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Last month, I took a day off of work and had a wander around Greenwich Market. It was Pancake Day, which fell just a few days after Valentine's Day in the middle of the month. The morning was sunny and a little chilly, so I had some time to wander around and enjoy the surroundings. I was amazed to see many daffodils already out in bloom; some of the earlier varieties do start to bloom at the end of February. We have had non-stop rain, so perhaps it is forcing everything to come out sooner.

My first stop was to Greenwich Market, and I had a wander around the different stalls and food market.

As it was Pancake Day, my breakfast consisted of pancakes by Planet Pancake. They come in three sizes with different choices of toppings, and I had the small size. It was topped with strawberries and pistachio sauce.

The small size comes with eight miniature pancakes.

I had a sample of fudge at one of the shops inside the market.

The winter punch was still on offer, so I had the Festive Berries punch. I tried one of each, and both were delicious. I didn't have any rum in it, but it was an option.

I wandered around some of the little shops. One shop that I went to last year for some Easter desserts had Valentine's Day cupcakes.

I then found my way around the beautiful buildings at Greenwich and saw the yellow daffodils.

I also discovered some photographs of Greenwich that I had taken in the summer of 2014. I saw this ship in a bottle near the museum.

Greenwich Market looked very much the same but with more market stalls and less food stalls.

With all the rain and cold weather we are continuing to have, I can't wait for spring to hurry a little quicker this year. It's been a very gloomy and depressing time, and I am waiting to see the back of it.

Last month, I purchased one of the special cocktail boxes from Craft Gin Club. I purchased the Margarita box. The spicy Margarita is one of my favourite cocktails, and I've not made my own margarita from scratch before. The box came with all of the ingredients needed to create your own margarita cocktail. (To make a spicy one, I ground up some bird's eye chilis and mixed the oil with the tequila, and you can make it as spicy as you want.)

The box came with the following:

Tiempo Tequila: This was a smoothe tequila, and the most important aspect of a margarita is to use a good-quality tequila. This one was a good quality.

Burnt Faith Triple Sec in 'blood orange': This spirit can be added with tequila to produce the margarita, although other orange-flavour liqueur will also work.

Bristol Syrup Co Lime Sherbet: This lime-flavoured sugar syrup helps balance the lime and sweet ingredients used to make a margarita (instead of needing simple sugar syrup and lime juice as separate ingredients).

Cornish Sea Salt Company salt flakes: I've previously purchased these salt flakes for margaritas, so this was a great addition to the box.

Belvoir Farm Raspberry Margarita: This was a non-alcoholic drink that tasted of a raspberry margarita, and I mixed some of it with the margarita for a different flavour.

Welcome to the summer and autumn 2025 edition of "empties", the beauty and skin-care products that I have used up over the the months during the summer and autumn. I wanted to showcase the products that I have used so that I can remember which ones that I would purchase again and recommend. 

Maybelline Watr Shine Diamonds: This sparkly and glittery nail polish is in a deep pink/purple colour and is a good colour for late summer and early autumn. The only problem with it was that it tended to clump up.

Geranium Odorata by Diptyque: This floral perfume by Diptyque uses geranium, which is an uplifting scent and wore well on my skin. I like the brand, so I would consider to purchase from them.

Nuxe Aquabella Moisturising emulsion: This product provides hyderation to combination skin and improves the skin generally. The product seemed to do well for me, so I would consider to use it again.

Penhaligons Endymion: This perfume has a pleasant scent, but I have a lot of perfume products to get through at present.

Ciate mini nail polish in "pillow fight": This is a grey-purple shade that can match a range of outfits. The product is okay, but it tends to dry out quickly in the small bottles.

WBCo Prep Mist in watermelon: This facial spray provides moisture to skin while traveling or on the go. It contains alo vera and makes the skin feel cool and hydrated. I used it before applying make-up, and I felt that the make-up absorbed better. I would consider to purchase it again.

Bath and Body Works Candy Corn hand sanitizer: I like the brand, and this is an American scent of "candy corn" sweets but in hand sanitizer form, which I enjoyed.

Benefit lash: This is a volume-enhancing lash product, but I would not purchase it again.

Maybelline lash: This product did seem to perform well with my lashes and darkend and lengthened them.

Berrisom horror mask in 'skull black rice': The horror-themed mask adds moisturise to skin and improves elasticity. This is a perfect mask for Halloween and autumn vibes:

Liz Earle Hand Repair: This hand cream helps add missing moisture to hands, and it is a perfect treat for the autumn when the hands start to dry out.

Illamasqua lipstick in "Nebula": This is a bright pink colour. The colour stained lips for a long last. I would choose a slightly-muted colour if purchasing myself.

Neon Vibes Peel-off Mask illuminating: This neon facial mask adds a bit of summery festival colour to your beauty routine. The product looked good, but I wouldn't bother to purchase it again.

Too Cool for School Pumpkin 24k Gold Mask: This facial mask glows a gold colour and is good for the autumn vibe. I did not feel that this product worked, so I would not purchase it again.

