Wednesday, July 01, 2015

Big news...

Note** This post was scheduled for for 01/07/2015 but for some odd reason it never posted...anyway without further hesitation:

Hey guys,

I know I've been REAAALLLYYY quiet lately, but I have some big news for you guys...I am moving house!

Just kidding, actually I'm moving blogs, I have started a new blog and you can read all about it here.

I hope to see you all over on my new domain as I will no longer be posting on Our Flavourful Life.

Thank you for all the comments and blogger love!


Sunday, April 19, 2015

When April rolled around

When April rolled around I said to myself "Myself, you have to write more blog posts this month, you should make time for the blog because you enjoy doing it and you always have these brilliant ideas/thoughts that pop into your head on the way to/from the office, you should jot them down and write about them."

Well obviously that hasn't happened, we are half way through April and I have only done one post! Tsk tsk!! Shame on me!!

The truth is there are things I enjoy more than blogging - like adventuring around my new city, cooking and squeezing in a workout here or there when I can. Then there are things that I have to do, that I don't necessarily enjoy more that blogging - like attending lectures, doing housework, my job, and sleeping. I need to find balance and get my groove back.

That being said, I have been working on a new look/design for the blog, and I'm working on moving the blog over to wordpress, so I'm spending all the time I would have spent writing posts on trying to design my new header, logo, buttons etc. I have a very clear vision of what I want the blog to look like, with about 2% photoshop skills to do it and approximately 231 559 pins (okay maybe not THAT many) on my secret blogging board with inspiration and tips on how to move to wordpress and create your own this and how to do that - So it might take a while.

Anyway, once I have that (and a few other, more personal things) down and sorted I will be back in the swing of things (hopefully!!). But for now, I will be content with writing sporadic posts about life and our adventures and my thoughts.


Thursday, April 02, 2015

On turning 25...

Photo: Studio DIY

So I turned 25 a few days ago and the weeks leading up to this birthday have been clouded over by one simple question... Am I having a quarter life crisis?? I didn't even know there was such a thing as a quarter life crisis until mid January. I think it might just be modern day humans that like to over analyse and self-diagnose EVERYTHING!

Anyway, I had a wonderful day and Riaan did a good job at spoiling me and making me feel 'not old'. Also my Facebook and Whatsapp were flooded with birthday wishes, pictures and kind words, it certainly made my first birthday away from home a whole lot easier.

We went out for burgers with friends at GBK on Friday and decided to skip Brighton because the weather was a little crappy so we moved those plans forward to Easter weekend.

So back to the part about turning 25... The thing is, when you're younger you expect to have your shit sorted by this age, you see 25 as OLD!! Hell if this was the 90's I would have had 2 children already! I am so glad times have changed, the only children we see in the near future are those our friends will be having while we explore the world! Don't get me wrong, I love kids and I definitely want a few!

Well, here I am at the tender age of 25 and I don't think I have my shit sorted, sure I'm married (people still find that weird..."But you're so young?" "You should live your life." - I've found my person we'll live our life together, thanks!), we have a house that we are paying off and we have decent jobs, but there are days when I ask myself - Why am I doing this? Why don't I have a bakery/nursery school? Why am I not backpacking across Europe and Asia for a year? We don't know where we want to settle down, or when, but it will all happen in it's own good time. But first for now, we will explore and adventure and live!

In January I stumbled across a list of  "25 signs you're almost 25"...and I realised that they were scarily accurate and they applied to me on almost every level! Well, I know you want to know what they are (you know, just to check!), so here goes:

1. You fantasise about doing something drastic to your hair just to feel alive...
Lets rewind to late October - I dyed my hair...PURPLE! Even I was surprised - I think it was a side effect of discovering the first grey hairs...HAIRS not hair.

2. Or something a little more permanent (AKA ink)
Yip, I've been researching and planning my next tattoo since about August last year, not to mention wanting to have the tattoo I already have spruced up a little.

