Belfast - "Top of th' mornin to ya!"

24OCT08 - 26OCT08

A cold, rainy, windy, eye-opening experience and a fun weekend away! And you gotta love the Irish accents (when you can understand them!) :P



We had a couple of cars for our group of 8 and did a little road trip up North along the coastline. The next day we had a "black cab" tour and jumped in a couple of cabs for a tour of Belfast and it's history. Can't believe that there is still some tension. Most of it has blown over now, but there are still a few little signs of it.


To top it off for our last lunch - had to have a steak and guiness pie!! Soooo good!! :)

Yaye DT!

So the national Top Chip Shop in NZ goes to a takeaways in Lower Hutt - congratulations So Fine Food, but the regional winner that I'm interested in for Auckland goes to Diamond Takeaways!! :) Yaye. Oh so proud!

Check out the article - NZ Herald

New job - GE Money

Yes - I had to say a sad goodbye to the o so fun Jetix. The world of cartoons, mircosites and kids competitions. But also a "why hello there" to the "money"! ;P

I've been at GE Money for about a month now, pretty settled in and really enjoying the change in environment and management styles.
My title is an e-Servicing Marketing Executive and basically means I promote a service offered online. GE Money are providers of credit cards to the big high street stores in London, such as Debenhams, House of Fraser, Topshop, Topman, Evans, Dorothy Perkins, Burton and also Ryanair (to name a few). Once people have their card, they can manage this account online - so my aim is to push / encourage people to do this by ways of email campaigns and promotions etc. Quite different to what I did at TNZ or Jetix, but all new experiences are good I reckon. Some good clients to work with also.

Great location - right next to Covent Garden and the NZ shop - for yummy PIEDAY, FRIDAY! :P yumm.
Also a lovely, very early(!), 2 hour train ride to Leeds and back every month - hence the time I have to update my blog!!

Sorry for the silence...

I notice it has been about a month since I last blogged about something, I've been a little busy starting my new job and going to shows etc... so gonna bombard you with a few posts over the next week! :) So keep watching...

Marbella! - España

10OCT08-12OCT08

A fun weekend away with the girls! Agnes' hens party in Marbella was all about partying and recovering!! :P

Unfortunately we didn't really get out and see much of the city and what Marbella had to offer (during the day!), but we did have a very enjoyable relaxation day hanging out in the spa pool and getting massage treatments in our 5 star hotel - NH Alanda! When we did venture out, dopey us, it was afternoon siesta time so all the shops were shut.

During the evenings a nice dinner out, fun hens weekend festivities and hit the Marbella clubs on Friday & Saturday.

Sorry - no pics of the weekend will be posted :P ... hehe, oooh, except one of the lovely hotel room's bathroom - courtesy of the hotel website - it doesn't give too much away ... hehe



It was cool to meet / chill out with Ag's lovely girlfriends, and hangout / room share / gossip with the newly engaged MAR SEEEEEE!! :D love ya xx

Not much been happening... check out these vids

hehehehe - how could I not post these... tooo cute!

Madonna Concert

11SEP08 @ Wembley Stadium

What a performer!! :) although I believe she mucked up her lyrics at one stage and joked about it near the end, but for just celebrating her 50th birthday, she seemed to be up to scratch! - double dutching, and jumping around the stage.

Her dancing and performance overall I feel was awesome. The stage was alright, I think it could have been better. But we were very lucky to get some wicked seats - Thanks M&M!! I heard standing tickets and tickets high up in the stadium were not so good - screens were too little and sound waffled out of the stadium.


Rumours of her not singing her old songs made me play out her Hard Candy album everyday leading up the concert so I was in the mood no matter what she played!! But to make things even better, she mixed it up and threw in a few oldies but goodies, including, Just like a prayer, Vogue, Into the Groove, Music & Hung Up to name a few. Her new album that features quite a few artists all appeared on the screens for their cameos - Pharrell, Kanye & Timbo.

I had a great fun and boogied in the row! Wembley Stadium itself is MASSIVE!! Quite impressed.

Venezia!

21AUG08-25AUG08
Over the August bank holiday, we managed to get away for our first European, weekend getaway!! … Venice!

