After what, I think we can all agree, was a bit of a stressful month, or so, time for a bit of chill and exploration again. Being out of work for a while has certainly opened up the door of opportunity for us to just get out there and spend time together, like the good ol’ days, you could say. For better or worse.
Thanks to, mostly, Hannah, we’d end up traveling to new locations for Trees, to, for the first time for both of us, the capital of the United Kingdom, London, for some random unknown singers.
Rushing to the Cinema, it’s Free.
After spending such a long time in the Philippines, me and Hannah were set to miss out on our monthly Cinema ticket and we can’t allow that. So, we resolve this by watching a couple of Films in a row. As you’ll remember, from the last blog, we arrived back from the Philippines, in a rather compromising state, at the tail-end of March, so, we had two days to watch a Movie, then, in the end, we ended up watching one the week after, also.
We’ve watched some pretty poor Movies, mostly the ones Hannah picks… looking at you Wuthering Heights (2026)… but, I have to say, these two weren’t actually that bad. Sure, they’re corny, bit cheesy, but, they are, for the most part, feel good Movies which I massively prefer. Men like Movies of two categories, stereotypically; action or comedy. Women like Movies of two moods, stereotypically; sadness and depression. Never understood why. So, when I take over, or, generally, we just avoid those, things are a lot better.
The first of these Movies was the Film “Hoppers”. Back in the 2000s, up to, I’d say, maybe 2010, if a Movie was a PIXAR one, it was guaranteed to the a good one (except Bugs Life, that’s awful). Then, that just stopped being the case. I think due to the Disney team doing the Movie, rather than the Pixar one. We all know Disney is a pile of rubbish compared to what it used to be. But, I have to say, this gave off real PIXAR vibes, and I like that.
Concept of the Movie is about as farfetched as you can possibly get. As always, cue to the outcast, mental health, crazy weirdo that has to be different person that always makes Movies these days. The main character certainly falls into that character. The obsession with the environment was also a bit cringey, definitely the Disney side trying to sneak in their agenda.
The Movie has been compared to Avatar, which is such a weak and pathetic comparison. Yes, of course, it does feature a human who goes into a pod and comes out as a different creature, but there lies the only similarity. Everything else, completely different. There’s no silly romantic back story, there’s no crazed War against the creatures. This was, quite literally, please don’t shut down a little lake, please, Mr Mayor. Despite this, it creates a ton of rather clever comedic moments, especially when the transfer to the Beaver was complete and the character bonding began with the great Leader.
But, the Movie didn’t stop there, with a number of twists with, who she thought, was just her College tutors, with even more transformation possibilities along the way, with ability to understand and communicate with all Animals. Each creature has its own Leader, creating a certainly ironic choice to the “evil” character towards the end when the concept of the “evil” Mayor goes a bit too far. Of course, it ends all well and good, with the Lake, in the end, not getting closed to, again, probably, to secure Mayoral Votes.
Overall, decent Movie, mostly, when it starts the feels of true PIXAR. The Disney inclusions make it, less so. For some reason, the decision was made to celebrate the Movie by purchasing the Drinking containers, I don’t know why, looking back. Purchasing drinking containers would be a continuing theme as the days passed, ironically.
As the days went by, we found ourselves in April, so, time for another Movie to watch. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is certainly a weird Movie, kind of, plays itself out as a sequel to the previous one, in parts, but, in reality, it’s a completely different Story. For those in to the Nintendo series of Games, you’ll know that Mario Galaxy was actually a Wii Game, which had a Switch re-release. Does this follow the Story… well, not really, but, at least features the characters. It was nice to see Yoshi, in a Movie, even though they made him so dorky.
Of course, as you’d expect, it was all about Bowser vs Mario, but, not the one you’d expect, but, his son as Bowser remained in captivity. With a bit of a twist of him changing his tone, and, almost, sides. The rest is very much the what you expect from Video Game Movies, bit of cliche, bit of nonsense, but a bit of fun and a good laugh. But, I will say this, whilst I enjoyed this more than Poppers, when watching, I can’t remember most of this Film. It’s rather forgettable. But, still worth a watch, if you can, especially if you saw the first one.
This was clearly another my-choice kind of movie. I remember, actually, being recommended to watch this through chats with Lee, but, yeah, the time finally came to watch The Sheep Detectives. Plus, it’s a British film, the first one we’ve watched since Fackham Hall, which Hannah didn’t like, and, the latest version of Wuthering Heights, which I didn’t like… though, speaking of which, has the same actress from that in this, if you look above the black sheep.
I don’t want to say the plot was a bit predictable, as, for Hannah it wasn’t, and, the reveal at the end surprised most in the Cinema, so, maybe I’m just more in tune with things like that. Essentially, we’re looking at a murder mystery, meets slapstick style British humour. Some will get it, some won’t, but, at least Hannah got this one. Despite a rather useless Cop on the scene of the crime, it’s up to the sheep to, essentially, force him, to see the true culprit. Parts of it do, perhaps, go on longer than they have to, but, overall, it’s a great Film and one I’d love to watch again once it’s fully released.
An extra dose of “Nothing”
There’s been a ton of Android devices that have interested me over the years, especially the Pixel line, but, most recently, has been checking the progress with Nothing. Nothing is a British born company which, yes, makes Smartphones, but, also have Watches, earphones and, yes, Headphones. They had some, rather pricey, “Headphone (1)” which had a metallic build, but, recently they’ve released these, the “Headphone (a)”. The naming scheme is similar to how Nothing, generally, name products, with a number indicating a series and the “a” indicating a budget, or, midrange, offering.
