Popcorn, candy floss and pick 'n mix

The London Film Museum hosted a showcase event at their County Hall venue on Wednesday. The location is amazing: on the Southbank, overlooking the Thames, Big Ben and the London Eye. And the County Hall itself is a beautiful venue with great architecture, including a lot of pretty wooden paneling. The museum is just one of a number of tenants of the building and actually only just opened to the public in April 2012.

Not surprisingly the theme tonight was movie night. They expected 800-1,000 people and it was certainly a busy event. In proper cinema style, they had popcorn, candy floss, ice cream and a pick 'n mix station. The hot bowl food proved very popular, so popular that the service was struggling to get past the hungry mob waiting for them. The chocolate making class was also very popular and the chocolates very yummy!

In addition to the Riverside Suites and the Rotunde (the main event spaces), they have a number of break out rooms, which were all decorated in different themes: there was the Alice in Wonderland room, a cool lounge room steeped in blue mood light and a proper English afternoon tea set up.

The museum itself is quite small and I don't think I would pay £13 to go in. Unless we didn't see all rooms, there weren't that many exhibits. It seems that a lot of people according to tripadvisor are rather disappointed.

I can only imagine the pressure for delivering on these showcase events - with event managers probably being amongst the most critical audience! And a few things let the otherwise great night down:

• When I arrived for the 18:30 start about half the badges were not prepared
• The first speech given by two representatives from a production company: after just a few minutes, most attendees started chatting and you couldn't really follow their presentation anymore. Showing slides might have helped and also explaining why they were giving a presentation in the first place! It seemed as if they were selling films as the latest hype in marketing an event. Hm... films have been around for a while - I couldn't quite get the exciting angle on that. And all the hollow marketing speak didn't help either.
• Next up was the CEO - who despite more or less shouting into the mic, suffered the same fate.
• Not enough (savoury) food!

All blue

multi-tasking

If you can't read your smartphone while climbing up the stairs, I recommend the following:
1) stop reading your smartphone and concentrate on moving up the stairs at a normal pace
or
2) step aside and let other commuters use the stairs, while you read your smartphone

It really isn't complicated.

Smell guessing

There is this weird smell in my flat. It appeared probably a few days ago and I have no idea where it is coming from. And it is proving rather annoying and disturbing. The flat is so small that there aren't many options for stuff to lie around and I checked everywhere. Or so I think. If the smell continues, I might have to start moving furniture on the weekend...

I also woke up with back pain this morning and today was a shit day at work. And Tottenham have just won against West Ham which means they've moved to third in the Premier League and Chelsea are down to fourth place.

So, altogether a wonderful start to the week. But hey, only 4 more days until the weekend!

Swimming home by Deborah Levy

Out of all my New Year's resolutions, reading more is probably the only one that I have made progress on... Going to bed a little earlier to read before I go to sleep rather than watch pointless telly or surf the net, is proving to be much more fun!

A book I recently finished is Deborah Levy's Swimming home. When I go to the book shop, I am usually overwhelmed by the choice. How do you go about picking a book? Especially, if it's not been recommended or by an author you already know?

This book was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2012.* And the plot sounded interesting. So, it ended up on my amazon order. Interestingly, the amazon reviews (and I am pretty sure, it didn't have that many negative reviews, when I ordered it months ago!), are quite mixed - with the majority of readers awarding it just 1 to 3 stars (out of 5).

I'm a bit torn. On the one hand, it's very easy to read, in a pleasant way. On the other hand, I didn't find the story very convincing. In parts it's just very predictable, in others very unrealistic. Overall, the atmosphere is very depressing and bleak. And I think that is conveyed very well by the author. Each character, despite being part of this group, is really just alone.

I'm not sure I'd recommend it, but I didn't regret buying (and reading) it. That's probably not a very helpful review, is it?!

Here's the story:
Two couples stay in a  villa in the South of France for a holiday. One of the couples also have a teenage daughter, Nina, who is with them, too. Then a young woman appears, Kitty, and gets invited to stay with them. She clearly has some mental issues and actually spent some time in a mental hospital. She befriends Nina - as well as her Dad (well it's more than 'befriending' in their case), who is a famous poet. It also becomes clear that Nina's parents aren't getting on anymore, with Nina's mother, a journalist, being away for work most of the time with Nina being raised by her Dad. There isn't much action and the book simply follows the group over a few days during their holiday. With a dramatic ending.


