A constant state of flux

I've been travelling for two months and I haven't posted anything about my time yet despite saying, 'yes, of course I'll blog about my travels'. This is mainly because I didn't bring my laptop with me so that I could spend my time taking everything in instead of constantly sitting behind a screen. It was also partly because I didn't just want to bang loads of pictures up and talk about all the pretty places I've seen.

I've decided that when I write about my solo travel journey, I want to share my experiences, feelings, things that I've learnt as well as say 'hey, look at what I've seen'. So many travel posts make the world look great but you don't get the real feel for what's going on along the way. What it really feels like to put your life on hold back home and book a one way ticket to New Zealand with no real plan.

I meet backpackers regularly and the subjects we connect on the most are often about what's going on inside our heads rather than which amazing places we've ticked off our list. This has been the most wonderful part of travel so far and one of the main reasons I decided to go for it. Connections. A theme that I'm currently working through is one where these connections are always coming and going.

You can make meaningful friendships within days hours when you're on the move and then within an instant, you find yourself saying goodbye, lump in your throat, flutter in your chest... Everyone and everything is so transient and it makes you realise the impermanence of all things physical.

I think about my life back at home and remember how I was done with routine and 'regular' life. Craving instead, adventure and freedom. You don't realise until you're out here, how freedom to do what you want can actually be quite challenging. To allow yourself to 'shake up the snow globe and let the snowflakes fall where they may'. Credit to my yogi hero, Adriene Mishler for that gem. I get what it means now.

You get so comfortable with routine that when you give in to going with the flow, like really going with the flow, not knowing what each day is going to pan out like but to just allow yourself to see what unfolds, it's actually a little bit scary.

Where am I gonna go next? How long should I stay there? Should I go with him? Maybe I should do it by myself? I don't actually know what I should do. 

These are all thoughts and questions that go through every traveller's mind. This constant state of flux is both liberating and daunting. On one hand you're like 'yay, I can do anything I want!' but then on the other you're thinking, 'what the fuck am I gonna do now?'

Learning to accept what is and surrender to these feelings is the only thing you can do. Nothing is permanent and everything is subject to change. Whether you are travelling or not. Travelling shoves this notion right up in your face and you know what? It actually makes you better at dealing with change. You get used to it. You get to this point where you understand that you just have to take each moment in when you're in it and be grateful for every opportunity you're given and that way you'll stay grounded when your head and heart are all over the place.

I've only been here two months and I've made some truely meaningful friendships. Some for the purpose of that moment only and some that I will carry with me and pick up again at another point in my life. An amazing gift of travel is that you make friends all the time. The word 'stranger' is becoming less relevant to me. The word 'connection' more relevant. It sucks hugging people goodbye after you've had some great (and sometimes bad) experiences with them, but I'm glad to know now from experience that I'll make more incredible friends along the way. Connection is awesome.

Thank you to all my travel companions who have contributed to making my journey so epic thus far. If I have to go home tomorrow then I will always have fond memories of seeing a friend that I haven't seen in over a year, conversations about what really matters, guitars and gravelly voices, late night boat rides accompanied by the ethereal notes of a harp, sunset boat rides and a hike up Rangitoto Island in the pitch black, hot tubs... so many hot tubs, laughing because it's so fricking cold at night and there's nothing else you can do, feijoa cider and Old China ginger liquor, singing along to the radio and thinking I can actually sing, waving at other campervan passengers and getting super happy when they wave back, bubbles, crazy purple and orange sunsets, swimming in geothermal pools when it's pissing it down, dying when I'm trying to climb a mountain and being pissed off because my travel buddy has stormed off and left me, getting to said mountain and being like 'woah', realising you've been in the same place before at the same time as someone you've just met and then talking for four hours, food! So much good food... I could go on but my point is, making connections is ace and I look forward to meeting the people on my journey that I'm yet to meet.

Just love

Rina xoxo

P.S. Here are some really cool pictures of a few of the pretty places I've been.

