Travel | Lanzarote - Part Two

Saturday

Day 2 began with a trip to Marina Rubicon for their weekly market, the day before the whole area was almost abandoned but with the market it was absolutely packed! There were hundreds of people, lots of stalls an local shops full of clothes, jewellery, hats, gifts etc.

The market happens every Wednesday and every Saturday, so I would definitely recommend a visit!

We decided to do some more exploring by hopping on the local bus to see what was in the area, absolutely nothing if you're wondering, but we did end up at a small little shopping area around 5-10 minutes from our hotel.
We found a little sports pub called Tropical sports where we had an amazing lunch of hotdogs and fries before we headed back to the hotel.

Sunday

Day 3 was a very chilled day for us, we spent a good few hours by the pool before heading to back to the sports bar for more hotdog and fries.
After more relaxing by the pool we got ready for dinner before heading back down to Playa Blanca beach to do some shopping where I bought a lovely t-shirt from mango and some croc flip flops (yes I know what you're thinking), I was actually hoping to buy some more in different colours but they didn't have any left!

Monday

After breakfast we decided that we would have another chilled day and head to Playa Dorada Beach just in front of Princess Yaiza Hotel. Now I'm not the world's biggest beach fan (I can't swim, so I avoid the sea) so I spent a few hours just lounging in the shade while the parents enjoyed a few dips in the sea.

The night before, we walked past a restaurant that was absolutely packed with people so we decided that we would try it out for lunch.
We definitely made the right choice because the food was absolutely delicious, my dad and I had some garlic bread and some prawns before heading back to the hotel to relax before dinner.

Travel | Lanzarote - Part One

Last month I went on a much needed holiday to Lanzarote with my parents.

The last few months have been pretty difficult for us as my Nan passed away mid July, it was completely unexpected which has made her passing just that little bit more difficult to come to grips with. We have quite a large family so we have been making sure to spend as much time together to help us through the difficult times.

Our holiday had already been booked a few months before and we weren't sure if we were still going to go, but we decided that it would be best for us to take a little break after the funeral and it was definitely one of the best decisions we've ever made.

We stayed at Hotel THe Mirador Papagayo in Playa Blanca.
Our flight on the Thursday was actually delayed so we ended up landing around an hour after we should have, we also had to deal with 2 transfer cancellations which meant we had to find a last minute transfer while we waited for the plane.

It looked as though we were in the middle of nowhere when we started driving to the hotel, and the ride to hotel was a little scary (think speeding up a mountain, cliff edges, no barriers and blind turns!), but as soon as the cab stopped outside the hotel we were all pleasantly surprised.

Friday

Friday was our first full day in Lanzarote so after a breakfast of pancakes, eggs and sausages (which really upset me because they were basically tinned hot dogs cut in half), we headed to the local supermarket for some snacks before taking a walk around the area.

The views along the path at the back of our hotel were absolutely amazing, the cliffs, the water, the skies were just beautiful.
The path took us all the way to the Marina Rubicon. The whole area was incredibly empty, a passing family told us that during the day the area is normally quite empty, but during the evening it get's considerably busier in the evening, with people heading to the local restaurants.

There was also a small shopping centre called Rubicon Shop and Fun that had a small cinema, a few clothes shops, supermarket and even a bowling alley.

We walked further along the path which took us past Playa Dorada beach, Playa Blanca beach and to a number of different shops and restaurants.
We spotted a Burger King and decided to stop off and have lunch before we headed back to the hotel (I wasn't a massive fan of thier long chicken, which is their version of a chicken royale). After a long walk back to the hotel we spent some time b y the pool before we got ready for dinner.

After dinner we decided to head back down towards Playa Blanca beach were we stumbled across a little in the grounds of the hotel Princess Yaiza, we also found a few 'highstreet' shops including Mango just above the promenade. You can't really tell but those dark rocks at the bottom aren't actually as close as they look, and that little pathway you can see actually ends right there with a sheer drop beneath. Eeeek. There are a lot of stray cats in Lanzarote, a lot and when we were there they seemed to be more present in the evenings. Dotted around we saw little huts all labelled Freddy's Cathouse with bowls of cat food and water! You can find Freddy's website and how it all started here!

Travel | Barcelona - Part Three

Monday

The first part of our final day was spent packing our suitcases ready for the next morning, then at 2pm we headed to the Sagrada Familia for our tour of the basilica.

It was absolutely fantastic! The amount of detail both inside and outside was absolutely incredible. We purchased the audioguided tour for only €22, which meant that we could tour the basilica at our own pace while learning more about it.
I took an ridiculous amount of photos, but I didn't want to bombard you so I've only picked some of my favourites to show you.

Enjoy!

After the tour we decided to do a little bit more exploring before we walked to Catalunya, around 10mins away to so we could lunch at Taller De Tapas. Different location, same restaurant but it definitely looked a lot fancier.

After lunch/dinner we headed back to La Rambla, but this time for some shopping where I purchased some magnets, keyrings and photo album.

