Lifestyle: Winter Weekend in Stockholm, Sweden

In December, I finally managed to get away for a well deserved holiday with Ben. We wanted to go to somewhere new we have never visited before in Europe, and preferably something that would give us Christmas spirit. Eventually we decided on 3 nights and 4 days in Stockholm, upon recommendation from a girl in my team at work who hails from the city. Its safe to say we made the right decision, as we loved the city and our time away.

The flight there was really easy, about 2 and a half hours from Gatwick, although the 5am wake up call was quite painful! We flew with Norwegian airlines, and their planes were really comfortable, with TV programmes showing the whole flight and free wifi, which I thought was pretty great for economy and a short haul flight.

Once we touched down in Arlanda airport, we got the Arlanda Express train to the centre of Stockholm, which takes about 20 minutes. We stayed in a hotel very near the centre called Miss Clara and it was absolutely beautiful. We chose this hotel mainly because the style inside was very Scandanvian and we weren't disappointed. Our room had lovely touches such as a chair back connected to the end of the bed so you can eat breakfast in bed comfortably, and fairy strip lights in the windows and ceiling which gave it a nice ambience. The bed was the most comfortable thing we have ever slept in, and the bathroom was incredible - the bath was so deep the edge came up to my hip when I was standing in it!

One of the main reasons I loved Stockholm so much was that although it is made up of about 4 or 5 islands, you can walk it very easily. There is loads of different public transport such as the tram, underground or bus, and there is even uber available there too if you wanted to use that, but we decided to walk most of the time during the day. The weather at this time of year was pretty cold though, I wore thermals every day, with a fur headband and gloves as we were outside most of the time.

The people were also so friendly and spoke amazing English which made us feel very at home. The only downside is that it is a very expensive city - we spent about £400 in total over 4 days on just food and drink. It is also worth noting that you can also buy alcohol over 2% in off licences as it is not available in shops and the rate of a beer is about £7-8 for a little less than half a pint. The Christmas markets were also a little bit disappointing but were still fun to explore.

All the food we had was absolutely amazing, we had the best burger in Stockholm at Flippin Burgers, a delicious first meal at Grill and traditional Swedish meatballs in the oldest restaurant in Stockholm. We also tried a mixture of Moose and Elk at the small Christmas market which was interesting and quite yummy, washed down with a cup of Glogg (similar to mulled wine).

Of course we did a little shopping while we were there, and I picked up a few make up items from KICKS, which is a bit like our Boots and they have their own brand make up line. Unfortunately the Sephora was tiny so I didn't buy anything there and there was also another drugstore brand I was recommended to try next time called Issadora.

Our Top Suggestions for Stockhom

* The Christmas Market/Village in Skansken situated on the island of Djurgarden - very touristy but there is also a zoo, food and drink and lots of craft stalls.

* Grill - a Tiki themed restaurant which had the most delicious cocktails and tasty food. Quite expensive but worth it.

* Miss Clara Hotel - amazing breakfast, service and rooms, I could not recommend this hotel enough!

* NK - big shopping mall similar to Selfridges in the UK

* Princess cake - you can get this pretty much anywhere but it is very traditional and yummy.

* Urban Deli - similar to Whole Foods but so much better and has a restaurant/bar inside. Delicious meals and snacks to take away.

* Weiners cafe - lovely for a glass of wine or afternoon tea. Super pretty inside.

Where is your favourite place in Europe to visit? xxx

Agadir, Morocco: Sun, Sea & Souks

Almost a month ago now Matt and I went on a long over due summer holiday to Agadir in Morocco. It was absolutely beautiful and we had such an amazing time that I knew I had to blog about it. Over the course of the week I didn't actually end up taking that many pictures, purely because we wanted to relax and immerse ourselves in the holiday rather than trying to capture everything on film (or should I say memory card!) We stayed in the Riu Palace Tikida Hotel which was 5* All Inclusive and one of Thomson's premier hotels so our flights, full board and hotel transfer was all taken care of. It was absolutely beautiful from the rooms, to the pool and the service we really didn't have any complaints at all. It's safe to say the week went way too quickly for our liking but we would absolutely love to visit the country again.

