Travelers

"Why, I'd like nothing better than to achieve some bold adventure, worthy of our trip" - Aristophanes

Being a 20 something is quite possibly the most awkward stage of all. Here I sit, feeling low because I want excitement and adventure and fear I am not getting enough. I have this horrible silent arrogance that I've seen some of the most beautiful places, I've met some of the most wonderful people and I've had some of the most unforgettable moments... what now?

I have absolutely no right to declare that I have seen it all, I definitely haven't. I know that there is so much more of the world to see, I have a map and everything. Yet here I am, heading back to a full time and all consuming job feeling that part of me just wants to run away on another adventure. Now, don't get me wrong I really love what I do, I love it to the point where I can see that talking about how much I love it annoys those around me but I just don't care. It's just, there's something missing in my little bubble of a world and I am starting to think that that 'something' is travel. Sounds ridiculous doesn't it?

Let me explain, before I went on my first 'big adventure' travelling around the west coast of America I had felt bogged down, stuck in a rut with a qualification in my hand and no idea what I wanted to do with it. Booking a last minute flight and just flying out of the UK knowing I wasn't back for 3 months was the most liberating thing in the world. When I found myself in a similar rut almost exactly a year later I decided to apply for a summer teaching job in Italy. I packed my bags, left my job, left my tiny little 1 bed flat and once again headed out alone into the unknown world of adventure.

To cut a long story short, though initially planning to be in Italy for 3 months I returned to the UK almost 2 years later. I had an offer from one of my oldest friends to crash on her floor for a few weeks in Brighton whilst I 'got myself sorted' so, once again I packed my bag and left for pastures new. Arriving in Brighton with just a backpack of clothes, a ukulele and  a laptop in my possession I started to forage for a life down in the south of England.

After what felt like an eternity I finally landed a pretty awesome job and found myself living in a pretty awesome house. It seems completely ridiculous that, given this privilege which I fully appreciate far too many people don't have I still felt like a part of me was missing. I couldn't work out for the longest time what it was that was secretly getting me down. For a while I thought perhaps I just wanted a boyfriend (I am a girl after all and we are known for such obsessions).

5 months after my initial move to Brighton I headed out once again for adventure, though just a short one this time in the shape of 5 days in Barcelona. It was sitting with a group of people who had been strangers just hours before that I realised the buzz I get from travelling to new places, not just for the fantastic scenery and the often precarious  food (they really don't understand why people are vegetarian in Europe!) but for the people that you meet. It was then I realised that this is what I was missing, this is why I felt like a part of me had wandered off somewhere. It was the rush of playing old games with a new twist, telling the same stories to a different audience and getting to know people in a way that only other travelers will ever understand. It was a craving for meeting new and exciting people that you would never otherwise come across, although, don't get me wrong; Brightonians are pretty awesome. 

You see, travelling isn't just a 'look at all the places I've seen' deal, at least not to me. It's more than that, it's the people you meet, the stories you have that make you smile when it's raining outside. It's the memories of the day when you went the wrong way when  looking for the supermarket and end up walking for an hour or the time you take a 'short-cut' to the beach and almost get run over by fast moving vehicles because the pedestrian path has simply disappeared mid step.  Travelling isn't just about the scenery and ticking off your itinerary. It's about those moments in between, when you learn from strangers a little something about yourself. It's the languages you hear as you walk down the street.  The ridiculous smile you can't erase from your face and the ever bubbling over feelings of excitement in your stomach as you plan your next adventure. This is what I miss, this is what I need in my life and this is most definitely what I hope I never stop craving. 

"The traveler sees what he sees, the tourist sees what he has come to see" - Gilbert K. Chesterton

The photograph was taken by me in Bajardo Italy (July 2012) 

Cinque Terre 2012!

This is the legendary tale of six uniquely talented people who once upon a time leave the land of the clouds to venture to the unknown pastures of a mystical place by the name of Cinque Terre. The town was fabled to be one of un refuted beauty, a place of five small towns off the coast of the Italian north west. A place where houses were painted in a variety of pastel colours and people from around the world shared moments of awe and wonderment with strangers they met along the trail that links the five towns.

