Food

One of my favourite things in the world is food. If all food was good for you and had no calories, I'd be eating all day. But alas.... In any case, Hong Kong is an amazing place for food. From €2 fish balls to €200 three star-meals, you will find everything in this foody city.

And we're lucky: we live close to Temple Street Night Market, with its egg waffles, duck skewers, fish balls and spicy crab. Imagine low plastic stools, plastic tables and plastic cups. It's touristy, but locals seem to go there as well and it's fun. We often go for a walk there after dinner (and have an egg waffle for desert while we're there).

Next up from the street markets are the simple local restaurants. Again, we live in the perfect spot. Anthony Bourdain's favourite noodle place, Mak's Noodle Shop is around the corner (and it's amazing!) and we have tried some fantastic cheap Vietnamese, Indian, Thai and Nepalese food as well.

For western food, we usually go to the island, although there is a Jamie's Italian nearby in case we crave pasta and can't be bothered cooking or travelling. On HK Island, there are loads of nice Italian and other places. A few streets are full of slightly fancier restaurants that seem to cater mostly for gweilos. It's easy to go bankrupt if you go here too often, especially if you like your wines. €10 for a simple glass of wine is considered reasonable. But they're fun places to meet friends in the weekend.

Have not been to any of the super fancy 2-3 star places so can't comment on those. Luckily, there are heaps of 1 star restaurants where you can eat cheaply so I have tried a few of those.

One thing I really had to get used to: (very) good restaurants here are often in shopping malls, and you will also find many restaurants on higher floors of buildings. These buildings can look pretty grey and miserable but once inside, the lift takes you to restaurants that can be very nice.

And finally: Sunday brunch! It's a real Hong Kong thing, and if you do it properly, you have the free flow wine or bubbles with it. We've done three of those now (without the free flow), and they're fun.  My favourite of the three was Blue Butcher. A funky restaurant in Sheung Wan, with a fantastic salad buffet, oysters and prawns, a good selection of mains and yum desserts. With live music. A really lovely way to spend a few hours on a Sunday.

It's a miracle I managed to lose some weight here. Thank god for the clubhouse with gym!

Our second home

On Thursday we moved from Mid Levels, expat playground, to Fortress Hill, a much more Chinese part of town. When I say 'we', I actually mean Wilko, as he moved our stuff while I was at work. And got me flowers. I knew I married a good egg.  

Our new shoebox has a comfy couch and a great bed so we're happy. Shame I can no longer walk to work though, that was nice while it lasted. Seeing the tai chi in the park was a very calming start of the day. 

Our new (temporary) apartment building is right opposite the tube station and in the middle of a gazillion restaurants. We had dim sum yesterday and some famous noodles for lunch today, followed by a local delicacy: egg waffle. We just followed our nose and according to several locals it was the best place in the area to have these. They were absolutely delicious.

Our apartment hunting is going so so. The view in the previous post won't be ours, as our offer was overbid by a massive HK$4000 a month, (about €480). We also made offers for two of the lower floors but those landlords don't want to get back to us until after Chinese New Year.  Patience is required.... The whole process is pretty interesting here. You offer a package of rent, rent-free period (1-2 weeks is not uncommon), start date and anything you'd like thrown in (like curtains) and then the agent negotiates with the landlord, often through another agent representing said landlord. Hopefully we're just a few negotiations away from signing a contract. And we have some time as our container is only somewhere between Egypt and Singapore.

Other than eating, we spent a fair bit of time getting organised: opening a bank account (a bureaucratic affair and the only reason I now have one is that I have a UK driver's license that has an address on it, albeit one I haven't lived at for 4.5 years), getting a phone contract, and applying for my Hong Kong ID (needed to apply for W's dependant visa, get my phone deposit back and many other things). In a country where everybloodyone is constantly staring at their mobile phones it's pretty shocking how undeveloped things are when it comes to organising things online. To give an example: my payroll account comes with a sort of savings account and online banking. However, the first time I want to transfer money to my savings account, I have to go into their offices. I also noticed many ATMs offer the option to do money transfers.  There's an app for that people!

