Photo Diary: China On Film

During my month in China I hardly touched my DSLR and opted instead for my film camera - an Olympus MJII Zoom 170. It's easier to carry around, I'm not as precious with it and it's easier to just snap the picture and be on your way and in the moment again. Easier is the word here. Also, not knowing how the picture is going to turn out until it's developed in your hand is really magic. Here are the results which I'm insanely happy with and am excited to experiment with film more in future. 

Shenzhen

These first three photos were taken in Shenzhen Bay Park during my first weekend in China. The park was beautiful but in a way I had never experienced before. I've never been one to think modern architecture is eye-catching but the way it interacted here as a background to the park was gorgeous. And oh so China! 

I was staying in a very contemporary part of Shenzhen but just a ten minute walk away was the food market. I took this on my walk there. I loved the vibe of this area as it felt much more local. Most motorbike/scooter drivers in China have these extra long umbrellas attached shading them from the sun and rain. I loved the people's use of an umbrella in the sun everywhere I went throughout China. Something I think we should all do once the sun peeps out. 

Wuhan

Fun fact - Chinese children learn 1000 Chinese characters in 1st Class. I couldn't, and still can't, get over this. I would look out of the car window at street signs and at my friend's school books and just stare in disbelief at their ability to understand the language. The country as a whole is just so completely different to what I know and I relished in experiencing that. 

At the hairdresser. The uniform! Love it!

Beautiful Yellow Crane Tower featuring baby tourists, koi fish and umbrellas as sun protection. 

Beijing

These first two photos were taken the night of our arrival. I don't think I'll ever forget arriving in Beijing at sunset. We were driving in a taxi towards our Airbnb which was right beside the Forbidden City. The taxi driver started to explain that the guards in Tiananmen Square were letting down the Chinese flag. The colours in the sky, the amount of people gathered to watch the flag go down, that we just happened to drive past it and the fact I was in bloody Beijing was so special. The second photo is us chowing down on some hotpot that hit the spot after a day of travel.

The Great Wall of China. I didn't think at the beginning of 2019 that I would ever see it yet there we were. It was spectacular, sweaty and steep and we tobogganed down it. 

Our gorgeous yet tiny traditional Airbnb in the heart of Beijing. 

Beijing was much cooler in temperature than Shenzhen and Wuhan. I love Beijing for many reasons including the day it gifted me with soft rain to explore its Forbidden City. These last two photos were taken there. There's something so graceful about umbrellas and I loved photographing them this whole trip. On heads or in hands!

A few things I didn't get to photograph on film in China which I loved:
- the amount of people who asked for a picture with this pale foreigner. I wish I'd asked for a photo with them at the same time! How cool would it be to have those! Maybe next time.
- The Summer Palace in Beijing where I fell in love with the lotus flower and became fascinated with the history of the Qing dynasty and Empress Dowager Cixi in particular.
- the food. omg. 

Ciara
x

The Big Trip - Nicaragua & Costa Rica

León

Volcano boarding outside León

Arriving at Surfing Turtle Lodge near Las Peñitas

Granada

Our balcony at Casa del Bosque in Ometepe

It's officially two years since The Big Trip and I'm still writing blogposts about it! I'm determined to get them done as I want to write about other things on here very soon. I'm currently in Shenzhen, China and can't wait to talk all about that. Maybe in video form for the bloody craic? Anyway! Here are my highlights from the beautiful Nicaragua:

- We ended up taking a flight from Guatemala City to Managua which saved us a 16 hour bus trip. The ticket was more expensive in the end because we booked it last minute but I'm so glad we travelled this way. We then got the bus to León where we had our first lunch there in a restaurant called Hong Kong. It was a Chinese restaurant (full circle! life is mad) that was full of locals and played One Direction bops. Beer was the equivalent of 70c and came in a frosty glass. Golden! 

- Our Airbnb in León which was a private room in a house which cost a tenner a night. There was no aircon but there was a cat, turtles and a lovely host. 

- Volcano boarding sounds a lot more terrifying than it actually is. It was essentially a massive sand dune that you slide down on a board. The group we were with took pictures of us on our way down. Declan, as you can see above, looks very cool with dusht flying around, a relaxed lean back and a wave to the camera. Mine looked like I was at a stand still with a load of sand on my board, and a bit daft if I'm honest, so I've saved picture that for my own precious memories. A good day out all the same!

- I was told about Surfing Turtle Lodge by my friend Karan. It's a beachside eco-hostel outside of León. It takes a bus, boat and horse to get there. We had a great time here. Great times included: incredible thunder storms, Jenga, cocktails, beer pong, chasing crabs, new friends, attaining bottles of alcohol and a nighttime walk to find some baby turtles head to the ocean. 

- The lemonade in Nicaragua is the stuff of dreams. Just the most perfect drink on a hot and sweaty day.

- When in Granada we travelled 30 minutes outside the city to Masaya which has an ACTIVE volcano. We saw real life magma which was pretty bloody cool. 

- Ometepe was just stunning. We stayed at Casa del Bosque and can't recommend it enough. It is stunning and I would go back there in a heartbeat. The food was unbelievable but unfortunately I had  gotten a bad tummy bug just before we arrived which stayed with me for the time we were there. Because of this though we did have a very memorable trip to a local pharmacy which was in a very small shed. 

- The last place we went to in Nicaragua was San Juan Del Sur where we had a little holiday towards the end of our backpacking trip. We stayed for three nights in HC Liri Hotel which was right on the beach and so chill. SJDS was very different to the rest of the places we visited in Nicaragua as there seemed to be a big community of immigrants and felt more American than Central American. Restaurant recommendations are La Vecchia Signora for pizza and Dale Pues for a variety of things. 

Costa Rica was our final destination where we travelled to Tamarindo (where I surfed for the first time and was pretty damn good!), Monteverde, Manuel Antonio and San Jose. We ended the trip in San Jose staying with friends who showed us an absolutely amazing time! Costa Rica was stunning and I will definitely be back there again. Photos are great memories but sometimes it's just nice to enjoy it in the moment and leave the camera down. That's what I did for the majority of our time in beautiful Costa Rica. 

That's it for The Big Trip - A fab experience with my Dec and can't wait for the next one!

Ciara 

x 

The Big Trip - Guatemala

The view from La Villa del Chef

Tikal

The view from Hotel Casona de la Isla

On the road to Lanquin 

The caves near Semuc Champey 

Zephr Lodge 

I'm writing these posts almost two years after The Big Trip all the while referring back to a Google Doc I made at the time where I noted the major events of each day. These were written on long bus journeys, at night or laying in bed catching up with myself a few days later after some particularly busy days. This process is interesting in a way as I'm looking back on the specific details combined with the memories and feelings of the country I have two years on. My memories of Guatemala are mixed - highs along with probably the majority of the lows that I had on the trip; withdrawing money and it not coming out of the ATM on the way to Lanquin, some dealings with shuttle bus companies that ended up being unreliable, a gruelling (pour moi) hike I'll never forget that brought us to a viewpoint of Semuc Champey and being left stranded on the outskirts of Guatemala. But, thankfully, there were happy ends and solutions to these hiccups - AIB, getting there in the end, a gorgeous view of Semuc Champey and a very friendly local waiter.

Sleep

Flores - Hotel Casona de La Isla was stunning! We had a gorgeous view of Lake Petén Itzá and the swimming pool was amazing. 

Lanquin - Zephr Lodge is in the middle of the mountains and still managed to be blaring Galway Girl in the evening. Ed is everywhere! Very popular with backpackers, would recommend. 

Guatemala City - The Clarion Suites for one night before catching our flight to Nicaragua the next day, did the job. 

Wear

Insect repellent with tons of deet!

