Venice

Travelling to Venice has always attracted me. From what I had heard, it’s a magical city full of history and enchantment. I was told by a friend that its impossible to plan anything, so for someone like me – a person who needs a detailed intinerary for each adventure. I found this daunting.

Now I have returned I understand what she means. It is difficult to plan, and some of my most treasured memories from the trip are composed of ‘getting lost in Venice’. But for those of us who need structure, I thought I’d make a list of some of my personal ‘must see’ attractions.

 

View from the Accademia bridge

St Marks Square.

This is a pretty obvious first point but I can’t even begin to describe how beautiful it is. Throughout our trip we ended up walking every morning to the square from our hotel. We went in February time, which meant it flooded every morning, but this truly adds to the beauty and the surrealist qualities of the area. The basilica is wonderful, truly a work of art. I would highly recommend booking a tour through Veneto-inside. Our tour guide was clearly very passionate and her enthusiasm was shared amongst our group. Food and drink can be quite expensive (it’s a very high tourist area), but if you’re willing to walk a little further through the ‘maze-like’ alleys, you can come across far cheaper and often more authentic venetian bakeries or restaurants. St Marks square is also home to a wide range of shops that are impossible to resist.

St Mark's Square

Murano/Burano/Torcello.

I was really interested to see the other islands in Venice. Allilaguna provides a service that gives you the chance to visit all three islands in one day. Our first stop was Murano; we were given special access into a traditional glass blowing workshop with the opportunity to observe vases and statues being made. As a fan of anything artistic, I felt the whole process was brilliant. It was fascinating to watch such an old process still being used. After watching the demonstration we walked into the showroom and were able to see or purchase a range of products that were created using the methods.

The next stop on the tour was Burano, an island famous for its brightly coloured houses, which used to help fisherman or sailors to identify their own from sea. On each island you are allowed 40 minutes to explore the island, which was perfect for photographs and to learn about the traditional lace making history of the island.

Torcello was the final stop. The island is completely dreamlike; with a population of less than 30 it’s incredibly quiet. We visited a small church, the Church of Santa Fosca; it was so peaceful and relaxing. The whole island is. It’s definitely well worth a visit.

Gondola Rides.

Unfortunately, we waited until our last day to go for a gondola ride and of course, it was pouring with rain. That didn’t stop me though! This was something I was desperate to do. The prices of Gondolas seem to start at around €80 (considering you pay for the boat, not per person) but with the private companies there is definitely room to haggle down. If anything, I think the rain added to the experience. Yes we were sat in the freezing cold, wet and huddled together. But the rain had cleared the alleyways of people so everything was still and calm. It really is a magical way to view Venice.

Mask Shopping

There are a lot of street sellers in Venice, it does become difficult to find the real masks from the rubbish. Underneath our hotel, away from the square and the key tourist points, was a man who owned the most beautiful shop I’ve seen. ‘Macia de Color’ is home to some of the most beautiful hand crafted masks where you can watch them being constructed. The owner is more than helpful and incredibly friendly. He showed me how the masks were made and how important the quality of his material is. Every single mask is truly incredible. They extensively vary in price but its absolutely worth paying that little bit more to own something that’s captures so much of Venetian culture.

handmade mask from 'Macia de Color'

Of course there are many other attractions and ways to spend your time in Venice. As my friend said, it’s easy to emerse yourself and take on activities as they come to you, rather than go searching. Venice is a city full of culture and life; it certainly was one of the most inspirational places I have visited.

Barcelona

Until this year, I had only been out of the country on three occasions and they weren't very far. So the fact I'm spending a significant portion of this year travelling is quite a nerve-racking prospect! I expect it'll make me so much more independent and I cant wait for all the experiences. My first trip was quite close to home, I didn't want to experience a really long flight when I'm just not use to travelling. The first destinations on the travel bucket list were none other than Barcelona and Sitges. We decided to go during September so we could experience the hot summer weather but at the off peak prices. The city was also widely free from floods of tourists as well which is a bonus.

