Noosa, Sunshine Coast

After my great trip to Moreton Island, it was up early on Sunday to head to Noosa. 

Vicki has planned everything perfectly, I’ve really appreciated it. We stopped off at her parents and we were having a chat about how scared I am of snakes and spiders, they all reassured me that they’ve seen no snakes in all the time they’ve lived here. 

On the way to Noosa, we stopped at a lovely watering hole. It had a nice little waterfall and swings that people were swinging off into the water. 

It was pretty busy with lots of people enjoying the sun and cooling off in the water. Vicki assured me they’d be no anacondas lurking in the water or crocs so  I swung into the water with a little squeal. 

It was so nice and refreshing. We jumped off the rocks (sorry dad) then we were simply chilling in the sun. I looked to my right and there with it’s beady eyes was a snake (a blue and yellow tree snake we found out afterwards). I jumped up, run and screamed so fast. I was literally hyperventilating and crying because of a stupid snake. Everyone else found it highly amusing. 

After that abrupt appearance, it was time to head into Noosa. Noosa is a lovely town on the Sunshine Coast. It has beaches and a river. It was buzzing with lots of families enjoying their Easter weekend. 

We stayed in an amazing Air BnB. It was so clean and had lovely woodland view. I was always keeping an eye out for a koala. 

Monday we had planned a nice coastal hike. It was 10km in the National Park and walked along the edge over looking the sea. 

Along the way I saw so many spiders! And although they were pretty damn big, they were ok as they were chilling in their webs. 

The views were breathtaking and when we got to Hell’s Gate (lovely name), we saw a turtle bobbing its little head out of the water. 

After our little walk (in at least 28 degree heat and high humidity), it was time for lunch and beach. The main beach was nice and busy. The other beach we went to before was infested with bluebottle jelly fish. 

As we were relaxing on the beach, then there was a medical emergency. We’re not quite sure what happened but the man had done something to his neck. I must admit the life guards on the beaches are incredible. They are all so on the ball and professional. 

We decided to try some stand up paddle board (SUP) before heading back. I’ve never tried it before but it was great. You need good balance and I found I was clenching my feet to get some grip which was a bit sore. 

We were going up and down the river but it was pretty busy with boats and jet skis. Every time one went by, it created waves and that was the point I thought I’d fall in but thankfully I didn’t - just lots more squealing. I even managed to do the splits on the board. 

It’s been amazing spending time with Vicki in Brisbane (and surrounding areas). Vicki and Toby have been the perfect hosts. We’ve still got a couple more fun days exploring Brisbane before heading onto the next place. 

Moreton Island

We were up early and heading to Brisbane port all before 7:30am. We’d already walked Toby over the park overlooking the river.

We took the ferry over to Moreton Island. We thought we’d done well with our seats up top and ready to spot some dolphins until a heap of French people decided to stand right in front of us. 

After the hour long journey, we arrived in paradise. Whilst we were waiting to get off the boat, I saw s sea turtle pop it’s head up to welcome us. 

Our first activity was sandboarding. I’d never tried it before so it was a bit scary. After a 25 minute bumpy ride into the ‘desert’, we then climbed these huge sand dunes to then slide face first down to bottom. It was pretty scary!!

After a quick lunch on the beach, it was time for our next activity, kayaking. We had these amazing clear plastic kayaks and paddled over shipwrecks. 

The current was pretty tough but we did well and had a blast. It wasn’t the first time Vicki and I had kayaked before so we felt like pros. 

By this point it was definitely time to cool off and snorkel. We had to wear wetsuits as we were snorkelling over the shipwreck sndparts were pretty sharp. 

We had to pulled out to the wreks on a jetski. This was pretty scary as there were 12 of us holding onto a boogie board whilst being pulled out. The current and jet ski pull made it pretty hard. 

We had been told there was so much to see such as sting rays and even a sea cow. We saw plenty of fish (and not the dating app) but sadly nothing too exciting. 