We flew from Gatwick (which has the most amazing duty free by the way) and the flight took us around 3 and a half hours. The transfer was pretty quick too on the coach and we were greeted with cocktails while we checked in. The hotel was huge and beautifully furnished but even though it was large it didn't lose any character. Our room was much bigger than we thought with it's own private balcony and one of the best bonuses was that the mini bar was free!! Luckily it is the same time zone in Morocco as England so we didn't have to worry about being jet lagged at all.

One of our favourite days was when we visited the Souks which was recommended to us before we went away. When you stay in a hotel it can be tempting to stay by the pool every day and not really immerse yourself in any culture but we really wanted to see the local life and considering it was only a short and very cheap taxi ride away it would have been a waste not to go. Unlike my experience in Egypt, the people in the Souks were hardly pushy at all. If anything everyone was very friendly and once they realised you weren't interested they were very gracious. The hardest part was bartering which is a massive thing in Morocco and something us Brits aren't very good at! We managed to get a few lovely bits in the end to take home as momentos which you can see below. The hotel served the most amazing mint tea (yes mint tea can actually be amazing!) so I was really excited to buy the proper herbs to make it at home. We had no idea that 5 different ingredients went into making the tea including dried stevia leaves, rose buds and three different types of tea leaves.

Talking of the hotel, we were lucky enough to be situated right by the beach as well as having the large pool. The hotel also offered so many other things including a spa, activities such as beach volleyball, aqua classes, a gym, an indoor pool, and entertainment every night which was always good fun.

Moving onto the food, we knew it would be a bit of a gamble as all inclusive can tend to go either way. However I am pleased to say the food was absolutely amazing! They had two theme nights in the week but the traditional Morccan food was so delicious featuring melt in your mouth meat and vegetarian tagines with cous cous and chicken pastillas to a pasta bar, loads of different meats and vegetables, and the puddings were incredible too! For breakfast there was a range of fresh fruits, cereals, cooked breakfasts, pancakes, doughnuts, champagne and more. They also had a snack bar open in between meals so it really was 24/7 food. I'm so pleased the quality was fantastic and the chefs knew what they were doing.

The staff were all incredibly friendly too and made us feel at ease in all aspects of our holiday. If you are thinking about visiting Morocco then Agadir is a little bit more touristy than Morocco but I highly recommend it if you are new to the culture. Thomson also offer a variety of trips which we would have loved to do if we were there for longer so you can really engage with the Moroccan lifestyle.

This was a bit of a whistle stop, generalised post of our holiday but honestly I can't say how impressed I was with the hotel and country xxx

Be Right Back!

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Over the course of the summer it seems as though I've had so many stops and starts with blogging. Right now is another stop because once again life is getting in the way! I've had a lovely week away in Exeter and enjoyed a break from social media and blogging which is just what I needed. Although I love everything about the internet sometimes it can take over and it's good to realise you don't need to be constantly glued to your phone or laptop (although I enjoyed a little tweet here and there!) Now I am concentrating on the last stretch of revision before my final exams in two weeks, so posting will be few and far between. I hope you all understand but that is an important stage of my life which I need to finish. I can't wait to get back to posting regularly and interacting with everyone again as I really miss it. xxx

Bourjois Bronzing Primer

Bourjois Bronzing Primer // 18g // £9.99

First of all, excuse the pictures! My pot was like this when I bought it so doesn't look that pretty for the photos. Secondly, you may have noticed this is my first post in a while. Life got in the way and I have been super busy but I am hoping to get back to my normal routine soon. Now lets get on with the review...

Last year I did a review on the Bourjois Chocolate Bronzer - if you read it you would know that I fell in love. Fast forward a year and there was recently news about a whole Chocolate range being released, which made me really excited! This product in particular intrigued me as there was whisperings that it is a dupe for Chanel's infamous Soleil Tan de Chanel, which I have been lusting after for many months now.

The tub is quite small for the price, but for a fraction of the price of the Chanel version I can't grumble too much. With one colour to suit all it can seem a little daunting in the pot and upon first swatch, as it is not too dissimilar in appearance to milk chocolate mousse (it looks a little orange in my pictures) However, if properly blended, you are left with a subtle glow. If you are as fair as me I would approach this with caution - its quite easy to over do it so use a little at a time, blend well and add more if needed. I normally use my fingers for this but a stippling brush would probably be good too. It has a really soft, silky texture and smells a bit like holidays, so a little different to the chocolate bronzer.

