Monday, May 30, 2011

My trip to Peru - Machu Picchu and The Amazon

Hi everyone. Sorry for the last of posts, I've been backpacking in Peru for the last 2 weeks. It's been a tiring trip of 3am starts, camping, cold showers/no showers and high altitudes but I enjoyed every minute of it.

Here are some pictures Id like to share with you. Bear in mind, I was backpacking. For more of the trip I was wearing minimal to no makeup. By the end of the trip I was severely sleep deprived, so I'm going to look pretty rough in some of these pics!

*All the pics can be enlarged by clicking on them*


Boat trip on Lake Titicaca, located high in the Andes.


Me with our guide, and a new friend from the group


Tequila Island


The most amazing lunch ever. Was in love with the view.



My husband and I and the rest of the group. Was such a great mix of people from all over the world, and we all grew close during the trip.


Our 3 walled accommodation in The Amazon. The 4th wall is the jungle. No electricity, no hot water. Creatures found in our room included:
- a bug the size of my palm with super long antennae
- a mouse watching my husband shower


It got dark by 6pm, so we used our head torches for light or else shower in complete darkness.


The food was amazing. Always 3 courses, lunch and dinner.


The night walk was pretty creepy. You never know what's lurking at you feet. Above is a wild Rainbow Boa. I mustered enough courage (stupidity?) to touch it. Below is a Wandering Spider. The most venomous spider in the world.


As creeped out as I was about the night walk, I still enjoyed it. We also got to see Bullet Ants which have the most painful bite known to man. Our guide also switched off his torch to render us in complete darkness for a minute to fully experience the amazon at night. It was wonderful! My eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness and I felt like I was seeing the world in a new light. Like I was in the movie Avatar or something...


Children living in the Andes. So cute. They have to grow up fast though. The older girl is about 3 years old and already has to look after her little sister while their parents are out farming.


More adorable children.


Day 1 of our 3 day trek up the Andes. (Though we trekked so fast we finished a day early-yay!)


The view was spectacular, and made the hard trek really enjoyable.


Me at the second pass of the trek. 4600m above sea level. A few of us were horsing around until the rest of the group arrived.

Me in glasses in our tent. All vanity went out the window during this trip to Peru. I found myself bespectacled and makeupless a lot.

Finally we arrived at Machu Picchu. Such a beautiful sight, the whole place felt 'otherworldly'.



As if we hadn't had enough of hiking, we climbed up Wayna Picchu. In the above pic (with my husband in red) you can see what a steep climb it is. In the Incan days, Wayna Picchu was the spot of a guard tower for Machu Picchu.



Our group resting at the peak of Wayna Picchu, surrounded by clouds.



More pics to illustrate how steep it is. Sorry if we all look a bit rough, we've been camping for the last few days and have been up since 3am.

Husband on the edge of the abyss.



Machu Picchu is behind me covered by cloud. Have better pictures of the aerial view of Machu Picchu that I forgot to put up!





More pics of us exploring the great city.



We sat here for ages just enjoying the view (and recovering from our hike up Wayna Picchu). You can see Wayna Picchu in this pic, it's the tall peak behind.





For me this trip was a great experience. It was amazing to see places like Machu Picchu and the Amazon. We also got the stay with a local family in a small native island community (complete with frogs in the bedroom and toads in the bathroom). We learned the basics of the indigenous language of Aymara so we could speak to them. I learned alot from this trip and now no longer take the little things for granted like; running water, having a bathroom, and having a bedroom without frogs.

I also spent my birthday in The Sacred Valley (or Urubamba Valley of the Andes), which was a truly memorable experience.


Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Coral Pink Cheeks - Topshop Flush Blush FOTD

FOTD using Topshop's Cream Blush in Flush.



5 Products Used:


Smashbox In Bloom Eyeshadow Palette

Kiss Me Heroine Make Liquid Eyeliner

Max Factor False Lash Effect Mascara

Topshop Blush in Flush

Elizabeth Arden Ceramide Ultra
Lipstick in Petal


I first saw this blush on Lifeandlensofbeauty. The blush looked so pretty that I couldn't resist purchasing one on my next visit to Topshop.


The blush is a gorgeous coral-pink shade.



On my eyelids, I used my new Smashbox In Bloom Eyeshadow Palette. I was so enamored by my Smashbox In Bloom cream cheek duo, and the 'In Bloom' range in general that I recently purchased their eyeshadow palette (will do a separate post on this!). I used the matte pale pink shade as a wash of colour all over the upper eyelid, and the plum shade from the lash line to the crease.


The eyeshadow on my lids:


As with my previous FOTDs, I skipped foundation. My face looks pretty chubby in this photo - time for a diet, I think!


And a cheesy smile pic to finish off the post:


Thursday, May 5, 2011

13 Questions Tag

Thanks so much to Aint That Pretty for tagging me in this 13 questions tag. I love her answers, and had fun learning more about her. Here are my answers:

1.
What do you order at Starbucks?
I always order the same thing - Caramel Light Frappuccino, and sometimes a Skinny Ginger Muffin.

2. What's one thing in your closet you can't live without?
This summer, I can't live without my Dune sandals.


3.
What's one thing that most people don't know about you?
I'm randomly really into British Monarch History. Have quite a lot of books on it, and love to watch David Starkey documentaries.


4. Whats one thing you want to do before you die?
It used to be sky-diving until I found out that may you suffer from retinal detachment while doing it! Also, the older I get the more fearful I am. Then it was going to Africa, which I was lucky enough to go on my honeymoon. I guess, my new wish would be to hike to Machu Piccu in Peru and trekking in the Amazon (which I'm going to do in 1.5 weeks - really looking forward to it!)


5. Whats one food you can't live without?
I have a sweet tooth, so it would have to be fruit scones with jam and clotted cream. They only take about 15mins to make too!



6. 'What's one quote that you live your life by?'
Let no one every come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness; kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile -Mother Teresa.

7. 'What do you like and dislike about the youtube community?'
I really like watching random videos like cats playing keyboards and people teaching Kung Fu. I dislike it when people write hurtful/hateful comments and hide under anonymity.


8. 'Whats your number 1 song on itunes?'
Muse - Undisclosed desires (really love that song, and Muse in general)


9. 'What kind of style would you describe yourself as having?'
Honestly, I sometimes fear that I have no style. Makeup wise I really like pretty, romantics looks with lots of pinks. Fashion wise I like the soft romantic look in summer. I'm inspired by pics such as this one from Elle Denmark that i found on Silkybow.



For winter, I like a slight gothic and leather with lace look.

10. 'Favourite Number? '
Number 7, and always has been since I was 6. Don't know why!!

11. 'Two hobbies?'

1. Hiking. My husband and I love the British Countryside and Scottish Highlands, and like to get out of the city for some fresh, clean air -whilst exercising. These are a couple of pics I took on our hikes.


2. Blogging. I really enjoy working on my blog, reading all your lovely comments, as well as reading the blogs of others.

12. 'Two pet peeves?'

1. People who have so much in their lives, yet remain discontent and complain that they have nothing.

2. People who think too much of themselves and treat others like they are beneath them. I see quite a few of these girls in Selfridges and Harvey Nichols. They walk around with their noses in the air and look disdainfully at others when they pass as if there's a foul odour around them :)

13. 'Your guilty pleasure?'
I love watching DVD box sets of shows like 'Desperate Housewives', 'The Tudors' and 'Gossip Girl'. I also like watching 'The Only Way Is Essex', a guilty pleasure for sure!





I tag the following: