Jamie Oliver - AnnaTheApple

February 11, 2013

My Skiing Adventures

Hi guys! Sorry for my lack of posts, we are now back from our week of skiing in Bulgaria. We got back late Saturday night (2am UK time, 4am Bulgarian time – which was the time that our bodies were still in) so we were quite tired!! So I’d thought I’d do a recap post to tell you all about it if you don’t mind

The taxi picked us up from our house 11ish so I had enough time to get up early to get in one last run before having a week off. Yes, I know, sounds a bit obsessive but I thought if I was just sat travelling all day it would be nice to think I got a run in the morning! So I ran my first ever 12 miles and was fairly chuffed with my speed.

It was quite a tough run, I’m not going to lie. By mile 8 I was feeling fairly tired. But I got there in the end about 8 minute a mile. This is the speed I’m planning for the half marathon and I know shouldn’t be running this speed already on my long runs but it just came naturally to me so I’m thinking I might aim to go quicker on race day. Not sure though as honestly I felt absolutely shattered at the end. I did lots of foam rolling at home afterwards!!

We got to the airport just after midday and by the time we got through security it was lunch-time. We decided on Jamie’s Italian (yes, I know, I am little bit obsessed with this restaurant at the moment!)

I had a vegetable plank to start, which was so yummy.

I loved that they put this in the middle of the table…as if I was sharing it. Ha! There was a small ball of mozzarella and a slice of fontina cheese, some chutneys, roasted vegetables and a mini carrot salad. Oh I do love variety!

Then for main course I had my standard turkey Milanese. I just absolutely adore this dish (it’s my third time having it…)

So huge! And so filling. Perfect for a long day of travelling.

We then caught our flight and then had a three hour coach journey to the resort. By the time we arrived it was around midnight. We were shattered! My legs also ached a lot from the run which wasn’t so great. It was 2am Bulgarian time and we had to set our alarms for 7am to get up for breakfast and meet our group to get our skis and boots etc. at 8.45am.

I’ll talk more about the food on Wednesday for WIAW as otherwise this post will be huge. But let’s just say I’m not a huge fan of the Bulgarian food!!

The first day was very stressful. Getting up after so little sleep, rushing to meet with our group, queuing for all our bits and pieces, then meeting with our tuition group…I felt so frazzled. Then Ben and I got split up in our groups because Ben was a better skier than me (he’s been three times before) and I felt a bit lost without him if I’m honest. This was my first time skiing on snow and I was already stressed and tired so I wasn’t too happy to start with!

However, after Ben managed to calm an emotional Anna down and I began properly skiing I loved it. After flying (read: slowly winding) my way down the first slopes, I was hooked and it no longer mattered that Ben and I were apart.

And it was just beautiful. I had to keep pinching myself when I was skiing down the slopes and just seeing the views in the distance. So beautiful.

Each morning we got up early, had breakfast and got to the slopes as soon as we possibly could. We were skiing by 9am together before our tuition began at 10am. Then 12am we broke for lunch and Ben and me would try and get a couple of slopes in before the lessons began again at 1pm and finished at 3pm. Then Ben and I would meet up again and ski until 4pm. Needless to say we were shattered by the end of the day. Literally we would fall asleep at 9pm. Now for me this is no big deal (hello, I’m an old lady) but for Ben this is CRAZY talk. And in the morning our legs ached like crazy. My calves were SO tight.

But we loved it.

Thankfully I wasn’t in the beginner’s group where they were taught the absolutely basics. I was in the intermediate group and we were taught how to parallel turn and basically improve. Though my moves are by no mean perfect, I can happily say that after the first couple of days I looked like a proper skier (not an expert, but I didn’t look like an absolute newbie!) Ben was amazing. He was a smooth criminal with his skiing and he even got to go down a black run on the last day! I got to go down some reds so I’m happy

I just couldn’t believe the views. It was terrifying seeing the heights we were going when we took the different chair lifts up. I only made it to the middle of the mountain but that was just phenomenal (Ben got to the top and he said it was just another world up there). Do you know what else was terrifying? Trying to take a photo of the views when on said chair lifts. This involved a lot of careful navigating of ski poles, gloves and phone. Scary stuff.

