May's Adventures

May was a nice month.  I kicked off the 1st May by waking up bright and early to compete in a 5k race.  It wasn't the best I had ever performed but I think that is understandable considering I had just completed London marathon the previous weekend.  The next day I then went on to do Milton Keynes marathon, which was horrendous.  If I learnt anything that day, it's to not run a marathon a week after the last, no matter what your best friend says.

Slam Dunk Festival 2016

This May bank holiday brought Slam Dunk Festival, my first festival of the year.  Slam Dunk Festival is held from Saturday to Monday.  Saturday's festival was held in Leeds, Sunday in Birmingham and Monday in Hatfield.  I went to the Birmingham venue.  Having previously only been to the Hatfield festival I hoped that Birmingham would be just as good, and it was!

London Marathon: My first marathon experience

It's done.  I did it.  My marathon training is over.  I finally ran the London Marathon on Sunday 24th April and I am proud to say that I completed it in 5 hours and 10 minutes.

My friend and I got the train down to London on the Saturday.  I had a small bag with some belongings.  We were going into the unknown.  I was putting pressure on myself to perform well.  As we sat on that train I said to my friend: I feel like I'm going into the hunger games.

Mission Complete: First holiday of the year

I am now back from my little trip to Spain. I had a lovely four days away! It was so nice just to chill out, relax and not have to think about work... or do any work.  We spent some time on the beach, we spent some time exploring, and I even went for a 3 mile run on the beach one day which was so nice.

Marathon Training: My first half marathon experience

For me, running a half marathon is a big thing.  A couple of months ago I could barely run two miles.  So to reach the target of running 13.1 miles, in a race.  I saw this as an unachievable target.  But I believe that if you really want to do something, you can achieve it, no matter what it takes.  After all, in April I will be running a full marathon.

Me on the right after completing the race

Switzerland Adventures: Part IV

Bern was like no place I have ever been before.  After researching the place before I traveled, I expected it to be smaller, I didn't expect to enjoy it so much.  I took 621 pictures in Bern (don't worry, they are not all in this post!!), expect clocks, the amazing buildings and architecture, creepy stalker men and Albert Einstein.

Winter Wonderland

In December, a friend and I decided to plan a trip to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park, but with both of us being so busy we did not have a single day free so decided to visit on the 2nd January, the day before it closes.  So we finally went yesterday and I was super excited, I love Winter Wonderland.  It contains everything I love about winter.

How did 2015 shape up?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Switzerland Adventures: Part III

Visiting Basel after Interlaken was a stark difference.  You can read all about my Interlaken experience here.  Whereas Interlaken was calm and serence, Basel was busy and bustling, but that was fine as I wanted my adventure to include a range of Switzerland.

Switzerland Adventures: Part II

This post may be a little delayed.  Ok very delayed.  I took this trip back in the summer.  But with dark, cold January approaching I think we could all do with seeing pictures of beautiful mountains and sunshine.  You can read all about part 1 of my Switzerland trip here.

After Zurich I took the train down to Interlaken.  I got off the train with my massive bag and suitcase and started the walk towards the hostel, following the map around the little streets.  My bag was ridiculously heavy, it was a boiling hot day and I was sweating.  But the scenery kept me going, and I didn't get lost!  I had never seen a scenery like it, it was the most stunning thing I had ever seen!!! The pictures will do the talking!!

Weekend in Canterbury

On Saturday I went off to Canterbury for a short weekend away.  I had never been to Canterbury before and it was lovely to see the Christmas markets, the cathedral, lovely Christmas lights and the cute little streets.  I had already completed my Christmas shopping so it was nice to have a relaxing stroll around, exploring the place.

The hotel room.

Sink envy  You know you're getting old when you start liking sinks.

Bathroom selfie and a weird hand.

Canterbury cathedral.

Cute little streets.

The most adorable bookshop.

My outfit for the evening.

It was a shame the weather was so pants.  It was SO cold and windy!!

