Tanzania: Week One

I already don't want to come home and not just because of the EU referendum results...

In the last week I have experienced a wedding, a christening, climbed gangilonga rock, been to church and attended a festival of Tanzanian heritage culture. In my foundation training, I have watched fellow Tanzanian volunteers take up role play dressed head-to-toe (let your whole body talk) in drag WITH PADDING and learned the African Macarena. I have been immersed in a culture that despite a 50:50 Islam:Christianity split, their peacefulness makes Britain look like a 1930s Soviet Union.

My first week experiences have exceeded my expectations for the full 13 week placement and I have picked up more Swahili than German -which I was taught at school for 3 years (sorry Mrs Stoddart).

On the other hand, my luxuries have slowly declined -I started with two long-haul Etihad flights, stayed at a kind of luxurious hotel (see my last post), spent a week in a high standard hostel, and moved to my new home with a concrete floor in my bedroom, waking up with back pain and a long drop toilet that doesn't flush in Iringa. But despite the latter, Tanzania is home. 

Tanzania: Day One

Tonight marksmy first night in Tanzania and my first taste of what life is really like for the locals (kind of). Our first night is spent in Dar es Salaam -about the size of Amsterdam- before tomorrow's 10 hour+ drive to rural Iringa to meet our Tanzanian counterparts. We are staying in a hotel - a nice surprise for us all after a hectic 15 hour flight with a 'HOT' transfer at Abu Dhabi. First thing we all wanted to do when we arrived was have a shower.

I spent my evening shower trying to clean myself from a drip in the pipe where the shower drain had split. Before too long I noticed a second shower head -meant for your butt- but it works! Then... OMG it's freezing. 

While I spent time flittering between a warm burst pipe (at this point there was water everywhere, except on me) and a shower head that only spurted out freezing water I laughed to myself... yep, literally. The local residents just outside can only dream about being in such a luxurious predicament. 

I continued getting myself ready for dinner in my room which was boiling hot -and those who know me know I am NEVER hot. I desperately wanted to open a window but I couldn't: I had no mosquito net, no idea where my deet was and due to the 15 hour flight was a little late taking my anti-malarial this afternoon. Instead, I had to find other -less effective- ways to try and cool myself down. 

Again, I reflected on the locals -they also have no mosquito net, no deet and would probably love to be stuck on a plane for 15 hours and have access to anti-malarials. I, on the other hand, will eventually find my deet and will sleep safe in the knowledge that I will be provided with a mosquito net tomorrow. 

I am lucky.

A Day in the Life of a Social Marketing Executive

This time last week I was racing through London in the evening rush hour, hoping to get to Sheffield in time to celebrate my cousin's 21st birthday. Anyone else would be rather exasperated at the busy city life and the thought of a 21st party to get to... not me. I had a smile on my face that generated concerned expressions on the faces of those passing by. Why? I had just spent the day interning with the Social Marketing Manager at CRUK.

My day started with a quick introduction to the Social and Digital Marketing teams before we dashed off to Holborn for a meeting with the advertising agency Mediacom. *Are they really going to let me sit in on a meeting with the 'big dogs'? Oh yes... yes they are. OMG!* The meeting focused on integrated communications and how a better structure and a change in their methods of communication can benefit both parties in the future. Having studied advertising at University and role-playing the client/agency parties it was so cool to see both the client and agency in action in the real world. The meeting lasted around 90 minutes and after that we hopped on a London bus *ahh!* back to the offices in Islington for lunch... making it out of Pret (-a-Manger) alive during rush hour was a task in itself.

