Short Mission Stories and Family Portraits | Sarah Douglas

While I was on my mission in China, my job was to gather stories, take photos, and post on social media. On the first day at the hospital, Screening Day, I went around collecting stories from the various families, interviewing a total of 15 patients that one day. Each time I interviewed a family, or indeed an adult patient, I took a family portrait. I soon realised that I liked the idea, having had no idea that it was going to happen, and continued doing so the rest of the day, and throughout the mission. Below are some of the stories, accompanied by their portraits.

Mother-in-law Kui Limei, Ye Zhao, and baby You Daizhi (male) during
screening. Zhao's husband was not around when the picture was taken.

Ye Zhao, a 33 year old mother of baby You Daizhi, was born with a unilateral cleft lip. Whether she had the palate as well or not is unclear, as she did not speak mandarin, we had to speak to her husband and mother in law. I'm not sure that she did, as I have another future procedure written down in my notes, and nothing about a cleft palate. Having only been married to her husband a little while, and it being an arranged marriage, her husband does not know very much about her background, or any of the information I was dying to ask her. Neither did he seem to want to ask her about it. Zhao and her family travelled five hours by bus from a village in the mountains, the journey costing ¥300, the equivalent to €41. She had never gotten a surgery before, as she had not known it was an option, and having always lived with an unrepaired cleft, she was used to it. Zhao is from an ethnic minority in Myanmar, but came to Yunnan, China when she had an arranged marriage. They told us that when the surgery was over, and they got back home, they will celebrate. They were very happy, and thankful to Operation Smile. I saw the result, and she was so beautiful. It was amazing to see someone in their thirties, that had lived for so long with an unrepaired cleft, had finally gotten it fixed.

Zhi Mei with her parents during screening.

This is Chen Zhi Mei, almost 4 years old, and her third time at the mission site. She had already received two successful surgeries, staying in the hospital for a whole week last year. They are from Zhenkang, a county of Lincang, four hours away from the hospital. On screening day, I saw her as she was playing, waiting to be called. I noticed a fancy dress draped over a bag belonging to the family. Later, when I interviewed the family during their screening, while they were waiting at a station, I noticed that she was wearing said dress. It's so nice to see how much the surgery means to the families, how big an occasion it is. I saw that on my previous mission as well, kids dressing up for the occasion, hoping that they'll make a good impression, and look nice on the important day that it is. Of course, she got surgery this time round, and was such a lovely child, always energetic, and full of life. She also displayed qualities of kindness, even if all she did was give everyone out stickers. She was also so gentle, a truly adorable kid, so brave both before and after her surgery.


Meet Chen Fang Yu, an adorable little two year old, almost three, whose family, or at least mother, appeared to love the colour red (which happens to be my favourite colour). I mean, both the mother and daughter were wearing red (well, Fang Yu had it on under her pink coat- and actually, pink seems to be a very popular colour in China)...

Fang Yu with her mother (left) and grandmother (right).

Fang Yu was there with her mother and grandmother, and lives five hours away. They found out, like many of the patients on the mission, about Operation Smile, through the Civil Bureau, as well as the hospital. She had already received one surgery last year on her lip, and came back for her palate. I only met the family during surgery week (which was really a weekend on this mission, as it ran from Friday to Monday), but had encountered Fang Yu on Screening Day, in all her cuteness. She even carried around a mini version of the kind of sashes they use to carry their children around on the day I met her family, her teddy bear tucked nicely inside. She was just so sweet!
They had originally planned to go to the Second People's Hospital in Kunming, a big city in Yunnan, for the operation, which offers a free surgery, but it is further to travel, and there is an ¥800 (€109) examination fee. The only difficulty Fang Yu had with the cleft, was speaking clearly. Something which surprised me during this mission was that most patients had very little, or no, problems with their cleft, whether it was already repaired or not. Most people were so used to it, they got by. Another interesting point to note, is that Fang Yu's mother seemed to be one of the youngest parents there, having had her daughter at the age of 20. Many of the other mothers, and fathers, looked much older.

