A whistle stop tour of Brighton's food offerings

Recently I went on a weekend trip to Brighton and had such a good time! I saw the sights, was forced into watching Stranger Things (great decision) and ate some tasty food! I thought it might be quite nice to share some of the delicious things Brighton had to offer - and there was plenty to choose from. Disclaimer: This is just a quick run down of where we went over one afternoon (and the next morning), other than that I'm probably the worst person to give Brighton food suggestions but I just thought it might be nice to share where we went.

Arriving in Brighton after just a sausage sandwich and a latte on the train I was ready for something tasty, preferably with a sea view. And that's just what I got! Now because I'm an idiot I have no idea what the place is called where we ended up but you could see the pier from it. Anyway we sat by the beach with a latte and some of the best chips and garlic aioli that have ever passed my lips. Think of the most garlic-y thing there very was, times it by ten and that's how much garlic was in the dip - it was amazing! Crispy hot chips and creamy sauce sat looking out to the sea in the sunshine, what more could you ask for!

We then fancied some ice cream and after a bit of a Google we made our way to Boho Gelato. It was the end of the day so flavours were a bit limited but still delish. I went for Nutella and vegan vanilla brownie and it was super tasty, especially the Nutella. I mean what's better than hitting a giant lump of chocolate-y goodness! Perfect way to round off a seaside afternoon.

Day two on the Brighton food adventure started with a bang. Two words; Red Roaster. It's literally the thing of Instagram dreams and not only does it look super pretty but the food is also seriously delicious! We went for breakfast after a prosecco fuelled late night in a jacuzzi (long story) so heads and stomachs were a little tender but we were ready for a tasty brunch. I went for a latte and a herb waffle with bacon jam, a fried egg and bits of apple. Oh my god it was amazing. You know when you eat something and it just sings - this was one of those moments. What's not to love about bacon, apple and a whole load of waffle?! I'd love to go back as well for lunch to test out some of the other things on the menu. I was 100% recommend this, it was sensash.

As I said, just a quick little run down of where I went on my tiny travels!

What's in my travel skincare bag?

As you read this I'll be living it up in Brighton on a little weekend trip for my friends birthday and to say I'm excited is an understatement - I'm literally bursting! I wanted to see if I could streamline my packing for this trip, especially makeup and skincare-wise, not for any particular reason just because I tend to overpack. A Glossier much seemed like the perfect size, big enough but also quite thin. The bag is pretty much filled with my usual skincare routine but with some cute minis thrown in, so here is what I'm taking skincare-wise on my mini break to Brighton.

I constantly need Micellar Water in my life and these little Garnier ones are the best for when you're out and about. You don't even really need to get this for the product inside (although this is my favourite Micellar Water) but the bottle is great, relatively flat and there's no fear of a massive explosion all over your bag. Also, cotton pads, because I'm sorry but toilet paper and kitchen roll are not the same. For when I need to really cleanse my face during this weekend (say on Sunday morning when I feel like absolute death) then I have this sample size of the Glossier Milky Jelly Cleanser to use. It's my favourite product for a second cleanse and although it isn't very good at removing makeup, once I've gone over my face with the micellar water it really gets in and cleans out any gunk left on my face and leaves it feeling a little bit happier. It seems like quite a decent sample and I might even get two uses out of it (woo I know how to live life!).

At the minute my skincare routine is very much 'get in all the moisture to stop the skin shriveling up like a little raisin' but this isn't very travel friendly. Enter the Look Fantastic Advent Calendar I had last year. Possibly the best purchase I've ever made it's provided me with new favourites and, most importantly, minis. After using up the serum that you got in the run up to Christmas (which I loved but was SO EXPENSIVE) I can now use the bottle for my serum of choice when I'm out on my travels. The one I'm using at the minute is The Ordinary 100% Plant Derived Squalane (see my early thoughts on it here). I'm so glad that I can still keep up my current skincare routine without it taking up half the room in my bag.

This mini of the Body Shop Vitamin E moisturiser is something I've trying to use up. Again an advent calendar present it's quite similar to my current moisturiser (the Body Shop Drops of Youth) and I've used it before so I know my skin likes it. It just saves me taking a massive pot or trying to scrape the product I'm using into a tiny tub, everyone's a winner! 

Three things that I already use that are the perfect travel sizes are my Body Shop Vitamin E Eye Cream, the Coconut Glossier Balm Dotcom and my Body Shop Coconut Hand Cream. Three great products that I'm glad can come with me without taking up much space. Also my toothbrush and toothpaste will be coming with me - nothing special but very essential (get me, such a poet).

