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Yuu Kitchen Executive Chef Jon de Villa | #TCTalks Episode 17
Posted in Drink, Food, interview, London, Podcast, Restaurants, TCTalks, Travel
Tagged #TCTalks, aldgate, Chef Jon de Villa, COMMERCIAL STREET, E1, E1 6NE, east london, Executive Chef Jon de Villa, Filipino food, Food, Head Chef Jon de Villa, interview, Jon de Villa, London, Old Sptalfields Market, Pacific Rim, Pinoy food, PODCAST, restaurants, reviews, spitalfields, spitalfields market, tikichris talks, Travel, whitechapel, Yuu Kitchen, Лондон, لندن, ロンドン, 伦敦
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Eat Puglia | Index
Here’s an index for quick reference to all of Judith Schrut’s posts in her Eat Puglia series.
Glad you could join me on my Puglian frolic. Here’s a list with links to all the posts in this miniseries: Continue reading
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Posted in Drink, Eat Puglia, Food, Italy, Puglia, Restaurants, Travel, Uncategorized, Wine
Tagged Drink, Eat Puglia, Food, italian food, Italy, Judith Schrut, pasta, puglia, restaurants, Travel, wine
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Vijay’s Bar & Lounge, Lokhandwala, Fitzrovia
Stylish Charlotte Street Indian Restaurant, Lokhandwala, has launched Vjay’s Bar & Lounge: a “speakeasy” above its main dining room.
I had a lovely time sampling drinks and nibble at Vijay’s during a recent Fitzrovia foray. Continue reading
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Posted in Bars, Drink, Food, London, Restaurants
Tagged BARS, charlotte street, cocktails, Drink, fitzrovia, Food, indian food, indian restaurants, Lokhandwala, London, restaurants, reviews, Vijay's Bar & Lounge, W1, W1T 4PY
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London Bridge Quarter / Bermondsey High Street Properties for Sale at Deep Discount
No, not my typical post but a dear friend is in a jam and needs to let go of four residential and three commercial units in SE1 for a deeply discounted price. Connect me quick if you want to know more.
The properties (all part of one development) have been built to a high standard and are perfectly placed within walking distance of Bermondsey High Street, Borough Market, and The City – and within 600 metres of London Bridge. Continue reading
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Posted in London, Luxury, Money
Tagged bermondsey, borough, London, london property, London Real Estate, London Realty, luxury, money, Property, real estate, SE1, south london, Wild's Rents, Лондон, لندن, ロンドン, 伦敦
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Eat Puglia | Trattoria Terra Madre, Alberobello
Judith Schrut goes organic with a farm-to-fork finale in her Eat Puglia series.
Although I loved sampling all that plentiful Puglian seafood, after a few days it felt time to try something completely different. That difference came with our evening meal at Terra Madre Restaurant. Continue reading
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Posted in Eat Puglia, Food, Italy, Puglia, Restaurants, Travel
Tagged Alberobello, antipasti, Eat Puglia, Farm to fork, Food, garden, Italy, Judith Schrut, organic, pasta, puglia, restaurants, salad, Terra Madre, Travel, vegetables
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5 Splendidly Inexpensive Weekend Beach Breaks for the Family (Going Places)
Is your family begging for a beach break but your bank account is begging for a break from big spending? Not to worry! It’s definitely possible to take the family to the beach on a budget.
Here’s our list of some of America’s best value-for-money seaside getaways.
Read my complete post at Going Places.
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Posted in Going Places, OneTravel, Travel, USA
Tagged beach, Going Places, OneTravel, Travel, USA
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Joanna’s in Crystal Palace Celebrates 40 Years with Vintage Specials Menu
40 years running and still going strong, Joanna’s in Crystal Palace is celebrating its four decades of delicious dining by showcasing some of its original and locally preferred dishes.
From now until 22 April, the restaurant is offering a Vintage Specials menu alongside its seasonal a la carte selection. Continue reading
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Posted in Drink, Food, London, Restaurants
Tagged burgers, cheeseburgers, Crystal Palace, Drink, Food, hamburgers, London, restaurants, reviews, SE19, SE19 1RX, south london, Westow Hill, Лондон, لندن, ロンドン, 伦敦
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Eat Puglia | Itria Bonta Cheese
During Judith Schrut‘s tour of Puglia, she made time to visit Itria Bontà, a small family farm which has been producing organic cheese and other deli delights for over 70 years.
