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Peppered – Ozeri Moderna Pepper Grinder review

November 12, 2014

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Pepper. Aaah pepper. I love pepper, it is one of those things that I always have in my cupboard at home, as it can literally spice up any old boring food. I put it on everything from salads, to soups and tomato juice. And of course, nothing beats  freshly ground pepper, right?

Why am I talking about all of this? Because Ozeri has kindly sent me the Savore Soft Touch Electric Pepper Mill and Grinder for a review. So here it goes:

Pros: Its shape is ergonomic and has a non slip texture to it, that will avoid ruining it by dropping it in your soup or stew.

It also comes in a good decent size without being too bulky, which is ideal if you don’t have a lot of storage in your kitchen.

Has two grinding options fine and coarse, which you can use as required, depending on what dish you are seasoning.

I like the fact that I can easily grind my spices without much effort – due to the amount of computer usage I have hand pain frequently and strain is always best avoided.

The design looks elegant and it wouldn’t look bad if you put it on the table, unlike the manual pepper mills you get from the supermarket.

Cons: requires 6 AA batteries. That’s quite a lot of batteries. However, as the appliance is small they might last for a while. I’ll have to see how long they last.

Have you tried any electric pepper mill before?

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Things to do in Mallorca

October 24, 2014

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If you are looking for a getaway and not spending too much money, Mallorca is a great option. As  England is bracing itself for the cold weather, a few days in the sun and balmy temperatures is just what the doctor ordered.

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As it’s low season, you can find flights as cheap as £50 one way and there are plenty of good and economical options on Airbnb. We stayed for three nights with a really nice couple at a very central location, with a great view of the port and mountain and two lovely cats, for little over £100.

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Palma de Mallorca seems to be very popular with Germans. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many Germans in one place (yes, I’ve never been to Germany, tut tut). For the first time in my life I was spoken to in German, which was confusing because I don’t think I look German in the least. Not that it is important but nonetheless funny.

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First night we had dinner at La Boveda. Tapas and good wine, finished by sorbet de limón con cava. Paid an average of 50 euros per person but worth every cent. Delicious food. Don’t miss out on the boquerones, the smoked ham, the pimientos de padrón and the squid in black sauce.

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On the second day we went for a drive in the countryside and  around the island.

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Rock On!

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We went through the Tramuntana mountain on the way to Sollér, and you go through a carved up tunnel (you pay 5 euros toll, for a regular car).

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Stopped for lunch at Port de Valldemosa, at the Es Port restaurant. If you don’t like seafood and fish, go somewhere else, as there isn’t a lot of options on the menu, other than maritime creatures. Great food, 30 euros average per person.

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As you make your way around the island, there’s plenty of scenic views, where you can park your car and stop for a couple of pics. And cats. Loads of cats to play with and take pictures of – I was in heaven!

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In the old town centre in Palma de Mallorca,  the windy roads hide some architectural gems, as I was occasionally surprised by a few Art Nouveau buildings, with gorgeous details. The light is incredible and great for taking photos too.

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If you want to do some shopping, there are options for all budgets, from high end to high street prices. There are plenty of quirky shops too, just don’t expect much on the vintage side of things, as I didn’t see anything. There are a lot of local handicrafts available though and I would recommend taking a look at the bags made of straw and other vegetable fibers.

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The older part of Palma de Mallorca has an interesting mix of old and new. There is some street art to be seen every now and then.

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I have to also say that in this weekend I couldn’t help noticing the large number of penises scrawled around on walls, dirty windows, you name it. I didn’t bother to document them all but you can see what I’m talking about. Very rude!

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The cathedral was quite a sight. It took my breath away, as I entered and saw how big it was. The stained glass roses are definitely a must see and there are a handful of interesting pieces in the cloisters museum.

 

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Another nice place for dinner is Quina Creu, with a great selection of wines, tapas, pintxos and other main courses. Definitely worth a visit.

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During the day you can eat tapas in terraces all across town (or the whole island, even) and stuff yourself with jamon iberico, a delicious specialty. funnily enough a lot of things including the food made me think about home, which wasn’t a bad thing per se. It just made me feel very comfortable.

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I really enjoyed these days away and I would definitely be happy to go back. The combination of affordable great food and travel, with sunny weather and beautiful landscapes definitely make Mallorca a destination to go back to.

art, London

The Nervemeter

October 22, 2014

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One of these days, after one of those networking events (can’t complain, really, met some interesting people), we were approached by a homeless man, selling a magazine. I expected it to be The Big Issue but he said it was something else. Something that was started by people who did work for The Big Issue before but had left, to do something different.

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I recognised Edgar Allan Poe in the cover, we all had a laugh over that (I’m so clever, aren’t I?), I gave him the £3 and as soon as I opened the magazine, found a quote by Aleister Crowley, right on the 3rd page. ‘This could be interesting, I thought’. And indeed it

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The Nervemeter is much, much darker than The Big Issue could ever be. It’s a mish mash of images and quotes and images about all sorts of addiction: Sex, heroin, alcohol… you name it. The imagery is right up my street. Creepy,  dark, thought provoking.

Reminds me of fanzines from back in the day. The collages, the black and white printing, the ‘forbidden’ themes. You can see the current issue and download previous issues here. I’m devouring them.

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This was very welcome with someone of my tastes but I wonder how well it was received by the public in general?

art, London

The Failure of the American Dream by Phil America

September 10, 2014

The other week I attended the exhibition Failure of the American Dream by Phil America, curated by friend and fellow blogger Victoria Villasana (AKA Syle Marmalade). Here’s a short description of the project, from Victoria’s blog:

“This pop-up exhibition was presented with video installations, where Phil America draws the audience into a dangerous month of living far below the poverty line, this time in San Jose’s The Jungle, America’s largest Tent City; In this piece, Phil lives each day with its residents and learns to defend himself in an autonomous society where its residents are surrounded with violence and despair on a daily basis the video was accompanied by a sculptural installation of his tent and belongings  which Phil America relied on during a month inside Silicon Valley’s ‘jungle camp’ where hundreds of homeless live in tents, caves and tree huts.”

Sadly, too many live in these conditions in the world, not just in America. The problem here is that America is one of the richest countries in the world and yet there’s so much poverty that people choose to ignore or pretend it doesn’t exist. It isn’t just all Hollywood glamour and to me this is one of the scariest things about the US and one of the reasons I had decided I didn’t want to o live there with Mr D. How is it possible that so many people still resist access to medical care or even basic help is beyond me.

The people portrayed here are real, they’re not part of a movie set and it’s interesting how to me, the presence of the tent makes it somehow more real. More tangible. The projected images are not just a film. They are real people and that reality is brought forward by the presence of a material object that was part of it. Shocking. As it should be.

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My shoe fetish – wedges

June 27, 2014

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Introducing a new feature – My Shoe Fetish. Because everyone knows I have a problem. Wedges have been known since Ancient Greece and they’re so stylish that it’s no surprise that it is still in use today. Salvatore Ferragamo brought wedges back into modern fashion in the 1930’s and they’ve never left! It is one of my favourite styles because it’s comfortable and you don’t have to sacrifice your style to be taller. Here are some from my collection, photographed in my old bathroom.

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Shoes by (in order of appearance) Cholas, by Irregular Choice, H&M, B-Store, Iron Fist, Office, JC Penney.