Ah well. I could do with some patience, and this is a good place to work on that. For now, I'll enjoy my five day sunny weekend.  Kung Hei Fat Choy!

Honkers!

So. Hong Kong. The big move.  Been wanting to (some time) move here for years and now that it finally happened I spent my first day thinking 'Aaaargh... Someone please remind me why I wanted this?!'  But luckily that was mainly my lack of sleep talking. We're now on day five and I am truly happy the man and I decided to come here.

First of all: it's cold. We had to ask reception for a heater. Apparently Sunday was the coldest day in 59 years. And we're kinda lucky: in other parts of Asia things were much worse. Tomorrow should be better and I am looking forward to not having to shiver in my summer coat.

Second: food. So many options here. We had fantastic fried rice at a very random restaurant in Kowloon, stumbled upon a roast goose resto that happened to have a Michelin star (sharing tables, food served within five minutes and main under a tenner, not your average 1* restaurant) and had some fantastic sushi. The choices are endless and I can't wait to further explore all HK has to offer food wise.

Then of course we need a roof over our head. We're currently staying at 2 MacDonnell Road, a serviced apartment in the Mid Levels. Thanks to an upgrade we have 60sqm which is pretty big for local standards. In a week we have to pay for accommodation ourselves and we'll move to a serviced apartment in Fortress Hill, an area a bit east of the center. We'll swap the big rooms for a 40sqm apartment and the amazing view of the island's sky scrapers for a wee bit of harbour but we'l be in a much livelier neighbourhood and the apartment itself is very nice. Plus it has a rooftop terrace that all the residents can use. Nice!

Most of our days so far were spent apartment hunting. The sister in law of a friend of mine is a HK estate agent and she's awesome. She showed us loads of different places in different areas and also suggested we'd try Kowloon when we had asked her to find us something on the island. And though we will still view two more apartments on the island, we really liked the southern bit of Kowloon, TST (or Tsim Sha Tsui). More Chinese, cheaper and some great condos. We might just end up with a very decent sized apartment with a gym and infinity pool on the premises and view of the harbour. Not too shabby!

And finally: I've never seen so many people look at their phones when walking. Pretty annoying as they really really really slow down and Chinese aren't the fastest walkers to begin with. So when I was looking at google maps while walking, I made sure to keep my pace. Which I did. Just straight into a pole. Ouch. My arm is still blue. The locals might have a point....

A week in Sing

Even before one of my best friends had moved to Singapore, I'd already booked a flight to visit her and her family. So last week was spent in hot and humid Singapore, pretty much just when summer decided to show its face in the Netherlands as well.  Having caught sinusitus pretty much on the way to Sing, it turned out a very quiet week. Still, I had a lovely time seeing E, getting to know her kids better, and catching up with a few colleagues. I lost most but not all of my appetite, so still managed to eat some of the great food the city has to offer. Next stop: Vienna, in two weeks time.

A weekend in Toulouse



French autumn leaves

As I hadn't seen my cousin and his wonderful family in ages, I decided to visit them in Toulouse mid November. My Dutch cousin and his German wife and their three kids moved there last year from Hamburg. A recipe for linguistical confusion and for a relaxed weekend.

The fact that it was 18-20 degrees was just a bonus, 'cause even in rain and thunder I'd have had a blast. I totally fell in love with my little cousins, aged 3ish, 5ish and almost eight. They were so much fun, and it's so cool to see my cousin in them. The oldest turned out to be a great interpreter (and peace keeper for that matter) which was very useful as my German is rubbish and the wee one doesn't speak Dutch yet. Over the weekend I navigated between Dutch, broken German and even more broken French. 

So Toulouse....the biggest ancient city centre in Europe if I remember well. A massive cathedral. Loads of cool shops that I didn't visit. And quite some tea shops, so I had to sample a caffé gourmet in one of them. It's a good thing I don't often have time to eat properly during the week as the goodies that were the 'gourmet' probably counted for a full day's calories. Delicious.  

