Ahh Paris, the city of lights, how I love you. This blog post has taken me a while to publish (I returned from my trip over a month ago now - how time flies!), but I wanted to make sure I got it right. To me, like many across the globe, Paris is a very special city - there's just something about it - and I didn't feel that I'd be doing it, or any of you, justice if I rushed through a guide to the city. 

2016 has been a year of change for me, full of some of the best times, and some of the worst. I started the year stuck in a rut, completely unhappy at where my life had taken me and generally down in the dumps. Unwilling to just sulk and hope my life worked itself out, I threw myself into my work, finally took the plunge and changed my blog direction, leaving me feeling a whole lot happier at the end of the year. 2016 was also the year I thew myself into travel, which is how 'Sail Away' came about really, so what better way to end the year, than by recapping some of my travel highlights. So, in no particular order...

1. Learning to sail.

This isn't something I thought I'd be doing this year, but in June we sailed to Cowes on the Isle of Wight. It was torrential rain the whole way through, but even that didn't spoil the fun! So much so, that we're looking at sailing again this year. 

2. Shooting machine guns in Las Vegas.

Again, not something I'd have imagined myself doing this year, and definitely not one for everyone, but if you don't mind playing with guns (in a safe & controlled environment - they don't just let you loose in the desert!) then I'd definitely recommend a visit - it's something I'll remember forever. 

3. Looking out over the Grand Canyon in Arizona. 

Visiting the Grand Canyon is something that's been on my bucket list for so long, and this year I was finally able to make that dream a reality. Looking out over the Grand Canyon was breathtaking, and reminded me of just how small we really are - a truly unforgettable experience.

4. Spending the night at a traditional arabic camp in Dubai.

This is something I've done before, but I wanted to show my friend who I was travelling with just how magical it can be. When you think of Dubai you often think of the flashy lights and super yachts, but taking the time to visit old Dubai is something truly wonderful. 

5. Eating French food in Paris.

Paris is somewhere that I've wanted to visit for my entire life, and with it being so close to the UK, it's a wonder I'd never been before! Eating French food in a little parisian restaurant was the dream, and I can't wait to return one day.

6. Winning on the slots in Las Vegas.

My trip to Las Vegas was one of my favourites this year, and in true Vegas style, of course I had a go at the slots...in fact, I had more than a go - I won! Okay, so it may have only been $180 but still, I felt like a millionaire when those bells started ringing!

7. Watching the world go by at the top of the Burj Khalifa.

The viewing platform at the Burj Khalifa in Dubai is another thing which reminded me of just how small we all are. I've been to viewing platforms before, but nothing compares to the Burj Khalifa, I've never seen giant sky scrapers look so teeny!

8. Gazing up at the Eiffel Tower. 

As I said, Paris has been on my mind for years. Sitting on the platform at the Trocadero, gazing up at the magnificent Tour Eiffel, I felt like all of my dreams had come true - there's something so magical about Paris, and this view captured that magic perfectly.

9. Pumpkin picking in Surrey. 

Okay so maybe I didn't have to travel too far for this one, but I'd still like to include it as it was so much fun. This year we did the cliche 'blogger thing' and headed to the Pumpkin Patch on Halloween, and we had a great time so I'll definitely be doing it again this year!

10. Flying Business Class with British Airways.

This last one technically isn't about the destination, more the journey. I recently flew business class with British Airways (to Munich and back in a day!) and it was such a dream. I'm always in the cheap seats right at the back of the plane, so being able to experience business was such a treat! 

On our third and final day in Paris, we had a lot of things we still wanted to see. Eager to cram in as much as possible, we headed out bright and early (after a quick pitstop at Starbucks to caffinate), taking the metro back to the Trocadero. 

Although we'd been the night before, we still wanted to see the Eiffel Tower in all of it's glory during sunlight, and the Trocadero really is the best place to take it all in. It turns out that Sunday morning is a great time to visit, as the crowds are much less and the sun created the most beautiful haze over the monument. 

We then took a stroll down the road to pick up some souvenirs from our trip. I like to pick up at least one little souvenir from each place I visit, to remember my time, and so that my home is decorated with a little piece of the world I've travelled - it brings back lovely memories and keeps me thinking about the happy times. We then wandered down to one of my favourite places in Paris, the Palais Royal. 

On day 2 in Paris, we were still suitcase-less and it was really starting to take it's toll. We'd had to sleep in our clothes, with no toiletries and what was supposed to be a fashion-filled girly weekend was turning into something much less stylish. Determined to not let this completely ruin our weekend, we all swapped coats (that's a new outfit, right?), threw on our sunglasses and hit the streets of Paris for our second day. 

