GIVEAWAY: The Collective Yoghurts & Gourmet Parcel NOW CLOSED

NOW CLOSED.

In order to say thank you, I've teamed up with The Collective, a Kiwi-originating company now conquering the UK yoghurt scene (I adore their passion fruit and Russian Fudge flavours), who have kindly agreed to donate a months worth of their delicious yoghurts to a reader of Adventures of a London Kiwi.

*plus*

I'm going to add a little 'something something' and make up a Foodie Penpals-esque parcel of gourmet goodies which will be delivered (separately to the yoghurts) to an address of your choice. It will take food allergies into consideration and contain £25.00 worth of hand picked goodies, unique to you, by answering a few questions over email like;

- Sweet, Savoury or a mixture?
- Good or naughty?
- Do you follow any particular diet such as vegan, vegetarian, low carb?

Life is all about adventures - in this case, Timtams may be involved.

Further info on The Collective and their utterly delicious products here

 

For the gourmet parcel you may be thinking £25 isn't the most massive value - for that much in your average-high-street-hamper that would get a bottle of chutney, some crackers & maybe a cheap bottle of plonk. The nice thing is I don't have a profit margin to make, and this is what approx. £10.00 gets -->
#justsayin

I'm also keen to share some of the delicious products my Foodie Penpals have introduced to me.

Personalised to your likes & dislikes it could include;



How To Enter:

• Simply complete the Rafflecopter widget below to verify your entries
• Entries can be via blog comment, Facebook, Twitter etc
• This competition is open to UK residents only. Please read the rules below
• Leaving a blog comment is mandatory and failure to do so will void any other entries
• Closing date -  27th April 2013 12.00 pm

*Terms and conditions

1. This offer is only open to UK residents (sorry international peeps)
2. One prizewinner only
3. The Yoghurts will be dispatched by The Collective directly to the winner as soon as possible
4. Adventures of a London Kiwi will post the gourmet parcel Special Next Day Delivery but is limited to the reliability of Royal Mail
5. The winner will be contacted by email within 48 hours of the end of the competition with and the gourmet parcel dispatched within 72 hours of the winners reply

How Entries and Rafflecopter works:

• You will need to complete the mandatory entry first by making a blog comment. Click 'leave a comment' at the bottom of the post and leave your reply. The comment won't show immediately as it needs to be moderated, however rest assured it will appear on the site, so carry on with rest of your entries.
• Go back to Rafflecopter and click the green button to tell me you have made a comment, this will unlock all the other options. All entries are checked to see that the mandatory question is answered, if its not all bonus entries will become void.
• Rafflecopter will tweet, like and follow on your behalf.
• For information on how to find the URL of your tweet click here.
• For bonus entries you can return to this page and enter the daily bonus entries.
• If you are still unsure as to how Rafflecopter works please do check out this short video.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Good Friday - A few Sailors, a drink and a Hot Cross Bun

Hot Cross Buns have a colourful and lengthy history. Amongst the superstitions, sailors would take Hot Cross Buns baked on Good Friday with them on their voyages, as it was said to prevent shipwrecks. Located not too far from the East End docks, the associations with the Widow's Pub in Bow in East London are incredibly strong.

The legend goes that in the early 19th Century a widow lived in a cottage with her only son. Her sailor son left for the sea but promised to be back on Good Friday, 1824. Awaiting his return, his mother baked him a hot cross bun, but he never arrived. Every year until her death she baked a bun on Good Friday, hoping to welcome her son home, but she never saw him again.

In the 1840's a pub replaced the cottages called the Widow's Son and the tradition has been carried on with a Hot Cross Bun baked every Good Friday and hung in a net above the bar. A service is held in the pub and a member of the Royal Navy adds another freshly baked to the net admist singing, a few jovial drinks and a lot of goodwill.

Another story says claims the Widow was the publican of a pub already on site - but we will possibly never know.

