Should you trust TripAdvisor

TripAdvisor has become the website to know and trust when making a decision on what to do when on holidays. But with the website become so popular and everyone looking to make sure they get and maintain good review with a good rating, can you really trust the website anymore.

I have been on trips that use of TripAdvisor as their main source of advertisement and I have to say at the end of my time with them I have become more and more suspect of the reviews. Putting aside the somewhat obvious post from individuals who have interests in the company, companies are now promoting everybody to leave a comment detailing their experience. This would not be a bad concept, however it is the notion of the guys running it bribing and blatantly catering their activities for good reviews. There was even one instances where they sat us down with a company after we had finished and politely asked us to leave a response and they would give us an ice-cream after.   

I know TripAdvisor has been looking to crack down on this sort of reviews, but I know that it is something that is just too hard to police. I am not saying that you should ignore TripAdvisor reviews far from it. I am just saying that certain reviews should be taken with a grain of salt. This way you will be able to enjoy your holiday and know that you are doing the very best activities

How to tell if someone likes you

I'm sure by this age you've liked someone, and wondered if they liked you back too. Sometimes the signs are obvious, and other times there can be mixed signals. Snapchat and chill anyone? Haha, so I asked my boyfriend for how he's able to tell if someone likes him. He said "I can't tell, I just get told." LOL but not all of us are fortunate enough to have friends who find out who your crush else likes and feeds you that information. Soooo I came up with a list of twenty signs that might help!

1. They find out about your hobbies and try and gain an interest in them if they don't know much about the topic. If you have a lot in common, they'll be really excited and base a lot of the conversation on mutual interests. They will notice your music tastes and find songs they think you'll like, and apparently it's love if they suggest a book that you like.
2. They call you almost every day and the calls last over an hour. Does anyone even like talking on the phone? Also, sometimes there is nothing left to talk about on the phone but they make no attempt to leave the conversation or hang up.
3. When they introduce you to someone, they don't say "my friend," they just say your name. Because subconsciously, it hurts a little to know that you're still just a friend.
4. Their replies are always fast, and they never give you the seen or unseen. They're always keen to talk to you and don't care if their instant replies are embarrassing, because they want you to know they're interested.
5. They compliment your appearance and notice when you do something different, e.g. straighten your hair or get a haircut. Even if they don't like the haircut, they will comment on it. Just something simple like "you got a haircut."
6. They make excuses to be with you alone. When you want a romantic relationship with someone, you might completely disregard mutual friends, whether it is intentional or not. They might walk you to bus stops when they live on campus, go looking for you when you get kicked out of a bar, ask you to spend the night painting fairies with them when they are perfectly capable of doing it on their own, insist on doing lecture announcements when they don't even have uni that day...
7. They work on something with you but end up talking and laughing most of the time. If they didn't have feelings for you, they would be fully focused on the task at hand and will want to get it done as fast as possible.
8. They don't check the clock. This is a huge sign when they're not even interested in the activity. Oh and even more so if they are usually on time to everything. But yeah, if they are enjoying spending time with you, they won't want to know what the time is, because it'll mean there's less remaining.
9. They lean in to be closer to you, even if they can hear you perfectly. Being physically closer can lead to feeling emotionally closer.
10. They initiate the conversation or approach you first. Orrr they could play hard to get. But usually both of these things are easy to see through.
11. They ask about your past. They want to know what you were like as a child, whether you've dated before and how far you've gone, what hurt you... they want to know you. If you tell them about your past relationships, they can have an idea of what it would be like to date you.
12. They're a bit nervous around you - they'll try to be smooth but they'll probably stuff up a little. Or maybe they're like me and think things through a hundred times before saying them HAHAHA.
13. They remember your birthday. It's something small but big enough that if they didn't remember it, it would hurt haha. There is no such thing as high maintenance. But really, they need an excuse to spoil you!
14. They laugh at your jokes, even if they're not that funny. You know how sometimes you give support likes on Facebook, sometimes girls give support laughs to the guys they like, just to save their ego.
15. They try harder with their appearance. They might start wearing makeup, styling their hair, care more about big brands, and even ask you for advice on what you think they suit better! If they ask you to do their hair for a big event (and they really care about their looks) then they definitely like you.
16. They either stare, are really good at holding eye contact, or can't look for two seconds without blushing. There is no inbetween. Perhaps they like what they see, like the intimacy of extended periods of eye contact, or secretly have this fear that you'll realise they have feelings for you and that's why they have to look away. Who knows...
17. They lose interest in the conversation and zone out when you talk about another boy/girl. I think this one is pretty self explanatory haha.
18. They listen to everything you tell them, and remember the small details. They want to know everything about you, and will want to prove to you that they care by remembering what you tell them.
19. They make time for you even when they are sad or busy. You know those moods when you don't want to talk to anyone? Well, the person you like will always be an exception.
20. They either constantly touch you, or don't move away when you accidentally (or "accidentally") brush your arm/leg against theirs.

Hope this helped! Or at least made things a little more clear. 

~ xoxo Farzana

Relationship myths

I'm no Dr Phil when it comes to relationships, but a few weeks ago, I read a blog post about bad relationships by Emma Chow from 96.1 on Popsugar that deeply resonated with me. As I read each point, I thought "wow that's sooooo true, feeling her sooo hard right now." I thought I would do something similar, but more on myths rather than lessons I've learnt. Can't roast anyone too badly on here haha.



The friendzone.

