In London with my lady...

My time in London thus far can be summed up by this photograph:

After almost five years of emails and facebook messages and staying in touch, it was as if I had never left. There are just some people that you can do that with. Miss Cassandra Jones and I simply picked up where we left off with lots of good conversation, joking about and laughter... and boy was there laughter!

I arrived in London on a Wednesday afternoon and after a taxi, a plane, a train and two tubes, I settled into a pub for a late lunch and a cold beer.

Once Cassie had finished work, and in true English fashion, we drank beer at a pub in the sun (yes, there is actual sun in London!) and began to properly catch up.

One beer turned into 3 or 4, and then we made the trip back to her flat to unload my heavy suitcase, freshen up and head out for dinner.

A good meal and some red wine later, and it was time to get some sleep (I had been up for almost 24 hours!).

Thursday was sightseeing day and with the sun shining, we wandered by all the usual things; the London Eye, Big Ben, The Strand and Trafalgar Square.

We had afternoon tea at the National Portrait Gallery, visited a couple of galleries, and then headed out for some rooftop bar and cinema action.

The highlight however, was the merry-go-round. When you are 32 years old and rarely have the opportunity to revert back to your inner child, riding a carousel is pure bliss. For three beautiful minutes we simply giggled and laughed.

Friday night was party time! At least once a week, a girl needs to let her hair down, have a nice dinner, get on the vodka tonics and shots, and dance until she is so hot that her hair is practically plastered to her face.

We had a delicious dinner at The Castle, followed by more drinks, danced up a storm at a converted tram shed funnily enough called 'The Tram' something, and wandered home to 'go to bed'.

Instead we found ourselves on the balcony, drinking beer and laughing our little heads off until 4 or 5am.

Feeling a bit worse for wear on Saturday morning, we postponed our graffiti art walking tour and lay in the sun. It is rare that the sun be out this many consecutive days in London so one must make the absolute most of it!

Saturday night was karaoke (I am still ridiculously terrible), a couple of pubs, a bit of a dance and then home.

Which brings us to Sunday. My last day in London until the end of August.
One cannot be in England on a Sunday and not go out for a roast dinner at one of the many, many (many!) pubs.
Some pork on my fork, red wine and quite the Sunday session later, it was time to go home, pack, and brace myself for 11 hours of traveling.
I am headed to the South of France to visit the very lovely Nathalie but fear not London, I will be back for an epic 10 days and my farewell tour ;)

A million thanks to my favourite Charlie / Cathy / Patty / Cassie for making it a fabulous few days with ample love and some of my very favourite photographs and memories xo

Sailing the islands of Croatia...

Sleep deprived, exhausted and having survived some of the worst hangovers of my life, I am pleased to announce that I somehow (and miraculously) made it through Yacht Week in Croatia. 

Sailing reminds me of caravaning, except on water and with fewer opportunities to stretch your legs. If I'm to be completely honest, I'm not sure it is my preferred holiday practice. In my mind, I envisioned luxury, glamour, and the essentials like flushing toilets, warm showers and, well, sleep.
In actual fact, it is more like survivor where you learn to work with what provisions you have, soon realising that you can get by with minimal sleep. There was plenty of good food, great company and lots of alcohol which, to be fair,  they don't have on survivor!

After an epic journey involving an 11 pm flight from New York to London, a half day layover, a flight from London to Split, and then an array of failed taxi experiences, we arrived at an apartment in the middle of nowhere (not conveniently located near the marina as originally expected!) but where we were welcomed with open arms (literally!). I now have a Croatian grandmother named Josie who was the most adorable of hosts and very keen to embrace me on multiple occasions.

Having already been up for well over 30 hours, we decided to have a late dinner and a bottle of red, and get some much needed rest.
Fail.
Instead, we stayed up until the wee hours of the morning eating, drinking and becoming acquainted with the group of people we would be spending the next week with.
And what a wonderful group they were!
Trust me, when you are all crammed into a boat for days and nights on end, sharing meals in very close quarters, and with all privacy thrown out the window, it is essential to have a group of easy-going holiday-ers!