First thing on the agenda was definitely breakfast. We'd initially planned to travel up to the Sacre Coeur that morning and to grab breakfast while we were up there, but unfortunately we needed to spend the morning shopping for necessities and new clothes in case our suitcase never turned up. Instead, we headed down the road from our hotel to the Galleries Lafayette and dived into a teeny french café. The café was your typical French bistro, serving up everything from croissants to croque madame to delight your tastebuds...and of course, wine. All three of us opted for the Croque Madame (cheese, eggs and bread?! yes please.) and a much needed coffee. Feeling a lot better after breakfast, we hit Sephora and the Galleries Lafayette and came out with a whole new outfit and toiletries to change into. 

After shopping we headed back to the hotel for a much needed shower and outfit change. As we got back to the hotel we found that our case had just arrived (at around 3pm) so we decided we would spend a bit of time at the hotel doing our hair and makeup, and generally making ourselves feel human again. 

The site also has historical significance, as an important part of the French Revolution. During the French Revolution the statue of Louis XV of France was torn down and the area was renamed Place de la Révolution. The new revolutionary government erected the guillotine in the square, and it was there that King Louis XVI was executed in 1793. Other important historical figures were also guillotined on the site, often in front of cheering crowds, such as Marie Antoinette, Princess Elisabeth of France, Georges Danton and Olympe de Gouges. Standing in the square now, it's hard to think that such horror occurred there back in the 1700s. 

After we'd finished at the Place de la Concorde, we headed to the infamous Angelia Paris to warm up with some hot chocolate and cake. When we were planning our weekend, we knew that a trip to Angelina was an absolute must. Frequented by Coco Chanel herself, their restaurant has become famous across the globe and their hot chocolate is to die for - The famous african hot chocolate is composed of three carefully selected kinds of African cocoa sourced from Niger, Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire, and is unlike anything I've ever tasted. 

The restaurant itself is beautiful, with it's typical french interiors and friendly staff, and the cakes are out of this world. Never one to shy away from a chocolate overload, I chose the 'Vienne'. As a reminder of the company's Austrian origins, the chefs have given the traditional chocolate Viennese pastry a new twist for the festive season - offering an alliance of three chocolates, worked in several different ways. It was delicious and if you're passing by any of their stores you have to give this a go!

It was dark by the time we left Angelina (the one bad thing about winter in Paris - the sun goes down at around 4pm!) so we headed to the Trocadero to take in the sparkling lights of the Eiffel Tower. The Eiffel Tower is one of my favourite monuments in the world, so to see it sparkling away right in-front of me was so special. The Eiffel Tower lights up every night, but on the hour, it switches on its sparkling lights for the prettiest of light shows. We waited a whole hour in the cold to see the lights twinkle, and it was so worth it - one of the highlights of my trip. 

After we were finished at the Eiffel Tower, we headed back to the hotel to prepare for dinner at A la Cloche d'Or, a french restaurant located right next to the Moulin Rouge. As the Parisians do, we headed out for dinner late and went fully French with our meal choices. First we had escargot and the best baked camembert I've ever had, followed by a selection of French meat dishes ad to round off we indulged in a trio of sorbet. The food was amazing and the restaurant had such a lovely atmosphere, I'd definitely recommend for anyone looking for a French feast in Paris!

For me, food is a big part of travel. It allows you to experience new cultures and meet the locals if you do it right, and being a fussy eater at the best of times, I like to have a few places scoped out before I arrive. I was only in Paris for three days, but we managed to find some great little places so I thought it would be worth sharing. I've also added in a little map to the bottom of this post with all of the details, hopefully it helps if you're planning a trip to Paris!

Time for Tea

Angelina

If you find yourself in Paris, you must visit Angelina for one of their famous hot chocolates and cakes. Angelina was first founded in 1903 by Antoine Rumpelmayer and quickly became the place to be among the Parisian aristocracy and Coco Chanel herself. If you only try one thing, make it their African Hot Chocolate. The famous african hot chocolate is composed of three carefully selected kinds of African cocoa sourced from Niger, Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire, and is unlike anything I've ever tasted. While you're sipping on your hot chocolate, you'll also *need* a pastry to go with it. The Mont-Blanc is Angelina's most famous pastry combining meringue, light whipped cream and chestnut paste vermicelli - a unique and unrivalled recipes since 1903. 

Pierre Hermé

Pierre Hermé is the home of the macaroon - a must for any parisian stroll. Pierre Hermé is a french pastry chef and chocolatier, who created his own brand in 1998. Heir to four generations of alsatian baker and pastry-making tradition, Pierre Hermé began his career at the age of 14 as an apprentice to Gaston Lenôtre, so it's fair to say he knows his stuff. Since then, he's been awarded the title of World's Best Pastry Chef and fourth most influential French person in the world. His stores are scattered across the city, so you're bound to stumble across one on your walks. 

