intimate and resonant: Normal People by Sally Rooney

“Two people who, over the course of several years, apparently could not leave one another alone” Sally Rooney, Normal People

Sally Rooney’s ‘Normal People’ filled the hole that was left after I finished David Nicholls’ ‘One Day.’ 

Its depiction of love, life and friendship was so real and understandable, and portrayed so incredibly that I couldn’t put the book down and was left thinking about it hours after I had finished it. 

The story follows Marianne and Connell, two teenagers at the start, who grow up in Carricklea, Ireland and then go to university in Dublin. 

While they become lovers as teens, Connell is too afraid of what his classmates will think of him to tell everyone of their relationship. Then, when they both go to college in Dublin, Marianne’s popularity and self-assertiveness flip the dynamic the other way. 

The book follows them through the course of several years, easy to follow with the explanation of how time has passed at the start of each chapter.

What really kept me hooked to this novel was the intimate moments between Marianne and Connell, the conversations and support they provided each other. Whereas other novels like this often have the female character ‘fixed’ by the male, this isn’t the case with Marianne. I recently read a Guardian article which described the support Connell provided as healing but not making Marianne whole and taking away her independence. I think this is accurate.  

Rooney’s candid depiction of mental health issues, particularly in men which are vastly underrepresented was powerful and effective. I think it is so important that she wrote Connell as so normally getting the help he needed when male suicide and mental health is such a key theme of this novel.

I felt kind of empowered after finishing it and warm inside. The story didn’t feel so outlandish and like such a fantasy that this relationship could blossom over so many years as the moments between Marianne and Connell are so real and beautiful.

For anyone who loves ‘One Day’ and contemporary romance fiction, this book is for you. I can’t wait to read more of Sally Rooney’s work, next on my list is ‘Conversations with Friends.’ 

album of the year: Painwave by Clean Cut Kid

Each year, a certain album stands out to me as a contender for my album of the year, often cementing itself as my favourite by sometime around August. This year, this didn’t happen. Not until November, did I discover my album of 2019. It was so good that within a few days of listening, it became my fave of this year. This is my first album review so I apologise if it’s a bit messy!

In 2017, whilst seeing The Kooks at the O2 Academy in Birmingham, I was enlightened by the sweet sweet sound of indie-pop band Clean Cut Kid. If I’m being honest, I left the concert at the end finding that I enjoyed Clean Cut Kid, the opening act, much more than The Kooks. 

Hailing from Liverpool, Clean Cut Kid comprises of lead singer and guitar player Mike Halls (who possibly has the most magnificent beard I have ever seen), his wife Evelyn, drummer Ross Higginson and Gareth Bullock on bass. Evelyn’s stunning harmonies on each track compliment Mike’s raw, unique vocals. Each track they produce is so simple yet so stunning and always tells such a beautiful story.

The new album, entitled ‘Painwave’, is raw, grungier than their debut album, ‘Felt’ (2017), which was much sweeter, dealing with issues such as heartbreak and first love. The new album is more varied and has a rockier edge. If you want to truly appreciate the new album, I feel it’s integral to listen to the first one. Whilst this article is definitely about ‘Painwave’, I beg you to listen to “Vitamin C”, “We Used to Be in Love” and “Evelyn” from the first album. 

Having been unaware that they had produced a new album, I was pleasantly surprised to hear a song from ‘Painwave’ come up on my Spotify shuffle. I then rediscovered my love for Clean Cut Kid and was absolutely obsessed with the new album. 

I think the new album is so perfectly varied. The rockier, edgy tones of “Deafening” and “Slow Progress” demonstrate the band’s raw indie-rock value and simple use of classic instruments. 

“Emily” with its stunningly charming and emotional lyrics tops the list as my favourite song of the year. Never have I heard in a song such a delicate representation of depression and mental health issues. “I know I’m only gettin’ part of the story and it’s not the part giving you lump in your throat” Mike sings. The song has a call and response kind of feel with each verse tackled by Mike and Evelyn in turn. The personal nature of the lyrics is reflected in “Emily I hope you know you can call on Evelyn and me.” It’s raw, graceful and personal, a message to anyone struggling to reach out to their loved ones. 

