The main blog in which all of my posts will appear no matter what topic the article is on.
Tomorrowland 2018 Travel Diary
How is it that a song can coat you in goosebumps and make your soul dance? I guess, there’s science and there’s sensation – and Tomorrowland is an adventure for the artists, the dancers, the celebrators and the lovers…
Dancing through from sunrise to the high moon and spending five days out under the wide-open sky really is a life for the dreamers.
It’s impossibly difficult to capture the energy of Tomorrowland and why it’s different to anywhere else I’ve ever known, but there’s a magic to the atmosphere that cannot be bottled…
However, the memories and the music have left me with the same goosebumps weeks later and that I can keep forever.
There’s a constant energy – a background crackling of electricity – that can be felt when people who love their life come together in one space. It’s contagious and wandering around the playground of Tomorrowland makes you feel inhibition- free from the moment your eager eyes open. Everyone you can see is living life fully on their terms, dressing how they want, dancing with everyone and living their life fully. There’s a freedom to Tomorrowland, and everyone is celebrating.
Here, the everyday is forgotten the moment you dance into the festival and instead, you’re surrounded by the unapologetically eccentric. There’s magic in the detail and every corner is a photograph, a glistening memory. Fragments of Alice in Wonderland can be found in wooded pathways, while each unique stage is embellished with details from the ocean to fit the underwater theme for this year.
You’re free to dance and kiss all day long and you do so sun-kissed and star-kissed, if just for the dusting of glitter that highlights cheeks and collar bones in the crowds.
We planned Tomorrowland as a once in a lifetime experience, and it exceeded all expectations. Yet, by day one I was desperate to return next year…
Bali Photo Diary
You can breathe Bali in, as much as you can walk on its earth. The spirit of Balinese culture is so distinctly sweet, I had to bring fragments of it home in my pockets. Of course, some of Bali’s magic still slipped through my fingers and for those moments, there are photographs…
Truthfully, I couldn’t help but see Bali through a camera lens… When every turn looks like a storybook, it’s too sugary to resist. Since I have so many photographs and words to spill from Bali, there will be a whole series coming – starting with, of course, this photo diary, or, highlight reel. (Believe me, while Bali was dripping with magic, it definitely also had a sting in its tail – but more on that later)
I honestly don’t believe I have taken this many photographs on my travels yet, but when a story opens on The Jungle Book and turns to Island life on the lick of the next page, the shifting worlds have to be captured, before the page gets turns again.
We spend just two weeks in Bali and the nearby islands, dragging our backpacks to a new home every one or sometimes two nights, and oh my, did we stay in some fairy-tale worlds. There were outdoor baths shared with dusty pink petals and dancing geckos and even huts without walls. Actually, we stayed mostly in places that lacked the traditional four walls in favour of soaking in jungle sounds, scents and sights, day and night.
Very much an eclectic trip, we spend our days dancing to reggae at Bestival before biking around nearby islands, and swinging off cliffs above the deep jungle. Of course, there was a lot of chasing waterfalls too – as it turns out, our favourite waterfall on this blue planet so far was only a muddy and wet hike away, near a rupturing volcano.
Oh my, was it worth it though…
A Girls-Trip to Greece’s Zakynthos Island
Much like Alice followed the white rabbit down the rabbit hole, following Jenna into Gatwick airport is a game with few clues and no instructions…
Despite having known each other our entire lives, some-how we had never quite managed to tie up a holiday together (neither of us are very organised). So, in a very spur of the moment decision we decided to book a flight and rectify that. Having a lust for Greece and hearts set on an island adventure, we set off, mid-way between our birthdays, for Zakynthos Island in search of sun, tzatziki and more tzatziki…
Exclaimer: Boyfriends and family members were in a state of mutual concern as neither one of us was exactly the ‘mother goose’ type – but we made it back without a scratch and with both our passports, so congrats to us.
(That doesn’t mean that in one short week we didn’t nearly manage to get stranded penniless on the wrong side of the island, hitch hike our way to the tallest point and hijack a boat, of course.)
