New Favourites in New Life
Work and life in this new city have changed the way I feel towards how I spend my free time.
In one of my previous posts, I mourned about my cozy hours in coffee places in London and about the delicious croissants you could find on every corner.
I still miss them, very greatly. Personal nostalgia has been hitting me pretty hard this year. I still long for the efficiency of public transport and the abundance of career opportunities the British capital was able to offer.
However, I have made some efforts to adapt to the new environment, and they have paid off! As time goes by and we head into the summer in Australia, I have noticed a few changes in the way I spend my days. Some of those activities have become common during my days out of the office.
During this year I’ve tried many different activities in this new city. Winter in Sydney wasn’t too hard, but now that summer is swiftly coming, I am looking forward to hot days at the beach and ice coffees without sacrificing my warm comfort.
Vitamin D Walks
One of my favourite activities has been walking to the park that is only 3 minutes away from my house and looking at the harbour, allowing my skin to absorb some fundamental and delicious vitamin D. I had forgotten how relaxing it can be to spend a few minutes under the sun…reading, writing or organising the week.
I personally love taking the sun while reading Melissa Broder’s The Pisces and Milk Fed. Both books with unique stories that captivated me from the first page. I am still reading Milk Fed, but will make sure to talk more about it in a different post.
If there is one thing this city doesn’t lack, is the number of spots where you can enjoy stunning views. I am pretty confident that, wherever you live in this city, you can find a stunning landscape in less than a 10-30-minute walk.
I have been going for short walks during my days off, and I have enjoyed them!
Japan
We finally took our very desired trip to Tokyo this month. And the long 4-year wait, this tip was absolutely more than worth it.
The city surpassed our expectations in every way. The size, the culture, and everything that involved the Japanese capital made this place one of our favourite places in the world.
We stayed in the district of Ginza and spent the entire week visiting the different districts of Tokyo, including a 1-day trip to Kamakura. I believe a full week is enough to visit every area of the city and spend a couple of nights playing the multitude of games at the cool Arcades.
We loved every part of it (minus the very long flight), from the delicious crepes to the architecture, to the different social norms, the stunning temples and the affordable and interesting drinks you can find in the vending machines.
And look at this original poster on the subway signalling people to be careful when the door is closing!
Bottomless brunch
I wish I could say I have been spending my weekends taking strolls around Bondi and learning how to surf. I did indeed go surfing, once! In my defence, it’s been a long Autumn-Winter, so I am planning my second class very soon.
My visits to Bottomless brunch venues have been slightly more frequent. To be completely honest, a couple of those did not include the bottomless drinks, but brunch options are wide around Sydney. The good weather and relaxing vibe of the city call for a nice early lunch with good company.
And the price of the bottomless drinks is surprisingly lower than the ones you can find in London or other European cities, which makes it even more alluring.
Beauty Treatments
As soon as I arrived in this city, I couldn’t help but notice how seriously affordable beauty treatments were. Specially Laser removal!
Some sessions can be as far as 60% cheaper than they are in London, so I decided to battle my fears, put my pain level to the test and try some of these laser removal sessions to get ready for the summer!
My experience has been pretty positive so far. Most of the hairs in the treated areas are completely or almost completely gone. None of the sessions caused any scarring or damage to my skin.
I am thinking of trying something a bit more “adventurous”, like microneedling or some other type of “collagen-booster” treatment. Have you tried any of those yourself?
Thrifting
My story with thrifting goes back to my trips to Tallinn, Estonia.
If you were checking my blog a couple of years ago, you know that I stayed in the capital of Estonia for a couple of months while the pandemic was forcing us to work from home.
Tallinn had plenty of thrift stores that offered a wider range of second-hand clothes and accessories. I spent some of my evenings walking around the city, checking the stores and trying some clothes. I wasn’t too lucky with my findings, but those weeks awoke an appreciation for this type of store.