Despite this, and being decently affordable (£149), for what they are, Nothing doesn’t sacrifice as much on quality. Yes, it’s plastic, yes, there’s not, as much, deluxe flair, but, they look the part, feel the part and, more importantly, sound the part. Do they sound extraordinary, obviously, no, but they’re very decent. Noise cancellation is very good, though, with transparency modes also. All of which can be controlled on the devices themselves, or, through the Nothing app on Android, or iOS, by the way.
The truly impressive thing about these is the Battery life, 75+ hours with noise cancellation, or, here this, 135 HOURS without. To be clear, this is constant playing battery life. And, we can confirm, that’s about right. Hannah’s been using these constantly for a week, and, they’re still going very strong. In fact, I don’t think we’ve charged them again, yet. So, yeah, Hannah loves them, so, gets a BEHANN recommendation. Though, I’ll admit, recently, when she’s been rushing to work, she still reaches out for her AirPods, so, maybe a short lives fad.
Traveling to Harrogate for Cherry Blossoms
Thanks to being sat in my home whilst my parents watch some propaganda…. I mean, News, Hannah was able to discover the local attraction at Harrogate, the Cherry Blossoms. Now, this isn’t Japan, but, even so, it’s fair to say there are quite a lot of them to see. In reality, admittedly, we probably arrived a bit later than we should of done, so, they weren’t quite as Pink as they might have been at full bloom, but, we also came just in time, as a lot of them were also starting to fade and die out.
Getting to Harrogate is, surprisingly, rather easy. We took a Bus from Leeds. Although, I have to say, the Bus journey was rather grander than the traditional Arriva or First experiences. You’d Aircon, much more comfortable seating, as well as Drivers who get a rather suspicious amount of compliments from Customers… that was a bit weird. But, once we got there, it was rather … OK, I’ll admit, Harrogate didn’t amaze me that much, but, it was, at least, a bit nicer than around the West Yorkshire side. So, there’s that.
Whilst exploring the sites, be them, limited, one that we noticed immediately was a Queen Victoria plaque, and, yeah, generally, seemed like a nice quiet area, at the time. Ironically, spent the most time in the local Waitrose, mostly as it was the only place that had a convenient toilet. Oddly, they were like Airline ones. Then, we headed for the Blossoms.
We’d actually seen them on the way, with the Bus going rather close past the other end of the, actually, huge park full of them. Once we crossed the road there, it was clear, however, we weren’t the only ones going there. It seemed to just, never, get quiet.
As you can see, it’s actually a fairly decent looking Park area, surrounding the main areas of the town. Looking at the area, you’re probably thinking, yeah looks nice, decent to spend around…ohh, I dunno, 30 minutes, an hour tops… yeahhh, no, we were there for the whole day!
Definitely got repetitive; Cherry blossom, photo. Cherry blossom, TikTok. Cherry blossom, photo…etc. And, ironically, it turns out Hannah wasn’t the only Filipina in the area thinking of photos + TikTok, in fact, there was a whole huge group of them there! And, yes, all dancing TikTok. Oddly, at one point, they were all, must’ve been over a dozen, trying to get into the same video. Hannah heard them speaking Tagalog, so, wasn’t interested. That infamous rivalry between Tagalog speakers and Bisaya.
Despite taking a billion photos, it’s fair to say, it was hard to get us both in a good shot. There’s only so much you can do by balancing on Trees, and taking each other. Thankfully, some there were able to help us with photos. Admittedly, the random woman wasn’t that good, but, there was a photographer with a huge Camera lens, who was insisted to take us with Hannah’s iPhone. To his credit, he did a pretty good job and took the best pics of the day.
Eventually, after a good few…years, or what seemed like, we were finally able to get back. So, yeah, quite a long day, with, seemingly, very little returns, but, Hannah was happy so that’s a thing.
That would have happened rather smoothly, if Hannah wasn’t more focused on random pictures against Lamp posts, than heading back to the Bus, which were, by the way, every half hour. So, yeah, we had the joy of watching it leave… So, after some, rather unimpressive McDonalds, we were then able to leave.
OUR TRIP TO LONDON COVERED SEEING TG MONTERDE, EXPLORING SOME OF THE SIGHTS AND STAYING THE NIGHT IN THE PROCESS. HERE WE GO.
Our first visit to London… but, with A LOT of Philippines.
As you may have remembered, I took Hannah to watch Busted vs McFly, a while back, and I think it’s fair to say we had a pretty awesome time. Well, all good things come with compromise, and, this was it 😁. Yep, Hannah had decided, on her own behalf, that we must now watch something of her choosing. Now, did she pick something local? Did she pick something easy to get to? Did she pick something cheap? Of course not! Yep, Hannah had decided to spend, ironically, more than I spent, to see a Philippines singer, no one has heard of, at a small bar, no one has heard of, in the outskirts of London, where most don’t go. Great.
Finding workable compromises
Now, I’ve never been to London, mostly as I’ve always heard it’s an absolute shithole from Rob, and, everyone else who’s been there, so, I wasn’t too happy about this. Plus, where the hell is Troxy…. ahh, nowhere even near the centre of London. This will be fun to plan. Then there’s the whole, ok, where do we stay, how much can we put towards this? How do we get there? etc. Things Hannah just doesn’t think of when jumping into this and buying it, sure, with her own Wages, but, still. Hotels in London are EXPENSIVE, everything is, apart from TfL buses, but, they’re rubbish, so makes sense. But, also, even getting there is EXPENSIVE.
So, what did we do? Well, we’d to think outside the box. For the Hotel, thankfully, there was cheaper options more closer to where the gig actually was. One, minor, benefit, to it being not in the centre of London, was that it didn’t come with the London tourist prices. Con to that was that it was in a bit of a, let’s just say, rough area. And, well, the place was awful, but, we’ll get to that. Then, when it came to getting there, we’d, instead, choose Coach instead of Train, which, whilst a bit slower, was actually very good. So, swings and roundabouts. OK, now that’s settled, let’s go.