In charge at Itria Bontà nowadays is Giorgio Spalluti – aka “Big George”– who makes his cheese entirely by hand, using traditional methods learned from his father and grandfather with milk from the farm’s herd of Freesians. Continue reading
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Posted in Eat Puglia, Food, Italy, Puglia, Travel
Tagged burrata, capocollo, cheese, Eat Puglia, italian food, Italy, Itria Bonta, Judith Schrut, Martina Franca, mozzarella, puglia, pugliese, Travel
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The 8 Places for the Best Burritos in San Francisco (Going Places)
On a mission to experience the biggest, baddest, and most bodacious burritos in the world? San Francisco is top choice for most chowhounds seeking to call it a wrap on where to enjoy this most delicious of Mexican dishes.
No matter if you’re after the meatiest mounds or healthiest of vegan options to stuff inside your tortilla, California’s city by the bay has a burrito just for you. Here’s our look at some the most significant spots to bite into a beautiful, bountiful burrito in SF.
Read my complete post at Going Places.
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Posted in California, Food, Going Places, OneTravel, Restaurants, Travel
Tagged american food, burritos, california, Food, Going Places, mexican food, OneTravel, restaurants, san francisco, Travel
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Win a Taster Box of Award-Winning Hand Cooked Corkers Crisps
COMPETITION IS NOW OVER AND THE WINNER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING TIKICHRIS. PLEASE STAY TUNED FOR LOTS MORE FUN AND FREEBIES TO COME!
Grown and hand cooked on a family farm in East Anglia, award-winning Corkers crisps are a cut above the standard British crisp. And I’ve got a big box full of them to give away so one lucky tikichris reader can taste the difference for free.
So who wants a free batch of these extra crispy pan fried crisps made from potatoes grown on a hundreds-of-years-old family farm in the rich Fenland soil of Cambridgeshire? Keep reading. Continue reading
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Posted in Competition, Food, Freebies, Shopping
Tagged #WinCorkersCrisps, competition, Corker, Corkers, Corkers Crisps, crisps, Food, free, freebies, Potato crisps, RT to win, Shopping, twitter competition
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Eat Puglia | I Pastini Winery
Judith Schrut has a taste of wine at I Pastini Winery on her tour of Puglia.
It’s approaching early evening in Puglia’s lush Itrian Valley and time to enjoy that important Italian tradition known as aperitivo– socialising over drinks and snacks to whet your appetite for dinner. It’s also the perfect time for a tour and tasting visit to I Pastini winery. Continue reading
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Posted in Drink, Eat Puglia, Food, Italy, Puglia, Shopping, Travel, Wine
Tagged Drink, Eat Puglia, Food, grappa, I Pastini, Italy, Judith Schrut, Lorcorotondo, Martina Franca, organic winery, primitivo, puglia, tour, Travel, vinyard, wine, winery, winetasting
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Nuwara Eliya | Index
Demi Perera reflects on her time in Nuwara Eliya.
We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
― T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets
Returning home is always an awakening experience for me. I never know the effect it might have on my consciousness, which memories will be triggered or which deeply buried part of my childhood I might face. Continue reading
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P.F. Chang’s Asian Table, Great Newport Street
P.F. Chang’s Asian Table – an American restaurant group with a crowd pleasing pan Asian menu of amped up flavours and an inventive list of cocktails – has opened an outlet near Covent Garden. I’m not sure you need to drop what you’re doing to eat there ASAP but neither should you sneer at the concept or immediately write it off.
I just read a super snotty review of P.F. Chang’s Asian Table published online by one of the UK’s more prominent broadsheets. It was snarky for the sake of being snarky with the added bonus of allowing the writer to snarl indirectly at folks who might have a good time at such a place. As unappetising as the reviewer aimed to suggest Chang’s to be, I finished reading the article thinking it was the writer’s attitude that was truly insipid.
I visited the restaurant a couple of weeks ago. Now, I’m not going to rave about it as the greatest thing since shrimp toast. But I must say I enjoyed my meal and that it was as good as (and in some ways better than) a number of more highfalutin eateries in the area. Continue reading
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Posted in Drink, Food, London, Restaurants
Tagged american food, american restaurants, cocktails, covent garden, Drink, Food, Great Newport Street, P.F. Chang’s, P.F. Chang’s Asian Table, Pan Asian food, pan asian restaurant, PF Chang’s, PF Chang’s Asian Table, restaurants, reviews, WC2, WC2H 7JA, Лондон, لندن, ロンドン, 伦敦
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Eat Puglia | Pescaria, Polignano a Mare
Next up on Judith Schrut‘s Pugliese forage is a visit to Polignano a Mare – and just in time for a lovely lunch!
