Diary of Summer Holiday

Here I have decided to document two and a half weeks of my summer holiday as most days included me lounging around stuffing my face whilst watching TV.

The first half week

Friday

Me and my friends struck with boredom decided that we should go on a little day trip out to M&M’s world. The day consisted of me waking up following my daily routine then getting a train to Balham where I met my friends, then taking various tube lines as we discovered none of us knew exactly how to get there. Finally we got there!!!! YAY…as I continued to walk out the station I heard the repetitive sounds of trampling as people flooded out the station, everyone dispersed in their own directions almost in sync with each other, strangely walking in a symphony. As we continued to walk together we realised we was lost, this meant asking complete strangers for directions who we weren’t sure spoke any English. At last we saw the recognisable logo of M&M’s, I was overwhelmed with relief of the fact I can finally stop walking. In excitement we burst in M&M’s world welcomed by the sweet smell of chocolate sifting through the air drawing me in. Walking aimlessly throughout the shop I found myself picking up all sorts of merchandise from soft furry stuffed toys, to shiny plastic cups, all of which followed the constant theme of vibrant colours. After all this walking around I got hungry and decided to go to subway to get an Italian meatball sub nothing compares to the taste of  gooey melted cheese and steamy hot meatballs doused in Bolognese sauce slowly disintegrating in my mouth..YUMMMMM

Saturday

Though the combination of my countless days of boredom and being a girl I decided that a perfect way to cure this state of lassitude is some much needed retail therapy. This meant going in to countless shops buying countless amounts of clothes, but not just any types of clothes. No this was holiday shopping. The only time of the year where I’m able to buy shorts and vests, summer clothes!! Clothes that often get neglected due to the adverse weather of Britain. This built up of excitement was later deflated by the brutal reality that I had to travel on the bus. A four wheeled red tin, where people have a sudden dose of amnesia as they forget all their common courtesy. It begins with shoving and pushing to get on, and then when I finally found a seat which is not under the residence of some ones bag I have to listen to the outrageously loud conversations of my fellow passengers, weirdly everyone finds it important to speak at the same time forming little constellations of conversations that all blend together to make noise. With my headphones I was able to drown out the noise until I got to the shopping centre. And this was where the fun began, going in to different shops looking at all their items from start to finish then moved on to the next. Looking into shop windows I was captivated by the large signs of sales which instantly pulled me in, I continued to examine every sale item in my size, focusing on the style and diverse texture. After 4 hours of shopping I realised I had very limited amount of strength to carry anymore clothes and thought it might be best to go home.

Sunday

As a result of me spending all my money on shopping I decided that it would best if me and my friends hang out on the common. As we all met up at the common we were situated upon open grass and surrounded trees and roads that followed the outskirts of the common. As I sat down I was constantly running my hands through the slightly prickly grass and then engaged in conversation. Tying to listen to my friends I often found myself paying attention to the other sounds around me, cars passing by with the occasional siren, birds tweeting and the comforting sound of the ice crème van. I then zoned back in the conversation and found myself laughing taking huge amounts of air; from this I was able to taste the fresh slightly moist air.

2 week holiday to Lanzarote

Week 1

Tuesday

Today was the day I was looking forward to all summer the day where I get to go on holiday for two whole weeks, doing nothing but sunbathing by the pool and relaxing which may be hard to do as there was 28 people In total who was said to be coming to this resort. I was full with anticipation and excitement; however this was masked by fact that I was forced to wake up at 4am to get ready to go to the airport, a time of day which I hope never to see again. Me and my family got cab to the airport where I drowsily looked out the window noticing the vast amount of greenery from the motorway.  After check in we made our way to the plane I heard the sound of the constant rolling of my suitcase as I pulled it across the floor. As I sat on the plane there was a rush of adrenalin as the plane reached high speeds and began to take off. The airhostesses brought around various snacks to passengers; I could smell the strong coffee wafting through the air. Although I was in a plane going thousands of miles per hour it didn’t feel like that, it seemed as though I was suspended, stagnant. Time passed as I played games on my iPod touch whilst listening to music, and before I knew I was listening to the reassuring sound of the pilot telling me we were about to land soon, followed by the stewardess’s instructions. We then got off the plane and I was hit by the humidity.

