Travel Lightbulb

As the sun sets on another year, let's start 2018 on a positive note. I don't know about you, but I can't quite believe how quickly this year has flown. I will remember 2017 as the year I travelled to many special places, making the most of celebrating a big birthday! It's been full of highs and lows, as every year seems to be but I have wonderful memories to look back on, and am very excited about the year ahead. Have a wonderful Hogmanay when it comes, and I hope you have plenty of travel plans to look forward to in 2018. If you haven't quite got round to that yet, then watch this space for more travel inspiration in the weeks and months to come!  Happy New Year, and all the best to you and yours for 2018 xx

Well as this is my last blog post before Christmas, I thought today's photo should be a wonderful wintery scene. You can almost imagine the snow crunching underneath your feet! I want to wish everyone who has taken the time to read my travel blog this year a wonderful festive season, and I hope you have a fantastic Christmas when it comes.  Spend it with your loved ones; spoil the kids, and most importantly....have lots and lots of fun!  Merry Christmas everyone xx

As this is my last travel photo before the end of the year, I thought it was fitting to feature a snowy scene that Santa would be very happy with! Many of my friends and family have visited Lapland this year, and I don't blame them - it's a stunning place, and the perfect way to build up to Christmas! It's not long now until Santa and his reindeer will be getting the sleigh ready to deliver all the presents, so I hope you've all been good boys and girls this year! Stay cosy everyone.

Bologna has a reputation of being the cultural capital of Italy, but the city has a lot more to offer alongside its wonderful food. It also has three interesting nicknames - la dotta - the educated; la grassa - the fat, and la rossa - the red. Founded in 1088, it's Europe's oldest university town - hence the first nickname - and thousands of students are drawn to the city for their student exchange programme. The university is famed for its medical school and the anatomical theatre can still be visited today! The fat nickname is probably easier for you to work out! Some of the traditional recipes from this region include the famous ragu tagliatelle, and mortadella - a large pork sausage which is typical of the city. There is even a theme park (Fico Eataly World) dedicated to food, and with so many wonderful restaurants, it's no surprise that it's hard not to put on weight when visiting Bologna! One thing you must visit are the food markets - they're ...

Today I'm flashing back to one of my favourite places in Europe. La Fresnada is a little village in the heart of Spain's Matarraña region, and the best place to stay is in the stunning 17th century converted convent, El Convent.  If you want to get away from it all, then the location of this convent is just perfect - it has a pool if you do just want to chill out, but you can also hire bikes from the hotel to discover the beautiful nearby towns. I can't recommend this place highly enough, so to read my original post, and find out more about the convent - click here .

What's the difference between street art and graffiti? I believe graffiti has a bad reputation because it can be seen as destructive and a form of vandalism. Street artists want people to be engaged by their work, and to have an emotional response to it.  I took this photo when travelling in Portugal, and love how it seems to totally transform a building that has seen better days. Have you photographed street art on your travels? If so why not share it with me. I'd love to see it!

In 1986 ice cream was made in a Cheshire farmhouse kitchen, and today over 200,000 now visit Snugbury's ice cream shop in Nantwich each year. One of the reasons people visit is because of the amazing sculptures in the nearby field. For over 10 years, the ice cream company has teamed up with a friend to build these incredible sculptures which can be a real distraction when you drive along the A51!  2016 marked 150 years since the birth of Beatrix Potter, one of the world's best loved children's authors. To mark the occasion, who better to dedicate this years straw sculpture to than Peter Rabbit. He's 38 feet tall, and the carrot and his ears are both 10 feet! Peter is a great excuse to visit, and before you wander over to see him - pick up an ice cream at the shop! I can highly recommend honeycomb and mint choc chip!

For years, Santiago has been thought of by many as a place to catch a connecting flight to somewhere else, but there's much more to Chile's capital city than that. It was founded in 1541 by the Spanish, and is home to 40 per cent of Chileans. There are plenty of things to see in the city, and the hub of it all is Plaza de Armas. The cathedral is in this square, and admission is free. If you love history, then the national history museum is worth a visit and if you're into dancing, then don't miss the live salsa shows! As you can see by the photo below, Santiago is surrounded by mountains - the Andes to the east, and the Chilean Coastal Rage to the west, which makes it one of the world's most spectacular cities. You shouldn't miss the view from Cerro San Cristobal. It also has a wonderful climate, with almost no rain between October and May. As I previously mentioned Santiago is a real travel hub, so this could be the perfect place from whi...