Bang Beauty brow cream: This was not a good product as it was completely dried and hard. I could not use it. If a product compltely dries, then it cannot be good for skin.

Headline Colors nail polish in "Quicksand": This muted brown nail polish had a nice shine and glided on, so I would consider the brand aain.

Revive watermelon sheet mask: This is a perfect summery scent of watermelon and adds a lot of moisture to the skin. I probably would not buy it again, though, as I don't feel it worked for me.

Thisworks in the sone body lotion: This is a lavender-scented body and hand cream, which is perfect before bed to relax the senses. I don't need anymore hand and body creams, but I appreciated this one.

Lancome eye shadow in Rose Bois and Cedar Rose: This duo of eyeshadow was a pleasant couple of shades and a nice travel product.

Avant Deluxe night cream: This night cream promised to add moisture to skin overnight. I did not feel it was better than other products, so I would not purchase again.

Lush Sparkly Pumpkin bath jelly: This cooling jelly product can be used in the bath as soap or shower gel. It lathered up nicely, and I enjoyed the scent and would purchase again.

Peter Thomas Roth 24k Gold Mask: The product is a facial mask with 24k gold. The product does not work at all for me. I would not repurchase it.

Lee Stafford dry shampoo: This dry shampoo was perfect for dark hair, and it blended better into my dark colour. I would buy it again.

Rimmel Foundation: The foundation felt clumpy on my skin and was not the right shade. I felt that it was too heavy for me.

Zerreau Beauty towel-off shampoo: This dry shampoo was a good alternative to lightly-wet hair without a full wash. The product was average. I would not use it again.

Nails Inc "Westminster Bridge matt topcoat" polish: This nail polish provided a matt finish to nails, but I did not like the product as it was too clumpy for a matt finish.

Nail polish in "white": This is a nail polish with confetti in pink and blue muted colours. I did not like it, and I felt it was very clumpy. I would not purchase it.

Roger Gallet perfumed soap: This little bar of soap was lovely in scent and was perfect for holding and using. 

Berry Burst candle: The candle did not have a very strong throw, so I would not purchase it again.

So Strawberries and Cream mist: This product provided a temporary fragrance to skin. The product smells pleasant, but it is not long-wearing.

Green People Age+ Defy Brightening: This product promises enhanced moituriser to skin. The product did seem to help my skin.

Olas Toothpaste: This is a toothpaste, but I would not purchase it again.  

Bath and Body Works Limoncello body wash: This is a perfect summer scent from one of my favourite brands.

Bath and Body Works Cherry Blossom body cream: I enjoyed the scent, but I did not like the product as it does not absorb into my skin. I would not buy it again.

Cool Gel Finca Canarias: I bought some products from this company in Fuertaventura, and it is a lovely product that cools the skin and can be used for a range of uses. I used it to add some moisture to my dry skin in the autumn. It can be used for sun damage too.

This Valentine's Day, Lush delivered new items in the seasonal range along with some items from previous years. I visited the shop and bought a few of the items in the Valentine's Day and seasonal range, which included Chinese New Year for the Year of the Horse. Read below to see what Lush has in store for this year's Valentine's Day.

Sweetheart bath bomb: This pink and white bath bomb with hearts on it smells of vanilla and citrus orange. It smells a little bit like sugary sweets.

Bananas for you bubbleroon: This banana-shaped bubbleroon is one of the Valentine's Day products. It has a banana scent, but it is very muted.

Life in Rosy Light bath bomb: This heart-shaped bath bomb is a floral scent and turns the bath water into a pink colour.

Love Letter bath bomb: This envelop-shaped bath bomb was in last year's seasonal range and appears this year too. It is a sweet candy-strawberry scent. 

Be My Valentine bubble bath: This heart-shaped bubble bath product is reusable. Simply hold it (via the wooden arrow) into the stream of water and watch bubbles appear. It is a floral scent.

Previously released was the return of the strawberry-heart shape bubbleroon Strawberry Crumble Bubbleroon. 

For Chinese New Year (Lunar New Year), which also appears this month, the horse-shaped bath bomb made a debut. Gallop to Success is an uplifting-scented bath bomb with orange flower and mandarin to aid relaxation.

Unicorn Poop is more of a summery and spring bath bomb with a rainbow of pastel colours, and it can be accompanied by an uplifting playlist. It is a playfully-scented product.

Read about last year's Valentine's Day selection from Lush here.

Last month, I bought the "Twelve Day" wine advent calendar from Good Pair Days. I use their service to sometimes buy and identify new wines that I enjoy with a meal now and then. I definitely will not be having a bottle a day for twelve days but will be using these up as and when I want to enjoy a bottle of wine. The options were a chilled box containing wine and rose or a mixed box, which also included red. 

The box came with some extras as well, including a wine bottle stopper set with corkscrew and a booklet of their wine guide with facts and other information about wine.

I am looking forward to try the wine over the coming weeks and see if there is a favourite amongst them.

