A letter to my 18-year-old self.

I did a straw poll (read: asked a couple of friends over a glass of wine) and asked them what they would tell their 18-year-old self. Most people I asked generally answered ranging from finish your qualifications to moisturize generously.

Honestly, I know that hindsight is 20/20, but I wouldn’t change much at all about my journey so far. Ok, there are a few situations that were completely out of my control and I would change them for all of the money in the world, but I can’t.

Writing, the drug that no-one warns you about

What never happens in all of the '10 tips to start a blog' posts is a warning about how expressing yourself via the medium of word-arranging is dangerous. Your bank account, personal safety (think photographing at the edge of cliffs) and emotional well-being are all affected in ways that no-one really talks about.

It's that saying "ignorance is bliss". Well, I used to be content with my ignorance. I blissed out over lots of TV, traipsed to and from the concrete jungle without much thought and fitted in a holiday or two when I could. Now, now every action has a tale somewhere narrated in my head, every moment can be framed in the golden section and rule of thirds (with bonus points for a square setting) and enough sometimes simply isn’t enough.

Keywords for finding Adventures of a London Kiwi

I do adore the internet, most of the time, but ever more so when I wander into the search terms use to find my blog. Public feedback - aka Twitter - indicates that London Kiwi Emma (ala my social media handle) is the most common method (and incidentally how I'm saved into a lot of cell phones...who needs a surname with the advent of Twitter?)

The interweb gurus say that SEO runs the internet, but I still find in an intriguing black ar full of chicanery, a thesaurus black hole and a sprinkle of voodoo.

Blogging style

Ever get that feeling that you’re not normal, that your rhythm is just slightly out of sync with the rest of the world? All my life I’ve been different, a round peg in a square hole as it were. Some days it's easy to revel in; a feeling of individuality and uniqueness that can’t be dimmed; and at other times it feels decidedly outsider-ish, like you can’t fit in because you simply see the other side of the argument.

Every so often I take a breather and look back on the crazy, wonderful world of blogging that I seem enmeshed in. It is brilliant. An excuse to see the world, drink coffee over laughter, indulge in all kinds of random whims (over the years they have numbered amongst door knockers, toast, herding sheep, luxury hotel stays, setting fire to food - aka Teppenyaki, go Nursery Rhyme Church hunting, indulge in whimsy and wander way too often.

Nine travel essentials that I won't leave home without...

Having zipped around the globe as much as I humanly could fit into annual leave for the last 10 years (HOW HAS IT BEEN THIS LONG ALREADY?) including 3 flights last year to my own Kiwi home - aka almost as far away as you can get from England without cozying up to Antarctic Penguins - it's safe to say that I think I've almost got this travel packing thing down to an art. (I'll have you know that it was my husband who left all of my bathroom kit behind in England on a recent trip - thankfully it was only Belfast and I could buy almost everything I needed in any case.)

In the vain hope of wrangling yet another trip on our way home from the last one, I always leave a little bag of essentials tucked into my drawer. I like to think of them as emergency travel ninja supplies that I could pick up at a moments notice - and it's the first stash of things that go into my suitcase.

Well, actually, this was going to be 10 travel essentials list, because as a spectacle wearer since the age of 11 - long before fashion made wearing spectacles respectable, even cool - I would always have to tuck my glasses case and a large stash of contact lenses for special occasions and emergencies into our suitcases. However, Vision Direct approached me to share their international contact lens delivery service (taking only 2-3 days delivery to most parts of Europe) that is going to be a game changer for our holidays. We will be much less stressed about accidentally knocking our glasses off the bedside table and having to wander around beautiful places squinting in annoyance because everything is blurry...

My carry-on essentials that I can't enjoy travelling without are:

Friday figments and photos: Oops I did it again

In the famous lyrics of Britney Spears;

You see my problem is this / I'm dreaming away
Wishing that heroes, they truly exist / I cry, watching the days
Can't you see I'm a fool in so many ways

But to lose all my senses / That is just so typically me
Baby, oh

Well, that and I got rather too carried away with the fun of blogging, and let drift my favourite section of the blogosphere - remembering to journal life as it comes.

10 reasons YOU should Blog (and why I love mine)

Anyone will tell you that I am the blog world’s biggest cheerleader. As an expat living on the other side of the world to her established friends (and long-suffering family), blogging gave me the impetus to get out of a work>home>work rut and continues to inspire mischief long after the honeymoon period of a new hobby wore off.

