 15 minute taxi ride from Magaluf. It was nice being out of it all and the town we stayed in was lovely, but it was difficult not being able to walk into the main town on nights out. However the taxi only cost 10 euros, which wasn't too bad. The hotel itself was lovely, we went all inclusive which meant we got all our meals, plus snacks and drinks for free, which was so useful for pre-drinking!

It was so lovely and hot. We didn't do many activities, just hung around the pool and beach. We did go to a water park one day and do a little exploring of the town, but apart from this it was just basically relaxing in the day time. We had some really good evenings out in Magaluf, it was so much better than I expected! I've been to Ibiza before, and everyone told me I wouldn't enjoy Magaluf as much, but I thought it was just as good. There are so many bars and clubs, and BCM is an amazing club. We went to a water party there and got so many free gifts with our tickets.

Has anyone else been to Majorca/Magaluf? What did you think?
Overall it was a really lovely holiday, would definitely recommend the area. Such a good experience.