I personally liked this best when I had a touch of a natural tan and used it instead of foundation, but used underneath a foundation or BB cream it brings a warmth to your complexion which looks natural. This also means I've found you use less of whatever base you follow up with, giving a more natural look which is perfect for the warmer months. The bronzing primer definitely lives up to its claims as a smoothing primer, which evens the texture and tone of my skin, however it did little for my pores. It is also meant to mattify which is true to an extent - it definitely doesn't add to the oiliness of my skin but it doesn't seem to keep it at bay either. The longevity is also quite good, but no better or worse than a normal base. I'm not normally a massive fan of primers for this reason as I've only ever found one which really prolonged my make up.

Overall this is a lovely summer product which I will certainly be getting a lot of use out. I'm also interested in the big bronzer they have bought out and the BB Bronzing Cream. Have you tried this product? What is your favourite item from Bourjois? xxx

P.S. This is the first time I've done a 'face' picture as I don't normally like putting my face on the blog, but a hand swatch wouldn't really show this product properly. I hope it's ok (it was also spur of the moment so my hair is still a bit wet!) 

City Break in Barcelona

Hey guys, I haven't posted in around a week as I've been super busy! Last Thursday I had my Graduation Ball, the Friday I finished moving all my things out of my Uni house and on the Saturday Matt and I went on our trip to Barcelona! From my previous lifestyle post you may remember he surprised me with this trip to cheer me up as things  have been a bit hectic and rubbish for me these last few months. We went for 3 nights which was plenty as city breaks are actually really tiring! I've been to Spain loads of times as my family own a villa out there but I had never visited Barcelona so it was really fun to spend time exploring the city. There is still a lot more to discover and I would love to go back again some time in the future. 

 Our flight was very early in the morning but we managed to get some shut eye on the plane, only to wake up to a rainy Barcelona! Once we got to our hotel, Rey Juan Carlos I, we managed to get into our room pretty quickly and had a quick nap so we could spend the rest of the day exploring and the sun had come out too. We paid for two consecutive days for the open top bus as this was cheaper - I would highly recommend using the bus as a way to explore the city as not only is it way cheaper than a taxi but there are audio points where you can listen to the recorded guide and there are loads of stops to get on and off when you please. There are buses every 5 to 10 minutes and they make the whole sight seeing process really easy! On the first day we took the opportunity to shop and explore Las Ramblas and the Gothic quarter as all shops are closed on a Sunday. I really enjoyed the Gothic quarter as it has loads of little streets to explore, with performers and interesting places to eat and drink. I wasn't as keen on Las Ramblas as it felt a bit too touristy but it was still a good experience to check it out. Once we got back to the room Matt had organised a surprise of champagne to be delivered which was such a cute touch and just what we needed after a long day!

The next day was pure sight seeing and we managed to see pretty much all of Barcelona from the bus, from the main part of the city to the beach. We stopped off at the MNAC art gallery which was so beautiful and had amazing views of the city, in Montjuic where we got a cable car overlooking the whole of Barcelona and finally onto La Sagrada Familia which is really famous. Unfortunately we couldn't go inside the last place because there was an event going on, but I will definitley be visiting it next time!

The final day we spent chilling by the pool and we ended up getting really sunburnt :(! After spending two days on the bus we knew the nicer areas to visit which were out of the tourist trap areas and so we got a taxi to drop us off an a nice street and went into a random restaurant for dinner. It was a lovely place with amazing food! We had a jug of Sangria, seafood paella and Catalan creme brulee all of which was delicious! Our flight was early the next morning, however we got delayed for over 4 hours due to the French industrial strikes. 

That is a quick summary of my time away but if you have any questions just leave a comment! Barcelona was an amazing experience and we definitely packed in as much as possible into the few days we had. I would keep in mind that city breaks are quite expensive though as we found out the hard way - we had three different types of taxes on our bill at the end of the holiday, including city tax for each night we stayed in a hotel, so its important to keep that in mind! I would highly recommend the city as it has the beach, history and culture all wrapped up in one place so there is something for everyone. 

I don't think we are going on a relaxing holiday this year like Turkey last year as we can't afford it - instead we are saving up for two weeks in Mexico next year when we are going to a wedding! I think it is definitley worth saving the money for :) Are you going on holiday this summer? xxx