Close but far away - West Bay

It doesn't always have to be on the other side of the world just to see something different. This time I would like to show a bit of England, a side which I got to see while being on a little family day trip on the south west coast this weekend.

West Bay is a sweet little spot in the Dorset region which is beautiful especially when the sun is out, this seems to be very rare this year in the United Kingdom. If you don't have a car, you can get there as well by public transportation

Un petit coucou de Genève

Just came into a lovely warm house and was happy to flee the coldness from outside. Back home in the UK. It is sometimes nice to come back to a base where you are familiar with everything. But that’s a different story, let me tell you something about Geneva, a place I spend the last two days.

I initially booked the flight to Switzerland, Geneva on a wimp because it was pretty cheap with £80 and since I had never been in that region before I looked forward to another weekend away.

As always I headed straight from work to the Airport, all now very much a routine. As most of you will know by now Gatwick Airport is personal favorite  simply because it is the most easiest to reach from home as well as work, a very short commute.

Above the world - London Part 2 at SushiSamba

There are times that you have to celebrate something or someone special. I took such occasion as a chance to experience the SushiSamba Restaurant at the 38th Level in the Heron Tower at Liverpool Street in London.

It had been recommended by several people. Although it is fairly expensive the overall experience is worth it. The food was fantastic, the portions exceeding expectations, the service quick and the view amazing. Certainly value for money even though not something you would do every time, but as I said, for something special I would consider this again.

Buongiorno signorina and signore

It is Monday morning; the smell and heat from the past weekend are still lingering over me. Slightly sunburned on the forearms and overall happy I will tell you a little bit more about a weekend in Rome, Italy 

After work I headed to the airport to catch a late afternoon flight to Rome Fiumicino Airport. The flight time was just over 2 hours and it felt like I was the only blonde person on board (which I wasn’t, but I certainly represented a minority). Upon arrival at the airport I was slightly disappointed that the airport hasn’t been developed at all in the last decade, it felt like I arrived straight into the 80’s. The restrooms were poorly and the stone walls along the corridors were not decorated very much, overall the place was cold and old. I was glad to see that refurbishment of the airport seem to have started, at least based on the outside construction set-up.

In the arrival hall I met my friend Marina from Germany as we had decided to spend the weekend here together. Since we both traveled together in Asia, I knew what was coming my way and was prepared.

Passenger

You only need the light when it's burning low

Only miss the sun when it starts to snow

Only know you love her when you let her go

Only know you've been high when you're feeling low

Only hate the road when you’re missing home

Only know you love her when you let her go

And you let her go

Above the world - London

Just a quick one, I thought I share my experience here in London from two events. The first one was climbing the O2 Arena in North Greenwich. We gathered a small group and met in front of the O2 Climb office.

There was a video that explains the history of the O2 and its details as well as the safety instruction first. We then headed to the change room and got fitted a suit to wear. You get into the suit with everything you have on including your jacket. During Winter it can get really freezing up there especially with sharp wind.

Any cameras bigger than a small digital or phone aren't allowed up there, so bringing my SLR was a bit pointless, but so was the climb in my opinion. It was great for checking it out, but nothing too amazing. You pretty much have the same view from the Greenwich Observatory, just for 28£ less.

A reflective weekend in Amsterdam

Time has come and I've done another short trip across the channel to the Netherlands, this time to the city called Amsterdam. Usually when doing a bit of research for trips I check online on wiki travel, it has all the basics I need. All remaining information I gather from friends like places to go and food to try. I pretty much gave up on lonely planet, it looked more and more like a waste of money as I was barely using it on trips. Surely it is handy, but in today’s time pointless as all the information are available online and with Wifi around everywhere it is as well accessible at any time. Here I don't even care about having a map. If I do need one, they are usually available in the hostels or tourist information centre. But who knows, maybe one day I get all nervous again without a map.

A sugar sweet passion

Most people know by now that I like to travel, everywhere and anytime. I like to tell a story or two and dive into daydreams when possible. Besides all that I had for the last 6 odd years a passion for baking. It all started when I moved to the UK and had nothing better to do than baking cakes. I guess that was in a way my therapy to settle into the UK and accustom myself with the new environment. It enabled me to get distracted, reflect, calm myself down and think of other things besides any trouble, but it also makes me happy to get people to smile over such a simple gesture.

Baking is one thing that is fairly difficult to do while being on the road and certainly one thing I miss doing when being abroad for a while. I have never developed a great technique or a personal signature; I am just trying out new recipes whenever I come across them.

A German in America Chapter Three

It was time again for another business trip over to Atlanta. This time I wasn’t overly excited to arrive in the States since I knew I would be at a place again I had been before and because I doubted I could motivate myself to get up and get out in a city in which it is difficult to get around and beyond without a car. I still had some plans prepared but nothing too exciting. I got more pumped by the thought that I would make a stop in New York on the way back and stay for a couple of days to take in this amazing city I have heard of so much about, but never been to.

To take the action already out of this entry, the trip to New York never happened because of Snow Storm Nemo, a blizzard that apparently was quite heavy and caused thousands of flight cancellations and delays. Instead I rebooked my flight to go out from Atlanta back to London. I was indeed disappointed, but nothing I could have done about. And for sure next time I will try it again and get out and about when I get the chance.

Mission Impossible in Iceland

Another weekend away from London and some more adventures on the agenda. I travelled this time with some lovely friends that I met through work. It had been a while that I travelled with some people. At some point I was a bit anxious and nervous as I wasn’t sure how everything would go and if there would be any trouble along the way. Soon I realised that all of them are well travelled and that I didn’t need to worry. I think I calmed down just before we actually took off.

A Spanish, French, Mexican and German boarded a plane….this is how a joke would start, luckily the weekend ahead was filled with laughter and not only a joke.