Despite the rubbish weather it was nice to get away and chill out rather than spending my weekend working.  It was good to relax!

Reading Festival - The end of festival season

May be a little bit late in posting this.  But nevertheless, here we go.  It took me ages to upload the photos.  Oops.

For me Reading Festival signals the end of festival season.  It is the last festival of the summer that I usually attend, and it means that autumn is coming.  I have been to Reading Festival numerous times, and each time I come back, feeling like I cannot wait until the festival next year.

On the way to Reading Festival... the cleanest we would be all week!

This year I was super excited as I didn't get to show my presence at last years Reading Festival and I missed it!  I went with 1 friend and we had early bird tickets.  I had never bought an early bird ticket before.  But having a regular festival weekend camping ticket means waking up ridiculously early on the Thursday to get down to Reading for the morning to secure a good camping spot that isn't drowning in mud.  Having now experienced an early bird ticket, I can safely say that I would get this every time from now on.

Our home for nearly a week.

It should only take less than two hours to get to Reading from my home, so at 2.30PM we set off... and didn't arrive in the camp site with all out luggage until 9PM! Yes, that's right.  It took us 6 hours in the car due to traffic.  We couldn't believe it!! We were so frustrated by the time we got there we just wanted to crack open a can and chill out.  However we had to choose a camping area to set up the tent, we already had a camping area in mind so we headed to green camping area.  We then had the challenge of choosing a good spot and setting up the tent, however it was dark, so this involved stamping around the soggy ground to see which was the least soggy and then making good use of the head torch to set up the tent.

After this mishap, everything was fine.  We woke up the next day to sun.  Then rain. Then sun.  We were incredibly lucky with the weather for the whole weekend.  It did rain, and the place pretty much turned into a mud bath at some points, but there was a good bit of sunshine and dry weather too.  I have previously been to festivals where it has rained non stop.  During this festival I tanned... a lot!!

Gin and beans for breakfast!

Foo Fighters - Broken Leg Tour

Last Sunday I was sitting in my apartment wondering what to do with my day, then I remembered that the Foo Fighters and Royal Blood were playing locally later on that day.  I was on holiday when the tickets went on sale and I just assumed they had all sold out.  I rather dubiously looked online, not expecting there to be any tickets left... and there was!!! Without hesitating, I bought the ticket, and that was the plan for my day!!

I drove over there, normally it would only take 30 minutes but due to the concert traffic it took hours!! I started panicking that I was going to miss the first band on, Royal Blood, who I love.  Eventually I managed to park up and only ended up missing one Royal Blood song.

Walking into Milton Keynes Bowl I couldn't believe the amount of people there!! I headed straight for the crowd surrounding the stage to catch Royal Blood.  It was a lovely sunny day and the crowd was packed tightly around the stage meaning I couldn't get very close, and the sun behind the stage was blinding.  That being said, I do love a gig outside in the sun, and it was Royal Blood, I love this band!!  They put on a good show as expected, playing well known songs like Figure It Out and Little Monster with added riffs and jams.  They played some of my favourites and I was super happy to see this bands, one of my favourite bands at the moment.

Next on was Iggy Pop.  I wasn't fussed about seeing this band, I didn't know their music.  I watched their entire set anyway, I was there so I figured I might as well.  I ended up knowing one song, and they weren't as bad as I expected.  I wouldn't see them in their own concert though.  The people dancing in the crowd amused me when my mind drifted off during the set.  They did put on a good show I suppose, but I didn't know their music.

