Hello!

A few years ago, I wrote a blog post titled "Two Weeks Anxiety Free", and another, more recently called "A Talk About Anxiety", and both of those posts were basically me talking about how I managed to finally beat my anxiety, and praising myself and talking about how adopting a positive mental attitude helped me. How changing my mind from 'what ifs' to 'just do its' drastically improved my fears and stuff like that. Which is all true. I still think positively, if I think 'if i do this', I will immediately shake my head and correct myself with 'when I do this'. I'm doing everything right. I've fought against anxiety for most of my life.

Matched | Series Review

Hello!

So, while I'm not a book blogger, I did write a quick review about the Noughts and Crosses series a few years ago. I struggle to concentrate on reading books, and it's something that I've been really upset about, because I can't join in with people when they talk about the books that they've read and enjoyed. Until a month ago, when I downloaded Audible. (Not Sponsored). I listened to Eve of Man, first, which I really enjoyed and I'm now desperate for the sequel to come out! But after that... I wasn't sure. Until I saw somebody (I'm sorry, I can't remember who), tweet about the Matched series by Ally Condie.

Struggling To Land A Job In Your Chosen Field? Here's What To Do!*

Hello!

The following post is a guest post from Scotland Jobs, a part of the CV-Library group. CV-Library are the UK's leading independent job's board. The topic for this post has been chosen by myself because it's a topic that I'm, personally, really struggling with, and I thought it might be something that some of you might find beneficial as well. As I'm sure you read from my last post, I'm currently on a job search and I needed some guidance on how to get where I want to be, or to even just find where I want to be in the first place! So, I hope you enjoy this post, be sure to check CV-Library out, and have a look at their career advice and recruitment insight pages if you need any more expert, or workplace advice. I'll see you next time! Be excellent to each other.

My Worst 24 Hours

Hello.

To start with, I'm not going to name the company who are at fault, mostly because at the point of writing this blog post, I'm still dealing with them and due a full refund. But I will say that when I booked with them, it was through a website offering the best deal, and they begin and end with an A. It's also not a common website, because I hadn't heard of it before that time. But upon further research (which I should have done before booking) they have a lot of bad reviews for fucking people over. I took a risk, and it wasn't worth it.

Teide By Night

Hello!

I've always been fascinated by the sky, the stars and what might be out there. It's so endless, and when the stars are shining against the dark sky, I'm mesmerised. Something that I've always wanted to do for a date is to go stargazing. I've also been fascinated by volcanoes from a young age. So, when I found an excursion in Tenerife that included stargazing and a three course meal ON TOP OF A VOLCANO, you can bet that I was all about that! And yes, I went myself.

So, this excursion was called Teide by Night, and as the name suggests, it was a trip up Mount Teide during the night time. As I'm sure you read in my review-y of TUI post, I booked my excursion through my TUI rep after I'd been walking about with my mum to get food and noticed an advert for it. The excursion itself cost me about 85 euros and I went on the tour on Tuesday 8th May this year.



Mid afternoon, I had to walk to a local hotel which was my pick up point in Playa de Las Americas, where I was the only one at that specific stop. My tour guide was Julien and the driver was Leoncio. There was one final stop in Adeje, then, once we were all picked up, we made our way up the mountain, taking a pit stop at a local restaurant to stretch our legs.

Along the way up the volcano, we stopped at a variety of view points, and were given information about Tenerife (80% of the economy is services) and information about the volcano (the Canarian pine tree, that grows on the mountain, can survive forest fires, such as the 2012 fire.) We were told about the variety of different plants on the island. Among that information, we were told about Carmine, as well as what it looked like. Carmine is most commonly known as a food colouring ingredient which is derived from crushed insects. It's used in a lot of red sweets, like red M&Ms as well as in strawberry ice cream, and a variety of makeup as well. It's very commonly used.



At all the view points, there was the chance to take photos, and Julien would also go around and offer to take photos for you. I, of course, took these as opportunities to take photos of my Bill and Ted figures, which is apparently a very common thing to do. (Not with Bill and Ted though.) As it got closer to the evening, we arrived at the restaurant (ON TOP OF THE VOLCANO) where we had our 3 course meal. Because I'm vegetarian, I had vegetable soup, vegetable lasagne and a desert. It was a closed menu and everyone else had chicken or pork instead of the lasagne.

I was sat alongside 3 other couples, who were all really lovely. There was also a really great atmosphere, and the walls were decorated purple with stars with the Teide by Night signage. When I finished my meal, I took a walk to the gift shop and bought myself a hoodie because I didn't think my fleece would keep me warm enough under the cloudless sky.



