Our Newcastle Weekend

Part two of the UK tour - Newcastle. Again, journeying up there has become a bit of a tradition, and was actually my fourth time in a year! Must like it, eh?

A three-hour train journey made it a little late on Friday to go out and paint the town red, but meant that by Saturday, we were raring to go. We did, however, get in the festive mood by watching Halloween: Resurrection – a gripping and profound piece of cinema, we all particularly enjoyed joining in for Busta Rhymes infamous line : “TRICK OR TREAT, MOTHERF***A!”. Why it didn’t win awards, we will never know.

After decorating the flat and finishing our costumes (more on that later!), we headed out into town. My friend has recently moved nearer centre of Newcastle, so it was lovely to be able to walk in and really see city life. It’s so beautiful up there, with stunning architecture and wide open streets – it almost makes me favour the idea of making London’s Oxford or Regent Streets pedestrian. No shoving or chunks taken out of knees by shopping bags, what bliss!

My friend took us to Olive and Bean for lunch, a café and deli on Clayton Street near Grey’s Monument. There was a bit of a queue, but understandably, because the food was absolutely delicious. As a table, we enjoyed a bacon, brie and cranberry Panini, a half bowl of chicken soup with a small mozzarella baguette, a chicken, sun-blushed tomato and pesto salad (which was enormous and unbelievably filling), and a Mediterranean platter. If we had had any room, we probably would have attacked the slabs of Rocky Road that they had behind the counter, but it’s always good to save something for next time.

After a rummage around the nearby shops for some last minute cobwebs, we walked back home and got ready for the evening ahead. Not only was this a Halloween party, but a Housewarming too. Fancy dress was optional but, surprise surprise, we went for it. If you’re a redhead and trying to find a wig-free costume idea, it can be a little tricky. Scooby Doo’s Daphne? Done. X-Men’s Jean Grey? Done. I’ve still got a few up my sleeve for future occasions, but for this event, it had to be Mrs Wilma Flintstone. My boyfriend was therefore Fred, and my beautiful friend and hostess, Betty Rubble.

Ok, I’m going to do the cost comparison of Shop Bought Costume vs Homemade Costume, but scarily as I’m writing this, I don’t know the answer. Let’s hope my theory that DIY is cheaper holds true!

To be Wilma you need :

White dress from ASOS : £10

Plastic white pearls from Claire’s : £3.50

Pearl earrings (that I painted white with nail polish) : £2

A donut ring for my hair from the party shop : £3.99

Total : £19.49

Escapade.com : £21.99 – Saving me £2.50 (phew!), and leaving me with a dress that I can wear come the summer.

To make the perfect Fred, you need :

3XL White T-shirt from Sports Direct : £2.50

White Leggings from ASOS : £6

One pack of Dylon dye in Goldfish Orange : £2.74

A metre of turquoise fabric from Peter Jones : £7.20

Total : £18.44

Escapade.com : £22.99, so a saving of £4.55.

It isn’t just about having the extra pennies in your pocket though; it’s about putting the extra effort in, and having fun whilst doing it. Betty’s outfit was also made from customized bargain items, and she found the plastic clubs and bones on Amazon for only a few pounds each. And the wig will come in handy for a Spice Girls theme, I’m sure (now that’s an idea… I wonder which one I’d be…).

Not only had she made an effort with her outfit, but our hostess had also been busy in the kitchen. As “Beetle” of the baking duo Beetle & Bear, we were treated to a range of Halloween treats; bone-shaped meringues, gingerbread crosses and gravestones, and spider web vanilla cupcakes. There was also delicious carrot cake, red with “blood”. If you’ve got a sweet tooth and a love of creative bakes, make sure to follow the Beetle & Bear blog and Facebook page.

The party was a huge success and everyone loved the costumes. Awake until the early hours, all that could get us out of bed the next morning was the suggestion of bacon and fried egg sandwiches.

What would a traditional winter Sunday be without a big juicy roast? While the chickens turned golden in the oven, we popped out for a stroll along the Quayside to get our taste buds going. Just a few minutes walk from the flat, we went from the Tyne Bridge to the Millennium Bridge and at around 4pm, the light is absolutely glowing. The Stade was all kinds of amazing colours, but I have worked out that it’s beautiful no matter the weather. We walked to the other side of the water (dodging a musical parade that went past, with adults and children all dressed in cartoon onesies) and into the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art. By the time we reached the viewing platform on the sixth floor, the sun was setting, and the lights of the Millennium Bridge had been switched on. It was stunning, and the faint music of the parade still drifting in the background painted a perfect landscape.

