Cafe Concerto

On Thursday I met up with one of my best friends for lunch in York. Because I have been living in Japan, it has been about one year since we last saw each other. One year is a long time but we have stayed in touch with many Facebook messages and long Skype chats, however it was great to finally meet up again.

Our usual place to eat is Wagamamas, but I had recently been with another friend so we tried somewhere new. Café Concerto had been recommended to me and I was intrigued to see the interiors.

It didn't disappoint, with quirky interiors, friendly service and tasty food. I had a chicken, chorizo and tomato baguette which was on the specials menu. Costing nearly £8 it was quite expensive for a sandwich, but they were very generous with the fillings and it tasted great. As well as sandwiches, they also offer soups, salads and main meals as well as delicious looking cakes and desserts.

The location is great, being very close to the Minster but also off the main drag and therefore not too busy. It is also a must for music lovers, due to the interesting interiors which include music score wallpaper and a violin on the wall. If you are in York and you fancy a light lunch in relaxed surroundings then I recommend coming here.

Website: http://www.cafeconcerto.biz
Address: 21 High Petergate York YO1 7EN

Hamlet to Hollywood

 

 

Ok so from my roundup of current London fashion exhibitions you may have realised that I love going to exhibitions! I mentioned that I went to the Hollywood costume exhibition at the V&A, however it doesn't require a trip to the capital to see some A list designs.

A few years ago I went to the Hamlet to Hollywood exhibition at Barley Hall in York. There was an amazing selection of costumes from films and T.V programmes. I am a big fan of period dramas (especially Downton Abbey!) so this exhibition was perfect for me.

Whether you're also a fan of period dramas or not, I am sure you will have seen at least one of these costumes on screen or if not, you definitely will have heard of the people who wore them.

 Worn by Cate Blanchett in Elizabeth. Apparently the dresses in this film were influenced by the director who was of Indian origin and wanted fabrics similar to those used to make traditional Indian clothes.

 

Worn by Helen Mirren in The Queen. This simple, black outfit is an outfit I could imagine the Queen really wearing, especially with touches such as the pearls, brooch and of course handbag.

 Worn by Rufus Sewell in Charles 2nd: The Power and the Passion. I never saw this T.V mini series but it looks as though the costumes were very opulent. In fact it was Charles 2nd who first introduced the waistcoat to England.

 Worn by Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle in Pride and Prejudice. Oh my. I have watched this T.V series so many times that I recognised these two outfits as soon as I walked into the room. I prefer this version much more to the more recent film with Keira Knightley, although I like that as well.  

 I didn't get the sign with information in this photo, but I think it was an outfit from Sense and Sensibility. I love the gold embroidery on the purple fabric.

Worn by Louise Lombard and Stella Gonet in The House of Elliot. It was actually seeing these two costumes that influenced me to go and watch the programme. It's about a couple of sisters who become fashion designers in the 1920's. 1920's = gorgeous costumes!

Worn by Maggie Smith and Michelle Dockery in Downton Abbey! I love this gorgeous red dress worn by Lady Mary in Downton Abbey, the cut is just so flattering and the detail on the bodice is beautiful.

Worn by Helena Bonham Carter and Colin Firth in The King's Speech. These two outfits are simple but stylish. If you haven't seen this film yet then go and watch it now!

And, last but definitely not least, this amazing dress worn by Keira Knightley in The Duchess. This film was filled with loads of opulent outfits and towering headpieces. This is the outfit which feautures on the DVD cover.

Have you seen any of these films and T.V programmes? What did you think of the costumes?
Linking up with Nicole for Treat Yo' Self Thursday and Alisha for Lovely Thursdays

Travel Tuesday: 20 Festivals in 10 Months

So, a couple of weeks ago I wrote this post talking about how during the 10 months I lived in Japan I saw 20 festivals. In that post I showed you photos from the first 10 festivals I saw, this post is the final 10 I saw.

11: Kyokusui-no-utage

What? A festival where people dress up in Heian period costumes, write poems and play music.
Where? Jonangu Shrine, Kyoto
When? November 3rd


12: New Years Day

What? In Japan EVERYONE visits at least one shrine at New Years. The more famous shrines get very busy and you have to queue for quite a while to actually get into the shrine. This was actually one of the less busy places...
Where? This was Heian-jingu shrine
When? January 1st, 2nd and 3rd

13: Iwashimizu Hachimangu Matsuri

What? A festival to protect against disasters in your life. One Japanese superstition is that there are three years in your life when disasters will happen. For women these years are 19, 33 and 61. I have just had my 19th birthday...
Where? Iwashimizu Hachimangu shrine
When? January 18th

14: Setsubun

What? This is one of my favourite Japanese festivals. It is day when people chase away evil spirits before the start of spring according to the lunar calendar. The main event is in the evening when people dress up as devils and do a performance in the grounds of a shrine.
Where? This was at Yoshida-jinja shrine
When? February 3rd

15: Hina Matsuri

What? Hina Matsuri is girls' day. It is when families with daughters celebrate by putting up a large display of special dolls. We didn't have the display of dolls but we did eat these very nice Hina Matsuri sweets!
When? March 3rd

16: Yosakoi

What? Yosakoi is a type of Japanese dance which originated in 1945. This was a great day out at Kyoto botanical gardens where they had different yosakoi teams competing. It's really fun and lively, as you can see from the photo!
Where? Kyoto botanical gardens
When? April 6th

17: Nagahama Matsuri

What? In April I went to Tokyo but before that I went to Nagahama for a few days. Nagahama is a town near Lake Biwa and it is famous for it's festival. Unfortunately the main parade was the day after I left but I did see some preparations for the festival, including lots of cute kids dressed up.
Where? Nagahama
When? 13th April

18: Kodomo no hi

What? Kodomo no hi translates as children's day. Makes sense really, if you have father's day and mother's day then why not also have children's day! On children's day these fish, called koinobori, are hung up outside houses and in public spaces.
Where? I saw these fish in Osaka
When? May 5th

19: Shimogamo-jinja Matsuri

What? I don't know what the correct name for this festival was or what exactly it was for, but basically we chose a white rock and then purified it in the same freezing cold water we walked through for the Mitarashi festival. Then we put them into these barrels, mine is the one just peeping up in the centre!
Where? Shimogamo-jinja shrine
When? May 10th

20: ???

What? A really local festival in my grandma's neighbourhood. I don't know what it was called. People from various neighbourhoods walked these small floats around town and as we were driving around we kept seeing other neighbourhoods' floats.
Where? Around Kyoto
When? May 11th

These are the last 10 festivals I saw while in Japan. Please note that the dates are the dates I went to the festivals in 2013, in some cases the dates might change each year.

 

Linking up with Bonnie Rose for Travel Tuesday

Shisa statues in Okinawa

In January I went on the most amazing three day trip ever to Okinawa, a cluster of tropical islands to the south of  Japan. On the final day we went to Taketomi-jima island, a beautiful small island filled with colourful flowers, traditional houses and very strange looking statues scattered all over the place.

These statues are called shisa and they are all over Okinawa but especially in Taketomi-jima island. When shisa come in pairs outside houses, the one on the left has it's mouth closed and the one on the right has it's mouth open. This is so that the closed mouth keeps good spirits in and the open mouth scares away evil spirits.

As well as the pairs of shisa there is also one shisa on top of each roof. These shisa are all in different positions, some are in the center of the roof and some are to the side. This is because inside Japanese houses there is a small shrine for members of the family who have passed away. In Okinawa there is a shisa placed on the roof directly above the shrine to protect the family's spirits. 

Have you ever come across strange looking statues during your travels?