It was a sleepy Wednesday morning in mid August when the six friends boarded the small blue coloured bus to await their train to their latest adventure. The bus journey was of little event and soon they were away on the train, giving each other wonderfully heart-warming nicknames such as 'Lector' 'Helen of Troy' and 'CreepHER' A story created in the mind of Ben aptly named 'two-crack, half beard, wet pants" transformed Ed and Rach into 'Daddy's Boy' and 'Mindy' referring to the more hilarious parts of Ed's new personality; this involving a confession to once eating a small child by the name of Mindy.  Arriving at their destination the group broke into two, staying in separate hostels and Lector, Daddy's Boy, Helen and 2crack headed up to the top of Riomaggoire. They were shown towards an amazingly clean hostel room containing a huge double bed and bunk bed, together with a separate bathroom containing a shower so small one has to sit in order to shower with any kind of ease.

The long train journey at an end and hostel rooms acquired, the troop headed to find the beaches of Riomaggorie. After taking a long dip in the ocean they decided that the night was to be made perfect by watching the sunset and standing in awe of the picturesque scene just outside the door of their hilltop retreat.... and of course some boxed wine and cheap beers. The next day was to be penned a day of extremes involving many an exhilarating experiment as well as many hours of hard pushed walking up and down the hillsides of the Cinque Terre trail. The walk from Riomaggoire was one of little event; lovers walk provoking a few memories and funny stories from all present but was soon over. After everyone had taken copious amount of photographs that would never fully give justice to the real life beauty of their surroundings the pushed forward.
 

They had arrived at their first new town 'Manarola' and after exploring the quaint little town they headed off once more to the next town of 'Corniglia.' After a short train trip, required due to the trail being closed the team walked towards signposts of the trail to continue their journey. After a seemingly short amount of time had passed they arrived at the fabled staircase that Hayley remembered only too well from the year before. There were many people on this part of the trail and all were in high spirits despite the ever looming and seemingly never ending steps twisted and winded above them.  The group spread into couples as they headed up the hillside of stairs, all seemed happy to be pushing forward on their adventure. 382 steps later, having stopped for a moment to take the standard 'Here's us next to a sign stating what we just achieved' photograph, they headed into Corniglia. After having an entertaining lunch involving the sharing of a bottle of beer and the passing of many sandwich ingredients they headed in the direction of adventure. Bound towards the seaside once again as they had heard a rumour that there was a rather good place to carelessly jump off the side of a 12 meter cliff into the beautifully blue ocean beneath their feet.  Heading down an innumerable amount of steps the troop found themselves looking down on a small cove with a slim beach, many small boats and a huge and looming cliff just a short swim away from the shore.

The boys began to enthuse about their planned feat and made a swift b-line for the slight row of rocks that took you out towards the cliff, now in clear view from where they stood. Having stripped almost immediately the boys, shortly followed by Meg and Rach headed toward the cliff, first quite sensibly surveying the sea around them. Hayley and Patrizia stood looking out at the sea like worried Nonnas as their friends disappeared for what seemed like an eternity before surfacing as small ant like flecks of colour on the rocks opposite. The four adventure seekers sat perched on the cliff side and, after posing for many photos seemed to have a discussion over who should jump first. By this time the worried nonnas on shore had began to shout haphazard advice and plees to turn back to their friends, drawing the attention of the small population of holiday makers and locals that were also enjoying the beautiful scene. It was at the moment when Ed jumped that the crowd became just as involved as the two left ashore were shouting cheerful "Bravo's" to Ed as he screamed with the adrenaline rush and swiftly began to direct the next jumper. After both Rach and Meg had jumped, much to the horror of spectator grannies Hayley and Patrizia who proclaimed "I know her sister, if anything happens to Rach Kat is going to literally kill me!" there was now just Ben left on the ledge. Having decided for no other reason than pure boy 'one up-man ship'  he dwindled on the edge of the cliff shouting his countdown before quickly stopping and starting is pre-jump ritual all over again.  After 5 minutes and with a rather primal scream Ben plummeted towards the water below. The adventure over, at least for the moment, they headed for the hill that would lead them to town; though not before awkwardly watching Ed taking a shower before he sheepishly called "I'll just meet you all up the top." So they continued, climbing back to the small town of Corniglia plastered with huge grins that just wouldn't seem to shake and headed to the trail that would lead them, hot and sweaty to the next town.

