Bahrain Travel Diary Days 1, 2 & 3

For the past 4 days, Fabio and I have been enjoying the hot and humid sun in Bahrain, an island which sits in the Persian Gulf. 
In order to document our time here, I've been making some short vlogs, however it's hard to sometimes film everything, especially when you don't have your camera on you when something interesting happens! Therefore, I have decided to write a short diary of each day spent here, however I won't count day 1 as the day we arrived, since we spend most of our time up in the air and didn't arrive until about 7:30pm. If you're interested though, just watch the  short video below!



Day 1
We woke up early to the arrival of Fabio's brother, wife and 3 children, who had also just flown over from the UK.  For breakfast we ate yummy American style pancakes with Nutella, washed down with a proper Italian Caffe Latte. It was authentic. It was made by Fabio's Italian mamma. We mainly spent the morning relaxing by the poolside, soaking up as much sun as we could like plants that hadn't been watered for years. I of course, being the pale being that I am, soaked up too much and got sunburnt. I am still dealing with aftermath as we speak!  We also decided to be brave and jump into the pool, which was not surprisingly, pretty cold. Once in though, it warmed up and we frolicked and played (with the children) until we were prunes.  For lunch we indulged in a meat feast, cooked on the BBQ by Fabio's pa, which tasted exquisite; the first BBQ of the year always does!  After yet more relaxing (I hope this diary doesn't bore you with all the relaxing we have done so far), at dinnertime we ate the much awaited shawarma! This is literally THE most delicious wrap on this planet. I chose the chicken one and Fabio chose one beef and one chicken. Oh the party my mouth had when I took that first bite. Trust me, this is nothing like the kebabs you get in the UK. Not even close. (Ignore that fact that this says 'day 2'. They will always be one day ahead because of the video I made for the flight).

Day 2
Another morning of caffe lattes but this time with the addition of a juicy mango (again, way better than its exported UK cousin). Today we had another relaxing morning but spent lunch out at The Rugby Club. No, we didn't hop back on the plane back to the UK just for our lunch. Bahrain is a massive hit for expats and has a lot of British and Americans living there, and so the Bahrain Rugby Club has become a popular place for them and their children to gather for events, football and rugby tournaments, as well as to eat the delicious food at the Manos Restaurant. The Manos restaurant serves a variety of cuisines, from a really good t-bone steak (melt-in-the-mouth!) to thai dishes and pan-fried fish. Everything is very tasty. We shared some halloumi bites and Saganaki, something I have never tried before but was curious. It turned out that it was battered feta pieces soaked in honey and sprinkled with sesame seeds. They were very pleasant! For main I chose the beef massaman curry with rice, which was also really tasty, and very garlicky! The only thing I would say is that most of the food tasted very strongly of garlic (to me anyway), unless It was just my tastebuds! After a little wonder around the club, we came home and the children enjoyed an Easter egg hunt around the garden. I also enjoyed one of  their spoils; a yummy kinder egg, although different to the usual.. this one had a spoon and you had to spoon out what was melted chocolate with two little crispy eggs in the centre. It was still rather nice (of course it was, it was chocolate!) In the evening we had a simple supper of bits and bobs (salami, salad, bread etc); a delight for the stomach which was already carrying a lot of heavy food inside from lunchtime!

Day 3
Caffe latte and fruit salad was today's breakfast of choice. And after some much needed relax (of course you knew I was going to say this) and a snack of cheese bread and Za'atar bread (google this!) some of us went off to hit the shops in Bahrain's City Centre Mall. Honestly, this place is like home from home. They had a Debenhams, H&M and even a Marks and Spencer! Of course I only went in the shops that we don't have: Victoria Secret, Virgin Music and Books and Bath & Body Works.   For lunch we ate light with a bowl of the most delicious homemade pesto with pasta and some fruit salad for afters. The reason for this is because we were preparing our stomachs for the meal that was to come later: an Indian buffet at Lanterns restaurant. This buffet is something to write home about for sure. The naan bread is freshly made with a dense texture but crisp surface (so yummy). When you arrive, you are served a little charcoal grill on the table with 3 little bites of different types of grilled meat: tandoori, shish kebab and chicken breast. The buffet is a mix of indian curries, biriyani and DIY stir fry, where you plate what you would like yourself and they cook it. This is also worth trying if you go. There are also a selection of Indian starters (the tabbouleh and hummus is a must-try) and also desserts. I was recommended to try by Fabio's father, a sweet cake-y ball which is soaked in syrup. Despite its sickly sweetness, I quite liked it.  We ended the evening relaxing in front of the TV watching Scrubs. I love that show. 
Will write about the next few days once they happen.. ha. 
xoxo

White Chocolate M&M Slabz

This is for all the lovers of white chocolate. This recipe is such an easy way to create a 'bar' of chocolate that you can customise to your liking. It's so easy that you probably all can figure out the recipe without me writing it down here. However for blogging and continuity purposes, I will! 

