a day in ibiza town.

I knew I had to get away and see some sun sooner or later. My last few holidays have been to places like Iceland, Prague and Copenhagen and well, I live in England and this year has hardly felt like one of the warmest (I still haven't packed my winter coat away). I'm not even one for the summer, I much prefer the winter but I still wanted some sun. Still wanted to step off a plane and feel the heat hit me. When one of my friends from Uni expressed the same wish, it wasn't long before we started looking for breaks away. 

I'm not sure how we came across Ibiza - I have had a little bit of an aversion to Spain for a number of years. It just seemed to be a place loads and loads of British people went to, a lazy option plus every single time I've been to Spain or heard tales of friends who've been to Spain something disastrous has happened. So I'm not sure why we decided to book, but I am really glad we did. 

Picking Ibiza was a little unnerving for me too, as I'm not a huge fan of clubbing and well, it's pretty well know what Ibiza is known for. I haven't been "clubbing" since I lived in Holland and Dutch clubbing is pretty tame compared to English clubbing and I'm sure I didn't enjoy it then and I wouldn't have enjoyed it now. Luckily, we picked a resort in the north of the Island - Portinatx - away from the clubs and the stag dos and the parties and whatever else. It was a good choice - quiet, empty enough beaches, adult only pools to lounge around next to and empty seas to spend the day kayaking around. 

But that was kind of it. With a very late flight back home on our last day, we knew we'd have to find something away from Portinatx to fill our time. So we decided to get the bus into Ibiza town. 

Let me just start by saying that this in itself was not an easy option. The bus from Portinatx to Ibiza town may have only been €2.95, but it ran four times a day at the oddest times. Not even in some of the most rural parts of England would the bus service have been this shit. It meant when you were in Ibiza town, you were pretty much stuck there for the day and you had to make the most of it. And God forbid you forgot where the bus stop back was. 

Because spending three days at an all-inclusive hotel stuffing our faces hadn't quite been enough food, the first thing we did was find ourselves a quiet bar near the port in the city. We grabbed a small selection of tapas, some beer and some shade away from the sun. It was pretty hot at this point, so any shade was extremely welcome! 

We then walked along the port of the city, which brought back a lot of memories of the last time I was in Ibiza, around 10 years ago, and came in on a cruise with my Dad. At sixteen, I think all I wanted to do was go clubbing (what a sea change to now!). We watched the thousands of ferries head off to Formentera, another island off the coast of Ibiza which is a lot smaller and apparently a lot prettier than Ibiza. We didn't have time to head over, if I'm ever back in Ibiza grabbing a ferry will be one of the first things I do. The port area of the city is full of hippy market stalls which are a main stay of Ibiza, and although not really my thing, they are worth a quick look. 

After recharging with a drink, we head off to Dalt Vila (literally high town) which is a Unesco world heritage site - a town hidden inside castle walls, and a complete maze of cobbled streets with secret tunnels (one hidden behind an old Catholic shrine). We entered through a draw bridge and walked into one of the bigger squares of Dalt Vila, Plaza de Vila. You can get amazing views across the island and over to Formentera. We carried on heading up, and down and up again through the maze until we stumbled on a square full of bars and restuatants, including one which instead of chairs had bean bags up the steps of the hill. We stopped again for another drink - I was a typical tourist and had a glass of sangria followed by affogato (at least, I know that's what it's called in Italian, who knows what the Spanish version is!).

Afterwards, we wondered around Calle de la Virgen, where it got a little more touristy, with a few shops and a whole lot of fridge magnets. It's the main gay part of the city, and there are rainbow flags hanging from most buildings. The small alleyway feel of the streets get progressively more packed as the evening goes on, full of people heading off towards the bigger clubs in Ibiza. 

We headed the other way, to a small square - Plaza del Parque - where we treated ourselves to a few cocktails which came with pintxos, small snacks which are generally held together with a toothpick. We watched the world go by and steeled ourselves for the horrendous bus journey back to the airport. 

I'm glad we took time out from our lazy mini-summer holiday to go and explore Ibiza a little more. Seeing Ibiza town in all its glory has changed my view of the island a little more - it's not just for clubbers! 

how to spend 24 hours in prague.

Every so often - usually when I get very bored during my lunch break and can't be bothered to fight the crowds to go to Pret in Westminster - I find myself looking for cheap holidays and then if I find one, even if I had no intention of booking, suddenly I'm clicking away and moving money around to just about afford it. It's a bit of a problem when the world is so big and there's so much to see, and an even bigger problem when cheap holidays exist and countries like the Czech Republic are cheap to get to and explore.