The second half of the day was broken down into 30 minute sessions. We started with a brainstorm based on a challenge to be marketed to Race for Life participants through social media in the lead up to the Summer. As an intern, my input was valued as much as the rest of the team and we had so much fun coming up with quirky ideas for the challenge... keep your eyes peeled! During the second session I had an informal one-to-one meeting with a lovely Digital Marketing Executive who was also called Hannah *omg!* I got to learn more about what her role entails and took advantage of this time to ask any questions.  The rest of the 30 minute sessions were based around a trading brainstorm. As part of this task I had to research a range of clothing companies' social media pages, taking note on how they address their audience and what generated the most interactions/activity. Following this, we brainstormed how CRUK can use social media in a similar way to market their Race for Life clothing and the day ended with a second informal one-to-one with a Social Marketing Executive. This demonstrated the differences between the roles of Digital and Social Marketing and allowed me to make comparisons based on personal enjoyment.

I could babble on about how truly UH-MAZING my day was but I don't want to blurt out anything confidential so I'll stop now. Anyone looking to undertake an intern-ship with CRUK should 100% do so - applications for the April-June intake are opening soon! My experience so far has been absolutely fantastic and the hours are flexible which means you can even do it alongside your University studies.

Ciao for now xo

12 days of Christmas: Day 10, What I'm Most Excited for 2016

THE PAST IS IN THE PAAAAAAAST, LET IT GO, LET IT GO...

Yep that's right, no more reflecting on 2015. It's time to look forward to the future and I'm starting with a list of things that I'm most excited for in 2016.

1. New job
I start my new job as a Marketing Intern on the 11th January. I'm so excited to be able to put all the theory I have learnt at University into practice. The internship may only be 12 weeks long but it puts my foot in the marketing door for when I graduate next year. This is like REAL life.

2. Return to University
Once the internship is over I get a loooong summer before I return to University in September for my final year. We just signed for our house for the year and it's SO nice! I'll also be taking my new car with me which will make the chore of food shopping a lot more bearable. I said this before and I can't believe I'm about to say it AGAIN but I actually can't wait to go back. Despite the stress and losing my head a few times, I'm very very excited to go back - because what's University if you don't have a few (a lot) of Hades moments? For those of you who don't know Hades:

photo source: disney.wikia.com

3. Adam and I have booked our first trip abroad (AHHHHHH!)
ERMAAAHGHERRRD. We literally only did it last night but Adam and I have booked our first trip abroad! We'll be visiting Deutschland in March to celebrate our one year anniversary. We have a bunch of stuff to look forward to before, including going to London to watch the fireworks for New Year but going AWAY AWAY together is  definitely what I am looking forward to the most.

4. Baking baking baking.
I GOT AN ELECTRIC MIXER FOR CHRISTMAS!!! The problem is... we did so much baking for the big day we still haven't eaten it all! Because of this, I haven't used it yet but I can't wait to get started, eeeeek. As well as the addition of the electric mixer, I have also recently developed an intolerance for dairy products (goodbye chocolate) which means my baking will have to adapt! It's kind of frustrating but it's made me SUPER excited to get experimental with some healthy bakes for 2016. I can't wait to share my recipes!

5. The Unknown.
Of course there will be so much more going on than the above but these are the main events so far. As the year goes on and new plans are made I'll be just as excited for those plans too! Life is what you make it.

I hope the more recent posts have let you know a little more about me. What are you most excited for in 2016? Tomorrow's post contains my New Years Resolutions, I wonder if I'll stick to them...

Ciao for now xo

12 days of Christmas: Day 9, What I'm Thankful for 2015

In an uneven world where it's so easy to be pessimistic about the big things, it's important to focus positive energy on optimism about the little things and the hope of a harmonious future. In today's blog, I am keeping in with the theme of reflecting on the year that is almost over (and because I love lists) here is a list of the things I am thankful for in 2015 and the lessons I have learnt along the way. 

1. Health.
The simplest yet most complex of them all. It's so easy to take good health for granted, but if you take a moment to make a list of all the things that could possibly be unhealthy about you, you'll see just how lucky you are. 

2. Relationships. 
2015 presented me with both my boyfriend, Adam and a new best friend, Bianca. I can't put into words how thankful I am to have them or how much I love them both with my full heart and more - I am both of their biggest fans. We've created amazing memories together in 2015 that will stay with me for a life time. As I've entered my twenties, I've learnt to cherish such bonds with gratitude and to be thankful for the people who are thankful for you. 

