tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-78879857639080230512024-01-23T11:18:43.240+01:00BEYOND MADRIDNadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.comBlogger251125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-2408880855457262442012-05-16T09:57:00.002+02:002012-05-16T09:57:44.257+02:00Gym hell<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A couple of months back I finally started going to yoga again. The fact that the classes are literally next door to where I work is a huge bonus as it means I can go during my lunch break. I’m finding it to be an enormous stress-reliever and I only wish I could go more often – I had long forgotten what it felt like to do something physical, especially when like most people I spend all day using my head – or trying to.<br />
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While the classes aren't that fantastic (loud music from the techno-booming spinners next door) I’m enjoying it even more than when I first started a couple of years ago, yoga can take a while to get into at first but this time the adjustment has been almost immediate – though not for my stiff ‘ole joints who are not being very co-operative!<br />
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Anyway, a few weeks back I decided to try one of my gym’s other offerings, stretching, or <em>strechin</em> as they write it at the gym. I thought it might help with my yoga as I’m naturally inflexible. Well, I got a lot more than I bargained for. Not only did I stretch, but I got stretched by the only other student in the class, a man as it would happen. Now, physical contact with a complete stranger might be the most natural of experiences for some, but not for <em>moi</em> I’m afraid. Anyway, I went along with it and did pair stretches with my new buddy – he was actually an amiable sort, not at all creepy. In short, the whole thing was just about bearable. That was until the perky <em>strechin</em> teacher asked me to sit on the floor and my partner (<em>Javi</em>, let’s call him) to kneel right behind me while I lay (yes, lay) my head on his chest (yes, a stranger’s chest and entire frontage). Right now I am no longer in bearable territory but being the polite Brit that I am I comply and allow him to bend my back forwards, diagonally and sideways. To be honest it would even feel quite nice if it weren’t for the fact I don’t even know this guy’s name.<br />
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Just when I think things couldn’t get any more awkward, I hear the word ‘massage’. Oh my God, she’s asking him to give me a shoulder rub (whilst I lean on his chest), and now she’s asking him to give me a head massage. Yes, a random stranger’s hands are running their fingers through MY hair. At this point I sort of lose consciousness, but not in a good way. This is like the bit in those true life stories in The Daily Mail when people report to ‘float above themselves’ and ‘watch it all happen with horror’. And then it starts to dawn on me: I’m going to have to return the favour, aren’t I? Oh yes, I kneel behind Javi, and proceed to knead his scalp while he closes his eyes and makes little noises that I really don’t want to hear. I'm sorry if this all sounds gross, but I have to get it off my chest!<br />
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Why didn’t I run for it? Why didn’t I make my excuses and flee? Politeness I guess. I sometimes get a similar feeling when I get a taxi and they drive like a maniac. I say to myself ‘just ask him to slow down’ but I just can’t say it and I continue to let them terrify me for the next 20 minutes and then pay them 30 euros for the pleasure… I mean how stupid would it be do die because of politeness?! But that’s a whole other post.<br />
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Needless to say I haven’t returned to <em>streching</em> .<br />
<br />Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-9116918316423775632012-05-04T21:02:00.001+02:002012-05-04T21:10:41.106+02:00Parched<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://greenreview.blogspot.com.es/2012/04/retap-bottle-product-review.html">Via</a></td></tr>
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Do you drink the recommended 8 glasses of water a day? I certainly don’t. One of the obstacles to my water intake is the fact that in the office we have a water cooler with no room-temperature option, and ice cold water plays havoc with my sensitive teeth and <em>friolera</em> (cold-sensitive) body.<br />
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Tap water is a viable option as the water in Madrid is good, but we don’t have any decent sized glasses in the office and if you bring one from home and leave it on your desk overnight the cleaning lady inevitably takes it to the kitchen and it finds its way into someone else’s hands! Some co-workers use plastic mineral water bottles but I have two issues with plastic – 1) doubts about whether it’s safe, and 2) water just tastes so much better from glass.<br />
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Well, for some months now I’ve had water bottle envy of a colleague who sups water from a trendy glass bottle – great as you can take bottles to meetings unlike glasses of water which tend to spill as you carry them into meeting rooms together with laptop, notebooks, pens etc. So, propelled by my envy, I’ve ordered <a href="http://www.retap.dk/home">two of these beauties</a> from Amazon, one for David, one for me. Retap bottles are award-winning Danish-designed water bottles with extra strong glass and lids made of ‘safe’ plastic. The price is also ok I think, for something you’re going to be using every day. Can’t wait for them to arrive, will let you know if they live up to my expectations!Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-24074312775325543632012-04-08T11:21:00.000+02:002012-04-08T11:21:51.510+02:005 tips for choosing a wedding colour paletteNot exactly suprising, but here is another weddingy post :-) 5 tips for choosing a wedding colour palette;<br />
<ul><li>Choose an object/image for inspiration rather than a set of matching colours. I.e. instead of choosing yellow and grey because they go well together (which they do) get inspired by a favourite yellow and grey rug, vase or postcard. Why? Because I'm not a designer and because these objects have in theory all been designed by designers or artists who have carefully thought not only about the contrast between these colours but also about in which proportions to use them, what tones, what accent colours complement the main duo, and what patterns work well with them (e.g.polka dots, art nouveau swooping arcs etc). The idea for using an object for inspiration is a pretty standard one I'd imagine but I cottoned on to it after reading an interior design book from my beloved <a href="http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/">Apartment Therapy</a>. More on AT another day, but that site literally saved me from insanity during a period of convalesence a few years back. See yellow and grey wedding colour palette from <a href="http://katemillerevents.com/yellow-and-grey-wedding-decor">Kate Miller Events</a>.</li>
</ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdBsUJ9OFzZm2_YWh2j2_nxLivdvoCgsGdgBeWs-pmf4Mhl6I0uzGFIFS07r4AHxk0YmqMAgCHX4XSdPtLtmFmqZg8lvXhIQLaP-XMFg5ePjffcqvvkj6OFkRmWdiKMXyR_1yeIA1taBhJ/s1600/yellow_inspiration_board-snapshot.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" nda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdBsUJ9OFzZm2_YWh2j2_nxLivdvoCgsGdgBeWs-pmf4Mhl6I0uzGFIFS07r4AHxk0YmqMAgCHX4XSdPtLtmFmqZg8lvXhIQLaP-XMFg5ePjffcqvvkj6OFkRmWdiKMXyR_1yeIA1taBhJ/s320/yellow_inspiration_board-snapshot.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<ul><li>Get inspiration from your surroundings. A sleek city wedding might use a black and pale pink palette, a sea-side wedding might go for turquoise and sea-glass green. I think the key to making these work is not to overuse the theme - i.e. not using shell motifs on absultely everything with a beach wedding. Don't just get isnpired in terms of colour but also shapes, e.g. the skyline of your city. See city colour and invite inspiration below via <a href="http://www.marthastewartweddings.com/">Martha Stewart Weddings</a>.</li>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmKMxPiNgpm2aDO0CsmU2PnAo31JpNgPrW-lwrYALL02WbFnR_NHOZYsYHM1MjTb-IAlUFBg-2umszjQAXI_DLY6Fiy8V2MhAjy3hGi7HGMnCnI3HIpmQPze9edjyxQyv9meI_WxryLyQb/s1600/mwd103565_spr08_tableset_xl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmKMxPiNgpm2aDO0CsmU2PnAo31JpNgPrW-lwrYALL02WbFnR_NHOZYsYHM1MjTb-IAlUFBg-2umszjQAXI_DLY6Fiy8V2MhAjy3hGi7HGMnCnI3HIpmQPze9edjyxQyv9meI_WxryLyQb/s320/mwd103565_spr08_tableset_xl.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><br />
<ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcuBX6UvfFPdRI29iU_AzTAvC2f6g782It0ltSlb7icSs6siqoazDrPP9vCnXujgMnvgej1eHhnuiNOQur7e9gtx5GGzqIIN_JEkPZYVNUSZbl5YyHjHRR6vIWsW1DTz5bLuwXdmyxnXPb/s1600/destination-invitation-spaceneedle-7_vert.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcuBX6UvfFPdRI29iU_AzTAvC2f6g782It0ltSlb7icSs6siqoazDrPP9vCnXujgMnvgej1eHhnuiNOQur7e9gtx5GGzqIIN_JEkPZYVNUSZbl5YyHjHRR6vIWsW1DTz5bLuwXdmyxnXPb/s320/destination-invitation-spaceneedle-7_vert.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><li>Think about your own colouring and personality. If any of you have every read anything about <a href="http://www.colourmebeautiful.co.uk/home">Colour Me Beautiful</a> you'll know what I mean! As 80's and throwback as this whole CMB concept might seem, their colour recommendations are quite often pretty spot on. 'Winter' people like me with dark hair and a cool skin tone tend to look good in bold reds, navy blues, ice-grays and whites. And perhaps that's why the whole pastel palette I was originally looking at didn't feel right. I don't think we need to go all colour-police here but after having looked at hundreds of wedding photos online I would go so far as to say that blondes do seem to shine alongside pale pinks, blues and mint greens - and redheads do look stunning with green or red accessories. Basically, I think if you wouldn't wear the colour because it doesn't suit you, don't include it as one of your main palette colours.</li>
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<ul><li>Think about the season. Red, which is one of my colours, is often a favourite for winter weddings (though personally, I'd be concerned about it looking too Santa!) - in order to make red more suitable for summer it helps to combine it with other colours such as orange or pink. Purple also works well in winter. Spring weddings work well with pastels and fresh colours like lemon and mint. Summer screams out for vibrant pinks. And autumn offers a whole load of gorgeous ombre tones - it's just a question of whether or not you'd dare to use them - I wouldn't because ombre and rust tones happen to look awful on me!</li>
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<ul><li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Consider the venue. One of the many reasons I didn't go with a pastel pallete in the ends was our venue. We booked our casa rural via my inlaws without having seen it in person, and while it's a charming venue it doesn't quite have as many trees and flowers as I was hoping for. I was envisioning a country house much like those in the UK, overflowing with blossoms and greenery which would in themself provide the colour scheme - meaning I'd only need to add a few gentle pink touches here and there to merely complement what was already there. Turns out it's actually pretty short on blooms! Instead of throwing a bridezilla the 3rd hissy fit I decided to change the palette to stronger reds, figuring that we'd need bold colours in order to detract from any of the percieved shortcomings of the venue. In contrast a truly stunning venue may be able to get away with an all-white palette which doesn't detract from its beauty, with a winery venue you could draw inspiration from grape tones and with a farm wedding golden hay tones might work. See below for some stunning sea-side inspiration via <a href="http://www.lovemydress.net/blog/">love my dress</a> - gorgeous. (Would have considered these colours if they suited me!)</li>