3. Finding out a celeb is younger than you ruins your entire day.
I'm talking to you Jennifer Lawrence and Lorde.

4. Partying is still fun but a little less spectacular than it once was, and that makes you feel conflicted.
Well this one speaks for itself. Is the hangover really worth it?

5. And you're surprise how excited you get to spend a night in.
Movies and a glass of red wine with no pants (I mean trousers) on? I'm in!

6. For the first time in your life you've thought 'Am I too old to be wearing this?'
The reason I have yet to buy a crop top.

7. You alternate between wanting to take better care of yourself and wanting to revel in the remaining days of your youth.
No comment.

8. You’ve downsized your friend group, and you’re starting to realise the ones who remain are the only ones you needed in the first place.
So true - why did it take so long to realise this?
 
9. You’re seriously considering emptying your bank account on a dream vacation to "find yourself" (whatever the heck that means).
I thought this was normal?

10. You still aren’t 100% sure what an IRA is, and it’s becoming a problem.
Haha I literally had to google what that is...turns out its the same as a RA - I had one of those, but decided it's not worth investing in, look at me being all grown up making investment decisions...

11. You get a weird sense of accomplishment from completing errands.
Hahaha yes, and housework, *pats self on back*.

12. You get blindsided by waves of general existential angst.
 I mean like who doesn't want to leave an impression on the world, make a difference, be remembered?? What was I put on this earth for???

13. Suddenly you find yourself legitimately enjoying your parents’ company. They are (understandably) suspicious of this.
This is so true, give me a cup of coffee/tea and I can chat for days!

14. You belong to one of two groups: people who can’t wait to have babies and people who are horrified by the idea of them.
Yeah I kinda have one foot on either side of the line here...you can't send babies back to where they came from!!

15. Either way, you keep doing mental check-ins: “Is this where I’m supposed to be in my life?”
Every few weeks - "Am I doing the right thing?"/"Should I be doing something else with my life?"

16. You have elaborate fantasies about quitting society and living off the earth in some unknown part of the world.
Like in a log cabin on the side of a lake in a hidden forest, yeah totes!

17. You comfort yourself by thinking you could be rich and famous if given the chance (despite your apparent lack of talent).
Just give me a chance universe, I have talent!!

18. You’ve had to Urban Dictionary teen slang juuust to be sure you knew what it meant.
Bae/Turnt...yip I had to google those!

19. There are more and more celebrities you straight up don’t recognise.
Where did they all come from??

20. Your ambition and your complacency are constantly at war. Should you sign up for a marathon or marathon-watch your favourite show?
Also, am I too scared of looking like an idiot to get out of my comfort zone and do something new? And why are we so scared of the unknown??

21. You find yourself making healthier eating choices…out of fear?
My favourite new food is courgettes, and when did I start caring so much about additives??

22. Sometimes you look in the mirror and think, "This is it. This is the best I’ll ever look."
...Unless I become famous - Yip still holding onto that one!

23. For the first time it really feels like your childhood is over. This is the point of no return. It’s DONEZO.

24. And that is mildly terrifying!

25. But also maybe — just maybe — a little…exciting?

This lead me to conclude that I may, indeed, be having a quarter life crisis...I'm off to buy some hair dye now!



Monday, March 16, 2015

Life lately - 16 March 2015

Time sure does fly when you're having fun...or when you are just crazy busy!!

Since we last caught up I had my first full pay cheque, and that only means one thing...shopping!! 30 kg's worth of clothing/personal belongings really isn't that much when you unpack it.

We ventured down Oxford Street 2 weeks ago and wandered in and out of the hundreds of shops that line the street, Primark was the most fruitful destination on that day! We went back to Oxford Street on Saturday afternoon, this time for Riaan (ok, mostly for Riaan - I couldn't resist a new handbag from Aldo, mine saw its ass this week!!)

