Rome: Day #1

Following a gruelling 4am wake-up, a two hour commute to Gatwick Airport and then the (fortunately very smooth) plane journey, it's fair to say that by the time we'd figured out which train to take from Fiumicino to Ostiense, and dragged our suitcases down the platform and onto the carriage, bedraggled is the only adjective that summarised our state. It was hot, we were tired and my stomach was growling. The train provided some respite though (take note, England, it was a double-decker - so much more space!) and we were, quite honestly, awash with anticipation. Upon disembarking, and subsequently realising I'd forgotten at home the print-out detailing our route from station to hotel, we resolved to the excessive use of hand gestures and map-pointing in order to gain some guidance. Having circled the station some three times in the scorching 32°C heat, we finally found someone who understood our phrasebook Italian (somehow Spanish and French came leaping out of my mouth first?) and rocked up at our abode one straight, three-minute walk later *sighs*.

It wasn't long after depositing our baggage that the bustle of the street below beckoned. We asked in the lobby how far The Colosseum was, and, ignoring advice that a train would be easiest, picked up the map, commencing our pursuit for perfect pizza and a first gelato. Now, I know a map chopped in half is hardly ideal but it was a real lifeline in our navigation of the city and its sites so it's important you can see (vaguely) what I'm blabbering on about. 

Wandering a city is, quite possibly, the best way to absorb it - its pace, lifestyle, vibe, aura, routine and peoples. You can miss a lot in dimly lit subways and dingy trains. Ostiense is not actually on the map; it's south-west of Circo Massimo (labelled) but a long street lined with quaint gelaterias, cafeterias, pizzerias & panetterias made for a dazzling first insight into the suburban side of this city. 

More tomorrow. SL x
P.S. Happy Friday! 

Pizza, Pizza, Pizza

Then, of course, there were the pizzas. Bar some arancini and a cheeky Mcdonalds (where they served Miami Fries...?), we ate nothing but pizza. In Rome it's often baked in large rectangular trays and sold in square slices by weight. This is known as Pizza al Taglio and the sheer abundance of it, that too in vegetarian varieties, made each mealtime choice a bittersweet one. Artichoke or asparagus, olives or onion, which to have? I'd take mental note of aaaaall the combinations (sometimes 5+) I'd liked to have tried and tell myself that I'd come back the next day - this never happened though, as the next pizzeria on would just add another 5 contenders to my toppings-to-try list. Yes, my eyes are alot bigger than my stomach.

Now, I was about to indulge you in yet another picture overload but I stopped dead in my tracks when I realised, no matter how beautiful, you all know what pizza looks like. Plus I wouldn't want you to think me... odd, photographing all this food when there is... well, so much history, culture, colour & wonder in every corner of the city. It does seems to happen all too often that I return home with more photos of food than of places and people. But I guess it's just as well because they sure come in handy on gloomy days, should I be reminiscing, and in need of a visual aide to recreate the essence of sunnier memories. 

I've [already] tried reworking some of the fabulous combinations I encountered (call it pizza withdrawal) and I will follow up with recipes but for now, I think, enough about pizza. 

SL x

Do As the Romans Do

You didn't honestly think I was going to start with anything BUT the food, did you?? Of course not. This is Italy we're talking about and quite frankly our days were planned around pizzeria perching and punctuated with stop-offs at various gelaterias. A typical day, really, went something like this:  
Breakfast. Coffee. Gelato. Pizza. Gelato. Gelato. Pizza. Gelato. I'm going to come to the pizzerias another time (trust me, they deserve an ENTIRE mention of their own) because today I want to focus on ice-cream, ice-cream and only ice-cream. Luckily for us it was a scorching 32°C throughout the holiday - even luckier, then, that our daily route from Ostiense (where our hotel was) to the Colosseum and beyond (Via Del Corsa, Trevi Fountain etc) was lined with quaint little ice-cream parlours vending every variety of gelato under the sun - from pecsa to panna cotta, limone to liquirizia, they had 'em all. 
What's baffling, though, is that no two gelaterias seemed to have the same selection - some favoured sticking to the traditional recipes (like hazelnut, coffee, chocolate & strawberry) whilst others' USP was innovation and invention. The prize for the wackiest we found goes to The Gelateria Punto Gelato...

I can imagine some of you recoiling at the very thought of this curious concoction, but, I tried it (how could I not?) and I assure you, it was the lightest, most refreshing sorbet I could've ever imagined. Sure it was peculiar, distinctly tomatoey and bordering on savoury... but it had a subtle sweetness and... well, it was just delicious really! 
I made a point of not having the same flavour twice and boy was that a good call 'cause I can't remember disliking a single one of them. Here are a lot of pictures of gelato for you. Try not to drool. 

SL x
Gelateria Punto Gelato, 00186 Via dei Pettinari 43, Roma, Italy.

Review: "Eat Your Way Around the World"

If there's one thing I miss about India [besides family, food, noise, vibrancy and the general palava all over the place] it's the huge American style malls that seem to be cropping up everywhere and the grand food courts they entail. Yes okay, Westfields and a handful of others have cottoned on to the idea (Thurrock's is particularly impressive), but they boast not even a fraction of the variety you find in say the Oberoi or Inorbit malls of Mumbai. Lets face it, deciding what to eat in large groups [read indecisive families] can always be tricky and ultimately result in a compromise. The solution? The Indian food court - buy what you want from wherever you want yet be able to enjoy your respective meals together.

