Travel Diary: Paris

A lovely long weekend was spent in Paris for my birthday. I had the best time strolling through the autumnal streets, drinking all the wine and sight seeing. So much so, that I want to share the things that we got up too. (Thank you Sam, you're the best). 

We arrived early hours of Friday morning, after an hours flight. We checked into the hotel after a train ride to the city, from the airport, dropped our bags off and jumped onto another train to Versailles. We stayed super close to Notre Dame, which was beautiful and convenient to be so near a metro to most other central parts of the city. Once off the train in Versailles, we visited the Palace of Versailles. A place that my year 11 self learned all about in History, when studying the treaty of Versailles. A beautiful place, surrounded by the most gorgeous gardens. A third train back into the city, and a stroll around the Eiffel Tower later, we got some dinner and went to sleep super early (a 4 o clock start that morning truly did me over). 

Saturday morning started with a croissant and some freshly squeezed orange juice. We strolled through the city to the Jardin De Plantes and the Pantheon. Another stroll through the city to the Louvre, where we qued and saw the Mona Lisa. Afterwards, we found the 'love lock' bridge which is no longer full of love locks. They were removed a couple of years ago, due to the weight that it was putting on the bridge which would have had effects on the usage of the bridge. But there were a few bunches of them here and there. We also visited a bar called the Little Red Door after dinner and it was really cool! There were only a small selection of drinks which were based on words in different languages. 

On Sunday, the weather wasn't the best, so we decided to spend the day doing what I'm sure was the rest of the tourists residing in Paris idea too - shopping. We started at the Galeries Lafayette, a designer mall with a roof top view over Paris and the most gorgeous ceilings, and shopping floors with balconies that overlooked the whole building. We also visited the Champs-Elysees, did a bit more shopping and took photos of the Arc Du Triomphe. 

Monday morning started off with more rain, which lead to more shopping. Thankfully, it stopped raining around lunch time when we were due to go up the Eiffel Tower. The views were amazing, although it was FREEZING! A hour or so was spent wondering around the Eiffel Tower, which followed with another little stroll, trying some snails and then the train ride back to the airport to fly home. Would 1000% recommend a long weekend in Paris, it's the most beautiful place. The architecture, the views, the people, the food, everything. It's so lovely.

Recommendations for the city..

- Due to being under 25 and an EU citizen, most of the museums and tourist attractions that we visited, we got in for free. (Definitely something to make use of if you're visiting Paris soon!) 

- Anything that you know for certain that you want to do/see, book beforehand! We were disappointed that one of the museum exhibitions were fully booked, but if we had looked further in advance, we may have been able to go!
- Eating out is expensive if you stick to the touristy areas. Take yourself away from there and you'll find some amazing food.

Have you ever been to Paris?
Amber X

The Perfect Snowy Weekend Treat

Last weekend, the snow hit. I must have been in school the last time I had a 'snow day'. Schools were closed, and work was closed. There was so much of it! I woke up early (this seems to be a habit of mine recently and I'm not 100% sure that I am a massive fan of it), and went for a little stroll amongst the 4/5 inches of whiteness that filled the floor and the snowy branches of trees that dropped copious amounts each time the wind blew in it's direction. That was all the snow that I took in.. I love how pretty it looks when it first settles, but when you're 3 days into the disruption that it causes public transport, or sticking to plans that you've made or even getting anywhere for that matter, it starts to get on my nerves.
Although the snow was a bit of a pain, and my weekend didn't go as it was originally planned, it was so lovely to be able to cook such wholesome, warm foods for dinner. Sausage casserole, pie and curry - mm! I even had the time to bake! A warm pecan and chocolate chip banana bread made the perfect treat for a cold snowy weekend.

The recipe I followed and copied into this post (although I did alter some ingredients just for personal preference and I will make note of those) was a >Jamie Oliver recipe<, and it turned out delicious. 10000% I shall make this again, and even adapt the recipe slightly more, adding different flavours like berries or walnuts!

You will need:

• Loaf Tin
• Olive Oil
• 250g of Self Raising Flour 
• 2 Tablespoons of Apple Juice (I personally dislike apple juice, and so I used Almond Milk)
• 3 Ripe Banana's - the riper, the better!
• 125g of Unsalted Butter
• 2 Large Free-Range Eggs
• 1/2 Teaspoons of Ground Cinnamon (I also added a little bit of ginger)
• 2 Tablespoons of Runny Honey
• 50g of Pecans (I didn't weigh the amount of pecans I used, the more the merrier, am I right..)

1. Start by preheating your oven to 180 degrees/gas 4. Then begin greasing your loaf tin with the olive oil, and dust with a small amount of flour, tap to remove the excess. Set to one side.

2. Peel your banana's, place into a bowl and mash with a fork until a smooth but chunky mixture.

3. Stir in the apple juice (this is where I added the almond milk). 

4. In a separate bowl, beat the butter with a wooden spoon until creamy. 

5. Add the eggs, 1 at a time combining well before adding the next, into the butter mixture. 

6. Fold in the flour, honey, cinnamon (and what other spices you may fancy adding) as well as the banana mixture but be careful not to over mix. 

