The Cape

Over summer I had the incredible opportunity to travel around America and Canada, and our final stop was the one I had been looking forward to the most!
Cape Cod (or ‘The Cape’ to the regulars and locals) is a glorious little paradise nestled just off the coast, south of Boston.

17 years ago, when I was just 5 years old, my family stayed at The Cape for a couple of weeks, but have only the vaguest of recollections and so I was excited to see if it would live up to expectations!
Cape Cod is one of those ageless islands, with its quintessential New England charm, and sparkling blue ocean making it a delight for the heart and soul!

On our arrival onto the island, our first stop was NOT the hotel, but a mini-golf course in the village of Sandwich. For us, a family holiday is not complete, without a tournament!
On my return home, I discovered I had inadvertently recreated an old photo! I guess I haven’t changed that much! Hahaha!

On our second (and sadly final) day, we took the ferry across to Martha’s Vineyard, making sure to set off early to make the most of the day!

It’s about a 45 minute boat ride across the blue Vineyard Sound. My dad in particular is pretty terrible to have on a boat (apparently he get’s ‘sea-sick’…) but even he couldn’t help being distracted by just how glorious the morning sail was! Mum and I LOVE looking at houses and there are some STUNNING sea-front properties which you can catch a glimpse of! Although a word of warning – it may make you just ever so sliiigghttlyyy envious!

Martha’s Vineyard in and of itself is very similar to The Cape, however it is somehow even more picturesque! It almost doesn’t feel real, more like a movie set!

We docked in at Oaks Bluff, a delightful village with quaint shops and cafes (backdoor donuts is a hidden gem of the locals, but get there early! Otherwise you’ll be queuing for a while!)

After some debating, I managed to convince the family to rent bikes and cycle to the next town, Edgartown, a 12-mile round trip. Living in Norwich, cycling is a familiar way of life, not so much for the rest of them!! After a few stumbling starts however, we were off!

Even for the most novice of cyclists, this is an easy ride, the wide, flat path enables you to relax and enjoy the stunning views as you’re flying by!
With the sun shining down and the wind in my hair, I truly was living out my dream of being in a teen summer movie hahahaha

Edgartown was bigger than Oaks Bluff, but no less charming. We found a lovely little spot for lunch “Among the flowers” and it was LUSH.

I opted for a sandwich, but dad went for a HUGE chipotle steak salad, that I’ll admit, I was a tad jealous of!
Whilst we were there, my dad and brother suddenly got very excited, whispering to each other and sneaking photos of the cafe – I found out later that the major winning golfer Sergio Garcia had been sitting next to us! Obviously with our old travelling backpacks and oceans of sunscreen, we blended in nicely to the clientele….

We had lovely mosey about the local area, of course stopped for a quick ice-cream to fuel up and then headed back to Oaks Bluff. After leaving the bikes back we had a lovely relaxing paddle in the sea before catching the boat back to The Cape.

Our time at The Cape was equally refreshing and exhausting and it MOST DEFINITELY lived up to my expectations!

 

 

Burlington

I’ll be honest, I don’t want to say too much about Burlington. It was a beautiful town and we had a delicious meal there, but what truly took my breath away was the STUNNING sunset, so please just enjoy!

Easter at Home

Being home for the Easter holidays was an absolute treat!

The people I run about with at uni the most consists of three of us from NI and one rogue Englishman we somehow managed to acquire hahaha!

Forcing a group selfie

LOOK AT THAT SEA

He FINALLY came to visit our little corner of the world which meant showing him all the sights, including visiting my favourite place in the world; what a pity!

My personal highlight was the GLORIOUS day we had up at the North Coast. If you’re ever in NI, 100% it is THE place to visit. With stunning backdrops and adorable coffee shops it is the perfect relaxing day.

We hit up the Giants Causeway first, just as the sun was starting to come out! Our Englishman is a lover of all things nature and so he was fascinated by the rock formations.

The Causeway is a fabulous place regardless of the weather. We saw it on a relatively calm day with blue sky and sea. It can however be equally as impressive on a stormy day with the waves making incredible crashing sounds over the rocks (just be careful!)

(No the co-ordination was not planned, but #goals I guess?)

After this we grabbed some lunch to prepare us for the trek to the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge! 100% be sure and bring your walking shoes for this one as it’s about a mile from the car park to the bridge.

Again the fabulous weather made our wee country look even more spectacular than it already is! When we were on the island, we took a wander down to the fishery the reason the bridge was put up in the first place. Doing this also meant that when we came back up, the crowds had cleared and we got to relax and take some photos on the bridge as we had it to ourselves!

 

Finally, with the weather being so lovely, we took a little walk on the beach before going out to hear the Irishman’s gig with his comedy band (an absolulte giggle of a night!)

Harrogate

When last summer FINALLY arrived and it was time for some travelling!

One of my housemates is from Harrogate, so I decided it would be a great opportunity to go and visit his neck of the woods before heading to a beach camp up that direction (more on that another time!)

My friend was in work all day, which ended up being fabulous as it gave me an opportunity to explore the town at my own pace!

My first stop of the morning was to the the Royal Pump Room to learn a little bit about Harrogate’s history! This was originally the place were EVERYone came to get their mineral water to kick off the day during their summer holidays, now it’s been turned into a quaint museum which I loved moseying around!

I then stopped in at the Art Gallery and learnt a little about how Yorkshire’s landscape had come about.

Then it was a quick stop for lunch in the Montpellier Gardens during my friend’s lunch hour.

The afternoon I spent a lot more relaxed, strolling around the Valley Gardens (BEAUTiful) and then reading in the Montpeillier Gardens (H is for Hawk is a top book!)

A trip to Harrogate is not complete with out a visit to the famous Betty’s tearooms!

Too say it was delicious would be an understatement! I decided to go for a selection to try a little of everything. It’s pricey, but hey it’s the holidays and time to ‘Treat yo’ self!’