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India In A Cup

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Two of my closest friends are on a rather wonderful travel adventure at the moment, which means we don’t get to see them for a whole year! As much as we miss them its been amazing to see the photos from their trip and to chat about all they are seeing and doing – the wonders of technology hey?

Ceri is a professional photographer and his work is impressive, at the bottom of this post you will find his social media details – I highly recommend you go check them out!

I asked him and his partner Andora if they would share a snippet of their travels with us and here they are chatting about one of my very favourite drinks: Chai.

One day I will experience it first hand in India!

Chai – a little cup of India

Ceri and I have spent 5 months travelling around India and Southeast Asia; Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia and Indonesia. Living out of guesthouses, homestays and hostels and not preparing any of our own meals has meant we’ve had plenty of chances to try the local cuisine; we’ve loved some things (fresh fish tikka from Goa, nasi goreng from Indonesia) and loathed others (seafood porridge from Thailand, deep fried scorpion on a stick from Laos) but if we had to choose one favourite it would be a nice, hot, sugary cup of masala chai in India.

Chai on streets of India

India is a world within a country; a place where you can find deserts and oceans, sprawling cities and rice paddies, backwaters and mountain top towns. The diversity of the land, food, culture and people makes it a chaotic and mesmerising place to spend a few months. One thing we found we could depend on amongst the chaos, whichever part of India we visited, was chai. It’s everywhere, it runs through the veins of the country and you only need to take a few steps along any street to find one of the many, many vendors.

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street vendor chai

During our two month stay in India enjoying a cup of chai (or several) became a daily habit; who can blame us at a cost of between 6 and 10 pence a cup?! The best chai we tasted came from the most unlikely sources; with tuk tuk drivers in roadside shacks built from scrap metal, in paper cups bought through the iron bars of the train window from the chai wallah on the platform, a freebie cup at sunrise when the marketplace of a crumbling city starts coming to life, mixed over a campfire in the desert or with the hotel boss on the rooftop of our guest house in total darkness during a power cut – a ‘chai party’.

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The masala mix varied slightly between different vendors but usually included cinnamon, ginger and cardamom. Sometimes we could also pick out hints of nutmeg and cloves. Although the masala mix varied, the technique for making the tea was almost always the same. The milk would be permanently simmering in a metal pot which had an impressive layer of burnt crust at the bottom. This, teamed with loose leaf tea, a homemade masala spice mix and a measure of sugar that made us wince, made the perfect little pick me up drink. In most cases, the spice mix and loose leaf tea were strained out before drinking but we also drank a few cups trying to avoid a thick layer of sediment at the bottom.

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indian boy chai

Since leaving India we’ve tried to find a cup of chai that matches up but so far we’ve not been able to find any that compare. Our next stop is New Zealand which means a slim chance of chai – looks like we’ll have to start hunting for a new favourite!

chai cup train india

Bye for now!
Ceri and Andora

TWITTER: @hula_photo + INSTAGRAM : @hula_photo
WEB : www.hulavisuals.com

 

Travel Essentials from Munchkin

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We received a hamper of goodies from Munchkin as part of our blog ambassador role for them. The theme of the hamper was travel.

All of the products we received were made to make the lives of parents easier when out and about, perhaps just for the day or on a holiday. I’m going to tell you about some of our favourites which would be ideal for you to take on your next break – perhaps in the half term holidays?

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Our favourite product by far was the booster seat. Izzy always likes to sit on a big girl chair now rather than a high chair but she struggles to reach things on the table and this makes it so much easier and comfortable for her. Within 30 minutes of it arriving she was sat on it at the table doing some crafting and she’s in love. It’s made eating our family meals at the table a much happier occasion as she is strapped in which leads to less walkabouts. I highly recommend this. In fact it’s a product we use at least once a day whether it be for Playdoh fun at the table or eating a bowl of stew with her little sis in the high chair. Oh did I mention it turns into a handy bag which you can take out and about and fill with nappies, wipes etc. Its brilliant.

We love the bib and spoon travel pouch which can be hung off a pram or popped in a bag and Chloe really loves this teether monkey toy which is a soft in parts, textured in others and chewable too. She used to have it on her baby gym and now it’s an everyday fixture on her buggy:

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I’ve never had a bad experience with a product from Munchkin and we have tried a LOT of them and it’s a brand I really trust and can recommend wholeheartedly.

The Big Feastival 2014

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This was our second trip to visit the home of Alex James and spend a little time playing in his garden. The Big Feastival is a magical weekend and I have to say we enjoyed this trip even more than our first.

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Having a nearly 3 year old along for the ride as well as 9 month old Chloe just made everything a bit more special. Seeing all that was on offer through their young and excitable eyes was wonderful.

In one short weekend they were able to:

Make necklaces ..from fruit..
Sit on a tractor – a real one.
Ride on a tractor – toy ones.
Hold a chick

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Feed a goat
Stroke a donkey
Pretend to drive a car
Watch DJ BBQ rock the bandstand with his set and dance metres away
Make a million new friends

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Watch Justin Fletcher bopping on stage
Watch Mr Bloom singing all about his veggies
Ride on teacups
Eat LOTS of new and exciting food…

And so much more than that. Sounds a bit good hey?

That’s just what she did.

We ( Andrew and I) also ate a lot of new food. Katsu burger anyone? Or deep fried risotto balls? Yum. We drank some totally delicious cider in the wonderfully relaxing Westons Wyldwood cider teepee.

Have you tried Wyldwood cider?

Westons has produced organic cider for over 15 years and Wyld Wood is a brand that comes straight from the heart of our values. It illustrates our deep and on-going passion for good quality cider and our respect for nature and wildlife. It was re-branded Wyld Wood back in September 2011 to emphasise its organic and rural origin. We wanted to refresh the brand so consumers feel more connected with the simple, natural beauty of its origin.

Wyldwood were the official cider of Jamie Oliver and Alex James’ Big Feastival, the family-friendly foodie and musical festival for 15,000 in the Cotswolds, for the second year running (29th – 31st August). The Wyld Wood Cider Bar was located within a cool tepee.

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We both tried our hand at cooking new dishes in the AEG cooking academy:

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We went to coffee and cider master classes and spent an awful lot of time at the AEG big family kitchen.. Izzy playing and me drooling over the state of the art kitchen equipment especially the new ProCombi SousVide cooking system.

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All in all we had an absolute ball and really hope we get to go again next year.

* Thanks AEG and Wyldwood Cider for inviting us on such a fun weekend.

Safe To Play Both Home & Away With Lindam

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I was recently sent a box of brilliant safety products from Lindam as part of my role on their blogger panel.

The products focus on keeping your children safe both at home and when you go away or even just out and about on day trips.

There are various safety options you can choose from Lindam but first let me tell you about my two favourite items we received.

First up it’s the backpack/reigns. I’m sure I’m not the only parent to have a very energetic toddler – which is great most of the time but sometimes especially when it’s just me with both girls I need to keep Izzy near to me and she doesn’t want to play ball. We have tried a few different sets of reigns as methods of keeping her quite literally on a leash but she has hated them. I took a different angle with these ones.. Showing her that she had a really cool new bag ( she’s a bag lover) with a brilliant handle for mammy to hold and so far so good. In fact she loves them. We have used them on several occasions already and they make my life so much easier.

Here are a pic of her on a recent day trip to Cardiff:

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Secondly we were sent some blinds for the car windows. Again we have used a few sets of blinds.. Quite often they aren’t great and let in light or fall down. These are excellent. Not only are they sturdy and well made so even the fact that Isabelle constantly pulls at them doesn’t cause a problem but they have a special new feature which tells you when the car is getting too hot with a white hot button at the bottom of each blind. We travel a lot by car or various festivals and it’s important to me that both girls are as comfortable as possible during these journeys. These definitely help.

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We also love the back seat mirror for keeping an eye on Chloe whilst on journeys.

Other products which are great for use at home and out n about include this flexi guardtravel gates which has it’s own carry bag for ease of travel, bed rails and more. Click here

* I was sent these products for the purpose of a review as part of my role on the Lindam Munchkins ambassador panel.

Perfect Family Holidays

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If you have read one of my ramblings about holidays and travel in the past you will know that myself and my other half LOVE to travel and see the world. When I got pregnant with Izzy everyone told me that this would change as its just too hard with children but I see no reason to stop. You can read more about our travels here.The last year we haven’t been abroad at all 🙁 mainly due to me having such a problematic pregnancy but we are really looking forward to lots of travels over the next year or two and can’t wait for our first trip as a family of four!

Pre baby in Paris…

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Pregnant in Portugal..

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We would like to go somewhere which isn’t too far to fly so perhaps 4 hours maximum.

With Baby Izzy in Lacanau, France..

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When I was asked to collaborate on this post it got me to thinking about some really beautiful places that we are yet to visit which are also close to other destinations that we would like to go to and perhaps plan a trip visiting three of Europe’s most beautiful cities in a week.
Prague, Vienna and Budapest are all beautiful, rich in history and culture, with something to please all tastes and ages.

Prague

Beginning your trip in Prague, you can soak up the many museums, galleries and restaurants, in a heavily pedestrianized city that’s easy to get around. Keep your little ones entertained with a trip to Vytopna Railway Restaurant, situated on Wenceslas Square. Not only do they offer great food at affordable prices, but a 400m miniature railway runs around the whole restaurant, and even delivers drinks to your table.

A visit to the visually stunning Charles Bridge is essential, which is littered with street vendors selling food and trinkets – just my kinda thing. If we want to avoid the crowds, then we should get there for dawn and enjoy an amazing sunrise overlooking the Vlatva River. Petrin Hill is another area worth visiting, with its vast green space and its beautiful gardens. The Church of Saint Michael and even a miniature version of the Eiffel Tower.

 

Budapest

If visiting Budapest for the first time, you may want to take a cruise down the Danube River, where you will enjoy panoramic views of the city. You can check out the crown jewels at Hungary’s Parliament building, and take a walk across the Chain Bridge, the first to connect Buda to Pest. Youngsters will be spellbound by The Palace of miracles, which is an interactive science museum designed for kids, located in the Campona Shopping Mall. Highlights include the simulated, low-gravity ‘moonwalk’ and the ‘miracle bike’.

Watch out for the pennies..

If you’ve had a busy day sightseeing with a group of hungry, restless kids in tow, the temptation to dive into the nearest restaurant is all too tempting sometimes. Try going off the beaten track a little, and you will find more authentic food at cheaper prices. Find somewhere with a free Wi-Fi connection and check out the top bars and eateries on Trip Advisor. When driving for extended periods of time, try grab some food from a local mini mart to avoid shelling out at petrol stations.

Avoid child road rage

Having one or more children in a car for an extended period of time can really test your patience, especially on foreign roads. If they don’t have access to a portable games console or tablet, there are other ways to keep them quiet, or at least entertained – we all know a quiet child is usually up to no good.