And as we Indians go, we're well accustomed to the 'queue up for your food' system. If you don't believe me, tell me if YOU've ever been to an Indian wedding with table service...? Nahhhh, table service, what's that? We're pretty used to queuing and waiting our turn pushing and shoving to raid a buffet and pile our plates sky high. So I guess it comes as no surprise that as far as the new Jimmy's World Grill in Watford goes... well it's a smashhit success, with my bunch at least. Remember this post? Let's say Jimmy's is the perfectly cross-bred child of Elaichi and the Red Hot World Buffet - countless variety, value for money and best of all, a chocolate fountain! Give it a try if you haven't already, it is Friday after all. 

Happy weekend guys!

SL xx

...and the Southbank itself

So here I am, one day later one week later as promised expected... but I reckon it's all worked out for the best; had it been a cold, rainy or windy day, I guarantee you'd've thought I'd lost my mind - it is about taking a scenic walk along London's Southbank, give me some credit okay?!

Southish London. I'm not overly familiar with it, no real reason to trek so far you see. If you draw a straight line between the West End and High Street Ken, that's preeeeeeetty much my half of the playground. North of the river, yes, I hear you, didn't think of it before. But. As I'm learning, slowly but surely, London Bridge, Borough Market, the Tate and Southbank beyond do have their own little lure going. An eclectic mix of old and ultra-modern. But as it's not awfully frequent I'm in those areas, I'm ever so slightly embarrassed to admit that I jump right onto the tourist bandwagon - y'know, clicking away like crazy with my camera, always carrying a backpack (hey, it's a long way away for me okay?!) - for let's face it, you can't be standing in absolute awe of the Shard if you're actually from only 15 miles away and you're wearing wearing formal workwear with stiletto heels. Too many 'weirdo' glances. Try it out, can be good fun. 

...Views from the Southbank Centre (and free pianos in empty ballrooms, what's this all about?!)... ...and sights closer to the ground... ...grab a Wahaca* mmmmm.... ...reconstructed history... ...and actual history... ...then there's shopping of course (for food, the best type uh-huh) ...*or maybe you want to hold out some pizza, proper italienne... ...before feeling like an ant before an elephant...
And let's not forget Gabriel's Wharf... back tomorrow, for SURE!  
SL x
P.S. Happy Friiiiday in advance, long weekend whoop whoop!

sl Days Out: Alchemy at the Southbank

So now. Before I ended up marvelling at the marathon in a brief but eye-opening moment of enlightenment, the fundamental reason for my so bravely foraging into London on Sunday in the first place. 
Alchemy at the Southbank Centre, I find out in hindsight, is now in it's fourth year running (almost at a close now though) - a celebration and summation of absolutely everything I love about the Indian subcontinent; vibrant explosions of colour in the way of art & fabric exhibitions, hustling-bustling crowds, highly skilled performers and then some. Of course if you've gathered anything in the time you've spent reading along with me, you'll probably have guessed what I found to be the crowning glory... Yup, THE most spicy, mouthwateringly tasty Indian food market you can imagine. Sizzling pau bhajis & refreshing lassi, pani puri prepared as you eat and clay-pot chai - HEAVEN. 
  As luck would have it, of course, I happened to be the very last Londoner to learn of this little treasure's existence... Friday, to be precise, which was exactly...err one day before the festival's last weekend. Bit of a 'do or die' situation really. Go on over and have a nose around the website, I think I've gotten back to you in the nick of time should you fancy catching the tail end - I'll be back tomorrow with some more. 
x
Visit the Southbank Centre on Belvedere Rd, London SE1 8XX. Closest tube station: Waterloo. 

The Missing Week, in Instagrams*

*... of food, of course.

Right. I have one day off. And about 20 minutes to get my derrière showered, dressed, beautified (DON'T snigger, I heard that!) and out the door... so excuse the brevity and hastiness this post is quite clearly dripping of. BUT, be back tomorrow - 'til then, Happy Sunday.
1. Sunshine in the City at last.
2. Masala Chai - who needs to go to India anymore?!
3. The things you're resigned to reading when you finish the Metro cover to cover and the train still refuses to budge. 
4. Hangover cure.
5. Yes, more food. At least homemade though. #lunchdates
6. Columbia Road Flower Market - a feast for the senses, a beating for the wallet.
xx

Food: White Cross Street Market

If you live or work near the Barbican then you’ll probably know all about Whitecross Street Food Market - personally, it was something of a revelation a few summers ago... but it's come to be a bit of a go-to lately. It's fabulous, fresh and filling food for well under a fiver be it Thai, Mexican, Indian, Italian, Brazilian, Chinese or the traditional Friday fish & chips. Pie and mash, soups and sandwiches, salads, falafal, or maybe you fancy a curry? It’s all there and then some. Every day (though there is by far a lot more choice Thursday-Friday) from about 11 to 3, trucks + stalls boasting authentic, freshly prepared & lip-lickingly delicious cuisine from all around the world line this otherwise non-descript EC1 street, transforming it into an aromatic wonderland for foodies. It makes for a captivating atmosphere too, almost carnival-like, a vibrant, bustling melting pot of suit-clad city workers, many clearly regulars, tourists + food lovers.

Of the tried and tasted, I'd award first prize to possibly the most delicious Kachori Chaat known to mankind (outside of the homeland of course), a bowl full of steaming hot vegetable jalfrezi served with made-as-you-wait chappatis coming in a close second. The Vietnamese vegetable dumplings are worthy contenders (cheap as chips, literally, £1.50 for 4!) and while we're talking chips, this market certainly knows how to serve 'em crispy, crunchy and piping hot. I'm yet to try something Mexican at the Luardo's van (the queue's always too long by the time I get there - indicator, perhaps, that it's one of the better eats?) but I'm happily going to bumble my way through the stalls one by one.. of course for the pure and selfless reason of reporting my findings back to you...

...stay tuned ;)x

Visit Whitecross Street Market, Whitecross Street, Barbican, EC1 Monday-Friday 11am onwards.