York again

Last weekend I spent a day at York with a few friends. I was there October 2012, but York is a lot more beautiful in April, with sunshine, blooming flowers, and crowded little streets basked in glorious spring time.

I took 2 roles of film, more than I’ve ever done in a single day, only to realise that the first role wasn’t rolling *heart broken*. So all the photos I took at the train museum with my film camera wasn’t in there. Luckily my friends took loads of photos and I managed to capture a few with my iPhone.

Us at the train museum. My favourite photo of the day.

Here is the Castle museum. Very Universal Studios-like. The best part is when you enter the shops on these streets, the insides are also decorated consistently with the exterior, and there are even people dressed up in costumes acting as owners of the shops (none of them actually sold anything though).

 

The watch maker’s corner.

 

I really like the design on this book. So luxurious and rich. It is incredible how much attention is paid to such tiny details, and to think all of this is hand-made.

 

 

We went to the prison exhibition at the museum as well, but I didn’t manage to get any photo there because it was very dark. After those dark rooms, we reached the 60s and 70s exhibition. Lots of The Beatles and Marilyn Monroe.

Fashion during this period sure was stunning.

Then we went to a Saturday market, which was so colourful, musical and delicious! I only got this one shot before immersing in all kinds of food and cakes and sweet treats on the streets that day.

Finally, Hong Kong food for dinner.

Of course, being the girly girl that I am, I had to stop by Zara with a friend. Get this, I didn’t get any clothes or shoes (because I’m saving up for the summer), but I came across this amazing fragrance. It’s a very nice floral scent that screams spring! It was the last bottle at the store. Seems like no one really bothers to try out the Zara fragrances but I’ll be keeping an eye out for them from now on. I’ll be using this maybe just to go to school, or on occasions I don’t think fancy enough to wear my Burberry Body. It’s eau de toilette so the scent is more subtle than perfume but still very refreshing.

 

That was my weekend. How was yours? I don’t go out much these days even though it’s the holidays, because I’m investing my time in studying, so I’d love to hear about your adventures!

 

Weekend bliss

The weather over here has not gotten so cold as for us to have snow, but it’s cold enough for me to put away my wool coat and constantly reach for my puffy duck-down jacket instead. The days are more gloomy than ever. With that said, yesterday when we went to Durham city, the sunny weather both comforted and cheered us up.

We decided to have our routinely English Breakfast and black coffee at our all-time-favourite Chapters Cafe.

 

The warmth of the sun was kind enough that we took a stroll around the city and found ourselves lost in a little tea shop with too many adorable looking kinds of tea, tea pots and all sorts of accessories.

 

We went shopping around for a little while and then strolled along the river, to breathed in all the beauty that was before us.

London Buzz

I got away from Durham and spent 10 days in London, all through Christmas day and New Year’s Eve. After a little more than 3 hours on the train, I finally arrived at the beautiful city that welcomed me with warm sunshine , a pleasant change from the gloomy weather up north.

Korean food near Tottenham Court Road

My Favourite: Korean rice cake in spicy sauce.

The famouse chocolate store Goldiva

I got one of those chocolate-wrapped strawberries and they were divine!

 

Burberry Outlet:

We spent a whole morning at the Burberry Outlet in Hackney. I love Burberry. Passionately. So this was probably the place the looked forward to visiting the most. I got a few things for my relatives back home and scored a beautiful green wool scarf for myself.

 

 

 

Westfield Stratford:

We went shopping in Westfield, which was packed with people on Sunday. I also managed to get myself a bottle of Burberry Body perfume (which shall be my scent from now on, although my DKNY bottle is still half full after, what, 5 years?). After shopping is, of course, feasting. My man went for curry broken rice while I opted for vermicelli with spring rolls and grilled pork from a small Vietnamese food stall in the Westfield food court. Not quite the authentic Vietnamese food, but close enough.

 

 

 

Limehouse – Caribbean Food

We went to Limehouse to meet up with a friend. Below is a badly-lit me.

 

 

We had Caribbean food for lunch. Chicken Jerk and Chicken Salad for starters and Chicken Curry for main dish. They were all delicious though *thumbs up*. With it being the 30th of December no one was really eating out around that area so we had the nice cozy restaurant all for ourselves.

 

Borough Market:

After lunch we went to Borough market, one of the largest and oldest markets in England. This is decidedly the most unique market I have been to in England (I haven’t been to many…). Here you can almost touch the holiday-ish vibe in the air. Nothing beats strolling around the busy market in the chilly air with a cup of warm wine. There is me trying out a scotch egg wearing said green Burberry scarf (<3).

 

 

 

 

Poor babies…

As a Vietnamese, I can say that this is the first time I have heard of such dish. It smelled delicious though! If only I wasn’t too full to try some.

London at dusk:

I can look at this scene for hours.

 

 

Mexican Food at Cafe Sol:

One of the best nachos I’ve had. I would’ve tried their steaks but I was too stuffed for that, so I went for a salad with a non-alcoholic cocktail on the side. Everything was great! Will definitely try the steak next time!

 

 

 

 

 

New Year’s Eve:

We wanted to watch the fireworks, but once we got inside it was way too crowded. We wouldn’t have enjoyed the fireworks very much with people constantly stepping on our feet (my Zara flats were thrown into the bin after the night as a result), so we decided to get out and have some Chinese food instead. Not the way we expected to spend New Year’s Eve but it worked out well for us as when midnight strikes, it started drizzling. So we got home safe and sound while everyone else was stuck in the rain trying to get out of the crowd. They were probably too drunk to mind anyway. My friends and I stayed in and chatted until we drifted into sleep.

 

 

Gourmet Burger Kitchen:

We walked into GBK by chance and were so happy we did so as the burgers were very well done. My man’s was the Taxi Driver (basically lots of meat) and mine was the Avocado Bacon Burger (they had a fancy name for it, I think, but I can’t remember).

 

Greenwich Park:

We got a glimpse at the Queen’s house and took a walk in the beautiful park. The weather was very cooperative. Just look at that blue cloudless sky. The view was breathtaking!

 

 

Cosmo Buffet Restaurant:

I was having a flu that night so couldn’t enjoy the food like I usually do, but I’d give it to the restaurant’s wide selection of cuisines. The buffet area was huge and it took a long time every time we went to get another plate of food. In my ill state I found their sweet desserts so irresistible!

 

 

 

 

Now i’m back in college and will be busy for a while. Already, I’m starting to miss London. See you again in the summer! x