After all a hectic day, it was time to head back on the ferry. It was such a cool day exploring Moreton island. I found out it is the second largest sand island in the World. 

I’ve had such a great time in Brisbane already and there’s still plenty more to discover thanks to my lovely tour guide. 

Sydney to Newcastle

Sydney has been incredible. It’s such a cool vibrant place but very expensive. 

After my chilled day at the beach, I decided to head to Taronga Zoo. A few people recommended it to me, they said the views were awesome. 

A short ferry ride and I was there. I was quite disappointed to hear the cable cart wasn’t running but just walking around the zoo, I managed to get to the top for the view. 

I’m not really a big fan of zoos. It’s not natural to keep animals enclosed. Plus, through my travels I’ve seen some incredible animals in the wild. I’ve seen the  elephants in South Africa and the penguins and sea lions in The Galápagos Islands. 

I thought I’d spend the whole day there but it only took 2.5 hours to see everything. I was excited to see native animals however the skippies were sleeping (which I totally get as it was so hot) and there was literally one koala. 

After the zoo, I headed back to Manly. I loved it there before so I went for some lunch, shopping and the coastal walk. I walked to Cabbage Island which was gorgeous. 

The next day I’d booked a Hunters Valley wine tasting tour. I booked it via Groupon and saved a heap of money. Pick up was early but it was worth it. 

Traffic heading out was so busy. It took nearly four hours to reach our first stop which was a vodka distillery. Trying all the different flavours at 11am was interesting. They also made liqueurs so I bought a passion fruit flavour- yum. 

We had a lovely lunch included and two vineyard tours/wine tasting. I think we tried maybe 15 different wines. 

My favourite place was the last where there were two gorgeous dogs who I got to pet. I also bought two great bottles of wine. 

I learnt that Hunter Valley can’t grow Sauvignon grapes as it’s too hot. The Hunter Valley region is famous for it Semillon and Shiraz. Both very good wines. 

As you can imagine, I was pretty smashed by the end of the tour so I was tucked up in bed by 8:30pm. 

Feeling refreshed the next day after my 12 hours sleep, I headed back to the Botanical gardens for another jog. It was so nice and I always feel so good after exercising. 

I left Sydney and got the train to Newcastle. It was a three hour journey and cost $5. So cheap! Unfortunately there was a really creepy man on the train who insisted on staring at me most of the journey. I felt so uncomfortable but my luggage was such a pain to move, I just turned the other way. He pulled out a bottle of red wine and necked it like it was water (like someone else I know...).

I had one night in Newcastle to meet up with my crazy friends I met in Ibiza. It was so cool catching up with Chloe and Jess (or Helga and Jesus as they’re also known as). They’re awesome girls but my liver could only take one night with them. 

We had drinks on the balcony of my hotel. Then we had a quick drink in the hotel bar before roaming the streets of Newcastle to find out where was open. We had to do the usual shopping trolley push, running after Jess as she was more drunk and Chloe giving Jess a piggy back, all this before we’d even technically gone out!

We went to this first bar/club where the music was pretty good. We were dancing away and Jess was doing an awesome dance routine (included falling up steps) then the bouncer came over and asked her to leave. I’ve never been chucked out a club before so that was a first lol

We headed to another place which again had pretty good music but such a mix of people. We were chatting to a cool group of guys and girls who work at the mines. One guy was showing me pictures of the 80 ton digger they just built- so impressive. 

I’m at that age now that I know my limits. I switched to soda and lime early so by the time it got to 2am, I just wanted my bed. I got a taxi back to the hotel and hit the sack. 

I was up and feeling fresh as a daisy so I was completely hyped for my hike. Chloe showed me pictures of gorgeous Mount Tomaree so we decided to walk up to the view point. 

The hike wasn’t too far but it was so hard in the heat. After walking down we were going to go for a swim but there were so many dead prawns and octopus along the shore line so decided against it. 