* "The prize, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2008 after launching in 1969, aims to promote the finest in fiction by rewarding the best novel of the year written by a citizen of the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth or the Republic of Ireland.To maintain the consistent excellence of the Man Booker Prize, judges are chosen from a wide range of disciplines, including critics, writers and academics, but also poets, politicians and actors, all with a passion for quality fiction.
The winner of the Man Booker Prize receives £50,000 and, like all the shortlisted authors, a cheque for £2,500 and a designer bound copy of their book. Fulfilling one of the objectives of the prize - to encourage the widest possible readership for the best in literary fiction - the winner and the shortlisted authors now enjoy a dramatic increase in book sales worldwide." (from http://www.themanbookerprize.com/background)

Ben and Kate and BJ

Ben and Kate is an American sitcom about Ben and Kate.
Ben and Kate are brother and sister and very different. Kate is a single mother and very together, while her brother - who lives with her - is a dreamer who hasn't quite figured out what he wants to do with his life.
Doesn't sound like an exciting story, but it's very funny. I especially like BJ, Kate's British friend and co-worker who is completely bonkers.

Seems though that Fox doesn't find it quite as funny and in January, they announced that they've pulled the series :-(

The Coach and Horses

A few weeks ago, I enjoyed lunch The Coach and Horses, a Sussex countryside pub. I like traditional English pubs and those in the countryside usually have authenticity and good quality food guaranteed.
Enjoy:

Duck leg with fondant potatoe

Fish 'n Chips - always a winner!

Rustic interior

BNC and goody bag galore

The BNC Global Event Show took place at The Brewery on 20 and 21 February. The BNC is the Buyers Network Club and the show was targeted at Event Managers. Around 200 exhibitors were taking part and 1,100 delegates had registered for this free event.

Unfortunately, I was only able to spend about an hour at the show. I definitely find these events worthwhile. I always do my 'homework' and work out who I want to speak to. While you can of course make the tour to all of the stands, and bagging goodies on the way, there are usually too many venues/suppliers that just aren't relevant to your particular job.

From my limited time at the event, I would say that the organizers had done a great job - especially regarding the catering. Bacon butties, pastries and coffee in the morning, a hot lunch buffet and afternoon tea as well as an artisan food village meant that delegates did not go hungry!

One of the incentives to arrive early was the promise of a Harrods goody bag for the first 400 delegates each day. And in addition, when registering you could choose from a number of different gifts (cosmetics, hotel or theatre vouchers, iTunes voucher,...). I am considering adopting this idea for our events: goody bags for the first 50 delegates on the last day of our three day event - that might encourage some to get out of bed for the 9:30 start!

And here's the content of the goody bag - a chocolate bar is missing, which I generously shared with my colleagues :-):

• Coffee chocolate discs
• Basil savoury biscuits
• Earl Grey tea
• Apple and chilli jelly - apparently perfect with fish and chicken
• £15 iTunes voucher

I WANT SPRING

Just when I thought that spring might finally put an end to the cold winter, temperatures have dropped again. And according to the forecast, it will get worse in the next few days. I wasn't prepared for this today, and had unfortunately not brought my beloved hat - the freezing wind was rather unpleasant...

Not surprisingly, I have a cold and so do most of my colleagues (and yes, I am pretty sure there is a link between the latter and the former...). I guess, I should be grateful, that there hasn't been any further snow like in Germany(so far).

Derek - watch it!

After a very long wait (the pilot aired last April), Derek is finally on the telly! It's not necessarily what you would expect from Ricky Gervais and I absolutely love it. It's so touching and warm and funny and sad. All at the same time. And for once reviews all seem to agree on it, too.

Watch it on Channel 4 on Wednesdays at 22:00, or catch up on 4oD. And if you don't live in the UK, wait until the DVD is out! :-)

Better than BOGOF

I think I've had a blog entry before, praising the fact that there is always a sale on in the UK. In addition, there are always good offers to be made in the supermarkets. Admittedly, some of them just lure you into buying higher quantities - and more than once, I didn't manage to eat the pack that I had gotten for free (Buy One, Get One Free) or half price...

