Can't beat a good cocktail or two

This Saturday I celebrated my birthday with my friends by heading down to Soho for a few cocktails and some dancing. My work week has been slow and long - never a good thing when I only had a four day work week! - so a night out on the town was exactly what I needed!

Most of Saturday morning was spent being lazy, watching a lot of tv and browsing the worldwide web which meant the day flew by and before I knew it, I had to start getting ready for the evening. We started the night off with a few cocktails at the London Cocktail Club which was incredibly hard to find since it was a cellar bar and didn't have the most obvious sign. The cocktails were delicious -and very reasonably priced - I started off with a Brixton Riot which was set on fire and it was so good! The only negative is that there was very limited seating and space in general so our group was just randomly standing around and having to shuffle around, every time someone walked past. So rather than spending most of the evening there until it was time to head down to the club (the original plan), we left after a few drinks in search of a pub which was no mean feat on a Saturday night in central London!

Brixton Riot

After a little catch up in the pub, most people headed back home either due to illness, money issues or club-hatred which left only me and Jess to head down to Roxy - Chloe was supposed to make it after work but the freezing cold weather and huge queues meant she sadly didn't make it. I had never been to Roxy's before, but I was really impressed. I loved the music, the interior was nice and drinks were cheap which is all I really want from a club so I was happy. Most of the crowd seemed to be uni students which although is absolutely fine of course, I did feel a bit old (crazy, since I was a student myself less than nine months ago!). In the end, I had a great night out, although I was a bit disappointed I couldn't celebrate with as many of my friends as I would have liked. Anyway, safe to say I got home exhausted and went straight bed.

As for this morning, I woke up feeling like I slept for years and spent the morning watching the Big Bang Theory (perfect lazy Sunday watching) with Jess who had stayed over. Once Jess left, I turned to my new addiction: Suits. I only started watching the series last week but I am addicted! I can't seem to stop watching it! In order to feel slightly less guilty about the endless laziness this weekend I also organised my wardrobe which was in much need of organisation and has left me feeling so much better (I may have slight OCD). I have to say, as lovely as it has been to be lazy for the weekend, now that evening has come, I am so restless. The only cure of course is some more Suits but next weekend, I will definitely plan something - I have definitely become unaccustomed to complete laziness.

One of the presents I received this week:
too perfect for me

Internet research leads to purchases
such as these. I did have to spend all
that birthday money!

Clearly, I am not the only one who appreciates Suits and if it's
good enough for the City of London, it's good enough for me!

Hope everyone has a lovely week!

Muah,


Roo xx

A very happy birthday

Today was the day I turned the grand age of 22 and a lovely day it has been. After a wonderful lie-in, I was greeted by my mum with presents, croissants, fruit and coffee for breakfast. I spent the morning watching tv and generally relaxing.

A little part of my Breakfast at Tiffany's love made reality this morning. 

Later on in the afternoon, Aurelija with her two boys gave me a visit. This largely consisted of more flowers, cake and a little catch up, along with some champagne. I have just finished my lovely, rather snazzy seafood dinner and now am sat in front of the tv with the family, about to start watching Skyfall (a little treat from myself, to myself).

Champagne and cake. Can't get a better combination than that!

A little obsessed with Daniel Craig as James Bond

And now I am now going to enjoy the last hours of my birthday, as tomorrow will simply mark the day of me being 22 years and 1 day old. Far less exciting.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!


Muah,


Roo xx

Let the birthday celebrations begin

Since the big day of me turning yet another day (and therefore a whole year) older falls on a Monday, my birthday celebrations began this weekend. Or more precisely on Sunday since I spent most of Saturday having a "me" day. 

Most of my Saturday morning was spent on the sofa, watching tv and sipping endless cups of coffee. I eventually forced myself to leave the house and head for the gym. On my return, I made my way down to Regent Street, where I spent most of the afternoon sitting in Starbucks, sipping even more coffee and sorting out my life, a bit. I haven't spent hours in Starbucks since university, where I would spend my weekends, revising, researching or essay writing. Now that my studies have come to an end (for now, at least) I spent my time trying to sort my life out, doing some research for my foreseeable future. It was really nice to just sit with my laptop, with my earphones plugged in and to just ignore the world for a bit. After my Starbucks session, I walked around some shops - managing to not buy anything which I thought was quite impressive - and eventually headed home. I had also agreed to go out with Alex to a local club, very last minute which meant that as soon I returned home, I had a quick change of clothes and heels and once again ventured out. We headed to a cocktail club in Welling which was ok - better than the last place, at least - but with far too many remixed tracks- something I am not a fan of. At all. 

As for today, I spent my morning helping my mum in the kitchen since I had a visit from a few people to wish me an early happy birthday. I am planning to celebrate my birthday properly next weekend, so today was just a mellow afternoon spent with Edita, Donatas and a neighbour, chattering away over some food, a few glasses of wine and some of my mum's famous, delicious cake which she makes especially for me every birthday! Having made my wish, blown out the candles and cut into the cake, I  feel like the birthday celebrations are well on their way and I think tomorrow will be just another mellow, easy-going day. I feel middle-aged already!

