three years in london, this week's my londonversary.

Three years ago, I would have what most people would describe as a pretty big week. Within the space of a couple of days, I moved from the Midlands to London, started a new job and turned twenty-three. It was pretty overwhelming. Overwhelming is a good adjective to describe life in London generally. I can't remember the last time I didn't feel exhausted by life here, managed to walk down a street that wasn't crowded with people, had a commute that didn't infuriate me or managed to get home from work without seeing someone or going out somewhere first. It's fast, but let's be honest, it's pretty fun too.

6 things i want to do in prague.

The only thing I'm going to take away from booking this trip to Prague is that I shouldn't be allowed on the internet anymore. More specifically, I shouldn't be allowed on travel websites that have pretty good deals to go to countries that I've always wanted to go to. I think having a world scratch map doesn't help. All I can see every day are these big gaps of countries that need little spaces scratched off and I spend too much time thinking about how I'm going to do that. Poland is driving me nuts, it's so big and needs to be cleared off, Switzerland is even worse, stuck in the middle of other countries I've been to like the odd one out. At least I'll be able to deal with the little problem that is the Czech Republic soon!  

I've finally learnt that doing a teeny bit of research on a country before you go is never a bad idea and it worked out quite well for Berlin. So in the similar vein, I'm whacking out a post of things I want to do.

how to be a better constituent when you write to your MP.

Recently, with Brexit and Trump and everything else that is happening in the world, I've seen more and more bloggers becoming politically engaged and encouraging their followers to get involved.  I think it's great - I get pretty annoyed by people who take no interest in politics because I think it's so important. I also think it's pretty bloody interesting and can often be more exciting as a drama than anything that's on Netflix at the moment. Although writing about politics is something I won't generally be doing on my blog (honestly, I live and breathe politics, I need a little escape sometimes) I did feel the need to write this post.

I've seen so many comments on social media about just "writing to your MP" that I didn't think it would be a bad idea to help someone get the best response they can. I've worked for an MP now for nearly two years, I deal with all of his correspondence in the first place and so I like to think it's something I know about. I hope, at least *fingers crossed*

And of course, these opinions are mine and mine alone. 

visiting bakewell. for a tart. or was it a pudding?

You know those horrible inbetweeny days in December, between Christmas and New Year? Those days when you're practically comatose from hitting the box of Roses too hard, you're not sure what day it is and you feel like you've eaten so many roast potatoes you may as well be one? Well this year, I just had to get out of the house. 

One of the benefits of coming from the Midlands is that you're never too far away from anything. Most places are a two hour drive away, which means you get a great level of choice on where to head off to. Funnily enough though, I don't think I've ever properly explored the Midlands. And so when it came to picking somewhere to go and visit for the day, I thought I'd head a little closer to home.

a guide to brick lane market.

One of the wonderful things about living in London is the sheer amount of things you can get up to each weekend - those wonderful days tacked on to the end of the week when you don't have to start your day squashed into a fellow commuter on the tube. I've really enjoyed visiting the different markets London has to offer (there are quite a few to be fair). If you want to get a real feel for an area then all you have to do is visit its market. The difference between Notting Hill's Portobello Road market and the East's Brick Lane market are stark, but so are the areas they're both placed in. I've not been to a market that's been even remotely similar to the last one in London. Have a look at my posts on Maltby Street and Columbia Road, you'll get what I mean.

neon heaven at gods own junkyard | walthamstow.

I love neon lights. A simple but slightly ridiculous statement to make, but it's true. I even used to have a Pinterest board devoted to them. I love how they're tacky and they're bright and they're kitsch and they can really add something to the interior design of a place (you'll know what I mean if you've ever been to Flat Iron), but deep in my heart I know they're something I'll probably never own. I'm just not that good at styling. I can see it now, I'd invest in a neon light and before I knew it, my flat would be mistaken for something a very different kind. A red lit building. A bit like the one I used to live near when I lived in the Netherlands, you know?

street food thursdays at markthalle 9 | berlin.

When I found out that one of the main food markets in Berlin has a street food night which takes place on a Thursday night and that I also would be in Berlin on a Thursday night, it was sliiightly obvious where I'd be heading. Inevitable almost. Heading to a food market is becoming a bit of a habit - both abroad and in London - and so I knew we'd have to find time for Berlin's offering too. Apparently, Berlin is becoming a bit of a haven for foodies and although I wouldn't quite put myself in that category, it was still worth checking out.

i failed at dry january, but i don't feel like a failure.

