8 Hidden Secrets of Temple, London

Normal Londoners will rush through the Temple area of London, race along Fleet Street and possibly settle into a cosy chair somewhere delicious along The Strand.

Instead of doing the above, the next time you find yourself with a spare half an hour or so fancy a 'London Kiwi'-style tour of the area instead? For medieval history, cats, Hollywood movies, Charles Dickens and a decent cup of tea read on. 

Merry Christmas to all - and to all, a good night!

This year we have the strange and uniquely wonderful situation of Christmas Eve falling on a Sunday. This means that by 5.02pm on Friday London was half-empty with expats zooming home and most everyone else clomping off to the countryside for family gatherings around groaning tables. (Another quarter of the population will be frantically racing up and down the aisles of the nearest shop even though they could just avail themselves by perusing this annual charity gift guide.)

Instead of disappearing off to the other side of the world to cast off our shoes and swelter - by choice - in Christmas jumpers in the New Zealand sunshine (not to mention swimming with wild dolphins (sorta)) we are cozying up at with family. We have a wealth of cheesy movies lined up, more snacks than we'll ever need and a few of our nearest and dearest next to us.

What do you buy someone who has everything? How about a goat? (A Charity Gift Guide.)

'Twas the week before Christmas, and all through the house,

not a creature was stirring, not even a clickety PC mouse. 

That's because all of the organised shoppers are sitting smugly with a glass of mulled wine in hand (clearly they read my blogpost celebrating some amazing small businesses), and all of the disorganised ones are leaving gift buying to the very last minute, and are braving the crowds on the Saturday morning before Christmas. Because they like to live life in the crazy lane.

Well.

Carrying on my annual charity tradition (est. 2014) I want to pay forward some of the amazing karma I've received over the years and give something back to those less fortunate. Blogger gift guides are pretty well established now but as ever I couldn't just do a normal one - it needed a slightly Adventures of a London Kiwi twist (I even spotted a couple of little sheep fellows - hey, you can take the blogger out of New Zealand...)

The Life of a Freelancer: A 6 Month Update.

I can’t believe I’ve been freelancing for 6 months now. It’s been 6 months as my own boss, 6 months learning my way around working directly with clients, 6 months of being able to set my own agenda and 6 whole months of learning to understand what my own strengths and weaknesses are as a girlboss businesswoman.

This point was another marker, another waypoint in the journey, and I’m so pleased to have been developing a portfolio of lovely, interesting clients who are also challenging my creativity and helping me expand my skill base – and I’ve also picked up a few unexpected projects along the way to add to my CV and LinkedIn.

A Day Trip To The Birmingham Christmas Market.

We tried to visit last year but ran out of available December weekends and the Birmingham Christmas markets eluded our grasp. This year was a different story. Rounding us up like Rudolph gathering his sleigh of reindeer, but with Whatsapp rather than elf-dust, our esteemed organiser not only managed to secure a whole day that we all could do but book train tickets in as well. She cracked that tinsel covered whip...

So, bright and early on a Saturday morning we gathered, scrubbing the sleep from the corners of our eyes and brightly hugging - glad that instead of cracking our usual escape rooms, we were just shuffling onto the train - we boarded our sleigh (also known as a Class 165/0 Network Turbo train) nice and early.

6 Luxurious Winter Cocktail Hotspots in London.

Christmas time, mistletoe and wine...

Disclaimer: we have been invited guests to the bars marked with a star, 
but I've been to most of these already on my own dime, and more than once...

It’s unmistakable. It’s the time of year that people get a twinkle in their eye, rosy cheeks and feel the need to get out an celebrate with their nearest and dearest. And why not, indeed.

Unique, quirky and full of love: a small business gift guide.

If a tree falls in the forest and there is no one around to hear it, does it make a sound? If you are a blogger who doesn't write a gift guide, are you even entitled to buy rose gold accessories?

Obviously, I'm joking, but having never written a gift guide in the 5 years that I've been blogging bar my annual charity guide (an updated version to follow shortly, don't worry) I felt that an essential tool in my blogging arsenal was lacking deployment.