This month, I received the Craft Gin Club gin monthly subscription box for December of 2025. The Craft Gin Club subscription box contains a full-sized bottle of gin, mixers, snacks, and a magazine (The Stir) with food and drink recipes using the gin. December 2025 month's full bottle of gin is Hentony Festive Gin, which sold out. The gin is from the Cotswolds in England, and the founders of the distillery are from Poland.

I received different snacks and mixers to pair with the gin. 

Schweppes Tonic Water: This brand of tonic water pairs nicely with the festive gin and lets the flavour of the gin work on its own.

Heartease Farm Sparkling Apple and Pear: This Welsh sparking apple and pear juice is made to use the monthly cocktail and tastes refreshing and is good enough to have on its own or made to mix with gin.

Angostura Cocoa Bitters: This brand creates bitters to add to drinks. A couple of dashes will transform your drink into a subtle flavpur for cocktails, mocktails, or othr dishes.

Goodrays CBD elderflower drink: This drink can be paired with gin or on its own and uses natural ingredients.

Brothers Toffee Apple Cider: This Somerset brand of drink can be enjoyed on its own or mixed with gin, and it uses real apples and ingredients.

Crosta Mollica fennel seed tarallini: I love this brand as they make many delicious products, and I loved to receive these little savoury biscuits that pair nicely with cheese and cocktails.

Savoursmiths Christmas Ham with Umami Truffle Glaze: This brand uses fine ingredients and comes up with unique and tasy flavours. I was not sure about these as I do not eat pork, but they are vegan.

Copperpot Gingerbread Fudge: This brand comes from Cornwall, and I've previously had their fudge before and enjoyed it. It does pair nicely with the festive gin.

Taylors Toasted Marshmallow Popcorn: I love popcorn, and this was delicious and tasted of toasted marshmallow. 

I also received a Christmas Gin Bellini syrup for the monthly cocktail and dried orange and cinnmon to garnish my gin and tonic this month.

Happy New Year's Eve to all of my readers, and I hope that 2025 lived up to your expectations. This year for me was a little more balanced in some ways, but it has its ups and downs as well. I decided to go into this year with few expectations so that I would not be disappointed. This year, there was a focus on healthy living and fitness. Although I visited two new destinations outside of the United Kingdom and travelled to two that I had been to before, I did not get to do quite as much travel as I would have liked to. There were some reasons for this - namely work, an injury, agendas/plans with others, and cost. Read below to see my review of each month this year and my plans for 2026.

January:

January started out a little bit slow, which was actually quite nice after several busy years. My mind felt more relaxed, and I took in the new year with some walks around London and to visit Duke of York Square where there is a Saturday food market (Duke of York Square Saturday Food Market) that I visited a few times during the month and bought some delicious foods, and I also paid my last visit to Patridges, which closed its doors this year. I enjoyed the food hall because it had so many wonderful items and unique food-related gifts. Duke of York Square also hosted a few sculptures, Lobsteropolis at Duck of York Square, London, because the artist had his work displayed at the gallery.

I also attended the annual Canary Wharf Winter Lights 2025, and I enjoyed the light sculptures this year. This event always brings colour to the cold and dark winter days, and I loved the displays this year and felt that they were better than the past few years.

I also visited Battersea Light Festival 2025 this year and was also impressed with the light sculptures. When I was in Battersea, I enjoyed Cocktails at Control Room B, Battersea Power Station. The cocktails were served in different glasses inspired by the history of the venue as a power station. Westfield in west London also had a small light trail, and I visited this a few weeks later: Here We Glow Lights up Westfield London.

Chinese New Year fell at the end of the month, and I celebrated Chinese New Year at Bang Bang Oriental. There is so much selection for Asian street food, and there is also a supermarket, bakery, and more. The portions are also very large and more than enough for two meals.

February:

At the start of the month, I went to see the large sculpture of the sun at Helios at the Bath Assembly Rooms (Bath and Somerset, National Trust), which is the new planetary sculpture from Luke Jerram, and the visit reminded me of my time spent living in the city of Bath. I also went to Prior Park in Bath (Bath and Somerset, National Trust) while I was in the city; I actually never visited this beautiful place when I was living in Bath. Since I had seen the sun sculpture from Luke Jerram, I saw that the moon one was also on display a couple of weekends later at St. Albans (Museum of the Moon at St. Albans Cathedral), so I also visited that. This was the first of Jerram's planetary sculptures and has been on my list to see for awhile. I am glad that I have seen it inside the beautiful St. Albans Cathedral as the sculptures do look amazing in the historical settings.

One of my good friends turned 40 later this year, so she planned for a group of us to go to see an Abba tribute in Woking: Coppid Beech Hotel Party Package with ABBA. We stayed overnight and had cocktails and afternoon tea and used the spa before watching the tribute act. 

Valentine's Day is in February, but I never do anything special for it; I love the hearts and special themes for the day. When I was in London, I went to check out the treats at one of the usual spots that do nice treats: Valentine's Day at Peggy Porschen.

