LIFESTYLE

Hello London | Birthday Night Out

Hi Lovely Readers, hope you are all well. Finally, a new “Hello London” blog from me. This time I will take you with me on a birthday weekend we had a few weeks ago. So, if you need to organise an upcoming Birthday, please stay tuned and read on…

Birthdays and Christmas holidays are my favourite days in the year. (sorry can’t help that)

On these days I like to do something special with the ones I love, like or appreciate. It is always nice to buy something the birthday guy or girl really appreciates, rather than just a random shower gel or soap. Unless you love those things of course. I think the best gift is to make new memories together. Usually I like to go to a nice restaurant and drink some good wine. Why not… It is always good to eat nice food and have nice company.

This time I wanted to surprise my boyfriend with a nice dinner in London. I wanted to make it special by going for something different than the usual steak we go for.

So, I thought let’s go for LOBSTER!

We never ate lobster together, so this was our first time eating it together. (See, just go for new experiences )

Burger and Lobster

There is a super nice and busy place called Burger and Lobster in London. It is recommended to make a reservation by email or phone before. We were there on a Saturday and it was very busy. They have a few restaurants in the city, so you can just choose the one that is closer to where you live or stay.

This was the first time that I had a lobster and it was DELICIOUS!

I can’t tell you exactly what it tastes like, because it has its own taste. It doesn’t taste exactly like a prawn or a crab. The white wine was also very nice with the lobster. Most importantly I think is the company. I am happy he liked the dinner and liked the surprise to this restaurant.

 

Callooh Callah 

After the dinner we felt like going for a drink. Where else to go than to Shore ditch. We found a random cocktail bar online. This cocktail bar has a secret room and very delicious cocktails. This is a cool place for a date night. The cocktails are a bit expensive. They are all around the 10 pounds, but for the experience it is worth to go here.

I must mention that we felt a bit special going to this secret room and drink some cocktails.

Party somewhere in Shore ditch / Hackney

The fun part was we didn’t plan anything after the dinner, but we felt like dancing after the cocktails.

So, we ended up somewhere between Shore ditch and Hackney.

Unfortunately, I forgot the name of the place we went. Shore ditch and possibly Hackney are the area’s if you don’t like the big clubs and if you don’t like it when it is too crowded. Usually Resident Advisor can help you to find a party. Better would be if you know someone that knows where the great parties are. I notice Londoners are very friendly when they go out, so you can always ask a local where you can find the best parties to go to.

This was a birthday weekend I always will remember because we did some fun stuff TOGETHER. The memories that you make together makes it worth to just go for it and try new things! It doesn’t always have to be with your partner. Make memories with everyone you love and appreciate from something small to sometimes something extra special.

I still love to write these “Hello London” blogs for you guys. Unfortunately, I am not able to write as much as I want to, because of my full time job. (boohoo) I will try to still write weekly or otherwise once every two weeks. For sure I will write a “Hello London” blog if I discovered something new in London or do something exciting. I have a few exciting things coming up, so please stay tuned!

Ciao! ♥ Miss Widjaja

 

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TRAVEL

Hello Bristol | Bath

Hello Lovely Readers and welcome back to a new travel blog. I almost forgot to write about our trip to Bristol and Bath, just because it has been a bit busy these weeks.

For the Bank holiday weekend, the end of August, we took a little break in beautiful Bristol and Bath. So, on some recommendation we slept in Bristol, which is close to Bath and we saw both cities. Bristol is more like a student city and much more alive than Bath. In Bath, of course you will be there for the Roman Baths and if you have time, the Bath Spa.

The first day we stayed in Bristol and discovered the centre. On Sunday we spent the morning till late afternoon in Bath.

This will be just a short blog for you to give you some suggestions where to go in Bristol and in Bath.

What did we see in Bristol
What did we see in Bath
Where did we ate in Bristol

Super nice place that looks like a gallery. A bit expensive but delicious steaks and wine!

Where did we ate in Bath
  • Rosarios 18 Northumberland Pl, Bath BA1 5AR

Lunch at Rosarios for a nice Italian cafe.

Where did we sleep in Bristol

Holiday Inn Bristol City Centre  Bond St S, Bristol BS1 3LE

Super hotel. It has everything you need in the room and on the 7th floor, you will get a nice view!