</ul><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZMhpX0qBw-CmnzZBUBzojFhCft1cJv32_dpCp9zmPaaMNwLrWOVYDREfOPPilEm2HGC6PLDKzuqkUb29Gd8SyG0mZE0IXqq3H_ZSi26xBNUdqCBDxdpBIFiAjKMslKJlX_oNKsfiOTD3I/s1600/untitled.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZMhpX0qBw-CmnzZBUBzojFhCft1cJv32_dpCp9zmPaaMNwLrWOVYDREfOPPilEm2HGC6PLDKzuqkUb29Gd8SyG0mZE0IXqq3H_ZSi26xBNUdqCBDxdpBIFiAjKMslKJlX_oNKsfiOTD3I/s320/untitled.bmp" width="197" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkcJqD4QErIGc5i1RpSuCfoHV_gBTOp8_NzxqvuuZ1E9oLkMrtgt9HVrxgBAEKB7KzzbaDba00RszwretnsX2ScLJeeoOfcTmQbQg87YWH0PDShVFsLk6OzGIArcINonkF4blYzgl4Z3VC/s1600/untitled2.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkcJqD4QErIGc5i1RpSuCfoHV_gBTOp8_NzxqvuuZ1E9oLkMrtgt9HVrxgBAEKB7KzzbaDba00RszwretnsX2ScLJeeoOfcTmQbQg87YWH0PDShVFsLk6OzGIArcINonkF4blYzgl4Z3VC/s320/untitled2.bmp" width="209" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrHORBt2c5KSBNzHmyeVYwtllvsW1CcIMZIcioISimUICJpkSf-1dRVEMUqnFV1xApFna0dETFUvdSbrGJU6yXr-8pfUUoEvLJhWmjNJe5DQvmzhSFbv1XyL3pDB3QndXPnAsunLDqBNqS/s1600/untitled3.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrHORBt2c5KSBNzHmyeVYwtllvsW1CcIMZIcioISimUICJpkSf-1dRVEMUqnFV1xApFna0dETFUvdSbrGJU6yXr-8pfUUoEvLJhWmjNJe5DQvmzhSFbv1XyL3pDB3QndXPnAsunLDqBNqS/s320/untitled3.bmp" width="219" /></a></div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-69444938015523732422012-04-07T22:43:00.001+02:002012-04-07T22:50:40.806+02:00All things weddingyI'm now well into the swing of planning our wedding this August and it has surprised me how much trouble I had choosing a colour scheme. My initial feelings were 'country wedding - country colours' - for me this would have been gentle pinks and peaches, glass jars of peonies, raffia placemats and a simple white flowing gown - a dress that was somewhere between grecian and boho. After much rooting around on sites like <a href="http://www.theperfectpalette.com/">The Perfect Palette</a> I decided on something along the lines of this gorgeous colour palette featured on <a href="http://www.lovemydress.net/blog/pink/">love my dress</a>:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY6PMAKaGTSA3QmiAcZJXF8DIqeDyqDzcUApsBsSyCJSKtxCMxZe5IE3Did2kP2BrHevBI7zzg12qweYhe2EFR5mJO5ul3ugjbe8RY3ZJhZWIV4As9Jku4qaYB9yaOH83SMb4rylXiaJsE/s1600/wedd.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY6PMAKaGTSA3QmiAcZJXF8DIqeDyqDzcUApsBsSyCJSKtxCMxZe5IE3Did2kP2BrHevBI7zzg12qweYhe2EFR5mJO5ul3ugjbe8RY3ZJhZWIV4As9Jku4qaYB9yaOH83SMb4rylXiaJsE/s320/wedd.bmp" width="213" /></a></div><br />
Well, I was more or less content with this until I found THE DRESS. It's true what generations of brides have said before; 'you don't find the dress, the dress finds you'. Or at least that was my experience. It became clear on my first trip to a bridal shop (with a gaggle of my best friends for emotional support) that my plans for a modest country frock were not going to happen. What had never occurred to me is that the ladies who work in bridal shops have seen hundreds of brides-to-be walk though the doors and pretty much know what you'll look good in as soon as they clap eyes on you. You see, I'd never imagined myself in lace (prissy), strapless (need ample bosom) and mermaid cut (80's) but that's exactly what I've got - not through any evil plan of the lady at the wedding shop (Pronovias) to make me look yucky - but because it turns out that's exactly what happens to suit me (much to my surprise).<br />
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So, back to the colours. Turns out hollywood-diva-glamourpuss-dress would overshadow demure peonies and raffia baskets. Also, odd as this sounds I started to feel the pastels would suit a blonde much better than a brunette. Anyway, THE DRESS just screams out for bold colours, and as we wanted to give a wink to our multi-ethnic backgrounds (6 races between us!) but without having anything so obvious as Bollywood bling or Arabic geometrics - we decided on deep red, orange and a touch of fuscia along the lines of the photos below - both taken from lovely weddings featured on Martha Stewart.<br />
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Still, I wasn't quite happy with it. There seemed to be something missing to tie it all together - yes we had the colours but we didn't have a theme. It's not that having a theme is a must, just that a colour palette is just that - a set of coordinating colours that look good together but don't necessarily say much and run the risk of looking too matchy-matchy as you're tempted to get every single accessory, flower, napkin and invite in those colours. So, the other morning I was reviewing (for the 100th time) the stuff I needed to buy before the big day and I came accross <em>manton de manila</em> on my list - one of those beautiful Spanish embroidered shawls that I'd always wanted to invest in and had planned to wear for the evening do. I'm after a white one with red and blue flowers, and it occurred to me that this would actually work really well as a colour palette. As it turns out we had decided to exchange rings in tiny Turkish Izmir ceramic bowls and I realised that these also tend to follow the red, white and blue palette. And with Turkey being a place both David and I had visited and loved it seemed to form the ideal basis for our colour scheme. Bless him, David is being very patient and showing admirable amounts of interest in all these girly dilemmas. So Izmir-meets-flamenco here we come! The whole Izmir thing also gave a gentle nod to our Eastern roots without going all-out ethnic. And not only does it include a strong red that matches up to my dress, it also includes blue which will be really nice to have as the venue (casa rural) looks out over the sea in Galicia and is a bit of a nod to my mum's coastal Bournemouth roots too :-) Everybody wins. The only thing we need to be careful of is the whole red, white and blue thing not looking too much like the French/British/US flag.<br />
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Over the past day or so I have been collecting bits of inspiration for this new set of colours and have actually bought the GAL lip balm favours for the ladies so there's no going back now!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>(P.s. sorry for not including photo sources, but I had initially collected these for my own private inspiration and now that I've decided to post them I don't have the refereces. In any case if anyone has any rights issues give me a shout!)Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-680542126821076482012-03-02T11:45:00.000+01:002012-03-02T11:45:27.309+01:00Never knew......getting married in Spain was so complicated! When I finally work out how to actually tie the knot I'll do a post on it as finding clear information online in almost impossible :-)<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4qvfGIWX83HKgUhBTcmRxF8tHnhjkjwuh6MjXW8lALShzrElAwgaeyvk9881W70XUGrEHJ0gt7xvqCwVHgtpREMOWvWe5QSsfRp1EmG3SoOy92q5_N1Z2EbMecgoOxfnmkH-vPPxHgNgo/s1600/nurse_paperwork.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4qvfGIWX83HKgUhBTcmRxF8tHnhjkjwuh6MjXW8lALShzrElAwgaeyvk9881W70XUGrEHJ0gt7xvqCwVHgtpREMOWvWe5QSsfRp1EmG3SoOy92q5_N1Z2EbMecgoOxfnmkH-vPPxHgNgo/s1600/nurse_paperwork.jpg" uda="true" /></a></div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-64270017313687482242012-02-11T21:18:00.000+01:002012-02-11T21:18:11.157+01:00HAPPY New Year - and some resolutionsA little late - but surely it's never too late for a little well-wishing? This year instead of my hugely ambitious and bucket-list like list of promises to self and others my resolutions are quite simple and practical - which will hopefully make them more achievable :-) Ever the future-planner I wrote this list back in November and here they are below and an honest review of whether I'm actually sticking to them or not;<br />
<ul><li><strong>Do yoga at least once a week and stretches at home</strong> - I've started yoga again this week so maybe I will achieve this one!</li>
<li><strong>Run twice a week</strong> - err have had a cold for the past two weeks so haven't being going out with D. But with my new running shoes from <a href="http://www.laister.es/laister2008nuevo/tiendas_laister.htm">Laister</a> (the place to gor for any Madrileños thinking of taking up running - they'll do a biometric test to see what shoes you need) and super-discounted Nike leggings from <a href="http://invitacion.privalia.com/2/index.asp?provider=busgooprivalia&par1=021110&gclid=CNK0gM__la4CFVRItAodL11dHw">Privalia</a> at least I'll look the part when I get back in the swing of things ;P</li>
<li><strong>Do a facial once a week</strong> - not doing this but thanks to a new daily beauty routine suggested by <a href="http://www.beautypedia.com/">Cosmetic's Cop</a> Paula Begoun my skin has improved noticeably. While I haven't bought any of her own products I highly recommend her scientifically-based reviews and her advice for different skin types found <a href="http://www.cosmeticscop.com/learn-skin-care-facts.aspx">here</a>. Clinque's Turnaround Concentrate is working for me despite the mixed reviews <a href="http://www.makeupalley.com/product/showreview.asp/ItemId=71849/Turnaround-Concentrate/Clinique/Treatments">here</a>.</li>
<li><strong>Get a gynae check once a year</strong> - sorry to discuss this in a mixed forum, but this is important, enough said.</li>
<li><strong>Bake once a month</strong> - haven't. baked. one. measly. cake :-(</li>
<li><strong>Cook a healthy 'green'/eastern recipe once a week</strong> - have fared better on this one. D and I went to the <a href="http://11870.com/pro/ta-tung-universal">Eastern supermarket in Principe Pio</a> a couple of weeks back and stocked up on dumplings, spring-roll wrappers, lemon grass, fish sauce and more. The prices are great. Made my own spring rolls the other week with a bit of help from Youtube (green and eastern but deep frying isn't exactly healthy!)</li>
<li><strong>Take lunch to work twice a week</strong> - managing to do this thanks to cooking up big batches of one-pot meals at the weekend. Lentils and <em>cocido</em> (Madrileño chickpea stew) have been in my lunchbox recently.</li>
<li><strong>Cook at least one thing at the weekend that can be eaten for dinner during the week</strong> - ditto packed lunches.</li>
<li><strong>Always have healthy work snacks on the go </strong>- sorry to obsess about what I eat at work but I'm there for so many hours that I think it's worth it! Hmmm, not doing so well on this one. Am taking in wholegrain bread to make toast drizzled with olive oil for a second breakfast but not doing any vegetable crudites, nuts etc for the afternoon. On a more positive note am managing to drink more water and making huge mugs of delicous organic <a href="http://www.yogiproducts.com/products/details/chai-green/">Yogi Tea Green Chai</a>. This company have an excellent selection of herbal teas - the best in my humble opinion.</li>
<li><strong>Make my own cleaning products</strong> - err I don't remember how I got so obsessed with this! Probably after reading about how toxic and nastly regular cleaning products are. Anyhow after<a href="http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/the-how-to-do-it-better-guide-1-138282"> much research</a> about how to do this I came unstuck when trying to get the necessary 'raw ingredients' in Spanish <em>droguerieas</em>. Bicarb, vinegar, hydrogen peroxide etc have all been easy to come by, but liquid Castile soap - a Spanish invention I would imagine from the name - has proved to be completely elusive!! Plenty of places sell Castile floor wash, clothes deterget etc but no-one seems to stock just plain old Castile soap in liquid format... So please, if anyone knows of a stockist let me know!</li>
<li><strong>Do something creative; sew/draw up house plans, etc</strong> - We have been on the lookout for a sewing machine for some time but have found it hard to find good brands and specialist shops (El Corte Inglés do not have a good selection). There is a specialist shop in E<a href="http://www.maquiborda.com/">mbajadores</a> but really don't recommed it; the owner was pushy, rude, wouldn't even let us take notes about the models, and will tell you the only good machines are his particular brand. Anyway, the sewing-machine hunting has been put aside and my time has been taken up with another creative project - wedding planning! My lovely David proposed at Christmas and we're tying the knot this summer :-) Will post more on this later but I can say now that we're going to have a small civil ceremony (about 25 people) in the countryside. We don't have much time to plan so it's going to be an intense few months! Will be posting more on this soon - needless to say I'm very excited :-)</li>
</ul>Well, hope you had a Happy New Year, and thanks for reading my resolutions despite them being an unashamed rouse for announcing my wedding!Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-21408756798347839422011-10-14T20:23:00.000+02:002011-10-14T20:23:20.026+02:00This summerI've finally got round to writing about our trip to Panama this summer, so here goes!<br />