Toward the end of the month of February, I had my first ever visit to Vienna in Austria. My cousin was staying there to do some research, so I decided to plan a visit to the city to explore it as I had some annual leave to use before the end of March. I have always wanted to go to Vienna, so I am glad that I got to go (February Travel to Vienna, Austria). I went to Kunsthistorisches (Art History Museum), Schonbrunn Palace, Schönbrunn Zoo, Schonbrunn Gardens in Vienna, St. Stephen's Cathedral, and listened to Vivaldi's The Four Seasons and Mozart at Musikverein. I also saw some Street Art in Vienna. I also stayed at Hotel Imperial Vienna.

March:

Pancake Day was in early March this year, and I had pancakes at My Old Dutch in Chelsea and went to watch the Better Bankside Pancake Day Race on South Bank, which was my first time to watch this particular Pancake Day race. It was not as large as some of the other pancake day race events, but it was a beautiful warm and sunny day. I watched a large dinosaur and someone dressed as "Batman" in the race.

At the end of March, I spent a few days in Wales and stayed at Treffedian Hotel in Aberdovey, a family-owned hotel that I stayed at many years ago with someone who had meant a lot to me at the time. I remembered that visit many years ago and the large expanses of sand dunes from the hotel out to the sea, so I wanted to return. This beautiful hotel comes with the traditional board - breakfast and dinner. The menus change each night for the dinner, and it is three courses.

My Wales visit included a lot of castle and former religious sites and National Trust and English Heritage visits. I went to the following: Grosmont Castle, White Castle (Monmouthshire, Wales), Skenfrith Castle (Monmouthshire, Wales), Harlech Castle (Gwynedd, Wales), Talley Abbey (Carmarthenshire, Wales), Dryslywn Castle (Carmarthenshire, Wales), Raglan Castle (Monmouthshire, Wales), Castle Y Bere, Cymer in Gwynedd, Wales, and Llanthony Priory in Monmouthshire, Wales. Castle Y Bere was one of the favourites as the landscape was picturesque and memorable. It was free to visit and down a narrow track, but the views are stunning over the Welsh countryside.

In addition to the castles and ruined abbeys/priories, I visited some historic houses and a former mine. One memorable visit was a house and a castle on a hillside a short walk away: Newton House at Dinefwr and Dinefwr Castle (National Trust: Carmarthenshire, Wales). Dolaucothi Gold Mines (National Trust, Carmarthenshire) was an interesting place where a guide told us about the history of the Roman gold mining operation here and its use later in years. Tretower Court and Castle was also a nice medieval home to visit with a castle a short walk away. Llanchaeron (National Trust: Ceredigion, Wales) was a large home with farm and gardens to explore.

While in Wales, I also stopped off at Sugarloaf Winery for wine tasting and lunch on the way into Wales and also sevral days later at Gwin Dylanwad Wine Tasting at Dolgellau, Wales for wine tasting in northern Wales. I also visited the beautiful town of Portmeirion: A Visit to Portmeirion in Wales. This was my second ever visit to Portmeirion after visiting when I stayed in the area all those years ago. The day was lovely, and I enjoyed the visit in the picturesque grounds, which are famous for starring in "The Prisoner" television series.

One other memorable place that I spent some time at while in Wales was Dolgach Falls. I enoyed a walk to the waterfalls and then up the hill for some beautiful views, up the stream to additional waterfalls. The trip was only over a few days, but I was able see so a lot.

April:

After a busy February and March, I had a quieter April. London is beautiful to visit in the spring, and Easter fell in the middle of the month. A friend and I had Spring Afternoon Tea at The Savoy, London. I also enjoyed walking around the park to see the beautiful daffodil displays: Happy Easter 2025. The weather was becoming very nice with warm and sunny days.

I also enjoyed a couple of trips out to London to see the The Big Egg Hunt Returned to London in 2025. The last big exhibition of these was just over ten years ago, so I was happy to see it return to the city as I loved it. I enjoyed seeing the different decorated eggs and walking around London to locate them all.

A friend and I also got to enjoy a bottomless brunch at Daisy Green, London as a late gift to me. I had been longing to visit here for awhile after a disappointed visit a couple of years ago where they did not offer the bottomless brunch on the day and time that I visited. I enjoyed the food here, and the brunch was good although I had to watch after my friend as he got very ill. 

May:

In early May, there were street parties across the country to honour VE Day, and my road had one. The weather was not great as it was very cold, but I managed to get outside and have a chat and share food and drink with neighbours. There were a few games, but it was quite cold and windy. I enjoyed meeting new neighbours and catching up with old ones.

I also managed to watch a live recording of one of the semi-finals of "Britain's Got Talent" that one friend secured tickets for: Unblogged Spring 2025. In the middle of the month, I hosted the Eurovision Song Contest and visited Daws Hill Vineyard near High Wycombe for a wine tour and tasting, which I enjoyed.

