5 Tips for festival packing

Travel

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Last weekend I went to RiZE festival in Chelmsford. It had an amazing line up – Stereophonics, Liam Gallagher, Bastille, Rag n Bone Man, James bay… the list goes on. Whilst there my friends suggested I wrote this post as they both couldn’t believe I had brought so little with me. So here are a few of my tips for festival packing…

1. Pack light.

For RiZE festival I took a pair of trousers, shorts and 2 tops so I could mix and match my outfits. Then I recommend bringing a couple of jumpers, one you can use as a pillow by putting it inside a pillowcase and another if it gets cold at night in the tent or in the evenings although to be honest, when you’re in the crowds of people dancing its pretty warm anyway.

2. Check the weather.

If it’s not going to rain you will only need a couple of pairs of shoes. I just wore my timberlands because I knew it wasn’t going to rain all weekend, if theres a slight chance I would bring flip flops because then if your feet get muddy you can just wash them off. However if you know its going to rain its time to bring those wellies out.

3. Remember toilet roll and hand sanitiser.

At any festival the toilets are always a problem, they usually run out and its much easier if you have your own.

4. Bring a small bag.

If you have a big bag they are unlikely to let you into the arena, and if you only have a small bag and have packed lighter it will take less time getting through security.

5. Invest in a bum bag.

They don’t cost very much, Im pretty sure mine was the cheapest one on amazon but they are incredibly handy – you don’t have to worry about someone stealing your bag or leaving it anywhere and you can keep all of your valuables close to you.

These are only a few tips I have found that work for me but, obviously, you may have to pack more if its longer than a 2/3 night festival. But I hope you have a great time at what ever festival you are going to, they are such a laugh and amazing fun particularly when you are with a good bunch of people and there is a great line up – have the best time 🙂

No Rain No Flowers

Lifestyle, Thoughts, Travel

Edit

Hello, Hope you are all okay!

So yesterday was world mental health day so I thought I would discuss some ways I deal with any anxieties and about why it’s so good to talk to each other about how we feel and be open about it. Mental health shouldn’t be a taboo topic as it is so common and talking about it is one of the best ways to help people with mental illnesses.

So one of the best ways to make yourself happier is to surround yourself with positive motivational people who support you and are always there for you. Make an effort to speak to these people often; with good friends you don’t need therapists.

Another way to feel less anxious is to look after yourself! Make sure you get enough sleep, eat a balanced diet and make enough time for things you like doing. Exercise is also good for relieving stress; even just a small walk around the block can really help.

I have always been quite an anxious person, I wouldn’t say I have anxiety but I’ve always worried too much about things I shouldn’t have to worry about. And through those times I tend to use an app called ‘calm’ and it really does help. Having calming music or having something to basically remind you to breathe really helps. So if ever feeling a bit panicky I would I highly recommend using it.

Life is tough. It’s stressful. It’s annoying. It can be overwhelming. There are times we all get a bit down and anxious and even if you don’t have a diagnosed mental illness it’s still good to do these sorts of things or whatever works for you and makes you feel calm and happy.

So I’ve titled this post ‘No Rain, No Flowers’. this phrase is so true, without some negatives, some failures and some unhappy moments there wont be anything good, you wont be happy and succeed. Its good to remember that in the difficult times because you know you won’t be unhappy forever; there will be flowers.

Failure is something I’ve had to battle and continue to, its something I’ve had such a massive fear of when in reality the little failures we make make us who we are, help us to grow and better ourselves.

Overall love yourself! You are always enough because there is no one else like you and if you’re ever feeling down or anxious about anything talk to friends and family or anyone that makes you feel loved.

I hope you liked this chatty post about mental health and happiness. Please fell free to leave a comment and please like and follow to read future posts! 🙂

(All photos are from a walk around Kingston lacy)

(What I’m wearing: topshop teal crop top, vintage striped blazer (you can find similar on ASOS), topshop Jamie jeans, vans)

Train around France

Lifestyle, Travel

Last week we traveled to France via the Euro-star from St pancreas station in London to Paris.We stayed for one night in St Pancreas hotel in London which was beautiful. We decided to go by train instead of boat or plane because my mum has a fear of flying so the first step to overcoming that was actually just going abroad by any other form of transport. The train ride was actually really nice; it was only 2 hours and you get to see other areas of France you might not necessarily see by flying.

