Month: April 2023

Love Is Blind Season 4 Reunion Thoughts

~ Courtney Shek ~ Leave a comment

Today we are talking about the Love Is Blind season 4 reunion! A few days late but you know it’s fine. I didn’t even watch this season until all the episodes had been released, like literally finished it the day before the reunion filmed so I’ve been behind on this season in general.

To be honest, I don’t think I’ve fully recovered from all the drama in the last season lol. I also feel fatigue from meeting so many new people each season like it’s exhausting always getting to know new people but I guess that’s the blight of reality TV. I just prefer the same cast we keep forever and we already know them, it’s easier.

But anyway yeah, onto this reunion. As always, my wedding predictions are wrong. I didn’t know if Bliss/Zack were going to make it and I also wasn’t sure about Kwame/Chelsea and they both surprised me but we’ll see if they last.

So the reunion was meant to be live but it wasn’t? They blame technical difficulties lol. I don’t know what went down because I wasn’t trying to watch it live, mainly because it was meant to be at 1 a.m. in the UK and I didn’t care enough to stay up. But I guess it worked out for me since they didn’t go live for ages/if at all.

The first thing I want to point out about the reunion and all Love Is Blind reunions is that they never spend enough time on the happily married couples. I’m talking about the ones that seemed to just get along fine the whole time and you know they’re gonna say yes at the altar. E.g. Lauren and Cameron, Alexa and Brennon and this season, Tiffany and Brett.

Yes Tiffany did fall asleep in the pods, but that was nothing, we’ve talked to that to death. Since they didn’t really have any other conflict or issue to overcome – that they aired – they get nothing in the reunion. It’s like ten minutes tops, meanwhile we listened to Kwame and Chelsea go on for half an hour. It’s not a dig at Kwame and Chelsea, it’s more that I wish we could hear more from the happy couples and their lives. It’s not as interesting but they deserve a spotlight especially if they want to prove their experiment really works, they should be selling the shit out of the successful couples.

Also on the note of Kwame and Chelsea, I love that they brought up Micah only to not let her really speak at all on the situation. I don’t like that they ask her a question and then ignore her afterward, like yes, you are speaking about a couple but you also brought up Micah because she was involved there with the potential conflict. I just think we need to hear out all parties. Everyone criticizes Vanessa and Nick for being bad hosts and this is why lol. To be fair, it seems like they have a better handle on things in this one than they did in the past with the whole Shake situation.

It’s good to see that Kwame and Chelsea’s relationship is stronger than what we were shown on TV though because the narrative they were pushing was that it was very strongly one-sided in that Chelsea decided everything and Kwame was sacrificing a lot. I’m sure that was an issue for them but I hope they have resolved it.

It’s also nice that this reunion is a lot calmer and it’s not just everyone shitting on one person because it would’ve been so easy for them to all turn on Irina the way that everyone turned on Cole in the last reunion. And in my opinion, what Irina did was way worse than any of Cole’s actions. She was a classic mean girl and was awful to Zack when she saw him in person and there’s all the tapes to prove it. So it’s good to see everyone being mature about the situation.

That being said Irina kept talking in circles, plus she was half owning up to her mistakes and half dismissing them because of her mental health. Which, yes mental health issues are valid but if you were really having a big crisis about it then leave the show. Though based on recent reports I don’t think it’s as easy as just walking off.

I just know that I could never show my face if the world saw me treat people like she treated Zack it was so unfair to him. And it’s the exact shit that Shake was doing and he got treated worse for it, I guess because he was openly telling people he was done with Deepti but even so, it’s not good. Even if you are in a situation you don’t like you shouldn’t string people along just to have your 15 minutes of fame.

I am glad that Zack and Bliss are doing well though. Don’t love Zack’s beard but that’s a personal thing lol. I feel like they didn’t really touch a lot on their relationship that I recall, I guess because once they did get together it was smooth sailing like Brett and Tiffany we don’t need to ask them questions.

They did not handle talking about Paul and Micah well at all lol. It just felt awkward them seeming to pressure Paul for answers about why he said no at the altar etc. And Paul seems like the kind of guy who is not able to articulate himself well under pressure, I feel for the guy.

Also, I understand what he was trying to say about how you shouldn’t have to ask your partner to be more affectionate but at the same time bro you gotta communicate your love languages. If they are different from Micah’s then let her know she can do more of what you need, you know? Maybe she’s not all touchy feely but you need that then tell her. I’m not putting all the blame on Paul but I just think communication could be better for both parties.

