Travellers' Tales...

Becky & Oli's Wedding

This Bank Holiday we have been at a friends wedding for the whole weekend, which has been so much fun. They got married at 2pm on Saturday in a lovely little church in New Ferry on the Wirral, which we just made due to being stuck in Creamfields traffic! The bride's dress was a 50s style one with a full skirt down to her mid calf, and she wore a veil for the ceremony. The bridesmaid dresses were a similar style, in a turquoise/ teal shade which looked lovely next to the flower arrangements of orange, fuschia pink and buttercup yellow.

After the service, a double decker bus was provided to take us to the reception venue, a church hall in Heswall. There was no seating plan which meant everyone mingled, and tea and cakes were served buffet style upon arrival (including some baked by the guests - I made peanut butter blondies!). Drinks flowed, and after the speeches there was a live band and a hog roast later in the evening to keep everyone going.

A group of us ended up going out in Birkenhead afterwards, to some dive bar that was open until 4am. It was so much fun though, and even one of the bridesmaids rocked up in her dress for the occasion!

The following day Mo and I were very hungover, so after a McDonalds we went back to bed until the afternoon, when a barbecue at a local golf club was put on as a second party! There was a quiz and a musician who was very funny, getting everyone involved, and the drinks got going again, hair of the dog!

This time we ended up out in Liverpool, although after going to a couple of places playing dance music and serving cheap double vodkas around Matthew Street, we found ourselves back in a McDonalds before grabbing a taxi home to our hotel. Today we are enduring a double hangover, and at 2pm I drove us both home, where I will be vegging out for the foreseeable future!

Weekly Update!

Catchups, Preparations & Buffets!

This week has been good and sociable! On Tuesday I met up with my friend Katie who I have known since I was about 4; we went for lunch and a catchup at Bap cafe in Altrincham, which was lovely - I had a bacon, brie and cranberry sauce baguette and a white chocolate cookie. Mo stayed that evening and then on Wednesday after work I went to my friend Luke's house for a barbecue which was really nice, even though the sun disappeared by the time we ate!

On Thursday I went round to Mum and Dad's for tea; Dad was working so it was just the three of us and we had fishcakes and a good natter - sometimes it's the best thing just to chill out at my parents house. On Friday I met up with Laura in Didsbury to sort out the final plans for our holiday. We went to Folk, a bar/eatery, and we both had the same - lamb burger with feta cheese and harissa sauce in a bun, it was delicious. I love going out in Didsbury, as it is close to my flat and quite trendy - there is always a good crowd out and it has a very relaxed vibe. I like that the majority of the bars there are privately owned too, as it gives it a community feel that is contemporary and slightly bohemian.

This weekend I have been at a hen party in Liverpool (see previous post) which was so much fun, and I felt surprisingly sprightly this morning! It's a good job as I have just had the family over for dinner (mum, and grandparents). I couldn't face doing a full roast, so did a bit of a buffet tea instead, with potato salad, quiche, olives, coleslaw, salad, cooked meats, cheese and pork pies. It went down well, and used up a lot of stuff I had in my fridge ready for going away on Friday!

Hen Do!

Liverpool

This weekend I headed to Liverpool for Becky, one of Mo's university friend's Hen party. I have only been to one Hen do previously, in Edinburgh, so was excited to hit Liverpool for the second!

I caught the train at 12.33pm, and landed at the station just before 2pm, ready to meet a couple of the other girls before getting a taxi to the hotel. We stayed at 33 James Street, the place where the Titanic was registered, and the rooms were amazing! They had padded quilted walls, big black sleigh beds, roll top jacuzzi baths - probably the nicest hotel I've ever stayed in! There were 5 of us per room, and I was sharing with the bride's sister Siobhan, Paula her friend from school, the groom's work colleague Marion, and Mel, who is another uni friend of Mo's who I have been out with lots of times before.

We dumped our bags and went for a cocktail at All Bar One until we could check in. An hour later, we went to the rooms and everyone congregated in ours for some pre-drinks of prosecco, wine and jaegerbombs! We got ready at the same time as we were booked in for a meal at Bem Brasil at 8pm.