So I didn't quite manage to complete Dry January. In my defence, I'm not alone. Apparently, something like nine out of ten people who take part don't manage to finish the whole month. Well, oops, I've joined those nine out of ten and become that statistic. But actually, you know what? I'm not all that bothered. I only broke it twice and I was never overly sure that giving up something when you're not even sure why you're giving it up was the best of ideas to start with. I don't drink that much! 

So I failed, but I won't berate myself. Plus, I've learnt a few things in the process:

mini baileys salted caramel chocolate tarts | a recipe.

My approach to baking seems to be to stare at my kitchen cupboards long enough to work out what I can make from the ingredients I have. I will do anything to stop myself from walking to Tesco, even if I do only live next door. These Baileys salted caramel chocolate tarts come from one of those moments - I had one of these salted caramel pots sitting around in my fridge which was just asking to be used. I'd also put a bet on lots of people having a bottle of Bailey's kicking about in the house too, perhaps a leftover relic from Christmas.

You can mix your approach to these quite easily. For example, if you want to make something a little fancy but don't have a lot of time, you can buy the pastry cases and the salted caramel without too much of an issue and then instead of baking, it's more of a case of assembling. But neither of those things are actually all that difficult to make either. It's entirely up to whatever you feel up to and what your time constraints are.

Let me know if you give them a try, they're incredible, promise.

Annie x

6 reasons you should visit canterbury.

I mentioned the other day that I'd started to feel a little bit of cabin fever in the days between Christmas and New Year and had to get out of the house. Being at my Mum's house in the Midlands helped because there were so many different places to go, but even when I returned to London at the end of the Christmas holidays, I still felt like I had to go and explore somewhere. Canterbury has been on my list for quite a little while and having a few days off before I started back at work, it felt like the right time to go and visit. Here are six reasons why you should too:

why unfollowing people on social media is a good thing.

I posted a while ago about why I felt a small amount of hatred for my blog, and how - rather than putting me off blogging entirely - I'm trying to turn this feeling into a positive instead, with the aim of making 2017 the year I give my blog the best go I can. After years of interrupted blogging and not really putting as much effort into my little piece of the internet, I felt my blog deserved that (is that weird?) I know this all sounds so weak but I find it hard to admit that I want to put effort into something in case I fail.

Anyway, as part of this process, I decided to just sit down one afternoon and reassess my blog. I remember signing into Bloglovin' and just feeling completely and utterly overwhelmed. I'm always looking for new blogs to follow and have always had trouble finding ones I really loved, but just didn't want to read anything that was on the dashboard. And not only that, but there were hundreds, if not thousands, of unread posts to catch up on. I knew there would never be a chance for me to catch up on all the posts, so I clicked that I'd read them. And I knew that in those unread blog posts there would have been some awesome posts, but at that moment in time, finding them would have been like looking for a needle in a haystack.

8 thoughts i've had since deciding to do my theory test.

I've finally taken the decision that I need to learn to drive. It's taken me a little longer than everyone else, I'll be learning at the grand old age of twenty-five (or even twenty-six by the time I get my act together). I'm pretty sure one of the reasons I've decided to learn to drive is because my provisional licence will expire soon and I'll feel like a massive failure if I have to pay £70 to renew the bloody thing. 

I did do a little bit of driving when I turned 17 - but the lessons cost £20 a week, which was exactly the same amount of money I earned at my Saturday job at BHS (which will one day be how I show my age, the shop doesn't even exist anymore!). The lessons soon stopped when I crashed my driving instructor's car (his fault, promise) and my Dad ended up threatening to sue him. He ended up taking me out after that, taking it in turns with my stepmum, but eventually, I moved to Uni and couldn't afford a car. Then I moved to Holland and there was no point driving there - after all, everyone cycles and I can't do my lefts and rights in this country, let alone thinking about it there. Then I moved to London. And who needs a car when you live so close to the tube station you get their wifi in the living room? 

But the time comes to us all. One day I'll move out of London and I'll have to be able to drive when I leave this well-connected city. I might as well get it ticked off while I can. In a moment of "I really have to commit to this driving test thing" I booked my theory test. Here are eight recurring thoughts I've had since then: