Happy St. Patrick’s Day! After getting married last year I decided to double-barrel my name to Silford-McLoughlin and today I have already had quite a few skype messages and emails being signed off with ‘Happy St. Patrick’s Day!’. This has never happened before. But seeing as I am now a bit Irish by marriage I might aswell use this as an excuse to join in with the celebrations tonight after work! …
expat
German Supermarkets
I am starting a new job this week and so I had a few days holiday to spare in Berlin. This was spent wisely by enjoying the sunshine, reading plenty of books in the sunshine, eating out, meeting with friends, drinking lattes and eating cupcakes … but of course a lot of this was spent doing the household chores and shopping. To make the most of my free time I decided to check out a supermarket that was recommended to me. I was not disappointed! I already knew of some ‘larger’ (when I say large this is not to be confused with a normal size sainsburys and are only slightly bigger than a sainsbury’s express) supermarkets in the outskirt of Berlin. For these you need a car. Yet I came across a big supermarket right on a s-bahn line! Perfect for those using public transport.
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Lunch in Paris: A Delicious Love Story, with Recipes by Elizabeth Bard
A lesson in love told through recipes. The book begins with an American woman falling in love with a French man and follows her journey through adapting to a different culture – Paris.
It begins with Elizabeth going to lunch with a French man and falling in love. Through time she ends up moving to Paris, setting up a new life and discovering a whole new culture. Each chapter covers her story from that first date, the big move to Paris, the first supermarket trip, discovering markets, meeting the family and learning the language. It also deals with the sometimes more negative aspects of living abroad that any expat will experience at some point. Being away from her family and friends, alienated by not speaking the language, just wanting chinese from a box and tinned ravioli and poor (or standard European) customer service. …
Jubilee Treats! Bakewell Tart and a Strawberry Tart
Happy Diamond Jubilee Day! I decided to bring the celebrations to Germany and took a few British treats into the office today. The kitchen was soon transformed into a mini UK with Union Jack flags and napkins. The goodies went down well and I also made some sausage rolls.
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It’s All About Salt and Vinegar
After my recent Fish and Chips blog it got me thinking about salt and vinegar. Salt and vinegar on your chips, salt and vinegar crisps – we Brits just love salt and vinegar! Whenever family or friends come to Berlin to visit they bring with them some salt and vinegar crisps. It is one thing that British expats miss the most about being in Germany. Aside from tea, beef, fish, pies, gravy, Cadbury’s chocolate and cheddar cheese (many more items could be added to this list) it is salt and vinegar crisps that is of top priority. It is always on my list when friends and family say ‘is there anything that you want me to bring over?’ when planning a visit to Berlin. I also keep a bottle of vinegar in my store cupboard for when I have chips at home. …