On Saturday we made a day trip to Auch, in the mid Pyrenees. A cute cobble stoned town, where the little one did a Marilyn Monroe on a wind machine for about ten minutes, much to the entertainment of other tourists.  And of course my trips abroad aren't complete without a visit to the local supermarket and markets. The Tournefeuille Carrefour and Sunday market saw to that.

And that was it in terms of 2011 weekend trips. The next trip is a biggie: to Melbourne in four weeks!



My two little helpers





Best place ever for a tea break



Food, fooder, foodiest

As my job can be pretty hard core, I tend to spend my weekday nights in the gym or on the couch with a book. This week though, I went out for dinner three times (and tomorrow will be number four).  On Monday my friend Deb was over from London with her boyfriend. We went to my local Szechuan restaurant and stuffed ourselves with some wonderful dishes. Tuesday the client and our team celibrated the succesful delivery of a project. Luckily I got to pick the restaurant and a place not too far from me happened to be convenient for everyone. Nice Frenchish food and a little bit too much wine. On a Tuesday, not a great idea... Yesterday I had my farewell dinner from my old team. Again, on walking distance from my place. It was nothing formal, I just asked the people I'd been closest too to join me for a farewell dinner. Magazzino serves great Italian food, overlooking the river. And I had more wine. I must be getting old but I can't really do drinking on two school nights in a row anymore. Tomorrow wil be dinner with three of my deariest friends in the Dam, Irish, English and French, at a restaurant that's meant to be really really good. It's called Anna, and it's in the red light district, which is an interesting choice of location for a resto like that. It will be a great way to start my weekend (and my diet!).

Back in Blighty

Big Ben, a photo by Gypsy Saskia on Flickr.

It had been two months when I landed at City Airport on Thursday evening. Two months of missing London terribly. And it was good to be back. As soon as I got on the DLR this big grin appeared on my face and it didn't leave it all weekend (well it did briefly but I'll get to that later). Reason for the visit was my friend Heather's farewell drinks as she is moving back to New York. It was lovely to be back in The Hide, have a chilli raspberry martini and catch up with colleagues. For the rest of the weekend, brekkies, lunches and dinners were planned. I saw many friends, ate fantastic food, and managed to do some shopping as well. Heels from LK Bennett, tea and granola from Waitrose, books from Waterstones and bits and bobs from Boots. I visited Nero and Pret at least twice a day, reading the papers on my iPad while people watching.

The only 'minor' glitch was the fact I showed up at City Airport for a flight out of Heathrow. Oops. Expensive 'oops' too.... Hopefully a mistake I will never make again. But even after leaving the UK a few hours later and many a pound lighter because of this, I can look back on a fantastic weekend in the city where I'm at my happiest.

Settling in

I could write blogs and blogs about things I don't like at the moment. Settling back in is tougher than I thought it'd be. Work culture is different (fewer laughs, more hierarchy), the people act differently (Dutch men don't do courteousness), and don't get me started about supermarkets and canteen lunches. But let's not write about that. It would only make me more miserable. I try and focus on the things that are fun in this place.

Like Lindenhoff. Major Dutch supermarket chains don't do organic/local food very well, but there are alternatives. One is Marqt, a local supermarket chain that really really really should open a branch near me. Another one is Lindenhoff, a farm that's a 30 minute drive from the Dam. It's proper countryside. People ooh and aah at the (very cute) piglets, knowing they'll be bacon when they're old enough. Having had a decent life, by then. The farm shed hosts a little shop where the farm's meat is sold, as well as cheeses and veg from all over the country and sometimes abroad. There are about 10 types of cheese you can sample (and guess what....) as well as a few wines (I was driving and decided not to go near those). The one thing that makes me very happy is the sight of heirloom tomatoes. I can't explain. They don't taste *that* different. But I have a thing for the purple, green and yellow beauties. So tomato salad it is tonight. With a lamb merguez and some broad beans. Yum.

Oh, and another thing that makes me happy every morning and every night is the view from my bed room. It can't get much better than this. The pic doesn't do it justice, but he ho.

