miss b loves......Munich in the summer.

A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to spend a few days in Munich, a favourite city of mine. I've often been there in the winter but walking around in warmer temperatures really appealed to me. There are so many impressive buildings around every corner......

The National Theatre, home to the Bavarian State Opera
 and the Bavarian State Ballet

There's an abundance of cafés, beer gardens and restaurants with terraces too. One of the advantages of visiting at this time of year is being able to eat and drink al fresco! 

Paulaner is one of the well-known brands of beer. It has been brewed in the city since 1634 and is now exported to over 70 countries around the world!

A traditional wiener schnitzel
 served with cranberry sauce

miss b loves .....Liverpool and The Three Queens

Liverpool is a city with such an interesting past and has always been a favourite of mine. Last month, the Three Queens (the three iconic Cunard ships) Queen Mary 2, Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria met for the first time in the River Mersey to celebrate 175 years of the Cunard shipping line. 

An amazing event with musical entertainment including the Royal Marines Band outside the Cunard building ..... 

....and a fly past by the Royal Air Force Red Arrows, one of the world's best aerobatic display teams.

The event was even more special as we had been invited for lunch in the spectacular Port of Liverpool building.....

 .....where we had the perfect view of the ships' arrival and we enjoyed a slice of celebration cake too! 

miss b loves .......spectacular art in London!

One of the things I love to do in London is take a leisurely stroll around the art galleries. Trying to view everything is impossible and I prefer to concentrate on one area of a gallery or perhaps particular artists. A few weeks ago I managed to pop into four galleries during my three day stay!

Tate Britain which opened in 1897 on Millbank, is not only home to historic and contemporary British art (from 1500 to the present day) but it's also an imposing and impressive building with a stunning domed ceiling.....

........and a very impressive staircase too!

The gallery suffered bomb damage during the Second World War but most of the collection was in safe storage elsewhwere.

miss b loves ..........Easter treats and traditions!

I always know that spring has arrived when cute signs appear on the trees down our lane! 

One of the highlights of this time of year is of course Easter. The tree which we bought last year with the glass and feather baubles has been brought out again ........

..... with a couple of new additions. A pretty egg-shaped candle (too cute to light?) and traditional woven palm leaves....both surprise gifts which were brought back from Barcelona for us this week. Palm Sunday is the beginning of Semana Santa(Holy Week)and the palms are sold on stalls in the city.

miss b loves....Notting Hill, London

I have always been attracted to colourful buildings so it's therefore no surprise that Notting Hill is one of my favourite areas of London. 

Notting Hill now has a reputation as an affluent, fashionable area with house prices to match! Around every corner there are row upon row of impressive Victorian terraces .....

There's no shortage of high end shops, boutiques, cafés and restaurants especially along Westbourne Grove ...... 

miss b loves......random photos of Dubai and an impromptu Fashion show.

We packed so much into our visits to Dubai last October and December... As usual I took so many photos! Below are the ones which didn't quite make it into the posts.......

miss b loves .......Paddington

While strolling around London before Christmas, I stumbled across Paddington Bear .....well several actually! I have fond childhood memories of the Paddington Bear books and the adventures of this very cute bear with a marmalade habit!

'Bear in the Wood'
standing outside St Paul's Cathedral

St Paul's Cathedral

I discovered that these statues were part of the Paddington Trail and with more time, I would have liked to have seen them all! The trail has now ended, the bears have been auctioned and over £930,000 has been raised for the NSPCC Childline Service. The trail coincided with the release of the Paddington film.

'Paws Engage' in The Italian Gardens,
Kensington Gardens

miss b loves .....blue skies in London and a visit to Cake Boy.

We were blessed with amazing weather in London before Christmas. The clear blue skies and sunshine were quite unexpected as back home in the North it had been grey and wet for days (and we returned to grey, wet days too!)  

St Paul's Cathedral

As we were staying near Kensington Gardens, it was an opportunity to have a morning walk (and we needed the exercise, especially after a full English breakfast!)

The Italian Garden,
 Kensington Gardens

It really was more like a spring day .......and the pastel coloured houses in Notting Hill looked even prettier against the blue cloudless sky...

miss b loves ..........welcoming the New Year in Dubai.

Happy New Year to you all! I'm finally getting back into a routine! It was such a treat to be able to escape the cold and wet weather in England to enjoy sunshine and blue skies .....

En route to Dubai
on Boxing Day

We were greeted with so many festive touches especially at The Beach with a giant Christmas tree, huge candy canes and baubles which shimmered next to the palm trees .....

The 'snowmen' on the sand were particularly cute and popular for photos too!