What's your cutest mini?

Exploring Edinburgh | The most amazing afternoon tea

Just look at this. Pictures speak louder than words so here it is - afternoon tea at The Signet Library in  The Colonnades in Edinburgh.

*scroll to the bottom to see my thoughts*

This was one of the best afternoon teas I've ever had, seriously stunning. Even starting with the setting, you're sat in a library under a very high ceiling surrounded by stacks and stacks of books. It's really cool. The table was like a mirror and pretty much everything else was also reflective and looked really sleek. There were loads of different teas and coffees to choose from so whatever floats your boat, they have something for you! I went for earl grey and it was goooood.

We started with an amuse bouche of parsnip soup, a nice surprise and really tasty. Then it was onto the main event. I don't want to go into too much detail so I'll give you the highlights. The mini game pie was to die for, just a bite of delicious pastry goodness and the mini fish burger (I should stop saying mini because let's face it everything is mini) was very tasty. The bizarre star of the savoury section was the red pepper cheesecake...yeah, that's right. It sounds really weird but it worked, buttery base with a red pepper filling and a crispy pepper bit on top. Might be one to recreate at home! 

Scones were delicious - one criticism was that we could have done with a bit more clotted cream and jam but I'm sure we could have asked for more. I'm usually a little let down when it comes to puddings on afternoon teas because 1. in general there's a lot of cake and 2. I'm too stuffed from the savoury section to even think about anything else. But well-thought out selection of mini pastries was amazing. Again, the highlights were the treacle tart, like a sticky bonfire toffee in pastry and the gin and apple jelly, a nice way to end off the meal. I was also a big fan of the pumpkin spiced macaroon. I'm normally not the biggest macaroon fan but this was filled with white chocolate and it was so tasty I could have had about 17 (obviously not right then and there - I was literally stuffed to burst).

There's a general theme with my Edinburgh posts of "if you're ever in Edinburgh you need to visit insert name of establishment here" but I really mean it with this one. Such a great experience, I wouldn't hesitate about going back!

Where else shall I try for afternoon tea?

Exploring Edinburgh | Food

When we went to Edinburgh we were greeted with so many options for places to eat. It was like a foodie haven and I was totally ready for it. As with finding places to visit, there was a lot of research on trip advisor, top ten lists and word of mouth before we had a list of places we wanted to try out. We didn’t over do it with eating out but we managed to sample some amazing places! I’m going to split them into meals and hopefully give you a few ideas of where to eat should you find yourself in the Scottish capital.

Brunch

Why not start with the best pancakes I’ve ever eaten. Ever. 

I’m a huge pancake fan, they’re my thing at the moment and I was determined to find an amazing brunch spot for one of the days. There were plenty to choose from (like seriously so many) but we settled on Loudons . With so much delicious sounding to choose from in a light and airy atmosphere this place was insane. It was a little bit pricy (just under £10 for pancakes) but the portion sizes are huge and really sets you up for the day. I went for the American Style pancakes with bacon, baked banana and topped with syrup and cocoa powder and an earl grey tea. There was plenty of sauce which was delicious and sweet, the banana was tasty and the actual pancakes were pillowy and soft. Also the bacon was crispy which I’m all about.

I wouldn’t even hesitate in going back here again, it was to die for. I truly memorable experience.

Tea (dinner/evening meal)

This meal was both amazing and bizarre. I think my mum and dad heard about Locanda De Gusti from a friend so off we went one night. Two buses and a short walk later we were stood in front of this small space filled to the brim with people in what I’d describe yas someone’s lounge. But in this random room on a random street was a totally delicious and memorable meal. An Italian restaurant with no pizza in sight it’s definitely an experience but one that’s worth having. I went for a seafood starter with mussels, scallops, prawns, squid and probably other things that I’m forgotten. Cooked to perfection it came with a chunk of bread to mop up the juices - not going to lie I was totally sold on the starter for the bread alone. As it was such a meaty starter I went for simple ravioli for main. The buttery was nice and buttery (duh) and the ravioli was delicious. Simple but not boring, and I’m usually someone who gets bored of pasta dishes if they are a little same-y. I was totally stuffed but I also really wanted a pudding so I went for a scoop of vanilla ice cream with a shot of espresso. It was just like coffee ice cream and it was the perfect way to end an amazing meal.

