The toss of a coin - Heads for Milan, Tails for Barcelona..

What do you do if you can't decide where to go? After a cheeky look at the cheap flights with Ryanair, I managed to convince Ian (he didn't take much persuading) to plan another city break for October. We have always had a few places in mind but no where in particular, so we came up with an idea. Heads or Tails.  It sounds crazy (& a little nuts) but we have decided to let fate control our next trip. If the coin lands on heads we'll be sightseeing in Milan and visiting Lake Como, if it lands on Tails we will be soaking up the sun in Barcelona. Then when we are there, the coin will help us make decisions about what...

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Beauty of the Canary Islands | Tenerife

For the last three years Ian and I have headed to the largest of the Canary Islands - Tenerife, to relax in the sunshine and enjoy Europe's best waterpark. I've had family there for over 16 years and it has always felt like my second home. Despite the tourist destination it has become (thanks to super hot weather all year round) there still lies so much beauty on the island.  I couldn't not share some of the beautiful photos we captured..    The best ice cream! This little place sits just...

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Temple bar, Book of Kells & Kilmainham Gaol | Dublin, Ireland

Advice from a friend and Trip advisor told us we had to visit Kilmainham Gaol, a former prison which now hosts as a museum. Many leaders of the Irish rebellions were held, imprisoned and killed there, playing an important part in Irish history. We took a bus from the city centre and it only cost a couple of euros each to get into the Gaol itself. The tour was amazing and our tour guide taught us all about the conditions the prisoners had to face. We were shown the execution holding room and the  courtyard where the Irish leaders...

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Guinness storehouse & exploring the city | Dublin, Ireland

I decided to surprise my mum with a citybreak to Dublin for her Christmas present back in December (well it started as a surprise until I had to tell her weeks before planned because she'd decided to book a concert at the exact same time - doh). Ryanair provide super cheap flights at £60 return for both of us and I managed to book a lovely little hotel right in the centre of the city for £60 for the whole stay too, so overall it was a pretty cheap break away. We arrived early on Wednesday morning in the pouring rain quickly...

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Notre Dame, the Lourve & the padlock bridge | Paris, France

Saturday was our last whole day in Paris and so we decided to visit the typical touristy sights that everyone recommends that you do. We took the metro to Notre dame first which we thought was stunning. The detail was incredible and I really love the Gothic feel and gargoyles. I can't remember it but I must have watched Disney's Hunchback of Notre Dame when I was little and it's made me want to dig it out again. Stood outside on the steps, we both became immersed in watching a French man sneak up on passers-by with a horrible...

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Eiffel Tower, exploring the city & a new hotel | Paris, France

For my 21st birthday back in July I was lucky enough to be treated to a trip to Paris by my boyfriend Ian, we were both really excited and I couldn't be more thankful.  There was just one teeny tiny problem.. leaving Ian to book the hotel was probably not the best idea! Seeing 'close to centre of Paris', 4* rating and low price prompted him to get us two nights in a fancy business hotel in... ORGEVAL!  Orgeval is another city just on the western outskirts of Paris, whereas the airport and Disneyland were of course,...

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Disneyland, parades & princesses! | Paris, France

Visiting Disneyland was my utmost important part of going to Paris and we couldn't wait to spend the day surrounded by our favourite characters, it was so magical. We took the metro to Nation before getting on the RER A that took us straight to Disney, we could use our Paris Viste passes too which meant we didn't have to pay any more. We decided not to buy our tickets in advance, hearing that with our passes we could get 20% off on the door. On arrival we wasn't sure where to buy them so spoke to a lady in the tourist...

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Lost in Paris | Paris, France

We arrived at Paris CDG after flying on the tiniest aeroplane and found our way through the huge airport, picking up a tourist map as we went. The signs for the train station were quite easy to follow, but we soon started to regret taking so many bags! We purchased two Paris Viste passes for 60 euros each which would give us unlimited access to trains and the Metro for five days, perfect for our stay.  After Rome, we were quite good at working out the metro systems (so we thought) and figured out we needed a train to Gare Du...

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Hong Kong Highlights | Hong Kong

1. Soho District: Soho is located in the Central district and is often referred to as the entertainment hub, a little sister to that of New York and London. It is acceptable to stand out in the streets to drink as the clubs and bars are so small and so often the streets are full of people. We chose an upstairs bar and people-watched through the open windows. We were entertained by a couple of street performers which eased the fact our drinks (vodka & coke) cost over a fiver each! A woman we met told us that the great thing...

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Causeway bay & Stanley | Hong Kong

On the Saturday we decided to visit two parts of Hong Kong that really interested us; Causeway bay and Stanley. We managed to find a bus stop near by that headed straight to Causeway bay (mainly by luck) and it was really busy and bustling - almost like being right in the centre of London or New York. We jumped on a tram which like old fashioned toy trams and made for a bumpy ride. We had a wander around then tried to find a taxi to Stanley which was near impossible and so spent ages walking around trying to find one.  Walking...

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Ocean Park & Pandas | Hong Kong

One thing I couldn't wait to do whilst in Hong Kong was see the Panda's! They have always been one of my favourite animals and I like the fact that not everyone has seen them up and close. Early in the morning we managed to take the bus to Aberdeen (with our OAP bus passes it only cost us about 30 pence!) and then took a short taxi ride to Ocean park ($28). It cost around $32 for entry which we thought was good for a whole day. Originally we were tempted by Disneyland, but heard that it's better for families with younger children...

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