Thank-you for all of the support that I have received on Ella’s. I have now moved to a new sight. Please check it out!
in-sight.space
Thanks,
Ella xxx
CARVOEIRO
The second stop of our holiday landed us in Carvoeiro, a town we’ve visited and loved before, now more than ever. This quaint village offers a completely different feel than Vale do Lobo; tranquility and atmosphere.
The architecture in the town also contrasts heavily with the previous town. Unlike sharp shapes and marble, pastel coloured walls and an abundance of aloe vera aligned each street, each villa owning its own personality and character. One of my favourites is pictured above (the peach/pink house). How could I not fall in love with a millennial pink villa?! Hidden by greenery, looking out towards the sea, it makes for an ideal relaxation spot. Even the blue and white water unit was pretty!
Visiting a fourth time may be slightly excessive, however it will be hard to resist due to the amazing food and bloody brilliant food. Carvoeiro, it’s been a pleasure.
LDN
Having visited London numerous times before, including completing the tourist spots, watching a game at Wembley, finding the hidden gems and attending Wireless festival, nothing quite compares to Lovebox and the weekend to go with it.
Festivals aren’t exactly my expertise; I’ve been to Beatherder, a festival consisting of max 15,000 people, twice, and spent the day at Wireless a few years back. Both festivals, albeit them both being fantastic, were laden with litter, drugs and scallywags. Lovebox was the cleanest festival I have ever been to. I can’t fault it. Everyone within the grounds dressed as if they were attending fashion week – although not quite as chic. Girls covered in sequins and men covered in…beer, roamed the grounds looking trendy and enviable.
The food was also a strong point. Although Dirty Burger was reserved for people with VIP tickets only (boo!), Olly and I managed to find a banging truffle burger. It’s safe to say that the emergency Nature Valley bars in my bag were completely forgotten about as we devoured juicy, cheesy burgers pre-Solange.
The music was fantastic; Kaytranada was awesome, especially with the surprise Aluna George and Chance the Rapper remixes that he dropped. As was Sampha; Olly and I were both gobsmacked that he sounded even better than on record, and he performed to a gorgeous purple/pink backdrop (obviously very important to me). Even though we were at the back for Solange and I only saw glimpse of her fabulous fro, what I heard was unbelievable – I’ll definitely have to see her in concert to experience her full performance properly. And the piece de resistance, having waited a good 5 years WAY too long, I finally saw Frank!! And we were closer than expected! The setlist was practically made in my dreams and Olly spotted Spike Jonze filming the set – awesome.
Highlights of the weekend also included the burrata pizza and the truffle pizza at Pizza East, Friend of Ours in Shoreditch for brunch, Primrose Hill and the good old Natural History Museum.
VALE DO LOBO
The first stop on our mini Algarvian adventure landed us in Vale do Lobo, a man made golf resort full of people who shop in Waitrose and a variety of overpriced cocktail bars. Whilst I disliked the contrived nature of this location, the cleanliness and pristine image could not be argued with. Every road was as beautiful as the next; fuchsia flowers, overgrown cacti, towering palm trees and bloody huge houses. HUGE. On a venture down to the beach Olly and I stopped to peek at the gigantic mansions hidden away through masses of hedge or monstrous slate walls. Vast slabs of glass and concrete stared angrily down at you; their blunt lines and harsh edges exuding modern, luxury living. Contrasting this, many of the towns architecture involved beautiful curved walls, giving the space a Gaudi-esque feel, as pictured above.
A highlight of the area was the beach. Turquoise waters kissed the golden sand, whilst kids dressed in mini-Boden frolicked along the sea-front. Despite the extortionate price for a sunbed (20 euros!!!!! 20!!), we enjoyed a glorious afternoon baking our little tanned bodies to a crisp.
Even though it wasn’t my favourite location of the holiday, Vale do Lobo gave me the best seafood I’ve ever eaten (thank you Sandbanks) and enough espresso martinis to keep me simultaneously buzzing and drowsy for the rest of summer, and for that I am grateful.
Water Lane Pizza
Myself being utterly obsessed with food, from spending all of my wages at Ox Club to forcing Izzy to accompany me for an ice cold Bathtub Gin at Friends of Ham, a good bargain and tasty treat is my ultimate vice. It doesn’t help that my boyfriend is just as obsessed with food and drink as I am, god knows how we stay in shape. I’ve visited Waterlane Boathouse a few times now; their Pink Rives gin has secured itself as a solid favourite of mine, and their sun drenched canary side views offer relaxation and seclusion despite the constant business. On our second visit we were desperate to try their pizza, only to find that they had sold out so steak sandwiches were a second choice. Third time lucky, and we really hit the jackpot. Unlike the likes of Dough Boys, Waterlane’s pizza is slightly more doughy and indulgent due to the sourdough base, making it perfect for a Friday night treat. I chose a San marzano tomato and mozzarella base with kale, olives, pecorino and truffle oil, whilst Ol opted for buffalo mozzarella, prosciutto and pickled radicchio. Both as tasty as each other, the bitterness from the kale balanced perfectly with the creaminess of the pecorino. Similarly, the salty prosciutto and acidity of the radicchio made for a perfect background for the melt-in-your-mouth mozzarella. Sat outside in the sun surrounded by the buzz of Friday feeling fellow Leeds-goers, accompanied with a gin and tonic, this made for a perfect setting to enjoy our food. Highly recommended a visit not only for their food, but for their large selection of craft beers and gins (notable mention to Northern Bewery Piñata – tastes of guava and mango!).
