City Escape : Berlin

During the summer, myself and four friends snuck away for a few nights to Berlin. Although now it seems like forever ago, I felt like remeniscing over our time in the capital, now truly one of my favourite cities in the world. 

I thought I would list my top five things to do if you ever get the chance to visit:

1. Fernsehturm Berlin (The TV Tower)

The best was to get a 360 degree view of the amazing city that is Berlin! Up and away in the lift, you arrive at the top to then be able to wander around the sphere at the pinnacle of the tower (not one for those with a fear of heights though!) What's better is that the tower in right by Alexanderplatz, an area filled with market stalls and shops, a perfect place to spend the day.

2. Berliner Dom (Berlin Cathedral)

Truly one of the most beautiful buildings I saw in Berlin, so ornate and intricate. An afternoon lying on the grass admiring the Renaissance architecture of the Cathedral is a must!

3. Sony Centre

Even if just purely for the architecture the Sony Centre is definitely worth a visit whilst in Berlin. Just look up as soon as you arrive and you will be wowed! But apart from that, there is shops galore; a perfect location in Potsdamer Platz for a day of retail!

4. The Reichstag

From the front it may look like your typical historical building but once inside prepare to be overwhelmed by once again amazing architecture. Wander you way to the top of the dome, and experience incredible views whilst sitting on the roof terrace.

5. The Holocaust Memorial

For an utterly moving and a memorable experience The Holocaust Memorial is worth a trip. The sombre atmosphere really emphasises the powerful experience this visit is, you'll never forget it. 

Berlin is without a doubt now one of my favourite cities. It's calm and easygoing yet there is so much to see and do, you will never be bored! I cannot wait to go back! 

Emma xo

 *Photos are all my own.

Semester Two & Three at Uni | Reflection

I am no longer a fresher. Wow that feels strange to say! My first year at uni is officially over; it has gone unbelievably fast. I won't lie at the beginning of the year I was wishing for summer to quickly arrive but now it's here I'm quite sad at the thought of never going back to halls. First year is a roller coaster for sure but once the new year arrived, the weeks seemed to fly by at a supersonic speed, it was Easter before I knew it. Second semester was much shorter  than first semester and was filled with new modules and exam prep for Third Semester. Then came the end of year rituals, Course and Hall Balls, final nights out with friends and the dreaded task of packing up my entire room (a tricky task!). 

I've always been one of the people who can't wait for adult life, to have a job, my own house and to be earning my own salary but the fact that my first year of uni is over is beyond terrifying! I don't know what I want to do after uni and still don't feel like I fully know who I want to be (sounds ridiculously cheesy haha) but with Second Year quickly approaching I thought I would list a few of my goals for next year:

Goals for Second Year:

- be more involved in a few specific societies to hopefully meet even more people

- be more sensible with money - cheap nights in often end up being way more fun!

- be healthy - stay active and eat well, it's so easy to stay in bed all day in first year

- see more of the towns and areas surrounding my uni - being in Yorkshire, there is so much beauty and culture to see, I definably want to travel about more next year!

Met Ball 2014 | Review

It's actually scary how fast the 2014 Met Ball has come around again? It seems like yesterday we were all gasping at Miley Cyrus' punk efforts in her fully-fishnet get up and spiky hair! However this year was a breath of fresh air, with a much more sophisticated theme of White Tie, although it my opinion a little tame. Nonetheless I had my favourites, some of whom stood out a mile. 

My first favourite has to be Leighton Meester's dress. A simple structure with fabulous embellishment. It complimented her hair amazingly and she was one of the few celebs I thought actually looked conformable in her dress. Job well done!

As much as VB's posing is beyond annoying, I was rather in love with her dress. So simple and elegant; the definition of White Tie to me. Top marks to her for sticking rather traditionally to the theme. (Having your date as David Beckhams isn't bad going either!)

Suki Waterhouse was another wow for me. She looked like a fairy princess but in a super stylish way. She's slowly becoming my new style crush for sure!

But without a doubt my favourite dress by far was Blake Lively. She just exudes glamour and sophistication in her outfit. Beautiful is the only way to describe her! And of course having Ryan Reynolds as your hubby is just the finishing touch. Hollywood's hottest couple?! Absolutely!

Among the disappointments for me were Cara Delevigne. I know she's always trying to be unique and do things differently but this is the Met Ball, a chance to really dress up and make an effort. Her trouser and crop top combo just didn't do it for me.

Another disappointment was Kendall Jenner. As a teenager, 18 years old, I was expecting her to wear something fabulously modern and fun but her dress, I felt, was way too old for her but I guess she was sticking to the theme.

Can't believe this year's Met Ball has already been and gone! Onto the next I guess!

Emma xo

*Photos all from the Dailymail UK website.

Matilda The Musical | Birthday Celebrations

From my little sister's 13th birthday we surprised her with tickets to see Matilda The Musical in London on the night of her birthday. After an afternoon spent wondering around a bustling Covent Garden, we headed for food at a firm favourite of my family's, Fire & Stone. They do the most amazingly, delicious pizzas, with an around the world theme. I went for the 'Peking,' which consists of duck, cucumber and salad (basically Chinese food on a pizza). Although this may sound like way too much food, the pizza's are actually very light and so tasty! Of course there was also time for a delicious chocolate brownie for dessert, scrumptious! 

After food we headed straight for The Cambridge Theatre where the show was on. 

The staging was stunning, I've never seen a musical setting quite like it! The colours and lighting were so eye-catching and engaging; it kept me intrigued right from the start.

