I must have spent at least 20 days in New York City in total, so I’ve been lucky enough to see all the famous sites. It really is one of the greatest cities in the world with iconic movie locations, skyscrapers and historical buildings.
Below is a collection of my favourite spots in the city. Enjoy!
Wales is famously known for its rolling hills, beautiful beaches, adventure holidays… rain and sheep!
Growing up, we had numerous family summer holidays in the Brecon Beacons, Barmouth, Tywyn and Snowdonia. Which are some of the most beautiful places in the UK.
Out of all the trips I’ve been on, to everyone I meet, my time working on a cruise ship definitely proves to be the most interesting. 4 years on and I still get asked a lot of questions regarding ship life. Did you like it? Did you miss home? Were you allowed off the ship? I can answer these questions very easily - YES!
Taiwan is one of the highest densely populated countries in the world, which makes you automatically think of stuffy cities and people everywhere. However, I don’t think of Taiwan like that at all. I have been fortunate enough to experience a lot of what the country has to offer, which is wide open spaces, natural untouched scenery and views to die for.
Japan has way more to offer than just bustling cities, culture and incredible food. The country is made up of over 6,000 islands and is surrounded by some of the clearest water in the world. Whilst travelling and working on a cruise ship in 2017, one of our main routes was sailing to three islands in the East China Sea between Taiwan and Japan's mainland. Okinawa, Miyakojima and Ishigaki are all in the Okinawa Prefecture.
Shanghai is the largest city in China with a dense population of nearly 25 million people. With a city this size, the list of things to see and do is endless. I’ve been lucky enough to spend a good amount of time in Shanghai, as in 2017 I worked on a cruise ship that sailed in and out of the city on a weekly basis.
A packing guide that will save your life - quite literally.
After six months of planning, researching, training and spending all my mula on equipment and hiking gear, I felt ready to take on the roof of Africa. I remember my mum dragging me around all the typical sports and outdoor shops. ‘Soph, you’ll need a warm jacket, walking boots, gloves, backpack…’ - the list felt endless. To be fair, I was taking on my first, solo hiking challenge and I had to be ready.
In this blog post, I’m going to give you MY experience on the mountain and an in-depth description of each day, trekking the Machame Route. I also have other blog posts on Kilimanjaro - Packing Guide for Kilimanjaro and 10 things I didn’t know before climbing Kilimanjaro. I climbed Kili at the beginning of September 2016 and still to this day, it’s THE best thing I've ever done. I booked the trek through STA Travel and G Adventures - I honestly can't recommend them enough!
Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro is one of those trips which you can’t explain to anybody. Your own individual experience and journey will not be the same as anyone else’s. The feelings, emotions and the physical and mental torture that you have to put yourself through to get to the summit, will change the perspective of your entire life.
Barbados is a small island in The Caribbean, with a length of 21 miles and a width of 14 miles. There are so many wonderful, paradise beaches all around the coastline. However, there are many differences between them.
When you imagine The Caribbean, I bet you think of laying on a beach with a cocktail in your hand for a week. However, if you’re like me and start getting itchy feet after two days of relaxing, then this post is for you! In Barbados you can literally hop from beach to sunbed and not leave your hotel for an entire 7 days… but where’s the adventure in that? I’m going to list 5 activities that you can do to get the most out of your holiday. Enjoy!
The West Coast of the USA is one of the most popular road-tripping routes in the world. In this post, I will take you through a detailed description of the places I travelled to back in 2015. In just two weeks I drove over 2000 miles and visited Phoenix, Monument Valley, The Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Mammoth Lakes, Yosemite National Park, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego and everything in between.
Beverly Hills. Hollywood Walk of Fame. Highway 1. Malibu. Downtown LA. Venice Beach. The Grove. LAX. Rodeo Drive. Griffith Observatory. Skidrow. Disneyland. Santa Monica. Runyon Canyon. Universal Studios. All the places that makeup one of the best cities in the world. The City of Angels, Los Angeles.
The best way to see the Grand Canyon is to hire a car, pack your walking boots and get ready for some of the best sunrises and sunsets you will ever see. That’s exactly what I did in the summer of 2015. Two days of incredible scenery, moments of calm and memories that I will cherish forever.
If you're looking to explore a new country, in a limited amount of time and on a budget, then this is the trip for you! For years, Italy was at the top of my bucket list but I couldn't decide which part I wanted to go to first. Then I discovered Interrail which enabled me to travel to Milan, Venice, Pisa, Florence, Rome, Naples and Sorrento all within ten days.
I’m 31 & a British expat, currently living the dream in Dubai. I have a huge passion for travel, photography & have over 45 countries ticked off my bucket list. I used the 2020 lockdown to produce runawaysoph.com, which is now home to 50+ posts of my favourite experiences. Stay tuned to see where I travel to next…
