February 2021 Archives

With a spell of a couple of days of warmer weather recently, the days are beginning to feel more like spring than winter. We are still firmly in winter until the 20th of March, but I think many will agree that winter is making a way out with an spring feeling as the days are getting longer and less chilly. Snowdrops started to make their appearance a little over a month ago, and crocuses followed by peeking their heads out three weeks ago and are curently in their prime. While it is slightly early for daffodils, they have also started to bloom in the last week too.

Eastcote House Gardens has become one of my favourite places to visit, though it has been getting particularly busy in the past week. I captured the below photograph of primroses at the end of January. There were a few different colours.

Over the course of the past few weeks, I have been documenting the beautiful snowdrops that are planted in the grounds of Eastcote House.

The crocuses started to make an appearance at the end of January/beginning of February.

The spring bloosoms have started to make an appearance recently too.

Now, the crocuses are out in their prime and enjoying the full sun that we have had over the past few days. There is a cluster of them at Eastcote House Gardens and a whole bank full of them along the road in the grounds of Eastcote Cricket Club.

It is slightly early for daffodils, my favourite spring flower, but a few of them have decided to bloom in the past week as well.

I am really looking forward to spring. It has been a very long winter and a very long year in general, and being stuck at home and in the middle of the lockdown has been far from easy. It's worse when the days are short and cloudy. The sun has always made a lot of difference to me; I think most people feel happier when they see the sun.

Earlier this month, we had a few days in a row that did not get above freezing and a dusting of snow. Since everyone is in lockdown, the public footpaths and trails have been exceptionally muddy. The freeze, at least, froze much of the mud into place so that it was easier to walk on. Ruislip Woods is comprised of nearly 730 acres of woodland to the north of Ruislip, and each area of the woods has its own name. I visited Copse Wood and Poor's Field on this visit. Mad Bess Woods is located across a busy road from Copse Wood in an area known as Duck's Hill.

Ruislip Woods is woodland located at the top of Ruislip and Ruislip Manor and located around three sides of Ruislip Lido. As mentioned, each area of the woodland have different names. Copse Wood is comprised of the largest area to the north of the lido and comprised of some areas of dense woodland on top of a hill. The lowest section of this area of the woods to the west was the former location of the Battle of Britain House, which was reclaimed by nature after the house burnt down in 1984. Park of Copse Wood is located on the summit of Duck's Hill with the north part of the woods downhill and a slight incline on the southern side toward the lido. 

Poor's Field is located at the far eastern edge of the woodland, bordering Haste Hill Golf course and miniature railway station. This section of the woods is less woodland and more pasture land, and it is used for grazing. 

South of the lido is primarily Park Wood, which runs north of the housing at the top of Ruislip and Ruislip Manor. Park Wood is the second largest section of the woods around the lido and is my favourite part of the woodland with some pleasant trails and streams running through the area. The smaller section to the west of Park Wood is Ruislip Common, making up a smaller section of Park Wood.

The photographs in this post are of Copse Wood and Poor's Field. There are a few main trails through Copse Wood with part of the area appearing to be newer woodland. With all of the rain freezing, a stream formed down the hillside on one of the trails in a sheet of ice.

The below image is at the edge of Poor's Field and Copse Wood.

Haste Hill station is a minature railway station that runs alongside Ruislip Lido.

The lido water was very high with some of the jetties and trees submerged.

The below three photographs are taken at the edge of Copse Field and Poor's Field by the main lido entrance and car parking.

This area of woodland, just north of the Battle of Britain House and toward the summit of the hill (Duck's Hill) has the older and denser woodland, and it makes a nice walk.

I think spring, summer, and early autumn will be more enjoyable visits to Ruislip Woods, and I will definitely be returning again.

More posts about Ruislip:

A Wintery Walk in Mad Bess Wood (Ruislip, West London)
A Snow Day in Ruislip
Visiting the Battle of Britain House Ruins in Ruislip Woods
Ruislip "Summer of 1939" Vintage Car Show
Ruislip Fairy Village
Easter in Ruislip (Easter Eggs & Duck Pond Markets)
Ruislip Lido Railway & Ruislip Woods Open Day

The Celandine Route is located in the borough of Hillingdon in west London, and it follows the River Pinn from Hayes through Ruislip and then finishes at Pinner. There is a twelve-mile walkway through meadows, parks, and woodlands along the river from end to end. The route is named after the Lesser Celandine, a yellow flowering woodland plant that thrives in wooded shade. The walk can be completed in six hours, but I only walked a part of the route from Eastcote House to Pinner. I walked the route in the middle of January.

I started at Eastcote House, which I previously wrote about here: Eastcote House at Christmas. Eastcote House has become a favourite local place of mine that I have been visiting once every couple of weeks during this difficult time. Although the house no longer remains, the stables, cafe, walled gardens, and flower beds remain and are cared for by community volunteers.