The bass part and harmonies in “Red Green Black” are unmatched. It has to be one of my favourites of the album. I’m not too sure what the song is about but I love the nostalgic feel and easy-listening rhythm. It’s infectious and happy. “Oh God” is gospel-esque, almost like new 1975 pieces, and different to anything Clean Cut Kid have produced before, it’s refreshing. “Can’t Hide the Feeling” also has a very 1975 feel to it, I love the harmonies and easy-going rhythm. 

Clean Cut Kid may not be as well-known as many other artists in the indie-pop genre but I feel like they should be more widely listened to because their songs have such positive messages, they call out to you, saying “it’s okay.” The new album concretes their place as an indie rock-pop band as the last album could have appeared more poppish. 

With an album release planned for next year, I am so excited to see what the band has in store and also to see them grow in popularity. I hope to see them on a tour of their own one day, but for now, they take the place of my artist and album of the year, perhaps even the decade. 

Image: Mohammad Metri/Unsplash

getting out of a reading slump and autumn to be read

After almost seven months of what can only be described as a reading slump, I’m trying my hardest to get out of it and have been enjoying a few books lately. 

What I’ve found, really, is that I was looking at the bookshelf at the end of my bed filled with young adult books I have collected and loved over the years, realising that this isn’t really the genre I like anymore. I have taken a lot of my old books to charity shops to make way for some new ones. 

The last book I read was ‘One Day’ by David Nicholls which I absolutely adored and is now one of my favourites of all time. Autumn-Winter time last year saw me reading a lot and I really want to get back into that as summer is usually the time that I find to read lots of books but sadly that just hasn’t happened this year.

But that’s okay.

I’ve got a few books on my to be read for this autumn so please give my good reads a follow at lucytravelsandreads for more detailed updates. 

On my list is a lot of feminist literature which I am really getting into so I would love any suggestions in the comments of books like these. 

‘The Power’ by Naomi Alderman

I am one of those people who tends to have a lot of books on the go at once but this is my main book at the minute after receiving it as a birthday present. I am absolutely loving it. I think it is so thrilling, well-written and powerful. It has a lot of deeper meanings and I love that the reader can make connections from what seems to be so bizarre and far removed from our reality to what is happening in gender and race relations in the current socio-political climate. I am so excited to see how this book ends and it is on its way to becoming one of my favourites. 

‘The Song of Achilles’ and ‘Circe’ by Madeline Miller

I have heard so much about how amazing Madeline Miller’s books are, and as someone who loves the Greek myths, I am really looking forward to reading these books. 

‘We Should All be Feminists’ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Having recently read an article listing the top feminist books everyone should read, this was top of the list. I have researched more into it and discovered that it is a collection of essays detailing why everyone should embrace the label of feminist and not see it as an insult, as well as examining ways of deconstructing societal expectations of masculinity. 

‘The Beauty Myth’ by Naomi Wolf

This is another one of the books I saw in the article and something that I am really passionate about reading. The synopsis discusses how this book unpicks the oppressive function of female beauty standards throughout history and today, confronting the beauty industry and the reasons why women become obsessed. 

‘Eat Pray Love’ by Elizabeth Gilbert

A while ago, I started watching the ‘Eat Pray Love’ film on Netflix but realised that it was one of those films that I would prefer to watch after reading the book. It looks really interesting as the memoir of a woman who decides to travel the world after getting a divorce. 

‘A Hundred Years of Solitude’, ‘Love in the Time of Cholera’ and ‘Strange Pilgrims’ by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

‘The Shadow of the Wind’ by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

I won’t say too much about these because I mentioned them in my summer favourites but I am so interested in the phenomenon of boom literature in South American literature and want to read Garcia Marquez’s classics. I also love Carlos Ruiz Zafon and want to read this after picking up a copy in a charity shop. 