Ingredients

300g of white chocolate for melting 
A packet of M&Ms (I chose the peanut ones)
2 oreo biscuits
Coloured sprinkles

Method

1. Melt the chocolate in a bain marie (you can use a bowl over a pan of water if you don't own one).

2. Line a tray with greaseproof paper and pour the chocolate all over.

3. Crush the oreos and crumble over the chocolate, as well as the M&Ms and Oreos. 

4. Leave to cool and then place in the fridge to finish cool it further. I would suggest to temper the chocolate, to stop it from melting in your hands, but I think this will be demolished quick enough to allow that to happen!

Happy Easter everyone!

Easy Mini Egg Easter Nests

These little yummies are my absolute childhood favourite! So easy to make and super duper quick! I'm sure all of you have made these at some point in your life. And if you haven't, start now!!

BEWARE THESE ARE VERY CHOCOLATEY!

Ingredients

3 shredded wheat packets (those that you find inside)

350g milk chocolate

Colourful sprinkles

Packet of mini eggs

Pastel coloured cake cases and little tooth pick things (no idea what they are called?!) to decorate. I found mine in Home Bargains for 99p!

1. Melt the chocolate in a bain marie (make one yourself by placing a bowl over a pan of shallow boiling water) or buy the one I have from John Lewis for £35.

2. Crush the shredded wheat in a bowl. 

3. Pour the melted chocolate over the wheat in the bowl and mix with a wooden spoon until all incorporated. 

4. Spoon evenly into cake cases and top with 3 mini eggs each.

5. Decorate with the colourful sprinkles.

6. Leave to cool and harden. Serve and spread the chocolatey goodness!!

Easter Coconut and Vanilla Popcorn Slices

Usually Easter is a chocolate lover's favourite time of year, but as there are always an abundance of chocolatey recipes going around, I thought I'd try and bake something a bit different! I originally found this recipe on Pinterest, on www.somethingswanky.com but I've mixed and changed it up a little bit. 
These gooey, biscuity slices are irresistible. Especially with kids. When my Nephew tried them this weekend, he went back for seconds..and thirds! With a hint of vanilla and coconut from the popcorn and a taste of chocolate that reminds that it's still Easter from the mini eggs, they are one to try if you don't want to overindulge but still impress your guests. And they are super simple. 

Ingredients

1 tbsp unsalted butter
8 jumbo marshmallows or 20 small ones (I used jumbo - it sort of depends on what size pan you are using)
1/4 bag of Proper Corn Sweet Coconut and Vanilla Popcorn
3 Rich Tea biscuits 
1/2 bag of Cadbury's Mini Eggs
Colourful Sprinkles

Method

1. Grease a square cake pan (I used a 7 x 7 inch pan which was 1.5 inches deep with a loose bottom).

2. Melt the butter in a bowl in the microwave.

3. Add the marshmallows to the bowl and microwave for about a minute or until they are gooey. (I had to do mine in stages as my bowl was quite small. Also watch out as the mallows will puff up in the microwave and look like they are about to burst!)

4. Pour the marshmallow into a large bowl and pour in half the bag of popcorn. Crumble in the rich tea biscuits.

5. Pour the mixture into the cake pan and spread to the sides. The mixture will be very sticky so it will be more like dragging it to the sides!

6. Decorate with mini eggs and sprinkles. 

7. Cool for 10 minutes and then slice and serve! They will keep in an airtight container for 3 days.

Happy Easter everyone! And let me know if you try these! 

First week of vlogging

So you guys may or may not know that I've recently started sharing more of my life than I normally do, by vlogging. 

It didn't mean to end up like this but I'm happy it has.