3. New opportunities. 
In 2015 I have been a 1st class student, a Manager and I am now a Marketing Intern for a charity close to the nation's heart. It's been one of the more eventful of my 21 years but I've learnt to see it as a roller-coaster - there have been big drops (like REALLY big drops) but there have also been uphill shoots. In 2015, I've learnt that it's the way you perceive these positives and negatives and how you use them to your advantage that shapes the person you are. Life isn't full of mistakes, it's full of lessons.

4. Hobbies.
You're probably thinking 'WHAAAAT?' right now. Remember the guy who cycled to the Bataclan to perform 'Imagine' for those who were in mourning following the Paris attacks? One of his hobbies was music, obvi. In the same way he used his hobby to overcome the negativity, you can do the same. Had a bad day? Dance, sing, bake, make... Hobbies provide you with something to focus your negative energy on and provide a distraction from what can be a vile world. This year I have picked up new hobbies and developed the old. Not because things as awful as the Paris attacks happen every day, but to give myself something to focus on positively. 

photo source: instagram.com 

account holder: @healthyisthenewskinny

What are you thankful for this year? What have you learnt?

Ciao for now xo

12 days of Christmas: Day 7, Best Blog Posts of 2015

2015 isn't quite over yet but as the holiday season continues, posts appear to be slowing down in the blogging community, so I'm posting this earlier than expected! Here's a round up of my favourite blog posts from this year. Extremely varied in theme, the posts demonstrate my eclectic personality so this should hopefully enable you to get to know me better. I think I'm going off on a tangent now, distracted by 'Now that's What I Call Disney' (a Christmas gift) playing in the background so I'll get started.

*Phillip Schofield impression* In no particular order:

1. Miss Rosie Bea - Make-up collection and Storage.
Find Rosie's blog-post here: http://msrosiebea.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/my-makeup-collection-and-storage.html
Or subscribe to her YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/MsRosieBea/featured

I have a LOT of make-up. I'm no make-up artist, I'm just a hoarder. Although this was posted towards the end of 2014, Rosie's post affected my New Year's Resolutions for 2015 in that her extreme OCD make-up storage inspired me to be more organised myself. Starting with my make-up, I threw away those old foundations that had been opened for years - and would probably turn my skin green if I used them again. I got my own make-up storage units that were a little more 'me' and I haven't lost a lipstick since!

2. Psyco Puff - Just do It.
Find Psyco Puff's blog-post here: https://psycopuff.wordpress.com/

The author of Psyco Puff is one of my oldest and bestest friends, Levi. After hearing Levi talk about how he dreams of a successful blog and YouTube channel for as long as I can remember, it was quite emotional to see him 'put pen to paper' and JUST DO IT. The Psyco Puff blog has unfortunately been a little dormant since the first post back in August but I know Levi has a bunch of fabulous ideas and I can't wait to watch this blog expand in 2016.

3. Rum & Raisin - University Blues.
Find Rum & Raisin's blog post here:  http://rumandraisinpages.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/university-blues.html

This woman inspires me more than she will ever know. I could put every single one of her blog-posts on here, they are ALL my favourite... damn I could write a WHOLE POST about this gal. In this particular post, the author, Sian Hodkin, gives her advice for University. Ranging from 'Speak Out' to 'Don't Sweat' she embodies my every thought about University life but makes me view this period in a much more positive manner. I never thought I would say this but she made me: I'm actually EXCITED to return to University in September when my sandwich year finally comes to an end. Sian, you are UH-MAZING.