What I haven't yet mentioned is that you can go on this tour at any time, because you go above the clouds (in fact, you actually get to see the sea of clouds). There's an observatory there, and after the restaurant, during sunset, you get taken slightly higher, get given a blanket and a glass of cava, and get to watch the sunset. It's kind of a surreal experience, because how often can you say 'oh yeah, I watched the sunset ABOVE THE CLOUDS.'?! It was truly something else. After this, we went back to the restaurant, got a hot drink, waited for it to get darker, and then went stargazing.



There's not too much to talk about for this, except to say that Julien was really knowledgeable about the stars, and pointed out all the constellations and the planets you could view. He answered everyone's questions they had about when you could see certain constellations and repeated what he'd said to anybody that couldn't hear him the first time. When we got back on the bus, he gave us all a sweet and a little flyer that featured all the main constellations (where everybody immediately looked for their star sign. Me included.)

Overall, it was an incredible experience, even if it was long and tiring, and I really want to go back and experience it again. Hopefully next time I can get to go with a friend so that I can share the experience with somebody!

Have you ever been on this excursion, or have you ever gone star gazing? Let me know!

Until next time, be excellent to each other.

My Experiences With Other Bill And Ted Fans

Hello!

I am a really big Bill and Ted fan (duh), but many of the people I meet have no idea what the films are, what they're about and they've never watched them (enter: Gail). However, that isn't to say that they aren't a pop culture classic. There have been numerous times in my life where I've had a random encounter with a fellow Bill and Ted fan, and so I thought a little post talking about some of those encounters would make a really fun post!

Colon 2 | Hotel Review

Hello!

Last week I wrote a post about my experience with TUI, and I mentioned that I was going to write a post about the apartments we stayed at. The TUI post itself was quite a long on and I thought this would be a better way to shorten, or break up the posts for everyone. I didn't write anything about the apartment I stayed at in Lanzarote but I was really impressed by Colon 2, so thought I'd write a little something.

A Review-y Of TUI

Hello!

I recently took a family holiday to Tenerife with my mum, brother, grandad and uncle in order to celebrate both my grandad's 75th and my uncle's 50th birthdays. Last time I flew to the canary islands was to Lanzarote with Thomas Cook, but this time I flew with TUI.

Why I Love... Georgia Jones

Hello!

Two years ago, I wrote a post about anxiety, and in particular, the story that Danny Jones told to London Real, and about how much it resonated with me. If you want to give that one a read, then click here! It's a long one, so make sure you're settled down with a cuppa.

Fast forward to now, and he and his wife, Georgia have had a little boy named Cooper, and ever since finding out about her pregnancy, I've been watching her Instastories religiously, and there are a few reasons why I love her so much. So, making a slight change into my "Why I Love..." series, here are 5 reasons Why I Love... Georgia Jones.

4Ocean

Hello!

Today I wanted to write a little post about the company 4Ocean. If you watch my instagram stories, you may have seen me talk a little about them a few weeks ago, but I wanted to write about it to be able to tell you a little bit more, and a bit more coherently.

A Reintroduction

Hello!

I feel like I've made a few of these posts in the past. Normally I write them when I've taken a break from blogging for a little while and this is no different.

So, hello there. My name is Gail. I'm 24 years old and I live in Scotland. I began this blog in 2014, and began using it more, and really began to get invested, in December 2015. The blog began as I watched my friend, hannah's, blog grow and grow. Her blog was, and remains a fashion blog, and so I tried my hardest to do the same. I'm not a fashion blogger.

An Excellent Cinematic Experience

Hello!

I love Bill and Ted. They're my favourite films, that's not a surprise to anyone. I use the phrase 'Be Excellent To Each Other' at the end of all my posts and I even have it tattood on my wrist. I have an instagram travel account where I post photos of my pop vinyl figures in a variety of places, including around where I live, other areas of the UK, France and Lanzarote. Hopefully there'll be more in the near future (I'm still dreaming of Hawaii). I quote the films all the time and everyone that I know now associates B&T with me. The films mean the world to me, and they were what helped me through my worst depression - during my high school years. I still struggle with depression, but being able to watch Excellent Adventure and Bogus Journey definitely help to relax me.

My Interrail Experience

Hello!

