May Week, Cambridge

May Week is the traditional name given to refer to the period after exams at Cambridge University. It's a time where students can blow off steam and many of the colleges have extravagant balls. Luckily for us, these balls often have wonderful firework displays which can be seen from the river. Therefore last night, my mother, Marcus and I wrapped up warmly and headed down to a bridge over the River Cam to watch the Trinity May Ball fireworks.

Kings College

Despite spending a large amount of my time in Cambridge, I aways get blown away by how picturesque it always looks.

The fireworks were amazing, lighting up the sky timed to a variety of music from modern to classical. There were even blooms of fire shooting up along the neighbouring bridge! The combination of the music, fireworks reflecting in the river and the beautiful setting really made this a magical night. The rain even held off until after the show too!

Many people had taken to the river to watch the display, rafting up under the bridges. Once the show had commenced, we watched them all dreamily punt back up the river before heading home. 

Much Hadham Open Gardens

One of the best things about living where I do is that I have access to both big, bustling cities as well as the serene British countryside. This was fantastic growing up as one moment I'd be in my town coat being whisked off to see a West End musical, the next I'd be up a tree in the middle of the forest. This weekend, my mother and I decided to go off to one of the local villages, Much Hadham, to wonder around peoples' gardens. The village was holding a charity event, where by the villages opened up their gardens and put on cream teas and music, all in the aid of St Elizabeth's. I love events like this- there's always a wonderful sense of community spirit (and who doesn't love being nosy every now and then?!). Anyway, I thought I'd share with you some of the pictures I took that day.

Mint Polo in the Park 2013

Last Saturday, a few of us decided to pop down to the Hurlingham for a day of polo in the park. It was Ladies' Day so I took the opportunity to don a hat and enjoy the June sunshine!

But first, brunch. We broke our studenty way of life and the boys whipped up a delicious eggs benedict. Ali, our master chef, went as far as to make the hollandaise sauce from scratch! I was put on the much easier task of chopping strawberries and mixing up breakfast Pimms (perfectly acceptable at this time- it's summer after all!).

Then, all suited and booted, we hopped on the train to Putney Bridge. The first thing that struck me was  how many people were there! Last year I'd attended on the Sunday and although busy, it hadn't been nearly so crowded. Not deterred however, we entered the park in search of a good spot to watch the matches from. Typically, we nested outside a pop-up pub which kept the boys happy.

The polo is exhilarating to watch. The players wheel their ponies tightly around each other, swinging their mallets, before making a mad dash across the field after the ball and hopefully hitting it into a goal.  At half time, spectators are invited onto the pitch to stomp on the divots (the bits of turf torn up by the ponies) to smooth the field before play resumes. The whole game appears almost chaotic, but we didn't mind as we cheered on the teams from the sidelines.

Feeling hungry, we pottered off to the food stands to find some rather late lunch and then browsed some of the stalls around the park. The boys even had a go at riding a polo pony simulator which they said turned out to be harder than it looked!

As the sun sank lower in the sky, we snuck up into the grand stand and watched the last match, groaning as our chosen team let in a few goals. Our spirits were not dampened however- we'd had a great day in beautiful sunshine. Lets hope this is only a preamble to the rest of summer!

Lucky Chip at the Player Bar

After watching The Book of Mormon, Marcus and I found that all that laughing had made us somewhat peckish. Therefore Marcus whisked me away to Lucky Chip, a now permanent pop-up at the Player in Soho serving oh-so-delicious sliders. These mini burgers were heaven on a plate. I'm not a huge burger girl, but these were truly scrummy. The meat was juicy, pink and packed with flavour while the brioche buns were not in the least soggy. They came with a selection of extra fillings and a side order of fries which happily complimented the flavoursome morsels.

Very content, we nibbled on our buns while sipping cocktails (I had a 'Penicillin' while Marcus had a 'Mexican Breakfast'), absorbing our lively surroundings and endlessly reminiscing over the spectacle we'd just witnessed. This was a truly lovely end to a fantastic evening. 

The Book of Mormon

Recently, Marcus and I were lucky enough to score two front row tickets to see The Book of Mormon. Every day before a performance, a lottery is held outside the theatre, giving people a chance to win some of the best seats in the house for just £20 per ticket! Marcus saw this as an amazing chance to see a musical which is renowned for being consistently sold out and so at five o'clock on the dot, we were lining up outside the theatre, raffle form in hand, hoping for a chance to win. We were very lucky. The number of tickets dwindled as we waited with baited breath. Then, on the second to last draw, my name was called! Grinning, I ran inside the box office to pay the absurdly low price to purchase the coveted tickets. I couldn't quite believe it- we'd heard stories of people entering for up to six days in a row and still missing out!

Okay, this is where I have to admit that at this point I knew next to nothing about the show, I just enjoy winning. I mean, I'd seen the adverts on the tube, but hadn't really ever thought that much about it. Luckily however, Marcus knew a lot and so set about filling me in. Essentially, it's written by the team behind 'South Park' and is about two Mormons' journey to convert people to their faith. I won't tell you much more about the story because I'd hate to give anything away, but I will say that it is easily one of the best musicals I've ever seen.

