A Guide On How To Plan Your Trip.

This post is in reference to the trips I took to Moscow and St. Petersburg sometime last year.

It was my first time organising a (any, actually) trip all by myself. And it was all last-minute.

It was a Monday, I remember. Woke up on the best side of the bed! 🙂 And decided that I wanted to go to Moscow the next day. So I went ahead and bought my ticket… right away in fact! I had no idea where I was gonna stay. Had no itinerary. Hadn’t packed. Nothing! All I knew was that I wanted to head to St. Petersburg as well after a short stay in Moscow. Ha! 🙂

I thought everything would magically fall into place within 24 hours. You know…

Let’s just say that the hours until my departure were an emotional turmoil.

There were times when I got frustrated because I wasn’t getting immediate email replies to confirm my accommodation. Teared up once or twice. Thought of cancelling the whole thing. But I’m so glad I didn’t.

Because it turned out to be the best time I’ve ever had! 🙂

So here are a couple of pointers to help you plan your next trip:

1. Destination.

First of all you need to determine which place(s) you want to visit. Town, City, Country. Find out if you need to apply for a visa if you’re planning to fly out of the country.

2. Date.

Then choose the precise dates for you trip. Because you need them for the step below.

3. Accommodation.

Now figure out where you’ll be staying. Hostel, hotel or home? For how long? Call or email them to make a reservation. ALWAYS make a reservation.

4. Transport.

Time to book your ticket. Plane, train or bus? You pick. 🙂

5. Itinerary.

And the fun part begins… planning your activities! Find out what amazing things the new town/country has to offer, list them down and schedule them for the number of days you’re going to be there. Make sure to spread them out evenly.

Any more tips you’d love to share? Please do write them in the comment section below. I’d love to hear your opinions. 🙂

Always be kind.

Dee.

❤

How To Maximize Your Vacation Days.

If you are a full-time student or have a full-time job, then you’ve at one time or the other felt like you need more vacation days. It’s so easy for you to feel like you are always working or studying since you only get a month or two or, if you’re lucky, three months off annually to kick back and relax.

Well, lemme help you make those couple of weeks seem more than just that:

1. Study or work abroad. 

By abroad here, I mean any place that’s not your hometown or even home country. There’s always opportunities to take a course or go for a conference someplace new to you. Grab that. This automatically gives you a chance to explore a new environment either temporarily or long-term.

2. Travel to new destinations.

There are places that we’d love to visit over and over again. But then that restricts us from experiencing what other destinations have to offer. So as much as you love that sandy beach, or that rocky mountain, book yourself a ticket to a fresh new location every once in a while.

3. Maximize your weekends and public holidays.

Use these days to travel to places that are close to where you live and around your country hence saving your vacation days for further destinations.

4. Work from the center outwards.

Explore your hometown first. And the neighbourhood. Then work your way around your country and region because those will be way cheaper to travel to. And I’m pretty sure that there are a bunch of gems close to you that you take for granted. Find out what attracts tourists to the place you live and then go find out why. 🙂

5. Plan out each vacation day.

Having an itinerary helps you organise your time. Also, having a bucket list for each town/city prior to your visit enables you to make the most of your time there.

Always be kind.

Dee.

❤

Top 5 Things To Do In Dombay.

This post brings back so many good memories.

Like the first time I went skiing and nailed it like a pro! 😀

Here are the top 5 things I think you shouldn’t miss while visiting Dombay:

1. Skiing.

Read more about this here.

2. Snow boarding.

3. Go see some bears.

These are in a park a couple of metres away from the town. They are caged though. 😦

4. Horse riding.

Read more about this here.

5. Admire the landscape.

Read more about this here.

Always be kind,

Dee.

❤

What To Wear: On Safari.

I love safaris. I love adventure. But most of all, I love nature. Just the other day, while studying for my pediatrics class, I drifted off and started daydreaming about the gorgeous mountains in Canada surrounding pretty little lakes, the amazing landscapes in Iceland filled with breathtaking waterfalls, the beautifully sculptured canyons in the USA…

I’d love to see all these places one day.

Ok, now back to this post. There are a couple of things to note when it comes to dressing right for a safari. One: You need to be comfortable. Like very comfortable. Two: You need to blend in with the environment (think browns and greens) to avoid disrupting wild animals. It’s for your safety as well. Three: You need to be well fed and hydrated because safaris are exhausting.

Here’s a breakdown of what you’ll need to wear:

1. Hats & sunglasses

To protect yourself from the sun.

2. Tops

If you’re planning a morning or evening trip, you’ll need to layer up since it’s most probably going to be chilly. Otherwise, a t-shirt will do for the day.

3. Bottoms

Keep these long to avoid scratches and bites.

4. Shoes

Sneakers are the best option.

5. Bags

Just a small backpack to hold your essentials like water and cameras.

Always be kind.

Dee.

❤

5 Tips For Booking The Right Accommodation.

Hellow there lovelies! 🙂

One of my favorite parts about putting together a blog post is finding and editing the title picture. But when I thought of today’s topic, I was so sure that I wouldn’t find an appropriate picture in my archive. So I decided to scroll down my Instagram and BOOM! I think this pic is as appropriate as it gets to what I’m gonna share today, isn’t it?

