Liebster Award - I've been nominated! :D

Say what? Liebster Award? A slightly different post by me today as you can see. The Liebster Award is a bloggers' buzzword, something that the majority will encounter during their writing adventures. It's our version of the YouTube tag I guess you could say, although the word "award" to it makes it sound quite professional! 

So thank you She Is Unstoppable for the generous nomination (who I must also add has a fantastic blog with food, travel and fashion posts/ photos -- click here for her blog). Here's my response to your questions:

1.   Are you in a relationship?

Am currently happy, healthy and single, so no.

2.   What's your blog about?

All the wacky things that go on in my life, with emphasis on travel (mainly around the UK), food (especially baking) and fashion. I do a couple of reviews on theater shows and events I go to. What can I say? I’m a somewhat interesting person :P

3.  Why do you start blogging?

Relaxation and de-stressing from uni work (seriously it helps). Plus it’s a good way for me to keep in touch with my family and friends.

4.  Are you satisfied of your life? What do you do right now?

Satisfaction is something I still strive for. Literally speaking, I am responding to this question right now (but career wise I am still hunting for the right opportunity).

5. Do you follow any tv- series? Which one is your favourite?

Silk (English law and drama – gotta love this combo)

6.  What is your main goal in life?

Still searching for it, will let you know via Facebook and Twitter when I’ve find it (am looking at becoming successful in something..).

7.Where will you go on holiday?

Next week will be Japan! <3

8. Which is your worst vice? 

My temper (mom calls me a rigid creature)

9. If you can choose a book to live in, which will be? Why?

Harry Potter – magic of course!

10.  Do you believe in this kind of tag? Do you think it can be helpful for your blog?

Definitely, it’s helped me appreciate the blogs that other people create, which can help me determine how to improve my own, as well as getting to know them. Live on Liebster Awards!

In order to keep the Liebster Award trend thing going, here's my five nominations (all of whom have sensational and inspiring blogs btw, click on their names to check them out!):

1) Krysti Encounters 

2) Minnie Mouse Chic

3) Nutellablogger

4) Mbcos

5) flourishingpetal

For you five fabulous bloggers, here's 10 fun questions from moi:

1) If you could be anything, what would you be?

2) Chocolate or Vanilla? Why?

3) Dogs or Cats? Why?

4) Blogger or blog you look up to?

5) Most difficult part about maintaining a blog?

6) Ultimate goal in life?

7) Favorite band/singer?

8) Name of celebrity you'd like to meet (if you got the chance to)?

9) Where do you usually get your inspiration from for new blog posts?

10) Fun fact about yourself.

I hope I've managed to follow the instructions correctly (fingers crossed!). Good luck to all my lovely nominees! Looking forward to reading your answers :D 

Lemon and Lavender Chicken

Attempting the extraordinary

As much as I like sticking to recipes (for the sake of accuracy mainly), I do like jazzing them up a bit every so often. These happen to be the very rare instances where I’ll act slightly more daring than usual and employ (somewhat) wacky ingredients. Sometimes they go wrong, sometimes they go right. In this case, it was the latter (thankfully). I’ve never really liked lavender as a fragrance or lotion; I much prefer a more fruity scent. However, when it’s combined with lemon, it’s a completely different story. It’s also a bit of a tongue twister; I ended up calling it lamon and lemender chicken quite a few times. Whether you want to try it with chicken drumsticks like I did or the entire poultry, Rachel Khoo’s French recipe is definitely a zesty dinner-time delight. As there’s honey in the sauce, it goes perfectly with a crusty baguette. However, I found that a mixed veggie fried rice is also a winning accompaniment. Don’t believe me? Try it yourself.

Chicken recipe available from two sources:

• Rachel Khoo’s The Little Paris Kitchen book
• http://www.popsugar.com/food/Lavender-Chicken-Recipe-27060764

Long time no see...