Following a generous Italian breakfast, multiple espressos and a morning exploring the scenic seaside caves, coves and clifftops of Polignano a Mare, one of Puglia’s most beautiful villages, it was time for another hearty maritime lunch.
It so happens that Polignano has many seafood restaurants, and choosing where to dine can be really difficult. We decided to follow the locals. And they were flocking to Pescaria. Continue reading
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Posted in Eat Puglia, Food, Italy, Puglia, Restaurants, Travel
Tagged bread, Eat Puglia, fish, Food, Italy, Judith Schrut, panini, Pescaria, Polignano a Mare, puglia, raw fish, restaurant, seafood, shellfish, Southern Italy, Travel
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Kinky Ping Pong
Dinner and a show with a one-minute stroll? Here’s a great date night idea: dim sum and drinks at Ping Pong Covent Garden followed by catching a performance of Kinky Boots just round the corner at the Adelphi Theatre.
Kemey and I did engaged in this very duo of evening activity a couple of weeks back. Dinner was tasty and the show was saucy. Continue reading
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Posted in Drink, Entertainment, Food, Live Performance, London, Music, Restaurants, Theatre
Tagged Adelphi Theatre, chinese food, chinese restaurants, cocktails, covent garden, dim sum, Drink, Entertainment, Food, kinky boots, live performance, London, maiden lane, music, musical, PING PONG, Ping Pong Covent Garden, restaurants, reviews, Strand, theatre, theatreland, WC2, WC2E 7N, WC2R 0NS, west end, Лондон, لندن, ロンドン, 伦敦
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(Northern) California Dreamin’ | Index
Thanks for joining Judith Schrut on her Northern California road trip.
Here’s a list with links to all the posts in this miniseries: Continue reading
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Nuwara Eliya | Ferncliff
Demi Perera shares the comforts of her stay at a boutique bungalow in Nuwara Eliya.
During my time in Nuwara Eliya I stayed at Ferncliff, a colonial period family home built in 1832. It’s an entrancing, historic place. For a romantic such as myself its poise was a distraction. Each morning here I spent the early hours of dawn lucidly dreaming of the very place I was staying only woken when the butler gently knocked on my door with breakfast. Continue reading
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Posted in Hotels, Luxury, Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka, Travel
Tagged Demi Perera, Ferncliff, Ferncliff Bungalow, hotel review, hotels, luxury, Nuwara Eliya, reviews, Sri Lanka, Travel
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Eat Puglia | Trattoria Il Brigante, Monopoli
Here’s the latest of Judith Schrut‘s edible adventures in Puglia: a lunch of seafood and tradition at Trattoria Il Brigante.
It was our first morning in the bright sunshine of Puglia– leaving snowbound Britain a few hours before on a crack-of-dawn budget flight from Stansted– so I was understandably eager to savour and set my teeth into the local cuisine. Continue reading
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Posted in Eat Puglia, Food, Italy, Puglia, Restaurants, Travel
Tagged antipasti, Eat Puglia, fish, italian seafood, Judith Schrut, liqueur, Monopoli, pasta, puglia, restaurant, sea urchin, seafood, shellfish, strascinate, Trattoria Il Brigante, Travel, Via Cavaliere
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Mahiki Kensington
I hadn’t been to a tiki bar in ages (a sad thought for a fella going by the online moniker of tikichris). So the invite to take a tipple and nibble at Mahiki’s new(ish) Kensington outpost was welcomed with a readily returned response.
Here are some highlights of my visit. Continue reading
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Posted in Bars, Drink, Food, London, Restaurants, Tiki
Tagged BARS, cocktails, Drink, Food, kensington, Kensington High Street, London, Mahiki, Mahiki Kensington, restaurants, reviews, sushi, tiki, Tiki bars, Tiki drinks, W8, W8 4PT, west london, Лондон, لندن, ロンドン, 伦敦
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(Northern) California Dreamin’ | Monterey Bay
spends the final part of her Northern California holiday chasing butterflies, sampling chowder and admiring marine life on the glorious Monterey Peninsula.
This is a destination you’ll want to return to again and again. Continue reading
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Posted in (Northern) California Dreamin', California, Food, Restaurants, road trip
Tagged (Northern) California Dreamin', 17 Mile Drive, aquarium, california, Carmel-by-the-Sea, cheesecake, Diving, Food, Judith Schrut, Kayaking, Monterey, Northern California, ocean, Pacific Grove, pie, Seaside, sports, sushi, Travel, Whalewatching, wildlife
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The Ins and Outs of Flying Standby (Going Places)
Your bags are all packed and you’re itching to get on the plane for your vacation to begin. Wouldn’t an earlier flight be nice? Or even an upgrade to a better class? Or perhaps you’re looking for a shorter journey than the one you booked.