We got taxis to the restaurant and were sat on three tables which was a nice number to chat to everyone around us. I have never eaten at Bem Brasil before, but would definitely go back, I had two types of beef, lamb, chicken hearts, and a load of sides including sweet potato mash, olives, salad and condiments. I was good and stuck on water until the meal was over when I had an amazing cocktail before we headed to the next place, a bar called Slaters.

Slaters is a cheap and cheerful sort of place, downstairs and a bit of a dingy bar, but it plays good indie music and sells 'quad vods' for £5.40 so you can't complain! We had a couple of drinks in there before going to the club we were finishing the night in, PopWorld. As the name suggests, it plays pop and cheesy music, which isn't my cup of tea, but considering we were a large mixed age group it was lots of fun as we could all dance and knew the songs well. We got taxis back to the hotel at about 2.30am, and everyone had stayed out for the full duration which I thought was a pretty good turnout!

The next morning after grabbing continental breakfast at the hotel and packing all our stuff up, we went for a wander along the docks and popped into The Tate Modern for a wander. I think it was a little over our (hungover) heads, so after a while we went for some lunch in a place called What's Cooking, where I had a gorgeous plate of fish, chips and mushy peas. Mel and I walked back to the hotel and caught a cab to the station as we both had earlier trains than the rest, and the hour trip went surprisingly quickly!

Weekly Update!

Another Chinese & The 'Pool

This week has been a pretty quiet one, I spent most of the week doing flat stuff and working out, though on Wednesday Abi and Hannah came round to see all the progress which was nice. On Thursday I went for a coffee in Caffe Nero in Sale with Rick, and then had my nails done - I had to adventure out of my comfort zone and try a new salon as mine was fully booked, but they did a really good job, and it was only slightly more expensive.

On Friday I invited Emily, Smeed, James and Kelly round to the flat for a Chinese and some drinks.It was my first time entertaining properly there, and I made my new table especially (it was very challenging to put together - it took Mum and I 2 hours!). We were going to play some games, but ended up just chatting which was just as fun. I drank an awful lot so felt horrendous on Saturday, which wasn't ideal as we had a trip to Liverpool that had been planned for ages to go to. I pulled myself together and went and had a great time, even though I couldn't face a huge amount of booze for a change!

Today has been spent mooching around in Liverpool; we went for breakfast, although I had a jacket potato with cheese and beans, so not very breakfasty. I am now chilling out at Mo's as usual feeling tired and hungover, and wishing I had another weekend before work tomorrow!

Travellers' Tales...

Liverpool

Yesterday, Mo and I journeyed to Liverpool for our friend Mel's birthday night out. As I was really hungover, we didn't arrive until about 7pm, but it was before people had begun to get ready or predrink so it was fine! We all stayed in the Embassy Backpackers Hostel in Faulkner Square, which is right near the centre, and only cost us £21 each with free parking. As there was a large group of us, we requested a four person and a ten person room, so we didn't need to share bedrooms with strangers which was good.

Downstairs was a huge games room with a pool table, computers and a TV with Sky, and as we were the only people down there it was like a personal party! We had some prosecco and a few games of pool before heading out at 10pm. 

The first place we went to was a Japanese fusion restaurant called Host, as one of the girls had a brother that worked there. We had some tasty cocktails on the house (I had a raspberry margarita - I could have drunk it all night!) and then we went to a bar called Hannah's that played some funky 80s music which was fun. I had a French Martini in there, and then we went to Bar Ca Va, a place well known in the area as it does lots of flavours of tequila, ranging from mango and cherry to chilli and baked bean! We had each put in £25 for the room, so all the rest went on shots, the blackcurrant one tasted like cordial so it is probably for the best that we only stayed for ten minutes!