We started out in Panama City – and it was nothing like I expected: towering skyscrapers, fancy cars and malls bigger than anything I've seen in the UK. This contrasted sharply with the poverty and tumble-down houses seen in less-priviledged parts of the city. The most interesting part of the capital for me was the ‘casco ‘viejo’ or the old part of town which is being done up and experiencing something of a cultural revival, with a mix of little boutiques, European-style cafes and prettily painted and flower decked colonial houses.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsBqH8_l0udepa3gictw12TtNnSL6Bd6JMEGDdmAq_uOjjV9bMtJ5s28ZWTgE19mO6i4AX-Ukei9-DswJ2mWlNySLoe79643H9UMYCaIXuCYdTtIe-2tvH6c1Hf-50mA-w-q9492CUsNwz/s1600/Panama2011+141.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsBqH8_l0udepa3gictw12TtNnSL6Bd6JMEGDdmAq_uOjjV9bMtJ5s28ZWTgE19mO6i4AX-Ukei9-DswJ2mWlNySLoe79643H9UMYCaIXuCYdTtIe-2tvH6c1Hf-50mA-w-q9492CUsNwz/s320/Panama2011+141.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>From PC we made a trip to ‘La Chorerra’ where D’s grandparents live – it was so nice to see him reunited with them and to see that they were so lively and in such good shape. Than, we drove across Panama (an-oh-so-slightly terrifying experience!), stopping off with D’s uncle on the way before settling in the highlands of Boquete for a few days. Here we relaxed in the gorgeous <a href="http://ranchodecaldera.com/">Rancho de Caldera</a>, went on coffee tours and cloud-forest safaris and saw a Quetzal (apparently the 2nd rarest bird in the world - no idea what the 1st is?!). Here's the view from our 'rancho'...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiavsBeTaHaPCjWJTEUpz9myT4QFuForNfnq8Vgop1HkGwTC_pyXOr8nphpQt3xsaTtOubdFUNyIgY-zRoH0_rjbYK9MMzT6U2ntNN1H0zxdIPi0IjHuwpHOV_Xk5jVWp7MX-BjdOTmUjpB/s1600/Panama2011+243.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiavsBeTaHaPCjWJTEUpz9myT4QFuForNfnq8Vgop1HkGwTC_pyXOr8nphpQt3xsaTtOubdFUNyIgY-zRoH0_rjbYK9MMzT6U2ntNN1H0zxdIPi0IjHuwpHOV_Xk5jVWp7MX-BjdOTmUjpB/s320/Panama2011+243.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Next stop – the Caribbean! What surprised me about Bocas de Toro wasn’t so much the pristine palm fringed beaches, but the sheer amount of wildlife, which I just wasn’t expecting. Dolphins, sloths, colourful frogs, toucans, parrots, starfish, monkeys and more surrounded us. And perhaps the most memorable part of our days in Bocas was when we got to see giant sea turtles laying their eggs one night and then help recently-hatched baby sea turtles make their way to sea. The next photo is of the secluded beach just steps from our room.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWmsTI0PyeKs0qfxSILkLlWdyBBrayFR1sLTkyQN8yAoGPdJoWrW3iq_eGJcFagIu3tIoLXWgPmluB2fxLX82evSr-148hkrDmhbWlTKTYE_dBa8oNAeY5uzZTAi4eiBJ-IC55W8oufK3g/s1600/Panama2011+591.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWmsTI0PyeKs0qfxSILkLlWdyBBrayFR1sLTkyQN8yAoGPdJoWrW3iq_eGJcFagIu3tIoLXWgPmluB2fxLX82evSr-148hkrDmhbWlTKTYE_dBa8oNAeY5uzZTAi4eiBJ-IC55W8oufK3g/s320/Panama2011+591.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
From Bocas we drove back east through Panama and bid farewel to <em>los abuelos.</em> 2 weeks really wasn't enough to sample all that Panama has to offer - but here is my list of 5 unmissable things to do in Panama:<br />
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<span style="color: #e06666; font-size: large;">1. Eat, eat, eat:</span> <em>sancocho</em> - a traditional type of chicken soup is delicious as are the fried plantains <em>- patacones</em>, <em>ceviche</em> made with Panama's national fish 'corvina' is yummy too. Also try the <em>raspados</em> from a roadside trolley - watch the seller grate fresh ice into your cup and top it off with a tropical juice of your choice – Passion fruit was a favourite of mine.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCZd-ubOtL544Wy2s9OZzdi7YH8ggCzO3te9Nctr13sNeBJ5Rm5ofaPby32CDOCpMFl7-uEdjGmL5TMYrkDP5LTn6pG4-8ZM99KAqtWnK_Llh6jFFsa4jX6SrfyLU1JQIYbzTf23XbZu1t/s1600/Panama2011+173.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCZd-ubOtL544Wy2s9OZzdi7YH8ggCzO3te9Nctr13sNeBJ5Rm5ofaPby32CDOCpMFl7-uEdjGmL5TMYrkDP5LTn6pG4-8ZM99KAqtWnK_Llh6jFFsa4jX6SrfyLU1JQIYbzTf23XbZu1t/s320/Panama2011+173.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Lobster on the Amador peninsula near Panama City (Los Bucaneros restaurant)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOYaxAn-rG2T-4TL5pQ3AKD2RLJxImDeEryzl4zM_zdqGiacJa-CRQ6j2q6OZZfJcaWwCbEs3ztUXyUDK6zjrGfxKFX7_68vOqY3DF_Rx2puAc9PGN31A00CUipOuS_P54Yotg64ghP4R7/s1600/SAM_2460.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOYaxAn-rG2T-4TL5pQ3AKD2RLJxImDeEryzl4zM_zdqGiacJa-CRQ6j2q6OZZfJcaWwCbEs3ztUXyUDK6zjrGfxKFX7_68vOqY3DF_Rx2puAc9PGN31A00CUipOuS_P54Yotg64ghP4R7/s320/SAM_2460.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Ceviche at Amador</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiniTs7HKhKw9tBFUYeljIuG-J7NsKsk0o0YiJPWaEDOVxbBjQlDWkenCiDqaIRGSZCHOOcqM8q8CbrZpTJiy-yKAMW5gYp1R4LFt7JJv69qvhj8cHO7OpEbLADlvZ2Oe9coAnSlu_uAANh/s1600/SAM_2442.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiniTs7HKhKw9tBFUYeljIuG-J7NsKsk0o0YiJPWaEDOVxbBjQlDWkenCiDqaIRGSZCHOOcqM8q8CbrZpTJiy-yKAMW5gYp1R4LFt7JJv69qvhj8cHO7OpEbLADlvZ2Oe9coAnSlu_uAANh/s320/SAM_2442.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Raspados in the Casco Viejo</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><span style="color: #e06666; font-size: large;">2.</span> <span style="color: #e06666; font-size: large;">Buy a Mola -</span> an indigenous indian embroidered panel that can be used as a wall hanging or sewn into a cushions, bag etc.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj55Z6Z3lBku2K7n8_VWKIZihUjt8aLQOre1xhOgQPxmz03QhvDsLlwlaxnHzSRzotSPRhtNUklMl1T8CImwY-Ff5aUv_JEePtkrvLSl2KZ7PLArcEI3JAr0N_zEIUBZaO4BmkT-y-eTe6/s1600/Mola.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj55Z6Z3lBku2K7n8_VWKIZihUjt8aLQOre1xhOgQPxmz03QhvDsLlwlaxnHzSRzotSPRhtNUklMl1T8CImwY-Ff5aUv_JEePtkrvLSl2KZ7PLArcEI3JAr0N_zEIUBZaO4BmkT-y-eTe6/s320/Mola.gif" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=mola&view=detail&id=4F69A883E2A71727176AF1A0C02B3B57A057BCE3&first=0&FORM=IDFRIR">Source</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><span style="color: #e06666; font-size: large;">3. Climb Mount Baru</span> and see both the Pacific and the Caribbean sea from the same vantage point. I'm sorry to say we didn't do this due to the poor visibility at this time of the year, but I'm told it's well worth the climb (which can be done partially in car).<br />
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<span style="color: #e06666; font-size: large;">4. Get up close and personal with the wildlife </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxz23lOI_XedzrV2bbkC3TFokTo2yKa6A5SU8niW6Q-TzxMIjzCim1nDczXS9F5PyHUY_3VSkNwUSI62uHFvTqVYm6Sj6J3hK_sh5VW6F_JeGSjvYEIn07gDIG6zhySsdYR1-cFTu95rPL/s1600/Panama2011+660.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxz23lOI_XedzrV2bbkC3TFokTo2yKa6A5SU8niW6Q-TzxMIjzCim1nDczXS9F5PyHUY_3VSkNwUSI62uHFvTqVYm6Sj6J3hK_sh5VW6F_JeGSjvYEIn07gDIG6zhySsdYR1-cFTu95rPL/s320/Panama2011+660.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Red frog (the hand is mine)</div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #e06666; font-size: large;">5. The Panama Canal </span>- lunch at the Miraflores Lock Visitor Centre while you watch the boats go by is an unforgettable experience - the huge ships look like whole apartment blocks floating by and the food is excellent. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVPKuOq29-lR4cNOyDnYcin2wRPcxL9jK6qcjqk_HRkQhWu8Y0WIAnkqCV6IUrzjdzZYzoy9k6uBh0LrFdxEOm0HU1oqnsPgSJqaFIeGP3sGsujgATl2WFAG1ZEGA8Cg__IeTXMg-I0vR6/s1600/Panama2011+061.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVPKuOq29-lR4cNOyDnYcin2wRPcxL9jK6qcjqk_HRkQhWu8Y0WIAnkqCV6IUrzjdzZYzoy9k6uBh0LrFdxEOm0HU1oqnsPgSJqaFIeGP3sGsujgATl2WFAG1ZEGA8Cg__IeTXMg-I0vR6/s320/Panama2011+061.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
As we're saving these days I don't think I'll be going on any exotic trips for a while, but I have a weekend in Merida coming up and another in Galicia so I can't complain :-)</div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-31611291572701272202011-09-01T18:13:00.001+02:002011-09-01T18:17:10.823+02:00Panama preview<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The reason I haven’t written in so long is that we’ve been in Panama on holiday! We had a wonderful time – the scenery, nature, food and people were just lovely. It’s my first day at work today so I haven’t managed to post as yet but will write about the trip and post photos at the weekend. In the meantime here’s a preview snap and hope you had a lovely summer :-)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4gM_Knf6fMzgrz7SVpRewKqTS2y_b1hCAWEKawA0z12Wz9RhoGS4YN9QpbW8FgMdFDgblUe5YRHKfPTADV0lPVrH-E__HaW_2wIxlBTtMTWDzLnN9yINuXWn_oy1LW2JAQPG3aRdK8Wez/s1600/Panama2011+137.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4gM_Knf6fMzgrz7SVpRewKqTS2y_b1hCAWEKawA0z12Wz9RhoGS4YN9QpbW8FgMdFDgblUe5YRHKfPTADV0lPVrH-E__HaW_2wIxlBTtMTWDzLnN9yINuXWn_oy1LW2JAQPG3aRdK8Wez/s320/Panama2011+137.JPG" width="320" xaa="true" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: center;">Panama City Skyline</div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-75820355580411279562011-08-01T12:02:00.001+02:002011-08-03T14:18:31.793+02:0030+ Warning a mega-post<img height="446" id="il_fi" src="http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/american-princess/birthday-cupcake.jpg" style="padding-bottom: 8px; padding-right: 8px; padding-top: 8px;" width="269" /> <br />
This morning, and with my 34th birthday just 2 days away I finally got round to writing this post – one that I’ve been meaning to do since I turned 30 but that somehow I never found the right words for.<br />
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Let me start off by saying that my 30th birthday in itself was a wonderful experience – I spent it in Florence with close friends – I was in a very, shall we say, ‘busy’ place emotionally but at the same time was having the time of my life – having being recently liberated from the constraints of an unhappy relationship and an unfulfilling job. Life felt full of opportunities, I felt like a child again. In a way I was going through such a turbulent time (in both good ways and bad) that celebrating (or bemoaning) having lived 30 years wasn’t really a big deal. For me, that is. A far cry from my nonchalance, I felt those around me (not my close friends, I must add) wanted to make a big deal of this landmark – <em>30? (insert frown) Oooh. How do you feel? Hmmm, I remember turning 30 that’s a tough one… The big 3-0 (insert raising of eyebrows).</em> I just didn’t get it – for me it didn’t seem tough. If my concern was meant to be about looking older I didn’t understand as grey hairs or lines hadn’t creeped in. If it was about child-bearing, I had several family members with successful births in their early 40s. About being ‘closer’ to death? People of all ages get run over by buses. I couldn’t really work out what they were getting at.<br />
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But then over the next couple of years it dawned on me. Here are some excerpts from conversations I was witness to soon after my 30th birthday – sex of person in (brackets):<br />
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<em>‘Women are really past their best over 30 (M)/After 30 the tables turn, instead of men chasing women, the women start doing the chasing – of course by then they’re desperate (M)/Women over 30 shouldn’t wear mini skirts (F)…’</em> I could go on here, but I don’t think it’s productive! It seemed regardless of my physical, biological and psychological state people were only concerned with the number.<br />
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This was usually followed by a polite <em>‘of course, that doesn’t apply to you because… [add appropriate excuse here]’</em><br />
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It was almost as if you were meant to feel bad about was, after all, just another birthday. It was as if 30 was a sort of cut-off point where all things good ended and you were supposed to mourn that fact. At the other extreme were the deniers (nothing to do with tights, and don’t even know if I’ve spelt it right) – <em>‘People think my daughter and me are sisters -</em> which I don’t think is a healthy attitude either as it’s simply not realistic and just sets you up for a fall.<br />