Here is Zhao Yiming, a seven month old boy, and one of the patients who travelled the furthest, a total of two days, from Zhenxiong county. On Screening Day, his mother didn't want me to take a photo of them, but on the day of his surgery, and the day after, she was very much willing to do so, even getting photos with Yiming, herself, and I, on her phone. Maybe it was because she now knew my face, and was no longer shy, or maybe she got more confident the further they got in the whole process. As a matter of fact, most families were happy to pose for photos, I never had many refusing to do so. Being the first child I interviewed, I was a little upset I hadn't gotten a photo, but then when the mother opened up a little more to us, even saying that I was welcome in her home town, if I should ever find myself there with Operation Smile, I get a few shots, not all particularly in good lighting, hence the photo here, most of the good ones were from post-op, and I'm in most of them.

That's it for today, I might release a second series of family portraits sometime, but for now, here is my first four. It was such a pleasure meeting, and finding out information about these patients, and I will never forget the personalities, and also how cute the kids were! It truly is an amazing experience to go on a mission, and something that I would recommend anyone who wants to volunteer abroad to look into.

Until next time,
Sarah

China: Meeting All the Patients and Families

Today was Screening Day, where all the patients went around to different stations, getting checked, and so that the medical team could determine who was a candidate for surgery this time round. Out of the 113 patients screened, 85 will be receiving surgery over the next four days.

It was a day of fun, games, and laughter. We met so many incredible children, and there were so many stories to hear. Many similar situations, but with different variations. Of course, you had the naughty children, like anywhere else, but altogether the kids were lovely and SO cute!
There were also some adults, many of whom got surgeries. Some had repaired clefts, coming back for a revision, others had never had a surgery, one woman was 27, so you can imagine how long she has waited for this moment.

I was a bit emotional at times, but didn't really cry, just tear up. It was so amazing to be surrounded by so many people I have something in common with, but since I am so used to seeing clefts, having known about them my whole life, I wasn't amazed as such, just delighted.

I can't wait to see the 85 patients go through the journey that awaits them this weekend, it's sure gonna be a great experience! I got a few background stories today, so the real work begins tomorrow, when I have to dig in more, and find out more about some patients, and follow their journey, all in the process of finding my mission story.

Let the adventure go on!

Another Adventure with Operation Smile

So about two days and 12 hours ago (when I'm writing this), I left for a new journey, to a place I'd never been to, on an exciting adventure with a charity that I hold close to my heart. I am currently on a mission with Operation Smile. It only took just under two days to get to our final location, after many security checks, stress, exhaustion, and over 30 hours of travel (with an overnight break in the middle). It's been a whirlwind of a journey so far, and even though it was stressful and I forgot to bring lots of the things I needed, or planned to bring with me (some of which have sort of worked out), at least now we're here, and the real journey can begin.

For the next couple of days, I will be acting as a kind of journalist, sharing things on social media, taking photos, writing stories, blogging... and I will get to meet children just like me, people born with a cleft, or other craniofacial deformity. It's not every day that I encounter another with a cleft, despite there being a large enough population globally. So it'll be nice to meet so many people with clefts, hearing their stories (if I can get someone to translate them for me), and being able to share something unique in common with them. No matter how different our stories are, we'll all have one thing in common. I'll also be able to show a photo of myself in an effort to try and reassure the parents, that everything will be okay.

Tomorrow I have a day off, and then on Thursday the real work begins. On this mission, we have one day of screening, whereas on my previous mission there were two days, and then we will have four surgery days, and a team day. Very short, but still a fulfilling experience nonetheless.

I can't wait for the action to start, and despite the dodgy WiFi, the lack of English speaking staff at the hotel, and the rock-hard beds, this will be an adventure to remember!

On our way to China, we had a six hour layover to Amsterdam. It made me want to go back in the summertime to visit it, and explore the city a lot more, as we just saw a few parts of it.