I enjoy sitting in the walled garden and having a bite to eat for lunch. In early January, this little robin stood next to me during my visit, and it chirped away happily.

The River Pinn is located just below Eastcote House on the slope downward to plains where visitors can cross the river and muddy turf on a walkway and wooden bridge. 

I visited since my walk, and the river was much higher. We have been getting a lot of rain and snow.

Along the route, information boards explain the route and what different types of plants and animals can be seen along it. Each area is also marked as a route. At the bottom of Eastcote House is a large flood plain that takes several minutes to walk. Part of the walk is paved, but most of it is not. The large amount of people and dogs that walk the route mean that it is very muddy in places. 

Some of the first signs of spring were noticed on my visit at the end of January with these purple crocuses.

The walk is a pleasant one, and I enjoyed this part of the walk the best with its large trees and open area. However, it was so muddy in a couple of places, and that was not at all enjoyable.

There is a small bridge near part of the walkway, if you wish to walk close to the river. It was so muddy. I did not walk through it.

Crossing a narrow road meant that I was on the other side of this flood plain and met with another and more narrow plain with large houses on both sides. The river bent around and changed direction here, and this was probably the muddiest bit, even muddier than the picture with the bridge in this post. There was no way to avoid the mud. 

A couple of photos below show the worst area with the mud, and the other photographs show the entrance to the wooded area entrance.

Here at the wooded area is a part of the trail that leads off to the main roads and housing estates in Eastcote or Pinner. The Celandine Route is marked on the map. A bridge links one of the housing estates with the route.

The wooded area was less muddy because the trees soak up the water. The walkways were defined through the trees and follows the river closely.

There was one muddy patch, but it was not too bad.

The below photograph shows how close the trail is to the river, and this is probably the closest that it has even gotten to the river.

Foamy dirt settles on top of the river where it funnels around a turn in the forest. There are houses on both sides with one side having the woods back onto the properties.

At the other side of the wooded area and before we say goodbye to the river, there are community allotments along the path. 

The house at the very end of the trail, before the gate to exit the wooded walkway, has a view over the river and a large decking area. I thought it was a cafe.

The Celandine Route heads to Pinner Memorial Park, but I had a little walk to Pinner Village Gardens, which is a large garden area that was laid out in the 1930s, according to the signs. It's a bit hibernating at the moment due to the cold winter months, but I can see how this would be an attractive spot. There are little gardens set out amongst the grounds and play areas for children.

At the other end of the gardens is Marsh Road, which leads to Pinner underground station and the main street with cafes and shops. I did not wander to the High Street, which is an attractive place, due to running out of time. I did not want to walk through the park land and grounds alone in the dark.

The actual Celandine Route ends at Pinner Memorial Park. There is a museum here to visit, and I will visit it once it reopens. The museum is the Heath Robinson museum, and he was an illustrator for books and a cartoonist. 

I walked briskly back to Eastcote House Gardens, and if approaching from the Pinner direction, Eastcote House is in front and across the bridge. The building seen is the dovecote, and you can also see the walls of the walled garden.

I'll leave you with a sunny photograph of Eastcote House.

I think that the route is probably very muddy in the winter and autumn months where there is more rain. I hope to walk the route again soon, although walking in the mud is not the most enjoyable of activities. I hope to visit during the different seasons to spot some of the plants and animals and enjoy what the local area has to offer. I would also recommend if you are not local to the area once the restrictions are lifted.

Edlingham Castle is the ruins of a fortified house located in Northumberland near the Scottish border. The castle ruins today include walls of a tower and an interior cobbled courtyard that was enclosed with a wall. The house included two storeys and was built on its own but later defended with a multi-storey "solar tower" and a wall built around it due to groups of raiders along this area on the English-Scottish border. The castle dates from the 1300s and was inhabited until the 1600s. 

Edlingham Castle is located down a path from St. John the Baptist church in Edlingham. The castle is located about a five minute walk down a gradual slope.

The courtyard of the castle had various buildings such as a bakehouse and brewhouse and probably other workhouses.

Edlingham is in a valley, but the views from the tops of the hills nearby are spectacular.

Edlingham Castle is maintained by English Heritage, and there is no fee to visit the castle. There is very limited parking at the site, but visitors can park near the fence or on the curbs in the village.

We are near the end of February now, and this month has been a cold one. We are still in lockdown and have been for many months now; in fact, it has nearly been a year with lockdowns and restrictions. This year, February brought us a few days where the temperatures did not get above freezing, and we had dustings of snow in London (although other areas did have more snow). Work have allowed us to be flexible, so we have been able to work longer during the other days of the week and finish at mid-day on Fridays, and I have used this time to get out of the house for my weekly walk. I've been exploring local places. Additionally, we have been seeing some glimmers of hope with the fight in the pandemic. Obviously, there is still a way to go and some countries are ahead of others when it comes to the control and mass vaccinations. But there is hope.

One area that I enjoy walking around is Ruislip. I've enjoyed spending time here since soon after I moved to Ruislip. The old manor house and barn are beautiful buildings, and I do enjoy the bi-monthly Duck Pond Market here. The manor house is a small local museum and worth a visit, and it is located at the site of a motte and bailey castle and a small monastary of sorts. A cluster of snowdrops brightened my mood. It's such a lovely place to visit.

There were a few days where the temperatures did not get above freezing, and the motte (moat) was frozen solid. I saw a couple of people standing on it, so it was good and solid.

The other news from yesterday evening is that the restrictions will be eased in phases with a possible idea that everything would be reopened by the end of June. I guess we will see if that happens, but I always knew that Easter was much too soon for many restrictions to be lifted. At the moment, it looks like only some schools with younger children and meeting outdoors with one other house will be permitted by Easter. Toward the end of May, other shops and a few venues will be allowed to reopen, but we have to wait until the end of June (at the earliest) for everything to reopen. By this time, the total lockdown will have gone on for over eight months for us living in or near London. (Ok, we did have about two weeks in December where the restrictions were partially lifted, but we were locked down from the beginning of November all the way through to the present and will be until the end of June at the earliest).

So, what have I been doing? It's honestly a continuation of the past seven years for me now with working hard and not being able to take holidays, which has been tough because I love travel, but I couldn't do it then due to full workloads and short rolling contracts. However, I am not working all the time like previously, and I've been reading a lot and also walking on Fridays when it is not as busy.

I am looking forward to brighter days and being able to get out and see something new, even if it means that it's just in this country for now. I hope that things continue to improve, though I always expected that it may be autumn before things start to look really promising. I hope you are all staying safe and well.

Finally, London has a pizza-by-the-slice option, and it's been long overdue. Slices of pizza are common lunch or snack options in the states, and I missed them when I moved to the UK nearly twenty years ago. Now, thanks to Pizza Pilgrim's (previous post here: A Cheesey Collaboration Between Pizza Pilgrims and The Cheese Bar), Londoners can now buy a slice of pizza instead of a whole one.

Slice by Pizza Pilgrim's is locatd on Southbank. Their restaurant boasts alcoholic slushies and a 1990's arcade, but I was not able to visit in the restaurant as it is currently closed. However, visitors to Southbank can still order a slice of pizza outside the restaurant.

The slice can be enjoyed along the Southbank by the Thames as there are plenty of places to sit and enjoy watching the world go by. What's my verdict? Was the pizza tasty? Yes, the pizza was absolutely delicious. I had the pepperoni pizza, and it was tasty without being greasy or too filling with a great topping to crust ratio. I hope to re-visit Slice as soon as I am able to and the restaurant has re-opened. 

Mad Bess Woods is one of the wooded areas that make up the larger Ruislip Woods in west London despite being separated by the larger Ruislip Woods by a road. Mad Bess Woods connects Bayhurt Woods. It is an area of ancient woodland with a couple of different species of oak and hornbeam, which are coppiced or trimmed to encourage growth; coppicing them will allow them to live over four times as long. There are footpaths that go directly through the middle of the woods as well as footpaths that go along the perimeter, and one such footpath is on the Hillingdon Trail through the borough. The woods is a typical one that would have covered the country after the Ice Age. More recently, the woods was used for hunting.

The name of the woods probably came from a caretaker called "Bess". There was a caretaker of this name who would monitor the woods and protect them against poachers. She was known by the poachers as "Mad Bess", so that probably describes that she did her job well to be imortalised in such a way. 

I started my walk from the south perimeter, which I later learned was called "Young Wood" at one time. Back in 1837 on February 16, a 15-year old boy named John Brill was killed while he was helping farmers with work, such as cutting some bushes. He had informed the police about the names of some poachers, and although the murderers were never convicted, it would have most likely been them that killed the boy for revenge. The boy's body lay covered and undiscovered for three days despite search parties. It is a sad story.

On my walk, the ground was still frozen. This meant that there was less mud because the mud was frozen, and snow still spotted the ground. 

The south-eastern part of the woods backs onto Brekspear Crematorium.

One of the secrets of Mad Bess Wood is the open-air chapel in a clearing at the edge of the woods. A paving in the shape of a cross or chapel is laid on the forest floor with the walls made of hedge. A fence can be opened for visitors to enter the chapel. It is near the edge of the forest where a campsite was set up for children to use in days gone by. (I'm not sure if this is still used.) The gate is covered with memorials to "The Youth of Ruislip" who lost their lives during World War II. The gate also has a couple of memorials to members of the public for scouts.

