FIVE DAYS IN PALMA WAS PARADISE

Over the last few years I haven't done a lot to celebrate my birthday, I didn't feel the need to plan or organise anything because it's just another day. This year was very different, not only did I spend a weekend in Brighton I decided to go to Palma for five days. Originally I was going solo but two friends jumped on my band wagon and decided to go with me, I was thrilled to have two beautiful girlies to help me celebrate my birthday in style.

The purpose of this holiday was to relax, unwind and enjoy exploring a new place. I'm happy the girls decided not to get drunk every night as I don't think I would have enjoyed the holiday as much if I was holding their hair back while they threw up. I'm greatful they decided to take it easy considering I don't drink alcohol.

On the 25th July we celebrated me turning 25 years old. Yikes, its strange to write that down. I can't believe I'm a quarter of a century old! We ate at a gorgeous restaurant on the seafront, listening to the waves crash against the rocks was magical. It's so soothing. Jayde bless her paid for it which was a very generous birthday surprise.

HOTEL

We stayed at the TRYP Bellver Hotel in Palma, it's the nicest place I've stayed and made our trip perfect. The entire hotel was beautifully decorated, our room was completely white with wooden elements. The best part of the room was definitely the beds, the last time I slept in a bed that comfortable is when I stayed at the Virgin Hotel in Chicago. The pillows are unbelievable, I didn't want to get out of bed.

The staff were polite and very helpful, the language barrier was sometimes difficult but we got by. I'm going to make it my mission to learn the basic language skills for my next trip as it would be beneficial.

I would recommend this hotel if you're heading to Palma. It's reasonably priced, we paid £244 for 4 nights each. Normally I would stay in cheaper accommodation when travelling but this was a special occasion and we all needed a bit of luxury in our lives. When I travel solo I would opt for a hostel as it's cheap and cheerful, although we wanted to enjoy our stay and spend time at the hotel. I was having the time of my life relaxing and eating amazing food that I didn't take loads of photos of the hotel. Sorry guys, you'll just have to experience it for yourself.

PIER

The best thing about staying in a 4 star hotel is having a balcony. Ours overlooked the pier and what a spectacular view it was. What I wouldn't give to be having breakfast on the balcony watching the world go by right about now.

There is nothing I enjoy more than taking a stroll with beautiful scenery, it was great to wander along the pier. Naturally when there is a stunning backdrop I can't help but take photos, the sunset was particularly amazing to photograph. During the day it was still very picturesque, we were physically jumping for joy! The expression on my face is hilarious! 

I also got the chance to practice some yoga, love a good headstand. Emma and Jayde were like worried parents telling their child not to do something, but I did it anyways. Don't worry guys, I got this! 

BEACHES BITCHES

After sleeping in the amazing beds we woke up fresh faced and fabulous, we thought the beach would be the best place to get our tan on! Being in Spain there are plenty of beaches to choose from, although since we were only there for 5 days we didn't get a chance to visit many of them. In fact we only went to one because we spent the majority of our time tanning by the pool. Palma City Beach was a short 15 minute walk from our hotel, the staff mentioned it wasn't the best beach compared to others that are slightly further away but it was perfect for what we needed.

I expected to be able to hire a sunbed as most beaches love to make some extra cash from tourist. Unfortunately this wasn't the case and we had to tan ourselves on the sand. I think we had been spoilt with staying at a nice hotel that we forgot how to be like normal folk. 

We were so fortunate with the weather, clear blue skies and the sun felt lush, the perfect tanning day. After a little while Em started to feel too hot, she was a little red and needed suncream and shade. Luckily she didn't get sunstroke! A little lesson to always apply suncream everywhere and stay hydrated! I felt like a parent on this trip always telling the girls to apply suncream hehe.

We headed over to the beach cafe to shade ourselves, it was a little classy for a beach cafe, more like a membership club. You needed to purchase a drink or some nibbles to sit down but this wasn't a problem. There were sunbeds available and we did consider renting one until the staff told us it was €35! That's right, €35 for the sunbed and you didn't get anything additional included. What a rip off! After we finished drinks we headed back to the hotel to use the free sunbeds.

CITY CENTRE

One day the weather wasn't the best, a little cloudy so we decided to head into town and take a look around. There are loads of back streets and its very easy to get lost, but sometimes its great to wander, not think about the time of day or where you are.

There were standard tourist shops, chains and restaurants. If you go deeper into the city you find little cafes and restaurants that sell real Spanish food. We had Tapas, the girls had sangria and said it was strong but delicious, I took their word for it. The food itself was incredible, so many yummy flavours. We ordered Patas Bravas and the waitress said "you do know this is a very hot dish?", like english people can't handle spicy food haha!

PALMA CATHEDRAL

In-between tanning and relaxation we managed to do some sight seeing, one thing on my to do list while in Palma was to see the Cathedral. It's breath taking, the architecture is incredible and its the most beautiful building I have ever seen, along side the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. We didn't go inside but I'm sure it's just as stunning.

Birthday celebrations are going to be tough to top next year, what am I going to do? Perhaps I should look into a trip to America or Japan, they've always been on my travel wishlist. One thing I can say about this year is it wouldn't have been the same without my amazing friends and family helping me celebrate in style. I truly am surrounded by the best people anyone could ask for.

Sincerely, Kimberly.

xxx

A WEEKEND IN BRIGHTON

For a few months I was dropping not so subtle hints to my sister Charlotte that I would love to visit Brighton for my birthday, I’ve seen photos of the pier that look incredible and heard nothing but positive things. Charlotte normally goes on 10 holidays a year, sometimes it's hard to pin her down so I was amazingly happy when she said yes! Since she's currently living in London for work we don't get any quality time together, it was the perfect opportunity. We booked everything in June and I was incredibly excited for the upcoming trip in July.

The day we were travelling it started off with a little bump in the road, our 9:04 train was cancelled. Luckily trains to Brighton are frequent from London, we managed to catch the next one at 9:40. That means I lost a whole 36 minutes of my time in Brighton, that’s right 36 minutes! I hope you’re as outranged as I was...

Hotel

We arrived safely and decided to walk to the B&B, it was only 20 minutes from the train station so wasn't far at all. We stayed at the Instanbul ev guest house, our room was on the top floor but this didn't bother us, perhaps the exercise was needed with all the ice-cream I intended to consume. The room was a decent size with two single beds, I much prefer single beds when travelling with friends in the summer. It can get hot and humid so I need my personal space in these situations. Luckily our room wasn't too bad heat wise. 

I always find it's best to get breakfast included in your accommodation where possible so you're not searching for the right place to eat. There was a choice between a full English or continental. I'm not much of a fan of full English so I went for poached eggs on toast with mushrooms and beans, it was great! 

Would I recommend this B&B? I'm going to say yes. The staff are polite and happy to help, the room rates were reasonable for the seafront, we paid £117 each for two nights. The only thing I would say is they need to upgrade parts of the B&B, but that wouldn't stop me from going back. 

Wildlife
I must warn you if you're staying near the seafront you'll wake up to a "lovely" squawking sound at 5am, it's definitely a wake up call! The seagulls are singing from the crack of dawn. On several occasions Charlotte threatened to shoot them, at first I thought this was a little aggressive but they don’t shut up! Another great fact about these birds is if you’re on the beach/pier and have Fish and Chips, they will stalk you, if they came after me I would sacrifice the food and make a run for it! 

Brighton pier

After we dumped the suitcases we headed straight out to explore, our B&B was situated right on the pier, only a two minute walk away. We explored Brighton pier for the majority of the day, looking around the rides, shops and walking along the beach. It wasn't busy at all, perhaps it's because it was a Friday but we were greatful we could get some great photos. Brighton pier is full of restaurants and take away places, we opted for chips, I don't normally like "chip shop" chips because they tend to be greasy but these weren't and were delicious! That good we had them again!

At night the old and new pier is just as pretty and photogenic.

We carried on walking down the beach and reached the colourful huts, I was expecting them to be on the beach not the pavement but they still looked bright and beautiful. The fact they were on the pavement didn't stop me from taking about 100 photos, Charlotte should of been paid as my photographer that day! Apparently you can buy the huts, inside you can decorate and make adjustments to the space to suit your needs, some people had a bed in them, others only bits and bobs for the beach. We asked a guy to take a photo of us and he mentioned that they're extremely expensive, I haven't looked it up but I'll take his word for it. Most people who own them tend to be retired so are able to spend time enjoying them to get the most out of their investment. 