I promised that I'd finally get my interrail post up! I'm really sad that this will be my last proper France post :( There's not a whole lot more that I can really talk about during my time in France but if you have any ideas or things you want me to talk about that I haven't mentioned then please let me know either in the comments or on one of my social medias!

My Experience With Life Coaching

Hello!

Okay, so I didn't get my interrail post live last Saturday like I thought I would, and in fact, I didn't get any post live on Saturday at all so I'm really sorry about that. That post will still be going live in the next week or so (for real this time) so still stay tuned for that!

For today's post, however, I thought I'd talk a little more about a situation I've mentioned in the past, especially in my mental health posts, and that's about my experience with life coaching.

My 24th Birthday

Hello!

Sooooo... No more France travel posts then. At least, no more until I go to France again. I'm actually quite sad about that, and worried because that means that I'll need to start thinking more about what kinds of posts to... Post. I will also admit that I took a teeny tiny lie in my last post as well when I said it was the final 'interrail' post because I do have to write about my experience of interail. Hopefully that will go up on Saturday, so keep an eye out! I digress...

Paris | Gail's Interrail Adventure

Hello!

This is the next, and final, instalment of the Gail’s Interrail Adventure series, and this one is all about Paris. To be kept up to date on what I’ve been up to, click here for my couchsurfing experience, here for Toulouse, here for Menton/Monaco, here for Grenoble, here for Lyon and here for my Versaillesphotopost.

Chateau de Versailles | Photopost | Gail's Interrail Adventure

Hello!

Bit of a late one this Tuesday, my laptop has been playing up a bit so it's not been easy getting this up on time. Also, I'm going to be 24 tomorrow. What. That's come way too fast, I don't feel 24 yet. Help.

Anyway, I'm sure by now you're all avid readers of my couchsurfing and interrail posts. If you've not caught up yet, I went to Toulouse, Menton/Monaco, Grenoble and got lost in Lyon for a few hours before I arrived in Paris (The next post!). On day one of Paris, I decided to take a trip to Versailles.

Lyon | Gail's Interrail Adventure

 
Hello!

There's not a lot that can be said about Lyon, and technically, because Joanne and I didn't take a train... This isn't an interrail post... But, I did take a train to visit her so IT'S GOING INTO THE SERIES! If you haven't read my other interrail posts yet, then please click here for Toulouse, Menton/Monaco and Grenoble.

Joanne, her mum and I left the house at around 8am and we arrived at the coach station 20 minutes later, waiting for our coach which was due to depart at 9am. Once on the coach, Joanne let me have the window seat and honestly I am so jealous of her ability to fall asleep on public transport because that's something that I don't posess!

Grenoble | Gail's Interrail Adventure

Hello!

Welcome back to my interrail adventure. I'm sure you know the format by now, but if you're new to my Interrail series, click here for the previous installments; Toulouse and Menton/Monaco.

This was the most exciting for me because it was my reunion with Joanne! We both lived together last year at university but hadn’t seen each other since we said goodbye in May. Originally, we’d planned to meet on the train, but that didn’t end up happening because her side of the train was too busy, we were both tired and we both had suitcases, so we met on the train platform instead. Then, we headed outside and waited for her boyfriend, Théo. When we got in, I had a shower and changed into my stitch onesie while they went to get pizza for us all. After that, went upstairs to all watch a film that they let me choose (a French comedy that was a bit strange) and then went to bed.

Menton | Gail's Interrail Adventure

Hello!

Following on from my Toulouse Interrail adventure series, today’s post is all about when I went to Menton. It was a long journey for me with changes at Narbonne and Avignon to get to Marseille, then a change at Menton in order to reach Menton Garavan. It was gonna be a long day and a total of about 11 hours travelling literally from one side of France to the other.

Toulouse | Gail's Interrail Adventure

 
Hello!

I still can't believe France is over. It was so incredible, if tiring, getting to see the places that I saw, and meet the people that I met. It was an amazing experience and something that I'll never forget, I hope it doesn't take too long for me to return.

This post is the first proper post in my Gail's Interrail Experience series and it's all about Toulouse!

My Couchsurfing Experience

Hello!

So, I've recently returned from France. I was doing so well at keeping my blog up to date, posting on every day of my schedule up until Saturday just passed, and you know what? I'm proud of that. But, it was nice to spend the day with Saph instead of last minute panicking about getting a blog post written. I've been really tired after all my travelling but I wanted to get this written before my (already pre-typed) posts go live about about the cities that I ventured to.

My Little Red Dress

Hello!