Please, if you’re wanting something a little bit different with delicious food then pay Locanda De Gusti a visit, you won’t regret it.

Afternoon tea

Two words: the best. Stay tuned for next week’s post when I’ll go into more detail. Trust me it’ll be worth the wait!

What is your favourite thing to eat for brunch?

Exploring Edinburgh | Sights

 Are you ready for some Edinburgh posts!?!

I spent four days in the Scottish capital with the parents a couple of weeks ago and I want to share where we went, what we did, all of the things we ate so sit down, get a cup of tea (or glass of prosecco, whatever beverage you fancy) and here's part one: the sights.
Note: I'll link the TripAdvisor pages for everything I mention, then it makes it easier if you want to take a look yourself!

Before we arrived in Edinburgh we did a little bit of research on popular places to go and I picked up a Lonely Planet guide to the city which proved to be really useful. So with the list of places we fancied going there were a few which we needed to book and by the time we were on the train heading up there we had a loose schedule of where we were going and a list of places that we could go to fill in any gaps. It worked really well and we managed to fill our day without sitting clueless about where to go next.

Attractions - Things that cost dollar (or scottish pounds)

The first place we visited was Real Mary King's Close. It's an underground history tour that goes through street that's sort of buried underground. It's a strange reason why it's there and to be honest I'm still not 100% sure why but it was really good. The tour lasted about an hour/ hour and a half so not massively long and it was so interesting that time just flew by! The Royal Yacht Britannia is a great way to spend half a day. Based out in Leith (half an hour tops on the bus from the centre) it's the ship that the Queen and the Royal Family used to go on holiday, go on state visits, etc and it's basically a floating museum. It's really interesting, you get something that looks like a phone and it talks to you as you walk round giving you information about where you are on the ship. It's good because you get to go at your own pace. Also, if you're a child like me, there are sometimes like cuddly creatures to spot walking round and at the end you can guess how many there were and get a badge. We did this with corgis and it was literally the highlight of the trip...seriously. There's a car onboard to in case you need a quick scone stop mid trip. Now the final 'attraction' is Edinburgh Gin and I'm not joking when I say you have to go here, it's not an option. For £25 it's an hour and a half (I'm pretty sure anyway) and you have a chat about the history of gin, tour of how they make it and at the end you and the rest of your group get to taste some gins and get a bit merry, what's not to love?! You also get 10% off in the shop and a small bottle of your favourite gin included in the price. Amazing, I totally recommend it!

Freebies - Places that are free (obviously)

If you go to Edinburgh and end up with a few hours to kill, go to the National Museum of Scotland.  It's free and has so much to see and do inside that it's just a good shout. I'd say it was like a standard 'big' museum - very similar to the likes of London's Science Museum with interesting facts and interactive games. You may need to kick a couple of kids off some of the games but it's fine, they'll get over it.

Sights - Places to go and things to see outside

One of the places we wanted to slot in somewhere throughout the trip was Arthurs Seat. It's a 251m high hill/cliff that looks out over the city. It took us about an hour to go up and down so not too long. Now, here's a word of warning. Everyone we passed was wearing giant coats, scarves and walking boots, you know, sensible attire for walking up rocky paths. I was wearing black culottes, a polo neck jumper with no coat (because I'm hard) and my loafers with not form of suitable sock (I'd just like to point out that we were going for afternoon tea straight after, hence the unsuitable walking outfit). Although there was no need for a giant arctic coat and hat like some of the walkers were wearing, more suitable footwear would have been a better choice and may have saved my feet a fair few blisters. A fun thing to do that's not such an intense walking experience if have a wander round Greyfriars Kirkyard. It's where Greyfriars Bobby is buried (if you don't know the story look it up, it's possibly the cutest thing you will ever read) and also it's where JK Rowling got some of her character names for Harry Potter.

Any more Edinburgh places suggestions? Loved it so much I'll probably be taking a trip back!

Travel minis to make your heart melt

I'm going to sound like every blogger on the internet when I say I love minis. Not only do they look really cute and dinky but they drastically reduce the weight of my suitcase.

I'm going to start with one of the cutest things I'll be taking away with me, the Gillette Venus Snap Portable Razor. It's a normal sized razor head on a short stubby handle and comes in a small plastic case. Whoever invented this is a serious genius because it just makes so much sense. It's just as good to use as a normal razor but is 10 times cuter!

