~Venice~

 

Well hello readers, it's been a very busy couple of months - a change of job  

http://taylormadefloraldesigns.com and lots and lots of travelling (which I am very excited to write about!)

So, let's talk about Venice.  

I knew that Venice would be a beautiful and romantic city, but I wasn't expecting it to be as charming and intriguing as it was. Once we had arrived at our apartment (as quaint as it was, the bedroom smelt slightly of wee and it took much of our perfume to try and mask the smell - suppose you could argue it adds to its .... character?) we decided to go for a walk around the island to get our bearings.

Actually, one of my favourite parts of this weekend was exploring the little back streets, getting lost in the maze of small alleys and losing count of how many canals you've crossed. Eventually we started to follow the signs to Piazza San Marco and from then on it became easier to find our way around. From the quirky structure of the sometimes slanted houses that back onto the canals, to the immense architecture of the Basilica di San Marco, Venice continually left me gaping at the craftsmanship, design and character of the city. 

For this alone, the trip was already well worth it.

I love museums, and I love historic art. But I've got to be honest, once you've seen one painting of baby Jesus and the Virgin Mary, it becomes extremely difficult to appreciate the hundreds of  baby Jesus' and Virgin Mary's that line the halls of the museums (most of them do not do either of them a favour appearance wise... Some were kind of creepy looking) but being able to get in with a student pass meant not so much money was wasted I suppose...

  

Piazza San Marco is stunning, as long as your prepared to continuously refuse the street sellers and you don't mind running the risk of having pigeons poo on you (tthankfully this did not happen to me) and it's worth a visit to the Florian, the Venetian equivelant to the Ritz - overpriced? Yes. Worth a visit anyway even for just a Coffee? YES!

But my favourite place to visit on the Piazza was the Doge's Palace. Which is made up of ornate government rooms, palace apartments and a long history of Dukes struggling for power. Not forgetting the dungeons and the Bridge of Sighs.

Regrettably, we never got round to going on a traditional Gondola but as there are no cars on the island, unless you walk, the only means of transport are the boat buses. Which actually come in handy to explore Venice and travel down the Grand Canal for as long as you want and as many times as you want if you get a pass - and this also provides a way to explore the islands surrounding Venice as well.
Not long is needed to visit Murano, famous for its glass factories and shops selling well... glass. I picked up a few glass beads that fit my Pandora bracelet (Pandora actually sell Murano glass beads but for about £40-£60, I got 2 beads for €10 each).

Definitely worth a trip on a clear day is San Georgio, just to take the lift (thank goodness there were no stairs) up the tower for the most magnificent views of Venice from above - but be aware of the bell that will suddenly gong just above your head sending you close to falling from the tower in shock...

My weekend in Venice was amazing, and I would definitely go back, just for a ride across the Canals in a Gondola, for the cute bars and the incredible food, and I'm determined to find a Museum dedicated to Renaissance art (that doesn't necessarily focus so much on a creepy baby Jesus' and his sickly looking Mother). I loved the market stalls that ran along the Promenade next to the Plazza with an abundance of Venetian masks, selfie sticks and cheap memorabilia.  I'm just slightly gutted I didn't bring a mask home.

~Weekend Trip to Bath~

Hello readers!

It's been a very long time since I've blogged, but, with the New Year upon us, and that 'I'm gonna make this the best year ever' attitude everyone seems to adopt, I've got a good feeling I can finally get down and tick off some things I've always wanted to do...

It just so happens, that my top priority this year is to travel more. Not expensive getaways (saying that, if you can provide me with the means to go for an expensive holiday, I will...duh!) but quick city breaks or long weekends away. Short and Sweet.

Two of the places I wanted to tick off the list this year was Bath, and Cornwall. All of which I would have done in the space of the first two weeks of Jan. I mean come onnn, isn't that a great start to my
2015 checklist?!

So first of all, let's talk about Bath. A - because I haven't actually been to Cornwall yet. B (for Bath hehe get me?) because I've always wanted to go and have never been, and it just so happens one of my best friends absolutely loves it and offered to take me. Here follows my rather excitable review of an Incredible City. WARNING: I love history, so sorry for anyone who isn't so eager on it - but it's still a beautiful city and you have to go do the old bits first to fully appreciate it.

Can we just for a second appreciate the name of this City. The more you say it the stranger it sounds don't you think? Anyway as soon as we got to our travel lodge we walked to the Roman Baths. This place is Incredible. That's my word for this City break - everything was 'Incredible'. I tried the water from the spring, which is meant to have healing properties - to be honest it just tasted of metal but its nice it's there to try I suppose? After taking a vast amount of pictures, and selfies, (the best of which was deleted by accident *grumpy face*) we were ready for a real 'Bath Bun'.

