I'M ON A DECHOX

This March I am chucking the chocolate and going on a DECHOX to help British Heart Foundation fund its life saving heart research.  That means absolutely no chocolate bars, no chocolate cake, no choccy biscuits with my tea, not even any chocolate sprinkles on my cappuccino are allowed. And that's why I need your help.

I was late in signing up but I will still give up chocolate for the whole month of March.  As a matter of fact I'm giving chocolate up for 40 days all throughout lent. Please join me or donate at bhf.org.uk/dechox  

Thanks a million chocolate buttons!

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#ChallenJing40

I AM GOING SUGAR FREE

This February I am ditching the sweet stuff and giving up sugar for 40 days to raise money for Cancer Research UK and helping to beat cancer sooner.  Help me conquer my cravings by sponsoring me.

https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/challenjing40

Cancer survival rates have doubled over the past 40 years.  Consistent progress is being made but improvements to technology and ground-breaking work offer new opportunities to find different ways to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer and improve survival rates even further.  Help Cancer Research UK improve results even faster.

The Low Down:

So come join me guys and let's beat cancer together!

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#ChallenJing40

40 CHALLENGES IN MY 40TH YEAR UPDATE

Hello family and friends welcome back to my blog.  It's been a while since I last posted on my blog.  I can't believe it's already February and Valentine's Day is just around the corner.   In January, I started a new job, so my challenges has been put on hold for a while as I adjust to the new job.  So far I love it, keeps me on my toes, challenging at times, but I know for sure it will be rewarding in the end.

So...I am currently looking into my 40 challenges and will be slightly changing the list a bit.  But one thing will never change, I will continue to help one charity each month as part of my challenge. 

For the month of January,  I helped and donated to WaterAid by drinking only just water!

This month of February,  I'm helping the charity Cancer Research UK.  Last Saturday,  4th of February was World Cancer Day, and I volunteered for 4 hours collecting money and I hope to continue volunteering for other causes.   I also signed up in taking on Sugar Free February as part of my challenge. So please sponsor me and donate at

https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/challenjing40

So here are the updated list for my 40 challenges:

1.  January - Drinking just water (WaterAid) √

2.  February - Sugar Free (Cancer Research UK) √

     http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/support-us/find-an-event/sugar-free-february

3.  March - DECHOX (British Heart Foundation) √

     https://dechox.bhf.org.uk

4.  April 24 to 30 -  Allergy Awareness Week (AllergyUK) √

     https://www.allergyuk.org/awareness-weeks/awareness-weeks

5. May 15 to 21 -  National Vegetarian Week √

     http://www.nationalvegetarianweek.org

6. June 10 - Walk 40 km for charity (Walk the walk: the MoonWalk Scotland) √

     http://www.walkthewalk.org/challenges/the-moonwalk-scotland-2017/

7. July - Plastic Free July

    http://www.plasticfreejuly.org/getting-started.html

8.  August 8 - Severe ME Understanding Day

     http://www.25megroup.org/campaigning_Severe_ME_Day.html

9.  September - World's Biggest Coffee Morning (Macmillan Cancer Support)

10.  October 20 - Stand Up to Cancer

     https://www.standuptocancer.org.uk

11.  November - Movember 

     https://uk.movember.com

12.  December 10 - Human Rights Day AmnesTea Make 40 cups of tea in a day

       (Amnesty International) 

       https://www.amnesty.org.uk/amnestea

These challenges are currently ongoing:

13.  Receive postcards from 40 different people from 40 different countries (Postcrossing)

14.  Send 40 postcards from my hometown (Postcrossing)

 15.  Post 40 blog entries

15.  Do 40 hours volunteering 

16.   Learn to say Hello in 40 languages

17.  Learn to say Thank you in 40 languages

18.  Visit 40 cities in England

19.  Eat 40 different kinds of Fruits

     https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fruits

20.  Eat 40 different types of Cheese

21.  Makeover my wardrobe (Dress with 40 items or less in 40 days)

http://bemorewithless.com/project-333/

22. Raise £40 at a car boot sale for charity

23.  Read 40 books

24.  Bake & sell 40 cupcakes for charity

25.  Bake & sell 40 donuts for charity

26.  Collect 40 shiny £1 coin for charity

27.  Visit 40 of London's most unusual museums

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/united-kingdom/england/london/articles/Londons-most-unusual-museums-50-of-the-best-part-one/

