Holiday

VALENTINES WEEKEND AWAY

Published on February 23, 2025 by simplycarinaxo14 Comments

Last weekend Luis and I packed up the car and headed up to Cresswell for a long weekend at our favourite caravan. We first came across this holiday let on Airbnb last year and enjoyed our time there so much that we keep returning. I think this was our fourth visit. The caravan is situated in the Cresswell Towers Holiday Park and is only about a 5-10 minute walk away from the beach. It’s really reasonably priced, always clean and well kept, and offers a quiet and relaxing spot for a seaside holiday. Note, we’ve only ever gone off season, so can’t speak for what it’s like during peak times.

Cresswell is about an hours drive for us so a good distance for a long weekend away. With my travel anxiety I don’t like being in the car too long, especially if we’re only going away for a couple of nights, so this is an easy enough drive for me to do. The first 30 mins are just up the A1 and then we tend to turn off at the Seaton Burn services, which although kinda dirty, rough and run down, are in a good location as a half way stop to settle my anxiety before we continue on through Cramlington, past Blyth and up to Cresswell.

We both still had to get some work done on Friday, but managed to finish a bit earlier and ended up leaving the house at about 4pm. Once we arrived we unpacked and before wrapping up warm and heading out for a short walk to the beach.

For Valentines dinner I made a vegan spaghetti bolognese which turned out yummy even though I forgot the herbs and spices at home. After dinner we cosied up and unpacked Patchwork, a new game we’d got for Christmas from our friends. I didn’t know what to expect but it turned out to be an easy to understand and really enjoyable 2 player game.

On Saturday we headed out to Amble for a mooch around the Marina. It was icy cold and rather miserable, but it was good to get out. We stopped off at the supermarket on our way back and got some pastries to enjoy with a coffee for once we got back to the caravan and settled down to another game of Patchwork.

On Sunday it rained on and off for most of the day and we enjoyed a cosy day inside. I read my book, Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi, spent a lot of the day crocheting, trying to finish my granny square cardigan and got stuck into trying to solve some Murdle logic puzzles with Luis which was good fun. It was a lovely relaxed day.

Check out was at 10am on Monday and so we got up early to start our day by heading out to watch the sunrise before having to pack up. It’s something we’ve been doing since our first visit. Although I always find the 10am checkouts somewhat stressful, starting the day by watching the sunrise is always so worth it. We really should make the effort more often to get up early to watch the sunrise – it’s always so beautiful – such a magical time.

Frozen after our early morning beach walk we headed back to the caravan to have breakfast and then pack up the car. It’s always sad having to leave the caravan – we’ll have to stay longer than a weekend one day, but it was another lush weekend away for Valentines. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend too.

A MINI GETAWAY IN NORTHUMBERLAND

Published on October 7, 2024October 7, 2024 by simplycarinaxoLeave a comment

The other week, my best friend Emily and I finally had our annual holiday together. We’ve been friends for over 20 years now, but as we sadly don’t live in the same city anymore, we don’t see each other as much as we’d like to. We try and make time for a little getaway together once a year. Our annual trips are a cherished break from our busy lives, allowing us to catch up on a deeper level and make lasting memories together.

Whilst planning this trip, my travel anxiety annoyingly acted up however, and so I didn’t feel up to going very far. With only two nights away planned though, it also made sense to opt for somewhere a little more local and not waste time traveling. And so, after browsing Airbnb, we came across a caravan listing in Northumberland. It looked like the perfect peaceful getaway for a couple of nights, just under an hour’s drive from Durham and nestled in a picturesque woodland spot.

We set off on a gloomy Sunday afternoon, the rain a steady backdrop to our journey. Hidden amidst fog-shrouded trees, we found our caravan and hastily unloaded the car. The heat was immediately put on, as well as the kettle of course, and we enjoyed the comforting warmth of a cup of tea as we unpacked and settled into our wee space for the next couple of days.

The rain eventually subsided, and we bundled up for a stroll and explore of the small caravan park we were staying at. We spotted lots of wild rabbits hopping about the grounds and allowed Emily’s daughter to burn off some energy in the small playground, before heading back to warm up again with some more tea.