And yes, I fell over – a fair few times I’m proud to say! Nothing major, no broken bones thankfully. It didn’t hurt at all to be honest. The snow was like a big pillow. It did dent my ego a little but, hey, I’m still learning! My instructor gave me a great compliment when he asked if I was in training for something as he said I was able to jump straight back up and carry on so easily. So there’s a silver lining!

Our hotel wasn’t the greatest I have to say. But we weren’t there for that so we shrugged it off as something to improve on next time. We already know we want to go back to the same place and we chatted around to different people and know the hotel we want to go to. So we’re putting it down to experience!

I had a couple of lovely massages though in the spa (which I definitely needed). I had a Swedish massage and an anti-stress massage. But can I just say that having a Bulgarian masseuse who doesn’t speak much English makes getting a massage a little bit awkward…

So I’m hooked! I love skiing and will definitely be doing it again. Probably next year and in Bulgarian again. It was so cheap there (all the gear and lessons) and the slopes were amazing, the snow perfect and the experience just unforgettable.

But I am knackered! We had today (Monday) off to recover and we definitely needed it. It’s back to work tomorrow unfortunately but such is life!

Have you been skiing before?

Have you been to Bulgaria before? To be honest we would have never gone there ordinarily if it wasn’t for skiing.

Do you prefer more active holidays or really relaxing holidays? I’m definitely a more active holiday fan!

February 1, 2013

Week recap

Hi all! And it’s Friday! Honestly this week has positively zoomed by, which is always lovely. I’m glad to be back at home after going to Derby again! Here’s a recap of my week. This might be a bit long, so apologies in advance!

Monday I did a 6 mile run which as I’ve said previously was really hard as I was still tired from the long run at the weekend. I should have delayed the run until the Tuesday but foolishly didn’t.

Though I’m happy with those numbers, I’m not happy with the run. It was a struggle the whole damn time. I’d much prefer a slow and enjoyable run then a fast and difficult one.

Tuesday I decided not to run – good decision! I needed to let my body rest. I love running but I need to give it time to ‘heal’. In the evening it was my mother-in-law’s birthday so we went out for dinner with her and Ben. It was such good fun. We caught up and celebrated with good food and, because I was driving, they had a few glasses of wine. I’m not a big drinker so I don’t mind at all not drinking! I love a big glass of diet coke, such a treat.

The food was deeeeelicious. For starter, I had scallops:

Heavenly!

Then for main I was craving something meaty, so went for half a chicken in a Mediterranean marinade with roasted vegetables.

Though I usually hate the skin on chicken, this was so crispy and yummy it couldn’t possibly not be eaten. It was really infused with flavour.

And well, a celebration isn’t a celebration without some pudding surely? Ben went for a knickerbocker glory.

I think he was happy

And Ben’s mum and I shared a PUDDING PLATTER. Now clearly these are not mini-versions of ordinary puddings. No, no. These are full sized fat boy puddings. And yes, of course we ate it all.

Chocolate brownie, treacle tart, crème brûlée, apple crumble, custard and ice cream. Hello heaven, I have arrived. Though I must admit Ben took the crème brûlée off our hands as we both weren’t big fans. And let’s be honest here, people, there was some strategic planning that had to be done in terms of how much our stomachs would allow.

So a really lovely evening. Good food and good company

Wednesday I went running with two guys at work at lunchtime which went really well, despite being fairly windy. I didn’t feel that I had to run next to them the entire time so ‘sped’ off from them a bit towards the end as I wanted to make it worthwhile to me. Sorry if that sounds really arrogant, but they don’t run on a regular basis like I do so I had a slight advantage on them. I got a cheeky 3 miles in under 24 mins which I’m happy with

Then in the afternoon I headed up to Derby with another colleague, arriving there in the evening ravenous for food. We picked the hotel restaurant for sheer ease and the fact that it was good the last time we came up.