A couple of places in Mad Bess Woods was still muddy, but most of the mud was frozen, which made it much more pleasant to walk in instead of thick and annoying mud. The temperature did not get above freezing all day.

I wore boots on my visit this time after being caught out at how muddy the trails and woods is on other visits.

I found the middle of the woods and the walkway to be more interesting. There are a few streams that run through the woods.

The sun came up during the end of my visit. I am looking forward to visiting the woods when spring comes. The bluebells in this woods and in Bayhurst Woods are meant to be very pretty, so I am planning to visit the woods then. Watch this space.

Street artist Dale Grimshaw has painted a wall on the high profile corner of Hanbury Street and Brick Lane recently. The mural design coincides with artwork that the artist painted on a London bus panel to raise charity for a decommissioned bus to be turned into accommodation for homeless people in London. Dale Grimshaw's work has been appearing over London for many years now, and the work that he has produced over the past few years aims to bring attention to West Papua. The portraits are likenesses of the people from there.

Unfortunately, the work was damaged within a week or two of being placed, and it was heavily tagged over. It's such a beautiful piece that it is a shame that it was destroyed before too many people coud enjoy it.

For more murals by Dale Grimshaw on this blog, see the posts below:

Dale Grimshaw Paints Hanbury Street for Well Hung Gallery Exhibition
Dale Grimshaw Paints For Manchester's "Cities of Hope Festival"
Dale Grimshaw Paints the Village Underground Wall, Part 2
Dale Grimshaw Paints Hanbury Street Ahead of "Pride and Prejudice" Exhibit
Dale Grimshaw Paints the Village Underground Wall
Dale Grimshaw Mural in Support of Papua New Guinea
Street Art: Dale Grimshaw, Icon, Code FC, Low Bros, El Mac and others

Street artist Zabou painted this new mural, titled "Good Vibes" with the model saxophonist Nubya Garcia. The mural was painted at the end of February in 2020 off of Kingsland Road and is a tribute to jazz music. This is one of the artist's largest-scale murals.

Previous Zabou murals that have appeared on this blog include:

Zabou Paints "Sisters" on Kingsland Road
Zabou Paints Audrey Hepburn on Brick Lane
Zabou: "Jack the Ripper" Street Art
Zabou: 'Racism is a Virus' Street Art
New Murals by Zabou in East London (Clockwork Orange, Sherlock, David Bowie)
Zabou "The Shining" and Refresh of Salvador Dali in Spitalfields
Villana and Zabou Collaborate on Amy Winehouse Street Art
Zabou paints Sid Vicious from 'The Sex Pistols'
Zabou Paints Freda #2 at Broadway Market
Zabou Paints Salvador Dali on Commercial Road
Koeone and Zabou Collaborate
"Keep Out!" Street Art by Zabou
Zabou's 'Cabinet of Curiosity' Street Art
Leake Street Tunnels Street Art, Spring 2016
Recent Street Art by Zabou
Street Art: Zabou

Pancake Day 2021 is very different this year; it is a lockdown Pancake Day. Last year, Pancake Day fell at the end of February, and I had gone to work and had pancakes for lunch in Covent Garden (see my post from last year: Happy Pancake Day! Pancakes at Pancs, Covent Garden). This day was the first day where I started to learn about COVID-19 and started to be careful and also started to feel anxious about being out. This year, there aren't any restaurants nor cafe's open to eat inside (or outside), so Pancake Day had to be enjoyed from home. Unfortunately, my pancakes do not look very attractive, but I tried!

I ordered some pancake mixes from Etsy from a company that creates different flavours of mixes. The Little Pancake Company started up inspired by childhood memories of making pancakes on Shrove Tuesday and then carrying the tradition with friends and flatmates. Quality ingredients are used in the mixes. The Little Pancake Company want its customers to enjoy pancakes at any day of the year, and in America, pancakes are a common breakfast food. Each pancake mix sold allows the company to donate a hot meal to a needy person through a charity known as FoodCycle. 

I ordered three different pancake mixes: apple crumble and cinnamon, toffee apple, and rocky road. The mixes require egg and buttermilk (though you can substitute milk and a squeeze a lemon for buttermilk). The apple crumble and cinnamon pancakes were too lumpy, and the apple chunks in it did not seem to cook well. I had better luck with the toffee apple.

Today, I had the Rocky Road pancake mix, which contains chunks of dark chocolate and marshmallows. To finish it off, I covered it in chocolate spread. It did not look very attractive, but it was tasty. This and the Toffee Apple mixes were my favourites.