The road that trailed from Corniglia to Vernazza was rumoured to be more challenging than either of the last hikes, the group having been pre-warned were fully prepared for scaling hillsides and walking up a seemingly never ending set of stairs. They headed off, recent adventures keeping their brains fresh with excitement and lusting for more. Hayley had promised everybody that Vernazza was far superior in beauty and general wonderment than the other towns and as the team headed up and down the hillside on the way to their destination there were moments of hilarity to be had. With Meg inadvertently telling a middle aged woman who was passing by to "Fuck me drunk," and not long after embarrassing herself again by telling another unsuspecting stranger that they were in fact a "Cunt." (Learning to speak with an Australian accent has its hardships) Ben bought the hilarity full circle after stopping and excitedly pointing at an old crashed and broken down yellow truck. (How it got there nobody really knows!) proclaiming, much like an overly excitable child having gelato for the first time "It's called Benny!." As Vernazza came into view the group decided that it was indeed a rather magical town, even from afar and at the sighting of a small harbor the exploration once again began as the troop headed at a quick pace. Eventually turning into a fast jog all the way down the innumerable number of stairs of various shapes, sizes and colours and straight into the heart of Vernazza.

After announcing that she needed coffee Hayley and the girls headed to a nearby cafe whilst the boys, bursting at the thought, headed towards the water to see what they could jump off and photograph in this small and exceptional town. After quenching their thirst the girls headed to the harbor to find the boys scaling the rock face on the opposite side, after a while they headed to wash off in the showers constructed in a cave that connected to a church. Shortly after relieving his bladder, having not realised his holy surroundings Ed and Ben headed back to the harbour and the group once again headed toward new adventures. Taking a few token pictures of Vernazza all six headed off whilst singing songs and talking about a variety of subjects. At some point in time along this final journey somebody in the posse decided to go for a run along the path. This idea spiralled out of control and after a primal scream of "RUN!" they suddenly found themselves running, not really knowing why but persevering anyway towards the ever closer and final town of Cinque Terre; Monterosso. All six now found themselves in an impromptu dash that would rival the Hunger Games at the moment where the contestants are set free and the cornucopia stands looming between them. The weak or rather, the less willing of group members began to fall behind and after waiting temporarily Hayley and Patrizia found themselves left in the dust of the other four as they sped towards their final destination.

Upon arrival at Monterosso the more energetic of the troop, dripping with sweat and with Joker like smiles ran straight toward the beach and the promisingly satisfying ocean water that lay waiting for them.  They had managed to reach the town in an impressive 40 minutes instead of the estimated hour and a half and a rather long 15 minutes later Hayley was seen coming into view on the hillside above them. With excited waves and yells of "Helen" she joined the rest of her friends and celebrated the victory of completing the walk, after of course, downing an entire half a litre of ice cold bottled water. Around 10 minutes later the final member of the team Patrizia had arrived and as everyone collected their belongings they headed into the town to track down some fresh vegetables to go with their pre-planned pasta dinner.

Having returned to the hostel, showered and began to feel more human the four members staying on the top of the hill headed toward the girls hostel room to enjoy their final night in Cinque Terre. Meg and Rach had prepared, what can only be called, an excessive amount of pasta and having offered second helpings to all Meg had a dilemma. She didn't want to waste perfectly edible food purely because of the lack of available Tupper-wear and so she searched the kitchen in hope of a suitable container. Having found a bright pink carrier bag and with a dubious look around the room she began to pour the remaining spaghetti into the bag. With a huge giggle she tied a knot in the top of the bag and claimed that all would be thankful to her tomorrow when they were hungry on the train. Having polished off a box of white wine they all headed up to the hostel at the top of the hill and sat drinking on the terrace, reliving their experiences until all were far too tired to continue, knowing that they had to be up bright and early to start their long and arbitrary journey back to San Remo.

