MH Blogs

Take This Waltz

Last Saturday I visited Princes Charles cinema in London. The movie I saw was Take this Waltz. I really wanted to see this movie, not only because of the cast (I am a huge fan of Michelle Williams) but also for the inside story and a very good reviews.

The story is about 28 years old Margo, a freelance journalist, who is married to Lou, a huggable husband. The story is set in suburban part of Toronto. Margo and Lou have been married for 5 years. Their marriage seems to be comfortable, sometimes even dull. The movie begins with Margo being away where she briefly meets the new guy. Later on, they meet on plane to Toronto and while the story progresses they find out that they live opposite each other. The new hunky neighbour is exciting. Meanwhile, Lou unaware of the situation is interested only in  writing a cook book about how to cook a chicken in different ways. I am not going to give out more, it is worth to see it.

 

Overall, I wasn't disappointed and I really enjoyed the movie. The dilemma of who do you choose from two guys is portrayed in a sensitive manner and very truthfully.

And I love Michelle’s wardrobe in this movie.

A long weekend in Brussels

I spent the last weekend in Brussels. I’ve planned to visit Brussels for a long time. So, I took Eurostar from London St Pancras on Friday morning and in about two hours I was in Brussels Midi. I stayed in Bloom Hotel situated near Botanique. I loved my unique decor of my room.

My first impressions of Brussels were really good. I really liked it here. I loved the quirkiness of the city, the architecture and its elegance. The weather was really nice too,  no rain. I was very lucky. Every day was amazing and I enjoyed my trip as much as I could. Monday was my last day. I wished I could stay longer, maybe 2 more days. Unfortunately, I couldn't do that because of my work commitment but I am sure I will come back. Perhaps next year, another long weekend.

I took over 200 pictures and here are the best bits:

  

 On Saturday, Manequin Piss was dressed in Mexican costume. 

The next day, he was dressed in Austrian costume.

 

 

London Olympics 2012

Last Sunday, when I arrived from Vienna to London Heathrow, I landed together with Japanese Olympic Team. This is when I started to feel the Olympic fever and this is when I have realised that Olympics will start in a less then a week. The atmosphere in Heathrow was very sweet, you could feel the upcoming excitement about the games.

I have checked out and left just shortly before the Japanese Team. Now I wish I have stayed a little bit longer to see their welcoming to London.

I have found this short video on YouTube which capture the whole moment. Feel free to have a look, it is very sweet video. The feeling of this moment will stay with me for a long time.

My Mums Orchids

Trip to High Tatras, Slovakia

Every time I come home to Slovakia, my sister, her husband and I plan a trip to our mountains, High Tatras. It has sort of became our tradition. Every time we choose a different root, somewhere where none of us has been before. Every time it is such a challenge and an amazing experience. I really like hiking and I love High Tatras. This time we went for a route from Popradske Pleso to Velke Hincovo Pleso and back.

Visiting ELRO 2012 in Kezmarok, Slovakia

This Saturday I visited annual folk festival in Kezmarok called ELRO 2012 (http://www.elro.kezmarok.sk/web/) It is cultural event full of european craft, dancing and music. When I used to live in Slovakia, I usually visited this festival every year. Since I live in London, I never really managed to come to Slovakia at the same time as festival was running. Because of that I had over eleven years break. Yes, the last time I have visited ELRO was I think in 2001.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prawn and chorizo pasta

Ingredients:

1 shallot

3 gloves of garlic

1 chorizo

2 tablespoons of tomato pure

1 dcl water

250g prawns (I used cooked ones)

1 green pepper

150g sweet corn

a jar of tomato sauce

300g penne pasta

a pinch of black pepper

and olive oil

 

Method:

Start chopping shallot, garlic, green pepper and chorizo.

In a pan, preheat the olive oil and slightly glaze chopped shallot and garlic until soften and translucent. Once they are soften, add a pinch of black pepper for little bit of seasoning. Pop chorizo into the pan and fry for a couple of minutes until chorizo oil colour your shallot and garlic mixture. Add 2 table spoons of tomato pure and little bit of the water to soften the whole texture. Add chopped green pepper and continue cooking for another few minutes. Meanwhile, you can prepare penne pasta.

Add prawns into the sauce and pour jar of tomato sauce. (I have used Lloyd Grossman tomato sauce with roasted garlic.) Continue cooking for another 5 minutes. Towards the end add sweet corn and leave to cook until soften.

If you want you can add the pasta directly to the sauce. I prefer to serve clean pasta first and then add the sauce on top of that.

I have decided to enjoy the meal with the glass of Italian red wine. Enjoy!

Catching up

What has been happening in the last few weeks?

Well, first of all, I have finally finished my exams. It was a tough experience to revise and working full-time in demanding environment. I founded it very difficult to keep up with everything. I could feel the strain. But I have managed to get through it and now I am waiting for the results. My results will be out towards the end of the July, so I have decided not to stress myself about it and just enjoy the summer.

Talking about the summer, here in England, so far it has been a huge disappointment. Rain, rain, rain and more rain. Typical British summer wash out. Even now, when I am writing this post, is raining.

Yesterday, I collected my delivery from the post office. When I opened the envelope, there was a ticket to Olympic games. How exciting! To my big surprise, there was a travel card for the whole day, too. I didn’t expect that and it definitely will help not to spend a fortune on travelling to the event.I have managed to get a ticket to watch the canoe sprint.  I can’t wait now!

My dearest friend, Martha, is turning 40 this week. Our group of friends decided to organise something special for her. This Saturday, we went to the Thai Restaurant called Mango Tree (www.mangotree.org.uk) The whole dining experience was just glorious. The food was very delicious. Particularly, I loved authentic Thai soup with the hint of lemongrass and coconut milk. It was full of flavour. Well, it was my first posh dining experience in London.

 

Next week, I will be travelling to Slovakia for a 10 days. I will be visiting my parents. I am really looking forward to spending some time with my Mum and Dad as I haven’t seen them for almost a year. And of course, I am also looking forward to see the rest of my family and friends.

Marylebone Summer Fayre 2012

This is one of my favourite events in London - Marylebone Summer Fayre.

I have been attending the Summer Fayre every year and every time it is such a wonderful affair full of food, music, cupcakes and hand-made craft. Once again the community came together and everybody seemed to enjoy themselves. The weather did not disappointed and the sun was out the most of the day.

I am already looking forward to next year’s one.

 

Jubilee weekend

Yesterday, after work, I have decided to go for a small walk through London. This week I have been feeling the buzz and the excitement about Queen’s Jubilee and its preparation. I was quite curious how London might look like. I walked from St. John’s Wood through Marylebone to Green Park passing Buckingham Palace to Victoria Station. I love the way how Brits celebrate their anniversaries and weddings. How they all come together amd how much effort they put into it. Queen’s Jubilee seems to be pretty important too. London looks very British these days with Union Jack flags decorations all over. I love the way shops decorated their windows paying tribute to Queen Elizabeth II. 

It was really refreshing to walk through central London again. I used to do it very often when I first arrived to London.

Here are some pictures I took.