It has recently been brought to my attention that Travel Journalling isn't quite all it's made out to be; and that maybe I'd overlooked the benefits of Travel Blogging as an alternative. Anyways, here are my thoughts on both, to enlighten your little minds, you're welcome. xx

Images taken from Pinterest

Don't get me wrong, I love a good notebook. There's a certain novelty that comes with writing in a brand new notebook and sticking in Polaroids with travel themed washi tapes... but it takes time, and if you've spent the entire day adventuring are you really going to want to return to your hotel to spend an hour or so writing everything down. I suppose you could write as you go along, it would split up your day and you could write a little more 'in the moment.' But realistically are you going to get the chance? I suppose you'll have the time during the day if you maybe have an hour long train journey either side of your outing, but if not, then it's a little annoying to have to spend ages documenting everything down when you just want to shower and sleep. It's at this point that the novelty wears off.

Travel blogging is a little easier, you can just upload the photos from your phone and type up your thoughts as and when you can - it's less time consuming as typing is often quicker than writing, and can be a little more chatty and a little less formal. It's also cheaper due to the not having to buy washi tapes and pens and notebooks and a Polaroid camera and any other stickers or decorative fabrics you may need for a journal. Travel blogging also comes with the benefit of having your thoughts actually being read by other people, whereas travel journals often just end up sitting on a dusty bookshelf for years. 

Earlier this summer, I tried to spend a few days both Travel Journalling and Travel Blogging - blogging the bigger, more adventurous days, and journaling every bit of every day. Personally, even after only a few days, I established that I definitely prefer blogging; purely because it's less time consuming and more practical as I can blog wherever and whenever as long as I have my phone on me. However the novelty of the travel journal still remains, it would be lovely to look back on each summer and see what I got up to through the means of flicking through a notebook filled with leaflets and Polaroids. But at the end of the day, I think I'm going to have to ditch the travel journal and stick to the blogging, but hey, maybe I'll give it another go in the future.

Let me know your thoughts on this very serious matter in the comments pls xx

July kicked off with a week spent in Lilo di Jesolo, near Venice, with my dearest mother and my younger brother. We spent a day in Venice, spent a few days relaxing on the beach, and went up the Dolomites for a little adventure.

It was honestly such an incredible week and Venice is one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen.

After a couple days spent back at home doing nothing apart from sleeping and binge-watching Netflix, as well as a quick lunch with the girls, myself and my brother hopped on a plane with my dad to Florida which is where I am currently.

Again, the majority of our trip so far has already been documented through the gazillion travel posts I've published recently, and that will no doubt continue into August, but here's just a quick update.

We spent a couple of days in Tampa, doing a bit of shopping and seeing some family friends. After Tampa we waddled on down to Anna Maria Island which sits itself on the Gulf Coast. We've just finished spending a week there on the island and on Saturday we drove down to Naples which is where we are now.

We're in Naples for a week before heading back home to London, where finally, I will be able to return to my preferred Netflix binge-watching lifestyle.

July has been a bunch of giggles but it has also kinda stressy and it has been a while since I've seen most of my friends. Hopefully, that will change in August.

Pretty chuffed about how July has turned out, despite having a couple of really rough days where I couldn't seem to keep my head above the water.

Currently pretty hyped for August, although I'm definitely dreading results day...

Men Explain Things to Me, and Other Essays was written by Rebecca Solnit - an author of several books and a generous thinker, contributing to the feminist movement. 

Men Explain Things to Me, And Other Essays by Rebecca Solnit

Currently sitting on a hotel balcony, reading the aforementioned essays, the idea arose that I could comment on the first essay, and give my opinions as a feminist and as a millennial teenager living and experiencing the pitfalls of a rather cynical and misogynistic society. 

Chapter 1, Men Explain Things to Me "Pressing Matters"

Chapter One summarises 'mansplaining,' - when 'men explain the things they shouldn't and don't hear the things they should.' The gendered phenomenon argues that men sometimes explain things to women that women know more about, but the woman's experiences and knowledge are dismissed due to men having the confidence and power to overthrow whatever may be said to them - belittling and berating women.

This chapter hardly describes the scale of the power difference between genders, but it does show that often, some men will patronise women as they feel they have the right to, and women will often be denied credibility.

That being said, I can say with great confidence that I have berated and belittled men over the past few years with the things I've said; unknowingly of course, but after having it pointed out to me a few times I've realised that it's not just a one-sided thing. All genders can belittle and 'mansplain' to all genders, however, there is a pattern that shows it is much more common for men to do it to women which is massively highlighted in the essay.
Equally, I have also experienced being belittled due to my gender and being discredited due to my age and the way I look/dress. In a nutshell, I completely understand what Rebecca Solnit is talking about.

Through my own experience, when I have 'mansplained' or unintentionally berated men, it was because I suddenly became defensive in conversation as I'd felt as though my right to speak, to have value and to be acknowledged had been compromised. Reflecting on those times, I'd maybe jumped to conclusions to quickly and not given the people I was talking to a chance to explain their point, I'd almost expected them to say something attacking my sense of self as that is largely what I've grown up to know that men do... - I was simply waiting for my turn to speak rather than listening, and was waiting to snap back at them and shut them down for making me feel like less than a person. 

