You're more likely to see a dolphin than an alligator...

It was 27 degrees CELCIUS today. In October. It's sick!

So, we decided to hit the beach just in case this was freak weather. We caught the bus over to Folly beach but as it happens the bus turns back 3 miles away. Now I don't mind walking but when your talking 3 miles at the side of a motorway built through SWAMP LANDS I'm not so okay with that. I'm not sure if you're aware that South Carolina is home to alligators, rattlesnakes, coral snakes, poisonous spiders...and the rest.

So just picture us pair scurrying along the side of the road, on edge, surrounded by swamps on all sides, nowhere to run,  I'm ready to throw Paula to the alligators as a decoy at any given moment and we're worrying what our parents would say. HA! We were so worn out by the time we got to the beach we just had to lie down and rest for 3 hours. 

{In the glorious sunshine. Karma's gon' be a bitch.}

I don't know much about alligators but I assume they come out the water when the weather gets cooler and the sun begins to set, say around 5 o'clock? What time did we decide to walk back? 5 o'clock. There he was, right there beside the road in the water. I'm not gonna pretend he was huge or anything but he was the kinda size which made me think mumma was lurking close by. He'd at least have taken a leg. "Just.f*cking.go. Just go" was all we managed at the time. Sorry dad, we did try and get a taxi. 

We seen an alligator though!! How amazingly awesome is that! We seen dolphins in the creek feeding and birds of prey circling above our heads , bright red dragonflies and neon butterflies, I love Charleston!

Louise x

Palm trees, Y'alls and chevrolets

There's a reason Nicholas Sparks sets all his books in the deep south. It's because it's cool as hell and literally every man is an undiscovered Abercrombie model. And because he lives here but that comes back to it being ace. Paula says I'm prone to exaggerating but come and see for yo'self.

We hired bikes today to explore and once I'd got used to the silly buggers we were a force to be reckoned with. Paula was in front because "apparently" I wasn't to be trusted on the roads. Now I don't know if it's just me but Americans make everything so difficult...miles, feet, inches, cups, toilet doors with gaps, bikes that you have to pedal backwards to brake. I mean what the hell is that! I literally had to learn to ride a bike all over again. My constant stalling at traffic lights made my pretty bike/ sun hat/ aviators combination waaay less cool. Consequently a lot funnier though. Paula more like a mother taking her 5 year old on a day trip, in particular when my hat blew away. Well imagine the horror when I realised it was on the path of death as the wheels of a truck headed straight for it. To say I screamed in terror is an understatement. I did however teach her a thing or two about the civil war today, just a little something I picked up in Philly on my Independence Hall tour...cool points to me!

Louise x

everybody be...

Tofino...proof that we really did go!



Louise x

Sometimes all there is to do...(edited)

...is take pictures of leaves.

We're in Kelowna, BC, now for a couple of days. I'm not sure whether it's down to the fact we've just been sharing a 4 bed dorm with two smelly boys but this place already seems pr-etty niice. Tuesday night is movie night but the guys are playing fifa so instead I'm catching up on the presidential debates 'cause I don't like fun and I couldn't think of a nerdier thing to do.

However tomorrow night, ladies and gentleman, is pumpkin carving night!! I'm super crazy {with a cherry on top} excited for this and no one's going to carve a better pumpkin than me...or sh*t's gon' get nasty.

These photos are actually from a solo walk of mine which was some sort of relaxing. No "WTF are you doing?"'s or explanations needed as to why the f*ck I was rolling about in leaves. Camera MADNESS.

lipstick and nature

This is the story of 4 girls who go camping. Or rather 4 ladies who survived camping. 

Well first things first. We went camping on Vancouver Island. 4 girls, one car, a ferry, and a bear. 

6am and off we chugged in our car weighed down by clothes that we wouldn't wear and a tonne of food that we definitely would eat. Our ferry ride went quickly with the help of breakfast bagels and the unavoidable reenactment of a particular scene from a well known movie. 

que Celine Dion

We stopped off for mini nature adventures but had to leave because SOMEBODY fell in the river with their clothes on and had to get all naked in front of the car on a busy road with Abercrombie models going past in every 2nd car. 

Chelsey set up our tent. And the fire. Hannah, Tennille and I were very helpful, of course. We collected twigs and things...

and when we needed more firewood we went for ice cream in Tofino. 

We drank like hillbillies and ate smores and danced around the campfire.

Instead of going whale watching like originally planned we all agreed surfing would be more memorable. Surfing.

There was definitely some girl bonding going on that weekend. No one showered for 3 days but we did go surfing so that counts, right? We listened to albums on repeat of Bonnie Tyler, Britney, and N'Sync,  Tennille gave us tarot readings and we ate our body weights in cheetos and veggie hotdogs. We snuggled up on the cold foggy beach for naps and attempted to tell ghost stories. I heard a bear outside the tent in the middle of the night and nobody believes me but they didn't hear it. 

It. Was. Amazing. 

I'll be frank with you, I've been having waaay too much fun so I haven't had the time to update you on my travels or lack of but better late than never hey!