A seaside view...

I thought I just had to share this beautiful view I was sitting by, when I had my lunch, yesterday at work.

When I'm home from univeristy, I work as a box office clerk at the Cliffs Pavilion, in Westcliff. We have all sorts of acts and performances come to the theatre. With a range of comedians, psychics and musicals! 

It's definitely a view to admire. 

Kirsty 

xxx

My weekend in Oxford

Hey bloggers,

I have been so busy recently, I finally have the time to sit down and write about the weekend. I have just spent in Oxford with my friend Jack. Because I've finished uni so early at Glasgow, compared to the English universities, I decided to make the most of it and catch the train from Leigh-on-Sea to Oxford.

I didn't know what to expect in Oxford, but en route, it really was a nightmare to get there. Upon arrival at Paddington, I was told on the train that it was cancelled as a man had jumped in front of a train at Twyford. Despite this horrid news, I had to get off and was really annoyed as Jack had planned to attend a 'formal' at the Trinity College, one of the colleges amongst the others at the University of Oxford. He wanted me to experience of the more posh side to Oxford and its traditions!

Luckily, I arrived JUST in time, with only minutes to get changed and then made our way to dinner.

Jack and I at dinner.

After this, we made our way to drinks that were being held by the Cherwell News. The newspaper that Jack writes for, before making our way back to the room to sleep before the activities next day! The next day we went to walk around the different colleges. Here's me at Trinity College in the day:

And then we booked a punt with Christchurch as Jack attends there (YES! The university where Harry Potter was filmed in the Great Hall!!) 

Punting down Cherwell River.

Jack and I.

Jack punting at the back of the boat.

I had such a great time, as we played music down the river and relaxed in the afternoon sun. 

Afterwards, we made our way to the Great Hall for dinner with Matt, another school friend who attends Balliol. 

Outside the Great Hall where Harry Potter was filmed.

I was definitely thinking of returning, as I made my home on Sunday. Oxford itself is such a small city and we were able to walk all around it. It was surrounded by tourists as they walked around the city looking at the picturesque scenery of the ancient buildings standing that are now owned the university.

Did you do anything nice this Bank Holiday weekend?

Kirsty

xxx

The Chelsea Flower Show

Christmas was becoming more imminent when I finally decided to purchase two tickets to the Chelsea Flower Show for my mum for Christmas. I knew she had always wanted to go so I saved up and planned to go on one of her days she had off work, during the week it was being held.

I booked the 3.30-8pm slot as I thought we could take a slow ride up to London and have some lunch. We had to go to the Royal Hospital, Chelsea and had to queue as we arrived early.

A definite tip for anyone thinking of going next year is to definitely arrive early and queue so you're one of the first people into the Show.

My mum and I standing by the most beautiful flowers that were named after ice cream flavours!

We went round the gardens after looking at the main map at the start of the park.

The map telling you the layout of the event.

These are some of the photos I took of the day...

Prince Harry's garden, inspired by an african theme.

The tree coming into the photo on the top left is over 150 years old.

Dead and alive plants hanging from the ceiling.

Outside the Royal Hospital, Chelsea.

Inside the large marquee, where plants from over the world were shown here.

After spending the day here, I definitely felt like I had more of an idea which plants can be grown in 'acid soil' and which gardens I wanted! Unfortunately, my favourite, Roses weren't to be seen! I would love to go next year, so will keep an eye out for tickets when they go on sale. 

Kirsty

xxx

Women on the Verge on a Nervous Breakdown

I had planned to see this gem of a show playing at the Playhouse Theatre at the Embankment in June, after seeing the excitement surrounded by it at the Oliviers earlier this year. 

However, plans quickly changed when I received an email telling me that this show was closing on Saturday 23rd May! Despite much upset, I managed to get a lovely little bargain to see the performance with my mother on Wednesday afternoon.

Outside the Playhouse Theatre.

Knowing nothing other than the vague plot line that was given on their website, this musical took place in Madrid in the 1970s about a lady named Peppa, who was magnificently well portrayed by Tamsin Grieg. Admittedly, I had not seen her in anything else but she surprised me in her acting and made me laugh with tears at her unfortunate circumstances that materialised throughout the show. 

We first meet Peppa as she awakes and realises she is late for work. She has taken a strong dose of sleeping pills. Catching a taxi to work, we learn that she is an actress for the TV and an image in the public eye. Grieg's frantic nature shapes this character rather well, resulting in the audience being able to make a judgement on the sort of person Peppa is.

Waiting for the performance to begin.

The story unravels, revealing her husband Ivan has disappeared and has not been seen for two days. He has left her for another women, we soon learn. Peppa later meets Ivan's ex-wife (Lucia), a lady Peppa did not even know about, whilst she was married to Ivan. This character is played manipulatively well. She is in the background for the majority of the Act One. In Act Two, Lucia comes to life as we see someone who is also as mental as Peppa. She tells the audience of the past 20 years she has had to deal with Ivan not being in her life. Lucia outlines that she will be going to court over the ordeal of Ivan. Peppa also meets his son, and Fiancé. 

As the plot thickens, the audience simultaneously meets Peppa's best friend, Candela who has a love affair with an Arab, and learns from the television that he is a terrorist.

Comical and light hearted, Women on the Verge was an abstract performance, embodied with Spanish tunes and dancing. A daring new show in the West End that has unfortunately not taken off. I really would have loved to have seen Hadyn Gywnne as I worked with her in Billy Elliot, alas she was not performing on the day. 

I would tell anyone to catch the show whilst it is still on in its final two days. It also reassures yourself that there are situations out there more complex than you're own!

The finale.

On our way out, I literally bumped into Jo Brand, as my Mum and I were heading to the Savoy to book tickets for Gypsy with Imelda Staunton and to have some lunch! I politely asked for a photo and she said yes. She was such a lovely lady.

Jo Brand and I along the Embankment.

Have you seen the show, or ever bumped into anyone famous whilst you were out?

Kirsty

xxx

S Club 7!

Never had a dream come true...

Until yesterday, when the day finally arrived for me to see my favourite childhood band. Brandon had bought me tickets for Christmas and I was so excited to see them, ever since the last show I saw at Docklands! But before I tell you all about the gig, I'll let you know what I did before the performance in London.

Brandon and I travelled into Liverpool Street earlier in the day to have a walk around as the weather was so lovely. From the station we walked to my ever favourite cake shop: Hummingbird Bakery to pick up two cupcakes, one for me and one for my mother. I got a #RHSChelsea themed cupcake as I am taking her to the Chelsea Flower show on Wednesday, which I bought for her as a Christmas present! 

We then walked towards Spitalfields Market and, once inside, we were asked whether we wanted to make a Mojito. Of course we said yes and got in line to make our mouth-watering Mojito. We had to do everything ourselves and even got to keep the cup!

Brandon's tasted better than mine... unfortunately :(

We then walked further towards Brick Lane. I found some AMAZING bargains in a pop up shop with the brand called Oh My Love London. The prices were slashed and I purchased some beautiful clothes for summer. On the way back to the station, Brandon wanted to try coffee from this place called Department of Coffee and Social Affairs. I had a Latte and it was truly amazing. Brandon ordered a Flat White and we sipped these on the overground as we made our way to the O2.

The two cute cups of coffee!

Once arriving at the O2, we had a bite to eat and then went to Sky Backstage to get a drink before heading into the arena!

We felt as though we were on the red carpet.

The performance was phenomenal, S Club performed all the songs I expected them too and each of the artists in the band were given 5-10 minutes to show the audience their worth within the band. I found that Jo O'Meara was the lead singer and held the band together throughout the show. I was disappointed at first to hear that Paul Cattermole would be singing the acoustic version of 'Reach', until rest assured, the gang sang the 'true' song at the end of their gig, along with 'Never Had a Dream Come True' and 'Don't Stop Movin'. The seats were brilliant and I was able to take some brilliant photos and videos!

The band popping up at the start of the gig.

Rachel Stevens even performed her solo songs which was very exciting and brought back lots of memories! Unfortunately, Tina Barrett didn't do it for me, and I believe that she performed very poorly. Despite this, it did not drag down the quality of the show, as they quickly pushed back into the hits they shared in the 2000's!

Dance, Dance, Dance.

Here's a video I took of one of my most favourite songs:

Overall, I had a lovely day and an even better evening. I'm so sorry to Brandon who was sitting next to me to hear the ordeal of me singing along to every song. 

However, I would definitely recommend this to anyone who was and is a fan to go and see them, they sing so well and entertained me the whole hour and forty five they were on stage! As ever with all trips to the O2, it was a very easy train ride home, which makes the gig a lot more accessible to get to!

Kirsty

xxx

Happy Birthday Billy Elliot!

When the show first began in 2005, I don't think anyone would have thought the production would still be running ten years on, although a lot of us were dreaming of it. However, last night, a dream became a reality as the six current Billy's took the stage to perform the 10th Anniversary of the production at the Victoria Palace Theatre, London.

This amazing show has been close to my heart, as I began the audition process from June 2005 and finally went onto rehearsals at the Sloane Square Barracks as Alison Summers, one of the ballet girls in the show and one of the first and one of only two Alison Summers who have participated in the finale tap. I was elated that I was about to join a family who I would see almost everyday, as we came together to rehearse and rehearse until everything was perfect.

 I had the most marvellous memories and the experiences and opportunities I had were endless. Performing on the stage three times a week, and then my decision to go to the Sylvia Young Theatre School, where I was awarded with a scholarship to attend. Furthermore, my team were chosen to appear on the very First Birthday, something which was an achievement for us all, and for me: I got to meet Elton John!

Found this off the internet, I'm the smallest one at the end on the left!

A couple of months later, my team were asked to do publicity shoots for the Anna Pavlova gold statue. The pictures were printed in all of the London Newspapers and appeared online.

All of this was such an incredible experience. However, there was more. I then went on to film the EPK for the show, which was shared on TV and on the web. 

I am so proud of the company and all that is has achieved. I am also so grateful to them for giving me such an amazing opportunity, as I was then asked to return to the show this time as Angela Robson. I truly cannot wait to see the show nurture in the next decade in all that it brings to the West End!

