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An Autumn trip to Westonbirt Arboretum

An Autumn trip to Westonbirt Arboretum

Autumn is my least favourite season of the year. The days get shorter and darker, it gets colder (and quite often wetter) and people start talking about Christmas far too soon. It doesn’t really live up to the idyllic images of pumpkin patches, hot chocolates and trendy ankle boots which seem to be all over the internet. However, although I’ve never been autumn’s biggest fan, I do enjoy a sunny day when the leaves are on the turn – and Westonbirt Arboretum is the perfect place to go! I’d intended to go last year and ran out of time, so was determined we would make the time this year.

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My Hot Air Balloon Experience with Bristol Balloons

My Hot Air Balloon Experience with Bristol Balloons

Surprisingly for someone who is scared of heights, hot air balloons have always fascinated me. There’s something just a little bit magical about them, and the fact that they are only spotted on calm, sunny days or in exotic locations only adds to their allure. Going up in a hot air balloon has always been a bucket list experience that someday I wanted to do, but I had always assumed it was something I would do much later in life. I was incredibly lucky when last year I was given a hot air balloon experience for Christmas.

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First Timer’s Guide to New York City

First Timer’s Guide to New York City

New York is one of those places that pretty much everyone I’ve met wants to visit at some point. It’s a place that seems reserved for special birthdays, honeymoons, proposals and other significant milestones. I’ll be honest, I’d never actually been that bothered about going. It’s just a city, and I much prefer the countryside to cities. However, that was until we were going somewhere within touching distance and suddenly it seemed like too good an opportunity to miss. All too soon I was getting very excited about heading to New York for the first time, and when I was there it didn’t disappoint. It can be difficult to know what to expect or where to begin with planning, so here are my tips to any other first-timer’s out there.

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First impressions of the USA

First impressions of the USA

It’s hard to write first impressions of a country that’s so large and varied; I imagine the different states can feel like completely different countries at times. On my recent trip to the USA, I literally scratched the surface. I visited three cities across two different states and know I cannot claim to have ‘seen’ or ‘done’ America now. However, as it was my first trip to the USA I came home with a few reflections and observations that I’d like to share. On of the best parts of travelling is seeing the differences in a new place to what you are used to. Sometimes you come home questioning what you need to or could change as a result of your experience, and other times you come back and are happy to return to your version of normality.

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Happy 4th Birthday

Happy 4th Birthday

I’ve been writing my blog now for four years exactly, and it has slowly become more a part of me at each step of the way. Rather like a journal, it allows me to look back over some of my favourite places and memories from that time, and know that they are stored somewhere I can return to. It has allowed me to keep friends and family up to date with what I’ve been doing if I’ve been away travelling, or just because we don’t see each other as much. It has prompted opportunities for discussion and helped me find a space to continue writing and improving my photography.

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