7. Roughly chop the pecans (or your other fillings) and fold into the mixture.

8. Pour mixture into the loaf tin and bake in the middle of a hot oven for 40 minutes, or until golden brown. (I left mine in the oven for 45 minutes, and it was perfect).

9. Leave to cool in the loaf tin when brought out from the oven initially, and then transfer to a wire rack to cool further.

10. Serve and enjoy!

This banana bread definitely made being snowed in much better! Here's the recipe >again< in case you'd rather follow these more detailed steps.

What do you like to do on a snow day?

Amber X

A Warm Treat for a Cold Day

Whether you agree or not, a hot chocolate is one of the best things to have to warm up on a cold, chilly day. When you know you need to clutch a hot drink in a mug to feel your fingers again, a hot chocolate is always a winner. Last year I wrote up >this< hot chocolate related post, this one's a little different. All you'll need is your favourite hot chocolate, tonnes of cream and finally, your favourite chocolate as a topping, or to munch alongside your mega hot choc. I have been loving Reece's ever since coming home from New York - we picked up a LOAD of different types of Reece's from the Hershey's shop and my god have I become addicted.

Simply grab your mug of choice (the bigger the better though surely) and make your hot chocolate as you normally would. Followed by constructing the biggest tower of whipped cream humanly possible. I even thought of stirring in a tiny bit of peanut butter to make it a little different seeing as I'm Reece's obsessed.. Or maybe even some mint Aero chocolate would be amazing! Add marshmallows even, whatever is your favourite way to drink hot chocolate.
Now to enjoy whilst binging something on Netflix. They've recently added a whole category named "Netflix and Chills" which is full of creepy Halloween picks, perfect for a cosy evening in approaching Halloween with friends, or alone, and enjoying the ultimate hot chocolate.

What's your hot drink of choice on a cold day?

Amber X

A December Evening Pamper

There is no doubt that a pamper session is the perfect way to spend an evening after a long day of work, studying or just generally being busy. But having a relaxing evening, after spending the day Christmas shopping, decorating, writing Christmas cards, preparing food ready for Christmas day, or even watching Christmas films all day, sounds 100x better. Here are some things I like to do when I want to spend the evening unwinding, and soaking up all the festivities. 

First on my list for some down time, is taking off my makeup. I know this may seem strange to some of you, but there are days that I genuinely look forward to taking my makeup off. It means the day is done, and it's time to get cosy. Especially after a long day, makeup can start to feel unwanted on my skin, and it feels much better once it's been removed. First off I use wipes, and then I take my trusty, Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish to ensure that everything is gone. For a gentle exfoliation, my favourite is the Neutrogena Visibly Clear Pink Grapefruit Daily Scrub. This stuff leaves my skin feeling super clean and fresh. I then tone, if I want too (this Liz Earle one is amazing) and then I moisturise with the Nivea moisturizer. 

Unfortunately, at uni we don't have a bath in our flat (big sad face). So after a hot shower, I like to put my pj's on. I recently brought myself the cutest Christmas pj bottoms from Next. Nothing is better, or cosier, than xmas pj's. I like to pair my pj's with fluffy socks, and a fleecy dressing gown. 

From here, there are so many different things I like to do, but it is completely dependent on my mood. Face masks, painting my nails, making a hot chocolate (click here for the yummiest recipe), sticking on a Christmas film whilst munching on Christmas chocolate, putting some music on, catching up on YouTube videos, browsing the internet, watching some Netflix, reading, or simply just putting on some fairy lights.

What do you like to do to pamper yourself?

Amber X 

Cheeky Little Asos Haul

When it comes to clothes shopping, it takes me ages to find pieces that I like. Then comes the debating as to whether I can see myself wearing it. If I can't see myself wearing it, it goes back onto the clothing rack. This is usually, if not always what happens whenever I attempt to go clothes shopping. It just so happened that the last time I looked on asos for some new clothing pieces to get for going back to University, I found a whole bunch of items I liked, result haha!

I'll leave links to the few items I picked up, in case you wanted to have a look yourself :-)

Converse Chuck Taylor All Star Ox Trainers 

I have been thinking about getting a pair of Converse for a while now, but just haven't seen a style or colour that I think would suit me. Initially when I saw these on asos, I thought they were grey - when they arrived, they were not! However, I do love the colour of them (maybe even more than if they were grey) and I cant wait to wear them!

Asos Cami with Eyelet Trim 

Black cami tops are just my favourite - they look good with jeans, skirts, shorts, everything! The V neck and eyelet detailing makes this cami so different to any others I have seen and it breaks up my collection of plain, black tops haha! This little cami definitely meets the 'jeans and a nice top' memo.

^ How cute does it look with Converse?!

Asos Stripe T Shirt in Baby Loop Back

Stripy tops are something that I love to thrown on with a pair of jeans. You can never have too many. I love the style of this one -  being slightly baggy, it's nothing like the other stripy tops I own. It fits well around my shoulders and isn't too tight around my wrists - this is often something I find with a lot of long sleeve tops/jumpers. I may need to get the red colour too...

What have you treated yourself too lately?

Amber X