Photo of the Week - 30th January

Pay Day is finally here and so is the weekend, hooray. I hope you are not all snowed in and managing to enjoy the Narnia-esque landscape we are experiencing at the moment.

Here is this weeks photo round-up.

Photo A

Dinner at Rub Smokehouse in Nottingham

Photo B

Cyril making Cat shadows

Photo C

Donating my 10th pint of blood and saving a life

Photo D

It's a hard life being a cat

Have a great weekend, back soon.

Nic x

Photo of the Week - 23rd January

Is it just me or does this January feel like the longest month in the history of time ever? Ok well maybe I am exaggerating a little bit but we are nearly there and not too far away from payday.

Here is a little look into my week.

Photo A

Channelling my inner Grany

Photo B

Cyril getting comfy  in his new bed

Photo C

Fondant fancy on  a Friday

Photo D

Winter TLC for my skin

Have a good weekend, thanks for reading, Nic x

Liz Earle Beauty Products

I first came across Liz Earle products about fifteen years ago when I used to steal the small samples that came whenever my Mum bought the products. I always remember how soft and clean my skin felt after using the range.

Despite it taking me a fair few years to become reacquainted with the brand I was so happy on Christmas Day to peel back the wrapping paper and get my mitts on some more products.

The 'Cleanse and Polish' hot cloth cleanser is great for giving your skin a deep clean and the muslin cloth is non abrasive on your skin. After that the Instant Skin Boost tonic really freshens you up and the smell is divine.

I will definitely be giving my chilly winter skin some extra TLC over the next few weeks.

These two products have now firmly made their way into my daily skincare routine along with the good old cucumber face wipes and No.7 moisturiser.

Do you like Liz Earle products? If so let me know which ones.

Thanks for reading x

Photo of the Week - 16th January

Happy Friday. Tonight for me will include take away and red wine with my girlfriends and tomorrow I will no doubt feel guilty and vow to eat healthy for the next week. Wish me luck!!

Here is a snapshot of my week.

Photo A

Street art in Brick Lane - Shoreditch

Photo B

Sunny mornings in East London and my 500th instagram post

Photo C

TBT to my time in Kuala Lumper at the Batu Caves

Photo D

Amazing home cooked breakfast

Hope you have a lovely weekend, back soon, Nic x

Breakfast Recipe

Hurrah the weekend is almost upon us. If you are looking for an alternative weekend breakfast treat then I have a little recipe to share with you.

I have long lusted over Instagram posts of people cooking Bacon Cups and so I decided last weekend to have a go myself.

Last weekend I made these little beauties and wanted to show you just how easy it was to do yourself.

You will need the following:

• Cake tray
• A small round cutter
• Bread
• Streaky Bacon
• Eggs
• Cheese
• Mixed Herbs/Salt and Pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees and whilst that is warming up get the bacon cooking. Now you only need to cook the bacon slightly just so its noT raw and that it has some flexibility for building the cups.

Take your cutter and cut out as many round shapes as you want to make Bacon Cups for and then place the bread in your cake tray.

Next sprinkle a bit of grated cheese on to each muffin.

Now with the bacon I found using streaky bacon was better as I could tear it in half and start to wrap the strips around the inside of my cake tin, building up a little wall of bacon.

Next you want to pop in your egg in the middle. Sprinkle some mixed herbs or salt and pepper depending on your preference and you are good to go.

Pop them in the oven for about 15 minutes and voila, yummy bacon muffin cups.

I hope this has inspired some of you to give this a try. You wont regret it.

Have a good weekend x

Honest Burgers

I am lucky enough to be in London once a week with work, so I am constantly on the look out for new places to eat. So when someone recommended Honest Burgers I was keen to give it a try.

Honest Burgers was founded in 2010 and since starting out as a small burger stall touring festivals around the country, it quickly accelerated into its founders Tom and Ben opening up their first restaurant in Brixton.

4 years later and 9 restaurants under their belt, Honest Burgers prides itself on its simple, quality-focused menu.

These burgers are in high demand and after seeing the queue at the Soho restaurant we headed to Oxford Circus where we were told there was a shorter wait for a table.

The decor inside is simple and the atmosphere welcoming and I like the fact that the menu isnt overwhelming with tons of burger varieties shapes and sizes. Clean and Simple.

I am, however one of those people in restaurants that looks at what everyone else is eating before making my decision. But in the end I did settle on a Stilton Cheese Burger with rosemary salted chips.

The meat was fresh and tasty and the Stilton was just the right amount of sharpness and came with an onion relish. All washed down with a Sheppy's Somerset cider. This is what Friday nights are all about.

If you are in London and fancy a burger with a difference then head to Honest Burgers and I guarantee you wont be disappointed.

I cant wait to go back. MMMMMMMM Burgers.

Thanks for reading x

Photo of the Week - 9th January

Well that's my first week back at work over and done with. These dark mornings have sure made it hard to get out of bed in the morning.

