#109 dining with a view: Wild Jordan cafe

When i travel and visit new places, exploring cafes and dining places is one of the most exciting things. Though hotel where i stayed (Toledo hotel, highly recommend it) offered great variety of local cuisine, I just had to check what Amman has to offer. For vegetarian and non-vegetarian people, but who value quality, organic food, Jordan wild cafe is a must-visit place.

Well, first of all, before i even sat at the table, i was amazed by the beautiful scenery and the city view and got stuck on the terrace for a while as i enjoyed the view. The cafe located on several floors has probably one of the most stunning views over the city.

Wild Cafe in essence is a an arm of a social enterprise which uses only locally produced products and prepares healthy, low-fat meals including also various local herbal teas and awesome smoothies.

So, finding a place with beautiful scenery and healthy, tasty food – that’s a bliss.

Price: for a salad, tea and smoothie – about 10GBP/10JOD.

Duration: 2 hours (they have there free wi-fi and interesting shop with handmade things made in Jordan (Death sea mud soaps!!);

Amazingness: definitely one of the must-visit places when in Amman;

May 9, 2014

 

#105 Amsterdam – Utrecht – Amsterdam = 98km

What can you do with two good friends and a weekend in Holland?

Of course, you can rent bikes (12 EUR for 2 days only, by the way) and cycle from Amsterdam to Utrecht and back. Only 98km in 2 days!

It’s easy, fun and great exercise! 😉

well, the story was..

We pre-ordered our bikes at Mike Bike Tour before arriving in Amsterdam, and following a tourist guide book on cycling routes in the Netherlands we just got on our bikes on the Saturday morning and hoped it will all work out well. And it did, despite the fact that the last time i was cycling was about 2 years ago. Not only Amsterdam but all country is a paradise for cyclists. Cyclist roads, road signs are so easy to follow that we rarely lost our way. And, it’s easy to cycle as the country is pretty flat, but, with a nice lovely, somewhat romantic at times, countryside scenery, it is a really enjoyable journey. You can cycle along the highways, but we chose the little roads through little villages passing farms and going through parks and forests. We did 46km on the first day and felt so great (excluding few painful knees and bums).

The next morning one of us did not want to cycle again (!!), but the other two did not want to give up so easily therefore democracy won and the compromise was reached: we will cycle only to the little town not so far from Utrecht where we can have a coffee and then take a train to Amsterdam. We got there much sooner than we thought and the cycling through the parks/ semi-forests freshened up us that eventually we all three agreed that we can continue further. Not all the way to Amsterdam, but to the next bigger town, from where we can take the train to Amsterdam. We got there so fast and it was already a half way to Amsterdam, when we realized that actually we can do it and cycle all the way back to Amsterdam. And we did it.

It was actually hard at times and sometimes you ask why you are doing this. But, once you complete it, it feels so great! 98km sounds a lot, but it’s not an impossible distance. Limits are in our heads only.

A friend from Italy just told me that there is a nice cycling route from Naples to Bari. Only 323km. I am thinking about this… 🙂

Price: 12 EUR for renting the bikes + accommodation in Utrecht;

Duration: 2 days but actual cycling was maybe 5 hours a day, not more. We were taking quite few coffee and photo breaks. 🙂

Amazingness: feeling proud of what you can achieve and complete, testing our limits – that’s amazing!

May 6, 2014

 

#101 cycling around Amsterdam

For someone coming from London cycling means not only being brave, but being even reckless. On my first day i automatically bought a day travel card to get around the city (they have trams and metro there); however, i soon realized that renting a bike is not only cheaper, but it is also really safe. Cyclists here are treated as integral part of the city’s traffic system with their own cycling lanes, traffic lights and street signs. What can go wrong here with such a cycling-friendly infrastructure?

 

We used Mike’s Bike Tours company (look for this monkey in the picture on your left to find the entrance into their ‘office’) which seemed like never would run out of bikes. Very good prices and friendly service.

Price: 6 EUR a day;

Duration: cycle as much as you can and want and go as far as you want and can;

Amazingness: apart form walking, probably the best way to explore Amsterdam;

May 4, 2014.

 

#95 little garden

everyone needs to have a garden. If you have a house and a nice, green, spacious garden – big enough for flowerbeds, BBQs, sunbathing and plants, it’s awesome. But for those, who live in a flat or for any other reason dont have a garden, there is always a way around: a tiny garden just by the window. Like mine – it is not big at all, but it will bring a joy in the form of fresh  herbs for my meals. A small thing, but amazing. I am still waiting until parsley, basil and spring onions are big enough to use them, but it gonna be soon.

Price: 5GBP for the set of little buckets, soil and seeds;

Amazingness: your own grown food always tastes so much better;

Duration: these should last for all summer; and i can always just plant more seeds.

April 20, 2014

 

 

#92 aqua spinning

With respect to physical exercise and fitness, yoga is my priority, however i like to experiment and try other/ new sport activities as well. The discovery of this week is aqua spinning offered by AquaFitPro: it is just like a normal spin class but in water. They say, it is probably one of the most effective calories’ burners ever. In a 45 min class you may burn up to 800kcal, which is a lot. Aqua spin is hard. Few times my eyes were stressfully looking around for a wall clock so see how soon the end of the class will be. But it was fun. And trainers know how to push you.

 

Price: from 10GBP per class;

Amazingness: it’s great; it definitely makes me want to do some more of aqua spin;

Duration: 45 min.

