SA Navy Festival

Monday morning and I'm showing up to blogger world like any good blogger should. Except, I'm actually showing up on Sunday evening and taking advantage of my parents' working wifi which also means that I'm coming to you from Cape Town which is awesome for many reasons including today's topic. 

I lived in Cape Town on and off for the last five years and for whatever reason I always seemed to have missed the Navy Festival held in Simonstown. I've been to Simonstown a number of times and i really enjoy visiting Penguin Beach but I was somewhat more interested in seeing what the Navy Festival had to offer and I finally got the chance. 

It was probably anti-climatic in terms of the food options. The usual food options were available similar to the US carnival food options but the festival was surrounded by loads of Navy officers and beautiful ships. I went with my parents and we walked around, snacked a little and then went for a tour of a submarine. 

Lucky to spend the day with my parents in a submarine

I really enjoyed the submarine tour, our guide was pretty awesome and clearly passionate about submarines and the history of it. The tours were in groups of eight which meant we waited almost a hour for our turn but when we did go through it, it was intimate enough that we really got the full picture. 

The festival was pretty much the same as the other festivals I've attended in Cape Town which is really fun, family filled atmosphere and full of great spirit. If there's one thing that no one can ever take away from the Capetonians is that they are proudly Capetonian and will support their city as much as they can. 

Would you be able to survive on a submarine?

#FirstsTotalSocial {Link Up}

Linking up with Helene and Sarah on all social media platforms, please join in with whatever first you want to share, just include the hashtag #firstsTOTALSOCIAL





Here I am, sharing the first photograph I ever added on Facebook. For some reason I thought it was a good one, I now know, it wasn't but I supposed it's because I took it at a wedding reception and I was in a really good mood but really looking back, it was bad one.

The picture was taken on my Samsung D500 in June 2006 and the quality shows.

I was 19 years old, apparently I hadn't learnt how to use make-up and I was proud of this picture. I used it as my first Facebook profile picture and my first Twitter profile picture! Shameful really when I look back at the quality.

Either way, that's the story behind my first photo post, ever!

Remember you can join in with the link up without "linking up" just use the hashtag #FIRSTSTOTALSOCIAL

13 Things I Accomplished / Decisions I Made In 2013

This is a bit of a serious post because it can fall in with Soulful Sunday... this year has brought a lot of challenges but I have also overcome a lot, some I didn't even blog about.

1. Making the decision to get admitted as an attorney - I fulfilled all the requirements in May 2012 but it took me months to actually commit to getting the paperwork and it was all due to my friend, Kaylene, deciding to get admitted as well so I thought it would be awesome to be admitted with a friend. 

2. THEN actually getting admitted - you can read about it here 

3.I finally traveled overseas again. It frustrated me that it took so long between trips but I don't intend on letting it go that long again.

4. I traveled to Europe all on my lonesome! You can read about all of them

5. I managed to throw an actual "SURPRISE" birthday party where my brother was ACTUALLY surprised.  - yay me!

6. I can bring people together, whether it be at work or a Hostel in Ireland....

7. Returning to Ireland - I am still incapable of explaining my pull towards the country and that place

8. There was this guy, who I thought I had unfinished business with - but now it's finished.

9. I finally wore a red dress!

10. There was an extremely toxic person who was trying to poison my family (metaphorically speaking) and she finally left and things are so much better.

11. Deciding to finally start a blog .... and then moved it here!

12. I had to overcome bullying in the workplace.

13. I decided to take a leap of faith and resign from my job. While the decision was not easy especially in this economy but I knew that staying there was making me sick and that it wasn't going to get better.

So there it is... what have you accomplished this year?

Bucket List - Liverpool FC vs Kasier Chiefs LEGENDS Game

I don't think it's accurate to include this particular game on my bucket list because I would have never thought it would be possible to even watch some of the players I did watch.

On Friday, I mentioned how excited I was and I had no idea how that would only be the tip of the iceberg.

I bought the Liverpool Tattoo when I visited Liverpool in 2010 ~ I knew it would finally come in handy

Last week was rough for me, work was rough and my sleeping patterns were completed messed up and if I thought that was hectic, things only got worse when we almost missed our flight because we were running a little late and the lady helping us well, didn't help! She printed my ticket twice and my dad was left without a ticket then when we finally all had tickets I thought my flight wasn't boarding so I went to buy a book and almost missed my flight. So if you were in OR Tambo on Friday and saw a girl running thought - it was me!

When we arrived at King Shaka International, none other than Kaiser Chiefs (and more so Bafana Bafana) legend - Doctor Khumalo was on my flight and he was nice enough to take a quick picture with me.

Back to the game, I was so psyched on Saturday to see so many Liverpool fans and for the short time it felt like we were all going to see Liverpool play at Anfield. When You'll Never Walk Alone was playing at the beginning of the day, it was definitely a "MOMENT".

Liverpool lost over penalties but the game was played in such a good spirit and there were so many goals it really was a great experience.

When leaving Durban on Sunday evening I then bumped into Liverpool FC legend, Bruce Grobbelaar and I am so happy that I got that opportunity. I was definitely reminded this weekend I am extremely blessed.

Who is the most surprising celeb you have met? Were you at the game?

Lemon Drizzle Cake

I have recently rekindled my love of baking and I haven't really blogged about it but my mom asked me to make her this cake but I thought it wasn't going to be any good - turned out I was wrong! This cake would not have been my usual type of cake to eat but it was really good and it was so easy and incredibly tasty that I can't wait to make it again.

 

Cake:

175g (6oz) Flora Regular

175g (6oz) self-raising flour

½ tsp baking powder

175g (6oz) caster sugar

3 extra large eggs

2 tbsps low fat milk

Finely grated rind of 2 lemons

 

Lemon Syrup:

Juice of 2 lemons, strained

115g (4oz) caster sugar

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Sift the flour and baking powder into a mixing bowl. Then add the remaining cake ingredients and beat with a wooden spoon until smooth.

 

2. Spoon the mixture into a greased and base lined 19x12x9cm loaf tin.

 

3.Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for 1 hour or until cooked.

 

4. Take out of the tin and allow to cool on a wire tray.

 

5. Put the lemon juice and sugar in a saucepan and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved.

 

6. Whilst cake is warm, drizzle the syrup over so that it soaks into the cake.

 

 

 

 

Have you ever tried a cake like this? If you make it, let me know how it goes?

 



Blogtember, Thurs 26 Sep 2013, Post From Somewhere Different

Blogtember Challenge

 

Thursday, September 26: Go to a coffee shop. Order a favorite drink. Write about what makes you happy and what makes you sad. Or write about anything you'd like! Bonus points for including a photo from the coffee shop. (I recommend downloading Ommwriter and bringing headphones along!) *if you can't make it to a coffee shop, at least leave your usual space and write someplace new.

 

 

So this is my second Blogtember post for the day, I'm trying to catch up the posts I missed. I have never blogged as much as I have this month and it's exciting and scary and exhausting! Either way, there are a few days left and I'm excited to have completed this challenge.

 

Todaý I'm sort of cheating because I honestly blog EVRYWHERE from my app but today I started this post as usual but finishing it from my Blogger App.

 

 

 Ok so I'm writing from our garden.. Look how pretty the rose is.. 

I think in retrospect, it's funny that I picked a picture of a rose becaus often people will say to you when you're stressed over a whole lot of things, just remember to stop... And smell the roses and this is so relevant for me because I have been SO stressed about so many things and I've been worrying about the future and if I'm being honest, I've been reflecting, scratch that, obsessing with the past and especially my recent trip.

I keep saying how much it changed me but actually adapting those changes into my life is definitely more of a challenge. 

So things which make me happy:

* my family (even they drive me somewhat insane) 

* music! I absolutely love listening to alternative folk music, traditional Irish folk music, any good love song! 

* Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres - I love watching them play and their interviews.

*baking

*blogging (reading and writing posts)

* TV - I am without a doubt a TV Addict!

Things that make me sad:

* Watching Liverpool lose

* People who are hungry

* People without ambition

* When I realize someone has underestimated me

So... Tell me, what makes you happy? Or what makes you sad? Where's your favourite place to read or write blogs?

X

 

Travel Post : Spending the Day in Strausbourg, France

When I was in Europe a few weeks ago ( I cannot believe how long it's been already) while I was with my friends Julia and Oliver, they decided they were going to take me to France for a day trip! How freaking awesome is that... we could just take a day trip to get there!

I was so excited that I got to take a drive into another country and the country just happens to be a country with so much history.

I was super super super excited when I saw this road sign:

 You know you would have been excited!! Paris was only 5 hours away!

 

It was so beautiful to be there but I will say compared to the other places I was visiting in Germany, Strausbourg was very touristy.

 

 

When we arrived we saw the Cathedral but decided to go eat first and we ended up at this restaurant - and it was not good. Well from the four meals we ordered, only Oliver was happy but I'm not sure if it was because the food was that good or because he was that hungry!

 

Afterwards we walked around and went into the Cathedral - it was incredible! I can't explain what it was like walking around there.. but as much as I liked the inside, I am absolutely in love with the details of the exterior of the Catherdral!

 

Here are some pics from when we walked around the town... all I can say is *prettiness* everywhere!

 

 

I hadn't even heard Strausbourg before this trip and now I am so grateful for the experience.

 

Have you heard about it? Have you been? Better question.... would you go after this post?

 

Have a great weekend everyone! I will still do my Blogtember post later today!

 

xxx