Food: VIP PRESS event at Liv, Bold Street

Food: VIP PRESS event at Liv, Bold Street

Friday, 12 May 2017

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Being invited to press events is all good fun- it’s even more fun when you get invited to VIP openings of brand new businesses! Last week, myself and a few blogger friends were fortunte enough to be invited along to the Grand Opening of LIV on Bold Street, a brand new organic food market in the heart of Liverpool City Centre.

Bold Street is quickly becoming THE place for good food and independent stores – whenever I’m stuck for where to go to eat, I tend to gravitate towards this little wonder and I’m never disappointed. Whilst I was living in France, the option to eat organically was pretty much the only option- Organic supermarkets play a massive role in French society and you can find one on pretty much every street corner. Having a shop like this in Liverpool will make all the difference and definitely be there to actively encourage people to consider what and how they eat. 

You may well be aware that I try to keep dairy out of my diet as far as I can, although I am very easily tempted by cheese. Dairy doesn’t agree with me or my stomach, so usually the safest option is to just avoid it entirely. LIV specialises in vegan and vegetarian products, products which mean that I can enjoy the amazing, fabulous things in life – like chocolate brownies, for example- without the horrendous after effects that being lactose intolerant causes. I’m in no way vegan- or even veggie – but cutting down on meat and eating more plant based food can only be a good thing, right? 

The market itself was absolutely fabulous. We got there a bit earlier than the hosts were expecting, which caused a bit of a coffuffle but nothing that was too much of an issue. When we arrived, we were offered lovely flutes of fancy lemonade and invited to try a range of different hors d’œuvres, all of which were presented in the most appetising way. We were also able to speak to different brands who had set up stalls inside the market, including Mi Vida, an independent store based on Bold Street (and one of my favourite places to browse for birthday gifts!). I also tried out a number of organic crisps (MMM) and had a talk with a brand about magnesium salts. I’d only been complaining ten minutes prior about having a bad back and this lovely godsend of a man provided me with a generous sample of one of their products to try and get rid of the pressure a little! All the while, it was lovely to catch up with my fellow bloggers and do it in an engaging and organic environment. I’m really excited to go back at some point and try out the food in their café; there really is something for everyone, as they even choose to serve meat, in spite of their vegan background. Absolutely no discrimination or judgement here. 

I have absolutely no doubt that the market will be a total hit! LIV Organic Market is open now on Bold Street. 

Goodreads: My May To Read List

Goodreads: My May To Read List

Monday, 8 May 2017

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Month 5 is upon us and I’m 23 books deep into my Goodreads reading challenge – can I get a woo?! I have a very busy month in May so I’m only going to give myself the target of 4 books this month- don’t want to set myself up to fail, after all.

The first book I’m reading this month is one that I’ve already read a significant chunk of – Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty. I’m really keen to watch the TV series based on this book, but naturally I can’t do that without reading the book first. I’m absolutely LOVING this story so far- I’m about three quarters of the way through and quite frankly, I have absolutely NO idea what the twist is going to be. I can’t wait to get it wrapped up tomorrow so I can finally sleep easily!

The second book I’ve chosen to devour for the month of May is one that was recommended to me by a fellow blogger! I reread The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes last month, and having posted about it on twitter was advised to give Barnes’ Levels of Life a go as well. This one is only a short read, so I imagine I’ll finish it quite quickly. I’ll be using it as a little break from psychological fiction- there’s only so much a girl can take before she gets way too jumpy!

Caraval is a book that I’ve been hearing SO much about over the last few months so I picked up a copy the last time I went book haul-ing. I’m not really sure what the story is about, other than the fact that it is a fantastical, magic-filled piece, so I’m excited to go into it completely blind to the plot. My final choice for the month is another fantastical novel, Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor. I am way too excited to finally get stuck into this one; it’s a book that’s been on my radar for way too long now, so my goal for this month is to finally tick it off my incredibly long list.

