Monthly Archives: May 2013

Jaywalking, loonies, bringing a plate and spondoolies – knowing the local lingo before immigrating is key

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sceneryIf you can’t tell your Australian pink lady from your Canadian loonie then you may need some assistance if you are planning on emigrating.

 

With The Organisation for Economic Co–operation and Development (OECD) revealing that Australia has topped the index of national wellbeing for the happiest countries in the world and the best places to live and work, followed closely by Sweden and Canada, and the latest Global Visas report highlighting Canada (27 per cent) and Australia (22 per cent) as the top two destinations people wish to move to, the demand for cultural information is on the increase.

 

When immigrating to a new country, it is helpful to become clued up on the local lingo, laws and cultural aspects of the country to which you are destined to feel at home more quickly.  For example, a very common mistake made by foreigners to Australia is being invited over for dinner and being asked to ‘bring a plate’ which doesn’t mean digging out your best Royal Doulton dinnerware but bringing a dish of food to share with your host and other guests. Or in Canada you could be fined $400 for simply crossing the road, as jaywalking, (crossing the road without using a pedestrian crossing) is tightly regulated and leads to on-the-spot fines.

 

Out of a total of 257,398 requests for immigration solutions (excluding tourist visas) in Q1 of 2013, Global Visas, a UK business that provides people worldwide with international visa, relocation and immigration services, found that a growing number of people were asking for country-specific information.  As a result, it is launching a series of ‘Global Visas Destination Guides’, launching with Canada, on everything clients need to know about moving to the country including visas and permits, working, budgeting, housing, studying, healthcare and laws.                                                                 …/

Gary Smith, global sales and marketing director at Global Visas, says, “There is a lot you need to know and be prepared for before emigrating to another country, and familiarising yourself with common phrases will certainly steer you away from embarrassing conversations or offending locals. However, first priorities will include setting up home and settling into a new job in your unfamiliar surroundings. Our new handy destination guides help prepare clients for the change in lifestyle, allocating your budget, understanding work arrangements and getting to know the country a little more. It is very important to be clued up on the laws and culture of your new home to ensure you know exactly what to expect.”

 

Victoria Blackman, a New Zealander who immigrated to the UK, comments: “When I first arrived I found it difficult as an English speaking foreigner to understand the British language. I couldn’t get my head around why people kept asking me if I was alright (‘you alright?’) I didn’t know how to reply. Was this a question? Did they think I looked sick? To my surprise they were saying ‘hello, how are you?’. I also found myself in embarrassing and awkward situations when I commented on people’s pants which are not underwear where I come from! I’m still learning daily and recently was informed that an ‘ice lolly’ is what I refer to as an ‘ice block’ or an ‘ice cream’ on a stick.”

How to Buy the Right Shutters

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Shutters are extremely popular amongst homeowners and interior designers: indeed, in warmer cities such as Rome, they are white-shutters-bay-window-chorleywoodfrequently used instead of windows rather than as an addition to them!  However you plan to used them, choosing the right shutters can be tricky: after all, there’s a fair few different models out there.  That’s why we’ve written this piece on helping you pick the right ones when checking out the different window shades:

Choose According To The Design

Because they’re designed to different aesthetics, different shutter models suit different décor.  Solid shutters, for instance, are more suited to older style properties that lean towards a Victorian visual.   As they keep out more light, they also work well in rooms that have a more minimal décor, such as country cottages.  Vice versa, of course, shutters that have a solid lower half but movable slats on the top work very well on French doors, as they give off the perfect impression of a continental aesthetic.  Plantation shutters, meanwhile, are ideal if you’re looking to get more creative with the colour schemes.

Are Shutters Right For You? 

Essentially, shutters are used as an alternative to blinds – so how do you know they’re right for you?  Well, for starters, they’re far more hygienic.  Curtains and traditional blinds have been known to absorb dust, where as shutters are simply wipe clean.  The adjustable ones are also more measurable in terms of how much light enters the room – more so than many blinds.  Finally, they also offer an increase in insulation when compared to blinds, saving a decent amount of money in the long run.  Essentially, shutters are the right choice if you want a cleaner, cheaper room.

What’s Your Budget? 

Whilst they’re by no means crazily expensive, full shutters aren’t going to be a cheap as simply knocking up a pair of home-made curtains.  However, it’s still more than possible to budget for your own design.  For instance, café-style shutters are hung-up on just the bottom half of the window, so are ideal for those who want to achieve privacy without spending the cash to kit out the whole set of panels.   Of course, those with a slightly higher budget can then move on to full-height shutters and the solid models, both of which offer a great deal of options.