One thing that takes up an unnecessarily large amount of space is micellar water. It's big, it's bulky, but I can't live without it. So I've finally been organised and bought (or got my parents to buy because I'm too lazy) the mini Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water. Although at the minute I'm using the micellar water from Simple, this one is just as good and will do a great job at taking off the makeup that doesn't disappear after I've used my Body Shop Camomile Cleansing Butter - another great product to travel with.

The Body Shop are great for minis and thanks to my advent calendar at Christmas I'm pretty stocked up. I have the Rainforest Radiance Shampoo, Coconut Shower Gel and Pink Grapefruit Hand Cream. They all smell amazing and work really well, what more can you ask for! I also have minis of both of my moisturisers which I got in the advent calendar - talk about luck, Vitamin E Moisture Cream and Oils of Life Sleeping Cream. I'm going to use them both up and if I change moisturisers I'll just wash out the pot and refill!

Something which I totally love is the Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Conditioner. I don't use it normally but it is just what my hair needs after it's been battered with chlorine. I also like to take a mini Batiste Dry Shampoo just in case I don't go for a swim so don't need to wash my hair but want to refresh it a bit. my favourite scent is Tropical but Blush will do.

Other cute products I have in my bag are a Nivea Invisible Deodorant, Burts Bees Coconut and Pear Lip Balm, Soap and Glory Puffy Eye Attack Eye Cream and, of course, a toothbrush!

What's your favourite product for summer?

What's in my Travel Makeup Bag

It's that time of year again, I'm going home for the weekend and I've set myself the challenge of streamlining my makeup bag as much as possible. I did the same thing last year (read about that here) and although I didn't over pack I reckon that this time I've got it down to the bare essentials. So without further ado let's get straight to it.

I'm taking my Makeup Forever Mattifying Primer because it is literally the best primer I've ever used. It goes on smoothly and I don't know what I'm going to do when it runs out because I love it so much. The L'Oreal Infallible Matte Foundation is the best at staying on my face without bringing out the oil so that was the only choice really to be taking away this weekend. My Mac Pro Longwear Concealer is sadly coming to an end (*wipes away tear*) but while it's still got a little life left in it I'll be taking it home with me. Still don't know if I'm going to repurchase it but it is one of my favourite concealers. Another concealer fave is the Maybelline Eraser Eye which is great for under the eye so I wouldn't leave home without it. The Bourjois Healthy Balance Powder has fast become my favourite powder of all time. Lightweight on the skin but still having the power to block all of my disgusting oils, this is an absolute winner!

I'm LITERALLY obsessed with the Soap and Glory Brow Archery Brow Pencil in Hot Chocolate. I picked this up a few weeks ago and instantly fell in love with it. The pencil glides on so smoothly, making it really easy to apply and the colour is the perfect brown. Even through I have light blonde hair it doesn't make them too dark so I look stupid. If you like a strong brow I definitely recommend it. I can't go anywhere without my Mac Painterly Paint Pot as it's the perfect base for any eyeshadow, and my life wouldn't be complete if i was without my new favourite eye quad, the Fleur De Force Eye Quad in Cosmic Bronze. I can create my favourite eye look with this one palette and it's nice and compact to travel with. My L'Oreal Superstar Superliner is coming with me, and although I love it it does need replacing. My life wouldn't be complete without the Rimmel Kohl Kajal eyeliner in Jet Black and I'll be taking my Covergirl Lash Blast Mascara. I really liked this one but it seems to have run out really quickly so if anyone has any mascara suggestions please let me know!

I'm in love with the new packaging for the Soap and Glory Solar Powder Bronzer. Not only is it more robust but it makes it so much better for travelling. I rarely use anything other than my Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Tipsy because it is such a gorgeous colour and formula. I'm not sure whether I like the Benefit Shy Beam Matte Highlighter but I'm taking it home anyway as something to use. Any highlighter recommendations would be much appreciated. I'm taking two lip options home, a nude and an autumn option, and if you've read my blog before you probably know what they are. The Clinique Pop in Melon Pop and Fleur De Force Lip Gloss in Starry Starry Night. Both great, nothing more to say.

I told you I streamlined it!

Applebee's!

Here we are. We've finally come to the end of my American food journey. A sad moment but it'll be nice to get to things other than chicken and chips! Last on the agenda for the food was Applebee's. It reminded me of Texas Roadhouse in terms of decor and food with there more on offer than just steak and burgers and there was a lot of wood and TV's playing sport on the walls. Nice atmosphere and a good way to round off a fantastic holiday!

