sammylou

This island is beautiful and so interesting. I have just returned from a two week field trip where we were based in Lemesos and took daily trips out across most of the island except the Turkish occupied area to the north.

It was a Geology Fieldtrip an so we were mainly there to visit the ophiolite complex. I recommend to any level of geologist or even anyone without any understanding in the subject to take a look at this sequence. It was my favourite field trip of my whole degree as it helped a lot of things finally slot into place.

We also got to visit some of the touristy things such as the tomb of the kings and Baths of Aphrodite. It was also worthwhile visiting the Green Line in Lefkosia (Nicosia), which is extraordinary and eerie at the same time.

The weather in late march was quite changeable but on the whole warm and sunny with several very hot days and some days it rained for a couple of hours. When you went up into the mountains it was cold which was great to drive up from such a hot coast into snow capped mountains. When the mist rolls over the mountains it is breathtaking.

The food is great and i think everyone can be catered for. I have to highly recommend the pastry shops as they have so many interesting things on offer. I cannot speak for meat products but the veggie options were great. I tried several types of breads with olives, cheese etc inside. Pastries with; spinach & feta, mushrooms, houlumi etc. Also i tried a cornish pasty shaped thing with pumpkin inside which was delicious. At one Lebanese restaurant our lecturers organised for a belly dancer to perform. It was amazing and wonderful and after a few glasses of wine we were all at it.

Restaurants do great offers if you chose the Meze, which basically is a continual flow of dishes to share and spead over several hours. They are usually meat or fish but if you ask they can prepare a veggie version. Always ask them what they recommend that day which will usually be the meze but they also mention what fish or meat is fresh in today and any specials.

Wine is cheap in most places (except the tourist pubs) and house wines are usually of good standard if a little strong.

The only thing of disappointment was the general upkeep of the place. I was upset to see sofas chucked down the sides of the troodos mountains and so much litter by the road sides. Also of aesthetical note was the unfinished look of most places, i presume there is a lot of regeneration but there is often unfinsished pavements or broken paving and metal protruding from the ground that can be a hazard at night whilst wearing flipflops – ouch! keep your eyes open.

Not to end on a down note, churches, temples, mosques are well worth a visit and trying out water pipes. The people were generally very friendly and ready to chat about all sorts. A wonderful place to visit.

I took my mother up Snowdon last spring just before her 60th birthday, i insisted it was something she must do before then.

As she is not as fit as she’d like to be, we thought it best not to tempt fate and climb, even though it’s not the hardest walk as the path it pretty accessible to all. We took the train up which enabled us to get fantastic views of the area and chat with other passengers.

Later that day we went for a walk up to Devils Kitchen, which is nearby. That was a gentle walk but it took it out of my mum. We stopped for a while at the lake and Mum told me about her holiday arranged by work, here in the early 60’s. She was delighted to at last see it again after so many years.

We stayed in a B&B near Betws-y-coed, which is lovely village with good selection of places to eat.

This place is so much more wonderful than you can imagine. I thought it was all hype but at long last found myself in the area and visited Stonehenge.

The work that is going on to divert roads away and make it more secluded and private is a really good idea. I can imagine it will be even more mystical once the work is complete.

As I have been only twice as a child, I cannot say whether it is a romantic city or not. I did find the architecture to be outstanding and would love to go back to see more and sample more pastries, yum!

I wasn’t that impressed, quite disappointed to be honest. It’s worth going only to say you’ve been and quell that urge. I expected a lot more.

I think you have to be the type of person who enjoys the mindless slot machines. I did enjoy the roulette wheel, where i won a nice amount. The Hotels are worth seeing but once you’ve been in one, you’ve kinda seen them all.

A couple of years ago I enjoyed the book ’ I dreamed of africa’ by Kuki Gallmann.

Ever since I have longed to go to Ol Ari Nyiro Ranch. I’d also love to go to Mt Kilimanjaro and the Rift Valley.

We camped here for a couple of days after visiting Barcelona. It is a lovely town with a beautiful beach cove. There were lots of children but they didn’t seem to cause much bother, they appeared very well behaved. The majority were French tourists and the atmosphere was very relaxed and respectful.

I would liked to have travelled to Figueres and Portlligat to have seen the dali museums but we didn’t have time. We did travel in to the Pyrenees and camp for a night wich was well worth it.

On a school exchange to Hilden, we visited Cologne. It was a wonderful day and the Cathedral was great apart from a spell of vertigo at the top.

A couple of years ago we went to aliaga on a Geology fieldtrip. We went at Fiesta time and the atmosphere was great. There was music all night everynight and a Bullfight on the friday which i couldn’t bring myself to go to.

On one of the last nights there was a medieval market which was great for gifts and crafts.

The evening meals provided for a group didn’t go down well with most as they attempted spanish versions of english food. Luckily I’m a vegetarian and they gave me spanish vegetable dishes which were lovely, especially the lentil soup.

Last January, my boyfriend took me to London for my birthday. We did a lot of walking and tube riding as the things we wanted to see were quite spread out but the public transport is really good.

We went to the Natural History Museum which is fantastic, we also visited Marble arch, Houses of Parliment, Big Ben, Downing St, Buckingham Palace, Convent Garden, Leicester Sq and Trafalgar Sq (where we had a meal at a thai restaurant), the Horse Guards, and Birdcage Walk. In the evening we went to see the Noel Coward play Blithe Spirit at the Savoy Theatre. The play was so funny and brilliantly put together.

The only thing that let the day down was that we arrived at the London Eye at 8.30am to book a ride for sunset that day. It was closed for repair for a few weeks, it was our own fault really for not checking in advance.

We plan to go back sometime soon as there is still so much to see.