  

Thanks to a tip off by the lovely Miss Regula Foodwise, we couldn't resist popping along, and chatting with the friendly locals (proper proper Cockney Sparra's) - some who have been attending the service for over 50 years and Navy members - some fresh from a 6 month voyage.

 

 

 

Sadly there was a fire about 15 years ago in which many of the age-old buns were burnt, but a few were saved and have been treasured with their fresher counterparts.

It's a real festival atmosphere; everyone crowded in at 3pm glasses in hand, rock music pumping and the buffet kindly laid on (over the billiard table) and such a nice atmosphere.




The legend is such a heartbreaking tale, can you imagine what the Widow would have to say if she knew that the tradition is still being carried out over 125 years later? Maybe as the MC said “Another year, another Good Friday, another bun.”

We especially loved the sign hanging above the pub of the Sailor returning many years later to the pub, with the many buns hanging in their net. The old Facade can be seen here.


There are many superstitions surrounding Hot Cross Buns and Easter:

• Sharing a hot cross bun with another is supposed to ensure friendship throughout the coming year, particularly if "Half for you and half for me, Between us two shall goodwill be" is said at the time.
• Another encourages keeping such a bun for medicinal purposes. A piece of it given to someone who is ill is said to help them recover
• If hung in the kitchen, they are said to protect against fires and ensure that all breads turn out perfectly.
• Eggs laid today will not go off
• If a child is born today & baptized on Easter Sunday they will have gift of healing

The Hot Cross bun has very contested origins, with Pagan claims, some claiming a connection with Eostre (a Germanic god, the namesake to Easter), some to the Ancient Greeks but the most widely accepted seem to be the Christian origins, with the cross on the buns representing the Crucifixion.

Awesome fact: the London Clerk of Markets issued a decree forbidding the sale of hot cross buns and other spiced breads, except at burials, on Good Friday, or at Christmas. The punishment for transgressing the decree was forfeiture of all the forbidden product to the poor.

If you fancy joining in next year, the pub address is The Widow's Son, 75 Devon's Road, Bow, London, E3 3PJ.

I hope you are having a lovely Good Friday!



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St Patrick's Day: The London Kiwi's Guide

Ahh, St Patrick's Day, the Irish public holiday day of celebrating' and drinkin'.

One of my favourite holidays to adopt, it usually involves claiming some Irish ancestry (vague is normally fine, you'll be called a plastic paddy), wearing green, finding your local Irish pub and drinking a heck of a lot of Guinness. If you can't find a good pub and live in London, I would highly recommended wandering up to Trafalgar Square from around 11am tomorrow morning & enjoying the immense party and parade put on. (I've just found TNT magazine, the great antipodean bastion, have a few more suggestions here.)

Credit: Glitterazi

Did I mention they usually dye the Trafalgar Square fountain Green? It's not just your eyes playing tricks, I promise.

 

Random facts to read/amaze your friends with/bore the annoying drunk on the train home:

• St Patrick's day was originally associated with the colour blue.
• As a feast day/holiday St Patrick's has been celebrated since the 9th Century.
• "Success to bold St. Patty's fist / he was a saint so clever / He gave the snakes and toads a twist / and banished them forever." Sadly they were symbolic snakes (non-Christians ) he converted, but it still makes a natty folk tune.
• It's an official public holiday in Ireland.
• As a side-effect, many takeaway shops make a lot of money from St Patrick's Day. Kebabs in the UK especially.
• Green ribbons and shamrocks have been associated with St Patrick's day.
• The restrictions of Lent are lifted, just for the day.
• The phrase "the wearing of the green", meaning to wear a shamrock on ones clothing, derives from a song of the same name.
• The Queen Mother used to present bowls of shamrock flown over from Ireland to members of the Irish Guards on St Patrick's day. (Cheers Wikipedia)

My cousin has braved Dublin this year - I've got to say she's a hardy soul & hats off to her!