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So having gone through this experience, here are a few humble words of advice for those who are temerous at the prospect of turning 30. Of course, I admit I’m not qualified to comment on turning 40, or, 50 or 60, and I’m sure my comments will come across as naïve to those who have. But still, I hope that some of these thoughts are also applicable to future milestone birthdays. I also apologize in advance for my somewhat female-slanted view on this matter.<br />
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• <strong>Every year is a gift.</strong> To start off on a morbid note, we all know people who have tragically died too young, and while we may not embrace the passing of years and the physical effects of this, if we enjoy living we need to be grateful for every year we get through relatively unscathed. We are the lucky ones. There, I said it.<br />
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<strong>You’re a long time old(er).</strong> We ALL get older, and it’s important not to place too much value on a period of life (youth) that is so short. We spend most of our lives at an age we don’t really want to be at – up until about 16 most of us want to be older and then from about 27(!!) we start to want to be younger – if the ‘interesting’ bit of our life were just 10 years long then it really wouldn’t be worth living (which is obviously not the case). Try to embrace the joys of every stage of life.<br />
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<strong>Contrary to popular belief you can look better as you get older.</strong> Ok, I’m not stupid enough to think I’m going to look better at 80 than at 20, but 40 vs. 20, why not? I know living non-famous examples as evidence. So many times I hear people bemoaning the fact that they don’t have the same butt they had when they were a teenager, and I feel like asking them to get out those old photos, and having taken in that 80’s perm, bad clothes and blotchy skin, ask themselves ‘did I really look that good?’. Chances are, you now have a much better idea about what clothes, hair and colours suit you, and yes it might take a bit more effort, but I firmly believe that every lady can look fabulous at any age if she is a bit clever with her styling.<br />
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<strong>Don’t make comparisons.</strong> I say this, but know how damn hard it is to do. Half of the discontent we associate with clocking up the years is to do with not having ‘reached a certain place’ by that age. We have to remember ‘we’ are not ‘them’, people get married, divorced, have babies, get great jobs, lose great jobs all the time. If on my 30th birthday someone had told me my life would be a million times worse at 32, then a million times better at 34, no way would I have believed them, but it happens. Luck comes into play, but effort is also a huge factor.<br />
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<strong>Move to a country that isn’t age-obsessed.</strong> Ok, this is totally tongue in cheek but there is a note of truth here. My visits to the UK confirm that society seems to try to condemn 30-plus women to a life of emptyness and the press is rampant with stories of 29 year olds emplying the services of sperm banks because they left it 'too late'. Bridget Jones exists there, and is almost forced to exist, as if she has to in order to make everyone else feel good about themselves. Living in Spain – as well as trips to France and Italy and conversations with women of all ages– has made me see that while youth has great allure you don’t suddenly become invisible at 30, 35, 40, 45…and so on. The type and number of ‘suitors’ (for want of a better word) may vary, but you don’t stop being a woman. And here I move onto the somewhat Mediterranean phenomenon of the <em>señora</em>. Far from being invisible, in Spain it’s easy to find groups of formidable, loudly chattering 50+ <em>señoras</em>, dressed up to the nines in almost any corner of the city. I think we would do well to learn from these ladies (apart from their queue-jumping skills that is :P)<br />
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<strong>Related to the above, <em>Single? ¿Y que..?</em></strong> I have come to the (perhaps quite obvious) realisation that not all ‘older’ single women want or need to be in a relationship and that there are many different types of relationship model. The strong women around me have shown me that one woman’s husband+semi-detached+kids, is another’s single who loves to spend their disposable income on travel, is another’s trendy 40-something couple who don’t want kids or choose to adopt. There is no ‘right’ way.<br />
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<strong>What really matters?</strong> I think even the most superficial of us, knows deep down that for the majority of us what really matters in life are the quality of your relationships with those that are close to you and being good - to both yourself and others. Treat yourself like a beloved child; lots of understanding, occasional splurges, a good education (and I don't mean in the academic sense). Find out what really matters to you (and let's hope that isn't being 21 forever) and work towards it, do things you love. This is a timeless quality.<br />
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And to finish off, here is one age-related anecdote. Before D and I were living together, one day he picked me up after work and I happened to have gone extra casual in jeans and a puffer jacket. His first comment was<em> ‘you take about six years off with those clothes, sometimes your work clothes make you look older than you are!!’ </em>Bless him, he was just speaking his mind, and when I was younger I may have been foolishly tempted to gradually adapt my dress-style based on this throw-away utterance. But what I instead said is that I <em>want</em> to dress like a 30-something woman, I’ve <em>earnt</em> the posh handbags and other ‘finery’ and don’t want to look like a student again, no matter how many years that takes of me and the fact that you think I can ‘get away with it. All this may sound a bit defensive but of course, what I was really saying was not that I had earnt expensive frocks, but that at 33, I had finally earnt a good dose of self-respect.<br />
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P.s. now he loves my suits or at least wouldn't dare say otherwise :pNadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-67541190513444906152011-07-28T11:19:00.000+02:002011-07-28T11:19:41.732+02:00House hunting in Madrid<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPzJFId8iC9eRynfAwjXCOOubhJfM6v8veT5ZZDTsUwTsdG3I5M_yyTbsHmG-ha2mzz1B_wNvBwC0WoLDNZGFXAp1YKiBfQyu8c5gLGEmXrxF1hN09hGTFO05mkfY9060aMgqNroWNOCnh/s1600/messyRoom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPzJFId8iC9eRynfAwjXCOOubhJfM6v8veT5ZZDTsUwTsdG3I5M_yyTbsHmG-ha2mzz1B_wNvBwC0WoLDNZGFXAp1YKiBfQyu8c5gLGEmXrxF1hN09hGTFO05mkfY9060aMgqNroWNOCnh/s1600/messyRoom.jpg" t$="true" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Hello! Is anybody still in Madrid this far into summer? I am, though you wouldn’t know it from my lack of posting (after summer resolution: to post more). All is very well indeed with me - busy, but in a good way :-) Have just come back from a week of work meetings in Coruña, where we were stuffed with <em>empanada</em> (a type of Galician savoury pasty), yummy scallops, octopus and plenty of chilled <em>Albariño</em> to wash it all down with. All of this made a somewhat tense week of meetings much more bearable! And was such a relief to get away from the heat of Madrid in summer.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">And now that the worst of the working year is over for both David and I, we’re busy house hunting. Tired of our cute but short term place in the sticks of ‘Glamabanchel’, we are looking for somewhere more central, and what we’re finding is frankly horrible. So here’s my tongue in cheek guide to would-be <em>Madrileño</em> sellers on what NOT to do if you really want to sell that house online.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">• Please tidy up. Just a little bit. Or at least, do not take a photo of the mess and upload it on <a href="http://www.idealista.com/pagina/portada">Idealista</a>.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">• Do not call something a ‘loft’ (in the New York sense) when what you want to say is a freezing-in-winter-boiling-in-summer, attic-cum-laundry-room with a corrugated tin roof and a ceiling so low you can’t even stand up in it.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">• A flat with a built-in adult bunk-bed in the living room is not a ‘duplex’ – and you can’t consider the square metre-age of said bunk-bed an addition to that of the apartment. E.g. 65m flat+4m of bunk beddage=69m. NO!</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">• If you are referring to your flat as ‘designer’ it probably isn’t, and no you can’t add a 10k premium to your pad just because you have an imitation Eames chair (that you are taking with you in any case). Meeeeowww.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">• Do not try to throw in your granny’s brown 3x3m formica <em>mueble </em>as part of the deal – we don’t want it. Take it to the junk yard, or leave it on the street the assigned day of the month for the local council to pick it up.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">• Do take wide-angle photos of the rooms and NOT close-ups of clusters of your porcelain miniatures or your bathroom shelf toiletries. The idea is to sell your house and not tell us what good taste in pottery you have!</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">In Madrid, with none of those annoying but enjoyable programmes like House Doctor, people seemed not to have cottoned on to all the usual tricks of making your home more saleable – painting in neutral colours, taking photos during the day, de-cluttering, freshly brewed coffee (ok, you can’t really show that in a photo). On the other hand, I am a sucker for taking on awful spaces and trying to make them habitable – and when yesterday we finally found a beautifully designed centrally located home at almost the right price, I turned up my nose, saying ‘but I want to <em>make</em> it pretty, I don’t want to <em>buy</em> it pretty’. There’s no pleasing some people.</div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-64804856035895301432011-06-15T18:27:00.000+02:002011-06-15T18:27:37.773+02:00Laziness vs the urge to nestI have to admit, I haven't been the most social of creatures lately. Work, moving away from the city centre, and being (please feel free to cringe) loved up have all kept me away from that place known as 'outside' for several months now. I keep promising to go out more, but come the weekend I'm so tired and life is so messy that often I just want to stay in and nest (aka tidy up). Trouble is, we don't stay in and nest, we stay in and watch films, take siestas, organize trips, make pancakes, drink wine, read, look at silly videos on Youtube and all other kinds of pretty unproductive but enjoyable pastimes. <br />
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Yet I fantasize about nesting, about all those homely, domestic-goddess type tasks that I promise I'll get round to as soon as we finish the next episode of Game of Thrones. I'm just reading over what I've written here and see, that without realising it I've become a Dinky 'Double Income No Kids' - not quite sure if I'm meant to be pleased about that, but I admit that for the moment, and for the first time, it does give me the 'luxury' of time-rich weekends but without all the strapped-for-cash issues of my 20s (and erm, a year ago). I must clarify that I didn't suddenly get rich or find a sugar daddy, just that money is thankfully no longer a big problem.<br />
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So here goes, my nesting projects for summer-autumn 2011 (I promise to stop using the N word from here on and while I’m at it I promise that I will never refer to myself as a yummy mummy no matter how smug and earth-motherly I become):<br />
