Returning to Paris

To say that my 22nd birthday in Paris will be memorable is probably putting in mildly. I'm not usually one to complain about heat and sun (because believe me, I love it!) but 40 degree heat in the middle of a busy city is pretty hard going. That, combined with a very ill mum and horrendous delays on the Eurostar to get back to England certainly made for an eventful trip!

Nevertheless, we did enjoy ourselves. I managed to go back to many of my favourite places and I enjoyed just being able to wander around Le Marais area again. 

Photo taken on my run as the sun was coming up. One of my most memorable runs!

It got up to 38 degrees on my birthday but I went out for a run at 6.30am before it got too hot. I was absolutely determined to go because I knew that running round Paris, past the Louvre, Hotel de Ville and Notre Dame on my birthday was kind of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity I couldn't miss! Then we went to Le Pain Quotidien (I know, I know it's a chain but I just adore this place) and had their delicious Crunola with a bread basket. I'm hoping to recreate the base of the Crunola which was banana, coconut and cashew nut butter and totally creamy and scrummy - I'll keep you posted if I'm successful!

We spent the morning shopping for a little present I could take home for myself and actually didn't find anything! But that wasn't a great loss as I got to spend my birthday creating the most incredibly memories in Paris. In the afternoon, the heat began to get to mum and we needed to get out of the sun for a while. Mum took me to the patisserie in BHV in Le Marais where, after cheekily telling them it was my birthday, we chose two patisseries (mine was the most incredible vanilla layered mousse) and the waitress brought them over with a candle and chocolate birthday plaque - in French! It was such a thoughtful thing to do and really made my day special. 

We spent the evening in my favourite bar that I fell in love with on my year abroad - La Favorite. My favourite cocktails there used to be the French Kiss but since they had changed the menu I tried the Peach Margarita and my failsafe, Cosmo (they do a mean Cosmo!). I would definitely recommend the Margarita though! Strong, but really good. I'd recommend going in Happy Hour between 7pm and 9pm to benefit from half prices (otherwise it's a fairly pricey place). It was great to have the hotel so conveniently located across the road from my favourite haunt, find it here because I'd definitely recommend it!

The Peach Margarita at La Favorite

Unfortunately, getting home put a slight dampener on our time in Paris. Mum felt ill on the Wednesday we were meant to go back, and with our train in the evening, we felt it was better to get to Gare du Nord early so at least we were there and wouldn't have to worry about her being able to get there if she worsened. However, the station was absolutely sweltering and we were waiting for an hour and a half before we were supposedly meant to board. But the Eurostar was experiencing delays on a huge scale that day so by the time we actually go on the train, we were already delayed by at least an hour, and then the train ended up stopping about 20 minutes after setting off and didn't go again for almost 2 hours. As you can imagine, with the heat, a lack of water and delays, we were feeling a bit fed up. But it really could have been worse. Yes, we got stuck in London but dad had booked a lovely hotel for us which was amazing when we finally got in and slept for 4 hours before getting the train home. Like I said - certainly a memorable trip!

Has anyone else been affected by the Eurostar/Eurotunnel problems recently? How have you coped in the heat this week? Did you love it or hate it? Let me know!

It's my birthday!

Twenty-twoooo

Okay so technically it isn't my birthday today, but it will be on Tuesday and since I'm leaving to go to Paris (eeeekk!!!) tomorrow, I thought I'd pre-empt the birthday post this year.

At the risk of sounding like a parrot, how quickly does time pass the older you get? It seems like just a few weeks ago that I was writing 'This is becoming a yearly tradition' in the post title box. Although I haven't been in an entirely different country this year, I think it's safe to say I've faced similarly difficult challenges and been on an equally emotional rollercoaster.

I've finished university! Boom, four years of my life gone. Poof. Over so quickly. The struggle of final year is real guys, both emotionally and work-wise. I've had to adjust to going back and studying again (intensely and under a huge amount of pressure), only to leave for the last time and get acquainted with the real adult world. That's been scary enough, but what's maybe more nerve-wracking is the thought of starting a new job. Nerve-wracking and so exciting at the same time because I do feel ready to move on now. Uni was great and was absolutely the best thing for me, but it's done it's job and now I can't wait to start creating a real life for myself, a real grown-up life.

