Trying to work out my itinerary for NZ has been seriously tough going!
I've decided to bus my way around the country and it's meant that I've had to cut out a couple of places that I was DYING to go to for the sake of time. It's just annoying because some of the places are pretty close together but there are no direct bus services between them. There is always the option of doubling back, but when you're travelling 8 hours to get somewhere, well, you've lost a day pretty much.
And when you only have about 17 days to get around the whole country, time is precious.
I talked about Abel Tasman National Park before. Incredibly stunning, but unfortunately it's one of the places that have been cut outta my plan. I've decided to fly between the islands instead of taking the ferry as I'd originally planned so that I would have enough time to spend in some gorgeous spots in the south.
You just can't do everything in such a short space of time! I'm already being my usual self and cramming in a million things as it is, but I will still have some time to relax, which is what I want. Chilling out against a perfect backdrop of stunning mountains and lakes. Nice.
Not only has that National Park been cut out, I'm foregoing the glaciers. I know they are a super famous attraction, but there is no direct route between Mt. Cook and the glaciers so I've decided to go straight from Mt. Cook to Queenstown. As it stands, I do have a day extra in Queenstown, but the glaciers are 8 hours away - unless I can find some amazing day trip, then it's just not going to happen. And that's OK because I don't wanna miss Lake Tekapo or the stunning view of Mt Cook. The days that I'm there are gonna be the ultimate chilled out days because the bus times SUCK which means I have longer there that I would ideally want, but hey, it's gonna be boxing day and a nice wind down afte visiting friends and probably blowing a fortune in Christchurch.
Now that I've worked out a rough itinerary, I need to start looking at hotels and getting a bus pass. I don't wanna book everything because we all know that things can just change, but if I can book something, then most of the time you'll be OK cancelling a couple of days before.
Gonna be such an awesome trip - I can't believe it's only a month away!!!
So this is roughly the route I'm thinking about taking:
Christchurch-->Tekapo/Mount Cook--->Queenstown--->Milford Sound--->Wellington--->Taupo--->Tongariro National Park--->Rotorua--->Waihi--->Auckland
There are definitely more stops in the north, but it's OK because the towns are really close together and it's all on the way back to Auckland. Looking forward to catching up with friends in Christchurch and Waihi and then making new ones in between!
I wish I could take just a few more days out. Technically, I could, but it's not worth the financial strain I'd have to endure upon my return!
xoxo
Tuesday, 20 November 2012
Sunday, 18 November 2012
Crushing
Recently I've developed a couple of new crushes.
James Arthur anyone?!
I know that he is not conventionally hot, has got busted teeth and is that little bit awkward, but there is no denying how incredibly SEXY his talent is. I absolutely hate the song he sang on the X Factor this week, but just the fact that he completely made it his own made it easier to listen to.
Over the last 10-12 years, I've done that typical switch that most girls make where they really start paying more attention to personalities. And his is diamond.
The second crush?
Gotta keep that one in. All you need to know is that it's someone I know. And I'm just going to admire from afar. LOL! Sorry!
xoxo
James Arthur anyone?!
I know that he is not conventionally hot, has got busted teeth and is that little bit awkward, but there is no denying how incredibly SEXY his talent is. I absolutely hate the song he sang on the X Factor this week, but just the fact that he completely made it his own made it easier to listen to.
Over the last 10-12 years, I've done that typical switch that most girls make where they really start paying more attention to personalities. And his is diamond.
The second crush?
Gotta keep that one in. All you need to know is that it's someone I know. And I'm just going to admire from afar. LOL! Sorry!
xoxo
Saturday, 17 November 2012
ANTM **SPOLIER ALERT!!**
OMG I am soooo disappointed with the winner of this cycle of ANTM!!!!
Don't get me wrong - I was a HUGE Laura fan in the beginning. She's absolutely stunning and just looked amazing. But ever since she went all "Team Kristen" and turned on Leila, she just became this horrible, bratty bitch.
I was rooting for Kiara. I was the opposite with her - hated her and all her attitude in the beginning, but that girl has developed and grown so much and by the end she was my fave and seemed to have gotten absolutely STUNNING!!! That waterfall shoot anyone?! Damn girl!!!
There's no doubt that Leila is the best model but she can't walk for s***. I was gutted for her when she fell in the final runway show. I would've been happy if she'd won, just because I really don't think that Laura deserved it as much.
Spoilt rich girl....of course, even rich girls have dreams too, but it would have just been that much more special for Kiara to have won. Everyone LOVES a rags-to-riches story. And she showed that she has a heart of gold and a wonderful personality.
