New layout & links

I have been looking for a new, fresh layout and design for my blog for a while. I am very computer literate but not really versed in design and HTML and I kept knocking up things but was not really happy with the overall look. I saw this layout in Gillian's blog shop after browsing her blog, ElevatorMusik and I am really happy with it. Some of the top tab pages are still in progress and I plan on adding more content this week.

I haven't felt very motivated to write or take photos recently and I think a new blog design, even though a small change, will help me to see my blog in a fresher light. I feel as though I am in a bit of a creative rut. I'm still reading a lot of blogs but I haven't felt compelled to post anything of my own.

Seeing as my blog has become rather bare of late, I thought i'd share some of my favourite recent posts from blogs I love;

• Jen posted the first few pictures from her wedding and they are absolutely beautiful
• I always love Jazmine's posts and I love the autumn photography and fashion in this one
• Jasiminne's blog Posh, Broke, Bored is a hilarious tongue in cheek look at her lavish life, although her illustration blog Audaciously Yours is seriously impressive and I love checking out her creations
• I love the dreamy travel photography of My Suitcase Heart and these pictures of a Bali beach make me want to drop everything and hop on a plane
• I really enjoyed this post on Betsy's blog about untranslatable words in other languages, I love the idea of other languages having unique words. I think "Sobremesa" is my favourite. 

Hello Autumn and hello again internet

Mid-Jerusalem - at Last Night of the Proms 2013

Hello again, blog. Apologies for my short hiatus, I now have the internet at home. It's been a hard month.

Weirdly I haven't picked up my camera that much this month which is very unusual for me. I don't know if it was the change in life dynamics because of the move, a lack of creativity or just pure laziness, but I feel like I really miss it at the moment. I keep finding blogs with such amazing photography which sucks out my inspiration and I start feeling very amateur. Comparison is the thief of joy, they say, and that couldn't be truer in my mind at the moment. I keep reminding myself that I am not a professional photographer, it is merely a hobby, but still I doubt myself a lot.

Nevertheless, I of course, did take some photos in the last month, albeit only with my phone. Even though I do sometimes post instagram photos here, I don't like to post that many as it feels slightly repetitive. If you'd like to see what I got up to in the last month, check out my Instagram here. And, as it feels weird to post without at least one photo, above is a snapshot from Last Night of the Proms at the Royal Albert Hall last month. I felt very lucky to go and I enjoyed every second!

Moving flats & internet-less

Our half unpacked room

As the post title indicates, I recently moved flats! We moved last weekend and I am pretty sure I am still feeling the tiring effects of the day. I really love our new flat and I like that we have a new area of London to explore, plus the fact that my rent is a lot less. We moved from a very busy area of West London to a much quieter area of North London, so it will be a very different atmosphere here. Luckily my commute time has only increased very slightly, and I am rather glad to be rid of the Central Line's humid climate although I do miss the speediness. Our new flat is a lot more spacious and I am (sadly) quite excited to have a desk in our room to blog from. It is probably a bit better for my posture than on my sofa or in bed. Our internet can't be installed till mid September, so I am mourning the lack of internet at home at the moment, and rinsing my 3G data. Hopefully I can get the odd blog post or two done from elsewhere.

View from our bedroom window - our shared garden (!)

I still have a bit of unpacking to do, I think we'll still be in settling in mode for another week. It's actually really nice to have housemates again (especially when they are already very good friends), it feels very student like and we're trying to kid ourselves that we are students again (I wish). I think we'll head to Ikea at the weekend to pick up a few bits that we've all realised we need. The girls are looking forward to this whereas the guys are not. I am not ashamed to be a massive Ikea fan. A trip there is a whole day out, breakfast or meatball dinner included!

New housemates!

Post-holiday thoughts

Aled & I in France

My holiday really was relaxing. It was a carefree, easy week of days out, home cooked meals and trips to the beach. I really do love that part of Brittany. Sadly it was slightly faltered near the beginning when we found out Aled's Grandma had died. It was partially expected, but of course, still very sad. It's odd to be removed from your normal environment when something like that happens, especially for Aled. Needless to say, we still had a great holiday were luckily able to go to the funeral as it had been planned for a few days after our return. We were both really glad about this fact, as we were in America when his Grandpa died and therefore unable to attend the funeral. I guess we should stop going abroad, even Aled's Aunt joked she was next in line next time. The weekend was sad and happy in nearly equal parts for me. There were the obvious really sad parts, but, and even though it feels weird to say this, I really enjoyed seeing everyone. We saw family that we wouldn't have seen for ages.