The following morning started with routine events and found the group sat awaiting their first train of the day with snacks and stories to share. After bumbling onto the train and boarding another everyone started to become increasingly hungry. The plastic bag was pulled out and offered around, there was just one problem, cutlery was in short supply, the only thing on offer being plastic spoons. It was a sight that is best left to the imagination that took up the next 10 minutes of their train journey. Meg started the feat of eating the pasta, without much success and to the pure disgust of two strangers sat opposite her on the train. As the epic mealtime continued jam (for the pasta obviously) peach halves and various pieces of fresh fruit were added to the mix. The looks of horror turned into wale's of laughter that possessed one of our new audience so much that he saw fit to repeatedly hit the window and small table dividing him from Meg whom he was now out rightly laughing at. The hilarity ensued as everyone finished their meals, much to the disgust of passersby and with many photographs taken in evidence the group left the train and made a mad dash to their headquarters in San Remo before taking one final journey up towards Bajardo on the famous ever honking bright blue bus. 

Just a small idea of the hilarity that ensued from eating cold spaghetti and jam out of a plastic bag with plastic spoons! 

Bajardo: The town in the clouds

Bajardo: The mountain town, ruled over by King Jimmy the drunk and incredibly hardworking (no really) and populated by overly horny and mostly bored and exhausted English camp tutors. It is the only place I have ever been where I have had to carry my huge backpack up steep uneven steps for around 10 minutes before collapsing into the kitchen of an old medieval house and drinking a cup of tea (water boiled in an overly huge saucepan) out of a jam jar. A place of rest and rejuvenation for some, one of drinking to excess and after dark escapades for others. You see Bajardo is the land of the ACLE hold tutors, a quiet unassuming town just outside of San Remo that during the months of June to September becomes somewhat a village of sin.

If you are familiar with Bajardo you may have heard many stories relating to the extra-curricular activities that take place during the wee small hours of the morning in the chilly mountain town in the clouds. Now don't get me wrong, most of these stories are 100% accurate; yes there was once a threesome in House 12 that woke up the neighbours. Yes, once upon a time 2 unsuspecting tutors did have sex on the terrace when they thought they were alone, only to get a standing ovation and loud round of applause when the act was over from the crowd quietly watching from house 2. Yes, there have been many sexy rendezvous' in the church and various other outdoor locations of Bajardo and No, not all of these stories have a direct link to me personally. I have spent more weeks than my bank balance enjoys in Bajardo yet every single day has been filled with adventures and amazing conversations that I wouldn't change for the world. Having spent the majority of summer living in strangers houses, eating their food and leeching off their wifi as much as possible, life in Bajardo is a breath of fresh air. With no internet access and little to do except cook strange concoctions of food, read books and have in-depth conversations with new friends on the terrace, you find yourself sharing your life history, talking about obscure topics and singing a rather random collection of songs when you discover someone can play the guitar quite well and everyone wants to sing; drunk or sober; all day long. "BIN! BIN! Can you play Wonderwall please BIN!"

With the odd exception the majority of the friends I have made for life through ACLE I have met in Bajardo. I think this all came to my comprehension after spending a truly epic week there this summer, by far my favourite week of the entire summer and possibly of 2012 as a whole. The week I refer to started out with myself heading sleepily back to Bajardo alone, having only been away for a week. I fumbled up toward the cafe from the bus stop to find Jimmy drinking a cider and smoking copious amounts of cigarettes proclaiming he had worked hard all day and wasn't going up the hill twice so I may as well wait the next hour out with him until other people arrived on the next bus.  The hour passed quickly with Jimmy telling me of his recent accomplishments which included moving a table and remembering to lock the store cupboard and soon new friends were heading our way and everyone headed up to the top of the mountain to get accustomed with their new housing for the next week.