Anyway here is this weeks photo selection giving you a taster of what I have been up to this week. 

Photo A

New Year, New Diary, New Mug

Photo B

My Beautiful new Crosley

Photo C

First Bake of 2015 - Lemon Madeira cake

Photo D

Saw this in Oliver Bonas and decided how true it was

I am off to London this weekend so expect to see photos of food and drink over on my instagram - nicsaint84

Thanks for reading x

Salzburg in a day

Doe a deer, a female deer. Ray a drop of golden sun. Me a name I call myself. Far a long long way to run!!!

Ok, I will stop with the Sound of Music lyrical reference, but I will admit to singing the whole entire soundtrack in my head on a recent trip to Salzburg.

I wrote in an earlier post that I had recently spent 4 days in Munich, and whilst there we made the most of being so close to the Austrian border and took a day trip via train to Salzburg.

The tour we booked was through Radius Tours in Munich, and for 44 Euros it felt like something we just couldn't pass up the opportunity on.

Salzburg is just 2 hours by train from Munich's Hauptbahnhof central station and upon arrival we wrapped up in our hats and scarves ready for the 1.5 hour walking tour. Our tour guide Maxine, was sure to point out the top spots along the way, which included Mozart's birth place, his favourite Confectionary - Furst, along with some of Salzburg's famous churches, monasteries and catacombs.

By lunchtime we were all ready to refuel and warm up and we were lucky enough to get a table at what is rumoured to be the Oldest Restaurant in Europe - St Peters Stiftskeller, which dates back to 803 AD. Large parts of the courtyard restaurant were decked out in festive dressing, but the newer side of the restaurant was gorgeous and lavish and like something out of a fairytale dining room.

After lunch of a delicious scallop risotto, we were given some free time to explore. My boyfriend and I decided to head up to the Convent which sits high on the hill next to the old Fort. This the convent that Maria joins in the Sound of Music and the views from the top offered a panoramic view of Salzburg.

The shops in the Altstadt (Old Town) all have unique wrought iron guilded signs lining the streets and definitely worth a visit.  You may also come across the prettiest McDonald's sign ever.

Whilst we were here it would have been rude not to have a wander around the Christmas Market and sample yet more Gluwhein. I swear by this point Gluwhein must have been running through my veins. Before finally walking over the bridge that crosses the Salzach river to look at the lovers locks chained to the bridge.

Overall this trip offered a whistle-stop tour of Salzburg, however the fog never really lifted so we missed out on the view of the Snow-capped Alps that normally would have been visible, which was shame. But the trip did leave me with an Austrian hunger. Perhaps next time for skiing (watch this space).

Salzburg from Munich is definitely worth a visit and if you go in the Summer be sure to visit the Mirabelle Gardens and act out the scene from the Sound of Music where the children are singing and dancing on the steps.

Thanks for reading x

The Crosley

Oh boy, I would like to take the time in this post to introduce you to my new friend.....The Crosley 

I must have been a very good girl this year to receive this from Santa (aka my Dad), and I am so glad I am now part of the record player gang.

Long have I had jealousy pangs when I have listened to friends go on about their record players, the sound it gives out, and the new vinyl they bought at the weekend. Now I too can share such ramblings.

Music is a big part of my life and growing up in pubs when I was younger definitely gave me access to a wide genre of music, both new and old. Now I am older I have the luxury of being able to see bands live and download music at my convenience. But a record player offers something different. It allows me to sit still and appreciate music in a different way. 

The sound and that crackle that just makes you go ahhhhhhhh, and for a surprisingly small player the sound is really good and clear.

This little beauty comes from Urban Outfitters and they come in a variety off different shapes and sizes. I absolutely adore their Keepsake Map player with the retro map lining  in the case, but in the end I settled with this smaller turquoise portable version. Handy for me to move between the living room and dining room depending on my mood.

She doesn't just sound great, she looks good too with the leather casing and brown and bronze finishing, she goes perfectly with my grey and yellow living room.

I've bought a few albums recently after stumbling into my local greetings card shop, that randomly has a vinyl record shop in the back. The shop has thousands in boxes ready to be tenderly selected and taken home. So you can imagine my delight when the owner offered me a deal to take home 7 for the grand total price of £10. Now that's a bargain if ever I have seen one.

After careful consideration I settled on these babies. Mainly because they remind me of my childhood, especially The Carpenters and Simon and Garfunkel, and let me tell you they sound great.

It really has been love at first play for me and my Crosley and I cant wait to build up my record collection over the next few years. Hopefully throwing a few more contemporary records into the mix.

Hope you enjoyed reading, I am off to hopefully be fed a Sunday Roast courtesy of my mum. Have a lovely Sunday x

A Weekend in Munich

So I have been a very bad blogger of late. I blame the festive season and the copious amounts of food and drink I have been consuming. However now we are in a brand spanking shiny new year, I've decided its time to give my blog a bit more TLC.