This is the title of my most recent vlog (see below)

The background story 

It all began in late 2014 where I became more interested in Youtube and following certain Youtubers, rather than just browsing for random videos now and then. I saw how much fun it looked and thought, I want to join in! However, I had a pastry course to attend at Le Cordon Bleu in London, which I was very much looking forward to, and of which I graduated in June 2015. 

During this course is when it all began. I needed an outlet to distract myself, procrastinate if you will. I began with making the most common, but also the most popular video of all.. yes, a Primark Haul! After a few weeks I was surprised to see that had over 300 views, so that spurred me on to do more (despite my low subscriber count)

I thought why not make some food related videos. I tried one where I baked cookies, and my Husband filmed it for me, which made it a lot easier. However that one wasn't so successful, and I can see why! 

 

So I experimented and did a totally different type of cooking video (along with a few other random ones), which turned out to get a lot more views. I'm not offended if it's because it didn't feature me! Haha!  
 
I actually really enjoyed making that, despite that I remember it being a quick job before going off to catch the train to London for class! 
I sort of slowed down with the whole Youtube thing towards the summer. I did one more video (another Primark haul - I do enjoy them!) and then stopped. We moved. We got married. SO many things happened. And then a few weeks ago I was inspired again to start doing something Youtube related. I think it was because my friend Rachel spoke about being interested in vlogging, and I had toyed with the idea for a while. I really loved the idea of being able to look back on just an ordinary, or perhaps one of the best days, when  you're 90 odd. Something to show the Grandkids!  That's why I'm doing. For the memories. And also for the support. Youtube has such a good community in the right places. You just need to know where to look. I've met some friendly people so far, despite the distance, it feels like I actually know them! Probably because some of them are vloggers too! 
My first week Well I've been doing it for 12 days now, and I've enjoyed every minute! It makes the day just that tiny bit more interesting. When you know that you are going to have an audience, you are sort of more inclined to do something a bit more out of the ordinary that you usually would. I mean, Ive started eating breakfast more often since beginning my videos with clips of me making it, when I used to just have a coffee.  The editing process is my favourite part. I really do love it. I love the way you can cut things when you sound like poo, or are babbling on (a lot of the time!) Also the way you can speed things up or reverse it. I'm learning all the time; another reason to love it. I've literally taught myself (with a tiny bit of help from Google) how to edit on Adobe Premiere. I'm very proud of myself! *pats on back* I also love the laughs it has brought to our house, such as when showing my Husband back clips that I've filmed, some of which are sometimes too hilarious to share!  I literally cannot think of one thing I don't like. The only teeny tiny thing is when you lose footage, but hey ho, that's life!
That's why I encourage you people to try it if you haven't! Maybe don't upload it to Youtube at first but keep it for your own personal memories. Or maybe don't daily vlog at first, but just once a week. It really is good fun. Let me know if you do!  
My most recent vlog (March 16th)
FYI - I have also started doing other lifestyle videos, and plan to do more cooking tutorials. Stay posted!  


Jess xoxo

A Holiday Guide to New York

This post has been a long time coming! Fabio and I went on our honeymoon last year where we stayed over the Christmas period in this magical city. I knew this post was going to be a long one, that's why I've been putting it off, however I have really wanted to share with you all what we did each day we were there, and hopefully help with anyone who is planning to go. Before we went I made an extensive itinerary (I literally couldn't resist) and mapped it all out so we would never not know where we were heading in case we ran out of internet. 
So enough explaining.. here goes! 

DAY ONE 

We arrived on the 20th December.

Mandatory plane window shot

First impressions of our hotel (The Waldorf Astoria)

DAY ONE ITINERARY

1. We decided to head to Midtown to have a wander around and get our bearings. It was already nearly evening by the time we got out of the hotel! And it was bloody freezing!

 We saw these two Christmas trees (whilst getting a tad lost.. I knew it haha)

Had a sneak peak of the Chrysler building

 Gazed at the wonder that is the Grand Central Station - who else thinks of Madagascar when they see that iconic clock?

Grabbed a cheeky Starbucks! 

Watched the amazing Christmas lights on the SAKS store - MAKE SURE YOU DON'T MISS THIS OUT! IT'S AMAZINGGGG!

Tried to get a picture with THE Christmas tree at the Rockefeller Centre (opposite the SAKS store basically). It was SO crowded.

