London Celebrations - cocktails at the shard

Tuesday saw the end of exams and hopefully the end of university. I can't quite believe how quickly it has flown by, so after our final exam a few of us went out and I had so much fun. Three of us decided to have some proper celebrations so last night we went all out.

Yesterday day time I went to Richmond for my lunch, it is under a week until I move back to devon and the one thing I will really miss about London is Whole Foods. It has to be treat as it is a bit pricey, but they do the best juices and salads, I would do my weekly shop there if I was rich enough. So I went and got a green juice and a greek salad and sat outside with the first Game of Thrones book, I am a tiny bit obsessed at the moment with GoT and so far the TV show and books are just as good as each other.

whole foods forever

When I got in I started to get ready for my evening out, I went for a purple smokey eye with winged liner and a messy ponytail. I wore a floral print dress from h&m, a peppermint blazer from NewLook and nude heels from Marks and Spencer. I was ready for celebrations, so we got the tube from west London over to central.

the view from the bottom

The moment you step out of the train station you are in awe of The Shard, it is super tall. We met our friend and got in quite honestly the fastest elevator of all time up too the 32nd floor and the view was incredible. We went to the Hutong bar which has a great view of the City, it wasn't too busy but there weren't any free table so we hovered for a bit and got one. I had two cocktails which were both amazing, I had the Oriental Breeze to start with which was kiwi and ginger predominately and the Yellow River which was elderflower and coriander. They were both delicious and pricey but that's what you expect at The Shard. Before we left we had the obligatory bathroom trip just to see how posh there were, they were super nice.

from my instagram: @aislingellen

By this time we are all a bit peckish and we hopped on the tube and then got a Black Cab to Brewer Street to Bill's restaurant in Soho. Bill's is a lovely place to visit if you want good food at a reasonable price somewhere with atmosphere! I had a Hedgerow Fizz which is Sparkling Wine, Elderflower Cordial and an Iced Blackberry, I get one of these every time. I love them. We shared some starters and then I had the Chorizo and Hummus burger for my main. I was a lovely dinner, definitely check out your local Bill's!

i love getting black cabs 

yum yum 

Final stop of the night was Be At One on the corner of Archer Street in Soho for a final cocktail, I had English fizz which surprise surprise was Elderflower again, with Gin and other good stuff. We chatted the night away, lots of fun was had.

Nights like this make me sad to leave London, but i also know with good friends and family living there I can make the most of visiting them on weekends and enjoy the London life. I am also sad to leave such good and lovely friends.

Howdy y'all I visited Texas

It has been two days since I touched back down in London and I have the holiday blues. I had the most amazing week, as always when I get back from a holiday I want to jet off again and see new places and make fabulous new memories! The memories I have from the past week are ones that I will treasure for many years to come.

Monday

Monday was spent travelling from Heathrow over to Dallas/Fort Worth, we arrived to lovely weather not too warm but slightly humid. I ended up going to bed pretty much as soon as we arrived as it had been a long day and the next day was destined to be even longer.

Tuesday 

I love a buffet breakfast, and this one did not disappoint. I fell in love with blueberry bagels. We jumped into the van and headed off to the Sheriffs office where we were greeted by the Sheriff and his Deputy and had our own passes made up. After a tour of both the training centre and the jail we were treated to lunch at the jail. (the food was made by the inmates - we were only told afterwards) We then visited the District Attorneys office and the court. It was really interesting from a criminological and criminal justice point of view. We then were taken to the University of North Texas where we met up with some of the criminal justice students who took us for dinner at iHop - it was my first visit and I loved it.

Wednesday 

Another early morning but this time we drove slightly out of the city of Denton to the sheriff's department shooting range and saw a SWAT team demonstration, and got to experience a number of the aspects involved in SWAT. Including firing a gun,  I have very little interest in guns, I didn't before and don't after. After learning about guns and the way they are used in Texas and the laws I can see there purpose but I still am not a gun person. Although this did not take away from the amazing experience. After a 'proper' texan barbecue we went back the CID offices and had a forensic demonstration by a man who had taken the hearts of all the girls on the trip. 