After that we went to an old fashioned pub that was pretty scummy, but it did quadruple vodkas and was really cheap (you can't have everything I guess!). We stayed there for quite a long time as it wasn't too crowded and was quiet enough to chat to people which was nice. Finally we moved onto Krazyhouse, which is £5 to get in and has multiple floors with different music playing, so it keeps everyone happy. Unfortunately for me as the least drunk (I was still suffering from the night before!) and with no cash at a place that didn't take card, most people wanted to stay on the floor that was mainly old school rock, which much as I love from back in the day, I do find I have to be intoxicated to dance to it now! It was still a fun night, but by 2am I was dead on my feet and needed cheesy chips and my bed. Luckily others wanted the same so I wasn't seen as too much of a party pooper!

Weekly Update!

Shopping, Pizza Hut & Bank Holiday Drinking!

This was my first of two weeks off, beginning with me returning from Paris on Monday, and not doing much all day except unpacking and having Mo round for tea in the evening. On Tuesday I went into Manchester with Abi shopping, and I had the microdermal on my navel redone, which hurt! We went for lunch afterwards at a cute place in the Northern Quarter called Teacup on Thomas Street, although we both just opted for cake in the end. I had a pistachio sponge which had green icing with white polka dots down the side and a cute flower in the top, while Abi chose the multicoloured Battenburg, which was amazing to look at, even if it was far to sickly to finish a whole piece!

Afterwards we wandered around the shops, and I tried on a few potential dresses for Laura's wedding, although I bought nothing except for some makeup sponges - very boring. At least it saves my money though! We had some wine at Selfridges as a bit of a break at 3pm, and came home quite late at 7pm. That evening Mo came round again and we had this nice chicken in cheese and leek sauce for tea and just collapsed in front of the TV, so nice having a free house!

On Wednesday I did my full triathlon cycle in an hour which I was really chuffed with, and then in the evening I went to Pizza Hut for tea with Emily, Smeed, MC and Mo. I shared a bottle of wine and had a barbecue chicken and bacon pizza, and all mains now come with a free salad buffet, so I properly gorged out!

On Thursday a group of us went to Liverpool for a night out (see previous post) and on the Friday Mo brought us home from the station mid afternoon. Jasmine came back from uni for Easter (after a very traumatic experience when the car her and Laura were driving in broke down on the fast lane of the motorway!) and Lydia popped round for a catch up, so it was a sociable day! That evening Mo and I went into town to meet Lydia and her friends Lisa and Connor at Dukes 92. I love the place, and we had a few drinks before moving onto Liars Club, where the night got very hazy!

Saturday was spent in various degrees of hungover, and when I finally got up at 6pm (!) I had some food, got ready and went out for a couple of drinks at Bloom with Tasha, Abi and Lyd. I drove as was not in the mood to drink again, and had a cocktail without the alcohol which was really nice, and made a change from drinking coke. Today Jas and I found our Easter eggs hidden in the garage, so had lots of chocolate and chilled out chatting until 4pm when Mo came round and we went for a walk in Dunham. It was a bit chilly, but nice to get out of the house, and when we got back we made a nice buffet tea for the three of us and watched The Other Guys, which was pretty funny. The week has gone far too quickly, but at least I've packed quite a lot in.

Traveller's Tales

Liverpool

Yesterday, a group of us went to Liverpool for a night out with a bit of a change of scenery. Abi and I got a train from Manchester at 2pm (lucky for us it was delayed, as we'd have missed it otherwise!) and we walked to the hotel we were in to check in and dump our bags. We walked to the wrong Travellodge to begin with, but luckily ours was only around the corner!

We had a quick cup of tea and then went out for a wander around the shops. There wasn't much to see, and we'd only been shopping in Manchester a couple of days before so didn't need anything, so after a while we gave up and headed towards Wagamama for some tea. We had a nice glass of wine and shared some duck gyozas (that were free as they were so late arriving) and then I had the chicken and prawn pad thai, a new addition to the menu that was very much appreciated!

