Living in Lagos and a little trip to Lisbon

Arriving at the bus station in faro an hour earlier than I had anticipated I set off to find chloe assuming she would not be too far. After a brief stroll in the port of faro sweating in my black plane clothes I put some pennies in a pay phone in an attempt to make contact. No answer but a MSG with something that slightly resembled pub i searched for the closest cafe with beer. Sure enough under the sagres (local beer) umbrella I spotted a familiar face! A quick cold later and we made the 4.30 bus to Lagos. Unfortunately a little too eager to get there, and dying for the bathroom we stumbled off at what we thought was our stop. Whist the area looked a tad familiar, we seemed to be orientating our way though strange streets that weren’t on the map. Not until we stopped to ask a local to point is in the right direction did we clarify that we were in fact in the wrong town! Back on the bus, another 5 euro later, we foolishly laughed at our efforts as we headed for our final destination.

We found our way to the shangri-lagos, which was the hostel I had emailed about volunteering and staying there for the month. Having received an email back “hey magic bees, things are looking pretty good, just show up” we weren’t sure what to expect. Walking around the cobble streets in the dusk we finally found the door and buzzed, pleasantly welcomed by the lovely mumsy of the house Savina; no one can back themselves up like this incredible and positive lady! (‘white wine!!!’) “You don’t know who I am, but I know who you are, you’re my baby bees” she said as she embraced us with a warm and genuine hug and led us straight to our two beds (bunk) in a private room (separated with a curtain). She showed us around what was to be our home for the next month and instantly we felt comfortable and accepted! 

It is the best hostel I have ever stayed in and we are so incredibly lucky to land such a unique opportunity to volunteer and be apart of the loving shangri Lagos family! We were introduced to tom (crack cat) another Aussie volunteering for the summer and the three of us have become close friends! We also met the owners Ben; a quirky and loving man, with a abundance of creative energy who never stops, and John, a very placid and lovely observer who is so easy to be around! And finally we met Hugo; our manager who I had been exchanging emails with; an ideas man, from Portugal that has the greatest sense of humor and will constantly make you laugh! (“where’s my baby bees motherbitches?”) Then there’s Paulina the lovely hardworking cleaning lady, and last but not least jaeo, the easy going and mellow night owl (does the night shifts). Like one big happy family full of eklective and different characters, the house seems to work together to give our travelers the ultimate shangri Lagos experience! 

Lagos itself is a beautiful small costal town with amazing beaches and small cobble streets lined with quirky bars beckoning you in with cheap cocktails and sangria. Renown for its intense and raging night life it attracts all types of travelers, the only down fall is that the majority of them being loud mouth Australians!!! (obviously a generalization, and i do love my own kind…but really…so many twats!!! Besides this, I can’t fault it…it’s small enough to make friends with the locals, walk home by yourself at 6am and spend your days sweating out the previous nights boozing at the many beaches! I have fallen in love with living in Lagos. 

Now although over two crazy weeks have passed here it seems that I can sum my days up quite easily; generally a 10am start to the day to do a load of washing, and gossip in our garden with our guests over breaky about the previous nights adventures! Another few loads of Washing and a general clean up later we either take the guests to the beach, go on a bees walking tour on the cliffs or go for an epic hostel shopping trip with Ben (for some reason I think of a game of American football to describe what happens here). The afternoon is spent perhaps on reception checking guests in, napping or lazing around the garden making friends and planning activities that the hostel can offer; so far two “love” boat trips, a big BBQ and cheese and chorizo night have been done! In the eve we either take the guests out for a family dinner or cook in! Swapping shifts at the bar we have in the garden, serving my sangria (made with a lot of love) and cold beers the pre drinking begins! Sometimes escorted by a few tunes from Shane (a talented musician that hangs out a the hostel) soon enough midnight strikes and we leave! Starting the night at our favourite bar; whites, owned by the lovely Denise and Andy, craines and I order the “usual” which happens be an incredibly large and delicious cocktail (we receive for free)! A few drinks later, mates rates and hectic dancing down stairs we all head onto grand cafe! With the occasional stop at another bar on the way…usually this part of the night is a little hazy! Waking up hung over…if the guests are happy we are happy, hence we don’t “work” we “volunteer” an exchange of a bed to make friends and generally help out at the best hostel in Lagos…what else could you call this but luck?! 