How Much Light Do You Need? 

Different shutters will enable a different amount of light through, meaning that they’re suitable for different rooms.   If, for instance, you’re looking to set them up in a professional environment such as an office, then you’re going to need the shutters that let through the maximum amount of light during the summer months – otherwise you’ll have quite a dingy workplace.  Vice versa, shutters within a restaurant should be able to offer enough natural light to have an atmosphere but without blinding the customers, especially in the evening.

Finally, the matter of spend is worth considering.  If you’re making a long-term investment, then it makes more sense to spend a decent amount and get full shutters installed.  However, if you’re simply giving them a tryout to see how they look in a new property and you’re unsure if they’ll be kept, then you should hunt around for any bargains.

 

 

HotelTonight, the app for last-minute hotel stays, launches new destinations

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hotelHotelTonight, the app for last-minute or spontaneous hotel stays,

launches new destinations in France, Italy, Spain and Mexico

 

HotelTonight, the first ever last-minute hotel booking app, has recently added more than fifteen new destinations to its roster of vibrant cities worldwide. This brings the total reach of the app to 12 countries and 100 destinations worldwide.

 

To tie in with the peak travel season in Europe, HotelTonight is adding popular European destinations, including Lille, Lyon, and Marseille in France; Barcelona, Madrid, and Malaga/Costa del Sol in Spain and Florence, Rome and Milan in Italy. The last minute hotel booking app is also offering its over five million global users new destinations in Ireland, Mexico and for those who prefer holidaying closer to home, HotelTonight has added Brighton to its list of best UK hotel deals.

 

This recent international expansion is part of its pledge to be ubiquitous and accessible to all last minute travellers and follows last week’s global announcement of new features including “Snap Your Stay” which allows customers to photograph and share images of their hotel with friends and other HotelTonight users, and the “HT Price Guarantee,” which guarantees its rates against competitors’ offerings.

 

HotelTonight is now partnering with almost 2500 hotels across the globe in the  ‘hip’, ‘luxe’, ‘charming’ and ‘solid’ categories. Hotels include the stunning 5 Star The First Luxury Hotel in Rome, and the charming Palazzo Vecchietti in Florence, the Kempinski Hotel Bahia Estepona on the Costa del Sol and the hip Music Hotel in Marseille. These hotels and others across Europe are perfect for an impromptu weekend break. There are also many more hotels more on the mid to basic level which are perfectly suited to business travellers’ needs.

 

At the same time as adding these new destinations, the company has also expanded its European operations, relocating to a new, larger office in London’s Covent Garden and building out the team with new Country Managers for Italy and Spain.

 

The Hotel Tonight app offers unbeatable deals on hand-picked hotels, with bookings opening at midday and closing at 2AM. Last minute travellers can book a hotel in less than ten seconds with three taps and a swipe, starting that day for one night or more.

Visit www.hoteltonight.com for more information and to download the free app.

 

For staycations, in the UK, cities include Birmingham, Brighton, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, London and Manchester.

Famous People Who Didn’t Go To University

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Zac GoldsmithI have a confession to make. I find the whole snobbish going to university thing stupid. If you want to actually study something or be a doctor, then obviously go and reach your potential, but one of the things I find most stupid about social pressure is that everyone should go to university. At least if they want to be middle class.

Tuition fees are now appallingly expensive, and the most annoying thing I found about the recent BBC class calculator is that they still put going to university and owning a home as an indicator of class. Even though people buying homes they could not afford was one of the factors in the recession, and a recent study said that most students would never be able to pay of the debts they had incurred.

I recently saw an interesting meme on Facebook. It said, “Modern education: creating people who are smart enough to accurately repeat what they are told and follow orders.”

You don’t have to agree with me. I know it is a controversial thing to think. However, have a look at just a few of the famous people who did not go to university.

Apple founder Steve Jobs dropped out of Reed College.

TV host and comedian Ellen DeGeneres dropped out of the University of New Orleans after one semester.

The creator of Tumblr David Karp never even graduated from high school.

Walt Disney left school at 16 to join the Army. He couldn’t get in because of his age so he joined the Red Cross and left for Europe.

Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard but later got an honorary degree.

Paul Thomas Anderson dropped out of NYU film school.

