DISCOVERING IRELAND & BEYOND

Sunshine Blogger Award

Hi friends,

Sorry I have been so quiet the past few days. I have been unwell and unwilling to do anything but I am back now. To be honest, social media can take take toll sometimes, and when that happens its always best to take a break.

Anyhow, today’s post is a little different. Francesca from A Female Flâneur blog nominated me for the Sunshine Blogget awards this week and not only I am so honoured that she nominated me, but also thrilled as it is my first award nomination.

The rules are simple:

-Thank the person who nominated you and link to their blog

-Answer the 11 questions sent by the person who nominated you

-Nominate your favourite bloggers to receive the award, and write 11 questions for them

-List the rules and display the award logo on your post and blog.

And my 11 questions are:

What’s your dream holiday destination and why? – New York

What book would you recommend for summer reading? – I don’t really read but when I do, Jackie Collins is always the culprit that makes me.
What outfit or accessory makes you feel fabulous? – My wedding ring and the Fossil watch my husband bought me for our third wedding anniversary.
On a typical Sunday morning, what would you be doing? – Brunch at home with my hubby
If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be? – Sweet potatoes (I am low key OBSESSED)
Do you have any role models? If so, who are they? – Of course. My mother. If I am even an inch of the woman she is, I will have succeeded in life.
What is something on your bucket list? – Call me Boujee but all I want to do is fly first class. 🙃
Tea or coffee? – Coffee- in the morning, white, two sugars
What is the best compliment you’ve ever received? – Three things – 1. A few days after my dad passed, a few family members mentioned that my dad used to brag about me. 2. I also found a paper where my dad had written my name. I don’t know why my name was written but for some reason, I felt so proud that he had my name written down. I still have the paper in my wallet. 3. People telling me I am just like my dad. I used to get offended when I was younger but now that I am older and wiser, it is a compliment.
If there was one change you would like to see in the world, what would it be? – Death.
Do you have a favourite fairy-tale? If so, what is it? – Cinderella. I have no clue why but I watch the original Cinderella cartoon and memorized all the words when I was a child. I can still recite the movie word for word from beginning to end.

Thanks for reading guys.

I nominate:

Hello Haileys

Ciara Swalsh

The Adventures of Clare

What He Does

Kate in The Country

Me Myself and My Passion

Wondering or lost

My questions to you are:

If given the chance, would you switch places with Megan Markle?
What’s the worst thing you ever did as a child and what was your punishment?
What is one thing you refuse to share?
What are two things you would do if you woke up to find yourself completely invisible?
If someone wrote a biography about you, what do you think the title should be?
If you were offered the position of mayor of your city, would you take it?
What bad habit do you have that you know you need to break, but don’t really want to?
If you could have one superpower, what would it be and why?
If you could be on the cover of any magazine which one would you choose?
Describe your own personal hell.
Describe your own personal heaven.

How to pass an ESL job interview with Snaplingo

Happy Wednesday, Friends!

So I have had a few questions about interviews with Snaplingo so I decided to write this post and explain the interview process and how to pass yours.

The first thing you need to know about Snaplingo is that they are quite casual nd laid back. So try not to be too nervous or rigidly stiff during the interview.

When I did my interview, I was sitted on my bed with my back pressed against the wall. Of course, I didn’t show that I was sitted on my bed but the point is that it was a very relaxed environment.

My interviewer was very nice and the interview was very conversational, it was almost like we were old buddies.

After you have heard about the company and the job from your interview, take the initiative to ask questions. Write down any questions you might want to ask about the company, the job, colleagues, salary etc. This will tell the interviewer that you are really interested and know what you are looking for.

The second thing you need to keep in mind is that you need to prove that you are a teacher by nature even if you are not one by profession. So mention circumstances in which you might find difficulty while teaching and ask a question about them. For example, I asked what would happen if I got a child that doesn’t know English at all. The trainer told me not to worry about those kids as they will more often than not have an adult to help translate. If not, you can use google translate if you need to.

Questions such as these will show the interviewer that you know what you are doing as a teacher even if you have never taught before.

Third thing to do is download the Snaplingo App and get familiar with it. If you have any questions about it, do ask them. Again, questions show your enthusiasm.

Finally, if you can, get a few props like puppets and work them into the conversation with your interviewer. As a bonus, you can get a chart of numbers or the alphabet and stick them onto the wall as your background. This also shows initiative and interest.

