Results matching “Christmas”

Over the past few months, I discovered some new and older street art little pig sculptures by artist Love Piepenbrinck around London. These are always unexpected and bring a smile to my face. One cute one is a pig-tiger lurking in a corner near Spitalfields. More photographs of the artist's work can be seen in my entry: Street Art: Love Piepenbrinck - Jenikya's Blog

I was very pleased to discover the location of the piggie advent calendar from Christmas 2013. I thought that I knew the location when I saw the photographs appearing on the artist's Facebook page, but I was incorrect and I only discovered the actual location last spring. Unfortunately, only a few of the 24 pigs remained. And there is one less now as I discovered one of them was lying on the groud and looking very sad so I took it to my desk at work to look after (after receiving permission from the artist). Perhaps I can get some glue from somewhere and paste it back up on the streets for others to enjoy.

Sometimes I just discover a new one when I am not expecting it, such as the one covered in fabric balls. Other times, it takes a new piece of artwork to paint around the pig in order for me to see it, such as the old flowery one.

I published the following in another enty, and I was lucky to capture them before they were too weathered and/or stolen. It seems that a lot of these get stolen because I see them posted by other street art enthusiasts and recognise the location, but before I am able to snap my own photograph, they have gone walkabout. My favourite has to be the patchwork one below.

Have you spotted any of these around London's streets?

Don "Paul" Smith, also known as "the Banker", is one of the most active London-based street artists. I've covered his work here, here, and here. I've seen the artist hard at work many times around Brick Lane and have had a chat with him, and I even got a spray-painted "banker" image to take away once. He uses stencils to create his work, which is primarily portraits of people, with famous people seemingly a favourite of the artist.

The artist has been busy regularly with some work on Hanbury Street in some of his favourite places, featuring Elvis and also Mad Max in another place on the same street.

 Some additions to Mad Max over a few days were made to this image over the past week to include lizards.

Other places in east London were also canvases...

He also painted the canvases opposite the Village Underground recently, which was a collaboration with a few other artists who owned the other three panels.

Bob Marley also featured in January, adding some brightness to a dull winter Brick Lane.

The Hulk was painted on Hanbury Street at the end of last year, but he did not last too long.

Marilyn Monroe was painted on Hanbury Street last summer.

Near Christmas and into the new year, many "banker" images with "banker and the Mrs" were painted in various places. The above one had "Merry Banker" written on it, and it appeared a couple of weeks before Christmas. 

Sadly, the world lost actor and comedian Robin Williams last summer, and a tribute was created.

I'm not sure who "Huggy Bear" is, but perhaps this is a friend of the artist.

Hopefully I will be able to get any new photographs of Don "Paul" Smith's work soon, as long as it is not painted over too quickly.

On Friday, I said goodbye to my colleagues and clients as I embark on new challenges. I became a web development contractor a little over two years ago, and the design and media agency that I have been working for was the first contract that I have had. I have been there for just over two years and was hired for a large-scale project for a global car/motorcycle brand. I spent my first month on maintanance for an oil company's website before joining the large project that I was hired for.

Welcome to Shoreditch; please don't laugh at the locals

Before Christmas, they wanted to extend my contract six months, but I was worried about the "two year rule" (in contracting terms, this means that the government assumes you are permanent and will not allow you to claim expenses). The negotiation happened before Christmas break-up, so we hurriedly put through one month with the idea to extend in the new year when we had time and everyone was back from the holidays. However, the company decided to cut costs by cutting contractors at the time that my contract was up for renewal. They managed to hold on to me for one more month as otherwise they had no replacements ready, and I have been super-busy on that project. The past eighteen months have been particularly busy, and we've been under-staffed and promised another developer with the same skills, but that never materialised.

Brick Lane from the meeting room

I agreed to stay for one month and also received another position right after I renewed my one-month extension. I'll be starting my new position immediately, and that's exciting. However, this means that I will no longer be working on Brick Lane in London or in London for the next few months. The new company is based in the midlands, and I will be working from home after the initial first two weeks. I am happy that I do not have the long nearly-four hour daily commute to Brick Lane, which was slowly killing me. I will, of course, return to London on the weekends every now and again to get photographs of new street art and visit other interesting places. (I have noticed the progression of a new mural on the Village Underground wall, which I was disappointed to see was not going to be finished before Friday, so I will have to return to London one weekend in mid-March to get a photograph.)

Commute work, commute die

Last week was extremely busy and also sad as I'd been working with the same group of people for so long, and we made a really good team. I finally managed to get a couple of developers to hand over the past two years' worth of work to, but they only had three days with me and were thrown into the deep end a little bit.

The majority of the websites for the different European countries and divisions are now live, and we actually had two new websites launch this week. I will be adding some information about the websites soon. Hurrah! I hope it continues to go well. On to the next challenge for me...

Clockjack is a chicken rotisserie restaurant located near Piccadilly Circus. The restaurant has a quirky atmosphere with and tongue-in-cheek chicken quotes on the walls and menus that reminded me of the popular chicken restaurant chain Nandos' branding. I visited here as I had a voucher, and I wanted to try out the restaurant.

The interior of the restaurant is quite small, but we were able to get a table and other free tables were available when we visited on one of the last weeknights before the Christmas break. In addition to the chicken quotes, the restaurant was decorated for Christmas. Bare lights without shades and ceramic chickens were dotted around the restaurant, adding to the decor. The interior reminded me of a warehouse feel, and the decor seemed similar but slightly upmarket from 'The Chicken Shop'/'Dirty Burger', which I covered here.

The exterior of the shop is bright red and contains branding with hand-drawn chicken heads, creating a playful feel. This shop would not seem out of place in east London.

We were greeted at the door, and I ordered the Apple Pie cocktail. The restaurant also sells London Craft beers, wine, cider, and a small selection of other cocktails that tend to vary depending on the season. I cannot remember what was in the Apple Pie cocktail that I had, but it had an apple and cinnamon taste, and I really enjoyed it. I would have had a second, but they were a little pricey. My partner had the Bellini.