After dinner we got Emily’s daughter ready for bed and then settled down to play a game together. We both love a good game and I was excited to introduce Emily to Fungi – one of my new favourite two person games. Unfortunately my relaxing evening was interrupted when sometime that evening I stood up from the couch and something in my back just went, giving way to extreme pain.

Although I managed to get to some sleep, I could still barely move on Monday morning and had to rely on a heavy dose of painkillers to cope. Not wanting to just sit around all day though, and hoping gentle movement would be beneficial, we ventured into the nearby woodland for a small walk before lunch. The misty, autumnal atmosphere was both kind of haunting and beautiful.

After lunch and a game of Qwirkle while Emily’s daughter napped, we decided to brave the rain for a little mooch around Hexham. We were fortunate to find a convenient parking spot and made our way to Hexham Abbey. The abbey was a beautiful place to visit; filled with intricate stonework and stained glass windows, it had a welcoming and peaceful atmosphere. There was also an interactive museum wing, which offered a glimpse into the abbey’s history and allowed us all to have some fun dressing up.

Having spent over an hour at the Abbey we sadly didn’t have much time left to explore more of Hexham that day, but as Hexham also wasn’t new to either of us, it didn’t really matter too much. If you haven’t been to Hexham before though and are ever in the area, it really is a delightful place to spend an afternoon and well worth a visit.

On our final evening, we enjoyed a simple oven pizza and played another round of Fungi after Emily’s daughter went to bed. We also decided to get crafting later that evening and while Emily worked on her current knitting project, a miniature pumpkin, I finally started a little embroidery experiment for a potential Christmas gift idea. If it turns out well, I will hopefully be able to share the project with you in a future blog post.

Checkout on Tuesday morning was at 11am – which was a huge relief. I love a later checkout when I’m on holiday as it allows me to relax and avoid a stressful morning rush. With plenty of time to spare once we’d packed up, we could also still enjoy a final stroll through the woodland to take some photos of Emily’s latest knitwear project (the sage green t-shirt she is modelling below). I’m always admiring her knitting skills – I simply don’t have the patience! Emily creates the most gorgeous pieces, and has started documenting her craft online. If you’re interested in knitting be sure to follow her on Instagram here and YouTube here.

After departing at 11am, we decided to still make a stop off on our way home and went for a mooch and a coffee at my local Farmshop, Broomhouse Farm. A browse of the shop’s selection of fresh produce, homeware and artisan goods and quick hello to the animals before sitting down and sharing a scone, was the perfect way to conclude our short getaway.

It is always a shame when holidays and getaways are over so quickly; but then I suppose there is always next year to look forward to!

DESTINATION ALNMOUTH

Published on November 9, 2018September 2, 2024 by simplycarinaxo8 Comments

Good morning beautiful souls,

My travel blogs are coming at ya a little belated, for which I am sorry, but I’m finally getting back into mu blogging and I have a lot of belated content to share haha, plus it is nice to reminisce all the cute mini getaways I had this summer! A couple of months ago I had my last holiday of the summer which was a couple of days in Alnmouth with my family and I just wanted to share a few photos from my time there with you!

We had a lovely few days together just relaxing by the seaside and enjoying each others company. We went for walks along the beach…

Let our creative juices flow spending time painting together, exploring an art gallery and taking a trip to Potadoodledo to paint some pottery which was great fun!

I cooked everyone delicious vegan food every day from tofu scramble to pea risotto all the while enjoying some delish holiday G&T’s whilst doing my thang in the kitchen haha – anyone else love a drink whilst cooking dinner?!

My sister and I introduced our parents to Queer Eye (if you haven’t seen this program you’re missing out- it’s the cutest) and we chilled watching tv or reading our books in the evenings…

All too soon however it was time for me to go home and back to work, whilst my mum, dad and sister were allowed to enjoy another couple of days there (I totally was not jealous!)

I love Alnmouth! If you live in the north east and haven’t been yet I highly suggest you take a trip to this cute coastal village with a beautiful beach!!!