These are just a few of the titles on my list but hopefully, some that I am going to get stuck into over the autumn period and through my first term of second year. I hope this was interesting and please do leave any book suggestions in the comments 🙂 

19 things I’ve learned in 19 years

It was my 19th birthday on August 31st so I thought it only apt that I share with you 19 things I have learned in my short time on this planet, in the hope that these can be useful to someone.

  1. Wear whatever you want because I guarantee people won’t judge you for it and if they do, that’s their problem.  
  2. It’s easy to be angry at the universe but more positive, although difficult, to be calm.
  3. Everyone has their own timeline, so don’t be hard on yourself or others for not following the same path. 
  4. THINGS HAPPEN FOR A REASON
  5. Be unashamedly loud and don’t let anyone tell you to shut up
  6. People will come and go in your life but that’s natural
  7. There is more to life than academia.
  8. Things don’t always go to plan, it’s best to sometimes expect different outcomes.
  9. But at the same time, reach for the stars.
  10. Never let anyone put you in a box.
  11. Stop listening to what anyone else thinks
  12. Do your bit to save the planet, don’t give in to fast fashion and have as many meat-free days as you can.
  13. You have just as much of a right to be somewhere great as anyone else, stamp down that imposter syndrome
  14. Hard work ALWAYS pays off.
  15. You’re never going to be stick thin, we all have little pouches at the bottom of our stomachs and no-one is built like the people you see on Instagram
  16. But look after your body- you only get one. 
  17. Say yes to things (only if you’re saying no for the wrong reasons.) 
  18. Spontaneity is a good thing.
  19. Embrace that change, your comfort zone will kill you.

That’s it folks! Here’s to 19 years on our glorious planet 🙂

summer faves :)

I have had the busiest summer but I have also had a lot of time to do the things I don’t get as much time to do in term time such as binge TV series and go to the cinema. This post is a collection of some of my faves from this summer. 

Music

I am constantly listening to music, when I am writing articles, blog posts, doing seminar reading or travelling. Despite Boardmasters being cancelled, I still discovered and have been loving some of the artists we were supposed to be seeing. 

This includes Sam Fender, particularly ‘Hypersonic Missiles’ as it sounds so much like Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Born to Run’ which is one of my favourite songs. I also love ‘Play God’, ‘Dead Boys’ and ‘That Sound.’ I think he’s really different and is an awesome guitar player. He’s great to listen to in the car. 

I have fallen in love with Bear’s Den. I heard them first on one of my TV shows of the summer, ‘Lovesick’, and have been listening to them on repeat. We were supposed to be seeing them at Boardmasters so I was gutted that I missed out on that. I have been loving ‘Above the Clouds of Pompeii’ but also ‘Fortress’ and ‘A Year Ago Today.’ For anyone who likes Mumford and Sons and Bon Iver, I would recommend Bear’s Den as they are sort of chilled-folk indie. 

Some of my other songs of the summer are Foals’ ‘London Thunder’, ‘Linger’ by The Cranberries, ‘Nina”, ‘South of the Border’ and ‘Beautiful People’ by Ed Sheeran, ‘Brazil’ by Declan McKenna, and ‘Sticks and Stones’ by Jamie T.

Films

Shamefully, I haven’t been watching many films lately. I used to love watching films and would watch several every day but I have given lots of my many DVDs to charity this summer. A few films have stuck out as being really good in the past few weeks.

Netflix’s ‘Someone Great’ is incredible. It gives you a proper feel-good feeling after watching and has such a positive message about friendship and relationships. It is funny and heartbreaking and I love Gina Rodriguez so am a big fan of this film. 

A few months ago, I watched ‘Vice’, a film about George Bush’s Vice President Dick Cheney, and thought it was amazing. It was shocking to see how much power Cheney actually had over the US government and the country but so interesting and a really well put together film (and it had Steve Carrell playing Donald Rumsfeld, can you ask for more?) 

Marvel’s ‘Spiderman: Far From Home’ did not disappoint. I loved the first film and enjoyed this one just as much. I saw it at the cinema and it was one of the best things I had seen in a while. 

