A European adventure

Well, we've been on a bit of an adventure! And not just any adventure, but an adventure that looks set to change the course of our lives for at least the next few months.

Mr. O and I are going Dutch! Literally going Dutch, starting to work for a company based in the Netherlands. We're not moving there, but from September we'll be spending a few weeks at a time out in the city of Utrecht.

We are so excited! We've been fancying doing something different for quite a long time and this is just the perfect opportunity for us - a non-scary introduction to moving away from everything we know without actually having to transport our whole lives abroad. That's the beauty of it, we won't actually be moving. We get to keep our lovely flat and spend weeks at a time at home, with regular sojourns across to the continent.

So, in the midst of all this excitement, it seemed only right that we went and visited our new city! You know what? I think Mr. O and I are going to be very happy here.

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We started our first afternoon in Utrecht with a lunch stop at the popular bakery, De Bakkerswinkel. This was such a pretty spot for lunch, with cute little tables lining the outside of the shop and overlooking a small canal. We studied the menu for quite some time, before both deciding on the roast beef sandwich. Oh my word, this sandwich was a thing of beauty and I now appreciate quite how seriously the Dutch take their 'broodjes' (seriously, it's pretty difficult to find a non-sandwichy lunch). I have a feeling De Bakkerswinkel will become a favourite of ours.

Tummies satisfied, we set about tackling the Domtoren, the tallest church tower in the Netherlands, right in the heart of Utrecht. The tower is pretty beautiful from outside, but we loved our guided tour up to the top - we saw the most gorgeous stained glass windows, mahoosive clanging bells and had an incredible view out across the city. It was a great way to have a nosey of our new neighbourhood!

I'm pretty certain that climbing up and down the Domtoren's 465 steps (phew!) meant I burnt up more than enough calories to fully enjoy the large slice of carrot cake that we treated ourselves to at Barbeton later that afternoon. We loved the modern look of this cafe, particularly the cool map of Utrecht on the wall. And Mr. O practically had to drag me away from the most stunning vase of flowers!

So many lovely treats! So many more to look forward to!

De Bakkerswinkel, Wittevrouwenstraat 2, 3512 CT Utrecht, The Netherlands

Domtoren, Domplein, 3521 JC Utrecht, The Netherlands

Barbeton, Korte Jansstraat 13-15, 3512 GM Utrecht, The Netherlands

Adventures on the Cornish seas

Once in awhile, it's does a person good to hit the road and get out of the big smoke (Swansea - ha!). Even better when this escape to the country includes spending time with wonderful family and adventures on the high seas. And ice cream!

On a beautiful sunny morning, we headed down to the harbour, packed up the boats with supplies and set out onto the creek. We pootled about (a technical term and one the sailors in my family would probably kill me for...) and then headed to one of our favourite family spots, the Pandora Inn.

Tucked away and surrounded by the most beautiful views, the Pandora is a real treasure. In the winter, imagine roaring fires and comforting food - in the summer, drinks in the sunshine and small boats bobbing alongside the inn's very own pontoon. We love it.

After enjoying our time on land, we waved goodbye to the boats and set off back home on foot. Having built up quite an appetite stomping through the countryside, there really was only one way to reward ourselves on our arrival - proper Cornish pasties! There was even a chance to look at a slightly 'bigger' seafaring vessel!

The only upside to being so far away from our lovely family is that we get to spend time together in this beautiful part of the world. Yay for long weekends, summer sun and adventures in Cornwall!

The Pandora Inn, Restronguet Creek, Mylor Bridge, Falmouth, Cornwall TR11 5ST

Exploring London: Brunch at Caravan and a stroll along Regent's Canal

Seeing as I live in deepest, darkest Wales and getting anywhere exotic is both time consuming and expensive, I decided to make the most of my trip east and spend an extra day in London on my way home.

One of my dearest friends had a free weekend and was able to meet me for brunch and spend the day exploring with me. Being based at opposite sides of the country, we don't get to see each other anywhere near enough, so it really meant a lot to be able to have a whole day together.

We met at King's Cross and headed straight over to the Granary Building, in the hope that we would bag a table at Caravan for brunch. We were in luck! Despite it being a Saturday morning, we were seated almost immediately and settled in for a long overdue catch up.

Despite not living in London, I have a very long list of places in the city that I'd like to eat and Caravan has been near the top of that list since it opened last year. Hey, how can a girl resist a place with a dedicated brunch menu!? A brunch menu that's served nearly all day on the weekend?? (Side note: I have never understood why so many places finish their breakfast and brunch menus at mid-morning - surely on the weekend no one wants to rush out and have breakfast at the crack of dawn? It's a meal to be savoured after a lie in and having spent a little bit too long in your pyjamas...!).

It was a sort of foregone conclusion that I'd choose the coconut bread with lemon curd cream cheese and strawberries, while my friend went for a slice of blackberry tart. I also had a freshly squeezed juice, which arrived quickly and really hit the summery spot. My coconut bread was tasty, though if I was to be critical, I'd say I had rather too much of the lemon curd cream cheese, which was delicious, but made the toasted bread quite wet. The texture wasn't my favourite and I think using the bread to make a coconut french toast (with the same cream cheese on the side) would have been a better choice. It was still a lovely fresh breakfast though. And the milk came in a mini milk bottle! Swoon!

My favourite thing about Caravan though was the atmosphere. It was so lovely to be in such a vast space, but to feel cosy and part of a relaxed, happy group of people at the same time. We weren't rushed at all, despite it getting close to lunchtime by the time we were finishing and it felt as though we could have stayed perched on our table all afternoon.

But there were other things to see! After admiring the incredible artwork that adorns the Granary Building and its neighbours (that silver stripe is incredible!), we set off on a walk along Regent's Canal. I had absolutely no idea that this canal existed, despite having seen it many times whilst at Camden Lock. We followed the path all the way to Camden, heading into the market for a quick explore and a hot chocolate, before getting back on the path and walking all the way to Paddington, where I would be catching my train back home from. We passed London Zoo! We passed house boat communities and beautiful houses in St. John's Wood! I even got to my favourite stretch of London, Westbourne Grove (though sadly too late in the day to hotfoot it to the Hummingbird Bakery for cupcakes). I saw parts of London that I'd never seen before and it was thrilling to see the city from such a different perspective. If you're looking for a different way to spend your time in the city, this was an easy walk, with plenty of places to stop for refreshments along the way!

Caravan, Granary Building, 1 Granary Square (off Goods Way), London N1C 4AA