Pembrokeshire coastline

At the moment, I am looking forward to the weekend as we are off to a festival! Lounge on the Farm, to be exact. I love festivals and my summer isn't complete without one. Like last summer, I am photographing this one too - and am really excited to have this opportunity again.

A small part of me just wants a restful weekend at home, especially after the past weekend was mostly spent travelling; Aled's grandparents lived in Pembrokeshire - a short 8 1/2 hour trip from London! Also, I hope the sunshine continues into the weekend, obviously I love a festival without rain, but this is mostly because my wellies are back in Salisbury and really don't want to have to buy new ones.

English countryside - A perk of the multiple train journeys.

Running up that hill

My fitness level is at a low at the moment. Even though I feel like my eating habits are getting better (albeit struggling a bit like always), I have really fallen out of love with exercise. Or, shall we say, fallen out of love with the motivation to exercise. My gym membership these past few months has been barely touched. I can really feel myself getting less fit and I need to do something about it! I'd like to start running again properly. I ran way back in 2008 and ever since then had been doing the odd run, but for the last year or so I have mainly stuck to the cross trainer, bike or rowing machine and have scarcely been on the treadmill longer than 5 or 10 minutes. You see, i've hit that wall of pain that always rears its ugly head with exercise. I have gone backwards and need to have an extra level of motivation and determination in order to get my tolerance back on track, otherwise I worry I will give up running altogether.

I've been longing for someone to exercise with for a while, as well as making full use of the gym membership i'm paying for. As if they were reading my mind, I had an email from my gym today offering a "bring a friend for free for July". This means Aled can come and work out with me for all of July which is great. I need motivation and he has been missing running recently. I'm hoping to start running 3 times a week to start with. I definitely can never say that I don't have time because I really do.

I recently downloaded the NHS Couch to 5k podcasts as a way of helping me get back into running. I'm not a complete couch potato, but I do feel not far from it at the moment. I've completed the first week and am enjoying the run/walk/run intervals instead of just putting my all into running and feeling very tired out very quickly.

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Also, instead of just the few and far between photo posts, i'd like to start posting more frequently on here, with shorter and sometimes photoless posts. I feel like I haven't yet hit a comfortable level of blogging, and whilst I really want to post more, I often end up lost for ideas to write about and almost wait for my next wave of photos. We'll see how it goes.

An update

After a very hectic couple of months filled with job interviews, flat viewings, money worries, train journeys and general life panic I am living in London, back in a routine and for the first time in a while, feeling like everything has fallen into place.

Being back in a routine also signals the start of a healthier lfestyle for me. I must admit that since returning home from travelling I have seriously fallen behind in exercise and also eaten far too much of far too unhealthy foods. I blame this on being able to eat all the English things I was missing in Canada. Great excuse, I think. I always find getting back on track hard, and this has been no exception. I signed up to a gym last week which starts tomorrow with a free personal trainer session. I am actually quite looking forward to it, I really enjoy working out in gyms and I think regular exercise will help me to eat better.

I've only been here a week but am already loving living in London. There is so much I want to do and so little money to do it with, but am currently trying to compile a list in my head of all the free things we can do each weekend, along with the odd gig and new restaurant to try out. After living in Vancouver, I have definitely craved the city life during a summer in Salisbury.
　

Frustration & routine

I have been wanting to write on here for a few weeks now, instead of posting more photos. I can never bring myself to start typing, mostly because I don't rate myself as a good writer (at all) and secondly because well, pouring out my thoughts for people to read can be a little embarrassing. Nevertheless, I enjoy blogging and I do find it therapeutic, and maybe my writing skills will improve if I keep at it (ignoring the slight possibility that they could get worse).

I've been feeling very frustrated with myself lately. I can't seem to fall into a proper routine and I end up feeling lazy and annoyed with myself. Adjusting to life back home after travelling has been pretty tough. I did't think it would affect me as much as it has. Weirdly, it has nothing to do with how future plans are going because to be honest, things are going well. I have been earning money, and London now doesn't feel like a far away dream. I desperately want to be out of my parents house and independently living in London, and this definitely feels like a strange limbo. And, of course, a lot of me wants to be back travelling. The thought of waking up and not having a plan, or knowing where you'll end up that day is very addictive.

Basically, I feel unsettled. Health and fitness are big parts of a routine to me. I suppose it's exactly these two aspects which I feel have been left by the wayside recently. This always makes me feel unhappy, and I feel like I am in a constant yo-yo situation. One day, i'd like to have made a lot more progress.