Preparing for my move

Birthday cards, Clippers organic tea, Merchant Gourmet lentils, loads of chocolate, HP sauce, marmelade, lemon curd, Lizi's granola, coconut flakes, dried pineapple, books, books, books and quite a few clothes. My coping mechanism is to surround myself with Englishness when I return home in two and a half (!!) weeks. I can't bring my gym instructors, colleagues or favourite restaurants so I will settle for what I can bring. The movers will probably think I'm nuts (as dI think did the check out girl at Waitrose when she saw all the cards) but he ho. I like the idea of having my english stuff around me in my Amsterdam flat in a few weeks' time. Strange feeling that this time in three weeks, I will have pretty much unpacked....

Oh, and to balance it out: four big bags full of no longer worn clothes for the Marie Curie charity shop and counting....

Quinoa FTW

I regularly chuck this Southamerican grain in salads, or eat it with mushrooms and mozzarella. It's healthy, filling, and has a nice bite and slightly bitter, nuttery taste. Had it not been for POD, I wouldn't have associated it with brekkie though. POD is my favourite London take away food place. Crunchy salads, yummy soups and thai curries that are to die for. And as a recent addition to their breakfast menu: quinoa mango pots. At £2 a piece a bit pricey to have on a regular basis, so I succesfully tried to copy it at home.

The 'recipe': an espresso cup of quinoa is enough for 2-3 days. Cook it and mix one part of the cooked quinoa with two parts Greek yoghurt (I like Rachel's Organic for this). Chop a mango in bigger chunks and really small chunks (puree would be best if you have a food processor). Add agave or maple syrup to taste and done. Keeps in the fridge for about 2 days. Yum!

Brixton

There's no need to leave London every time I want to explore something different. Since friend Zoe moved to Brixton, it's become one of my favourite places to feel like being abroad. The indoor markets are full of exotic products: African fabrics, many types of yams, small colourful peppers, you name it. The butchers sell parts of animals I have only ever seen at African or Asian markets. One of them tried to tempt us into buying a bag of pigs' feet. 'Just a quid dear!'. A google search tells me it's very good for your skin but I think I'll stick to avoiding fags and relying on Chanel to make me look 27 (ahum). One of the nicest things of the market, are all the little cafes. The one selling sourdough pizza is apparently very famous, and the queue must have been at least an hour. We settled for a Colombian place where we ordered the 'Saturday lunch'. Once we were eating, we noticed we were pretty much the only non-Southamericans there. Always a good sign. Our soup of corn, chicken and potato was absolutely delicious. And I'd go back for the juices alone. My soursop was wonderfully sweet and sour at the same time, and Zoe's passionfruit a jug of deliciousness. One to remember!

A week in the Algarve

Albufeira beach
Originally uploaded by Gypsy Saskia

When we booked it back in October, all we hoped for was that the Algarve in this time of year would be sunny. Temperature wouldn't matter, just sun on our skins please. And that's what we got. A week of sun and never more clouds than the ones in the pic. Friend Ilse and I have a very healthy looking tan, and stocked up on vitamin D.

Our little Fiat Punto took us from west to east, and even into Andalucia for a few hours. The Algarve is beautiful this time of year. Citrus fruits everywhere and some blooming trees already. And, big plus, hardly any tourists. Ok, we spotted about 4 under the age of 40, but the senior Dutch, Germans and Poms seemed to have mostly stuck to golf resorts. I imagine the Algarve in July/August must be hell.

There was a drawback to this peace and quiet tho.... Few restaurants were opened. And we both like our food. I'd made a shortlist based on Tripadvisor but the top two were closed, as were many others. Which led us to some interesting experiences:

There was a place we referred to as Nicola (which seemed to be similar to referring to an Amsterdam bar as Heineken), where we ate twice. In the tourist heart of the city, but incredibly friendly, and properly home made food. On the first night, the owner apologised it had taken so long, as they hadn't pre-prepared anything because of low volumes. Little did we carre, the chicken peri peri had been delicious, the service homey, and the port good.