Walked down towards Midtown East and had some yummy grub at Schnippers! (570 Lexington Ave, New York, NY 10022, United States)

The burgers were so yum (our first taste of NYC) but unfortunately the chip fryer was down! 

Before heading back to the hotel we wandered past the Byrant Park Winter Village. Super cute! 

DAY TWO ITINERARY 

Experience a New York breakfast! Our first breakfast was in the hotel. You can also eat there too. It's called the Bull and Bear Prime Steakhouse. They do an awesome breakfast buffet! This is something I really do miss in the UK. If anyone knows anywhere that does an American breakfast buffet, let me know!

Had a wander through Central Park.

Took a photo by this bridge. 

Went ice skating in Central Park's Wollman Rink. You get to skate for about an hour and you can also hire skates there too. Get ticket 

prices here.

Home Alone anyone?

Had lunch in The Plaza Hotel's food hall. It's ideal as it's right near Central Park. You NEED to try Luke's Lobster Rolls, they are so delicious.

Walked up Fifth Avenue, had a peak at Bergdorf Goodman's Holiday Window.

Found my most favourite bag shop EVER. Henri Bendel. And they deliver to the UK :D

Went for a NBC Studio Tour which was very interesting. It's only just re-opened so I was very happy as I thought I was going to miss it. I've been on it twice now but was very happy I was able to take the Husband. Definitely recommend it if you love SNL and are interested in how a studio and tv network is run (you get to see where it's filmed and all!!) You can book online for one of their tours that are run daily.

Saw this beauty lit up all Christmassy.

Visited the Museum of Sex. I know. It was a strange one. Worth a look though for a few laughs! 

Ate at a Korean place called Kyochon. Literally one of the best chicken places. Trust me though, one of the chicken wing flavours are VERY spicy. If they try to warn you, believe them and don't be like me and order them anyway.

Those on the left are the spicy ones. The waiter managed to convince me to have less of them, thankfully. The white cubes in the middle are pickles. In New York, most foods come with a pickle of some sort!

DAY THREE ITINERARY

Sailed the seas on a scenic tour of New York. Apart from it was THE most horrible day ever. It was foggy, wet and just eurgh. We stayed inside the boat the whole time. Also DON'T do what we did and buy tickets of someone on the street. We got lost looking for the port and were sold tickets at a higher price. Make sure you buy them direct from the company. I'd recommend just going on the Staten Island Ferry since it's free, which is what we originally wanted to do.

The only picture I took outside. I risked the camera getting wet for this lady!

Wandered through Wall St. 

The New York Stock Exchange.

Paid our respects at Ground Zero.

Ate lunch outside (it was mega busy!) at Shake Shack in Battery Park City. Luckily there was a cover overhead as it was spitting with rain. Another must visit! I chose the hot dog with pickles etc and the Crinkle Cut Cheese Fries. Fabio chose the hamburger. Oh and I couldn't resist having the Shake Of The Week which was a peppermint candy one. Yummeh!

Walked past the entrance to the Brooklyn Bridge. We were going to cross but it was such horrible weather!

Visited 8 Hook and Ladder on North Moore Street, the site where Ghostbusters filmed their headquarters! 

Room service was needed that night because of the weather. We ate pizza and bolognese!

DAY FOUR ITINERARY

Yes, it's the picture from my blog profile! We took this at Black Seed Bagel in Nolita (North of Little Italy) where we had breakfast on our fourth day. They hand roll their bagels and cook them in a wood-fired oven. Absolutely divine. 

Little Italy

Had lunch at Nom Wah's Tea Parlour. This place is very popular, so it's worth getting there early. They do the nicest Dim Sum (Well, it was the first in NYC!) 

On the left is our Shrimp Sui Mai (shrimp minced in wonton) and on the right is our Sticky Rice in Lotus (Rice and chicken mixed in a lotus leaf) - our favourite! They also serve lots of different teas in cute little cups.

Fabio eating his pan-fried dumplings. 

Sticky rice with Chinese sausage. Beware though, it's all so very filling and it's easy to order too much!

My new favourite bookstore. McNally Jackson, an independent booksellers located on Prince St. They sell a really cool assortment  of books, the perfect place to lose yourself in! Also a very good amount of choice in the food writing section. 

An excellent second-hand bookstore, Housing Works Bookstore Cafe. JUST LOOK AT ALL THOSE BOOKS!! And the great thing about is is that all earnings go to the Housing Works Charity. 

