A&E & A Food Fight!
This will be a fairly short post as I've just done one on the weekend away that I have just returned from. On Monday I ended up sat in A&E with Mo as he needed to get his leg and ankle looked at after he had a fall on Saturday night in London. Luckily nothing was broken, just bad bruising and ligament damage - puts him out of action for a couple of weeks yet again though! He stayed at mine that evening and on Tue
sday we made a nice brunch, and then I ate at the Country Club in the evening.
On Wednesday I went to Sofar Sounds (see previous post) and on Thursday I went shopping in Manchester and got some Christmas pressies, and in the evening I popped to my parents' for a lasagne as some of my relatives were over for the night. On Friday I went to this event in Manchester called Friday Food Fight run by the same company that did Up In Your Grill that I went to in summer.
I went with Amanda and a friend called Nadina who I haven't seen since university which was fun. I had a hotdog from a stall called Piggie Smalls which had beef brisket, crispy onions and barbecue sauce on it, and a cocktail that was a variation on a mojito. Afterwards we went for a couple of drinks in Bar21 in the Northern Quarter before I caught the train home so I wasn't hungover for my drive the following day. The rest of the weekend was spent in Leicester and Birmingham (see previous post).
Leicester
I got back about an hour ago from a weekend trip to Leicester to visit my friend Claire, with a stop off in Birmingham today to visit the Christmas markets and meet up with our friend Laura, who is now 7 1/2 months pregnant!
I set off at just after 1pm, and arrived at half three, giving us enough time to pop into the town centre for a coffee at a really quirky little independent cafe called St Martin's Coffee. I had a white chocolate snowball mocha which was delicious and then we went shopping for a while to find something for Lauras's birthday which was on Friday. I got a burger from the German market for tea, and then we walked back to Claire's apartment for some predrinks and to get ready for a night out.
We started at Revolution, where we had a couple of glasses of wine, before moving onto a club, but it was pretty dead so we ended up going back to Revolution. Claire knew the bar manager there so we enjoyed some free drinks, and ended up going to a stripclub with him until 6am! It was my first experience of one, and to be fair, it was loads of fun!
Today we were so hungover it was awful, but I managed to make sausages for breakfast and we got ready to head into Birmingham. It took us just over an hour, and after meeting Laura we wandered around to find somewhere to eat a late lunch. We settled on Jamie's Italian, where I had a nice fruity drink and a deconstructed caesar salad which looked really cool and tasted even better. We gave Laura our presents which she liked, and then went for a mooch around the Christmas Markets, which were OK, but not as good in my opinion as the Manchester ones.
It started getting dark (and very cold!) so I said my goodbyes as had the long drive home to get through. It took me 2 1/2 hours, and boy am I glad to be home and ready for a good night's sleep!
Cocktails, Catchups & Chinese!
This week has been a great week for socialising with lots of different people, my favourite kind of socialising! On Tuesday I went for a coffee and catchup with Rick in Altrincham, and had dinner at the Country Club. On Wednesday I had a good chatter with Laura in Didsbury, we went for a cocktail (mine's a margarita) at The Drawing Room, and then a fruity cider in Folk. Lovely filling her in on all the gossip in my life right now!
On Thursday Brian from uni came to stay as he had an early interview the next morning so needed somewhere to crash. We had a nice casserole for dinner and then sat around talking for ages, pretty deep for a weeknight! On Friday I went to watch my other friend Rick's play in Manchester with my mum and grandpa (see previous post) and then yesterday I did a lovely yoga class before the Miles foursome travelled to Leeds for my cousin's 21st birthday party.
Stephanie had hired out a bar near to their house called Medusa, and we stayed there all night drinking wine and jaegerbombs as they were four for £10! Today we woke up and had a big cooked breakfast (much needed as I was desperately hungover, and Mum was throwing up all night!) before travelling home, and I am now safety at home after a roast dinner in Alderley Edge (see previous post), chilling out before getting a Chinese later when Mo is home from London.
The Botanist, Alderley Edge
Today I arranged for all of the girls and their boyfriends to go to The Botanist in Alderley Edge for a Sunday roast. It is somewhere I've heard is really nice, and I knew after my cousin's twenty first birthday last night that I would be in need of hangover food!
We had booked a table for 3pm, and when we arrived it was pretty much full, and the atmosphere was warm and lively - they had a singer/ guitarist on in the background playing some decent tunes. We were in a corner around a big square table, which was a little bit of a squash but nothing we couldn't deal with.
We ordered our drinks and then food shortly after - we all went for the roast except Emily, who opted for sausage and mash. There was a choice of beef or chicken, and it came with a large Yorkshire pudding, potatoes, stuffing, lots of veg and gravy!