The play itself followed the original story of Matilda, with various added songs. The music was so catchy, my whole family were singing the songs the whole way home. The actress who played Matilda herself was incredibly talented, I couldn't get over how tiny she was and with that much skill! 

I would 100% recommend this to anyone of any age. It definitely kept me smiling the whole way through, and the whole way home. A must-see! 

Emma xo

Semester One at Uni | Reflection

I'm officially packing my bags - last minute as usual - to return to uni for my second semester of my first year. Having been at home for a whopping six weeks, I'm kind of apprehensive about going back. Settling back into halls again, going to lectures, completing essays and of course, the odd night out (I am a fresher of course!) However I'm sure within a couple of days I will have gotten back into the swing of things and it will have felt like I'd never been away. I thought I would share some tips about starting at university, some of them may seem pretty obvious but none the less all worth a go!

1. BE BRAVE 

As I'm not the most confident or chatty person when you first meet me, uni was going to be tough to begin with. At uni you are immediately faced with a situation where you are put together with a bunch of people you don't know to live with for the year. ( In my case, 42 people on my floor! - yes very overwhelming). I'll admit it did take me a few weeks to find my feet, and find people who had similar interests to me but when I did I started to feel a lot happier about uni life. Trust me when I say the only way you will meet these people is to be brave. Yes, freshers week can be pretty daunting and throughout it you will go out with people you may never speak to much again but it is the time and place to meet a lot of really interesting people, and hopefully people you want to spend time with!

2. JOIN A SOCIETY

Yes this seems pretty standard but honestly it is a great way to meet people outside your halls. People at these societies obviously have the same interests as you as you all came to this society so that's something to start chatting about, break the ice! Whether sport, volunteering or academic, societies can often be a great distraction from the stress of moving away from home or beginning a new course - they also often host great socials, again a prime spot for meeting new people.

3. FRESHERS WEEK

Often hyped up a lot more than it should be. To be honest it was all a bit a of blur to me. Your emotions are so heightened as you are thrown into the new environment that this first week can be a bit of a roller coaster. During the day there are often introductory lectures to your course and the infamous freshers fairs, where I promise you, you will be handed countless fliers you will probably never read, and sign up to societies you'd never dream of joining. I honestly probably signed up to twenty societies, which bombarded my email inbox for the first few weeks of the semester, great! Also you will get endless amount of freebies - wristbands, sweets, pens (yes all great neccesities). And obviously freshers week is known to be a constant party, with nights out all week. My first night at uni was spent at my student union club with every fresher at my university all there, it was crazily overwhelming, and to be honest I didn't really enjoy it as I felt I couldn't relax as I didn't really know anyone but I'm sure many others felt exactly the same. I felt a lot happier when the week was over as there wasn't the pressure of feeling like I should be going out and socialising every night but I did have some fun nights out and made some lovely friends to start the year off.

4. HAVE FUN

As it pretty standard amongst most UK university's (Don't quote me on this!) first year does not count towards your final degree grade so do not stress to much over perfecting that first essay, or reading that journal back to front five times before your seminar. You are a first year (I'm only half war through) so have fun. Your flat are going out on Monday night - do it! Want a lazy weekend - put on that all day harry potter movie marathon! I was very stressed in my first semester over the smallest things and in hindsight I really needn't have been. If I could go back I definitely would have been more chilled. I'm  not saying don't hand in any work at all, that is obligatory but just let the anxiety go and enjoy your student years. I can't believe I've already completed my first semester, it seems like yesterday I was sending off my UCAS application! Oh I feel old!

Emma xo

Christmas Excitement

So it's that time of year again, where the Christmas festivities are at the peak as we arrive at "Christmas Eve Eve, " I know it sounds silly but it's just too exciting not to call it that! I've just finished wrapping my final presents for friends and family. This year I went to a little more effort on my wrapping, after purchasing some lovely festive accessories and paper from paperchase; although a tad of the expensive side, it is only Christmas once a year! The simple designs on the paper, was then enhanced by contrasting ribbons and tags, to hopefully create a rather special present for some very special people. However I quickly ran out of my paperchase supplies, so resorted to some good old WHSmith paper, which did the job perfectly, allowing me to finish all my Christmas wrapping!

The previous day, myself and my family headed up to central London to do some last minute Christmas shopping, which has now become sort of a Christmas tradition. 

We started the morning with breakfast in The Riding House Cafe near Oxford Circus, then headed straight for Selfridges. 

After bustling through the crowds on Oxford Street we finally arrived to even bigger crowds inside the store. Nonetheless we rummaged our way through, and picked up the few last gifts we needed. Next we wandered our way down Old Bond Street, longingly gazing at the rather 'posh' shop displays I could only dream of purchasing, such as Cartier, which looked very Christmassy with its large red bow. 

We soon arrived at Victoria Secret, a personal favourite of mine and my sister's, where we picked up one or two things for ourselves. Then we head to Liberty, to have a look a the Christmas shop; here we admired the fabulous designs in the store.

The day finished with dinner at Pasta Brown in Covent Garden, where I treated myself to garlic bread and spaghetti meatballs. Yum! It was a wonderfully Christmassy day spent with the family, which has made me feel very festive and extremely excited for Christmas Day!

Emma xo

First Post

Welcome to my blog!

I decided to begin my own blog after coming across various other blogs and vlogs on the internet. I loved the way that these people could express whatever they wanted and explain to everyone what they loved. From beauty blogs to travel blogs, I couldn't decide on just one thing to focus my blog on so I have decided on a mix of all my passions and lifestyle. Despite that fact that there are so many similar blogs out there at the minute, I hope mine provides something new and exciting for you all to read! 

Emma xo