Wednesday

Like most days on holiday, I spent the day sunbathing by the pool. It began by laying down my towel on a sunbed in a way of marking my territory, then the rest laying on it. As I laid on the sunbed I looked at the luxurious view of the pool before closing my eyes to get some tan. The smell of scented sun lotion was all over my body, I slowly began to heat up as I felt the sun submerge in to my skin, rudely interrupted by breaks of wind. The sound of children screaming and splashes brought me back to the memories of when I was a child and spent most my holiday in the pool playing with my cousins. I then reached my boiling point and decided that I should go for a swim, within 5 second I realised the water was absolutely freezing and dashed back out, I continued this process a further three more times till finally jumping in . The ice cold water penetrating my skin sent shivers down my spine but I stuck it out, finally got used to temperature then got out and continued to sunbathe. The smell of chlorine lingered on me, the sun went down and I got ready to go out.

Thursday

The day was exactly like Wednesday sunbathing by the pool, swimming water fights. However at night we decided to go to the resorts bar called the Soliel bar, which both my family and I would soon become to love. The night began with us entering the bar greeted by the smell of popcorn, then sat down and watched children up on stage alongside the entertainers doing a range of children songs in both Spanish and English, a night which regretfully I had to do the agadooo with my younger cousins as there were too shy to up on stage. To brighten up the evening I had a fruit cocktail which was both sweet and acidic it was nice and cold as when I grabbed it I felt the water vapour slowly drip on to my hands. Then I danced to some more children songs which I found strangely ………….. talked to my cousins danced some more but this time to some real music.

Friday:

Today was an important day, well for the boys as football was on, I wasn’t too bothered because my team weren’t playing but I tagged along anyway. We went to a breakfast bar and had nothing less than a full English fry up. The smell of cooked bacon and scrambled eggs reminded me of the food back in England, I then tucked in to my one sausage off a heart attack grease filled breakfast. We sat on wicker chairs watching the football listening to constant cheering and booing commonly due to poor refereeing decisions.  We then traipsed back to the resort, where I took settlement on my sunbed once again.

Sunday

This was a great day as me along with the rest of the females in my family went to the Sunday market in Lanzarote. We travelled by a coach where we had to listen to the tails of a tour guide I tended to block this out until she informed us about an artist Cesar Manrique. Who was the main artist of Lanzarote and how he was the one who built various wind sculptures situated within many roundabouts. She also told the story of how he was the first to build his house upon lava rocks. Through the endless walking around the market I begin to notice the repetition of the products that they were selling. I also felt my shoulders beginning to burn as I neglected to apply sun lotion, despite the constant nagging of my mum, I forgot and I wasn’t about to tell her. Whilst going around I noticed a stall offering free samples at that moment I didn’t care what it was, it was free.  It was Aloe Vera crème, instantly my hand felt soft and I was seduced by the strong perfumed plant like smell which meant I had no choice but to beg my mum to buy it for me. To which she said NO. Filled with disappointment I continued to shop and soon forgot being distracted by the constant yelling of …………enticing you to look at their stall. When I finally found some items that I wanted I needed to use my haggling skills. After haggling/arguing to get the price I wanted we all went and got some lunch, I had a hamburger which tasted like minced bacon, along with an ice cold drink call Aquarius lemon taste like lemon flavoured water and it was EXTREMLEY refreshing. Then as we exited the market my mum noticed the same Aloe Vera crème but at half price. YAY and now my hands are silky smooth.

Monday:

This was my favourite day on holiday. I was one year wiser, one year better, one year older. It was my BIIIRRRRTTHHHDDAAAAYY!!!! I was so excited because not only did I get to celebrate it with my family around me but on a beautiful hot island. The day began like no other except with the constant reminder through variously family members singing happy birthday to me. The afternoon consisted of me and my family dressing up in Hawaii themed outfits, tacky shirts, hula skirts and flower garments (which I found quite itchy). And a party at one of my cousins apartment on the complex we blasted music from our iPod dock this often led to people around the pool staring at us but we didn’t care. The smells of sweet cocktails and food platters wafting through the air, then I had chocolate cake where the soft sponge melted in my mouth.

