Côte d'Azur Day 1: Vallauris and Cannes

After eight months without leaving the UK, we finally went abroad again, spending four days in the south of France and Monaco. 

This is a trip that we were considering doing in April, after our holiday to Australia was cancelled, but we felt that we couldn't face planning another trip so soon after having to cancel one. In the end, we decided to go for Claudio's birthday in June, when the weather would be better.

This was a dream bucket list trip for Claudio, as he really wanted to visit Monaco to see the supercars! As for me, I had actually been to the area several times before, because my granddad lived in Cannes, but the last time I went was over 10 years ago, so I was keen to go back, revisit places I'd been to previously and explore new ones.

We chose to stay at Blanc Sable Hôtel, a hotel with very beachy décor, located in Vallauris, between Cannes and Antibes. We arrived from the airport quite late at night, so went straight to our room to go to bed. The room had a great view of the pool, overlooked by what appears to be a former church, and the bathroom came equipped with a full set of Fragonard toiletries.

We started off our first morning with a delicious breakfast by the pool (highlights being the coffee, pains au chocolat and fruit salad), followed by a swim and a bit of sunbathing. We definitely felt very much on holiday after that!

We then went for a walk by the beach near the hotel and ended up coming across a classic car exhibition. Claudio was super happy!

In the town, we came across this really cute bakery called Maison des Merveilles. It had some incredible looking trompe l'œil cakes!

We then took the train over to the glamorous city of Cannes in order to take in its sights, starting with Notre-Dame de Bon Voyage de Cannes church.

Next we headed over to the best-known place in the city, Palais des Festivals, where the famous film festival is held. The red carpet was out (though it was actually green!). There's a photo somewhere of me standing on the same carpet (red, on that occasion!) from around 15 years ago, but this time there was a big queue, so we just took a selfie from a distance!

We went for a wander round the area, taking in the views of the port, the hilltop neighbourhood of Le Suquet, the Hôtel de Ville, and the bus station (which is surprisingly pretty!).

We then went to get an ice cream from Nivà Gelato Italiano, which actually turned out to be some of the best gelato we've ever had.

However, since arriving in Cannes, I'd been struggling with some sort of allergy in my eyes; they were really stinging and I could hardly keep them open. Luckily, although it was Sunday, there was a pharmacy open near the gelateria, where we were able to buy some very expensive but effective eye drops. Once they'd started working, I was able to start enjoying the day a lot more.

Our next stop was Le Suquet, part of the city I'd never visited before. This is definitely the most historic area of Cannes, with an old church and the ruins of a castle. It reminded me a bit of the Citadella in Gozo.

After exploring Le Suquet, we went for a walk along the city's beaches.

We took a look at the Carlton Hotel, which is the most glamorous and iconic hotel in the city. Of course, there were plenty of supercars around, which Claudio was very happy about!

After enjoying a poke bowl and some iced tea, we took the train back to Golfe-Juan-Vallauris, went back to the hotel to get changed, and headed out to the local beach, where we spent a very happy hour or so swimming in the Mediterranean Sea.

It had been a great start to our trip, but Claudio's birthday was the following day, and some even more exciting adventures were coming our way!

Year Abroad: My Travel Highlights

For today's post, I'm looking back at my Year Abroad (which I can't believe was 8-9 years ago!), and specifically showcasing my travel highlights from those 15 months.

During that time, I travelled to eight countries across Europe and South America, and visited some of the world's most famous tourist destinations, like Paris, Vienna, Venice and Florence. I used my weekends to take various day trips and mini breaks to places in the countries I was staying in and in neighbouring countries.

Though I had a great time in every place I visited, these were the trips that left the biggest impression on me...

Travels Around the South of France

Following a difficult start to my Year Abroad, when an au pair placement I took on in the south of France turned out to be a nightmare, I returned to the UK after just 10 days. However, just a matter of days later, I was back in the same region, this time spending a few weeks at a language school in Montpellier. Fortunately, this experience was completely the opposite, and I had a wonderful time. I stayed with a really nice lady and her cat in a lovely flat and had the opportunity to travel to various places around the area on weekends and Wednesday afternoons. Those weeks were one of my favourite memories from the entire year, and gave me confidence after the initial setback to keep going with my Year Abroad plans.

Read more here!

Udine, Italy

The second part of my Year Abroad took me to the south of Austria, where I worked as an English teacher in two secondary schools for four and a half months. As I was living pretty much right in the centre of Europe and worked four-day weeks, I had amazing opportunities to travel all around the continent, without even getting on a plane. I visited four neighbouring countries, including Italy on three separate occasions. The first trip I took was to the small city of Udine, close to the borders with Austria and Slovenia. It was a city I'd never heard of before seeing it on a train map, but it turned out to be one of my favourites - it has so much beautiful architecture and none of the crowds you get in the better-known Italian cities.

Read more here!

Vienna, Austria and Bratislava, Slovakia

The following month I, along with the other British Council English language assistants in Austria, was invited to an afternoon tea at the British Embassy in Vienna. The event was nowhere near as fancy as it sounds - it was literally just us passing round packets of Mr Kipling cakes and making tea from a hot water urn! However, it was interesting to visit the embassy and hear from the ambassador about what it's like to work in diplomacy. Of course, I used the event as an opportunity to stay in the city for a few days and see its many sights. I also took the train over to Bratislava in Slovakia (a journey of less than an hour), which was a great experience. The two cities are very different, but there's a lot to like about both, from Vienna's grand palaces and elegant streets, to Bratislava's fairytale castle and quaint streets.