The leaves were so beautiful in Amsterdam. Here we are doing the obligatory "throwing leaves" photo (this one was taken just after the leaves were in the air.)

Baking | Homemade Pizza

Yesterday I uploaded a video on how we make pizza in my house. Every Friday is pizza night for us, it's a tradition we've had for several years now, starting with shop-bought pizza, and in recent years, making the pizza ourselves.

In the video I explain, step by step, how I make it. It's a really easy recipe (it's from a kids book- The Children's Baking Book, Denise Smart), and has a very tasty result. We've adapted the recipe over the years, almost making it our own, and a lot of the time we double or add another half onto the recipe, depending on how many people will be eating. In the video, I do the recipe as it is in the book, minus the salt, as we very rarely add salt to our recipes or cooking, unless it's in a cake, where exact measures are necessary.

So while writing this blog post, I went over to the video an realised that one bit of text (an ingredient) wasn't there, it had hidden underneath the video footage on the timeline in my editor. So I have re-uploaded the video now (I know, I know, only a little mistake, but it really annoys me!) Scroll down below to watch it.

Here are the ingredients:

225g Strong White Plain flour

Half a Teaspoon of Fast Action Dried Yeast

150ml Warm Water

Tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Salt (I didn't use salt before when this was filmed, but I now add just a pinch of salt)

It really is an easy recipe, and don't worry if a little more water ends up going in, or there isn't enough flour, it ends up working out, as you use flour for kneading and rolling out the dough -just as long as you get a nice elastic consistency in the end.

Until next time,

Sarah xxx

Baking | Profiteroles (Yet Another Tanya Burr Recipe)

So this week I tried to make profiteroles. It was a learning curve, and I certainly know what and what not to do next time. Despite coming across a few bumps, they ended up being a lovely dessert, enjoyed by all!

Like last time, I won't bore you with the step-by-step recipe- that can be found in Tanya's book. But I will recount how it went.

As I've said before, I have never made profiteroles before, let alone any choux pastry recipe! So it was a challenge, but nonetheless, I was determined to try it out. Unfortunately, even though I had read the recipe through a few times before I started, I skipped one vital little word, well, sentence. I forgot to let the first part of the recipe simmer. Whoops! Well, I hadn't really noticed, it was when I added the eggs that I thought it was a little too liquid to pipe. So I naturally thought it was the eggs, and it wasn't until I went to re-do the mixture, that I realised it mustn't have simmered. And that made a big difference in the second mixture. And don't worry, the first one did not go to waste, my mother had the idea to use it to make pancakes, which I will get to later. So no batter or ingredients were wasted in the making of these profiteroles!

They turned out quite well, regarding it was my first time making them. You're supposed to slit a little crack in them to add the cream later, but they seemed to have holes in the bottom of them regardless. I did cut into them, as I only saw the other holes after I took them off the trays. Piping could have less messier, but I got the cream in, and then then attempted to make a pyramid, which took a while to get right, then adorned them with melted Lindt chocolate. Yum.

As for the other batter, we ended up trying to make pancakes. It did take a few tries or adding in four and milk, and trying different-sized pans, before we got a pancake batter-like consistency, but in the end we managed to make some not so bad pancakes! At least nothing went to waste, and I got pancakes for breakfast!

That's all for this post, there wasn't too much to write about, I suppose. The profiteroles were a success in the end, loved by all who ate them. They are also surprisingly healthy in comparison to other confectionery baked goods! Not too much sugar, I guess it's the cream and chocolate that take away from them being healthy- although dark chocolate isn't too bad!