7 Things I Adore About The Festive Season.

For me, the festive season kicks off at the end of October. It's when my birthday is, and signals the beginning of two months of celebrating life.

There is Thanksgiving, Diwali, Guy Fawkes, Hanukkah, Christmas AND New Year. What can I say, I'm an equal opportunity celebration kinda gal (and are lucky enough to have a diverse range of friends to celebrate with!)

Aqua Kyoto - Reviewing The Go Zen Lunch Boxes

What a difference a year makes. Roughly 365.25 days ago I was sat in Aqua Kyoto, surrounded by my workmates in a job that wasn't challenging enough, hiding my blogging obsession and being teased about having a raging travel addiction. Funnily enough, our big group were seated at the very table that I took the below photo on. So many things have changed, though the raging travel obsession (obviously) hasn't subsided.

Disclaimer: We were invited guests of Aqua Kyoto but my (very many) thoughts are only ever mine and my repeat visits, I mean victory feasts attest to simply how much I enjoy their cuisine.

This time around, I'm becoming an established freelancer with clients who seem fairly happy, I've written articles for all kinds of places and I've been to New Zealand and back, but I still love to schedule in lunchtimes of indulgence and zen because goodness knows I'm only a human-bean. But, that's more than enough rambling about me.

A Restaurant Review of Celeste at the Lanesborough.

This was a meal both of angelic delicacy and more earthly disappointment. Not the company, obviously, just read on.

After much to-ing and fro-ing, Aftab, Angie, Binny, Zoe and I managed to find a date that could all gather for my birthday (#bloggerproblems) we chose Celeste at the Lanesborough, excited to check off a restaurant that had been languishing on our spreadsheets (I wish I was kidding - but behind many hungry bloggers is an electronic hit list of tasty locations) for much too long. Chef Eric Frechon and Executive Chef Florian Favario hold five Michelin stars between them, so to say we were excited would be an understatement.

Spurred on by friends who had visited many times and loved the fare, we also managed to hook ourselves one of the London Restaurant Festival menus (allowing for less bank manager outrage and more champagne - my old maths teacher would be so proud). Unfortunately, it was a dark and rainy evening. We arrived shaking the rain from our coats and giggling at the rather late 21st birthday mug that arrived from Australian (thanks to my Aunty, who gave it to my Uncle who stored it between house moves.)

A Two Michelin Star Lunch: Hélène Darroze at The Connaught Hotel, Mayfair

Approaching birthdays seem to strike terror into the hearts of many people that I know - for a huge variety of reasons - but I've always just seen it as an excuse to hang out with the people that I love and as a reminder that life is too short to drink bad coffee.

Last year I celebrated a milestone birthday, and managed to eke it out to 6 weeks of celebrations (which is ludicrous, I know - but we had to wait for Dinner at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel to finish their renovations. Honestly, Heston, really did you have to make us wait so long?) so this year as it wasn't a milestone, I managed to tamp things down to around a week - which I think is totally reasonable in the scheme of things.

Booking in a few lunches and dinners with a load of good people who helped me to celebrate, first up was a leisurely (ahem, four hour) lunch with Shikha (Why Waste Annual Leave) and Connie (Connie Consumes) at the luscious Connaught Hotel.

Magical Train Journeys Around the World - A Few Of My Favourites.

It may be a cliche, but sometimes the journey can be just as astonishing as the destination.

I love catching trains. The ease, the ability to wander around whilst speeding through the countryside, the sweeping corners, the friendly people dispensing hot tea, staring out the windows for hours as the world chugs past, generous luggage allowances and the whistling engineers with grease smudges in their eye and rosy cheeks.

Where to eat and drink in Chelsea - 10 of my favourite places

Chelsea began life as a Saxon village some miles from the thriving town of London (the name derives from Saxon words cealc hythe, the word hythe meaning a landing place for boats) and has long been a sought-after area. So sought after that in 1536 Henry VIII built a manor house in Chelsea but it was demolished in 1760.

Disclaimer: Any of these that I was a press guest at some point are indicated with a * in the title. 

As ever I review as if I had paid for them and only share the ones that I have loved, 

(too) often returning on my own dime.