VEGAN CAMP OUT 2018

Published on August 26, 2018September 2, 2024 by simplycarinaxo9 Comments

Good morning beautiful souls,

Last weekend I went on my first proper solo trip! I went camping, to a festival all by myself and I’m glad I did! I get huge travel anxiety so this was a big deal for me, but I coped! Woohoo! I didn’t have a panic attack and best of all I had great time and met some lovely people! The festival I was attending was the Vegan Camp Out Festival at Newark Showground. With this being a very new festival (only it’s 3rd year running) I’d say it’s still a learning curve for the organisers too, but considering the number of attendees more than doubled from last year, it went down super well, there were no major hiccups and everyone had a blast.

I departed lunchtime on Friday with far too much stuff (but hey I was only used to going camping with the car where you can chuck as much as you like on the back seat aha, so considering this I think I managed to reduce my camping kit considerably!). Jessica kindly helped me carry all my things to the train station and from there on I just about coped; luckily I had a direct train and once I arrived in Newark it was a just a taxi ride from the station to the showground and a little walk to the campsite.

It was soo windy when I arrived that being by myself and with a brand new tent (which I hadn’t practised putting up beforehand) I really struggled to set up camp. Luckily some kind stranger next to me asked if I needed any help and together with the tips of two passing guys who had a similar tent we eventually, after what felt like hours, managed to erect it although I was a bit dubious as to whether it would stay up with the way the wind was knocking it around. Once I had my sleeping mat rolled out and the fairy lights put up though I was very happy with my spacious but cosy home for the next 2 nights (I had a 4 person tent all to myself which was rather lovely I’m not going to lie).

Before going to the Vegan Camp Out I’d joined a Facebook group created for all the lone travellers, so that we could interact and arrange somewhere to all camp together. However I also knew that my experience would be ruined if I were to be kept awake all night by loud neighbours haha so I decided to camp in the designated Quiet area. I had been nervous about plonking my tent amidst strangers but before going I by chance ended up making friends with a lovely girl named Molly via Instagram. She was coming to the festival with her boyfriend and they decided to camp with me for which I was very grateful. About three hours after I got there Molly and her boyfriend Will finally arrived and set up camp next to me.

After settling in, we decided to check out some of the talks and went to listen to guitarist Jona Weinhofen’s personal vegan story, before ALF (Animal Liberation Front) founder Ronnie Lee took to stage and gave a very motivating speech about why we should not just be passive vegans but take to the streets and become activists. Having spent a good 9 year in prison himself for being an animal rights activist this guy’s passion for animals and their welfare is seriously inspiring!

Later in the evening I met up with Sam (a guy who’d messaged me from the Facebook lonelies group a day or two before the festival). We went to listen to the reggae legend that is Macka B and then sat down to chat the night away. Okay, okay you got me, we didn’t actually chat the night away. I mean I would have loved to, it was so lovely just chilling and chatting and Sam was super nice but I was literally yawing like every 2 mins come 12pm haha, so we called it a night.

The next day Molly, Will & I went to some more talks and workshops, including one by founder of the Carnisim Debunked website, which were all very informative and thought provoking. One of the talks held by Earthling Ed had such a huge crowd I only just managed to squeeze in at the back, but I’m glad I did – it was amazing hearing him talk in person, what a guy!!!

We treated ourselves for lunch and had some vegan pie & mash (I went for the mushroom one) which was so yummy and went off to listen to more talks such as by Peter Hammarstedt a Sea Shepherd Captain.

In the afternoon we decided we wanted to go to the screening of Dominion. Watching Dominion was so difficult, not everyone made it through the whole film. It was very harrowing to watch – it’s a stark & emotional reminder of why we as vegans do not eat animal produce! Hearing the cries of anguish from mothers and calves being separated, bearing witness to the thousands of animals repeatedly abused, watching as foxes are skinned alive for their fur, seeing baby chicks get conveyorbelted into a shredder just because they are male, having hidden cameras reveal the disgusting dirty & cramped conditions farmed animals live in….. the list of unnecessary, inhumane cruelty we inflict is truly endless, terrible and heart-breaking!

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PLEASE, PLEASE PLEASE, START DOING SOME RESEARCH TO INFORM YOURSELVES MORE ON THE IMPACT ANIMAL AGRICULTURE HAS ON ANIMAL WELFARE, OUR EVNIRONMENT & OUR HEALTH! IT’S SUCH AND IMPORTANT TOPIC!