The Memory Highlight Reel
Zakynthos Island is a small Greek island that is most iconic for its Shipwreck Cove (that’s pinned onto every corner of the internet). Of course, we were always heading there, stopping off to swim with the turtles and bask in the calm, crystal waters…
We were based in a small, never-heard-of town called Keri (a universe away from Laganas, despite it being a short taxi ride away) and it really couldn’t have been more authentically Greece. Every morning we had the same elderly couple sat outside their house in the beating sun, smiling and speaking to (at) us as we walked past each day (we literally had no idea what they were saying but stand optimistic it was pleasant…)
Boat Takeovers and Crystals Waters
Everyone in the village was unbelievably friendly, and we were offered lifts around the island to save us money on the nearby tourist taxi services and we were even able to spend the day exploring the nearby island of Marathonisi (an absolute must) on a private boat for a fraction of the usual price (we felt like real bad bitches that day). It felt as if we were a part of the family for the short week we were there and it was very much the Mamma Mia fantasy we were both dreaming of.
From swimming in luminous blue waters as we watched the water dance off the white caves walls overhead to pulling up at a floating bar for a quick ice-cream top-up and even (badly) steering the boat back to land (or in the occasional circle). Truly one of the best days of my life.
Hitch-Hiking and Sunsets
We had heard that the best spot to soak up the sunset was at the very top of a very tall and windy cliff side and having literally been denied a moped (the owner very wisely decided we shouldn’t rent a scooter – we did consider briefly a tandem but in the end, we (read: Jenna) decided walking (read: hitchhiking) was the best idea for our collective travels…
Having optimistically started the low-key hike, it was beginning to dawn on us that we might just miss the sunset (we’re not hikers) and instead be left on the hillside, in the dark, with the goats. Before I breathed my usual “Jenna, no,” the girl already had her thumb out and was getting into a car with some equally rushing German girls – we made it.
Homemade Greek Cuisine in Lost Villages
We made two attempts to watch the sunset… During the first trip, the clouds were so thick the sun looked like the moon caught behind fog, which was beautiful in a strange, unexpected way. On our second attempt, we jumped out early to explore to village we were driving though, at risk of missing the sunset, after being drawn by the colourful, rusty buildings and the rainbow tapestries hanging from the walls. I hadn’t seen this on Pinterest, was this place even real?
We headed straight back for dinner after the sunset, to feed our tummies with home-made moussaka and freshly squeezed orange juice – all made out of the kitchen of a local women singing as she carried our oranges to her home. We were maybe one of three other guests there, sat out on the cobbled streets watching the other families enjoying food and drink around us. Sometimes the best moments are the complete accidents, and often the ones involving food…
3 Reasons to Add Ao Phang Nga National Park to Your Thailand Bucket List
The largest primary mangrove forest in all of Thailand, Ao Phang-Nga National Park is renowned for its iconic karst scenery.
Nearest to: Phucket & Krabi
Explore by: Speedboat/Longboat & Kayak
Best for: Nature, Wildlife & Caves
Larger than life vertical cliffs jolt out of the still sea casting shadows over the quiet waters. The park encompasses 42 small islands sprinkled across the green ocean, many with angular white caves and others dusted in overgrown vegetation. The caves (known as hongs) are often semi-submerged and only accessible at low tide. These small tidal channels exist as a transport system for fisherman and locals who share the mangrove with local exotic creatures who swim, crawl and climb the land-before-time limestone rocks and murky turquoise waters.
Swerve around the limestone cliffs & take in the views at
Phang Nga Bay
Arranging a day trip with a tour company (we booked via our hotel in Phucket), or even hiring a personal longboat and guide to weave you around the national park will be sure to inspire you. We arranged a trip via speedboat which did just this, gliding us through the marine park, where we could peacefully take in the views of the prehistorical landscape and snap sun-drenched photographs. If you choose to travel by speedboat, shun the main seating area for soaking up the sun at the open air front seats. The journey is part of the experience, and why spend any time closed off from the views and the beaming sun? Breathe in the peaceful atmosphere and untouched scenery. Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for two eyes peering out of the water back at you, rare birds flying overhead and ever curious creatures clumsily climbing the limestone karsts.