Okay then, on to today’s post. I’m a student, as you probably already know. So when travelling and booking accommodation, due to my student budget and all, there’s a number of things that I put into consideration:

1. LOCATION.

Living at the city/town center is very convenient. You get to stroll to the main attractions at whatever time you want. Also there’s so much you can do without having to worry about being out late.

2. COST.

Personally, I don’t think spending too much on accommodation makes sense. You’re likely going to be outdoors most of the time anyway. So I’d rather spend more money on activities and adventures instead of a fancy bedroom.

3. REVIEWS.

Reviews never lie. Don’t book accommodation in a place with bad customer reviews and expect anything different. Sites like TripAdvisor and a few others are very reliable when it comes to these. Make them your friends and you won’t be disappointed.

4. FACILITIES N SERVICES.

Especially free Wi-Fi. And personal lockers and safes. If you can give me these then I’m good. 🙂

5. QUICK ONLINE RESPONSE.

Lastly, when I’m trying to book a last-minute trip (which I always tend to do), I need places that will reply to my emails at least within the hour. There’s nothing more annoying than getting a reply 5 days later when you are already halfway through your trip.

Always be kind.

Dee.

❤

Dombay, Russia. 3

We woke up feeling a little exhausted and my legs were really sore from walking in those heavy ski shoes during Day 2.

At around midday, we went out to explore the little town of Dombay.

The markets were particularly bright and colourful.

Talk of being a real tourist. Haha! :p

Picked up a souvenir t-shirt, which I’m actually wearing as I write this.

We then took a cable car up the mountain to the first peak. It’s about 3900 metres above sea level.

This not so little cutie lives up there.

The view was spectacular!! We did intend to go higher, but the extremely cold winds put us off. Also, the higher peaks were foggy that day and we were advised not to climb up to them.

I absolutely loved my trip to Dombay. It’s such a pretty skiing resort. So pretty that while there, you feel like you’re in some sort of fairytale story or something. I definitely had the best 3 days up there!

Check out Day 1 and Day 2 in Dombay as well.

Always be kind.

Dee

❤

Dombay, Russia. 2

We had a jam-packed itinerary for Day 2 since we had spent most, no, the whole of Day 1 relaxing, eating and having fun indoors.

The weather was definitely on our side. Day 3 wasn’t this perfect.

After breakfast, we drove to a horse paddock that is 10 minutes away from the town center.

The place is owned by a very friendly middle-aged guy, who was there with his little daughter.

The 4-year-old girl was riding a huge stallion! I mean, I couldn’t even trust myself with this pretty lil one.

We rode the horses for a couple of miles then headed to a zoo that was nearby. The only animals that caught my eye were the big bears. Unfortunately I didn’t get to take a picture. Apparently, I was “enjoying and living the moment”! 🙂

There was this super clean river flowing by the entrance to the zoo with giant rocks sitting on its banks. Such a beautiful backdrop.

I decided to have some fun on our way out. Never too old to play, right?

Then came the next big thing on our itinerary. Skiing!! Woop! Woop!

I was super excited. I had never skied before but I learnt pretty fast.

I just wanted to keep going and going and going. But then the sun set and it got really dark so we went down the slopes back to our hotel.

We spent the evening at the sauna, had our dinner and called it a day. A day well spent.

Always be kind.

Dee.

❤

Mombasa, Kenya. 3

So on my last day in Mombasa, I decided to have a very chilled out morning.

Enjoy the beautiful nature.

And feed on a plate of cold watermelons by the pool.

We then headed out to Nyali Wild Waters, a water park filled with a bunch of entertainment facilities.

We had lunch, swam and played like kids. Well, I played like a kid. 🙂

We had so much fun that we ended up regretting getting there way past midday.

This is me admiring my henna tattoos on our way home. For a moment I wished they were permanent. We stayed out until the sun set and the view was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G!!

Apart from feeling under the weather at the beginning of this trip, I had the best time in Mombasa and I can’t wait to go back there sometime.

Always be kind.

Dee.

❤

Dombay, Russia. 1

Yay!! I finally got to go on my first ever trip in Russia. Took forever, but better late than never, right? I’m looking forward to taking more of these in the near future.

During the winter holidays, a couple of us took a bus ride from Volgograd to Dombay. Roughly 12 hours.

Dombay is a resort settlement, situated on the snow-capped Caucasus Mountains in southern Russia.

The town is so small you can literally walk through it in 5 minutes! As of 2010, Dombay recorded a population of 657 people.

One thing that caught my eye is the colour all around contrasted by the squeaky clean snow, from the pretty markets, to the cute buildings, to the holidaymakers in their brightly coloured ski suits. It was magical. Almost unreal.

We arrived at around 10:00 am and checked into our hotel, Taulu. It was their first working season so everything inside was pretty neat and new.

We didn’t do much on the first day since we were too tired from the long bus ride. Day 2 was amazing so stay tuned for that.

Always be kind.

Dee.

❤