I do wish we got more information about their relationship outside the pods but sounds like there wasn’t really one lol. I also would have liked to hear more from Micah but she didn’t seem up for saying much.

Then we move on to Jackie and Josh and I feel like it was a cop out for them not be there. I mean I understand why they aren’t there because they didn’t want to be put on blast but at the same time it just seems like they hiding. I also feel like Vanessa’s interview did not uncover anything lol. Josh barely said two words. Lame.

It seemed like Marshall wanted to say a lot about what Jackie said but he held back. I feel like he’s probably the smartest on that though it could be because he doesn’t want to paint himself in a bad light. Though at least he was there he could defend himself.

Then to wrap up the reunion, they had video clips they asked the couples to film of their married lives. This translated to some house tours? lol I mean I love a good sneak peak into people’s lives but I expected more. Thankfully Zack and Bliss came through with the goods, the cute photos and things. I gotta say I don’t love Zack’s singing but I didn’t marry him so as long as Bliss loves it, it’s fine.

I have to say, I wasn’t really sold on Zack and Bliss during the show but seeing them at the reunion changed my mind. They are so cute and in love and I am rooting for them.

The last thing I’ll say about the reunion is that Vanessa needs to stop putting pressure on people to have kids. It’s super uncomfortable, even getting Bartise to send in a video with his son and asking about having kids…it’s not a good look. These people got married only a year ago and still barely know each other can we give it time? But also what if they don’t want kids? It just wasn’t the best note to end on.

And all that leaves is the question, are they doing an After the Altar? I feel like they don’t have to since the reunion was live. But at the same time, I prefer seeing them in After the Altar just doing their own things and seeing more of the married couple life. I guess it’s just because I’m hoping for some last minute drama lol.

Oh and they announced a new season of Ultimatum, which I did enjoy the first season of so might check it out again. But all in all, I’d say reunion was fine. Nothing special. I never feel like the reunion episodes give me much. Anyway, glad to put another season of Love Is Blind behind me. Now to find other trash TV to fill the void…

Jasmine’s Hen Party! | Marbella Highlights

~ Courtney Shek ~ Leave a comment

I’ve just come back from Marbella after celebrating my friend Jasmine’s hen do and I thought I’d share some of the highlights of the trip!

Our AirBnb

The back of the house

The pool!

Because there were a lot of us going away on holiday, we decided to opt for an AirBnb, this way we could all be together rather than be separated in hotel rooms. As everyone knows, AirBnb can be hit or miss, we had settled on one before that did not have many reviews. But after a bit of mulling over we changed our minds and went with this villa.

I am so glad we trusted our guts and went with a place that had a few more reviews, because this place was stunning. There was room for everyone, with two to a room, each room had their own bathroom, there was a spacious living area which was great for us to eat at, get ready at and even play games.

I’d highly recommend looking into staying there if you are a large group in Marbella. It is just a 15 minute Uber/bus ride from the main town and a short walk to the marina at Puerto Banus. There is also a pool near the villa which we frequented and we usually had it to ourselves. Not sure if it’s due to being there in the off season or what but it was great.

The perfect place if you want a chill holiday, especially if you are planning nights in. It was also a reasonable price between 8 people for 5 nights so again, would recommend.

Jack’s Smokehouse

We stopped here for lunch on our second day and it was probably one of the better restaurants we went to. Maybe not in terms of food, the food was probably your average kind that you’d get in the area but the vibes there were great.

Us with Suzie

Our waitress, Suzie, was a highlight, she was super friendly and made sure we had everything that we needed. She gave us recommendations for nights out and even took photos with us when we left haha. Honestly, just want to say that if I ever go back to Marbella, I’m intent on finding her and saying hi.

But yeah, aside from that, the music they played was great, the cocktails were amazing and all in all it was a great afternoon. If I had to describe summer vibes those were the ones. The restaurant wasn’t busy, we basically had the upstairs to ourselves, sun was shining, music blaring and good food, drinks and company. What else could you possibly want?

Someone on Google compared this place to a TGI’s and I’d have to agree. So if that’s the kind of thing you’re looking for, definitely stop here.

