My Favourite Places

I have always been in awe of the world (it’s this fascination that is actually one of the main reasons for my faith in God). I love to look at the stars, I love to see sunsets and sunrises, I love to walk through a forest at any time of day or night, I love the set line of a horizon over the sea.

I’ve been lucky enough to travel quite a bit for my age, thanks to my dad’s job and his obsession with holiday-booking. I’d like to share with you my favourite places, and if you’d like to then please feel free to share yours with me! They could be in your house, in your country, or anywhere else in the world.

Goa, India

To kickstart this list, I’d like to share with you an experience that truly changed my life. It introduced me to Christianity, charity work, and the rich/poor divide, which was shown to me more clearly then than I had ever seen before, and have ever seen it since.
I won the trip of a lifetime to visit Goa, India in a business competition run by Faith and Football, a Christian charity. My team of 5 friends had to create a product, market it, and sell it to the public. We also had to create a business plan, which we put so much effort into that it won us the competition. The prize was a week in Goa to relax and see the sights, but more importantly to help the charity and try to spread some love and happiness. We visited old people’s homes and met some incredible people, who had nothing but were so content. The whole trip will stick with me forever, but the one highlighted memory for me was our last night in India, when we visited the orphanage we had been getting to know the boys from. Words can genuinely not even begin to express the emotions that filled the air that night. One man even spoke in tongues (which, honestly, is absolutely terrifying if you don’t know what it is) which was incredible looking back on it now, but very frightening for a bunch of 14 year olds who had no connection whatsoever to the Holy Spirit. Goa is such a beautiful place, and I so strongly urge anyone who has the chance to go there to do so. However, it’s also a very unequal place. There are rich people and rich areas of India, and then there are the poorest. There doesn’t seem to be much middle ground, which is also true of many other Asian countries and African countries. This level of inequality is one that we are very lucky not to have in England (although I’m definitely not saying that England has true equality, that’s for sure) and that needs to change so that everyone has a chance to not just survive, but thrive.

The Cows

Another of my favourite places is one a little closer to home. On my road, there’s only houses on one side, and on the other there is a big green area. It’s a sort of combination between forest and grassy space, and occasionally there’s horses grazing on the spaces. I love to take my guitar or a book or some song lyrics and just sit and be in the space, surrounded by trees and horses and fresh air. It’s like going to the country but without the smells. My family calls this space ‘The Cows’ because one time, roughly 18 years ago, there were a few cows grazing there when my mum took my brothers up to it. There haven’t been any cows there since, but I have always (and probably always will) see(n) this place as ‘The Cows’.

Orlando, Florida

Creds

My final favourite place of this list is one which I am very, very excited about. I’m excited because in April I’ll be lucky enough to visit once again! When I was a child, my parents took me and my two brothers to Florida relatively frequently, because we were so infatuated with princesses (me), Winnie the Pooh (my brother), and the magic of Disneyworld. I reckon Mickey Mouse has this magic about him that whenever someone sees him, internally they’re instantly seven years old again. But that’s just a theory. When I look back on the old times in Disney, the most prevalent memory is of eating at the Princess Castle, where you would be having dinner and look up to see Jasmine chatting to your mum, or Ariel hugging the kid next to you. It’s moments like these that I’ll remember forever, and even though now I’m a lot older (but no taller. Thanks puberty.) I still cannot wait to wear the Minnie Mouse ears and go on the rides and just experience the magic that (I believe) can only be found at Disney. Also, what can a vegan eat at Disney world? EDIT I’ve actually found a website with a BUNCH of food options for vegans at Disneyworld, if anyone’s interested (I sure am)!

Top 3... Bands

To round off January's series of Top 3..., I'll be sharing with you my three favourite bands. Before we get into it, I have a bit of admin to do.
Firstly, I am so sorry that every post nowadays seems to be late! I've had a lot of college work to do and I just haven't had the time to organise my time. But now, that's gonna change. Wednesday's posts will actually be on Wednesdays, and Sunday's will be on Sundays. Secondly, as this is the final instalment of Top 3..., I'd like to reveal that February's series will be...