I hope you had a great Pancake Day and managed to flip pancakes without too much of a mess. Happy Lockdown Pancake Day!

I wanted to wish all of my readers a Happy Valentine's Day! I know we are still in lockdown here in the U.K., and I hope that we can start to get back to normal by the autumn. Hopefully, places will re-open again like they did for part of the summer last year. I can't wait for museums, galleries, theatres, and other attractions to re-open. There are not too many places to walk around where I live, and I am looking forward to seeing something different.

Valentine's Day was a quiet one. Roses have brightened the room for me, at least, and the mini bottles of Prosecco and chocolates make an extra treat.

Lola's cupcakes are yummy, and they have the special Valentine's Day editions that I posted about yesterday:  Valentine's Day Treats in London 2021.

Happy Valentine's Day, and I hope we can all have brighter days soon.

Normally, London's bakeries, cafes, and restaurants have a few cute Valentine's Day treats on offer to customers looking for a treat for someone special or to treat themselves. This year, some of those bakeries and cafes remain closed due to the pandemic, but I've provided a few options below that are still open. Some of these options do also deliver in case you're looking to treat that special person in your life. Unfortunately, I've not been able to really get out this year due to obvious reasons.

Humble Crumble: Humble Crumble have become a firm favourite selling crumble in a short amount of time. They only launched at the beginning of 2020, and they have managed to do well with their delicious crumbles. The crumbles have been made seasonal by different toppings, and the Valentine's Day option does not disappoint. Last year, the Valentine's Day option had a simple marshmallow rose on top. This year, it could also include a solid ruby chocolate heart. The flavour of the crumble was Prosecco and strawberry. Visitors also received a tulip with their orders. 

Photo courtesy of Krispy Kreme

Krispy Kreme: 
The American doughnut company became a firm favourite on British shores when it opened its first shop in Harrods around twenty years ago. While they no longer sell in Harrods, they have several high street shops, sell in some Tesco grocery stores, sell online, and also sell via courier websites in some areas. This year, Krispy Kreme have partnered with Swizzle Love Hearts for their Valentine's Day special: Krispy Kreme Love Hearts. There are four different flavours, each in a different colour and topped with different slogans, such as "love me" and "hug me". Green is chocolate kreme filling, pink a strawberry and sherbet kreme filling, yellow a lemon and sherbet kreme filling, and purple a sherbet kreme filling. 

I had actually purchased three of these different doughnuts from the limited edition range, but they got completely smashed in my bag, and I've had to use a stock photograph from Krispy Kreme instead of a creative photograph that I planned. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, I'm restricting what I carry to avoid possible transmission of the virus to protect my safety. 

The doughnuts do have a similar taste to the Love Hearts candy. I love the kreme filling, but my favourte are the chocolate-iced doughnuts with vanilla kreme filling, which they have not sold in the UK for a few years now and only bring out on special events. 

Blondies Kitchen: Last year, I treated the bloke to a giant Valentine's Day cookie from Blondies Kitchen. Founded in 2016 by two professionally-trained chefs, they are a relatively new cookie company. They opened a cookie and milk bar at Selfridges on Oxford Street and have started nationwide deliveries last year, offering their delicious cookies and cookie gifts during lockdown. During Valentine's Day, they make personalised large cookie "cakes". I've eaten their cookies a couple of times, and I am picky when it comes to cookies. They're delicious. 

Lola's: Lola's Cupcakes have been selling cupcakes in London for several years now and on the back of the cupcake craze that took place more than ten years ago. Their well-designed cupcakes are available from a range of different locations throughout London, and they always release seasonal ranges throughout the year. They always offer a Valentine's Day package, and this year is no different. Some of their cafes are still open for take-away across London, and they do deliver a range of brownies and other items, though some of the items depend on the receiver's location. 

I was able to purchase a couple of their Valentine's Day cupcakes. They have many different designs and flavours to choose from.

Photo courtesy of Hummingbird Bakery

Hummingbird Bakery: Cakes and cupcakes are the speciality of this bakery that became a London staple over ten years ago. They now have several different bakeries throughout London and will deliver to some addresses in London. Many of their shops are closed, but a couple are currently open. Valentine's Day cupcakes always feature.

Milk Train: Milk Train first gained traction in Covent Garden a few years ago for selling ice cream clouds of cotton candy/candy floss. Since then, they often create a seasonal Milk Train are currently closed due to the lockdown.

Yolkin: Yolkin gained fame several years ago for selling ice cream macaroons out of a little kiosk in a Soho Market at Rupert Street. They opened their first permanent cafe on Rupert Street (Chinatown end), and they often create cute seasonal macaroons and ice cream macaroons. Unfortunately, they are closed due to the lockdown.

