Tag Archives: family

London Film Festival – Film Review – Mistaken for Strangers #LFF #Film #Review

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In 2010 critically acclaimed US band The National were embarking on their biggest tour to date. Needing extra help – and seeing an opportunity to spend time with his younger brother – lead singer Matt Berninger invited Tom to join the band as a tour assistant. As an aspiring filmmaker, Tom too saw an opportunity and grabbed his camera. As an outsider with the cheek and irreverence of a younger brother, Tom begins to make a mischievous portrait of the band. Neglecting his day job, though, the stresses of the tour only lead Tom to a sense of alienation from the group and his brother. With 200 hours of unedited live footage and interviews, Tom, with the passionate, loving support of his rock star older brother, turns the film’s attention onto himself to rediscover a sense of purpose. What emerges is at once rough edged, enigmatic and moving; a comedic, satirical portrait of a popular band famed for nuance and intensity, and a beautifully honest portrayal of brotherhood.Screen Shot 2013-10-15 at 14.04.02

It will be hard to leave this film without a smile. You have an over achieving older brother who has achieved fame through his band, he is wise, calm and popular and his younger, not so successful brother still lives at home with his mum and dad, can’t hold down a job and lacks real direction in life. The description of these two people alone would make the basis for a great piece of fiction, but actually they are both the product of reality. A real sibling relationship captured, comically, sentimentally and naively through the eyes of Tom. From the outset you see the playfulness, as Matt questions whether or not his younger brother even has a clue as to what he wants to interview him about, and throughout you see the members of The National road crew bite their tongues and put up with Tom’s awful attempt at being a roadie because he is the singers brother. It all makes for an enjoyable watch with plenty of laughs, honest insights and real views to life on the road with a famous band.Screen Shot 2013-10-15 at 14.03.52

You don’t have to be a fan of The National to watch this film, although those who are, will probably find it even more compelling, but as a newbie to this whole world of Indie Rock, I found it interesting, hilarious at times and most importantly real. Its more a story about brotherhood and the things you will and wont put up with for your family, and that no matter how famous you are, supporting those you love is the most important factor.

Go and be surprised, entertained and uplifted with this fun and poignant watch.

3.5 Stars

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Get ahead of the Xmas rush and grab a @johnlewisretail bargain for under £50 #shopping #buying #xmas

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The time is nearly upon us, the shops are prematurely changing their in store decorations and we know its not too long until Jingle Bells starts playing on loop! So we thought, to get you all ahead of the game we would showcase one of our favourite Xmas go to shopping centres, John Lewis, and show you the kind of bargains you can expect this festive season. So if its mum, dad, brother or sister, this famous department store has it all, and just for you we have some of the finest selection of goodies for £50 and under! Enjoy!! 

Lets get shopping!! 

BaByliss Pro 200 Nano Straighteners, Pink – £9.95 – Available from end of September

The perfect size for your suitcase or handbag, the Babyliss Nano straighteners provide all the performance but in a handy little package. Great for touch-ups and fringes, they heat up to 200°c and come in stylish purple or pink.

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USB Snowman and Gingerbread Man – £19.95 – Available from October

These cute novelty USB sticks make storing your most important documents fun! With a substantial 8GB of memory available, and no removable cap to lose, your documents will stay safe and secure thanks to the lifetime flash drive guarantee.

Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 17.09.19Krups F20342 Coffee Grinder – £19.95 – Available from end of September

With the Krups F20342 you can grind beans with ease and efficiency. The oval, easy to hold shape gives even grinding and a single speed assures fast results at the touch of a button. With a large grinding capacity of 75g, this can guarantee up to 15 cups of coffee; perfect for entertaining.

Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 17.09.24 John Lewis Boom Bar Wireless Speaker, Graphite – £29.95

The John Lewis Boom Bar features great sound, Bluetooth connectivity and a huge battery. Ready to play all of your music in exceptional quality, it even features a built-in microphone to use it as a hands-free calling device.

Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 17.09.31John Lewis Spectrum DAB/FM Radio, Red – £29.95

Compact, functional and fun; the John Lewis Spectrum DAB/FM radio is a smart choice for digital listening. It can be fully powered by mains or battery making it just as at home on the move or on a shelf at home. The soft touch finish also makes it easy to pick up and carry around.Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 17.09.37

Barbour Quilted Flip Case for iPhone 5, Olive – £34.95

Protect your iPhone 5 in style with this quilted flip case from heritage brand, Barbour. The exterior is quilted with a small leather section displaying the Barbour logo, while the interior features a mix of leather and the Barbour tartan pattern. The click in shell keeps your iPhone safe with cut outs for your camera and volume controls.Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 17.09.48 John Lewis Spectrum DAB/FM Clock Radio, Aubergine – £34.95

The new John Lewis Spectrum DAB/FM clock radio is a great choice if you need help waking up in the morning! The clever snooze function is activated by its feet, so it can be turned off by touching the radio anywhere. Fully powered by mains or battery, it also features a soft touch finish.Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 17.11.20Wild and Wolf Trim Classic Corded Telephone in Peacock Green – £35.95 – Available from October

For those who love retro styling, Wild and Wolf’s replica of a 1970s classic will help complete the look in any room of the house. Available in stunning Peacock Green, features include last number redial and ringer volume control.Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 17.11.24Lomography Fisheye 1 Analogue Camera, Orange – £44.95