I have this red dress - that I love, and I've only worn it 3 times. I've had the dress since September (ish) 2015. The times I've worn it? Hogmanay last year, my manager's wedding, and the 27th January this year. That's it. For a dress that I love that's insane. But I do really adore this dress, and if I could, then I'd wear it every day. But it's winter time right now, and I'd get really cold if I wore it all the time.

A Little Talk About Pizza Hut

Hello!

As I'm sure you all know, I am vegetarian, and the lovely Morag is vegan. I'm sure you're also very aware of my love of pizza, so imagine my delight when Morag invited me along to Pizza Hut with her to try the new Vegan cheese, as she was gifted vouchers! (This is not a sponsored post, these vouchers were gifted to Morag and she simply invited me along with her. All opinions are my own and are not biased.)

Vapiano Glasgow | Restaurant Review

Hello!

The bagettes and I (minus Jack) finally reunited recently for a few hours in Glasgow. We rarely see each other any more because of work commitments and life in general getting in the way, which is really sad. Racheal finished work a bit later in the day, so Robin and I spent a few hours wandering around Glasgow (I may have hugged a few Stitch teddies in the Disney store) before we were joined by her. We all decided that we were quite hungry, so it was time for food. What's better than catching up over food?!

A Talk About Anxiety

Hello!

I haven't planned much of how this post will go, but I thought it might be an important one to write about.

I haven't written anything about my anxiety in a really long time. In fact, I think my High School & Depression post was the last one I really wrote on the topic of mental health, and that was all the way back in August! I feel I owe you a little update considering the amount of insane things I've done since then.

Why I Love... My Colleagues

Hello!

Continuing on with my 'Why I Love..." series, by taking it on a slightly different spin this week. This time, it's why I love the guys that I work with. (And why I wish I could take them to any and every job I ever have from this point on.) The picture is slightly different, because I'd bulk taken the other photos, and since I took those, people have left and people have joined in my work, so for ease, this post will have a different picture.

Pourquoi J'apprends La Langue Française

Salut!

Bienvenue à mon deuxième article en francais!

La semaine prochaine, je vais voyager en france et je suis très excité! Mais, cette article n'est pas la traduction de mon dernier article. Voici pourquoi j'apprendre la langue française.

My French Travel Plans.

Hello!

So, as I'm sure you all know, I'M GOING TO FRANCE NEXT MONTH! I'm so excited about it because I've never been to France before, plus, this is my first time travelling alone in a foreign country, which is so nervewracking. But I really am so excited about it, and I just can't 100% believe that it's something that's happening to me! I never imagined that I'd have the guts to go solo travelling, especially considering how bad my anxiety and depression had been over the last few years.

100 Truths About Gail

Hello!

I've not been very scheduled this week, but the lovely Saph from Simply Saph tagged me in this post, so get yourself a cup of tea, and let's get to know me a bit better.
Q1: What’s your name?

Gail

Q2: Any nicknames or aliases?

I like to go by 'gailypi', but some people *cough* Russell *cough* call me G-Dawg. You can't really shorten my name, except to call me G so that makes me quite sad.

Q3: Your gender?

Female

Q4: Your star sign?

Pisces

Q5: How old are you?

23

Q6: Your relationship status?

Single

Q7: Any children?

Do teddy bears count?

Thomas Cook | A Review

Hello!

So, as you all probably know, I went to Lanzarote a few months ago. It was fun, and I miss it so much, but I'll be in France in a few weeks time, which I may have mentioned once or twice before. Anyway, I haven't written an airline review for a little while now, so I thought I should write a little something about my holiday with Thomas Cook.

Why I Love... Hannah

Hello!

Sorry I didn't have a Saturday post last week, I've been stressing out quite a bit over planning my travels next month (a blog post will come soon!). I thought that today I could have something nice and easy to read, and so here's my next "Why I Love..." in the series. Let me introduce to you my friend, hannah, aka, hxanou. And one half of Dayvelle.

My Winter Coat

Hello!

Today I wanted to write about my coat. I like my coat. It's purple and it's warm and it's basically the thing that's getting me through this winter!

Rancho Texas | Lanzarote

Hello!

Happy new year!

So. I wrote a few blog posts about my time in Lanzarote, but after looking in my notepad, where I note down some blog post ideas and bullet points, I realised that there's one that I forgot to write anything about. (Also, I'm sorry that the photos are so poor in the post. The lightning wasn't blog photo friendly, and I didn't decide until I was in the taxi queue that I was going to write this post. I have tried to edit them so they're a bit better than the originals!)