Adventures of a London Kiwi -

A London Staycation In The Chronicle Aparthotel

February 4, 2019

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To chase away the impending January blues, Sima (The Curious Pixie), Binny (Food and Travel Diarist), Shikha (always asking Why People Waste Annual Leave) and I plotted a cheeky respite from the winter blues, a ladies staycation in our favourite city, London. Disclaimer: We were invited to spend our London staycation in the Chronicle Aparthotel by Supercity but all views, PJs and meal choices are very much our own.

Did you ever read The Babysitters Club books by Ann M. Martin as a teenager? In one of them (Baby-Sitters’ European Vacation – The Baby-sitters Club Super Special #15 to be exact) some of the group take a trip to London & Paris from their American home of Stoneybrook. They have adventures, dance in professional performances, explore London, meet the Queen – you know, the usual things that teenagers get up to on holiday.

Should you go to Lisbon or Porto for a Portuguese city break? [Travel Linkup]

February 1, 2019

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It’s fair to say that I fell in love with Portugal on both of my city breaks. This fun loving country seems to be quite the winter sun destination for 2019, and I’ve had quite a few people contact me recently asking whether they should visit Lisbon or Porto for their Portuguese city break.

Both Lisbon and Porto are unique cities, each with an individual character – and sadly it’s not always practical to visit both in the same short trip.

10 Ways to Beat Winter Blues

January 28, 2019

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It’s cold, there isn’t much sunshine and I’m already getting sick of arriving places looking like I was dragged through a wet hedge backwards – repeatedly. So, I decided to pop together this blog post of 10 ways to beat winter blues – tried and true methods that help me to survive those Northern Hemisphere winters that never seem to end. {Disclaimer: post contains one clearly marked affiliate link.}

I love a good list. Especially one filled with ways to cheer myself up when I’ve got a case of the blues.

72 hours in Gibraltar – Sunshine, Rock Stars and Monkeys

January 25, 2019

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We booked our 72 hours in Gibraltar without any expectations. If I’m entirely honest, I didn’t know very much about Gibraltar other than the history as a disputed territory, that there are a lot of monkeys, it has a huge rock and it’s a perfect place to catch some winter sun.

I’m becoming more of a spontaneous traveller – my friend and I booked the destination on a whim, and that ended up being the theme of the trip.

Bar Boulud at the Mandarin Oriental: A weekend lunch review

January 22, 2019

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“Brunch you say? Well, there are several places on my (neverending) list that I fancy, can I tempt you to Bar Boulud at the Mandarin Oriental? It looks lovely for a weekend lunch? Ok, cool, all booked. Yep, already! See you there!”

If only all life decisions were that easy. It was a grey old January Saturday, so with our scarves snugged tightly in around our earlobes, we met at our corner table in Bar Boulud at the Mandarin Oriental hotel. At the edge of Hyde Park and Knightsbridge, Bar Boulud is a delectable, cosy bistro by Michelin-starred chef Daniel Boulud and sister restaurant to Bar Boulud in New York. Perfect for a leisurely lunch catch up.