You don’t have to get props and a background at interview stage. Most people wait until they get the job to get a background and props. This means that having them during your interview stage will give you an advantage over everyone else applying for the job.

TinyTip: Just buy a chart with the alphabet from a local store, cut the letters out and paste them onto the wall. This will give you a simple and attractive background.

So guys, this is my advice for anyone who has an interview for a job as an online ESL teacher with Snaplingo.

If you have any questions, please do comment or send me an email.

If you want information on applying for a job with Snaplingo, read my post here.

If you would like a sample letter to give you an idea on what to include in you cover letter, click here.

If you are looking for information about Snaplingo, click here.

Thanks for stopping by again.

See you next week.

Kel xxx

What to wear on a weekend at the 5 Star Dromoland Castle Hotel

Recently, my amazing husband surprised me with a fancy spa weekend. It was one of the best 5* castle hotel in Ireland with portions and prices to match.

Now normally, finding a wardrobe for a weekend away is never hard for me. However, when you are headed to a 5-star castle hotel, you are in an entirely different wardrobe demographic.

It all started on a Sunday evening as we were watching telly in our living room. Hubby suddenly looked up at me and said to me “don’t plan anything for the weekend of the 5th”.

Of course, curiosity kicked in and I started to ask questions. Where are we going? What are we doing? With who? Etc. My husband is a terrible secret keeper so I am usually good at getting these things out of him. This time, he was extremely tight-lipped about this particular one and that ignited my curiosity even more.

After loads of begging, I finally got him to show me just one photo of the place where we were going. All I wanted was an idea of what clothes to pack. It is my first time in a 5* castle hotel and I refuse to be the sloppy black guest. I mean it was already highly likely that I was going to be the only black person there. No way I was gonna be the sloppy black person.

The picture I saw was of a magnificent dining room with everyone dressed so formally. It was definitely not a wedding setting and I could make out that it was a dinner setting for hotel guests. I decided that we must be going somewhere fancy.

My fancy wardrobe ended the day I crossed the Atlantic and it has suffered severely since. What used to be little black dresses and heels back home had now turned into comfortable converse shoes and mustard knitwear in my wardrobe. My friends back home wouldn’t recognize me anymore.

So I now had about 10 days to get something inexpensive to wear for our weekend playing king and queen in a luxurious castle hotel.

I was going blind here guys. I had no idea where we were going or what the itinerary was going to be. Honestly, it was like taking a blind sheep out on the road and asking it to find its way home.

There is only one simple solution to wardrobe choice when flying blind- pack several different options for all scenarios. That basically means that I was packing about 10 different outfits for 2 days and one night away. Who does that? Apparently, me!

Scenario #1: cold and rainy day- I got this gorgeous red coat which I planned on wearing with a smart-casual top along with jeans and flat knee-high boots.

Scenario #2: for a warm dry and sunny day, I got this cute striped off shoulder skater dressin case it was sunny. I was hoping it wouldn’t be windy as these skater dresses like to fly up with the wind and I had no interest in having a Marylin Monroe moment. I matched the dress with a pair of flip-flops and slipped into the suitcase.

Scenario 3# Horse Riding. A quick google search educated me on the fact that there would probably be horse riding activities at a castle hotel. This was a bit concerning because I had no idea what to wear for horse riding. Fortunately, Google also suggested that most horse riding places provide boots and a helmet so all I had to do was bring a pair of jeans and a top to match. That was easy. I got this blush cotton jacket and matched it with a pair of jeans, a simple white top, and converse. Into the suitcase, they went.

Scenario #4: Afternoon tea- Just in case we went for Afternoon tea, I bought this gorgeous midi skater dress. It is simple and yet very elegant and ladylike- definitely has an ‘afternoon tea at the castle’ vibe.

Scenario #5: Dinner- my friend Google told me that castle hotels tend to suggest smart attire for their dinner guests. I welcome any chance to dress fancy- especially since they are so few and far between these days. I decided to pull out this little black number. It is elegant, romantic and definitely smart.

Fast forward to the day. We spent the weekend at Dromoland Castle Hotel which was such an exquisite and luxury experience. It’s official guys, I was born to be a princess and live in a castle. (COUGH) When you spend a weekend in a real 5* castle hotel, you start to rethink your entire existance. Suddenly, my three bedroomed terraced house was not quite sufficient.

Anyway, back to the point. What did I end up wearing? Well…… *DRUM ROLL*

DINNER

I ended up wearing this cute peach button front dress for dinner. It was decent, smart and quite summer. O matched it up with a pair of sparkly pink Aldo shoes that I wore once to Hello Haileys’ wedding in Cape Town last December gone.(Read about their tips on wedding planning HERE)

Bag was from Primark.

