How to spend 24 hours in Bordeaux

10am: Go for pastries at Le Boulangerie Saint Michel. Make you pick up a the local delicacy of Canelès. The sandcastle-shaped rum flavoured pastry has a tender centre with a caramelised outer. Once you've chosen a few pastries to try and a orange juice, head outside to find a bench overlooking the Saint Michel church. If go on a Monday, make sure you take time wander around the flea market to see if you can pick up any goodies to take home.

11am: Head to the tourist office to pick up a CityPass. Available for 24, 48 or 72 hours, the card offers free public transpire (even to the airport), free entry to most of the main attractions and discounts of some of the surrounding vineyards. Prices can be found on the website.

11.30am: Make sure you get to the Citè Du Vin before 12pm for free entry with the CityPass and a voucher to have a glass of wine. You'll be able to grab a tram from the city centre. Shaped like a decanter, the museum takes you through the science behind wine. You'll be given an audio guide and have lots of information to process. It's quite intense so be prepared to read a lot!

2pm: You'll have built up quite an appetite so it's time to grab a bite to eat. Karl offers a great selection of toasted sandwiches, quiches, salads and sweet treats. It's set in a pretty square so will be the perfect place to eat al-fresco if the weather is warm.

3.30pm: Now it's time to explore the city on foot. Sights to look for include Place de la Bourse, Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux, Bordeaux Cathedral, Post de Pierre bridge and Tour Pay Beland - which you'll be able to climb for cracking views of the city with your CityPass. We wanted to visit the Resistance museum but unfortunately it was closed.

5pm: Make time to stop at Le Comptoir Bordelais to buy some foodie souvenirs to take home. I treated myself to some fancy salt (it's such an old person thing to say but France has some great salt) and a box of canelès for my office. I also picked up some great caramels and chocolate to take home as gifts.

6pm: Stop by one of the many wine bars for a chance to try the region's wine. I highly recommend the Bordeaux Rosé which I couldn't get enough off. We had a drink at Le Regent as we wanted to have a drink outside in the main square.

8pm: If you're watching your pennies, pump for L'Entrecôte for dinner. The menu only consists of a simple walnut and lettuce salad to start followed for steak and frites. You can choose from medium-rare or just rare. The fries are unlimited so just catch the eye of the wait staff to ask for some more. But if you're looking to splash out then definitely book a table at Le Bouchon Bordelais. The cosy restaurant's menu changed weekly as they only use seasonly produce. You can order a la carte or as we did, opt for the taste menu. Priced at 55 euros, the nine courses are a surprise and they ask at the beginning of the meal if you have any allergies. Sadly I didn't get any decent pictures as it was too dark. But, I'd rate the food here as one of the best meals I've ever head, up there with my all-time favourite meal at Fleish in Copenhagen. It was simply divine.

10.30pm: If your belly can take it - ours couldn't and we headed home - try out a couple more of the wine bars. After all, you are in Bordeaux!

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Photo diary: a midweek break to Bordeaux

We were keen to get away for our anniversary this year as we did last year. We had no where particular in mind, everywhere is on our list, so just scoured Ryanair to find some cheap midweek flights that suited us. It was here we stumbled across Bordeaux for £20. Then when we found a AirBnB for £100 for both nights, it was a no brainer. Three days a way exploring somewhere new for £70 each? Yes please!

We had an afternoon flight and landed in Bordeaux just in time for dinner. Our travel writer at work has a friend who recommended we head to L'Entercôte for the best steak and frites in the city. I would never pick steak in a restaurant as I don't enjoy eating it. But it's one of my boyfriend's favourite dishes so whenever we go away I always schedule in a restaurant. Because I'm nice like that. But this steak we had here? It was probably one of my favourite meals I have ever had. It was so simple yet utterly delicious. The medium rare steak was so soft that it literally melted in my mouth and the fries? Oh lord the fries. So crispy yet so fluffy in the inside. I've since heard they have a branch in London which I am visiting asap.

After gorging ourselves we retired to our apartment for an early-ish which I LOVE doing on holiday. I'm never about staying up late! The next day we had a pastry breakfast from Le Boulangrie Saint Michel, a bakery I'd found on Instagram, ate them on a bench overlooking a pretty church, and set off to explore the city in the day light. We ate some more, popped to the famous wine museum and tried to squeeze in a few more of the sights which were unfortunately closed. After going back for a nap, again a holiday tradition, we got ready for what we thought was going to be a five to seven taster menu at Le Bouchon Bordelais. It ended up being nine delicious courses of heaven. It was expensive but 100% worth it for a special occasion. Mainly seafood based, I'm still dreaming about the scallops with chorizo. You really can't visit Bordeaux without treating yourself to a meal there. My belly had never been so full!