Ladurée

When in Paris, tea and cake at Ladurée is a must. The recipe for the Ladurée macaron hasn't changed since the middle of the 20th century, and with good reason - it's delicious. The restaurant on the Champs Elysées is simply stunning - sit and let the world go by as you enjoy one of the worlds most famous macarons, in one of the worlds prettiest restaurants. 

Lunch and Dinner

La Bocca Della Verita

If you're craving italian food whilst you're in Paris (honestly, I'm always craving italian food!), then La Bocca Della Verita is a must. The menu is pretty small, but they've perfected everything they serve. Their hazelnut and rocket pesto pasta is to die for, and the cocktails aren't to be missed either!

A La Cloche d'Or

If you're wanting to try traditional french food, then A La Cloche d'Or is perfect for you. The baked camembert is the best I've ever had, and the staff are all super friendly. The restaurant serves food until midnight, and I'd say the best time to go is around 10pm. You can also book this restaurant online here to guarantee a space and it's in the perfect location right next to the Moulin Rouge!

Frog Hop House

The Frog Hop House has been brewing beer in Paris since 1993 (the year all the best things were born haha) and has since opened up their own bar/restaurant right by Rue Cambon. It's perfect if you want American-French food (their halloumi burger is great) and a cocktail or two. They also serve a great breakfast and the atmosphere is laid back, so perfect for an easy dinner. 

Light Bites:

Bistrot Valois

Located right across the street from the Palais Royal (a.k.a my fave spot in Paris), Bistrot Valois is perfect for grabbing a bite to eat and a glass of bubbly. We stopped off for just that to beat the cold before heading back to the hotel - I'd really recommend the cheese and meats board. 

Café de Flore

The Café de Flore is one of the oldest coffeehouses in Paris. Located at the corner of Boulevard Saint-Germain and Rue Saint-Benoît, in Saint-Germain-des-Prés in the 6th arrondissement, it is celebrated for its famous clientele.

Thomas Jefferson famously said 'a walk in Paris will provide lessons in history, beauty, and in the point of life'. Desperate to experience this for ourselves, we booked a short break in the much-loved French capital city. Having lived in London for a while now, it's a wonder as to why I've not made Paris my second home. It's so close to London, yet so far from what London is...indescribable differences that make these cities incomparable, yet beautiful in their own ways. I've said it time and time again, whilst I love London, spending too much time there can wear you down...Paris on the other hand, is the city to visit when you want to feel alive. 

Even emerging from a railway station, you're surrounded by the beauty of the city. Take the Gare D'Orsay for example, you're instantly hit by a view of the Seine and it's many wonderful bridges, the Louvre, Notre Dame, the beginning of the Champs Elysees, I could go on....there really is nothing like it on earth. 

Anyway, I digress, today I wanted to share with you my first day in Paris, and how I instantly fell in love with the city. Our flight left London Heathrow bright and early, so we were lucky enough to catch the morning light in Paris by 8am. The first part of our morning was filled with the necessary admin tasks that come with landing in a new city - finding the hotel, checking in, and of course caffeinating for the day ahead. Unfortunately, Air France lost our suitcase, so a lot of our day was spent on the phone to their (somewhat useless) customer service team trying to locate our belongings, with little success.

Determined not to let the small issue of a missing case ruin our mini-break, we hopped on the metro to the Grand Palais for a quick look, we were pretty behind schedule at this point so we didn't have time to go inside, and then a wander down the Champs Elysées to the Arc De Triomphe. We found that the best way to see Paris was to walk, theres so much beauty in the architecture and the quaint little shops and cafes that you'll miss if you're on the metro - so it was definitely worth the extra steps to walk everywhere on day one.


As I said, the architecture in Paris is something to behold, and the Champs Elysées is just stunning. The Avenue des Champs-Elysées is probably the most famous avenue in the world. The impressive street stretches from the Place de la Concorde (the famous fountain where Anne Hathaway throws her Blackberry away in the Devil Wears Prada a.k.a my fave film ever) to the Place Charles de Gaulle, or the site of the Arc De Triomphe.

Determined to make it to the Arc De Triomphe before it got too dark to enjoy the view, we strolled down the Champs Elysées without stopping in any of the shops (serious will power was required), only stopping to take a few snaps of the beautiful buildings.


When we finally made it to the Arc De Triomphe we spent some time exploring the beautiful details of the statue and paying our respects to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It's often easy to forget that the Arc De Triomphe is more than just a beautiful statue, but a monument to honour those who fought and dies for France in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. The monument has the names of all French victories and generals inscribed on its inner and outer pillars, and beneath the monument lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from WW1, marked by the first eternal flame in Europe since the Vestal Virgins' fire was extinguished in the fourth century. It can be quite a solemn experience, but something I'd definitely recommend visiting if you're into your history like me.