We walked back in the dark and enjoyed a delicious meal whilst watching Grease on the TV (it’s probably not polite to do a Greased-Lightning at the table, but who could resist?). I was sad to leave Newcastle, but having spoken of my return even before leaving, I knew it wouldn’t be long until I was back again.

Our Nottingham Weekend

 

This weekend was part one of two spent up north visiting friends. First stop, Nottingham.

The main reason for making the trip was a birthday tradition - I'd been there for my friend’s 21st and 22nd, so her 23rd was to be no exception. Although a London lady through and through, I love to spend time in other cities. In previous trips there had been a fair amount of chatting on the sofa, but this time I felt I got to see a great deal more.

Before we set off, just a little London travel tip. If you're looking for something to eat when catching a train at St Pancras, and don't want the disappointment of a fridge-cold, soggy sandwich, head straight for Sourced Market. We had a delicious dinner of falafel wraps, baba ghanoush, and a lentil curry that they heat up for you to take away. Stinking up the train and getting all those funny looks was completely worth it.

We arrived in Nottingham at 9:30pm, which was perfect timing to be picked up from the station and walked to the Broadway cinema and bar.

At the Broadway, you can enjoy drinks whilst watching a film projected up on the walls (see picture above of us doing just that!). That Friday night was the screening of the Bruce Lee classic ‘Enter The Dragon’. It was the perfect choice because with so much action and visual excitement, you didn't really mind popping to the bar, or having a chat.

Only my boyfriend had seen the film before, which helped when following the story... especially at the end when the DVD skipped and we went from Bruce about to fight the bad guy, to Bruce surrounded by dead bodies, looking bashed and bruised having just saved the day. We were all able to laugh though, as despite the skip the evening had still been great fun. That’s the thing about other cities. In London, you would have been overcharged for entry and bar, and a glitch like this would have caused an uproar, but with drinks being cheap and no extra charge for the film, it didn’t really matter.

Saturday was a bit of a slow start, but in the afternoon (with a quick detour through the pub) we had a look around Nottingham Contemporary. Although this gallery is small, it housed some great work. The main exhibition on display was Geoffrey Farmer's 'Let's Make The Water Turn Black'.

A conceptual Canadian artist, this is his most ambition installation yet. Influenced by Frank Zappa's composition of the same name, Farmer's 70 sculptures are constructed from found materials including old movie and theatre props, and are animated in correspondence to a soundtrack composed of field recordings of places that Zappa recorded and played.

The installation was incredibly abstract, and though I put my hands up and admit that I probably didn't understand Farmer's message fully, that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it. It was nice to sit and watch as these "characters" came alive for a few seconds, and I love knowing that because of the ever-changing combination of sound, light and movement, no other visitor will have the same experience.

The other exhibition at the gallery was 'Asco : No Movies'. Mainly photographic, it depicted the street performances of the Asco group, made up of four Chicano artists who emerged during the time of the 60s/70s civil rights movement.

After an hour of culture, it was time to start the birthday celebrations. First to Pepper Rocks, which served £3.50. No, not 13, which would be the norm for a Saturday in London, but THREE, which they offer from 5-8pm every night. Even the Nottingham residents hadn’t been there before, so this little place, tucked away down Pepper Street, really was a find. I broke my Tom Collins virginity and sampled the Long Island Iced Tea too; both where very tasty indeed.

Unfortunately there was only time for one, as we had a table waiting. We all piled onto a bus and headed Beeston-way, to a newly opened restaurant called Café Roya. This incredible vegetarian eatery started off in the back of a pub kitchen. As the dishes grew more popular, Roya and her team opened up on Wollaton Road back in April. There is a three week waiting list so when we all finally got to sitting down, the Birthday Girl was unsure whether the hype and anticipation might lead to a bit of a let down - she didn’t need to worry! Their menu changes every month, but the waiter confessed that he thought that October’s was the best yet.

There are three options for each course on the menu, and with a table of ten, we knew we could all get a taste of everything if we asked nicely! To start I had the fennel and celeriac soup, which was zested (new word?!) with lots of orange. My boyfriend had Patatas a la Probe, slow fried potatoes and onions with chorizo. Yes, vegetarian chorizo - we were informed this was the creation of the second chef, after a whole month of research and trials.