I had a haddock fishcake with a poached egg and mustard sauce with courgette parmesan frites on the side. Absolutely delicious. I was dubious ordering the fishcake as it sounded quite dull (hence ordering the frites) but it was so chunky and fluffy and the sauce, though quite rich, was a great accompaniment. Do I need to tell you how good the frites were??

In the morning I headed to the gym for the ~~dreadmill~~ treadmill. I made the below interval plan to follow beforehand as I didn’t want to just run aimlessly because I’d die of boredom.

I was a sweaty mess afterwards! It was just over 3 miles in 36 minutes in total.

After getting showered, I got into my smart stuff again. At work usually it’s all very casual, but when we’re on a customer site I wear much more smart outfits.

Ohhh and I had such a hair-washing related disaster. I always take little travel pots of shampoo and conditioner with my when I go away. Just generic little pots that I fill up myself with whatever I have at home. I still had some left from last week so just topped it up. When I was in the shower after shampooing my hair I grabbed my conditioner only to find it also contained shampoo. Clearly at home I’d just mindlessly filled the wrong pots. Idiot that I am. But in the end my hair was alright. Just a bit less shiny! Really confusing for me in the shower though haha.

Then breakfast. Now last week I had bacon and eggs and though I did enjoy it, you know me…I love my oatmeal. So I asked the waitress if I could order some (as there wasn’t any at the buffet area, nor any menus) and, hurrah, she said that was absolutely fine.

Obviously with a good mug of black coffee and water. Comparing to last week, porridge definitely fills me up for a lot longer than bacon and eggs.

Then a day full of meetings, with a brief stop for buffet lunch. Once again lots of ‘picky’ food and sandwiches.

I had this and another ham sandwich (bit of baguette?) and a mini scotch egg. Not normally something I’d have for lunch but definitely filled a whole. By the end of the day, my brain was whirling with all the information and talking that had happened.

As a reward for our hard day, we decided to go to Jamie’s Italian again…well, if we must!

Sorry, bad lighting (again…). This was fish plank which basically was a board full of fishy delights: smoked salmon, a piece of bruschetta with mackerel pate, a slice of fontina cheese with a sweet jam on top, some shell fish, a salad of shredded carrots and pickles, and then a couple of sardines (pilchards?) in a breadcrumb with a tartar sauce for dipping. Ermmm, amazing! It sounds a lot but each thing was very small so it was like a tasting platter.

As much as I really wanted to eat the turkey Milanese again (I love, love that meal), I decided to try something else. Plus I was loving the fish!

I had a piece of white fish baked in a bag with a tomato sauce and shell fish alongside. This was all on top of some amazingly fluffy bulgur wheat.

I hated it

As much as I was loving the meals, I’d now eaten out three nights in a row (each time two courses) and my tummy was feeling a bit worse for wear. I went to bed not feeling my best I have to say. Nothing against Jamie’s food OBVIOUSLY. But I think I was starting to get tired of all this rich and new food. Sometimes you just want some good old fashion chicken with sweet potato, you know?

Today I woke up really not wanting to go to the gym. I dragged my bum there though and thought I’d just try a quick run and then see how I felt. I had planned to do some hill running. Ha. That didn’t happen. I watched some news on the TV while running and it helped take my mind of the dullness and the fact I didn’t want to be there. In the end though I ran 4 miles!

Mind over matter and all that! Then I got myself showered and smart for the day.

When I’m in a hotel room I like to make as little mess as possible – is that weird? I always unpack only the bare minimum and pack away stuff as soon as I’m done with it. I’m a bit OCD like that – I just like no clutter Anyone else the same?

Thankfully today was only a half day so we left at midday and I was home by 3ish. I’ve been on a mad tidying and washing spree as we’re off tomorrow skiing. I still need to pack and do some ironing but I thought I’d write my last post before I go on holiday.

I plan on getting up early tomorrow and getting in a 12 mile run. I’m panicking a bit that all the work I’ve done on my endurance in my long runs and general speed will disappear while I’m off skiing. I know this is ridiculous but I just hope skiing sort of maintains something! It’ll be fine. Stop being stupid, Anna.