Tesco currently has this great offer: Buy two bottles of Coca Cola (2 litres) for £2! 
And what makes the offer extra special, is that just one bottle costs £2.08!

A dark Lullaby

On paper and off paper

The interviews yesterday went all right. I think. I certainly felt a lot more at ease and comfortable, than about 18 months ago, when I was involved in interviewing candidates for the first time. Back then, I was probably as nervous as the interviewees!!! Slightly worried, that they'd 'find me out' - and ask what on earth qualified ME to interview THEM... So, I am pleased to say I moved on from that ;-)

The most interesting lesson I learned today was the realization of how different somebody can come across on paper compared to in the interview. And that goes either way  - people's CV either inflating their experience and skills or people's personalities not really shining through on paper.

We've made our decision and will now have to wait until Monday to see whether the candidate was equally impressed by us as we were by them. Otherwise, we'll quite possibly have to go back to the drawing board. Which I'd really rather avoid. But hey, it's out of my hands now.

I just want to stay in bed

It's been one of these weeks...
I feel a bit like inside a black cloud and I don't know how to get out. Work is keeping me busy, which helps a little. But at the end of the day, I ask myself whether that's really it.
I know it will go away eventually. But right now, I just want to stay in bed, with the blanket pulled right up to my nose. Fortunately, it's just one more day until the weekend - when I will be doing just that!
Tomorrow we'll be interviewing for my assistant's job. Should be interesting.

Good night

Stick it on

OPI Lucky Lucky Lavender with nail stickers

Happy New Year!

It's the year of the snake and to celebrate Chinese New Year, the Hong Kong Tourism Office invited me to a reception at Paramount, a bar/restaurant at the top of Centre Point right next to Tottenham Court Road station. While you get quite good views over the city - the view isn't all that exciting (at least not from the part of the bar, where we were). I couldn't spot any landmarks and Oxford Street from high above is just another big street with loads of people.

To be honest, the whole day (at the office) was a bit sh*t and I had really been looking forward to a nice evening. So, my expectations had probably been a bit high. In the end it was primarily noisy, crowded and not enough food :-( On the upside, the virgin strawberry mojito was delicious!

And there was a nice end to the day after all - as at home my threadless t-shirt delivery was waiting for me! :-)

Keeping warm

Unfortunately, the freezing cold weather has returned and if the forecast is to be believed, this February will be the coldest in the UK since 1986. So, it is very fortunate that I was given this wooly hat for Christmas. Not only is it of course seagulls merchandise, it also keeps my head very warm.

Eyes blacked out because of looking very stupid...

I'm not a hat person. I like to think that hats actually suit me, but they mess up your hair and I somehow always feel a little uncomfortable wearing one. But this one might change my mind. It just feels really nice and I have started wearing it at home, too. It must have some kind of psychological effect on me - a feeling of being safe. Very strange indeed...

Gus Poyet's blue and white army

After a bit of a football abstinence, I was back in the Amex today. And it was bloody freezing!
To cheer on the Brighton boys, I decided to paint my nails in the seagulls colours (yes, for some strange reason, they sell girly replica shirts in baby pink!):

I can't draw but I hope it's clear that they are meant to be seagulls!

And what can I say? The seagulls won 1:0 against Hull :-)

I see red

Literally. And metaphorically.

In case you hadn't noticed (and you must be a hermit not to!), Valentine's Day is upon us. Adverts everywhere, everything is red in all the shops - it's right in your face no matter where you go. While I'm sure it's been like this for a long time, I had forgotten just how annoying it can be - when you are not part of a couple on this particular day. For the first time in eight years I am single on 14th February. And I am finding it a little depressing...

But hey, only a few more days, and all this enforced, commercial romanticism will be over!