Read more here!

A Weekend in Austria, Switzerland and Liechtenstein

Later on in the semester, I went on a trip that incorporated destinations in three different countries: Austria, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. First, I took the train to Innsbruck for one night before travelling to the small town of Sargans in Switzerland, which I used as a base for exploring the tiny country of Liechtenstein, before stopping off in Innsbruck again on the way home. This was a long weekend filled with mountains, castles and a real feeling of adventure.

Read more here!

Valparaíso, Chile

In February 2018, I headed over to South America to start the third part of my Year Abroad: a semester studying at a university in Santiago, Chile. This was the most daunting but also the most exciting part of the year. During the first couple of months, I got to know my new city, but didn't travel much outside of it, other than a trip to a vineyard with the university and a weekend at the beach in a group. Before going to Chile, I'd been given a lot of warnings not to travel around Latin America on my own, but when my plans for one weekend fell through, I spontaneously took the bus to the coastal city of Valparaíso by myself and joined a group walking tour, taking in all the sights of the city. Valpo is full of steep hills, colourful buildings and street art, and has a Bohemian atmosphere that really draws you in. Almost five years later, I had the chance to go back, this time with Claudio, and I enjoyed it just as much the second time around.

Read more here!

Huilo Huilo, Chile

The first three months of my time in Chile were filled with ups and downs. While I fell in love with the country, its landscapes and culture, I also invested myself in an unhealthy relationship, which ultimately ended in heartbreak. In the days that followed, I was strongly tempted to book the first flight back home, but forced myself to stay by booking a spot on a group tour to the south of the country towards the end of the semester. By the time the trip came round, I'd unexpectedly met Claudio (my now-husband!) and life in Santiago was better than ever. Though Claudio wasn't able to join me on the tour, he did turn up at the bus station to see me off, which was a lovely surprise! After an entire night on the coach, I emerged into a landscape that was much colder than Santiago, but also much more tranquil. The following two days were spent visiting lakes, volcanoes, waterfalls, forests and thermal springs. It was an incredible experience and one of my favourite memories from the year.

Read more here!

The Year Abroad was a big project for me and something I felt really nervous about beforehand, as I'd never done anything like that before. Though I experienced some difficult moments, it also changed my life in the best ways.

In terms of travel, it helped me leave my comfort zone and become more confident about living in and travelling to different places around the world, often by myself. It inspired me to seek similar experiences in the future, starting with 10 days teaching English at a summer camp in Poland after graduating from university, and then moving back to Chile for 15 months after the pandemic, followed by a three-month internship in Malta. 

We're now settled in our life in the UK and plan on staying here for the foreseeable, but I have to admit that part of me still craves the prospect of spending a few months, or even longer, in a different part of the world. Maybe sometime in the future!

That's all for my Year Abroad Series for the moment. But please check out the other posts in the series right here:

Year Abroad: Dealing With Problems

Year Abroad: The Best Bits

Planning a Year Abroad

Year Abroad: The Most Popular Destinations

Barcelona Day 5: Arc de Triomf, a Tram Ride and Bogatell Beach

Our fifth day in Barcelona was unfortunately our last! We didn't want to leave the sunshine, beaches and relaxed vibe of the city and return to cold, grey England, but such is life! Our flight was in the late evening, so at least we had almost a full day to enjoy before leaving.

First of all, we had yet another tasty breakfast at Spice n Brunch, a short walk from our hotel. Being both millennials and Chilean/having lived in Chile, of course we love our avocado on toast!

Now fed and caffeinated, we began a leisurely walk over to our last sightseeing stop of our trip, passing through some attractive areas, including Parc de l'Estació del Nord, with its very Catalan sculpture, the striking Estació del Nord, and this cool staircase, which brought back memories of Valparaíso. 

The Arc de Triomf was the last of Barcelona's iconic landmarks that we were yet to see. At 29.8 metres tall, it is nearly 20 metres shorter than its Parisian counterpart and you can't go inside it, but it has an interesting Spanish/Moorish architectural style and is definitely worth seeing.

During the rest of the morning, we did some souvenir shopping and also took the tram, just for fun! Taking the tram is always a great way to see a city and feels like a very European experience.

We then headed back to the Poblenou neighbourhood where our hotel was located. For lunch, we decided we fancied something a bit different, so went to a Mexican place called Matt and Marshall. My burrito was spicy and full of flavour, and I feel like it was a lot better than most of the Mexican food you can find in the UK.

For dessert, we enjoyed ice creams sitting on the hotel's rooftop terrace, next to the swimming pool - something I could definitely get used to!

Our last activity of the trip was a final paddle in the sea at Bogatell Beach. It was so nice being there in the sun that we really had to drag ourselves away to go back to the hotel and collect our things.

We both felt a bit sad to have to return home, especially as it wasn't the easiest journey to get back. We eventually arrived back in our flat at almost 2am the next day, feeling very cold!

Despite the negative experience of Claudio's phone being stolen on my birthday, we had an amazing time overall in Barcelona. We wished we could have stayed longer and will definitely try to go back at some point in the future. In fact, we could even imagine ourselves living there!

It was also super nice to enjoy a last bit of warm, sunny weather in the middle of autumn, especially as we didn't go abroad over the summer. Though we like the UK, it definitely does us good to go somewhere else from time to time! Hopefully, it won't be too long before we'll have another adventure like this!