We stayed for only one night in Paris but I definitely want to go back. We did the main tourist sites; the Eiffel tower, the Arc De Triomphe and then we did a river cruise on the river Seine to see other sites like the Notre Dame which I would definitely recommend if your’e only there for a short time like we were.

outfit: Sunglasses (Dolce and Gabbana outlet) shorts (asos) Top (Zara) watch (Kate Spade)

Then we went on a 6 hour train journey to Nice but it toured around most places in the south of France like Cannes and Marsailles. We stayed for 5 days in the Radisson blu hotel. We mostly stayed by the beach and the pool during the day because it was so hot. Then We went around the center as well in the evening which was full of cute restaurants and was really busy. We also went to the port but there wasn’t as much going on there.

I took a photo of this eye graffiti that I saw on the train journey from Paris to Nice, I think it is JR or in the style of and thought it was really cool.

Lastly we went to Avignon for a night, we had dinner on a river cruise and explored the little village on the outskirts which was really pretty and picturesque, it was kind of very stereotypical of what I expected a French town to be like. It was even hotter though at around 30 degrees.

Where would you recommend visiting in France?

Festival season

Fashion, Lifestyle, Style, Travel

Its festival season and these are a couple of festivals I’ve been to so far this year…

COMMON PEOPLE FEST

I went to common people festival in May with a few friends, its in Southampton and I think is quite a new festival. Tom Odell was playing and it was incredible. So here are a few photos from the day and as festival season has arrived ( my favorite season) here is what I wore:

Yellow top, cropped joggers, denim jacket, classic vans

CAMP BESTIVAL

I’ve been going to camp bestival for about 7 years and has always been really good. However this year (2017) the line up wasn’t as good and is accommodating much more to families now as it has child friendly music or music for the parents. But the Sunday was really good; Anne Marie and Louisa Johnson were playing and we even got to meet Anne Marie! I don’t think ill go back, might try it’s sister festival though- Bestival as the line up is normally really good with more of a mixture of music from pop to alternative. Camp Bestival is really good for families though and they always put on an incredible firework display on the last day. I might even try volunteering next year.

Both these festivals are run by the same people so they are both quite similar.

What are your favorite festivals?

NCS

Lifestyle, Travel

For the past month, after GCSE’s, I’ve been doing NCS. For those that may not know NCS stands for National Citizen Service. I know its offered in the UK but i’m not too sure if they have this in other countries and its only offered to 15-17 year old’s. To sum it up, it is basically a 4 week course. 2 weeks residential, 2 weeks in the local community. It includes 30 hours of volunteering so you can put it on your CV and earn UCAS points!

The first week was the ‘adrenaline fueled’ activities week; we did activities such as paddle boarding, kayaking, paint balling and coasteering. Coasteering for me was my favourite because it was something I’d never done before and was really fun. It also pushes you out of your comfort zone, i never minded heights but jumping from them is a bit more terrifying! I just didn’t look down and it was amazing. However one thing a lot of people ask me about NCS is about the food…. and to be honest I would bring snacks, many snacks… it was a little like fat camp; living off a piece of bread and half a spoonful of beans for breakfast whilst doing a lot of exercise during the day. But i didn’t really mind it, we were taken into the town nearby and allowed to buy some snacks midweek so it was still a really good week. I was awful at quad biking though! On the first corner i managed to accelerate in the opposite direction into a hedge… maybe i wont take up quad biking in the future haha.

The second week we stayed in Bournemouth university flats. This week was amazing because it was the time we got to be the most independent and get to see what uni life is like. We had a budget and had to buy and cook our own food then did activities in our groups during the day. The best activity that week was the photo challenge; we competed against the other groups to get the best and most creative photos; good for me as sports and music related activities are definitely not my forte and this was a chance to get creative! The bournemoth uni flats were so much nicer than i expected, we all had our own rooms and en-suites. So it was a great experience into finding out what uni life is like.

Week 3 and 4 was the social action part of NCS, week 3 was planning and doing presentations and pitches to get the project and get money towards the project. Then week 4 was completing the project. Ours was renovating the pond area at St Walburgas primary school so that it was usable and educational for the kids. It was so much more fun than i thought because although there were more boring jobs like weeding we were still with a really good group of people and got to be creative and paint fences etc. It was also really rewarding as we were giving our time to help a local school and the headteacher frequently thanked us for helping out.

Overall, I would highly recommend NCS to anybody. It was such good value for money, only £50, and an amazing opportunity to meet new people and gain new skills.

Have you done NCS? If so what did you think x

10 Places To Visit In New York!

Lifestyle, Travel

Hellooo from New york!

I’ve had such an amazing time staying in Manhattan with the christmas atmosphere, I thought I would share my favourite places to go, to eat and to see…

A must-see is the top of the Empire state building! They have got an observatory room on the 86th floor where you can view New York from the warmth of inside or you can go to the very top on the 102nd floor to see the view from outside like we did to capture the superb view without the glare from the windows.