Advantage

Bristol is close to Bath. So if you take the bus in Bristol, it will costs you only 6,50 pound for a return ticket to go to Bath.

Disadvantage

I don’t mind the bus, but with the warm weather, like everywhere.. there is almost no air-co in bus. Just like in London.

Wow a super short blog about Bristol and Bath. Hopefully it got you a bit excited to go for a relaxed weekend to these cities. Like we did! Bristol is a really nice city to go away to in the weekends and cheaper than London! It is a big plus that it is near Bath. Bath is a small city you must have seen once in your live, as it is on the UNESCO world heritage centre list.

Enjoy and let me know what else did you see in these cities.

Ciao! ♥ Miss Widjaja 

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TRAVEL

Hello Rome | Fiumicino

Hi Lovely Readers, Welcome back to my blog. Finally a travel  blog YEAHHH!!! It has been a while that  I wrote a travel blog, meanly because I didn’t travel. (I am not complaining!) Let’s be honest, London has a lot to offer so I am still pretty satisfied with everything I am discovering in London city.

We all need to get away sometimes to just relax and get some fresh  (new) energy. We had an extra long holiday weekend, so this time we went for a short trip to Rome, Fiumicino. Meanly because we were invited by a relative in Fiumicino, which was really nice and fortunately we had some time to spend in Rome.

Two years ago I went to Rome for two weeks, so I already saw a lot in this amazing city. I didn’t blog about that trip, so in this blog I will include all the best of my two weeks trip I did to this ancient city. Of course on top of my experience during my latest trip.

Like all my travel blogs, I am going to tell you what we saw and where we ate. This time we slept at a relative place which was in a really nice apartment in Fiumicino near the airport. If I can find any pros and cons, I will let you guys know.

If you like Italian food, seafood and wine…Don’t Go! I would suggest to definitely check the restaurants below in this blog for the details where to eat. Enjoy!

What did we see

Let’s go back to my trip from two years ago, because back then I saw lot from Rome. Unfortunately I didn’t had my canon M10 camera back then, so some pictures are not so great.  (I KNOW) But I really wanted to show them to you to have an idea how beautiful it is there.

  • Foro Romano (If you buy a ticket here, you also get access to the Colosseum with the same ticket) Via della Salara Vecchia, 5/6, 00186 Roma RM

Here you will find a lot of ruins of important ancient government buildings. This was the city centre of ancient Rome. Just to walk in this amazing ancient place, made me fantasise how Roman people lived back then. (too be honest I just love history, so I have this fantasy with a lot of historical places/ monuments)

Also the Colosseum is a must see… just imagine sexy gladiators fighting in this theatrical area!

The mouth of Truth is such an iconic monument if you saw Roman Holiday with Audrey Hepburn. If you are at this spot, you will probable want to put your hand inside the mouth of Truth.. and feel a bit like Audrey Hepburn.

The must see places in Vatican City is the St. Peter’s Basilica , the Sistine Chapel And the Vatican museum 

A tip is to buy your ticket for the Vatican museum online, so you don’t have to wait too long.

Then after you visit the museum, you will enter the Sistine Chapel (no pictures are allowed). If you leave this Chapel, you can choose to go left or right (right is the exit for groups) but I went anyway to the right, because this way will lead you to the St. Peter’s Coppola.

So this means you don’t have to wait in the queue again and this will save you a lot of time.

The view from the Coppola is amazing! There are a lot of steps up, but trust me it is worth it!

 

This is a nice square where you can find one of Bernini’s fountains and a lot of creative people selling there art.

Fontana di Trevi is my favourite fountain ever around the world. It’s so massive and beautiful ,I could sit there for hours.

(Almost impossible with all the tourists) But I really enjoy just looking at this fountain. It is super romantic and reminds me of the movie La Dolce Vita.

 

On this square you can find the “twin” churches of Santa Maria in Montesanto and Santa Maria dei Miracoli.

 

  • Via Nationale and Via del Corso

On the Via Nationale and Via del Corso you can find the high street shops, the exclusive shops and the mainstream shops, for the shopaholics among us.

Look through the hole to see the st. Peter’s Basilica from the secret garden. It is really an one of a kind view.

At the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore you can find the baby crypt of Jesus Christ. If this doesn’t make you want to go to Rome.. I don’t know what will 😛

 

From here you will have a great view on the Foro Romano and of course lots of Roman history in this museum.