A VERY early start for the Coach
To get to the Coach, we’d have to set off very early from our house, so much in fact we had to get a Taxi to Leeds to be able to catch it on time. Although, in reality, we ended up having plenty of time. This was the first time I’d ever used National Express to get anywhere. I’d always seen the Coach station in Leeds, but, always thought them a bit too good to be true, if you get me, in terms of price. But, honestly, no complaints about the service. Barely £20, and we were both able to get a return to London, can’t really complain about that.
The journey consisted of two Coach journeys, well, for the most part. A long main journey, which I reserved Seats for, followed by a minor second one just to get to a more convenient place. At the first stop, generally, we just waited at a Station for the next one. It’s probably the most Train-like Bus experience you can have.
I will say something, though, the London Coach station had some of the most disgusting toilets I’ve ever been to in my entire life. It’s no joke, I think these were last maintained, built, and, cleaned before the reign of Henry VIII! An honestly awful first impression of London in that, alone. Then, it was time for the last trip.
The journey was actually around 4 hours, though, honestly, it didn’t feel like it. You had decently comfortable seats and was about as smooth as a Train. I decided to bring my AYN Thor, for some Gaming on the journey, and trip, which helped pass the time. Hannah, of course, managed to find a way to sleep during the journey. Still amazes me how she can sleep, basically, anywhere.
Once we did arrive in London, the sights and sounds of the place had to take a back-seat in terms of priority, as we needed to figure out where the Venue was, and, where our stay was.
TJ Monterde, live a the Roxie, London
Thankfully, finding the Venue wasn’t, too hard, even if it was quite a long walk. The only problem was, the VIP Experience that Hannah had arranged (for some reason), started before we were able to check into our AirBNB… so, as a result, we had to go into the Venue first… which, went well. Yeahhhh, for some reason, once we entered the Venue, they wouldn’t let us out again. So, in the end I’d to message and inform I’d be not back until the very end of the night. –sigh–
We passed a long road outside of London that felt more like Beeston, but, eventually, we reached the Voxie venue. Then, it was as-if I was transported back to the Philippines… no, really. EVERYONE was from the Philippines. Even inside the Venue, I was (apart from Staff) one of three white guys there. Very strange. It was also one of those Gigs where the men’s bathroom was a lot more free than the women’s, if you get me.
Despite being a rather small Venue, and, despite the acts being rather unknown in the UK, this was possibly the most Sponsored By gig I’ve ever been to. Sponsored by WorldRemit was EVERYWHERE, a billion Adverts for really poorly acting Dramas and other artists. Made the Event feel very tacky, if I’m honest with you. The Venue was nothing special, either, very claustrophobic with some pretty awful chairs, but hey.
After a billion hours of advertisements, then a very cringeworthy Games that took place on the top… it was bad. Eventually, it was time for the actual show to begin.
The Gig began the man himself performing a range of songs. Was pretty cool to see some animated London cues, even if they looked a bit AI. He was also supporting a Jacket with the Philippines logo on the right arm, then the UK Flag in the Left, a nice touch. As for the Music itself, I mean, they were very … OK. Nothing blew me away, so, I won’t be searching him up next time I’m there. But, it was something.
He then left the Stage and was replaced by his Wife, KNZ. She did a few performances, she was very umm… loud. I’m not saying she can’t sing, she can, but, it was a bit full-on and a bit crazy for no reason. So, as for the Gig itself, I wasn’t particularly amused, but, I think Hannah enjoyed herself.
Then, it was time to go. With the added worry of wondering whether we’d be able to actually find our place to stay the night. But, surely nothing should go wrong, right.
Our AirBNB… you get what you pay for…
Once our Gig was over, we had to find the AirBNB, and, when we did, we were able to get in via a Password locked Door. When I say you get what you paid for, well, this was the pure definition of that. On paper, and, at first, I thought it was quite nice. A decent shared Kitchen, and seating area. A pretty bare-bones bathroom, then, we got to our room.
The Room was pretty baron, a very squeaky old Bed, a Table and… that’s it. This, to be fair, wouldn’t have been a problem, really, as we were just staying the one night. But, at this point, it was the middle of the night and the Lights didn’t work. Yep, we had a pitched-black room, relying on our phones to keep us alight. Not good. If it wasn’t for Street lights, I’d probably never even realise where the Bed was.
We tried contacting the Hosts, who weren’t even there, by the way, and got no response. So, we were just stuck with it. This was a good excuse to make an early start to, essentially, leaving, and exploring some of London.
Exploring London 🇬🇧
Before visiting London, I always had this impression that it would be an absolute shit hole. After this trip, that has gone from an impression, to, now, confirmed, fact 😅. Look, I get it, it’s got a lot of Tourist places you might as well check out once, but, once you step outside of those focus areas, it’s got so many flaws, and, it ends up feeling like a bad version of Manchester, and I hate Manchester, too.
This all started the second we even arrived;
Hannah’s first impression of London, an unhygienic Chinese restaurant
Once our Coach dropped us off at London, the first thing I thought to do was to try and get Hannah something to eat. In the end, we found a nearby Chinese place. Well, let’s just say, she was not impressed. We found out after, this place had a 2/5 star Hygiene rating which is, VERY bad. Not surprising, really, especially as when Hannah went to collect her Food, the alarming remote you take up, was dropped into her food, then, food was just given as if it never happened. Then, it was, apparently, awful, too.
But, that was, thankfully, the worst part of the Trip, for Hannah, at least, over with, so, to be fair, it was up from there.
The Telephone Box Obsession, then, Big Ben FOREVER!!!