Our first night was spent docked in Seget Marina, where we took a water taxi to the beautiful old town of Trogir; eating, drinking and dancing ensued, including on a stage complete with its very own pole. At some point I was lifted up and was required to slide back down it and thankfully somehow managed to not bare all to the crowded club (I was wearing a dress!).

The following day, we sailed to Milna where we wandered the little marina town and watched the World Cup final (go Germany!).
On night three, we anchored in St Clement's, a secluded bay where we swam off the boat, ate, drank mojitos and sangria, and chatted under the stars..

Our next stop was Vis, and one of the highlights of the trip. After a day sailing in the sun, we moored and soon after were picked up by a fleet of taxis to be taken to a restaurant and winery perched atop a hill.
The wine was delicious but the slow cooked lamb, that I will henceforth refer to as 'perfection in a bell shaped pot' or 'the best lamb of my life' is quite possibly the finest meal I have ever had in my entire 32 years.
New plan - marry the son of that restaurant and winery owner and spend my days drinking wine and eating lamb.

Hvar is one of the more well known islands in Croatia and in part, for its rambunctuous night life. We had a lovely dinner (all dinners are lovely in Croatia), went to a number of bars, and then boarded a water taxi to the infamous Carpe Diem - a nightclub on it's very own island. (No, I'm not kidding!)
Sometime between 6 and 7am, we stumbled home, well and truly spent.

The following day was spent trying not to die in Palmizana.
It is a miracle that I survived that day because it is very likely that I was poisoned in an excessive consumption of alcohol kind of way.
A write-off for the entire day, I only began to feel the revival in the early evening when it was time to wine and dine all over again, at a waterfront restaurant with a view.

Our seventh and final night was spent back in Seget and Trogir. It was at this point that I finally hit the wall. I wanted to dance, I wanted to be energetic and vivacious, but I simply could not. I was the walking dead. And so, at midnight, I took a water taxi back to the boat and was in bed by 1 am.

The following morning, the others caught a taxi to the bus terminal in Split (45 minutes), to then catch a bus to Dubrovnik (4+ hours), but I decided that I needed a day and night on land, to sleep in a real bed for as long as humanly possible. It turned out to be an expensive and indulgent activity, but sometimes a girl just needs to day to re group.

I wandered through the old town of Trogir, visited the fort and the church, took myself out for dinner and wine, spent hours using my land legs again and then suddenly, it was time to finish this portion of the blog and try to chase out the few mosquito's that were attacking me in my room.

Seven weeks in and this traveller is starting to feel the wear and tear of minimal sleep, 50+ days of drinking, and endless buses, flights and taxis.
But don't get me wrong - I don't mean to complain...
I am having the time of my life, seeing new sights, sailing in beautiful oceans, wining and dining like a boss, and meeting fabulous people.

I am almost halfway - seven weeks down, seven more to go.
While some parts have simply flown by, other parts, like Canada seem like far longer ago than it actually was.
Tomorrow, I take two buses to Dubrovnik to spend the last night of this leg with my wife-y Cassie.
We have laughed, we have danced, we have bicycled, mountain-biked, sailed, swam and sunned. We have assessed the lack of men situation worldwide, and we have been the best of traveling companions.
Time really does fly when you're having fun!

Four more sleeps and then it's time to touch down in London town!

Special mentions to Shane and Linda, Mandy, Maria, Diego, Tarna and Olly who made our sailing trip a laugh a minute, and who were a truly fun and fabulous crew!

Spend a week sailing the Adriatic and having an experience of a lifetime- check!

Over and out!

New York, New York!

