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Chamonix Travel Diary: Part Deux

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Admittedly our first full day in Chamonix was always going to be a lazy one. That didn’t stop me waking up at 8am though to go to the boulangerie for baguette and croissants (you gotta be early to get the pick of the best). It did mean that I took a rather leisurely stroll back to the apartment, making sure to take a few photos here and there. Each chalet in town seems to be unique to it’s owner, baring marks of their personality and history. As someone who admires architecture this is perfect for my holiday snaps. After devouring my croissant amande we took a stroll into town and did a bit of window shopping.

It was intended to be an actual shopping trip, but Ben (he’s after some new kicks) can never decide when it comes to clothing. Usually it’s me who is after a new outfit or the latest beauty product, but I’m actually pretty content right now. I guess I want to remember this holiday through experiences, rather than material items. That’s why we had to stop off at one of the best sandwich places in Chamonix. The hole-in-the-wall food vendor is usually populated by skaters and snowboarders (depending on the season), taking me back to my high school days. Good nostalgic comfort food. Whilst we were sat enjoying our poulet frites baguette, a sudden cheer erupted in a crowd that had somehow gathered around us without our knowledge. A marathon was happening, and the stars were the waiters and waitresses from the local bars and restaurants. Their task? To carry a tray of filled glasses and bottles around the town as quickly as possible. Not something I’d personally want to partake in, especially in the hot sun. Yet everyone was smiling as they competed against each other.

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Chamonix Travel Diary: Part 1

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Yesterday morning I woke up at 4:30am and hopped on a night bus to Victoria station. No I wasn’t going on a still-drunk adventure, I was off on holiday! We caught the train to Gatwick with our gigantic suitcase and were whisked through drop-off and security pretty quickly. In fact everything went very smoothly and before we knew it we were sat on our Easy Jet plane bound for Geneva (with a spare seat beside me – score!). Our travels didn’t stop at Geneva though, as we boarded the Alpy Bus to Chamonix.

If you were reading my blog this time last year you may have noticed a slight similarity. You see, we have a family apartment in Chamonix and Ben and I love nothing more than running away to it in the Summer. Ski season is wonderful in Chamonix, but the weather in Summer is amazing (clear sky and a hot sun), and it’s much more relaxing not having to fight the hoards of skiers/tourists for the last baguette every morning.

As I type this I am currently sat outside on the porch looking directly at Mont Blanc (the third most visited natural site in the world behind Mount Fuji and the Niagara falls), and I realise just how lucky I am.

I really want to share my travels with you as it’s not something I get the chance to do often (due to work and life in general). Therefore I plan to bring you a daily travel diary complete with photos and a summary of what I’ve been up to (more than likely from the previous day). I hope you’ll enjoy it!

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Travel Diary: Countryside Escape

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I love London, but sometimes travelling outside of the big smoke is just what the doctor ordered. This time we headed off into the Welsh countryside for a long weekend. I only discovered Wales about 5 years ago when I met my fiancé, yet it has quickly become a second (third?) home for me. The scenery is beautiful and the people are welcoming, what more could you ask for?

Whilst I’m in Wales I enjoy taking long walks in the hills, making friends with sheep as I go by. Sampling the amazing local food at home (and in restaurants) is always a must, as is having a good catch-up over a glass of wine. Unfortunately the rain may have got in the way a little this past weekend, but we still managed to fit in: a 15 mile bike ride, a trip to a manor house and a stroll around the local castle ruins. Relaxation success!

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Turning a Photograph Into a Piece of Art

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When my parent’s told me they planned to redecorate their lounge I knew I had to send them a little gift, and by ‘little gift’ I mean a gigantic canvas print of our family dog. It was the one item I could be confident they would make use of. Thankfully The Print Foundry were on hand to do all the hard work. All I had to do was sit back and choose a fitting photograph.

The one I finally went for is a personal favourite of mine, which was taken on the beach at Walcott, Norfolk. Now I realise that I’m biased, but I do happen to think my dog is pretty darn handsome. This photo of him just seems so majestic and regal that I couldn’t resist having it blown up for all to see. When it arrived I was in half a mind to keep it for myself. The quality of the canvas and printing is superb, it almost looks like an oil painting when the light hits it. As for the size, it was bigger than I had expected, but that certainly wasn’t a bad thing. I had been secretly hoping it would be large enough to take pride of place in my parent’s lounge. In fact my parent’s adore it so much that they have already put it up, even though they haven’t even started decorating yet. They told me that they fell in love with it as soon as they laid eyes on it, which makes for one successful gift if you ask me. Apparently my grandmother has plans to steal it and put it on her staircase…that’s one less Christmas gift to think of anyway.

You can turn your own photographs into works of art at The Print Foundry.

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Photo Diary: Food & A Photography Masterclass


Waking up early on a Saturday is not something most people would do, and when I say most people, I mean me. That said, the lovely people from Simplyhealth had me leaping out from beneath my covers for a special workshop that included food and photography – two of my greatest passions in life.

The event started with a mini masterclass with the photographer Paul Hames. He taught us the basics of using a D-SLR on manual mode, something which can seem a little intimidating at times. I will admit that I’ve been lazy in the past and flicked my camera onto auto and just gone with the flow. So this gave me the kick up the derrière that I needed. It also gave me the push that I needed, to finally decide on buying a Canon…now I just need to figure out which model.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand! After Paul had shown us around the basics of a D-SLR, he took us out for a wander around Kings Cross, to try out our newfound photography skills. We headed to the viewing platform behind Kings Cross Station, which gave me a view of the area that I’d never seen before. It was the perfect place to take some snaps of London. It began to get a little crowded though so we headed alongside the canal to take some portrait shots in the gorgeous sunshine. Sarah, Jess and I became a threesome for the project and found a nice shady spot to take our photos. Both ladies were the perfect models. Although I may have got a little carried away taking photos of Sarah’s gorgeous tattoos. All that snapping finally took it’s toll on us though, and we were ready for food! Luckily the Kerb street food market was on so we headed over and wandered off in search of sustenance! Marlene and I paired up and headed to Bill or Beak for one of their amazingly juicy sandwich-burgers…I’m still not sure what to class it as. We soon found a shady spot to to keep our delicate skin from burning (it still didn’t save me) and to enjoy our food. After we’d all enjoyed our food we headed back for some more photography chit-chat with Paul, who taught us how to take a good photo.

I had such a wonderful day and was so inspired by Paul that I’ve been taking photos like there’s no tomorrow…on manual, of course. So thank you to everyone who made the day so great!