Apart from a few hiccups with our orders (mainly as we asked two portions to be kept on the heat as Tasha and Tom were arriving later) the experience was a good one, and I think a roast of such quality for £11.95
was a real find, especially for Alderley Edge. I'd definitely go back again, and am tempted to try the food there on a normal night as well after it was so tasty!
Reunions & Revolution!
This has been a really bizarre week, as it appears that somehow, Mo and I are seeing each other again, which has come from nowhere! He seems to be in a really good place and I'm happy, so we'll see how it goes, it's nothing permanent for now!
I saw him on Monday, when he came round to mine for drinks, and during the day on Wednesday I went to Gastronomy with Lydia and Abi for lunch, and then Mo came round again in the evening to chill at mine. On Thursday I had my nails done, and Friday I popped round to Mum and Dad's for a cup of tea as my babysitting was cancelled so I had a free evening. I got an early night as had Aum's birthday party at Laser Quest the following morning, and I had to go and pick up his cake from Slattery's beforehand so was in a bit of a rush.
Straight from the party I drove to my friend Bex's house near Ripon, for a catch up and night out in York. She lives with her sister in a beautiful converted church which I was very envious of. We got the train into York and started in a bar called Blue Fly that did cocktails, I had a caipirinha which was really strong! We then moved on for a couple in a huge bar on two floors that had an almost church type feel, and then after a quick prosecco in a dingy pub, we ended in Revolution, where we drank pitchers and danced the night away!
The following day we went to a cute little cafe in Ripon called Oliver's Pantry for brunch, where I had a huge field mushroom with rocket and bacon on sourdough bread, with an oreo cookie milkshake. It sorted my hangover out, and I drove home at 1.45pm for a roast dinner at Mum and Dad's. Mo came round to keep me company on my usual Sunday evening hungover lounge-around which was a welcome addition, not that I was much company!
Dublin!
I have just got back from an amazing weekend in Dublin! We set off on Friday (conveniently at 9.35pm so no time off work needed!) so were touched down in Ireland just before 11pm. Flights were only £26, so an absolute steal. We got a taxi to our hostel (£35 each for the two nights) and after a quick change/ makeup refresh we went out to a club called Everleigh, as a guy called Andrew that I met in Croatia who lives in Dublin had recommended it. He was out there with his friends so was cool to catch up. The music was amazing in there, proper old school r&b classics, so we all had a good boogie. The drinks weren't cheap, vodka mixer was about £8, so I stuck on wine which was about £6.50 a glass so not too bad. We stayed out until pretty late, and then I went back to Andrew's house for an afterparty, but ended up passed out on the sofa after about half an hour, despite the loud music!
The following morning I got a taxi home and got ready for a day exploring the city. We walked to the spire in the centre, it was drizzling slightly but we weren't perturbed. We were going to get some breakfast, but it was closer to lunchtime once we were out of the hostel so we decided to head to Wagamamas for something more substantial instead. Afterwards I was feeling really ropey and tired, so Lizzie and I headed back for a couple of hours nap!
That evening after spending a while trying to ring round for a restaurant that had space for six people on a Saturday night at the last minute, we ended up in the Irish version of Pizza Express called Milano. It was still really nice, we shared a bottle of wine and I had a meat feast calzone, which was definitely what the doctor ordered! Afterwards we went for a few drinks in a bar called 37 Dawson Street, which was dark and luxurious, with animal heads on the walls and flocked velvet wallpaper... and expensive drinks! At one point I was going to get a mojito, but stuck to a gin and lemonade when I heard they were 15 euro.
A few of the girls wanted to go home then, but Lydia, Lizzie and I decided to stay out and go to a bar on the same street called Cafe En Seine. It was a similar style to the last place, but huge, with glass ceilings and chandeliers like something out of Moulin Rouge. They played some great music so we had a boogie and then got a rickshaw home which was so funny!
The next day we had a lazy one, and packed up ready to leave before going for breakfast. We went to a cafe called The Elephant and Castle, where I had French toast with berry compote, maple syrup and whipped cream - so good. We wandered around the shops for a while and got a coffee before the taxi came to pick us up (rather late - we actually had to steal someone elses!) and I was back home for 6pm after such a fun weekend with all the girls!
Awful Bands & Tinder Dates
This will only be a short one as I have spent this weekend in Dublin, which deserves its own post! On Monday I went for a coffee and catch up with Rick, and filled him in on the whole Mo situation amongst other things as it has been ages. I always have a laugh with him as he's like the male version of myself!
