Ali

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So in case you didn't know I travelled around Europe for five weeks with my three best friends from highschool. I vlogged the entire trip (well attempted to) and vlogs will be coming later this year.

Before my full post about the trip comes out I thought I'd put together a quick photo diary. So, enjoy!

Day 1 - Travel Day!
London bound = 3 flights, 23 hours of flying and not much sleep.

Day 2 - We made it.

Even though we all had little to no sleep, we couldn't help but do a little exploring as soon as we got to London.

Day 3 - Buckingham Palace, the Queen was in today.

You can't not go to London for the first time and not act like total tourists, so of course Buckingham Palace was on the to do list.

Day 4 - Harry Potter Studio

It may have come 14 years late but I finally got my letter and I'm off to Hogwarts ;)

Day 5 - Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

This play is the whole reason I planned this trip to Europe and it was freaking amazing. No words can describe what I watched. I laughed and I cried and I loved every moment.

Day 6 - Beginning of TopDeck

And just like that, my 24 day Winter Spirit TopDeck tour had begun. First stop - Paris.

Day 7 - View from the Eiffel Tower

It was cold, but the view was worth it.

Day 8 - No photo

Day 9 - Switzerland, I love you

Switzerland is absolutely stunning and is a place I need to visit again, maybe next time in Summer to see beautiful green hills.

Day 10 - I went full tourist in Pisa

I said to myself, 'Ali don't be one of those stupid tourists who take the typical tourist shot at the Leaning Tower of Pisa' and then I got there and became one of those tourists When in Rome as they say, or at least When in Pisa.

Day 11 - Florence, Italy

I walked to the top of the tower and the dome of the Florence Cathedral, that's around 900 stairs and yes I almost died, but the view was worth it.

Day 12 - Hello Rome

The Romans were one of my favourite ancient civilizations so of course I was thrilled to finally get to Rome.

Day 13 - Exploring Rome

Ticked off a big bucket list item today - visiting the Colosseum.

Day 14 - No photo

Day 15 - Venice, Italy

Venice is such a picturesque city and I couldn't not go on a Gondola ride - can you actually say you've been to Venice if you haven't gone on a Gondola?

Day 16 - Salzburg, Austria

The hills are alive with the Sound of Music, yes that is pretty much all I associate Salzburg with - haha.

Day 17 - Hohensalzburg Castle

I can see why they built a castle here, the views are mind-blowing and absolutely stunning.

Day 18 - Quick stopover in Vienna

We spent one night in Vienna where we visited Schonbrunn Castle and I was being very cultured off to watch the Opera and an Orchestra.

Day 19 - Budapest, Hungary

I don't know what I was expecting in Budapest, but it certainly wasn't this - it quickly became one of my favourite cities.

Day 20 - Szechenyi Baths

A relaxing day at the baths. Although I would've liked to see more in Budapest (oops I'll just have to go back) it was nice to spend a day relaxing.

Day 21 - No photo

Day 22 - Krakow, Poland

Visited the local salt mine in Krakow, this place is absolutely massive!

Day 23 - Prague for Christmas

Finally arrived in Prague for Christmas and spent Christmas Eve exploring the streets which were so alive with activity.

Day 24 - Merry Christmas from Prague

Spent the entire day exploring the sights of Prague, another beautiful city I need to go back to one day.

Day 25 - Dresden, Germany

We had a quick stopover in Dresden on the way to Berlin.

Day 26 - The Berlin wall

A small section of the Berlin Wall still left standing, it's so crazy to think east and west were segregated for so long.

Day 27 - No photo

Day 28 - Amsterdam, Netherlands

So the trip to Amsterdam was disastrous, I was then so sick I couldn't speak and it put a dampener on my time here. I still enjoyed walking the streets and seeing the Anne Frank house, even If I was only outside for a couple of hours before heading back to bed.

Day 29 - No photo

Day 30 - London for New Years Eve

Another bucket list item ticked off the list. Being in London on New Years Eve was amazing - the vibe, the atmosphere, the random people we met and became friends with and the fireworks, I'd recommend everyone to spend a New Years Eve in London.

Day 31 - Disneyland

With our TopDeck tour over and staying in London for NYE I had one more stop on my list - Disneyland Paris! Apparently the only photo I took on my travel day was of my food at Rainforest Cafe.

Day 32 - Disneyland Paris

I can tick another Disney Park off my list. I was so happy to be in my happy place - starting my new year off the right way, at Disney.

Day 33 - The Hollywood Tower Hotel

If you know me, you know I'm finding Tower of Terror at a Disney park and riding it as much as I can. Love this ride! Though this version isn't as good as the Disney World one.

