Tag Archives: holiday

Crazy Outbursts, Lessons Learned, My Life, Steffi Says

Appreciate the good things in life

Leave a comment

Sometimes, when I am struggling with life or I’m just having a hard time, I try to write down what I’m going through. Other times, I try to focus my thoughts on the good things I have in life.

I will share this with you, in the hopes that you will realise that there’s more to life than bad things… Sure, we spend most of our life thinking about what went wrong, or how bad we have it… and what about that damn bad luck or bad timing? But if you fight it, good things can be achieved like…

  • Having a good relationship with your family
  • Having friends that you can count on day in, day out (I don’t have many, but that’s ok! Quality over quantity)
  • Appreciating the little thing
  • Having a job
  • Being able to afford a roof over your head and a daily meal on the table
  • Being able to pay the bills at the end of the month
  • Being your own person, even if this make others cringe… Embrace yourself!
  • Being a decent cook
  • Owning two naughty but loving cats
  • The ability to drive a car and go places (unless the roads are flooding because of heavy rain!)
  • Affording to go on holiday every once in a while
  • Making random people or strangers happy with a simple act of kindness
  • Owning your own little house
  • Being creative in my own way…. through photography
  • Being able to listen to live music and talk with people over a few drinks (Sounds simple, but some of us don’t have the privilege)
  • Volunteering in a charity shop
  • Having that one person (or more!) in your life, that will always make you smile… no matter what you are going through

Surely this is not all…. I’m only getting started 😉

Cardiff, Events, Experiences Abroad, My Life, Reviews, Steffi Says, Wales

Doctor Who Experience

Leave a comment

It has been an awful long time since I wrote something on here… and I am blaming life and lack of inspiration on this. I have been finding it extremely difficult to find time to focus and write something interesting. More so, because in my free time I try to relax a bit, edit a few photos from my holidays in June and July or watch TV Series.

So, I thought, I should review one of the places I have been to while in Cardiff. Let’s start with the Doctor Who Experience… because, why the hell not? 🙂

dw6
We made our way to the Doctor Who Experience on the first day of the holiday. Actually, it was oudw1r first activity after we checked into our hotel. We were staying in Cardiff Bay, so you would think that it was straightforward to locate the BBC venue. Truth be told, we were slightly distracted with the amazing views of the bay and the surrounding, and it took us longer than expected to get there.

But once we did, I had a huge grin on my face. I couldn’t believe I have finally made it… It has been five years since I made up my mind that I should visit this place! We had already purchased our tickets online, so we simply waited for our time-slot and off we went in. The first half of the experience was very interactive and fun. It was the best part of it, in my opinion, however we were not allowed to take photos or videos as not to spoil this for other visitors. Granted, it made sense… but I wish I have captured that moment when I walked in the Weeping Angel’s cemetery or when I flew the Tardis.

Some photos taken outside and around the museum:

dw7

dw4

dw2

dw5

dw3

I would definitely return here eventually and would recommend it to all Whovians out there! 🙂

England, Experiences Abroad, London, My Life, Reviews, Series, Steffi Says

Baker Street Lovin’

1 Comment

When I was a teenager, I was fascinated by London.
I was even more overwhelmed when I discovered that in London, there was an alternative town by the name of Camden. Every time I visited England, I had to spend a day there shopping until I run out of money. When I moved to England in 2011, London become the least attractive place for me to visit. Sure there were a lot of shops and activities going on, but it was too busy and hectic for my liking. I would go down to London for a major gig or to meet friends who were visiting; but would not bother with it at all otherwise.

But this year, everything has changed.
I had to go back to London for one specific reason: AC/DC.
Any heavy metal fan would know that AC/DC are touring again, and considering their age, it would most likely be the last time (I hope I am wrong!). But this was the sole reason why I step foot in London again, after 3 odd years.

While I was there, I had to fulfill one huge dream which unbelievably I did not do even though I visited the city countless times.

Baker Street

IMG_8238 copy sml

I would like to think, that if you are reading this, you know where I’m going with this.

Well, geeky Steffi… geeky TV Series.
Hello Sherlock Holmes:

IMG_8231 copy sml

Did you know that 221b, Baker Street is the world’s most Googled address?

IMG_8229 sml
Waiting for Sherlock outside the door
IMG_8235 copy sml
Sherlock’s store
Crazy Outbursts, Experiences Abroad, My Life, Steffi Says

Dream Job

Leave a comment

I have been asked the question of what is my dream job several times. When I was younger, this used to change depending on my moods, or what I was going through. I remember me wanting to be a scientist, and even a hairdresser; until I was told I had to study biology for that. I hated anything that had to do with biology and the dissection of a human or animal. One of my childhood friends had to buy a heart of a cow and cut it in half in one of the lessons. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all up for steaks, but this was to me disgusting.

Then, I wanted to become a teacher because it would mean I get the summer off from work like all the students. Then I started thinking on how bored I would, and how much I despised the summer heat that this didn’t sound like such a good idea either.

Growing up, I decided to get into IT, because, I thought, this would mean, working in peace, and not get distracted constantly by customers and people with questions. A couple years later after my graduation, I can tell you that this was very untrue as stakeholders come and go on a daily basis, and I get bombarded with questions face to face, by email, by chat and what not.

No, my current job is not my dream job.drmjob

But, the more I matured, the more I realised, that IF IT IS SOMETHING I LOVE DOING, AND I’D CALL IT A DREAM… HOW ON EARTH CAN YOU CALL IT A JOB? Isn’t it more like a vacation, a hobby, or a pastime.
This got me thinking further.