This year has been both an end and a beginning, has brought massive highs as well as some lows but I'm going to see the next year of my life as a stepping stone in paving the way for my future. It's daunting, but I'm determined to make the most of every minute and begin making the life I want to live.

The positivity is currently overflowing (possibly something to do with the fact I'm going to Paris in less than 24 hours!!) but I'm aiming to make it stay! I'm feeling 22 ♪♪

10 Best Bits of 2014

Bonjour! Hello! It's me- I'm back! I understand if you no longer know who I am, it's been a long time. I have no excuses, other than life happened as it so often does. But while I sat here chipping away at another essay (yes, being back at university has hit harrrrd), I thought to myself: I really should do a blog post and not leave it to just be another new year's resolution (that I may or may not keep) because I miss it too much for that. There is understandably a recurring theme in the blogosphere at the moment, the '10 [insert appropriate somethings here] of 2014'. I have decided to jump on the bandwagon and instead of doing a generic catch-up post, thought I'd combine it with a few memories of an incredible year.

1. New Year in Paris

Kicking off 2014 in style with my bestest friend in the world, Sophie, in the best city in the world (I can't vouch for that admittedly, but Paris will always hold a special place in my heart). Even if it was a bit of a flop celebration-wise, we had a great time and it set the bar for the rest of the year. 

2. Mum and I in Paris

The most important lady in my life came to stay with me in Paris in March and I got to show her my new life. We had so much fun together and are even planning round two. Bring it on.

3. June in Paris

I spent my last weeks in Paris having an absolute ball, and my friend came to stay for my last weekend there. Sitting in my favourite cocktail bar, aptly named 'La Favorite', I felt that I was where I belonged and in that moment could see myself living permanently in Paris. Reality burst my bubble of course, but who knows what the future holds?

4. Summer in France

An amazing opportunity with a lovely family and a little girl who I really do miss. I got to see a part of France I never would have seen, and of course got to lounge in the sun too.

5. Lessons on Toffee

Photo of Your Horse Magazine 2014

Over summer I found a new instructor and have never looked back. In just a few lessons, she has made such a huge difference to my attitude and understanding of riding that I know I will make such great progress with her. To top off a great few jumping lessons, Toffee and I also made a name for ourselves in the monthly horse magazine Your Horse. I got to tell my story in their special confidence-centred issue and help other riders in similar situations. I even got a double page spread!

6. My 21st Birthday weekend

Turning 21 in styyyyle. Yes, I now feel old at uni, and yes, I probably need to start making life plans. But for now, I am enjoying my half-birthday as a 21-year-old who is generally having such a great time.

7. Venice

Even if I could have dreamt of the most perfect getaway for my 21st birthday, it wouldn't have topped the trip mum and I took to Venice in September. It was so so memorable and was the most amazing present my family could have given me.

8. Running 5k

Bearing in mind I only took up running properly last October as a huffing and puffing, could barely run 100 metres novice who really likes food, this has to be a huge landmark in my achievements this year. I ran my first 5k with the running club at uni in November in just over 25 minutes! I was aiming for around 30-35 minutes, so you can probably imagine how elated I was when I saw my result. I think I can class myself as a proper runner now!

9. Back with the Equestrian Club

Being back as Vice President of the Equestrian Club is a dreeeaaam. It's nice to still be a member of the committee without the pressure of Presidency and we have some great new members this year. The rosettes above were two of three I got on our Christmas fun day and our socials so far have been huge successes- it's great to be back with like minded horsey people and to see the club growing so much!

10. Christmas with my grandparents

For the first time since I can remember, my Nana and Grandad spent Christmas with us! My Grandad is 90 years old in May and my Nana is 82 and we thought it was high time we all spent the holiday season together. They live up north so transport has always been the problem but mum and I shared the drive so they could spend five days over Christmas with us, and it really was so special to have them there.

Thank you to everyone who has made this year so incredible... 

Here's to 2015!! Happy New Year!

Birthday celebrations!

I've had a crazy past couple of weeks, but it's definitely not something to complain about! It's been a whirlwind of birthday fun and holidays/work with a lot of riding thrown in too!

My celebrations started on Sunday, the day before my birthday and my family took me to a very nice restaurant for lunch where I had a quinoa, roasted aubergine salad followed by a chocolate tart for dessert. The food was delicious and, although it was obvious to us that we were out celebrating, the staff obviously twigged too so when I got my dessert, I got a super cute surprise birthday message!

With my brother having our meal out

I spent my actual birthday out on a birthday ride and then had a lovely afternoon tea in the gorgeous sunshine. I drank lots of wine/champagne, ate (too much) good food, galloped across fields and opened some fantastic presents. One of which was this beautiful thing on which I am currently typing- a Macbook Air. It happened. I took the plunge (after so much deliberation that mum ended up just dragging me into the Apple Store) and I have to say I do not have a single regret. I've officially become an Apple whore, but it's awesome. I also got some lovely pieces of jewellery, and the most exciting thing- VENICE! I'm counting down the days until my biggest 21st birthday present in the form of a 4 day break with mum to this beautiful city.

Birthday lunch, 'scuse the ambulance- nobody was harmed!

I also celebrated with my gorgeous girls (minus one- we missed you!) over the weekend and we had the most wonderful weekend country retreat. We started off with afternoon tea and a BBQ on the Friday, and headed into Cambridge on the Saturday to go punting. We booked a private tour with Let's Go Punting (who were fantastic- full of banter and interesting facts and made for a great trip, find their website here). We took along a bottle of champagne and made some chocolate-covered strawberries in the morning to have a classy little picnic on board. This was followed by some shopping, and lunch at Harriet's tea rooms, which as always, lived up to expectations. Then we returned to mine to have a cocktail night with more champagne. It all made for a fabulous weekend. I had such a wonderful time.

Punting with champagne!

Giving it a shake!

As for the birthday cake, I decided to have cupcakes made in a cute vintage style which were so so yummy and absolutely perfect! There rates were very reasonable considering the quality of the cakes and they were perfectly decorated so if you're thinking of having some cakes made, seek her out! They were made by a lady in the Cambridgeshire area, and you can find her website here: http://www.thesweetkitchen.co.uk/

My lovely cupcakes, plus an extra 12 mini cupcakes too!

A day after my friends left, I was getting ready to jet off again to the South of France for my job as an Au Pair for two weeks! So I really haven't had that much room to breath but it's been a fab few weeks and now I have to whole of summer to make more memories before Venice, and then going back to university at the end of September!

This is becoming a yearly tradition...

It's the 29th June again which means tomorrow is my birthday. Not just any birthday- the big 21. 

I read over my blog post from this time last year, covering my achievements of that year. It's fair to say that I've come so far since then. I don't think I could have predicted how my year in Paris was going to turn out but when people told me it would be the best year of my life so far, I didn't believe them for a long time. Now I realise how true that is. Here's what I did this year: I went completely and utterly alone to live and work in Paris; I built a life for myself out there from nothing. 

I look over my diary entries from those first couple of days which were filled with nerves, fear and uncertainty and I am so proud of myself because I've just come such a long, long way. I'm still me, I'm still Rachel but I'm a better version of myself, and that version thrived in Paris. I am already starting to find that I'm slipping all too easily back into my old, easy life. Paris was so far out of my comfort zone when I moved there and I dreaded everything that I had to do because of that. But by the end of the year, being out of my comfort zone was exciting. That's a feeling I don't want to lose, but being back home makes it easy to slip back into a comfortable lifestyle again. I love home but I need to keep challenging myself, and I do believe that the older I become, and over the next years, I will welcome those challenges and know with confidence that I can face them.

Having left Paris now, I know it will always hold a place in my heart, and will always be a part of my life. Never did I think I would be able to love a city so much since I am a real country girl. But I'm going to have to find the perfect balance of both because I can already see myself booking a weekend away back to Paris before the year is up.

Being abroad gave me a confidence which I never thought I'd find and has made me feel like a young woman ready to take on the world. That is something I'll never lose. So when I look back at my life in 10, 20 or even 50 years time, I'll remember that when I was 20, I had the most incredible year living in Paris which helped me develop into the person I want to be.

I took advantage of every opportunity thrown my way this year and have loved every minute of it. I've said yes when all I wanted to do was say no, and I've jumped when I've wanted to stop. That's a fantastic feeling and that's how I know I've made the most of this year.

I am so lucky to have had such an incredible year, and even luckier to have my lovely home and family waiting for me when I returned. So here's to another wonderful year... I'm going to make sure it's a good'un.