The next day we went to a place where even the Brazilian waiter spoke some Dutch ('portje van de huis?'). We were tired and hungry so had decided not to look further. Dickhead slimey Dutch waiter clearly didn't like us any more after I concluded, passive-agressive mastered to perfection, that his sauces weren't home made (Ilse asked for an ingredient to be left out, which couldn't be done). His response that 'we can't do that in a busy restaurant like this' made me burst out laughing.

The place where we went the last night was cute and frequented by locals. Nice owner, menu not in Dutch, good food. And Grolsch beer. Or hold on, the Grolsch bottle didn't contain beer. The four locals next to us drank something like homemade grappa from it and offered us some too. With a dried fig. I love grappa, but hell, this was strong. Ilse didn't finish it, and the owner happily polished hers off. A gezellig experience.

One resto we were very keen to visit, was open thank god. Henrique Leis, in Almancil. As we both wanted to drink, we opted for a bus and taxi combo. Good decision, as we gave the sommelier carte blanche for our wine flight and he sure as hell did his job! A seven course tasting menu with three glasses of different Portuguese wines was amazing. Scallops, crayfish, quail, steak, a never ending food heaven. What a joy.

And now after a week of monkfish and seafood cataplane, chicken piri piri, vino verde and grilled sardines, it's back to healthy homecooked meals in London. With my new cookbook (Ottolenghi's Plenty) as inspiration!

Winter wonderland

Wandsworth Common
Originally uploaded by Gypsy Saskia

It was snowing so hard I didn't fancy leaving the house. Not owning a winter hat type thing didn't help either. But as my friend Zoe had booked us a table at Chez Bruce, I decided to brave it, looking slightly ridiculous in nice clothes and a Cricket Australia sun hat to cover my hair. But I needn't have worried. It may have been cold and slippery, but man, was it great to be outside! Massive snowmen in Clapham Common, a white and quiet Wandsworth Common, everything looked ever so pretty.

And Chez Bruce? Fantastic. We both ordered pork belly as our main, with some veg and the best caramelised onion I've ever had. The cheese board for desert nearly killed me (it's hours later and I am still full), but it was delicious. What a perfect way to spend a cold December Saturday arvo.

A weekend in York

River Foss
Originally uploaded by Gypsy Saskia

Knowing I have (much!) less than a year left in Old Blighty, I am determined to make the most of it. And that includes venturing out of London every now and then. Last weekend, friend Ilse and I boarded a northbound train, and were in York in two hours.

There are three distinct facts about York. 1. It's very pretty. 2. People speak funny. ;-) 3. Girls on Saturday night wear no clothes. Or hardly any. They do wear ridiculously high heels.

On 3: I don't quite get it. If you wear virtually no clothes, you will have to empty a Wetherspoon's supply of booze to stay warm in November. That doesn't quite match with the enormous heels tho, let alone on the cobbled streets. So this is a bit of a mystery to me.

Anyway. York was lovely. Pretty little streets with little shops. Nice food. Friendly people. Ilse and I both beeing foodies, we made sure to eat very well. Nineteen was a Yorkshire restaurant, with interesting dishes. Cosy and delish. The Blue Bicycle used to be a brothel, and came recommended by a work friend. Best resto in York apparently, which meant we could only get a lunch booking. So Saturday arvo was spent eating lovely food and sipping prosecco, cab sauv and tawny port. Dinner was a simple pasta while we watched the locals. Sunday lunch was afternoon tea at Betty's tearooms, including the obligatory Carpenters played by a pianist. It was lovely though in all its oldfashionedness (is that a word?).

Next UK trip: Edinburgh in two weeks time. Yeah!

My home for the week

Pondok Keladi guesthouse
Originally uploaded by Gypsy Saskia

Pondok Keladi. My home away from home on Langkawi. It's a six bedroom guesthouse, owned by a Eurasian couple, surrounded by palm trees and rice fields. Four dogs and a cat live at the guesthouse, hens, roosters, cows, monkeys, squirrels, and what sounds like crickets and frogs share the area. For my week of doing bugger all but eat, read and explore a bit, this is just perfect.