Sitting behind a computer kinda changed me. Far from retreating into myself and the unique loneliness that a big city like London can bring, blogging became the last piece to complete my expat puzzle. It took a long time to come about, but it turned me from the quiet mouse who admired outgoing characters into a ballsy adventurer who discovers intriguing things to do that keeps us fascinated with our home city, and discovered a new side to New Zealand.

So, when Dell contacted me to share the passion that I have for blogging and what makes it unique and special as a creative medium, I jumped at the chance. The below is pure Emma prose - and inspiration for the next time blog-guilt strikes and I begin to wonder why I chose such a full-on, indulgent hobby.

Lessons I have learned over 1,000 blog posts

I can't actually believe I'm writing this. If someone had told me in June 2012 that years later I would be still typing away at my little corner of the internet, I would have laughed. In their face.

Setting myself a goal of daily blogging for 1001 days seemed foolhardy to a girl who can only just commit to reading a full book (and usually cheats on it with at least one, maybe two other novels along the way) and struggles to watch a whole movie without wandering off. Bizarrely enough I managed it (at the rate of 6 posts a week) and at the end of the challenge still enjoyed blogging enough to continue on.

Furthermore, somehow all this time down the track Adventures of a London Kiwi is something I am immensely proud of.

10 reasons I hate blogging – a rant.

Over the years I have come to a firm belief in karma (and I was bullied as a school kid - are you reading this Janine?) so try to live by the motto of ‘be nice’ where I can in my life. I try not to complain about things that I can change, put as many good vibes out into the cosmos (*hippy alert*) and generally try to live without any regrets.

But, there are rare days where I really hate blogging – yes, the opportunities are immense, I’ve learned so many skills and met some wonderful people – and some days that I just fancy a little grouch. Unfortunately the latest mood occurred just when I had a blog post space, so here goes…

• Envy, there I said it. Envy is the greatest issue I have with blogging – reading someone else’s fantastically phrased post (even worse when you were at the table with them), when a someone spots a great viewpoint that you had your eye on and don’t want to look like you are copying or when you compare someone else's amazing photographic talents. We all struggle with our demons, I know

9 ways to make living in London easier

Over the years I have called London a lot of deserved names. Tempestuous, stunning, old, demanding, fantastic, incorrigible, sassy, boring (which was unfair of me), mischievous, inscrutable, over-the-top, busy, magical and usually wonderfully ridiculous.

You can go to up to Charing Cross for a greasy full English breakfast, over to Paris for lunch and party at the Ritz for dinner. What's more, with only a short hop out of the city, you can sleep in a 14th Century Castle, drink your way around Europe and attempt to find the Loch Ness monster. The flipside is that the UK, and London in particular can be a demanding place to live.

Over the years I've found that the secret to London is accepting that happiness does take work (and occasionally a little luck) and there is one key thing to keep in mind when coming over: you will still probably have to wake up to an alarm and work the daily grind. But if, you are courageous, the benefits can be immense. Why be poor, tired and unhappy in a rural backwater when you can be poor, tired and happy in a City where your potential can be immense?

15 rainy day ideas when you're in a strange city

It's happened to all of us. After months dreaming of sunlit idylls, the weather gods let you down and allow a storm to bucket down torrents of icy rain. You have no car to hand or destination in mind (having planned a city-centre stay close to where all the tours leave from) and can't bear the thought of being hemmed in at a vaguely interesting museum amongst frazzled kids.

This happened to us the day before New Years Eve. Ironically we had planned a ferry trip across Auckland harbour and hike to a volcano crater (the most organised physical, outdoors activity we fancied on our trip) and the heavens opened. Perusing the cinema listings, we didn't really fancy watching any thing there, so thought up a few amusing alternatives.

My New Years Resolutions

This blog has always been, and will forever more be a record of my personal adventures. It is a journal of the chaos, delight, opportunities and travails that we encounter all rolled in with an obsession for photography (as far as my skillz extend) and a dash of humour (well, I try anyway).

There seems to be a lot of the usual goal setting in the blogosphere that a new year usually entails, with a strong dash of 're-injecting the personality' for many bloggers who have been lured over to the shiny lights of corporate opportunities which makes me a little sad. What are blogs if not a record of your personal journey - whatever that may entail and without too many filters.

I guess over the years, this corner of the Internet has settled into a bit of a travel/food/laughter groove - reflecting my favourite passions in life - and this comes out in the goals that I usually set. This year is different. I don't normally set New Years resolutions - the idea of them sends a shiver down my ever failing spine, so I've decided to call them commandments. Moses style.