Now I’m at the airport waiting for my flight to Brisbane. It’s only been a few weeks since I saw Vicki in Dubai but I’m super excited to see her again and hang out on her tuff. Also beyond excited to meet her fur baby Beagle called Toby. 

G’day from Australia

G’day mate! So I’ve finally made it to Australia. It’s funny as Australia has always been a country I said I’d never visit as I thought everything here could kill you. Snakes, spiders, plants... however I’ve heard too many cool things to not visit and met so many awesome Aussies that I had to check it out for myself. 

I was a bit anxious about the flight time but it was fine. Flight to Dubai was nice and easy, 7 hours then a mad dash to the gate to catch a 14 hour flight to Sydney. I was lucky to have a spare seat next to me so I could stretch out and sleep. 

I decided to stay at an Air BnB in Darlinghurst. It’s a great location. I arrived just before mid night and the kind taxi driver waited with me until I made it inside (had to figure out how to find the keys).

After waking up at 5:00am (and requesting a lullaby song to help me sleep from Peter, thank you baby) I managed to get a few more hours sleep before waking up and heading out for a jog. 

This seems to be a holiday ritual now. The first morning I wake up, I like to go for a jog to explore the local area. Sydney was no different and I headed to the botanical gardens for my run. 

The heat was pretty intense even at 8am but it felt great to stretch my legs after such a long time travelling. When I first caught a glimpse of the opera house over the harbour, it was breathtaking (and not just from the jogging!).

I decided to stop in the cafe in the gardens for some breakfast. The usual carrot cake and iced coffee. It’s so nice now being able to eat carrot cake and not feeling sad. For those who don’t know, carrot cake was the only thing I ate after Dean passed away and it was always my ‘go to’ food when I was sad about Dean. 

The gardens were so peaceful although there were lots of people exercising (Tai Chi anyone?) and enjoying the slightly cooler weather. 

After heading back to the apartment, it was time to freshen up before meeting my friend Jo. I haven’t seen Jo since we left school in 2002 so it was a long overdue catch up. 

We headed back to the botanical gardens. This time it was nice to simply wander around and take everything in. We headed towards the opera house and central quay. We decided to hop on the ferry to explore Manley. 

After a 30 minute ride, we arrived in Manley. It was super busy being a Sunday but it was so nice people watching and seeing families enjoying their weekend together outside. 

We headed to a restaurant overlooking the ocean to have some lunch. It was time to start on the Australian wine. I do love my kiwi wine but you can’t beat a good Australian Sauvignon blanc. 

After lunch we took a stroll along the beach and sat on some rocks. It’s been lovely catching up with each other and even hearing some gossip I totally missed at school - I do love karma. 

After a few hours chilling, it was time to hear back to the ferry. On the way back, we had some amazing frozen yoghurt - the flavours here are so good. In general the food is really good. Plenty of choice although a tad expensive. 

Cocktails overlooking the opera house were calling. We watched a storm clouds gather so much momentum. All the smaller clouds were drawn to the bigger cloud, it was majestic. 

The rain came down so fast and heavy. I do have this strange fear of thunder and lightning but thankfully it wasn’t too bad. The sky lit up over the opera house was pretty amazing. 

It felt like we hadn’t stopped all day and by the time I got back to my apartment, I’d walked over 32,000 steps. I was so beat and ready for bed. 

Strangely I woke up again at 5am. Peter (already preempting) had sent me another song (best boyfriend ever!) and I managed to get back to sleep for a few more hours. 

Today I’ve headed to Bondi Beach. It’s a lot quieter today being a Monday and the sea isn’t as rough as at Manley. I’ve been a little bit cautious so I’ve just paddled instead of going fully in, I just keep thinking of all the things that could be lurking beneath... I’ve listened far too much to Daddy. 

I hope you all have a lovely Monday. I’ll be thinking about you all on your morning commute whilst I catch a few more rays on the beach. 

Girls trip to Dubai

What a trip! I’ve always enjoyed Dubai but it seems better each time I visit. I can’t believe I’ve visited Dubai three times and Abu Dhabi once. I rarely go to the same place twice, but Dubai does have its appeal. 