April 15, 2014

 

#90 feeling the spirit of London marathon

since I live in London, i have tried not to miss the London marathon which i find to be one of the most inspirational events i have ever attended or watched. You see hundreds and thousands of people testing their power of will, strength and stamina, motivations and determination to complete this challenge despite sweat and pain. Just from watching i get so much energy, inspiration and motivation to work on my own things because it makes me think – if so many other people can do, so can i. All you need is focus, determination and ‘yes, i can’ attitude.

Moreover, one of my colleagues ran this Marathon for the second time willing to beat herself 30 years ago. And – she did; she completed it 2 minutes faster than when she was in her 20s. it’s absolutely fantastic! She showed us the medal she got and all i could do is – make my reverence to her!

Price: zero for watching;

Amazingness: inspiration is amazing

Duration: it is very busy for about 4-5 hours;

April 13, 2014

 

#76 how insane is ‘Insanity’?

The first time i heard about Insanity was about half a year ago when one of my friends on Facebook was telling about it. He was doing a home version, every day for few months and could not believe himself that his round belly got gradually replaced with 6-pack kind of stomach. Then i got curious and watched some of the videos on YouTube like this one and it made me think – am i lazy, am i not hardworking enough and dont i have will power? Couldn’t i do this too?

And, just very recently i found out about Insanity trainer in London and with a special intro deal I decided to check it out how insane this ‘Insanity’ is.

Insanity class lasts only 30 minutes, but it’s incredibly insane, with lots of jumps, push-ups and squatting. For someone like me who isnt used to cardio exercises, this was a challenge, but i survived. And, knowing what one can achieve as a result of all this sweat and pain, it keeps you pushing yourself and prevents from giving up. Doing it every day (that’s what you are supposed to do for 60 days to see obvious and amazing results) requires massive will power, but that’s how we develop and improve ourselves mentally and physically. So, if you believe you have a strong will-power, try Insanity. That will tell you the truth.

Price: from what i see, normally this is more expensive than other fitness classes; much cheaper is to do home DVD version;

Amazingness: Insanity class as such isnt amazing, but the result it;

Duration: just 30 min. Just 30 min of suffering. every day.

April 1, 2014

 

#75 acting as a fitness geek

My innocent today’s plan to relax by attending the Be Fit London women’s health and fitness festival ended up being a day long fitness challenge:

• 5km brisk walk to the venue;
• Insanity class – ok, it’s official – it’s indeed insane!
• Sleek technique class – great semi-aerobics class which slightly reminded me of my childhood ballet classes;
• ‘Whipped’ by Equinox; – fast, comprehensive series of exercises training various groups of muscles and combining cardio and strength;
• contemporary yoga by David Olton – interesting combination of contemporary dance and yoga; amazing how natural it actually felt;
• 5km brisk walk back home.

In between these i tried rowing machine, took part in plank challenge, got inspired by Victoria Pendleton telling about what it takes to win Olympics and tested loads of healthy, delicious goodies. I am also hoping that i will win at least one freebie offered by the exhibitors in exchange of giving them my email address (particularly, i would not mind winning a free boot camp weekend).

There were so many other things i had to do today, but at the end of the day i must say – i have not felt so tired and inspired for a long time. It was all absolutely worth it.

Price: 18GBP – the entrance fee;

Amazingness: the most amazing thing is that after all this i still managed to walk all the way back home. It’s all in our heads, i guess.

Duration: 7 hours.

March 29, 2014

 

#74 getting the most delicious bread from home

Whenever somebody from Latvia visits me in London, all i ask them is – just bring me a loaf of dark rye bread. Or two. And, not just any kind, but specific Kelmeni dark rye bread, which individually is signed off on its label by the bread baker. Latvian dark rye bread is much darker than Lithuanian dark bread and any dark bread i have seen in Scandinavia. Kelmeni dark bread i can recognize by its smell. It’s awesome. Some people find it too heavy, but i say – it’s nutritious, healthier than white bread and yes – two slices of bread with cheese, ham, tomatoes or whatever is your preference you have had a meal. It’s not a side or for snacking. It’s food.

Friends who visited me this week brought, of course, me this Kelmeni bread and also as a bonus – so called ‘Festival bread’ (made by Lielezers): dark bread with dried fruits and nuts. This is my the second most missed food stuff from Latvia. If you spread a slice of this Festival bread with honey and take with coffee or tea, it tastes absolutely heavenly.

So, if you ever have a chance, try these ‘gems’ from Latvia. You wont find anywhere anything similar to these.

Price: Kelmeni dark rye bread – about 2.50GBP a loaf, Festival bread – about 4-5GBP per loaf.

Amazingness: absolute deliciousness;

Duration: unfortunately these do not last long.

March 28, 2014

 

 

#73 walking under the Thames

London is amazing. Did you know that there is a foot tunnel going under the Thames connecting Greenwich and Isle of Dogs? It’s fascinating and if time allows, i always make sure that my friends, who visit London (that’s a price for being a Londoner – you eventually, willingly or not, become a pretty regular tourist guide), do walk under the Thames. Apparently, this tunnel is more than 100 years old now, and every time i walk through it, i just cant stop being fascinated by what human mind can do.

The best way to visit is to take DLR from Bank (direction Lewisham), get off at Island Garden’s station. Once you are on the opposite side of the river – Greenwich, it’s perfect to climb up to the Greenwich observatory, visit Greenwich market or learn about Cutty Stark.

Price: just the cost of getting there; there is no fee to use the tunnel;

Amazingness: it’s definitely unique experience;

Duration: it takes about 3 minutes to walk through it, i think.

March 27, 2014