2014 was a year of challenges, surprises and – integral to my existence as a travel blogger – many incredible adventures. Here are some of the most significant moments from the past year.
I’m pretty sure that my friends here in London wanted to murder me by the time these months rolled around. Why? Because 4 October was my sister’s wedding, along with a three-week trip to South Africa for the occasion. I can’t recall speaking about anything else in the months preceding that date!
The two weeks before the actual wedding were unbelievably busy, involving lots of driving, decor making and dress fittings. Throw in a kitchen tea and hen party, and you’ll understand why there was very little Mother City sightseeing going on.
It was all worth it, though. My sister is my closest friend, and language feels limiting whenever I try to explain what it meant to be a part of Anna and Michael’s journey. From their engagement in Croatia to their travel-themed wedding in the mountains of the Western Cape, I’m so happy that I got to be there for these special moments.
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| Photo credits: Love Made Visible. |
Love Made Visible were the photographers for my sister’s wedding, and you can see their photo compilation of the big day over here.
Nowadays, I never delve too deeply into my personal life here. Ironically though, this blog started out as a personal one, as part of a self-inflicted writing project I took up after graduating from university.
Resonating with those beginnings, I can say that May was one of the most challenging months of my life. Due to their financial woes, I lost my job at a digital marketing agency. Since I was still within my six-month probation period, I had no more than a week’s notice. To say that this turn of events was a surprise would be a massive understatement.
But, ever one to be optimistic, I decided to try and turn this stressful situation around. And so began my ‘funemployment’, where, amid the manic job hunting and panicking, I took the time to explore as much of London as possible and I travelled more than I ever have before, with four trips back to back (more on those below)!
On a serious note, a big thanks to my mum for a) always being my biggest fan and b) for keeping me sane during 2014’s tough times.
I was so fortunate to be able to travel a lot this year, and to walk away with so many good memories. These are the trips I got to take in 2014.
This was the perfect way to bring in 2014. After celebrating New Year’s Eve in Lisbon – with Christmas-time stops in both Sintra and Evora – my mum and I returned to London with memories of castles, walled cities and, importantly, pasteis de nata.
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| Castelo dos Mouros, Sintra. |
I’ll use any excuse for exploring the UK, and Traverse ’14 provided a perfect one for seeing Newcastle. Filled with learning, networking, a trip to Hadrian’s Wall and a bit of partying, this was definitely one of the most fun weekends of the year.
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| Exploring Hadrian’s Wall. |
Imagine a terrified-looking girl with a massive backpack strapped to her stepping off the Tube at Heathrow Airport. That girl was me. March marked the very first time that I’d done a long-haul trip all on my own (if you don’t count immigration to the UK, of course) and, while there were obstacles along the way, this was the most rewarding and freeing trip I’ve ever taken.
In just under three weeks, I had sightseeing overload in Bangkok, explored temples in Chiang Mai, volunteered at an elephant retirement park, partied way too much on Koh Phi Phi, did rock climbing in Railay and snorkelled in a shark-filled bay off Koh Tao. This trip not only started a love affair with a new country – it also made me feel like I was a lot stronger and more resourceful than I originally thought!
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| At Chiang Mai’s Elephant Retirement Park. |
I celebrated my return to the UK with an Easter-time road trip with my mum. After discovering the fascinating attractions of Bath (a city I’d love to revisit), we hired a car and drove through Somerset, with an entire day spent at Cheddar Gorge.
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| Spectacular Cheddar Gorge. |
The beginning of my funemployment coincided with my first trip to Wales. I had an afternoon to explore Caernarfon, where my number-one priority involved a trip to the castle. The next day, I climbed Mount Snowdon, which has to be one of the most beautiful locations I’ve ever hiked in.
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| Hiking up Mount Snowdon. |
May also happened to feature my very first press trip. Julie from A Lady in London and I had three amazing days discovering Guernsey and Sark, thanks to Visit Guernsey. I think we were both surprised at just how much there is to see on these islands, and I know that we’ve since spoken often on how we’d like to see the other Channel Islands too.
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| La Coupee, Sark. |
This was my second-ever press trip, this time with Spain in UK and Cantabria Infinita. Travelling with three other travel ladies, we all got to see just how much this gorgeous Northern region has to offer. While in Cantabria, we saw some of the world’s oldest rock art, paid a visit to Cabarceno Nature Park, had a walking tour and dinner in medieval Santillana del Mar and tried our hand at sailing in the waters off Santander.