This trip was planned for my lovely friend, Vicki’s, birthday. We first met in The Philippines last April. Then she popped over to London in August and now we’re in Dubai. 


It’s awesome making friends through travel. We’ve got similar mind-sets, pretty chilled but also very outgoing. From the moment I saw Vicki at the airport, we were in fits of laughter. 


We luckily both arrived at similar times, me from snowy London and her from sunny Brisbane. After a short taxi ride to the hotel, a freshen up at the Hilton JBR then it was time to hit Cove Beach Club. 


The weather in Dubai is usually so nice but it was overcast and windy as hell. We tried to brave the sea but it was too chilly. Nothing warms you up more than wine though. 


The ladies nights in Dubai are amazing. It cost us AED100 (roughly £20) for entrance to the beach club, lunch and unlimited drinks until 5pm. We got there at 11am. Needless the say, we got our money’s worth. 

After six solid hours drinking, chatting to some friendly ex pats from Ireland and embarrassing Vicki with a pre birthday dessert and singing, it was time to head back to the hotel. 

I’d love to tell you about the taxi ride back however, we kind of can’t remember leaving the club. My memory loss when drinking is so bad sometimes. And it appears Vicki is the same lol

We ended up falling asleep when we got back to the hotel. We woke up at 11pm (5 hours nap) and decided to go grab some dinner. Everywhere is open so late so it was easy heading to Chili for dinner. 

The next day was Vicki’s birthday. I bought some personalised banners to put in the room and Vicki loved them. We had breakfast then chilled for a bit. The weather wasn’t great so we shortly got ready to head to The Fairmont Hotel, on the palm, for afternoon tea. 

The hotel was stunning! Gorgeous flowers everywhere and the staff were so friendly. The food was delicious and the iced tea so refreshing. It was nice to sit back and just chat about life. I’m so pleased to have made such a lovely friend in Vicki. We’re very similar so it’s cool hanging out. 

In the evening we got ourselves dolled up and headed out for free drinks. Again good old ladies night offered us free drinks. We decided to walk to one of the hotels, I forgot how many people stare. I thought we were fairly covered but apparently not. 

After a taxi (Vicki insisted) ride to Tribeca for more drinks, we walked into a cool club. The music was awesome and we soon got chatting to a group of ex pats. 

I did some research and it turns out only 1/5th of people living in the UAE are locals (Arabs), the rest are ex pats. I was pretty shocked by that. 

The group we got chatting to were lovely. Many local Essex lads. All very friendly and they were heading to another place called Mahiki’s (same chain as London) so we decided to go with them. 


The music in Mahiki was amazing!! We danced all night. I love how friendly and open people are. I was chatting to the guys and they were saying what it’s like living in Dubai. It sounds fun but so superficial. 

We remembered our taxi ride home this time and left about 2:30am. We woke up the next day (Friday) with every intention of going to brunch however the thought of day time drinking was not appealing to either of us. 

The weather has been terrible. So unusual as it’s often lovely so we decided to explore a little. We headed to Dubai Mall. I wanted to show Vicki the water fountains but sadly the show is only in the evenings. 

We hopped in a taxi to check out some Souks. The shopping is great here but rather expensive. All the perfumes are amazing, so different from the high street brands. 

After a nap (another great think about Vicki is she likes naps too!), we walked over to the marina. Lots of beautiful yachts and the buildings lit up at night is stunning. It reminds me of the Hong Kong skyline. 

After our two big days/nights, we decided on an early night. Finally the sun decided to show on Saturday so it was time to chill on the beach (after my morning jog) ahead of the desert safari. 


The car for the safari was full with seven of us. We sadly got stuck next to a lady who suffered from motion sickness. The whole ride we were praying she wouldn’t be sick and thankfully she held in her pink sick until we got out of the car. Me being the horrible person I am, had an inappropriate fit of giggles. There’s been quite a few of those this trip.