Toward the end of the month, I visited the annual Chelsea in Bloom 2025, which coincides with the flower show. I did not think it was as good as some of the previous displays, but it did have a lot of colour, and I managed to visit on a day where the weather was warm and overcast so that I was able to get some decent photographs.

I returned to Vienna for the second time toward the end of the month as I have always wanted to see the city in bloom. My cousin was meant to be there, but he had to go back early, so I just explored alone and spent one day with one of my colleagues in the city. I went to the following places in Vienna: A Visit to Prater Theme Park, Galleries at Upper and Lower Belvedere and Belvedere 21 in Vienna, Belvedere Gardens in Vienna, Dinner and Birthday Cake at ROLLERCOASTERRESTAURANT, Vienna Alpine Gardens, Schoenbrunn Palace. I also enjoyed Champagne Breakfast at Sacher in Vienna. Spring is a beautiful time to visit Vienna, and the parks are all in bloom: Spring Visit to Vienna, Austria. I loved the gardens in bloom in the city, which was far different than in my February visit while they were dormant and devoid of colour.

At the end of the month, I had the afternoon off and a walk to Pinner to enjoy An Afternoon at the 688th Pinner Fair. The fair takes place on one day each year, and it is a day filled with games and entertainment for the community set in the centre of Pinner. The day felt like spring and was lovely to see the community out to enjoy the day.

June:

The weather became nice in June, and after the previous walk to Pinner a few days before, I had another nice walk to Pinner after work and enjoyed some cocktails and good food at Awadh in Pinner. Early in the month, I also enjoyed Afternoon Tea at Tudor Hotel in Eastcote Pinner, which I had been wanting to visit when I've walked past before because it is an interesting Tudor-style building. Since the weather was starting to get nice and spring-like, I wanted to get out a bit more.

June is my birthday month, but I did not have a large celebration this year as everyone was busy, but I had a couple of smaller gatherings for dinners. For my birthday, I bought an ice cream cake. My birthday was one of the hottest days of the year, so getting the cake was a little bit of a challenge. A friend and I had bottomless brunch in London in a rooftop bar at The Aviary in London as a birthday treat (because he got ill in our spring visit and I had to look after him). I also had a meal out with friends after work at Izgara in Hatch End. More birthday photographs can be seen here: Birthday 2025.

At the end of the month, I had a week away with a few days in Norfolk, Essex, and Suffolk area. I have been wanting to go to the Sandringham Estate for several years now. I finally got to go this year, and I had Sunday lunch after a tour around the house and gardens. I enjoyed the visit and tour.

While in this area, I visited a few castles and National Trust and English Heritage properties: Oxburgh Hall Estate (National Trust: Norfolk), Peckover House and Garden (Cambridgeshire, National Trust), Castle Rising Castle (Norfolk), Flatford Mill (National Trust, Suffolk), Castle Acre Castle in Norfolk, and Castle Acre Priory in Norfolk. Castle Acre (pictured below) are grounds of a castle which the town is named after, and there is an interesting priory a short drive away. I thought that the grounds were picturesque.

I stayed for a fw days at Potters Resorts Five Lakes in Essex. I did a lot of crafts when I was there, and it was the type of break that I had never done before but interesting. I learned how to do iris folding (card-making), and I really enjoyed this. I did some other activities too and took some time out for a break.

July:

The month of July started with an adventure to visit the Air Raid Cafe in High Wycombe for breakfast before this much-loved cafe closed as it is trying to locate a new location. I loved the cafe with its quirkly historic war-time rooms and items. While I was there, I also visited Hughenden (National Trust, Buckinghamshire), which is a short drive away.

The weather continued to be amazing in July. I have been wanting to visit The Cheese Barge for years, and my friends and I finally got to visit here and share a selection of different foods. This is the type of place that is best to visit with multiple friends so that you can try different things. The food was delicious here, and I would love to go back.

On one of the hottest days of the year, I had the morning off to visit Moor Park Mansion (Rickmansworth, London), which is located not too far away. I had a tour of the mansion and learned the history and enoyed a drink in the bar. It is now a golf course, but there are tours run every now and then to see inside. The mansion has history during the Tudor times with Henry VIII.

The annual Whitecross Street Party 2025 was held in the middle of July again. This was my first visit on one of the street party days itself, which is open to the community and draws large crowds. It is known for its street art as many street artists do visit and paint (or create) on the day. I went to check it out and see the street art being created. 

Toward the end of the month, I had a weekend in Bristol to see the sculpture trail Gromit Unleashed 3. As I took the train to Bristol this time and was only there for a short time, I only got to see the sculptures that were accessible within the centre of Bristol. A few days before my visit, I had hurt my toe and was struggling to walk a lot but made the most by adjusting my stride. In the long term, I damaged my foot even worse; it's still not fully healed. I developed plantar fasciitis after the big toe eventually got better after several weeks. I am doing what I can to recover,  but it has been very trying.

At the end of the month, friends and I met up and had lunch out and visited Hinton Ampner (National Trust: Hampshire) to have a short walk and admire the gardens. My foot was painful, so I did not get to do a long walk. I also wanted it to heal as much as possible before my visit to Rhodes in August.