Photo courtesy of Bubblewrap

Bubblewrap: Bubblewrap, based in Chinatown, offers ice cream served in a waffle-batter wrap. For Valentine's Day, they have created a blossom petal with slices of strawberries, and the ice cream is a rose and strawberry flavour. 

Photos courtesy of Konditor - https://www.instagram.com/konditorcakes/

Konditor Cakes: A London staple for over ten years, Konditor Cakes (previously known as Konditor & Cook), offers seasonal cakes, cupcakes, brownies, and other treats. Their products were always eye-catching and well-presented. Their London bakeries are open (although hours and days open vary between branches), and they can deliver some items to some London postcodes, but brownies can be sent nationwide . Brownies and cakes are a couple items that are popular with customers.

Photo courtesy of Whipped London - https://www.instagram.com/whipped_london

Whipped London: Cheesecake lovers should visit Whipped, which opened their new branch on Endell Street in Covent Garden last year, replacing their smaller shop on Drury Lane. Seasonal products are photogenic and perfect for social media, and their products taste delicious. They are relatively new to the London scene, but they have already established themselves as a favourite. Their shop is shut every day except for Saturdays, and they do deliver to some London addresses.

Photos courtesy of Peggy Porschen - https://www.instagram.com/peggyporschenofficial

Peggy Porschen: Peggy Porschen has become a firm favourite and go-to location for Instagram users in the short time it was founded in Belgravia at the pretty pink corner cafe. A couple of years ago, it opened its second cafe on King's Road in Chelsea. Themed decor and treats - cakes, cupcakes, and biscuits - are always popular and change seasonally. The Belgravia branch is currently shut, but the King's Road branch is open for takeaway and local deliveries.

Floozie's Stuffed Cookies: Floozie's Stuffed Cookies is a temporary pop-up cafe located in Covent Garden. They have a seasonal cookie, and February's seasonal cookie is "Devil's Food", which is a chocolate cookie stuffed with Devil's Food cake batter. It is sprinkled with hearts.

I hope that you have enjoyed my round-up of Valentine's Day treats in London in 2021. Maybe next year's will be normal and we can have drinks and meals out again.

Valentine's Day is approaching, and I received a box of special Valentine's Day croissants today from Saint Croissant. Saint Croissant was launched in Manchester in May 2020 when the pandemic made the owner's marketing work temporarily redundant. She started to bake the croissants as a way to use her creativity, and she delivered them to friends and family. During the lockdown, she worked on her pastry skills with the help of her French husband, and her posts on Instagram instantly took off. Since then, she's been sending the croissants throughout the UK.

For Valentine's Day, Saint Croissant launched a special range of Valentine's Day-themed treats. I received five treats, and they were all decorated with various items - heart-shaped sprinkles, marshmallows, cherry chocolates, filled chocolate hearts, chocolate sprinkles, jammy dodger cookies, waffers, sweet hearts, and more.

Nutellow is a croissant topped with Nuttela, heart-shaped sweets, and marshmallows. Banana's Bout You is a croissant with a banana and peanut butter frosting and decked out with filled chocolate cherries and hearts and sprinkles. Heaven Saint is a croissant topped with vanilla wafers and a packet of Love Hearts. 

Heart Breaker is an iced doughnut with jammy dodgers on top, and My Kinder Luv is a kinder-inspired croissant.

I was not sure what these were going to be like, but I was wowed. These are the most delicious croissants that I have ever had, and the icing on them is perfect. Not only that, but they look so cute all blinged out with Valentine's Day decorations. I would definitely order from Saint Croissant again.

North Leigh Roman villa is located in Oxfordshire, England, and is the site of a set of ruins with some surviving floor mosaics. The area was actually occupied in the Iron Age as escavations were uncovered in the 1970s. The villa itself was discovered and escavated in the early 1800s. The villa had its own internal courtyard and was lived in for over 300 years and probably one of the best villas in Roman Britain. It was built around 1AD and lived in until 5AD. The complex had its own bathhouse and quarters for slaves or servants.

The most complete mosaic floor discovered here is located on site in situ, and it is open to visitors during certain times of the year. This would have been a hall for entertaining and dining. The mosaic features geometric patterns.

Visitors to the site must park up on the main road and then walk down a narrow country farm road to the site. The site is located down a hillside. Sheep graze in one field, and a few horses are kept at the farm at the top. There are views over the site as you walk down the hill. It is approximately a 15-minute walk.

The building at the end protects the mosaic floor.

Some of the wall is in need of repairs, so it is being protected until the repairs can be made.

Various opening times and days allow visitors to see the mosaics. Check with the English Heritage site for more information.