We ordered the whole chicken. The chicken is free range and marinated before being slowly cooked. We could see the whole chickens being cooked behind the counter. Sides are sold separately, and we ordered double-cooked fries and vegetables. The vegetables were not quite what I was expecting. They were zuchinni and pepper, served cold with olive oil and Mediterranean herbs.

The chicken was fiddly to cut. We were given a knife and had to hold the wooden board while we cut the chicken. It was tender but extremely greasy too. A puddle of grease was on the table after the empty dishes (and chicken bones) were removed.

After the mains, we decided to have desserts. I tried the chocolate tart, which was tasty but not quite as good as I had hoped. My partner had lemon sorbet and strawberry ice cream, which I thought was an interesting selection. 

Now for my verdict. Although the food was alright, it was not too filling. The cold vegetables (peppers and courgette/zuchinni) were odd, and I did not really enjoy them. Overall, I felt that the food was pricey for what we received, and that was my main disappointment. I would not go out of my way to return. Note that the cocktails, desserts, sides, and drinks were not included in the voucher.

I'd walked past the cafe Maison Trois Garcons on Redchurch Street in Shoreditch so many times over the past couple of years. Finally, I decided to pop in with a colleague awhile ago to see if it was good. Awhile ago is actually the summer of 2013! The cafe markets itself as a "lifestyle cafe" as it offers various gift items, accessories, home furnishings, and antiques for sale. I loved the vintage style and the "Wizard of Oz" neon sign at the back, and the cafe has adequate room; an additional seating area at the back of the restaurant provides more tables. 

The desserts always appealed to me as there's quite a selection on offer. They also serve afternoon tea, so I really want to visit the cafe to try this. The only catch is that afternoon tea is not served until after 2:00pm, so I'd have to take a late lunch in order to do this.

On my first visit with my colleague, I had the thai chicken curry with sticky rice. This was divine. This was followed by a scone with butter and jam. The chicken was so tender and delicious and packed full of flavour.

On my second visit, I was joined by the same colleague and a different colleague. The second colleague is very particular about his food, but he was even impressed, even when the meal he ordered was not a traditional one. I had the chicken curry for the second time and topped that off with a vanilla cupcake. The curry did not taste as nice or tender as my first visit, but it was still good. The restaurant was also very busy during this visit, and we were seated in the larger room at a table with the skylight directly above us, so we got quite warm.

On my most recent visit, which was last summer, I visited on my own. I took a late lunch that day, but it wasn't quite late enough to be served the afternoon tea. I waqs also in the mood for cooked savoury food and not sweets. I ordered the usual Thai chicken curry with rice, and it was spot on, despite being a little watery. I had a lemon and pistachio pudding for dessert, and this had a light citrus flavour. I was hoping the flavour would be stronger than what it was, but it was still good.

Maison Trois Garcons is located at 45 Redchurch Street (E2 7DJ), a couple of blocks away from Shoreditch High Street overground station. 

At the time of publishing this entry, I have noticed that Maison Trois Garcons cafe has closed. The last couple of times that I walked down Redchurch Street, the cafe was boarded up and being painted. Right after Christmas, I noticed that an antiques shop occupied the building, but I assumed they were redecorating. It looks like a new bakery or cafe is going to occupy the building. I am going to miss the chicken curry, and I never did get around to having that afternoon tea. Oh well. It's the ever-changing London, particularly east London, at work.

I have been a member of Degustabox, a monthly food subscription box for six months now. Each month, surprise products and samples of food and drink items are delivered to my door. I first saw this subscription service online somewhere and really liked what was in the June box, but I just missed out by a few days. I subscribed in June, but I did not receive my first box until July. You can see July, August, and September's reviews here. The remaining three months of my subscription are detailed below.

October

October's Degustabox contained several smaller items and some decent products - a few that were good and a few that were not so good. I really enjoyed a couple of the products. This is one of the better boxes.

Special K Cracker Crisps: (3/5) My favourite flavour of crisp/potato chip is BBQ. For a long while, getting this flavour was impossible, but other companies have been bringing it back over the past three or four years. The product has a nice taste, but I am just not that into it. Crisps/potato chips are not something I tend to indulge in, and I find them messy. 

Blue Dragon Sweet Chilli Sauce: (4/5) I have purchased this product before to use in a stir fry. It is a good product.

Get Buzzing Original Nutty Flavour Flapjack: (5/5) I enjoyed this flapjack, and I liked the flavour and the texture. I would buy these again as this tasted healthier and seemed to contain less sugar than other flapjacks.

Enhance Drinks in apple and blackcurrant flavour: (3/5) I have used squash to liven up water as I do find water to be difficult to drink on its own. Actually, I normally have my water ice cold with lemon. This was an interesting alternative, but I was not that keen on the artificial sweeteners, which tend to give me migraines.

Kent's Kitchen meal kit in tikka masala flavour: (1/5) This kit contains oil, spices, and curry paste to create a curry. The recipe requires adding tomatoes, yoghurt, and meat. I used chicken for this recipe and followed the instructions, but I was not happy with the results. The curry tasted bland. My partner also did not like it, and he could not even eat it because he really disliked the taste of it.

Solo Marshmallow Creme: (5/5) I like marshmallow cream, but I have never tried this brand before. This is an American product, and I've made chocolate fudge with this type of product before. I received the toasted marshmallow flavour in my box, and I enjoyed it. I made chocolate mousse with most of it.

Dr. Oteker extra dark chocolate and fine dark cocao powder: (5/5) This brand of dark chocolate and cocao powder suit my needs, and I used some of the dark chocolate to make the mousse with the marshmallow cream that I received in this box. These are baking products, and I do not do a lot of baking. There are other products on the market, so I am not typically fussed about which I buy. The quality of this one seemed good.