2. Another place to go over the christmas period is the Rockefeller centre. The whole place is decorated with christmas decorations and there is the famous Rockefeller christmas tree featured in many christmas films. They also have an ice rink which is smaller than a lot of the others and the most famous, so it is ridiculously busy. The queue was massive even when we got there at 6;30 in the morning! so we went to Starbucks for breakfast instead haha.

They also have an observatory called ‘Top of the Rock’, located on the top of the centre you are supposed to get amazing 360 views of the city as it is very central and right next to times square.

I also cannot believe that it SNOWED!!! It was literally like a dream seeing the magical city covered in snow.

3. Talking about times square…. It was amazing to see the pure hustle and bustle of the city centre although I’m going to be honest, i could only walk through it briefly as it took forever walking through the crowds to get there. aIts really a once you’ve seen it, you’ve seen it kind of place. Quickly take a photo have a look at it and leave really.

It is a must do place though if its your first time to see the heart and soul of the busy life in New York, it was an incredible sight.

4.My favourite and place i could definitely get quite used to is around madison square gardens. It was really relaxed and absolutely beautiful. And they had the best place to get a hot dog, a burger or a milkshake; The shakeshack. Omg The food tasted insane. we were only there for a long weekend and we ate it 3 times over our 3 day break… yup it was that good.

I made a new friend too… awh hey lil’guy.

5. Just around the corner of madison square gardens is the flatiron building, its such a quirky building and apparently was the first ever skyscraper. You can’t actually go into the building but if you are nearby or on the way to the empire state, it’s definitely a building to see and take a photo of. You won’t believe how thin it is.

6. Another place which may not be particularly a tourist attraction (although if you live in the uk and is a MASSIVE love of candles like myself it might be) is Bath and Body Works. oh my lordy this is like candle heaven. The pure amount of amazing scents is immense and overwhelming; this is not your usual yankee candle haha.But if its not candles that rocks your boat, they also do hand gels, shower gels, moisturisers and room sprays. The people are all so friendly as well.

I shall also be doing a haul of what I brought in New York so you can see all the itms I brought 🙂

(ohhhhh sneak peak)

7. If in need of a healthy boost Joe and the Juice is a place for you. The atmosphere is lovely and when in need of a delicious pick me up after walking around all day it gave me the energy I needed.There are so many different flavours to choose from and come on the packaging is just incredible too.

( i didn’t just eat, i promisee you haha)

8. Central park is a must do. I am such a friends fan I jut kept having Rachel and Phoebe running flashbacks. But it was beautiful in the snow and they have a much larger ice rink. (it was unfortunately shut due to the snow 😦 )

9. The 9/11 memorial and museum. It was so poignant and emotional, people were crying and seeing all of the victims stories; it was incredible. The memorial itself was very deep, so simple but it really made you think – seeing the exact positions of where the twin towers once were going down into a waterfall – I don’t know there’s just something so significant about it.

10. Last but not least, ice skating and 5th avenue shopping.

Yes we finally found a place to Ice skate (and with a view) ! I have officially decided that I could possibly be the worlds worst ice skater but nonetheless it was really fun- probably more entertaining for my dad watching me but oh well.

When I talk about 5th avenue shopping, I’m not meaning that shopping was my highlight from the trip – not in the least!- I’m talking about the absolutely stunning christmas shop windows! like seriously these are not your ordinary shops, they go all out! one even looked like a disney castle and all the little kids faces were priceless at the sight of them; it left them speechless and even many of the adults speechless too.

Although pictures really don’t capture the magic in it xxx

If you’ve been to New York or are going I’d love to hear all about it, I would definitely go again so please tell me if there are any other hidden gems!

Completing DofE Bronze award

Lifestyle, Travel

Duke of Edinburgh has been an amazing experience although very challenging!

if you are not sure what DofE is it is basically an award you get for completing physical, skill and volunteer sections, then completing a 2 day, 1 night expedition. If you complete all these sections successfully you get the award. It is great for improving independence as you have got to organise and cook your own food, carry all your equipment etc. with you and use vital teamwork skills.

We did get lost! but we managed to navigate our way back to our route by using the skills our leaders have taught us. It was physically challenging, you can walk anywhere between 12 and 16k for your expedition, we walked for about 15k a day. Although on our practice weekend we walked 25k on one of the days which was really hard, we got many blisters! We had to plan the route ourselves as well which was fun but also a lot of responsibility.

It can also be mentally challenging with the preparation for the expedition, getting the right kit and completing the sections can be stressful. It is also exhausting afterwards, you really appreciate a bed and tasty food!

I would definitely recommend DofE to anyone who likes the outdoors, if you don’t it might not be for you but it is an amazing experience!

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