It was a relatively quiet week in Bajardo with just 10 of us on hold and in Bajardo but the weekend got off to a great start when, having drank copious amounts of boxed wine and having a few hours of entertaining card games Jimmy stood up to proclaim "I don't want to alarm anyone but I can't see" After laughing hysterically he was helped to bed by Rachel and woke up the following morning to a cooked breakfast and a phone conversation with Fern where he announced "We're just singing a bit of Wham... I've got the tutor bug" ... I'm not sure she really understood what he was talking about! The small population of Bajardo slowly made their way back to the kitchen, the drinking of tea continued from jars, bowls and anything that could hold a certain amount of hot liquids and the next day passed with everyone flitting in and out of the kitchen of House 2, cooking, talking, drinking tea and helping Jimmy out who at this point was in a fixed state of dazed and confused. Patrizia decided it would be entertaining to invite the tutor population to an exclusive one night only event in House 3, a rather cosy house I had aptly named "The Man Cave" as Bryan; a slightly creepy tutor (I love you Bryan!) was living there alone. The invitations were posted, the guests began to arrive and as Ben took up the post of DJ, Ed and myself  assumed the roles of bar staff; I'm not entirely sure how that occurred! The night went increasingly well with everyone having a good time, drinking, dancing and laughing at and with each other and its suffice to say the end of the night became a bit of a blur for most of the exclusive party guests, myself included.

The week continued in the same homely fashion, I was dubbed "Jimmy's wife" due to my consistent need to help out wonderful ole Jimbob in his everyday tasks and my incessant cleaning of the kitchen and dining area that became our hub. By Tuesday I felt very close to these people, most of whom were complete strangers not two days before and I came to my senses, disregarded my complete lack of cash and made a hostel reservation to join them all on an epic 2 day trip to Cinque Terre. (That story I will save for another day as in and of itself it is a story of great wonderment and adventure involving a slap around the face from Meg, cliff jumping and running from town to town) It was the return from this journey, having been travelling all day that really made Bajardo stick in my memory as a place I can call a home. After sitting tired on the bus back up to the mountain from San Remo and climbing the hill into House 2 our nostrils were accosted by a wonderful smell, the boys whom  had not joined us on our trip away had cooked up a huge dinner with the simple comment "We just assumed you'd be hungry" and as the noise of plates being moved, veggies being cut and various receptacles for wine were being found filled my ears, I sat at the table with a somewhat cheesy grin plastered across my face.  Bajardo felt like coming home, surrounded by amazing friends for life, having finished our delicious meal it was time to bring out the guitar and have one final and most epic sing along. The week of bliss was rounded off nicely when, due to a high number of directors staying in Bajardo there was a bed shortage and me and Rachel got the privileged of staying the night at "Casa della Jimmy". The night, having begun with boxed wine ended with another bottle of red and tales of the incredible life of the King of the mountains; stopped only briefly when there was a pause in the music and Jimmy had to walk over to the other side of the room to turn his cassette tape over before continuing his stories. At around 4am we decided we really should at least try to get some sleep before we had to awake and clamber onto a bus at 7.30am where we were to say our goodbyes and depart to separate regions of outer Milan for the final camps of the summer.

I think back now to all the stories I had heard before I visited Bajardo for the first time last year. "There are so many bugs I wanted to kill myself" uttered one person. "There's absolutely nothing to do, most bored I have ever been in my life" proclaimed another ....I have but one question for the people who gave Bajardo a bad name... "Did you walk around with your eyes closed the whole time?!" Debauchery aside, Bajardo is most definitely one of the most beautiful places I have ever stepped foot in. Set on a backdrop of beautiful green mountains that overlook the far off sea and the alps and draped in history from the times of old, the medieval houses and spectacular church; sadly now without a roof, make Bajardo a must see location! Even if the only reason you go is to meet Jimmy, he alone is worth the 45 minutes of sitting on a bus that sounds like a clown car as it toots its horn and takes sharp corners at anywhere between 5 and 50mph!

Do what makes you happy!

“Do what makes you happy.” It sounds so simple, it just rolls off the tongue in the same way that “can you pass me the salt please?!” does but it’s something my wonderfully indecisive mind has always struggled with. There are many reasons that my poor little brain fumbles over such a simple request; some are selfless wishes such as not wanting to disappoint or upset anyone; though for the most part it becomes a struggle as my brain seems to think its hilarious to keep me awake at night with many an indecisive thought that juggles any simple decision from every angle. As the hours of night time dwindle into the wee small, my brains starts imagining all kinds of scenarios that make me around 95% certain that I read too many books and watch too many sci-fi movies. The past few months I have decided to change all of this, to let go of past guilt and anger, move on with my life and be happy with whom I am and the choices I make. I have come to realise that the only person to ever stop us from being happy is ourselves. In order to BE happy and to feel great it’s your personal responsibly to take charge of your life and skip merrily towards your dreams.