Until next time,
Sarah xxx

Baking | Tanya Burr's Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Last week I bought Tanya Burr's cookbook, Tanya Bakes. It has so many delicious-looking recipes, I couldn't wait to try them out! I love baking, and in recent years my love for the craft (it is an art, after all) has grown deeper and deeper. So naturally, when you go to the bookshop to buy one book, then see that there's a promotion to buy two books and get the cheapest half price, you jump for it. I was buying Carrie Hope Fletcher's new book, On the Other Side, which I had been waiting to buy since the day it came out, the day I was in the airport travelling to the US for my big trip of the summer. Unfortunately we had no time to stop at any shops in Dublin, and in Heathrow the book hadn't arrived yet, so I satisfied myself with waiting until my journey back through Heathrow. When it still wasn't in stock there yet, the minute I had the chance to go to the bookshop here at home, I went and got it. The last copy at that. And with it, I decided to do the whole buy-one-get-one-half-price shindig. And so I picked Tanya Bakes. Why not treat yourself with some books once in a while? After all, it has been a while since I last bought a book...

So, getting back onto the topic of this blog post, this week I finally got to bake. Ever since I got the book (and got home from America in general) I'd been itching to bake something. But I had no reason, nor is it the healthiest option, really. But an opportunity arose, and so this past Wednesday I got to bake cookies! And may I say, they were yummy! So a big thanks to Tanya for sharing her recipe in her book (and YouTube channel).

I also felt like making a video, just for the sake of editing (yet another thing I've missed doing), but didn't really feel, since there's no talking- just a montage of footage, that it didn't qualify as a main channel video. And since I don't have a second channel, I realised that, along with this blog post I had already intended to write before I decided to film, I could upload it directly here, as a sort of accompaniment to the post.

So I guess I should probably get started on writing the post.... I mean, I could go on all day about how I love baking, reading and editing videos, but that's not what this post is really about. It's all about the cookies, really. I mean, cookies are great, right? One of life's best inventions. And one of life's unhealthy inventions too... but lets just forget about that side of it for a minute and enjoy it, just like we ought to!

If you want to, you could just watch the video and ignore all the above, but that would be pointless, as if you're reading this, you've probably read all 469 words previously written before this sentence. Anyway, I am going to write more about the actual baking of the cookies in the following sentences, so by now it's too late- you've been sucked into this endless blog post of random tales and information you'll probably forget when you've finished reading this.

So I made my batch of cookies a little different to the recipe, I used dark chocolate instead of white and milk, but you could use any chocolate you prefer, or even any filling (is that the right word to use?) you want, such as raisins or almonds- whatever takes your fancy.

It truly is a very easy recipe, there isn't very much to it, which is great! And it's pretty quick to do too.
Now since this was my first time baking these types of cookies (as far as I can remember), not everything was as perfect as it looks in the video. I was rather quite proud of how they turned out, but I learnt a few things that I will do differently, or better, next time round. First off, in the recipe it says to bake for 12 minutes. I ended up having to let them bake a little longer than that, but I reckon every oven is different, so that is often the case with recipes (that they take longer, or shorter, than it says). Another thing I know to do differently next time, is to put less chocolate, especially when using dark chocolate (it can be overwhelmingly strong sometimes!). The recipe says to use 200g of each chocolate (white and milk) so since I was using one type of chocolate, I boldly decided to put 300g in. It ended up being a bit too much (depending on the cookie- some had more chocolate than others), but it was my first time baking from that recipe, so mistakes are acceptable. The third thing that differed from the recipe, which isn't a big deal really, it meant extra cookies, was that I had to use three baking trays instead of two. Maybe I was just too scared they'd all stick together, or maybe the trays are slightly smaller than what Tanya uses, but it worked out fine anyway, so no harm done!

Altogether, the cookies were a great success, I'm really glad I got to try the recipe out, and I'll definitely be using that recipe again! I can't wait to see what I'll try next from Tanya Bakes!
My mum's birthday is coming up, and I've promised her some profiteroles- maybe they'll be my next baking endeavour! And maybe I'll write a blog post about making them too (if they're not a disaster- it is my first time making something like that! But I can't wait to see how they turn out, I do love me some profiteroles!), I guess we'll see. I also hope to make some proper baking videos (maybe even some collabs) on my YouTube channel at some point too, so I suppose this video here is kind of like a mini preview or promo to what I'll be doing.

For now, that's all. I will hopefully blog more, but I am super busy! I didn't even get to write more about my trip to San Diego- but I promise, more will come! I'm also working on lots of YouTube projects, so we'll see where those take me.

Until next time,
Sarah xxx


P.S.: In the end I also uploaded the video to YouTube, as the quality is a lot better there, and why not? I might as well share it on my channel :)
Click here for the YouTube version of the video.

Adventure | A Weekend of Fun, Friendships, and Learning

This past weekend was amazing. I met so many great people, made lots of new friends, and have memories that I'll never forget. Today is the beginning of the International Leadership Conference; and after changing dorm rooms, lots of the mission trainees leaving, and a little bit of shopping (when in Rome!), it's time to start the next part of my trip here.

But first, here's a recap of what happened this weekend:

Friday I had expected a lie in, but even though my efforts were to stay in bed longer, the light coming through the window was just too strong for me to get back to sleep. I woke around 6:30 am, tried to sleep for another half hour or so, then decided I just wasn't going to be able to fall asleep again. So I watched caught up on social media (even thought at first the internet wasn't working in all but one corner- which happens at a certain time at night until the morning), watched Pretty Little Liars, and got ready fro my day. 

We went on a drive around, stopping at the beach for about 10 minutes (it was breathtaking), and then going to The Old Spaghetti House for lunch (just- yum). We even passed by the convention centre, where Comic Con is on every summer (this week, actually). I can't believe that many of my favourite TV show casts are going to be in the same city as me later this week. If only it had been a week later, I could have gone! 

Friday evening I got to meet my room mate, and we sat through a few presentations, as well as playing the infamous name game (it was a long game!).

Saturday was a great day. We learnt a lot of great skills and information regarding our training, as well as sitting on the grass eating delicious ice-cream, and getting assigned our missions. Just the thought of the memory of lazing about after lunch, sitting in the sun with our melting ice-creams (luckily the fact that I got ice-cream on my top doesn't ruin the memory), makes me smile.  

In the evening we had a barbecue dinner, where we posed for pictures, dressed up, and had fun.

After that, we found out where we were going to go on missions. And I'm excited, because I am going to China! Having only been to two continents and only two countries outside of Europe, this is pretty exciting!

Sunday wrapped up the end of our training. It was a bit of a longer day than Saturday, and we were all a lot more tired. Nonetheless, we had both lunch and dinner on the outdoor patio, which looks over a pool and an amazing view. We also went bowling in the evening, and had a blast, despite my fail at striking (the one time I did really well, it wasn't documented on camera). We said our goodbyes, as only three of 11 of us are staying for the ISLC. So it was a little nostalgic, but we're all going to stay in touch, which is nice. 

This weekend I met some of the nicest, most wonderful people, and I hope to continue friendships with them in the future. One of them is actually going to study in Dublin, which is great, and I just hope more of them decide to come to Ireland some day (one of them might be next summer, I do hope so!).

Today, I went shopping (of course) and ate lunch in Chipotle, whcih was a first for me. I had a chicken burrito, and it was really tasty! I also did an interview for a video this afternoon, so that was pretty fun to do, considering I make videos on YouTube!

So all in all, I am going to miss this past weekend. But I am ready for the excitement that is the ISLC!

It starts in about an hour, so I can't wait to see what this year brings. I'll be singing in the talent show, so that'll be lots of fun.

I better go get ready for ISLC now, but I hope to post more during the week, but it all depends on time. If not, I will post when I get home.

Sarah xxx

Operation Smile U-Voice Training Group 2016

Hanging out at the barbecue on the Saturday

Team China!

Irish Mission Trainees (Two "high school" students, an adult sponsor, and me- the U-Voice student)

The view at dinner.

Bowling! Team U-Voice 2016.

Getting our certificates.