Light Chocolate Cake

Thought I’d do the second cake as a separate post to enable easier searches. Making my brother’s cake may have contributed to the highest stress levels I have ever experienced when baking. I was so nervous about the outcome. He’s fussy; as in likes-chocolate-cake-but-only-one-type-of-chocolate-cake fussy. This one type of chocolate cake seemed utterly impossible to recreate. It’s from our local bakery but is the richest, most sickly chocolate fudge cake ever and after numerous searches on-line for something similar, I had to compile my own ideas into a new recipe. But do you know what his verdict was? HE PREFERRED IT! I don’t think I’ve ever heard words so golden! 

The sponge itself was perfectly chocolately, and definitely not in a sickly way which was perfect for everyone else who wanted a slice and didn't want to feel queasy. But no matter how hard I tried, I could not find the kind of fudgey, gooey icing I was searching for without the use of cream (which he was quite adament he didn't want- difficult customer). This turned out to be a good thing because it stopped the cake from being too sickly. So, if you're looking for cake that's moist and chocolately, but still light enough to eat a whole slice, here's the recipe: 
(find the original here, thanks Mary Berry! Here video tutorial is especially useful)

Ingredients-

2 oz (50g) cocoa
6 tablespoons boiling water
3 eggs
2 tablespoons milk
175g self raising flour
1 rounded teaspoon baking powder
100g baking spread, I used Stork
250g caster sugar
50g dark chocolate, melted
30g milk chocolate, melted

(For the icing and filling)
Batch of buttercream (enough to fill, and cover an 8" cake)
1 tbsp cocoa powder
30g milk chocolate, melted
30g dark chocolate, melted

Method-

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/160 fan/Gas 4 and prepare two 20cm (8") cake tins.
2. Measure the cocoa and boiling water into a large bowl. Mix together until it reaches a smooth paste-like consistancy.
3. Add the remaining ingredients and beat again until combined. After melting your two chocolates, either over a pan of simmering water (without the bottom of the bowl touching the water!) or with intermittent bursts in the microwave, leave to cool slightly. When the chocolate has cooled, stir it through the mixture until combined.
4. Divide the cake mixture between the two tins. Put in the oven for about 30 minutes until well risen and you see it pulling away from the sides of the tin. Leave to cool.
5. After making your batch of buttercream, melt the dark and milk chocolate separately and leave both to cool slightly. Add cocoa powder to buttercream and stir through. Then add the two chocolates and beat until all combined. Spread over the first sponge, put together and then ice the top. Enjoy! 

Let them eat cake

Easter weekend was pretty inconveniently timed this year and was over my mum’s and my brother’s birthday so not only were we busy present-buying and celebrating but it meant that my desire to back an Easter cake this year was met by two family members who were also hungry for their own birthday cakes too. But instead of going overboard and doing three cakes over one weekend, I settled for two and my mum’s doubled up as the Easter cake too. So first up the Lemon Drizzle, minus the loaf tin, plus some buttercream. Find the original recipe here, and my altered recipe below…

Ingredients-

Zest of 1 lemon, plus half the lemon for juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

225g baking margarine (I used Stork)

225g caster sugar

4 free range eggs, beaten

225g self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tbsp milk

Bag of mini eggs, or other decoration of your fancy

(For the lemon buttercream, to sandwich)

Batch of plain vanilla buttercream- enough to fill one cake

Half of the lemon for juice (plus extra if you feel it necessary)

(For the lemon syrup, quantities for covering just one half- obviously double up if you want to do both)

2 tbsp demerara sugar

Juice of one lemon

Method-

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan 160°C/Gas 4 and prepare two 20cm sandwich cake tins and line the bases with baking paper.   
2. Put the lemon zest, vanilla, baking margarine and sugar into a large bowl and beat until pale and fluffy.
3. Gradually add the beaten eggs with a little of the flour, mix and then repeat until all the egg is gone. Fold in the rest of the flour and the baking powder, make sure not to overbeat! Finally add the milk and then spoon equally into the two tins.
4. Bake for 25 minutes. This is approximate because I waited until it had risen and was coming away from the sides of the tin. I also turned up the oven an extra 10 degrees towards the end for a few minutes to produce the gorgeous golden-brown colour on top. 

5. While the cake is still warm, poke holes in the cake with cocktail sticks. Mix together the demerara sugar and lemon juice until the sugar looks as though it's beginning to disssolve. Pour over the cake (one or both, depending on what you fancy- I did both and it gave it a wonderful texture), aiming it around the holes so that it sinks in.