I think with the stress of the competition and how busy work has been, I’ve needed this time to be silly and relax. Sadly though my mind hasn’t been able to switch off and I’ve been having some slight panic attacks and bad dreams. Hopefully they’ll pass soon. 


The desert safari was great. Walking over the silky sand was lovely. The sun set so quickly. The red sky looked incredible. The food was traditional Arabic food and then entertainment. One thing we couldn’t understand was for such a reserved country whom dress conservatively, how can they have belly dancers jiggling their boobs in public?

We had a huge night planned for Saturday. Trey Songz was playing at White Dubai however by the time we returned from the desert, we were both pretty knacked so we went to somewhere local for a drink. It was a pretty quiet night as Saturday is there Sunday night so drinks were cut short for another early night.  


Sunday was another beautiful day. It’s typical only two good days of weather but I hear we’ve had much better weather than the -5 degrees at home. 


I’ve had such a great time with Vicki. I’ve laughed so much. Mainly laughing at how I can’t pronounce things properly (I want a crepe is not I want a crap) and also it’s been so nice being with someone so like minded. Usually I’d be sad to go home but I’m very excited. I’ve felt so guilty leaving Shiloh in the kennels with the cold weather. I’m also very excited to see a certain man. 


I’ll be back 19 days then heading off again. So excited to be heading to Australia and it’ll be super to see Vicki again. I know once again how lucky I am that travel and have such amazing experiences. 

Happy 2018 and welcome to Budapest

Happy 2018! Everyone knows my love of travelling and why would 2018 be any different? 

I managed to last a few hours of 2018 without having a trip booked. My lovely friend offered to look after Shiloh for me so I decided to book a weekend away. 

I went straight onto Expedia and managed to find a trip to Budapest leaving the Friday coming. 

Many people ask me how I have so much annual leave to travel as much as I do. Usually when I go away for the weekend, it’s literally that - the weekend. 

Friday after work, I got the train from Blackfriars and headed to Luton airport. I don’t think I’ve ever flown from Luton before and to be honest, I doubt I’ll fly from there again. 

You’d think each airport is the same but honestly what a dive! It’s chaotic, it’s messy, it smells - it’s just gross. Even in the airport lounge wasn’t particular nice. 

When I was at the airport, I realised I’d forgotten to pack my phone charger. Luckily I went to Dixon and bought a new one. Sadly that cost £26 - not impressed considering they only few quid on eBay. 

Next up I headed to the gate when I discovered my flight was delayed. At the same point I realised I left my scarf in the airport lounge. 

They say things come in three’s so I figured I’d had mine (1. Phone charger, 2. Delayed flight. 3. Forgotten scarf). Sadly not, I arrived at Budapest airport and called my transfer to be told I'd have to wait an hour before someone could come get me because I’d missed the shuttle. At 01:15 I figured screw this so I hopped in a taxi. 

I woke up at 7:30am Saturday as I had booked a tour of the parliament building for 9:15am. After only about 5 hours still, it was pretty hard getting up. 

After wandering the streets, and thanks to Virgin for the ability to use my phone (and google maps) in Europe free of charge, I stumbled across the stunning parliament building. 

The parliament building in Budapest is the second largest parliament in Europe and the third largest in the World. It’s a very impressive building. 

Here is a view of the stunning building from across the river.

Our tour guide was very informative and funny. He explained the architecture and the amount of gold used within the building. 

We saw the precious Crown Jewels of a very historic king (history isn’t my strong point but shiny things are). These were protected by two regal guards who were keeping a very close eye on me (it was extremely unnerving this man constantly shifting his gaze to look my way).

After the tour, it was time to find some breakfast. I had a coffee and biscuit before the tour but I was pretty hungry by now, and no one wants to be hungry in Hungary (sorry I couldn’t resist!). 

I headed over the other side of the river and found a nice upmarket cafe. I choose the traditional breakfast and a pot of tea. It was more brunch time now. 