After we'd taken it all in underneath the monument, we headed inside to purchase our tickets and hop in the lift to the top. It turns out that a visit to the top is actually free if you're under 25, so remember to take your ID with you and you can save yourself a few euros! We then quickly discovered that the lift was out of service for maintenance and that we'd have to climb all the way to the top...this wouldn't normally be a problem but I was suffering with the flu and trust me, it's not easy to climb when you can barely breathe! After we'd finally made it to the top (after multiple little breaks) we were amazed by the view. From the top of the Arc De Triomphe you can see pretty much the whole of Paris - everything from the Sacre Coeur to the Eiffel Tower and all of the pretty buildings in between. It was a pretty misty day when we visited, but luckily we were still able to enjoy the breathtaking view.


After we'd made it safely back down the Arc De Triomphe, we decided to rest our legs and do the typical girls weekend thing of going for tea and cake at Ladurée. The Ladurée restaurant on the Champs Elysées is simply stunning, it's typical parisian ornate decor was everything I'd ever dreamed of and the treats were to die for. I had the hot chocolate with chantilly cream and it was honestly like nothing I'd ever tasted - simply amazing. Between us we managed to try one of their chocolate delights, a cheesecake and their famous Ispahan, all of which were so tasty. As I go through my three days in Paris, I'm sure you'll start to notice a theme...hot chocolate and cake!


After we'd finished up at Ladurée and felt we were ready to brave the cold, we hopped on the metro and took a quick train to the Louvre. We didn't spend long here as it was getting dark, and we'd all been before, but it was still lovely to have a quick walk around and grab some photos next to the famous art gallery. It was already dusk by this point, so there wasn't too much more sightseeing we could fit into the day, however we did quickly cross the road to admire the Palais Royal - one of my favourite places in Paris. As it was getting dark quickly, we made the decision to revisit the Palais Royal another day, as we wanted to admire it's beauty during daylight.


As it had been quite a long day (especially with losing all of our belongings - thanks Air France!) we decided to treat ourselves to some bubbles and some traditional french snacks (french bread, french cheese and french cold meats) at Bistrot Valois, located right next to the Palais Royal. The Bistro was a traditional french cafe, complete with european festive decorations - it was the perfect way to get cosy before heading back to the hotel.


After we'd drank our way through a bottle of french champagne, we headed back to the hotel to prepare for dinner - although there wasn't much we could do as we didn't have our outfits and makeup with us! For dinner, we headed to La Bocca Della Verita - a quaint little italian restaurant recommended to me by Jenny from Margo & Me (she's your go-to girl on all things Paris!). If your craving italian food, then this place is to die for - their rocket and hazelnut pasta is divine.

If you're a foodie visiting London, then you need to take a trip down to Borough Market a.k.a foodie's paradise. Borough Market is London's most renowned food and drink market, and for good reason. I had the day off work today, so I decided to take a little trip across London to see what all of the fuss was about...

Located right next to London Bridge Station, the market is made up from 70 stalls all selling gourmet food from across the globe. Before you enter the market, you're greeted with hundreds of buzzing tourists and Londoners eating, chatting and snapping the odd photograph, which makes for such an exciting atmosphere - the whole place was buzzing. 

Borough Market is quite a loud place, and it's definitely very busy (especially around lunch time - abound the 12pm rush if you can!), so it's not one for the faint hearted...but then again, I wouldn't say London is for those who prefer a quiet life! There's so much to see, eat and do at Borough Market, it's really worth planning to spend half a day looking around the stalls so that you can see everything. I ended up staying for around 3 hours, just wandering through all of the stalls and sampling the culinary delights...everything from scallops to donuts, but the cheese stalls were definitely my favourite (and of course the prosecco spritzers!). 

With so much on offer, it's easy to get overwhelmed and go for the first stall you see. However, my top tip would be to take a walk around the whole market first before deciding what you want to eat..there's nothing worse than settling for the first thing you see then getting major food envy right after...and definitely go with an empty stomach! 

If you've traveled all the way over to Southwark to see the market, it's worth planning in some time to explore the surrounding area. London Bridge area is alive with history, so it's definitely worth planning in one of the Jack the Ripper tours...if you can handle a fright!

Bon Appétit!

I desperately wanted to go to Vermont this year for Autumn to experience all of the changing colours and bright orange leaves, drink apple cider and of course, go pumpkin picking. Alas, life got in the way and I've ended up staying in London for the Autumn season. When you live somewhere, it's easy to forget just how beautiful it is, and I think I was starting to fall out of love with London a bit. This weekend, in an attempt to get into the Autumn spirit just in time for Halloween, we ventured all the way out of London to Crockford Bridge Farm in Surrey, to enjoy an afternoon of pumpkin picking before settling down to watch Hocus Pocus and carve our pumpkins!