It was such a shame that I could not be back at the Victoria Palace Theatre last night but I am so excited to see the photos that are and will come from it!

Kirsty 

xx

Santorini

Following my last blog post, the ship sailed from Turkey and headed to the picturesque island of Santorini. We arrived at 7AM, and unfortunately, we awoke to cloud. Once on the boat to take us to the island (as this island has no port and so the ship is tendered), it started to rain.

Our ship from the boat, so majestic.

Brandon and I had decided to take a tour on this day with Thomson. So we were the first off the ship. Despite the overcast weather, we were determined not to let it ruin our day. Firstly, we visited the tranquil Oia village, where celebrities tend to hideaway in the summer months to catch the glorious sun rays and wandered around for two hours.

Oia is a village, built upon the cliff and, leading down to the sea, villa's are cut into the rock to make the beautiful getaway spots that most of us dream we were on the days we're stuck in lectures or in the office!

Oia Village.

After wandering around and seeing some lovely shops, I found a book shop, which to much disappointment was closed. 

Such a unique shop, surrounded by souvenir shops.

We then stopped in a coffee shop overlooking all the beautiful sun houses I dream of owning! Here, I wrote my postcard to my nan.

The swimming pools are to DIE for! I am so jealous of anyone who spends the night here.

We had to meet the tour guide back at the church in the middle of the square. It is chalk white and looks stunning when standing against the blue sky.

Wouldn't it be a dream to get married here?

We then made our way to Santos Winery. They gave the group a tour of the winery. Although, it was obvious that most of us had come for the wine and olives they provided us with. We were here for around an hour. I had glass after glass, tasting a white, red, and a dessert wine. I enjoyed the white the most! The sun came out for this part of the tour and it was lovely to sit on the verandah and watch the world go by and watch the boats come into the Cyclades.

Santos Winery.

A picture before leaving.

After this, we returned to Thira, and we were given a coupon to get the cable car back down to the port. Once we spent some time in Thira, the capital of Santorini, Brandon and I made our way back down back to the ship. We enjoyed the rest of the afternoon on the ship, tanning and listening to Top Men on deck. 

Truly, a marvellous and memorable day.

Have you ever been to Santorini?

Kirsty 

xxx

Just gone for a cruise!

So recently I haven't been too punctual in keeping my aim of posting at least every two weeks. Excuse my lack of posting but I actually managed to get an AMAZING deal with Thomson to go on a cruise last minute. It was the 'Ancient Affair' itinerary. It departed Cyprus and then made its way to Marmaris and Alanya in Turkey, then onto Santorini in Greece and then to Ashdod in Israel. The cruise was exceptional and I chose it because it stopped off at Santorini and more importantly, Ashdod. This was the gateway to Jerusalem, the Dead Sea and Bethlehem. All of which I visited. 

I'm going to break my blogging posts up as the post will be too long but I shall start with the first leg, consisting with the ports of Turkey.

After boarding the Thomson Spirit, Brandon and I made our way to our room and unpacked.

Brandon standing by our enormous ship.

The first port of call was Alanya and we didn't plan anything with the ship to do anything so we got off and had a walk around. 

It was really a picturesque place and a lovely day.

Once walking round the town, we made our way through the bazaars full of clothing, bags and shoes! It was really very very tempting. Brandon and I then walked towards the castle. We realised there were two ways of getting up to it, and naturally, Brandon chose the complex way up!

The stairs up to the castle.

The view from the top!

I would definitely recommend doing this in Alanya and to not do the tour with the ship. We had a great day, and the weather was perfect so it wasn't too hot to climb!

The viewing point at the top.

That evening we joined in with the ship's entertainment and played bingo. Despite not winning we still had a laugh. We set sail for the next port which was to be Marmaris.

We got to Marmaris around 8am, and we chose to get off the ship at around 11am as we weren't leaving until 7pm that evening. 

The ship stops on the opposite side to where the Old Town is. There is a lovely walk round from the terminal through the Marmaris Marina. I loved this as the walk was interesting looking at all the yachts that were tied up there! The walk was around 15-20 minutes.

Lots of yachts all from the USA to New Zealand! 

It was a beautiful day, but we decided that we would try to go to a Turkish Bath. We managed to find a ticket booth, and there we got an amazing bargain for £10, which included the transfer from the ticket booth to the hotel and back. I would definitely recommend this to anyone, it was a relaxing place, which included the sauna, hamman, and then an oil massage. 

With lots of time to spare after the Turkish Bath, we continued to walk along the promenade and again went through the parade of shops, there we both picked up a bargain or two. Haggling and paying in sterling, which the shopkeepers seemed to prefer!

A photo to finish the end of the day in Marmaris.

We decided not to go to Marmaris Castle because we had visited Alanya fort the day before, but I would recommend stopping by the Castle as at dinner, a few people mentioned the lovely views from the top.

I would definitely return to Turkey. In some ways, I preferred Alanya to Marmaris because I felt the latter had a more rivera and european style to it. Whereas, Alanya still felt very Turkish. However, I would also go back to Marmaris!

Have you visited either places? What did you do there?

Kirsty 

xxx