If getting your daily vitamins via copious pints of Guiness aren't your thang, there are a variety of ways to celebrate your Irish (however vague) roots: Soda Bread, Cabbage & Bacon or Colcannon. Perfect also for hangovers...

Credit.

 "Did you ever eat Colcannon, made from lovely pickled cream?

With the greens and scallions mingled like a picture in a dream.

Did you ever make a hole on top to hold the melting flake

Of the creamy, flavoured butter that your mother used to make?"

 

The chorus:

Yes you did, so you did, so did he and so did I.

And the more I think about it sure the nearer I'm to cry.

Oh, wasn't it the happy days when troubles we had not,

And our mothers made Colcannon in the little skillet pot."

 

Lá Fhéile Pádraig Sona Daoibh! Happy St Patricks Day.

Slainte! Cheers!

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The Guernsey Literary and Potato Pie Peel Society: Reading Recommendation

Firstly, happy #worldbookday!

“ I wonder how the book got to Guernsey? Perhaps there is some sort of secret homing instinct in books that brings them to their perfect readers.”

Recommended to me by a lovely lady via Twitter, I simply didn't want this to end. A series of letters jsut after the Second World War, between a London newspaper columnist and a group of unlikely friends on Guernsey (who invented the society to hide a dinner party feasting on a forbidden pig which eventually evolves into reality), this tells the story of the effect the Nazi occupation had on the lives of the Guernsey people and how the bonds of friendship helped them cope with the daily monotony and atrocities of their occupation.

I couldn't put this down. I'm not normally one who enjoys multiple view-point books, and written entirely as an Epistolary novel (taking the form of letters) to and fro each of the characters establishing who they are and the events, this book charmed my socks off. I also didn't know a whisker about Guernsey.

It's a soft, charming, sad and funny book, and one you open it, you will struggle to put it down. I'm a sucker for anything London (you would think living here I would be sick of it, but no) and anything War related, and this was no exception. The American authors Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows made a very credible post-war England and Guernsey, and I can imagine walking down the streets. The braveness of Elizabeth is heartwarming, and she epitimoses the war spirit a lot of people had in such harrowing times.

 The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

I was sad to see the book end - I laughed, I cried, it made me yearn to explore the small island and find out more. The authors are American, but write with believable conviction. There is criticism floating around that it's not a challenging read (umm, hello read War and Peace if that's what you are looking for) and that the characters all 'wrote' in the same 'voice' but I think they didn't, and to exaggerate the individual voices any more would skew them slightly.

I loved it!

(Please note any links to Amazon are through my Amazon Associates account, which means I make a little money (less than 5%) from any purchases made after clicking through these links and it adds nothing to the price of your book. This helps support my book addiction, so if you are interested in buying the book, please click through the top link)

 

 

 

 

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Lunching, with the Queen.

On our lunchbreaks yesterday, a colleague and I decided to pop over to the hopsital where the Royal Family are treated. Mostly to have a nosey and check out the mad paparazzi that lurk outside, hoping to get that million pound image of her Majesty.

Credit - Mirror

We absoloutely lucked in, and I can't quite believe this, got there just in time to see the Queen in person! She's the head of the Commonwealth, the lady on the back of our coins and one of the most famous people in the world - and we watched as she left the hospital, and was gracefully ushered into her waiting car. As my colleague remarked "she's the ultimate Betty, and looks amazing for 87."

She was "admitted briefly as part of the assessment of symptoms of gastroenteritis” but was feeling much better, so 24 hours after being admitted went home to Buckingham Palace. A lady of steel.

It's a controversial subject the monarchy; on one hand you have the continuance of the established upper class draining public funds and in the words of a friend "doing almost nothing for their entires lives", and on the other hand the epitome of what make England special and a massive tourist draw to this island nation.

(These aren't my photos, but show the amazing view we had - you can't believe how much we are kicking ourselves to have left our phones at work.)