Now this isn’t where I blather on about a 10 step programme concocted in America where you must attend seminars lead by a squeaky clean enthusiastic man that tells you to stand up and shout “Hell YEAH” until you feel a sense of euphoria. This is simply me stating for the record that I’m bored of over-thinking every little decision and from now on I’m taking responsibility for my own happiness! (I think the crash of turning 25 is going to hit me hard!) This new life plan started out with me vouching to give up alcohol and chocolate for lent, and I must say, after getting spiked in an Italian Discoteca full of old people waltzing and completely blacking out, the first part of this deal I made with myself is shaping up wonderfully towards success. My quest to self happiness has also been guided by my investment in a ukulele which I have been caring for as if it were a small child between sessions that consist of me strumming along to the completely enticing vocals of Eddie Vedder. Singing at full volume in the shower has also taken a key role into my journey to re-self discovery, and I must say, after being heard belting out “eye of the tiger” whilst drying the kids hair by my boss I am now more than content to sing along to my iPod in the shower.

Today however, I decided to take a more pro-active step in the right direction. I decided to… wait for it…. Go for a run. The fact that said run turned into more of a pathetic t-rex mimicking jog and power walking session is besides the point! I felt great to have completed 2 hours of forward motion without stopping to moan even once! After all, my quest to a happy me involves a skinny me and that’s not going to happen if I continue to whittle away my free time typing out blogs and editing pictures to give them that much aspired “artsy edge.” That’s not to say that I don’t intensely enjoy such endeavours, I love nothing more than putting on my thinking cap and letting the creative juices flow but the brain and the body both need an equal chance to be happy, balance after all is the key to success!

So this is my advice to you my friend, or complete stranger reading this here blog: Do what makes you happy! Really do it! Don’t just think about doing it, go ahead and be a clown. Remember that it’s ok to dance like a lunatic, play air guitar and find toilet humour amusing every now and again! Laugh until you cry, have a deep and meaningful where you are truly honest with yourself and your friends, apologise for that past mistakes that haunt you and then laugh about it, sing your favourite songs as loudly as you can in the middle of a field or just scream from the top of a really big hill. Whatever you want to do, believe me, when you set about doing it, you will feel great! So what are you waiting for?! Take a step in the direction of your own happiness. Put yourself first and don’t stop until you are so happy people think you are constantly stoned or have just had Botox!

Different Types Of Friendships

“Happiness is only real when shared” Alexander Supertramp

Everyone in the world, no matter how moody or inconsiderate, callous or sly they appear needs the comfort of other peoples company at least some of the time to fully enjoy life and be happy. Every person in your life gives you happiness of some form and really, if they don’t then ask yourself why they are part of your life. Each friend you have offers to you, and you to them something that neither of you have with anyone else. It is for this reason that, if we really think about it, everyone has a vast array of different friendships to suit each mood and need. Much like choosing what to eat for dinner or what to snack on or drink when the mood strikes, different friendships give you a small, or large dose of exactly what you need at that time.

After some thinking I have concocted a list of different flavours of friendships that we all need to have a healthy balanced lifestyle. I hope that anyone reading this has at least some of the foods and drinks that are most important if we wish to live a healthy and fulfilling life. Enjoy!

-          Celery; something you find on your plate on a rare occasion but that doesn’t really give you much in the sense of fulfilment:
People you are friends with on facebook but don’t go out of your way to speak to online or in real life.

-          That packet of multi coloured pasta that sits in the back of your cupboard: You don’t really use it all that often, and really you’re not sure why you bought it:
Friends you only see when you are out drunk, that you probably met when you were drunk and the only thing you know about them is what their drink order is.

-          Lettuce; great in a salad but a little bland and boring on its own:

Friends that are part of your friendship group but one day you suddenly realise that you don’t really know them as well as you imagined; in fact you only see them when other mutual friends are with you.

-          The Spice Rack; mostly sat in their glass containers at the back of a dark cupboard without a second thought, occasionally utilised when stumbled upon putting away new groceries, you always plan to use them again but inevitably forget.
Friends that you have known for years but don’t really keep in touch with regularly. Whenever you see them you always swap happy tales and plan to meet up…. Forgetting to arrange anything until the next time you see them, by chance, in the street.