In true Hannah fashion, she came to London, not just to see her favourite Artist, but, also, with an agenda of places to see and do, and, as always, TikTok is the annoying cause. For some, rather odd, reason, this came in the form of the Red Telephone Boxes. Specifically the ones right next to the eye-line of Big Ben. This was clearly a spot that was popular as their was always a huge queue of people literally just to get a picture of a Red, unused, by the way, Telephone Box… madness, if you ask me.
Due to the issues with our place of stay, we ended up tackling London very early, we’re talking, taking photos outside the Telephone Box and Big Ben as early as 7am. But, the advantage of this was, much more clearer pictures. Once the hours passed, and, they did very slowly for me, with a few billion shots, the people started arriving.
It’s mad, really, as there’s so many other places after we struggled to take due to people, and it’s like… well, if you just went to them efficiently we’d of been fine. But hey.
So, Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, and, the infamous not-really-special Telephone Box has been covered. What’s next? Well, a strange collection of side of the Bridge pictures, which never looked that good. She just had all these random locations on a list. Completely ignoring the fact that everyone on TikTok heavily edits.
As the morning was slowly continuing to progress, and the photos were now reaching over the 1,000, it was time to realise we were hungry and in need of something to eat. So, we made a bit of a plan for the rest of the day and then proceeded to have the worst McDonalds I’ve had in a very long time… ahhh London, you sure disappoint well.
London Life Guards of the Household Cavalry
Guarding a whole ground and a park area, are, of course, the Guards at the Household Cavalry, or, as most people know them as, the guys that stand with the horses. So, in true tradition we took a picture next to the Horse and riders as you’re supposed to do. Hannah, of course, did two, because, of course she did.
Of course the Guards symbolise an actually protected area, this one, to be exact. Obviously, nothing was going on when we turned up, but, regularly there’s Horse events going on at the time, but for that day it was just a bit of gravel. But, it did lead to a very pleasant looking park which, even for London’s standards, was actually very very nice. We saw some very carefree Ducks and little chicks on the way through. It kind of reminded me of that Park in Leeds, but, yeah, was a nice place to walk through.
But, where was this leading to, well, makes sense that the Royal Guards are protecting, well, what else, than Buckingham Palace itself.
Buckingham Palace, and, the changing of the Guards.
I’m not going to lie, when I first saw Buckingham Palace I was kind of left with a bit of … “is that it?”, syndrome. Wasn’t impressed. I mean, sure, it’s a grand building with its iconic look, but, to me, it just looks and seems a bit past it. Maybe it was the cloudy moody weather, but, just did nothing for me and was one of the least exciting parts of the day.
One unexpected addition, as we’d genuinely had no idea, was that we’d turned up just as it was the changing of the Guards. So, we were met with a display of Royal display walking past, which was pretty cool. But, once it was over and the crowd had started to disperse, we were able to get some last close up shots of the Palace.
Once we’d taken a few pictures of a building, it was time to move on. I’d made the choice earlier, once we were taking pictures of the Big Ben, that it would be a good idea to explore the London Eye, so, that was the next stop.
Exploring the sights from the London Eye!
It felt right to check out the London Eye, whilst in London. To be fair to London, everything we’ve checked out, so far, has been completely Free, so, I guess, in that regards, we got a lot out of the day for that. Most people would associate Madam Tussauds, also, but, honestly, we went to one in Blackpool, and I doubt there’s that much more there compared. Plus, Hannah hadn’t heard of 90% of the people at the Blackpool one, so, would just be a repeat of that. So, the first time there was a Fee to pay, was London Eye.
You could have got a bit of discount, if you did choose to go elsewhere, but, we didn’t.
The journey lasts approximately 30 minutes, which, on paper, sounds like a long time, but, in reality, it goes by much quicker than you think. Definitely, quicker than it feels, it’s rather slow. But, in reality, that’s a good thing if you want to get all the shots you want, and to enjoy the experience.
Obviously, it’s near-on impossible to give you the full experience in photos, but, it’s definitely something I’d say is worth doing. But, also, something that’s probably a one-time and you’re fine, kinda thing. Maybe, could do it again at night time, but, that’d be it.
Then, it was time for just a bit of walking around randomly and aimlessly, woo.
Spending the last couple hours going… somewhere, surely.
Once we’d finished with the London Eye, we’d got a few hours left to just explore a few more things before we could head back, so, we, just, had a walk about. We checked out Tower Bridge, and whilst we had a glimpse of the Tower of London, Hannah seemed completely oblivious to what it actually was, despite being called out, so, we never explored it further … ugh.
Once we’d looked around London once more, it was approaching that time when we needed to get back, so, it was time for a quick bite to eat before the journey back.
London, on a Sunday afternoon… awful, for Food. And, heading back
For some reason, on a Sunday afternoon, there’s, pretty much, absolutely nothing, to eat. Even all the Greggs were shut. So, I ate… nothing. But, Hannah was still hungry, so, in the end we ended up going to, yet another, Chinese place, though, this one we checked the Food Hygiene Rating, before we entered. It was a lot more pricey too, but, consumable. Plus, not full of electronic remotes like the first one. So, there’s that.
The main reason, actually, though, for choosing that place was the location, it was very close to the first Stop we’d to make on our journey back. Unlike going there, coming home starts at a random middle of a Stop place. But, if we missed the Coach, we’d, honestly, be screwed. Hannah thought I was being over-dramatic, but, hey, it came 9 minutes early, so if I didn’t make sure we were prepared, we would’ve been.
Then, we were able to catch the first shorter Coach and head to the main Station until the main journey was able to take us home. Thankfully, this was the Station with… yes the awful toilets, but, a Gregg’s, so, once again, I was, at least, able to eat something before we headed back. So, yes, minus a dreadful McDonalds, all I ate in London was Gregg’s. I don’t know if that says more about me, or, London.
After a VERY long wait, our Coach took us home!