Credit - Sky News

It's times like these that I adore living in London. We were literally standing 6 or 7 meters away from her. She was immaculately dressed and very reserved. It's a little surreal actually. I normally miss her, such as the time we went to Buckingham Palace for tea, but managed to catch a good glimpse of her during the Jubilee celebrations.

It's been a very exciting few days!

 

Royal family - yay or nay - tourist attracting titular head or a drain on the taxpayer?

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The Xenophobes Guide to the English: Book Review

"Heat waves bring out the beast in the English. Cold and drizzle calm them down"

This was an amusing read about the stereotypes of English characters - it probably would have been quite good to read earlier in my travelling, but a page-turner nonetheless. It covers the importance of the cuppa (Tea), Cricket, stoicism (a much admired trait), how house-proud they are (especially oop north), how much they enjoy queueing, mentions their obsession with poo, and their sense of humour.

Lucky for us Nuu Zulunders, "The English have a special relationship...with the Kiwis who have model manners, but have an annoying tendancy to thrash them at rugby"

It does discuss the English preference to not make a fuss, or a "to do, a hullabaloo, a palaver, a kerfuffle, a song and dance". This is very much the bastion of the English character; for instance I've been in a restaurant several time with my hubby, and they have gotten his order wrong and he has said nothing, just looked po-faced, even when I've offered to mention the problem to the staff.

"Supplication, gratitude and, most important of all, apology are central to English social discourse."

So is getting your round in at the pub. It's a real social faux pas not to.

This is a good chuckle-read, to assist deciphering your pommy workmates and educate yourself a little on commuting. Written by English authors, it's very tongue in cheek, but quite apt. It's quite a good series, I particularly enjoyed the guide to New Zealanders, it even taught me a little something.

(Please note any links to Amazon are through my Amazon Associates account, which means I make a little money (less than 5%) from any purchases made after clicking through these links and it adds nothing to the price of your book. This helps support my book addiction, so if you are interested in buying the book, please click through the top link)

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The Worlds Biggest Egg-Hunt, v 2.0

Guess what's back, back again? Huge Eggs are back, tell a friend...



Last year in the month leading up to Easter, London was overtaken by a strange phenomena - giant porcelain eggs popping up on street corners, in shop windows and hotel foyers.

We became strangely obsessed with hunting down every single one of the 101 eggs. From the Sloan-ey market squares, to Mayfair and as far as the platinum towers of Canary Wharf, we were determined to, and managed to spot every one of them and take photographic proof.

We also helped them collect one of two world records the made - most participants in an Easter egg hunt and the worlds most expensive chocolate Easter egg. Sadly it wasn't the latter.

This year, much to our geekery excitement they are back! Focused initially on (my favourite London spelling mistake) Covent Garden, they have unleashed another 101 artist designed eggs, in order to fundraise for the charity Action for Children. In their own words "The Big Egg Hunt is a record breaking, egg hunting, fundraising spectacular - a public art event with a BIG difference"

This year, instead of having them dotted to the four corners of London, they are on tour to Birmingham, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester to end up in London again.

I must admit to a tinge of disappointment that we aren't having the same format as last year, but logistically it must have been a nightmare to organise with them spread so far. And I mustn't be selfish - everyone should have an equal chance, not just us Londoners.

It's great for kids of all ages - there were as many middle-aged-no-kids pairs and groups as there were families excitedly shouting "there's one, there's one!"

It's so cheap - a minimum £3 donation gets you a glossy brochure to tick your eggs off as you spot them - and it includes a Chocolate bunny. For sustenance you understand. It's a great excuse to mooch about the vibrant Covent Garden area, with it's buskers, food, and installations. And the artwork is incredible.

They are staying in London until Sunday (tomorrow) and are back for the finale, 22nd March - 7th April, visiting more cities in between. Set aside a couple of hours, and keep your eyes peeled for some eggs-celent art (sorry)!

