Vietnam in pictures

I'm going to let the photos speak for themselves...

Floating Fishing Village - Halong Bay

Volleyball on a beach at Cat Ba Island - Halong Bay

Halong Bay

The cutest child I have ever met - Sapa

Waterfall in Sapa

River in Sapa

Halong Bay (again, too beautiful!)

The family we stayed with in Sapa

Our Group

We were excited to have found a waterfall!

Jumping off the boat at Halong Bay

Underwater Beer Selfies

Me and Helena went Paragliding - Hoi An

The trekking group

After a month in the most incredible country I have ever been, I am back! Vietnam was absolutely stunning; seeing its scenery, culture and history with a brilliant group of people made it the best month and exactly what I needed.

For those of you familiar with the country, I travelled around the north; starting in Hanoi, then Ninh Binh and Tam Coc, followed by Hoi An, and then trekking through Sapa before finally having a week at the stunning beaches on Halong Bay. Every place we went was like a completely different country in itself, with completely different scenery and culture.

If you didn't know, I travelled with RealGap which is a company where you meet up with a random group of people and the whole trip is planned out for you. It was an amazing trip and I met some friends for life so if you are thinking about travelling and don't fancy going it alone, definitely check out RealGap here. (Full review of the trip coming soon!)

Being in the little Vietnam bubble away from work, university and the real world was bliss and although I miss it already, I feel refreshed and ready for my final year at university!

For more photos of my time away, follow me on Instagram: alicesmithh

How has your month been?

Alice x

Be-right-back - off to Vietnam!

Today is my last day in the UK for a month, because tomorrow I am going to Vietnam! I mentioned this a few posts ago, but I am off travelling with Real Gap for 4 weeks, exploring North Vietnam. We start in Hanoi and end up on Halong Bay and I am so excited!!

Ever since returning from France in March I said to myself I wanted to do two things this summer; get an Internship for 3 months, and go travelling in a new country. I am so happy and lucky that I can say that my summer has turned out exactly as I hoped!

Last week I finished my Internship of 3 months and 3 weeks. It was a great experience and eventhough the 9-5 got a bit tiring at times I am so glad I have done it and now have it to put on my CV for graduation next year. 

So on to the packing...

The weather in Vietnam is set to be 32 Celsius plus, with probably a few rainstorms as i'm encroaching a bit on rainy season! So I feel I am well prepared with my clothing so far, as you can see, I doubt I will run out.

If I had been smart I would have set up some scheduled posts, but alas, I have not been that organised. So I'm sure we will all survive 4 weeks without any posts! Make way for a lot more when I return in September :)

What are your plans for the rest of your Summer?

Alice x

Festival Fun Times

As you would have noticed, I recently went to WOMAD which is a festival located conviniently just down the road from me! We go every year and with the UK going through a heat-wave it was so unbelievably hot and lovely to have a few days chilling in the sun with a cider in hand.

As shown in my last Summer Staples post here, my new Primark hat provided welcome shade from the sun.

I had a great weekend - eating, drinking and listening to music in the sun - what's not to love! You probably wouldn't know any of the acts as they are from all around the world; but that is the beauty of WOMAD, there is no pressure to see a long list of artists, but instead you just stumble onto some under-rated musical genius.

Actually I lie, this year they had Sinead O Connor playing ('Nothing Compares', you 90's kids will know!)  

Until next year, WOMAD :)

Alice x

English Summer

Hello!

So with the weather being so beautiful here in England lately, I have found myself spending much more time in the great outdoors... 

Last week I  had a lovely day having a countryside walk with my beautiful friend Lara (see her blog here). We discovered that pine-cones come in all shapes and sizes.

Hat - Primark
Skirt - H&M
Top - Bershka
Bag - New Look

I forget how beautiful my surroundings are and how lucky I am to live in the countryside sometimes :)

How is your summer going so far?

Alice x

Summer Staples #4

Summer Staples # 4 - Festival Style Essentials

I am off to a local festival called WOMAD next week and I cannot WAIT. When it comes to festivals i'm all about the festival style, any excuse to wear a flower headband and i'm there. Thought i'd show you a few festival goodies which I picked up in Primark recently...

Headband - £3

Black Hat - £8

Bum Bag - £6

Some of these beauties in action with my favourite playsuit! 

I will hopefully do a post all about WOMAD, currently praying that this glorious weather will hold out! Can't waaait :)

Alice x

London Baby

A particularly lovely day in London recent was spent with my good friend Tanja. She is one of those people who knows the best places to eat so I was certainly not dissapointed by our lunch at "Jak's". It has a kind of deli vibe where you pick your main and two sides. We both chose the Tuna and I had some pasta and greek salad on the side, was sooo yummy!

Lunch followed by a lot of shopping and strolling around London made for a perfect day in the sun!

Always nice to have a change of scenery for a day.

Alice x

Summer Staples #3

Fuss-free Jewellery

When it get's to hot weather, festivals, travelling.. I just can't be bothered with thinking about what jewellery to wear and switching it up daily. I especially can't stand it when you buy a new ring and it before you know it it leaves a blue trace because it's such poor quality.

So I generally opt for Sterling Silver jewellery that I never have to take off and looks good with pretty much anything! It doesn't have to break the bank either as you will see...

Hoop earrings: all from Claire's roughly £5-7 depending on how many per pack

Left to right...
Cross ring - Claire's £10

Small band ring - Part of a pack of 3, Accessorize £15

Thumb Ring - Accessorize, £8

Bobble ring - Pandora, Gift

Daisy ring - Daisy, Gift

Plain silver band - Part of pack of 3 (see above), Accessorize £15
Small heart ring - Accessorize, £5/6

If you are someone like me who doesn't want to have to worry about the faff of jewellery, definitely start a little silver collection!

What's your go-to summer jewellery peice? 

Alice x