I need to apologise for the huge delay in writing this post! Back in February Valerie from The Little Graduate nominated me for the Liebster Award and she posed such difficult (but good!) questions that it’s taken me forever to answer them! Then about a week ago the blogger behind (pre)concept also nominated me for the award, so a big thank you to both of you and I’m so pleased that you enjoy my blog enough to give me this award! It’s a great idea and I have loved finding out more about you two (as well as the other blogs you’ve nominated – it’s a great way to discover great new bloggers out there!).

Liebster is a German word meaning kindest, nicest, beloved, endearing and welcoming – it’s a word that has a positive meaning towards others. This award is given to bloggers by other bloggers; the most important thing about this is to share and grow the network and encourage new bloggers. The blogger who has been nominated should have < 200 followers.

How it works:

• Each person must post 11 things about themselves
• Answer the questions that the nominator set for you, then set 11 more questions for the blogs you nominate
• Choose blogs to nominate, then link them to your blog
• Go to their page and let them know

So, first of all, here are 11 things about me:

1. I am 100% English and grew up in the south of England, but I now feel more “European” than English, and would like to settle down somewhere outside the UK.
2. I am utterly addicted to my to-do lists. I couldn’t live without them.
3. My family has a hereditary title, but as I have no brothers, the title will die out soon, as girls aren’t allowed to inherit it.
4. My favourite literary genre is the murder mystery & Agatha Christie is an absolute genius.
5. At one point or another I’ve started learning 7 separate foreign languages. The most successful of which were Spanish & Italian, which I’m now fluent in. The least successful was Turkish – I went to 1 class, decided it was a crazy idea & never went back!
6. My family tree has been traced back as far as William the Conqueror, almost 1000 years ago. Does this mean I’m related to royalty? (I would like to think so haha although I’m sure half the country must be related to him!)
7. I’ve been scuba diving with sharks (albeit harmless ones).
8. I’ve travelled to 35 different countries & won’t stop there. However, the countries I love the most are the ones in which I can speak the language & make local friends.
9. I’m constantly thinking and daydreaming about the future – sometimes I get fed up of thinking so much about the future and wish I could just live in the moment!
10. I don’t eat fish or seafood (aside from calamari, which just don’t register in my mind as seafood for some reason).
11. I’m fiercely indepedent.

Here are my answers to the 11 questions that Valerie from The Little Graduate asked me:

1. How did you come up with your blog names? One thing I absolutely have to pick up on my travels is a postcard. Covering the walls of all the various rooms I’ve lived in, in all of the various countries, a growing number of postcards have followed me around, always reminding me of past adventures. Hence the name of my blog, The Well-Travelled Postcard.
2. Who are your top 3 bloggers/blogs that you follow? Cookiesound Is Travelling, The Londoner, The Littlest Things
3. Describe yourself in 3 words (hah! good luck). This was so hard! I’ve finally come up with these three: ambitious, adventurous, curious.
4. If you could swap bodies with someone for one day, who would it be and why? This is a tough one – but at the moment I have serious envy of Italian fashion blogger Chiara Ferragni of The Blonde Salad. She travels all round the world and has what looks like an incredible lifestyle.
5. If you could have a superpower, what would it be and why? I’d be able to teleport. I’m in a long-distance relationship so it would make a huge difference!
6. Where would you like to travel to next? Indonesia.
7. Who are 3 (real or fictitious) people that you’d invite to your fantasy dinner party? Miss Marple, Prince Harry & Kate Moss.
8. What are your 3 favourite clothing shops/labels? Zara, Ralph Lauren, Massimo Dutti.
9. What’s your favourite TV show? Inspector Montalbano – an incredible Italian police detective series set in Sicily. Great locations, great plots, Italian food & language – absolutely perfect. They occasionally show it on the BBC, or you can also find it on iTunes.
10. If you had to only eat one kind of food for the rest of your life, what would it be? Without a doubt I’d choose ice cream. As a teenager (when I still had really high metabolism) I used to make my own ice cream and would eat it at all times of day, even for breakfast.
11. Share an embarrassing or awkward encounter with someone you’ve had a crush on! There have been far too many – these encounters usually involve me without any make-up on and attempting to hide!

