Get to know me

In order for you to get to know me a bit better, to get to know the person behind this blog and behind the advices for a structured life, I filmed the Get to know me tag for YouTube. Check it out! :)

Next Thursday at 11:11 AM is the start of Karneval in Germany. So you can take a wild guess what next week's topic is going to be.

See you then

Jen

This year everything's going to change!

Heya!

January's almost over, so let's have a look at how we are doing so far. Last month we made a list for January. Mine looked like this:

·         Be prepared for all exams

·         Do sit-ups and yoga every day

·         Go swimming three times a week

·         Eat salad + vegetables + a piece of fruit every single day

·         Start searching for jobs after my Bachelor

Did I accomplish this? More or less. I am prepared for my exams, I know roughly how they are going to be and I studied for them. I did my sit-ups and yoga every single day, apart from when I was sick. I didn't go swimming three times every single week, but it was at least twice a week, and afterwards I always felt great. I am doing really well with the healthy eating! Before Christmas I told everybody that I absolutely do not want any sweets. So after finishing the few sweets I got nevertheless or I bought before, I haven't bought any new ones at all, so I haven't eaten any sweets since, which was really difficult some days but made me feel great overall. Most days my dinner consists almost entirely of vegetables, so even if I am not exactly having salad plus vegetables plus a piece of fruit every single day, I am doing very well and feel great about it. During the holidays I started having a really healthy muesli consisting of various flakes additional to the typical oat flakes, spelt instead of cornflakes, pumpkin seeds and freeze-dried banana chips which aren't as sweet and unhealthy as the typical fried ones. I also already ordered a new muesli consisting of cornflakes, barley flakes, poppy seeds, cornflakes, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds and freeze-dried banana chips. What else? Start searching for jobs after my Bachelor. I didn't really accomplish that. Already in September I sent out four applications to luxurious hotels in the UK, but since then I didn't do much. The first step really was for my boyfriend to look at graduate programmes in the UK so that I know in which cities to apply for jobs. So, that's all sorted out. Step 2 is for me to actually look and apply for jobs during the next two months and then in Step 3 my boyfriend will apply at the universities. So fingers crossed everything works out! I am so nervous...

How did you do with your list? Ready to make a new one? Keep the ones you didn't accomplish, revise and raise others and create new ones. Mine will be:

·         Do my best in all exams

·         Increase number of sit-ups and yoga exercises

·         Sign up for swimming / sports back in Cologne

·         Continue to eat healthy

·         Start searching for jobs after my Bachelor

·         Choose a rough topic for my Bachelor Thesis

·         Start studying for the classes I will be missing in Germany

(The end of my studies in Spain and the start of my final semester in Germany are overlapping, so I will be missing some classes and have to study a lot)

But to actually successfully have the "This year everything's going to change" experience you need to do more than just having a detailed to-do list. Start with getting up "early". Even on the weekends set your alarm for 8 o'clock or maybe 8:30 or even 9 o'clock. The first couple of times it will be really annoying, you will be tired and won't understand the point of this. But trust me, it will work and will help you to feel better and more motivated this year. Your body will adapt and you will go to bed earlier, and getting up for work, university or school will be a lot more easier if you don't have such a big difference between weekdays and weekend. Get up immediately! Don't keep on turning around and snuggling up under your warm and cosy covers. There are only two reasons you still feel tired: you either didn't listen to your body and went to bed too late, or you slept too much. Start the day early, start it with energy and motivation! Get up immediately, do some yoga, go running, have a shower, don't eat breakfast immediately. In order to live and eat healthy it is important that you listen to your body. Don't just eat. Only eat when you're actually hungry. Your body will thank you. With a good night's sleep (not too long, not too short), an early wake up and a healthy breakfast you can start your day with a lot of energy and motivation. And the best thing is: you have all day because you got up and had breakfast all before midday ;)
Don't ruin this energy by opening your social media sites first thing after breakfast. Actually get some work done and then you can use the social media, YouTube videos and whatever else it is you might do online to reward yourself. Additionally to my monthly lists in my diary/calendar book thingy I have an actual calendar and sometimes even very detailed to-do lists for certain days. I like everything to be planned and organised. You might get some work done without a plan or at an untidy desk. But trust me, nothing will change this year if you just get some work done. Nothing will change if you work like "ah I need to do this" and "oh I forgot that". Start by "wasting" more time, pushing work a little bit further behind. Because it won't actually be wasted time. Tidy, empty, clean your desk / room / flat / house. Throw out all the unnecessary stuff. Create a good, light flooded work atmosphere. Then, take your working materials and do exactly the same. Tidy them, organise them, throw stuff out, make a plan. And then start working by chronologically working your plan. Don't jump because some things seem more fun than others. If you do that, in the end you will be left with only the worst and won't have any motivation left. Stick to your plan, work hard, take breaks, reward yourself, don't work to long. Take walks to get some fresh air, exercise and most important: listen to your body.

I really hope this will help you to really change everything this year. Especially because this isn't just from any magazine, this is me doing exactly the same thing at the same time. The only difference is I started a couple of months earlier, so that I don't recommend you something that isn't working. Keep me updated on your lists, on how you are doing and please tell me if you have any doubts. And of course I will tell you more about healthy living and structured planning in good time.

See you soon,

Jen

Next stop: UK

Heyho :)

Don't you just love the UK? I most certainly do! And that's why I want to explore it as a tourist destination. First thing that comes to your mind? London, obviously!
I just realised that this entry seems massive and never ending, but actually it's 99% photos.