For those that aren't too sure where Venice is or what it's all about - it's a beautiful (but very touristy) city in Italy that does not have any roads or cars. It has rivers and canals as their streets and lovely old buildings and churches. Everyone either walks the cute little alleys (and get lost!!!) or travel by boat, water taxi or water bus.

We had such a great time. The weather was great - sunny and cloudless majority of the time. It was a good temperature and not too humid. We walked everywhere and pretty much saw all of Venice just by walking around and getting lost.

A couple of the great touristy sites were St Mark's Square - or shall I say San Marco - great cathedral with it's full massive ceiling made of mosaic images. We climbed the stairs to see great views over the square and out to the Grand Canal. And then Rialto Bridge - a bridge with shops lined along both sides that crosses the Grand Canal.

Of course we couldn't go to Venice and not ride a gondola, or eat pizza, pasta and GELATO! Yum! … And the joys of getting by in a country with no English or no one to show us the ropes! Love ordering off menus that are in all Italian!!?! Lucky I know my spaghetti, lasagne, tortalini, pollo, funghi, bistecca, gelato and dolce! hehe

All in all - a fantasic first trip away. We experienced the lovely journey times to and from the airports(!) getting back late to go to work the next day!! The joys of London and weekend getaways :) - It was good to get away from the London "summer" which is getting cold and cloudy. I managed to get some lovely permanent jandels! :P

As always - more pics on my FaceBook.

Diamond in the news! Wohoo :)

Good to see the family business getting good PR on TV1 6pm news few weeks back - yes it's taken me a little while to get this online!

Check out the article and it's related video online on TVNZ.

Yaye!! :)

The unemployment days are over!

After 4 months of unemployment, I got a job offer on Friday and start on Monday! :) Yaye! Took a little while coming, but should be good.

The role is an Online Coordinator for a entertainment company called Jetix. They are owned mostly by Disney and network a number of famous cartoons in UK & Europe. This includes Power Rangers, Pokemon, Pucca, Naruto, Ninja Turtles, Totally Spies - to name a few. I will be updating and manageing their websites and competitions for the Central & Eastern European countries.

Looking forward to starting work on Monday in a whole new environment and new industry! Should be exciting and looking forward to the experience.

Stonehenge & Bath

Martin was in the UK for work and suggested a sightseeing trip that was on our list of things to do, so why not do it with our good mate from home.

Good times catching up with Martin & Jamie at the same time as seeing some of the historical sites in UK. Although just some big as stones in a field, bit of myth and history behind them made them all worthwhile checking out.

Bath - very cool little Roman city and of course, famous for it's yummy Sally Lunn buns!!! Not like you get back home, so many different varieties! Set up in what looked like an old house, jam packed with tables and had a bit of queue, these buns are in demand! ... Sweet tooth that I have, I opted for the Cinnamon Butter Sally Lunn bun with clotted cream! YUM YUM YUMM!! Gotta check it out if you ever go to Bath.


More pics on my FaceBook.

To finish off the day, and kill time that we didn't end up needing to kill(!), we all had a good laugh that we'll never forget. Papaya Pearl Tea at Cafe De Hong Kong... the substitute for not having Taro Pearl Tea... let's just say... not a good experience!!!

"HAP-PY NEEEW FLAT!!"

Yaye! Matt & I have found our own 1 bedroom flat in Paddington/Bayswater, so why not celebrate and open a bottle of champers! :P - Thanks Warrick & Mo! Can't move in until 5th September, but still glad we found somewhere nice that matches our criteria!

I'll post some pics once we move in and get settled! Yaye - can't wait!

Gotta see London

Since we have some spare time (being jobless and all), and Nat & Dave got us a London Pass to see some London sites (thanks again Nat & Dav)... we thought we'd kill as many tourist attractions as we could in 2-4 days!

So just to keep it short - here's the things we ticked off our list:

LONDON ZOO

ST PAULS CATHEDRAL - view from the top

TOWER OF LONDON

WINDSOR CASTLE

WIMBLEDON

Unfortunately we didn't get to see any big stars or even the inside of Centre Court or Court #1... however the atmosphere, and walking around the massive grounds and other courts was cool. We got to see some of the juniors close up - they're still really good!! We were really lucky with the weather and we didn't have to queue for tickets!