WALK AFTER DINNER

When you are taking a walk around a 200 acre garden, you need to make sure you have a comfortable pair of shoes on. After dinner, I did the sensible thing and changed into these flat sandals I got from Debenhams. As it was getting colder, I slipped on this red coat that I ordered off Boohoo.com. (Its a maternity coat but I promise I am NOT pregnant)

BREAKFAST

There was a gown and slippers in the closet so I slipped those on for breakfast which we had in our suite. The plan was to head to the hot tub after breakfast so I had my leopard print swim suit from Primark underneath.

FALCONING & HORSE RIDING

First of all, horse riding and falconing for an hour around the gardens was such a fantastic experience. I am actually thinking of starting private horse riding sessions.

Anyway, we spent the day engaged in outdoor activities so I decided to wear the pink jacket, a white top (old from Primark), black stretchy pants (old) and these cute pink trainers I got from Debenhams (now on sale)

One week later, I am slowly relearning to appreciate my 3 bedrooms terraced house. It gist doesn’t seem fair that I can’t live at the castle forever.

Ps. The black and white dress was lovely but too short for me in the back. The black dress is very cute but the slit was a bit too high and left my thighs a bit too exposed for my liking. I will get that remedied by a seamstress and give it a go on my anniversary.

Hope you enjoyed my very first fashion episode guys.

See you next week.

Kel xxx

Sample Application letter for an online ESL job with Snaplingo

Dear Andre,
I hope this e-mail finds you well. My name is _______________ and I got your contact from Kel Eya who is currently working as an English tutor for Snaplingo and has recommended me.
The reason for my e-mail is to express interest in becoming an English tutor with Snaplingo myself.
I have been volunteering with children for 4 years now which has exposed me to a lot of experience with children of different ages, abilities, and languages.
I believe that with my natural way with children coupled with 4 years of volunteer experience adequately equips me for the position as an online English Tutor for children under the age of twelve years of age.
It is therefore with keen interest that I apply for a position as an English Tutor for Snaplingo as and when a position becomes available.
I am available to start immediately and have a very fast internet connection, therefore, lessons will be smooth and uninterrupted.
If you have any positions available, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
I look forward to hearing from you with a possibility of a Skype interview and a position with Snaplingo.

Skype Address:

Sincerely,

____________________

I hope this helps.

If you would like more information on Snaplingo, I have written a good bit of information about what they are looking for here and about working for them here.

Please do let me know if you need any more help.

Kel xxx

Camping gone wrong in Dingle

Hello friends!

About two weeks ago, I had this brilliant idea to surprise my hubby with a nice romantic clamping experience away in the country. I have never ever been a clamping or camping kind of girl, but my hubby loves it so much and has always wanted us to go, so I decided that I would be adventurous and book us a weekend f clamping out in nature.

Yes! We are that cheesy couple that ceases every opportunity to suprise each other. It’s almost expected at this stage in our relationship, but whats life without a few expected surprises here and there? 😂

On with the story… So I know nothing about clamping- let alone clamping in Ireland. All I know is that I wanted me of those magical camping scenes that you see in Hollywood movies where a couple go away on a cheap camping trip in the woods together and return even more madly in love than the were when they left.

I pictures the moon glaring above us as we sat outside roasting marshmallows around the camp fire with other fellow in love campers.

Only now do I realise that I should probably cancel my Sky subscription as I am clearly starting to live in the movies.

We arrived in Dingle on a cold wet evening- this should have been my first warning bell. We arrived at the clamping sight which was saturated with partly occupied camper vans.

We were led to our cabin which was in the far back back of the grounds. The moment I saw the cabins, my heart sank- along with any hopes I had for romance and reconnection with nature.

It was a garden shed. I am not joking guys, a garden shed with a bed and a mini fridge. I have a garden shed the size of this cabin in my back garden and wouldn’t even let my husky sleep in it. How the heck was I supposed to spend a weekend in this one.

I couldn’t show my distaste in front of my husband for fear of ruining our weekend even more. I smiled and tried to save face and make a workable plan on how in the world I would sleep here. A few minutes in, we noticed there was no heating at all in the cabin and there were holes in the door. To be fair, this was a perfect excuse to spend the night snuggled up to each other not that we ever need one. However, i dont think any amount of snuggling would have kept us warm all night.

