Wandering around London

Lexi, Will and I went to eat in Melati on Great Windmill Street (I love it there) and I had some origami paper in my purse leftover from some birthday card I made.

Walking through China Town

Sam and I went on an adventure afternoon to Canary Wharf.

Rawwwry the lion!

I went to see All’s Well That Ends Well at the National Theatre during the week with Lexi and some of his lovely UCL friends. Here we are waiting on the balcony to go in!

For my friend Tara’s birthday, Lexi and I bought her a lifesize cardboard cut-out of David Tennant.

I’m feeling quite sad at the moment because we’re moving out of the flat in Bloomsbury on Wednesday. It’s the end of an interesting chapter that I’m quite happy to leave behind, but I will miss our little nook off Russell Square. London won’t be on my doorstep anymore. I won’t be able to walk to Soho or go to Nando’s more times per week than is strictly healthy.

I won’t complain. I leave for Mexico on Thursday for two weeks of awesome, fun-filled times with Steph. And before you say it, no I’m not particularly afraid of contracting swine flu. Everyone and their mother is warning me about it but neither my doctor nor my vaccination nurse had any worry whatsover. Although the nurse gave me quite a scare about rabies. She’s a very stern and motherly woman from New Zealand and the conversation went something like…

Nurse: You can get rabies from a bite or a lick.

Me: A lick? It would have to be quite a hard lick.

Nurse: No, just a lick.

Me: Really?

Nurse: Okay, a lick on an open wound.

She is also ‘very passionate about Hepatitis B’ so gave me a looong lecture about it. I guess it’s better to have a scary nurse who cares than an inept nurse who hasn’t got a clue (like in my last GP practice).

This week, as you may have guessed, is filled with packing to move and preparing my suitcase for Mexico. I have so many new summer dresses, I’m tempted to dedicate a post to them…

Food Frolics: Boonchoo, Southampton Row

Boonchoo!

Mussaman curry

Pad Thai with tofu

Thai iced tea

Boonchoo has rather an underdeveloped website. There’s not much information on there, and it doesn’t sell itself very well. The restaurant is placed rather inconspicuously on Southampton Row (at the Russell Square end), the sign isn’t particularly eye-catching and some of the staff are rather sour-faced (in fact, so sour that it’s quite entertaining).

I can safely say without a doubt, however, that Boonchoo serves the best Thai food I’ve ever had in London. The green curry is lovely and spicy without losing its creaminess. The Pad Thai is divine and I’m not usually a fan of the dish. The tofu in the Pad Thai was perfectly cooked with just enough marinade and the noodles were just right. Boonchoo is a gem hidden by a boxy and unpolished exterior.

If you’re a sensitive soul, I’d advise you not to eat at Boonchoo. The main waiter is rude and unattentive. A couple of friends and I were waiting to order dessert when he came over and slapped the bill on the table without saying a word and flounced off. Catching his attention is also an absolute nightmare, when he’s lounging by the kitchen shimmying to a cheesy Thai pop song. However, if you’re not in a rush and you’ve got plenty of time to sit and digest after your meal like I did, eating there is actually rather fun. I’ve even been back a second time just to repeat the whole experience, bizarre and rough-and-ready as it is.

Verdict: A diamond in the rough with a fantastic menu.

Food Frolics: SNOG, Berwick Street

When my friend Issy first told me about Snog, I raised an eyebrow at its name. Snog? I swear that’s a naff slang term for kiss? When she explained (conveniently, on a warm, sunny day) that it’s a frozen yoghurt place with a difference, I was more than sold.

My Snog of choice: Green tea frozen yoghurt with strawberries and Oreos

Verdict: Delicious. I bought the Snog special for £4.25, and while this is a bit steep for a tub of frozen yoghurt, the taste more than makes up for it. That and I did feel rather (*ahem*) hip sitting in a pink cafe in the middle of Soho. I’d recommend the green tea flavoured frozen yoghurt for its not-too-sickly sweetness and any of the fresh fruit toppings.