I also saw ‘Toy Story 4’ at the cinema and thoroughly enjoyed it. I did cry at a few parts and the end because it is so nostalgic and felt like part of my childhood. 

TV

This summer, I have watched some good TV shows. At the end of last term, I finished ‘The Bold Type’ on Amazon Prime which I recommended to all my friends and would definitely recommend. It is about three women who work at a magazine so is basically my dream in a TV show, it’s great and tackles some important issues. 

‘Lovesick’ was the first show I watched over the summer. It came up on my Netflix recommended and I thought I would give it a go but it has become one of my favourite shows ever. It is so perfectly written, has the best soundtrack on any TV show and is just so real. The show follows the friendships and relationships of three friends as one of them traces the history of his relationships. It’s also set in Scotland, which is a big win for me. 

I had never before watched any of ‘The US Office’ but gave it a go this summer and have been binging it ever since. It is so funny and easy watching, and I was recently reading a Guardian article about how millennials watch comfort TV and I think this is so true of The Office. It is easy to put on and laugh at. I love Jim and Pam. 

Netflix’s ‘Designated Survivor’ is a new one of my favourites and I am currently halfway through season 2. It is so different from anything I have seen before and the concept is brilliant. It is based on the idea that the whole of the US government is killed in a terrorist attack, except for the designated survivor who happens to be the least important member of the cabinet. For anyone who loves thrillers, conspiracies and political programmes, this is perfect. 

I am also so so so excited for the new series of ‘Peaky Blinders’ and the first two episodes of this series have been great. This is probably my all-time favourite show and the new series is looking more into the history and politics of the 1920s which I am enjoying.

Books

I am aware that, as someone who has ‘reads’ in the title of my blog, it is shameful that I am yet to do one post about books but I’m not going to lie, I have been in a bit of a reading slump for a few months now. The last book I read was David Nicholls’ ‘One Day’ which is one of my favourites of all time and I have just not really felt like reading.

I am loving Naomi Alderman’s The Power at the minute and I am intending to get into more sort of feminist literature. I can already tell that this is going to become one of my favourites. I love the deeper meaning and parallels to male-female power dynamics in real life. 

I am currently reading a few things though that I hope to get finished before I go back to university. I am loving Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s ‘One Hundred Years of Solitude’ and also have ‘Strange Pilgrims’ and ‘Love in the Time of Cholera’ to read. 

I picked up Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s ‘The Shadow of the Wind’ at an Oxfam Bookshop that I am also enjoying. ‘Marina’ is one of my favourite books so I hope I enjoy this just as much. 

Shows

I went to the RSC in Stratford-Upon-Avon (which is stunning) a few weeks ago and saw ‘The Taming of the Shrew.’ This is one of my favourite Shakespeare plays and it was so interesting because it was gender-flipped so a very unique take on the original. The acting and production were incredible and I would recommend the RSC to anyone, it’s so great.

Last weekend, I was lucky enough to get to see Ed Sheeran perform at Roundhay Park in Leeds and it was insane. I have loved Ed Sheeran for years and always tried to get tickets unsuccessfully. He did all the best songs and it was the best concert I have been to in a while, despite the hour-long walk back to Leeds, midnight bus to Bradford and miles of mud. 

Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this insight into what I have been loving this summer! Sorry, it’s been so long since I posted but I have been writing a lot of articles for my university newspaper 🙂 

let’s talk about astrology

Astrology, to me, is all about studying the stars, moon and planets and their effects on human bodies and the universe. It is something that I have always been interested in but I have been reading more into lately and I want to share some of the things I have learned and found interesting. I am by no means an expert and may have got some things wrong but this is just my interpretation and things as I have understood them. 

I completely understand people who find astrology silly or unrealistic but personally, I just find it interesting and I read horoscopes or explanations of zodiac signs and do find links to aspects of my personality or life. 

