25th Birthday in London

Over the weekend I turned 25. It was a hard one to miss as I feel I definitely got an extra 9 hours of birthday time with the time difference between London and Melbourne. Having a surprise birthday party the week before also helped! Thanks Rach & co! First thing on Sunday I got the best present one could ask for given to me by the best friend/housemate/cousin one could ask for. An ASOS voucher & cash... Just joking Tim Tams & pizza shapes! Again I joke, although I did receive that, I received the loveliest of birthday cards from all my girls, my parents & a special man. I definitely felt the love. Pictures below document the birthday weekend. The 2 bunches of flowers will make my birthday last that little bit longer. Till I remember I am 25 #stayalive... Thanks to everybody for all of the love. 

Being in London also meant I missed my twinnies 25th birthday and my big sister Brooke's special 30th - Happy Birthday ladies all my love xoxo

Coffee 193, located 2 doors off Oxford street with amazing coffee. This place is a must between Zara & Primark! 

11 Pimlico Road, breakfast brunch with Bellini's!

The Swedes, Amelia, The Boys, Beck

The Lion King, absolutely incredible. 

Pizza East, featured on GP blog in Shoreditch.

Had the pork belly pizza for dinner - amazing.  

To be sure, to be sure - Dublin

Reunited in Dublin with my friend from Melbourne, Rachel, it was my first weekend getaway from London. Yes, I did stay in a backpacker hostel the first time in quite a few years! I forgot a towel and body wash...essentials to note for the next getaway. The weekend involved quite a bit of drinking and many many laughs. We were definitely in the Irish spirit, drinking Guinness and eating stew, quite uncommonly I actually got burnt too! We did a very good (long) walking tour and spent Sunday basking in the sun in Howth on the coast walking along the hill top. One of the most breathtaking views I have ever seen. I hunted down the 'best coffee in Dublin,' The Bald Barista, which was worth wading through the sea of homeless people out the front & a decent cake shop which was necessary after the long walk around Dublin. All in all, a perfect weekend getaway. I am not sure if I can top it! Will try though. 

Trinity College

Dublin Castle

Tower of Dublin, from the gardens behind

Dublin

Irish Pub - Guinness

Queen of Tarts - Great cupcake & crumble

Irish Shot - amazing! 

Howth, Lighthouse in the distance

Howth Beach

Weekends in London

I have been away from my beloved Melbourne for over 2 months now. What I really miss is breakfasts/brunch's out in St.Kilda/Prahran & Richmond ! To compensate for this I have been on the hunt for great brunch's in London, boy are there lots to try. The weather has been dreary with days highlighted by sun, making you forgot the grey days ever happened. I am also loving being a tourist in my new city, going on the Eye, biking around Hyde Park. There is always something to see and do! 

Granger & Co. 

Where else would you find a great breakfast but at an Australian chef's restaurant! The best coffee I have had in Europe. Even if it was a 30 minute wait...But it was in Notting Hill so automatically excused! 

The Workshop Coffee Co. 

Owned by the same people as St.Ali, the workshop in Farringdon was very cool. Melbourne cool! Corn fritters and coffee in a trendy location. Can't go wrong. 

Breads Etcetera 

A local for us in Clapham this place was SO fun, I had the vegetarian breakfast with unlimited bread! Yep you read correctly every breakfast is unlimited bread cooked on site. You choose a loaf you want to try, cut it yourself and toast it on your table. 

Tourist Shots:

Battersea Power Plant

Amelia & I on the Eye

Westminster Abbey

Notting Hill

In preparation to a weekend visit Portebello Road market I did my research ie. I watched Notting Hill. What a great movie that is! Just like the movie Notting Hill is full of charm, beauty and makes you feel a bit warm and fuzzy on the inside. We had brunch at a gorgeous place called Tom's Deli, I am certainly trying my best to find good brunch spots! Wandered down Portobello Road where the market was in full swing & extremely busy. Stopped to pick up a cupcake from the Hummingbird Bakery and sat on the top deck of the bus for the trip home. Bus truly is the best way to see London and when it rains you are undercover!

Portobello Road

Very busy market

Gorgeous coloured houses

Toms Deli

Market Stall - Harry Potter! 

The Hummingbird Bakery

The best cupcake I have ever eaten - Red Velvet

First Weeks in London

Although I am still jobless in London, we have managed to spend our spare time wisely by being tourists in our new home town. It is such a vibrant city with so much happening all of the time. The weather has been sunny most days, even reaching 22 over the Bank holiday weekend! Adventures below are outlined by food, of course!

Jamie's Italian - Covent Garden. A great fresh meal in a very bustling restaurant. 

Brick Lane - Shoreditch. Rows of Indian restaurants bartering out the front to get you in their door.  

The Wandle - Earlsfield. Typical English pub, so gorgeous! The local for my friends who live close by.  

Bluebird Cafe - Chelsea. Shared lunch and Pimms in the sun. Tried to spot people from Made in Chelsea...We did end up seeing Ollie a different day at 'The Ship - Wandsworth," love a (sort-of) celeb spot!

Harry Ramsden's - Eastbourne. A chain that at one time made it Melbourne. The fish & chips were the highlight of our trip to the beach at Eastbourne... where it rained all day! 

Kai - Mayfair. Friends were in London for one night & took us to this Chinese Michelin starred restaurant. Could not fault anything about the meal, service or the company. 

Paris

Ahh Paris, how I je t'adore. She did not disappoint. Although unintentional this trip was like an art tour as much as a food & champagne one. I visited Musée Marmottan, Musée D'Orsay & Monet's garden at Giverny. This was as close to 4 perfect days as I could have dreamed of. Except perhaps if I had have met a lovely man who took me to Galeries Lafayette to shop! 

The Eiffel Tower, stunning at night

Crepes from Le Petit Josselin

Giverny

Lunch at Derriere was incredible, such a cool place

Macarons from Laduree on Pont Des Arts

Sacre Coeur, a favourite place

Veneiza

To say mine and Amelia's trip wasn't full of romance would be a lie. By the time we got to Venice we were deeply in love with Italian food & wine! I think we managed to have a glelato nearly every day while we were in Italy too. We were lucky with incredible sunny & warm weather, which made taking photos a dream. 

At the Guggenheim museum

All Vedova, known for their cicchetti or Venetian tapas

Everything was picturesque!

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