After 6 hours of walking along the pier and exploring we decided to head back to the B&B. Since we were walking all day we didn't realise how far along the beach we actually went. About 30-40 minutes, I didn't mind the walk as it was such a nice day. Plus we stopped for ice cream on route back, chocolate brownie and cookies & cream how could you not love that! Back at the B&B we realised how burnt we both were, apparently to prevent sunburn you need to apply suncream ...  who knew! I didn't make the best outfit choice for the day, I wore a cold shoulder top which meant I now have red circles on my shoulders and white arms, not the look I was wanting to style this summer. Oops! Even though we were burnt and possibly suffering from sunstroke we had high exceptions for the evening and were going to watch the sunset at 9pm. After 6 hours of walking along the pier we were a tad tired and took a nap, waking up to our alarm at 8pm, ignoring this and going back to sleep until 10pm. I can safely say that we missed the sunset. We attempted to watch it the following night, although it wasn't the best weather and was very cloudy so unfortunately the sunset wasn't that great. Just a missed opportunity, I'll catch it next time! 

i360

For my birthday Charlotte booked for us to go on the i360 which is a little like a sky bar. You get on the platform and it slowly takes you up. The views were amazing, we could see all of Brighton and we chose the best day as it was blue skies. I can't imagine it would be as impressive if it was a dull and cloudy day. 

Anyone who knows me understands that I have an obsessive need to take photos, although it wasn't really possible to capture the moment properly as the reflection on the glass creates a glare. I guess these kind of experiences are meant for enjoying the moment rather than capturing it on a camera. This experience is only for 30 minutes and you have to book in for a time slot. I could of stayed longer if I had a choice because it's such an amazing view. Looking down at the city I realised that Brighton is quite a quirky place, I've heard of all the street art and it continues to the roofs of the buildings, how awesome is that?! 

An interesting fact that I found out is this attraction replaced the big wheel, it was taken down in May this year in order to get the planning permission for the i360. I do love a big wheel but wasn't disappointed by the amazing view at the top of the i360. I would definitely recommend it if you visit Brighton.

Royal Pavillion
For more of the arty museum goers visiting the Royal Pavillion should definitely be on your list of things to do in Brighton. We didn't end up going inside the building but the building itself certainly made an impression, the architecture is beautiful!


Brighton City centre

It was disappointing when the weather took a turn for the worst on the second day, it was very cloudy and over cast, there was a small beacon of hope with the sunlight despretely trying to peak through the clouds but it was not meant to be. In the afternoon there was heavy rain so we decided that the best thing to do was to stay indoors where possible. Despite the crappy weather it didn't ruin our day. We took the opportunity to do a little bit of shopping, since Charlotte has been working 60 hours on average a week at work she needed some TLC and a shopping trip was the best thing. I'm not going to lie I also brought a few bits and bobs, I never really get the chance to browse the shops as I'm always going because I need something like leggings for example so was nice to relax while treating myself. It was my birthday weekend after all! 

As we were wondering through the streets we came across the greatest shop I have ever seen! The Duck House, it's an entire shop dedicated to rubber ducks. The range is huge, looking on their FB page they sell over 900 different ones across each store location. Naturally I couldn't resist and got one for my niece Phoebe and another for my friends baby Thea. It was super busy and I can see why, although this meant I didn't get any good photos, you'll have to go and experience it for yourself.

Sunrise
Since we missed the sunset on the first evening, Charlotte thought it would be an awesome idea to watch the sunrise on our last day in Brighton. The alarm went off at 4:45am and Charlotte wouldn't get out of bed and continued snoozing. Despite this I decided to go out and take a look for myself, it was definitely worth it.

My experience in Brighton has been awesome, I got to catch up with one of my favourite people in the world and explore a new place. If you're looking for a weekend away I would suggest giving Brighton a chance. We were there for three days and I think that's enough for what is there to see. Thanks so much to my amazing sister Charlotte for celebrating my 25th Birthday with me!!

Sincerely, Kimberly.

xxx

HOW TO SPEND 48 HOURS IN CHICAGO

Chicago is an amazing city to visit and I'm so grateful I was given this opportunity to jet off for work with a colleague. I had time to get lost in the city, explore and take plenty of photos. To say I only had one weekend and a few evenings I made the most of my time and managed to fit so much in. If you're heading over to Chicago and need some inspiration for your todo list, look no further! I've listed the highlights of my trip including activities and food, all of which can be packed into 48 hours if you plan it right! 