Adventure | San Digeo Day One

Today I began a trip that I have anticipating all year. Ever since I decided during the last few months of my first year in college that I was going to apply for U-Voice mission training this year, I have thought about this trip non-stop. I can’t believe I am already on my way as I type this, sitting on the plane, eating nachos from those little snack boxes they hand out.

That’s one thing that’s great about long-haul flights, you can never go hungry cos they’re feeding you all the time! Another great thing, I suppose, is getting to do things you’re usually otherwise too occupied to do; like writing in your diary (something I almost never do anymore- I never have the time!), watching movies drawing, reading a book or a magazine, writing blog posts (obviously), and believe or not, a snooze (which can be hard to get in when you have a hectic lifestyle, sometimes it’s difficult to get enough sleep at night!). Apart from all that, it can get tiring and rather difficult to be cooped up on a plane for so long.  So here I am, trying to occupy myself whilst doing something productive. The only downside is the fact that there’s no internet (there can be on some airlines), so I can’t post this blog straight away, or check my emails for anything important, or contact people to pass the time. But it’s alright really, the time does seem to go by quick enough. Another downside can be the food- when they run out of the one you want and only have the one you don’t, or when you’re not fond of a certain type of chocolate, and they hand that very one out…. And the list could go on, but you get the gist. The food isn’t always great. But there’s nearly always at least something you’ll like in the tray or snack box!

Right now I am passing over Hudson Bay, and have roughly four and a half hours to go. It was written 10 and half hours of air travel at the beginning of the flight, but I think it’s definitely been longer than that…. Or at least around that long. So, it’s not 100% accurate. But at least there’s only a couple of hours left before I land in the sunny land of California! I cannot express how excited I am! There’ll be people from all over the world, and funnily enough, I get along better with foreigners than Irish people (not every Irish person, just in general I do get along with foreigners more, maybe it’s my Belgian side- yes, I am half Belgian for those of you who don’t know- that overpowers when making friends), so it’ll be great to meet new (and old) people from different corners of the world over there!

Anyway, I think it’s time to change activity and stretch my legs a bit too (and finish off my snacks, I’m on a cereal bar now; oats and honey!). I will write again soon, and hopefully when you’re reading this, I will be ready to get comfy in bed in San Diego!

Sarah xxx

P.S. It's the next morning when I'm posting this, I can't believe I'm in San Diego now! So surreal. Those of us (out of the Irish group) doing training have a few hours free today, so I think we're going to the beach or something! It's going to be a great trip!  Let the fun begin!

Last night's view from my window.

The view this morning.

Adventure | Operation Smile: Trip to San Diego

Next week I am off to the US for mission training (to be a student journalist on a medical mission) and the International Leadership Conference. I am extremely excited, as I haven't been to the US before, aside from Atlanta airport when I went on my last mission to Mexico.

Operation Smile is extremely important to me, and being able to get involved with lots of people from all over the world in a completely different continent is very exciting. I get to spend 11 days with people who share the same passion as me, while having fun and gaining beneficial skills that will last me a lifetime. It's a charity that gives great importance to their Student Programs, ensuring that young people learn the important skills needed to lead in the future. The conference is a fantastic opportunity to gain these skills and for us, as young people, to make the world a better place (one smile at a time!). 

I have been to three conferences, two local Irish ones (2011/2012), and an international one in 2014. I love how everyone there is so willing to help and are so invested in it. To me, there is no question about volunteering, it's almost instinctive, as I have grown up involved in the charity, and as I was born with a cleft myself. Operation Smile is amongst my favourite things in life (next to musical theatre, fandoms and chocolate of course!), and I don't know what I'd do without it! It's true that sometimes I think that my life would have been easier without being born with a cleft, but then I think about how I wouldn't be volunteering for Operation Smile, at least not to the extent that I do now. Maybe I would have gotten involved in another charity, but, like everything else, there's no knowing what my life would have been like. It is then that I conclude that without my cleft, some of the most amazing experiences I have had have been with Operation Smile.

