Takin' it easy

Hola Amigos!

Summer continues to shine on in the beautiful sun and what a glorious Summer it has been so far! The weather has allowed for many a beach barbecue, woodland picnic and sunset drink and thus not so many a blog post (sorry!)

Summer essentials and some lovingly collected shells from this weeks camping adventure.

Firstly, today I simply wanted to take the time to say happy Holidays and congratulate everyone who last week collected their A level results! I received my AS grades and was very happy which was followed with a celebratory camping trip down to the beach with some of my lovely chums (photos to follow once they have been developed.

Secondly, after much running up and down and round and round the country I finally had the chance yesterday evening to sit down with my mum and think about all the adventures I have had...well I would've done if I wasn't so exhausted, best nights sleep in a very long and canvas-related time! Which is why I am writing to you all today to say take it easy (as the post title suggests)... it is great to travel, explore and adventure but sometimes it is important to sit, think and soak up your wonderful surroundings be it at home in the garden, in London in a beautiful park, dozing in a European holiday hotspot or jet-setting off to a wonderfully exotic location. Otherwise us travel-folk become obsessed with 'seeing' as many places as we can without really seeing and appreciating the places right under our feet and right in front of our eyes!

The Big World Small Girl map is beginning to fill up with this Summer's clutter!

That's all I have time for today as I am off to Cornwall to catch a few waves before the Autumn leaves fall upon us!

Animated adventures!

Happy Wednesday! It's the middle of the week, which means we are half way to the weekend (hallelujah!) and so this is just a short post today to keep us moving on through this icy January week. This is a GIF I created using a series of photos I took of a sumptuous sunset that graced, and made our evening in Sorrento on a trip to Italy this summer, as we gazed across the calm ocean to the magnificent Vesuvius (yes, I did climb it!)

This is my first time using a GIF maker so I'd love to hear what you think or any tips and hints you have! Sorry the quality of the image is not great. Let me know if you would be interested in seeing more posts like this in the future - all comments and advice are read and received gratefully!

Rainbows and hailstorms.

Alas, half term has already drawn to a close for us college students and its time for us to go back to work feeling rested and refreshed (supposedly...) Though what a lovely week half term has been - finally having an opportunity to do some travelling, even if it was only in country, to visit the lovely beaches of Devon and some brilliant friends who have settled down there. And oh boy can I see why! Leaving the beach to go back home and to work on Friday evening was a hard task, even with the atrocious weather! Better a rainy day at the beach than a rainy day at home I say.

I also got a chance to get in for a few much needed surfs - the first of the winter season! Little bit chilly to say the least, being November, but as an avid surfer I could not resist getting in. We surfed Putsborough beach which is one of my favourites with its long stretch of golden sand and rugged rocks to scramble over. Our second surf brought much excitement due to the sighting of a rainbow and a furious hail storm whilst we were in the water - we felt pretty hardcore it must be said, especially I, wearing only my summer thickness wetsuit. Many hot beverages were required after that experience in attempt to warm us up and restore our body temperature to somewhere vaguely around normal.

We also got exploring in some of Devon's stunning countryside with Jess the lovely Labrador, sighting some impressive wind turbines causing some heated arguments about green energy vs. nuclear power...just your standard conversation for a family walk.

All in all it was a thoroughly enjoyable and much needed break to relax and feed my insatiable desire to travel...well for a little while at least.

The Very Beginning.

So I thought a good place for me to start this blog would be at the beginning of my life as a travel-maniac and it seems from a bit of digging and photo searching, I have been a victim of the travel bug from an extremely young age. In fact, my first time abroad was before I was even born as you can see from this picture of my beautiful mum pregnant with me in Portugal.

Ok, I know that doesn’t really count so the next travel experience that family Smith with baby me in tow embarked on, was again to Portugal, with I a mere 9 months old! And no prizes for guessing here; I absolutely loved it (or so my parents report) even if my cousin did nearly drown me in the swimming pool, but that’s a story for another day... 

Left; me and mum. Middle; Grandparents, mum and me. Right; Me wearing Pop-pop's explorer hat.

The gang enjoyed a lot more holidays in Portugal and it has become one of my favourite destinations to visit with its stunning beaches, buzzing markets, and lush gardens. Various forms of family Smith made up from grandparents, Aunt and Uncle, Cousins and brother, could often be found whiling away the days sampling Peri-Peri chicken in our favourite beach-side cafe (or to us “the shack”), taking long walks admiring the gorgeous pink flowers (which we so often had to stop for photos in front of) and spending sandy days splashing in the sea and strolling along the beach.