The moment that truly kicked off my new passion for second-hand clothing was my trip to Melbourne.
A few months ago, we paid a weekend visit to the Victorian metropolis intending to check out the street art, indulge in the great cafes the city is well-known for, and of course, see the cute penguins on St Kilda Pier.
We didn’t see any penguins, but we did find a few amazing thrift stores where I got amazing bargains, including a very new Regatta jacket for A$15 and an amazing Boody hoody for A$10. I also found a stunning trench for A$25 in perfect state. I regretted not buying this one because of fear that my luggage would surpass the weight allowance.
I decided that, after coming back to Sydney, I would check all of the thrift stores in the city, and so that’s one of my favourite ventures so far!
Which new hobbies have you started enjoying this year?
18 Comments
Pauly
Hey, good to see you posting again! i see that you miss London but yet you are settling in Australia. I never lived in Oz but I was there for holidays. SO much different than London.
Walking around a city with nice weather is the best 🙂
Kiira Smith
It is very different from London!
I’m glad you enjoyed the sunny city too, despite all of the things I miss, the weather and the parks make up for it.
Thanks for reading again 🙂
Joana
Good read, and nice photos! Am I right to assume that is you in one of the photos? 🙂
Kiira Smith
Yes that’s me haha
I’m glad you like them, I am the type of getting my images from Pexels, but I had a few on my iCloud that were perfect for this post 🙂
Nat
I have read The Pisces. Love polarizing and controversial books! Still need to read Milk Fed, but two other books I’ve enjoyed with similar vibes are “A Touch of Jen” and “The New Me”
Kiira Smith
Thanks for the recommendations, I will definitely check them out!
I’m on the same boat, love the controversial books, but they are so so difficult to find sometimes.
Karen
The Pisces was a little bittersweet to me. I was a little frustrated by the end (though I liked the book a ton)! – hope you enjoy it though, usually people disagree with my book opinions hahaha
Kiira Smith
Interesting! I didn’t love or hate the ending. I was surprised, that’s for sure (kind of expected the main character to “go in”).
I get that is not an ending for everyone though, but the entire story was worth reading for me, hopefully it was for you too!
Ken
Great to hear that you enjoyed your trip to Tokyo! I live here and i think you came at a great time, because on other months it can be too hot or too rainy!
Kiira Smith
You live in Tokyo? That’s amazing Ken!
We were incredibly lucky with the weather. Most days were sunny but not torrid, the perfect weather to see the city.
I’ve heard that Blossom season is also one of the recommended seasons to visit the city since you can see the first cherry blossoms appear.
jared
Bottomless Brunch? Best I’ve had so far is Green Moustache in North Sydney
Kiira Smith
OMG I haven’t tried that one, thanks for the recommendation!
The best one I have tried so far is 169 Darlinhurst.
Will
Hey, i have a list of brunch places in Sydney that i wrote a while ago, hope it’s useful!:
Pina / Room 10, Potts Point – Owned by the same folks, always busy, Al fresco seating, great breakfast options at both. I love Pina’s upgraded take on the Maccas sausage Mcmuffin and hash brown. The Room 10 broccoli salad is crunchy and just great if you’re feeling healthy but opt for the mushroom melt if you’re after indulgence. Special mention to Pina’s chilli oil that packs the right amount of heat and is the perfect accompaniment to their creamy scrambled eggs.
Joseph Hyde, Potts Point – just a hop, skip and jump away from Pina and Room 10. Waiting times are lesser, the staff are lovely, the food is divine. I tend to opt for their weekly specials. Fried chicken and waffles, and chorizo omelette with melty manchego have been my favourites so far.
Soul Deli, Surry Hills – I love the vibe of this place. The korean owners are friendly and have a good eye. The Kimchi – avo on toast at $15 is totally worth the dent in my house deposit savings account. Second favourite is the korean omelette that is studded with cod roe so you get that burst of salty goodness with every bite. You can pick between sourdough toast and rice. I’m partial to rice.