So off we went down a quiet little lane to Sally Lunn Bun's,  Do not be fooled by the dainty looking building - this place has queues of people waiting to try the famous bun and it is well worth going to - this Tearoom is well known for its famous recipe that was found in the wall over the fireplace - which is still top secret today.

Now we were down to the 'Nitty Gritty exploring Bath City' (so sooo proud of that line!), and here follows the places, pictures, links and selfies (yes, more) to Bath's best and most beautiful MUST SEE places. 


Places to Visit:
1. Roman Baths
2. The Assembly Rooms and Fashion Museum
3. Jane Austen Centre
4.The Circus, The Royal Crescent and The Pulteney Bridge
5. Sally Lunn Bun's
6. The Pump Room Tearoom's
7. The Holburne Museum

 

 

Most of these museum's not only allow you to take photos (don't always have this privilege in London) but they actively encourage you too and to use social media to bring them to attention!

So this Friday I'm heading off to Cornwall, and yes, you will all be inundated with lots of pictures, I promise ;)

xxx Lucy xxx

La Lavandou Diaries Part Deux.

Monday 8th September

 

St Tropez. The most beautiful drive through the hills (thought we were going over the edge a few times) into St Tropez - which, though it sounds rather suave, it's not actually the most exciting place if your a peasant like me, actually it's like torture. I cried walking past Louis Vuitton (not before getting a good look at a beautiful pair of black suede heels in the window), stopped and stared at the door of Dolce & Gabbana and pointed towards a bag I blogged about a few weeks ago -I thought if I pointed and stared long enough some billionaire would take pity on me and buy it - didn't happen :(.

 

The closest I came to the bag was my Granddad taking a picture for me. I mean, it's a good picture, but it's not quite the same is it? And then my Pa made me close my eyes, led me across the road and planted me in front of the entrance to a Dior restaurant. DIOR RESTAURANT.

Any normal Father would at this moment BUY something from Dior for his daughter right? Yeah, well, not this one ;) JOKE. But seriously, if anyone has a few coins spare please give to me and I'll add it to my 'never in a million years but you can try' Dior fund.

 

I spent the majority of our trip to St Tropez picking out what posh yacht I'd have if I was rich, hunting for single Billionaires to marry (or rob if they're too old haha), laughing at a few of the botched up Botox and plastic surgery jobs and coveting anything of a designer brand.

 

I could however, afford a cute little box of Lauderee Macaron's (I was mostly drawn to them because of the pretty packaging) and tasting them became a bit of a laugh with Sophie (pictured below ).

 

Tuesday 9th September

 

Wednesday 10th September



Fig, Parma Ham, Lettuce - SOOO good!

Thursday 11th September

 

 Fin

 

And now I'm back at home, drinking tea, looking for a job, and wishing I was back in France! But a quick trip to Kew Gardens to see the sweet smelling roses and getting some good photo's wasn't too bad I suppose!

 

 



La Lavandou Diaries Part Un.

 Sunday 30th August

 

 

Monday 1st September

1 day into my holiday and I have a ridiculous amount of boat photos already. Like, I'm seriously obsessed with them. If anyone's out there reading this (that's a miracle in itself) and happens to have enough money to buy me a boat, my contact details can be located on my About page. You think I'm joking, but I'm not. Really I'm not.

Also, I'm obsessed with these shades of blue. Deep, dark and intense midnights, sapphire's, cobalt's and azure's. And I love how the sea gets lost in the skyline. Nothing beats the sound of waves rolling into shore, the sand beneath fizzing against the white crest of the waves. Why I don't live by the sea is beyond me. If you're rich enough to buy me a boat, why not throw in a seaside cottage too?

 

Tuesday 2nd September

 



 Wednesday 3rd September

So today we found the cutest little town, at the top of a hill in the valleys - Bormes les Mimosas, which is just above La Lavandou. I've decided I want to move here... actually I've decided the house I'm going to live in too (last picture below) but to be honest I'm not sure I'll ever find it again in the maze of cobbled lanes and cottages. Sooooo beautiful. Arty shops (I bought a lovely mint green basket for beach trips), pretty restaurants with patios overlooking the hills and STUNNING doors. I've taken so many photos of doors already that they are going to need their very own post. But honestly, I absolutely adored the peace and quiet of the lanes and I wish I could stay here.

 

Thursday 4th September

A little cruise around the beaches.