All images belong to me, please do not use without my permission

Travel | Barcelona - Part Two

Saturday

At around 2pm we headed back down to La Rambla for a look around the La Boqueria Market. We didn't actually do anything in the morning, the girls just take ages to get ready.

The market was absolutely fantastic! It was full of stalls selling fresh fish, meat, vegetables, dried and fresh fruit that you could make into a juice! There were also quite a few small tapas restaurants inside the market but it was way too packed for me to even consider eating there.

I really wish that we could have brought a few prawns to cook back at the apartment and we were all amazed at the crab for only €4!
Maybe next time!

For lunch we headed back to Taller de Tapas (you can tell we're loving this place). The first time we visited we all had margarita's (that quickly went straight to our heads) so this time I decided on a Caipiroska de Fresa which was absolutely heavenly.
That drink also went straight to my head as the alcohol was masked by the sweetness of the drink! Just how I like it.

After lunch/dinner we walked down to one end of La Rambla and had a look at the stalls which is where we discovered these amazing miniature instruments from KosmoArte. I bought a little something for Father's day but I wish I had bought a few more pieces. I may have to buy some online or book another trip to Barcelona!

We headed back to our apartment where Ruby cooked us couscous for dinner, which was a first for both my sister and I.

Sunday

I felt quite down on day 4 and couldn't wait to go back home, but luckily we had a very chilled day watching films before we finally decided to head out for dinner.

Earlier in the day the other girls we were staying with headed to a restaurant called Flamant for lunch which is where we decided to go for dinner. We had a quick look at the menu and decided we should go there for dinner.
Unfortunately when we got there we realised the place wouldn't be open for dinner for another hour, so we took a long stroll around the area where we found a place called Soda Bus where we sat down for a cocktail.

I ordered a candy mango drink which came in a brown paper bag! We thought she made a mistake and had brought us food until she pulled out the glass filled with ice and fruit, a bottle with the cocktail and a shot glass of dry ice!

Definitely wish I could have tried more cocktails there.

Travel | Barcelona - Part One

Wednesday

Our holiday started with a long journey back from our cousins wedding in Sudbury to our house in London, where we grabbed our suitcases and hopped on the train to London Liverpool Street station.
My sister, Venessa and I met up with my best friend, Ruby, and we all jumped on the Stanstead Express to the airport.

I booked us a private transfer so when we landed at around 7pm we grabbed our bags and find our driver who took us to our apartment, EnjoyBCN Gaudi where we stayed with 3 of my sisters friends.
We got changed and then headed straight out to dinner, to a restaurant called Tapas 24. I didn't take any pictures on our first night so I'll start with what we got up to on our first full day.

We were seconds from the Sagrada Familia, so every day as we headed to the metro we were greeted by this magnificent sight that we constantly took pictures of.

Thursday

My gorgeous sister in the yellow dress and my best friend in the playsuit!!!

Our first day started with a trip to Primavera Sound festival so my sister could collect her wristband before heading down to La Rambla, a tree-lined street full of shops, stalls and restaurants.

Almost every (if not every) restaurant has someone outside to try and persuade you to eat in that particular restaurant so it was a little overwhelming at times, but then we spotted one small restaurant called Taller de Tapas and after a quick glance at the menu we decided this was the place to eat.

It was my first time having tapas and I absolutely loved it. I had grilled prawns with extra virgin olive oil and Maldon salt, grilled chicken kebab marinated with herbs and spices and patatas bravas which is fried potatoes! The prices were very good, the food and atmosphere were great and the mojitos were strong! If you're planning a visit to Barcelona I would definitely recommend visiting this restaurant.

Friday

We spent a few hours by the pool on the roof on our second day, well when I say we I really mean everyone else. I don't sunbathe ever, so whenever I'm by the pool or on the beach when on holiday you can find me on sun lounger under an umbrella.

Unfortunately there were no umbrella's here so I ended up sitting by myself in the shade on the other side of the pool, before I gave up and headed inside because it was way too hot.

The pool itself was nothing to write home up (I forgot to take pictures but you can see them on the EnjoyBCN Gaudi link above), it is very small and there were only 5 sunbeds.

We then went for a walk down the streets by the apartment where we found this cute little chocolate shop (I forgot to get the name of it) that had all kinds of sweet treats before we headed back to the apartment to get the rest of the girls so we could head to dinner.

Venessa, Ruby and I ended up at a restaurant called Bacoa near Barceloneta (right by the beach!) while the others ate nearby at a place called Salamanca.

We loved Bacoa! We had to take a menu and tick what meat we wanted, if you wanted a bun, style of chips, extras like bacon and cheese and what drink you wanted. You can find the menu here: Bacoa Burger Menu
All three of us had something different. Ruby had the Gran Vegano burger, Venessa had the Suiza burger and I had the Pollo burger. Venessa and Ruby were also obsessed with the €2 cups of wine.

On the way back to the metro one of the girls went to a shop called Eyescream and Friends and got that incredibly cool ice cream!

All images belong to me