The Italian Edit

I just got back from Italy and was inspired by how stylish all the locals were. Italian style is slick and chic. People of all ages seem to know how to dress well. Men wear suits and women are well groomed. It was all about clean lines and good tailoring. My favourite part of Italian styling was definitely the use of the colour white. Italy seems to be the only place where you can get away with wearing a white blouse, white trousers and white shoes but look good. It must be the Mediterranean weather because I'd never pull off such a combination in the UK!

Rome is such a great place for checking out street style and taking inspiration to put together the outfit above. Maybe not so fitting for the fast approach of Autumn over but it's certainly something to look forward to wearing when we get the odd spell of freak good weather or perfect for an evening out if you're visiting the Med soon. The fragrance however, is fine for any time of year. One of my current favourites smells, Bottega Veneta 'Eau Legere' is a warm, seductive fragrance and so very Italian. If you like Narciso Rodriguez  'For her' you'll love it and like the lady who sold me it said, with the eau de toilette you can spray it through your hair... for those moments... tee hee!

Blouse and jeans - Zara
Shoes - Valentino

Ciao for now!

Just love

Rina xoxo

Norton House Hotel & Spa Review



As I'm getting closer to 30, I've noticed that my love of a good night out is slowly being replaced by more love for a good spa break. You can't beat them really. You get to lounge about in a fluffy robe and slippers, you can have a nice nap, you can even take a nap in a hot tub if you wanted to (I don't recommend this). So given that my visit to Norton House Hotel & Spa was my third spa break in less than 6 months I kinda feel like I've been to enough to know what a good spa break should look like.

The hotel is part of the Handpicked Hotels group and is located in Edinburgh by the airport. My friend and I booked a spa break which included a one night stay at the hotel, a three-course meal, breakfast and £75 towards a spa treatment plus full access to the spa facilities.

Hotel

The hotel itself was lovely. It's surrounded by beautiful, spacious gardens and fields which really does make it feel like a proper getaway. The old Georgian building sits in the middle and looks pretty impressive amongst the scenic backdrop. The exterior was like a postcard picture and was one of my favourite features of the hotel. This is definitely the kind of place to go to if you like the outdoors, so if you're a fan of running or long walks, I highly recommend it.

Spa

The spa was good but not the best spa I've been to. It had a large pool, steam room, sauna, experience shower, hydro therapy pool, gym facilities, treatment rooms and a relaxation area. It had some great facilities but I just didn't get the same kind of relaxing ambiance that I've experienced in other spas before. Perhaps this is because it's quite a large spa and maybe it takes away from the cosy, peaceful feeling you get in smaller spas. There were also families who were staying in the hotel so the pool did get a bit noisy at times. My main dislike was the fact that the spa was in a separate building to the rest of the hotel, which meant that you either had to get dressed or you had to walk outside in your robe and slippers to get to your room. I prefer the kind of spas where you can stroll out of your treatment room and glide straight to your room...

Food/Service

This was probably the best part of my stay. I've been to hotel/spa breaks before and food options have always been limited with small portions. At Norton House they had a good slection of starters, mains and desserts at the The Brasserie restaurant. The main dish was the most stand out part of my meal. I ordered the Roast Chicken Breast with Leek Dauphinoise Potato, Fondant Carrot and Sherry Wild Mushroom Sauce and it was absolutely delicious. The chicken was succulent and tender and it was complimented by the sauce perfectly. The carrot had just enough bite and the mushrooms added an earthy depth to round off the dish. I would definitely eat here again. The service was fab, all the staff were polite, friendly and were always on hand to help if we needed anything, like an emergency beans on toast!

So, the overall verdict - I'd give it a 7 out of 10. It was really good value for money and would be a nice relaxing excursion if you're in Edinburgh for a few nights.

Click here to go through to the hotel website.

I'm always on the lookout for new spa's to visit. Can you recommend any good ones?

Just love

Rina xoxo