No starters this time so straight into the main. I went for the chicken tenders with fries, coleslaw and ranch. Now if you've been following these america food posts you'll know that I've developed a serious obsession with ranch so when they asked me what dip I'd like I jumped at the ranch chance. I have to say I was very disappointed. It just tasted weird and a little bit off, not creamy and delicious like the other ranches I've had. The chicken was delicious. Crispy on the outside and soft in the middle. Tasty coating and there was just the right amount. Fries were good too, crispy and had lots of flavour just how I like them. All in all, a great meal to end my little food tour.

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Uno!

Continuing on our Florida food trip we go to Uno, a place I'd never heard of before going. I didn't have a clue what kind of thing they offered so I had no expectations going into it and I have to say I was very impressed, it was one of my favourite eateries from the trip and I think that could be said for the rest of the family. So without further ado let's take a foodie trip down memory lane! The restaurant itself was very similar to the other ones that we'd been to, wooden inside, sports on in the background, that kind of thing. From what I gathered from the menu it was Chicago based and focused on pizzas, but it also did burgers, steaks and everything else that they offer in American restaurants.

For starter we went for another combo, the uno sampler, which is great when the portion sizes are so big. This one had onion rings, tortilla chips, guacamole, eggplant fritters and buffalo chicken quesadillas along with a mayonnaise, a salsa and a tomato sauce. Th onion rings were what I call proper onion rings (meaning you could tell that it was a whole slice of onion) but it had flavour on the inside and was sweet and tasty. The eggplant fritters were nice but made me really thirsty and I couldn't have more than one. I really liked the quesadillas, they had a barbecue flavour and were packed full of chicken and vegetables, really tasty. The star of the show was the guacamole. I've never been the biggest fan of it before now but this was so tasty! It was seasoned so nicely that I could just not get enough. That with the tortilla chips was a winning combination!

Seeing as though the place boasted about its amazing pizzas I thought that I might as well give it a try. I went for the Chicago classic which had crumbled sausages, tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. It was deep dish, the classic Chicago way and also my favourite because I'm all about the base. This pizza was a bit backwards. The cheese was on the bottom with the tomatoes on top, whether that's the right way to do it or not I'm not sure. This was out of this world. The base was crispy on the bottom but doughy in the middle and it was filled with flavour. I couldn't eat it all but was very grateful when I took it home to eat it the next day. Yum!

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IHOP!

Well, what a bizarre experience this was. This has to be one of the weirdest but greatest culinary experiences I've ever had. I had heard of IHOP before I went to America but I had always thought that it strictly pancakes. Boy I could not have been more wrong. This menu was literally so extensive that it was hard to narrow it down. We had to wait for about 15 minutes for a table, it was literally so busy, there must have been about thirty people waiting for a table. It was totally worth it though!

I went for the steak, eggs, hash brown and pancakes. I know, steak for breakfast is a bit weird especially when it's deep fried but it was literally amazing! It tasted more like a sausage than a steak but that didn't matter, it was still delicious! The hash brown was the star of the show! It was what I'd call a rosti as apposed to a hash brown which is totally more up my street than a 'normal one'. So nice, crispy on the outside and soft in the middle yum! The whole thing came with a cream gravy which was very bizarre but I'm not complaining! Super tasty. The eggs were nice but just like normal eggs. I was in pancake heaven! Fluffy and delicious. The only problem was there was butter on them and because I ate them last the butter had melted a whole in the middle of the pancakes and they went soggy and salty. Next time I'd take it off before I started tucking into my meal. Overall it was a great meal and one of my first breakfast out experiences which has made me want more.

Longhorn Steakhouse!

Week two of the Florida food trip and this time it's the turn of Longhorn Steakhouse. Unlike Texas Roadhouse last week the menu is a little more limited. There are a lot of options but it sticks more towards steaks and burgers and different versions and flavours of those. The service wasn't as good as last week's but it wasn't awful and the decor was nice and cosy, like a log cabin, lots of dark wood.

Let's jump into the meal and for starter we all shared chicken bites and handmade kettle chips. The chicken bites had a slightly spicy batter which was tasty and gave off a nice heat as well as having a sweet chilli sauce which went really nicely with the bites. The portion size was large for one person, but as a sharer for four it was absolutely perfect. The pieces were bite sized and really moist. The kettle chips were lovely. Crispy, not greasy at all and you could tell that they were made in the restaurant. It came with two dips, a garlic one and a barbecue one. The garlic one was okay but tasted a little funny and I didn't try the other one as I'm not the biggest fan of barbecue. The chilli sauce however from the chicken bites went really nicely with it so I just used that. Overall I enjoyed both of these and the meal got off to a really good start.