To make matters worse, we found out that the toilets were a two minute walk from the cabin. Who knew that glamping cabins the size of a garden shed have no toilet inside? I know i didn’t. Heck I had never even conciously thought about the fact that camping sites dont have private ensuite bathrooms for when one needs to ease themselves. Now that my head was out of the clouds, I could believe i had booked us a weekend away and the toilet was within a two minute walk of where we were sleeping.

The fact that I had booked it as a romantic get away meant that i had to put up with it and try to make sure hubby enjoyed it too. Our romantic moon light marshmallow roasting fest had gone down the drain with each drop of drain that had come to ruin our weekend.

Fortunately, I have the most amazing husband who came to the rescue. He managed book us the last available room at the Dingle Skellig Hotel and literally dave my life at the same time. I was not going to cope with the ‘glamping’ situation at all. Call me ‘Boujee’, but I believe in ensuite bathrooms and wall heating- FULLSTOP!

Its now official. Glamping and camping are bot for me. I am all for adventure but I shall not be adventurous with my lodging options unless they have clean ensuite bathrooms with warm showers, flashing toilet and sahaarah desert kind of heating.

Anyway, the Dingle Skellig Hotel was amazing and we did have our romantic get away after all as well as a few adventures.

Here is what I recommend if you are heading over to Dingle for a weekend.

1. Take an hour boat out into the deep blue waters to see Fungie, the Dingle dolphin. I have never seen a real life dolphin so this was a huge treat for me. The views out there are also amazing! I booked with Dingle Dolphin Tours.

2. Drive down to the Kinard beach which is a secluded beach about 15 minutes east from the Dingle town. This is an amazing spot.

3. Drive along the Slea Head which is the most westerly part of Europe. To the west of the Slea head is America. You might need special equipment to see this. 🙃

4. Before you finish the Slea Head, you have to see the Clogher Strand beach. This beach is the most perfect spot to watch a sunset. We sat here for a good long while and just took the scenery in.

Last but not least, If you like your dinner served with a view, recommend lunch at the Boat Yard restaurant in Dingle town. And if you are into a more high- end vibe, the Coastguard Restaurant at the Dingle Skellig Hotel. We had a really scrumptious meals in both restaurants but the prices also differed grately.

We are planning on heading back to Dingle sometime soon. Does anyone have any recommendations on what to do and see there?

Want to see some gorgeous videos of the Dingle Peninsular? Follow me on Insatgram and check out my stories this week. If you see this post after the week posted, head over to my highlights for a little peak.

Gonna end the post here. Thanks for stopping by.

Kel xxx

The perfect job for travelers

Hi Friends,

Since I started blogging and traveling, the one question that has been asked the most (4 people) is how I afford to travel so much. This post is not so much about how I afford to travel but how YOU can afford to get up and go travelling the world and still get paid.

Sounds too good to be true? Well, it isn’t. Just keep reading.

To be honest, I afford travel because I mostly travel within Ireland which in itself is a traveler’s gold mine when it comes to abundance. There is always something to see and do on this little Island. My advice to anyone who wants to travel is that you don’t need to cross borders to experience travel and adventure.

Back to the point, how can you afford to travel as much as you want? Well, you need to get a job that allows you to do so. One that you gives you the opportunity to work from anywhere in the world and in any time zone. It is literally the dream job and here is some advice for you if you would like to land yourself one.

I am an online language teacher- better known as an ESL (English as a Second language) teacher. I basically teach Chinese children English for a living. It is an extremely enjoyable job and as flexible as a job can get but with good enough remuneration. In short, if you work for 20 hours a week and get paid what I would have been paid if I was in a fulltime 9-5 job.

How do you get yourself one of these? Well, listen carefully- I am about to give you pure gold.

What you need:

1. The first and most important thing you need is a native English speaking accent. The most desirable accents are the American, British and Canadian accents. Neutral accents are also very important for non-native speakers, although many companies prefer not to hire non-native speakers.

2. Experience with children. If you have experience teaching children, you have a greater chance of getting an ESL job. Companies look for people who are able to deal with children in a professional yet effective manner. That said, I know loads of people who have gotten ESL jobs with no teaching experience whatsoever.

4. You will need to have a TEFL certificate course done or be in the process of acquiring one. You can get them on discount depending on the time of the year.

3. High-speed internet very important as the companies need to know that your lessons are going to run smoothly with little to no distractions due to the connection.