Before we knew it it was time to jump on the bus back to the airport to fly home. But not before stuffing ourselves with a traditional French breakfast at Plume. If you fancy getting away from it all with lots of good food and great wine, it's a great palace for a few days. The architecture is very similar to Paris so it feels familiar. Make sure you check back in a few days for a more comprehensive list on how to spend 24 hours in Bordeaux. We really enjoyed wandering around and soaking up the city. I now want to explore even more of France with Brittany at the top of my list!

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2017: A year in books

One of my 2017 goals was to read more books and take advantage of my commute. I didn't hit my goal of 10 books this year but I did hit eight which I didn't think was too bad at all. A lot better than the three I read in 2016! I'm determined to read even more of my kindle this year. I'd love to hear any recommendations please. So what did I read?

Room - Emma Donoghue
Written from a little boy's perspective, this harrowing novel follows the story of a a woman who was kidnapped and kept as a prisoner. Half the book takes place in a garden prison so you really get a feel for the trauma the pair are going through. No stone is left uncovered as to how they're coping. It starts off slightly mundane to read but really picks up pace halfway through the book. It's such a heartbreaking read and brought a tear to my eye on more than one occasion. I saw the film before I read the book but I'd recommend not doing that. In order to get the most out of the book, you have to go in it with a completely clear mind.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - Betty Smith
Francie is a second-generation Irish American in New York City, growing up in poverty. The story follows her from an adolescent child in the summer of 1912 to an adult working in the big, bad world, with all her trials and tribulations along the way. Despite being written in 1943, the novel feels timeless. Sometimes I want to shake Francie and sometimes I want to give her a hug. The sign of a good book is when you get invested in the protagonist. It's a great read if you don't want to invest too much of your time - it's easy to pick up on a daily commute.

The Miniaturist - Jessie Burton
I fell for the hype for this and wanted to jump on the bandwagon. But now thinking about it, I'm not quite sure I enjoyed it. The novel tells the tale of a young naive woman married off in the 17th century Amsterdam to a man she doesn't know in a house full of secrets. I just feel like it never really got going for me. I did find the twists compelling and some of the secrets I never saw coming. But I can't quite put my finger on what I didn't like about it. I would be interested to see the TV show though as it'd be fascinating to see it portrayed on screen.

The Night Manager - John Le Carre
Slow at first, this book is addicting. John Le Carre has such a way with words that you find yourself holding your breath from one page to the next, being sucked into a web unsure of how everything is going to pan out. Jonathan Pine gets recruited as a spy to take down an arms seller,  and before he knows it has has dived head first into deceit and danger. I found myself willing Jonathan on and berating him for being careless. John Le Carre really never fails to deliver.

A Storm of Swords: Part 1 Steel and Snow -George R. R. Martin
I'm a massive Game of Thrones nut but by good do the books take me a long time to get through. I think I spent about five months reading this one. It's not the type in book you can pick up and get back into it straight away. As I don't read every day, I found myself having to go back a few pages each time to get my bearings. That said I just love the world that George R. R. Martin has created. I just need a break for a while before I start on the next one!

The Maze Runner - James Dashner
I found this dystopian future trilogy in a charity shop so thought they were worth the £3 investment as I'd seen the first film. As they're young adult fiction, they're pretty easy to read and aren't very big. The perfect commuter book! I really enjoyed it as its an interesting concept. A group of teenagers are at a place called 'The Glade' with no idea why or who they are.

The Thing Around Your Neck - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
This collection of 12 short stories all focus on Nigerian women.  Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is one of my favourite authors, I love how I can just lose myself in her writing and she chooses subjects that I don't know too much about, so they're always so interesting. I'm always left with so many questions and informations swirling around in my head. They encourage me to dig deeper and find out more. I'm not really sure short stories are for me as I find just as I get into them, they suddenly end and I'm left wanting more. Saying that they were really easy to read.

SSGB - Len Deighton
WWII is the period in history that I find the most interesting. I've been intrigued with toying with a couple of alternative history books for a while. I decided to take the plunge with this one. The United Kingdom lost the Battle of Britain and are not under Nazi occupations. There's a resistance in the north but the south is basically Nazi puppets. The story follows a British policeman who is trying to do the right thing. It's a fantastic book and one which I finished in a week. Not mean feat for this slow reader!

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