The best way to beat Monday blues.

Monday is derived from an Old English word Mōnandæg literally translating as ‘day of the moon,’ our favourite glorious celestial body. When the name was originally nominated as a day of the week I'm sure that the image of modern day desk workers trudging towards their desk with a cup of joe (or a round of Tea if you work in England) wasn't quite what they had in mind, so a bevy of lovely bloggers and I are here to the rescue.

Sometimes we all need a touch of travel inspiration, so as such we've scoured the internets for a few of our favourite travel quotes and photos that made our hearts happy. Take for instance this incredible Icelandic Horse's expression courtesy of Dannielle from Chicedeedee;

 

Quotes, mottos, mantras and inspiration

A couple of weeks ago, a friend turned to me and asked "What is your life motto?". Rather astounded (it was only 10.15am on a Tuesday) I gulped goldfish-like a couple of times, and short of shouting out 'look, it's a bird' as a distraction or Googling furiously, it got me thinking.

What is my motto? Do I need a motto? How do pick just one? Should I get a tattoo in case I then forget the said motto? In any case, last year a few lovelies and I pulled out our quotes textbooks, and drafted a few inspiring words overlaying our favourite places. So, in the interest of answering the motto enigma, I've drafted a few ladies in again - the delicious Jaime@Angloyankophile, Dannielle@Chicadeedee, Kelly@Flat Eleven, Lauren@Lifestyle Diaries, Rebecca@Runaway Kiwi, Amanda@Rhyme & Ribbons, Maaike@Travellous World and Angie@Silverspoon London.

They say that 'Traveling is a fool's paradise. Our first journeys discover to us the indifference of places" but...

Blogs I love.

What I love the most about these blogs are the vivacious variety of posts, escapades, mischief, fun, real life, chaos, quirkyness, foodie fun, history, brunch... all the wonderful blogging personalities.

Just a few of my favorite blogs for your perusing pleasure...

Sequins and Cherry Blossom - London, sunshine, sushi, books and blooms.
A Life Less Beige - A girl with big dreams on a mission to see the world and make a difference.
Runaway Kiwi - Coffee, brunch and an obsession with polka dots.
Emm in London - An eternal South African Tourist.
The MayFairy - A wicked Kiwi, with a razor sharp wit.
Jasmin Charlotte -  A hybrid English Kiwi currently living in London
Angloyankophile - Stylishly escaping the clutches of suburban American life in London...
Cake and Whiskey - She had my heart at 'cake'.
The Lifestyle Diaries - Full of mischief and smiles.

Around the World in 80 Pairs of Shoes - Gluten free afternoon tea, roadtrips and mischief.

Silverspoon London - Luxurious life, fun and foodies escapades (with a side of salmon ;D).

Lux Life - Life, events, food, travel, luxury - and the best surname ever.

Luxury Columnist - Delectable tastes of the finer side of life.

Penelope & Parker's Travels - Accountant by day, travelling blogger by night...

Follow your Sunshine -Luxuriating in the sunshine of a Doha life.

The Wanderblogger - Beautiful, beautiful photos and and enormous smile.

Urban Pixxels - Stunningly stylish photography.
To the Days Like This - Adventures, travels, ramblings and thoughts on this funny old life.
Melanie Fontaine -Aspiring writer & photographer with a mad case of the travelbug
Oh, The Places We Will Go - Texan travel exploits around the world
Jess on Thames - My favourite Minnesotan Kiwi living, loving London.
Being Erica - Wednesdays she wears pink.
Living in Another Language - Life in the Deep South. Of New Zealand, currently.
Kiwi Footprints - Tips, tricks and photography causing travel envy.
Why Waste Annual Leave - I think the name says everything you need to know...
Lines of Escape - Travel, confessions, suitcases, quirky activities and a side of archaeology.

Meg-Made - New adventures of a glitter glamour puss in Abu Dhabi
The Hemborg Wife - Craft, tea, cheeky American wit and a love for cheese that matches my own...
Globetrotter Postcards - Immersive theatre, day trips, off the beaten track travel & a huge shy smile.
Erin Out and About - Expat life on the flipside.
Globetrotting in Heels - Passionate traveler, budding photographer and mom with a nomadic soul.
Chic-a-Dee-Dee - The story of a New Yorker & her explorations of North-East England
Big World, Small Me - A New Zealand girl who left home five years ago to pursue a life of travelling and living abroad.
That Adventurer - Loving the adventure in the everyday.
This City Life - A writer currently navigating the world of advertising and a new life in Leeds.
Six out of Ten Magazine - Head in the clouds and feet on the ground.