4. The Little Plum - Stop Comparing Yourself.
Find The Little Plum's blog-post here: http://www.thelittleplum.co.uk/2015/08/sunday-talks-stop-comparing-yourself.html

It was nice to see something different to The Little Plum's usual OOTD. Part of her 'Sunday Talks' series, Chloe spoke eloquently about something I think we can all relate to - comparing yourself to others. Before you stop comparing yourself to others for academic performance, you find yourself comparing your post-christmas dinner food baby to their hot bikini pics on Instagram. This can sometimes turn quite bitter and encourage self-hatred. In this post, The Little Plum begins to celebrate our differences and encourages you to do the same, spreading positivity across the blogging community.

5. Samantha Leal for Marie Claire - 5 Career Myths you Need to Stop Believing. 
Find Samantha's post here: http://www.marieclaire.com/career-advice/news/a15921/career-myths/

In this column, Samantha discourages any negative thoughts regarding chosen career paths with these 5 myths. A believer of every single one of these 5 myths, I felt a HUGE weight lifted off my shoulders at the end of the post. The most significant one for me this year: '3. Dressing for the job means blazers and trousers and neutrals.' WRONG. On search for a placement for my sandwich year, I attended several interviews early this year with huge corporate companies. I woke up hours earlier than I should have done to make sure every single hair was neatly in place and that my outfit was on point. I even took a change of shoes, true Londoner style. When I got to the interviews, everyone in the office was wearing jeans! I was SO overdressed it was embarrassing. Like Samantha mentions, the CV was created in 1482 and oh how times have changed!

6. British Vogue - How to be a Healthonist.
Find British Vogue's post here: http://www.vogue.co.uk/beauty/2015/12/14/how-to-be-a-healthonist-staying-healthy-during-party-season

I know what you're thinking... WHAT THE F@** is a healthonist??? Yep, me too. But Vogue focuses on remaining healthy during the holiday season - something we can all struggle with. Determined to stick to my New Years Resolution of becoming more healthy in 2016 (I WILL do it this year) British Vogue will motivate me when it gets tough at parties. I'd prefer a cold-pressed cocktail to red wine anyway... 

Hope you're enjoying the holiday season! What are your favourite blog posts of 2015?

Ciao for now xo

photo source: bitrebels.com

12 days of Christmas: Day 6, Charity of the Year

Hello! Hope you all had a fabulous day yesterday. Now that Christmas is over, the focus is all on the New Year celebrations: reflecting on the year that is almost over and looking forward for what's to come. While I reflect on my 2015 and think of my New Years resolutions, I'd like to tell you about my 'Charity of the Year.

While I was on my family holiday in Lanzarote this year, a cat followed us back to the villa almost every night. During the first few days, there were several debates over whether she (we assumed she was a girl) was a stray: she was extremely affectionate and even followed us inside and sat on our laps! One morning, as my dad was giving her a cuddle on the garden, a van pulled up. A man jumped out and passed my dad a pouch of wet cat food over the garden wall. That was all. 

After that night, we began to see small shelters - the perfect size for a cat - dotted around the island. The man-made shelters contained cushions and blankets for comfort and a bowl of dry cat food. Next to every one of these small homes, written on a rock was 'Freddy's Cat House'. To begin with we thought Freddy was one hell of a lucky cat! After some research, we discovered there was a stray cat crisis on the island and a gentleman named Freddy had built these homes himself to help the animals. Not only did he build the shelters, he took the sick cats home and nursed them back to health. He also took the young ones to be neutered to improve the stray cat crisis and to avoid young pregnancy. We assume that the gentleman that gave us the pouch of wet food over the wall was helping Freddy. 

Without a car, or a driver's license, Freddy walks all over the island to build these homes and feed the stray cats across a variety of resorts. On his website, Freddy asks for help as he could not carry large amounts of cat food round the island. Because the crisis is so big, he can not recover the issue alone. He asks that people fill the shelters he built with dry cat food - and explained that wet cat food can go off quickly if it is not eaten and make the cats sick. There is the option for holiday makers to foster a cat during your stay and even the possibility to give one of the cats a new home and Freddy's Cat House will pay for the flight!