How many do you think you could find?

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Valentines Day

The blog-overse today will be a sea of red and pink. I'm briefly going to add my tuppence worth, then quietly retire.

I like Valentines Day. Not the crass over-hyped consumerism, but the idea that there is a day in the year just to celebrate someone loved. However, I don't think it should just be your partner (whatever flavour they are; best friend, married, civil partnership, long-term, short-term, just met) you celebrate, it should be everyone you love.

Use it as an excuse. Call your mum & listen to her chat about her garden, email your Sister, bake something for your Grandparents just 'cause, go out to lunch with a good friend!

I Love you Toast is the best kind of Toast

In the meantime, I found a few alternative Valentines traditions in the UK as food for thought on 'Everything Valentines Day';

• It is traditionally believed in Sussex that birds choose their mate on 14th February, the beginning of spring and thus call it 'Birds’ Wedding Day’. On that day, if a robin flies overhead the woman will get married to a sailor; spotting a goldfinch would mean marrying a rich man, while if she saw a sparrow she would be destined to marry a poor man but will be happy.
• Another tradition was that the names of suitor’s of an unmarried girl was written on paper and then wrapped in clay. The clay pieces were them immersed in water and the one the rose first would have the name of the future husband.
• In Wales, a unique and beautiful custom on Valentine’s Day was to gift wooden spoons with custom design carved on them, such as hearts, keyholes and keys. The keys and keyholes were meant to represent the phrase “You unlock my heart!”
• In the Middle Ages, names were drawn from bowls to know who their valentines were. The name was tagged on their sleeves for the next whole week.

...and continental Europe;

• Valentine’s Day Cards are said to have originated in France before they materialized in any other country. A Frenchman, named Charles, Duke of Orleans has written the first written Valentine’s Day Cards. The Duke who was captured as war prisoner at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415 is said to have written a Valentine message to his wife while imprisonment in the Tower of London.
• Finnish Valentine’s Day is considered as the ’friendship day’. The bond of friendship is celebrated with sheer enthusiasm on this day.
• One German story goes, there was a peasant revolt led by Duke Welf against King Conrad III. The King had pulled together a great army which overthrew the Duke’s fighters. As a result, peasants found themselves under siege. Lady Elizabeth, the wife of the Duke requested the King to let her and other wives leave the castle with whatever they could carry on their backs. The King agreed but got surprised to see them carry their husbands on their back on that Valentine’s Day.
• In Denmark, young couples become cousins of Shakespeare on Valentine’s Day. Yes, they write beautiful romantic poems on the day. They write some special poems for their beloved, pointing out the character traits of their sweethearts in a romantic and humorous way. These love poems are known as 'Gaekkebrev.’
• Food plays the major part in the Valentine’s celebration in Hungary. Honey sprinkled salmon, Fried vegetables and pasta, and Ginger marinated filet of duck breast served with pear-chardonnay sauce are some of the traditional recipes for the celebration of Valentine Day in Hungary.

For more, check out - Everything Valentines Day.

Happy Valentines Day!!

Ps. Boys if buying flowers, how about surprising the recipient with a bouquet of meanings? Helioptrope (devoted affection), Lisianthus (appreciation), Cactus (Ardent Love), Gladiolous (You pierce my heart) - or Clove (I have loved you and you have not known it).

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The unlikely pilgrimage of Harold Fry: Book Review

After sitting lonesome on my shelf, I picked this book up and couldn't put it down.

"Harold Fry was a tall man who moved through life with a stoop, as if expecting a low beam, or a screwed-up paper missile, to appear out of nowhere."

 

Harold Fry, a recently retired 65-year old receives a letter from an old colleague, dying of Cancer. He pens a reply, tells his wife he'll be back soon intending to walk it to the postbox, and simply carries on - for 600 miles with boating shoes, his wallet and an vague purpose.