Here’s some sites to get you started:

Carnism Debunked – Plant Proof – Must Watch Informative Vegan Documentaries

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Well after a difficult afternoon, we went back to our tents to rest a little more before having dinner. I’d brought most of my food for the weekend with me (far too much in the end aha) and so I made an avocado salad sandwich but joined Molly and Will by the food stalls to treat myself to some vegan Churros for dessert. Annoyingly they ran out of chocolate sauce, 2 people in front of me?! Say what?! But they were just as tasty with just sugary cinnamon!

In the evening we went to see the last bit of Simon Amstell’s show on the main stage and have a good laugh. Molly and Will went back to their tent after this and I headed off to find Sam and hang out with him and some other lonelies grooving away to JME! After JME it was time for the afterparty, but I was pretty tired by then and knew I had an early enough start the next morning so I made my way back to my tent. Sam came back with me to my tent (I was forcing my leftover booze on him as I did so not want to have to carry it all the way home again aha) but instead of going back to the party straight away he stayed a while and we talked a bit more which was really nice as I felt like we’d just clicked really well. Eventually I did go to bed though and Sam went off to continue the party, well into the early hours of the morning apparently (I’m so glad I’d listened to myself and did not sleep in the lonelies area of the camp as this had apparently been the afterparty of the afterparty area where I would have got 0 sleep).

Anyway I woke the next day to a grey sky and chilli morning which made getting out of my toasty sleeping bag rather difficult. I had hoped both mornings to be up and awake to join in on the morning yoga sessions, but totally failed both mornings, preferring my cosy lie ins aha! But this morning I couldn’t lie in too long as our taxi was booked back to the station for 11.30am (following the horrendous queues for taxis to the festival we made sure to book on Saturday for Sunday, and I’m glad we did otherwise who knows how long we’d have had to wait!). I’d packed my things together quite quickly and was having my breakfast by the time Molly & Will woke up and in the end our tents were all dissembled quicker than I thought, which was good though because it meant we could still go to one of the morning talks before leaving. I was also a good call getting up earlier as it started to rain and so we just about had everything packed away before it got too wet!

Once we made it to the train station the last leg of my trip began as I had almost 4 hours to wait for my train home. It wasn’t too bad though, I read my book (The Handmaid’s Tale), drank coffee and before I knew it 4 hours had flown by and I was on my way home.

I apologise for this essay of a blog post, but I guess I’m not good at being short and precise aha, so you get the long winded ramblings of my weekend adventure! I hope you enjoyed learning a little more about what I got up to and might even be inspired to check out some of the links 🙂

MINI GETAWAY – DESTINATION ALNMOUTH

Published on October 8, 2017September 2, 2024 by simplycarinaxo4 Comments

Good evening beautiful souls,

At the beginning of the week I was away in Alnmouth, a beautiful village on the seafront. It is my dads 50th this November and he’s celebrating early with his brothers, sister, their spouses and his mum who have all flown over from Germany so they can enjoy a weeks holiday together in Alnmouth. I could sadly only visit for three days as I had to work, but I did enjoy three days with my extended family. I took the train up on Monday and on Wednesday we all drove down back to Durham together so the family could see our hometown. Although short it was so lovely in Alnmouth; I am already missing it. Anyway the coastal scenery is just so beautiful there I just had to share some photographs with you.

On Monday we went to Bamburgh a short drive up the coast from Alnmouth, for a lovely walk at the beach, although it was so windy the sand whipped around our legs in a bit of a sandstorm.

The next morning the sun was rising over the beach and I enjoyed my breakfast with a view. The living room window had a lovely window seat looking out onto Alnmouth beach and it was the most peaceful breakfast I have had in a long time – breakfast goals on point!

After breakfast I went for a walk at the beach with my dad which was lovely as the sun continued to shine. The weather was just fab!

Later on in the day we went to the Alnwick Gardens where we had booked to eat lunch in the tree house in which is just so cute and quaint. The food was amazing and we all enjoyed ourselves. I sipped on my favourite Rose Lemonade, had a terrine for starters and pork belly with broccoli and apple mash for mains which was just scrumptious!