Right, you lovely people, have a lovely weekend and week! Please keep your fingers crossed that I don’t break something – I’m so clumsy, if I was to hurt myself it would probably be falling over while walking to a restaurant.

What do you have for breakfast in hotels when you can’t have your normal stuff?

Do you like to keep things tidy when you’re away, or do you just relax and not worry about it?

Do you prefer wearing smart stuff to work or more casual?

January 26, 2013

Up ‘North’ on business

Happy weekend all! I’m so glad it’s the weekend. This week has been fairly busy. I left the office on Wednesday afternoon to drive up to Derbyshire as we had a customer workshop Thursday and Friday. Now I live in the South (of England), Southampton to be exact. I would class myself, obviously, as a Southerner. And I know Derbyshire isn’t actually in the North, it’s in the Midlands. However, anywhere past Reading is pretty much North for a Southerner. So it felt quite northern to me! I love the northern (and midland!) charm that people have – the more-willing-to-help and polite people seem to be. Southerners can get swept up in the rat race and become a bit impersonal. So it was nice to be there.

But anyway, we got there around 7ish, checked in and then headed out to find some food. I Googled the area and found there just so happened to be a Jamie’s Italian nearby… After a nightmare of driving around trying to find a car park nearby (literally seeing the restaurant but not actually being able to get to it). Finally after parking and walking in the FREEZING cold (it’s colder up north ) we made it!

I straight away needed a hot drink so ordered a peppermint tea. It came in this beautiful heavy little tea pot. I asked the waitress where I could buy one but she couldn’t remember. Ahh well.

Sorry for the terrible photos, the lighting was terrible and I only had my IPhone.

And then we were seated. I ordered mini chilli’s stuffed with tuna and herbs with the starter.

Now call me boring but I already knew what I wanted for the main as I’ve already been to Jamie’s before for my hen do and I loved what I ate then. So I went for it again: the turkey Milanese.

Again, appalling photo. Basically it was turkey with a light crumb topping with mozzarella in the middle and an egg on top. Ohhh it was just as good, maybe even better, than I remembered!

Then we went back to the hotel and to our rooms.

Though the bed was lovely and comfortable I just couldn’t sleep. It’s really hard without Ben and without my usual home comforts. And what was really annoying was in the morning I could hear other people’s alarms going off, like the vibration and standard IPhone ringtones. I’m such a light sleeper it woke me up (30 mins before my own alarm). And what was worse was that one of the people was clearly having issues getting up as they kept snoozing it. I wasn’t happy.

The hotel had a gym so I thought I’d keep up with my running schedule and run on the treadmill.

I am hugely impressed with anyone who runs regularly on a the treadmill, and for long distances. I forgot how much I hate it. I like to zone out and just run, occasionally checking my Garmin for pacing and times. I hate having the stats right in front of me. I find myself counting down either seconds or 0.1 of miles. Seriously I couldn’t run further than 3 miles, and that was hard work.

So I pretty much ran 3 miles, starting at a pace of 8.30mins/mile and then jumping it up to 7.30min for around 1-2mins throughout to get some intervals in. Normally I find this absolutely fine outside, in fact I tend to run faster intervals. But honestly, I just couldn’t bear it.

Then it was shower and, because we were with a customer, time to look smart!

And then breakfast time.

No porridge for me. All they had was the makings for a full English, cereal, toast and fruit. So I had a plate of bacon, scrambled egg, tomatoes, mushrooms and a cheeky bit of black pudding. And then had a bowl of fruit salad afterwards. It was good but it definitely didn’t fill me up as well as oatmeal usually does.

Then on to our meeting in the world’s warmest room. I’d much rather be too warm than too cold but even I was starting to get a sweat on in this tiny room where 12 other people were crammed in. And then a buffet lunch. I hate buffets. I love them, but I hate them. I like to have a plate full of food and leave it there but with a buffet you go for a little bit and then a little bit more and before you know it you’ve had about two large platefuls! Well, maybe you have more restraint than me?

