My Summer Favourites

*before I start I realise this post is about 2 weeks late but it's been in my drafts and I keep forgetting to edit it but I still want to post it so here we go....*

Wow wow wow wow wow. How on earth is it the end of summer already?! Ever since I got back from South Africa the weeks have just flown by and it's been quite a whirlwind but I think the future is looking up now!

I have a whole lot of favourites from this summer and majority resonate from my trip to South Africa. I have fallen head over heals in love with Rooibos (Redbush) tea. I've drunk so much of it I don't remember what English tea tastes like. Rooibos is very different to English teas but I don't quite know how to explain it but I can recommend that you try it because it is DELICIOUS! I also fell in love with beetroot and before you say anything, I know this isn't just South African, but I'd never eaten it much before I went. We'd eat it for lunch everyday with crackers, cheese and mayo. It was delicious, I highly recommend it to everyone. For breakfast every morning I had muesli and fell back in love with that too. We had to use creamer/powdered milk and warm water which may sound a bit weird but it tasted lovely and warmed you up after a cold night. My final food favourite comes in the form of rusks. In the UK they're most well known for giving to babies when they are being weaned off milk and onto food and I don't like the British ones but the South African rusks are a different story. Each night we had different flavours, some with raisins, some were buttery and others were vanillary. Despite them being extremely crunchy and hard, dip them into some Rooibos tea or hot chocolate and you're onto a winner! I'm yet to find them in the UK though which makes me very sad.

I loved all the South African food so it is all my favourite but I can't go on for so long about the food so I'll go on to my other favourites. Throughout my trip I wrote in a journal and since I've been back I've enjoyed writing in one since. I like being able to write all my thoughts and feelings of the day down. I'm also reading more on my kindle as I find it so convenient. I just chuck it in my bag and I can read whenever I want. I highly recommend The Girl on the Train, it's a psychological thriller and it is incredible!! 

Dolphins and horses are my ultimate favourite animals but I've always had a soft spot for giraffes and elephants which only increased when I visited the wilderness. The gracefulness of the giraffe is just beautiful and the unlikely elegance of the elephants took my breath away. Also in the wilderness I encountered hundreds of impala. The impala has the most beautiful, silky looking coat I've ever seen and their horns are incredible. I guess I just love animals! 

Slightly random favourites include the classic french plait, perfect to keep your greasy, hasn't-been-washed-in-5-days-hair out of your face! My beanie because it kept me unbelievably warm at night when my head was poking out of my sleeping bag. Finally for my SA based favourites is water. Now this obviously isn't exclusive to South Africa but while I was there I realised just how much we take it for granted and actually how much I like drinking a cold glass of water from a tap that isn't brown and mud-tinted! 

Aside from all my South African favourites I do have a few general summer favourites. I've fallen in love with the Rimmel Wake Me Up mascara again. It makes my eyelashes ridiculously curled, thick and lengthened. It's definitely my go to mascara for all events.  I've been having a lot of trouble with my skin and it seemed the face washes I used were making me breakout more like the Neutrogena Grapefruit wash or the Garnier Pure Active anti-blackhead deep pore wash. So I bought the Clearasil Ultra 5-in-1 Scrub and it seems to be working a treat. I've not had anymore spots and I think my blackheads which have constantly been present on my nose are reducing in visibility quite a lot. My skin feels a lot smoother after I use it too.

I hope you've all had a lovely summer but I fear it is over as the rain has really set in but that can only mean one thing; baggy jumpers and cosy winter clothing! 

Thanks for reading,

Charlotte

XO