Having seen lots of people talking about the Co-star app on twitter, I downloaded it and was fascinated. You put in your date and time of birth and where and it tells you all your zodiac signs with explanations and daily horoscopes. I had to read more into my zodiac signs as I didn’t know there were so many and that we had houses that affected parts of our personalities. I love it all. 

I do think there is some truth to a lot of what people say about how the moon affects our personalities and hormones etc. This is just my opinion and a lot of people will disagree with it but I’m a big believer in the universe and natural phenomenon affecting our bodies and minds. There is the concept that the moon affects the tides and many native beliefs associate water wit emotions and this can mean that heightened emotions are brought to the surface when there is a full moon. There is also a belief that the new moon is a time to set new goals and intentions and then the full moon is a time of reflection and release.

This is why I found reading into my own moon cycles and zodiac signs so interesting and for anyone else interested I’m just gonna explain a few of them and what they mean.

Sun Sign: Virgo – This determines your identity, basic nature and picture of yourself as the core of ourselves. Mine is Virgo which means I am (apparently) smart, responsible, hard-working and self-sacrificing. I would like to think that I am all of those things and feel as though that was especially true during my A-levels and the responsible part is something which I always strive to. It also says that this is in my eighth house which means I feel the need to distinguish myself from others in some ways which I think is also true. 

Moon Sign: Libra – This determines emotions, moods and inner feelings which most reflect your personality when you are alone or comfortable. The Libra part means that I am balanced and see the part of every situation but also indecisive and desperate to please. I think this is definitely true as I am awful at making decisions because I don’t like to disappoint people. It also says I can be self-obsessed but hide these feelings which is true. It is in my ninth house which means I find security through education, politics, and travel which I definitely agree with!

Ascendant Sign: Sagittarius – This is the mask that we present to people and can be seen in personal style and how we respond to new people or situations. Mine is Sagittarius which means that I come across as independent, optimistic and confident. This can sometimes seem restless, critical and blunt. I do agree with this a little, however, I don’t think it is as accurate as the others are. 

I just found it really interesting that the different signs were related to different moons in different houses and how these each corresponded to an aspect of our personalities. It’s fun to read about this and see which bits are true and which bits are a bit less relatable.

Although this is a bit different from what I normally post about, I hope this post has been interesting and insightful. Please share in the comments what zodiac signs you are and anything about astrology that you find interesting!

making memories: unexpected plans and summer days

Finding out the festival we were supposed to be going to had been cancelled less than six hours before we were due to leave was not the most ideal situation but the past week has been filled with happiness, laughter, love, and time spent with my incredible pals.

Yes, we spent a lot of money on tents, camping equipment, alcohol and food prepared for Boardmasters (trip to ASDA to buy 24 cans of cider each included) but the best-laid plans are sometimes not meant to be and everything happens for a reason. Camping in my garden at least got some use out of the tent and it was cute spending the night in the tent with the luxuries of a clean toilet and shower. 

Living in the Midlands is not the most ideal as one of the most landlocked areas of the UK. The closest beach is at least three hours away but we all made the drive over to Barmouth in Wales and had a lovely day on the beach. 

The sound of waves, the feeling of sun on skin, laughter playing rounders and cricket and falling over in the sand, the softness of sand in between toes, swimming in the sea and pretending to be kids again on the dodgems. 

Like something out of a dream

And then, a great day spent at the Alton Towers’ waterpark, only an hour’s drive away. As someone who is not a particularly strong swimmer and has never really been to a waterpark, I was apprehensive about what to expect but I would definitely recommend this as it was great fun, reasonably priced at £16 for an adult ticket and even the biggest slides were enjoyable. It was an amazing day out, so much fun. 

Although it hasn’t gone to plan, I have made so many memories over the past few days, captured through the lens of a disposable camera. Car drives singing to Lucy Spraggan and JLS with my favourite people are irreplaceable moments of perfection. The sun-burn, unused festival outfits and aches from the waterslides are so worth the memories of the past few days. 

planning a post-graduation trip to South America

Having taken a Latin American history module in my first year of university, I fell in love with the history and culture of South America. Now, going into my second year, I chose my modules around this and I am so excited to be taking a module focused on Mexico. I don’t graduate until 2021 but I have decided that following graduation, I would absolutely love to take a trip around South America and visit all the places that I keep reading about. 

