Right. Here it is: the post you’ve all been waiting for. It’s currently 2:25am on the final day of 2017, and I am ready to be brutally honest with every single one of you who’s taking the time to read this post right now – thank you, by the way, it really does mean a lot. […]
What Being Away for 7 Months Taught Me
“You were on your Gap Year last year?! It feels like years ago now!” Those were the words of my sister a few days ago. It really doesn’t feel like it was last year and I’m going to keep saying this, but did it even happen? One thing that confirms that it did is what being […]
Shanghai in Pictures | Travel Diaries
I’ve finally got round to importing and editing a collection of photos from my latest trip to Shanghai. We spent five days being tourists and exploring the bubbling metropolitan city. We wandered around markets and street stalls filled with small restaurants and shops selling small trinkets. There were also parks, temples and gardens: We had […]
Saving Money to Travel
I am frequently inundated with messages and emails from readers, subscribers, friends and students on how I managed to fund my Gap Year entirely by myself. As this is something I’m incredibly proud of, and something I’ve achieved on my own, I think that I can share with you some travel-saving money tips… 1. ‘Take care […]
My flight: London to Shanghai
The last time I was on a plane which was more than a couple of hours was my flight back from Beijing last June. I spent most of the flight sleeping and resenting the fact that I was flying back home after a seven-month trip. I really, really didn’t want to get off that plane […]
Our East Coast Australia Route | Gap Year Travel
I get numerous questions from many friends and YouTube subscribers alike about where exactly Alice and I went along Australia’s East Coast and which places we would recommend. Here’s the full breakdown of where we stopped off at and which places you can’t miss. Melbourne – Cairns 1. Melbourne We first flew into Melbourne which was by far […]
Why I love Ubud | Gap Year Travel
Out of all the places we happened to visit in Bali, Ubud was by far our favourite city. It’s rich in culture, arts, beautiful landscapes and incredible food. We planned to stay only four days but in the end extended it to a full week. Here are the reasons why I love Ubud… 1. FOOD […]
Kraków in Pictures | Travel Diaries
When I suddenly found myself at the airport with one of my closest friends heading to Poland for five entire days, I knew that this was the most spontaneous I had been in my life. View this post on Instagram A post shared by V I O L A (@violahelen_) Kraków is an absolutely gorgeous city […]
twenty-sixteen in review and what it has taught me
I cannot believe an entire year has passed yet again -where is the time going?! Cue all of the “2016 in Review” blog posts and “2017 New Year Resolutions” as everyone begins to settle down and reflect on the past year. And I’m just about to jump on the bandwagon I’m afraid… Twenty Sixteen. Aside […]
If We Were Having Coffee… | Vol. 18
If we were having coffee, I would tell you that I’m currently in Kraków – crazy, huh?! I wanted to go abroad somewhere; I wanted to explore a new place and so when my uni friends told me to meet them in Kraków, when my mum told me to “just go” and when my good […]