4. Availability in peak times which happens between 6 pm and 10 pm in the students local time.

Once you make sure you have the above listed checked, you can then apply for a job. The company that I work for is called SnapLingo and they are definitely a great company. I have worked for them for a while now and I can confidently say that I am very happy with them.

I have created a new page on the blog solely dedicated to recruitment advice. Here are a few things you need to know about getting hired with SnapLingo. Click here

I am also thinking of posting a few videos to help fellow travellers with the application process, interviews, demos etc.

Comment if this is something you are interested it.

Thanks for stopping by guys.

I am buying the Castle- Castletownshend, Ireland

Hello, friends!

Most of you that are following me on Instagram or those that have read my previous blogs posts know that I am absolutely obsessed with Castles. Everything about them- from the stone build to the watchtowers and solid thick arched doors, they are just this girl’s idea of the perfect home.

In fact, if you gave me a time machine, I would rewind back to the previous centuries when living in castles was a thing. Then again, I would have been a slave, so I shall not indulge too far into that fantasy. Since I can’t go back in time, I have decided that I am going to buy a castle and here is why.

Somewhere on the west coast of, along the Wild Atlantic way, in a small town of Castletownshend, you will find a gorgeous Castle. ‘The Castle‘- they call it, and man is it one indeed.

A few days ago, I had the privilege of visiting The Castle and actually even staying in it for a night. Now most castles in Ireland are ruined or preserved as tourists attractions. Not this one. This one is a Bed and Breakfast that has tried it’s best to preserve the authenticity, history, and ownership.

Staying at The Castle for me was like visiting a rich white uncle on my husband side of the family in the 19th century. The moment you enter through the solid wood arched door, you get a sense that you are in a 19th century aristocratic home decorated with old but tasteful antique furniture.

It was eerily quiet inside- almost like no one lives here. After a minute, a lovely lady greeted us and handed us the key to the Army room in which we would slumber for the night. Forgive the last-century lingo guys- just getting into character here.

As the lovely lady led us through the living room and the corridor and up the stairs, I observed shelves full of really old books, a table of maps and some kind of big ancient religious book that looked to me like a very early version of the bible.

The stairs are dark brown and curved with 19th-century hardwood. Clearly, they have not been changed in at least a century if not two. The Castle was originally built by Colonel Richard Townshend in 1650 and later in 1800 after undergoing a couple of destructions through the years. There is a good bit of information about the Townsend family who owns The Castle HERE. (Handy information for me who wants to buy the castle)

Back to my story. Our room was on the third and topmost floor of the Castle. The room was not as antique as the rest of the house but that was to be expected. I doubt a 200-year-old bed would hold the weight of two fully grown Mc’Donalds eating, 21st-century adults. It goes without the say that the toilet and shower were both authentically 21st century and thank goodness for that- I don’t do squatting toilets or cold baths.

The best thing about the room was the view. Take a look at the photos below to see what we saw. The room was warm and definitely comfortable.

For dinner, we walked about a hundred meters outside the Castle to Mary Ann’s pub which also has its own rich history. The most fascinating thing though was the fact that besides us and 2 other couples that were obviously staying at the Castle, everyone else knew each other. There were predominantly older people walking in from all of at most 500 meters of the whole town for a pint and a chat with friends.

Our meal here is absolutely divine but as usual, I will not or pretend to know much about the food.

We walked home as the sun set over the water for a well-deserved rest as we had a long day of exploring to do the next day. All I wanted to do was take a shower, put up my feet and I bulge in a good book. I found a really interesting book in the Castles large collection and settled down with that until bedtime.

I hate to admit for fear of sounding so old but we were asleep by 9/10pm.

Sunday morning we had to get to breakfast table between 8 am and 10 am.

Allow me to set the scene. The breakfast room is large and tastefully decorated with 19th-century furniture and antiques. The windows are huge and let in a generous amount of light- even on a dark overcast day.

The breakfast was surely delightful. We had an Irish breakfast and headed out for a morning walk along the garden paths to what probably used to be a watchtower at the top of a hill. The view from the top is definitely worth the short walk up. On a lovely summers day, a picnic up here is a brilliant idea.

Check out was at 11 am and off we were.

So, now for buying the Castle. Oh, I am definitely serious about this. However, I am still trying to track down the owners of the Castle. I am not quite sure what the going rate for a Castle on the Wild Atlantic Way is but I think I can make them an offer of about €5000-10,000.

Contributions welcome from the public. Help this black girl achieve her dream of owning a Castle.

Your Boujee traveler

Xxx