A day trip to Sopot, Poland

When I mentioned to people I was planning on squeezing a beach trip into our visit to Poland, everyone was surprised that it even had a coastline. And the fact that the country actually enjoyed hot weather. Yet another misconception about this beautiful country.

The seaside resort Sopot is part of the Tri-City - known as the place to party - in Eastern Pomerania, just six miles away from Gdansk. Or a 20 minute train journey. It gave off similar vibes to Brighton. It was full of cool, young people, quirky independent restaurants and shops alongside seaside-esque style housing. But one plus is the fact it has a sandy beach so make sure you bring a towel to relax.

It's the ideal town to have a lazy day. Check out the longest wooden pier in Europe - be aware there's a charge in the summer months -, the town's most iconic building known as the "Crooked House", the famous Sheraton seafront hotel and take a stroll alongside the beach, checking out the souvenir and ice cream shops. We never had dinner in the town but I've heard that you must seek out the fish restaurants as the quality is second to none.

One place you absolutely need to visit is Flamingo & Co for a couple of scoops of ice cream. It was the best ice cream I had in the entire two weeks in Poland - which is saying something as Lody is amazing! I opted for the salted caramel and strawberry which turned out to be the ideal combination. I'm willing to go back to Sopot just to have some more ice cream!

Have you ever thought of visiting Sopot?

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Exploring London: Anna on the Thames, Doubletree Hilton, Docklands

Sometimes London grinds you down. It's all-comsuming, frantic and tiring. But when I get to the river, there's something about being on the water that makes all those feelings disappear and I feel so incredibly lucky to spend most of my time in one of the world's beautiful cities. So as you can imagine, I was pretty happy to receive an invite in my inbox to spend the evening at the new Anna on The Thames terrace at the Doubletree Hilton.

A little bit of Barcelona has sprung up on the riverbank for the summer months. You're greeted with grey sofas, slick black tables and a sprinkling of plump Anna cushions - making it the perfect place to sit back and relax.

Staying put until September, the terrace showcases the best of what Cordoriu Cava has to offer. Choose from various different cavas ranging from sweet Anna Dulce to an Anna Blanc de Blanc. If you're feeling extra fancy opt for a sangria cocktail which I can confirm tastes absolutely delicious. Top marks!

Once you get a bit peckish it's time to try out the tasty tapas menu. We sampled a feast of meatballs smothered in a sweet tomato sauce, a classic potato bravas, bite sized pieces of squid, manchego cheese and jamon mini sandwich (my favourite!) and crispy croquettes. What could be better than some nibbles and a glass of fizz eh?

Thanks for such a lovely evening Doubletree Hilton!

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Four places to visit in the Scottish Highlands

The Scottish Highlands are one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. I still can't quite believe they're in the UK. And that it took so long for me to finally visit! Make sure you don't wait as long as I did as trust me, you're missing out. We're lucky to have friends living up there who knew all the best places to take us. If you're planning a trip to the east coast, here are four places you should definitely add to your intinerary. 

1. Golspie
This little town is famous for being the home of the beautiful Dunrobin Castle, a fairytale chateau-style castle build an incredible 700 years ago. Make sure you spend an hour or so taking in the walled gardens and catching the fun falcon show. Once you've enjoyed the castle, it's time to refuel with some cake at a little tea room in the high street before heading out to explore the waterfalls. The city girl in me had no idea that scenes like this existed in the UK. I don't get out to the countryside much! The Big Burn is an easy 2.5km walk through lush, green woodlands. Pack sensible shoes and wander until your heart's content.

2. Tarbat Ness
This lighthouse is the perfect places to watch the sun go down. Climb over the rocks and you're greeted with the amazing sight of seals splashing about in the water below - this was by far a highlight of my trip. If you visit during the summer, you'll find the seals soaking up the rays on the rocks themselves.