Such a shame.
I'm sure she'll go on to do really well in the future though
Do you know what, I was thinking about ANTM this week when I was in the hairdressers. You know when they have the makeovers and you always get the girls who go insane when their hair is cut too short? I always thought they were ridiculous - I mean hair grows back, it can't be that big of a deal, right?
Wrong.
I showed my hairdresser a pic of how I had my hair cut back when I went to England in the summer. A sweeping gradual side fringe, starting from just below the eyebrow. My hairdresser was all confidence and smiles as he asked me to trust him.
What a mistake that was.
He was standing in front of me so I didn't have a clear view in the mirror. I heard a snip and then I felt my hair fall against my forehead...
,,,ABOVE my eyebrows!!!!
I pushed him out of the way and was absolutely mortified at how short he had cut my fringe. My hair has a natural wave and even though the roots are straight, there's no way I can carry off this ridiculous fringe. As I shouted at him to fix it, he kept cutting and cutting and cutting and I was just holding my head in my hands telling him how much I hated it.
He kept trying to fix it and then when I eventually had the courage to look in the mirror again, it happened.
I CRIED.
I NEVER thought I would be one of those girls that cried about hair. But it looks so AWFUL and completely changes the way I look. I absolutely HATE it.
I think my hissy fit lasted for about 10-15 minutes before I demanded that he give me some vlips and I clipped the fringe back and had to go back into work.
Gutted.
The problem is now that I'm gonna have to clip the whole thing back until it at least grows back past my eyebrow. And then I'm going to have a nightmare styling it anyway coz it's a strange shape and just looks ghastly. I washed my hair this morning and normally I would just be able to leave the house with wet hair and let it dry naturally, but because the fringe is so damn shorts, it looks ridiuclous so I had to blow dry it. And then it looked even weirder having this dead straight fringe and gentle waves so I had to blow dry the whole lot straight.
I don't mind wearing my hair straight - it just requires a whole extra load of maintenance...like brushing!!! HAHAHA!
it's interesting though coz my hair has gotten CRAZY long. I had no idea until I blow dried ti out just how long it is. Another inch and it's gonna be past my boobs! YAY!! I've been trying to grow it this long for ages, but now I'm thinking about getting it cut. Not for a while though - I love how ultra feminine having super long hair feels. And it keeps me looking young as well!! Always a bonus.
Rant over - I'm going to bed!
xoxo
Don't get me wrong - I was a HUGE Laura fan in the beginning. She's absolutely stunning and just looked amazing. But ever since she went all "Team Kristen" and turned on Leila, she just became this horrible, bratty bitch.
I was rooting for Kiara. I was the opposite with her - hated her and all her attitude in the beginning, but that girl has developed and grown so much and by the end she was my fave and seemed to have gotten absolutely STUNNING!!! That waterfall shoot anyone?! Damn girl!!!
There's no doubt that Leila is the best model but she can't walk for s***. I was gutted for her when she fell in the final runway show. I would've been happy if she'd won, just because I really don't think that Laura deserved it as much.
Spoilt rich girl....of course, even rich girls have dreams too, but it would have just been that much more special for Kiara to have won. Everyone LOVES a rags-to-riches story. And she showed that she has a heart of gold and a wonderful personality.
Such a shame.
I'm sure she'll go on to do really well in the future though
Do you know what, I was thinking about ANTM this week when I was in the hairdressers. You know when they have the makeovers and you always get the girls who go insane when their hair is cut too short? I always thought they were ridiculous - I mean hair grows back, it can't be that big of a deal, right?
Wrong.
I showed my hairdresser a pic of how I had my hair cut back when I went to England in the summer. A sweeping gradual side fringe, starting from just below the eyebrow. My hairdresser was all confidence and smiles as he asked me to trust him.
What a mistake that was.
He was standing in front of me so I didn't have a clear view in the mirror. I heard a snip and then I felt my hair fall against my forehead...
,,,ABOVE my eyebrows!!!!
I pushed him out of the way and was absolutely mortified at how short he had cut my fringe. My hair has a natural wave and even though the roots are straight, there's no way I can carry off this ridiculous fringe. As I shouted at him to fix it, he kept cutting and cutting and cutting and I was just holding my head in my hands telling him how much I hated it.
He kept trying to fix it and then when I eventually had the courage to look in the mirror again, it happened.
I CRIED.
I NEVER thought I would be one of those girls that cried about hair. But it looks so AWFUL and completely changes the way I look. I absolutely HATE it.
I think my hissy fit lasted for about 10-15 minutes before I demanded that he give me some vlips and I clipped the fringe back and had to go back into work.