 

 The Unlikely Pilgrimage Of Harold Fry: Rachel Joyce

 

This is a slow read, exploring how relationships can change over time, so slowly that you don't realise what has happened. Harold and his wife Maureen have been married for 47 years and are re-defining who they are. Harold's journey changes them - physically, emotionally and mentally.

 

"She was nothing but the remembering"

 

It was just so easy to pick up and delve into - the characterisations of Harold and Maureen delicious - I don't know what it's like to be 65, but I certainly have a good idea of how it could be now.

 

"The world was made up of people putting one foot in front of the other; and a life might appear ordinary simply because the person living it had been doing so for a long time.”

 

It made me appreciate the little things we take for granted, assuming that everything will always be the same and questioning why we let life develop instead of taking it by the reins. This is the after-effect of the book on you - you enjoy it, laugh, cry at it - and find yourself afterwards almost brooding. It has lessons, but in a tiny slipped in way - no preaching here.

(You may wonder why this is so brief, I don't like including spoilers, and it's such a lovely story!)

 

(Disclaimer: the above links to an Amazon Associates UK account, which means I make a little money (less than 5%) from any purchases made after clicking through these links, but at no extra charge to you. So if you are interested in buying the book, please click through the link under the image. Help support a book addiction...)

Are there times you look back on & wish you could change?

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The Snow Child: Book Review

Sweet, slow, gentle, gorgeous. I found the Snow Child to be an intriguing read, it's definately not an action book, but is based around a Husband and Wife in Alaska in the 1920s, a stark unforgiving landscape on which their relationship and need for a child is laid bare.

Jack and Mabel struggle, Jack with the weigh of responsibility and sheer volume of work nessecary to coax a living out of the harsh wilderness, and Mabel with the loneliness and depression of being so self-contained. In a moment of rare fun they make a snowgirl. The next morning the snowgirl and all her acoutrements are gone, but a young blonde girl with a red fox at her side, is running through the deserted woods.

Taking inspiration from a Russian Fairytale, this is a beautiful read, as they explore a relationship with this almost fey creature, and the journey it takes them on. The characterisations and relationships in the novel are lovely; Jack and Mabel make friends who seem almost ruddy with their family and offer of friendship.

I did feel a disconnect near the end of the book as did friends of mine that recommended it, but I guess the author needed to tie it up in someway it feels almost enivitable what happens, but makes sense for them.

Another slow burner, this very weather topical book sucks you in slowly, before you've realised it you are half way through, much like "The Little Stranger". In some ways, I'm not sure that I would have read this or stuck with it without doing these reviews - it makes you really consider what you are reading 'Do I like this?' 'What would I do in this situation'?

(Please note any links to Amazon are through my Amazon Associates account, which means I make a little money (less than 5%) from any purchases made after clicking through these links and it adds nothing to the price of your book. This helps support my book addiction, so if you are interested in buying the book, please click through the top link)

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Snow Survival Kit

I am a wuss when it comes to Ice. Snow I love - Snowmen, Snow Angels, Snowball fights, Sledding; I'm in. Ice? Not a chance.

The Highways Agency have said anyone travelling in icy conditions should take a shovel, blankets, sleeping bag, extra clothing, including a scarf, hat, gloves, 24 hour supply of food and drink, de-icer, rock salt, torch, safety triangle, tow rope, petrol can, first aid kit and jump leads.

 

I propose an alternative. You will need:

- A local home (your own or a family/friends is preferrable, strangers may not take it the same way)
- Warm clothes
- Thick Winter Coat & Waterproof shoes for Snowman, Snowball and Snow Angel Making
- Mittens and Marigolds for the Snowman and Snowballs
- Heating
- Pyjamas
- Movies/DVD sets you have been meaning to watch, that unfinished craft project lurking in the back of the cupboard or that book you've been meaning to finish
- Soup, Stew or a nice Roast
- A few naughty nibbles (perhaps Lolly Cake or Ginger Crunch)
- Water, Juice and your favourite winter-time beverage
- Carrot and decorations (for the aforementioned Snowman)
- First Aid Kit (always be prepared, Crafts can be surprisingly vicious)
- Moggy or Dog (optional)

Do not be tempted to video call your antipodean family and friends. Their gorgeous weather will only make you jealous.