Not included in our "touristy" days, but just down the road from us... is HYDE PARK - kebab for dins..


So to conclude, all the attractions we've seen were very cool and a must! Glad we got to do them. There are more pics on my FaceBook.

The Black Seeds @ the Electric Ballroom

If you ever feel homesick, or want to get away from the Poms... go to a NZ gig! Huffer / Federation / "100% Pure NZ" tees and kiwi accents everywhere.

Went to The Black Seeds last Wednesday night (25th) at the Electric Ballroom in Camden, and it was good to boogie to some of their classic hits.

Real cool vibe and a cool night out with some of the TNZ clan.

Food for thought - Yum Yum Yummmo!!

So there are a few goodies that I'm addicted to or loving at the moment... McDs Crunchie McFlurrys, giant coke bottle lollies, and roast duck!
Man - I sure missed the giant coke bottle lollies back home... now they're stocked up at the diary right across the road!!
And bad news with the McFlurrys... I must say, I've been having one at least every 3-4 days! Not good... hehe

No chicken fillets?!?!

Just a short note... I had Subway the other day for the first time here... and to my surprise, they don't have chicken fillets!!! that's like the only ingredient that I ever have! haha... as an alternative (maybe healthier option) I had chicken breast. They also have sweetcorn as a salad ingredient, so also tried that. Overall, it wasn't tooooo bad. :)

Atmosphere & Brother Ali @ KOKO

Atmosphere & Brother Ali - a hip hop gig I tagged along to last night! :) It was wicked! Matt and my TNZ buddy Megs both wanted to check them out, so why not tag along. I didn't know any songs (haha), but it was such a cool "atmosphere" and being at hip hop gig and hearing some good hip hop was good. I'm sure Matt will blog more about the gig and performance, so keep an eye on his blog.


The venue was wicked! Koko felt like a bigger St James theatre with multi levels and little booths on the sides. It was packed! We had a primo spot on one of the higher levels looking over the crowd - and right behind us was the bar. Check out their sites for pics... seriously one cool venue for a gig! Few of our pics on my Facebook.

Toms Shoes

My favourite London shoes!
I got these kung-fu type shoes in San Fran on our way over... I've worn them almost everyday I've been here! :)
They are soo comfy and light, and petty cheap too. What's even better is that for every pair of TOMS that you buy, TOMS will give one pair to a child in need.
I'm gonna buy me another pair when these are wasted ;P

New found love for MUJI

There's a shop in London (and also in other cities in UK, Europe & Asia) called MUJI. It's quite close to where we're staying so I can visit there frequently! hehe. Those ex and present Londoners may know what I'm talking about.

For those that don't know what I'm on about, MUJI is a store (I think originally from Japan) that sells everything you could possibly need from clothes, stationary, sofas, slippers, bed linen, storage, travel bags and accessories and much more. And their products are simple and plain. Think they call it "No brand quality goods". If only I had a home to decorate and some pounds, I could spend all day in there. Lill - you'll LOVE this shop for home storage goodies!

Every little bit helps

Just wanted to shout out to Nat & Dave and say thanks heaps for the nifty eco-friendly bag you got me! It's great.

The amount of times I've been to the supermarket during the last few weeks, I would have accumulated a number of plastic bags! This handy little "Envirosax" is a cool little rolled up bag that fits nicely in your handbag to take to the supermarket (or anywhere) for all the groceries. It fits heaps in it and is quite styly too! :) hehehe

Go the Envirosax! Help our environment and get one today! :)

Grease is the word

Went to see Grease (the play) on Monday night. Had primo seats, just 3 rows from the front. I was a bit disappointed as they performed all the songs in a different order to the movie! And the story line was condensed big time :( ... they didn't even have the race off or the whole other gang for that matter!

Anywho, it was a fun night and got to sing along to all the good ol Grease songs.

It has begun...

So I have finally got around to starting my blog for my travels. I'm planning to update my blog at least once a week with things that I get up to or random findings along my way.

But as I've now been here for a couple of weeks now, there is a bit of catch up to do.

So save this link to your favourites and check back regularly, coz I don't know if you can subscribe for updates :)

Short and sweet... enjoy!