Month: September 2020

Our Little London Staycay

September 30, 2020

With a well deserved break from work finally in sight at the end of September, I had my hopes up that we would be able to do a last minute holiday abroad. However the uncertainty of countries being added and removed from the quarantine list was all looking far too risky, so we settled on booking a mini break to good old London town.

After a thorough browse through booking.com we found a fancy looking hotel located right in the heart of the city at St Paul’s. I know the area well having lived just down the road back when I was studying in London, so I was excited to take a trip back to some of my favourite places nearby too.

Our hotel Leonardo Royal St Paul’s wasn’t half bad considering we paid just £104 each for two nights. The bedroom was a decent size with a lovely bathroom and dreamy, humungous sized bed which was like sleeping on a cloud!

Spa facilities were very nice too, however given that there was no allotted time slots to use the pool and jacuzzi, it was a gamble whether or not we would actually be able to get in due to social distancing.

Despite this, I had a very nice experience in the hotel’s gym which was much more spacious with plenty of equipment. I even had one of the big studios all to myself for about an hour, so I made the most of it and pumped out a good workout before practicing some old dance tricks.

Being the super organised/guilty control freak that I am, the weekend was all planned out revolving mostly around where we would be eating out next. Having lived in London for three years also gave me a lot of knowledge on the city and I had to visit some old regular haunts.

Of course a shopping trip to Oxford Street was a must and it’s always fun to have a stroll around Selfridges pretending we can afford that Rolex watch or Cartier ring 😉 We went for some truly special dinners (more posts to come on those) and I also had to take my boyfriend for a trip to my stomping ground Four Seasons for a late night tipple.

Four Seasons Ten Trinity Square is the newer of the two FS hotels in London and is simply breathtaking from the minute you pull up to the grand entrance. Given my connections back at my workplace Four Seasons Hampshire, we were treated to a spectacular array of cocktails on the house during our visit to the Rotunda Bar. How special to be the guest for once!

For our second evening I planned a more casual dinner and drinks in the trendy neighbourhood of Shoreditch. Another area I used to visit a lot, I booked us into a brilliant burger place Hache which never fails to disappoint.

On reflection, it was a perfect little getaway with my boyfriend and really great to see London still thriving despite circumstances. We certainly did miss out on our beach vacation this year, but there’s always next year and here’s hoping things are back to normal by then so we can see everyone smiling without masks once more 🙂

Late Summer Pastel Hues

September 22, 2020

So as we find ourselves almost at the end of September and already nearing the end of what has been a pretty rubbish year for us all (cheers Covid, you really shat all over 2020!), I’m thankful for these late summer days.

This time of year tends to bring some surprisingly warm weather in the UK just before the autumn months roll in and daylight hours swiftly shorten.

We had to make the most of such glorious days of sunshine last week, so we headed down the coast to my favourite beach in the south, West Witterings in Chichester.

Arriving in the late afternoon, we setup a spot with our picnic and enjoyed sundown whilst grazing on a mezze of nibbles and sipping on some beers.

Not much beats the simplicity of a stunning sunset complete with an ice cold beer and good company. This is what I did everyday when I was in Bali, it was a dream!

I have many fond memories of visiting the Witterings as a kid when I would come down with the girls and our mums. We would spend the whole day down here swimming in the sea, playing games and even having a barbecue using those little deposable ones that always burnt the grass!

Feeling the sand between my toes and listening to the calm of the sea never fails to make me smile and helps me find a little peace at times when I’m stressed and anxious. Living by the coast and being able to go to the beach everyday is definitely the thing I miss most about living in Sydney.

I find it fascinating how every sunset is so unique and different and we were treated to one of the most beautiful sundowns I’ve ever seen at the Witterings on this visit. The pastel pink and blue hues of the sky soon turned a deeper coral colour, just before the sun dipped below the horizon and went to sleep.

The magical wonder created by nature gives me goosebumps and uplifts my soul from within. It gets me thinking about where I am in life and what I want my purpose to be; a loaded thought which inspires my creativity and motivates my passion to stay a wild.

Another summer may be almost over, but the seasons progress and so must we. As life continues and my mid-twenty year old self still feels eighteen at heart, I believe now more than ever that life is for living in these moments, here and now. Too many times have I longed for the past or hoped for the future, when I all I needed to do to be happy was to live and be present in the universe.

These are just some thoughts I had when I was able to take a step back and breath in the beauty of the world around me. Life doesn’t have to be as complicated as we often make it; sometimes we just need to ground ourselves back down to earth and live in the moment.

‘Stay wild moon child.’

Recipe; Date PB Chocolate Truffles

September 11, 2020

Happy Friday my wild childs! This week I’m back with another tasty recipe perfect for an after dinner treat or sweet mid-afternoon snack. Using only a few wholefood ingredients, these truffles are so easy to make and a lot healthier than any pre-packed desert often full of refined sugars and sweeteners.

Whilst the basic components of these truffles are simply dates, peanut butter, nuts and chocolate, each element can be altered to suit your personal taste. For example you may choose to use a different chocolate like salted caramel or white chocolate, or maybe even mix it up with different spreads for the filling like biscoff or sprinkle with hundreds and thousands for a fun decoration alternative… the possibilities are endless!

The first step is to remove the stone from each date and fill with your spread of choice. Medjool dates are the best kind given their larger size and naturally sweet, gooey flesh. My favourite peanut butter by Pic’s works perfectly as a smooth, creamy filling with a hint of salt.

Adding a sprinkling of crushed nuts at this stage gives a little crunch to the centre of the truffles. Alternatively crushed biscuits or even a whole hazelnut would be another good addition.

Now pop the dates into the freezer whilst you melt the chocolate ready for coating. I opted for Green & Blacks 70% dark chocolate block to match the intense salted peanut flavour from the PB and simply melted this in a mug in the microwave for a few minutes.

Now comes the fun part where things tend to get a little messy too! It’s easiest to use a fork and spoon to submerge each date into the melted chocolate and lay straight onto a board ready for setting. I then got artsy by drizzling the remaining chocolate all over the finished truffles and decorated with strawberries for an aesthetic desert board.

Finally I chose to complete my truffles with a sprinkling of desiccated coconut, but yet again feel free to get creative with different toppings here. Leave them to set in the fridge and serve chilled or remove from the fridge half an hour early for an extra oozy centre. As you can see these require very little effort to make but look super impressive, especially when presented on a board with berries and extra chocolate! I’ll be enjoying mine curled up on the sofa with a glass of wine tonight 😉

Midnight Moon Child

September 1, 2020

From time to time I find myself restless and wide awake, full of thoughts and ideas at 3am. It’s when my mind ticks on over into this midnight madness that I get my most inspired to create.

Edit 1I’m always reading poetry and collecting quotes as I find words and writing to be one of my favourite outlets of creation. Having a little journal by my bedside is key for capturing those unique moments of imagination and other worldly dreams which fascinate me.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAAfter a few days break from work I already feel a new wave of inspiration and motivation as my mind, body and soul has had time to catch up with itself. Not pressuring myself to go out and do lots of things on my days off has been a blessing as I’ve had quality me time, something which I’ve neglected since going back to work.

Edit 2I’ve always been a night person and feel a strong connection to the moon and the stars as they accompany me in my midnight madness… perhaps I’m a moon child, still searching this infinite galaxy for the stars within myself.