I haven’t really considered the logistics of visiting these places or in which order etc I want to visit but I just want to share some of the places in different countries that I would love to go to. Shoutout to World of Wanderlust for their amazing blog post about some of the best places to visit in South America, which can be found here http://www.worldofwanderlust.com/25-places-must-visit-south-america/ 

Argentina

  • Buenos Aires
    • As soon as I go back to university for my second year, I have to apply for a year abroad (this is something I am still pondering about) and doing a year at the University of Buenos Aires is something that I think I want to do. 
    • The city looks absolutely beautiful with a nice balance of metropolitan and urbanised areas, stunning traditional European architecture and rich culture and history.
    • It is considered one of the most diverse cities in the Americas
    • Its history is something I have loved studying, particularly the populist coups of the 1940s and 1950s and the phenomenon of Juan Perón and his wife Eva who were incredibly popular among the Argentine working class. Latin American politics are fascinating to me. 

Bolivia

  • La Paz
    • This city looks beautiful, situated in a canyon and surrounded by the mountains of the Altiplano. The city is geographically amazing. This makes it the highest capital city in the world. 
    • Its indigenous history and Inca roots are unique and interesting. 
    • It has several significant colonial landmarks such as the San Francisco Church and Plaza Murillo. 
    • It is renowned for its unique markets such as the Witches’ Market. 

Brazil

  • Rio de Janeiro
    • Brazil is another country which is of particular interest me and having recently completed a research project on the military dictatorship of the 1960s and 70s, I am incredibly interested in visiting.
    • Rio’s carnival looks amazing and I would love to go one day
    • The city was essential to the Portuguese empire
    • I would also love to visit the Christ the Redeemer statue
    • Brazilian politics are slightly complicated at the minute and I am not a fan of Jair Bolsonaro, its current president so hopefully, things will be better by the time I go.  

Chile

  • Santiago
    • As the capital city of Chile, Santiago seems like an important visit. 
    • It has stunning neoclassical architecture and the cityscape is shaped by the hills and Mapocho River. 
    • It is the cultural centre of Chile which makes it a great place to learn about the Chilean culture and traditions. 

Columbia

  • Medellín
    • Netflix’s ‘Narcos’ (one of my favourite TV shows ever)put Columbia into my consciousness. Medellín is a key part of the series and Pablo Escobar’s hometown. This is where he grew up and began his criminal career. Escobar built many neighbourhoods in the city and remains a very divisive figure.
    • The stunning urban style and architecture of this city looks so appealing and the city is essential in the process of Columbian independence from Spain
  • Bogotá 
    • As the capital and largest city of Columbia, I feel as though Bogotá is an essential place to visit. Its name means “The Lady of the Andes” and it was founded by conquistadors.
    • It is politically significant as the home of the Columbian government and also an important cultural centre with many museums
    • It looks so interesting because it is urban and metropolitan but surrounded by mountains and the natural world. 
  • Cartagena
    • This city looks beautiful. It has stunning colonial-era architecture with Andalusian roots and is on the northern coast of Columbia. It was an important trade route between Spain and its overseas empire
    • Its colonial walled city and fortress in 1984 were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Cuba

  • Havana
    • Cuba is the country that I have focused on in my essays and I intend to do my dissertation on the Cuban Revolution. 
    • Havana is the place that I most want to visit in the world
    • Its traditional architecture, classic cars, and rich history inspire me and I would love to explore the capital city of a country that fascinates me.
    • Old Havana looks beautiful
  • Cienfuegos 
    • A city on the southern coast of Cuba and named “one hundred fires”, this looks and sounds incredible.
    • Its history and stunning architecture looks beautiful
    • This was the scene of famous battles during the Spanish-American war of 1898, saw uprisings against Batista in the Cuban Revolution and host to Cold War hostilities
    • The Gothic-style buildings look incredible 