6. Leave to cool and remove them from the tins. When completely cool, peel off the baking paper from the bottom.

5. Make your batch of buttercream (sorry for not putting something more detailed here- I don't think I have ever measured quantities of buttercream, I just add and taste until it's tasty and I have the right amount!) and mix in the lemon juice. I went for quite a weak taste here because of the already lemony sponge and syrup. When the cakes are cool, spread the buttercream onto one of the cakes, placing the other one on top when you've finished. Use any leftover to blob on the top with a piping bag and top with your decorations of choice.

Pre-Birthday Post

Yep, it's that time of year again when the last day of June signifies that I'm another year older. It's true what they say- birthdays really do get so much less exciting the older you get. Boo.

We pretty much have no plans and I failed to give anybody any clues as to what I wanted/needed (money? Poor student here...) so I'm not sure tomorrow is going to blow my socks off. I can barely be bothered to get myself into a birthday outfit to give myself the excuse of getting all dressed up. BUT, trying to be ever the optimist, I thought I would look not at the day itself, which after all only marks the year passing, and instead look at what I've achieved this year and what my aims are for next year (before the big 2-1... Eeeeek!).

There are three huge landmarks this year which immediately jump out at me as some of my proudest moments to date:
1. Finally getting Toffee to our first show. Sure, I fell off. Twice. In front of everyone. But we've come so far since then and just being able to get there after such a turmoil surrounding my riding life was an achievement in itself. Plus, we did get round... Eventually. And today I had the most wonderful hack on him as we cantered over the countryside. So overall, job well done. Nutty pony cured. Just kidding, that's wishful thinking but we're getting there.

2. News Editor of The Stag newspaper at uni. At the time, it was an incredible honour to be voted in and I seized the chance with both hands, throwing myself into research and emailing and generating fresh ideas. Little did I know that it probably wasn't as important as I had originally thought and it didn't bring me the university-wide fame I had envisaged. But hindsight is a beautiful thing, and also a really pessimistic thing. So whilst I can now say that I no longer I want to be a journalist and I often ended up loathing the time I had to take to complete my section, I wouldn't change it. It added to already massively high stress levels but taught me to better manage my time and balance work/commitments/me time. 

3. President of the Equestrian Club. Especially with the thank you I received at the end, I have to say that this has been the highlight of this year at university. I never, ever thought this would happen. I was pushing my luck for Vice or Treasurer at the AGM, but through a change in circumstance, it kind of landed in my lap in what I can only put down to fate. To say that I have been President of the Equestrian Club is so important to me after everything I have been through with horses. It's as though it all paid off. I actually felt needed and important, and I guess I was. Best decision I ever made.

And to think at the beginning of this academic year, I was in floods of tears thinking that I couldn't juggle my degree with my other commitments, horse and all, and now I have finished with some of my best coursework marks to date, despite all the odds against me. I am capable!! This, of course, is ignoring the upcoming exam results- kill me now before I find out. But to top it all off, in the last couple of months the University of Surrey has been named eighth best university in the country by The Guardian's uni guide. It is mind blowing to think that when I was choosing universities, I told myself I couldn't even get into one of the top 20, let alone the top 10. And now I can proudly say that I go to a top 10 university. I'd say that's pretty damn good.

Of course, there's the little things too: I'm finally becoming a better, confident rider; I've cultivated seriously special friendships which I know will last for years and years to come (you know who you are girls!); I've met Lawson (still holding out for one of them to propose to me, I know they'll come back for me soon); I experienced the best Colours Ball yet; and there are so many more, I'm not going to list them. But how can I complain about one day when really that day is just a celebration of the amazing year that I've had?

So, to round off this now positive pre-birthday post, here are my five goals for this coming year:
1. Be fluent in French after my year abroad
2. Take Toffee to another clear round jumping
3. Be at a decent level on the drums (to be defined at a later date, possibly along with an uploaded video)
4. Go to Italy and have a photo at all of the most famous sites (granted this will probably be very shortly fulfilled with my dream to go to Italy coming true in 6 days! So I might replace it with another soon)
5. And finally one I cannot unveil to the wider public for fear of airing my laundry.

Small goals, I know. Nothing major here but... From little acorns mighty oaks do grow. Goodbye to 19 year old me. xoxo