So me and a couple of friends made our way to Prague for a super short break to scratch another country off the scratch map and here's a few things we got up to.

Joined a walking tour

A lot of people think that going on a walking tour is a bit of a cheesy, crappy touristy way of seeing a city but it's something I pretty much always do when I first arrive in a new city. They're a great way to get your bearings in a new place and there were so many departing from the Old Town Square in Prague that we really had our pick of different tours at whatever time we fancied. Our guide was definitely an unusual woman, but she did take us to Prague's "creepiest church" where a dead man's arm is hanging from the wall. You can read the full story here, but I doubt it's something I would have found on my own, as I'm pretty bad at doing my research about a city before I go on one.  The great thing about these tours is that you can get free ones and pay what you think they're worth, meaning you never feel done in. 

Saw the Astronomical Clock

Yes, it was slightly underwhelming but it's also quite incredible that it's the oldest working clock of its type in existence. It's hard to work out, but once you do it's pretty awesome. I do recommend finding yourself nearby on the hour to watch it chime the hour, but you do have to pay attention to make sure you don't miss it - it's quite quick! 

Spent time in Old Town Square

Prague has two main squares: the Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square, the latter of which meant that I had the Christmas carol stuck in my head for most of the trip. I was not a big fan of Wenceslas Square, which is a bit of a stag do hotspot with pretty crap architecture but Old Town Square was completely the opposite. The architecture was incredible and you could stand on the Square and just soak in the history. Make sure you pay particular attention to the Church of Our Lady before Týn and Old Town Hall - incredible buildings that I couldn't get enough of. 

Visited the Jewish Quarter

The Jewish Quarter in Prague, known as Josefov, is located between the Old Town Square and the Vltava River. It's one of the most preserved Jewish areas in Europe, partly because Hitler wanted to preserve it as a "museum of an extinct race" which is, of course, bloody vile but a big part of the history of the area. Take a look inside in the Spanish Synagogue, the Pinkas Synagogue (including its Holocaust memorial) and walk through the Old Jewish Cemetery. Don't forget to pay a visit to the statue of one of the area's most famous residents, Franz Kafka, on Dusni Street which depicts a man riding on another man's shoulders and originally appeared in Kafka's "Description of a Struggle". 

Drank

It's really hard to avoid beer in Prague - it's pretty much the only thing that many bars seem to serve and it's ridiculously cheap. There are quite a few varieties of beer, all among the same light theme which can keep you going for some time. Of course, we tried most of the popular local varieties, like Pilsner Urquell, Staropramen and Budvar. And at around £1.50 for a pint, it's pretty hard to say no. 

Walked uphill to Prague Castle

We walked into the Malá Strana district and started the uphill walk to Prague Castle. If you're not a big fan of hills, then there's plenty of shops, bars and squares to take a rest on the way up. It's worth it! When you arrive, if you ignore the random Starbucks at the top, you get some of the best views of the city that Prague has to offer. Prague Castle itself is a little underwhelming if you're expecting a traditional castle, it looks more like an old-school town hall, but honestly, the views and the atmosphere are definitely worth it. 

Walked across the Charles Bridge

It's a ten-minute walk from Old Town Square and another place in Prague to capture those incredible views of the city. The statues along the way are great to stop and look at along the walk across the bridge. It's absolutely full of tourists, so get there early if you want to be able to get across, or do like we did and head across when there was some rain which seemed to put a lot of the other tourists off! Once you've reached the other side, head to the left and visit the John Lennon wall, which was once a wall full of graffiti where young Czech's would complain about the Communist regime and is now more of a mural to "peace and love". 

If you ever get bored during one of your lunch breaks and find yourself looking for a quick and cheap city break to get away to, then you can't really go wrong with Prague. If you've got any ideas for any others, then do let me know!

how to spend 48 hours in lisbon.

So we'll have to excuse the film photos once again - I love them although I appreciate they're not the best quality for use on the internet. But seriously, isn't it nice to have a photo to hold once in a while, instead of hidden away inside your phone? The only issue is that I actually went to Lisbon nearly a year ago but never quite got around to getting them developed - and that really is one of the big problems of having film photos! 

Anyway, on to the matter at hand. Last year (!) I headed off to Lisbon for a little bit of time before heading off to Baleal in Portugal for a surfing trip. I'd been to Lisbon before, with my family, for a very short amount of time, but this was a little longer and this time I was with some friends and was over the legal drinking age which always makes a bit of difference when it comes to holidays I reckon.