Arkham Escape Room

The team that escaped lol

I feel like it’s no secret that Jasmine loves an escape room, so obviously one of the things we had to do was book one for her hen party! And I think of all the things that could have gone wrong, the escape room was at the top of the list.

I remember looking up websites for the escape rooms and none of them were good. I’m not saying your website has to be amazing, but if you’ve put in minimal effort it doesn’t look good for your business. Plus, I don’t think a lot of the places had reviews which also made it difficult to find one we wanted to book.

Originally, we were going to go to Prison Island because it was a franchise and at least we knew it would be decent. Though Prison Island is actually in Malaga and not Marbella, so it would’ve been a lot of travel for us. So we decided to go with Arkham escape room because it was close by and to be honest, I think it had the best website/room description.

This escape room was really good, it’s hard to talk about escape rooms without giving anything away but this one was very well designed. The story is Hansel and Gretel themed and the backstory is strong and on top of solving the puzzles to escape the room there is an added challenge.

I will say the room is scary in that there is a live actor that can come in occasionally, this is not something stated on the website and so we were not prepared but I’m putting it here so you are warned. I think I would’ve done better without the possibility of someone coming into the room but I guess that adds to the experience lol.

Sadly because there were a lot of us we did have to do the room in two groups, one group made it out in time and one did not. Sadly mine was the one that got out after time ran out but we still completed it and that’s what counts.

Before going into the room the game master did say people find escape rooms in Spain harder than in other places and I’d have to agree. The ones I’ve done at home weren’t as difficult, though they aren’t super easy either. I really enjoyed the challenge of this one and would definitely recommend it if you are looking for an escape room in Marbella. Plus, we were able to do the room in English which is a big advantage lol otherwise we’d never have made it out.

Joy’s Live Bar

We went to Joy’s twice while we were away. The first night, we didn’t stay long because we had to get up for the escape room the next morning but we enjoyed it there, enough to come back anyway haha. It was their 9th anniversary the first night we were there though the celebrations were kind of tame? I mean you wouldn’t have really known it was an anniversary unless you saw the sign on the door. That or we weren’t there long enough to know. Though we did get our photo taken a lot that night, and we were only there for about an hour.

We went back the next night to stay a lot longer and there were no photographers this night, at least none that I saw. But the vibes were still good, the drinks were a standard price so nothing special but the music was good and the live singers/entertainers were also good.

I do wish there was more space to dance there though, since we were mainly there for dancing, we were kind of cramped into this one space that wasn’t really a dance space, more like a gap between the tables for people to walk through but was large enough to dance in. It’s a small venue which I think is a shame considering the performers all seem larger than life so I think if the space was bigger it would be better.

I also think we were the youngest people there by about 10 years, which isn’t the worst but it was definitely noticeable. On top of that, we definitely had to fend off some creepy men which I guess is to be expected anywhere, but it’s not great. Though the bouncers were on the lookout because I think they did speak to some of them which was nice. I don’t recall this, though the other girls did, so that’s something.

Aside from that though we did have a good time, despite the small dancing space we still made the most of it and were there til around half 3 in the morning. So it was definitely a fun night.

There are plenty of other places the girls and I went while we were away but these four were definitely the big highlights that I wanted to mention. I really enjoyed my time away with the girls and hope we will make this annual girls’ holiday a tradition because it was so much fun last year too.

In the meantime I will be resting up and preparing to go to Paris in May, it’s only for a couple of days but it should still be good! So if you have any recommendations, hit me up. I plan to be living my Emily in Paris life to the fullest while I’m there.

My 2022 Planner Flip Through!

~ Courtney Shek ~ Leave a comment

I am so excited to share this flip-through of my 2022 planner! It took a long time to complete but I am so obsessed with it. Everything is so pretty and I just know I will be looking back at this for years to remember 2022.

Sticker planning is such a random hobby for me but I am so glad I found it because it brings me so much joy, I can’t even explain.

Now that this planner is done, I can finally start my 2023 planner! Yes it’s April but it’s fine, I’ll catch up lol.

Try-On Clothing Haul! | New Look & Shein

~ Courtney Shek ~ Leave a comment

It’s been a long time since I hauled something that wasn’t stickers. But I splurged on clothes last month so decided to do an old-school clothing haul.

Not going to lie the lighting isn’t amazing in this but I’ve always used natural light so yeah we do what we can. Probably won’t have another clothing haul for a long time so enjoy!