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| A street in Santillana del Mar. |
I had originally booked this trip as it fell over the Bank Holiday weekend. I’d always wanted to visit Istanbul, and my experience there didn’t disappoint. Although I didn’t always feel entirely feel comfortable there as a female on my own (especially in the evenings), the buildings and other attractions I saw there soon made me forget any discomfort I may have felt.
In one of the more comical moments of the year, I also met up with Becki from Borders of Adventure on this trip, and we visited a Turkish hamam together. Read her brilliant account of this experience.
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| Yoros Castle. |
As someone who fails at the easiest task involving hand-eye coordination, no one was more surprised than me when I was invited to Star Surf Camps in France so that I could enrol in surfing lessons. I was part of a team brought in to celebrate and spread awareness about International Surfing Day (watch the resulting video). I’m not destined to be even a below-average surfer, but those sun-filled days with inspiring people were some of my favourites of the year.
I followed this week up with a few extra days in San Sebastian, Spain, which was only a short bus journey away. Cue a lot of hiking and excessive eating, but I also used this solo time to get my head around my upcoming job hunt.
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| The wonderful International Surfing Day crew. |
Sometimes, spontaneous trips can be the very best kind. A few minutes after hearing about my sister’s last-minute confirmation to attend a conference in Strasbourg, I bought my flights without really thinking about it.
We spent two days exploring this highly photogenic city – a city with medieval, half-timbered buildings, outdoor cafes and a cathedral that completely dominates the skyline.
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| My beloved sister and I in Strasbourg. |
This was my second trip with my boyfriend, Chris, and he was longing for some time in the surf. We had heard that the area near St Ives in Cornwall was good for waves, and we headed over there on an epic road trip.
This is a picturesque part of the UK (see this photo of Hell’s Mouth as evidence) and the experience just amplified my need to see as much of my new country as possible.
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| Hell’s Mouth, Cornwall. |
A 3AM taxi, cryptic texts and sneaky planning; these were the moments leading up to Chris’ surprise birthday weekend away. I wanted to show him one of my favourite places in the whole world: the tricity area of Sopot, Gdansk and Gdynia in Poland.
It was a lovely weekend away where we got to soak up the last rays of Europe’s summer sunshine.
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| Old Town, Gdansk. |
September and October – Cape Town, South Africa
The ultimate trip for the ultimate wedding. See above for the details!
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| The Boomslang walkway at Kirstenbosch Gardens. |
Since it was my birthday on 1 December, Chris got his ‘revenge’ by surprising me with a long weekend to a city I had wanted to see for years. Prague surpassed all of my expectations, and I can’t wait to start sharing my posts on this destination soon.
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| Charles Bridge: Prague in the wintertime. |
This was my last trip for the year, and we decided to do a wintertime stay in Oxford. There’s so much to see and do in this particular city, so it was a top choice to round out a year that’s seen so much travel.
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| Outside the Bodleian Library, Oxford. |
As I’ve already stated, 2014 threw a lot of firsts my way, and I also got my first real glimpse into what it takes to do full-time travel blogging. A lot of that boils down to knowing what you, as a blogger, have to offer. I spent a lot of time trying to figure this out, which resulted in me reaffirming the topics I love writing about the most: stories as opposed to lists, quirky/alternative places and activities and my experiences in my new home here in London.
There’s still a long, LONG way to go in terms of improving my blog, but 2014 was the year when I really started thinking about what blogging means to me and about my position within that industry. Analysing aside, a particular 2014 blogging highlight has to be my newspaper interview in the South African Sunday Times, which prompted a lot of happy screeching (from my side) and excessive newspaper buying (by my dad and sister).
On a slightly different note, I’ve said it here often: my first friends in London were other travel bloggers. Another year has meant a wealth of new memories with the wonderful friends I’ve made. 2014 involved dinner dates, conferences, London adventures and even some camping in an extremely questionable tent – and I’m already looking forward to all of our future shenanigans.
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| Photo booth shenanigans at World Travel Market. |
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| Inappropriate tent donated by Simon. |
While travel blogging led me to new friends, I can’t say that I ever expected it to lead to a different type of relationship too. I won’t get overly soppy here, but I will, however, say that, apart from simply being an awesome, supportive and effortlessly funny person, Chris has become my favourite travel companion.
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| Chris and I in Prague. |
With all of that being said, I can’t help but wonder what 2015 will hold in store… But I do know that, thanks to the January travel link up that’s due in the first week of the new year, I’m going to have to come up with some guesses very soon!
Stay tuned for my 2015 wishlist!
What were your favourite moments of 2014? Sharing is caring, so please comment below; I’d love to read your answers!
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