André Aciman’s Call Me By Your Name is, at its heart, a novel about first love—the kind that consumes, unsettles, and lingers long after the last page. It is a romance, but not in the conventional sense. There’s no grand declaration, no sweeping resolution, and no clear line where love begins or ends. Instead, it’s an intimate, feverish portrait of desire and self-discovery, narrated through … Continue reading All-Time Favourite Romance Novels
I had the pleasure of speaking to a Cardiff local and one of my favourite social media content creators. Cassie, also known as @thisis.cassie, creates and curates content about Cardiff and other countries she has explored. She shared her top travel tips and explained why Cardiff, Wales, and the UK are underrated travel destinations. What inspired you to create lifestyle and travel content, and where … Continue reading Interview with @thisis.Cassie- Cardiff’s Own Travel Influencer
It was my first time attending the Society Spring Showcase, but it was something I will never forget. The talent on display was unbelievable! A wide variety of acts showcased their talents, including a mixture of A Cappella, FAD extravaganzas, and a Brass Band with audience participation to conclude the show. It truly was a fantastic evening. Yet, the most heart-warming aspect of it all … Continue reading Spring Showcase – Embracing the Arts at Cardiff University
Pointe shoes, tutus, and pirouettes. Ballerinas ooze grace and elegance whilst on stage. Is the world of ballet as refined as it looks on stage, or are there layers of ballet and ballet culture hidden behind the facade? Ballerinas train tirelessly and often have to decide at a young age to devote their life to the stage and to their craft. Putting in hours of … Continue reading Pointe Shoes and Pirouettes: The Dangerously Delicate
Growing up in an increasingly digitised world has increased the importance of self care breaks and digital detoxes. When I want to unplug myself from technology and social media, I take myself to the Gower Peninsula, South Wales. Having been there every summer since I was born, there is no better sanctuary than the beautiful miles of beaches available. From a surfer’s haven at Llangennith, to tucked … Continue reading A Coastal Reset: Digital Detoxing on the Gower Peninsula
One of my biggest pet peeves is food waste. See a perfectly good vegetable go to the bin is a crime honestly- especially when there is so many ways to use it up, or even save it for later. Therefore over the years I’ve learnt a few handy tips to rescue those wilting veggies, packets of meat coming up to their due date, and that … Continue reading Anti-Waste Anecdotes
Imagine you start getting a pain in your knee every so often, you don’t think anything of it. But then that pain turns to both knees, hips, ankles, shoulders and wrists. And it’s just a twinge here and an ache there until it’s not. Until it’s excruciating, shooting pain coming from all of your joints simultaneously. Except this isn’t some hypothetical or imaginary situation, this … Continue reading Struggling With Chronic Pain: My Experience
Dating apps love to sell us a story of finding our soulmates using algorithms and prompts, as if finding the perfect partner is solely down to a matching of criteria. Through my years — yes, years — of being on and off dating sites, I’ve come to the conclusion that they are nothing more than glorified hookup sites. Sure, you get the odd happy ending … Continue reading Dating in the Digital Age
Getting the date right on Valentine’s Day can be stressful, whether it’s to celebrate a longstanding relationship or to woo a situationship, the time, place and atmosphere can be crucial for making a memorable Valentines. A table for two is the staple hallmark of a Valentine’s date- after all, with all the love in the air, who has time to cook? If a candlelit … Continue reading Best Places for Valentines in Cardiff
The five love languages of ‘Quality Time’, ‘Giving Gifts’, ‘Words of Affirmation’, ‘Acts of Service’ and ‘Physical Touch’ are all special in their own ways showing the varied ways we express and receive love! From Quality time to Words of Affirmation and Giving Gifts, it’s funny how humans love differently despite our similarities. My love languages evolved over the years and continues to shift through … Continue reading Love Languages Explained: What’s Yours?
‘I was born in England, but my mum is from the Netherlands and my dad is Syrian.’ It is a sentence I’ve uttered countless times throughout my life. But the answer to the common small talk question ‘where are you from?’ was far from simple for me. Born and raised in the UK until the age of 5, living in Aleppo for 2 years, and returning to … Continue reading Third Culture Kids: Identity Across Boarders
As uni students, we are living the best years of our lives. Yes, we capture those moments, taking out our phones and snapping a shot with an intentional aesthetic edge, uploading them to a highlight named ‘second year’ and moving on. It’s a simple and easy way to look back on key moments, but it is not unique, sentimental, or even natural. My camera, a simple … Continue reading A Look Into The Digital Camera Frenzy
Sappho – Fragment 147 – Written by: Samira Abbey Sappho’s fragment 147, ‘someone will remember us / I say / even in another time’, resonates with me as more than just a poetic reflection on legacy; it’s a subtle, powerful reminder of resilience. Queer people, who have navigated history often overlooked or erased yet unquestionably present, will find this message especially relevant. Sappho’s words transcend … Continue reading Connecting with Poetry: Finding Emotion in Experiences
The pope is dead, the throne is vacant, and Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is left in charge of finding a worthy successor. This is the main conflict of Edward Berger’s two-hour epic Conclave, a pressure-cooker concept where the natural progression of a religious institution may lead to its destruction. Two years ago, Berger became a household name with All Quiet on the Western Front (2022), … Continue reading Review: Conclave (2024)
Gossip Girl TW – Mentions of eating disorders There is a common misconception about Gossip Girl. For a show with such a title, the honest-held belief of many fans is that Serena and Blair are the pinnacle of female friendship in TV. I’m not sure if many people base their opinions on Tumblr, or only half-watched the show, but as iconic as the Upper East … Continue reading Female Friendships Representation in Film and TV
Love is universal. Whether it’s your family and your friends; your partner or a pet, it exists in all our lives. Love is holding someone very close to your heart, but that does not always mean they are close to us physically. Learning to adapt to our environment is hard enough as a human being in this massive world, and then you add someone else … Continue reading Long Distance Love
‘Why don’t you just wash your face?’. As someone who has personally struggled with acne, this has to be the worst of a bad bunch of comments you might throw at somewhere who has tried every product, antibiotic, and pimple patch under the sun. Some seem to be uneducated about the harmful opinions regarding skin and appearance. However, there is also an influx of understanding … Continue reading Patches in Public
Right now, we are witnessing a new way of perceiving art, one of scepticism and constant critique. Our eyes are drawn to subtle discrepancies and potential mistakes to prove that the art was not made with human hands but rather generated by artificial intelligence. The negative term “AI Art” can be applied to many fields, the most common types we associate it with are pictures … Continue reading Canvas to Code: Are We Experiencing a New Era of Art?
As someone who has been lucky enough to do a fair amount of travelling in the twenty-three years I have been on this planet, I am pleased to recount that the experience has been delightful. A fan of slow travel, I have been used to the odd missed connection here or delayed train there. I usually find it within myself to let it all wash … Continue reading A Troublesome Trip
My first solo trip by plane fell short of the travel ads. I blame the false sense of security that my airport experience fabricated. I had no issues with trains (for once!), crossed the security border without being drug-tested and arrived at my seat with maximum time to spare and scheduled departure on time. So, I relaxed and allowed my thoughts to finally drift to … Continue reading Travel Trips & Troubles