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• <strong><span style="background-color: white; color: #e06666; font-size: large;">Making home-made cleaning products.</span></strong> But you HATE cleaning! Yes, but I also hate the idea of using toxic nasties. I did a trawl of the various sites offering tips on ‘natural’ cleaning products and the verdict is that it’s better for the environment, better for health and better for my pocket. Just need to see if they work. As ever, I have trouble getting the right ingredients here - the recipes called for ingredients like white vinegar, castile soap and borax which you can get - but not from my local <em>droguería</em> who were aghast at the fact I wanted to buy food (vinegar) from a drug store. I figure out that for the moment Marseille soap and apple vinegar will have to do. Here are some recipe pages, one in <a href="http://www.ecototal.com/autosuficiencia/235-productos-de-limpieza-ecologicos">Spanish</a> and one in <a href="http://www.re-nest.com/re-nest/email/20-diy-green-cleaning-recipes-for-the-whole-house-141129">English</a> – will let you know how I get on scrubbing the bath with half a lemon filled with bicarb!<br />
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• <strong><span style="color: #e06666;"><span style="font-size: large;">Cook something from one of my recipe books once a week.</span> </span></strong>I don’t know when I stopped buying recipe books and just searched for recipes on the internet instead? But over the past few years, what was a bi-yearly shopping spree on Amazon has dwindled to nothing. However, I still have my shelves groaning with Nigellas, Nigels and Jamies waiting to be made proper use of. Surely even I can manage to delve into them once a week and try something new? I love <a href="http://www.thebittenword.com/thebittenword/">this project an American couple</a> set up to make use of their bulging food magazine collection. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUpNq9oT3zekwBorOLeX1x_ztUw7C_F8Ud7MaAh4g1OSQW0abrcZdyzDtBjCaZmf6lqRHxQj7v1QOsD5Hqyiqh2KgTlwMSsjpHHokFu76D-BWDzW1K4G7jMmngOQWdG0RuVSS9ShOct11p/s1600/imagesCAEHW6QP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUpNq9oT3zekwBorOLeX1x_ztUw7C_F8Ud7MaAh4g1OSQW0abrcZdyzDtBjCaZmf6lqRHxQj7v1QOsD5Hqyiqh2KgTlwMSsjpHHokFu76D-BWDzW1K4G7jMmngOQWdG0RuVSS9ShOct11p/s1600/imagesCAEHW6QP.jpg" t8="true" /></a></div><br />
• <strong><span style="color: #e06666; font-size: large;">Buy a sewing machine and make stuff.</span></strong> I have always loved to sew and am not bad at it – it suits my quick-fix nature much better than knitting which I love the idea of but find painfully slow to get good at. I have this book by Amy Butler with loads of easy projects that can be speedily stitched and I love the fact that you can rustle up cloth napkin rings, cushion covers, and whatnot in less than an hour and avoid the neo-chintz ugliness that is the El Corte Inglés home department. And with Christmas 6 months away, do I have time to stingily but lovingly make all my presents? <br />
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• <strong><span style="color: #e06666; font-size: large;">A meditation corner</span></strong> (or any peaceful little corner to call my own). I know you can meditate anywhere, but this is just a little luxury I’d love to have, space permitting. I don’t even meditate properly, but since last summer in Bali dedicating little bits of time to myself in the form of quiet contemplation or ‘just being’ have become quite important to me. Our home is a quite colourful due to the fact that we have the sum of 2 lives in one place, but this corner would be white, with my little white Buddha as a centerpiece – I imagine lots of whites and off-whites but different textures – velvet cushions, a plaster-framed mirror, a rag rug, scented candles, a notebook and pen, orchids… completely whimsical I know. I have a couple of examples that I’ve seen online (below) but none of them really capture what I have in mind - I'll have to do a post on furniture and accessories for a meditation corner.<br />
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Happy N******!Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-2485877137653086402011-05-23T15:42:00.001+02:002011-05-23T15:45:07.151+02:00The best exhibition I've seen in agesIf you like modern architecture to the point of being slightly geeky about it then get yourself down to <em>Domusae</em> - in the old <em>Museo del Ejercito</em> on Calle de Méndez Núñez 1 (nearish to the Prado) before 16th June 2011 when the exhibition is gone forever! It's a stunningly exhibited selection of cultural buildings (libraries, museums, public archives) from around the country. All of the projects are gorgeous and are either new or older buildings that have been rehabilitated with a modern edge. Models of the buildings and in-depth interviews with the architects are presented beautifully in the old <em>Salon de Reinos - </em>picture below. It made me realise that often when visiting famous Spanish cities I made a beeline straight for the old classics missing out on many modern gems. Definitely worth a couple of hours of your time.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgZdA0HrSxEA9vR7ycr3Z-R7LJXAA_zyYlrGl86hgRWwz3R1vTsbgxskqRpLnqh049xPAWSj4iQKe7l1w0jYfa-Q5GOzLAMyaTkQJAqLmO6qVCFIrSZl6bRJ7v3rgZ7hzjteT1PvCY6NMj/s1600/DOMUSae01_big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgZdA0HrSxEA9vR7ycr3Z-R7LJXAA_zyYlrGl86hgRWwz3R1vTsbgxskqRpLnqh049xPAWSj4iQKe7l1w0jYfa-Q5GOzLAMyaTkQJAqLmO6qVCFIrSZl6bRJ7v3rgZ7hzjteT1PvCY6NMj/s1600/DOMUSae01_big.jpg" /></a></div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-81743368588165061692011-05-15T23:05:00.001+02:002011-05-15T23:08:28.505+02:003 beauty bummers and what I do about themI have a dear friend who loves to rifle through the make-up bags of her best chums, trying out tubes of lipstick - ooing and asking where you got certain products and what they are for. I can totally relate to this sentiment. The things I learn about cosmetics, lotions and potions (and trust me, I don't know that much) I always tend to pick up from friends and peers and hardly every from glossy magazines which I can't help but feel are encouraged to gush over new products by PR people. Websites like my old favourite <a href="http://www.makeupalley.com/">Make-up Alley</a> with its hundreds of reviews - mean that the group of 'peers' with whom to share knowledge is bigger than ever, and I won't splash out on expensive slap without consulting there first. So, in the spirit of 'sharing' I thought I'd post on my own beauty problem areas and how I address them - little things that are part of my routine, help me look and feel a bit nicer and might work for others out there that have the same issues.<br />
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1. <strong>The frizzies</strong><strong>.</strong> This is going to sound PATHETIC but buying a professional hairdryer has changed my life! I have hair that manages to be both straight and frizzy at the same time and so porously dry that soaks up all the water and takes fooorrevvveer to dry. That was until I splashed out on a professional high-wattage Valera hairdryer. It saves me 15 minutes in the morning on hairwash days and makes my hair so much shinier and more manageable. On a recent work trip I had to take my old travel hairdryer and it was like a sparrow was blowing on my hair.. took forever and looked crap. I'm afraid next time the biggie is going to have to come with me - even if that means chucking out a pair of shoes. The only disadvantage is that I have to be more careful about drying my hair out - I always make sure I use a good serum and do a hair mask once a week.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilFuNBJ9AN8mNSRxIbOf1GFjkgmDyXtnUJIgiYg1yXzBKNNuQq1YdpQr83il1qC-QV4nbYCw7abXCQgtwu276MjOIrRbU4nFw9F6ZU6eMX1ae0fTL6q8LmYy00m8M5Oa61c3GEEKA3MnAG/s1600/index_rotocord_440x490.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilFuNBJ9AN8mNSRxIbOf1GFjkgmDyXtnUJIgiYg1yXzBKNNuQq1YdpQr83il1qC-QV4nbYCw7abXCQgtwu276MjOIrRbU4nFw9F6ZU6eMX1ae0fTL6q8LmYy00m8M5Oa61c3GEEKA3MnAG/s320/index_rotocord_440x490.jpg" width="287" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">2. <strong>Teenage breakouts in my 30s!</strong> Some people suit cream cleansers, I don't. Although they leave my skin lovely the first week in time they give me breakouts. On the other extreme I find gels and soaps can be a bit harsh and drying. My halfway house is what the beauty gurus seem to be calling 'hot cloth cleansing' - in other words using a flannel good old-fashiones style. I slather on a lightweight cream cleanser - I like Avene's Gentle Cleanser - then wipe it off with a hot damp cloth or flannel. The trick is to use a clean face-cloth every day to avoid breakouts and nasty bacterial transference. This may sound a bit extravagent, but what I have are 7 identical super-cheapy flannels from <a href="http://www.tigerstores.co.uk/">Tiger</a> - I use the same one morning and night (turning it over) and chuck them in the wash with the 2 loads of washing we do per week at home. Skin feels lovely and clean and you get a daily exfoliation too. I'm told Liz Earle has a hot muslin cloth system that's very nice - also for more see <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/mar/26/hot-cloth-cleansing-beauty">Sali Hughes video</a> in the Guardian - as she says, no wasteful cotton wool involved.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA05bbC4Z6klwlm27AtpmNx41_SjXnwVkPY4k_06DFKEBVUJKj4ycdjBCZQF6fTfjnKZlAh6pr-Gk7RYoXwOPweRwddHXjYAHRiVEkM8bEOADI1e17xlDW_3bXvvMxgSHtDnc_jrl7_qrO/s1600/3136_1_Large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA05bbC4Z6klwlm27AtpmNx41_SjXnwVkPY4k_06DFKEBVUJKj4ycdjBCZQF6fTfjnKZlAh6pr-Gk7RYoXwOPweRwddHXjYAHRiVEkM8bEOADI1e17xlDW_3bXvvMxgSHtDnc_jrl7_qrO/s1600/3136_1_Large.jpg" /></a></div>3. <strong>Yucky morning face.</strong> You know those days when you wake up and look pasty, dully and pretty much poo? Well late nights and frequent travel mean I have them more often than not! I think all women who use cosmetics probably have their own particular make-up tricks for these days, and here are mine. Firstly, hot-cloth cleanse and give your skin a good massage with warm water to help smooth out any puffiness or lines - now for the cover-up job: 1. I swap foundation for tinted moisturiser which doesn't sit in 'cracks' - for me this just means mixing my MAC Studiofix foundation with a bit of moisturiser. 2. Concealer - possibly the most important step - I get scary dark circles, but find <a href="http://www.bobbibrowncosmetics.com/templates/products/mpp/index.tmpl?CATEGORY_ID=CATEGORY22762">Bobbi Brown's Creamy Concealer</a> covers the worst of them. I dab it into the shadows and also onto the upper eyelid to even out the colour. Finally I take a shimmery ivory coloured shadow and lightly dab it into the inner corners of my eyes and just a hint under the brows - really opens the eyes up. 3. Cheeks - a bit of Guerlain's Terracota bronzer follwed by a touch of pink blush - just a little to avoid ther Aunt Sally look - gives a look that's somewhere between sunkissed and rosy-cheeked healthyness. I also pop a bit of bronzer on my chin and the bridge of my nose. 4. Eyes, with a sharpened eye liner I draw a very very thin line next to my upper lashes from the outer corner to the centre of the eye and blend with a brush, depending on my mood I'll repeat for lower lids too. Mascara - 2 thin coats. 5. Lips - I line them with a pencil the same as my natural lip colour and blend in with my fingers - I then add a tinted lip balm by Korres or MAC or fill in with a pale baby pink <a href="http://es.clarins.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/beauty-products_los-labios-y-unas_rouge-prodige_C050302009_10251_12301_-5_92532_33667_33651">Clarins Rouge Prodige</a> lipstick + blot.<br />
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All this might sound a lot, but it takes only 5 ninutes and very little colour is used as less is more on a tired face - a spritz of something that smells lovely and I'm ready to face the day!Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-84748367650757646942011-05-03T12:06:00.001+02:002011-05-03T12:08:59.924+02:005 things I loved about ParisWe've just come back from my first time in Paris. Needless to say I'm in love with the city, there was so much I liked that it's hard to know where to begin but here are 5 favourites to start with...<br />
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1. Staying in a cute Parisian apartment. One thing I’ve learnt on my travels is that if I can’t stay in a lovely hotel I’ll stay in a rented apartment and live like a local! I can’t begin to describe how much more pleasant it was to pick up croissants and pan aux chocolat from the bakery below rather than the hotel buffet.<br />