Floozie's Stuffed Cookies opened toward the end of last year as a pop-up cafe in Covent Garden; the cafe is only temporary in this location. I visited it toward the end of last year, and you can read about that visit here: Floozie's Stuffed Cookies, Covent Garden. Due to the pandemic, Floozie's Stuffed Cookies also sell mixed cookie boxes online, and I placed an order for one last month. Their mixed boxes contain a cookie of each flavour.

The mixed box that I ordered came with one of each flavour of their six cookies. My favourite cookie is the Cinnamon Crunch (not pictured below), and I had this cookie when I visited their cafe toward the end of last year. Cinnamon Crunch is a cookie with cinnamon crunch and filled with speculoos cream. Chocolate Chunk was my second favourite flavour, and it is a milk and dark chocolate cookie stuffed with a soft dark chocolate. Celebration Cake is a vanilla cookie with jam inside. Peanut Butter and Jelly is a peanut butter cookie filled with jam. The seasonal cookie at the time was Pecan Pie, and it was pecan and filled with caramel.

When I visited Covent Garden and went to Floozie's Stuffed Cookies earlier this month, the new seasonal cookie for Valentine's Day was available to buy. The seasonal one for February is called "Devil's Food". It is a chocolate cookie with Devil's Food cake batter stuffed inside. The cookie is sprinkled with hearts. I thought this one was delicious as well. 

Originally from Rome, Alice Pasquini paints illustrative portraits that represent expression, and she has painted all over the world. Pasquini enjoys painting on the streets as it adds a new level of interaction and unexpectedness to the work. The last time that I covered her work was in 2018 when she returned to London to paint a couple of small portraits. The following piece is in Camden, London, and it was painted in 2013 but I only just recently discovered it in Camden. 

The artwork is comprised of a young female with a hat and bunch of flowers. It is located on the side of a Greek restaurant in Camden on Plender Street. I enjoy seeing new artwork by Alice Pasquini because it always looks refreshing and her style is so different other street artists.

Street artist Alice Pasquini has quite a few murals in Manchester, and she often paints portraits. Additional blog posts with her work can be seen here:

Street Artist Alice Pasquini Returns to London
Street Art: Alice Pasquini
Alice Pasquini - New Portraits of Young Women

Killerton, located in Devon in southern England, is an estate with an 18th century Georgian house and hillside gardens with 6,400 acres of land. The house was given to the National Trust in 1944 by the owner, Richard Acland, for his political views. He was a socialist and believed that land should be for all of the people to enjoy. In the gardens at the estate are some hidden gems, including a 1950s post office cottage, mill, medieval house, and iron age fort with Roman ruins. I did not have a lot of time at Killerton, and the house was only partially open to visitors with the upstairs off-limits; I spent an hour in the queue to visit the house and did not have time to explore further beyond the garden next to the house.

The landscape gardens and park was created in the 1770s. 

In 2016, an archeological dig discovered the footprint of a home that is known as "the lost house of Devon" and dating to 240 years. This footprint is located a short walk from the house and is located in a copse that looks as though it was planted to hide the house.

The music room (picture above) is where the family enjoyed listening to and performing music.

This leads off to a hallway and a dining room / lounge off of that. This room is a large room and would have been partioned.

This is the other side to that room with the doorway at the back being for the library and the one on the right into the hallway.

The library was my favourite room. All of the books had been sold in the estate, so the books that are on the shelves have been donated by the public.

The dining room is filled with portraits.

This red room is the reception room, and this leads to a billiards room.

The small garden at the back of the house is pretty, and a short climb up the hill reveals some wonderful views.

I hope to visit Killerton House and estate once more of the house is open to the public and the restrictions have been eased.

Fed up with thick mud and not having a decent place to walk around that is mud-free and not streets of terraced houses, I ventured into central London to have a change of scenery for the first time in a month. My destination was Southbank where a "Winter Light" exhibition is currently on display around Southbank Centre. There are approximately thirty artworks on display with the focus and theme of "Winter Light". For those of you who are too far to travel to Southbank or those who are self-isolating, check out the images below, which are on display until the end of this month. 

I visited the exhibition during the mid-afternoon in order to avoid the crowds, although I had to wait a short amount of time for the lights to come on. I did not have to wait long since the sky was dark and overcast throughout the whole day, so I was able to leave Southbank before it got too crowded. I was actually amazed that quite a few people were out on Southbank during this time. Anyway, the photographs and a short description of the work is below.

"From the series 'No Such Organisation', 2018-2020" by Navine G. Khan-Dossos

On display in front of Haywood Gallery are several paintings from a group of one hundred that the artist, Khan-Dossos, has created based on themes of technology, surveillance, and freedom of speech. The artworks are a series of graphical and geometrical illustrations created with bright colours and patterns. Look closer at the artwork to pick apart symbols.

