The Fox, The Dog, and The Crab: The Rest of my Manchester Trip

Hi, everyone!

I wish I could have continued blogging while I was in Manchester, but unfortunately, the Word Press app on my phone was acting up way too much. So, now that I’m back in London and on my laptop, I can blog again without any issues!

On my second day in Manchester, I went to the movies and saw Foxcatcher. I thought the movie was really great. I’m not surprised that Steve Carrell and Mark Ruffalo got nominated for Oscars. Their performances, although very different, were genuine and multifaceted. I think Bennett Miller really created a moving piece that is an interesting study on masculinity, family, sport and America.

But after such an intense movie, I had to lighten up the day. So, it was another day of walking around the city and eating some good food! I grabbed lunch at Brew Dog.

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Oh, you know, just a reindeer chilling out with all of us at Brew Dog.

I had wings with their South Carolina mustard sauce. It was delicious! I had never tried a mustard-based sauce on wings. It was great to try something new!

Brew Dog is really known for its beer. I tried its Punk IPA (India Pale Ale), and it was delicious! Richard tried its Hardcore IPA. Both were really good!

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Brew Dog’s Punk IPA on the left. Brew Dog’s Hardcore IPA on the right. Both were wonderful!

Also, if you ever wanted to know more about brewing beer, Brew Dog has this wonderful infographic on everything hops!

12215 Lowdown on Hops manual

After walking around town all afternoon, I had worked up an appetite and decided to go to one of my favorite, if not my favorite spot in Manchester: Mud Crab Cafe.

If any of you ever visit Manchester or live in Manchester, I highly suggest taking the tram to Didsbury Village or the bus to West Didsbury and try this place out! The drinks, the food, the vibe, everything about this place hits the spot for me!

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Mud Crab’s perfect Long Island Iced Teas – perfectly mixed
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The Main Event: Mud Crab’s 2nd Best Cheeseburger with Chicken Salt Fries. My all-time favorite!

On my third and last day in Manchester, I didn’t take that many photos mainly because I just wanted to soak everything in. Manchester is the city where I really grew up. I learned a lot not just academically but also about myself. I will be forever grateful to that city for everything it has given me.

Oh, I know, that sounds so sappy, but it’s the truth! I’m not ashamed to admit it.

I hope you guys had a lovely start to your week! We made it past hump day, and the weekend is so close!

Lots of love,

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Back to Where It All Began

I’m in Manchester!

I lived in this city for a year, and I have so many amazing memories from my experience here. So, I decided to visit it for the next few days.

After I arrived, I went to lunch at The Alto Bar at The Raddison Blu. At The Alto Bar, you choose from either a steak or a lobster.

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I chose the lobster. It’s my favorite! The lobster came with unlimited fries and a salad. As you can see, I clearly loved the salad! The salad was so amazing that I had to have seconds. It was mixed leaves, croutons, sunflower seeds, a sprinkle of Parmesan and a light house dressing. Just writing about it again makes me want to have thirds!

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Then, I walked all around town. It was so nice to see that some of my old favorite places are still around, but it was also good to see new places that have been built over the last couple years. I didn’t take too many pictures because I was soaking it all in.

For dinner, I went to The Font. During my first week here, a guy asked me out for dinner and drinks at this place.

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These amazing drinks are called Zombies!

 

Everyone, this is Richard!
Everyone, this is Richard!

It turned out not to be a one date fluke. So here we are, recreating our first date, toasting to the past 2 years and the future.

We’re also toasting to you guys! Thank you so much for the follows and likes in the first few weeks of my blog. Thank you for allowing me to share a slice or two of my life with you.

Cheers!

Lots of love,

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Brunch at the Brasserie

My weekend has been about enjoying the food London has to offer!

Today, I decided to grab some brunch today at Cote Brasserie.