Initially, I was quite dubious. I'm not a big fan of the type of humour in South Park and so was quite apprehensive about sitting through a few hours of something along the same lines. The South Park influence was definitely there in the clever references to other stories (a surprise visit from Yoda!) and at times, the humour being cringingly crude, but I have to say, I enjoyed every minute of it (and if the laughter filling the theatre was anything to go on, I'd say the rest of the audience did too). The story was  brilliantly current (Starbucks mugs dancing in Hell, lorded over by a guitar riffing Devil), with every song up beat and every dance choreographed to perfection. I especially loved just how animated every single character was and how there was always a surprise around the corner. The only unsurprising thing was that the performance ended with the entire audience on their feet, clapping and cheering the actors as they took their final bows.

This is how close we were!

This show is really not to be missed. Not only is it wonderfully hilarious (please, if easily offended, take everything with a pinch of salt), it's also thought provoking, causing you to question not only religion and belief systems, but the romanticised view we all have on certain parts of the world. More than anything however, it leaves you feeling rather endeared towards Mormons!

The King's Road and the Google Labs

Since exams were finally over, I decided to take my purse for a little walk about and hit the King's Road for a touch of retail therapy.

My main aim was to visit Brandy Melville, an Italian brand which has only recently recently hit the UK.

 I'd been promised good quality, affordable clothes and I can't say I was disappointed. More importantly, everything fitted beautifully and hung well, despite the store's 'one size fits most' policy. (I often find it hard to find clothes that fit my figure, so was pleasantly surprised!) Feeling rather spoilt, I happily trotted away with a pretty little tee and a floaty pink skirt, while Marcus treated me to the cutest pair of shorts! 

After a bit of a wonder, it started to tip it down so we headed over to the Science Museum (a favourite haunt of mine as a child- everything's so 'hands on'!) to visit the Google Labs. 

This exhibition is highly interactive, inviting people from all over the world to get involved (live!) over the internet. Your interactions are logged on a special lab card you're given, which allows you to view what you've done from home. While we were there we had time to watch a robotic arm draw our faces in the sand (which was incredible to watch) and view live 360° images of a 24hr bakery and an aquarium! Unfortunately we couldn't stay long, but I wish I'd had a chance to fully explore the exhibit as everything seemed so interestingly eye-catching  The exhibit closes in August so hopefully there will be time to go back and see what else it has to offer!

Rather hurriedly leaving the Science Museum, we dashed to Leicester Square to see if we could win a pair of Book of Mormon tickets...

UCLU Variety Show at the Magic Circle and Soho House

The sun was streaming in through the windows as the invigilator took one final glance at his watch and called that time was up. The room of students in front of him scuffled as they wearily put down their pens. Finally, after many long weeks of revision, the last exam was over. Freedom beckoned and I answered with full force, jumping on the first train out of the city and back to London. I had a fabulous weekend ahead of me which was to be kicked off somewhat magically that very evening!

Last Thursday, Marcus and I went to watch a variety show which had been organised by his friend Edward Hilsum, a rising star amongst magicians and a member of the secretive Magic Circle. It was at the Magic Circle's head quarters the show was to take place, a building full of mystical displays and frequented by extraordinary people, tucked behind an unobtrusive blue door.  I could easily spend a few hours wondering between display cases, ogling all the artefacts, but soon after arriving we were ushered into our seats. Marcus and I were lucky enough to have some of the best in the house, right in the front row!

The most magical of staircases

Murals decorating the staircase

The show was incredible and really did justice to the concept of 'Variety.' The acts ranged from a serene contortionist to the strangely enthralling  art of 'paper cutting,' whereby a lady stood on stage and cut silhouettes out of paper while the audience watched with bated breath. Ed performed his incredible dove act (I can never get over the finale- it's simply mind boggling!) and there was even a special surprise performance from Piff the Magic Dragon, who left the audience in stitches! The whole night was hosted by the hilarious Young and Strange who made a girl vanish into thin air!

The evening really was magical and I couldn't recommend the shows highly enough. The amount of skill and talent put on display is simply astonishing and made me wonder what on earth I was doing with my life! Unfortunately for you guys, I think this show may have been the last of its kind for now, but be sure to look out for it in the future- hopefully Ed will co-ordinate something similar at some point!

After the main show, a few of us got talking to the liveliest of characters I've met in a long time, Fay Presto, who also performed that night. She kindly invited us along to her local haunt which just happened to be Soho House! For the second time that night, we were ushered through a secretive door and up to the main bar where Fay hosted the most spirited table there. After showing us a trick which involved an entire napkin going up in flames and then reappearing scorch free, we ordered cocktails. Soho House still remains somewhat of a mystery. The bar appeared to be fairly ordinary, like a club house if anything. However, there were a number of doors leading off in various directions which I didn't get a chance to peak through and I bet hid much more interesting places- I heard whispers of a private cinema behind one of them..?

Eventually, Marcus and I excused ourselves and headed home. I'd had the most wonderful night and the best possible start to the weeks of freedom ahead.



Ps- apologies for the lack of pictures and for the number of links. The links for the acts however should point you in the right direction for the performers' showreels which will demonstrate some of what I got to see that evening. Enjoy!

Freedom!

I'm happy to say, as of this Thursday just past, my exams all finished. Finally! Therefore I've had a few fabulous, jam packed but well deserved days to celebrate! Posts to follow shortly, but I'll just leave you with the photo below on what's to come and I promise normal posting shall (at long last!) resume: