why cold countries are underrated

Here I am in London, where we've only just reached fall (although it’s hard to tell as it's already pouring with rain and freezing) and yet I can’t stop myself from reminiscing the days last winter when I was back in Poland. It's a pretty random place to miss when you think about it, especially as I slept in the tiniest dingy little room with my newly demoted ex-boyfriend, only $200 to my name and without any grasp of the language - or warm gloves. It was a massive culture shock being served vodka and blocks of butter with my lunch, with the flight home consisting of the plane falling out of the sky several times as it fought against a storm with everyone on board screaming. It's the sort of trip most people would look back on and grimace, and yet here I am craving the disorientation, the new language, the beautiful backdrops, and just how everything completely disconnected me from the stresses of home life. If I'm completely honest with you, this one wacky little sojourn introduced me to the wonders of cold countries, and may have even started to turn me from a summer person to a cold, wrap-up-warm-lest-you-freeze-your-arse-off person - and here's why.

recovering from the reading festival under my mermaid blanket

So for those of y'all that don't know, I recently went to one of the biggest festivals in England - the Reading Festival. It was five days of mud, bad music, and a diet consisting of candy and packets of Lays chips. I've spent the past couple of days trying to recover from some weak sunburns and memories of the human waste cesspit, and it feels so great to be able to shower, sleep in a normal bed, and eat actual food again. The journey back from Reading was insanely stressful, and living on three hours sleep over several nights has really caught up with me. And so, I've taken some time out to recuperate - with the help of the super adorable mermaid tail blanket sent to me by Everything AF.

why you should visit a buddhist temple at least once in your life

A year ago marked my fifth year living in London, and it was killing me. The mundanity of life in the city with its endless stream of grey people with grey lives always rushing to be somewhere, was really getting to me. Considering I'm from Wales (think beaches, cute lil communities, mountain views, lots and lots of cake), the big sights of London really started to grate after a while. And so, I decided to set out to explore the more hidden parts of the city, that would be devoid of both tourists and mundane businessmen with little black briefcases. This is when I found the Buddhapadipa temple.

The Best Weekend of my Life - Sedlescombe Golf Club

So I've always thought that golf was this insanely boring sport for old men to play at their weekly social gathering, meaning that when I was faced with the opportunity to stay at the Sedlescombe Golf Club for a couple nights getting fed and watered and taught golf, I was a bit anxious. However, what followed were some of the most incredible days of my life, where I was situated in their luxury lodge, eating wonderful food at their clubhouse restaurant with chefs that do anything for you (and make truffles for dessert!), and taught golf by a professional who rendered my group aching from how difficult, but also insanely fun, it was.

The founder of the golf school (and man who generously let me have this experience), James Andrews, approached me on my first morning in order to introduce himself, and he couldn't stress enough that when I write about them he'd really appreciate it if I were as honest as possible. Having only arrived five minutes before and not seen anything as of yet, I was thinking that was probably a bad move as it gave me permission to be brutal. In my 100% honest opinion, however, I felt like I'd won the lottery at the end of my stay as I'd had such an incredible time. If I were to be completely honest, I'd say that the only downside was the fact that they didn't offer fair trade decaffeinated green tea in my room - but even then, the minute-walk to the clubhouse had that sorted. It was a perfect stay, which means that this post is mainly just going to be me bragging about having the time of my life.

72 hours in Falmouth, Cornwall

Early last month I booked myself a small trip to Falmouth, Cornwall, mainly just so that I could check out a university I may possibly want to go to either next year or the year after, depending on whether or not it's viable I can stay with a pal in the US for a tad as a lil gap year, (but then again,  could we really imagine me settled in one country for three years, with a year abroad???) and I left with an unconditional offer, a wonderful cafe recommendation, and a new found love of the Cornish seaside. Honestly, I can't begin to tell you how beautiful - and wonderfully non-local to my house near London - the area was there, it was insane. But I sure as hell can try.

Top 10 Things Off The Beaten Track in London

Unfortunately I was unable to leave the UK this month (unlike the UK with the EU, amirite?), mainly due to the fact that I had a bunch of exams to take and no one else could make it either. So instead I invested my time and money into exploring the parts of England that are often overlooked in travel blogs and sites, which resulted in a pretty cool month filled with having super awesome experiences with super awesome people. And so, if you're in London or plan on visiting, here's my top ten favourite low-budget, low-tourist, things to do around the city.

Top 5 Things to See and Do in The Lake District

Last month I went to the north of England with a guy who would turn out to be a massive douche, and his family (who were all sweethearts), and I had a pretty good time. For someone who loves travel, experiencing new things, staying in a new house, and getting free food, the mini-break was perfect for me, especially as there were so many interesting things to see and do.

We stayed in Windermere in the Lake District, which is known for being an area filled with such vast natural beauty, that it's even a favourite place of my boss to travel to. We set off from Watford, a place relatively near to central London, so you can imagine what it was like spending a six/ seven hour journey in a tiny car with four other people and a dog. The outside scenery slowly changed from tarmac to tumps (no, not the US presidency candidate that we all thought entered as a joke), and made me feel more and more like I was embarking on my way to the Shire. From there, we went to Buttermere and Glenridding and Kendal, and spent a lovely eight days scouring cliffs and towns - my favourite five of which are categorised here. Warning: I took way too many photographs.

amy goes to swansea; wales, + bath; england

First things first - I've been in this little space of the internet for four years now! That is so insane, I can't even. Four years... wow. It'd just finished being 2011 when Awkward Donkey started up, and now it's 2016 and I'm 17, not 12/13. Holy crap, guys. I just want to say thank you for everyone who's supported me over the (freakin' four!) years, your encouragement has led to this blog not dying in flames just a couple of months down the line. I've made some good blog friends, and I'm glad that this space has been kept positive and awesome by all 80,000 of you. I hope y'all continue to check out this little space and stay here for as long as you can c:

So, on a completely different topic, we adhere to what this post is actually about. 

To celebrate it being 17 years since I clambered into this world, my family and I went down to my hometown in Swansea, Wales. It was pretty awesome for the most part, and I got to see sights and people that I've been missing since my last visit. Naturally, I thought y'all would appreciate a spam.