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2. A cliché but… the Eiffel Tower. Not on top of it – 1.5 hours is just too long to queue for lazy old <em>moi</em>. However, we passed a happy hour or so sat on a grassy verge (unexplicably free of other people – I guess they were all queueing) gazing at the lit up tower by night. At 11pm the sparkly light show began, and I couldn’t help but shed a little tear – then a storm brewed up and we had to run off into a little café for shelter just like in the movies!<br />
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3. The supermarkets. Sorry to say it but Spain’s supermarkets can be somewhat limited (unless you go to the Corte Inglés)… We had a field day browsing the aisles of goodies both French and stuff that I miss from back home… <em>rillete</em>, maple syrup, buttery biscuits, stinky stinky cheeses, smoked mackerel, North African spices, red wine… and best of all the beauty counter – not for fancy international names like Dior (which you can easily pick up here) but the cheaper local brands that feel and smell divine but won’t break the bank balance (<a href="http://www.lepetitolivier.com/site/dsp/dsp_produit/dsp_type.php?id_type=8&id_langue=en">Le Petit Olivier's</a> fair trade shea butter body lotion was a particular favourite). Also, check out this Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop site for her tips on <a href="http://goop.com/newsletter/114/en/">French pharmacy brands</a>. Wanting to extend our Paris experience beyond the 5 day break we brought along an extra case to fill with cheeses to take home – said suitcase is still on the balcony being aired – as despite double wrapping all the munsters and camamberts the smell still steeped through – just glad we didn’t put any clothes in there!<br />
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4. Montmartre. A hilly district in the north of Paris with a slightly boho villagey feel – little lanes and streets full of boutiques, delicatessens, pavement cafes and the setting for the film Amelie – need I say more :-) See fruit stall above)<br />
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5. Seeking out the best views – here are the best we found (apart from Sacre Coeur in Montmartre) in no particular order: 1) On top of the Galeries Lafayette department store – I was also stunned by the amazing stained glass cupola seen from inside (photo below). 2) On top of the slightly posher Printemps department store next door. 3) On top of the Pompidou centre (above) – if you want to go up without going into the gallery at the front of the building to the left you’ll see a security guy sat by a lift – tell him you’re going to the café and he’ll unlock it for you – go up to the 6th floor to enjoy the view. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHa-vzkd9YGftAYNX5RisXcuM5eImPsg-SHDXWjjVDews1OslRNU5L0d780Sac_-VgClEOeQOdh_xj9goCnpNd98M6aKeoUhwtpicm4C6WCXm_xeKcvwnzQW7BbYVkZXhDGhx2IX7byztL/s1600/LafayetteAnalysis_med.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHa-vzkd9YGftAYNX5RisXcuM5eImPsg-SHDXWjjVDews1OslRNU5L0d780Sac_-VgClEOeQOdh_xj9goCnpNd98M6aKeoUhwtpicm4C6WCXm_xeKcvwnzQW7BbYVkZXhDGhx2IX7byztL/s320/LafayetteAnalysis_med.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
5 days really wasn’t enough to even begin to scratch the surface of Paris, but as it’s next door there’s really no excuse not to go back soon - a driving tour round France next summer perhaps?!Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-83648144721067242322011-04-26T09:25:00.000+02:002011-04-26T09:25:52.502+02:00Paris preview<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGxlf9Bx1XKdvuiUrE_cUcXCZ_cb9YmuoFa-kH_393O9d8UeCQEk1s7EGAt29I6SjD1tttjZQJ4uJwnC3dZMpJ3PfHXj9hpgf4CVe3QUFn04treh6fXpQEZucENsHQ8jKDlBOl8KZtcmF3/s1600/IsThereAPaparazzi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" i8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGxlf9Bx1XKdvuiUrE_cUcXCZ_cb9YmuoFa-kH_393O9d8UeCQEk1s7EGAt29I6SjD1tttjZQJ4uJwnC3dZMpJ3PfHXj9hpgf4CVe3QUFn04treh6fXpQEZucENsHQ8jKDlBOl8KZtcmF3/s320/IsThereAPaparazzi.jpg" width="180" /></a>We just got back from a lovely, sunny Easter in Paris - my first time! Photos and anecdotes to follow soon :-)</div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-80442531504182214052011-03-27T20:49:00.000+02:002011-03-27T20:49:30.786+02:00Another weekend away<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This weekend to celebrate, among other things, our anniversary and my new (now old) job I prepared a surprise trip – I wanted somewhere no more than 2 hours from Madrid (for practical reasons) and something very rural but with a bit of style. A few hours of googling and somewhat disappointed with the amount of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">casas rurales</i> with dusty vases of dried flowers and flammable bedspreads I stumbled upon <a href="http://www.hotelnabia.com/index.html">Hotel Nabia</a> in the <em>Sierra de Gredos</em> at the foot of <em>Almanzor</em> mountain and with views over the picturesque <em>Valle del Tietar</em>. The hotel is gorgeous - see photo of room 14 below where we stayed - breakfast is also yummy serving all kinds of local goodies. In the vicinity you can go to nearby village Candeleda which is quite pretty (see bottom photo) and eat roast lamb/goat and there are plenty of stunning walking routes if your inclined to hiking. But to be honest, it's worth the journey (2.20 hours from Madrid) just to wake up to such gorgeous views of the valley.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizpE-7HaChThgBuxLudZitx06-Y-ZW-kop-m9Q6nxKpTXduDlmVv2xuToKRiICQo1DX7Y23yTa4rpi4DhwQCe_L9zKzW8f4gAXuhawADYa5TdwMIRzlaNZZH2HsKYRu6ugsv2EXxte-xeG/s1600/Room14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizpE-7HaChThgBuxLudZitx06-Y-ZW-kop-m9Q6nxKpTXduDlmVv2xuToKRiICQo1DX7Y23yTa4rpi4DhwQCe_L9zKzW8f4gAXuhawADYa5TdwMIRzlaNZZH2HsKYRu6ugsv2EXxte-xeG/s320/Room14.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTlPwTtgkA9Mi0flmw7K3xV8J5uyYXOurXp8bO1jzXPiJiB3OIT5i7VhaZretILUWJGlBAc9dNZM0UIGhdPuaDb_pKzVdk9EZ1GXOMyY9kD2oIMeIyle7FzZ47Y83s1bsbbbuSGaxzGFZ7/s1600/P1100107.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTlPwTtgkA9Mi0flmw7K3xV8J5uyYXOurXp8bO1jzXPiJiB3OIT5i7VhaZretILUWJGlBAc9dNZM0UIGhdPuaDb_pKzVdk9EZ1GXOMyY9kD2oIMeIyle7FzZ47Y83s1bsbbbuSGaxzGFZ7/s320/P1100107.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6QMRRxPErI1IQ5ZiTZIsRMEg75Vav_9Yu33J_-eh20m0lv2GfL7zdW6gfSRzFmnzpNEHTaT_vWy9gADCtCDoXOX1TLanqPuxyZrk3B0raEG_FpuSnN7keFvhDgvaXBzrkMiC_eioEHLoH/s1600/P1100122.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6QMRRxPErI1IQ5ZiTZIsRMEg75Vav_9Yu33J_-eh20m0lv2GfL7zdW6gfSRzFmnzpNEHTaT_vWy9gADCtCDoXOX1TLanqPuxyZrk3B0raEG_FpuSnN7keFvhDgvaXBzrkMiC_eioEHLoH/s320/P1100122.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><br />
</div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-65961039902013884762011-03-19T21:11:00.006+01:002011-03-20T22:45:02.696+01:00Cream of Spinach soup<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieNEH2IaikAdDAWiuzddPWtx54UzQXKGjvV3N6-zcZz9I2FHomakfLeuRa5f1O_eVGC0uUi3r_rp-9QjI-qXwauIoFNSpVRDhxI6Az774VWSxTDkyJEPn473C3VNIcBKyvYfSuEEb14jnZ/s1600/SAM_1871.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieNEH2IaikAdDAWiuzddPWtx54UzQXKGjvV3N6-zcZz9I2FHomakfLeuRa5f1O_eVGC0uUi3r_rp-9QjI-qXwauIoFNSpVRDhxI6Az774VWSxTDkyJEPn473C3VNIcBKyvYfSuEEb14jnZ/s320/SAM_1871.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>As seems to happen with me every few months, once again I'm mildly aneamic. Instead of resorting to iron pills which don't agree with me all that well I'm taking a more natural route - starting off yesterday evening with some homemade spinach soup - absolutely delicious even if I do say so myself. Here's the recipe which is a mixture of stuff I've seen online and a bit of my own inspiration (I measured out amounts pretty much guessing as I went along, but if you taste as I go I think it's quite hard to go wrong with this one).<br />
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Ingredients (will serve 4 'normal' people or 2-3 greedy guts like us):<br />
1 huge bunch of spinach (stalks trimmed)<br />
Good vegetable stock (I used Aneto - all natural, no additives) - around a third of a litre.<br />
Around 1/4 litre of milk<br />
A largish onion finely chopped<br />
Big chunk of butter<br />
Flour a desertspoon or a bit more<br />
2 slices of cured sheep's cheese - though given the choice I would have used a Kraft cheese slice here (something that is normally inedible but comes into its own when used in green vegetable soups)<br />
Cream - a good dash and extra to serve<br />
White pepper<br />
Salt<br />
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In a big pot melt the butter and add the onion, fry gently until transparent. Sprinkle flour over the top and blend in to make a thick paste/roux type mixture. Gradually blend in the milk- when dissolved add the stock and bring to the boil - I've been pretty inexact about the quantities of stock and milk but basically they should be 50:50 an reach up to about 2.5 inches above the base of the pot. Add the spinach and cook on a medium heat until wilted and soft. Remove from the heat and blend with a hand blender until smooth. Crumble the cheese into the soup and whizz with blender. Whizz in a little flour if it's too runny. Check seasoning, adding white pepper and salt. Serve with a swish of cream and crusty bread. Enjoy!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcE7Gv7vdTLJPPNe7H0lfkAxWMY0r0jbFfIQXBUR99E-Qmw8fsKVVMjfQ1VicQ5FHXCR0dEqyCM6HMBHl-ygscXjviSy4XmIQSW65OZymWUm4Gk0-__rUZwlmQim6pe8Dt0FuB5tHqYqXW/s1600/SAM_1862.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcE7Gv7vdTLJPPNe7H0lfkAxWMY0r0jbFfIQXBUR99E-Qmw8fsKVVMjfQ1VicQ5FHXCR0dEqyCM6HMBHl-ygscXjviSy4XmIQSW65OZymWUm4Gk0-__rUZwlmQim6pe8Dt0FuB5tHqYqXW/s320/SAM_1862.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfzfF16omccwwz9pMSDyNDERAsuTCIxCQIxNAHyUHAKspyzpKl3c258ntFtDCX_BYuWFa3twhuwjVkj1GiIjEecB46bJbhZcVC5BK-X7Hrk_FH-kUXRxFfveE_ZjKHdcqN_qUnNb4sJ9y2/s1600/SAM_1863.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfzfF16omccwwz9pMSDyNDERAsuTCIxCQIxNAHyUHAKspyzpKl3c258ntFtDCX_BYuWFa3twhuwjVkj1GiIjEecB46bJbhZcVC5BK-X7Hrk_FH-kUXRxFfveE_ZjKHdcqN_qUnNb4sJ9y2/s320/SAM_1863.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ1rNDywsrnsbpoW0mi07sR-tVOyJ97xSLxUASg4pxOy3zHMiwsJ3ZBtVjKQiH8jhLpwBp_YYn3ky-fpGniPYtia7ttsqsoH4_48U9dUkhN1JwExct68WgM636b7aeDSGtz9DZoihyphenhyphenEYm_/s1600/SAM_1867.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ1rNDywsrnsbpoW0mi07sR-tVOyJ97xSLxUASg4pxOy3zHMiwsJ3ZBtVjKQiH8jhLpwBp_YYn3ky-fpGniPYtia7ttsqsoH4_48U9dUkhN1JwExct68WgM636b7aeDSGtz9DZoihyphenhyphenEYm_/s320/SAM_1867.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQt8PCfpE2R0S093o52ThYwzA5m3giT5o1hzXPMgH0spomC6xQRWwSgUIkGyaDsmLJqa9xQsTEiNPSULRIo5pHiRu6F87WFu4j-2CEApLTqn2GbpxWmNRd0csPv6lDP_ttbu5HF6-ZfU2w/s1600/SAM_1869.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQt8PCfpE2R0S093o52ThYwzA5m3giT5o1hzXPMgH0spomC6xQRWwSgUIkGyaDsmLJqa9xQsTEiNPSULRIo5pHiRu6F87WFu4j-2CEApLTqn2GbpxWmNRd0csPv6lDP_ttbu5HF6-ZfU2w/s320/SAM_1869.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-37981192093970345642011-03-15T12:42:00.000+01:002011-03-15T12:42:25.170+01:00A thought for Japan<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC90TFuaTBccnTLRKajh3v3vXGrxsGUA4k98Ao7mLavat57z_NdOehmnOn4hNbGE6bRM5-j_IX12p7Adv6-jUNH2bHsHERhfyujEYEyDkYaAY6tJXBkZOAt8p3wMfk-RZHbcIjvWHlJwaY/s1600/Japan.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" q6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC90TFuaTBccnTLRKajh3v3vXGrxsGUA4k98Ao7mLavat57z_NdOehmnOn4hNbGE6bRM5-j_IX12p7Adv6-jUNH2bHsHERhfyujEYEyDkYaAY6tJXBkZOAt8p3wMfk-RZHbcIjvWHlJwaY/s1600/Japan.bmp" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">These days Japan is on my mind, I can’t really think what to write about this horrible tragedy. I remind myself of how lucky I am that my loved ones are safe, to make the most of every day and smile at the little things in life. Thinking of everyone out there.</span></span></div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-91466541198513290322011-03-09T08:48:00.001+01:002011-03-09T08:52:34.380+01:00A knight in SiguenzaLast weekend, and in celebration of David's tenureship, we spent the night in the <a href="http://www.paradores.es/es/tratarFichaParadorCabecera.do;jsessionid=35B11480831062FADFFE21027EAEF980?parador=075">Parador at Siguenza</a>. The hotel is a medieval castle from the 12th century and a makes a really atmospheric getaway for a wintry weekend; suits of armour and stone fireplaces aplenty. One of the best places to eat in the town also happens to be the parador where we had roast suckling pig (<em>cochinillo</em>) and <em>migas</em> which are, er...breadcrumbs...though so much tastier than they sound - chunky breadcrumbs fried with a fatty paprika rich sausage known as chistorra and served in this case with a variety of acompaniments: fried egg, baby green peppers, bacon, gammon, cheese, preserved red peppers and grapes. The idea is that you roughly chop the runny egg and greasy chistorra into the crumbs then eat with the rest of the garnishes. Sounds yucky but tastes yummy. Prior to this I had only ever stayed at Paradores when travelling with work - basically they are state owned hotels, almost always in historic buildings and usually 4 star. Also it worked out to be great value as we managed to get an escapada joven (youth getaway) which is about 40euros less than the normal pruice - funny how in Spain joven is up to 35 - funny in a good way of course, but surprising compared to the UK where your 'young persons rail card' is no longer valid at the 'ancient' age of 26... and I only have a couple more years of escapadas joven to go so I'd better get my skates on ;-)<br />