Lending itself to the current Instagram trend, the Lomography Fisheye camera captures great shots with fun distortion. It sees a sweeping 170-degree view, compacting everything around you into a circular image. Whether you get right up close or use the huge depth of field, the built-in fisheye lens offers bright colours and great contrast.Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 17.11.29Wild and Wolf 746 1960’S Corded Telephone in French Blue – £49.95 – Available from October

Based on the original post office telephone model from the 60s, Wild and Wolf have brought the 746 right up to date in a range of striking colours, featuring the bold curves of the original design. For modern convenience, the dial has been replaced by buttons and the phone simply plugs into a standard phone socket. It also includes a re-dial button and authentic bell ring sound!Screen Shot 2013-09-29 at 17.11.35

The perfect sunny mini-break Majestic Gorges de Verdon #travel #holiday #france #placestovisit

Thinking of that perfect mini break away? Well, our travel writer Katrina Santos Baron shares her tips for a fantastic trip to the sunny and picturesque Majestic Gorges de Verdon.

You can find out more about Katrina and read oodles of her fantastic writing on her own blog Katscapades.

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Gorges de Verdon is a river canyon that is often considered to be one of Europe’s most beautiful. It is located in the midst of the region of the French Riviera and Provence, about 2 hours drive from Nice or from Marseille. I’ve just ticked another item in my bucket list as we spent our whole Saturday at this majestic place. Five of us left Nice early in the morning, packed our food and mats for picnic and had our wishful thinking that the water’s gonna be warm enough to swim as it is not yet summer. We were lucky with the spring weather, sunny at 20ish degrees but the water was still ice cold.

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Crossed on foot by hikers all over the world, the Verdon has become a natural site protected since 19901. Although it’s much smaller than Arizona’s Grand Canyon, the Gorges du Verdon is deep, compact, wild and beautiful. From Castellane to the village of Rougons, the Verdon river flows clear and swift, and the road follows along the banks. At Rougons, by the Point Sublime, the river plunges into the narrow rock walls, and there’s no escape until it comes out the western end before flowing into Lac de Ste Croix2.

The place offers various activities for all ages to enjoy whether you’re with family, friends and/or partner. You may explore the area by hiking or cycling, look at the specular view from above through paragliding, climb the world-famous rocks, or camp amongst one of its sites. Water sports lovers can go canoeing, rafting, stand up water surfing, water bike paddle boating (like what we did) and others. Of course, swimming is a must if the water’s warm enough. We’d love to go back in few weeks’ time and try paragliding!

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If you would simply like to relax and enjoy nature’s picturesque view whilst having a picnic, Lac de Ste Croix is a perfect spot.

I’ve also put together some outdoor skincare tips plus quick-fix hairstyling for women:

I used Avène’s sunblock (from the goodiebag I got during my last visit at the Hydrocentre) and I must say it is the best sunblock cream I’ve ever tried. It Screen Shot 2013-05-10 at 13.25.00is non-greasy and has a pleasant smell unlike other creams I used in the past. I love the composition, spreads easily without leaving white marks on my skin and it is very light considering its high SPF protection and water resistance. Of course my skin got oiler in the afternoon as I had a good-paddle-workout through the river so I sprayed Avène Thermal Spring Water and wiped my face with a clean tissue. I’m not a fan of make-up when actively doing outdoor stuff. For quick-fix outdoor hairstyling, I just braided my hair in the morning (it works better if you sleep with your braid overnight), loosened it in the afternoon and tied it back with a simple ponytail as it got warmer. Viola, no need for electric curlers! 🙂

For more information on how to visit the Gorges de Verdon, see below:

Information

Here are the principal places for information about the Verdon Canyon. The Office de Tourisme or Mairie in other villages of the region also have information on the Gorges de Verdon.

Aiguines (83630)
Tel: 0494 70 21 64; Fax: 0494 70 20 41
Email: verdon.accueil@wanadoo.fr
Moustiers-Sainte-Marie
Parc Naturel Régional du Verdon
Tel: 0492 74 63 95; Fax: 0492 74 63 94
Castellane
Tel: 0492 83 61 14; Fax: 0492 83 76 89
Email: office@castellane.org
Web: http://www.castellane.org

Transportation Verdon Gorges

Bus

Marseille – Gréoux – Riez – Castellane Bus FH-27

LER line 27 (part A): 3 buses/day, between Marseille and Riez, trip time 2 hrs. Stops: Marseille, Aix-en-Provence, Venelles, Meyrargues, Peyrolles, Pont Mirabeau, St Paul-lez-Durance, Vinon, Gréoux-les-Bains, St Martin-de-Bromes, Allemagne-en-Provence, Riez.

LER line 27 (part B): 1 bus a day between Riez and Castellane (via the Gorges-de-Verdon), trip time 1h30. Stops: Riez, Roumoules, Moustiers-Ste-Marie, Lapalud, Rougon, Pont de Soleil, Castellane.

• On the LER website (http://www.info-ler.fr/fr/lignes-horaires/carte-et-fiches-horaires-n287. , select Ligne 27: Marseille / Greoux / Castellane to display the bus schedule PDF.