Kayak through the semi-submerged island caves
Get up close and personal with the dramatic limestone islets. As well as gliding the waters via speedboat, we also clambered into a two person Kayak (plus driver) to dip in and out of the sporadic hongs (caves). A spectacular vision, the hongs (meaning ‘rooms’) are so small and intricate that we were often directed to lay back completely flat so that we could squeeze into the private space. Not as claustrophobic as it may sound, once inside, the caves are much larger and provide a more than worthwhile vision of the vibrant waters dancing on the darkened, stone walls. The views from inside the cave looking out across the park frame the picturesque landscape perfectly – a truly unmissable experience of Thailand waters.
Visit Khao Phing Kan and discover the unusual and iconic Ko Tapu
The small island of Koh Phing Kan is an iconic Thai landmark. The striking vision of Ko Tapu – the triangular shape islet that guards the bay steals the attention of every explorer. The setting for James Bond’s The Man with the Golden Gun, the island itself is unsurprisingly a buzzing tourist spot, so unfortunately, the area becomes overrun by selfie stick wielding visitors, especially during high season. We learnt this on arrival, where there were ques forming to sit at the best view points and overrun market stalls made some areas near inaccessible. Therefore, if you have plans to make this trip – which oh you should- try and arrive as early as possible. Beating the crowds is sure to make the experience that bit more personal and breath-taking for you.
Have you been to Ao Phang Nga National Park before? If not, do you think you’ll be adding it to your bucket list?
Under the Sea in Thailand | Three Perfect Snorkelling Spots
Thailand is as renowned for its white sieve through your fingers sand as it is its glowing turquoise waves. So, of course on our travels we were sure to dedicate a lot of time to both treasures as we tread the southern islands.
The beaches and bays dotted in secret locations across Thailand are almost too surreal to comprehend as real life visions. The larger than life rocks guard the sands and cause the boats to swerve gently around them in the ocean. Truly other-worldly, it’s often the world below the glistening water that draws so many curious travellers to Thailand – snorkel and flippers in hand.
Koh Nang Yuan
Earlier this year, I accidently found myself speeding toward Koh Nang Yuan in a rocking speedboat, bouncing across the glistening blue ocean in the wrong direction to the most perfect place. I’d been staying at Koh Samui, and had arranged a boat trip from the island to a nearby national park. As it turns out our hotel had instead booked us onto the company’s sister tour which was heading for Koh Nang Yuan. With no pre-collected idea of where we were going (I had never heard of Koh Nang Yuan) I was luckily enough to stumble upon the most mesmerising island, completely by accident.
If you are planning on exploring Koh Samui or Koh Tao, add Koh Nang Yan to your bucket list. A short boat trip from either island will take you to this beautiful slice of paradise, and you will count your magic starfish that you didn’t pass it by. Snorkelling is a must in Koh Nang Yuan, with the crystal clear, calm waters providing a perfect looking-glass to the under-water world. You could leave your snorkel collecting sand on the island-connecting beach, and still catch a clear glimpse of the colourful fish exploring their waters.
Koh Tao
Koh Tao is well-known as an ideal snorkelling haven. The small island’s glistening waters are perfect to catch sightings of the vibrant fish that fling around the equally colourful coral. Our visit to Koh Tao involved jumping off our boat into much deeper water than we dared swim out to from the shallow waters in Koh Nang Yuan. As we were based in Koh Sumui (an hour and a half boat ride away) we were able to tick another island (well, the blue outskirts) off our bucket list unexpectedly.
Lee definitely proved himself to be significantly better at tracking fish than myself. There were plenty don’t get me wrong, I just seemed to spend more of my time emptying my snorkel and chocking on sea water (very smooth). The photographs speak for themselves in this department, where you can see Lee the fish whisperer in action.
Maya Beach
Arguably one of the most renowned bays in all of Thailand, this popular spot brings travellers from all across the globe to this perfect hidden treasure, equipped with beach towels, cameras and snorkels in tow. If you’d rather spend your time under the sea chasing the cast of nemo than soaking up the sun on a bed of flour, head into the warm waters and you’re sure to find yourself swimming over waving neon coral and alongside a school of bite-size sea creatures.
If you decide to head to Maya Beach from the nearby Phucket or Krabi, head off early as Maya Beach can get overcrowded with selfie-stick wielding tourists. Arrive in the early hours of the morning and you’re sure to experience the most breath-taking views as you pop up out of the clear waters, and equally so as you submerge into the calm of the underwater world.