I am especially excited for my trip next week, and everything OpSmile have to throw at me. I will get to be in a whole new country, and get to meet new people, and some old ones. I will learn things, brush up on some things I already know, and come home with skills that I will have for the rest of my life. Most of all, I will have fun doing something I love. It's going to be a great experience, and I can't wait to see all the terrific surprises they have for us!

Sarah xxx

5 YEARS ON YOUTUBE!

Friday the 3rd June 2016 marks 5 years of videos on my YouTube channel :)

I made a video to celebrate this, and give an update on what's to come!

Sarah xxx

Health, Food & Recipes | Discovering New Tastes

So just a moment ago I was making a smoothie, as I sometimes do (which I try to do as often as possible!). There were no bananas left in the house, something I put in my smoothies almost every time (unless there are none left of course) so I decided to make do without them.
Another thing that was different than usual was that we had no ordinary oranges left, only blood oranges, which I had never tried in a smoothie before. The result of not making my usual smoothie was delicious!
I had made smoothies slightly different to my usual in the past, but this one really had a zing to it. I am having it as I write, and it really is something. I have stumbled upon a good combo!
I think I'll call it...Red Spark, or maybe Red Zing... as it really and truly is very zesty!

I am trying to stay healthy and have more smoothies, and use the exercise bike once a day (except on days where I have a dance class). So far, this past week, since last Thursday I have exercised (including dance) almost every day! Except for two days, for which I have excuses (one was the time of month, and as many girls out there will know, you don't always feel like doing much when you're on your period! And the other, I just didn't have the time that day, But I did end up walking a lot when getting buses and such, so maybe that was a good enough dose of exercise?).

So with that in mind, I've only gotten back to my smoothies today, and will now try (again) to make one every day, except of course if there really is no time to make one. But I'll try not to let that get in the way of staying healthy!

Here are the ingredients I put in my smoothie, try it out, it's delicious!

• Lots of frozen raspberries (not sure how much I put in, but hey, they're small enough, so there was quite a bit in there!)

• About 4 frozen strawberries

• 2 blood oranges

• Half and apple (it was a generous enough sized apple, not one of the tiny ones)

• A small bit of almond milk ( I wasn't sure what it would turn out like, as I've never put any milk in my smoothies, usually sorbet, but it definitely worked out in the end!)

Until next time,
Sarah xxx

Adventure | A London Voyage

London. The city of great history, dreams, and musical theatre. Last August I traveled to this amazing city for another round of West End Stage, and also to get to know it a lot more. Even though it was my third visit, I hadn't seen very much the previous two times.

This time I got to experience the history and beauty of London, trying to do and see as much as possible. Is it the rich history and culture that I find fascinating? Or the way that the West End is lit up at night? Or is it the beautiful architecture that captivates me? Whatever the reason, I love London a lot. My favourite part of the city is the West End (no surprise there) and Covent Garden area. For the obvious reason, musical theatre, but also because there is a certain air there. I can't really describe why I love it so much, I just do. Walking down Shaftesbury Avenue, parading along the streets in Covent Garden, and standing in Picadilly Circus, I was in my own kind of heaven.

Kensington Palace

The gardens at Kesington palace.

We visited countless historic buildings and grounds, including Buckingham Palace, but the one historic place I felt most at home was Kensington Palace. I kept telling my friend that I felt as though I could have lived there once upon a time. It was as if I was in a Jane Austen novel, walking around that palace, exploring the history it had seen. It was beautiful and timeless.I don't know why exactly I felt such a sensation, but I just loved it so much. From the long curtains hanging on the windows, to the exquisite view that could be seen of the garden and park, to the grand staircases, I was in a whole different world, something you read about in books or see in movies.

The chess-pieces used in the movies.

The Night Bus.

Something else that we visited that really made me feel that sense of elated happiness was a place that I had seen over and over again in a certain film series. I had journeyed along with those three very lovable characters, as they threw caution to the wind and went on one too many ever so dangerous, and slightly forbidden, adventures. I had laughed, smiled, and cried so many times. The stories played an important part in my childhood and teen years. I think you have an idea of what I am talking about, and it isn't just any movie franchise, it's Harry Potter!