Glaswegian hospitality

On Monday, I went up to Glasgow for a number of site visits.
I had been looking forward to this all week - and had somehow managed to forget about the fact that I had to get on a plane first... Until I woke up in the middle of the night, suddenly doubting my own sanity: WHY did I agree to FLY to Glasgow and even worse to Hong Kong in a few weeks??? It certainly didn't help when the pilot announced on take off that turbulence were quite likely due to the heavy wind up north... And he was right. It was one of the more bumpy flights and probably the bumpiest landing I've ever experienced. But hey, I survived and even managed to get on the plane back to London. And the flight was pretty crap again....

The weather remained strange all day long: from one minute to the next sunshine gave way to heavy rain, then some snow and then hail and in between a bit of dry and sunny weather. But other than that, I thoroughly enjoyed the whole day! I had been to Glasgow just once before, several years ago. I was looked after very well all day long and got to see these great venues:

• The Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECC)
• The Glasgow Science Centre
• Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
• The Merchant Square
• The Old Fruit Market
• The Corinthian Club

While Edinburgh is probably still the more popular option in Scotland, I would definitely recommend a visit of Glasgow. And once you are there, make the most of the beautiful surroundings - the coast and the lakes and the mountains.

Unfortunately, I didn't take any photos. So, you will have to go and see for yourselves!

Strictly no under 18s

Will this be my ruin?

Next to the estate agent round the corner from the flat, they are preparing to open a bookies.
I like gambling. I blame my Chinese genes. Sanity generally prevails though. I will pass the bookmakers every day to and from work. Let's hope I'll stay strong.

I am also a little worried what kind of 'audience' it will attract. The clientele will quite possibly be sufficiently deterrent...

Gus is looking after me

 

This beautiful portrait of Gus Poyet, which I got as a Christmas present, has found a place in my bedroom. Very comforting to know that Gus is watching over me in my sleep! :-)

Just a little creepy - I look a little dead...

Welcome to the 21st century

A few weeks ago, I finally got myself a smartphone. Primarily, so I can access the internet when I am on the go. Given that I usually sit in front of the PC all day long at work and also having internet at home, this isn't really necessary but there you go.

I went for the Samsung Galaxy Ace 2 and it's taken me a few days (including consulting google) to figure out how it works. This was particularly annoying on the first morning, when I couldn't work out how to switch off the alarm... Or when I couldn't answer a call... Both by the way are done in the same way: by sliding the icons across the screen - instead of tapping on them wildly and increasingly aggressively...

I am most excited though about the cover I got on ebay :-)

In pink of course!

Don't trust google if you want to get a cocktail

I always moan about people (delegates/speakers) who contact us to find out how to get to places. GOOGLE IT! It really isn't that hard! Or so I thought.

I went to 140 Park Lane Restaurant and Bar the other day. It's on Park Lane. And I appreciate that with a bit of common sense, one would assume that it is at 140 Park Lane. I had printed my google map and followed it - to the other end of Park Lane. I was a little surprised that numbers were counting down... but then google has never let me down before.

I eventually figured it out and was 15 minutes late (I have no time for people being late...). Service was a little slow but very friendly and the cocktails were delicious! The place is at the end of Oxford Street, just round the corner from Marble Arch and opposite Hyde Park.

I had the Zeal Raspberry

• Fresh mint, lime, ginger and raspberry crushed and shaken with lychee and pomegranate juice, lychee liqueur and Absolut Raspberry, served over crushed ice

and a Raspberry & Apple Mojito

• Lime, mint, raspberries and brown sugar muddled, blended with green apple puree, Bacardi Golden rum, topped with soda

Let her go

Only just discovered this British band on this blog: Passenger

A fishy evening

After a reception at Madam Tussaud's last year, Merlin Events invited to an evening at the Sea Life Aquarium, near the London Eye on Tuesday. Sparkling wine, canapes and lots of seafood (as well as mac'n cheese). And topless, glittery male waiters. All very yummy indeed!

I had never been to the aquarium and I am hoping that we didn't actually get to see everything there is to see. Because if we did, it was a little bit disappointing. As an events venue, it's clearly something different. But I am not sure I would organize one of our events there - not least given the high costs. You can also probably find an aquarium in most big cities, so it's not typical for London.

We certainly had a nice evening and the food was very nice!

a little shy

slightly odd looking

the sharks were swimming past too fast to capture them

lovely colour!