Seeing so many guests come and go over the two weeks, saying goodbyes to travelers we now call our friends, it is a hard cycle and it does take its toll! Well that, and the extreme partying we have been doing Craines and I decided a little trip away was needed so we headed for a detox in Lisbon! We caught the four hour train north, changing once and arriving into the capital to check into the old town hostel about 5pm. It felt bizarre to be traveling just with a hand bag (only two nights worth of stuff) and being in a bustling city again! The metro system was simple and the directions to the hostel were great! Lisbon is very hilly but easy enough to navigate! The streets were lined with lovely old terrace houses as they plunged down into bar areas! We stayed central in bairro alto area which happens to be the old part of town where everything is in walking distance. The hostel was huge, very clean and they were very helpful! Soon enough hunger hit and we wandered the streets searching for something to feed our appetites. We stumbled upon a little family run Goan Indian restaurant with a large tv screen in view (to watch the game; portugal vs Spain)! We devoured our delicious meal and made friends with the staff as we stayed there for near two hours to watch the outcome! With Spain winning on a penalty shoot out, we shared our sighs with the disappointed locals and headed home for an alcohol free night! The next day we went on a wild walkers city our to St. George’s castle, cathedral and main square! Lisbon is very charismatic and pretty, with squares, monuments and ruins representing the history rich past, and the colorful graffiti and beating bars provoking the current social splendor. A brief crawl of the streets to find a vintage store we headed home for a nap to rest our exhausted bodies! We then headed out for a delicious local Portuguese feed that the hostel recommended; Casa Cabaccas! I ordered a grilled steak of salmon and craines ordered the famous naco; which is a giant slab of raw beef (from near the bum) which she cooks and cuts herself on a large stone escorted by salt and garlic sauce! A few fried fish, olives, cheese and sangria later we were struggling! Making friends with a few locals at the restaurant they insisted we meet them at Bali bar after they had finished dinner! Paying our pricey but worth it bill (turns out nothing is complementary and we should have got them to remove things from our table) we made a move for the bar! It was like a surf shack with live music, and after just one delicious strawberry cocktail later we bailed on our new-to-be-friends and headed home after 12, (Lisbon happens to have an incredible night life, but due to our daily drinking efforts in Lagos we unfortunately had to decline its offer to party!) 

We woke this morning a little late and headed straight for the bus station in order to get back to Lagos! With the 12:30 bus booked out we waited around and caught the 2pm one! A pretty easy and direct 4hr journey I’m glad we got away for a few days! A little bit of a stop, revive survive and im Excited to get back for another crazy week and a bit, who knows what experience the shangri will throw our way? A lucky one, no doubt. 

Arriving back into Lagos from Lisbon in the late eve we collected other travelers from the bus, some of which were staying at our hostel, and others simply lost so we pointed them in the right direction. A feeling of familiarity and a sense of contempt accompanied craines and I as we headed home to the Shangri. Bursting through the wooden door we headed straight towards our room to drop our bags off…only to find someone sleeping in it. It seems that in just three short days things change, especially in a hostel, where people come and go barely leaving a hand print, so in order to survive you need to be able to adapt. I do enjoy change but of course like others I find comfort in what is already established, weather it be relationships with people or the environment around you, it’s easy if you know it…but far more exciting if you don’t. Our small little private room was now to be shared with a nice German girl who worked down the road at the tshirt shop, quite passive; in the 10 days iv known here I still know very little. A quick shower and clean up, Sav briefed us on the latest news around the hostel…let’s just say I think we (craines and I) were missed!!! 

