Pigs, orchids, parasites and general weirdness

You can book cinema tickets for just £6 on a Monday at the Barbican Centre. That's about half price of what Odeon, Vue & Co usually charge. So, on Monday, I went to see 'Upstream Color'. To be honest, I thought there was probably at least a 50:50 chance that the film would be absolutely rubbish. But given the raving reviews (e.g. listed in third place for the Metro's films of the week...), I thought it might be a good art house film.

Well, it wasn't. I really have no idea why it's getting such good reviews... It did make me want to write my own film script though with an equally pointless storyline.

Nail bow

Topshop daydream with water decal

Cruising

I love water. Ideally the sea, but otherwise a river, lake or canal will also do. I was very excited when I got the invite for a Thames cruise aboard the Elizabethan, part of the Thames Luxury Charters fleet. And what a perfect night it was for the cruise, too - probably one of the last warm summer evenings (can't believe it already gets dark before 8pm though...). London is a perfect city to be viewed from a aboard a boat. And with the sun setting it was even more beautiful. And the canapes were delicious, too.

Preparing for the office bake off

The Great British Bake Off is back (and so far, I've missed all episodes...)! And my colleagues are planning an office bake off. There will be three rounds: signature bake, technical challenge and a show-stopper. To be honest, I am hoping that I will be out after the first round....

As I haven't baked in a while and really fancied cake, I tried this nutty chocolate cake and added some mandarins for some fruitiness. Prep is really easy and quick (I never go for anything complicated...) and - if I may say so myself - it tastes very nice, too. Except for it being slightly burned on the outside. As per usual, I forgot to take it out in time... And I then also remembered why I don't bake very often: I hate the pile of washing up and general cleaning afterwards...

I got the recipe from my go to cooking and baking website Chefkoch. 

• 4 eggs
• 200g sugar
• 200ml oil
• 200g creme fraiche
• 200g flour
• 200g ground nuts
• 1 packet of baking powder
• 200g chopped chocolate

Mix the eggs with the sugar until sugar. Then mix in oil and creme fraiche. Then add the flour, nuts and baking powder and then fold in the chocolate. I then just added a tin of mandarin segments.
Bake for 50 minutes at 200C. You can then decorate with chocolate couverture if you want. I was too lazy though, so just dusted with some icing sugar.

Before

And after. Unfortunately the outside burnt a little...

'I am siege face'

I LOVE Alan Partridge. So I couldn't wait to see his new film 'Alpha Papa'. And I was not disappointed. It was absolutely hilarious and I was laughing all throughout the film. Even snorting on occasion and having a proper giggle-flush - if that isn't a seal of approval?!

Hanging with the girls

I've never been a 'group-person', have never been part of a clique and prefer to have one-to-one time with friends. Even though I meet (and have to interact) with lots of (new) people all the time, I tend to feel uncomfortable in groups.

Today I went for Dim Sum at New World in Chinatown (1 Gerrard Place) with the girls I met on the Lisbon trip and a couple of their friends. And I had a lovely time! S - our Chinese food expert - ordered us a great selection of Dim Sum (which is served from the traditional Dim Sum trolleys) and after lunch we moved on to an Irish Pub round the corner where we spent all afternoon. The pub was surprisingly empty and has really nice sofas upstairs. Really relaxed atmosphere, perfect for chilling on a Sunday afternoon.

And as we are hardcore - three of us went for more dumplings afterwards (well, it really was dinner time already!).

A selection of our lunch

Fried Dinner Dumplings

Regent's Park and orange marmalade

We are planning an event at the Royal College of Physicians which is in an enviable location right near Regent's Park. It's a great venue for conferences (it has a tiered, fully equipped lecture theatre) as well as dinners and receptions and the food is delicious, too! I went for a site visit recently and was not only offered macaroons, fruit cake and brownies but also homemade orange marmalade! And I will say it again: I do love my job (sometimes)!

And as we are currently very lucky to enjoy some sunny days, I used the opportunity for a stroll in Regent's Park. One of the places, I've never really explored. It's got pretty spaces with flowers and fountains and wide grassy space and is just a short walk from the Zoo and the Regent's Canal. A walk along the canal is another of my favourite things to do in London. I envy the people who have houses with back gardens backing onto the canal - so beautiful!