Mexico

  • Mexico City
    • Quite simply, as the capital of Mexico, Mexico City looks culturally rich and as though there are so many cool things going on. It looks beautiful also. 
    • It is the oldest capital city in the Americas and was built by Aztecs. 
  • Cancun
    • I feel as though this is slightly more touristy but I simply have to go as it looks stunning, with blue skies and sea and palm trees and sandy beaches. 
  • Tulum
    • Tulum looks like a great place to is it as it is extremely historic and the site of a pre-Columbian Mayan walled city
    • I love Mayan and pre-colonial Mexican history so this seems like an interesting place to visit. 
  • Guadalajara
    • As a big fan of Netflix’s ‘Narcos Mexico’ which is heavily based in Guadalajara, I would love to go and see where one of my favourite TV shows is inspired by. 
    • The cathedral and churches have amazing architecture 
    • Guadalajara is a major Mexican cultural centre with lots of film and book festivals
  • Oaxaca
    • I remember doing a lot of reading about Tenochtitlan and Oaxaca as they were significant to the Spanish conquest of Mexico
    • The architecture of Oaxaca looks absolutely stunning
    • It is renowned for its indigenous people and culture which is great as I am fascinated by indigenous culture and history. 

Peru

  • Cusco
    • The history of Cusco is incredibly rich as the capital of the Inca Empire until the 16th-century Spanish conquest and it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983.
    • It has nearly 2 million visitors a year and is the most important tourist destination in Peru
    • Its natural style architecture looks amazing
    • The Iglesia de Compañía de Jesús looks particularly impressive which is considered one of the best examples of colonial baroque style in the Americas
  • Machu Picchu
    • As a history lover, Machu Picchu is a must
    • It is a 15th century Inca citadel in southern Peru and near to Cusco
    • It was believed to be constructed as an estate for the Inca emperor Pachacuti and is the most familiar icon of Inca civilisation, built around 1450 but abandoned during the Spanish conquest
    • It is built in the classical Inca style with polished dry-stone walls
    • It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983
  • Lima
    • As the capital of Peru, Lima looks like an important place to visit. 
    • It is near to the coast and looks beautiful

I hope you have enjoyed and learned a few things from this article, just as I did by researching it. I am so excited to look more into this trip and learn more about South America. I would love to hear from anyone who has been or is planning to go so please leave a comment or get in touch!

self-care and coping with a-level results day

With A-level results day rapidly approaching, I can’t help but think about how stressed and anxious I was this time last year, and how much less stressful life has been since A-levels. With that in mind, I wanted to share some of my personal self-care tips and experience of results day to try and alleviate some of this stress for anyone awaiting any important results.

We all live busy, chaotic lifestyles which may make finding time for self-care difficult but to live the most productive, best life you can, self-care is incredibly important. This can mean different things to different people but for me it means taking care of your physical and mental health, taking time for you to relax and do things you enjoy.

Doing some yoga or a few exercises from workout apps on my phone is something I like to do of an evening. Something I want to start doing is doing some form of meditation or mindfulness as I am quite a stress-prone person and I feel as though this would help so this is a personal goal of mine.

Something I have recently found very relaxing but might sound unusual is doing at least fifteen minutes of Duolingo per day. At the minute, I am refreshing my French language skills as this is something I loved at school but got out of the habit of. I find it gets me away from social media and helps take my mind off of the things I am stressed about and is making my memory and concentration skills better. It’s also free which is great.

Reading for pleasure is something I have always advocated and always done but I am ashamed to say that it is something I have fallen out of the habit of this year. I started my second term of uni off reading a lot for fun but as deadlines piled up and I was revising more, I didn’t read as much and now I very rarely pick up a fiction book which is so unusual for me. I am trying to get back into this and picked up Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s The Shadow of the Wind in an Oxfam bookshop the other day in the hope of making this happen. Nonetheless, reading for pleasure is great and forces us to do something other than think about what we are worried about.