On Tuesday after eating sushi at the Country Club, I went to a gig at the Roadhouse with my sister to watch one of her friend's bands. Unfortunately due to me finishing work late, we only saw their final song as they were the support, and the main band were terrible! At least I got to have a cider after a stressful day though.
On Wednesday I went on my first ever Tinder date, which was an experience. We went to Sandbar off Oxford Road, and to be fair, it actually went quite well. There were no awkward gaps in conversation and we had a lot in common, and managed to go through a fair few drinks so I was pretty tipsy by the end. When I realised the time I had to make a mad dash to the train station, so ended up running with him there, giving him a quick peck and jumping on the train, so not the best end as I couldn't really gauge the situation, and I wasn't blown away with chemistry so don't think it will lead to anything. It hasn't put me off meeting people off Tinder though, and considering I've only ever been on two dates apart from ones with boyfriends, I think it could have been much worse!
Thursday was spent packing and prepping for Dublin, and on Friday after finishing work a good 90 minutes later than usual I had a crazy dash to the train station to get to the airport on time, so was glad when I was sat in the departure lounge with the girls sipping wine and eating pasta!
RNLI Charity Ball, Preston
On Saturday, Natasha and I headed to the Marriott Hotel in Preston for a charity ball in aid of the RNLI - Royal National Lifeboat Institution. It was being run by my friend Luke, who was one of my ski reps when I went to Andorra, and whose house we all bombarded last New Year's Eve, as he is windsurfing the channel next May so wanted to raise some money for the charity that may end up helping him!
We had booked a hotel room at Guy's Thatched Hamlet for the night, which was a quaint little place that looked like something out of a Disney film! We dropped our bags off there first before heading to the hotel where the evening began with a glass of Bucks Fizz.
After standing and chatting for a while we were asked to take our seats, and enjoyed a lovely three course meal, which I was very impressed with to say there were 90 people catered for. We had tomato and basil soup, followed by chicken in a creamy sauce with sweet potato and root vegetables, and finally a vanilla cheesecake with berry compote and fresh fruit.
After the food the dancing started, and there were various party games and a raffle, and we stayed around drinking prosecco until about 1am, when we finally decided to head into Preston. The nightclub we went to was called The Loft and stayed open until 6am, so we were there until the early hours, and I eventually got back to the hotel room at 7.30am! Was hardly worth paying for a room!
It was such a fun if very messy night (to be expected when Tasha and Luke are involved!) and we met some great new people and had a blast, worth every of the many pennies I spent that night!
Busy, Busy, Busy!
This week has been officially exhausting! I have had something on every single day/ night! On Monday I went to see Aquilo with my sister (see previous post) and then we stayed for a night out afterwards as Remake Remodel was on at Soup Kitchen, which is a night I've wanted to try for ages. It was really dead to begin with, but soon perked up, and played some awesome music. We got home at about 4am, and I was up for work at 7!
On Tuesday after a meal at the Country Club (braised and glazed Cheshire pork rib-eye steak with sweet potato, caramelised plum and amaretti crumble, AMAZING) I went to see the Klaxons with Tasha, who were awesome! They have recently announced they are splitting so this was the final tour, and they really gave it their all. Unfortunately I got a parking ticket, which dampened the mood slightly, but still a fun evening.
On Wednesday I dropped Aum in Pontefract and then finished for the day, so met Abi after an interview in Manchester. We went to a place called Tea 42, which does fabulous cakes (I got a huge slab of the chocolate variety), and since I was off duty I indulged in a glass of prosecco too.
The next day I got a lie in, and collected Aum from Oldham in the afternoon. In the evening Mo came round, as there had been a slight misunderstanding that we needed to clear up. We sorted things though, and it was nice to see him, even if it made me feel slightly weird as he seemed back to his old self. I had to suck it up though as on Friday I had a Halloween party to go to! I went as a vampire, and had a great night, and it helped to take my mind off things which was much needed.
On Saturday, though slightly hungover, I dragged myself up and went to the Altrincham Market with Abi for lunchtime pizza. I had one with capers, anchovies and olives which was delicious, if a little salty. That evening I had a ball to go to! (see next week's post) It was in aid of the Lifeboats and was run by my friend Luke who I met whilst skiing. I went with Tasha and we had a great and very late/ drunken night!
Today we drove home and I went to Mum's for eggs Benedict for lunch, which was much appreciated after a night on the tiles. I had a nap there and then came home to get ready for the Indiana gig I have just returned from with Amanda (see next week's post). She was incredible live, and it was a chilled affair which was definitely required after a hectic week!
Klaxons
I saw the Manchester leg of Klaxons farewell tour on Tuesday, review for Candid here:
http://candidonline.com/live-review-klaxons/
