12/12/10

The chill of the outdoors has sent me into a bit of a lazy state with the blog. That and the fact that these days its too cold to stop and take photos around town, one just needs to keep moving! When comparing the difference between Canada & England one thing that came to mind is snow. Yes, Canada gets snow, however the difference is how the two countries deal with the snow.

Its laughable here how the country shuts down when its snows, panic ensues, and no one can deal! I understand that the country may not have snow like we do at home, and do not have the equipment to deal with the snow like we do, but its a bit absurd at times. I think we need a Canadian consultant to aid the Brits when the snow starts to fall.

1/12/10

Last weekend I went to the Christmas Market in Birmingham. A tradition started in Germany, its something that happens in England during the four weeks of Advent. We went at night, so it was a fantastic way to end the day. Lebkuchen- kinda like gingerbread (see the image of the cookies), chocolate covered marshmellows and of course mulled wine were the treats that evening. A nice way to get into the Christmas spirit...

24/11/10

Certain products in the UK carry the coat of arms on the package, as well as the statement: "by appointment to Her Majesty the Queen". Interestingly enough this means that the Queen approves of these specific brands and products, and they are the official supplier of these products to the Queen and the palace. How special is that!

Couple of snaps of things around the house with this: dish soap, wellies and sugar.

19/11/10

Tis the season for the Christmas baking to begin. Its been ages since I made gingerbread, but I thought this may be a good treat. However the cutie little men are soon to be sent off to Afghanistan for the boys out there in their Christmas packages.

Anyways, one reason I wanted to post this was I find it interesting to know where food originated from, kind of odd but nonetheless. Turns out that gingerbread was actually invented just a mere 20 min down the road in a nearby town. Kinda cool right? Even cooler that this town has a pub entitled "The Gingerbread Man"! Fantastic.

18/11/10

So I think I have an idea for the blog...last year it was documenting my days with a photo, nothing specific but just choosing an image to represent my day. For the next chapter of this blog I am going to focus on what makes this country so special, and different from Canada. I think if I was reading this in Canada, that is what I would like to see. How things are done differently here, products, ect...What do you think?

Lets start with this (badly taken) photo of tuesdays news. Wow.
I know Kate and Williams engagement is in the news in Canada, however its crazy here. They made the front of every single paper here. Every. Single. Paper. And there are 10, 15, 20 different papers. Thats a lot of coverage. That evening they were on the news, and there were shows entitled "William and Kate- the love story" I am sure the producers of those shows had that produced for years, and were just waiting till this day to get that engagement clip in.

Hey, I'm all for a Royal wedding. I love weddings, and I like the Royal family and all of the twists and turns its been though. There are lots of people complaining about the engagement and how they dont care, but a journalist made a good point. The Royal fam needs a positive, heart warming story. It makes the people of Britain happy and thats not a bad thing!

17/11/10

I think it may be time to get back into the blog...I mean, clearly the photo-a-day kept me on track, now it just seems too easy not to post! I have a couple photos I took the other day that may be quite fitting for my friends back home in snowy Canada.


There is a company here called Innocent drinks. They create things like smoothies and juices, with a very healthy approach. No additives or sugars, and some really interesting mixes. They've also started getting into things like veg pots for healthy lunches. I have one of the smoothie cookbooks, and they are such a unique company with a great ethos. The floor in their offices are astro turf, and they have a pet sheep (plastic of course).
Anyways, for the month of November they had a ton of volunteers (and grannies!) knit these tiny little touques (or knitted hats as they call them here, as no one knows what a touque is) for the top of the bottles, and 25p of each drink goes to Age UK a charity for the elder population- (things like health care and stuff I believe). At first I was like "what is the point? A knitted hat on a bottle?" Then I saw them all sitting there on the stores shelf- all different patterns and styles and it looked almost cute. So I had to buy one, the marketing ploy worked!

10/11/10

I refer to this blog once a day...and everytime I look at it I think..."I really should get back into this". I think what I want to try to do is thematic weeks, something to focus on when taking photos. I have not forgot about the blog, and still want to keep it going, promise!

In the meantime here is a photo for Remembrance Day.

2/11/10

1. Now this last post for my 'top ten things I love' may be a bit syrupy sweet for some of you...

And you may think its a bit cheesy...

But I can't think of anything else I love more in this country then my boyfriend (or partner as you I would refer to him over here). Not saying anything more mushy than that, but he had to be number 1!

26/10/10

2. Style

The English have a very special style when it comes to fashion. Depending on how a pair of boots and leggings are worn, a scarf or hat, trousers, dresses, accessories, etc... it all has a certain British effort put into it.

Hard to describe, but I can really notice the difference when arriving in England, or comparing the dress of the French or Italian for example. I think the British put more of an effort into their clothes, and clothes are outfits, and outfits become a style. It's a nice change.

25/10/10

3. History

I had to include this in my top ten, as its so fascinating the level of history a place like England has compared to Canada. I find it hard to display in the photos I've taken this idea, but tried with a few images. Not only is history in items like cathedrals, old market squares and historical events and people, but the army. Lots of interesting history I've learned about this past year.

24/10/10

4. Becoming a Domestic Goddess (or at least trying)

In England I find there are more cooking shows, baking shows, and a big focus on wholesome, natural, local, organic foods. The best word to describe many of the shows is "rustic". Jamie Oliver, Gordon Ramsay, Nigel Slater, Nigella Lawson, ect ect. Its that feel good, belly warming food. This has inspired me to cook and bake more (along with a personal teacher I have here), and to try new things like tarts, or curries, and breads. Along with that comes the inspiration to create- sewing, knitting, ect.

22/10/10

5. Parks & green spaces

There is something about the British that makes them love their parks. I don't know if its the relative size of the country to the population that allows them to cherish space, or the calm and peace a park can bring even in the busiest of cities. With the climate being what it is here the parks are ALWAYS green, even if snow happens to fall, there is always green below. The park in town here has become a fave place to run, stroll, picnic, or just sit.

Gardeners plant flowers all year long, and the grass and hedges always seem to be taken care of. Theres a certain pride. All of these photos (with exception of the last one) were taken in the park in town here, I love this space.