After brunch, I walked up to the castle. The view point over the city was stunning. It was pretty overcast this morning but slowly it burned off and lovely blue sky crept through. 

Whenever I travel, I just wing it really. I don’t like to plan too much. I like to walk, look at a sign post or check trip advisor for ‘near me’ and go from there. That’s exactly what I did here. 

There were a few places I wanted to visit such as Fisherman’s Bastion, Matthias  church and Castle Hill. They were all fairly close by so I simply walked. 

I love finding the most traditional places to eat and drink when I’m away. I found a lovely restaurant and stopped for a refreshing local beer. They were playing beautiful live music. A violin and another instrument I’m really not sure what it is?!

Next place I wanted to visit was the Magic fountains in Margaret Island. It was 3.5km from where I was but I figured I’d walk there. I finally got there to discover it was closed. I had read a few trip advisor reviews before that said it was closed but I’d managed to forget that - opps. 

It was time for a late lunch. Again I found a local cafeteria style restaurant and literally just pointed at something. It was beef goulash with some odd white stuff. I literally have no idea whether it was some pasta/potato or even flour based thing. It was nice but very filling. 

I decided to head back to the hotel for a nap. I was pretty exhausted from all the walking and lack of sleep. 

After my nap, it was time to head to the opera. I’d packed a new dress for the occasion, it was only cheap but still nice. When I put the dress on, I managed to break the zip. I was pretty annoyed as I wanted to look nice but I had to put my white jeans and stripy blouse on. 

When I arrived at the theatre (another 2.5km walk), I felt a little out of place. Not everyone was super dressed up (expect for the stunning blonde girl in the floor length pink dress) but I was definitely the only person out of hundreds in white jeans - opps. 

I’d decided to book a box ticket. It literally cost under £10. I had the whole box to myself. The view was fantastic. 

I saw The Gypsy Baron. Thanks to the sub titles, I managed to follow along. It was very long - 3.5 hours. The plus to this was the two interval breaks and the glasses of champagne for roughly £6.

On my walk back towards the hotel, I found a lovely restaurant for dinner. Rose restaurant was another traditional restaurant with live music and plenty of locals. I had a lovely meal of salmon, gnocchi with spinach. Not exactly traditional Hungarian but it looked too good not to choose. 

I was back at the hotel tucked up in bed by 11pm. I really wanted to go see parliament building at night however I was far too tired to head there again. I ended up walking just under 32,000 steps. That’s probably the most I’ve ever walked in a day. 

I had a little bit of a lay in and woke up at 8am. I wanted to head to the Szechenyi thermal baths. It was 3.5km away so I decided to walk. It was so foggy but on my way, I walked past a memorial which included a section of the Berlin Wall. That’s why I love walking as you see these random things. 

When I got to the spa, it was buzzing with locals already. I got there about 9:45am. I headed straight outside to the pool. A lovely temperature of 38 degrees allowed me to sit outside for nearly an hour. 

It was the perfect morning to sit, reflect and manifest the life I want. I’m very blessed with the life I have but I’ve also started to plan the other things I want in life. 

I’ve started reading The Secret again. This book explains the Laws of Attraction. I truly believe in this and I’ve started applying this to my daily thoughts. Good thoughts attract good things. 

I’ve had a few things go wrong this trip and before I might have allowed that to put me in a bad mood but you know what, it didn’t. Everything happens for a reason and it’s ok. 

The thermal baths were huge! I very nearly didn’t explore indoors but I’m so glad I did. There were about 17 pools. All varying temperatures and offering different health benefits. There were steam rooms and saunas with lovely scents. There was even a beer bath. You pay a certain amount and you stay in a spa with hops and maze and drink unlimited beer for the time you’re in it (I didn’t do it but I know a certain brother and brother in law that would love it!).

I decided to leave the spa and get the train back towards the hotel. The ticket cost just over £1 and it was a cool experience seeing the tiny stations. 

I found a lovely place for lunch. The ambience was so traditional and quaint. I spent time just taking it in and eating some yummy cake and drinking mulled wine. 