I went for our table’s most popular main, the beetroot, red cabbage and pumpkin curry, served with rice, banana raita and an amazing pickle (and yes, it was bright pink!). Absolutely delicious. It passed the ultimate good food test, which is when it arrives, you’re already sad about it being over. The cannelloni and the mushrooms were apparently also very good.

Too stuffed for pudding, we all got to sample a coconut truffle, which were described and tasted like “a posh Bounty”. My friend was also given a little glass of homemade organic Limoncello, which was miles better than a branded version. I say that as a big Limoncello fan.

What a super meal it was. When the rain started to pour down, they brought another bottle of wine, and I genuinely felt they were as happy to have us as we were to be there.

When it was a little drier, we jumped back onto the bus to town, and finished the night in The Horn In Hand. Surrounded by mummies and super heroes (I’d completely forgotten it was Halloween weekend), we enjoyed a few drinks whilst belting out the brilliant soundtrack of tunes. There is a modern computerized jukebox where you could choose from thousands of songs, but unfortunately the Horn closed at 1am before it could get to our selections.

After carrying on the party at home until 4:30 (and having already change the clocks it was actually 5:30), you can hopefully appreciate that Sunday was a bit of a quiet one. We tried to go out for a full-english, but unfortunately the caff was closed, so we made our own at home which was just as good. As St Jude was howling outside, it was probably best to stay in the warmth anyway.

What a brilliant weekend, with huge thanks to all involved. Lots of laughs, and lots of wonderful new experiences.

Road Trip to Cannes

Apologies for the absence of blog posts this week, but I have been away! On Monday 19^th August, myself and two friends packed up our car and started on our journey down to the French Riviera. Our final destination of Cannes being nearly 900 miles away, we decided not to tackle the whole 14-hour trip in one go, and planned instead to drive for as long as we could, and make a stop somewhere along the way. We drove through some wonderful little towns on the way down including Ham and Brie! Everywhere seemed very sleepy and the roads were empty, but at least that made for a smoother journey.

Having left London at 7:30am, we found ourselves in Lyon by about 10pm, however it then took us about an hour to find the Ibis hotel we had plugged into our SatNav! After a long day and a plate of food, we collapsed in our beds. Although not exactly what we were expecting (a room for three consisted of a double bed and a single bunk over the top!), we had a perfectly decent night and were energized and back on the road by 9:30 the next morning.

The excitement levels rose as the sun began to shine brighter and soon we could see the crystal blue sea in the distance. Our apartment was absolutely perfect. Il Paradiso is a gated collection of apartments located in La Bocca, the old part of Cannes. A twenty-five minute walk to the port and only ten minutes from the beach, we couldn’t have had anywhere better for a relaxing trip away. Only in Cannes for four nights, we spent most of our time by the pool, on the beach, cooking incredible lunches, and exploring the area both in the day and at night. There’s such a lovely buzz in Cannes, and it meant that finding a drink or dinner at midnight was never much of a problem.

On Friday, our last day, we decided to spend the morning snooping around the Gambetta market and all the lovely backstreets that surround it. The market offers everything from food to clothing, and we bought some bags of spices for as little as €4. As well as coming across some unexpected bagpipers (!), on the Rue Hoche we picked up many presents for the family in a wonderful little chocolate shop called Paci Chocolatier, which sold everything from hamburgers and croissants to iPads and credit cards, all made of the sweet stuff. A must-see on our list had also been Jean Luc Pelé, whose main attraction is its vast variety of macaroons. Buying two boxes between the three of us, some highlight flavours included nutella, mojito, passion fruit and champagne, which had glitter over the top and popping candy mixed into the creamy filling!

Very sad to leave, we packed up our bags and headed back onto the road on Saturday morning. This time, we had booked a hotel for that evening in Dijon and although heavy traffic delayed our arrival time, we still enjoyed a brasserie dinner of breaded camembert, escargots, confit de canard and moules. Dijon is a beautiful little town. Walking around the next morning, I was happily snapping away at the beautiful architecture, and we even stumbled across another market, selling antiques and bric-a-brac. And of course, a trip to Dijon wouldn’t be complete without a trip to a mustard shop. Though there may not be enough to do for a whole week, we all agreed that Dijon would make for a perfect weekend destination.

What a wonderful week away I had. Perfect location, perfect weather and most importantly, perfect company :) 

Hastings Old Town Carnival Week

When not in London, I am lucky enough to spend time down on the coast in the seaside town of Hastings. Though usually only popping down for the weekend, I recently spent a few lovely days there, celebrating Hastings Old Town Carnival Week!