Thursday 

I was taken under the wing of a lovely old sheriff who took me on patrol of this area, I got to see the Texan countryside and he told me all about the history of Texas and how the sheriffs department had changed over time. He bought me a pink lemonade and wore his cowboy hat the whole time. After patrol me and another girl were taken to interview three male prisoners, who were all incredibly polite to their guests, I got the feeling they weren't always so polite. In the afternoon we were given a talk by a lovely forensic artist who's work was incredible.
In the evening we were going to the university to have another barbecue but we were rudely interrupted by a tornado - an actual tornado - with a siren and weather warnings. We had to go into the library which was also the tornado shelter. As we didn't get too eat, me and one of the girls Alice went to have dinner at the hotel accompanied by cocktails. We were later joined by our lecturer and one of the masters students from UNT who gave us a great insight to the criminal justice world and Texas.

Friday 

SHOPPING DAY. we ventured into Dallas which took a couple of hours on THE cleanest train and then a tram. We arrived at the mall and split up so we could do our shopping, I may have gone a little crazy in Kate Spade!! It started to get busy on the way back to the hotel because of the final four. But I did manage to find some Minute Maid lemonade which is my favourite. We then spent the evening hanging out with some of the UNT students.

Saturday and Sunday 

We shopped again on the Saturday morning and then hung out at the hotel, I was getting super tired by the end of the week and looking forward to having a rest day. Sunday morning I watched the football in the hotel room which was a total bonus, we then were taken for some proper Texan Mexican before we had to fly home.

I had the BEST time in Texas, we were more than looked after by both the Sheriff's office and the students and lecturers from the University of North Texas. Southern Hospitality was defiantly at its best. Texas was beautiful and so different from the UK but I would go back in a heartbeat!

Seasides and City 'Scapes

Like many students as soon as I have a break from university I am straight back on that train home. Train journeys are an event I thoroughly enjoy, I give myself plenty of time and get to the station early, grab a starbucks and something to read and hopefully get a seat far away from other passengers. In the past two weeks I have taken four long train journeys and read two books - perfect.

I went home for six days, days spent enjoying Devon as only someone who has lived away from the beach and countryside can. After two and half years of London life I can now seriously appreciate everything Devon has to offer, the same can be said for my parents kitchen after student kitchens. A hobby I have enjoyed for much of my life is baking so going home means one thing, BAKE OFF. I could bake all day, everyday and my favourite days are the ones where my family drift in and out of the kitchen chatting away to me whilst I cook, with the football on the radio in the background, the smells of cake and bread wafting through the house and an apron covered in smears of cake batter and bread dough.

I spent much of my time at home cooking and to me this is pure relaxation. I made soup, paella, baguettes, lemon and blueberry drizzle cake, banana muffins, portuguese tarts, banoffee pie and white bread loaves.



Something about the sound of the sea and splashing waves on a Sunday soothes my soul. A visit home is never complete without a walk, chips and afternoon tea down by the beach - even in the depths of an English Winter. Especially if I am accompanied my family and friends.

A fun fact for you is my love for Waitrose runs deep, almost as deep as the two friends who ran around the supermarket on a monday evening looking for dinner with me. Indian food in the oven and the chatting began, a good catch up is all anyone needs to put a smile on their face especially if it is with friends as lovely as mine.

And then suddenly I was back on the train to London with the countryside blending into the city before I could blink, but only for one night... I was off to Dorset the next day. And then suddenly the city became hills again and I was in Dorset. In need of a long catch up with a best friend, I was happy to see her waiting at the train station.

Sat on her bed, just like we spent many a day in school holidays and weekends for many years, the chat just flowed. We happily talked on piers, in cafes, on the bus and back on the bed. There are not many people who I could watch solid BBC ONE daytime TV with, she is most certainly one of them. Albeit brief the trip was filled with much laughter and reminiscing, and those pesky life worries most final year university students feel.

Once again I was back in the City, bright lights always blinking and never fading.

On the bus to work, back to the daily grind, thoughts fell to the final push at university with a little more than four month left...