Bear Paws fruit snack: (4/5) This fruit-flavoured snack does not contain any added sugar. The snack tasted fine, and I like the fact that it's a healthy alternative. This product is aimed at children. 

Bear Alpha Bites: (4/5) This was an extra product in this month's box, and it is a healthier alternative to cereals that are higher in sugar. The taste was fine, but I would not replace it with my museli. This product is aimed at children.

Jelly Belly: (5/5) I have never been a fan of jelly beans, but I received the sour/tart flavour of the product, and I enjoyed them. I do love sour/tart sweets and prefer these type of sweets to chocolate. I may purchase these in the tart/sour flavour if I saw them; I would not buy the original flavours.

Bricohe bread loaf: (1/5) I am just not keen on this product. I am extremely picky about bread products, and this was not to my liking. I received other products from the brand in a previous box, and I was not too keen.

Brioche pain au lait chocolate chip: (3/5) I received croissants from this product in a previous box, and I was not keen on them at all. Howeever, I enjoyed these more but I would never go out of my way to purchase them.

November

The November Degustabox was very disappointing to me as I was not keen on the majority of the products, so it was a waste of money for me this month. Degustabox have one more month on my subscription, so I am particularly looking forward to December's box and hope to get many Christmas items. Perhaps they are saving all of the good products to next month.

Kettle Chips (Stilton & Port): (2/5) I do like Kettle Chips, but I would never touch the 'stilton and port' flavour. I gave these away and I was told that they were alright.

Pip cloudy apple juice: (4/5) I love apple juice, so these were welcome. The juice is watered down, so it does not have a strong apple flavour. I did enjoy them, but I would have preferred a stronger apple flavour.

Cool Dawn energy drinks: (1/5) These energy drinks are meant to be consumed after drinking alcohol. I thought they tasted awful, and it had a slight coffee flavour. After a sip, I threw the rest of it away. I gave the second one to a colleague to have after drinking, and he also hated it.

Holy Cow! sauces (Mangalore Malabar and Korma): (3/5) I love curry, but I found these sauces to be bland instead of spicy. I have had better similar products.

Branton carmelised onion chutney: (2/5) Chutney is one of those products that I do not eat. I gave this away to a colleague.

Lindt chocolate star: (5/5) I was never a fan of this chocolate brand, but these are nice. The inside is a soft chocolate truffle, and the outer is a soft chocolate shell.

Chai Latte: (2/5) I gave this away and the review was a "meh".

Stir-in Flavour shots (Garlic and coriander): (3/5) I struggled to put these to use, but I mixed one with some chicken and it was alright. I would have preferred another flavour.

Montano cider: (4/5) I do not have cider, so I gave this to my partner who said that it tasted alright, but he's also not too keen on cider.

December

I was not too impressed with my last Degustabox, which was the December box. I know others felt the same disappointment. I had expected more for the December box. More on that will follow.

Pukka green tea: (4/5) I do drink green tea, so this was nice to receive. It's not my favourite brand, but I found it to be ok.

Popchips (original): (3/5) I have previously tried Popchips when they became available, and they are alright. I'm not keen on crisps or potato chips as it's just not a snack I have regularly or enjoy.

Eat Chia: (1/5) Chia seeds are considered one of the superfoods, and these are recommended to be sprinkled on cereal or yoghurt. I have tried this product previously, and I am not sure about it because the results are not instant. The seeds do not have a flavour.

Bahlsen (milk chocolate and caramel biscuits): (5/5) These biscuits, which I have previously bought repeatedly, were not new to me. Two flavours were provided, and the caramel flavour was one that I had not previously tried. My favourite is the dark chocolate, which is a product that I do purchase from time to time, but this flavour was not one of the ones provided.

Glow Worm drinks: (3/5) These energy drinks can also be used as cocktail mixers. One of each flavour was provided, and the flavours were hit or miss for me. The flavours are cucumber and apple, raspberry and grape, ginger and lemonade, and pear/lime and spice. The raspberry and grape was nice, but I was not keen on the pear/lime/spice flavour. The other two flavours were good as well, but the best was the raspberry/grape.

Kent's Kitchen Madras: (2/5) I received the Kent's Kitchen 'Chicken Tikka Masala' in a previous box, and my partner and I both disliked it. This one was better, but I halved the amount of tomato in it because my partner dislikes tomato. This had a better flavour, but I still found that the spices did not blend as well as I'd expect they should.

Fry Light Chili Infused cooking oil: (4/5) This product is to be used in cooking to add flavour. The product works well with frying in a wok and can be used to add a little extra spice to fried rice.

Bonne Marman marmalade: (5/5) I love marmalade, so this was welcome.

Eisberg alcohol-free wine: (1/5) When I received the alcohol-free wine, I thought for sure this must be a mistake as Degustabox do an 'alcoholic' and 'non-alcoholic' box, and I signed up for the 'alcoholic' box. I'm not sure how I will use this as I do not really see the point in alcohol-free wine. I think this will be used for cooking, but it's sitting in my cupboard as I do not know what to do with it.

My verdict on Degustabox:

Although I did find a few nice products and one product that I have purchased since (as well as others that I would not mind purchasing again), I did not feel that it was value for money and some of the products were ones that I would never buy. Also, the past couple of boxes had repeated goods that I had previously received in the past six boxes, and some of these I was not keen on.

Ultimately, I cancelled my subscription so that it would not renew. I was also not happy with the way my response (criticism) about the December box was handled by Degustabox. I felt that they did not try to or care to keep my custom.

I think I expected something better for December's box as I was already greatly disappointed with November's box. November's and December's boxes were the weakest. (Now that my subscription has ended and many were upset, I do hope that they have made improvements. The January 2015 box is out now, and I've peeked at the contents and I'm quite happy to have ubsubscribed as I wouldn't have used a lot of those items this month.)