When I said a wait, before, I didn’t quite anticipate the one I’d have… I’ll get to that. Once we got to the Station, I was straight to the Gregg’s to get something to eat. Unfortunately, I made the same mistake, I think we all do, when you’ve not eaten for a considerable amount of time, and… well, eat too much. What I should have done; have 2 Sausage Rolls, maybe a drink, then, be gone. However, what I did; 4 Sausage Rolls, 2 Gingerbread Men, a Large drink and, as a result, gained a rather bloated stomach for the whole journey back. So, that was brains.
The journey back was like, I’d say, every journey back, after a day, or, holiday, out, always seems to go quicker, and has that feeling of ending. Overall, a comfortable journey back, and, it turned out we were set to be a bit earlier than what was originally expected, which had an annoying, ironic, circumstance. We were expected back after 11pm, in Leeds, but, due to being a lot earlier than planned, we were, actually, more, barely half 10. This was annoying as, due to the expected time back, I’d reserved a Taxi around after the time we were expected to return, which resulted in two things that annoyed me;
- We could have taken a bus: The last bus home from Leeds, runs around 10:54PM. We fully expected not to be able to catch this, so, the Taxi was, thought, to be the only option. In the end, we had to watch the Bus arrive, and, leave, as I’d already reserved, and paid for, my Taxi. (and the Taxi couldn’t be cancelled this late on)
- Uber Reserve is a SCAM!: To get to our first, initial, Coach, it was quite early so I reserved a Taxi to make sure it arrived. Then, the Uber app is all “hey, let’s arrange your return trip too, and save”, well, it turns out, not so much. Whilst I didn’t check the price of the morning, getting a fresh Taxi would have been £3 CHEAPER than the price we’d reserved and paid for. And, of course, I wouldn’t have to wait for the reserved slot, either, meaning we’d of got home earlier. So…yeah, won’t be doing that again.
Don’t get me wrong, in reality, I doubt we’d of wanted an hour journey home via the Bus and the walk after, after the long exhausting 24-48 hours, but, the real bullshit was the Uber reserve. But, hey, even though we’d to wait for it, it finally arrived and we headed home. But, oddly, not before Hannah put a Coffee on a seat in the Bus station for a random person to pick it up and steal it… yes, that happened… Anyway, once our journey took us home, you could tell it was an exhausting time as, instead of staying up too late, I joined Hannah and collapsed till the next day.
So, what did I think of London, really? I mean, I didn’t enjoy ANY of the Philippine music side of things, but.. well, how about the more important question;
Is London the shithole I had the impression it would be? … … … YES!
I’m fully aware of the difference between the small online minority, even majority, sometimes, and reality. But, when it comes to the impression of London being a shithole, yeah, it’s true, it’s garbage. Most of London reminded me of the side streets of Bradford, and that’s before it was, slightly, cleaned up when it somehow won City of Culture. London has an odd thing in common with North Korea’s Pyongyang, where it’s all this is lovely, look at this…. oh, no, don’t look over there… very good, back looking here, everything’s great … kinda vibe. So, yeah, you won’t find me recommending the place.
Unfortunately, for me, Hannah probably wants to go back, one day, but, if I never went back, I’d be very happy.
THIS CONCLUDES THE COVERAGE OF OUR TRIP TO LONDON
Rob’s Wedding
This may sound ironic coming from a Married man, but, I’ve always hated Weddings. There’s something about them. I’ve always found them very narcissistic, perhaps that’s why I didn’t enjoy my own. A myriad of fuss and exaggeration surrounding just two, while the rest of everyone else has to smile, grin, and, pretend to enjoy themselves. Despite this, obviously, the reason why you’re ever at a Wedding, knowing those obvious realities, is to support someone important to you which, of course, was the case here. Although, to be fair, I’ve only been to three Weddings in my entire life, and, that includes my own, so, I guess generalising is rather obtuse, but, I’m yet to be proven wrong.
Preparation for the Wedding, obviously, began rather soon after it was confirmed to be a thing, during our York trip. Then, of course, Hannah went dress shopping in the Philippines. There was a bit of drama, unfortunately, surrounding this Wedding, which did mean one, otherwise, obvious face, was not at the Wedding. I think this did taint it, slightly, for me, though, not more than someone else, unfortunately, which I’ll get to.
An awkward arrival, sets the mood.
I’d heard of the place the Wedding was at, but, couldn’t confidently place it, so, getting there was always going to be a quick Taxi to get us there. Although, there was a rather awkward moment where Caddy offered us a lift, which we had to decline; one, as Hannah hadn’t met them so thought it would be awkward (kind of understand that), and, two, in the end, my Dad was able to lift us up.
Once we arrived which allowed me to remember exactly the place it was, the first thing we saw, rather immediately, was Caddy who coincidentally walked outside for a quick cig, as we arrived looking for where to go. In a way, I actually thought this was a good thing as it allowed Hannah to meet Caddy without any huge crowd intimidation. This would’ve been, if Hannah didn’t shake with the wrong hand using barely two fingers … an odd handshake she’d continue through the night. No idea why. I have to give credit where it’s due, if it wasn’t for Caddy there, I’d of probably really struggled to blend in to anything, but, he was, so, that’s good.
Once we entered the Venue, however, we were greeted to a collection of completely random unknown people, with the odd, slightly, familiar face here-or-there. And, by slightly familiar face, I’m talking, I know of them, not, know them. Kai was with his own group, Caddy had vanished, then Rob rushed past to thank us for coming before, understandably, duty calls so he was off. So, in the end, me and Hannah was just awkwardly on our own in the corner, whilst everyone drunk with those familiar to them. Yeahhh, not the best start.