For my main I chose the parmesan steak with seasoned fries. It also came with a salad before they brought this which was huge. I didn't eat it because it had grated cheese in and I do not do raw cheese but it's quite good that it came included with the price of your main meal. The steak was cooked lovely, near perfect but it could have just been a little bit pinker, I asked for it medium rare. The parmesan crust was needed because I like to have a sauce with my steak so this gave it a bit of something else. It was crispy and there was the perfect amount. The fries were very nice, tasty and crispy. The portion size of the whole meal was perfect, surprising from what we'd experienced before, and I polished off the whole lot. Lovely!

To finish off the meal I went for the chocolate lava cake. I have to say I was a little disappointed. I expected it to be a bit like a chocolate fondant, rich and full of chocolate-y flavour but it was a little bit tasteless. Too sweet, too clacky and too big. Sorry to be a bit of a downer but I just wasn't a fan and it was a shame because for me it let down the meal a little bit but overall I really enjoyed it and pretty much everything was tasty.

Texas Roadhouse!

This post is the first in a line of America food posts and I know that I'm going to feel seriously hungry when writing all of them. Without further ado, her we go with Texas Roadhouse. The menu had a wide range of food items, from burgers to steaks and chicken so there is something for everyone. Drinks are free refills (on pop) and the service was top notch so I'd definitely recommend going here. It was one of my favourite places that we ate all holiday.

For starter we decided to go for the combo, that way we could try out a few different options and not be too full for our main (because these portions sizes were something else, as you'll find out later). The dish came with loaded cheese and bacon potato skins, rattlesnake bites, which were a breaded jalapeño and mozzarella mix, and spicy chicken pieces. This has to be one of my favourite dishes of the entire holiday. The chicken was nice but rather than blow your head of there was a little bit of heat and it went really nicely with the cool sour cream. The rattlesnake bites were a lovely little addition. They also had a nice heat behind them and were super tasty. The outside was crunchy and the inside was soft which was a nice contrast. The star of the show was definitely the loaded potato skin. I am totally not a fan of this kind of thing, I'm not normally a cheerleader for potato but the crispiness of the skin and the taste of the bacon totally won me over! I literally could not stop thinking about these things for the rest of the holiday, especially when we went out to eat. What a winner!

Southern Fried Chicken with mushrooms, onions, a cream gravy, chips and a sweet potato was on the agenda for lunch and boy was it delicious! It was weird and a really bizarre experience, but delicious all the same! The mushrooms and onions mixed with the cream gravy turned into a really nice mushroom sauce and went really nicely with the crispy chicken. Fried chicken is one of my guilty pleasures so this was right up my street and did not disappoint! It wasn't greasy in the slightest but was full of flavour and I would definitely have it again. The chips were a little bit too chunky for me but I enjoyed the crispier bits but the sweet potato was out of this world! Soft and sweet, I was in love. The only downside of this meal was the shear portion size. There was no way I was going to finish all of this. It tasted pretty amazing though, yum!

Final Florida Round Up

I'm home, *cry cry*, from the best holiday ever! I had the best time and to commemorate the fun I'm going to look back at all of my favourite times from the trip! Let's get started!

Favourite Disney Park // It's a toss up between the cuteness of Magic Kingdom and the world showcase at Epcot.

Favourite Restaurant // More on food coming in the next few Tuesday's but I think when it comes down to it Texas Roadhouse had great food and really good service. A good all round package!

Favourite Ride // After long consideration I think that it has to be the People Mover in Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom. We went on it three times and I don't know what it is about it but I wish that they made it to go all around the park!

Favourite Experience // Swimming with dolphins. Without a doubt. It was amazing and something that I will never forget.

Favourite Cuddly Meeting // We didn't meet many but Chip and Dale were just too cute not too put at the top. They're chipmunks for goodness sakes! But all of the ones that were met were super cute!