Towards the end of the holiday, almost every night we saw an elderly gentleman 'taking his cats for a walk'. The cats had no leash but stayed almost glued to the man's feet and every so often he would stop, pull out a handful of cat treats and fuss them. We recognised the him - It was Freddy!

photo source: freddyscathouse.weebly.com

Read more about Freddy's Cat House here: http://freddyscathouse.weebly.com/
Like his page on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/freddyelgatolanzarote/videos?fref=photo

12 days of Christmas: Day 2, The Christmas Bake

Love Christmas but not a fan of the Christmas pud? No problem. These no-bake Oreo cake pops are just the thing you need to tingle those taste-buds! Because Christmas is a time where we all have the lowest bank balance, with just two ingredients, these scrummy cake pops won't break the bank either. AND because Christmas is also a busy time for all of us, these cake pops are one of my quickest 'bakes' yet - ruling out the chill time, they take less than 30 minutes.

ALTERNATIVES:
If you don't have the cake pop moulds, sticks, or holders, don't worry, you can leave them as they are for the perfect Christmas party finger food. There are other alternatives for this recipe too - I usually make them with cream cheese but as these were for dessert for my boyfriend and I - and as Adam doesn't like cheese (who doesn't like cheese?) - I substituted the cream cheese with double cream. Another alternative is that I separated the Oreo biscuit from the cream in an attempt to make it a little less messy - it's not totally necessary if you don't have the time. Finally - you can put the Oreos in a food processor or blender - but for me 'it was my moms in the eighties' and the noise it makes terrifies me.

Here are the photos from this weeks bake:

Separate the cookies from the cream (optional)

Bash the cookies into crumbs

Add the crumbs to the Oreo cream before adding the double cream or cream cheese

 Mix into a paste

WARNING: It gets MESSY

Tah-dah!

RECIPE:
Ingredients:
24 Oreos 
100ml of double cream (or about half a pack of cream cheese)

Icing sugar
Water

Method:
1. Separate the Oreo biscuit from the cream. Place the biscuit in a strong clear bag - like a freezer bag - and seal (or in the blender). Put the cream into a mixing bowl for later.
2. Using something solid - I used a rolling pin - bash the biscuits up into fine crumbs (or blend into fine crumbs).
3. Pour the crumbs into the mixing bowl with the Oreo cream and add the double cream or cream cheese.
4. Roll the mixture into small balls and place in the fridge to chill - if your balls are too big they will fall off the cake pop!. They should chill for a minimum of two hours but probably best to do this overnight.
5. Once they have cooled, use the icing to replicate a Christmas pudding - for the holly leaves I cheated and used Regal Icing - you can make your own or similar to my blood-filled Halloween cakes - use an inedible decoration.

12 days of Christmas: Day 1, The Pintertest

WHY DID I THINK THIS WAS A GOOD IDEA? I am currently covered in hot wax... and so is my phone... and my jeans... and my carpet (sorry mum!) Why? Because I decided to 'customise' a candle - something that I'd seen on Pinterest.

After deciding to blog '12 days of Christmas' and seeing a number of DIY Christmas Crafts pinned all over the internet, I thought I would try one for myself and share my (non-existent) success. The first craft I clicked on - a snowman 'countdown to Christmas' decoration was apparently NOT A CRAFT but thrown in the crafts section to advertise someone's Etsy page (rolling eyes emoji). Moving on, the second craft I thought I'd try my hand at was a rustic-looking hanging Christmas-tree decoration and it was beauuuutiful. "How pretty is this Christmas tree?" It said in the description. "Very" I said to my iPad as I began to sing "oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree..." receiving bemused looks from my dog. "Get the instructions here" *clicks* WHAT? The instructions to make this lovely lovely decoration were GERMAN. Although I studied a little German at school, my proficiency is somewhat elementary - definitely not good enough to follow a set of instructions. Disappointed and ready to give up, I trudged on with the thought "third time lucky" running circles round my head...