Throwing ourselves straight back into it we bonded with the new travelers socializing in the garden until 12 and headed straight to whytes for a big Friday eve. This night however differed a little from the others as for the first time I didn’t make it into grand cafe, stopping short at the door I opted for a chat in the gutter for hours with a local instead of dancing the night away in the crammed club. The rest of the weekend was much the same routine…a large Saturday night is reduced to simply another night out…as it seems all nights out are of an equivalent size! However on Sunday eve, Shane; a friend of the hostels came to collect us in his van and took us to his gig in a family style restaurant/bar in the next town over, Luz. It was lovely to get away and do something different for the eve whist listening to incredibly talented musicians. What was meant to be just a few quiet drinks escalated into giant shots which had gold leaf in them so they slightly slash your throat in order for the alcohol to go into your blood quicker!!!

Come Monday the time had finally fallen for craines and I to part ways as she was flying off to a music festival and not due back before I had departed. Not sure as to when we were to see each other again, the goodbye was heart breaking…it seems that this little lady has made a special bed in my heart, we put it down to the fact that we are both country kids, but what ever it be we have formed an unbreakable bond and from that a beautiful friendship that i treasure is forever present. My mind was distracted that afternoon by another love boat cruise (tom and i organized for the hostel) which involved a sunny afternoon on a boat with unlimited sangria, beer and sandwiches, swimming and grotto caves! The day led into the eve and Indeed I drank my sorrows away which led to a night of dashing dancing, deep and meaningful chats with a very lovely friend Sam, and watching the sun rise on the beach before I finally took my sorry self home to bed.

My Tuesday was spent moving into the bee hive; a self contained one bedroom apartment across from the shangri! I moved in there with a newby bee (worker); kaisa who is one of the sweetest people I have come across, she has an absolute heart of gold! Excited and a little liberated with our new space we spent the afternoon decorating it with random accessories found at the shangri inclusive of a deer head, a few kitsch Japanese artworks and some colorful canvases. Wednesday passed…and there’s really no need to even talk about Wednesday…(maybe because it’s a little hazy). By my second last night out, (thursday) I seemed to have had a plan to just venture for a few drinks at whytes then head home…obviously impossible in Lagos…come 12am, one of our guests turned 21 so the entire shangri family did a bit of a crawl from one pub to another, again far too shots consumed and tables were dominated! 

My last day of lagos sunshine was spent at the beach on Friday before heading home to prepare for my farewell BBQ…obviously involving a theme; pirates, Ben and I quickly popped to the shops to see what we could find in the way of accessories to add to his already extreme and extravagant collection of fancy dress! The eve was lovely, everyone put in effort to look a little sea bound, and all of my favourites were there, even the lovely Andy and Denise from whytes! It made me reflect on just what i had stumbled upon there in Lagos; life long friendships with incredible people, and a home away from home!!! However as much love as I was feeling the burden of me leaving was definitely scratching the air and everyone became all the more stressed and tense at each other. So much so, that Hugo led everyone off from whytes not long after arriving so Sav, Mya and I stayed behind. Over the past week I have become even closer to Mya; Hugo’s Slovenian girlfriend, she has such a kind heart and is a lot of fun to be around! The three of us then headed onto a few bars before making way for the unavoidable grand cafe! Again not making it inside I called it a night and headed home with a friend. Packing my life up in the morning was stressful, as I handprinted and wrote on the wall…”to be continued”. It seems that Lagos has this addictive aura about it, even when I said my goodbyes and jumped on the train it felt more like an “I will be back soon,” be it this year or next! 

