PART 1: STRASBOURG

So when deciding where to go on holiday this year, me and my boyfriend decided to take an interailing trip around France. I've always wanted to do an adventurous trip like that and we both loved Paris when we visited so wanted to explore the other parts of France. It took a lot of planning and we followed a budget by getting the cheapest train tickets we could find and getting cheap hotels. 

After it was all planned, we were on our way, we travelled down to London and from there to Paris and from there to Strasbourg.. 

Strasbourg is quite a large city but it's main attraction is the old town named La Petite France, it is a small part of Strasbourg and the most beautiful. All the buildings are really old and you feel like you are in a fairytale. It is surrounded by canals and is full of lovely little restaurants and cafes. 

It is a lovely place to explore, relax and have a bite to eat and discover the historical buildings. The cathedral was amazing! They don't have many shops in this part of Strasbourg, mostly Pinocchio style toy shops and souvenir shops. If you go, definitely stop off at the Au Pont Saint-Martin restaurant, you can get a seat on the balcony and overlook the river while enjoying some amazing food! 

You can also watch the video!

FILMS THAT GIVE ME SERIOUS WANDERLUST

I'm a huge wanderluster so you can understand why I love films about travel, they give me that big desire to want to drop everything, jump on a plane and travel the world. So here are my top 10 wanderlust films that inspire me to travel..


10. And While We Were Here

This movie is set in Naples, Italy which I would love to visit, I've been to Italy but Naples looks so lovely and this film really captures the beauty of Naples. Kate Bosworth plays a lonely wife lost in a dull relationship as she travels to Naples with her husband for his work. As he leaves her during the days to go to work, she explores Naples and ends up meeting a handsome, young American who totally changes her outlook on life. I love this movie as not only does it show beautiful Naples, but that travelling and meeting new people can totally change you for the better.

9. Hector and the Search for Happiness

Simon Pegg drew me to this film because I love him and also the fact its about travelling. Simon Pegg plays a psychiatrist who is tired of his boring life and decides to travel the world and search for what makes people happy (aka searching for his own happiness). In doing so he travels to so many amazing places including China, The Himalayas and Africa. I love that this film is a comedy with some serious parts of the movie making you want to cry. I just love that this film teaches you that there is more to life then working 9-5 and happiness is only achieved when you go through unhappy times.



8. 127 hours

How can this film not give you wanderlust? The amazing shots of the Grand Canyon are insanely beautiful, especially the sunset ones. The Grand Canyon is definitely on my bucket list and watching this movie makes me desperately want to go. This film is so inspiring as James Franco brings to life the true ordeal Aron Ralston went through and at the end when he frees himself it shows you how he still follows his dreams climbing Mount Everest and living life to the full, that's so inspiring!


7. Lord of the Rings

New Zealand. The backdrop on Lord of the Rings is so amazing you just wish you could be on a journey too exploring the mountains and rivers of New Zealand. I can watch all three films in a day, and then I'll feel totally inspired to travel.


6. Tracks

This is about the true story of Robyn Davidson, a young woman who in 1977 undertook a perilous solo trek across the stunning Australian outback. Her family and friends think she's crazy when she tells them her plan and some even think she'll give up but this only makes her more determined and she does it with only four camels and her dog for company. It's so inspiring that she went through this tough journey and made it to the Indian Ocean rewarded with life changing self-discovery.


5. The Way

The way is about a doctor played by Martin Sheen who travels to France after his son dies during a storm while climbing the Pyrenees to walk The Camino de Santiago. Martin Sheen's character decides to retrieve his son's body but ends up making the journey in homage to his son. While walking The Camino de Santiago he meets other people from around the world who have became broken in some way too and are travelling the route to find meaning in their lives. I loved this movie it made me cry, made me laugh and inspired me so much.


4. Wild

This is the true story of Cheryl Strayed who hiked more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail all by herself. Cheryl starts the journey with no hope in her life anymore, but the determination to leave behind her broken marriage and destructive behaviour. It's so inspiring to see her going through tough times and terrifying moments and just keep going and ending the journey stronger and healed.



3. Lost in Translation

Bill Murray + Scarlett Johansson + Japan.. makes the best film ever! The film is set in Tokyo, Japan one of the places on my bucket list! Bill Murray plays an actor working in Japan but can't speak a word of Japanese, Scarlett Johansson is also there to support her husband who is also in Japan for work. Both are feeling lonely in Japan but when they meet they create a bond with each other and explore Japan together. I just love how this movie shows travelling can form unlikely bonds with people you would never think you'd be friends with if you were back home, it shows you can meet all kinds of people while travelling to another place.



2. Eat Pray Love

This is one of my all time favourite films! It's a true story about Elizabeth Gilbert who has a serious case of wanderlust but feels trapped in her broken marriage and job. She decides to leave it behind and go on a journey. She starts off in Italy to eat, then India to practice meditation and find her spiritual side and then Bali to love! She makes new friends along the way, rediscovers herself and becomes a stronger person. This film inspired me so much and i would love to take the same journey too one day! Also if you love the film i definitely recommend the book, it's even better!


1. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is my favourite travel film ever! Whenever I want to feel inspired I watch this movie. It stars Ben Stiller who's my absolute fave and he plays Walter Mitty who is a bit of a daydreamer which I can totally relate to and deep down he wishes for a more exciting life rather than his daily job at Life magazine. In desperation to keep his job he needs to retrieve the picture for the cover of the final issue, in order to do this Walter travels to Greenland to find the photographer to get the photo. During his journey he leaves his comfort zone and jumps out of a helicopter into the ocean and fights off a shark, skateboards around Iceland, runs away from a volcanic eruption and climbs the Himalayas. After his journey Walter comes back a changed man, feeling more alive and happy. I love this movie so much, it inspired me to travel to Iceland one day and also to do more exciting things in life and really live it to the full.

ITALY PART TWO - Malcesine

After spending some time in Lake Garda, we decided to take a bus to Malcesine which was only about half an hour away. A few people had told me about this place and said how beautiful it is so we decided to go.

As soon as I got there I was astounded at how beautiful it was. It was a small town with an amazing backdrop, it was like being in a painting with the mountains. We walked around and explored all the lovely little shops and searched for somewhere to have breakfast as we hadn't had time to have any that morning. We found a cute café that sold hot sandwiches and sat inside, I noticed that even though I tried to speak the best Italian I could the people where so friendly and they spoke English really well.

After having breakfast we decided we were going to take the cable cars up to the top of the mountains to get a good view, we saw pictures on the leaflets of the views from the top and it looked beautiful. When we got to the place where you get your tickets we saw the queue for the tickets and cable cars and it looked so long, it must have been at least an hour wait, Michael also wasn't feeling well either, so we decided not to do it.

Instead we bought tickets to visit Castello Scalligero which was a beautiful castle beside the lake. Michael still wasn't feeling well but he still braved the long stairs all the way to the top. The views were breath taking.. 

The castle reminded me a little of Game of Thrones, there was also a wedding going on and it looked gorgeous, it definitely gave me ideas of where I would like to get married one day.

Read my next Italy blog here: Italy Part Three - Verona 

Read Part One of my trip here

IBIZA - PORTINATX

Last October, me and my boyfriend took a holiday to Portinatx in Ibiza. I've never been someone who wanted to go on a party holiday, so Ibiza never attracted me. I always associated it with partying, drinking and a place full of clubs and tacky hotels, but when looking for holidays we came across a cute little place called Portinatx with lovely beaches, shops and hippy markets. So as it was quite cheap we booked it and 2 weeks later i fell in love with Ibiza.

As soon as we arrived i was amazed by the Island. The beaches were incredible, the ocean was so blue and the views were just so amazing! It was so hot too!

The first day was spent swimming in the clearest waters that were so warm and full of tiny fish swimming around my feet! We also took a boat ride to explore more of the Island,the rest was just as beautiful and had some amazing houses, beaches and caves! The locals were the most lovely people and were so laid back and polite to everyone. The restaurants and bars were so lovely with outside balcony's to sit by the sea and enjoy the starry night. The food was so good too, I love seafood pizza and the restaurants had so many choices of seafood pizza.

The next day we went to San Joan on a 'hippy train' which was a life size toy train that drove on the roads. One Spanish man drove and the other man with dreadlocks was named Elvis, he pointed out the sights like a sort of tour guide as we drove by, he wasn't boring like most tour guides he made it fun and cracked some hilarious jokes. He was Spanish but spoke in English as there were a lot of English people on the train and then he spoke in German as a German couple were also on the train, i can't even imagine how many other languages he knows and has to speak for other tourists, I was really impressed as he spoke both German and English really well! The train was open with no windows and I could feel the hot sun glaring down on me with a light breeze as we drove. Elvis played Spanish music through his radio while couples on mopeds and in jeeps speeded past us down tiny, bumpy roads. We visited the lovely streets and small churches of San Joan, it was really pretty. We also visited a beach and had a swim in the sea before heading back to the train to go back to Portinatx.

The next day was followed by more swimming and then a taxi ride to Es Cana, the biggest hippy market takes place there. When we arrived I fell in love as soon as I walked through! I could hear  drums and cool hippy music from the bands playing and was surrounded by colourful rugs, dreamcatchers, the smell of incense and aztec patterns were just everywhere! I was at home!

The people who owned the stalls were the coolest people I'd ever seen, they looked like Elvis with their dreadlocks and laid back style, I wanted to have my own stall too! Everyone was dancing along to the music and just enjoying life! 

I purchased a throw with an elephant, paisley pattern on it and some tie dye clothing. I wanted to buy everything I saw. Everything was so precious and handmade, one stall was full of rare handmade crystal rings and one full of crochet clothing that must of taken hours to make and another sat an old man making leather accessories by hand. He looked like the most interesting person to talk to but I didn't want to disturb him as he was concentrating on crafting his jewellery.

We spent a few nights in the hotel bar which had a gorgeous chill out area with huge sofas and fire torches! I loved it! It was a great place to just sit and relax and unwind after a long day if we were too tired to walk down to the other bars further away. They had some lovely cocktails too, I never stopped drinking Malibu and Pineapple! Sooo good!

We also spent a day in Ibiza Town which had so many cute shops selling hippy clothing, handmade jewellery, moroccan lamps, Buddhas and frozen yoghurt and there were so many adorable bars and cafes! The alleyways and staircases were covered in leaves and plants and flowers growing out of the walls.   

The best thing about Ibiza has to be it's sunset. You can't go to Ibiza and not witness it! We had to walk a bit away from our hotel to a castle and an old abandoned building to get to see it and as soon as we walked up the hill we were amazed, it was so lovely to sit and watch the sun go down, it was so peaceful and just an amazing sight to see.

This island was not what I thought it would be. It was so much better than I imagined, the locals, the laid back vibe, the carefree way everyone lives, I would love to live in Ibiza, own my own stall at the hippie market and live a chilled life driving around on my Vespa. Maybe one day...