Do you subscribe to Degustabox? Let me know what you think!

This year, I received the Ciate Mini Manor Advent Calendar. Behind each door is a new nail polish or nail accessory for each day in the run up to Christmas. This advent calendar contained loose sequins and glitter. Loose glitter for the nail's top coat was new to me, although I know that it has been around for a little while now. My first application was a little messy, and I found that the glitter was quick to wear off and needed a top-up at the end of each day. However, using a clear top coat kept the glitter on the nail, which I feel is a better alternative.

I liked the design of the avent calendar, which looked like a toy house with windows or doors that could open to reveal the polish and accessories. See below for a day-to-day review of the colours received in the 2014 advent calendar.

1. Headliner: This turquoise colour needs a couple of coats on the nail to deepen the colour, and it dries in a matte finish.  

2. Sharp Tailoring: This is a pale grey colour, and a couple of coats are needed as it's otherwise a streaky finish.

3. Girl with a Pearl: These loose 'pearls' are meant to be used on nails to create your own look. One side is flat so that it can stick against the nail. I have never used nail embellishments.

4. Members Only: This pale colour needs a few coats as it's almost the same colour as my nails/skin and has a slight shimmer effect. It's not one of my favourites because it needs a few coats. (I paired it with the glitter colour I received the following day.) 

5. Sloaney, Sweetie: This is the first glitter nail polish in the advent calendar, and it consists of shinny light pink and silvery strands. The colour compliments yesterday's.

6. Runway Ribbon: This bright red loose glitter is perfect for Christmas. 

7. Tuxedo: This shimmery dark grey has a glossy finish and is a nice netural colour. I paired it with Sand Dune, Members Only, and Sharp Tailoring. This is one of my favourites so far, but it does need a couple of coats on my nails. 

8. Big Yellow Taxi: This bright yellow nail polish. I've wanted bright yellow nail polish for awhile, so this is welcome. A few coats are needed to get rid of streaky nails. I combined this with nails painted in Cupcake Queen (beneath door 16) and Amazing Gracie (behind door 17).  

9. Prima Ballerina: This loose glitter nail polish is a dark pink colour. I added this over the top of Strawberry Milkshake (behind door 11).

10. Mineral Clarity: This shimmery glitter polish is a dark blue-silver colour when dried. I love this polish.

11. Strawberry Milkshake: This is the colour of a strawberry milkshake - milky pink. The product appears to be a slightly lighter colour until it dries. This needs a good three or four coats to look nice.

12. Let it Snow: This is another colour perfect for Christmas. It is a loose silver glitter.

13. Silhouette: This polish is a dark red-purple. It is almost a dark berry colour. This is a nice sophisticated colour when you want something classy but not red. I wear this colour as an alternative to wearing bright red because I feel that bright red washes out my skin.

14. Unrestricted Glam: This is a glossy black polish, but I needed several coats of this to cover my nails, and it was still not the darkest shade of black. I paired this with the glitter 'Slumber Party', and it was perfect. This polish, paired with 'Slumber Party' is perfect with black jeans and a casual look.

15. Slumber Party: At first, I thought this was a polish, but it's actually loose blue-purple-black glitter. I love this glitter and it's perfect on top of the 'Unrestricted Glam' and is a great look with jeans.

16. Cupcake Queen: This bright pink polish needed three coats to look bright on my nails. I'm not a fan of the colour pink, but I painted one nail this colour and also used 'Big Yellow Taxi' from earlier in the month and a white polish (tomorrow's 'Amazing Gracie') to create a trio of shades on my nails. I love the results. This is a summery colour, though. Also, this goes perfectly with a glitter polish that I received later on in the month.

17. Amazing Gracie: This is an off-white nail polish. This needed several coats as it dries streaky as it's such a light colour. This also took a lot longer for this colour to dry when compared to the others. 

18. Tinsel Trail: These large blue and silver sequin flakes remind me of winter, so this is a perfect shade for this time of the year. These are loose flakes, so they require getting a little messy, and they are quite large, so they take a lot of fiddling to get the desired effect instead of over-hanging on the nail.

19. Candy Cane: This is a pink glitter nail polish. The polish itself is a semi-transparent pink colour, but I did not care for the effect as a polish on its own. The polish actually looks really nice on top of 'Cupcake Queen' from day 16.

20. Frozen Daydream: This is another loose glitter, and it's a dark blue colour. This is another wintery shade which I think could look sophisticated.

21. Nail Transfers: This long strip of nail transfers contains a wintery snowflakes pattern. 

22. Sand Dune: This is a shimmery gold polish. The colour dries a pale gold.

23. Sherbert Fizz: When I originally looked at this polish, I thought that it was a festive bright red. However, it's not. The polish dries into a sherbert pink colour, and it has a shimmer effect. This is more of a spring or summer colour.

24. Celestial: This is a larger-sized nail polish compared to the others. The polish is a glittery shimmery silver with larger flakes of glitter nail polish and smaller pieces of silver glitter. This is an extremely pretty polish.

Which was your favourite shade?

The bloke and I visited Liverpool on the weekend before Christmas. I really like the Beatles, and I have been wanting to do a tour of the Beatles' historical locations. This post covers photographs from previous trips to Liverpool as well as the mentioned tour. There's still three places that I have yet to visit: the Casbah Club, which was Pete Best's house (I've tried to visit it twice, but no one is around or answers the phone) and the houses of Paul McCartney and John Lennon (both owned by the National Trust), and I've also still not been to the Beatles museum in Albert Dock. Keep an eye open on this blog for those visits as I do hope to get to Liverpool at some point this year to finish off the Beatles Tour.

The Beatles in front of the Liver Building, Liverpool. Photo by Les Chadwick.