In about 25 mins I am on the main drag, where all the restos and mini marts are. Loads of seafood and some very nice western salads. It's low season, which probably explains why quite a few places are closed. Still enough tourists tho to keep it lively. Tourists from everywhere. I hear a lot of Russian, German and Australian but also a lot of languages I do not know.

This being a predominantly moslim island, it is the first time I find myself surrounded by tourists in chadors (excluding the Arab invasion of London in summer). Quite a lot of them too. Several resorts list prayer rooms as one of their selling points. At the end of the little road that leads to my guesthouse, a mosque calls for prayer five times a day. Your regular ham and bacon have been substituted by turkey ham and beef bacon everywhere I have been so far. Some of the mini marts sell beer, but I haven't seen wine or anything stronger outside the duty free shop (which is also on the main road). It's a funny thing to see the women in chadors sitting on a beach next to scantily clad Russian women in full make up. But at the same time, it's good to see that with a bit of give and take, this beautiful island can be appreciated by all.

Comfort food at its best

Comfort food at its best
Originally uploaded by Gypsy Saskia

Hainan chicken rice. I first had it in Singapore in '02. Ever since it is's been one of my favourite comfort foods. When I make it at home, I cheat as I cook it for one or two people only. But here I can eat it like it's meant to be eaten, in one of the many specialised restaurants.

Yesterday shortly after seven I wandered out to a resto I'd spotted earlier to have my fix. To my surprise they'd sold out. Very frustrating as I could smell the ginger and soya sauce and all. Today I went back for lunch. The lady who I'd tried to order with the night before recognised me instantly and said 'chicken!' as she showed me a table. Five minutes later the fragrant stock, chicken, chilli and garlic dips and rice along with lettuce in oyster sauce were brought to my table. Including a fresh apple juice, the bill came to less than £3. There is something about the combination of ginger, chilli and soya sauce with the tender chicken and neutral rice that is to die for. When in Sing this weekend, I will make sure to ask my friend to take me to a hawker place to eat their version as well. Oh Asian food, I worship thee!

A different type of city trip

Dalkey
Originally uploaded by Gypsy Saskia

What we expected was a gloomy, grey, weekend in Dublin. Bit of rain, plenty of pubs. Good for chilling, chatting and making the most of our stay in the beautiful Clarence Hotel. No sun is required for catching up with old friend Paul on Friday night and eating nice french food at Frere Jacques on Saturday night - things we had planned to do.

How different reality was! It was sunny, warm and there were few clouds to be seen. So we only stayed in the city on Friday and explored the 'suburbs' (a bit of an insult for the beautiful towns on the outskirts of Dublin) on Saturday and Sunday. Malahide and Dalkey are affluent coastal towns with lovely cafes, nice little shops and beautiful coastline. We walked down to Portmarnock, watching the sailors, snorklers, swimmers and sunbathers (they clearly only do stuff that starts with an S in this part of the world). We walked along the beach, through a park and in the forest. Saw castles and castle shops. Had lunch in the sun by the Malahide marina, polishing off a nice bottle of white (only to get rid fo the hangover from mixing cocktails, japanese beer and good old Guiness the night before). Smelled the smell of fish when we strolled around the boat rental places. Admired the runners in Dalkey (seriously....heaps of them on Sunday morning!).

A great weekend altogether. And a confirmation I have so not lost my thing for the north Dublin accent! Or Irish men.

Oh, and a new thing I have learned: people in Dublin wear a lot of green. Seriously. Not just the tourists. I always assumed it was called the emerald isle because of its green countryside. But it must be because of the dress sense of the Dubliners.

Culture vulture and amateur chef

Two things keep me busy at the moment. Post having to balance football, Wimbledon, cricket and more, two things is manageable. They are the red pluche and food.

A big wish came through last weekend: with friends Ilse and Heather I went to see the Bolshoi ballet. Ilse is now spoiled forever as this was her first ballet, Heather used to be a pro dancer herself and saw it in that light. I just love ballet and was stunned by how good this company is. Unbelievable.