Foo Fighters 6th September 2015 @ Milton Keynes Bowl

Then, on came the amazing Foo Fighters.  I have been wanting to see this band forever.  I think I have now seen every band I have ever wanted to see live, I have waited for this moment for so long.  They were amazing, it was everything I expected and more.  Dave Grohl sat on a specially made chair, due to his broken leg, you could see he wanted to move around.  They put on such an awesome show, and had great crowd interaction.  The show seemed to last forever, but went by so quickly.  By that I mean that sometimes when bands play two plus hours set, you start wanting it to end.  But I never wanted this show to end.  It was just too good.  Seeing as it was outside, it became absolutely freezing, and I started to wish that I hadn't worn shorts.  But I didn't mind, I was seeing the Foo Fighters!!  They played well known songs, All My Life, The Pretender, Best of You, Everlong, and so much more.  I can't even describe how good it was!! I had the time of my life.  I didn't even mind that it took me two and a half hours to get home,  I had seen the Foo Fighters.

Foo Fighters 6th September 2015 @ Milton Keynes Bowl

In other news, I have been writing up a post on Reading Festival which I can't wait to share with you, and have been making new additions to my home.. I can't wait to show you the finished thing!!

Have you seen Foo Fighters before?

Switzerland Adventures

Guess what?! I finally have internet! Woohoo!! So I am here today to tell you about my adventures in Switzerland. I will have to do this in parts as I went to 9 towns and cities, and took 2000 photos.

On Tuesday 14th July I set off from London to Zurich.  I felt so unprepared, I had only booked it a week prior to the trip, but had spent that week doing so much research.  I was so excited and couldn't wait to land in this country I had never visited before.  I nearly cried on the flight there, I thought I had forgotten to take my bank card, but I was saved and found it in my luggage in Zurich airport.  I took the train into Zurich, then walked to the hostel.  I'll admit, I got a bit lost.  But thanks to the google maps images I had screenshotted on my phone, and the research that I had done, I was able to re-trace my steps and eventually found the place late afternoon.

Start To The Festival Season

My prolonged silence doesn't mean that I have abandoned or forgotten this blog.  I moved house at the end of May and haven't had any internet.  In fact I still don't have any internet.  I may be borrowing the neighbour's.  Ooops. But I get my own in two weeks. Yay! Then I can start this up properly again.

Anyway, this is something that I have been dying to share for ages. Back in May I went to Slam Dunk Festival in Hatfield (London).  I hadn't been to this festival in years, and it was where I used to attend university, so I was super excited.

It was a cracking line up and the official start of my festival season.

We arrived in the afternoon and the first band we caught were PVRIS.  They are not a band I would have chosen to see, we just happened to be walking past, heard the music, and stopped for the rest of the set.  I was pleasantly surprised, and it was a great start to my festival.

Lower Than Atlantis.

We then went on to see We Are The Ocean, Cartel, Goldfinger and Taking Back Sunday.  Another band I was surprised by were Lower Than Atlantis.  I had heard them on the radio before so thought I would check them out and they were brilliant, I would definitely see them again.  Goldfinger did not disappoint, as usual, either.

Taking Back Sunday

We finished the evening off by going to see You Me At Six.  I had not seen this band in years, I was a huge fan in my younger years. The band played a great set.  Unfortunately it did have to be stopped for what seemed like ages due to someone becoming ill at the front of the crowd, which caused people to walk away.  But when they started again, it was still brilliant.  They mostly played their older songs which is what I wanted, as I know all the lyrics, and my friend and I were jumping around like crazy.  Definitely the highlight of the whole festival.

You Me At Six

I was surprised to see how the festival had grown since I was last there a few years ago.  There were more, and bigger, stages.  But there were also more crowds.  Many, many crowds.  In my opinion, they had let far too many people in for such a small venue.  We also had tickets for the after party, which I was excited about.  But we never got to go in. After the festival finished was wandered about for a bit, went to the toilet, then decided to join the queue to get in to the after party.  But the queue was so long, it would have taken us hours to get in.  I think people must have started queuing before the bands finished. This was also disappointing.  Why sell so many tickets for the after party when all those people won't get in.  Anyway, we decided that we had, had a great time at the festival and couldn't be bothered queuing, so we went home.

My map fell out of my pocket.

All in all, overlooking the disappointment at the end, it was a great day.

Have you been to any good festivals recently?