What are you planning on reading this month? Let me know!

Travel: Un tour de la France en Cinq jours - Part 3: Avignon

Travel: Un tour de la France en Cinq jours - Part 3: Avignon

Friday, 5 May 2017

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Here I am finally with a very belated conclusion to my Tour de la France en cinq jours series – disgustingly belated, in fact, when you consider the fact that my trip actually happened in February and here we are in MAY. MAY. Someone give me a kick up the behind! It was actually my booking ANOTHER trip to France that prompted me to get up to date with this trip – so thank my spontaneity for this little city guide!

The final part of my trip was the longest stretch of my stay in France – a visit to the beautiful city of Avignon, in the South of France, to visit a friend of mine that I met whilst living in Strasbourg. His lovely girlfriend Blakley was ever so hospitable and put me up for two nights in her lovely little studio, which made life (and the trip) so much easier! I’ve been to Aix-en-Provence and Marseille before, cities that are relatively close to Avignon so I kind of knew what to expect in terms of architecture and climate.

Avignon is a lovely little place – and it really is little. Joe met me from the train station and gave me a quick whistle stop tour of the city as we walked back to Blakley’s apartment, and it became quickly apparent that it wouldn’t take long to see all of the main tourist attractions. I dropped off my bags and freshened up before Joe and I wandered around the main city square in search of somewhere to get dinner. We found a lovely little Italian restaurant and ordered one of the tastiest pizzas that I’ve ever eaten in France (and this is saying a lot; the French have a very unnecessary obsession with putting emmental on their pizzas…). We accompanied pizza with wine and then went off to one of the squares to meet some of Joe’s friends for cocktails and frites.

The next day, we got up relatively early to tackle all of the amazing sites that Avignon has to offer. One of my customers at work, a fellow Francophone, advised that Avignon has the most amazing Papal palace and told me about how the Pope, at one point in history, chose Avignon to relocate to away from the Vatican City. I absolutely love history so this was something that I definitely wanted to check out. However, breakfast took precedence so we wandered around the food markets in the Centre Ville and ordered Pain au chocolat to go.

The Papal Palace was absolutely phenomenal to visit. I was quite lucky to visit Avignon on a very sunny day- the temperature actually surpassed 20 degrees in February!- so wandering around meant being able to tan a little bit. All good, as far as I’m concerned. We didn’t go inside the Papal Palace but seeing it from the outside was more than enough for me- the palace is surrounded by the most beautiful grounds (where we later relaxed with books and snacks)- and the building itself is both colossal and magnificent to look at. We were also able to see the Pont d’Avignon (as made famous in the song!), a bridge that crosses halfway across the river Rhône. It’s made up of four arches, the rest of which were destroyed during the Crusades. If you’re interested in history like me, this is a pretty cool thing to go and have a look at. We decided at this point that lunch was a good idea and let’s be honest- you can’t go to France and not eat croque monsieur at least once, can you? I ordered a normal croque monsieur, and Joe went for an Alsacien variation. Neither of us really want to let go of our Alsacien background! Joe then showed me around the University of Avignon, including sneaking me into their vast library, before we felt the need to go and get MORE food. This time crêpes were on the menu and my word, they were delicious. I spent the rest of my time in Avignon hanging out with Joe’s lovely friends over even more food; Blakley and his friend Hattie put together the nicest little spread of food. I felt incredibly welcomed into their group and couldn’t have spent time with a nicer group of people.

Avignon was a treat to visit- it wasn’t the usual city that I’m used to visiting in France but it has its charms and was definitely worth my time in getting there. It was lovely to catch up with an old friend and get a taste of a new culture, all at once. Thank you to Joe and Blakley for the amazing hospitality- you two are lovely and the favour will definitely be returned when you visit Liverpool!

Have you ever visited this part of the South of France? 

If you want to check out the rest of my trip: 

Part 1: Bordeaux

Part 2: Montpellier