Transport

Our route through Guatemala was as follows:

Belize City - Flores (Tikal) - Lanquin (Semuc Champey) - Guatemala City 

We got a bus from Belize City to Flores with Maya Mundo which can be found near the port in Belize City. Then we hopped off the bus and got onto a smaller one organised by Maya Mundo to get us to the small island of Flores. On the bus to Flores, one man very successfully (fair play to him!) sold us on the idea of buying our next three bus tickets from him. That was Flores to Tikal and back, Flores to Lanquin and then from Lanquin to Guatemala City. ''I think the company might have been Repsta?'' is what I have in my notes. These trips were LONG but scenic and all went swimmingly bar the journey from Lanquin to Guatemala City. We rocked up to our bus in the morning only for them to say there was no room for us on the bus when there was in fact room for two, we had booked it and had the tickets to prove it. A very annoying exchange occurred in which we had to fork out the cost of the journey again to be allowed on the shuttle bus. Not wanting to be stranded in the Guatemalan countryside, we paid the money and hopped on, arriving in Guatemala City around six hours later to then be left stranded by our bus driver outside the city. We acquired the help of a friendly waiter who called us an Taxi Amarillo which was apparently the safest taxi in the city. It was indeed and we got to the hotel in one piece, wrecked and still digesting the corners our bus driver overtook on and the potholes we drove over, and between, which were the size of small paddling pools.

Eat & Drink 

The food highlight for me in Guatemala was a restaurant in Flores called La Villa del Chef. We popped in one evening as it was just a few doors down from our hotel. It was so good we went back another time! They also gave us little Guatemalan worry dolls with our bill which are still with me today. The view from the restaurant's terrace can be seen in the first picture above, stunning!

Do

Our time in Guatemala was full of adventure. We based ourselves in Flores to travel to Tikal which is an ancient Mayan city. I much preferred Tikal to Chichen Itza in Mexico because we had a very friendly guide, there were a lot less tourists and we could climb the ruins which was amazing to see other buildings in the ancient city from above. 

Our journey to Lanquin was to see Semuc Champey which is a kind of limestone bridge with pools on top of it under which a river passes. We booked the day out with Zephr Lodge. Firstly, they brought us to some caves which were great craic but probably not great if you're claustrophobic. At one point we were individually shot down a very small hole in which a waterfall flowed and landed in a pool of water on the other side. It was quite scary but all turned out well in the end. Declan jumped off a few waterfalls within the caves whilst I watched and cheered him on from the pool below. Bravo Dec, bravo! We made our way through the caves with candles in hand which was very atmospheric and again, slightly scary as you had no idea what the water looked like or what lied below as you walked along. Once out of the caves with faces covered in cave mud like a group of warriors, they brought us to a swing and very high bridge to jump off which again Declan participated in and I cheered on from the sidelines. Next was an unforgettable hike up to the viewpoint of Semuc Champey and then we promptly made our way down to take a well-deserved dip in the limestone pools. This was my favourite part of the day. It was so relaxing and refreshing and it was full of locals which I love to see. 

Although the experiences we had with the local bus companies weren't great in terms of organisation, I'd highly recommend travelling this way around Guatemala. It's such a great way to see the country. I would also advise closing your eyes real tight when your Guatemalan bus driver is overtaking on an extremely sharp bend. Trust that he knows what he's doing... :). 

We also ended up flying from Guatemala City to Managua, Nicaragua which saved us a 16 hour bus journey. It was a little more expensive than normal as we booked it last minute but it saved us a lot of time and energy in the end. 

Next up, Nicaragua!

Hope your summer is going well so far,

Ciara 

x

The Big Trip - Belize

There are places in this world that I had never even thought about visiting, let alone knowing of their existence. Caye Caulker was one of them. An island off Belize, it was exactly what I needed after the busyness of Mexico. The mantra in Caye Caulker is 'Go Slow'. I had seen this on signs and t-shirts in local shops, the island clearly being proud of the fact. We had an experience with a local man one day as Declan and I were walking down a sandy path towards our hotel. The man asked us how we were and we replied with the typical ''Good, thanks! And you?'' He smiled and replied, ''Well, I'm going slower than you!'' and walked off, head held high and with a pep in his very slow step. 