3. Loch Ness
Probably the most famous loch in Scotland, Loch Ness is the largest one in the UK thanks to the sheer volume of water. It's around 45 minutes from Inverness and makes a great day trip. We explored the Loch with an hour long boat ride with Jacobite Cruises who helped to set the scene. It was fascinating to listen to the folklore and history of the area. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking, even on a gloomy day.

4. Glenmorangie Distillery
No trip to Scotland is complete with squeezing in a trip to a whisky distillery. Book yourself into the fascinating tour and learn about the history of this famous whisky. You'll be able to try a sample at the end. Even if you're not a whisky fan it's still worth doing because it really is such an interesting process and the guides are so enthusiastic.

Have you been to the Highlands before? Anywhere I should add to my list? I'm definitely planning on heading back soon!

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Exploring Europe: Villa Noailles, Hyerès, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France

During our weekend in the South of France, we drove to Hyerès to check out the exhibition at Villa Noailles. Located in the hills overlooking the town and set within pretty grounds, this gorgeous early modernist house is a sight to behold. Every year it holds the Hyerès International Fashion and photography festival exhibition and this is what we were here to check out.

Free to get into, it's such a wonderful place to spend a sunny afternoon. Walk around the various exhibitions, marvel at the cubist colourful garden, wander around the pine trees or bring some snacks to enjoy the stunning view over the town. The list is endless of things to enjoy. It was one of my highlights from the trip and a place I'd definitely visit again if I'm lucky enough to find myself in the area. 

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Restaurant review: The Diner, Camden, north London

I have a lot of nostalgia for The Diner so was delighted to be invited to the launch of the newly refurbished Camden branch. So my BFF and I trotted down after work for a lovely sunny evening on the rooftop terrace, enjoying far too much food and a bit too many cocktails for a Wednesday evening. Confirmed when I work up the next day for work with a bit of a sore head...

So what did we try? EVERYTHING. Highlights included the bacon wrapped crispy tator tots with a delicious jalapeño dip, WTF fries consisting of french fries with shredded tangy BBQ pork, oozing cheese, crispy bacon and topped with a perfectly fried eggs and chilli flakes, boneless southern fried chicken and flavoursome buffalo chicken wings with a creamy blue cheese dip. But my favourite were the tator tots loaded with crumbled blue cheese, beef chilli, lashings of sour cream and chopped spring onions. They were incredible and I really didn't want to share.

The Diner has has a great makeover, the roof terrace really is something special looking out over all the action on the high street. It's in a superb location, just a short walk from Camden Town tube station. The menu is always so consistent and pretty reasonably priced. A great choice if you find yourself in the area for a few drinks. Thanks so much for such a great evening guys!

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A weekend in the South of France

Like I mentioned in my Marseille post, we spent the day in the port city before getting the last train back to Elodie's hometown. We didn't see much as we got into Sanary-Sur-Mer around 11pm. Plus we were too busy fawning over Elodie's incredible pink house. Yes a pink house. The dream eh? We retired to bed just after midnight, looking forward to doing some more exploring the following day. 

We had a lie in before getting ready and walking down to the beach for a breakfast filled with pastries. It was just as glorious as it sounds. After hitting up what was said to be the best bakery in town, we found a bar to tuck into. My sugary brioche and cheese and ham croissant were amazing. Still dreaming about that croissant actually. After what seemed like hours of gossiping and drinking orangina, we decided to check out the (ridiculously windy) beach as we cheered on Michelle taking some outfit snaps.

After a slow walk into the centre of town we realised that Elodie actually lived in some sort of alternative Disney town and started to regret not coming over sooner. Have you seen the cinema below?! We walked passed a bustling farmer's market filled with delicious looking plump vegetables, tempting creamy cheeses and traditional biscuits. Surrounded by tall palm trees and basking in 25 degree heat, I could hardly believe this was just a short flight away from home.

Elodie gave us all a tour and we being the fickle bloggers we are, we fell in love with every single winding street we stumbled across. That architecture really is something else. The French Riviera really captured my heart. After climbing to the top of a hill for a cracking view of the town, it was time to go home as Elodie had an fun afternoon planned for us in Hyeres. More on that in another post!

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