This is a square without a church, with lots of food markets on the street.

 

Best view of Rome and great for a nice walk. For the romantics among us… this is a great place to walk around and just enjoy the environment.

At this market I bought a leather black jacket with fringes. Still in love with it! I am pretty sure Via Sannio was the Flea Market we went to. You can find a lot of second hand clothing, army  survival stuff, motorbike clothing  and  lots of new leather clothing. It is located near San Giovanni metro station, were you also can find the St.John’s Lateran Archbasilica ( Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano)

In Frascati it is nice to have dinner at night. From here you will see the lights in Rome.

This time we saw some new things in Rome, yes it is possible !

Somehow I missed this fountain the first time I visited Rome. It is not a big fountain, but for me it was something i definitely wouldn’t want to miss.

Also, this one was on my list. Not that I am a big fan of skeletons. But there is much more to see than the skeletons. Like the Caravaggio painting “Saint Francis in Prayer”.

I am a big fan of Caravaggio and of course in Rome you can find a lot of his paintings.

This Basilica used to be a part of a huge Roman spa. A spa for the whole city. There are still some parts left of the original Spa.

  • Leather shop Very Pel Via Cavour, 174/176, 00184 Roma, RM

The owner makes every leather item in his shop. It is a small shop where you can find leather bags and jackets. The bags for men are amazing. Also, the leather jackets for women. Because it is all handmade the prices are higher but the quality is excellent.

Go to the boulevard and the Pontile di Ostia for a view of the beautiful sea. Lots of locals in the weekend having fun in this area. You can have drinks, have dinner, eat Gelato or go out in this area.

Where did we eat

Different restaurants are good in this area. This area is alive at night with lots of street artists just on the other side of the river.

One of the best Arancini you will find in this place.

They have the best pizza’s in town and my favourite Insalata di Mare.

If you love seafood like me, really try this seafood salad. It is really amazing!!! I will never forget about this one!

This time we ate at these places

OHHH this restaurant was AMAZING! We ate like twelve different seafood dishes and that was just before the main course.

Here they have excellent Italian pizzas. They were once or twice champions in making the best Italian pizzas.

You can get the best coffee at Sant Eustachio !

You can find it at Piazza di San Eustachio, 82, 00186 Roma RM

Advantage

In Rome, you have a lot of Drink water in and around the city. Not all fountains, but you will always find a fountain with Drink water. Just bring you water bottle with you to fill it up somewhere.

Everywhere you would like to go in the city is walk-able, but if you don’t want to walk a lot, just take the bus or metro. It is cheap.

Some roads in Rome are made with these lava stones. This makes it sometimes a bit difficult to walk on, so bring your most comfortable shoes with you. You will need it!

Disadvantage

For me the best period to go is in September. In August, it can be too hot. Beside this I can’t think of any disadvantages.

Wow I see I saw a lot in Rome, but there is always something new to discover in this city. This city really has a special place in my heart. Very romantic, great food and lots of history…

So enjoy every moment when you are in this magical city!

Ciao! ♥ Miss Widjaja 

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LIFESTYLE

Hello London | How to find a JOB

Hi Lovely Readers, hope you are all well. In this “Hello London” blog I would like to discuss with you how to get a JOB in London. This will be just some general tips for you to use as a guide in your journey finding new opportunities in this wonderful city.

The reason why I want to share this with you guys, is because I think finding a new job in a different country can be overwhelming sometimes. Where do you start, where should I look for a job and do I know the language enough to do a great job? Lots of questions I was thinking even before I moved to London. Of course, you need to be prepared before you arrive because you want to work as soon as possible and be productive. I am not going to lie, I was scared in the beginning and not so confident. How could I work in an environment where they only speak English? But in time I was getting more and more confident to get the job I wanted. If you have a good support team, that will help a lot! For me, it also helped start writing in English, so I started this blog to learn and get familiar with the language.

After my first job interview, which went well for a first time. I was super excited and I got more comfortable in how this interview procedure works. After this interview, I just had two more interviews. I was lucky enough to choose one of the two companies I had an interview at (they both wanted me to work for them) and after two months I am happy I have chosen to work for the company I am working for today.

I feel so much better now I work again and meeting new people. I know how it feels when you are looking for a job and it still isn’t happening for you. I felt the same sometimes, but trust me there is a job for EVERYONE!

Don’t worry about your English if you can explain yourself or describe things, it will be fine.

Of course, depends on the type of role you want, but if you have studied or have a degree in any kind of way, it should be just fine. So, no worry… check the rest of the blog and get inspired again to find the job you always wanted in London.

Me on the day that  I moved to London

So where should you start

Start with getting your (CV) Resume together. Learn about what you should or shouldn’t say in the Resume.

  • – Keep the Resume simple.
    – No photo needed.
    – Let the recruiters know you are based in London by placing your address and phone number on the Resume. (Preferable an UK number, but if recruiters can’t contact you via your number. They will send an email)
    – Tell mostly about your achievements for each role you did (only the roles that are important for the new role)
    – Max two pages
    – Leave everything that isn’t important for the role away
    – Use key words that they use for the new job description also in   your previous job experience  (This way recruiters can easily find and scan your Resume to see if you are a match)
    – After work experiences comes the studies and degrees.

If you have done this then the next step is just to send…send..send away the Resume on as many job related websites as possible. Of course, you should check which site has more the kind of job opportunity that you want than just random job opportunity sites.

The first step is done, you are online and recruiters can find you!

My experience is when I placed my Resume online, usually the next day I got a phone call or email from a recruiter with a job opportunity. It can be so fast! And if not… just adjust your Resume a bit and try again. If you don’t get any respond, ask for help and let someone check your Resume. It is always better to have an extra pair of eyes to check everything is okay on the Resume.

Which sites should I use

After your Resume is ready for the world, you can check online which sites should I subscribe to or which sites has the job opportunities I am lusting for. This can be different for everyone, so I am just going to give you the ones that I used and I found a lot of job opportunities.

Prepare for the actual interview

After everything is done. Your Resume looks perfect, you have applied on opportunities online, received some phone calls and emails. It is a match and you are invited to go to a job interview.

YEAH! You have done great! This means that they like your Resume and just want to see if the person behind this Resume is also a match for the company.

This can be overwhelming, but don’t let this affect you in anyway.

You can do this! And the best way is to prepare yourself:

Know about the company

What do they do, what are the products and services, read the latest articles about the company, about the company culture and so on.

Basic questions preparation for every job about you
  • – How would you describe yourself?
    – How would others describe you?
    – What was your greatest success?
    – How did you achieve it?
    – What has been your biggest failure?
    – How could you improve yourself?
    – How do you handle criticism?
    – Do you work well with others?
    – Do you need other people around to stimulate you or are you self-motivated?
    – Are you accepted into a team quickly?
    – Can you act on your own initiative?
    – What motivates you?
    – What do you dislike doing?
    – Can you work under pressure?
    – What interests do you have outside work?
    – If you could be an animal which one would you be?
    – Where do you see yourself in 3 years’ time? / What are your long-term goals?
Basic questions preparation about your previous job
  • – How much does your last job resemble the one you are applying for?
    – What do you think of the last company you worked for?
    – Why are you leaving your company?
    – How did you get on with your previous manager/supervisor, coworkers and subordinates?
    – What did you do on a day to day basis?
    – What problems did you encounter in your last job?
Basic questions preparation about the new related job
  • – Why do you want this job? think what you like about the company and what you like about the job role.
    – What qualities do you think will be required for this job?
    – What can you contribute?
    – Why do you want to work for this company? / Why should we employ you?
    – What do you know about this company?
    – What interests you about our product (or service)/or working for us?
    – You have not done this sort of job before. How will you cope/succeed?
    – What do you like and dislike about the job we are discussing?
    – What are you looking for in a new job?
    – What level of salary are you looking for now?
    – Why you are interested in the role?
    – What you think will be expected of you in the role?
    – What you know about the role?
    – Give me four of your strengths?
    – Why you would be good at the job? / Why do you feel you are suitable for the role?

If you prepare these questions before, it will help you to feel more confident during the interview. You will see the interview will be more like a conversation than an interrogation. Of course, they will not ask all questions on the list, but if you know all the questions, you  will be able to  improvise easy at any question that comes your way.

So good luck guys, I really hope this will help someone to get the job they want here in London or anywhere else. Keep in mind, this is my experience so far and I found a job that i really like. So just do your research on how to improve your resume and prepare for the interview.  Remember if they like your resume, halve of the work is already done!

Preparation is the key

Ciao! ♥ Miss Widjaja

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