In fact, throughout the day it felt like me and Hannah were always the ones left behind, or, forgotten about. You could also say, it felt like we weren’t supposed to have arrived, so to speak. As I said before, without Caddy, we’d have been entirely unnoticed. Whilst I feel like some of the things that followed, specifically from Hannah, remain inexcusable, at the same time, this early impression that stuck, certainly contributed. We did not feel welcome. But, there were some positives, which I’ll get to now.
Once the awkwardness of the introduction was over, it was time for the event itself. This was to be a registry office, style, Wedding, so, it would all be taking place at the same place. But, due to a… recurring, issue, where Hannah would have us out of the rest of everyone else, we were one of the last into the place so, almost, didn’t get a seat. Though, ironically, we ended up rather close to the top. The only negative to this, we’re probably in a lot more photos of the actual Wedding ceremony itself, than would have been desired.
The aisle, the vows, to the “I do”
It was actually a rather decently decorated room where all the vows took place, with a very white covering on the chairs to match. Sure, slightly claustrophobic, but, once everyone had their own space it was fine. It was clear to see that Rob was nervous, with seemingly rather unhelpful jabs from both sides, but I think it was more the fact of that infamous wait. What do you do during that wait? You’ve just to wait and not look odd. In a Church, it’s not too difficult as there’s a, somewhat, distance between you and the audience. In this venue, he’s so close, so was obviously awkward for him. Thankfully, for Rob, the wait was finally over, with accompanying music playing.
After an almost dictatory notice that we must not film anything and post things later, the service was ready to begin. Then, after about a solid minute, there she was, Rob’s, soon-to-be, Wife, walking down the aisle. A moment I don’t think any of us, that’s known Rob for as long as we have, every thought we’d see, Rob at an alter vowing for Marriage, but, here we were. It was clear that both of them were finding the traditions a bit OTT, with both of them joking throughout the process, which was funny.
After a surprisingly emotional collection of vows from both of them, before we knew it they were Married, and walking down the aisle together. Oddly, no bouquet was thrown, at the end of it, just a sense of … umm, what’s next? Well, what was next was heading outside, getting a free TINY Lager bottle on the way out, and heading to an outdoor area.
A few snaps, to then… tick tock tick tock
Once we were all outside, there were some very unusual and strange traditions that were attempted, especially with confetti, all a bit weird for the majority of us. Then, finally, the photos were taken. The brides family and co, then, the grooms family and co, then a group of the girls, then the lads which was, interesting. Well, let’s just say, if Adam didn’t butt in and say, “shouldn’t we be included?”, a very valid point, I don’t think me, Caddy, and him, obviously, would even been included in the picture. Could be wrong, but it was certainly the impression I got. Makes you wonder who was in charge of this… But, hey.
Once all the photos were taken, it was very much a case of… umm, yeah, everyone just act busy for a couple hours. Hannah wasn’t particularly happy, at this point, as she knew literally no one, and, it was cold (to her) outside it wasn’t, so she wanted to, initially, go inside for a little bit. This was the beginning of the worst part of the whole day for me. Whilst I was keen to catch up with a few people I’d not seen for a while, Hannah just had this complete determination to make the day completely worse. Look, I get it, she’s bored, she knows no one, what do I do etc, but there’s also such a thing as being supportive, and going with the flow. Something she just couldn’t be assed to do. This is even more infuriating, due to how much shit and rubbish events, meals, and so much more, I’ve had to put with with her Family and Friends. It’s supposed to be something you just do, so when, just once, she’s asked to return the favour and be decent, she completely failed. So disappointing, and, embarrassing. Sure, I know what you’re thinking, shouldn’t you have just gone on your own? Well, first of all, why? Everyone else has come with their partners, and, second, she’s supposed to be an adult, not a child, I shouldn’t have to babysit and make excuses for her. As I hinted, at the start, everyone was bored, Caddy’s gf was bored, others were bored too, that’s normal for a Wedding. Then, when that brief moment where the Bride and Groom have time to say hi, you bring out the smiles and congratulations. This doesn’t exactly work when everyone’s going, ohh where’s Hannah, then, having to say, ohh she’s a bit cold… yeah, that only works once before people start asking questions. Then, you feel like you have to leave the action and be with your Wife to be like ok…ok, but that just means we miss EVERYTHING…literally. 😡 I was so mad!!! Still am.
All Hannah cared about was bothering me every single second to run away from people who I was trying to mingle with, just to go inside on a Table with no one around where she’d complain she’s bored, spend 99% of the time on TikTok, and text me constantly “let’s go home”, “I want to go home”…. I was so mad! The level of selfishness that shows, is just peak. I was embarrassed every time people put the effort in to try and include her, and she’d refuse or disappear, I was mad that she was doing everything to make the night worse and put zero effort in, and, I felt guilty when I was forced to go on Hannah’s account very early. -sigh- Not good.
We missed all the Speeches, getting a table for the Food, and, more.
If there’s any saving grace from a Wedding, it’s the usual 3 that do their best to make it not all a waste of time… exaggerating, slightly, but, just saying;
- The vows and Wedding itself
- The speeches from the Best Man, and, whoever else
- Camaraderie
Thanks to Hannah, I, only really experienced one of those things. The vows and Wedding itself. Yep, missed all the Speeches as whilst I was trying to get Hannah from being selfish and forcing me away from everything, everyone who (including us) was supposed to be waiting outside, was invited into a private room where the Speeches, and, eventually, Food, was to take place. Yep, we missed it all! Brilliant 😑
Literally, we were trapped outside on a Table with Hannah with a pathetic mood, watching TikTok’s with my nicked-off-me AirPods, complaining and moaning how she’s bored, whilst all the entirety of the Event was taking place without us able to be involved. There was no hiding it anymore, I was fucking fuming with her! I texted Caddy, just to, essentially, say, we were out of the action, can you let us in, basically. Obviously, after the Speeches were done, he found a way to get us in, but, by that point, it was all done. Then, some rather small selection of Food was available for everyone. So, nothing for me. Hannah had a small amount, and was already ready to go, again, immediately, after.