August:

I spent a long weekend in Rhodes in early August, and I got to see a little bit of the island but wished that I had had more time to spend on the Greek Island. I had a couple of days trips, and I got to see, Kritinia Castle, Rhodes Clock Tower, Embonas Wine Area of Rhodes, Kallithea Springs in Rhodes, Elafos Hotel and Saint Nikolaos Fountoukli, Rhodes Archeological Museum, Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes, Ancient Kamiros Acropolis, Rhodes Old Town Walls, and Rhodes Old Town. I enjoyed to see the history of Rhodes and the ruins, and there are so many beautiful places on the island.

One of my favourite places was Lindos, where I had a visit to the Acropolis at Lindos, Rhodes. The walk up to the acropolis was amazing, and I enjoyed the views. I also loved the community cats around the island, which are all looked after and can be found on the streets: Cats of Rhodes.

During the week after work, I went with a couple of friends to my first ever cricket game at Lord's Cricket Ground for the Hundreds. One of my friends has a membership, so we got to be in the VIP area. We brought champagne and picnic food, and the weather was beautiful.

I also managed to get to the new Lucy Sparrow's Bourdon Street Chippy exhibition. Everything was made of felt, and readers would have seen me post about her other exhibitions before.

At the last Bank Holiday in August, the weather was amazing. I had a walk to Headstone Manor in Northwest London. On that day, there was a special market and village show: Headstone Village Show - Diamond Anniversary 2025. I had been wanting to visit this historical place for a few years, and I finally got the long walk in. 

On the last weekend of the month, I had a day trip to Birmingham to see the sculpture trail Bulls in The City. This took me all around the city. I also got to have a tour of the Birmingham Back to Backs: National Trust. I loved the tour, which I thought was done really well and allowed me to see how different families lived in these houses. Seeing how the average people lived in the past is interesting because a lot of the ways of life and homes do not exist anymore.

The summer this year was beautiful, and I did spend a lot of the time walking, exercising, and enjoying drinks in the garden: Unblogged Summer 2025. The only issue was my foot, which was still badly hurt and took forever for the big toe to heal from being badly damaged. The plantar fasciitis did not come until the end of the month and no doubt made worse because I did not care for it but equally did not know what the issue was, and the doctors also did not help.

September:

After a busy August, September was very quiet. I did not have much planned as I had hurt my foot and was trying to recover from that. I did meet a couple of ex-colleagues that I am still friends with, and we went to her little tea shop: The Little Tea House in Barnet. The food was delicious, and we had a great time catching up. 

In the middle of the month, I visited Frieze Sculpture in Regent's Park 2025. This is an annual sculpture exhibition held outdoors in Regents Park every year, and it is free to visit. This year, I enjoyed the sculptures when compared to the past couple of years. There was a nice selection.

October:

October was a busy month to counteract the largely-uneventful September. I had a few different visits with groups of friends. I started the month with Sherlock Holmes Boozy Afternoon Tea, which I really enjoyed. I had afternoon tea and solved a table-top mystery. This was followed by a couple of different intelligence games in their bar and a couple of different Sherlock-themed cocktails. I also loved the Victorian decor, and I enjoyed reading some poems out of the vintage book.

The harvest and Halloween mood started in the middle of October, and I visited friends in Hampshire and returned to a lovely pub, The Milbury in Beauworth, which we visited earlier in the summer. After the pub, we ended up taking a long walk around the estate at Hinton Ampner (National Trust, Hampshire) and admiring the autumn and harvest decorations. They display the harvest decorations across the gardens each year, but this year was the first that I got to visit them.

Another friend came to visit, and we enjoyed a visit to Audley End House and Gardens (Essex: English Heritage). Afterwards, we went to the pumpkin patch and toured Halloween tunnels at Cammas Hall Farm. The pumpkin displays there are amazing, and they had a Halloween-themed mosaic wall made out of different colours of pumpkins and squash. The pumpkin patch is open each October, but this was my first visit. They also do Halloween nights and live music, and this gets busy and more spooky on the week that children are off from school.

My friend and I had bottomless drinks and pizza locally in Ruislip: Pizza and Pornstars at Anabella's in Ruislip. I also went out with another couple of friends to enjoy Halloween Afternoon Tea and Cocktails at Roast in London. Roast is located at Borough Market, and they really do decorate the room well, and they do themed cocktails.  

Diwali was a couple of weeks before Halloween this year, but I did not do anything for it. On the day before Halloween, I had a evening out after work. I went to Avora Immersive Cocktail Experience in London, which is immersive theatre paired with different cocktails and set on a different planet with some actors/actresses being a species from the planet Avora. (There are some similarities in this story to the "Avatar" film.)

That day, I also went to the Pumpkin Lantern Festival at Dalston Eastern Curve Garden. This was wonderful to experience as there are many hundreds of carved and lit pumpkins to enjoy while walking around the community event. During the day, people can also carve their own pumpkins. As always, London was decorated for Halloween, and it seems to be a bigger deal every year: Halloween in London 2025. As autumn drew to a close, I also enjoyed the fall decorations and went to see Michael McIntyre twice this month as a couple of friends got tickets: UnBlogged Autumn 2025.