After our meal in the tree house I walked to Barter Books in Alnwick. It is one of the cutest bookshops I have ever been to. A large building filled with secondhand books, antiques and first editions. One can really spend half a day here browsing through all the books. If you are ever in Northumberland I totally recommend you take the time to visit this quaint bookshop. There is a little cafe for refreshments and chairs to sit and read in oh and there are some CD’s and DVD’s too, but only a small section. As far as I am aware you can also exchange books, as in if they don’t already have certain books you can trade them.

On Tuesday evening we continued family time and had a lovely night reflecting on the past by looking at old photos which was cute.

Well that sums up my mini getaway in Alnmouth; thanks for reading! Also I’d love to know if you have ever been in Bamburgh, Alnmouth or Alnwick, so please do let me know!

Love Carina xo

HOLIDAY BLUES!

Published on August 11, 2017August 11, 2017 by simplycarinaxo3 Comments

Hello my beautiful readers,

I have been dreaming of a holiday for ages, the need to get away for a couple of days really gets to you esppecially when working 19 days in a row with no days off as I am at the moment! However I finally have something to look forward to now at the end of August! A mini getaway with my best friend Emily and perhaps a few others if they decide to join us. Just before she set of on her honeymoon interrailing Europe we booked our tickets for the Lindesfarne festival!

This will be our second time going to the Lindisfarne festival together; last year we wnt for the first time ad it was the first festival experience for the both of us. The Lindisfarne festival is a small new (this year is only it’s third year) local festival in one of my favourite places (a stunning coastal plot of farmland overlooking the beautiful Holy Island in Northumberland). Holy Island (see photos above) was were I had my first every job as a waitress in the holidays. I used to stay on the Island when working there so it was like a holiday for me even though I was working. I love the place; it it idylic, peaceful and just holds a speacial place in my heart. Thus it was without question a great descion for the Lindisfarne festival to be our first festival experience. As it is a small scale festival you can walk from your tent into the arena within minutes and there weren’t any overbearing crowds. It was a great first festival experience and I’m hyped to be going back again this year! Let me share some photos from last year:

The festival didn’t have any famouse artists playing, more local and smaller talents, but it was nice to discover new people; for us the highlight was Molotov Jukebox and meeting the artists afterwards including Natalia Tena (Tonks from Harry Potter/ Osha from Game of Thrones). Their music was bizar but upbeat and happy and got us all dancing with smiles plasterd on our faces! Loved it! Comedy was also offered there as well as the Sanctuary a wellness tent with holistic treatemants and the like. On our second morning we participated in meditation followed by partner yoga which was hilarious and great fun, even though my back killed afterwards from lying on the uneven ground aha. We treated ourselves to a massage afterwards and then continued to enjoy the music, views and general atmosphere of the festival. Not long now till this years festival and I can’t wait!

Love Carina xo

MINI GETAWAY – DESTINATION – PEAK DISTRICT

Published on April 12, 2017September 2, 2024 by simplycarinaxoLeave a comment

Hello my beautiful readers,

So first of all just a little apology, I have no days off this week and am struggling to find the time to write and take photos, so there will be no What I Eat In A Day today I am afraid but instead you’re getting this lovely post about my mini getaway to the Peak District! Enjoy!

Last week was amazing! About three weeks ago I found out one of my best friends was coming to England and had some time to see me, so I managed to get some time of work and we booked a last minute mini midweek getaway to the Peak District for some peaceful time amongst nature. Here’s what we got up to! (P.S. sorry about the photo quality I only had my phone with me)

Day One – Jane Eyre Trail and Stanage

We met at Manchester Piccadilly station, did a quick food shop at Sainsbury and then took the train to Hathersage (about 1h) where we arrived at our hostel just before 10am. We were very lucky they hadn’t locked the door yet (they are officially only open 5pm-10pm). I mean I knew check in was only at 5pm, but I didn’t expect no access at all until 5pm, usualy hostels are open and have at least a locker room for bags, but we found none of that here! The guy at least allowed us to dump our bags behind the reception after we put everything we needed for the day into my small backpack. We quickly put our food shop in the fridge, made a humous wrap to take with us for our lunch and went on our way. We didn’t really have a plan or a map aha so with the only information I had for a trail being it was called the Jane Eyre trail, we just asked about and the locals were friendly and pointed us in the right direction!