We located the ONLY Steers in London and embarked on an adventure along the South Bank with our eye on the prize - a juicy King Steer Burger!! We ended up walking all the way to Steers (12 miles), which really isn't that bad when you're just strolling along taking in the beauty of the River Thames. It's on adventures like these that we find awesome places...like this craft beer boat!!
We have both got our NI numbers and I'm waiting for my residence card from Home Office, hopefully we get it before the end of April...we need our passports back because we want to go to the Netherlands for our second wedding anniversary, continuing the tradition (or starting the tradition? It can't be a tradition after only doing it once right?? Hmmmm food for thought!!) of going to a new place for every anniversary. *Awwww*

I started my weekend lectures for ACCA the weekend before last, which is why I've been so busy. I spent the week in Oxford, and I'm spending this week there aswell, it's such a pretty little town. Emphasis on the little!

On Saturday we went to Camden Market! It is awesome and I highly recommend this, if you have a open Saturday with nothing to do, head down to Camden Market! Take a few hours and just browse the stalls, there is literally something for everyone there! Art, antiques, food, clothing, home decor and random gadgets. I found a 60's style pin up dress that I love...I see another shopping mission in the near future!
My favourite face!!
Yummy!!!
After Camden we went to Oxford Street and after all the shopping we were ravenous! We roamed the streets of Soho and in true Riaan and Simone style it took us over an hour to decide where to eat! We eventually settled on a lovely little Italian Restaurant we found called Stefs. We had champs to celebrate Riaan's new job... he starts tomorrow!! Oh and some delicious italian food , creamy mussels, calamari, and linguine with salmon and spinach, accompanied by a smooth red of course!

Somewhere in Soho
Our plans for the next few weekends include the Portobello Road Market, lectures, Brighton for our birthdays and some random wandering adventures!

If you have any suggestions about where we should go or places you'd like to go to that we can test out for you, let me know in the comments below!!

Monday, March 09, 2015

Living in London - 5 Essential Apps

I'm a very excited girl! More than one of my friends is looking to move to London and/or the UK in general in the coming months. Some have spilled the beans recently and some we knew about before we left, either way it's all very exciting!!

So, I have taken it upon myself to help them (and anyone else looking to take an amazing leap of faith) out. I will provide knowledge where I can and share what we've learnt in our first 2 months in London.

My 5 Essential Apps

 1. City Mapper
City mapper is my new BFF...for realsies!! I just tell it where I am, and where I want to be and it will tell me how to get there (walk, cycle, taxi, tube - along with a multitude of different line options, bus), how long my different options will take and how much said option would cost. It gives you to the minute updates on train statuses, which pretty freaking awesome! It also has a "more rain safe" option, perfect for the unpredictable weather in London!! We've actually been rather lucky since we got here, but I do believe it will start raining more as it gets warmer...

2. Google Maps
When I'm looking for my nearest tesco/waitrose/sainsburys I just type it into google maps and they pop up all over my screen, little red dots of convenience! It's just as helpful when you're wandering around London, on a general explore and want to see what's in your immediate surroundings. Don't forget to zoom in and take a screen shot if you're low on battery power, GPS can drain that very quickly!

3. Whatsapp/Viber/Skype
ET phone home! Whatever your preferred method of communicating with your loved ones back home, it will become your daily go to.

4.Wingit/Hype
These nifty little apps tell you about cool/fun things happening in your area/wherever you find yourself wandering around wondering what to do on a Saturday/Sunday or any day really.

5.Word Lens
This app isn't really applicable for London, we only really used it in France, but if you find yourself if a foreign restaurant/shop in London this will definitely come in handy. You enter your language and the language to be translated and then, using your phone's camera you aim to the text to be translated (as if you were going to take a photo) and your phone will translate the text to your chosen language!

There are a few more apps that I will be trying out over the next few months as we settle in, I'll be sure to let you know what they are and how good/helpful they are.

So, that's it for now, I'll be back soon, sooner than last time, I promise!