Disneyland Paris March 2015

It's been a while!! Far too long in fact!!  I have been away from this blog far longer than I intended to but my life has been crazily busy recently.  I was meant to be moving house in March, along with a trip to Disneyland, I applied for a job I never thought I would get, got an interview which I only had a couple of days to prepare for, I got the job which I started a week later.  I did not end up moving house in March, it was put back to April, and then to late May (which means I have't moved yet boo).  Anyway, that's all for another blog post.  Here I am going to tell you all about my trip to Disneyland Paris.

I went to Disneyland from 16th March to 18th March.  I had been before when I was 6 years old, so going back almost 20 years later, a few things seemed familiar but I did not remember too much.  I took so many pictures, 560 to be exact, so I am going to let the pictures do the talking (don't worry I won't show you all of them, although here are a fair few)!

Enter Shikari Live

You can't beat live music, and you cannot beat an Enter Shikari gig.  Two of my favourite things in the world: live music + Enter Shikari = Complete awesomeness.  Last night I went to see the band who put on a great, lively show as I expected.

Enter Shikari.  Cambridge Corn Exchange.  24/02/2015.

The band opened with The Appeal & the Mindsweep I, then went into Destabilise, continuing with songs mostly from their new album but with some loved classics like Juggernauts and Mothership.  You can always expect a lively, energetic show from Enter Shikari with lots of jumping about and sweat, and we got just that.  In my opinion Enter Shikari always have a cracking stage presence with a large crowd response.  Enter Shikari never fail to impress me and my hopes weren't let down this time either.

Enter Shikari.  Cambridge Corn Exchange. 24/02/2015

Christmas Party #1 Sequins and Silver

Friday was the evening of my work Christmas party. As per usual I left it until the last minute to get a dress.  I was starting to panic when at the last minute I fell in love with a dress from Warehouse on the ASOS website which you can find here.

This dress was perfect for me.  It is covered in sequins, and I am in love with sequins at the moment.  It was the perfect fit, leaving a little bit of room around the waist for food and drink, and was the perfect length.

It was a good night with lots of yummy food, including a lovely Christmas dinner, plenty of drink (perhaps a bit too much), and a good deal of laughter with some dancing to finishing the evening off.  Not leaving out the part where we went into town after, I slipped in a puddle of drink and now my knee is purple and very swollen.  So accident prone.

Al in all a lovely evening and I am now feeling even more Christmassy.

Best Night Ever

For as long as I can remember I have loved the band Avenged Sevenfold.  So when tickets went on sale 7 months ago I could not wait to get my hands on some.  As soon as I bought those tickets I was so excited.... and the excitement lasted from May all the way until 1st December, when I saw my favourite band.

On Sunday 1st December I was unbelievably excited when I made my way to Wembley Arena.  I was going to see Avenged Sevenfold, my favourite band!  The atmosphere in the arena was great, and everyone was so pumped for seeing the band.

First up was Five Finger Death Punch who I had seen at Download Festival back in June.  Five Finger Death Punch are awesome live and they certainly got the crowd going by putting on a good show.

Then, next up, was the great Avenged Sevenfold.  It was surreal, I could not believe I was finally seeing this band.  They put on a brilliant show, playing a mixture of new and old songs, with added fire.

So I can now say I have seen my favourite band live.  I cannot express how good it was.  The best night ever!!

Graduation!

That's it, I have graduated.  I am officially no longer a student.  Last Wednesday I headed down to the cathedral for the graduation ceremony with my family feeling excited and slightly nervous.  It was strange seeing everyone from my course again, but this time in gowns and hats... which I loved wearing and did not want to take off.  It was a nice day, although a shame about the weather as it started off freezing, then heavily rained, snowed, hailed, the sun came out for a second, then it heavily rained again.  Alas, I did not get any nice photos outside the cathedral which was annoying, but it was a good day nonetheless.

Had just picked up the gown and hat.

Outside the cathedral.

Collecting my certificate.

A much needed glass of wine afterwards!

It was a good day!