Off the two hour train and onto the bus said goodbye to my new found dancing partner and fellow Sydney sider James, and made it to the airport with plenty of time to spare, jamming my oversized bag into the Ryanair measuring box to avoid a hefty fine that I was luckily dismissed. Arriving back into London just past 8pm I stepped off the plane in my denim shorts wishing I had of predicted the drizzling london weather! I headed straight back to my friends house in brixton catching up with Bridie over a cup of tea before calling it a night. The next morning I headed into trafalgar square to meet Bridie after her 10k marathon which she impressively finished just over 50minutes. We then went with her friends down to south bank for a lunch before making our way home for a lazy Sunday afternoon watching the Wimbledon final and cooking a delicious dinner. Finishing the night with a little bit of jazz and a few glasses of red at a little pub around the corner from her house. 

The next morning I headed off to kent which was an hour away by train to visit my friend Nat in tunbridge. We spent the evening overindulging in delicious food (incredible cheese from france) and sipping on wine and cider watching bad American films. Taking her dog for a long walk in morning through the lush green country side it was lovely to get some fresh country air before making my way back to the city. The streets in London were swimming with tourists with the olympic games creeping up just around the corner so I made a dash for the pub to meet an old and dear school friend wade. To my delight I received a message from craines as she was in town for the day so we spent some of the afternoon together before I retired back to Bridies to pack up my giant ruck sack again. Trying to illuminate the unnesacary items I re packed several times only to set aside two nail polishes and a note book, it seems that no matter how many times I do this it doesn’t get any easier! 

Up early this morning, I caught the bus to stansted airport running away from the rain and hiding indoors all day. Just now boarded and sitting on the aircraft which is due to depart in 10 minutes. It is a bizarre feeling when you travel alone, in a way I find it less stressful because you rely on yourself but in the same respect I dont enjoy it as much as there is no one to share the experience with! Excited that I will be seeing my sister Danni tomorrow as she flys into istanbul early morning and we are meeting at the hostel I have booked for us in a really central area (I stayed in the same street a few years back when I passed by). With three months passed and hong kong, china, Mongolia, Russia, Sweden, Portugal and the uk down I’m extremely excited to start the second half of my big trip; turkey, israel, Egypt, Jordan and New York!!! ww

Arriving at the bus station in faro an hour earlier than I had anticipated I set off to find chloe assuming she would not be too far. After a brief stroll in the port of faro sweating in my black plane clothes I put some pennies in a pay phone in an attempt to make contact. No answer but a MSG with something that slightly resembled pub i searched for the closest cafe with beer. Sure enough under the sagres (local beer) umbrella I spotted a familiar face! A quick cold later and we made the 4.30 bus to Lagos. Unfortunately a little too eager to get there, and dying for the bathroom we stumbled off at what we thought was our stop. Whist the area looked a tad familiar, we seemed to be orientating our way though strange streets that weren’t on the map. Not until we stopped to ask a local to point is in the right direction did we clarify that we were in fact in the wrong town! Back on the bus, another 5 euro later, we foolishly laughed at our efforts as we headed for our final destination.

We found our way to the shangri-lagos, which was the hostel I had emailed about volunteering and staying there for the month. Having received an email back “hey magic bees, things are looking pretty good, just show up” we weren’t sure what to expect. Walking around the cobble streets in the dusk we finally found the door and buzzed, pleasantly welcomed by the lovely mumsy of the house Savina; no one can back themselves up like this incredible and positive lady! (‘white wine!!!’) “You don’t know who I am, but I know who you are, you’re my baby bees” she said as she embraced us with a warm and genuine hug and led us straight to our two beds (bunk) in a private room (separated with a curtain). She showed us around what was to be our home for the next month and instantly we felt comfortable and accepted! 

It is the best hostel I have ever stayed in and we are so incredibly lucky to land such a unique opportunity to volunteer and be apart of the loving shangri Lagos family! We were introduced to tom (crack cat) another Aussie volunteering for the summer and the three of us have become close friends! We also met the owners Ben; a quirky and loving man, with a abundance of creative energy who never stops, and John, a very placid and lovely observer who is so easy to be around! And finally we met Hugo; our manager who I had been exchanging emails with; an ideas man, from Portugal that has the greatest sense of humor and will constantly make you laugh! (“where’s my baby bees motherbitches?”) Then there’s Paulina the lovely hardworking cleaning lady, and last but not least jaeo, the easy going and mellow night owl (does the night shifts). Like one big happy family full of eklective and different characters, the house seems to work together to give our travelers the ultimate shangri Lagos experience! 