Hathersage was the inspiration behind many a scene from Charlotte Bronte’s classic Jane Eyre. On the edge of the village lies a church where Robin Hood’s friend Little John is buried and next to it is a quaint little parsonage (pictured above) in which Charlotte Bronte once stayed. During her visit she began writing her novel; her influences become clear as you wonder aound the area. In the graveyard one can find gravestones engraved with the names of Eyre and Elliot for example. Furthermore, North Less Hall (pictured below) is said to be the inspiration behind Thornfield, and local ledgened has it that a mistress of the Hall was kept imprissoned as a mad woman and later died in a fire which destroyed part of the building and had to be rebuilt. It’s a pretty building but not quite as majestic as I had in mind from the BBC series aha.

The first good view of Stanage. The natural rock cliffs of Stanage and surrounding moorlands influenced Charlotte Bronte too, it is visible in the part of Jane Eyre where she wonders the moors lost before her cousin finds her. The scenery from here was stunning, although sadly it was a bit of a murky day to begin with.

Although murky to begin with, once we finished this roughly 3 and 1/2 hour trail we went and sat in a cafe when the sun came out and stayed all afternoon. We moved outside and soaked up some rays whilst enjoying our books.

Day Two – Win Hill and Lady Bower Reservoir onto Derwent Damns Viewing Point

Day two took us on an unplanned detour up Win Hill on our way to Lady Bower Resevoir, but it was well worth the extra 2 hours hike. Pictured below is our first view from the resevoir at the beginning of our climb up Win Hill.

Eventually after a hard climb for me and my unfitness aha, we made it to the top and the views were phenomonal! Absolutely stunning! Sadly it was just far too windy and cold to linger for long though.

What I loved most about this hike was the diverse landscape around us, we walked through fields, heather moor land, pine forrests and next to the resevoirs… The ever changing nature made the hike even more interesting to the eye!

In the evening I had the luck of being able to briefly meet up with a friend I’d made whilst volunteering in Corrymeela over last year, as she only lived a 15 minute drive away! This was super lovely as I hadn’t seen her since November.

Day Three – Hike To Castleton

Day three was probably my least favourite walk, although parts like the beginning where we walked along the river for a good 1-2 hours was really beautiful. However I am not used to walking for so long, so I was feeling not just physically but also mentally drained aha. (Garden envy shown below – I mean how idyllic!)

What made it worse was that I google mapped how long it would take to walk from Hathersage to Castleton failing to realise that the time given was obviously for the route following the main road and not the public footpaths. Annoyingly the public footpaths aren’t always sign posted very well at all either, so of course we also ended up taking a couple of wrong turns leaving us having to climb over barbed wire fencing aha and adding even more time onto our walk. So what I thought was going to be a 2-3 hour walk ended up being a 5 hour hike aha! But there was loads of cute lambs around, so that made it better aha.

Eventually we arrived in Castleton, I was rather tired so, so we didn’t stay long and got the first bus back to Hathersage. It was a long walk but not as inclined as the day before and not as varied scenery, but there was still some stunning views!

Day Four – Hathersage

On our last day we just chilled. We had to check out of the hostel by 10am and then we just browsed the shops in Hathersage and I did a little shopping. There was a little arty shop where we picked up some new reads, I bought Cider with Rosie by Laurie Lee and Travelling to Infinity by Jane Hawking (the story behind the movie A Theory of Everything) which I am excited to read! There was also a little cute interior shop with some jewellery and I treated myself to some new little black stud earrings from Pilgrim. After some shopping we walked back to the Church, searched for the Eyre grave stones and then went for a short 30min walk. The sun slowly started to show it’s face as we returned to town and after grabbing some lunch at a little deli cafe we then basked in the sun outside the cafe for the rest of the afternoon reading our new books. It was a glorious end to a perfect mini getaway!

Love Carina xo