As the Bird Flies - A Londoner in Amsterdam (for now)
The Sunny Side of This - The fabulous 'self-proclaimed unofficial Slovenia-Mexican Ambassador'.
A Deecoded Life - An expat living in Singapore and sharing her world.
Unlocking Kiki - Lust worthy life in Iceland
Full of beans (and sausages) -  A devoted English romantic and explorer living in Canada.
Crumbs in the bed - Saying life how it is as an English expat in Belgium
Toothbrush Travels - An ex-expat having expat worthy escapades.
Eat Love Wanderlust - All my favourites!
Stacey Fenton - Aussie girl living in London. Full time web developer and part time traveller


A Little Lusciousness - Supper clubs, London life and foodie treats.
The Italian Kiwi - The life and times of an Italian Kiwi.

In her 30s - Honest #foodporn.
Lady Loves Cake - Wellington NZ brunch meets London UK dinners. Get in mah belly.

Whatever Gets You Through The Day -Delicious recipes and wonderful writing.
Rhyme & Ribbons - London shenanigans and a Paul Hollywood approved baking thumb.
Passport and Toothbrush - Currently travelling around the world one London restaurant at a time.
More than just a cupcake lover - Chatter, tea, cake, London.

I always find it fascinating to see whose blogs other bloggers love to read - does it say something about our personalities? In fact I've just realised that my bloglovin' has 230 blogs that I follow.

Hello, my name is Emma and I am a blog addict.

(I know I've missed a plethora - drop me your recommendations!!)

Blogging inspiration and what the heck to write about?

A friend of mine was asking me the other day just how I managed to blog 6 days a week for 3 years, work fulltime, spend quality time with my other half AND motor around London like my pants were on fire. Honestly I don't know... I guess really it came down to two things: sheer bl**dy determination and settling into a blogging habit that suited me (and occasionally inviting Mr Kiwi out to blogging dinners - heh, two birds with one stone and all that).

I've learnt that creativity comes easiest to my weird brain in the later evening; it helps to have a soundtrack of pop music (Delta brainwaves help generate creativity with a good bass line apparently) and no distractions ie. turning off Twitter. I know it is hard, but you can do it if I can (for at least 10 minutes anyway). I absolutely wouldn't have been able to do it without publicly setting myself a target of blogging, and seizing that tricky muse went it hits - some days I could draft 4 posts in a sitting, some weeks I could draft 2 over all 7 days.

I also find that I have to have photos to write. Strange I know, but once there are a few pretties lined up in the draft box, the words seem to come a little bit easier.

Friday(ish) figments and photos

Ironically for someone who prides herself on defying the blog niche perogative, I seem to thrive creatively in a set, defined challenge. Bizarre, yes. Very Emma, yes. With my set scheme of 6 topics, I could plan ahead, knew what I needed to get for the next few posts and could feel like I was cheating when I defied the system and spent an entire week writing about Harry Potter and Doctor Who.

I think I've just solved my blogger's block. *facepalm*

This entire week has been rather surreal and rather moving. With a 3am start on ANZAC day, we made our way to the incredibly busy corner of Hyde Park (there were literally thousands of sleepy antipodeans all rugged up, listened to the remembrance service intently. I do always wonder what the local hotel guests think!?) and joined Princess Anne commemorating the fallen soldiers of World War One.

Blogging #firstworldproblems.

I have a very strange problem. I’m finding it weirdly hard to settle into the less frenetic groove of 3 posts a week (plus Fridays). When I was publishing a 6 posts a week it seemed like a fairground train ride that just kept chugging along happily; I had a pattern and variety of posts that I loved to put up – an organiser by nature I felt grounded in my routine: Monday – London, Tuesday – Books, Wednesday – Foodie something, Thursday – Travel, Friday – Figments and photos, Saturday – anything that took my fancy.

...just another brick in the wall...

Like so many of the blogging folk*, for me blogging is a creative outlet to make up for a pedestrian 9-5 <insert a good ole bit of Dolly Parton here>. It’s been a wonderful way to make friends in the London expat community, find out a few insane secrets of my adopted city, bring a bit of creativity into the day and a fantastic excuse for making brunch dates.