Walked through rainy Union Square Park Holiday Market before taking the Metro home.

Dinner at Bull and Bear because it was so rainy outside! I literally got soaking wet through my coat and had to hang up all our clothes around the hotel room to dry! We shared a chauteaubriand for two (sorry the lighting in there was terrible!)

DAY FIVE ITINERARY (CHRISTMAS EVE!)

Bloomingdales first thing in the morning for a little browse and then off to the Nintendo Store in the Rockefeller Plaza, ready for the show at Radio City Hall later.

We had booked tickets to go and see the Radio City Hall Christmas Spectacular and we recommend you do too! It's one of the best shows I've ever seen. A mix of dancing, animation, singing + real life animals on stage! I won't give it away :) But look at the sweet selection in the foyer!

Just look at those boxes of Nerds! Much to my delight, the Americans don't do small when it comes to sweets! 

The Rockettes 

After the show we were pretty tired and weren't sure where to go and eat, so we decided to just eat what we know and go to TGI Friday's on Times Square. I had the Jack Daniels' Burger.

DAY SIX ITINERARY (CHRISTMAS DAY!)

Breakfast was had at the Lexington Brasserie for something different (we'd eaten at the hotel buffet everyday so far!)

I chose Buttermilk Pancakes with Cinnamon Butter and Caramelised Apples.

Fabio had Eggs Benedict.

We wondered down Fifth Ave again and peaked in at the Saks' Holiday windows. 

A Christmas day stroll through Central Park.

We enjoyed a Christmas Day brunch (although we ate at 3:30pm) at the Peacock Alley Restaurant in our hotel. Book early if you want to eat there. They do a similar brunch every Sunday too. It's definitely worth experiencing an American brunch at least once. 

DAY SEVEN ITINERARY

We headed back to Union Square to its Market, and I bought some strawberry chilli jam off a seller from Massachusetts! 

What a cool idea. 

We stopped off at Max Brenner's for what we thought was going to be snack which ended up being so filling! This place is literally chocolate heaven.

The Mexican Spicy Hot Chocolate

The Urban S'mores for two. This was so fun! It came with a little campfire where you could toast your marshmallows!

Another bookstore - The Strand. It's located just on from Max Brenner's. You won't miss it. It's on the left. 

It claims to be 18 miles of books! I could spend so much time in there. 

Finally got to try Stumptown Coffee! We came across it in the Greenwich Village. One of the best coffee's ever.

Now this is a place that I highly recommend visiting. I think I keep saying everything is THE best, but when I say this is the best fried chicken, I mean it's THE best. The chicken is coated and fried freshly and omg the chicken is so succulent. Please visit Sticky's Finger Joint!! (It's nearly opposite Stumptown)

We then walked towards 66 Perry Street and Bleecker St, where Carrie from Sex and the City's apartment can be located. Apparently the apartment was only used for exterior shots.

I then came across this really cool thrift store.

We also went to see the apartment where Friends was 'filmed' on the corner of Grove and Bedford St in Greenwich village. It took us ages to find this place as we only had the block number and St, and since it's on the corner, we ended up walking right past it! Again, this place was only used for Exterior shots. 

We climbed up the steps to the High Line and took a casual stroll along to the end where we then visited the Chelsea Market, which was conveniently located.

Dylan's Candy Bar was next on our list. It's sweetie heaven! They even have a cafe but it was full when we got there!

We then at Chinese at this place. It wasn't even in China Town. Don't even ask me where it was but we were knackered and it was the only place we could find. (I know, right!)

 DAY EIGHT ITINERARY

On our last full day, we decided to head down to Macy's and take a look around there. Fabio bought a jacket, so at least he found something!

Central Park Zoo was last on our list of tourist things to do, so we went there and met the cutest seal!

For lunch we went to the Time Warner Centre which isn't that far from Central Park (on the west side). It's a big shopping mall with a few choices of places to eat in there.

And to have a toast to our last evening, we drank in the Peacock Alley Restaurant Bar, where we also met two lovely girls from Dallas who joined us in a chat at the bar. Memories to cherish.

DAY NINE ITINERARY (NOT REALLY AN ITINERARY!)

On our last day all we did is eat Pizza near the hotel and sit in the hotel lobby. Fun stuff!

The Christmas tree in JFK and the plane home. Bye New York!