Coming off the train and making our way to the High Street, we walked straight into the annual Seaboot Race. Organized in memory of old towner Peter Trickett who died in 2002, competitors have to run down Courthouse Street, around a lobster pot and back again, whilst wearing a pair of very heavy seaboots! The winner gets to keep hold of Peter’s walking stick for a whole year, although all participants get a certificate. The race was followed by an auction, filled with all kinds of donated prizes from artwork to trips on a fishing boat, which raised hundreds of pounds of the RNLI. 

We walked up to the Cinque Ports pub on All Saints Street for a drink that evening, where we were accompanied by tables of detectives, nurses, glam rockers and pirates… all teams taking part in the fancy dress Treasure Trail.

Tuesday started with breakfast at the East Hastings Sea Angling Association clubhouse, and all the rumours were true – it was pretty great! To walk off the grub, we took part in the Twittens and Catcreeps tour, which took us up and down the narrow pathways and steps of the Old Town, and taught us much about the history of the streets as we went. This was one of many tours taking place throughout the festival.

During Carnival Week many houses open their gardens to the public. That afternoon we enjoyed an organic cream tea in the stunning gardens of Craig and Jo Sams, the founders of Green and Black’s chocolate and Hastings’ Judges’ bakery. Tea, scones, squash, and even a lovely bar of chocolate as we left; it was the perfect way to relax in the sunshine.

At seven o’clock whilst enjoying a tapas dinner in Harris, The Wardrobe vintage shop opposite was putting on a fashion show, showing off some of their best garments. The models walked up and down the old seawall to the smooth sound of Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, and we had the perfect view with a table in the window.

It’s probably true to say that every night, all year round, one can find live music playing in the Old Town, but to witness the best, you need to be in The Stag on a Tuesday for Folk Night. The Stag Inn is the oldest pub in Hastings, dating back to 1547. As always, the small group of local musicians who play on a Tuesday night were super, and even a few of All Saints Street’s cats came in to join us for a pint. There’s such a great crowd in The Stag, and usually a bit of a sing-a-long at some point during the evening too.

After quite a busy Tuesday, we tried to relax a bit the next day, enjoying a lovely lunch at Latham’s on George Street, and a bit of retail therapy in the afternoon. But in the evening, all hell broke loose again for The Pram Race! The Pram Race is a pub crawl around the Old Town, and is thought of by many to be the highlight of Carnival Week. Teams started to gather outside The Cutter Pub a few hours before the race actually began, all themed with costumes and pram designs to match. There were army teams with tanks, Vikings with sailing ships, spacemen with rockets, the royal family with royal pram (complete with royal baby!), jockeys and horses, bathtubs and girls dressed as multicoloured loofahs, hoola girls with portable tiki huts… to name but a few! One of my favourites had to be the fridge-freezer pram, pushed along by Captain Birdseye and eight 6-foot fish fingers! The queue at the start line was so long that it came all the way up West Street and past our front door, meaning we had great view from our kitchen table! Down on the seafront was where the atmosphere was best, with sailors already sampling their rum despite being about to begin a tour of all the pubs in the area.

Thursday was more tours and open gardens - the day, and my time in Hastings, coming to an end with the Trader’s Street Party. Stalls were set up all along the High Street selling garments, nick-nacks, food and holding games for the younger children. We enjoyed a paella dinner, and I bought two wonderful vintage shirts for a steal. There was also live music, with The Moors set up on stage outside the Jenny Lind Pub, and later Blair MacKichan and friends were playing up by the First In Last Out Pub. All music provided by Hastings locals, we were also lucky enough to have Liane Carroll come up and play with Blair. What a voice she has!

Although having known Hastings for a few years now, this was my first ever Carnival Week. It was filled with all the things you’d expect from a Hastings event; laughter, fun, food, drink, music, and many excuses to dress up!  You’ll find these kind of events all year round on the Old Town calendar, the next ones being the Seafood and Wine Festival in September, and October’s Bonfire Night. I can’t wait :)

The Things I Fancy...

My posts will be split into :

                                    

                                               Theatre and Film                            Art and Exhibitions

                                   

                                                  Restaurants                                         Bars

                                   

                                                      Books                                            Fashion

                                    

                                                      Music                                             Travel

Do feel free to comment or make suggestions, and I'll reply when I can. Hope you enjoy!