On the 21st of August 2015, I finally got to see where all the onscreen magic had happened in the making of the films. It was the most amazing and magical experience, and I was so overwhelmed when I was there that I think I'll have to go back to take even more in (and the fact that we had only so much time until the last bus left to bring us back to the train station did rush us a little towards the end). But apart from not getting to spend as much time as I would have liked to and being overwhelmed, it was still the most fantastic experience ever! I got to walk down Diagon Alley, get a peek into the Weasey's home lifestyle, stand get on the back of the Night Bus, and even drink some Butterbeer (which, might I add, was very overwhelming! But I'll talk about that later). It was overall one of the best experiences ever, and getting to see all the sets and props was a dream come true!

On our way to Hogwarts!

Just casually knocking on
the Dursley's front door.

The one thing I will say that was my least favourite (only because it's one of my biggest fears), was the room filled with realistic-looking creatures and characters. I did manage to survive it, somehow, but it was pretty terrifying! I had expected to see Dobby, which, by the way, was a very sad and emotional encounter, but I hadn't realised that there would be realistic wax figures of some of the actual actors (as their respective characters), so it kinda freaked me out. But that was the only thing I didn't like! I loved every other part of the tour. From the magical moving objects, such as knitting or chopping in the Weasley home, to the Hogwarts Express, to the Great Hall, to the actual Hogwarts model used in the films (which is taller than me, but way smaller than it appears on screen). The studios did not fail to entertain and delight me. And maybe even every time I go there, I'll start getting used to the moving creatures and realistic statues (creature or human), who knows. I just know that it is a place of pure happiness, and it definitely did not ruin the magic of the films for me. Maybe it's because I love anything to do with making films, but nonetheless, it is an experience worth spending on. Oh, and back to the butterbeer. It was... interesting. A few sips is okay, but I wouldn't really order it in a café or bar. I drank maybe three quarters of it, then gave it to my friend to finish, as it was very heavy and hard to drink. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't the worst thing I'd ever tasted, like I said, it was interesting, but it certainly was way too buttery and creamy for my liking! I did like it in a way, but not enough to have a whole cup if it again. Maybe a sip or two, but not as much as I had last time... it was a little too much! I definitely do not regret it, as it felt kind of like a rite of passage on the tour, tasting the very thing that was fictional before it was real, something so familiar from the movies.

I probably could have written a whole blog post on my experience in the Harry Potter studios, but here I am, after writing a very long passage on it amidst the other adventures I had on my trip to London. There is lots more to talk about, but I think I have gone on long enough at this point to leave it for another time. Maybe I'll write a "part 2" to this blog sometime soon.

Anyway, that's all for now, otherwise I might bore you to a tee!
Until next time,
Sarah xx

2016: Another New Year, Another Set of Adventures and Experiences.

So here we are, another year has gone by. It is once again time to embark on new adventures and take what 2016 has to offer. But before we begin to move forward into the year ahead, let us first reflect on 2015 and all that has happened.

Last year was a mixture of good and bad, like every other year. It saw violence, death, natural disasters, the refugee crisis and many more terrible things. But it also saw many good things. Unfortunately, that's how it is, but it is the positive things that keep us moving on. We must remember the worst things in order to stop them from happening again, and the good things so that we can bring all that positivity along with us on our journey into 2016. In both our personal life and as a society.

So what are you going to bring from 2015 into this New Year? What will help you improve and grow as a person? These are things we should all think about at this time, whatever our situation. As they say, the past is the past, you can't change it. But you can try to cultivate your future. It is hard, but there is nothing we can do. What we can do is take from our past experiences and learn from them.

I'm not saying anything new here. All this has been said before, many times, and it is important not to forget it. It is vital that we remind ourselves of the past year in order to start the new adventure that is 2016.

Happy New Year,
Sarah xxx