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Here are some photos of the weekend plus an example of what <em>migas</em> look like. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Siguenza Parador</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOdmnqC4NKptn78AS93sivKjvzm4Y_hkbqpI1RwcMEriGp4Tbx5vBbrPOkxxIpAZPDwKZhCsPADWwTa1sSe_t14MD68k2cNTRXG-qpvIiq1zEgcuk7dFd1k_K0hozQeUQfBvvQktQVuETE/s1600/SAM_1841.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" q6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOdmnqC4NKptn78AS93sivKjvzm4Y_hkbqpI1RwcMEriGp4Tbx5vBbrPOkxxIpAZPDwKZhCsPADWwTa1sSe_t14MD68k2cNTRXG-qpvIiq1zEgcuk7dFd1k_K0hozQeUQfBvvQktQVuETE/s320/SAM_1841.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This second photo is taken in a castle in Jadraque that is closed to the public but seeing as some local youths had already broken down the fencing we sneaked in :-)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9beZoecmqyuiapEZ3ieLNp1JATFdJsSUjMP8R4REn7W2bdzjaW_vmFwz5kh7-VMs93jWfroJBDjc6rM4deLyVQwJGbMMlAsCBWaLtWTUDAz8oER_fmzrV10Xjssa0Oa0Oa_wz8eO6yN1W/s1600/migas-extremenas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" q6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9beZoecmqyuiapEZ3ieLNp1JATFdJsSUjMP8R4REn7W2bdzjaW_vmFwz5kh7-VMs93jWfroJBDjc6rM4deLyVQwJGbMMlAsCBWaLtWTUDAz8oER_fmzrV10Xjssa0Oa0Oa_wz8eO6yN1W/s320/migas-extremenas.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Migas with accompaniments - <a href="http://www.ojoalplato.com/archives/2800">source</a></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Views of the deserted castle<br />
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<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-73317565547673979972011-03-06T21:45:00.001+01:002011-03-09T08:49:14.798+01:00Bling covetingBoy is it scary blogging when you haven't done it in a while. I feel expectant, like the words should just flow like they used to, and they don't... at least not yet. So to ease myself in, here's a light and airy little list of some stuff I like, jewellery to be specific - a bit odd for me as I barely even wear jewellery, but over the years there have been a few pieces that have caught my eye and that I thought I'd post here.<br />
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Swatch Bijoux Love Explosion ring. I think this one of the first pieces Swatch came out with years back when it launched its Bijoux jewellery collection and it's been a best-seller ever since, apparently even Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston bought them for each other back in the day. So whimsical and pretty.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqttCaay-eyrtdKRnEgVP1Iu3Ux9khX61909ezxJEUa7rF7DDdC3NaRbTJH8ik4kg91p-RHWZ_GkP3MuJDVM7oTYYRcPXOFWY8a5fBvaWwwMkMJwt8I98oCEXJRhoD3gWPZRxzyeEIKsBm/s1600/th300_swatch_love_explosion_red_02_1291038966.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqttCaay-eyrtdKRnEgVP1Iu3Ux9khX61909ezxJEUa7rF7DDdC3NaRbTJH8ik4kg91p-RHWZ_GkP3MuJDVM7oTYYRcPXOFWY8a5fBvaWwwMkMJwt8I98oCEXJRhoD3gWPZRxzyeEIKsBm/s1600/th300_swatch_love_explosion_red_02_1291038966.jpg" /></a></div>A cute mother's day present would be this <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/64531586/two-name-charm-hand-stamped-personalized?ref=v1_other_1">pendant from jcjewelry design on Etsy</a>. Personalised with the names of of you and your siblings and adorned with a freshwater pearl, this is a lovely gift. There is also the option of birthstones instead of pearls.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdQWx6CzssrRma-OdSdonOEGMLw499S0qPf0Uzh-BwqM0PBxoeo-87tiesTV79o3mjWqNgsGFDTO10ipykxMIfMS-B1fsER_T6__8UngTXO2DZXfFi61oW1lvaPYqPz5sFLV1zxxy1ThUM/s1600/etsy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="290" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdQWx6CzssrRma-OdSdonOEGMLw499S0qPf0Uzh-BwqM0PBxoeo-87tiesTV79o3mjWqNgsGFDTO10ipykxMIfMS-B1fsER_T6__8UngTXO2DZXfFi61oW1lvaPYqPz5sFLV1zxxy1ThUM/s320/etsy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Also on my love list (after seeing one on the wrist of one my glamourous colleagues) is the <a href="http://www.linksoflondon.com/online-shop/women/bracelets/11091-friendship-bracelet-copper-and-grey-39-bars">Links of London</a> friendship bracelet. The photos don't do these justice at all - in real life they are so pretty.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnV7Y-STYaSD4kVraP5VJVo4EU_s_YfiKmS7DPjU3GS5O__n4daTQaCfw0rmzW8YU6-oAlKlrY1q4kz-_SD_1vt-r7-zyxbkW6Vc1u2CHWvzhOTr0t4R2z6dH_Uu5XFRnjO-lH_36AshEF/s1600/11091-metallic-copper-and-grey-friendship-bracelet-image-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnV7Y-STYaSD4kVraP5VJVo4EU_s_YfiKmS7DPjU3GS5O__n4daTQaCfw0rmzW8YU6-oAlKlrY1q4kz-_SD_1vt-r7-zyxbkW6Vc1u2CHWvzhOTr0t4R2z6dH_Uu5XFRnjO-lH_36AshEF/s320/11091-metallic-copper-and-grey-friendship-bracelet-image-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizlxM0SC3Wdcx4SnrjrfbHUlayuWnHFkupDO5ZSec4pZvXrMGrGXq3ZfwmS25poVns0M_Y9b8-i1q0BY_6dPqSUwLacmV3emA4_BULVtls3D-VwaII64w7ypUNUFK8BBdG-8qUizj03r3y/s1600/6727-pewter-and-white-friendship-bracelet-image-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizlxM0SC3Wdcx4SnrjrfbHUlayuWnHFkupDO5ZSec4pZvXrMGrGXq3ZfwmS25poVns0M_Y9b8-i1q0BY_6dPqSUwLacmV3emA4_BULVtls3D-VwaII64w7ypUNUFK8BBdG-8qUizj03r3y/s400/6727-pewter-and-white-friendship-bracelet-image-1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">Something cute by Thomas Sabo, like this charm carrier bracelet. I'm not a fan of charms when it looks like you've got most of the monuments in western Eurpe hanging off your arm, but something a little subtler I'm all for. And how about this little olive green flower or hand of Fatima charm to go with it?</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy7wgsJFFjvLufznrr5c6V8okawxNsyjD2HJEtPm27UDSUCt2q1NoqpcNTpw-PAc7fRScvYxWaFf7tT4PnclwiV8XkIYgsKeDTgH13Tc7TzoQKRNb2HLSZ15aGfk7nWmw8yydyIwXkSSIt/s1600/X0099-087-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy7wgsJFFjvLufznrr5c6V8okawxNsyjD2HJEtPm27UDSUCt2q1NoqpcNTpw-PAc7fRScvYxWaFf7tT4PnclwiV8XkIYgsKeDTgH13Tc7TzoQKRNb2HLSZ15aGfk7nWmw8yydyIwXkSSIt/s320/X0099-087-11.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtnvqgR_jErRK93LmXgdJNR8vA4mJ4LPdAos5g3tnuXqzqkzOGvCyVVYL9RFcD011DHjt_N4GP0eDDEDi3VDbUxA9stNwhwoc8nDg032IvumFTnbZWTLCXJTbce3MimPUWuqRvlVES93y6/s1600/0373-051-14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtnvqgR_jErRK93LmXgdJNR8vA4mJ4LPdAos5g3tnuXqzqkzOGvCyVVYL9RFcD011DHjt_N4GP0eDDEDi3VDbUxA9stNwhwoc8nDg032IvumFTnbZWTLCXJTbce3MimPUWuqRvlVES93y6/s320/0373-051-14.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg24DGJdx_pHZ7J1gps_m4OZ0SX2VloEDbBGwvp48HD06EbVU14nFL38tSQ0Y-HIAB0ETqZMqoFSZ2sit2E9E6cdOpQ-hbBcQB8DbNOzDNBWjAcEdqJk9dhT0lHjKaP9kB8p0k0SmJWMU24/s1600/0712-021-6_C.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg24DGJdx_pHZ7J1gps_m4OZ0SX2VloEDbBGwvp48HD06EbVU14nFL38tSQ0Y-HIAB0ETqZMqoFSZ2sit2E9E6cdOpQ-hbBcQB8DbNOzDNBWjAcEdqJk9dhT0lHjKaP9kB8p0k0SmJWMU24/s320/0712-021-6_C.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Cartier Love bracelet. Would I look like a gangster's moll wearing it? Maybe, But I like it. And the romantic in me (or perhaps the prison warden in me :p)loves the idea of your adored one 'locking' it onto your wrist.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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Well it's Sunday evening now and I'm going to get off to bed as have a long day tomorrow, but this post has got me wondering why I'm happy to spend money on clothes and cosmetics but not jewellery? Maybe it's time for a little gift from me to me :-)<br />
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Have a nice week!Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-39531422965045142622011-01-17T09:48:00.003+01:002011-01-17T09:54:18.583+01:00Winter in Madrid and a recipe to share<img border="0" height="240" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaY_m_BDIT7jksAkg7Vf-xF_pDK1MDPC42gzWgcjUDzRVVeSlhM9oRidx38BgOlrcv555Thyi2rhKtgR6htVF0MiKbo3VmVoCjWzliD0Gj4jBTAmSa7U__Ei08lSsY6fQWJ0VI6zloTJU7/s320/P1080913.JPG" width="320" /><br />
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This winter in Madrid is proving to be particularly enjoyable; not too cold this time round, plenty of home-cooking and good wine, browsing art galleries, day trips (Aranjuez in the photo) and staying in and watching <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caprica_(TV_series)">Caprica </a>(and no, I don’t normally like SciFi but this is one of those series that doesn’t include characters that wear spandex jumpsuits or have bony knobbled foreheads or pointy ears, so I’m actually not averse to it!). I just wanted to share a little side dish that I cooked the other day as it was perhaps the first time that I cooked fennel and it turned out just right. Normally I cut it into lengths then braise it with white wine and butter, and while it’s tasty it’s not ‘come back for seconds’ tasty… but the other day D did roast lamb and I decided that I’d do a side to accompany – a quick Google and voilá (Sp?) – fennel with pine nuts and raisins (a mix of various recipes found online). I’m sorry that as usual I don’t have a photo but promise this is delicious and easy peasy!<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Ingredients (for 2-3 people as a side)</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">1 bulb of fennel</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Tablespoon of butter</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Slug of olive oil</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Small handful of raisins/sultanas</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Small handful of pine nuts</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Salt and pepper to taste</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Chop the fennel into more or less 1.5 cm cubes, meanwhile heat up the butter and oil in a pan. Add the fennel and cook for around 5 minutes on a medium heat, add the pine nuts and raisins, cook until the fennel is done – about 10 more minutes in my case. You might want to partially cover the pan if you find the pine nuts and fennel are getting too dark. Add salt and pepper to taste. Goes beautifully with lamb. Enjoy!</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-82519034627511948352011-01-01T13:43:00.001+01:002011-01-09T11:25:11.992+01:00Happy New Year!Well, it wasn't actually that happy as it was spent arguing with money-grabbing pen-pushers in Khartoum airport, but I feel quietly optimistic about what the year ahead might bring :-) Looking back to last New Years, I think <a href="http://nadyamadrid.blogspot.com/2009/12/happy-new-year.html">this post</a> reveals that I knew certain aspects of my life were not going well and were about to come to a sad end. I'm happy to say that this year things seem to be looking a lot brighter and that the old saying that time is a great healer is at least a little bit true (other stuff like good food and great people also help)<br />
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This Christmas/New Years break has been a little unusual to say the least - there was no turkey, no crackers, no carols and no presents. My brother got married on the 27th December in Sudan (of all places) and so yuletide festivities were cancelled this year and replaced by the mayhem that is a Sudanese wedding - think 1000 guests, tribal <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFPOP_1ANuk">bridal dances</a> (go to minute 1.57), fertility ceremonies, intensive ululation and enough food to make you explode. There's a preview of Sudan photos below but I'll post more soon. As for Christmas, D and I plan to do our own Christmas and New Year in one here in Madrid on Reyes (Epiphany, 7th? January)<br />