November:

November was also a busy month. November started with Bonfire Night 2025, and I went to the Ruislip Rugby Club with friends again to enjoy the display. This was the only local display this year.

Another friend and I went to 1990s bar and club in Covent Garden, Bunga 90s. There was meant to be a group of us, but two of the four dropped out. I loved the themed cocktails and sections of the club, and the food looked good. Each area of the club was a throwback to something in the 1990s from "The Simpsons" to "Sonic the Hedgehog", "Spice Girls" to "Take That", Britney Spears to "FRIENDS", and popular toys to films.

The following weekend in the middle of November, I visited Birmingham Christmas Market with a couple of friends. It was a bit of a rushed trip as we got to Birmingham late, and then we walked around the city and market. Our train back was at mid-day, and we just about managed to eat breakfast (we ended up in a long queue) before we rushed out to get the train with not too long to spare. I actually did not buy anything. We also did not drink as one of my friends had been ill and was on antibiotics.

At the end of the month, I jetted off to New York City to spend Thanksgiving there and to see the parade. I had a wander around the city to see some of the attractions and Christmas decorations (Christmas Decorations in New York City), and I spent some time with my cousin who lives in New York City. The highlight of the trip was watching the Balloon Inflation in Central Park and the 99th Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 2025. Afterwards, I had Thanksgiving dinner with my cousin at Bryant Park: Happy Thanksgiving 2025. I absolutely loved watching the parade, and the weather was perfect for it.

December:

I arrived in Ohio for a few days from the beginning of December: A Snowy Ohio December Visit. The day after I arrived, the snow came and did not disappear during my whole visit. I spent some time with my parents and family, went to some shops, and went to the Amish country. I did not spend long in Ohio.

When I got back into London, I visited Chelsea Winter Illuminations. This was the only opportunity to visit a festive light trail this year. I was pleasantly surprised, and I enjoyed the different displays. Some of them were also interactive. 

After several years of not securing a table at the coveted Claridges for festive afternoon tea, my friends and I managed to finally book. We enjoyed the Festive Afternoon Tea at Claridge's. Inside the tea room, groups of children sang Christmas carols, and this made the experience extra festive. We got a lot of extra sandwiches and had plenty of scones and pastries to take home.

In the run up to Christmas, I enjoyed a few trips around the city to see the festive decorations, window displays, and Christmas lights: Christmas in London 2025. The Christmas decorations and lights came extra early this year with most of them being launched in early November. I always enjoy visiting the city during Christmas, and I was happy that the decorations launched earlier this year to keep back the crowds.

I worked over the festive days and do not have any plans for New Year's Eve except to get caught up on sleep and relax after I finish work, and I may have a drink or two with neighbours. 

Overall, 2025 brought some travel (two visits to Vienna, a visit to Rhodes, and a visit to New York City). There was a little less travel when compared with last year, and I hope that 2026 will allow me to visit more new places. One of the problems that I had was getting time off of work, particularly in the summer months, and I also had the issue with my foot. That made my life challenging. It is still painful, but I am managing.

I was able to look after myself a little more this year and gave my health more of a priority to lose some weight and generally be healthy. I participated in fitness nearly once a week all year and also walked a set number of steps the majority of days. I also managed to read and listen to a lot of audio books on my walks this year. I got through some good books and finished a series of books that I loved and had been listening to for the past couple of years: "The Adams Family Saga" by Mary Jane Staples.  

I hope 2026 is amazing and brings more joy.

This year, I bought two advent calendars. I bought the Bloomingdale's Beauty Advent calendar and the Jolly Rancher advent calendar when I was in New York City. It has been a few years since I purchased a beauty advent calendar, but I decided to buy my own this year. The Bloomingdale's advent calendar is illustrated to appear like their shop front on 59th Street with colourful boxes in different sizes and a prize in each one. Read below to see what the beauty advent calendar has inside.

The beauty advent calendar looks like the shop front of Bloomingdale's and contains colourful boxes.

The beauty advent calendar contains the following items:

• La Prairie Skin Caviar Luxe Eye Cream: This cream works on the eye area to rejuvenate the skin and remove dullness.
• Kiehl's Ultimate Strength Hand Salve: This is a full-sized product that helps repair and moisturise hands, and this is particularly useful at this time of the year.
• Jo Malone Wood Sage & Sea Salt Cologne: This sample size of scent has an earthy aroma. The brand is known for its different scents for the home and body.
• SK-II Facial Treatment Mask: This facial mask is from Japanese brand SK-II and helps to combat aging and restore skin.
• SK-II Facial Treatment Essence Pitera: This Japanese skin-care company create their products from sake, which helps to keep skin youthful.
• NEST New York Holiday Votive Candle: This candle is perfect for the season with a festive and warming scent.
• Kitsch Metal French Hair Pin in Gold: This hair pin can be used to style hair.
• Clé de Peau Beauté The Serum: The serum helps to plump up skin and its complexion.
• Augustinus Bader The Eye Patches: The product promises to brighten up the eye area.
• CREED Aventus Collection Discovery Set: Aventus, Aventus Cologne, and Absolu Aventus: These three miniature scents were provided inside a little box.
• Shiseido Vital Perfection LiftDefine Radiance Serum: This is another Japanese brand that claims to nourish the skin.
• Charlotte Tilbury Glowgasm Beauty Light Wand in Pinkgasm: This full-sized product is a highlighter to add radiance and glow to skin.
• U Beauty The SUPER Hydrator: This is another full-sized product that hydrates the skin.
• Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Cream Shadow Stick in Ruby Shimmer: This full-sized eyeshadow by brand Bobbi Brown is long-wear.
• Sisley Paris Black Rose Cream Mask: This lightly-scented product hydrates skin and is anti-aging.
• Slip Pure Silk Skinny Scrunchie Duo in Black & Leopard: Scrunchies come in useful to style the hair and to keep it out of the face, and this comes with two different colours.
• Trish McEvoy Intense Gel Eyeliner in Black: This is a full-sized black eyeliner.
• Lancôme Génifique Ultimate Recovery Serum: This serum hydrates the skin and keeps it looking youthful. 
• Diptyque Do Son Eau de Toilette: This is a fragrance with orange blossom and jasmine scents.
• Decorté Liposome Advanced Repair Serum and Eye Serum: These two sample products of serum promote youthful and hydrated skin.
• Maison Francis Kurkdjian Baccarat Rouge 540 Eau de Parfum: This sample of perfume is an earthy and woody scent and is long-lasting.
• The Laundress Beauty Sleep Detergent: This laundry soap gets bed sheets to smell calming of lavendar and other relaxing scents.
• Sulwhasoo The Ultimate S Serum: This serum hydrates skin and gives a glow.
• La Mer The Rejuvenating Night Cream: This product hydrates skin overnight.
• Le Labo Fragrances The Noir 29 Eau de Parfum: This is an earthy scent with bergamont, fig, bay, cedar and musk tones.
• Clarins Lip Comfort Oil in 25 Black: This full-sized product hydrates and protects lips while wearing the colour.

The Jolly Rancher advent calendar contains a different flavour of Jolly Rancher chew for each day. The flavours are strawberry, green apple, blue raspberry, watermelon, and cherry. 

I received the monthly subscription box from Craft Gin Club for September 2025. The Craft Gin Club subscription box contains a full-sized bottle of gin, mixers, snacks, and a magazine (rebranded from Ginned! to The Stir) with gin cocktail and food recipes for ideas to either pair with the gin or that use gin as an ingredient. In this post, I cover the September 2025 subscription box. This month's full bottle of gin is from Tasmania - Forty Spotted Pepperberry & Mandarin gin.

The gin of the month box contained the following snacks and mixers to pair with the gin:

Luscombe Grapefruit tonic water: This tonic water is a grapefruit flavour, which pairs with the pepper and mandarin flavours of the Tasmanian gin.

Quenched Orange soda: This sparkling orange soda uses natural flavours and was used for the cocktail of the month and a mixer.

Gin & Juice by Dre and Snoop in Melon flavour: This is a gin-in-a-can with fruity and refreshing melon flavours, all ready to drink.

Angostura Orange Bitters: This citrus essence is added to drinks, particularly cocktails, for an orange citrus flavour.

The Good Crisp Company crisps in original. Subscribers would have received original, sour cream onion or salt and vinegar flavours. I received the original. The crisps are made of mashed potatoes and formed into a wave shape like another brand's design. These ones are free from artificial ingredients.

Gouda Cheesies: I've had these cheesies before, and they do pair well with gin. They are bites of cheese that have been baked to a crisp.

SugarSin Summer Wine: Subscribers would have received these gummies in summer wine or berry bramble flavours. I received the summer wine, and they were fruity.

Peach & Jasmin Highball cocktail syrup: The cocktail paired with the gin is the Peach & Jasmine Highball. It was a fruity cocktail with peach flavours.

Dried passionfruit: I received dried passionfruit to use with the gin and tonic.

Earlier today, I saw the matinee performance of "The Great Gatsby" at the London Coliseum near Charing Cross and Trafalgar Square. The 1920s have always had an allure from me, but I have never read the book nor seen the movie of the production, so this was my first introduction into the world of "The Great Gatsby". I purchased a Prosecco and chocolate bar and made my way into the theatre to watch the show. I cannot remember if I have seen a production at the London Coliseum before, but if I had, it was many years ago. 

Overall, the play was very good. The set and costume designs were particularly very good. I am not sure how true the production was to the book as I had not read it, but there was a nice blend of story and song. The singers and actors/actresses were talented here. The show finishes on September 7, so I encourage you to pay a visit in the final couple of weeks to see it before it goes.