(drumroll please)

a continuation of The Pressures Young People Face! Everybody's favourite series. I started this series in October 2016 (my very first series) but because I didn't have the blog at the very start of October, I missed at least one Wednesday. Plus, (unfortunately) there are too many pressures faced by teenagers for just one month.

Anyway, onto Top 3... Bands! This was very hard for me to do, as I am a fan of literally every genre of music (yes, even country) and I don't think you can really compare two bands from different genres. But I've tried my best, so in a particular order:

1) Green Day.
Green Day has to be my favourite band of all time. All of their songs might sound the same, but they all sound pretty darn great. If I was forced to pick a favourite genre of music, it'd probably be pop-punk (I know, I'm awful). Green Day are the fathers, the kings, the origin of pop-punk, so it only seems fitting that they'd be my number one band. If I were to recommend something to listen to, it'd be Minority, Basket Case, Sex, Drugs & Violence, Good Riddance, and the entirety of the American Idiot album (especially 21 Guns). Phew. That was tough; choosing from a masterpiece of a discography.

2) Smashing Pumpkins.
The Smashing Pumpkins are hard to pin down to a genre. Wikipedia says they're 'alternative rock', but I don't think that does them justice. Honestly, I haven't found any other band that sounds slightly like them. Which is kind of annoying, because if they sounded like the Smashing Pumpkins, they's be great. I'd describe their sound as more indie chilled rock, with a few songs that are decidedly un-chill. My personal recommendations would be 1979, Beautiful (I genuinely cry overtime), Luna, and if you're into something a little rockier; Bullet With Butterfly Wings. Plus. as a little bonus fact; it looks as though the Smashing Pumpkins will be reuniting for a tour! Exciting stuff.

3) Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.
To round off this array of musical talent, I decided to stray a little from the modern punk/rock area, and go to another artist (I guess not technically a band, per se, but a group) whom I love dearly; the Four Seasons. If you haven't heard of them, you'll definitely have heard at least one of their songs before. At large in the 60s and 70s the Four Seasons, fronted by Frankie Valli and his amazingly high voice, made instant hits such as Sherry, Big Girls Don't Cry (no, not the Fergie version), Walk Like A Man, Rag Doll (my personal fave), Bye Bye Baby, and December, 1963. I recommend you listen to snippets of them all, because you will 100% recognise a good proportion of them.

This was a hard post to write! Too many good artists, too many good songs! Not that I'm complaint, there could never be too much music in the world.

Top 3... Musicals

Happy Wednesday!

Today I'll be mini-reviewing my favourite three underrated musicals. My favourite musical of all time has to be Les Miserables, but that's so well-known that I won't bother reviewing it today. Let me know if you want to hear my thoughts on it.

In no particular order;

Love Never Dies (Phantom of the Opera sequel)
Written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Ben Elton, with music by Webber and lyrics by Glenn Slater and Charles Hart, this musical is a masterpiece. I watch the DVD of the Australian cast so much, and I was lucky enough to see Anna O'Byrne (who plays Christine) in a different musical last year. Ben Lewis' performance as the Phantom is truly a spectacle. The plot continues the original Phantom 10 years on, and is so emotional and thought-provoking. Christine and Raoul have a 10 year old child, and Christine is reunited with the Phantom to sing for him one last time. Highly recommended.

Matilda the Musical
This adaptation of Roald Dahl's classic novel is written by Dennis Kelly, with music and lyrics by comic genius Tim Minchin. The story is heartwarming and funny, yet sad and slightly harrowing at points. My favourite songs from it are My House, Loud, Quiet, Telly, and This Little Girl. The young cast are always exceptional and make you feel bad about being older than them and yet far less talented. The School Song scene and the gym scene are so well put together and the entire stage is beautiful aesthetically.

Miss Saigon
Miss Saigon was an instant classic, written by Alan Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg. It deals with the issues faced by American soldiers and Vietnamese women during the Vietnam War. Kim, a 17 year old Vietnamese peasant, is left with nothing when her parents are killed, and so has to become a prostitute, catering to American soldiers in Vietnam. On her first day, she attracts the attention of Chris, an American GI. They fall in love and plan to be together forever, but the strains and circumstance tear them apart. What will happen when they are reunited 3 years later? The musical is filled with heart reaching songs such as Why God Why?, Movie In My Mind, I Still Believe, and The American Dream, among others. At the end of every single show, there isn't a dry eye in the room, and even for the thousandth time watching it, I still cry before the interval. An incredible show, second only to Les Miserables.

Top 3... Movies

Hello Wednesday!
Today I'll be sharing (and mini-reviewing) my personal 3 favourite underrated films of all time.
In no particular order:

Zero Day (2003, dir. Ben Coccio)
This is by far my favourite film ever. The story is inspired by (well, directly based on) the Columbine high school shooting of April 1999. Andre Kreigman and Calvin Gabriel, the two main characters (played by Andre Keuck and Cal Robertson, respectively) are fictional versions of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold (respectively), the perpetrators of the real-life crime. I find this film so enthralling because, having studied the real massacre and perpetrators, it gives a different perspective to the relationship between the two criminals/characters, and also to the mind and inner workings of Dylan/Calvin. In particular, this is shown by in real life, Eric was blamed for being the 'mastermind' being the plan, and Dylan was portrayed as the 'quiet innocent one, led astray by Eric'. However, in the film, there is a scene in which Calvin (Dylan) is talking about how it's funny that people seem to not blame him and instead blame Andre (Eric), even though he has most of the ideas. In short, the film is very well made (and I usually hate found footage films), with incredible complex characters who give your morals a shaking-up and simultaneously make you love and hate them.

St Trinian's (2007, dir. Oliver Parker and Barnaby Thompson)
This film was my entire childhood oh my. Summarised by IMDb, the plot is thus; In order to save their bankrupt school, a group of troublesome girls stage a robbery with a group of geniuses on their tails. This does not do the movie justice. It is witty, innovative, moving, and all-round hilarious. The typical clique trope is so overdone, but somehow works impeccably in this classic. Plus, I'm pretty sure everyone wanted a cliquey makeover after seeing that amazing makeover scene. I remember always wanting to be one of the Posh Tottys, before realising that they were phone sex workers, of course. In summary; funny, empowering, and sheer genius.

Ratatouille (2007, dir. Brad Bird and Jan Pinkava)
One of my all-time favourite Disney movies, and one of the most underrated! The story is wonderful: a rat with great culinary skills and a sophisticated palette pulls a guy's hair and makes hm move in order to cook better. Simple! Honestly I have no clue why this film isn't more hyped-up, it's so funny and clever! Roger Ebert claims it is 'a triumph of animation, comedy, imagination and, yes, humanity' and asks for a sequel. If any animated film deserves a sequel, it's Ratatouille (excluding the cinematic masterpiece Toy Story 3 of course). But what really proves how wonderful this film is, is that I am a huge germaphobe, and yet I would be totally comfortable with Remy (the chef rat) cooking for me. Magnificent.

Top 3... Blogs

(A very late) Welcome to January's Wednesday series! This series is called Top 3..., and each week I will give you a mini review of my top 3 books/films/etc.
To kick off this month, I thought I'd start with something clearly rather important to me: blogs.
I am lucky enough to know the owners of these blogs in person, and I genuinely get excited when any of them upload a new post!

In alphabetical order (to avoid favouritism :P );

My friend Anna's blog, A Fabulous Feminist.
Her posts make me think, they make me laugh, and they inspire me. (Also her poetry is insanely good, you should also check out her poetry/photos instagram; @wildpetals)

My blessed-with-historical-knowledge friend Jemima's blog, Another Ranting Reader.
I see a lot of who I want to be in Jemima (both as a blogger and as a person), especially in her organisational skills, You just have to glance at her blog to see how structured and clear her goals are. I always find it hard to set goals, but I'm taking a leaf out of her metaphorical book and trying to be more organised.

And lastly (but definitely not least-ly), my friend who blogs anonymously at How Can You Believe That?
She posts Christian-related topics, answering age-old questions and debunking arguments against Christianity with reason and grace. I really, really recommend checking out her blog, whether you're an Atheist, Christian, questioning, or of any other religion. (Also I am always here if you have any religion-related questions. I may not be able to answer them all, but drop me a message and I promise I'll try!)