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I feel surprisingly relaxed at the start of this new year, none of the intensive 'I must improve' lists of resolutions - I feel reasonably fit, work-wise and relationship-wise things are going great and my big bro just got married :-) Perhaps more than looking to the future (there are a few exciting trips and events in the pipeline that I hope to be able to share here soon :-)) I'll reflect on what I've learnt this year - it's not much I'm afraid and perhaps very obvious but I feel I ought to record it nevertheless:<br />
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1. Know when to give in and ask for help - I've really had to swallow my pride and do that this year - and funnily enough sometimes those closest to you are not the people to get advice from.<br />
2. Don't be afraid to travel alone - I did it for the first time this year (Marrakech and Bali) and it was possibly one of the most enriching experiences of my life - I met great people, had a wonderful time and forgot my woes in a big way.<br />
3. When you want something (a better job and a happy relationship in my case) just keep gnawing away until you get it. That probably sounds awful doesn't it? At the start of this year both of these were looking truly and utterly dire with no light at the end of the tunnel - but I have to say that perseverance, direct communication (i.e. letting people know clearly what I want) and coming at the problem from different angles paid off despite often feeling that I was getting nowhere.<br />
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Hope you all had a lovely Christmas and New Year and that 2011 turns out great for all of us!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvYivEcvLEWxBsUgFSrackLMyP2ODLo1UYdeMdvMqNxj2AbHlAjxuoLAPQSt-5oxeIKK_xoYaM8hW5W4zvT9pWrHaJysfEVKklhhRdu-279BUk8NMwARMLjlr2OvN0EHAfVpc6jVk9oN7w/s1600/SAM_1647.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvYivEcvLEWxBsUgFSrackLMyP2ODLo1UYdeMdvMqNxj2AbHlAjxuoLAPQSt-5oxeIKK_xoYaM8hW5W4zvT9pWrHaJysfEVKklhhRdu-279BUk8NMwARMLjlr2OvN0EHAfVpc6jVk9oN7w/s320/SAM_1647.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My sisters and I at my brothers wedding</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE7GrlL2-In1VmzHLX5zOCO6VUrZMY_dXeqF5-NTcQsnKirgY_zmyJD0HonNOaz8vWuc8VZvhyphenhyphen5hcyHLBXE5Oc912MrzpW71R2IihLFERguymVcgEC0NMZtpJMYuo3qCQE2oHy3Ac81fqi/s1600/SAM_1706.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE7GrlL2-In1VmzHLX5zOCO6VUrZMY_dXeqF5-NTcQsnKirgY_zmyJD0HonNOaz8vWuc8VZvhyphenhyphen5hcyHLBXE5Oc912MrzpW71R2IihLFERguymVcgEC0NMZtpJMYuo3qCQE2oHy3Ac81fqi/s320/SAM_1706.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Henna time</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA9Znqvc99SMaoR3XdVt-3Wy9oZIC9-lmbFW6HKQaU9U-QeCDiEip5Q01cDhkcHEqUW7bhABx0MtIDVXepSBJsr_9Vq0IyCqvp5gQ8_rpPDbvahoODjX2IHCjJkFNPlOJUWxMwJMlJtJ7I/s1600/SAM_1727.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA9Znqvc99SMaoR3XdVt-3Wy9oZIC9-lmbFW6HKQaU9U-QeCDiEip5Q01cDhkcHEqUW7bhABx0MtIDVXepSBJsr_9Vq0IyCqvp5gQ8_rpPDbvahoODjX2IHCjJkFNPlOJUWxMwJMlJtJ7I/s320/SAM_1727.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Where the blue and white nile converge before travelling north (and on to Egypt)</td></tr>
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</div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-54897140866205997882010-12-07T21:32:00.000+01:002010-12-07T21:32:32.210+01:00A lovely bank holiday and a recipe to shareWe are in the midst of a huge bank holiday here in Madrid - all in all it's five days off from Saturday to Wednesday. I so needed this break, and although I haven't done anything particularly exciting I feel like a new woman. On Saturday D and I had a G&T night in, and I wanted something light and fresh to accompany so I made sweetcorn blinis, topped with greek yoghurt whipped with a little Philadelphia cheese (which makes a decent substitute for sour cream, which you can't get in Spain) smoked salmon and..er...Euro Caviar - I promise I wasn't being stingy and would have bought the real thing, albeit a tiny thimble of it... but alas El Corte Inglés's <em>rincon del gourmet</em> isn't always all that gourmet and I couldn't get any... Still, we enjoyed them as luckily I'm a big fan of roe of all types. Sorry, they were devoured so quickly that I forgot to take photos - ok, that plus the fact I was a little tipsy - embarassingly, all I have left is the one remaining sad little blini that somehow managed to miss my mouth and that I have pictured below. Anyway, to make up for my lack of journalistic detail, I will share the recipe :-) <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0HObZqemfYt2q-bFE2FffgLwqXi_7R63ADAgwHa76N1dtN__qbDQpLfvZl2QFImI03F8nuQa7h2RiaNTNoC1wrP7hBXo1Fzjx-PRWkrW4e6sa69dTBO4x0HPKXSn887ZmkQ8ck9MRsNRK/s1600/SAM_1467.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0HObZqemfYt2q-bFE2FffgLwqXi_7R63ADAgwHa76N1dtN__qbDQpLfvZl2QFImI03F8nuQa7h2RiaNTNoC1wrP7hBXo1Fzjx-PRWkrW4e6sa69dTBO4x0HPKXSn887ZmkQ8ck9MRsNRK/s320/SAM_1467.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
The recipe is one I adapted from one I scribbled down on a back of an envelope years ago and while it isn't totally orthodox (no buckwheat flour, and no buttermilk - partly as they're hard to get here and partly due to laziness) I can promise they are very tasty and won't disappoint .<br />
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Ingredients: (makes about 30, 5cm diameter blinis, though again, due to tipsiness I can't vouch for my this 100%)<br />
150g plain flour<br />
250ml milk (you may need to add a little more less when done, check how the texture is, it should be like a thickish cake batter)<br />
3 small eggs, beaten<br />
1/ tsp salt<br />
dessertspoonful baking powder<br />
2 tablespoons of melted butter (I cheated and used a good slug of olive oil)<br />
200g sweetcorn drained (I got mixed up and thought the recipe required fresh corn on the cob, so I removed the kernels from one cob and boiled them for about 15 minutes then let them cool down)<br />
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Mix the flour with the milk with a wooden spoon, beat in eggs, salt, baking powder and butter/oil then add sweetcorn. Fry spoonfuls in a pan with a little oil/butter and turn over when bubbles begin to show on the surface. Serve with soured cream and smoked fish/roe with a twist of lemon. If I had had any mixture left over I would have served it with bacon and eggs the next morning, yummy. Anyway, I'm going to get on with enjoying the rest of this lovely little break and if I get up to anything interesting, I'll let you know :-)Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-28939851365685212542010-11-30T10:22:00.001+01:002010-11-30T10:23:56.067+01:00Running topsThe sheer amount of stuff happening in my life at the moment mean I haven't done a yoga class in a while. My body feels stiff and cranky and in need of a good stretch. I haven't been completely idle these past weeks though, as thanks to David I've taken up running. Yes, me, running. It's something I always thought I'd be totally crap at, but surprisingly in just a couple of weeks (and 4 sessions) I've got up to 5km. Not exactly a marathon I know, but it's a start. Image conscious as ever, I've noticed that I feel much better jogging in D's figure-hugging dri-fit leggings than my own baggy junkie-style tracksuit bottoms. Despite my supposed 'busyness' I've managed to find the time to browse the web in search of stylish ladies running gear - namely tops as I'd rather wear some plain leggins on my bottom half - I'm too lanky to look good in bootleg.<br />
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I love this Alpine top from <a href="http://lululemon.com/">Lululemon</a>, the colour and the fit are just gorgeous and I think the hole in the hood for your pony tail is ingenious - no more ponytail scrunched into a ball and no more looking like a boy when you have your hood up. Sorry the other thumbnails pics are so small.<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">Equally gorgeous but a little more spring-timey is this option from <a href="http://www.sweatybetty.com/long-sleeved-tops-dept1010_pg1/">Sweaty Betty</a>...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh32IXycGwknHBjZXPvyHJEi0OcW5vBTx0oz8W-chCf-XlKPKB5E8dBLPRBOR2UzN1cY9p1U58up7R0KhG1Z9LyATghiYZU08hyphenhyphen6SVRWAcxKhZDPgRj-nW6-SNdxDzxen-CXlKOyREUGNns/s1600/O09562_DarkPurpleF03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh32IXycGwknHBjZXPvyHJEi0OcW5vBTx0oz8W-chCf-XlKPKB5E8dBLPRBOR2UzN1cY9p1U58up7R0KhG1Z9LyATghiYZU08hyphenhyphen6SVRWAcxKhZDPgRj-nW6-SNdxDzxen-CXlKOyREUGNns/s1600/O09562_DarkPurpleF03.jpg" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTgdYWbRy2v-VYC-hrzdE42j0daLn5YxX11RGHTasZ3gSktCgDjoeL1JvQ_lf_j0NJN4hpk71U8X3ZTu7D71vkhyphenhyphenkl3qACZifoD0XBEUNRvONxenOrJbE1gi5HiFuxdTFCG8ZtN9SFXEUe/s1600/SR0072_TaupeShiny.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a>And now, something that even body-conscious old moi would find too daring to run in but that is undeniably very sexy, this Stella McCartney top for Adidas...</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijCIrpNqlaag09dbk3lz5-kmgzdlVZGLZfbxyhfa9TWXvPB2d8se8qooQvj_c1r3tseah5BhvWfmr9cV7UGJw2TEiCgpLxce4vQry-JyxX-Ltk0ts8gCrGa7PN-_upiv-hnzMngmd6GAGL/s1600/O09603_BLACK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijCIrpNqlaag09dbk3lz5-kmgzdlVZGLZfbxyhfa9TWXvPB2d8se8qooQvj_c1r3tseah5BhvWfmr9cV7UGJw2TEiCgpLxce4vQry-JyxX-Ltk0ts8gCrGa7PN-_upiv-hnzMngmd6GAGL/s320/O09603_BLACK.jpg" width="248" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">And for summer in beige from Sweaty Betty - wouldn't it look nice with a tan?</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilTQLaZGm_S0GnZNrntuURY5-UKZHW4Zk7s7y2WzPc0v-uIDxZ-UFnHXB0j0t8TtjxHXs9MTwBvyhcRbyZEin2KHXMN_UMVDGHHZCkhXWFwictGRqukHKbEygSGRigsYtemUhzTtdVnPEm/s1600/SR0072_TaupeShiny.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilTQLaZGm_S0GnZNrntuURY5-UKZHW4Zk7s7y2WzPc0v-uIDxZ-UFnHXB0j0t8TtjxHXs9MTwBvyhcRbyZEin2KHXMN_UMVDGHHZCkhXWFwictGRqukHKbEygSGRigsYtemUhzTtdVnPEm/s320/SR0072_TaupeShiny.jpg" width="248" /></a></div><br />
For some reason I actually believe these tops will make me run faster...I just need to find out where to get them in Spain.<br />
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</div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7887985763908023051.post-53154645814923292882010-11-08T13:04:00.000+01:002010-11-08T13:04:14.224+01:00Bits and bobsI'm a wee bit stressed at the moment (in a good way). I've recently been promoted at work and I'm finishing off my old job and starting the new one and trying to do my best in both. Also I seem to have a tonne of personal bits and pieces to do - arranging my visa and jabs for my trip to Sudan in December, kidney doctor appointments here and there, friends and family that I feel I haven't paid enough attention to recently and fights with the evil telecoms company 'telefónica' who seem to be intent on robbing me of every last penny I own.<br />
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Anyway, enough ranting! I just wanted to share this link (sourced via SwissMiss):<br />
<a href="http://design-milk.com/tapi-by-dreamfarm/">Tapi</a> - I think this is ingenious! (no more dribbly slurping from ones hand - I know, I know, civilised peolple have glass cups for this kind of thing...)<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdMZVVNKD_KIa6oLXrKna0t4rtjTNj1ZnB2uZ4Qss0_aX58f3ZNhCXWclTqMdCinR06tDtxyHM6LhoLHc-z3ApsTpfglr10Iqg5YIqSAzd43uEHwmRGofh_0CqZYP3ci1pIJw9LJzh9YMI/s1600/dreamfarm-tapi-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdMZVVNKD_KIa6oLXrKna0t4rtjTNj1ZnB2uZ4Qss0_aX58f3ZNhCXWclTqMdCinR06tDtxyHM6LhoLHc-z3ApsTpfglr10Iqg5YIqSAzd43uEHwmRGofh_0CqZYP3ci1pIJw9LJzh9YMI/s320/dreamfarm-tapi-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixxZLzI68k0Lo09N6HnkzQgPHQJ4ulT3ziFWtF2a_zy01bz526P3ast5k1EtXam715LZjVt2L7o2FMa9w0T53HrVEpqHuObAeJpLo8U98zOZvasXIVJhyZDd4enjpEujV1pQri10G-4pzG/s1600/dreamfarm-tapi-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixxZLzI68k0Lo09N6HnkzQgPHQJ4ulT3ziFWtF2a_zy01bz526P3ast5k1EtXam715LZjVt2L7o2FMa9w0T53HrVEpqHuObAeJpLo8U98zOZvasXIVJhyZDd4enjpEujV1pQri10G-4pzG/s320/dreamfarm-tapi-4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Nadyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401722898415182009noreply@blogger.com3