LONDON

I've been to London so many times I stopped counting. I just love it. We usually go there for a weekend trip. We fly to Stansted Airport, which leaves you at Liverpool Street Station. Most of the times we stay in Victoria. Additionally to the obvious sightseeing and shopping stops such as Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Tower and Tower Bridge, London Eye, Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, Oxford Street, Carnaby Street, Covent Garden, etc... we like to explore one or two more sites, like for example the Strawberry Hill House or Kew Gardens. Every single time we go to the theatres or see a musical, which is just such a great experience! London has so many impressions, you can't see everything in just one visit.

   Big Ben

   London Eye

 

 My Mum and I in Jamie's Italian Restaurant December 2012

 Carnaby Street

 

 Chinatown

Westfield Shopping Centre in Shepherd's Bush

                         

During the celebrations of the Royal Wedding 2011

 

 

  Leadenhall Market

I know, I didn't go into detail, so if you have any specific questions regarding London, sightseeing, shopping, accommodation, food and so on, just tell me. I just wanted to give you a brief overview why I adore the UK. So I'll continue with Cornwall, Edinburgh and Scotland in general. And another time I will go into detail about the beauty of the Lake District. I don't want to bore you with too much about it at once...
So, let's continue:

CORNWALL

Cornwall is a peninsula in the Southwest of England. At the very end of it, between the English Channel and the Celtic Sea, is Land's End, a very interesting location and good start for hiking or biking tours. Due to its long coastline and the very rough, windy weather the county is very famous for surfers. The must-sees in Cornwall are St Michael's Mount, the Eden Project (housing thousands of different plants), Penzance, St Ives and The Lost Gardens of Heligan. Of course you also have to try a Cornish Pasty! I can also recommend to visit Jamaica Inn, scene of the Alfred Hitchcock film written by Daphne du Maurier, and smuggler's museum. What else is there to see? Penzance has a really nice marine water pool. Every single time I went to Cornwall I told myself, this time I'll try it. But let's face it: It's feezing!

 Land's End

 Beach of Newquay

  St Michael's Mount

The two biosphere domes of Eden Project

 

The Lost Gardens of Heligan

 

Jamaica Inn

Fancy 5 course dinner in Jamie Oliver's Restaurant "Fifteen" June 2011

 

Okedokes, that's all about England. Of course there are so many more beautiful places to visit such as Brighton, Torquay, Dover and the chalk cliffs, and so on. But London and Cornwall are my two favourite places of England. Closely followed by the Lake District which, as I already said, I will explore in a lot more detail with you another time. So let's continue with Scotland and its beautiful capital city Edinburgh.

SCOTLAND

Scotland has the perfect combination of beautiful landscape, a very interesting culture as well as so many castles and monuments to visit. You can see the adorable Scottish Highland Cows, make excursions to hundreds of islands, start hiking trips from Ben Nevis or search for Nessie in the famous Loch Ness. Most people will have heard about the Scottish culture, about the famous dish "Haggis", the kilts as well as the Celtic music which is similar to the Irish Folk. Scotland's capital is Edinburgh, whilst its biggest city is Glasgow. Further interesting cities to visit are Aberdeen, Inverness, Stirling, Dundee or Perth. You can also go island hopping.

Scottish Highland Bagpipes

Urquhart Castle at  Loch Ness

Eilean Donan Castle at low tide

Glenfiddich Whisky Distillery in Dufftown

 

And of course the Whiskey!

Dunnottar Castle near Aberdeen

Glasgow Science Centre June 2014

By the way, to all the place I am presenting you I have a lot more photos and infos, so if you're planning your next trip, just feel free to ask!

EDINBURGH

The capital of Scotland is a beautiful city to visit! Obviously the first thing that comes into mind is Edinburgh Castle. But I also love visiting the National Museum, sitting in "The Meadows" or shopping on Princes Street. But let me warn you: It is a very hilly city...

 Sir Walter Scott Memorial opposite Princes Street

Edinburgh Castle (which is really beautifully illuminated at night)

 

Calton Hill

Holyrood Palace, the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland

 

St Giles' Cathedral

Okay, so let's talk a little bit about food and shops. No matter where I go in the UK, there are a few shops and restaurants I always have to go to because I love them, and I don't get them at home.
If you're visiting a city and you're hungry but don't want to eat in a restaurant, I can really recommend you Pret a Manger, a chain with freshly handmade natural food and drinks. It is really healthy and very tasty! Another take away or eat in chain is Wasabi. They have dozens of branches in London but hardly any outside the city, and only one internationally - in New York Times Square. They offer prepared sushi and bento. Staying with the Japanese cuisine, I love love love the Yo! Sushi restaurants. First of all, I adore Asian food and sushi in particular and secondly they have really cool restaurants! And if you want something a bit more special, check out one of Jamie Oliver's restaurants. Whenever you're a little bit hungry you can also get a Meal Deal in various shops such as WHSmith, Marks and Spencer or Boots. Which leads me to my next category, shops. I am in love with Boots! I always have to go there and buy for example the Boots body spray, the Vaseline (which now I actually wouldn't need to anymore because you can also buy it in Primark which we have in Germany) or the Johnson & Johnson baby products which are really good for your skin. And then there are shops such as Topshop, River Island, New Look or Next, which we don't have in Germany.

Okay, I'll better stop it here. I just wanted to tell you so much about travelling to the UK, and I already feel like I left out so much. I guess I have to leave it like this, and now with a broad overview you can ask for more details. And I will see you next week when we are going to talk about starting the year well prepared, finally applying the "Next year everything's going to change.."!

See you,

Jen