I am hoping this doesn't apply to me yet...

There are already some fresh, beautiful
flowers all over the house which always
puts a huge smile on my face

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and have a great week to come!

Muah, 

Roo xx

Celebrating my loves: friends, food and my city

This has been another manic week but for a change it's not (just) work but my life outside of it that has made it so crazy. I took Tuesday off work since my wonderful friend Maja was coming all the way down from Exeter. Maja was one of my flatmates in our first year of uni and since graduating, I haven't managed to see much of her - partly because she is a bit of a globetrotter, who has probably been on more flights this past year than the US president! Anyway, she came down to London for an interview which was taking place on Wednesday, so we spent Tuesday catching up and trying to keep busy and keep Maja's mind off the upcoming interview.

Our first stop was Westfield in Shepard's Bush - far better than the Stratford one! We mooched around some shops and had lunch at Wagamama (always delicious!) and after a little more shopping, headed down to High Holborn to celebrate Pancake Day at My Old Dutch. They made the biggest pancakes that I have ever seen! I had a banana, chocolate sauce and cream pancake which was incredible!!!! After our pancakes, we made our way home (a 6am start the next morning made a late night out the last thing on our minds!) and had a very girly evening with more pancakes (my mum made some savoury and sweet pancakes for dinner), wine and Sex and the City reruns - a perfect evening, if you ask me! The next day, Maja went off to her interview and had to make her way back to Exeter. She hasn't heard back from the company yet, but I have my fingers and toes crossed for her!

A My Old Dutch pancake

With all the heart, red balloons and sickly, cheesy cards in the shops, it's impossible not to have noticed that Valentine's Day has been approaching. I never celebrate Valentine's Day since I think it's a bit of a useless holiday but this year decided to do something, spending it with the people I love the most - my friends. Me, Chloe and Jess decided to go for the least romantic dinner ever - burgers at Brgr Co which were so good! I loved the place too! The entire place had a really nice, almost upscale feel but the prices were really reasonable and the food was great. Win-win! After some yummy food, we headed down to Adventure Bar, first stopping at Laduree for some macaroons (I couldn't resist!) and taking some pictures of some Valentines-inspired sculptures in Covent Garden. We spent the evening sipping gorgeous cocktails, listening to some great music and chattering away. A perfect evening!

The heart shape had little metal badges locked,
each badge containing personal messages. Cute!

A good cocktail is always a good idea!

As for today, I returned home absolutely shattered, deciding to give the gym a miss, and settling for pizza and tv. I have Monday booked off work (refusing to go in on my birthday) and a 3 day weekend is precisely what I need!

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Muah,

Roo xx

Worcester weekend

This weekend I left London behind and ventured up to Worcester to visit my friend Bex. We haven't seen each other since our one-day catch before Christmas which seems to have been forever ago! So, after finishing work on Friday (which was the most manic day so far!), I rushed off to Paddington, to catch a train to Worcester.

The weekend turned out to be great and exactly what I needed after a couple of stressful weeks. Most of Saturday was spent shopping (which was rather unsuccessful), having endless amounts of coffee and eating what was probably one of the best sandwiches I have ever had! Bex took us to a cafe/bar called Bolero, where we had an open steak sandwich with red onion marmalade and chips which was absolutely amazing! After lunch and some more failed shopping (although I did manage to buy some s'more pop tarts - delicious!) we headed to her flat, watched some tv, had a good-old catch up and got ready for a night out. This weekend, a couple of Bex's college friends were celebrating their birthdays, so we headed to Slug and Lettuce for some cocktails and then to a club called Sin, for a little bit of dancing. Overall, it turned to be a pretty good night which ended with a trip for some stodgy food at McDonalds.

Clearly, we are not vegetarian girls! 

This went some way to helping with my s'more
withdrawal issues after my trip to America

Can't beat a good Cosmo!

As for today, after a bit of a lie in, me and Bex headed down to a cafe for some bacon sandwiches and coffee. The weather has been atrocious which meant that we couldn't do the stuff we wanted - like take a trip to Malvern or walk around the park surrounding the cafe. On top of that, the engineering works on the rail network overran which meant I had to leave Worcester two hours before I planned to and had one of the worst journeys home I have ever had! To sum up: I got on a train (in the pouring rain) which went as far as two stops where we were told to get off because it was terminating - leaving me cold and wet in a secluded little village, with no idea of where I could possibly go, only to be told -having spent 30mins standing in the rain-to get back on the train. After that, I had to change trains two more times in the most random locations, finally reaching home wet, cold, exhausted and absolutely furious with everything and everyone. Not the best end to what has been a great weekend.

Disliking rail travel right now

As for now, I am in my PJs with a warm cup of coffee in my hand - feeling ever so slightly better after the treacherous journey, almost ready to start a new week.


Hope everyone has a great week!


Muah,


Roo xx

Coffee and company

In spite of the miserable week I've had, the weekend turned out to be far more successful,which as per usual went by far too quickly. I started my Saturday by heading down to Covent Garden to have a catch up with my university friend Katherine.  I hadn't seen her since our graduation and it was wonderful to have a long overdue catch-up. We headed to the cafe, Notes. I had walked past it a couple of times and been wanting to give it a try and it's so cute! The cafe has a European feel to it - it's simple and has food, coffee and wine - perfect for a catch up or to spend time on your own. We grabbed a coffee and after a while had some soup - which was absolutely delicious! All in all, it was a great afternoon with great company! 

Afterwards, I had to rush off home, get changed and make my way to a local Mediterranean restaurant where we celebrated my aunt's 50th birthday. Her birthday was actually at the end of December but with the holidays, she decided to celebrate it a bit later. It was a lovely evening with surprisingly good food and a Michael Buble impersonator - who was incredibly cheesy, but as he was pretty good, it was actually more than bearable. 

As for my Sunday, I spent most of it sleeping, catching up on some tv, doing some housework and even managed to make a trip to the gym. The day seems to have flown by and I didn't get to do as much as I would have liked. Nevertheless, it's been good to end the week on a positive note, making me slightly more optimistic about the week ahead (doesn't make me dread Monday any less, however). 

If you're feeling depressed about Monday: think
of this

Hope everyone has a great week!

Muah,

Roo xx

"Paris is always a good idea"

Audrey Hepburn has said a lot of clever and inspiring things but her comment on Paris is just a perfect fact. I know I have been going on and on about how I am going through a Paris obsession. Well, I had the most perfect start to the weekend by booking a trip to Paris with Chloe and her friend Naomi. The short break is not until the very end of April, but I am so incredibly excited, I just had to share!

I am hoping for a packed couple of days, where we do lots of different things, making the most of the city and have an amazing couple of days, so fingers crossed!

If one of my mornings in Paris looked like this, I'd be in heaven

Found this on Pinterest (my addiction) - which will come in
handy when it comes to packing

This will absolutely be on my shopping list-
I used their guides for New York and Barcelona
- its's perfect!

Cannot go to Paris and not give Laduree

Muah,

Roo xx

T.G.I.F

Never has the phrase "Thank God it's Friday" been more appropriate than today. Don't get me wrong: I live for the weekends and have never been anything but happy when the week comes to an end, but since starting my job, I have dreaded work far less and whilst this is in no way my dream job and I still skip out of the office, as soon as the clock strikes 5, after the week that I've had, I have never been so relieved to have two days of freedom! My week has been absolutely mental, with stress at work and in my personal life: not the best of combinations. I shall start at the beginning...

Monday had the most bizarre start when I got to outside my office building only to see it cordoned off with police tape! It turns out, some crazy protester guy  climbed the scaffolding on the building adjacent to ours, put up a huge banner, perched himself on the roof of a building and threatened to jump off. It meant that the police, ambulance and negotiators were running in and out of our building non-stop, with the entire building in uproar (we had a separate access point to the roof). Turns out, the guy wasn't suicidal like we first feared, but merely a little crazy. For his full motives, click here. Anyway, the guy eventually came down at 5.30pm, having disrupted the day for us, the police and numerous other emergency service providers. If he aimed to get publicity, then I guess he succeeded: I just spent a whole paragraph in my blog, writing about him. On the other hand, even the Metro failed to mention him, so really at the end of the (long) day, all the man got was a brief mention by yours truly and a(nother) criminal record. Quite a start to a Monday!

The rest of the week combined work overload - I have been juggling hundreds of things, running around and emailing like a mental person - along with all kinds of stresses in my personal life, including trying to sort out a loan for the LPC (I got an offer from BPP and accepted it, now I have the issue of sorting out funding from the bank - no mean feat!) Along with numerous failed attempts to organise a mini-break with some friends which has led me to experience every emotion under the sun - from excitement, to worry, to outrage and everything in between. This week's weather has reflected my mood perfectly i.e. being all over the place, going from rain, to warm sunshine to rain. On the bright side, my wellies had their first outing this week since I bought them in the Christmas sale and on Thursday I got a free coffee from a brand new cafe-deli place on Cannon Street - Benugo. The place looks really cool with great looking food which I can't wait to try - they not only managed to wake me up with a lovely Americano but also put a smile on my face. Win-win!

As for today, it hasn't helped either: rather than doing my usual job, due to numerous absences, I spent the day doing other people's jobs - in fact, it felt like everybody else's but my own! - which was hateful and made the day crawl by at a snail's pace!

Thankfully, I am home now, with my warm PJs on, the telly on in the background, looking forward to an early night and a good, relaxing weekend. Yes, I am that cool ;)

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!


Muah,


Roo xx