Week 2

Tuesday

From sunbathing all day we all built up an appetite so we went to La Chiminea  for starter I had salmon stuffed with crème cheese I liked the contrast between the slimy texture of the fish against the soft crumbly cheese. In anticipation for my main course I was teased by the smell of food coming from the kitchen blends of smells and strong garlic. I heard people talking which sounds like soft mumbling and glassing clanging together. I finally got my meal and was extremely satisfied with my chicken and chips. We then left the dimly lit restaurant which through using candles was able to create a tranquil mood.

Wednesday:

From realising that we are nearing the end of our holiday and all we have done is spent time at the pool my mum suggested we should go to the beach. So we moved from laying on a sunbed by the pool to lying on the sand by the sea. Which made a huge difference? Okay not really. But I was able to listen to waves breaking, the wind blowing palm trees people having fun. The beige sand and deep turquoise ocean created a calm and serine atmosphere, allowing you to relax. Slowly ran my fingers through the soft grainy sand heated by the sun.  After I sunbathed I went in to the warm salty sea. But my experience of the beach wasn’t complete until I had a vanilla ice crème, immediately cold slowly melting in my mouth. But my favourite part was where the sun melts my ice crème forming a milkshake which I gracefully slurp up.

Thursday:

This was the day I was able to live one of my dreams, to be like Mario and drive a go kart. From the moment I sat in the go kart my adrenalin started to build up as I heard the engine humming, the smell of petrol and my cousins cheering me on. Before I knew it I was off, I kept increasing my speed wind blowing in my face and the vibrations from the wheel, and then I crashed in to the barrier which was red and white tires. I heard the sound of karts passing as it got fainter as they got further away. Once getting unstuck I was able to continue the course twisting and turning. Once I came off my hands were still shaky from the vibrations of the wheel.

Friday

To take a break from the excitement from the day before, we went to the Mai Tai bar at sands beach resort. This was a restaurant sited next to a heated pool with a Jacuzzi, which I knew at some point I would have to take advantage of. It had a smell of cooked food mixed with chlorine, as we ate lunch I realised that you could see a volcano in the distance, which didn’t surprise me as it was a volcanic island. Then when I least expected the resort entertainers came out and started playing a Spanish dance song enticing people to dance along with them, this song was often played around Lanzarote and represents the summer and this idea of fun and excitement.

Saturday

We went on a day trip out to the Gran Hotel, which is the largest building in Lanzarote. We took the bus there and then my mum decided that we should get off the bus however we weren’t at the hotel or the bus shelter, this meant we had to walk through the city till we got to the beach and walked alongside it. After half an hour of walking we ask for directions and realise we was walking the wrong way, so we turned around and continued walking up until we got to the hotel. I started taking loads of pictures and got moaned at as I was holding everyone up. As we went inside we went up the hotel and saw the most amazing views of Lanzarote similar to the things you would see on a postcard. I saw the volcanoes in the distance various buildings compacted into one another separated by narrow roads. The golden man made beaches, and bright blue sky. The repetitive sound of camera flashes and people talking whilst point told me that is so much to see. The buildings seemed layered almost like a relief coming out. The smell or rich coffee filled the room. As we went outside I collected some volcanic rocks as I was interested in their diverse colour and the fact that by taking the rocks I’m taking a small part of Lanzarote with me.

Sunday

The day that I have dreaded has finally arrived I have to begin to pack and face the reality that my holiday has come to an end and have to go back to England and their rubbish weather. I did a last minute souvenir shopping going to a perfumaria where I it  was my duty to try on a range of different perfumes making me smell like ………………. I bought different rocks and crystals that are both rough and shiny.

Monday

I stayed at the resort around the pool sunbathing then doing that……dance as I burnt my feet on the hot tiles. I then went in to the pool and did a dive off of the stairs, I was then got told off by the life guard. Well I think he was angry and talking Spanish. I returned to my apartment finished packing stuffed my face with Cheetos, the most amazing cheesy crisps similar to watsits but it came with a free tattoo which makes it more awesome. Being the responsible mature adult that I am, I rushed in to the bathroom to put on the tattoo and watched tv.