How to survive a blog conference weekend

Blogging is a funny creature, and at one point or another temptation will hearken for spending a Saturday learning stuff and you may just find yourself sat behind a school desk in your spare time of your own free will. Don't believe me? It's totally true. Ploughing the fields of SEO strategy, photography tips, basic accountancy, a touch of history, social media workshops - all the blogging buzzwords (and occasionally a few of those too).

 
But even after 3 years of being involved in the blogging community, introducing myself into a room of strangers makes me break out in a cold sweat. I've often called my better half 5 minutes before the start of a morning to squeal howIcan'tpossiblydothisbecauseIdon'tknowanyoneandwhyonearthdoIputmyselfthroughthis!?. Luckily he usually calms me down by telling that I'm an idiot, to go for an hour and see how I feel - much like a parent on their child's first day at school. Half an hour later I'm happily playing chatting away and get the 'told you so' text of support and vindication.

Back walking through the school corridors...

Over the years I've made myself push through the barrier, and been helped by a few tips from friends when faced with a room of 150 smiling faces. In reality, I guess a lot of these apply to the professional world too (except possibly the snacks, play that one by air)

101 goals in 1001 days - the final result.

A thousand days ago (give or take 3) I set myself a rather rambunctious set of goals: 101 items to be crossed off a list within almost 3 years. The goals ranged from as simple as visiting America, to keeping the coffee table clear for a whole month (you snigger, but have no idea at the will power this took to complete...!) One of those goals was to blog every single day for that time.

Not one to do things by halves ('I want to travel' turns into move to the other side of the world, 'I've met a nice boy' turned into ooops, how on earth am I married) my ridiculous enthusiasm which is perfect for beginning projects, was somewhat diminished by the real world getting in the way - who needs sleep, I mean really!? - but I'm pretty proud to say I managed 800(!!) of them and close to 6 days a week of blogging, sharing, musing and adventuring.

I can quite seriously credit sitting here at a computer for getting us out and about exploring London a hundred times more than we ever did. Instead of just frumping at home on the couch in front of the TV wondering why we were so 'meh', we're continually finding more and more crazy, wonderful things to do and places to visit. Afternoon teas, hidden wonders, coffee spots, fascinating lectures, incredible homes, Hindu temples down residential streets, secret gardens, nursery rhyme churches, I could go on (and let's be honest here, I have done for 1001+ days...)

Revelling in a plethora of fascinations 101 in 1001 Afternoon Tea Animals Blog advice Bookshelf Brunch Cat Highjinks Christmas Churches Cocktails Coffee Day trips England Europe Excercise expats family Fiction Food Foodie Penpals Foodie-in-training Free London Fridays Fun Giveaway Gluten Free Guest Post Healthy Holidays Inspiration Kiwi Spotting Life lately Linkups London London Living Non-Fiction Olympics Oranges and Lemons Phone Photography Photography Product Review Quirks Recipes Restaurant Review Touristy Traditions Travel Travel Linkup Treats United Kingdom to name but a few, I've had written work commissioned (to my never ending surprise), made a plethora of wonderfully quirky friends, hosted a year long travel topic linkup, paid karma forward as much as I could and generally loved every minute.

 

I've learned SEO, what a social media is, how to turn almost any situation into an article, how to hack Blogspot layouts, basic html (mostly centering, let's be honest) but what has really amazed me is how my photography has improved, my palate has sharpened and the confidence that's emerged as a result of having my wee blog soap box. I intentionally only share positive things because that's me - I don't want to be the person that looks back on life and only sees the negative - it happens, it just isn't immortalised on the world wide web, and that's no bad thing I reckon. I have come to realise that my grammar is severely lacking in refinement, my spelling is atrocious but I seemed to have developed a conversational writing that is me and me alone (even when my other half is drafted in to edit occasionally - the jokes he takes out are more often than not chucked straight back in.) Having a blog could be seen as an exercise in ego, but it's also bursting with something to say, and realising that everyone has the ability to say it, they just need the confidence.

This here corner of t'internet has resulted in more than 1,000,000 Google+ views (and probably would have been more if I hadn't switched accounts, rookie error), found myself with 2,300 Twitter followers, 660 Bloglovin' followers, but best of of all I've found you. Yep, you, the lovelies who stick reading my drivel day after day, offering your own stories, amusing comments, an occasional shoulder to cry on, company to drink tea with, hilarious encounters, epic advice, cat photos, dinner recommendations and above all, an audience to commiserate with when blogging seems like hard work.