I love Christmas, love, love, love it. So it has long been on my travel bucket list to visit Germany and take part in the festivities at a traditional German market or Christkindlmarkt as they are more traditionally known.

I had heard a lot of great things about Munich and the surrounding Bavarian area, which helped to make up my mind about my chosen destination. So on the 28th November my boyfriend and I flew out for 4 days of beer drinking, pretzel eating and gluwhein drinking. Pardon the pun but I am not a fan of the funny looking white sausages they sold in Munich, so I tended to stick to more traditional food.

Whilst staying in Munich we booked into an Air B'n'B in the small town of Norbad, which is really central to the main tourist spots in Munich and has very easy access routes via the cities local tram and bus networks, (albeit we did hop on the wrong trains a few times, but hey that happens to me in England).

Our apartment was owned by a lovely Canadian guy called Michael and the place was perfect. Clean, warm and cosy. I have added the link below in case anyone is ever thinking of going to Munich and looking for a place to stay. I cannot recommend this place or Michael s hospitality enough. https://www.airbnb.co.uk/rooms/994168?s=bzkE

Now, on to the Christmas markets. Munich has an array of markets to choose from but the most popular one is in Marienplatz, which is the main square in the city centre, and also home to the beautiful St Peter's Church. It is also between the 27th November until Christmas Eve, home to the Christkindlmarkts, where you will find endless wooden chalets offering gluwhein in every shape and form, gingerbread hearts iced with messages to your loved ones and traditional wooden trinkets. It's worth noting that the Gluwhein tastes different from stall to stall. From the very sweet, to the boozy versions with added Jagermeister!!

There was something about this place, perhaps it was the hustle and bustle, the twinkly lights adorning the huge Christmas tree in the main plaza, and also the large amount of Gluwhein that I drank, but you couldn't help but feel all Christmassy inside.

Munich and the Bavarian region is also famous for its Beer halls and we visited two of the most popular in Munich. The first being the Augustiner beer hall which is a 5 minute walk from Marienplatz and offers a great selection of Bavarian beer. This was our first pit stop on day one and after tucking into a monster pretzel and drinking a pint of white beer we were ready to do more exploring. Definitely worth a visit and swift pint if you are in Munich.

The second beer hall and probably the most famous in Munich is the Hofbrauhaus. This giant beer hall has beautifully hand painted ceilings and 2km of wooden benches serving litre sized mugs of beer (steins), and has a brass band and dirndl with lederhosen clad servers.

This place has a real buzz and atmosphere to it from the moment you step through the door, and the benches mean its easy to get chatting to other beer swillers and share stories. Be warned though, you will need strong arms to hold up your litre of beer. In my case (being the little weakling that I am), I needed two hands. :)

A few other highlights from this trip was also a visit to the Olympic Park which in 1972 played host to the games which were sadly marred by a horrendous terrorist attack which left eleven athletes dead. However it was great to wander around the park and try to imagine what it must have been like in the height of Summer '72 and the thousands of spectators and athletes that would have been wandering around. The place is still largely used for music events and the swim hall was a welcome warm up-rest bite from the sub zero temperatures we were experiencing outside. The ticket booths now look a little sad and lonely, but this place still has lots of characters and history and well worth a visit.

Next to the Olympic Park is the BMW museum and a great way to spend an hour or two wandering around the museum and looking at the classic and modern vehicles.

The final highlight of Munich and something which we had planned before we went, was a trip to Neuschwanstein Castle through Viator. I had taken a trip with Viator before when I had visited Washington DC 2 years ago, so I knew they would offer a great tour.

Image courtesy of Wikipedia

The small guided tour takes you two hours outside of Munich to the small town of Fussen, and from there you make your way by foot up to the castle. The town even has its own maypole. Our tour guide was a guy called Jeff and he really knew how to tell a good story about the history of the town and the castle. It was like a short history lesson with added spooky voices and hand gestures.

I was so excited before hand as the castle really does look like something straight out of a Disney film and is even rumoured to have inspired the artists behind Disney's Sleeping Beauty's castle.

However, it seemed the weather was playing against us on this particular day and the castle itself was shrouded in this blue ethereal fog which meant the castle was only visible from right underneath, and that the picture postcard view from the bridge didn't exactly offer me the photos I would have hoped for. 

Nevertheless the trip was fun, informative and the castle itself was grand and ornate and gave a great insight into the taste and personality of King Ludwig the Seconds home. Sadly the King never lived to take residence in the castle as he died in mysterious circumstances shortly before it was finished completion.

Overall, Munich was everything I hoped it would be. Steeped in history, friendly locals, tasty beer and Christmassy vibes.

I hope you enjoyed reading and hope it inspires some of you to take a trip there in the future. I recommend downloading the Trip Advisor Offline city Munich app before you go, as this helped us to navigate our way around.

Thanks for reading and Happy New Year x