Two trips to New York in one year - I am a lucky lady!
Although there was some doubt about whether we would arrive here at all.
We were due to fly out of Nashville in the afternoon but soon after checking in we were told that our flight had been cancelled due to thunderstorms and a hurricane warning.
A hurricane.
We were re-booked on a flight via Detroit and spent hours upon hours, watching flight after flight to New York being cancelled. All direct flights were cancelled and we began to doubt whether once we got to Detroit, we would be able to fly out at all.

After what seemed like an eternity, we boarded our plane and not long after that we landed in Detroit (Put your hands up for Detroit... We love this city!) And we did love it because all other flights to New York had been cancelled except for the one that we were booked on. Insert sigh of relief here.
So we arrived, thankful that we had made it. Pending hurricane, thunderstorms and all.

Only Cassie's bag did not arrive with us.
For some reason, it had been put on a flight via Atlanta and so we waited a short time, until her suitcase joined us after it's own little adventure.

After yet another trip in a Fast and the Furious-inspired taxi, we arrived at our apartment in SoHo, very grateful to Cassie's generous friends Mo and Aaron, who had allowed us to stay there while they were away.
And what an apartment it was! Gorgeous, comfortable and home-y with two large bedrooms and the perfect open plan living, dining and kitchen.
In the heart of SoHo, I felt very 'Sex and the City-esque' and made ample use of the shopping and cafes and restaurants.

July 4 in New York was an affair to remember. We started with a spot of pub-hopping and World Cup watching in Brooklyn, and were invited to an apartment and rooftop to watch the fireworks. With an unobstructed and front row view, we stood upon our ivory tower (the rooftop) and watched the most spectacular fireworks.

For some unbeknown reason, we later decided to power walk for up to 45 minutes through New York city singing "I'm so fancy", and with people shouting 'Work it girls!', in search of a dance floor.
It was a successful night, particularly the part where a very attractive brunette woman asked to dance with me and then attempted to recruit me to become a lady of the night (No, I'm not kidding, and no, I did not agree to go with her to meet her clients!)

Saturday night was spent eating delicious Japanese-Brazillian infused food and rooftop bar hopping to get some of the best views in town.

We saw 'Kinky Boots' on Broadway, had lunch in Central Park, walked through the many galleries at the Museum of Modern Art, strolled Madison and Fifth Avenues, wined and dined but the highlight for me, is always the most random part of a trip.

There we were, on a pier on the Hudson River, drinking beer, ordering Mexican and waiting for The Fray to start their outdoor concert when suddenly, in the blink of an eye, the heavens opened and it began to rain. Not light, sun shower type rain but absolute monsoon-style, soaked right through, huge puddle forming rain. The concert came to a halt, the food trucks ceased service, and we waited. As we fitted ourselves with garbage bags (a newly acquired survival skill) we sipped our beer and waited it out. 
And just as abruptly as it had begun, it was over and we proceeding with our evening of beer drinking, sunset watching and the concert.

It is hard to believe that we have been here for a week and that in nine hours, we will be on a plane en route to Croatia.
New York, you have been vibrant and vast, entertaining and thoroughly enjoyable , but I must admit, I am excited about sailing the Adriatic on a yacht...
Cue Song: "I'm so fancy, you already know, I'm in the fast lane...

Highlights: Watching a musical on Broadway, being caught in a monsoon on the Hudson, meeting the kind, generous and welcoming Mo and Aaron (a big thank you for letting me, a complete stranger, stay in your fabulous apartment) and of course, meeting the most adorable little girl in the United States (quite possibly the world) Poppy, with her bright baby blues and her contagious giggles.

Lowlights: The complete lack of items for purchasing! What does a girl have to do to find a nice but casual dress in this town?, certain exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art. For example, filming near naked people throwing animal blood on one another and rolling around in it, does not an art piece make! Nor is a blank, white canvas. Pretty sure they forgot to put the paint on it...

Needless to say, I'll save my gallery and museum visits for the Louvre, or at least the classics.

Farewell New York City - it has been a blast!

Welcome to Nashville, Tennessee!

And what a very warm welcome it was!