This is the only photo I could sneakily take without my fellow colleagues looking at me like I’d lost my mind. Believe me when I say this really wasn’t it…I said last post I’m more of a protein lover than a carb lover and I felt quite bloated and uncomfortable after eating so much bread as I’m just not that used to it. OK the above doesn’t really show much of a carb fest going on, but bare in mind this was one of the plates I had…

Then after a long afternoon of a continuation of the long, warm meeting we headed back to the hotel and decided to just eat there as it was a lot easier than venturing out into the cold again and going through that painful process of parking and walking miles.

For starter I had salt and pepper squid with a chilli jam sauce. Again poor photo due to trying to be inconspicuous.

And for main I had a Moroccan chickpea stew with couscous.

Both courses were really good, surprisingly good actually as I usually find restaurants at standard hotels aren’t that good. I was missing my normal food from home though. I know that sounds silly but though I enjoy eating out and eating different food from usual, I find it quite taxing (maybe not the right word) when it’s every single meal. I don’t usually eat a big meal in the evening and so when we parted to go to our rooms I needed to stay up to just digest. Which actually wasn’t an issue considering my room had Sky! What a luxury! Actually my room was pretty darn good. All the coffee and tea was Starbucks! So obviously I took some home with me…

How generous is that??

I wasn’t planning on doing another run at the gym the next morning but just wanted to mosey around at the weights and maybe do some rowing as I quite enjoy that and I never usually get the chance to go to a gym. However, I woke up raring to go and jumped on the treadmill (OK maybe not jumped) and did some really good intervals (7min/mile!) for three miles with a warm down. Still boring as hell but I had the energy to fuel me (all those carbs I expect).

Though I wasn’t in the gym mega early – only 7am, it was still a surprise to see so many people at that time in the morning. Normally in the week when I go out to run in the morning no one is about and it’s dark and quiet. It was a shock getting into the gym and it’s practically pulsating with all this energy and movement going on. I just wasn’t prepared. I barely say good morning to my husband at this time in the morning let alone have full on conversations about what I go up to last night.

I had some time so I thought I’d have a look around as it was quite a big gym with loads of equipment. I found myself a Power Plate! I’ve never used one before but had always been intrigued.

It was the strangest feeling, all that vibration going on and trying to do squats and lunges. Not entirely pleasant I must say. I managed two sets of squats and lunges and called it a day. Maybe I’ll try again some time but I just wasn’t sure about it.

Then another day of meetings (and another buffet) then a long drive home. I was so glad to be back home with Ben and Alfie. I just made myself a quick omelette for dinner and went to bed.

I do enjoy going away for business and staying in hotels and eating out but it gets tiring. You miss the comforts you’re so used to at home…that night-time hot chocolate, good night kiss from the husband and the furry dog lying on your chest in the morning staring you down waiting for his walk. You forget how lovely home until you’ve been away

Do you go away on business a lot?

Do you enjoy staying in hotels?

What do you prefer: running outside or on the treadmill?

October 14, 2012January 5, 2017

Holiday –part 1 (Orlando)

Hi guys! Well, I’m back to 100% Anna now. Back into the groove of work. It’s quite nice to have nothing to worry about or stress about. No more mad planning and just free weekends! It’s novel. I can get back on track with things that slid to one side this year. Like sprucing up our little home a bit as since we moved in last November we didn’t majorly deck it out with any sort of decorations. I’d like to buy some pictures and things like that to make things a bit more homey. Oh and Alfie is in a definite need of a haircut! He’s a mess.

So, I thought I’d do a recap of our holiday adventures. We spent six days in Orlando and then four days in Colorado Springs. So, here’s how Orlando went:

The taxi picked us up at 4.45am. We were half asleep as you can imagine. But by the time we got to the airport it was breakfast time (5am was breakfast time my tummy was telling me, but I waited). We treated ourselves to a Jamie Oliver breakfast:

Check that bad boy out. Not my usual porridge – but it’s Jamie’s so what can I say! I don’t eat sausage though (worst food in any form) so Ben gladly traded it for his black pudding. Yum.