Here’s where flying standby could work in your favor.
Read my complete post at Going Places.
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Posted in Going Places, OneTravel, Travel
Tagged air travel, Going Places, OneTravel, standby
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Eat Puglia
In a previous post, Judith Schrut wrote joyfully of her recent cycling trip to Puglia in southern Italy. Now she’s back, to share more about the region, particularly its fabulous food and wine and where best to taste it.
“One cannot think well, love well, sleep well if one has not dined well,” Virginia Woolf once observed.
You’ll easily do all of these when visiting southern Italy’s “heel of the boot” region of Puglia. Continue reading
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Posted in Drink, Eat Puglia, Food, Italy, Puglia, Restaurants, Travel, Wine
Tagged Drink, Eat Puglia, Food, italian food, Italy, Judith Schrut, pasta, puglia, restaurants, Travel, wine
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Nuwara Eliya I Top 5 Activities
Source: DailyMirror.lk
Demi Perera is back with another instalment in her Nuwara Eliya series and her list of the five most amazing things to do in this beautiful region of Sri Lanka.
If you scratch just beneath the surface of Nuwara Eliya, the landscape begins to whisper. Stay very still and the whistling winds will carry secrets of the hills to you, provided you’re willing to listen. It is near impossible to avoid the allure of tea plantations (which are inconceivably beautiful) and the chance to photograph the tokenised smiling faces of poverty within them. However, if you would like a more mindful experience here is a list of ways you can have a more discerning connection with Nuwara Eliya. Continue reading
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Brunch with Bea Vo | #TCTalks Episode 16
Posted in Coffee, Drink, Food, interview, London, Podcast, Restaurants, TCTalks, Travel
Tagged #TCTalks, american food, Bea Vo, Boondocks Restaraurant, brunch, Butterscotch Bakery, CAFES, coffee, Drink, Famous Flames, Feed Your Soul, Food, interview, London, PODCAST, restaurants, Soul Food Enterprises, Stax Diner, The Famous Flames, tikichris talks, Travel, Лондон, لندن, ロンドン, 伦敦
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The Best 3-Day Getaway Ideas for the Easter Weekend (Going Places)
The appearance of chocolate bunnies on store shelves can only mean one thing: it’s almost Easter. For those with a bit of wanderlust, it’s also a great time to take a day off work and make it a long weekend of adventure.
If you’re the kind of person who loves to travel, then here are a few trip ideas on how you can squeeze the most out of the weekend.
Read my complete post at Going Places.
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Posted in Easter, Going Places, OneTravel, Travel
Tagged easter, Going Places, OneTravel, Travel
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Nuwara Eliya | Little England?
The Post Office
Demi Perera continues her series about Nuwara Eliya, with a visit to Sri Lanka’s Little England.
Nuwara Eliya is well known as Sri Lanka’s Little England and Tea Country with sprawling hillsides covered in waist-high tea bushes attracting endless tourists, photographers, writers and bloggers who blissfully sidestep any history that pre-dates colonial rule. Its selling point has become Englishness. The focus is on manicured lawns, period cottages and botanical gardens. Tea estates and grand bungalows have long been under local ownership yet a colonial air prevails throughout the province. Continue reading
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3 Destinations for a Sizzling Hot Pre-Summer Vacation (Going Places)
Spring is finally here! But we still need to endure a few more weeks of mild temperatures before we can bask in the sun, sipping ice-cold margaritas.
If you absolutely cannot wait for balmy, lazy days, consider hopping on a plane to one of these perennially warm destinations.
Read my complete post at Going Places.
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Posted in Going Places, OneTravel, Travel
Tagged Going Places, OneTravel, pre-summer vacation, Travel
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Minimix at The Megaro
Alexandra Kalinowski gets dragged out for a night at a plush dive near King’s Cross.
It’s not often you’ll find me out four nights in a row. But a bar designed as your personal minibar with unlimited help yourself popcorn was enough to drag me out for cocktails to catch up with an old friend. Continue reading
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Posted in Bars, Drink, Food, Hotels, London, Travel
Tagged Alexandra Kalinowski, BARS, cocktails, Drink, Food, hotels, king's cross, London, Minimix, Minimix at The Megaro, restaurants, The Megaro Hotel, Travel, WC1, WC1 8AB, Лондон, لندن, ロンドン, 伦敦
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Good Stuff #74
Good stuff and lots of it!