Zac Goldsmith MP for Richmond Park and North Kingston did not go to university, instead deciding to travel the world. He told the Financial Times: “I think university is hugely overrated for most people,” he says, insisting that a wide range of good apprenticeships is more useful than three years of light work and heavy drinking. “I would not encourage my children to go to university.”

Mark Zuckerberg dropped out of Harvard to work full time on Facebook.

Yoko Ono dropped out of Sarah Lawrence College

Woody Allen was thrown out of New York University after one semester and later dropped out of the City College of New York.

James Cameron studied physics at Fullerton College. He dropped out to become a truck driver.

Thomas Edison left school to work on the railroad at the age of 12.

F. Scott Fitzgerald dropped out of Princeton.

Coco Chanel dropped out of school to become a cabaret singer when she was 18.

Whole Foods founder John Mackey dropped out of the University of Texas.

Pablo Picasso dropped out of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts.

The founder of WordPress Matt Mullenweg dropped out of the University of Houston in 2004.

What do you think? Is going to university important?

The Significant Other | Theatre Review

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Insignificant others theatre reviewThe Significant Other can be best described as flicking through the glossy pages of a real life-story magazine.

 

It portrays snippets of the relationship between two people in 10 different scenes played out within a strict 10minute window and each one is as far removed in terms of content as the previous story.

 

Performed at The Park Theatre in Finsbury, The Significant Other explores relationships from the hope, boundaries, friendship and passion experienced in every day life.

 

It expertly portrays the awkwardness experienced by two strangers, to the comforts of a long-term relationship and friendship and even tries its hand at the human interaction with an alien, guardian angel and ghost.

 

Each scene is influenced by a different genre from comedy, fantasy, crime and even a musical, spanning both the past and future ideas of the world.

 

The audience is kept guessing at each turn and the play certainly grips your attention.

 

Three scenes stood out for me:

 

Coyi – a fired up couple are watching their football team on the telly (they can’t be there as the boyfriend lost the game tickets).

 

She tells him that she went to the bookies and made a bet on their future if their team wins 2-1 and they get engaged to marry.

 

The audience feels each missed goal and penalty and enters the couple’s living room as they agonise the unpredictable nature of the football match and the hope they’ll win a fortune.

 

A Month and Five Days – Set in the past in a library, a visitor is attempting to study but keeps talking and distracting himself as he is told off and told to be quiet.

 

The librarian is actually in love with the visitor and in an aside, bursts into song calling herself ‘Julie Andrews’ after adopting his surname.

 

This shy librarian has hopes of marriage and the couple realise they are perfectly suited to each other, as long as he can respect the rules to be quiet.

 

Icebergs – A somewhat ditzy brother and sister plot to steal from their employer but at the last minute, the sister pulls out and we see them reveal their thoughts and feelings of being stuck in a little village, missed opportunities and tattered dreams of the future.

 

By far one of the funniest scenes, the audience sees the protective older brother nature towards his sister, as well as his mocking and arrogant character.

 

But in the end, there is no doubt that sibling love reigns rather than sibling rivalry.

 

Performed as part as a festival of genres, the play is unlike any I have seen, and despite their short length, strangely the audience was still able to bond with the characters and the personal impact was not tarnished.

 

Produced by Neil Byden, Serena Haywood and Laura Kim on behalf of The Pensive Federation, it was a light and refreshing performance on a Friday evening and it felt as if we were sitting among friends in the compact loft studio.

 

Common Mistakes Made When Brushing Your Teeth

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Ah, brushing your teeth; It’s one of theimages most ingrained habits in the UK, and it’s something that everyone knows how to do, right?  Well, not always.  There is actually evidence that quite a lot of people still make some fairly basic errors when brushing their teeth.  Because we’re nice, we’ve put together this little list of some of the most common mistakes that people make:

Not picking a brush with the right bristles.  As time goes by, toothbrushes are becoming more and more varied in terms of their design and the way in which the bristles work.  Though they still come down to the same patterns – straight and angled – the materials used for them has changed quite a bit, with everything from solid plastic to the traditional fibres a part of modern bristles.  This means that the tougher brushes are even more unsuitable for those with weaker gums, and yet many people who suffer from small amounts of bleeding without brushing still use them.  Needless to say, this is a seriously bad idea.

Not brushing enough.  This is possible the most common mistake, with a great many people simply not brushing either enough times a day or for a long enough period.  The typically recommended time period is for at least two minutes each time, at least twice a day taking place.   Any less will often lead to problems in the long run.