Anyway, after a very very long flight we arrived in Orlando. Groggy and tired we basically just went to bed (in our amazing three bedroom villa!) It worked out nicely because we’d gone to bed so early (Orlando time) we woke up the next day at like 5.30am and so got started straight away. To save money and time, we decided to buy a load of food from the supermarket and eat breakfast at home before dashing to a theme park (also I’m a bit sad and get very excited with foreign supermarkets so it was a win-win situation).

Obviously I had porridge. American style! (Actually not that different from UK…) And Ben had a crazy array of cereals each day:

Each day we zoomed off to the parks. We went to Universal Studios and Island of Adventures first.

It was brilliant. It was fairly quiet so we got on rides very quickly. We were like kids running around with big smiles on our faces. Obviously we had to go to Jurassic Park (my all-time favourite movie – despite being terrified of velociraptors for the majority of my childhood).

And Harry Potter world as well…

Where we shared a BUTTERBEER!!! Pretty much heaven in a drink. I dare not to think of how bad it is for you but seriously, I need this in my life on a weekly basis:

Divine.

Do you know what else was amazing? The sheer amount of sweets.

Hello candy-coated apples! Of simply every variety. Cue Ben holding Anna back before she spends all their money on teeth-rotting goodies. The chocolate/marshmallow/caramel/peanut butter coated apples are healthy though, right? There’s fruit in there somewhere…

For lunch we decided that it was just too hot to buy something from a vendor and sit outside eating. We went to a great restaurant (twice) on the City Walk: Emeril’s Restaurant.

[Anticlockwise: Rotisserie chicken and Andouille gumbo, BBQ prawns, Salmon with stewed beans and smashed avocado, & roasted trout with artichokes and rocket]

After two days of Universal, we then went to Disney. In complete juxtaposition to Universal it was so busy! We were surprised as it’s supposed to be the quiet season right? But maybe there is no quiet time for Disney…

We went to Hollywood Studios in the morning and then headed to Magical Kingdom for the afternoon. We got there around lunchtime and it was packed. We decided to try finding a restaurant to eat (=cooler). Epic fail.

Now, withhold your judgement please… Throughout the parks I’d been seeing people eat HUGE turkey legs. Now I’m not a massive meat eater but I had begun craving one of these bad boys to an irrational level. I just had to have one.

I’ll spare you the pictures because, people, it wasn’t pretty (good ol’ husband snapping away while I tried not to look like a savage). Despite lacking a lot of feminine grace while gnawing away on the beast, it tasted AMAZING. Out of idle curiosity I later Googled it. 1,200 CALORIES. I was aghast. Ben laughed. But what can you do? No wonder it tasted so damn good.

Disney wasn’t as good as we thought to be honest. A lot of children. A lot of Disney-obsessed people. We enjoyed it, but it didn’t rock our world like Universal.

The next day was spent in Busch Gardens which was EMPTY. We went on everything and even got on the front of the roller coasters quite a lot. It was good fun. Lots of animals as well!

We grabbed lunch while watching some crazy dancing in one of the indoor canteens. On a similar carnivorous note to before I went for ribs with a side of veggies. Ribs are a bit of my devil food. I LOVE them but I try not to eat them too often as they’re usually always coated in that delicious BBQ sauce which probably has about 5 tbs of sugar in it. But hey, it’s holiday, and they were the speciality. Would be rude not to…

[Apologies if I’m offending any vegetarians/vegans – sometimes I just can’t control the beast within]

We did manage some slightly less rich food by eating in the villa (and saving us some money) and trying out some more local restaurants and enjoying their salads.

[Chicken, avocado, lots of fruit and seeds. Yum!]

And between parks and rollercoasters we enjoyed the pool.

Though it was verrrry chilly. But nice and refreshing after all the humidity and heat.

We spent one day away from the main tourist area and looked around Winter Park which is a very beautiful area with nice eating spots and coffee shops. It was nice to take a moment out!