Canadian's are universally known for their polite and friendly disposition but I must say, the folks of Nashville certainly give them a run for their money. I now understand the true meaning of 'southern hospitality'- and a girl could get used to that.

Unfortunately, events leading up to our arrival in Nashville were not the smoothest. On our last night in New Orleans, Cassie was pick-pocketed and left without a phone and a camera, arriving home in the early hours of the morning understandably upset by it. The pick-pocketers of New Orleans are a talented bunch - they can unzip your handbag while it is still strapped to your body, and remove items in the blink of an eye all without you noticing a thing out of the ordinary. At around 3 am already, and the alarm set for 5:45 am for our early morning flight, we didn't get much sleep at all that night.

After closing my eyes for what seemed like a minute, the alarm on my phone went off at '5:45 am'. As it turns out, it was actually 6:45 am in real New Orleans time as my phone had failed to automatically update the time zone. Being on holiday and with rarely the need to know the time, I had failed to notice this important fact.
With less than 30 minutes to get to the airport to check in, we sprang out of bed, dressed in ninja speed, and with superhuman strength lugged our 23 kg suitcases down the many, many stairs in record speed. Continuing on with record breaking, our taxi driver got us to the airport in 12 minutes, a personal best for him and thankfully, we did not miss our flight.

We arrived in Nashville, exhausted and sleep-deprived. After breakfast at the highly recommended Puckett's, the lovely woman at the hotel let us check in hours before we were supposed to and we could finally lay ourselves down to rest.
Feeling better later in the day, we went our for Italian and a stroll along Broadway - the epicentre of downtown Nashville. Although not a large strip, there is plenty of entertainment on offer. Blocks and blocks of live country music venues so that should you wander in and find something not to your liking, you can simply go next door. Or the one next to that. And so on.

My first night in Nashville was the type of great night you can only have when it is random. I found a rooftop with a band singing all the favourite rock and country covers and sat myself down for a couple of beers.
Within the hour, I had met a couple who welcomed me with open arms and proceeded to buy all my beers and fireball shots for the remainder of the night, simply because I was Australian and travelling. Fireball shots, also known as cinnamon whiskey are a force to be reckoned with. After setting your throat on fire, they then later creep up on you as most shots tend to do.
We danced, we sang along, we tapped our feet and waved our arms, and we drank. Later, I held back her hair in the cubicle until she was asked to leave by security.

On our second day, we put on our tourist hats and with camera in hand, we visited the Rymin Auditorium (which is the original Grand Ole Opry), the Country Music Museum and Hall of Fame, and the Walk of Fame. Granted, country music is not my go-to choice of tune but nonetheless, it was all still very impressive - particularly Elvis Presley's solid gold piano and Cadillac.

You cannot go to Nashville and not have a typical Southern dinner - ribs and beer. There was far more animal on my plate than necessary but as they say, 'When in Rome...'

We saw band after band, heard song after song, wandered from place to place and even found ourselves at Coyote Ugly where yes, I did dance on the bar. Thankfully, I did not have ice water poured down my underwear and the band of them cut and then ripped off like one patron (Phew!).

We went to the Listening Cafe and were almost brought to tears by some very talented young songwriters and performers, and followed that up with a brief line dancing lesson with the majority of the US's under 18 year old population (very strange!).

Our three nights and four days in one of the most fun and friendliest cities I have been came to an end and I begrudgingly said goodbye to Nashville, Tennessee. It is important to learn something new every day, or so they say so here's what I learned:
1. 'First you "HOLLER", then you SWALL-A"', the Nashville way of raising your glass and saying Cheers (I know it sounds a little dirty but it's really not!)
2. The chorus of 'Rock Me Mama', my new favourite country song, 
3. Being pushed down the hotel corridor on the luggage trolley is almost as fun and driving a golf cart, and
3. There is something very attractive about a man in denim, cowboy boots and hat, and with a southern drawl...

I will miss you Nashville but fear not, I have a feeling that I'll be back y'all!