I headed back to the airport at 3pm. That was pretty early considering my flight wasn’t until 6:40pm but that’s the joys of arranges transfers. 

I would usually have a slightly later flight home but it just worked out the best flight landed back at 8:30pm. This is better for a Sunday evening as I need to be rested for work on Monday. 

As always, this has been a lovely trip. I’ve been a bit antisocial this trip. I’ve avoided conversations with strangers and I hadn’t even been on my phone that much. I wanted some me time. Lots of reflection and gratitude time. 

I liked Budapest but I wouldn’t rave about it. Go if you get the chance but it’s probably not my favorite city I’ve visited. 

Nassau - part two

After our lovely day in Cozumel, the captain announced another itinerary change (sixth one I think) and instead of visiting Costa Maya, we were heading back to Nassau. 

Obviously most people were not too impressed as many have visited Nassau multiple times. I was hoping the weather would be better so I could enjoy the paradise island. 

I decided to book a shore excursion to Atlantis. I had visited the Atlantis in Dubai and had an amazing time shooting down the water slides and admiring the marine life. 

The Atlantis in The Bahamas is the original one. You assume the original would be the best - sadly I was disappointed. 

The excursion cost $159 so it wasn't cheap. That included the transfer to and from the resort but that was it. 

When I looked at the map, it looked pretty big however it struck me as just a hotel resort. Lots of swimming pools and a handful of slides. 

The one thing I wanted to do in The Bahamas was to swim in the sea. I headed straight to the stunning beach and tried to go in however it was pretty choppy and soon enough I was whistled at to not enter the sea. 

After not being allowed in the sea, it was time for some rides. I think in total there were maybe 8 slides and Rapids. For the steep entrance fee, that's not enough. 

The first slide I did takes you through the shark tank. I was so excited to see these beautiful creatures but it was quite foggy inside the tube so it was better viewing them from the outside. 

I was desperate to swim in the ocean so it was time to try again. I went to another beach, it looked less choppy so I tried to go in but again I got that damn whistle. By this point I went up to the lifeguard and asked where I could swim in the sea and he directed me around to another beach. Time for a quick handstand on route. 

  

I finally made it into the sea. It was worth the wait. The sea was a beautiful blue colour and so warm. 

After exploring the rest of the resort, and being pretty underwhelmed, it was time to head back to the port. I wanted to get some rum cake to take home and decided to buy all six of the small ones to give some out as presents. 

Back on the ship, it was time for some Dutch courage and to try the flow rider. I've got pretty good balance however I was so nervous. When you fall off, it looked liked it hurt. Thankfully it didn't. 

It was formal night again so I got to wear my second floor length dress. I've only worn this dress once to my lovely friends wedding so it was good to wear it again. 

It was lobster night and the food was delicious!

At dinner I was sharing a table with three lovely couples. They were all around my age so after dinner they asked me if I'd like to join them at the comedy show. I'd seen the show before but it was still so good as they feed off the audience. 

After the comedy show, we headed to the Irish pub where an amazing singer was taking requests. One of the guys thought it would be a good idea to have an Irish Car Bomb - it wasn't a good idea!!

After the singer stopped, we headed to the night club in the Solarium, the music was great but it was so hot!! 

Next up was a quick stop by the casino. I wanted to play some Blackjack. I bet $50 in total and had $30 profit left when I decided to 'go big', I lost it all opps. 

After a lot of drink, it was 3am and time for pizza before heading to bed. It was such a fun night and it was so good spending some time with people my own age. 

Today (Saturday) is my last day on the cruise. I've had an amazing time. I've met some fun and interesting people. I've managed to switch off from work (this is the first holiday in three years where I haven't checked my work emails) perhaps that's because I've handed my notice in before I left so that's helped me relax. 

I definitely recommend cruising and I'd happily do another one. I think I've spoilt myself being on the largest cruise fleet. There's been so much to do, it's been a blast. How can you not love a ship this big?