"Total Collapse" by Toby Ziegler

Tony Ziegler uses mixed media (painting, sculpture, video) to create artwork. "Total Collapse" shows an abstract landscape, and it was created using a "ghost file" (corrupted file) that was recovered from the artist's first computer after fifteen years. The recovered file was transformed into a painting that was then defaced with an electric sander. The bold lines and patterns of this artwork fits in with the Southbank Centre's architecture.

"Slugs on the Cabbage of Bliss" by Toby Ziegler

The second artwork by Toby Ziegler is located in a window and features a sculpture that is a rendition of a computer-generated landscape that was painted by hand with Japanese ink on Shoji paper. The title of the artwork is inspired by a quote that the artist's grandfather would use. The landscape is made to feel like an alternative universe or a computer game.

"Counter Void-S-I" by Tatsuo Miyajima

This lightbox sculpture can display all numbers between zero and nine, which are counters used by the artist to mark the passage of time. The countdown never reaches zero, but it cycles through the other numbers.

 "Reflect" by Martin Richman

Martin Richman has created this commission for Southbank Centre located on Level 5 of the Royal Festival Hall, and it uses waves of colour and light to create a sense of movement. It was inspired by the Thames.

Simon Barclay has created a neon artwork with the likeness of cartoon character Andy Capp. The artist used the image to fit a personality who cannot emphasise with others or who looks at the world with a closed mind. The artwork speaks about some attitudes in Britain today where people refuse change, resist progress, and look too fondly on the past.

"We Are In This Together" by Tavares Strachan

This artwork was inspired by a project in Colorado that took place five years ago and focused on housing, climate, food, immigration, and education for the community. The phrase "we are in this together" expresses the sense of shared purpose and community of people in this town in Colorado. The same challenges face areas and humans everywhere, and the artist created the artwork to establish the sense of unity.

"Once upon a time, a time that never was and always is" by Louiza Ntourou

This short film focuses on nature and life. It is minimal in style and focuses on a single leaf hanging on a tree, caught in an invisible spider's web. The music that accompanies the film is big band style from a different era, and it's a relaxing and nostalgic series of images.

"Mahakala" by Shezad Dawood

Dawood's artwork depicts one of the Tibetan gods. This god is used to overcome obstacles and represents compassion. The god is created with neon light, which is important in this artwork because colour and light are positive and come after darkness. 

"supercalifragilistic" by Kota Ezawa 

 Kota Ezawa uses colour and flat imagery to create artwork inspired by popular culture and events. This artwork features a never-ending fictional character "Mary Poppins" landing at a runway. 

"Unseen" by Suzie Larke

Suzie Larke creates photographic images by editing them digitally to transform everyday portraits into surrealist portraits. The images shown depict individuals who are coping and struggling, and this series looks particularly at mental wellbeing and isolation. This series of photographs hopes to raise awareness on the subject of mental wellbeing.

"Birds, Freedom, 2020" by Emma Talbot

This short animation depicts a female figure exploring an abstract and colourful landscape. The film invites us to explore with the character.

"Sisters" is the name of the mural that London-based street artist Zabou painted on a coffee shop at the bridge at Kingsland Road (between Hoxton and Haggerston) back in 2019. The mural depicts twin sisters who have got each other through troubling times with challenges such as Brexit, social unrest and division, displacement, and high living costs in London. The sisters are named Surprise and Success and were five years of age when this was painted.

When I first visited this location, the wall was occupied with a geisha, and you can see that original piece in my first Zabou write-up here: Street Art: Zabou. This is an area that I do not get to visit often, and an additional two murals appeared on this wall between my first visit in 2014/2015 and my recent visit in 2020. In early 2018, the wall was occupied with another mural, which was titled "Waiting For You", and it featured a woman with her arm resting on the railing, integrated into the surroundings of the environment.

In 2016, the wall contained the piece "Queen of Hoxton", which was refreshed at some point and is likely the only other mural that I have missed visiting on this wall.

Previous Zabou murals that have appeared on this blog include:

Zabou Paints Audrey Hepburn on Brick Lane
Zabou: "Jack the Ripper" Street Art
Zabou: 'Racism is a Virus' Street Art
New Murals by Zabou in East London (Clockwork Orange, Sherlock, David Bowie)
Zabou "The Shining" and Refresh of Salvador Dali in Spitalfields
Villana and Zabou Collaborate on Amy Winehouse Street Art
Zabou paints Sid Vicious from 'The Sex Pistols'
Zabou Paints Freda #2 at Broadway Market
Zabou Paints Salvador Dali on Commercial Road
Koeone and Zabou Collaborate
"Keep Out!" Street Art by Zabou
Zabou's 'Cabinet of Curiosity' Street Art
Leake Street Tunnels Street Art, Spring 2016
Recent Street Art by Zabou
Street Art: Zabou