hannover

A few weeks ago I got to visit the city of Hannover in Germany. I tagged along with a friend as she went home on holiday and visited for a few days. We spent most of our time relaxing and enjoying Christmas movies, tea and cookies. The other main attraction was the Christmas markets. Oh my goodness do they have Christmas markets! We visited four different markets in three different towns; they were all different and yet very similar. I tried so many new foods and watched as vendors made fresh burnt almonds and listened as others proudly explained their wares. Such a fascinating and unique opportunity. German Christmas markets are becoming more popular and many cities outside of Germany are creating them, but they're not the same! Definitely go to the real ones if you can.

Christmas market #1

Rådhaus in Hannover (one of the only buildings not destroyed in WWII)

Herrenhausen Gardens

Hot chocolate was a must!

Marienburg Castle

If you look closely you can see the cupboards
and stove and oven - all part of the stall!

Freshly-made burnt almonds

Enjoy!!

xx,

K

cardiff

Last weekend my student union organized a trip to Cardiff, Wales. My friends and I bought tickets the first week of the term so we'd been waiting a while to go! It was about a three hour drive and we actually got better weather out there (it was raining in Guildford all day). Upon our arrival we went to the Castle as a group and then were free to wander the rest of the day.

We spent about an hour at the Castle exploring the old tunnels, the original castle and the castle apartments before heading into town.

Henry and Jane 

Library in the Castle Apartments

I bought some souvenirs and then we wandered through the German Christmas Market they set up, and then on down to Cardiff Bay. Before we reached the bay, we spotted a Portuguese bakery selling traditional pastel de nata. My friend loves it so we stopped and tried it - it's delicious!

We spent time in a coffee shop and did a little bit of shopping back in the center before having dinner at Bill's. It was an early birthday treat for me!

xoxo,
K

catch-up

The last few weeks have gone by so quickly I can hardly believe it. It's been so fun and just to share a little, here are a few photos I've taken. Enjoy!

Last Saturday (the 15th) I went into London with some friends. We first stopped at Dominique Ansel Bakery - it opened up recently near Sloan Square and is originally from New York City. I loved the store itself, very clean and modern yet warm and inviting.

the famous and delicious cronut

Next stop was the Chocolate Fair!

chocolate as far as you could see...
(and yes, I did try most of these)

I wish I had an extra £50 to spend on a Cumber-bunny...

Then we wandered around London stopping only for the scenery (and a few photos).

Dinner at Punjab: delicious Indian food near Covent Garden.

And a stroll around Westminster Square to finish the night:

For those who made it to the end: some fireworks from the "Celebrate University of Surrey's 50th Anniversary" party from this past week.

xoxo,
K