48 hours probably isn't enough time to get to grips with all that Lisbon has to offer, but it is a great amount of time to get a taste for what the city has to offer. 

VISIT SAO JORGE CASTLE

We stayed in a little Airbnb pretty close by to the castle and so we made it one of our first stops. You can see it from pretty much anywhere in Lisbon, and it's perfect for walking along the towers and the ramparts to get a wicked view of the rest of Lisbon - and for checking out the view of the 25 de Abril Bridge across the River Tagus. It was quite busy when we arrived, but not overly so, and we paid the 8.50 euro fee to get inside so we could try and take photos of the peacocks which are everywhere inside the castle grounds.

EAT AT GRAPES AND BITES

Hidden away on Rua do Norte, this was one of our favourite places to grab some food while we were in Lisbon - to the point where I still think of it often even now. There was a wide range of petiscos - the Portuguese cousin to Spanish tapas - hot and cold, brilliantly presented and thousands of different wines to choose from too. The food was great, the service brilliant and best of all was that it wasn't too expensive either. 

EXPLORE HILLY STREETS

Even though it nearly killed me and my fat bum, exploring some of Lisbon's back streets was one of my favourite things to do while I was there. I never once managed to get my bearings and considered myself truly lost at most points of time, but you won't get much of a better work out walking up and down the thousands of steps that connect one street to the next. You won't get much better views either, which seem to sneak up on you when you least expect it. 

TAKE A RIDE ON TRAM 28

Most of Lisbon's trams have been replaced by more modern and efficient trains, but one line, the 28, still retains the trams which were commissioned in the 1930s. Not only that, but the route is one of the longest in Lisbon, meaning you get to see a whole lot of the city for a whole lot less than you would were you to pop on a double-decker tour bus. The only downside of doing this is that you have to put up with an absolutely massive queue that you just don't have to with other trams - but you just won't get the same level of charm exploring the city in any other way. When we were in Lisbon and it decided to rain one afternoon, this tram was a lifesaver and kept us dry while we explored for a bit. 

DRINK GINJINHA

I'd never even heard of ginijnha until a friend I was with in Lisbon decided we had to make our way to a little shop to pick up a shot. It's a thick sweet liqueur made from sour cherries, and it's apparently been around in Portugal for over 200 years. We picked ours up from A Ginjinha on Largo de Sao Domingos, where it cost around 1.4 euros. Personally, it's not a drink for me but I'm not one to turn down a shot if I can help it!

SNACK ON PASTEIS DE NATA

I think it's basically the truth that if you don't have at least a million of these little custard tarts when you're in Lisbon, then you have to question if you actually made it to Lisbon at all? You can pretty much get them everywhere, and could probably spend days looking for the best ones. Popular opinion seems to be that the best and most authentic tarts can be found at Pastéis de Belém but it's not too hard to find others to compare them to. 

LOOK OUT FOR TILES

This was seriously one of my favourite things to do in Lisbon, and I came home with more photos of tiles than I did of anything else. I didn't go quite as far as visiting Lisbon's tile museum, but to be honest, I came pretty close. They're a pretty important part of Lisbon's architecture and I was constantly surprised by the sheer range of tiles that there are - every single pattern and colour. It's a pretty big shame that at eye level a lot of the tiles are covered in graffiti - but I suppose that's a reminder to keep looking up!

Also worth a mention is to head to the Jerónimos Monastery. It's not something I personally did, but some of the friends I was with took a visit and really enjoyed it. I'm ashamed to say I passed thanks to a slightly sore head...

So that's my little guide to how to spend 48 hours in Lisbon. Had I had longer, I would have loved to have headed to Sintra, but maybe next time? I'm pretty sure I'll be back.

Have you been to Lisbon? Do you have any more tips?

Annie x

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a surfing break in baleal, portugal.

How amazing are film photos though? It's so nice to get them back from the developers and see what you've taken. It takes me right back to my childhood. We'll just ignore that I've had to crop my thumb out of the majority of these...

Anyway.

On to the matter at hand.

The one problem with taking photos of your holiday on only your film camera is that it will, at least if you're me, take you about a year to get them developed. I went on this holiday in May last year. I went with what can only be described as a ragtag bunch of friends - so much so it would almost be impossible to describe the relationship between us all - my ex-best friends University housemate and his current housemate would be a good start. Isn't it funny who you make friends with as you get older? I'm babbling again, sorry!