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Florida Round Up #3

Animal Kingdom

Arrived bright and early. Had second thoughts about going on expedition everest. Decided against it. Was told it was very good. Skipped to the lion king show. Was insanely good. Fast passed to the rapids ride, which was a good job as it was very busy. Would have been a disaster without the ponchos but it was all fine. Good fun. Waited for the flights of wonder show. Became one of the highlights of the day. Very funny and cute. Then it was time for the safari trek. Elephants on the trail meant the ride was closed. We found out after a 30 minute wait. Great. Torrential downpour meant we headed home early.

Epcot

Great day. Went to world showcase. Didn't open until 11. Test track. Really good, one of the best rides of the holiday. Time for the showcase. Boat ride in Mexico. Wander around Norway. Visit the sights of China. Get festive in Germany. Watch a gondola man in Italy. Get patriotic in America. Peek at Aladdin in Morocco. Have a browse of the shops in Japan. Eat a crepe in France. Meet Pooh and Tigger in the UK. Buy an ice hockey shirt in Canada. Overall it was one of my favourite days!

Seaworld

Woke to rain (spoiler alert, it rained pretty much all day). Went on the Atlantis log flume. It was great because getting wet wasn't a problem. Lots of fun was had. Shows were the name of the game. The dolphin show was followed by sea lions, pets doing tricks and Shamu. The sea lion show was my fave because it was funny and didn't have depressing music about being 'one ocean' (sorry Shamu).

Hollywood Studios

Returned once again to finish everything off. I'd defs recommend One mans dream which is Walt Disney's life and is a gallery with a film at the end. It was interesting and lovely I loved it. Lights, motors, action show next and that wasn't really my thing. I did appreciate the appearance of Lightening McQueen however. BEAUTY AND THE BEAST. It was okay (he he he). It was seriously good and I'd love to see it again.

Magic Kingdom

This time it was a night time visit and it was really busy. So busy that they kept the park open for an extra hour. We beat the 115 minute queue for splash mountain with our fast passes. I loved it so much that I would defs go on it again. Haunted Mansion time and I was not looking forward to it. The queue was awful as everyone was squashed together and it was such a hot day. The ride was okay and different. Parade time! We couldn't really see the parade but I loved the fireworks and especially the disney music.

July Favourites!

So this month has been pretty exciting. Fun parties, ending work experience and best of all going on holiday! And there have been a few things that I've really loved this month, like true love. The weather this month has also been great, not just here in Florida but also back home where the heatwave was more than just a weekly thing and more like the entire month. So let's get into it!

Vichy Detox Moisturiser

A few months ago I got two mini testers and it was one of those things that I didn't really notice was so great until I'd finished it. I hadn't used it in a couple of months and I noticed that my skin wasn't as clear and my scars were sticking around a lot longer. For me £15 for a moisturiser is a little bit excessive but the fact that it made my skin look so good made me need it back in my life, and I have to say I've never looked back. It has improved my skin in terms of scarring and although I still get breakouts my skin overall is much clearer. It doesn't make my skin greasy but it hydrates it nicely so when I wake up it feels soft and I'm just seriously in love with it.

Florida and Disney World

So far I've been here for a week and a half and it's been one of the best times ever! The mix of Disney and sun and general amazingness...I just can't explain how much of a good time I'm having. If you want to keep up to date with some of my antics my weekly round up posts are dedicated strictly to all things Florida. Some of my highlights have been Magic Kingdom and Discovery Cove (the dolphins were so cute it's one of the best moments ever kissing it's fishy lips!).

Florida Round Up #1

Welcome to the first Florida round up! We've only been here for a few days and it's been amazing so far! This week was a Universal week because we're not starting Disney parks until tomorrow. So, I'm going to do a run down of the days and a bit of what happened each day. Let's go!

Monday- Downtown Disney

Wandering around. Taking in all the disney. Trying a mango black iced tea lemonade from Starbucks. Loved it. Made our way to the 'disney hub' Had mini breakdown. Too much disney merchandise. Reined self in. Only bought some Minnie Mouse ears. More shopping and browsing. Home time.

Tuesday- Universal Studios

First stop Harry Potter. Escape from Gringotts ride was amazing and a little terrifying. Wander around Diagon Alley. Simpsons world and Simpsons ride. Waste of space and came off feeling sick. Lard Lad Doughnuts tasted very good. Animal show was great and cute. ET to shelter from the rain which was also cute. Waited around for Woody Woodpecker rollercoaster which was okay. Disaster next which was long and drawn out but good in the end. Home time.