-          Nutella and banana sandwiches; it’s a bit weird and sometimes people give you strange looks when they see what you’re eating but it’s so enjoyable you could never cut it out of your diet.
Nerd friends that share your passion for a certain subject; be it Dr.Who, Star Wars, superhero movies or unheard of TV Shows such as Eureka or Warehouse 13; this friendship mostly consists of quoting lines from TV shows and movies and talking about your thoughts on aforementioned subjects. The same kind of friendship may form with those who have your taste in music though in this case you speak as often as possible to ensure that you can talk about and discuss your favourite bands’ new album because none of your other friends would understand or appreciate how epic it really is.

-          Crackers: Simple, straightforward and hit the spot when you want to snack on something savoury.
Friends you go to when you just need a straight up, no nonsense, non sugar coated answer to an important life decision; “should I quit my job and go travelling” or “do you think I should go out drinking tonight for the third night in a row?”

-          Food you have at 4am; be it cheesy chips, a kebab or chicken wings; you always try to forget you caved into buying it the day after.
Friends that you accidently hook up with. This can go either way, ending with a relationship or awkward encounters whilst surrounded by other friends who don’t know of the event… though sometimes you can just go back to being friends and forget it even happened however this is rare.

-          Salt; sometimes forgotten but always to hand to make your dish seem that little bit more appetising and flavoursome.
Advice friends; the ones that are always there for you to rant at when you need them, usually these friends only speak to each other when they want advice, you know these friends because every time they get in touch you assume there has been a break up or some kind of emergency.

-          The unpopular vegetables like peas, sprouts or radish; the food you always really enjoy, much to the confusion of others.

Friends that you spend time with who don’t know any of your other friends; you hang out with them and have fun but other people think it’s strange that you are such good friends (usually because you are so different).

-          Potatoes; they may seem bland to others but they are delicious and versatile, always satisfying and also filling.
Friends that you are in a “relationship” with; these are the friends you text to tell them you just ate some amazing food, saw a hot guy, spent £40 on a single item or found a bargain at the shops. They will be the ones that come around to hang out but busy themselves doing something completely separate to what you are doing, talking occasionally if something amusing or shocking happens or is read about.

-          Chocolate brownies; always enjoyable and fills you with happiness. Ok, so maybe it’s a little bad for you but isn’t that half the enjoyment!?
Friends that you always without fail have a good time and a laugh with, these friends are the best when you are in a bad mood or down in the dumps as they will always cheer you up. It is with these friends that you discovered that sometimes you can laugh so much it physically hurts but you can’t stop. These may be the friends that you get into troublesome situations under the influence of but really, isn’t that half the fun?!

-          A good whiskey or a nice cup of coffee; simple, reliable, delicious and satisfying, always the go to when you need a pick me up or a moment of celebration.
Friends that always know exactly what to say and exactly how you are feeling without you having to say a word. These friends are extremely hard to come by but they will spot from the other side of the room if you’re not feeling good and try to cheer you up, they are also the first friend you think about when you get good news or something exciting or completely random happens. These are the best type of friends, they get to see the true “you” and you know that no matter what you say or do they won’t think you’re strange they will just laugh and join in.

So there we have it; everything you will ever need to ensure you have a healthy and balanced lifestyle. Have a think about your own diet… I hope that you all have plenty of whiskey, coffee and chocolate cake! If you’re lucky you may even have a good portion of potatoes too and please, never forget the importance of a good ole nutella and banana sandwich, trust me, they’re amazing!

A ukulele is a thinking man's violin!