Gutted.
The problem is now that I'm gonna have to clip the whole thing back until it at least grows back past my eyebrow. And then I'm going to have a nightmare styling it anyway coz it's a strange shape and just looks ghastly. I washed my hair this morning and normally I would just be able to leave the house with wet hair and let it dry naturally, but because the fringe is so damn shorts, it looks ridiuclous so I had to blow dry it. And then it looked even weirder having this dead straight fringe and gentle waves so I had to blow dry the whole lot straight.
I don't mind wearing my hair straight - it just requires a whole extra load of maintenance...like brushing!!! HAHAHA!
it's interesting though coz my hair has gotten CRAZY long. I had no idea until I blow dried ti out just how long it is. Another inch and it's gonna be past my boobs! YAY!! I've been trying to grow it this long for ages, but now I'm thinking about getting it cut. Not for a while though - I love how ultra feminine having super long hair feels. And it keeps me looking young as well!! Always a bonus.
Rant over - I'm going to bed!
xoxo
Sunday, 11 November 2012
Best Of British
I absolutely loved The X Factor this week.
The theme? Best of British. Quality.
If there's one thing that Britain does well, it's music.
Two words. JAMES ARTHUR.
His version of Adele's "Hometown Glory" was just simply PHENOMENAL. I was backing Jahmene to win but I've changed my mind, just because James Arthur is a true artist. That and I wasn't a huge fan of Jahmene's performance this week. James Arthur is gonna go on to be a global superstar, and I, for one, will be buying his album. He has one of those voices that you can just listen to all day. It's truly incredible and he is raw talent.
I highly encourage you all to check it out on You Tube if you're not watching the show.
Other stand out performances of the night go to the boy bands. I absolutely ADORED both of their perfomances and it helps that their song choices were iconic. Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven" and Coldplay's "Fix You". Even if you're not into the bands, how can you NOT just absolutely LOVE those songs?! Beautiful performances and I really enjoyed them!!
People are always cussing out reality shows. I've said time and time again that I support them when the objective is to find talent. Everyone loves to slam the X Factor, but there's no denying the platform that it has given to certain acts that have gone on to become GLOBAL SENSATIONS.
Leona Lewis and One Direction are easily the biggest thing to have ever have come out of The X Factor. Not to mention other acts like JLS, Olly Murs, Cher LLoyd which have all enjoyed global success since being on the show.
One Direction are insanely growing in popularity in Japan. Guys and girls of all ages just LOVE them and my clients are always raving about them. These kids only formed their band 2 years ago and have already had something like 12 million record sales and they entered the Guiness Book of Records for being the first British group to have a debut album go to number 1 in the US Billboard Charts. Whether you're a fan or not, that's impressive.
They're a little too poppy for me, but I have to admit, I kinda like their new single.
*hanging head*
xoxo
The theme? Best of British. Quality.
If there's one thing that Britain does well, it's music.
Two words. JAMES ARTHUR.
His version of Adele's "Hometown Glory" was just simply PHENOMENAL. I was backing Jahmene to win but I've changed my mind, just because James Arthur is a true artist. That and I wasn't a huge fan of Jahmene's performance this week. James Arthur is gonna go on to be a global superstar, and I, for one, will be buying his album. He has one of those voices that you can just listen to all day. It's truly incredible and he is raw talent.
I highly encourage you all to check it out on You Tube if you're not watching the show.
Other stand out performances of the night go to the boy bands. I absolutely ADORED both of their perfomances and it helps that their song choices were iconic. Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven" and Coldplay's "Fix You". Even if you're not into the bands, how can you NOT just absolutely LOVE those songs?! Beautiful performances and I really enjoyed them!!
People are always cussing out reality shows. I've said time and time again that I support them when the objective is to find talent. Everyone loves to slam the X Factor, but there's no denying the platform that it has given to certain acts that have gone on to become GLOBAL SENSATIONS.
Leona Lewis and One Direction are easily the biggest thing to have ever have come out of The X Factor. Not to mention other acts like JLS, Olly Murs, Cher LLoyd which have all enjoyed global success since being on the show.
One Direction are insanely growing in popularity in Japan. Guys and girls of all ages just LOVE them and my clients are always raving about them. These kids only formed their band 2 years ago and have already had something like 12 million record sales and they entered the Guiness Book of Records for being the first British group to have a debut album go to number 1 in the US Billboard Charts. Whether you're a fan or not, that's impressive.
They're a little too poppy for me, but I have to admit, I kinda like their new single.
*hanging head*
xoxo
Tuesday, 6 November 2012
GO OBAMA!!!!