Wednesday- Islands of Adventure

Back to Harry Potter world but this time for the Hogwarts Express. Amazing. Went on one of the two HP coasters and it was insanely good! Went on the actual HP ride and I've never been so terrified. Hated it, never again. Wandered around. Jurassic Park ride. Good but shut eyes at the scary part. Dr Seuss land led to a torrential downpour. Got the Hogwarts Express back to Universal and went on the Men in Black ride. That was surprisingly very good. Home time.

Thursday- Shopping

Florida Mall. Sephora trip. Upcoming haul. Very warm day. Hurting feet.

Makeup I'm Taking Across The Pond

If you didn't know I'm going on holiday on Sunday and I'm so excited. Florida here I come! So I thought I would take this opportunity to take you through what makeup I'll be taking with me across the pond. I'm going for three weeks but I'm not taking a huge amount with me because I'm planning on have a little splurge when I'm over there (when in America, buy what the American's buy). Also I'm so proud that I managed to fit the entire contents of my makeup bag in this photo and it not look awful, snaps for me!

Foundation wise I'm not planning on wearing foundation very much but just in case I'm taking my L'Oreal Infallible Matte Foundation in 11 Vanilla. It hasn't got any SPF in it but that doesn't really matter as I'll be creaming up my face anyway. I doubt that I'll really be using it that much but it's there in case I have a really bad skin day and want to look nice for Mickey and Minnie. My L'Oreal True Match Concealer in 02 Vanilla will be my concealer of choice, good on blemishes, redness and under the eye so in this compact little kit it fits in well. As far as powder goes I only have one in my life and that's the Rimmel Stay Matte Powder in 002 Pink Blossom. What more can I say, it's cheap and does at great job at stopping shine.

Base down for my brows I'm hoping to have them tinted just before I go so all I'm going to need is something light like my L'Oreal Brow Artist Plumper. It thickens, and gives a nice colour to my brows without being too clumpy. Eyes eyes eyes and it's all about the Kiko shadow sticks in 05 and 21. I'm seriously in love and I don't think I can go back to a pot cream shadow ever again. Swipe and done. I'll probably buy a palette when I'm out there so I'm just going to take my Too Faced Natural Eyes Palette. It has everything I need and goes really well with the Kiko sticks. I'll also be taking my L'Oreal Super Liner Superstar for more of a night look. It's all about the Rimmel Kohl Kajal in Jet Black and my Seventeen Back Lash Mascara, as I'll hopefully be buying one when I'm out there.

Soap and Glory Solar Powder Bronzer. Need I say more. So good and I can amp it up with the darker side if I get a bit of a tan. Blush wise it's going to be Mac Satin Blush in Immortal Flower as it's just so easy to wear and very pretty on the cheeks. Highlighter will be my Maybelline Golden Beige eyeshadow but I think I might purchase one when I'm out there because I'm coming to the end of this one now.

My L'Oreal Lip Gloss in Miami Vice will be coming with me as I think it will be the perfect holiday colour and I love the way it feels on the lips. My Mac Lipstick in Kinda Sexy will be making an appearance if I want something a little more nude as it's so easy to wear and Mac Shy Girl will be my slap on peachy nude shade, but I'll have to make sure I keep it somewhere cool otherwise it'll melt.

Wandering Around Cadiz

Welcome to one of the weirdest weather days I've ever experienced in a foreign country. Is it hot, is it cold? Is it blistering sunshine or overcast cloud? We experienced it all! Cadiz was a beautiful place with a really nice atmosphere that was calm but bustling at the same time. The port was in the perfect place, stepping off the boat straight into the centre, my favourite (less exercise!). The cobbles narrow streets leading to hidden historic statues were beautiful and so cute!

The architecture in Cadiz is stunning. Much like Vigo the buildings remind me of little Paris apartments with the bright colours and balconies, except these were only three or four storeys so they weren't as imposing and made streets and squares nice and light. There was one main church which was central in Cadiz and when you saw it from the boat it looks like the biggest, most imposing building in the world. However, from the ground it is beautiful. It's in the most gorgeous square filled with market stalls (one which sells insanely good churros!).

Our plan for the day was just to walk around and have a little explore which worked out really well as everything was clustered together so we didn't have to walk far to get anywhere. When we went and had our usual little drink at a bar we had a beautiful view of the sea with little bobbing boats and the beach that was full of life. I'd love to go back and maybe stay for a few days as I think it would be a really nice place to relax, have a browse of the markets and spend a little time on the beach. I seriously loved this place and would definitely go back.