Lagos itself is a beautiful small costal town with amazing beaches and small cobble streets lined with quirky bars beckoning you in with cheap cocktails and sangria. Renown for its intense and raging night life it attracts all types of travelers, the only down fall is that the majority of them being loud mouth Australians!!! (obviously a generalization, and i do love my own kind…but really…so many twats!!! Besides this, I can’t fault it…it’s small enough to make friends with the locals, walk home by yourself at 6am and spend your days sweating out the previous nights boozing at the many beaches! I have fallen in love with living in Lagos. 

Now although over two crazy weeks have passed here it seems that I can sum my days up quite easily; generally a 10am start to the day to do a load of washing, and gossip in our garden with our guests over breaky about the previous nights adventures! Another few loads of Washing and a general clean up later we either take the guests to the beach, go on a bees walking tour on the cliffs or go for an epic hostel shopping trip with Ben (for some reason I think of a game of American football to describe what happens here). The afternoon is spent perhaps on reception checking guests in, napping or lazing around the garden making friends and planning activities that the hostel can offer; so far two “love” boat trips, a big BBQ and cheese and chorizo night have been done! In the eve we either take the guests out for a family dinner or cook in! Swapping shifts at the bar we have in the garden, serving my sangria (made with a lot of love) and cold beers the pre drinking begins! Sometimes escorted by a few tunes from Shane (a talented musician that hangs out a the hostel) soon enough midnight strikes and we leave! Starting the night at our favourite bar; whites, owned by the lovely Denise and Andy, craines and I order the “usual” which happens be an incredibly large and delicious cocktail (we receive for free)! A few drinks later, mates rates and hectic dancing down stairs we all head onto grand cafe! With the occasional stop at another bar on the way…usually this part of the night is a little hazy! Waking up hung over…if the guests are happy we are happy, hence we don’t “work” we “volunteer” an exchange of a bed to make friends and generally help out at the best hostel in Lagos…what else could you call this but luck?! 

Seeing so many guests come and go over the two weeks, saying goodbyes to travelers we now call our friends, it is a hard cycle and it does take its toll! Well that, and the extreme partying we have been doing Craines and I decided a little trip away was needed so we headed for a detox in Lisbon! We caught the four hour train north, changing once and arriving into the capital to check into the old town hostel about 5pm. It felt bizarre to be traveling just with a hand bag (only two nights worth of stuff) and being in a bustling city again! The metro system was simple and the directions to the hostel were great! Lisbon is very hilly but easy enough to navigate! The streets were lined with lovely old terrace houses as they plunged down into bar areas! We stayed central in bairro alto area which happens to be the old part of town where everything is in walking distance. The hostel was huge, very clean and they were very helpful! Soon enough hunger hit and we wandered the streets searching for something to feed our appetites. We stumbled upon a little family run Goan Indian restaurant with a large tv screen in view (to watch the game; portugal vs Spain)! We devoured our delicious meal and made friends with the staff as we stayed there for near two hours to watch the outcome! With Spain winning on a penalty shoot out, we shared our sighs with the disappointed locals and headed home for an alcohol free night! The next day we went on a wild walkers city our to St. George’s castle, cathedral and main square! Lisbon is very charismatic and pretty, with squares, monuments and ruins representing the history rich past, and the colorful graffiti and beating bars provoking the current social splendor. A brief crawl of the streets to find a vintage store we headed home for a nap to rest our exhausted bodies! We then headed out for a delicious local Portuguese feed that the hostel recommended; Casa Cabaccas! I ordered a grilled steak of salmon and craines ordered the famous naco; which is a giant slab of raw beef (from near the bum) which she cooks and cuts herself on a large stone escorted by salt and garlic sauce! A few fried fish, olives, cheese and sangria later we were struggling! Making friends with a few locals at the restaurant they insisted we meet them at Bali bar after they had finished dinner! Paying our pricey but worth it bill (turns out nothing is complementary and we should have got them to remove things from our table) we made a move for the bar! It was like a surf shack with live music, and after just one delicious strawberry cocktail later we bailed on our new-to-be-friends and headed home after 12, (Lisbon happens to have an incredible night life, but due to our daily drinking efforts in Lagos we unfortunately had to decline its offer to party!) 