Indeed, the third click was a lucky one and I found a set of instructions to create a 'personalised' candle - something I had a lot of! The post originated from hometalk.com and my final craft was promised to look something like this:

I think you already know it didn't quite turn out as planned...

The instructions seemed pretty easy:

You first have to print your pattern onto some tissue paper (I chose a Christmas tree - in loving memory of click number two). To do this you need to Sellotape the tissue paper to a sheet of regular paper to carry it through the printer... so far so good!

Once it has printed you cut out your pattern and position it onto the candle. Then over the top of the tissue paper, wrap some greaseproof paper round the candle before heating. Still so far so good!

I chose to heat mine with a hair-dryer and put it on the highest heat... It burnt my fingers, ouch ouch ouch! So I put it on my knee - protected by a pair of jeans - and held the paper in place between my legs. Before long the wax started to melt... and it got EVERYWHERE. Persevering, despite the state of my room, I continued to burn myself (and the image onto the candle). 

The final outcome looked like this: 

basically it looked like a picture that a child has Pritt-Stick-ed onto the candle...

If I wasn't so frustrated I would have maybe attempted to heat it further - I also think it would look better on a candle that is pure white but I'm going to rule today's Pintertest as a FAIL.

Think you could do better? Try it for yourself:

http://www.hometalk.com/5992638/how-to-add-images-to-candles?utm_source=editor&utm_source=editor&utm_medium=pinterest&utm_medium=pinterest&utm_campaign=featured&utm_campaign=featured&crlt.pid=camp.wxR0oW6UvNOp

Hoping tomorrow's blog is one of success - a Christmas bake!

Ciao for now xo

Halloween Bake on a Budget: Blood-filled Cupcakes

Having a Halloween party tonight? Don't worry, there's still a little time for a last minute bake! Taking inspiration from Tanya Burr's chocolate cupcakes (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49WvunWX7mc) I decided to try my very own blood-filled bake and have written it down which will hopefully make it easy for you to follow. Having done pretty bank-breaking-bakes previously, I tried to make this as cheap as possible and have also added a few 'cheats' for a quicker process and less washing up...smiles all round! Disclaimer: The spider is not edible. 

Here are the photos from this weeks bake:

 The finished product! The spiders are from Hobby Craft and are £1 for 50.

 CHEAT! for less washing up, use an apple corer for your 'blood'.

 Oops... Maybe there was more washing up than I first thought!

Ingredients:
Cakes:
225 g butter (softened)
225 g brown caster sugar
225 g plain flour
4 eggs
2 caps vanilla extract
2 tbsp milk

Filling:
12 tsp Raspberry Jam

Icing:
200 g butter (softened)
400 g icing sugar
2 caps marshmallow flavouring
1 pea sized scoop of orange food colouring

Method: 
Cakes:

1. Preheat the oven to 190 C (170 C fan oven). Place cupcake cases into tin.
2. Stir together the butter and sugar to create a soft mixture. Add the flour and the eggs.
3. Mix in the vanilla extract and milk and stir out any lumps leftover.
4. Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes.
5. Leave to cool for about an hour.
6. (This is the cheaty bit) Following the pictures above, take an apple corer and 'de-core' your cake - be careful not to hit the bottom or the blood will fall out the other end! Spoon some blood (raspberry jam) into the hole and place the top back on to hide the spook-tacular surprise! Alternatively, if you don't have an apple corer, place the jam in a piping bag and pipe the jam inside the cakes.

Icing: 
1. Place the butter in a bowl and stir until smooth. 
2. Sift the icing sugar into the bowl and mix together. If you're adapting the recipe in any way, make sure you always have twice as much icing sugar than butter - this will keep the shape when it comes to piping!
3. Add the food colouring and stir until evenly covered and a smooth texture.
3. Pipe on your icing in a circular motion and top with spooky decoration!

Trying this recipe yourself? Don't forget to tag me in your photos! Happy Halloween.