Boon Café, CBD – Thai style eggs all day long! I love when I can demolish brekkie and do my groceries at the same time. It’s tiny and cozy and I love it for a solo breakfast where my brunch date is a book. I’m partial to the Kai Gatah (Thai baked eggs with fish sausage, chicken and pork) but everything on the menu and neighbouring tables looks so good that I want to order everything. Go for the Big brekkie if you cbf with making decisions.
Chapter E, Darlinghurst – Small place, big flavours. I tend to get takeaway but if you’re dining in get the steaming hot shakshuka with chorizo. It’s accompanied with a generous serving of their homemade hummus.
Corn Stars, various markets – hate the name, love the fritters. No fuss menu- corn fritters with a selection of toppings. I tend to go for the OG (bacon, sour cream, chilli jam, fried onion and coriander)
Super Bowl, Chinatown – CONGEE with alll the toppings. Enough said.
Chatkazz, Harris Park- forget about IG brunch aesthetic and dig into no nonsense South Asian breakfast. There’s dosas and parathas and idlis and vadas and the list goes on. You’re going to need multiple visits to cover the variety of breakfast dishes on offer. Note this place is Vegetarian and the lines can get long but it’s worth the wait.
Student Biryani, Auburn – on weekends they do a choley – batura special. This is a deep fried puffy bread served with a chickpea curry, spiced potatoes and halwa a sweet semolina dish. Make sure you’re realllly hungry before you order this.
Kiira Smith
Wow Will that’s such an amazing list, thanks for sharing it!
From all of the places you mention, I have only tried Rom 10, and I absolutely adored it!
I got their speciality Cold Brew with almond milk (they serve it in such an adorable cup) and a Cheese and mushroom melt, what a treat!
We had to wait for around 20 minutes for a table, but I enjoyed every part of it!
I will definitely visit the other places on the list, almost all of them are relatively close to my place which is even cooler.
My personal recommendations would be Contessa in Balmain (you can see my order in the photo I used on the blog), Blue 36 Cafe in North Sydney and finally 169 Darlinhurst (if you are looking for bottomless drinks that include Espresso Martinis and the best spicy Bloody Marys in Sydney, possibly in Australia).
Pam
I have done microneedling in the past 🙂
During my birthday I will treat myself to a few sessions. Cost depend on your area. 1 can cost 300-500$. You truly need 3 to see results. I would do research and see what offices around you are charging.
My experience: I have received about 7 vampire facials within the past 3 years. You have to do it on a weekend when you’re not going out. Your face will be visibly red and possibly bruised. But trust the process. Your skin will glow 1-2 weeks after.
I noticed that my products were more effective after. And my skin was smoother and brighter.
But with any professional treatment it does not matter if on a daily basis you are not wearing SPF, using retinoids, vitamin c, peptides. All those are proven methods to help skin “anti age”. Specifically SPF and retinoids.
If you are taking care of your skin invest in micro needling. But if you are not, then don’t waste your money.
I recommend them.
Kiira Smith
Hey Pam! Thank you for sharing your experience 🙂
I forgot about the fact that you need to stay home since your face will be red, noted!
It’s also good to know that you need at least 3 sessions to see results, I was thinking of trying the treatment only once to start with.
And completely agree with the daily routine. Never skip my SPF before leaving the house, especially if you live in a sunny city!
Saoirse
Going thrift shopping in Sydney is great. Neutral Bay has a Vinnies, Salvos, Red Cross and Save The Children clustered together on Military Rd. Paddington Vinnies is very large and interesting. Both locations are rich areas so cater to rich people.
Kiira Smith
That’s amazing I will make sure to check out those ones!
The ones I frequent the most are the ones in Surry Hills (same street as Surry Hills Library) and Darlinhurst.
I also visited a couple in North Sydney, but the ones in Surry Hills were nicer in my opinion.