Day 1 in Exeter: A New Outlook After Lockdown

It feel almost so surreal that many months have passed since the beginning of the pandemic. As lockdown begins to ease all over the country, I finally picked up the courage to go travelling again after months of staying firmly indoor. As much as I am excited to be out of London again, I am also telling myself to be extra cautious along the journey. Anyway, it was still exciting to be out on an adventure again! ❤️

After a 3 and a half hours train journey (face mask on throughout 😷), I arrived at Exeter just around lunchtime. My hotel is very conveniently just right opposite the train station, so I was able to drop my luggage off in the room and then headed out to the city centre.

I chose to have my lunch at Eat the Bird Exeter after seeing it being recommended online. (Plus, I was oddly craving for a fried chicken burger! 😂) I like the idea of ticking off the orders on the menu (reminds me of how we always used to do that in Chinese dim sum places haha.) It was nice to see how many restaurants are taking very nice approaches in dealing with the Covid-19 situation (such as staff wearing masks/visors and asking customers to leaving names and phone numbers to allow contact trace in the event of an outbreak), which really assures me and made me feel at ease about being outside. The food certainly didn’t disappoint! 😋 I ordered their Double Dip fried chicken burger which was drenched in a rich gravy – absolutely love the crispness of the chicken! ❤️ But, for me, the highlight was that delicious mac and cheese (especially when drizzled with that spicy hot buffalo sauce! Yum! 😍🤤)

After a very filling lunch, it was time for me to explore the city. 🏃‍♂️ But the first bump hit quick when I discovered the iconic Underground Passages (the place I was most looking forward to visiting) was indefinitely closed due to the pandemic. 😢

Nevertheless, my exploration of the city continued… 😅

Exeter Cathedral – the place is only opened to service today so will be back here again tomorrow

Perfect dessert after my lunch 💛 – until a seagull flew straight into it when I was about halfway through… 💔💔

There are a lot of ruins dotted around the city – it’s so fascinating

Northernhay Gardens – FYI the seagull sitting at the top is not part of the memorial 😂

After a brief nap back in the hotel, I visited the beautiful Exeter Quayside in the evening to finish the day. ❤️

Walking into the sunset 🌅 with another ice cream in hand

Day 2 in Glasgow: Back in Time

After what seemed like a very short night of sleep, we continued our second day in Glasgow after checking out the hotel at 10am (yes, that was the official final check out time… 😛) We headed to Bill’s for a conventional full Scottish breakfast (how I missed black puddings lol!), then decided to stop by the Riverside Museum and the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum today before heading back in the late afternoon.

We decided to go by the route via the Glasgow Subway. Unlike the London Underground, it felt much cosier and I actually found their small carriages quite cute lol. 😂

Wall painting outside the subway station

The museum itself is a transport museum where many of the displays are interactive for visitors, so many of the transports can be climbed inside.

This reminds me of the mini vans in Hong Kong.

Inside the van. A nostalgic feeling for my mum.

Or, even better, walk in the old streets of Glasgow and taking the old subway. It’s like being transported back in time. 😮

Guess I can come here if I need some cash…?

Inside the old subway (it actually smells a bit… 😅)

The museum is also well known for the Tall shop from Govan parked outside by the harbour. The ship was built back in 1896 as a cargo ship and visitors were able to also go on board to take a look around. (Totally felt like I was in the Pirates of the Caribbean lol 🌊🌊)

Could actually imagine me bathing here lol 🛀

Exploring to the depth of the ship… 🤭🤭 (actually only a café and a souvenir shop down there 😂😂)

The bottom of the shop (there is a children playground right next to this! 😆)

Before my mum started feeling too seasick (lol), we then decided to move on to the Kevingrove Art Gallery and Museum not too far of a walk away.

Greeted by an organ performance upon entering (thought we accidentally stepped into a church service lol)

Probably my favourite painting of the ones I saw ❤️❤️

Tired from all the walking and sightseeing, we finally decided to head for lunch at the Hard Rock Café. The portions were absolutely massive! 😨😅 (Still delicious though haha!)

Nachos, Spicy Prawns and Buffalo Sliders

We loved the nachos (No joke, it was probably the biggest plate of nachos I had ever come across in my life!) with its overload of cheeses and spices. The spicy prawns were okay but slightly too much mayo in the coleslaw. I liked the sliders but just couldn’t really taste the blue cheese. The portions were so big that we had to take a huge doggy bag with us on the bus back home! 😂😂 (P.S. we were still having it for lunch today… 😅)

Listening To the Sounds of Music, Eating My Favourite Things

One of my favourite things about summer is being able to spend time outdoor and living every moments under the sun. Truth be told, I always can’t help but feel nervous about the fickle nature of British weather. However, the weather couldn’t have been more perfect for my plans today.

On this Saturday, my friends and I decided to visit the Junction 2 Festival in Boston Manor Park. It was my first time going to a festival, so I didn’t quite know what to expect besides dancing to loud music and mangling among drunk people. Unlike a night club though, being outside under the sun felt much more open and relaxed. The park itself is a large space with woodlands. As we navigated around the venue, walking underneath trees and brushing past bushes, it almost felt like an exploring adventure.

While I expected the alcohol supply here would be plentiful (😂), I was pleasantly by the presence of food trucks supplying hot food in the venue. After hours of dancing and drinking, what could be better than to have something to soak up the alcohol?

I went for a British duck burger with pork stuffing and bacon jam. Despite its lack of colours, the burger more than made up for that in flavours. The gaminess of the duck meat paired very well with the richness of the stuffing and the strong, savoury flavours of the bacon jam. A British classic with a modern twist! It would surely be enjoyed by any meat lovers.

It would be unlike me not to finish the meal on a sweet note. This limoncello sorbet was so refreshing that it was the perfect sweet, cold treat under the sun. The best way to have a cocktail is to have in its ice form!

The British summer sky was always deceiving, and before we knew it we stayed in the festival well into the evening. (Not going to lie my feet was sore from all the dancing and walking we did haha!) Exhausted, I somehow managed to hop onto the wrong underground line on my way home. So, I ended up taking a bit of a detour and also had my late dinner inside a gastro pub at the changing stop.

What are you all up to this weekend? Hope you will be having fun no matter what you are doing! 🙂