The thing that really annoys me the most, all my friends were trying to include her. Literally, everyone. Rob wanted to see her one-to-one. Caddy was very good, including his girlfriend, with Hannah, including her showing off their pet. Even Adam was trying to include her with an amusing moment where she wasn’t a fan of Guinness. Kai wanted to meet her, but, never got to. Hannah just had no willingness, whatsoever. That’s what annoyed me. If none of that were true, I’d understand her hesitations, wanting to leave, and lack of willingness to even put basic effort in. But, that simply wasn’t true. In the end, I’d had enough, so, started to just leave her, with it being her choice whether she wanted to be included or not, cos, at this point, I was getting too annoyed.
The Polaroid doesn’t work, plus, a final catch up with the Married couple.
Once I was able to get away, I noticed Caddy was messing around with something, turns out it was a Polaroid Camera. And why was everyone using a Polaroid Camera? Well, turns out for a pretty neat idea. Rob, well, more likely Jayne, his now Wife, had this book prepared where you can put a photo taken into it, then write a passage next to it. Obviously, not a life story, just a Congratulations was good enough, this was our contribution;
However, getting the Camera to work, was quite an amusing farce. It just didn’t want to behave. Initially, me and Caddy were trying to get the Camera working, was trying to take Caddy and his girlfriend, then, the plan was, they’d take me and Hannah. Well, the Camera just … didn’t want to work after one. So, came a rather hilarious moment of struggle. Eventually it did work and me and Caddy had a picture, as, at this point, Hannah was not responding to calls to come over. So, we added a page to say thank you from Damn Crows… if you know, you know.
Then, finally, Hannah arrived and began probably the first inkling of some sort of involvement in the day. We had a quite laugh together, me, Hannah, Caddy and some random photographer getting the Camera to work, then, a picture was taken of me and Hannah (badly, and blurry, as you can tell), so we were able to be put into the book. Phew. Now that Hannah had decided to be bothered, all of a sudden, the choice, or the question, was made, that we should probably get a photo with the Married couple, which is fair enough. Of course, as I’m aware of, too, on your Wedding day, you don’t really have time and are constantly trying to be involved with everyone you can. But, thankfully, when I approached Rob for it, he was up for it, got Jayne over, and we got a few photos. There was even a bit of chat between the four of us, for once. So that was actually pretty awesome, and, a very welcome hint of development from Hannah.
This is how the Wedding should have felt, with me and Hannah. Both of us getting involved, enjoying the other’s company, and just having a laugh. Was such a shame that this only really took place, about the last 30 minutes, to an hour, tops. Hannah did mention, at this point, that she was working early the day after the Wedding which, whilst was true, it was a rather obvious seed to how she was going to leave. And, that would be, what would be why we did.
Once we’d taken the photo together, we ended up back at our chairs, so, back to boredom? Well, I was having none of that. So, whilst Rob, Caddy etc were outside having a smoke, I thought, you know what, I’m going to join them. Was finally able to have a bit of normal catch up with everyone. This was the moment where it felt like a decent time… though, the texts continued at the same time… So… yeah, then, it really was time, that we were going to go, unfortunately.
Heading off home, earlier than desired. But, thank you for the invite 😊
Let me just make one thing crystal clear before we cap off this section of the blog. Neither me, or, more importantly, Hannah, have any issues whatsoever with Rob or Jayne. I truly believe that. Of course I’m saying this more in regards to Hannah, than me. It really was, the event, so to speak. I remain very disappointed with her, for not, still, putting a bit more effort in, but, she didn’t. This also made me feel guilty, even if, the reason we did go, was, for the most part, valid, she did go to bed very soon after we returned, but, I’d of easily preferred to have had another 1-2 hours, at least.
Once a Taxi was booked for us to leave, I immediately looked for Rob just to confirm that we were indeed going, got a hug and a thank you, and was pretty clear in my hopes that we get a good catch up sometime real soon, which I truly do hope happens. We also talked about some other things, which he never ended up coming through with, but, that’s whatever. Then, as the Car arrived, managed to see Caddy before we left and was able to say goodbye which I was glad about.
Once we got home, I think it’s fair to say, everyone was surprised we were home when we were. Hannah knew I wasn’t happy with her, so, just kept quiet and played the victim, which, trust me, doesn’t work anymore with me. Something she’s… slowly, learning. Then, before we knew it, the night was here and the day was over.
Obviously, at this point, you’ve probably worked out who the obvious emission was from the Wedding, of course, Lee. I have to say, it was such a shame that the drama had to take place between Lee and Rob. Not just because, what’s the point? But, also, because, if it wasn’t just Caddy I had to rely on for the night to be, somewhat, bearable, in those boring moments, add Lee to the mix, and, I think it would’ve been far easier, even for Hannah, as she’s met him multiple times before. But, alas, the day went as the day went. Shame, really.
A couple weekends with some Animals
As has become a growing tradition, with my Family heading off to somewhere, typically, in Spain, I’m always put on pet-sitting duties. As this was arranged a while back, it was agreed that I would be covering the initial weekend, with the main week covered by someone else. In the end, however, that ended up being slightly extended. So, in the end, I’d end up doing Friday night until Monday lunch, then back again the weekend after for Saturday evening until Sunday morning. In the middle of all this, we’d have the main house free for whatever we liked.
This was, initially, something I was given as my ex Claire was OBSESSED with Dogs, so the idea of being able to look after Rex, was something that was very agreeable. Of course, in the end, that ended up being one of the downfalls of that relationship, but, we digress. As for Hannah, she’s not as bothered about Dogs… in fact, like me, she’s not bothered about them at all, so this ends up being more of a chore, than anything else.