We were picked up at our hotel near Albert Dock by Eddie in his taxi cab dubbed "Penny Lane" from Fab Four Tours (http://fab4tours.co.uk). We had selected the three-hour tour (known as 'Lennon'), and although the day was cold and windy, the rain managed to stay away and we had a nice day for the tour. Our first stop was outside the impressive and imposing red-stoned Liverpool Cathedral. The size of this building is unreal, and it is one of the world's largest cathedrals. We were given a short history of it and told to visit it and climb the tower for good views. (We'll have to do this next time.) The cathedral did play a smart part in Beatles history. A young Paul McCartney failed his audition to become part of the choir here, but he did perform at the cathedral after becoming famous. 

Liverpool Cathedral

Our next stop was not far away; it was located just down the road from the Radio City Tower. We stopped at a common-looking three-floor Georgian building. This is the Mount Pleasant register office, where John Lennon married his first wife, Cynthia Powell in August of 1962. We were told that the Beatles manager Brian Epstein purchased the building to avoid word getting out that Lennon was married. The Beatles were starting to become famous then, and they were well-known in Liverpool by this time, and Epstein did not want any harmful press circulating that he thought may alienate fans of the group. John and Cynthia met at Liverpool Art College, and she ended up pregnant with their son Julian, which prompted John to propose.

John's legal guardian (aunt Mimi) did not approve of the wedding, so she did not attend. George Harrison, Paul McCartney, John's married aunt/uncle, and Brian Epstein were in attendance; Epstein was best man. Although Ringo Starr had recently joined the band, they did not know him well enough to allow him to attend. No photographs were taken of their wedding because Epstein did not want the word to get out about the wedding. After the wedding, they walked up the street to Clayton Square and had their wedding meal at Reece's restaurant, which was the same place where John's parents had had theirs. The wedding was kept secret. John had to perform with The Beatles in Chester that evening.

As no photographs were permitted, Cynthia later drew an image of her wedding day in the register office. In the drawing, a man on a road drill is outside the window and behind the registrar. The wedding day was extremely noisy with these roadworks going on outside that no one could hear what was being said.

Mount Pleasant register office and Cynthia's drawing of the wedding day

After John and Cynthia were married, Brian Epstein gave them the keys to one of his houses to use so that the wife and baby were kept secret. Previously, the house was used by Epstein for his encounters with male friends. It was not in a nice area of Liverpool, and the riots happened near to here. However, it is now one of the most attractive streets in Liverpool. It is a cobble-stoned street, and it has been used in films, television, and commercials. The house is 36 Falkner Street, and in the photograph below, it is the one with the red door. Cynthia and John were very happy here, and she had her baby Julian here. John wrote some of his early songs here, including "Do You Want To Know A Secret".

Falkner Street 

Just before we went to 36 Falkner Street, we had a quick stop at John Lennon's birthplace, a Liverpool Maternity Hospital (located at Cambridge Court), which is now a part of Liverpool University. Yoko Ono, John's second and last wife before he was murdered in new York City, had the plaque put up. In these years, German World War 2 bombings were common in Liverpool, but on the night when John was born, the bombings ceased. John's mother's name was Julia, and her husband Alf (John's father) was always at sea. John did not know his father well as he always decided to stay away. His mother eventually got tired of him being away and had affairs and fell in love with other men, and John actually had a secret half-sister from one of his mother's relationships. The half-sister (named Victoria) was born when John was very young, and Julia's father made her give the baby up for adoption. Later and when Julia eventually remarried, John's aunt Mimi made Julia give her John to take care of so that he could have a stable life.

Maternity Hospital

A short drive away, we drove past the pub Ye Cracke, located on Rice Street near Hope Street. This pub was frequented by students at the Liverpool Art College. John, Stuart Sutcliffe, and Cynthia frequented the pub, and it was a busy place. Inside the pub are meant to be photographs of the Beatles. We were shown a photograph of John standing outside the pub, and the door design, window text ('Houldings Beacon Ales') and tiling has not changed.

 
Ye Cracke

Our next stop was at Liverpool Institute, where Paul McCartney and George Harrison went to school. The building was meant to be demolished, but Paul McCartney and producer George Martin managed to save it. It is now the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts. Paul does often visit the institute (and Liverpool), and he shakes the hands of graduates. Next door to this was the Liverpool Art College building where John Lennon attended. They did not know each other at the time. The Liverpool Art College is currently under scaffolding as it was recently acquired by McCartney to expand the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts.

 
Liverpool Institute

Outside of the institute is a sculpture by John King, called 'A Case History'. It was placed in 1998 as it won the competition. The artwork features several pieces of luggage, and some of these contain plaques with the names of famous people who studied at the institute. The names include the Beatles and former Beatles, but a couple of the items from the sculpture have been damaged or stolen.

 
'A Case History' by John King

We then headed to another part of Liverpool (Welsh Streets, Dingle), where the council have decided to force people to move out so they can gentrify/regenerate the area with new housing. In the middle of this is grafitti "European City of Culture?" on a wall amongst the abandoned houses.

Welsh Streets - Dingle - Liverpool

The abandoned buildings have been used in television programmes. Around the corner of this and on Madryn Street is Ringo Starr's childhood home at number 9. And at least one resident on this street has resisted and not moved out. Apparently, the council have now claimed that some of the buildings will be kept as is and some of the buildings will be torn down and new homes will be built. Apparently Ringo did not have any memories living at this house, and he did not live here for too long. Although boarded up, Ringo's house is covered in doodles left by fans. Apparently the resident who lived across the street from this house before being forced out, was a big fan of the Beatles and had 'Beatles' put into the brickwork (pictured below).

Ringo's childhood home

Ringo's house above had six rooms, but his father and mother separated when he was very young. The house was too large for the family, and Ringo's mother found another family who wanted to swap from a smaller house to a larger house. This resulted in Ringo and his mother moving to a smaller and cheaper house, 10 Admiral Grove, which is basically around the corner from the old house. We were told that the lady who lives in this house is a fan of the Beatles and has many Beatles items in the front room. She also has many stories about the Beatles and those who visited the street.

10 Admiral Grove

Around the corner is where Ringo went to school, and we were also told that many celebrities went to the same school. On the corner of Admiral Grove is the pub immortalised as the album cover of Ringo's album "Sentimental Journey". In the photograph below, you can see Admiral Grove just to the right of the pub where the fencing is. Houses did exist where the fencing was at one point, but they have been torn down and the terraced housing and Ringo's childhood home starts on the other side of the pub in this photo.

Sentimental Journey

Our next stop was a little bit of a drive away, and this was a visit to Penny Lane, the road made famous by the Beatles' song "Penny Lane". We started at the top of the road first, where we got a photograph of the Penny Lane road sign. Some of the signs have been replaced as the council was getting fed up with fans stealing the sign. To deter this, they painted on the walls. This has become a magnet for fans to doodle on.

Penny Lane

We drove to the other end of Penny Lane where the lyrics in the song make sense - "the shelter in the middle of a roundabout", the bank, the barber where Paul and his brother had their hair cut, and the fire station.

Penny Lane - shelter in the roundabout

Paul McCartney, who wrote the song, had fond memories of his childhood here. John Lennon also knew the area well as it was not far from his home. John would have also used the same barber. The barber shop was run by an Italian, but it's changed since then. Visitors can go inside the barber shop and have a look around; a small charitable donation can be made, and this goes to a Linda McCartney cancer charity. Images of the Beatles and old photographs of the shop and Penny Lane can be seen in the barbershop. We were also shown a child's 'seat' (wooden board) that belonged to the shop in the older days when the Beatles would have been children.

Penny Lane barber shop

I took a photograph of the cab we had, "Penny Lane", on Penny Lane!

Penny Lane

On the way away from Penny Lane, we passed the fire station, which is also referenced in the song lyrics.

Penny Lane fire station

The next stop was Paul McCartney's childhood home, and this was not too far away. This is located at 20 Forthlin Road. The property is now owned by National Trust, and it can be visited. The road does get quite busy in the high season, but it was not too busy when we visited. Apparently our taxi driver just missed seeing Paul McCartney drive to his childhood home and speak to visitors outside the window, though he did say that he had taken Paul's brother on taxi journeys around Liverpool.

The house has been refitted to look like it was when Paul lived there. Luckily, Paul's brother was interested in photography, so many photographs of it were taken so that they could make it look like it did when Paul lived there. Paul's bedroom was the one above the door. The house is only open from March and closes for the winter months, so we did not visit it on this trip.

This house was a sad one in a way. Paul's mother had wanted to move into a new house for awhile, and she finally was able to move into this nice house but died a few months later.

The house was purchased by the National Trust because of the important history in song-writing that was made here. John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote some of their songs together here, and Paul wrote songs here as well. "When I'm 64" is one of the songs that Paul wrote here.

Paul McCartney's home

After visiting Paul's childhood home, we rode over to "Strawberry Fields", which John Lennon wrote a song about. The fields may have been used for strawberries at one time, but a gothic-style mansion used to exist beyond the red gate. The mansion was an orphanage when John Lennon was a child, and he did not live far away from here. This was one of the places that reminded him fondly of his childhood. Unfortunately, the mansion/orphanage burnt down. Fans of the Beatles stole pieces off of the red gates, so fake ones have been set up in its place. There are plans to create a visitor's centre here so that visitors can easily park in the area as this is just off the road at the moment and is not easy to access.

Apparently John was so besotted with this mansion from his childhood that he was drawn to an exclusive apartment building in New York City because it looked similar and reminded him of home, so he worked at getting an apartment there with his wife Yoko Ono. This was the building he was later shot outside of.

Strawberry Fields

After the visit to Strawberry Fields, we drove a few blocks away to the house (Mendips) where John Lennon grew up with his aunt and uncle, after he was placed in their care. The house was placed onto the housing market, and Yoko Ono purchased it and gifted it to National Trust to keep John's memory alive. Also, song-writing history was made here as John did write some songs in this house. Many of John's friends lived in the houses around here, but the area has also been built up. John would have been able to see the top of Strawberry Fields from this house. 

Unfortunately, John's mother was hit by a car not far from this house. She was on her way to see John and John had gone out. She stayed to have tea with Mimi and later in the evening happened to meet one of John's friends who lived around the corner. He walked her to the crosswalk to cross the road, which was not busy in those days. Unfortunately, a driver who was drunk hit her as she was crossing the road and she was killed. We were shown where this happened, which was not far from the house.

John's house has a blue plaque because he has been gone for twenty years. Like Paul's house, it is owned by National Trust and not open in the winter months. 

Lennon's house - Mendips

The next photograph is of George Harrison's childhood home (12 Arnold Grove), which I went to see in last summer on the way home from Liverpool. I was interested in seeing this house because George Harrison is my favourite Beatle. I have read online that the person who lives at the house currently does not like the publicity and the distractions caused by Beatles fans visiting at all hours and even trying to enter the house, so I was careful that we parked a couple of blocks away, and I quietly made my way to this small street and got a photograph. A few children were playing in the street, but it was a quiet cul-de-sac, and the front door was wide open.

This house had small rooms, and George Harrison's parents had four children. George was the youngest, and he was born during the bombing in 1943.

George Harrison's child home - Arnold Grove

Getting back to the taxi tour, the next place that we visited after Mendips was the third house that George Harrison lived in. (The second house that he lived in is in the Speke area of Liverpool, but it is quite rough and it was also not a nice place when he lived there and his parents tried for awhile to get to move to a new location.) The house below is also lived in by someone who would rather not be associated with the Beatles.

George Harrison house

After this visit, we were taken to Woolton. This is where John Lennon and Paul McCartney visited the cinema. 