We woke this morning a little late and headed straight for the bus station in order to get back to Lagos! With the 12:30 bus booked out we waited around and caught the 2pm one! A pretty easy and direct 4hr journey I’m glad we got away for a few days! A little bit of a stop, revive survive and im Excited to get back for another crazy week and a bit, who knows what experience the shangri will throw our way? A lucky one, no doubt. 

Arriving back into Lagos from Lisbon in the late eve we collected other travelers from the bus, some of which were staying at our hostel, and others simply lost so we pointed them in the right direction. A feeling of familiarity and a sense of contempt accompanied craines and I as we headed home to the Shangri. Bursting through the wooden door we headed straight towards our room to drop our bags off…only to find someone sleeping in it. It seems that in just three short days things change, especially in a hostel, where people come and go barely leaving a hand print, so in order to survive you need to be able to adapt. I do enjoy change but of course like others I find comfort in what is already established, weather it be relationships with people or the environment around you, it’s easy if you know it…but far more exciting if you don’t. Our small little private room was now to be shared with a nice German girl who worked down the road at the tshirt shop, quite passive; in the 10 days iv known here I still know very little. A quick shower and clean up, Sav briefed us on the latest news around the hostel…let’s just say I think we (craines and I) were missed!!! 

Throwing ourselves straight back into it we bonded with the new travelers socializing in the garden until 12 and headed straight to whytes for a big Friday eve. This night however differed a little from the others as for the first time I didn’t make it into grand cafe, stopping short at the door I opted for a chat in the gutter for hours with a local instead of dancing the night away in the crammed club. The rest of the weekend was much the same routine…a large Saturday night is reduced to simply another night out…as it seems all nights out are of an equivalent size! However on Sunday eve, Shane; a friend of the hostels came to collect us in his van and took us to his gig in a family style restaurant/bar in the next town over, Luz. It was lovely to get away and do something different for the eve whist listening to incredibly talented musicians. What was meant to be just a few quiet drinks escalated into giant shots which had gold leaf in them so they slightly slash your throat in order for the alcohol to go into your blood quicker!!!

Come Monday the time had finally fallen for craines and I to part ways as she was flying off to a music festival and not due back before I had departed. Not sure as to when we were to see each other again, the goodbye was heart breaking…it seems that this little lady has made a special bed in my heart, we put it down to the fact that we are both country kids, but what ever it be we have formed an unbreakable bond and from that a beautiful friendship that i treasure is forever present. My mind was distracted that afternoon by another love boat cruise (tom and i organized for the hostel) which involved a sunny afternoon on a boat with unlimited sangria, beer and sandwiches, swimming and grotto caves! The day led into the eve and Indeed I drank my sorrows away which led to a night of dashing dancing, deep and meaningful chats with a very lovely friend Sam, and watching the sun rise on the beach before I finally took my sorry self home to bed.