Despite the inclement weather, with heavy rain and wind ironically marking the first day of summer, my exams and uni work have ended which means, like the last two years, it's time to begin my blog again - stay tuned for the story/ adventure behind this photo :D

P.S. I apologize for, again, disappearing just like that without saying goodbye. But I guess farewell is unnecessary because you all knew that I would be back...eventually :P

Ropner Park - Stockton-on-Tees

Alone at last

Signs in Ropner Park

I have to admit, sometimes being alone in life is better than being surrounded by a million others. Of course, living in solitude on a day to day basis is not something we should strive for. But having some “me” or “myself” time every so often does in my opinion make life just slightly more colorful and interesting.

At the Lake

And for me, that essentially involves a walk in the local park.

The beauty of mother nature.

Ropner Park isn’t the biggest park I’ve ever been and certainly not the most glamorous (if you’re ever in Hong Kong, do visit the Botanical Gardens; it’s fab!). As a quick summary, it’s essentially made up of a lake, pavilion and playground, with lots of walking paths and greenery in between. What to me makes it utterly perfect for a day out alone is its peacefulness and daintiness. I don’t think that there was a second where I wanted to swap listening to the sounds of children giggling and ducks quacking with my iphone music whilst I was there. I think I managed to spend nearly two hours walking from each location to another.

The Pavillion

And my are there a lot of ducks.

If you’re a keen photographer, then there’s plenty to take. From flowers to trees, and from ducks to sculptures, Ropner Park offers a wealth of picture-perfect moments and locations, perfect for any professional or even the lone amateur like moi. Words essentially fail me when trying to describe just exactly how truly gorgeous this place is. Give it sometime and you’ll definitely be able to see, for yourself, its true beauty.

The Daisy Trio.

What I think tops it off is the little metal information signs that have been strategically positioned in certain significant areas of the park. It’s great that it offers an opportunity to rejuvenate as well as educating oneself about its history and that of the local area.

The lonely but tranquil pathway - my kind of bliss.

P.S. Don’t forget your camera.
x

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The Amateur Anthropologist :)

Welcome to my life...

Why hello there...

Welcome to my blog. I'm not a huge fan of long paragraphs so I'll keep (or try to at least) my intro sweet, short and straight to the point. I finished my first year of uni (yay!) in Anthropology (hence the name of the blog) in mid May and was left with more than a month's wait to try to find something to do in the north east before I headed down to London. 

I'd been told by loads of people that there really wasn't much to do around here so I expected a barren and boring wait. However, after looking around through brochures, websites and listening out for the places my friends appeared to have gone that were within the north east range, I managed to gather a list of landmarks and sites that I ought to visit. And even up until today, I haven't managed to visit even a third of the places I'd noted down. The castles, halls and gardens I visited were all magical. 

Every place added a chapter to my internal knowledge bank of England's history and development, every moment was memorable, and every day was a new adventure. And, to be honest, had I'd left the north east immediately like a few of my friends had with the assumption that there was nothing to do, I definitely wouldn't have had such an amazing holiday

So, essentially, this blog is a photo journal of all my adventures I've had in different areas of the north east. It includes, castles, gardens, beaches, parks etc. and also my thoughts during that time and any funny anecdotes. At the end of the day, I hope that my blog will convince you to come up north to see what there is to offer in this stunning and breathtaking environment. At the same time, I hope it'll also inspire you to look at things in a different angle. Often you'll find that my pictures are of quite mundane and ordinary things like huge forests and old buildings, or even just some graffiti on the wall.  But it is that level of simplicity that I crave for and should be craved for by everyone. For when we learn to appreciate the simple things, life becomes more beautiful and enjoyable. You forget about all the things that causes stress like materialism, relationships, the economy etc. It's a rejuvenating and relaxing experience, one of which will free ours minds and help our imagination soar to an even greater level (at least that was the case for me).

So grab your good walking shoes, water bottle, sunscreen and camera, and come with me, the amateur anthropologist, as I take you on my great summer adventure of north east England... :-)

The Amateur Anthropologist :-P