Two days later, Ilse, her parents and I joined the Arab contingent in Kensington. While we ate our pre-theatre dinner at a local Italian, we were entertained by two fat blokes with a fat car, boot open, who were handed bags full of designer clothes by the ladies they accompanied. Not once or twice, but four or five times. Business as usual in the rich parts of London in August, when many Arabs come here to shop, sometimes bringing their own cars from Dubai and the likes. It's a phenomenon that makes for great people watching. Anyway...the whole reason we were there was the Royal Albert Hall, as we had tickets for the Prom. I knew 3 of the 4 composers that were played that night. It's probably a good thing I didn't know the 4th as his piece was just awful! Nothing a three year old with the right tools couldn't do, we all thought. Weird avant garde noise. It was the premiere of that piece, the composer was there and half the crowd absolutely loved it. Rave reviews in the papers the next day too. Ah well.... Let's just say it wasn't for me. A half empty RAH on a Monday night by the way, turned out to be great for prommers who like to listen to their music horizontally. Several people were lying in the proms area as there was so much floor space. A funny view, from our balcony.

Coming up next on the culture front are Sondheim's Into the Woods, Shakespeare's As you Like it and Noel Coward's Design for Living. Plus I got tickets for Classical Spectacular. Slightly tacky but they do some beautiful pieces and play very English songs at the end.

Then food. Since I moved here, having access to proper supermarkets, I have completely rediscovered my love for cooking. At home I usually can't be bothered thinking ahead on a Saturday, and my local Albert Heijn is just that....an Albert Heijn. An inflated 7-11. Here, the abundance of great products make I enjoy preparing my own food more than ever. Throw in a website I discovered last year by a girl who does fashion and food equally well, and I eat like a king. The past two weeks I have made fantastic mozzarella and halloumi based salads, grilled organic chicken with lemon time and other stuff, squid salad, nice pastas, thai style tofu and what have you. At work, I am already thinking about that night's meal and popping down to Waitrose on the way home, I know another nice meal is on the cards that day. Life is good.

A weekend in the Dam

Overgrown bike
Originally uploaded by Gypsy Saskia

Now that I have signed the final extension to my expat contract, I am starting to get used to the idea that this is my last year in the big smoke. 1 July 2011, I am expected back in the Amsterdam office. And with this in mind, my weekend in Amsterdam couldn't have been better. I went straight from Schiphol to Toomler on Thursday night to meet my friends Vicky and Craig and a bunch of their friends, most of whom I knew. Two brill comedians and a good night out. The Amsterdam office on Friday, where I managed to catch up with loads of people who all made me feel so welcome to be back. A barbecue on V&C's rooftop was the perfect end to a very good day. Saturday morning was rediscovering De Pijp with Vic. New coffee places, new sushi bars, new clothes shops. Visiting a friend to meet her one day old bub. Bitterballen and wit bier, a pedi, and dinner with loads of friends in de Jordaan. Sunday was for my oldest friends. And their kids. Another barbie, more wine, and chatting away in the sun.

When I flew back home on Sunday night I couldn't believe how much fun I'd manage to pack into three days. It gave me that happy, relaxed feeling you normally get from a week's hols. No matter how sad I will be to leave London, it makes a difference to know I will be moving back to somewhere good.

A culinary day trip

Lunch by the river
Originally uploaded by Gypsy Saskia

From a weather perspective, our timing for a Cambridge trip was fab. From a sightseeing perspective however, it was pretty poor as a lot of the colleges were closed for finals. That didn't stop my friend Ilse and I to have a great day out though.

Basically our day was: coffee at a lovely little place opposite Trinity College, a two course lunch washed down with a bottle of Verdelho by the river, punting on said river, icecream, walking, reading the papers in a courtyard by the river, enjoying a few cold drinks, and a two course dinner with a glass of wine. So one might argue we have seen more of Cambridge hospitality staff than we have of its students. Very true. And it was brill.