I looked at the dainty rope tied to wooden poles separating myself and the edge of Kerið, a volcanic crater lake in Iceland. Common sense would have you stay well back, but the nosey in me wanted an unobstructed view.

Whenever I think of the West Coast, I normally picture beaches, Hollywood and the Kardashians. California is of course, so much more than that. To see it for myself, I relinquished my East Coast loyalty for a week during my sabbatical, curious at what the Golden State had to offer.

Throughout all my travels I’ve realised that I’ve always had company. Whether it’s the friends I’ve traveled with, or the family I’ve visited abroad, I’ve done part of my travels alone, but not entirely. So during this sabbatical, I figured a solo trip to New Orleans would be perfect to experience what traveling alone was really about.

I’ve been sitting on this news for so long but I can finally speak on it – I’m taking a sabbatical from work!
It’s something I’ve been contemplating for a while and I’m excited to be taking the plunge and taking some much needed time out.

Just over a month back from NYC I was in need of another break. Somehow my feet can’t seem to stay planted on home soil for long nowadays.

The notification on my phone stopped me in my tracks. It read: ‘Explosion at New York’s Port Authority bus terminal was “attempted terrorist attack.”‘

Immediately a thousand thoughts ran rampant in my mind over the weekend. Did anyone die? Where do my family and friends work? Where is Port Authority?!

I have been dying for a spa break and Bath was my destination for this year’s birthday. Normally I find myself jetting off abroad, but with my buddy in tow, we drove and made our way to Somerset!

A weekend break to Gibraltar was the holiday I needed.

Recharging your batteries needn’t take you across the world when you have unspoken wonders on your doorstep.

My visit to Toronto has been a long time coming. The last time I ventured over to ‘the 6’ was over four years ago.

Home to Drake, The Weeknd, Lilly Singh and Rupi Kaur, I did secretly hope I would bump into one of the four during my week there but alas, it didn’t happen.

I did however have a lot of family time and even though I was struck down with a relentless cough, I still braved the elements and got to admire some of what Toronto had to offer. 

People tell me time and time again that I was born in the wrong country. Given my love affair with New York, I’m starting to believe it.

My adoration for this city started at the tender age of 13 and no matter how long I left it until my next visit, my enthusiasm for the big apple never dwindled.