I haven't been following the Presidential race as closely as I did 4 years ago.
As we approach election day in the States, I decided to get up to speed and watch the 3 debates.
And I'm sorry, but I really fail to believe that people feel Mitt Romney is a viable candidate for the Presidency.
Seriously?!
Half of the bull**** that was coming out of his mouth left me gobsmacked - absolutely OUTRAGEOUS!!! I was thinking about my American friends and I feel pretty confident that none of them would vote for this fool. Well, I truly hope they wouldn't.
But of course, everyone has the right to vote and everyone has the right to their opinion. To be honest though, if anyone I know does choose to vote Romney, I think I'd prefer not to know about it. America gained a lot of worldwide respect when they voted Obama into office 4 years ago - let's hope they make the right decision today.
It's only been 4 years people!! Rome wasn't built in a day!!
GOOD LUCK OBAMA!!!! \(^0^)/
xoxo
As we approach election day in the States, I decided to get up to speed and watch the 3 debates.
And I'm sorry, but I really fail to believe that people feel Mitt Romney is a viable candidate for the Presidency.
Seriously?!
Half of the bull**** that was coming out of his mouth left me gobsmacked - absolutely OUTRAGEOUS!!! I was thinking about my American friends and I feel pretty confident that none of them would vote for this fool. Well, I truly hope they wouldn't.
But of course, everyone has the right to vote and everyone has the right to their opinion. To be honest though, if anyone I know does choose to vote Romney, I think I'd prefer not to know about it. America gained a lot of worldwide respect when they voted Obama into office 4 years ago - let's hope they make the right decision today.
It's only been 4 years people!! Rome wasn't built in a day!!
GOOD LUCK OBAMA!!!! \(^0^)/
xoxo
Wednesday, 31 October 2012
Can't. Stop. Eating.
I have spent the majority of my day off in 2 places.
On the sofa watching Masterchef and in the kitchen.
What did I manage to rustle up today?
A humungous amount of Thai green curry, strawberry cupcakes and a stunning dinner of pork fillet stuffed with garlic, green onion and wild mushrooms on a bed of wilted spinach, served with nira mash and some brocolli.
It was seeeriously good! If I do say so myself - haha!
Watching Masterchef has given me so many new ideas for cooking meat. Normally I would stew pork fillet or poach or roast it, but I saw a new technique today where you wrap the fillet (or whatever other meat you're cooking) in baking paper, twizzle the ends like a Christmas cracker and then shove it in the oven as is. I wasn't sure about doing it, so I put it on a low heat of 150 and let it do it's thing for 40 minutes.
My goodness, the meat was PERFECTLY cooked - so tender and juicy with all the juices gathered in the paper - which made for a good sauce over the top. As you unwrap the paper, the fragrant stuffing just wafts in your face and it smells AMAZING! I'm a huge garlic fan, so I added a couple of small cloves and it was just heavenly. LOVE the smell of onions and garlic together. I really enjoyed it.
Then I made some custard and had it with a couple of cupcakes for dessert. They were OK, but ended up in a variety of different shapes and were much sweeter than I was anticipating! So why did I eat them with custard? Because I didn't ice them and they're too boring on their own.
So full now though. In between the curry lunch and pork dinner, I scoffed 3/4 a huge bar of white chocolate and some cockles. Love those things - the tiniest amount of vinegar and they are ready to eat.
Lovely jubbly.
Not looking forward to getting on the scales at the gym next week!
xoxo
On the sofa watching Masterchef and in the kitchen.
What did I manage to rustle up today?
A humungous amount of Thai green curry, strawberry cupcakes and a stunning dinner of pork fillet stuffed with garlic, green onion and wild mushrooms on a bed of wilted spinach, served with nira mash and some brocolli.
It was seeeriously good! If I do say so myself - haha!
Watching Masterchef has given me so many new ideas for cooking meat. Normally I would stew pork fillet or poach or roast it, but I saw a new technique today where you wrap the fillet (or whatever other meat you're cooking) in baking paper, twizzle the ends like a Christmas cracker and then shove it in the oven as is. I wasn't sure about doing it, so I put it on a low heat of 150 and let it do it's thing for 40 minutes.
My goodness, the meat was PERFECTLY cooked - so tender and juicy with all the juices gathered in the paper - which made for a good sauce over the top. As you unwrap the paper, the fragrant stuffing just wafts in your face and it smells AMAZING! I'm a huge garlic fan, so I added a couple of small cloves and it was just heavenly. LOVE the smell of onions and garlic together. I really enjoyed it.