Buttercups
Driving my usual route home one afternoon I spotted this gorgeous buttercup field. The stunning, bright yellow resembled the sun on this particular glorious day, and so, feeling compelled to discover, dragged Olly down to explore it with me in the hopes of getting some lovely pictures of sunshine frolicking. It was to our surprise that horses greeted us hungry for some good old grass (they weren’t too fond of buttercups) and a stroke. We named the brown one Norman, and the paler one Henry (because he was horrid and a snatcher). This little adventure was also a good excuse to put my new camera to good use – Sony RX100 II. So far, so good. The colours are lovely and using it automatically and manually produces awesome pictures with ease. The fact that it goes down to f1.8 is awesome aswell because I’m a sucker for a good background blur. The camera was obviously put to good use this day – reference to the up close picture of the horses nose. This compact guy will hopefully aid my travels through summer, and judging by the picture quality and colours it produces, I’m gonna be taking some pretty good snaps – watch this space.
Summer Stripes
Raybans, Shoes – & Other Stories, Dress – Zara
Walking up to the moor on this beautiful sunny day gave me the perfect excuse to wear this little number I purchased from Zara a few weeks ago. The bardot style and flouncy skirt make it super light and breezy, perfect for summer walks. I thought this dress would come in handy during my many summer travels for its easiness and practicability, and also because it’s just beyond cute. Paired with these simple white trainers, this look will be a go-to when warmer weather embraces us again.
Birthday Post
Olly – Raybans, Ella – Raybans, Shoes – & Other Stories, Dress – Zara
After taking a pretty long while off posting on here due to revising for exams, leaving school, getting a full time job (woop woop!) and other shenanigans, I thought the most natural way to get back into the swing of things would be through a post all about my favourite human, Olly.
In celebration of his 20th birthday, we made the most of the beautiful weather and the fact that I didn’t have any lessons until 11:30 by taking a stroll on the moor with the dog, basking in the sun and consequently sweating my arse off. Followed by breakfast at Friends of Ham consisting of coffees and bath chaps (better bacon) with french toast and maple, I headed off to endure my penultimate day at school before returning later on for a BBQ.
Parks and Stories
In attempt to soak up the very most of the English sun at the weekend, Olly and I headed to Roundhay to absorb Vitamin D and some caffeine. I’d first come across Stories when Rachel visited, and since I have become obsessed with trawling their Instagram drooling at their selection of toast based, scandi-inspired dishes and gorgeous latte art.
The decor doesn’t disappoint. Bright, light and airy (apart from the miniature toilet!); the walls adorned with plants and prints, lit by naked filament bulbs hanging from the ceiling. We both opted for toasted brioche topped with Greek yoghurt, figs and honey which satisfied our sweet cravings delightfully. Paired with a latte and some great background music (Childish Gambino and Kanye were obviously staff favourites), it made for a perfect brunch. Would definitely visit again to try out their salted caramel brownie and their other food options!
Top – Marks and Spencer / Culottes – Armarni Exchange / Shoes – Superga / Sunglasses – Rayban
After our brunch we headed to Roundhay Park. Despite the whole of Leeds deciding a BBQ and a game of rounders was in order, the park still offered a sense of calm due to its vast size. We plonked on the grass and people watched for a good hour, and even watched a fall out between three 5 year olds unravel.
Hope you had a lovely weekend. Ella X
New York: The Plan
Last summer my family visited New York to accompany my dad who was working out there. We ate, drank, sunbathed and hiked around the city till we could no more, returning to the UK at least a stone heavier than before we left (so. many. pretzels.). Whilst in New York I discovered a few things. 1. The coffee is truly horrendous. 2. NY is intense. and 3. There was so much left to explore. My mum, who had previously visited, took us around the tourists spots and what have you: Empire State Building, MoMa, 9/11 Memorial, and whilst my brother and I thoroughly enjoyed that, we craved a different, less touristy experience of the city.
With the opportunity to revisit New York this summer, Ben and I grabbed it with both hands and want to make the most of our time in the jungle. With all the tourist spots ticked off the list, I’ve been searching for the past few weeks for foodie spots, good coffee sources and interesting bits and bobs to do.
- McNally Jackson Books looks like the perfect place to spend a Sunday afternoon perusing the books and magazines that live in this cosy shop. This independent icon also involves a small cafe, perfect for a cup of tea or lemonade whilst tucking into a good read.
- Just looking at pictures of Tacombi makes my stomach rumble. Eating Mexican food is probably my favourite past time, so hopefully munching on some tortillas from this joint won’t disappoint.
- Whilst on Bleeker Street after hopefully filling myself up at Tacombi, I have to visit Kith just to look at the new collection under the new creative direction of Emily Oberg. While their clothes may be a little out of budget, a look around the store and a lust over their extensive shoe collection will satisfy my cravings.
- I will be dragging Ben to Two Hands to get my hands on the banana bread with espresso mascarpone even if my life depends on it. How bloody good does that sound?! Hidden in by Little Venice, a stroll around the surrounding area is a must to walk off the amount of sugar I will be consuming.
- High Line looks like a funky place to take a break from the city in an elevated park setting. This cool prospect holds events, includes walkways and even a secret passage to Chelsea Market.
- How could I visit New York without at least stopping off once or ten times at Cookie Do? Different flavours of cookie dough scooped into a cone like ice cream honestly makes me hungry just thinking about it. Will definitely spend all my money here and put on a good few kilos.
More New York posts coming in July. X
ella's 