This is especially true when, in the end, you end up doing, literally, everything. It was bad enough before, but, literally, when Hannah comes around, she sits, gets up to do TikTok, and… then moans that the dog’s breath smells. So, this time, we did things slightly differently. Instead of staying at the house throughout the whole duration, this time we made the decision to come back home each day for around 5-6 hours. It’s amazing what a huge difference that does to the moral of looking after them. Plus, Rex is a lot more self capable than he used to be. There used to be a time, when you’d get up in the middle of the night walk into the bathroom and …. ohhh dear. Thankfully, that is no longer the case.
So, the new plan ended up being, heading up around 6PM, spending the night, until 12PM, the next day, where we’d, then, head back home and return up again around, or, just after, 6PM… and repeat. However, in most cases, than not, Hannah ended up not bothering. We spent the first night, and day, generally together, then, she just had enough so… that was a bit annoying. But, at the same time, it’s whatever.
On the first night there, it was very much a case of getting used to the return of the duties. Personally, I love the cats, and, put up with the dog. Obviously if it was just looking after the Cats, you could turn up barely once, or twice a day for a couple minutes to an hour, whereas a dog is a lot more work. He requires, at least, three walks a day, so that was what I had to do.
A problem with Darcie
Of course whenever I’m involved there’s always a bit of drama. Although, I don’t think this had anything to do with me. Both Charlie and Darcie, the cats, are both animals with quite a big appetite. You could say the same about the dog. Don’t get me wrong, Charlie takes that to the next level, but Darcie normally doesn’t struggle to eat… until now. Yeah, for some reason no matter what I did, she just wouldn’t eat. It wasn’t like she wasn’t acting hungry, just wouldn’t accept anything. Meat? No. Treats? No… Philadelphia?? … apparently she likes that, but, also, No.
Looking back, I have my own theories, as to what was the cause, others have their own, but, yeah Friday night and Saturday … day, she never ate a thing. It was also frustrating finding a way to feed her carefully, as both Rex and Charlie are greedy buggers so they take over. Thankfully, on Sunday morning, and I mean early morning, their was a lot of meows outside, which I heard due to the window being open, and I let her in, she was meowing like crazy. Then, when I did, she was all over me begging for food. So, I fed her and she ate every last bite. Phew.
EVERYONE ELSE’S THEORY: Most people have assumed, she had a stomach issue, or, perhaps ate a mouse, or something that made her feel unwell, enough, to not want anything to consume. Until, eventually, she did.
MY THEORY: Personally, I just think she didn’t like that everyone had gone. Like all women, they’re more complicated. Eventually, obviously after the sulking, she got over herself and started eating. Plus, when I returned the Saturday night after, no issues whatsoever with her, she was eating Treats, Food and more, with no issues. This theory also has more weight as my sister has recently just got a Kitten, and, guess who’s suddenly having issues… yep.
A pretty empty week, really.
When my Family went on holiday and left me home alone, back in the day, it was a moment of freedom and joy. Now, it’s just a rather meh collection of empty days. That’s pretty much all I’d call this one, too. We spent the majority of the time off under two categories of things;
Finishing of “The Apothecary Diaries”
Out of all the things we’ve been watching recently, I have to say this is one of my favourite things we’ve been watching, The Apothecary Diaries. So far, there’s two Seasons and we’ve been really enjoying it. (Only Season 1 is on Netflix, but Crunchyroll has the second) Of course, having a week off to ourselves, gave us a perfect opportunity to complete the rest of the episodes.
The only problem is, now it’s completed, we’ve nothing else worth watching. But I have to say I really recommend it. Even if it’s rather strange.
The main character, Mao Mao, is an apothecary who gets captured into a Palace of concubines and eunuchs. She ends up becoming initially a servant, to a poison taster, to then being able to solve multiple mysteries and conspiracies. Along the way, she gets the attention of the main eunuch, or so you think, Master Jinshi, who develops a very clear interest which, certainly isn’t mutual. The relationship and connection between the two creates a collection of comedy moments. At the close of Season 2, everything gets twisted from what it once was. Without spoiling too much, everyone isn’t quite who they appear to be.
Whilst Season 2 does conclude the big changes, it leaves you hanging soooo much. OLM Asia have confirmed production of Season 3 is ongoing and should be available (in Japanese) around October 2026. Unfortunately, that means a longer wait for an English Dub. So sad. I’m actually re-watching from the first Season to check a few things. Japanese anime regularly stick hints that you only notice on a re-watch once the whole context becomes clear, and, already, I’m noticing loads that were missed. I love that about anime as it, as I said, makes them worth a re-watch.
Hannah’s new Korean obsession at Halifax
Another inclusion in our week together was a continuation of Hannah’s new obsession, a Korean restaurant in Halifax. It says a lot about how … entertaining … the week was that this was the main event. On one of our earlier trips to Halifax, Hannah tried out Seoul Food • Korean Kitchen, in Halifax, that she’d heard from her Philippines things, that it was very good, and, it turns out it is as she’s constantly going back.
One rather awkward thing, for Hannah, at least, is that a Filipina works in the kitchen there, though, for some reason, Hannah took a rather arrogant ‘I don’t care’ stance against them. But, yeah, she’s there almost every opportunity that comes, she’ll order to eat in, then another meal for takeout.
Ironically, my main reason to go to Halifax was that they had an M&S to go to to get some Food. But, it turns out, it’s one of the worst M&S I’ve ever been to and rarely has anything of use in stock… so, now it’s literally just a … Hannah wants more Korean food … place.
Summary
And, that just about does it. Obviously, there are other things going on in my life, though, currently, you could say, are “work in progress”. Once they reach the conclusion I’m, certainly, hoping, they do, there’ll be an update to share on that. As of now that’s about where we’re at.
BEHANN 