Brushing too hard.  The other main error is to actually brush too hard or for too long, as this can both expose the root of the tooth to some irritation, as well as erasing the enamel on the teeth.    It can also cause serious damage to the gums if over a prolonged period of time.

Not brushing the inside.  Watch any toothpaste advert, and you’ll inevitably be confronted with the sight of some gorgeous person, frantically brushing away at the front and centre teeth. Unfortunately, this has led to a great many people not taking their inside cleaning as seriously as the outside, meaning that plaque will quite often build up the mouth side.  Needless to say, you should spend just as much time cleaning the inside as the outside.  A lack of inside cleaning will likely lead to you visiting a dentist like Kool Smiles.

Not replacing their toothbrush often enough.  If you wash up in the old-fashioned way, imagine having to use the same sponge or scourer for six months.  Not a pleasant thought, is it, all that muck and dirt being scrubbed back onto those clean dishes?  As an item that spends half of its time soaking wet and cleaning up dirt, a toothbrush needs to be replaced around every couple of months to ensure it is helping and not hurting.

Not rinsing.  Again, the best way to think of this is to imagine having a good bath and then not rinsing the tub down afterwards!  A good rinse is the perfect way to ensure all of the bacteria and food that the brushing has scrubbed away from the teeth is sent back down the plughole.  Not doing so means it will linger around the mouth, which isn’t what anybody wants.

Chore-dodgers given anonymity: Bring harmony to the home with new ‘covert cleaner’ service

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cleaner
If you and your other half argue about cleaning then Frost magazine has come across something we think is quite cool: covert cleaning.
A recent survey found that 46% of couples that live together argue about cleaning; with nearly 2/3 of all individuals surveyed saying their partner’s cleaning abilities were below average – something start-up service Teddle has turned into a marketing opportunity by creating a new ‘secret service’ that disguises the fact a cleaner has been paid to complete household chores. You can even personalise the clean by adding in your bad habits for them to echo, such as to ‘leave the toilet seat up’ or ‘forget to remove the hairs from the sink’.
Those with an aversion to household chores have today been given a fresh escape from nagging partners by pioneering web service Teddle, which has launched the first ever ‘covert cleaner’ service to clean up conflict over housework. The award-winning start-up, which helps people search for, compare and book trusted cleaners in seconds, is testing the ‘cheeky’ service to prevent arguments in the home by allowing customers to dupe their partners into thinking they have completed the chores personally.

Alex Depledge, co-founder of Teddle commented:

“We have seen a big demand to ‘cover up’ our service and allow users to secretly book a cleaner without detection from partners, housemates and even mothers. We’re here to make life easier, so we thought why not make it easy for people to remove hassle from their lives without any consequences?”

“You always design the clean you want during booking, but now you can make the job seem more authentic by using the Teddle platform to request the cleaner misses out certain elements that make it more believable you completed the work.  The feedback we’ve had is that you can’t have it too perfect, or no one would believe it was you.”

Fiorelli Supports Race For Life and Launches The Hope Bag

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FiorelliFiorelli has been making beautiful handbags for 25 years and to celebrate this landmark the brand is joining the fight against cancer by partnering with Cancer Research UK and Race for Life.

 

Fiorelli has launched the Hope Bag as part of their partnership with Cancer Research UK, the world’s leading cancer charity dedicated to saving lives through research.

 

The mini barrel shape Hope Bag makes it the perfect smart grab bag to take you from work to weekend.

 

Available in 15 shades including cerise pink, dusty pink, nautical, snake and monochrome, the Hope Bag is a summer must-have. Functional and on-trend, this is the perfect investment to accessorise any outfit while proudly helping to support a remarkable charity.

 

Fiorelli will be hosting pop-up shops at the Race for Life events this summer selling limited edition canvas tote bags for £5.00 with all profits going to Cancer Research UK. They have also produced a pretty Hope Bracelet, available at events with a donation to Cancer Research UK.

 

Fiorelli will be running a competition at all their pop-ups to invite people to go online at Fiorelli.com and submit a name for Fiorelli’s next exclusive charity bag.

 

The Fiorelli Hope Bag is £30 and £5 will go to Race For Life. Available to buy now at www.fiorelli.com

The Fiorelli pop-up store will be at the following Race for life events:

 

Saturday 1st June: Regents Park

Sunday 30th June: Richmond Park

Sunday 7th July: Blackheath

Sunday 14th July: Hyde Park