Woolton cinema

We stopped a little further along in Woolton where there's a picturesque church (St. Peter's). In the cemetary here are references to lyrics in the song "Eleanor Rigby". John and Paul would have hung out with their mutual friends in this church yard. Although Paul said that the name "Eleanor Rigby" was made up, it is thought that it actually referenced the lady buried here. Perhaps he did not want the place to become a Beatles pilgrimage and destroyed by this fame. Although Eleanor Rigby was married, she kept her maiden name and was known by both names in the village. the "Father McKenzie" may have been a name on another grave.

Eleanor Rigby

Across the street from St. Peter's Church is the church hall. John Lennon and Paul McCartney met here at the church's garden fete. They were introduced by a mutual friend. John was a member of the Quarry Men band, and the mutual friend mentioned the fete to Paul and asked him to bring his guitar. By the end, Paul and John were friends and respected each other's music ability. A plaque on the hall commemorates this event. Our driver gave us a CD with information about this meeting.

 
Woolton church hall where John and Paul met

This concluded our tour. However, we had been to Liverpool before, so the remainder of this post will be photographs of other places with Beatles fame that I have visited. The photographs below show the Cavern Walks shopping centre, where there is artwork and sculptures dedicated to the famous band. Outside in the street (Mathew Street) is the pub district of Liverpool. The pub called 'The Grapes' is where the Beatles would have a drink before playing at the Cavern Club across the street.

The original entrance to the Cavern Club was next to the entrance to where this shopping centre is today. The artwork and statue of the Beatles in the shopping centre were created by Cynthia Lennon.

Cavern Walks

We went into the Cavern Club. I've been a few times before, but I had never seen the Beatles guitars and drum and the contract with the Beatles signatures. This display contained information about the instruments.

Cavern Club - Beatles display

We visited just before mid-day, and a band was practising. They were singing Beatles songs, which was appropriate. We had been the first people in the club, but a small crowd turned up to listen to them practice while we were there. This bit of the Cavern Club is what the stage would have looked like at the time of the Beatles, but the Cavern Club is only a quarter of its original size. The area where the Beatles performed no longer exists as it was torn down. Actually, the club is more popular now than when I visited in 2007, and one area is a large gift shop with Beatles merchandise.

The walls and ceiling were filled with grafitti from Beatles fans or simply tourists wishing to leave their mark. Other bands have played here, and there's a wall of bricks outside with the names of other musicians who have performed.

Cavern Club stage

I have a few shots of the exterior of the Cavern Club, and a statue of John Lennon is located across the street from the entrance.

Cavern Club

It may have been a little too early for cocktails before mid-day, but we decided to have one anyway. The Cavern Club serve Beatles-themed cocktails; each one of four cocktails is named after a Beatle. The one that appealed to me was the one named after my favourite Beatle, George. The cocktail "My Sweet George" contained Vodka, Triple Sec, orange juice, and Archers. The bloke had the "Ringo's Rum Drum", which contained rum and orange juice. "Lennon's Long Island" and "Macca's Magical Mystery" were also on offer. 

 
Beatles cocktails

The following photograph shows Mathew Street as it currently looks (summer 2014).

Mathew Street

This concludes the Beatles post for now, but check back for an update as I still want to see the National Trust Houses, the museum, and Casbah (if they ever answer their phone/emails). I plan to see them at some point this year.

Note that this post is not an endorsement.

I decided to give the beauty subscription box "My Little Box" a try for the past four months to see what it was like. Previously only available to French subscribers, this box is new (as of September) to British shores. Although December was my last box, I will continue to follow them and perhaps sign up again at some point in the future.

What attracted me to this subscription box was the box designs and illustrations as well as a nice mix of make-up, skincare, and other 'surprise' products.

December - Fleur De Force Box

December's box was put together by British blogger Fleur De Force. Each "My Little Beauty" box contains a three beauty products, one of which is from the "My Little Beauty" range. The subscription box contains more than beauty products. Each month contains a non-beauty product as well as magazines and an illustration. There's not another subscription box quite like it.

December's box contained some nice items to get ready for Christmas. This was my favourite box by far, and I can say that I will use all of the items this month. 

Cowshed wild cow body lotion: This lotion promises to hydrate skin. The scent (rosemary, lemongrass, and ginger) smells beautiful and energising. I am not too keen on body lotion as traditionally, it feels greasy on my skin, but this was just absorbed into my skin.

My Little Beauty lipstick: This reddish lipstick promises to look good on everyone. The lipstick glides on, and colour can be built up to make a bolder colour. I found a subtle look that worked for me with two light coats.

L'Occitane Precious Cream: This cream promises to minimise the appearance of lines and wrinkles, restore firmness, and protect skin. It's a thick cream, but it is easily-absorbed into the skin and does not feel oily.

String, coloured masking tape, gift tags: These are perfect for wrapping gifts, and I love the design of the tags and the red and black thread. The masking tape is patterned and also beautiful. The magazine shows guides on different methods of using the products to create nicely-wrapped packages.

Headband: I received a woollen grey headband (with sparkly silvery strands). I love this. I think that some subscribers received the woollen headband in a pale pink-brown colour, but I prefer the grey.

November - My Little Cosy Box

November's box theme is perfect for November. Each "My Little Beauty" box contains a three beauty products, one of which is from the "My Little Beauty" range. The subscription box contains more than beauty products. Each month contains a non-beauty product as well as magazines and an illustration. There's not another subscription box quite like it.

November's box was more interesting to me, and I found a couple of nice products.

StarLiner eye liner: This was my favourite product in the box. This eye liner is easy to apply and is cream-based; it simply glides on. I would buy this again.

My Little Beauty Mascara: This black mascara is easy to apply, but I found it to be clumpy and smudged easily. This was a little frustrating to use. 

Essie nail polish in coral: I am typically not a fan of pink products, but I do really love this colour. It is not really 'pink' but contains a hint of 'orange'; I suppose 'coral' is the appropriate name for the shade. 

