INDIA

In Melbourne's freezing temps, I'm dreaming of Indian Summers! So here's a post full of throwback photos from my Indian Summer holiday earlier this year. India is where my family live, so normally I don't take too many blog-worthy photos as my trip is usually full of family activities. But this time we turned into tourists for a day and went to a 300 year old fort, a few hours drive from the city of Pune, that has now been converted into a beautiful resort complete with a spa, museum, cafe, two restaurants and a bar! This incredible place where history meets contemporary hospitality is Fort Jadhavgarh.

Photography is prohibited inside the museum, but its a must visit if you're in the area, it houses some extraordinary artefacts that were everyday objects in homes in the area 300 years ago and you will be amazed at the ingenuity and grandeur of these household items, However the drive to the Fort is bumpy for the most part once you are out of the city traffic, as you can imagine, so make sure you fasten your seatbelts!

Of course, no travel post is complete without an outfit of the day pic, so here you go...

Royal Lunch at Fort Jadhavgarh Outfit:

Loose White Top: *$15 (Cotton On)

Stripe Midi Skirt: $56 (ASOS)

Bangle: *$17 (Kate Spade)

Flats: $49.95 (Zara)

Usual Prada Sunnies

Outfit Total: $137.95

* = sale prices

DUBAI

If you've been following me on Instagram, you would know that a couple of months ago I was holidaying in India & Dubai. Here are a few photos I thought I'd share from my Dubai trip...

View from our room at the Arabian Courtyrad Hotel of the Dubai Museum

A quick coffee and a browse through The Atlantis Hotel at The Palm Jumeirah

The aquarium at Atlantis

  Sightseeing in Dubai Outfit:

Dress: *$80 (BCBG bought at a Sample Sale)

Flats: $49.95 (Zara)

 Outfit Total: $129.95

* = sale prices

Ibn Batuta Mall - Persia Court

Dubai Skyline

Driving past Burj Khalifa

Dancing Fountains at the Dubai Mall with Burj Khalifa in the background

Desserts at Cafe Blanc in Dubai Mall

Desert Safari - A MUST DO

Entertainment at the Desert Safari

My cousins & I recreating the SATC2 moment

 Desert Safari Outfit:

Offshoulder Top: $29.95 (Seed)

Chambray Baggy Pants: *$79.95 (Seed)

Comfy Shoes: $5 (Local convenient store in Dubai just to wear for Safari)

Outfit Total: $114.9

* = sale prices

Accessorised with Prada sunnies and Kate Spade bangle and other bracelets. These accessories I wear quite often and they have more than delivered on their cost:wear ratio so I won't count them in the outfit total. Cool?!

Dubai was so much fun! Can't wait to go back again. There's something for everyone there. Especially shopaholics like me! And malls like Ibn Batuta aren't just great for shopping, their unique concepts make it almost a day-trip destination.

Signing off now that it's turned into such a long post. Hope you enjoyed this little glimpse of Dubai. Until next time...

Hawaii - The Hotel

We aren't usually the kind who spend too much time in the hotel while on holidays. We usually don't worry about paying extra for a view that we're not going to look at because we're out sightseeing anyway. And we only do the token dip in the pool on the last day to just kill time before flying out. But this time we knew we wanted a relaxing holiday where we would lay by the pool and wake up in the morning and have a coffee (or a Mimosa) whilst enjoying the view from our room as we plan what to do (or not do) the rest of the day. So, when I came across the Hilton Hawaiian Village Resort and read that they had not 1, not 2, not 3 but 5 pools on the property, I knew we had found the perfect retreat. And with the ocean in their backyard, we were spoilt for choice as to where to spend lazy afternoons. And don't even get me started on the view from our room on the 32nd floor of the Tapa Tower....

View from the Lobby

Our Room

The colours of the ocean we woke up to every morning

The view from our room on the 32nd floor

The view

Sipping cocktails on the balcony

Panoramic shot of our view at dusk

Lunch at one of the restaurants in the hotel by the beach

Hotel Grounds

Pool 1

Pool 2

Pool 3

Pool 4

We didn't get to try Pool 5 because that was always the busiest one as it had water-slides and was filled with kids the whole time. And there was also a man-made lagoon on the property which we didn't get to try. But you know, there's only so much relaxing you can do on a 7-day trip. Plus it's a good excuse to go back. Although, the hotel is very crowded and busy most times, this is just a sign of how popular it is and because of the beautiful view and great location right on Waikiki beach and close proximity to everything you'll need during your stay and the 5 pools - I'd highly recommend staying at the HHVBR if you plan to go to Oahu. We booked our hotels and flights on Expedia, we got great rates so I also recommend you try researching your next holiday on Expedia to compare prices. They have great deals year round specially if you bundle flights and accomodation. Bon Voyage!

Hawaii - The Sights

We flew to Hawaii for a week last week. It was absolutely wonderful! The weather, the shopping, the relaxing by the pool and beach - it was all perfect. A much needed break. And I hear we avoided some really cold days in Melbourne, so that was a bonus. I'll be putting up some of our photos from the trip in a series of posts. I thought instead of a travel diary by day, I'd do posts by theme, so this is the first - The Sights of Hawaii.

Waikiki Beach

Driving around Oahu Island

Turtle Bay

Turtle Bay Resort

Chinaman's Hat

 Arizona Memorial & King Kamehameha's Palace

Battleship Missouri

"The Ultimate Surrender" Statue

King's Statue & Palace (as seen in opening credits of Hawaii 5.0)

Atlantis Submarine Tour

Heading to the Submarine in a Ferry - Diamond head Crater in the background

111ft deep in the ocean

  Such beautiful sights! Day or night, Hawaii doesn't disappoint. I miss it already!

Coming up next posts on Shopping, Our Hotel & Food, My Outifts....