Anything I've missed?

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(Mostly) Wordless Fridays

This weekend with a ridiculous amount of snow forecasted, I'm hoarding fellow bloggers recipes, hunting down a load of baking supplies and hunkering down in the house. I have no intention of going anywhere.

"Snow? What snow?"

Oh, and PS. Breakfast rocks according to the BBC Good Food 'Olive' Magazine, it's going to be 'big' this year in Foodie circles. (Check the link out for a few healthily decadent ideas).

What are your plans?

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London Living: Tea, beverage of the Brits

The stereotype is true. The art of tea is a very important social aspect of living in England. That's not to say it doesn't have its place in New Zealand, but there is a special place in most Brits hearts, and it's solely reserved for the great leaf.

Fact for the day: Approximately 165,000,000 cups of tea are drunk on average in a day, in England (according to the United Kingdom Tea Council, though they may be a little biased).

Tea with friends

Setting aside the very serious historical and political influence the humble tea leaf has been involved in, it is almost a religion here and I do know a few people whose blood has practically been replaced by the tan liquid.

 

Tea in the Queens' Garden 

In the work place it's very social - in most of the offices I've have worked in & charities I have volunteered with, if you don't drink tea it kind of baffles people. They aren't offended at all when you say no thanks, but a fleeting puzzled frown normally crosses their brow if you say "No, I'm ok thanks, I don't really drink tea." I found myself accepting cups of tea and getting involved in tea runs more out of a courtesy than thirst, and subsequently found myself with a caffeine habit.

I've found that there are 3 types of people; the social makers (who always get their round in, or can be persuaded to), the anti-social makers (who never get a round in, strategically planning their trip to the kitchen and employing some pretty sneaky tactics), and the canny ones (who make such bad tea that the rest of the offices shudders at the suggestion & leaps to their feet to make for everyone).

Greasing the wheels of industry... 

It's also quite a social etiquette with milk; who gets it and which one they get - we have had office-wide discussions on the subject alone, and there is a minor panic when we run out.

Posh Afternoon Tea

There is also the subtle art of how you take your tea - at home we were quite involved in the motor racing scene, and the odds were:
MECHANICS - 2 Sugars+
DRIVERS - 1 Sugar
OWNERS - No Sugar

It was uncanny how often our 'scientific' formula was right, and it didn't matter if it was cars or bikes. Whilst researching for this post, I ran into this article on "your tea type" Great minds think alike (although fools seldom differ. That's a bit of food for thought!)

No overseas box would be complete without a box of Union Jack Tea. Fact.

 

In my experience, since living here, if I find yourself in a stressful situation I didn't quite know what to do, I switch the jug on. A cup of tea is your friend, calming, giving your hands something to do, partially occupying your mind, it's hot and soothing, and provides a small caffeine bump.

However, if you aren't a tea drinker, I have found a loophole in the social matrix.

That's right, nothing is enjoyed more by your new tea-drinking colleagues & Brits than a nice slice of cake.

How do you enjoy your tea? Or are you a Coffee Fiend?
Have I made you Thirsty?
What does your beverage of choice say about you?

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London Living: Posh Girlie Weekends

This weekend was lovely in the lovely wilds of Surrey. Busy, but lovely. Lunches, 50th's, Spas, nattering, mischief, deer, drinking, gangnam-style dancing, Tequila, dresses, deer, royal park walking & recovery.

I think I'm going to need another weekend after this one.

My phone & camera batteries didn't quite make it to the Park, but it certainly settled a bit of the old Donkey-on-the-edge symptoms.

 

 

 Have you had a busy weekend?

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