And here are my answers to the 11 questions that (pre)concept asked me:

1. If you had to choose 3 countries where you see yourself living what would they be? Italy & Spain for definite, and at the moment I’d say Hong Kong as number 3, although I wouldn’t want to live there forever.
2. Do you prefer coffee or tea? Neither! I get my caffeine from Coke Zero, although I don’t drink it in the morning.
3. What’s your favourite song when you’re travelling? If I had to choose just one song, it’d be ‘Dancing in the Moonlight’ by Toploader. But the general type of music that most gets me in the mood for travelling and exploring would be foreign music – preferably in Spanish, Italian or Portuguese. Hearing music I discovered when I was abroad always reminds me of being abroad and gives me a buzz!
4. If you had to recommend one book, what would that be? If you haven’t yet read the Millenium trilogy by Stieg Larsson then you are seriously missing out. Read the books before you see the films – the films simply can’t convey everything the books give you. The fact that he’s not longer alive and unable to write anything else is such a huge shame.
5. What is your favourite cuisine around the world? Spanish tapas – nothing better than plates and plates of tapas to share with friends.
6. What are the five things you would never leave at home, if you were going on a big trip? 1. Eye mask (it sends me to sleep straight away). 2. My camera. 3. An empty notepad along with stationery & glue, sellotape, scissors etc. for sticking in momentos. 4. A phrasebook/dictionary. 5. An iPod full of music and audiobooks (for long journeys).
7. Do you prefer the countryside or a big city? Big city. I grew up in the countryside and will always love the odd break to the countryside, but at this stage in my life the countryside is just too dull, and I love living in London – there’s always something to do!
8. Which city would you recommend me to visit and why? Havana, Cuba. I haven’t been there since 2007 so it may have changed radically since then, but it had such a fantastic atmosphere and is so unlike anything I’m used to in Europe. It’ll open your eyes and give you another perspective on the world you thought you knew.
9. What is the best thing about the place you live in? London seems to be the centre of the universe in some respects. You can find anything you want here and there is such variety! In certain areas it feels very English and traditional, and in others I feel like I’m in another country, that’s how diverse and international the city is.
10. Why did you decide to write a blog? I started my blog in summer 2012 after graduating from university, when I had lots of trips planned and plenty of free time before starting my graduate job in September. I wanted to maintain a connection to the world of travel once I started my job and thought that a blog would be a good way to travel vicariously and to stop myself from getting too stuck into the London bubble.
11. If could only eat one thing forever what would that be? Without a doubt I’d choose ice cream. As a teenager (when I still had really high metabolism) I used to make my own ice cream and would eat it at all times of day, even for breakfast.

So now it’s my turn to pass on the award to some of my favourite bloggers. I love reading these blogs as well as many many more, and it’s been very hard to choose. So I am nominating:

HolaYessica
Where in the World is Dayna
Emily’s Journeys Abroad
Tricia A. Mitchell
Cookiesound Is Travelling
Lighter Life
The Limoncello Life
The Littlest Things
World’s Heritage Travel
Emma in Euroland

So here are the 11 things I’d like to know about you!

1. If you could have any nationality of your choice (other than your own) which would you choose?
2. What’s your pet hate?
3. What did you want to be when you were little?
4. What was the best day of your life so far and why?
5. Where on your travels have you had the biggest culture shock?
6. Would you rather: never be allowed back into your home country, or never be allowed out of your home country? Why?
7. If you could be a character in any film, who would you be?
8. What is your most prized possession?
9. What’s your favourite childhood memory?
10. The genie from Aladdin’s lamp offers you 3 wishes, what are they?
11. Where do you see yourself in 10 years time?