Posted by Katrin on September 14th, 2006 — Posted in Literature
If you are looking for a good book to read that will not be forgotten after just a few days this might well be the right choice!
After having had trouble in the beginning getting into it, I soon was not able to put it down. It is the story of Kathy and her friends, set in an England of a not specified time. It is a different world from what we are living in now, but not in obvious ways. One needs time to figure things out, they are not clearly pointed out from the beginning, which might lead to the problems I had. I simply thought that it was my English (or lack thereof) , not realizing that I had to get used to a different kind of setting than what I expected. Ishiguro just takes for granted that you know this world like you live in it yourself which makes it even more real and touching.
It is a tale of friendship and love, told by Kathy herself. Even though the subject matter is not entirely new it grabbed me through the way how Kathy is narrating the story in a very calm and collected way. Somehow always knowing and accepting what lies ahead for her. For me it was not so much about what it is about, but how it is told.
Kazuo Ishiguro
Never let me go
faber and faber
£ 7,99
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Posted by Katrin on September 13th, 2006 — Posted in Cafés, Food supply
If I feel like having coffee in the afternoon I sometimes take a little walk from home to the Olive Bar Deli. I noticed it the first day I was in London, getting to know the new neighbourhood. Small Deli’s have always been my absolute favourites and if you can sit down and have coffee I’m pretty much a fan straight away.
This one offers a small range of delicatessen which you can buy and enjoy at home, as well as some tarts, croissants and cakes you can have with your coffee. They look quite mouthwatering I can tell you! Have a look at the cookie jars by the counter which hold a variety of Byron Bay Cookies. I am very happy that London offers me some of my Australian vices. These cookies are a close runner up to Spirulina Balls, I can tell you.
The other good thing about this place is that it is all organic.
I like to grab a cup of coffee and sit at the window to watch the people go by, but they also have more tables in the back of the room which tend to be more quiet as the street gets quite busy. In any way it is a nice place to take something to read, or in my case today to study, while all the other customers start gathering around you to grab some healthy lunch.
Olive Bar Deli
140 Shepherds Bush Road
London W6 7PB
020 7603 5717
theolivebar@btconnect.com
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Posted by Katrin on September 9th, 2006 — Posted in Bars, Movies
Last night a friend asked me to join her for a movie, which I happily did. I am somewhat of a movie adict - having seen loads and always wanting to see more. I even went thorough certain movie phases: There was the Truffaut-phase, the Dogma-phase, the Wong-Kar-Wai-phase… Don’t get me wrong though, I have nothing against a good popcorn-movie and easy entertainment! However the longer lasting pleasure I get out of movies which are a long way away from Hollywood.
One of my favourite directors is Pedro Almodovàr. I have seen his last five films and some older ones, although I like his more recent work better. They all have been so colourful and touching and especially the women portrayed are often very strong despite their circumstances.
For this movie night we chose Volver which has just recently been released and has been highly praised and critically acclaimed already. It is absolutely wonderful and as always Almodovar’s characters are warm-hearted and fighting for what they need most: love, friendship and family. This longing for warmth is always stronger than the tragedys they have experienced along the way. I left the theatre uplifted and happy!
Anne and I had tried the Odeon at Kensinton High Street and we were happy to discover that we have this lovely movie theatre so close by! If you don’t want to make your way into the city this is just the place to go.
Odeon Kensington
263 High Street
London, W8 6NA
0871 426 7067
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The other good thing about this was that we ran into a very cosy little bar called Sopranos. We had been walking up the street to find a Pub after the movie and suddenly we heard live music. We didn’t hesitate long and went down the few steps to be surprised by this comfortable place! There wasn’t an entrance fee and we learned that they have live music every Fridays and Saturdays and sometimes Wednesdays and Thursdays.
It was just a piano player and a male singer but these two were really good! We were lucky to get a table as there were already quite a lot of people there, but it wasn’t too full - just comfortably. It was exactly the right place to go to after you have seen a good film and want to chat a bit before going home.
Sopranos
183 Kensington High Street
London W8 6NA
020 7937 2458
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Posted by Katrin on September 6th, 2006 — Posted in Travel
Every once in a while you need to break out a little. In order to do so what could be better than a short trip to Paris in order to recharge and focus again. Thanks to National Express you don’t have to pay a fortune to get there! A return ticket from Victoria Coach Station to Paris - Gallieni (both with good connections via Tube/ Metro to the city centre) costs as little as GBP 33,- and I believe that isn’t even the lowest fare.
To be honest I am not much of a Coach-Trip person, but having to watch my money a little at the time, it seemed like a good option. It’s quite an experience too! For starters now I know that you need to check in to a coach just like on a plane…
The trip went surprisingly smooth and with a good book the seven hour drive was bareable. In any case when doing such a short trip: travel light! On the way back we had to go through customs and they made us take out all the luggage. I was very glad to just have my handbag to hold on to and didn’t have to worry about large suitcases.
I was less lucky with my hotel though and therefore I can’t give you any recommendations. However, this is a good search page.
One of the reasons why I was keen to visit Paris is the fact that I am a delighted reader of Chocolate and Zucchini, a blog by a young French woman living in Paris. I wanted to see a few of the places she mentioned in her blog for myself:
E. Dehillerin an outlet store for cooking utensils. It’s absolutely amazing what they stock and you see straight away that they normally target professionals. However they are open to individuals as well and I couldn’t resist and bought two small tarte-forms.
G. Detou is a wonderful store full of everything you might need for baking. I was almost a bit sad that I didn’t have a recipe at hand with some unbelievable ingredient I might find nowhere but there. Maybe next time, for now I just enjoyed to have a look around.
For a Café Crème I turned to a small restaurant/café near Jardin du Luxembourg. Mostly for it’s likable name Au Petit Suisse:
It turned out that having only one whole day in Paris is just not enough… Well I should have known! I can definitely advise you though to return home either early in the morning or in the evening. My bus left at 1 pm and once you leave the hotel with your luggage in the morning it is a very uncomfortable way to kill time. You hardly manage to do anything fun or useful.
I was happy to return to London with a few of my favourite French products:
Bonne Maman: Galettes au beurre frais, for afternoon tea
Le Petit Suisse, for breakfast
Taillefine Equilibre, as a snack
Nestlé Dessert Chocolat Noir and Corsé, for Mousse and Fondant au Chocolat
We’ll see how long they last…
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Posted by Katrin on September 4th, 2006 — Posted in Cafés, Food supply
Not being rich I certainly can’t afford to do my shopping in organic food stores. Nevertheless I do like and support their approach and sometimes I just brouse for something little that will give me the feeling of “I just have treated myself to something tasty yet healthy”.
Walking up Kensington High Street to further explore the area we live in Tom and I came across a health food store. It is small but well stocked and you can go in for food and something to drink - they have tables and it looks quite cosy. To my delight they had a wide range of snacks and such things and now let me introduce you to what I have grown to love in Australia:
The Spirulina Ginseng Ball!
Put some label of Wellbeing on anything and I buy it - I admit I am a very easy target when it comes to these things. First spotted and eaten was the Bounce Spirulina Ginseng Ball in Sydney at one of their (healthy) Juice Bars over there. I loved it immidiately, not just because it says on the wrapping that everything in there is good for me. It’s just that kind of thing I want to have a little stock of at my desk to give me a boost when I need it.
I do have to alert you though. I happily wanted to share my discovery with everyone, but they weren’t quite as enthousiastic as me. But in any way I am very glad to have found a source in London and if you come across one I urge you to try it!
luscious organic
240-242 Kensington High Street
London W8 6NE
0207 371 6987
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