Fast-forwarding to modern times, much hasn't changed in Chelsea. The beautiful stone and brick buildings that could tell juicy enough tales to make your hair curl, the roads which still occasionally host horse & carriage and there is a delightful selection of places to spend a few hours with friends; to eat drink and be merry.

Beneath The Colour: The Hyatt Regency Hotel Marylebone

The pianist started to softly play a familiar tune. My friend Kate turns to us, and exlaims 'oooooh, it's someone's birthday!' Guiltly exchanging glances as the waitress got closer and closer - birthday cake crowned with merrily dancing candles in hand - my other friend and I tried to stifle giggles as realisation dawned on Kate that the cake was floating closer and closer to her, and that we had schemed a way to celebrate her birthday whether she liked it or not.

Disclaimer: This time were invited guests of the Hyatt Regency Hotel

but all previous visits, errant thoughts, and misuse of literary quotes are entirely my own.

This was in the Montagu Restaurant, the main restaurant of the Hyatt Regency hotel, our usual haunt for a ladies only monthly catch up. Not only a plush place to enjoy an evening, it was so conveniently located in Marylebone that we could all assemble easily, fresh from a long day in our offices. Now that we have all changed jobs, we don't meet quite as often, but every time I walk through the doors I think of those friends who made the long days bearable.

Date Night: Galvin At The Athenaeum Hotel

Do you prefer the hubbub of a busy restaurant or the slightly sleepier buffer hours around opening and closing times when you have the whole place practically to yourself?

It makes me feel kind old to admit this, but I really prefer an early evening repast; one where we are tucked around a corner that makes our meal a cosy, intimate evening - whether with the long-suffering Mr Kiwi or a group of friends who I haven't seen in ages.

Also, if I had to wait until 8/8.30pm for dinner (without strategic mealtime planning) hanger would undoubtedly kick in, and I can not be held responsible for the results.

A Cup of Tea in Eastcote House Gardens

Flitting about London is a bona fide passion for me - I love any excuse to discover a new suburb,  turn a new corner or a unveil a new story, so a few weeks ago when I was meeting someone near Pinner - a suburb of North West London - instead of going into a S*******s or C***a, I quickly Googled for somewhere a little more interesting and discovered 'the Gardeners Cafe' at Eastcote House and Gardens.

Eastcote House Gardens is a beautifully tranquil award-winning green space, with Grade II listed buildings, including a historic Walled Garden, wildflower meadows, a Topiary garden and a newly planted Jubilee Orchard, linked by a footbridge over the River Pinn to Long Meadow, an ancient water meadow.

Modern Brunch : Percy and Founders in Fitzrovia

Jay Rayner doesn't like this place. He called it "an evolutionary dead end".

But, sometimes of a morning, you just don't want a fuss. I've been into Percy and Founders a few times - entirely intentionally and pre-planned - but this time we had fallen afoul of our booked restaurant not actually doing brunch and found ourselves a few streets away.

English Traditions: Bell Ringing in Churches

One of the moments in my life that I'll never forget is hearing the Church bells pealing as Mr Kiwi and I took our first steps as a married couple.

Our favourite song was playing, many of our favourite people around the world were smiling all around us and that bloke who had just vowed to stand beside me through thick, thin and endless photographs of doorways (that wasn't in the vows, it was implied) took my hand.

My Favourite London Coffee Shops To Work From

When I initially went freelance, I had intended to launch a mini-series on the blog, sharing the best cafes I was discovering. I love using the change of scene to ward off being stuck at home, and to make the most of not being tied to a desk - and I failed to journal it spectacularly.

Fortunately/unfortunately it's because I’ve been super busy that I haven’t put fingers to keyboard, so thought I’d put that right. All of these have been trialled several times - for quality testing purposes obviously and nothing to do with a raging coffee addiction...

How To Move To The Other Side Of The World: A Retrospective

I honestly can't pinpoint exactly when I actually decided to move 18,764 km away from the only home I'd ever known, all on my own.

I was the ripe old age of 19, and not really enjoying my architecture degree. My grades were pretty good, but I remember being frustrated at only learning from books and idealistically thinking 'how on earth am I supposed to create these amazing spaces if I've never actually experienced them?'