All in all, Orlando was amazing. We went on every ride we wanted to (some twice) and really had a great time. Having the villa was brilliant as we could just come back and have something simple to eat at home or swim in our private pool! It definitely saved us some money as well.

So, part two will be on our adventures in Colorado. Horse riding, bike riding and lots of mountains!

August 23, 2012August 23, 2012

Hen Party Extravaganza–Part 1

I’ve decided to split my hen party shenanigans into two parts as both days deserve their own post.

Initially I was very apprehensive about the hen do [bachelorette party], as you can imagine. The stories you hear about what goes on and the dares that the bride-to-be are force to do…the horrible photos that get taken…And the fact that my big sister was organising it for me. So a lot of nerves! My sister is crazy. No-inhibitions-loud-daring crazy. Nothing like me, basically. I’m fairly quiet, can be quite shy, I don’t drink much, I don’t get drunk often (like twice a year) and I don’t go clubbing anymore…what can I say, I feel too old now! I like my sleep and I like waking up with a clear head.

However, I was pleasantly surprised. It was such a good weekend. It started with my friends from university coming down to stay with me until the Sunday. It was so lovely to see them as I don’t see them that often due to geographical issues and everyone’s conflicting schedules. We then spent the Saturday afternoon PAINTBALLING. It was a Hen Vs Stag affair where Ben’s friends were teamed up against all my girlfriends. There were around 20 of us in total and it was brilliant. Painful, very painful. But brilliant. And obviously they thought it would be hilarious if Ben and I were dressed in bunny suits. So everyone one else was in nice camouflaged, thick army-style gear. I, however, looked like Bugs Bunny preparing for a war:

(This photo was at the end when I was free from my bunny suit, but not my bunny ears)

I like to think that in a war I’d be a survivor. I’d be one of those hero-types. However, I was slightly disappointed to find that I was one of those hiding-types. A good ditch or a big tree was my friend. I’d be rubbish in war. I wasn’t a complete coward though – I did get my fair share of shooting on. I just wouldn’t get any medals…

Then we got home and showered (major issues with mud & sweat!). Next it was party time! Check out the lovely gear my darling friends inflicted upon me [I quite liked the veil if I’m honest…though I did conveniently lose the feather boa through the night…] And, as it is a well-known fact that I have a bit of a crazy love for Jamie Oliver [it’s the amazing food, his funny personality…he’s just so lovely] they managed to find the next best thing:

Oh and check out my beasty bruise from paintballing! [I had four of these!!]

After getting ready, we went and had a Mexican dinner:

I had a grilled coriander and lime marinated chicken with green rice & garlic wilted spinach. Very zesty and yummy and not too heavy – I didn’t want to impair my dancing ability! And obviously being at a Mexican restaurant meant an obligatory Mexican drink:

Margarita! And this is how much I enjoyed it:

Not a big tequila fan I have to admit. Also, the sneaky barman had put a double in it as he found out it was my hen party! I love my friends as well – they told me that around the brim of the glass was sugar and I, like a mug and being very unworldly, believed them. Very salty.

And then it was time for dancing! It was a fairly tame evening – both mothers came out with us (by the way, HILARIOUS – get your mother into a club and no end of amusement is had). My friends had thought up some ‘great’ dares for me to do as well…like randomly asking a guy to give me a piggy back (tick), trying to get a free dink at the bar (tick), dancing on the table (tick)… And lots of alcohol…Apple Sourz obviously!

The music was a good bit of cheese (hello Backstreet Boys, hello Greece Mega Mix), random people kept congratulating me, and all my friends enjoyed themselves. It was just lovely. I felt very lucky

Well, we got back around 2ish – which isn’t that late I suppose (though late for me!) It was such a good evening. And I still had the next day’s adventures ahead! So, tune in soon for part 2 of my hen party shenanigans!

Has anyone else had a hen party/bachelorette party? What did you get up to? Was it crazy?

Anyone else have a secret crush on Jamie Oliver..?