Oh, I know!

My dream job would be, traveling from one place to another, photographing, and writing about it… And in turn sharing it with my readers…. Companies would pay me to do this for them, and from my end, I would enjoy one holiday after another for free.
Both of us win right? Adverts, promotion and generating buzz for your country, and traveling experiences for me.
Yes please.

Cardiff, England, Experiences Abroad, London, My Life, Steffi Says, Wales

Tomorrow, tomorrow…

2 Comments

It still does not feel real that I will be in mid-air tomorrow.

For some reason, even after packing my luggage and I’m officially ‘ready to go’ it still feels unreal.

It could be, because I will be fulfilling five things from my bucket list, or something is just very, very wrong with me:

  1. I will be watching AC/DC live at Wembley Stadium
  2. I will be visiting Cardiff aka Doctor Who hot spot
  3. Going to 221, Baker Street!! (Not sure why it took me so long!!!)
  4. Hampton Court Palace – If you do not know why, you don’t know me at all!!
  5. CASTLES!

So, if you have read the above, it means that I am on my way to Cardiff and London, baby!

Experiences Abroad, My Life, Netherlands, Steffi Says, Utrecht

A day in Utrecht

2 Comments

I would say that out of the many towns I have visited in the Netherlands, my very favourite is Utrecht. Imagine, somewhere as pretty as Amsterdam, with half the tourists around. I am not a big fan of crowds and this was perfect for me. The streets by the canal are still full of coffee shops, tourist shops as well as restaurants. Yet it is less busy, and loud. Perfect.

Here’s some photos I took, just to give you an idea.

utrecht

utrecht1

utrecht2

utrecht3

utrecht4

The photos does not do it any justice.

I would suggest that you do not miss the opportunity to visit this town while in Holland. Besides, it is just 1.5 hours away from Amsterdam by train.

Crazy Outbursts, My Life, Steffi Says

New Zealand dreaming

2 Comments

I have just come across an article claiming that New Zealand will need around 50,000 workers to move there in the next two years. Seeing this is my dream destination not for just a holiday, but for living, because of the fact that nature is at its best and it’s not so over populated, I started thinking what my life would be like there.

Turns out that they are looking for a lot of technology workers, most of which in IT.

Here is me hoping that they would open up their offers outside of Australia, to us Europeans… Who knows what I decide on doing then….

nz

Source: http://www.theage.com.au/it-pro/expertise/wanted-by-nz-it-workers-to-fill-up-to-50000-jobs-20141127-11vdl8.html

About Malta, Malta, Places to Visit, Steffi Says

A walk in Rabat

Leave a comment

While waiting for a friend this Wednesday, I decided to have a stroll in Rabat, in the vicinity of Mdina. The weather was not so promising, and I was waiting for the rain to start pouring any moment. In fact, it did after a short while. But, I still managed to take a couple of photos to share with you.

Rabat and Mdina, especially Mdina is a very touristic area, and is a must to visit when in Malta. I’d say it is one of my Top 3 places in Malta, mostly cos I adore medieval and history. Mdina, is known as the Silent city. I won’t bother you with much details for now, until I am able to feature it to you with more photos to support it.

In the meantime, a few teaser photos of the lovely area of Rabat:

201500218 - Rabat&Mdina Walk before meeting Joan (2) copy

201500218 - Rabat&Mdina Walk before meeting Joan (1) copy

201500218 - Rabat&Mdina Walk before meeting Joan (3) copy
Entrance to Mdina
Lessons Learned, Steffi Says

Share the love on Valentine’s day

1 Comment

I am not big on commercialised feasts, and I do think that you should show your love to the special people in your life all year round. But I received this video by email this morning, and it was certainly beautiful. And it is not about people, it’s about the nature surrounding us and all the changes that are happening to it… Something we are often forgetful about.

This, is all done through Shakespeare’s Sonnet number 18 to life; in a beautiful 100-second film that’s a celebration of the world around us. Listen to the cast of familiar British faces: David Harewood, Meera Syal, Stephen Fry, Dermot O’Leary, Jarvis Cocker, Deborah Meaden, Emilia Fox, Alison Steadman and Raymond Blanc, and let me know your thoughts in the comments.

#showthelove

Cardiff, Experiences Abroad, My Life, Steffi Says, Wales

Summer in Cardiff

3 Comments

Cardiff is going to be the first holiday I will be planning for this year. I will be visiting end of June and currently I am trying to decide whether I should book a hotel or self catering accommodation. Usually I tend to choose the latter as I cardifflike my privacy and have a kitchen, if I fancy to cook something myself one of the evenings. However it looks like it’s going to be quite hard to find what I want, as during the same time I am visiting, there’s a motorcross show, and as such some of the best self catering places are already booked. I have decided that if I have not decided my accommodation by end of the week, then I will be staying at Travelodge.

Obviously, I chose Cardiff for a couple of reasons:
1. I have not yet been to the south of Wales; I usually tend to visit the North (I’ve been to Chirk, Llandudno, Conwy and their surroundings so far)
2. Cardiff Castle
3. Doctor Who Experience and related fandom
4. Cardiff Bay Wetland Reserve
5. Mermaid Quay
6. Gothic architecture (St. John the Baptist Church, St. Mary’s Church St. Fagans)
7. Hopefully a ghost tour in the castle itself but the dates are not yet out for summer!!