I’ve wanted to go to Cote for a long time now actually. The first time I tried to go to Cote, my part of town flooded because the area’s pipes burst. Needless to say, there was no way I was going to get to Cote unless I swam there…

Luckily, today, it’s a lovely winter’s day here…

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… and I enjoyed mussels with a side of fries. So not a typical brunch choice, but it’s been years since I’ve had mussels mariniere!

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I’m sure you can tell that we all enjoyed our meals…

 

I hope you all are enjoying your Sunday!

Lots of love,

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Aloha Breakfast!

This morning, I had breakfast at Kua ‘Aina, a Hawaiian restaurant in central London, and it was pretty good!

I got a latte and blueberry pancakes with a side of bacon.

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Kua ‘Aina logo (c) Kua ‘Aina blog

The only small downside to the meal was that the bacon was burnt a bit… But the great upside was that the blueberry pancakes were delicious! (I’ll totally admit – I took a couple bites before I took the picture of my plate. I totally forgot that I wanted to take a picture of my plate for this blog! I’m definitely not in the habit of taking pictures of my food, but hang in there with me guys, I’m trying!)

Word on the Interwebs is that Kua ‘Aina is known for their burgers, and just from reading about them on the menu this morning, I can see why!

I thought the decor of the place was colorful, vibrant, and fun, brining the best of the Aloha State to the other side of the pond.

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This was the calm before the storm. By the time I left, the room was full!

Kua Aina Surf Lounge

To see more about their food and restaurants all over the world, check out Kua ‘Aina’s blog!

Let me just say in the name of transparency here: This post is not sponsored. I really did enjoy my morning at Kua ‘Aina. It truly has an awesome island vibe that you don’t only feel in the decor but also in the food and the friendly service staff!

I love trying new things, experiencing different places. What can I say? I’m just…

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Lots of love,

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I. Declare. Oscar Nomination!!!

You guys…

Michael Scott Steve Carrell just got nominated for an Oscar!!!

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Now, who knows if he’s going to win, but I’m so happy that Steve Carrell got nominated for his lead role in Foxcatcher.

I’m also pretty pleased that Eddie Redmayne got nominated! I’m sure you could tell from my reaction to his Golden Globes win that his portrayal of Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything is one of my favorite performances of the year.

To see the full list of nominees (and The Washington Post’s Stephanie Merry’s reactions to the nominees in each category), click here.

Did any of your favorites get nominated? I was pretty bummed that David Oleyowo didn’t get an Oscar nomination… His performance gave me goosebumps – just from the trailer for Selma alone!

Feel free to comment below on any of the nominees and categories!

Lots of love,

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Critics’ Choice Movie Awards

And Awards Season 2015 continues!

While the HFPA voted on nominees and winners at the Golden Globes, it’s the BFCA’s turn to vote on nominees and winners at the Critic’s Choice Movie Awards.

You can find the full list of nominations here.

I think it’s great that Michael Strahan is hosting! I think he’s such a natural and has such great energy.

I’m particularly interested in the categories of best picture, best supporting actor and best supporting actress because it seems like the BFCA has nominated a real mix of pictures and performances. I’m always really interested to see which movie wins for best acting ensemble. There’s something to be said about acknowledging a whole team, a whole cast (not just solely lead actors) for their talent, chemistry, and dedication to a film.

Kevin Costner will be receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award, Ron Howard will be receiving the Louis XIII Genius Award and Jessica Chastain will be receiving the Critic’s Choice MVP award.

I love all three of them! They are some of my absolute favorites in Hollywood.

In honor of TBT, here’s Kevin Costner on the infamous poster for The Bodyguard:

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(I have to send up some love to my girl, Whitney! At the end of the day, I think she had a voice of a lifetime.)

Ron Howard in Happy Days:

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(With the Fonz! I remember watching Happy Days every week night on Nick at Nite.)

Jessica Chastain in The Help:

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(She has to be one of the most versatile actresses of our time. So glad she’s winning MVP! (Did movies just become a sport or something?!)]

Are you guys looking forward to tonight’s awards? Do you have any favorite nominees?

