A week in London

Life has been hectic as I've tried to settle down in Houston.

But I did go back to London last month to attend my graduation ceremony. Obviously I tried to cram as much in as possible, which included watching Phantom of the Opera for the third time and revisiting some of my favourite restaurants and shops.

It's hard not to miss such a great city and not feel sad about not knowing when I'll next be back!

First night in London: my dad wanted to try out the Goring Restaurant, as the corresponding hotel is where Kate Middleton spent the night before her wedding. They have a well-priced 3 course dinner menu.

They made arrangements for my dad's birthday as requested :)

I've been to Terroirs once before and so I brought my parents there for a quick meal before watching Phantom. It's like gourmet comfort food ♥

Snails on toast 

Quail on polenta

Candy Cafe completes my life...

THAT cheesecake crepe

Graduation @ Royal Albert Hall

The day after: lunch with the parents at the Ledbury.

I let my dad order the lamb... tasted just as amazing as the last time.

The truffle toast that accompanied the buffalo milk curd

The brilliant violet ice cream!

A good friend treated me to dinner at Mitsukoshi. Why have I not been before? You know it's good when even the Japanese go there!

There is a huge gaping hole in my life that rose macarons once occupied... Can someone send me some from Pierre Herme please?

The Harwood Arms... partly owned by Brett Graham of the Ledbury, I've been meaning to try this gastropub for a long time. For some reason, I forgot to book a table and we were only able to sit at the bar. Thankfully, the "bar snacks" still make for a decent lunch.

THAT scotch egg

And lastly... the obligatory souvenirs:

Finally managed to tick off a lot of things on my wish list (please bear with the pink overload; I have my moments!), like the teacup and mug I bought at the Harrods store at the airport just before leaving.

I've been back in Houston for a fortnight now... and although interesting restaurants and shops aren't condensed together like in London, I'm sure that there will be good finds - if I look hard enough. 

Dear London... I will be back someday. x

GREECE

I'm back in Hong Kong now, but still reminiscing about our greek holiday 2 months ago. I've been putting off blogging about it because it was simply too epic!

Santorini
We stayed at Sigalas hotel on Kamari beach - it was at the very end of the beach, away from the restaurants, which was a bit inconvenient to be honest.

The hotel itself was lovely though.

Dinner on a boat; we were near Oia at this point. If you do go on a boat trip, choose the ones that take you out to the more remote beaches, not the more common ones that simply go to the volcanic island and hot springs.

Donkey taxis - one of the best experiences in Santorini? I think so.

Wish I was back in Greece and munching on a souvlaki stick right now! They're a very popular street food.

Seriously, after trying this lamb souvlaki I was obsessed.

It costs around 1.50 euros for a stick, but for 2.50 you get a souvlaki pitta, which they typically chuck some fries in.

Mykonos
Psarou Garden Hotel, so named because they have a garden where they grow all their veg. The staff were amazingly friendly. Especially Yannis!

Wild cherrys with syrup - a sweet welcoming.

The best moussaka we had on the trip was had at the hotel.

This was a lovely store in the town centre that sells various greek desserts. 

Baklava - so sinfully good.

The staff at the hotel recommended Parnormos beach - apparently it's the most beautiful beach in Mykonos. I wouldn't be surprised, as it was much less crowded than Paradise and Super Paradise.

There was only one bar in operation when we went. You didn't have to pay for the deck chairs, which is uncommon in Mykonos. You simply needed to order from the bar. 

Strawberry daiquiri - loved it! What a good start to the day :P

Their food was honestly pretty good. I ordered the club sandwich while someone else went for the burger - a very juicy burger at that.

Athens
Arriving at Athens was a massive culture shock. The grime! The graffiti! The dodgy lighting!

Thankfully, we only spent one night here.

We went on a late night hunt for food and ended up at this German store.

Ah, this will have to do for now.

The last day was spent visiting the acropolis.

Backstreet boys - asian edition?

That's all folks. Counting down the days til Texas! x