¡Adios Lanzarote!

The final day of our trip was a relaxing one, especially after all of the running and walking we did on Ironman day!

Instead, it was time to relax and top up our tans before getting our flight back to London this morning.

Goodbye Dubai

Like every city you visit, there is never enough time to see everything you want to, so the final day in Dubai was going to be a busy one, trying to fit in everything we can.
Fortunately for me and Hannah, we didn't have to be at the airport until midnight, so had heaps of time to cram in some last minute sunbathing and touristy things.

Kicking off, of course, with breakfast at the world famous Dubai Golf Course.

The breakfast was amazing, all cooked fresh and you could eat as much as you wanted (perfect!) whilst over-looking some early morning golfers teeing off. 
With full stomachs, we had a few hours spare to top up the tan, so headed over to Barasti Beach Club to grab a bed.
The trick to this is to make sure you get there at about 11am, just as it opens. As the beds are free, it gets busy really quick.

 

When I arrived in Dubai, I expected to be wowed by the size of the buildings. Instead, I was a little bit like 'Meh, they don't look that tall.'
Then I started counting the floors. 
When I got to 10, which is the level I work on, and took a look upwards, I finally had that wow moment.
They literally go upwards and upwards.

The temperature kept rising on the final day, until it was 43 degrees. 
It was simply a case of; Grab a strawberry daiquiri, sunbathe and drink said daiquiri, run into the sea to cool down.
Although the sea was like a bath, it was so warm!

You can't go to the beach on holiday, and not write the city and date in the sand can you!

A late-afternoon dash back to the apartment to shower, pack, and let our swimwear dry, was followed by a trip to the Dubai Mall for dinner.
This is the worlds biggest mall, with probably the biggest aquarium I have ever seen!

T-Shirt is from Taxonomy, Shorts from Topman (similar here). 

For our final meal, we went to More, which overlooks the lake.
I am genuinely going to miss the food in Dubai. Everywhere we ate was so good, and this was no exception again.

Salmon on a bed of mash potato for Stacey

I opted to get back into the British spirit by going to the biggest fish and chips possible.

Whilst Hannah went for the Duck noodles, which were insanely good!

Even more rounder than we were after breakfast, we headed outside to grab a spot in preparation for what we came to the Mall for.
The Dubai Fountains.

This is the largest choreographed dancing fountains in the world, and they play every 30 minutes in the evening, right next to the Burj Khalifa.

 

 

It was so good! The water went so high that the spray was like a miniture shower - which was much needed in the evening humidity and heat!
We watched the show a couple more times, whilst having some drinks in between, before heading off round the mall to explore more and grab some last minute gifts, before we headed back to grab our cases.

Our trip to Dubai was coming to an end, and the final thing to do was to have some drinks on the balcony, overlooking this fantastic city.

Then, before we knew it, we said our goodbyes to Stacey, promised we would be back next year, and headed off to Dubai International to catch our flight back to London.
I was flying with Royal Brunai, who were a great airline to fly with. They flew overnight, which was fine with me as those drinks on the balcony sent me straight to sleep after we had taken off.

Goodbye Dubai, you were awesome!

Instagramming

Like any blogger, being snap-happy is part of the job!

Even when I don't have my camera on me, the mobile gets whipped out and I usually capture a picture on my iPhone. Then it is straight to Instagram and shared for the world to see...

The perfect birthday present... Although devoured in 30 minutes

Say hello to Poppy, she is a Beagle, the rut of the pack who my mum fell in love with. She

is usually found passed out on the sofa after a heavy day walking...

Whereas I prefer my bed and a cup of tea after a heavy night out!

Making sure my envelope stood out among the rest at a recent birthday meal... Quick bit of

printing and gluing seemed to do the trick!

WE Party... Wearing a top I thought no-one else would be wearing...
I was wrong, obviously!

My housemate has just returned from Korea, armed with chocolate and goodies...

These were sooo much better than Mikados!

Being professional (of course!) at a Advertising industry workshop.

Skins... THE television show that summed up our teens!

Southbank... one of the nicest places in London when the lights go down at night.

A quick stroll, visit to the Tate and hot dog was on the menu!

Walking off the hot dog, all the way to my favorite cake shop!

Can you tell that I like food? Lola's Cupcakes are my biggest weakness... Try the

Oreo one. Heaven!

Me and a few friends went to the Halloween Masquerade Ball at Kensington Roof Gardens.

The bow tie wasn't a clip on, and it managed to stay in place all night!

A room full of vampires, zombies, witches and blood 6 floors above London...

Trick or treat?

That was only a few of allllll the pictures I take, but if you want to follow me then just click here.

Back to being snap-happy!

Unique Brighton

Adjective: Being the only one of its kind; unlike anything else.

I am fortunate to be able to call Brighton my current home, but rarely do I get the chance to have a wander around and take in what is around me. Unique, elegant and different, are three words that can describe Brighton. Sure, I see the pier and the shops on a regular basis, but to actually take in what is around me was quite surprising.

I am a country boy at heart, visiting the seaside again.

So, I took a saturday to wander around and catch a few snaps of Brighton in all its glory, and a few little oldies that I liked...



An early morning stroll along to town. Cloudy and not a person in sight.

A few toes in the water, before a wave crashed and got us wet through.

Yes, I did check out the local stand and try on everything I could.

Brighton is fortunate to have some extraordinary street art, created by local artists. This is found on the way through to the North Laines, an area of boutique shops that you can spend the day getting lost in.



Once in the Laines, one shop to always go in is Snoopers Paradise. This shop is a warehouse for boutique stalls, offering everything from 1970's style televisions, to modern day furnishing. Where else can you find a Noddy collection like this...



But what made me stop and stare for a while was an old selection of postcards from around the world. At 10 pence a card, you can take a part of history home with you. Its fascinating to read about what these individuals had to say, and the images are very unique.



After a browse around the Laines, we decided to do what any tourist would... Go to the pier. If you head over there, a selection of rides and gambling is within your reach, but I decided to keep it safe and go on the Merry-go-Round.



After spinning around a few too many times, it was time to wander home along the sea front, and have a much earned glass of Vino on the rooftops.



Brighton really is unique, fun and a great place to live. If you end up coming down let me know and I will show you around!