Lots of love,

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Part of my Post-Work Out Recovery

I have to share this with you guys because after a tough work out, this is really one of the best parts of my post-work out recovery.

Arbonne Sea Source Detox Spa Renewing Body Gelee

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It’s absolutely amazing! My mom got it as a gift from one of her friends, but I noticed that she wasn’t using it. So, I decided to try some and instantly loved it. Since my mom saw how much I loved the product, she let me have it (Thanks, mom!). I’ve been happy with it ever since.

I can’t gush about it enough. It has this wonderful cooling effect that I love particularly after working out or even when I’m out and about in the sun…

I know what you’re thinking: You live in England. What sun are you talking about?! Don’t worry, I totally get you. But it comes in handy I travel back to the US, especially during the summer. It’s so wonderful.

It is a bit up there in terms of price, but honestly, I think the investment is worth it.

And once again, this product post is not sponsored! I just love this product so much, and I just wanted to share it with you guys.

Do you guys have any beauty products that you swear by? Feel free to comment down below!

Lots of love,

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The Day After: The 2015 Golden Globes Edition

Hey, guys!

I’m just catching up on the Golden Globes, and it sounds like it was a great night, particularly for British talent in Hollywood!

I am so beyond pleased that Eddie Redmayne won Best Actor (Drama)! Look at how happy this guy is! He so deserved it.

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From his acceptance speech, you can really tell just how genuinely devoted he was to the role, how humbled he was with the opportunity to portray one of the most important scientific figures in history, and how important it was to him to share Stephen Hawking’s story and spirit on the big screen. Major congratulations are in order for Eddie!

And of course, congratulations to Ruth Wilson for winning Best Actress (TV Series – Drama)!

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Congratulations as well to Joanne Froggatt, the wonderful Mrs. Bates! Her tribute to survivors of rape was really touching. It wasn’t long, but I thought that the acknowledgement was incredibly heartfelt.

 

In terms of American talent, I was also so happy that Michael Keaton won for Best Actor (Comedy/Musical). After years of being away from Hollywood, what a welcome back to such a talent! It was so sweet to see him get a bit choked up when he called his son his best friend. What a beautiful father-son moment captured forever.

 

And just like I mentioned in my previous post, I was really excited to watch Tina Fey and Amy Poehler’s opening this morning!

They were really funny, overall. Of course, there have been a lot of reactions across the board about them making fun of Bill Cosby, particularly in terms of him addressing the rape allegations brought up against him.

I can definitely see both sides of the issue: I think rape is never something to joke about, and I think the fact that I’m sure some of Bill Cosby’s alleged* victims were probably watching the award show last night should have been taken into consideration. But the way I saw it, I think the ladies were not making fun of Bill Cosby raping innocent women, but rather, how ridiculous he sounded defending his horrible alleged* actions. From what I can remember from my studies, I think it was Mbembe who once argued that humor can be a form of resistance. I think that through their comedy, Tina and Amy were saying, “Hey, Bill, you may think you’re untouchable because of your lovable image and your celebrity status, but in light of recent accusations, we don’t believe anything you have to say! And to show you just how much we don’t believe you, we choose, as two empowered, funny women, who have spoken for women’s rights and against rape culture, to make a joke about how ridiculous you sound defending such despicable alleged* actions.”

Wow, that went a bit longer than I thought it would, but I wanted to share my feelings on the issue with you guys because I think there’s a difference between joking about someone raping someone else, which I don’t think is okay by any means, and joking about how ridiculous the alleged* rapist sounds when s/he tries to defend his/her actions, which is what I think Tina and Amy were doing.

To end on an upbeat note: The Golden Globes are just the first of many award shows this season. I am so excited for the Critic’s Choice Movie Awards on Thursday! Also, Oscar nominations are announced the same day at 5:30 am PT, which I believe is 1:30 pm GMT.

Did any of you watch the show last night? What did you guys think of it all?

Feel free to comment down below on any part of the show you thought was noteworthy (whether good or bad)!

Lots of love,

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* – all for legal purposes (just in case)