Sleep

Whilst in Caye Caulker we stayed at Popeye's Beach Resort. We did have a slight problem with our room checking in but the staff were so friendly and sorted us out straight away. We had our own private room with an ensuite, kitchenette and sofa which was a lil basic but met all our needs. We (mostly I) had a slight mishap (more on that later) where we ended up having to stay an extra night and they accommodated us which we very much appreciated. 

Wear

Minimal clothing and ALL the SPF50 EVERYWHERE. 

Transport

To get from Tulum to Belize City we had to take an overnight bus in which we crossed the Mexican border. I had been warned by my good friend, Nicola, that you needed to have proof of travel tax paid leaving Mexico, which is normally included in your airfare. It was indeed included in ours and we had the proof all ready to rock and roll on our phones. Now, once you get to the Mexican border you are asked to leave the bus in the middle of the night and line up outside a very dodgy looking border control building. Waiting outside the door to the building, you can hear your fellow travellers inside; some crying, some arguing with border officials and others pleading to let them through without paying. Upon entering the office, arriving at a desk and looking into the eyes of an unsympathetic guard, we were told that our proof was inadequate as we had to have it printed out. So, much like the majority of our bus companions we had to pay $500 Mexican Peso to cross the border. The five hour bus journey ended up taking eight but we finally got to Belize City. Once in the city, take a taxi to the ferry port and hop on a ferry with Belize Water Taxi. The guys in green t-shirts take your bags and you board the boat, arriving in beautiful Caye Caulker a short time later.

Once on the island, you can walk wherever you may please. A lot of the locals use golf carts to get around on the sandy paths as there are very little roads. I think I only saw two vehicles the whole time we were there. 

Eat & Drink

Rum punch was my drink of choice in Caye Caulker. Those Caribbean vibez. Try The Lazy Lizard located at the Split for good cocktails, music, a nice place to watch the sunset and diving boards for during the day if you feel like a dip. A lot of the restaurants on the island do amazing seafood that's caught locally. We loved wahoo and red snapper. I also highly recommend the only bakery on the island for breakfast treats. The Guinness is nothing like the stuff at home but that's to be expected. The #1 restaurant on TripAdvisor in Caye Caulker is an Italian one, Pasta Per Caso Anna & Armando. We didn't get to try it as it was full at the time but I could use this as an excuse to go back to the island one day! 

Do

The best thing we did whilst on Caye Caulker, and one of the best things I've done in my life so far, was snorkelling in the Caribbean with Stressless Tours. It was an unbelievable day out on the water. We saw manatees and turtles and swam with nurse sharks and stingrays. We snorkelled over a ship wreck and Hol Chan, a marine reserve, where we saw beautiful coral and other sea life. The water itself was just incredibly blue and beautiful all on its own. We were given a hearty lunch and some rum punch to keep us fuelled during the day. However, I've never felt the urge to pee as much as I did on the boat ride back to the island. I'll never forget it. And then what happened? The boat ran out of fuel. Heh. Upon eventually arriving back on the island, I used a local man's loo and promptly noticed how red my arse was. This being the mishap I mentioned earlier. I had been layering on the factor fiddy THICK, forgetting to cover the one part of my very pale body which was protruding out of the water all day. This the reason being us staying an extra night as the whole next day I was laid on my tummy alongside my new best pal, a refreshingly cool bottle of Aloe Vera. The final few days of the holiday were spent watching GoT, sheltering from the sun, then braving it with a few dips in the pool. All in all, the burnt bum was worth the experience and I look back on it with great fondness and a lesson learnt in suncream application. Don't.forget.ya.bum. 

Our time in Caye Caulker was one of my favourites of The Big Trip. Take a lil time to go slow my friends!

Next up, Guatemala.

Ciara 

X