Day 34 - Disney at Christmas

Not only did I tick Disneyland Paris off my list, I also got to tick off being at a Disney Park while it was decorated for Christmas.

Day 35 - Goodbye

And just like that my 5 week long adventure to Europe was over. I got to witness this beautiful sunset from my room on my final night in France.

And there you go, a quick photo diary of my adventure. Expect a full blog post coming soon. Also, let me know in the comments below what your favourite city in Europe is, I'd love to see peoples opinions!

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Well here we are again, another new year, another new years resolutions list. Did I stick to my 2017 list? No, not really. But I did try I swear!

Here are my 2018 new years resolutions, that I hope to try and achieve this year.

1. Weekend Vlogging (and actually stick to it!)

So in 2017 I tried weekend vlogging for the first time, and it started off okay but then I just started to get real sloppy. This was a resolution last year, so this year I hope to actually try and stick to it.

Of course I know there will be some weekends where I just can't vlog, but I'm truly aiming to try and vlog most weekends, at least more than last year anyway.

So if you want to keep up with my fabulous (lol, jokes) life, then subscribe to my YouTube channel!

2. Blog at least once a week
So I tried to blog last year, but let's be real, I was slack. I have so much I want to write about, but then I get tired and just can't be bothered - not this year! I plan to put out a blog post at least once a week, and finally get some blogs that I've had sitting in draft forever out to the world.

3. Read!!
This is another resolution from last year, I wanted to read 10 books - I only got through 5. So this year, instead of saying I don't have time or I'm too tired I will pick up the book and try to even read a chapter.

I actually love reading and have over 50 books on my to read list but I'm just lazy. So instead of Netflix, YouTube or mindlessly scrolling through social media I will instead pick up a book every once and awhile.

4. Say yes to going out more
I've noticed I like saying, 'oh sorry I'm busy' a lot, even when I actually have nothing planned. I've found myself in a rut, where on my weekends I prefer just to sit at home and watch TV instead of going to a friends house or going out to dinner. So this year I will say yes to more things, and actually get out my house and socialise in my spare time.

5. Get in shape
Okay so this one makes the list every year, but I really do need to stop making excuses. It's time to hit the gym or if I'm too busy at least take my dogs for a walk and do something active. This year I will attempt to do something active at least 4 - 5 times a week.

5. Go to bed on time
I'm making it a priority this year that on work nights at 9pm I put down my phone and turn off the TV. I need to get more sleep and have a better quality of sleep, so after 9pm if I'm not tired I can read but that's it. Hopefully this will also help me get into a routine and then be able to wake up at a decent hour where I can have breakfast before work - because I do skip it a lot, oops.

Let me know what your new year's resolutions are below, I'd love to hear what you'd like to achieve.

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2017 - what a year.

It was a pretty fabulous year and looking back probably one of my favourites. So let's take a look back at the year that was 2017.

Travel

I was very fortunate during 2017 to do a lot of travelling. Not only did I go back to my happy place - Disney World in Orlando Florida and a Disney Cruise to the Caribbean, but I also got to travel around Europe with my 3 best friends from high school.

Countries I visited:

America
Austria
Bahamas
Cayman Islands
Czech Republic
England
France
Germany
Hungary
Italy
Jamaica
Mexico
Netherlands
Poland
Switzerland
Vatican City

Just looking at this list I can't believe I did all this, but I'm so glad I saved my money and did. I love travelling and couldn't imagine not having a year that doesn't involve me going somewhere.

A permanent full time job

2017 was the year I finally secured myself a permanent full time job. No more short contracts, no more wondering if I should start looking for another job out of fear I wouldn't be extended. It's like the biggest weight was lifted from my shoulders when I finally signed that contract.

YouTube growth

I never give myself a number to work towards, or look at how many views my videos get, but I was pretty damn happy my channel had over 550 subscribers by the end of 2017. I just still can't believe that so many people actually want to subscribe to me.

So thank you to everyone who has subscribed or even watched just one of my videos. There are so many wonderful people to watch on YouTube and the fact that people choose to watch me is amazing and I thank you very very muchly.

I saw Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

Literally this play was the reason I travelled to Europe. My friend booked these tickets in 2016 and then said why don't you come with me. This then turned into a 5 week trip around Europe but regardless, this play was the reason I went and holy gosh I'm so glad I did.

This play made me laugh, cry and just took my breath away.

____________________

I'm sure I've missed some things because let's be honest I have a terrible memory. There are things I wish that could've happened in 2017, but really it was a pretty unbeatable year. Sorry 2018, you have a lot to live up too.

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