Day 1 - La Boqueria

On the first day we visited La Boqueria in the Ramblas which was only a 10 minute walk from our hotel. It was a completely surreal experience, absolutely every manor of things was available to purchase. Everything from a whole pigs head, to seafood to weird meat that I could even name. There were all types of sweets and spices, even ostrich eggs were being sold. It was so strange, It was mesmerising the amount of people shopping. Possibly my favourite part was one stall that was completely covered in these dried chilli's. They were so brightly coloured and looked beautiful, it was amazing how many types were up for sale! Sadly photography was prohibited at this stall so I cant show everyone how incredible it was! I did manage to take a picture of these sweets however, there were so many crazy designs, I just loved how intricate they are.

Day 2 - Sagrada Famillia 

The must see attraction of Barcelona. I cant even begin to put into words how spectacular this masterpiece is. It began its construction in 1886 and should be finished in 2026, I cant wait to go back then and see it without all the scaffolding. The building is so detailed and spiritual, it reminds me of a fairy tale. It was completely surreal and magical, I felt truly enlightened. I would also recommend if you are going to visit the Sagrada Famillia you should book tickets to avoid the queues. When I went it was absolutely packed so I would dread to think what it's like in the summer! The tour (provided by them) was also really informative and captivating. Couldn't recommend this landmark enough!

Day 2 - Park Guell

We were so inspired by visiting the Sagrada Famillia we decided to walk to the top of Barcelona and visit Guadi's other works at the Park Guell. Upon arriving you are immediately greeted with wacky mosaic buildings that are also so reminiscent of fairy tales, one of which particularly reminded me of the gingerbread house from Hansel and Gretel. Since we were on a very tight budget we decided to not pay for tickets but leisurely stroll around the rest of the park. It resembles a crumbling old temple which is really interesting and unusual to explore, the musicians and artists also fitted the ambiance and atmosphere perfectly. The view from the top of the park was also incredible, you can see right to the port. It truly is breathtaking.

Day 3 - Camp Nou.

The one drawback of travelling with a boy! Of course we had to visit the Barcelona football stadium. I'm really not into football but this was actually a really lovely day out. I wasn't really that interested in the museum bit but I took some lovely pictures to make my younger brother jealous. The actual stadium was breathtaking. We got to appreciate it on all different levels; where the fans would watch, where the commentators would watch and where the managers would watch. It really was magnificent how big the capacity of the venue was. I was surprised about how much I did actually enjoy myself and would definitely recommend it.

Day 4 - Quimet and Quimet

Obviously we didn't spend the whole day at this restaurant (we actually spent the day reclining on Barcelonetta beach). Quimet and Quimet was definitely one of the highlights of my trip. Tucked away in a far quieter part of the city we actually discovered this through tripadvisor as we found deciding where to eat somewhat overwhelming. This restaurant is not your usual situation, there are no tables or chairs, you lean on the counters at the side whilst you enjoy your food. Its worth pointing out that this restaurant is tiny and gets crazy packed. The ceilings are really tall and stacked with possibly every type of wine in the world. The tapas we chose were a selection of bread, Iberian pork cheek, salted tuna and king prawns. It was fantastic, all the food is prepared and made in front of you so what you see is what you get. The quality of the food is also brilliant and it was really good value for money. It was my best meal in Barcelona by far! Unfortunately as they are such a small business they don't have a website, but the size of the restaurant means they don't take bookings! arrive early to ensure a spot!

The rest of the holiday - Sitges.
From when we booked this, we had always planned Sitges to be a place where we could relax and sleep on the beach. It delivered this perfectly. We stayed in a hotel that was right on the harbour (port Sitges resort) and a two minute walk from a small but beautiful beach. Between them was a strip of the most incredible restaurants and bars, all which had lit up cabanas to eat outside in. The beach was brilliant, it was luscious gold sand and I went swimming in the sea every day. The weather was incredibly hot also which was a bonus! Sitges as a town is very picturesque and was lovely to stroll along on a cooler afternoon. Its such a charming town and everyone was so friendly towards us.

I have had so many amazing experiences over my time in Spain and I definitely will be going back someday. I've learnt lots about myself and cant wait for my next set of travel plans.