Now more specifically about results day, I think the most important thing to remember is that, in my opinion, everything happens for a reason and we all end up in the place we are supposed to be. Going into results day with this mentality makes it less stressful and it is important to remember that there are always options. Although not ideal, clearing is now a much easier process and I would recommend going to results day with a list of universities that you wouldn’t mind trying on results day should you not get the grades you need, the grades they require and the phone numbers as this makes it more organised on the day.

I didn’t have the most conventional results day. An A*AA offer from Durham and the expectation to get the highest results in the Sixth Form meant that I was so so so so stressed leading up to the day and ended up crying several times in the morning before we even got our results.

As soon as I got to Sixth Form, I had a gut feeling I hadn’t got into Durham and this was confirmed when I opened my results and I was gutted. Things got more complicated when my teachers said I had missed my grades in two subjects by only 1 UMS so I had to wait for remarks.

I got these back two weeks later with the grades I needed but I had decided by then that I was going to go to my insurance choice which was Warwick. Something just felt right about Warwick and things fell into place when I got my first choice of accommodation. I had loved it at the open day and felt really at home there.

A year on from this and I can honestly say that this was the best thing to happen to me. I am so happy at Warwick in ways that I know I wouldn’t have been at Durham. I am still shocked and annoyed that my examiners had missed 16 marks in one of my subjects and 8 in the other as they robbed me of the perfect results day I wanted but I got the grades I was happy with in the end and Warwick has been amazing.

This was an incredibly unusual situation and I doubt this will happen to many people but I want to share my experience in the hope of demonstrating that things really do happen for a reason and results are not the end of the world. They were certainly not worth destroying my mental health over. This post has just been to reassure anyone expecting results and to give some tips on how to practice self-care.

Feel free to message me or leave a comment if you have any questions about A-level results day and leave a comment with things you like to do as self-care 🙂

  • the dreaded UCAS track screen
  • the confirmation email from Warwick

the benefits of sustainable fashion

It’s easy to fall into the trap of fast fashion when there are so many offers and sales on websites such as PrettyLittleThing and Boohoo. I am guilty of this, I buy a lot of clothes online and these shops are not that great for the environment. Especially as Missguided has recently come under fire for selling a bikini for less than £1. We are bombarded with adverts and Instragram inspiration for these shops which makes it difficult to make the effort to look elsewhere. 

But I am trying. I have become so passionate about Depop, an app that allows people to sell and buy second-hand items, making several purchases and selling things. I think it is a great community and supports young entrepreneurs. 

I don’t mean to talk too much about Depop but it has genuinely revolutionised the way that I shop. I have bought some unique, amazing pieces for ridiculously cheap prices. They sell a lot of Brandy Melville and Urban Outfitters items for so much cheaper than the shop. I have a striped bandeau from Brandy Melville that I wear on most nights out. I also bought a mesh star top that was handmade and some handmade moon dangly earrings that are unique and personal because they are handmade. I cannot rave enough about Depop. I think it’s a great way to recycle clothes and support people trying to make money. It’s also a great way to find clothes that better fit you as you can message the seller to ask about how the item fits which is perfect for me as I am quite short so clothes are often too long for me. 

I am also a big lover of charity shops and vintage clothing sales. My university has weekly vintage clothing sales in the SU and they are great. I bought a Ralph Lauren denim jacket for less than £10 which I love, a Puma sweatshirt and a Nike t-shirt which are comfy and I wear most days for less than £20. The vintage, thrifty look is so in at the minute and this is a great way to get some normally expensive pieces for cheap. 

Most towns and cities have no end of charity shops which are great because the money goes to a good cause and you can find some incredibly cool items that look pretty much new with a wash. 

Sustainable fashion is just so important because it’s something we can all do to help to save the planet. I am trying to learn more about it and be more sustainable in all aspects of life. It’s something we can at least try at and a way for us to save money as well as supporting smaller businesses. Selling clothes on Depop or at vintage sales is a way to get rid of clothes that you don’t wear and make a bit of extra cash also.

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