Vicky - October in Italy and Spain

The weather has turned. It’s the time of year when a pair of slippers seems more favourable than your thongs (Australian for flipflops) and to get any warmth you need to stoke the fire rather than lie in the sun.

For any jammy ones with a bit of time and money to spare there are still some places in Europe with the heat on though. I’ve just got back from a toasty 33C in Gran Canaria, in November! It’s only a 4-hour flight from England and although it’s one of the Spanish islands it’s actually just off the coast of Africa and so benefits from their scorching temperatures. It was beautiful, balmy and the perfect opportunity to get my flip flops out again. I’m still on my trusty pink, spotty Slim Fresh Havaianas and Roxy Sevilla leathers for best. I’ve got my eye on these white Gizeh Birkenstocks though; I think they’d go nicely with the sun (or snow).

Apart from that, I spent most of November as a hermit inside – in London and the Midlands – so it felt so good to have the sand between my toes and sun in the sky.

October was spent half in Italy, half in Spain. Some friends and I had a villa where we relaxed by the pool and transformed it into a co-working space. It was great working alongside other bloggers to see how they interpret this crazy world of blogging. We stayed in Pollenca in Mallorca, a cute little town with a harbour nearby and a beach. I got totally stuck into the tapas. From anchovies to salty peppers to patatas bravas, I love them all. It was kind of cold here but I really like the whole flip flops, ripped jeans and scarf look as you can see from my photos from Italy below.

The half of October that was spent in Italy was in Bardolino and Mantova, near Lake Garda. Absolutely loved it. I celebrated my birthday here with a bike ride from our cool farm-like hotel resort into Mantova. We may have had a few too many local cocktails (4 Negronis each) and my friend ended up falling off her bike down a hill on the way back. Not the best idea, but funny all the same.

I’d strongly recommend you visit here at this time of year. There were no crowds, the Bardolino Wine Festival is on and it’s a beautiful time to cycle round Lake Garda and visit Verona. Ah Verona. Beautiful place. I stood on Juliet’s balcony, ate pizza and drank Prosecco in the main plaza and walked around licking pistachio gelato while window shopping at the boutique stores.

On another note, I went to see the Bond film Spectre last week and thought it was brilliant. You can’t beat the Bond formula, the special effects brought together through a plot of ticking bomb, Martinis shaken not stirred, of course a fight on a train and his beautiful women. I don’t particularly like action films, but Bond films are something else. If you haven’t seen it already, treat yourself.

The next big excitement at the cinema is the Star Wars film, out in time for Christmas. And you know what any self-respecting Star Wars fan wants in their stocking right? Yes, Yoda / Darth Vader Havaianas. Enter the competition here and you could win them, or some Storm Trooper ones if you prefer.

Sadly there’s no place for flip flops on my next adventure: I’m off to Tromso in Norway to see the Northern Lights (hopefully!). I’ll let you know if I catch a sighting from my snowmobile!