Afterwards we went to an off license to buy some wine, and then went back to the room to start getting ready and crack open the booze! Emily and Natasha didn't arrive until half nine,  so they got ready speedily and we finished our drinks and headed out at just gone eleven. We went out on Seel Street, starting in a bar called Aloha, that was downstairs and Tiki themed. We had as couple of cocktails and a dance before moving on.

Emily and Abi went to another bar called Saltdog Slims whilst Tasha and I went to a cash machine, but by the time we got there the queue was huge, so we moved onto the final place, Heebie Jeebies, and the other two met us in the queue once they had finished their drinks. Drinks weren't that cheap, but it was fun and the music was decent, and two of the boys I went to Benicassim with were out that night, so they came to meet us in there which was cool. Unfortunately we then realised that Abi had had her phone stolen, so her and Tasha went off on a wild goose chase to find it, and we all met up later back at the hotel.

This morning we were all feeling the after-effects, and so once we had checked out we went for breakfast at a place next door to the hotel called New York Diner. I had a bagel with mushrooms, bacon, cheese and scrambled eggs, which went down a treat and sorted me out in time for us to get the train home at 2pm. A fun adventure!

Traveller's Tales...

Hitting The 'Pool

It was my boyfriend and I's anniversary on Saturday, so we fancied a weekend away, having gone to Edinburgh last year. We settled on Liverpool, as I had never been, and he said it was a really cool city, so we booked our trains.

We arrived to a very windy reception on Friday evening, and got picked up by the lady we were staying with in Birkenhead (a friend of my dad's). After dumping our stuff and sprucing up a bit we walked to a local pub called The Swan where everything was ridiculously cheap. I had a 4oz steak with a mushroom and red onion sauce, chips and peas, 2 glasses of wine and a starter for £8! It was tasty as well. After we had eaten (and finished watching the six nation's rugby match) we walked to another pub called the Canaervon Castle for more drinks, before getting a taxi home as it was so blustery!

On Saturday we got a bus into Liverpool city centre. We had a wander around Mathew Street (birthplace of The Beatles) and the area nearby which included an amazing Vivienne Westwood shop, and a lovely retro cafe called 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' which we had a late lunch in.

I got a bargain 50s style dress from a little boutique, as well as some classic Primark steals, and then we walked to the docklands to try and find somewhere to eat later that evening. We got some nice photographs of the water and skyline as it was just coming to dusk, it was just a shame about the driving rain that got us absolutely soaked!

After a bit of a struggle to get home as we couldn't find our bus stop, we quickly got changed into evening gear, had a glass of very nice wine that we had been given as a present and then went back into Liverpool for our meal. We had eventually chosen Las Iguanas, a Latin American restaurant that I have been curious to try out, as I have seen a few of them dotted about around the country.

I was adventurous and ordered a Cherry Bomb cocktail to drink which was delicious, and then for starters we shared 'Totopos' (nachos with guacamole) and 'Molletes' (ciabatta with refried beans and melted cheese). For main course I chose a Brazilian dish called 'Xinxim' which was quite similar to a traditional Thai curry- chicken in a creamy crayfish, lime and peanut sauce. It was served with asparagus, rice and deep fried plantain which I had never tried before so was good to sample something different. It was all amazing, but sadly I couldn't finish it all as the portions were so generous. Some of the desserts sounded awesome as well, I'll have to remember to skip a starter next time! After tea we walked to The Living Room, and had a couple of drinks, before catching a night bus home.

On Sunday we had a brilliant cooked breakfast courtesy of our host, and then we packed up all our things and caught a bus back into the city. Our train wasn't for another few hours, so we paid to lock our bags up and went to the Tate Modern. Despite some very strange artwork that I didn't think seemed particularly special, there were also some interesting sculptures and a few paintings by well-known artists such as Picasso, Matisse and Salvador Dali. The last time I visited an art gallery I was considerably younger, so it was good to relive the experience with a more mature outlook on the exhibitions.

Then, at 3.31pm on Sunday 6th February we caught a train back from the Capital of Culture to the land of work and life that is Lancaster. An awesome weekend that I didn't want to end!