Mug: This mug contains a cute illustration from the "My Little Beauty" team. The mug is angled. This is quirky and perfect for a small cup of hot chocolate.

Hot toddy bean bag thingy: This is perfect to warm during the cooler months to keep cosy as the beans inside can be heated and they retain the heat. I also love the red and polka-dot design.

October - Diane von Furstenberg

October's box is based on fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg, famous for creating the 'wrap dress'. Each "My Little Beauty" box contains a three beauty products, one of which is from the "My Little Beauty" range. The subscription box contains more than beauty products. Each month contains a non-beauty product as well as magazines and an illustration. There's not another subscription box quite like it.

I was not so keen on this box as the products did not really appeal to me. I had not heard of Diane von Furstenberg before I received this box.

"My Little Beauty" cleanser: This is a facial cleanser and make-up remover. This did the job, but it's a product that I cannot get too excited about.

Kerastase hairspray: I rarely use hairspray, so this is another product that I was not too excited about. This seems to do the job.

L'Occitane hand cream: I am not sure how I would describe the scent of this hand cream, but it has a faint smell of honey and almond. The hand cream is thick, so a little goes a long way. The product contains shea butter to nourish skin. I've used this product before, but it did not excite me.

Lips Brooch: A lip brooch on a card reading "a kiss from Diane" is included in the box. I am not sure how I am going to use this.

Diane von Furstenberg scarf: Last but not least, the box contains one of three designs of scarf. I would have preferred the green design, but I got the bold blue and red leopard print instead. This would be sure to brighten up any outfit. The box that the scarf came in contains a guide on the different ways to wrap the scarf. This was the best item in the box this month as the beauty items were a complete "miss" for me.

September - My Little Parisienne Box

September's box was the first "My Little Box" to be made available to British subscribers as it was previously a subscription box for French subscribers only. The box contains French products, and every box contains one product from the "My Little Beauty" range. The box contains more than beauty products. Every month are surprise products as well as magazines and an illustration. There's not another subscription box quite like it.

NUXE multi-purpose day oil: This product is used by French women on their body, hair, and face. The oil has a light scent. I used it on my hair primarily, and it made my hair smell nice.

Laura Mercier foundation primer: This primer is put on the face before foundation to give a complete finish and minimise the size of pores and impurities. I did really enjoy using this product, and it seemed to give my skin that finish that it needed before putting on the foundation. I may buy this in the future.

My Little Beauty highligher (Stylo Lumiere): The product has a soft and creamy texture that can be used to highlight the browbones, cheeks, and other areas. This product is easy to blend and is my favourite product in the box.

Laptop Sleeve: This laptop sleeve contains a cute illustration from the "My Little Beauty" team. The laptop case is too small for my MacBook, so I cannot get any use out of it, unfortunately.

Stickers: This box contains a set of Paris-themed stickers based on the illustrations from "My Little Beauty". I love stickers and put add them to my postcards.

Have you subscribed to "My Little Beauty Box"? What do you think of them? Which was your favourite box? 

At the end of last year, fifty statues of Paddington the Bear appeared across London. Paddington Bear is a book by Michael Bond about a Peruvian bear who ends up in Paddington station in London with a note "Please look after this bear" tied around him. A film adaption (simply known as Paddington) has been in cinemas since the end of November, and this sculpture trail consists of several painted Paddington Bear sculptures to celebrate the film. Many of the bears are designed by British celebrities and other celebrities that had some influence in the film, such as Hugh Bonneville, Peter Capaldi, Nicole Kidman, David Beckham, and Emma Watson. The bear sculptures will be auctioned for children's charity NSPCC at the beginning of January.

Hugh Bonneville - The Journey of Marmalade

The Paddington Bear sculptures were on the streets from the beginning of November until the end of December, so they have sadly all gone now. They were spread across London, so I sadly did not get to see all of them due to them being scattered about the city and for the fact that the past two months have been busy with the Christmas season, holidays, and shorter hours of daylight. I saw all apart from five of the sculptures, so I did not do too badly considering one was far out as Heathrow.

Peru - Wonders of the World

Nicole Kidman - Blush

David Beckham - Golden Paws

Michael Sheen - Shakesbear

Ripley's Believe it or Not! - Paddington the Explorer

Matthew Williamson - Thread Bear

Ryan McElhinney - Fragile

Rankin - Bear in the Wood

Bears by Boris Johnson, Darcey Bussell, Emma Watson, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Ben Whishaw, Marc Quinn, Benedict Cumberbatch, Frankie Bridge

Zaha Hadid - R; G; B

Michael Howells - Good Morning London

Julie Walters - Primrose Paddington

Taylor Wimpey - Bearing Up

Canterbury of New Zealand - Paws Engage

Robin Partington & Partners - Brick Bear

Jonathan Ross - Futuristic Robot Bear

Lulu Guinness - Love Paddington x

Costain Skanska and the Paddington Partnership - The Mayor of Paddington

Davina McCall - Paddington Jack

Guy Ritchie - Dapper Bear

The Telegraph - Good News Bear

Bears by Benjamin Shine, Peru, Stephen Fry, Westminster Academy

Some of the bears were orgnaised into a trail. Although not all of the bears could be seen this way, this was a good way to see some of the bears. The trails included:

• Royal Parks: This went through Hyde Park and up through to Westminster but only contained six bears over a long walking distance. 
• Paddington Trail: This trail went around the Paddington and Little Venice area of London and consisted of several bears in a small area.
• River and Historical London: This trail contains approximately eight bears centrered around the London Bridge area of the Thames
• The Christmas Trail: This trail contained several of the sculptures around west London to allow visitors to combine this trail with seeing with Christmas lights.

Did you see any of the bear sculptures in the Paddington Bear Trail? I could not pick a favourite sculpture as all of them were completely different and there were so many good designs. The Paddington Trail map and information about the bears can be seen here: http://www.visitlondon.com/paddington/trail-map