The reason I'm saying all this, is because the essay, 'Men Explain Things to Me,' majorly focuses on how men treat women, and doesn't balance the argument by discussing the flip-side. The writing is also based on the idea that there are two genders - male and female, and whether this was due to limited research being done and not enough evidence for patterns to be found within other genders, I don't know. But when reading this essay, which I recommend you do, take it with a pinch of salt, as it mostly consists of a one-sided argument with a few disclaimers thrown in to make sure the reader knows that the author, Rebecca Solnit, does not, in fact, hate men.

Currently in Italy with the fam, lying on a sunbed in 30-degree heat.

Observations - I'm not a fan of heat, at least not without a fan present.

- As much as lying on the beach is hella fun, I'd prefer to be hiking or abseiling or cycling or just up in the mountains somewhere experiencing those picturesque landforms.

- Deffo not a fan of sun cream. Deffo don't appreciate the fact that my thighs stick together when I walk whilst covered in sun cream. 

- The lack of internet available to me at this current moment is deeply traumatic, however, it's nice to not talk to people cos people can be hella annoying when they grace you with their presence every minute of every day via the means of snapchat, insta and the twitosphere.

- I'm about as white as a piece of paper reflecting sunlight. I have the inability to tan. Instead, I just burn and peel. Not fun. Although the peeling part is a tad satisfying. #dontjudge.

- Currently obsessed with using #'s in everyday conversation; think I'm morphing into what is commonly known as a hipster, although let's be honest, take one look at my aesthetic and you know I'm above that lyf.

Pretty convinced I've just about got my shit together, pretty much know what subjects I want to be taking next year and where I want to be educated, pretty much know how I want to spend the rest of summer, pretty much have my priorities in check, pretty much got life sussed at this current moment in time. Pretty chuffed.

Currently 18 full days clean and counting. Applaud my success pls #killingthislivingthing #lovinlyf. 

Currently not quite knowing where I stand with at least 4 people, but not thinking about that rn cos did you hear I'm 18 days clean? Ain't nothing gonna bring me down *touch wood.*

Currently missing rain, and the cold. Heat is great but it feels a lil unnatural. Still don't quite understand what the giant yellow plasma ball in the sky is doing #whatisthisheat #whereistherainandmisery.

Definitely going to binge watch a bunch of movies and tv shows when I get home. Also, plan to blog a lot more since the whole excuse of having exams and having to revise has sailed over the horizon. 

Desperately in need of exercise. I miss running. Never thought I'd say that but I genuinely do feel out of place not being in my sports bra. I also just bought some new weights so hella excited to start using those. 

Currently debating what my favourite flavour of ice cream is. Used to be strawberry, now I'm not sure. All I know is that I hate chocolate ice cream. This uncertainty in my life has brought me to a bit of a mental standstill; can't move on with my life without knowing, you know? Anyways, watch this space cos I'll keep you updated on the ice cream front. 

Xx bye fans

I know it's mid-way through July already but ssshhh time doesn't even exist...

Was thinking I could start doing these little 'my month in photos' type of things, just as a way to get a little closure on each month and move on from everything that seems to slap me in the face day in day out. So without further ado, your presence is graced with, 'June.'

The entirety of June seems to be a little bit of a blur tbh, with too many drunken nights and too many nights full of tears and too many deep thoughts and too  many things happening all at once it just seems to be a bit of a mess, but hey.

June brought about a great deal of sleep deprivation, starting with the nights spent cramming for my final exams and ending with watching the sunrise on more than one occasion - fun fact, it's better to stay up the entire night that to wake up to see the sunrise cos getting up at 4am hurts no matter how pretty the view is gonna be.
Another fun fact: tampons are  great for getting a bonfire going if you run out of kindling. 

With June came about a lot of quotes which I intended to follow the principles off, it sort of backfired.. Sort of... I think.. I mean I'm not quite sure, but consequently, I feel as though I am in the suitable position to advise never to take a quote too literally and never use words that mean something to you to justify your actions *she says completely ignoring her own advice.*
There was a bunch of birthdays to celebrate this month as well as a lot of loss which led to a serious amount of emotional days and nights and slight emotional instability, but I pulled through folks, unharmed and unscathed. Just.

A lot happened and I feel like I've lost quite a few people who meant and still do mean a lot to me. I said lots of words I shouldn't have said and did a lot of things I probably shouldn't have done and got into so many pointless arguments that have pushed people away, yet on the flip side I've also grown closer to a few people, one of which being my best friend who I hadn't spoken to in 8 months, just because. Life just got in the way and with a blink of an eye 8 months had passed and I suddenly realised that I'd lost a piece of myself. But hey let's not get too deep cos time isn't a thing and life might not even be real so who cares right? 

Not sure quite where I want to go from here, but although it seems like everything has been messy and chaotic, I personally think chaos looks good on me (if any of you get that reference I LOVE YOU). So I'm just going to keep on keeping on and try not to waste this incredible 11-week summer I've been granted. 

Until the end of July, my fellow readers, ciao xx