Everyone has their faults and as I sit listening to Eddie Vedder’s ukulele album I feel taunted by him, playing so well and so freely without a care in the world. What has that got to do with having faults I hear you cry?! Well in the meantime I sit staring at a screen listening to a computer playing the g string over and over and over again trying to tune my very own ukulele. You see, my fault, the one that Eddie Vedder so carelessly rubs in my face is that I’m really not good at being bad at things. I have sat trying to tune my fresh out the box ukulele for the past hour and I am getting nowhere. Whenever one string sounds perfect it knocks the others out of sync and means I have to start again. I really do not like this having to work at things angle to life. I like to be good at things, I like to immediately know and understand how to do things and this tuning business has knocked the wind out of me. I think the challenge I have set myself to play the wonderful little bundle of strings is going to be a slow and frustrating ride. I need to discover how to deal with the learning process a bit more; learn to enjoy it as opposed to getting ready to throw my ukulele out of the window. Of course I could never actually do such a scandalous thing and I know this for certain as I look to my side and see it sitting next to me. I realise how perfect and awesome it is and I’ve decided I need to spend a little more time getting to know my new friend before I judge us as incompatible. We need to get comfortable with each other, work out the kinks in our friendship and maybe we can go on to have a wonderful musical love affair in the future. For the moment however I glare at my new Uke, dubbed the “uke-hayley” (thanks Caitlin!) and wonder how compatible we really are. I mean, he looks good but I’ve never been the shallow type, I just have to see past the wonderful colours and beautifully cared for neck and body and see what we can give to each other. I will keep you posted on the outcome of my new love affair and hope to be truly besotted with my new friend before long. Now to go back to listening to the persistent strum of the g-string as I try to imitate the sound on my own uke… we could be here for a while I feel. 

I will leave you with this quote from none other than Krusty the Klown! 

"A ukulele is a thinking man's violin!"

And my new friend and future lover: 

I often wonder

I often wonder what it is that makes people the way they are, what make them react in the way they do or look at things with a certain viewpoint. I've always been a big believer in astrology and personality traits that are a kin to that but obviously there's a bit more to it than simply saying “you were born in June therefore you must be carefree and prone to having a split personality.” I think the most important thing that makes anyone happy is their outlook on life and the vibe they give back to the universe. I truly believe that positive thinking brings about positive events; a positive person will see any situation with a sense of optimism and therefore make the most of it. Doesn’t this in turn mean that they will have a better life, merely because they perceive everything that happens to them as positive in some way or another?

I will give you an example…I was sat in a car on the way to the mountain house of the family I au pair for the other day and as I looked around at the beautiful view I thought... I'm such a lucky person, not only do I come from a fantastic home and have a wonderful relationship with most of my family, here I am; in Italy, working next door to a great friend and surrounded by beauty. It was shortly after this thinking that the car came to a stop and we saw police guarding the way by. There was a parade in motion as some famous skier had won a prestigious race and this was his home town. Now, it was around 9pm, it was minus ten outside and there was ice and snow everywhere... What to do?! The choices were clear... sit in the car and moan and sigh that the parade was setting us back from arriving in good time at our destination or embrace the sudden adventure and go and join in the festivities. Now I for one was game straight away to join in... What can I say, I am Peter Pan aren't I?! The adventure continued as the neighbouring family and cousins came to tap on the windows bearing flags and smiles to which we saw as cue to jump out of the car and follow the parade waving the flags and cheering as if we knew exactly what it was all about! It was definitely more fun than sitting in the car watching the fun and excitement go by that’s for sure!

Now I’m sure that many people in such a circumstance would have done the same but as we all returned to the car freezing cold and glad of the cars heating being kept on full pelt I couldn’t help but have a huge smile on my face. Yes I am lucky, not purely because of the circumstances I find myself in, with a roof over my head and a fantastic support system just a keyboard tap or phone call away;for that I will always be eternally grateful. I also appreciate how lucky I am because for the first time in my life I feel truly content and happy with how I am living my own life in this moment. Ok, so it’s not perfect, I live in someone else’s home and I don’t have the job of my dreams but who cares. I am happy with my hand right now and I’m sure when the next game starts I will be presented with an even stronger hand that will see me in a winning position. For now I am content and happy with the little things in life that make us smile. I know I will always be excited by the views of snow covered mountains and beautiful lakes like Lago di Garda just down the road. I also know that I will always be happy to see and speak with my friends and family from all around the world. That’s without the slight mention of the pure happiness I feel when listening to my favourite band or hearing the laughter of the children I look after when were having fun playing silly games and making up characters (a favourite being Mr Pirate Dragon; he lost an eye from the attack of a smelly foot) If that isn’t something to celebrate and feel fortunate and lucky for then really, I have no idea what is.