My Tuesday was spent moving into the bee hive; a self contained one bedroom apartment across from the shangri! I moved in there with a newby bee (worker); kaisa who is one of the sweetest people I have come across, she has an absolute heart of gold! Excited and a little liberated with our new space we spent the afternoon decorating it with random accessories found at the shangri inclusive of a deer head, a few kitsch Japanese artworks and some colorful canvases. Wednesday passed…and there’s really no need to even talk about Wednesday…(maybe because it’s a little hazy). By my second last night out, (thursday) I seemed to have had a plan to just venture for a few drinks at whytes then head home…obviously impossible in Lagos…come 12am, one of our guests turned 21 so the entire shangri family did a bit of a crawl from one pub to another, again far too shots consumed and tables were dominated! 

My last day of lagos sunshine was spent at the beach on Friday before heading home to prepare for my farewell BBQ…obviously involving a theme; pirates, Ben and I quickly popped to the shops to see what we could find in the way of accessories to add to his already extreme and extravagant collection of fancy dress! The eve was lovely, everyone put in effort to look a little sea bound, and all of my favourites were there, even the lovely Andy and Denise from whytes! It made me reflect on just what i had stumbled upon there in Lagos; life long friendships with incredible people, and a home away from home!!! However as much love as I was feeling the burden of me leaving was definitely scratching the air and everyone became all the more stressed and tense at each other. So much so, that Hugo led everyone off from whytes not long after arriving so Sav, Mya and I stayed behind. Over the past week I have become even closer to Mya; Hugo’s Slovenian girlfriend, she has such a kind heart and is a lot of fun to be around! The three of us then headed onto a few bars before making way for the unavoidable grand cafe! Again not making it inside I called it a night and headed home with a friend. Packing my life up in the morning was stressful, as I handprinted and wrote on the wall…”to be continued”. It seems that Lagos has this addictive aura about it, even when I said my goodbyes and jumped on the train it felt more like an “I will be back soon,” be it this year or next! 

Off the two hour train and onto the bus said goodbye to my new found dancing partner and fellow Sydney sider James, and made it to the airport with plenty of time to spare, jamming my oversized bag into the Ryanair measuring box to avoid a hefty fine that I was luckily dismissed. Arriving back into London just past 8pm I stepped off the plane in my denim shorts wishing I had of predicted the drizzling london weather! I headed straight back to my friends house in brixton catching up with Bridie over a cup of tea before calling it a night. The next morning I headed into trafalgar square to meet Bridie after her 10k marathon which she impressively finished just over 50minutes. We then went with her friends down to south bank for a lunch before making our way home for a lazy Sunday afternoon watching the Wimbledon final and cooking a delicious dinner. Finishing the night with a little bit of jazz and a few glasses of red at a little pub around the corner from her house. 

The next morning I headed off to kent which was an hour away by train to visit my friend Nat in tunbridge. We spent the evening overindulging in delicious food (incredible cheese from france) and sipping on wine and cider watching bad American films. Taking her dog for a long walk in morning through the lush green country side it was lovely to get some fresh country air before making my way back to the city. The streets in London were swimming with tourists with the olympic games creeping up just around the corner so I made a dash for the pub to meet an old and dear school friend wade. To my delight I received a message from craines as she was in town for the day so we spent some of the afternoon together before I retired back to Bridies to pack up my giant ruck sack again. Trying to illuminate the unnesacary items I re packed several times only to set aside two nail polishes and a note book, it seems that no matter how many times I do this it doesn’t get any easier! 

Up early this morning, I caught the bus to stansted airport running away from the rain and hiding indoors all day. Just now boarded and sitting on the aircraft which is due to depart in 10 minutes. It is a bizarre feeling when you travel alone, in a way I find it less stressful because you rely on yourself but in the same respect I dont enjoy it as much as there is no one to share the experience with! Excited that I will be seeing my sister Danni tomorrow as she flys into istanbul early morning and we are meeting at the hostel I have booked for us in a really central area (I stayed in the same street a few years back when I passed by). With three months passed and hong kong, china, Mongolia, Russia, Sweden, Portugal and the uk down I’m extremely excited to start the second half of my big trip; turkey, israel, Egypt, Jordan and New York!!! ww