Summer reading

By now, you've probably noticed that I really enjoy reading but hardly have anytime to do so. Well summer is the exception to that rule so here's a little summary of what I have been reading and my views on each book.

Firstly, an author I really enjoy is Cathy Glass. She is an inspirational woman who writes true stories, under a pseudonym, about her experiences of fostering children. In the past I've read quite a few of her books so my pre-holiday library visit started with a visit to her section. I picked up 'Daddy's Little Princess' and 'The Child Bride' both of which were very emotional and moving but I found some of the points raised in the second horrifying. I don't want to give too much away but what I'm going to say can all be gathered from the title! The little girl in this story is of Bangladeshi decent and it shows just how different the culture is and how living in England doesn't necessarily change that. The poor girl is subject to a forced marriage to someone three times her age and is hiding secrets that she wishes she could forget. 

After reading these two I read 'Cut' which, for me, ended a little too abruptly and I'm now reading 'Will Anyone Love Me?' which is becoming a personal favourite. It tells the story of Cathy's adopted daughter Lucy and has been such a heartwarming read.

Something else that I read on holiday was 'One Million Lovely Letters'. It is another true story about Jodi who contracts a life-threatening brain infection after a tick bite. It leaves her quality of life restricted but tells us about a project she set up to spread happiness, hope and joy across all corners of the world. It was lovely to see how positive things can come from anything and made me realise that there are so many inspirational people in the world who go unnoticed. I would definitely recommend this book to everyone.

And my final book is 'The book of you'. I read this one on my flight home from Egypt and it's a little bit different to the others; I have a varied taste. It's a thriller about a young woman, Clarissa, who has to do jury service. She is assigned on to a case about another young woman. One who is trying to get her stalker convicted. As the trial progresses it becomes more and more obvious about the similarities between the two women's lives. Not only that, it shows Clarissa just how difficult it is for her to do something about it. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book and will certainly be looking out for more by the same author in the near future. 

And that's the end of my summer reading. It's becoming more and more autumnal at the moment, and I'm working more than full time hours, so I think I'll have to admit that summer is over. But I've realised how much I've missed escaping to new worlds so hopefully I'll manage to do a similar post soon.

Keep smiling,

Kathryn x

Tourist tales: Helsinki

I get to do a part two! Isn't this great?

After our expedition, we left the campsite at around 10am on a coach that took us on the four hour journey back to the capital of Finland, Helsinki. Now four hours might seem a long time but it flew by so quickly in a blur of reading, music and taking in the scenery of a new country. We arrived at the Eurohostel in Helsinki at around 2pm, dumped our bags and, although very tired, couldn't wait to explore the city. 

The first thing we did was the bit that I was most excited for; the markets! I love to see markets in foreign countries as they are all so varied and different and these were no exception! I picked up a couple of souvenirs including a beautiful fridge magnet for at home. And, since we hadn't eaten since breakfast, I treated myself to some of the most delicious, melt-in-your-mouth, homemade vanilla fudge that I managed to make last a grand total of two minutes! Then we found the crepe stall where I bought a banana and Nutella one (healthy diet me 😉) but I couldn't quite finish it. 

The afternoon was spent wandering, sort of aimlessly, around shops and exploring the area. Whilst we were there, a huge gymnastics competition was going on in Helsinki and it was lovely to see the teams each in their own brightly coloured kits. Later on we found a lovely cathedral which was holding a wedding. As the wedding bells rang members of the public ran to create two lines from the cathedral to the wedding car for the couple to walk through and if was all just so lovely. It filled me with so much warmth.

We then found our way to the Hard Rock Cafe where we had a relaxed drink and I called my sister to wish her a happy birthday. By this point it was time for a meal. A large group of us met up at the Pizza Hut for dinner and it was sort of nice to be eating from a table and plates again as opposed to sitting on the ground with food bags. Strangely enough, you can grow to miss both options equally.

At around 9pm we returned to the Catedral for group expedition photos (it doesn't really go dark so it was always light enough for photos!)

(Group 1 - the best group!) 

We had a few races up the hundred steps to the cathedral and then headed off out to a bar for a couple of drinks but then I headed back to the hostel as a friend wasn't feeling too well. It was around 11pm and, after a relatively sleepless week, I was exhausted and wanted to make the most of our final day. So, no sooner than my head hit the pillow, I was asleep.

On our final day I woke at six, enjoyed the complimentary sauna, showered and changed. I then went down for breakfast with the leaders as everyone else was still in bed hungover. And I just don't see the point of wasting a day in a new place. I went on a boat trip across to islands and enjoyed the opportunity to practice my nature photography. 

I returned to the hostel and still only one person was out of bed. I found the money I'd collected for our leader and left to buy him a present from us all with Emma. We found a canoeing top which we decorated and all signed on the plane home amongst other things. After a little supermarket run in the pouring rain, we were done and awaiting our coach for the journey home. 

The journey was relatively uneventful. I was a little bit panicky then travel sick on the coach back home but still managed to enjoy a delicious vanilla tea from Starbucks at the service station. It was such a lovely trip and I can't wait for another in the near future!

Keep smiling,

Kathryn x