Turkey Travel Diary / Arcanus Side Resort

There is so much beauty in the world that we miss out on. Some people will never get to see what else the world has to offer. Cherish the ability to travel & expand your mind and views.

Two months back I was living my best life! In the most beautiful resort set by the ocean in Side/Antalya in Turkey. Arcanus Side Resort, to be exact. Words can not really describe the views my eyes were blessed with, the food my stomach was filled with and the feeling I felt just to be on a beach holiday for the first time in many many years. This trip was one of the most memorable and best experiences of my life accompanied by my beautiful friend Cheyenne, we truly cannot express how much fun we had!

The first half of the trip was honestly spent relaxing. It's crazy how you can wake up so early on holiday ready to do everything but at home I can barely get up to my alarm for work. Such is life. Our days started with an amazing open buffet breakfast of endless pastry & bread choices, fresh fruits and salad options as well as multiple other hot food/savoury choices e.g. pancakes, sausages, chips, beans, eggs etc.. We were honestly spoilt for choice, so much that we did cheekily go up for a second plate after each meal. You know, just to "test" everythings potential of course! What was amazing is that despite being Vegan Cheyenne was also able to enjoy the food and had multiple options. Relaxing by the pool & on the beach really made me feel at peace. It felt so great to just have no commitments and be able to do nothing for a moment. The hotel had its own cocktail list, the best one on there however was a non-alcoholic fruit juice mix called 'Heidi' we definitely downed enough of those.

Our room was a standard twin room that could fit up to 4 people in it as we also had a bunk bed in there but was nonetheless perfect for our stay. We opted for the garden view as opposed to sea view which we were so happy about as when we arrived we were met with the most beautiful silence on our balcony, the most quiet I have ever experienced in my life! Housekeeping was very on their job, we had the sweetest woman who came to clean our room everyday leaving designs on our beds using our blankets, renewing our towels & toiletries & just making our rooms a great haven to return to in the afternoon. The staff at the hotel were super friendly and welcoming to us, we were two of few non-European people in the resort who spoke English as their first language.

Activity wise we managed to fit a few things in. Parasailing. Scary to think about but one of the most peaceful experiences to fly over the ocean and see it from a birds eye perspective. I'm so glad that I did it despite me being close to nearly crying at the thought of it.
 The day before last we also decided to go on a River boat tour which included a trip to the bazaar and Manvagat waterfalls. Honestly this was an experience in itself. To say that the ocean is beautiful is a true understatement. I had never seen water so blue, it looked like it had been coloured in! We sailed along where the river met the ocean in a huge wooden river boat, embraced the views, tasted fresh pomegranate juice on the beach, ate lunch aboard and then got off to go and see the waterfalls. Now, you know how in movies & programmes people are always falling off waterfalls or hanging on for dear life to escape their death. It's honestly so dramatized. Not all waterfalls are like that, unless you're at Niagra Falls then yes they are definitely like that lool, but this one was SO BEAUTIFUL! Omg! The water even separated into two colours as you will see in the photos and it wasn't scary at all. It was almost somewhat more attractive the more you looked at it. This is honestly why you have to go out and see things for yourself because the TV lies!

I have realised that travelling is truly a luxury in this lifetime and by not visiting different parts of the world in so long, I have cheated myself out of many experiences but going forward I want to make sure I make the most of being able to travel. By the time I am posting this I would have just come back from Amsterdam making that 4 trips in one year. I can only hope that 2018 brings me many more amazing memories! 
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To my mind, the greatest reward and luxury of travel is to be able to experience everyday things as if for the first time, to be in a position in which almost nothing is so familiar it is taken for granted - Bill Bryson

Adulting: Life Is What We Make It

There will come two stages in life that you will cherish: leaving behind people/energy/environments that bring you down +

appreciating the good people/things/opportunities you receive.

I'm currently going through a stage of clearance. Clearance of people, things & situations that no longer benefit me in any way shape or form. That's where my head is at right now.

Last time I wrote an adulting post it was about 'The Real World' but that ship has sailed and now I'm living the true reality of being an adult & focusing on clearing out the old that weighs me down & holds me back from being the greater version of me or just from having space.

Like how I don't really need 7 bomber jackets, a load of trainers & a library supply of books that I never use when there are people who could use/benefit from them more than me and I could sell some & spend that money on better experiences in life. Or how I don't have to be around people that make me feel worst than I feel better and create more downs in my life than ups. Or just simply how I don't have to do anything my heart doesn't desire to do.

I've had to do some self reflection in the last year on who I am & what I want from this life. To be happy is the answer. It's funny because when that becomes your spectrum/goal you start to realise how many things/people don't fit within that vision. What doesn't make me happy is getting up for a job I no longer like, to see people that don't uplift my spirit & waste 5 days of my life a week that I'll never get back...on repeat. Time can't be refunded it simply comes with no receipt to get it back when you don't use it wisely.  

So I've started having a huge clearout of clothes, which you will find on my Depop page : tiaao19 or my eBay page: taliyah19 and the rest will go to the clothing bank for someone who needs it more, I have way too much for one person and my style is forever changing so it's time to let go! I have also taken a huge step towards my happiness & future by deciding to actually leave my current job and not keep saying I will. I've never felt so strongly about something in my life but I have so much faith that God has my back & I will get more opportunities from doing this. Lastly people come & go and that is fine because negative energy is not what I need, I have the most amazing selection of good friends that I can actually fit on one hand as cliché as that sounds but it's true. I'm also going to keep up the travelling, when this goes live I will have just come back from a week in an amazing 5 star resort in Turkey which was the break I really needed and next month I will go to Amsterdam making that my 4th trip of the year!

I can only hope that things will look up for me , my positive mindset will be restored & that God and the Universe sends me great things in return! New opportunities, new great people & new experiences. After all, life is what we make it so it's worth making sure it's a good one!

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Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step. - Martin Luther King Jr