When I was younger, I found going into shops on my own daunting. It's only in the last couple years I've really found my independence and this summer I leaped out of my comfort zone and set off for India. 

   I'm in my final year at vet school so I went to do a surgical course, neutering street dogs to help control the population and control the rabies problem over there. You can read about the charity and the different trips they offer here. I highly recommend them if you're an animal lover :)

 I knew people said it was a culture shock, but my goodness was it!! The driving was absolutely manic! There was no way I was getting any sleep on the mini bus. 

There was so much to see as we crossed southern India; people selling coconuts on the side of the road, men chopping up raw pieces of meat swarming in flies, cages of live chickens, stalls selling spices, sweets and other goodies...and lucky for us, our drive over meant driving through the Mudumalai tiger reserve where we saw so many wild jungle elephants, monkeys, bison, wild boar and  deer!

After 10 hours on a plane, a 6 hours wait at the airport and another 9 and a half hours on the mini bus, I arrived at the training centre. Our hot water wasn't working and all we had was a bucket so my 'shower' was basically the ice bucket challenge. The toilets were those dreaded squat toilets you find abroad. Electricity came and went throughout the day. It was a bit overwhelming, especially as I hadn't slept for 48 hours but by the end of the trip, I embraced this way of living! It really does make you appreciate how lucky we are! 

I did two surgeries and two anaesthesias a day which included lots of puppy cuddling too! It was an amazing opportunity to build on my (basically non-existent) surgical skills and confidence. 

My favourite day was when we visited the local villages to vaccinate the dogs against rabies. The houses were made out of all kinds of materials, a mix of beautiful colours and there was lots of climbing up and down ladders to get to them! 

Can we all just take a moment to take in the cuteness of this little fella'!

We stopped for breakfast halfway through...and yes that is curry! Something I grew to love first thing in the morning and actually miss. Over there, they eat it with their hands so of course, do as the locals do!

On our day off, we got up super early and headed to the local tiger reserve. A huge bison walked right past the window of our mini bus! We also had a bit of an encounter with a monkey...it's a good idea to close car windows when near monkeys, just a little tip. 

We also did a spot of shopping in Ooty where I bought sooo many shawls. I'm obsessed with them. I don't even wear shawls but anything with a colourful pattern will steal my heart. I have reluctantly given a few away as gifts to my family (love them for me please if you're reading this). 

I've never tasted a samosa as good as this!

They know their stuff!

As well as chocolate, Ooty is famous for its tea. We ventured up into the tea fields and found ourselves looking down into a valley where there were lots of wild bison scattered throughout the trees. A local man had to guide us back to safety as it turned out we'd explored our way into a bear's habitat who had already killed two people!! Who'd have thought a little stroll could turn into an adrenaline filled experience!

I still get emotional now thinking back to how amazing the trip was!!! On the way back to the airport we stopped at Mysore to see the beautiful palace. We even went inside, and did the whole taking off your shoes to show respect thing. 

The best part was of course meeting everyone in my group! I've definitely made some friends for life there :)

India. You are smelly, dirty and amazingly beautiful. You can't help but fall for the place. 

Anyone thinking about travelling or doing anything outside of their comfort zone, I'm yelling at you now to do it!! You won't regret it!

p.s. I now have a facebook page which you can find here

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Pretty, cute and delicious life happenings

It feels like forever since I last blogged. I thought that with the summer holidays coming up, I'd be blogging almost daily but you know how it is..life gets busy and things keep getting put off!! So rather than post a million things, I thought I'd summarise a bit of what's been going on :)

This shop is one of my favourites. In fact, anywhere with this cute, pretty vibe to it gets a yes from me! It sells candles, trinkets and bunting which I am obsessed with!!!! It's called Strickland and Holt and can be found on Yarm Highstreet....if you ever find yourself there..

Speaking of shops I like, Utility sent me this gorgeous tote bag* which is the ideal summer day bag to just chuck everything in. I'm half french so this bag appeals to me in a more personal way as well as being pretty with its candy pink stripes.

This necklace is also something I picked up from Utility. I've had my eye on it for months and eventually caved. A lot of Estella Bartlett's jewellery has the same simple but beautiful look! An appalling photo I know and it really doesn't do it justice but it does deserve a mention!

I am forever eating, thinking or talking about food, so of course this summer has involved an extra load of that! Me and Tom went to a gorgeous cafe in York called the Brew and Brownie. They do all sorts of delicious baked goods. I went for a goats cheese, walnut and fig salad followed by this mouthwatering chocolate and peanut butter torte...So rich but sooooo good. Tom made me share because apparently it'd be too sickly to eat all by yourself but I'm pretty sure I could rise to the challenge..

And you know the animal lover in me, I have spent a lot of the summer cuddling lots of cute animals! Both on and off placements! Aren't they the sweetest?!!

Hopefully I'll have more time to get back into blogging again on a more regular basis!! I can't really take photos on placements which is a bit of a problem but I hope you've liked seeing the little snippets of whats gone on in between! :)

lets go to the zoo!

Last weekend I headed to Chester Zoo which meant that of course, my trusty camera came along too.I've never really photographed animals before and have since learnt that it's something I really need to work on, but nevertheless..here's a few snaps from a lovely day that did actually turn sunny by the end! Yay!

There was a sign outside the Elephants which explained how they were all related and who was whose mummy which was really cute :) 

I was absolutely freezing at the start of the day as I'm terrible at judging the weather and made a bad outfit choice so the warmth of the butterfly house seemed like the next logical place to fly to!

It was a tropical paradise in there and it wasn't long till I was peeling off the layers and carrying half of my outfit! 

It was fun spotting the different patterns and colours on the butterflies which made them fun to photograph but my goodness was this a battle! Every small child has a camera phone these days and there I was in amongst them, elbowing my way to get a good shot. No shame, no shame...

If I was a butterfly, I feel like this would be my hangout place. Gimme fooood!

Next was the Giraffes! They're so fascinating. They look like they shouldn't work but they just do! I'd love to watch one run but it didn't look like these three were going anywhere fast.

We had to wait a while for the Jaguar to come but it was worth it! It was so majestic looking, I couldn't stop taking photos but thought I'd just share with you the best of the bunch.

How cute please?!

The monkeys were probably my favourite animals to see. It is amazing how human like they can be and their balancing and climbing skills are incredible! I could watch them all day.

Obviously we popped into the aquarium to say hi to Nemo and his Dad. Would have been rude not to! See how they're waving back..

By the end of the day, we were as tired as that Rhino looks below! It's a huge zoo so meant my little legs had to do a lot of walking.

I know people have mixed feelings about Zoos, but I personally think they do a great job with conservation and educating the public! I discovered so many animal species that I had never ever heard of which is slightly embarrassing as a vet student, but it's great to have the opportunity to see them up close! I also thought their enclosures were generous in size with lots of things for the animals to do :)

I haven't been to Longleat Safari Park yet but as a previous fan of Animal Park, it's on my life 'to do' list!

Which animals do you like best when going to the Zoo?