Here’s the low down on some fine things to see, sip, savour and more (well, in this case just stuff to sip) – all of which I’ve recently come across and thought were worth sharing with you. Enjoy. Continue reading
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Posted in Beer, Coffee, Drink, Good Stuff, London, Shopping, Wine
Tagged #SpiritOfSharing, beer, Bord Bia, coffee, Drink, good stuff, Green Lady, Hop Stuff Brewery, Irish Food Board, Kinahan’s Irish Whiskey, Kinahan’s LL, Kinsale Mead Company, London, Mead, Shopping, Spirit of Sharing, Stag Roasters, tea, Tipperary Boutique Distillery, whiskey, Wicklow Way Wines, wine, Лондон, لندن, ロンドン, 伦敦
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The Marula Festival – Swaziland
Petra Shepherd sways her way to Swaziland to experience its annual Marula Festival.
Swaziland, South Africa’s postage sized neighbour is one of the few remaining monarchies in Africa and embraces and upholds its own unique and ancient traditions. Both the monarchy and the people of Swaziland actively maintain and preserve a remarkable cultural heritage, experiences here are the real deal probably unmatched anywhere else in Africa. Continue reading
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Posted in africa, Drink, Travel
Tagged africa, Drink, Marula, Marula Festival, Petra Shepherd, south africa, swaziland, The Marula Festival, Travel
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Nuwara Eliya | Sri Lanka’s Mythical Wonder
Demi Perera explores the under appreciated history and wonder of Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka.
It’s been the most unimaginable couple of years since I started travelling full time for a living. Even though it felt like I’d been on the road forever the urgency of the places I’ve never seen continued to seduce me away from what most would consider a good life. That was until I got to Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka: a place so astounding it brought me to an abrupt halt, made me stop and stare in utter wonderment. I was bewitched. For the first time in a long while a place felt like home. Continue reading
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Posted in Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka, Travel
Tagged Demi Perera, Ferncliff, Ferncliff Bungalow, Hanuman, Kandy, Nuwara Eliya, Rama and Sita, Ramayana, slow tourism, Sri Lanka
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Pedals in Puglia
Judith Schrut heads to southern Italy for a cycling holiday like no other.
The sun is out, the sea deep blue, your sexy (e)bike is beckoning you! Welcome to your first morning on Contrasts of Puglia, Headwater Holidays’ self-guided cycling tour on the heel of Italy’s “boot”. Continue reading
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Posted in Coffee, Drink, Food, Hotels, Italy, Puglia, Restaurants, Travel
Tagged coffee, cycling, Drink, e-bike, Food, Fun, Headwater Holidays, Italian coffee, Italy, Judith Schrut, masseria, Monopoli, olive oil, Polignano a Mare, puglia, self-guided, Travel, wine
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Win a Craft Cider Taster Box from Crafty Nectar
COMPETITION IS NOW OVER AND THE WINNER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING TIKICHRIS. PLEASE STAY TUNED FOR LOTS MORE FUN AND FREEBIES TO COME!
I’ve teamed up with Crafty Nectar – the UK’s number one craft cider destination and subscription box – to offer one tikichris reader the chance to discover a range of award-winning ciders delivered direct to your door!
Crafty Nectar is on a mission to change the perception of cider from “ooo arrrrr” to “ooh la la” through craft cider subscription boxes. I certainly was impressed with the ciders I recently sampled in a Taster Box sent kindly to me from the Crafty Nectar folk. Continue reading
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Posted in Competition, Drink, Food, Freebies, London, Shopping
Tagged #WinCraftCider, cider, competition, craft cider, crafty nectar, Drink, Food, free, freebies, London, RT to win, Shopping, twitter competition, Лондон, لندن, ロンドン, 伦敦
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Kanada-Ya | #TCTalks Episode 15
Posted in Food, interview, London, Podcast, Restaurants, TCTalks, Travel
Tagged #TCTalks, angel, Food, interview, islington, japanese food, japanese restaurants, Kanada-Ya, Kazuhiro Kanada, London, N1, N1 0PN, PODCAST, ramen, restaurants, soup, tikichris talks, Tony Lam, Travel, upper street, Лондон, لندن, ロンドン, 伦敦
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Considerations for Home Renovations
Thinking about doing some home reno. I’ve done my share, am pleased with the results and definitely love my home, but I did find the experience rather daunting at times. In retrospect, I probably wouldn’t have been quite so overwhelmed if I had kept a few basic factors in mind.
Here’s a look at four broad considerations to remember before and during your next renovation. Continue reading