I've lost count of how many times I've written about this or told people it's not real. But it really isn't. I've had people ask me "weren't you worried that he would never see you as more than a friend? I would never date someone who's a friend" and it shocked me. If you only consider people you just meet, how do you know that the interest (from either side) isn't purely based on looks? Some people don't want others to know their flaws, but you know what's even better than people not knowing your flaws? People knowing your flaws and still accepting you. That's when you know it's real. You can't hide forever LOL. People date friends, and the truth is, if a friend wouldn't date you, it's because they're not attracted to you. It's not "because you're a friend."


Opposites attract.

Initially, this could be true. However, if/once the infatuation dies down (which it probably will,) what are you going to do? If you want to go out to parties and he wants to stay at home playing videogames, would you still go? If you hate mainstream music but she loves Taylor Swift then what songs are you gonna sing along to on your long drives? Would you feel awkward about spending all his money on designer bags he doesn't see the point of? Over time, you'll realise that the list of things you can both enjoy becomes shorter and shorter, and you'll end up relying on your friends and family to stay happy. That's when you know it's time for quits - when you feel happier without them.


They'll change.

If you want someone to change, or if you're having thoughts like "if they ______, then I would be happy" then chances are, they won't change, or even if they do, it won't be as expected. You can't make someone quit smoking. They'll just find ways to do it without you finding out. People only change for themselves. There is nothing wrong with change; personal growth is essential, but it's little things that can end up mattering the most.




by Farzana

5 Essential Travel Accessories

New technology has revolutionised travelling in the 21^st century has change forever. With new technology maps, bookings, travel books and even taxis have become redundant. The internet and smartphone has empowered the traveller, here are the newest and best toys that will make travelling a breeze.

LifeProof Phone Case

Link Here

For anyone who has ever travelled to a far distant destination, you will know that your phone is the lifeblood to getting around. This means if anything happens to it, you are going to be in a lot of trouble. The LifeProof iPhone case will make sure that whatever may happen to your phone, it won’t see a scratch. Waterproof, Shockproof and dust proof, it may be a little expensive but it will bring piece of mind to anyone travelling.

Xiaomi Power Bank

Link Here

Smartphones may be powerful, but they are by no means everlasting. This can be a huge problem if you are lost, with low battery and no access to another map. What you will need is something that can give you instant long lasting power. Meet the Xiaomi power bank the lifesaver of every smartphone. With up to 3 full charges to a smartphone, leave nothing to chance when you are getting lost in another world.

4 USB Roll-up Travel Charger

Link Here

We all know we need as many USB charges as possible and packing space is at a premium. There we need something small and combat while also extremely useful. The USB Roll-up travel charger will make powering your devices easy and leave you more space to buy that souvenir that just going to complete your collection.

Refillable Liquid Travel Bottles

Link Here

These bottles are small, convenient and oh so easy to fill. Its never practical to bring your own large bottles of Shampoo with you and we all know those travel sized toiletries are overpriced. Here are the perfect sized bottles for anything that you can’t live without.

Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones

Link Here

Nothing can be more frustrating that being on the long haul of a trip, desperately needing sleep and there is one crying baby sitting directly behind you. What you will need are a pair of headphones that will reduce even the loudest crying baby into soothing white noise. Enjoy your sleep, or hear your music clearer than ever with these headphones. Nothing will get in your way from making your trip a memorable adventure with these headphones.

Make An Origami Paper Crane "Orizuru"

Orizuru basically means folded crane. Origami is a Japanese craft of folding paper. The crane is a well known origami and is relatively simple to make.

Stuff you need: 

A square piece of paper.

A square piece of paper.

Instructions: 

Step 1: Fold the square paper along its diagonals, in half and quarters. You should see fold marks on your piece of paper. 

Fold marks on the square piece of paper shown by the yellow lines. 

Step 2: Chose two opposite quadrants And fold each quadrant along its diagonal. 

Choose to opposite quadrants and fold them each along its diagonal. 

You should end up with something like this. 

The two quadrants folded along its diagonal gets tucked inside the square shaped structure. 

Something like this. 

Step 3: Fold one side of the square along the yellow lines as shown below. Step by step folding is shown below too. 

The yellow lines where you should fold

Fold the long side along the opening end of the square structure. 

Then the next side.

Then the top.

Step 4: Open the folds. and open up the square.Then press down each side. These steps are shown in the images below. 

Open up the folds

Open up the square. 

Press down on each side. 

You should end up with something like this. 

Step 5: Repeat step 4 for the other square. As shown in the images below. 

Fold along the yellow lines. Then open up the fold and open up the square. 

It should look something like this. 

Step 6: Fold each side like a spear structure as shown in the images below.

Fold each side like a spear structure. 

Repeat for the other side. 

Step 7: Fold the neck and tail shape for the crane. To do this you must create a fold mark along the yellow line as shown in the picture below. Then open up that side and fold it inside, tuck it into the body structure. 

Fold along the yellow line. 

Fold along the yellow line like so. 

Open it up and tuck it into the body structure like so. 

Repeat for the tail. 

Step 8: Fold the neck structure like the image below to make the head. Just like with the neck open up the fold and tuck it into the neck structure.

Make fold mark along the neck. 

Tuck it into the neck like so. 

 Step 9: Fold the sides like the image below to make the wings. Repeat for both sides. 

Fold the side down to make the first wing. 

Repeat for the other side. 

Step 10: To make the body into a box like structure slowly push it down using your thump until it looks something like the image below. 

Top view of the crane, the body is a box like structure. 

And you are done!

Finished product 

Now that you have made a crane, why not try making 999 more? The Japanese believe that a 1000 cranes will grant you a wish. Whether it be good luck or good health. Why not give it a try? 

by Gayathri