Revisiting That UK Destination Bucketlist

Not too long ago, I wrote a >blog post< sharing where in the UK I still wanted to visit and explore. Funnily enough, two of the places on my list were crossed off within a week.

On a hot Monday off of work, we travelled down to Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove in the early morning and had arrived by 11. The car park just above Durdle Door was already filling up pretty fast, and there were so many people already about. The walk down to Durdle Door was quite a steep one, and if it's steep on the way down, that only means one thing.. It's going to be hard work on the way back up haha. And it was! But it was so worth it. The beach is pebble, and wasn't as crowded as we had anticipated. It was so peaceful! People were jumping off of Durdle Door itself into the sea, and most people were just lounging around like we were. It was beautiful.

You can walk from Durdle Door to Lulworth Cove itself, but it involves walking down a very steep cliff side. If you psyche yourself up for the walk back up, you'll be fine. The top of the cliff gave the most beautiful views of the cove, you could see the Jurassic Coast line for miles. Although, the cove itself was as impressive (in my opinion) to photos that I had seen on Pintrest, it was still nice to take it all in, and sit with an ice cream, whilst listening to the sound of the sea wash up on the pebble beach. If you haven't visited the Jurassic coast, I would recommend you go! Especially on a warm, sunny day.

The second place on my UK bucketlist that we visited that week was St Michael's Mount, Marazion. I never realised that St Michael's Mount itself was National Trust. Being a member, this was amazing, as we all got to explore the ground free of charge. St Michael's Mount is connected to the shore by a manmade causeway, which when the tide is out, allows you to walk over to the island - pretty cool! The causeway was covered with water when we wanted to go out, so we caught a little ferry over to the island. There were so many HUGE jellyfish that had been washed up with the tide on the beach. There have been a fair few sightings of massive jellyfish off the coast of Cornwall at the moment! The grounds were incredible! The views were incredible. The sea itself was clear and turquoise. After exploring the grounds, the causeway was free of the sea, and we were able to walk along it, back to sure. St Michael's Mount is and has been one of my favourite National Trust visits.

Have you visited either places?

Amber X

Porto Santo Stefano - Monte Argentario, Orbetello

The fourth stop on our Italian trip - Porto Santo Stefano, Monte Argentario, Orbetello. We took the train from Florence to Pisa, walked through Pisa to find the leaning tower. Took some exceptionally touristy (yes I just did say that) photos, ate lunch overlooking the tower, and headed back to the train station, after an Aperol Spritz, and made our way to Porto Santo Stefano.

Not one of the most spoken about places in Italy, I was so excited to visit somewhere that wasn't specifically tourist driven, somewhere that was more authentic and Italian. It was definitely that. Only a fair few people could understand an English conversation (which if anything made me feel incredibly ignorant, being in another country and incapable of speaking the language), and some delicious seafood. The view from the balcony of our Air BNB was just incredible. A view that I could never tire of seeing. One that was would be different in the morning, and different again in the evening. A most needed break from travelling from city to city. A place of quiet and calm.

Recommendations for those visiting..

Plan your route of getting there beforehand - Finding public transport when you don't speak any Italian, is always going to be tricky, but when you're in a rush to catch a train is even worse. Make sure you know how you're going to be getting to and from your mode of transport in good time, or completely prior travelling. This will save SO much stress.

Take the ferry to Isola Del Giglio - A pretty little island, an hour ferry ride away from Porto Santo Stefano with the bluest sea, and secluded beaches. It's a must see. Whether it be for a day at the beach, or for a hike around somewhere new, a place that you cannot miss. The photos will never do it justice, it's just paradise.

Try all the seafood - If you're wanting to try seafood for the first time, there is no better time too than when it is completely fresh. It'll never taste better. Or, if you're a seafood lover than myself, you must have it when it is at it's best! With the port, seafood is so fresh. We had so much incredible seafood.. I wish I could eat it all over again.

Would you visit here?

Amber X