Then I made some custard and had it with a couple of cupcakes for dessert. They were OK, but ended up in a variety of different shapes and were much sweeter than I was anticipating! So why did I eat them with custard? Because I didn't ice them and they're too boring on their own.
So full now though. In between the curry lunch and pork dinner, I scoffed 3/4 a huge bar of white chocolate and some cockles. Love those things - the tiniest amount of vinegar and they are ready to eat.
Lovely jubbly.
Not looking forward to getting on the scales at the gym next week!
xoxo
Nom Nom Nom!!
I swear Masterchef is seriously starting to take over my life!
HAHAHA!!
I watch that show and then while I'm at work or in bed, I'm constantly thinking of different food combinations and recipes I wanna try!!
And it's all coming a day before I'm due to go to Costco which means I'll be able to pick up the ingredients that I need to actually make some of this stuff!! I'm so excited it's not even funny!!
After a hardcore workout in the pool, I hit up the supermarket. I have 5 supermarkets within a 20 min walk from my house. The thing is, every week the prices of fruit and veg are different in each one. The one nearest my house is suddenly really expensive, so I thought I'd pop into Seiyu today - mainly because I wanted to pick up some Asda white chocolate! I was in there and I thought I'd just have a peek at the fruit and veg before nipping to Tesco....and what a surprise I got!!
EVERYTHING was sooo much cheaper than usual!! Avocados for 78 yen and so much other stuff for under 100yen!! I completely filled my basket and then after I'd been to Tesco as well, I had to lug home 3 very full bags fo fruit and veg. Happy though, because it means that when I come back from Costco tomorrow, I'll already have all the fruit and veg I need to start cooking some awesome dishes!! Masterchef inspired of course!!!
Absolutely loving it!
On a completely different note, I can't wait until this week is over so I can stop seeing stupid Halloween pics clog up my FB News Feed!!! Driving me crazy!!! **** Halloween! HAHA!
And on that note, I'm off to bake a cake!
xoxo
HAHAHA!!
I watch that show and then while I'm at work or in bed, I'm constantly thinking of different food combinations and recipes I wanna try!!
And it's all coming a day before I'm due to go to Costco which means I'll be able to pick up the ingredients that I need to actually make some of this stuff!! I'm so excited it's not even funny!!
After a hardcore workout in the pool, I hit up the supermarket. I have 5 supermarkets within a 20 min walk from my house. The thing is, every week the prices of fruit and veg are different in each one. The one nearest my house is suddenly really expensive, so I thought I'd pop into Seiyu today - mainly because I wanted to pick up some Asda white chocolate! I was in there and I thought I'd just have a peek at the fruit and veg before nipping to Tesco....and what a surprise I got!!
EVERYTHING was sooo much cheaper than usual!! Avocados for 78 yen and so much other stuff for under 100yen!! I completely filled my basket and then after I'd been to Tesco as well, I had to lug home 3 very full bags fo fruit and veg. Happy though, because it means that when I come back from Costco tomorrow, I'll already have all the fruit and veg I need to start cooking some awesome dishes!! Masterchef inspired of course!!!
Absolutely loving it!
On a completely different note, I can't wait until this week is over so I can stop seeing stupid Halloween pics clog up my FB News Feed!!! Driving me crazy!!! **** Halloween! HAHA!
And on that note, I'm off to bake a cake!
xoxo
Saturday, 27 October 2012
Halloween
Saturday night and I'm hiding out at home.
Why?
Not just because I'm tired but I'm just not a fan of Halloween.
I don't wanna go as far as to say I hate it, but I'm just not interested in it AT ALL. Especially not over here. It's increasing in popularity year by year, but the whole dressing up as Disney character thing drives me insane. The times when I did go to Halloween parties was the excuse I need to go out dressed in just my underwear. LOL!!
I just don't wanna be out surrounded by it. But all you who have put copious amounts of effort into your costumes, you go for it!
But for me, it's gonna be an evening of catching up with TV shows and an early night.
Rock and roll!
HAHAHA!!
xoxo
Why?
Not just because I'm tired but I'm just not a fan of Halloween.
I don't wanna go as far as to say I hate it, but I'm just not interested in it AT ALL. Especially not over here. It's increasing in popularity year by year, but the whole dressing up as Disney character thing drives me insane. The times when I did go to Halloween parties was the excuse I need to go out dressed in just my underwear. LOL!!
I just don't wanna be out surrounded by it. But all you who have put copious amounts of effort into your costumes, you go for it!
But for me, it's gonna be an evening of catching up with TV shows and an early night.
Rock and roll!
HAHAHA!!
xoxo
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