Yes, London is still brilliant

I can hardly believe it, but it has now been almost a year that I've been living in London. And I still love it. Although I do feel a little bit of wanderlust kicking in and I would be totally open to moving somewhere else for a job, I really still love living in London and I know I'll miss it if/when I leave.

The last few weeks have been pretty full of dissertation writing/editing/obsessing/mild panicking, but I've been able to do a few fun things around the city. I mean, it is the summer--I can't be expected to forego fun altogether.

A couple of weekends ago there was a fantastic (and free) jazz festival in Canary Wharf. I tagged along with my flatmate on two of the nights it was happening. It was in this little park in the middle of all the swanky high-rise office buildings, so it was a pretty cool setting. And the music was brilliant. The first night had a band that was kind of a mix between jazz and hip-hop with the frontman rapping on half the songs and playing the sax on the others. The second night was even better with a huge Cuban band who were just incredible. The frontman for this one played electric violin and sang and he was crazy good. So we chilled, jammed, and drank wine in the park. Not a bad way to spend a summer night.

Last weekend I went out to a super cool speakeasy-style bar with a friend of mine--you have to know the address and ring the bell to get in and it's set up like the office of a private investigator. It's called the Evans & Peel Detective Agency. The best part is that you have to make an 'appointment' and give them a case. When you get there, the receptionist does a little acting and asks you about your case before you're ushered through the door behind the bookcase to the bar. Theatrics aside, the drinks are fabulous and, while I didn't eat, their food menu looks pretty phenomenal as well. I had an amazing cocktail called the Rick's Cafe Americain which is a twist on an old-fashioned with 12yo bourbon, espresso bitters, and a spice-scented glass. Definitely my cup of tea.

So those are the highlights of my last couple of weeks. I should have some more stories of interest after this weekend as I'm off to explore Edinburgh and celebrate handing in my dissertation (sweet, sweet freedom...well, until I have to get one of those job things). Till then, stay classy and drink good whisky.

Pretending to be Posh

Two weeks ago I hit the halfway mark in my dissertation and then I had a visit from my mom so that provided the perfect opportunity for me to take a break from researching and writing and do some fun stuff around London and take a little mini-break to Ireland.

Thanks to my mom and some brilliant internet deals I had the chance to do some stuff that made me feel super posh. Mainly, this was due to our stay at the Royal Horseguards Hotel (just try saying that without putting on a pretentious British accent). I felt a bit out of place arriving in my holey Converses and backpack but this ceased to bother me when I discovered our room had a heated bathroom floor and a TV in the shower. Yes, that's right, in...the...shower. If that wasn't enough to make me lose my mind I later found out that the floor we were on was used as the British Secret Service's headquarters during WWI. So, you know, it's basically like sleeping where the real-life James Bonds hung out. It was also frequented by Winston Churchill and he commanded operations from there during WWII. A fact I appreciated even more while having the drink named after him in their bar. It consisted of tobacco-infused bourbon, Scotch, tobacco syrup, and bitters. Big fan. The moral of the story is that I got really spoiled for three days and then had to return to my previously fine, but now slightly depressing flat.

Also during this week I finally made it over to Harrod's which, again, made me feel posh as I pretended that I could afford anything they sell there. The food halls were my favourite (unsurprisingly) and we did splurge and have a glass of wine and buy some fantastic salami and cheeses. Then we just stared longingly at the shoes and purses.

A similarly exciting outing was to the bar at the top of Heron Tower. I've been dying to go there and it did not disappoint. Great drinks and an unbelievable view. Plus the bartender gave us some free drinks and who doesn't get excited about that? I thoroughly enjoyed their posh twist on a Jack and Coke which came in its own flask.

The rest of the week was somewhat less fancy. We went to an awesome blues bar in Soho called Ain't Nothin' But... which is tiny, crowded, a little dirty and has great music--everything a blues bar should be. And I can't forget our little side-trip to Ireland. Instead of the typical Dublin excursion, we went to Limerick which was a pretty little city. We explored 12th century churches, villages with thatched-roof houses, King John's Castle, the Burren (a hilly, coastal region with ancient rock formations), the Saturday-morning market, and a pub or two. I loved seeing the castles and old buildings (again, history nerd) and of course I enjoyed drinking Guinness and Irish whiskey while listening to traditional Irish music. The countryside in the Burren was incredible and it was quite nice to be on the ocean again, particularly being a Rhode Island girl. It wasn't nearly enough time to spend in Ireland and I would love to get over to Dublin, but for now, a second trip to Belfast will have to do.