Michigan Park - The Bean

If you go to Chicago you have to visit Michigan Park to see the Bean. We were lucky and had a day with clear blue skies and managed to get some awesome shots of the skyline reflecting in the sculpture. The city looks incredible from the park also and is a lovely little walk. Unfortunately this area is always busy so it's difficult to get any photos without people.

James Hancock Building

Originally we were going to visit the Willis tower (Sears tower to Americans) although our minds were changed as a colleague at the office recommended the James Hancock building. We were told it's an amazing view and wasn't disappointed when we reached the top. There are a few ways you can experience this view. Option one is pay $25 to go up to the top, option two you can go for lunch or drinks at the bar and not pay $25 just to go in a lift. We were going to have lunch although when we arrived they informed us the only option was bunch for $50 per person. I like bunch but not this much, we headed one floor up to the bar and had a few snacks and drinks. We got the best view seated next to the window, the skyline was incredible.

Navy Pier
Out of everything I did I would say that Navy Pier was the highlight of my trip. It's such a beautiful place and for someone who loves photography it was perfect. I don't know what it is about ferris wheels but I think they look great in photos and the fact its on a pier is even better! It was quite chilly and there was still ice along the pier, combined with the clear blue sky and crisp air it was an awesome day.

Bulls Basketball Game

If you go to America and don't see a sports game whether that be basketball, baseball or ice hockey then you're missing out. Due to the time of year we could only see indoor sports. Some of my colleagues in our Chicago office decided to go to a basketball game and George and I were happy to tag along. What an amazing experience to see a real American basketball game! During halftime we were still very entertained with the cheerleaders, dancers and the mascot shooting t-shirts out of a canon. Luckily either the Basketball or Ice Hockey will be on every other night so plenty of chances to catch a game while in town.

Lincoln Park & Zoo

I've been told that Lincoln Park is a great place to visit while in Chicago, although in the Winter months its not as pretty as it would be in the summer. To be honest the park was very grey and gloomy, so I wouldn't say this is a necessary trip to make, especially if you've only got a few days in Chicago. Just off Lincoln Park is the Zoo that is free to enter, there is plenty to cover so leave yourself with a good few hours to look around all the animals. We made a little friend while walking around, a squirrel felt the need to follow us as he thought we had food. You could tell he does this on a regular basis as he was on the chubby side!

It's time to talk about the important things, the truly amazing parts of my trip. All the food ... and Snapple, how could I forget about the Snapple!

Wildberry Pancakes

You can't go to America and not have pancakes! George and I decided to go to Wildberry Pancakes as we had heard good things. I ordered chocolate chip pancakes with a side of strawberries and bacon, it was an unusual combination but it works!

Mindy's Hot Chocolate

Omg, if you're a chocolate lover then you need to go for a hot chocolate at Mindy's. There is a range of about 8 different variants to choose from and a variety of food and snacks. I had the Medium hot chocolate and it was sweet and so creamy, a little sickly after a while even for a chocoholic like me. George had the Chia one and it was just amazing. Food wise, I would definitely recommend anything with Avocado because Avo makes everything better! 

The French markets

We went to the French Markets a few times for lunch during the week when we were working as it was so close to the office. It's quite awesome, there are so many different type of foods from various countries. From Sushi, Italian, Vietnamese, Chinese and so many more. It gets very busy because there are lots of options but definitely worth looking at.

Pearl
After work one day we went to Pearl for food, it was so busy. I decided to try and be healthy and had a cob salad with grilled chicken and oh it was so good! One of my colleagues ordered a chicken parminagno which was huge, it came on a sub and also had chips! That was enough food for 3 meals in my opinion! 

Sushi

I don't know about you but I love Sushi. George and I were told about Sunda and it was so good. Everything was cooked to perfection and I wanted to eat more but I was super full. The one thing I would recommend is the Tiger Shrimp Tempura in creamy honey aioli, now they are the best prawns I've ever had.

Lou Malnati's Pizza

You can't go to Chicago and not have a deep dish pizza, we were told that the best place to go is Lou Malnati's. I thought it would be like any pizza you get in the UK but oh was I wrong. The best way to describe it would be its more like a pizza within a pie crust. You either love or hate it!

Sincerely, Kimberly.

xxx

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