28.  Listen to the top 40 best selling singles of all time non stop

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_singles

29.  Listen to the top 40 best selling album of all time for 40 consecutive days

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_albums

30.  Ride for 40 minutes on a horse

31.  Vlogging for 40 days 

32.  Sell 40 things on Ebay for charity

33.  Visit 40 pubs in 40 different towns or villages in Essex

34.  Have a movie marathon with 40 in the title

35.  Do Hadrian's wall trek

36.  Ride the slide at arcelormittal orbit

37.  Cook 40 new recipes

38.  Learn a new skill

39.  Abseil for charity

40.  Tandem skydive for charity 

The list of challenges I've completed:

Buy a complete outfit for £40 √

Go vegan for 40 days √

Go Gluten Free for 40 days √

Do 10,000 steps a day for Cancer Research UK √

Make and sell 40 greeting cards for Movember √

Drinking just water for WaterAid √

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OUR WEEKEND IN DERBY

Last Saturday, September 17, 2016, we (with husband) went to Derby for the weekend and I love it! We took the National Express from London Victoria Coach Station.  This was our second time to book with National Express, what's great about this coach is if you book your ticket well in advance you get a great deal off your ticket.  We stayed in the Premiere Inn (Cathedral Quarter) and it was awesome.  The room clean, the bed was so comfortable and the best part of the room was the view of the Silk Mill and the river Derwent from our hotel room window perfect.

What I would like to have done differently was arrive Friday afternoon instead of Saturday in order to get inside Derby Museum and Art Gallery to visit the world's largest collection of Joseph Wright's paintings and Derby Silk Mill.

Here are the reasons why I love Derby and why it's a must visit.

1.  Derby Pyclet Parlour

I love these flat crumpets!  I think they are better than crumpets in my humble opinion.  Paul tried it with salmon and horseradish cream and he loved it.  I tried it with Stilton, honey and walnuts, and even though I'm not a big fan of Stilton, the combination of the three was so perfect that I'm now converted. I love it. Great news you can now order online at  http://www.pycletparlour.co.uk

2.  Derby Cathedral

This magnificent cathedral dates back from 14th century and one of Derby's dominant and majestic landmarks.  I love the tower and it's cathedral bells.  Each day the bells played out different tune sounding out nine in the morning, at noon and six in the evening.  We were so pleased to attend the Cathedral Eucharist on Sunday.  The service was beautiful and the choir was excellent.  For more information visit their website at http://www.derbycathedral.org

3.  Silk Mill Ale & Cider House

I highly recommend this place and make sure to book in advance to avoid disappointment as the place was busy.  We walked in and we were lucky to get a table.  The food was great and the staff friendly.  We both ordered from the fish menu.  Paul had Brixed Grill and I had Port Issac and we both loved our choices.  For more information visit their website at http://www.thesilkmillderby.co.uk

4.  Cathedral Green, Derby Silk Mill and river Derwent

In 2009, the whole area of the cathedral green leading to the river Derwent was beautifully landscaped at a cost of £4.2 million.  At the banks of the river Derwent stands Derby's stunning Silk Mill and is the gateway to the UNESCO world heritage site.  The Silk Mill is open Thursday 3PM - 9PM, Friday and Saturday 1PM - 5PM and Sunday 11AM - 3PM and entrance is Free.

Statue of Bonnie Prince Charlie at the Cathedral Green

Derby Silk Mill and River Derwent

View from our hotel window

5.  Cathedral Quarter Free Audio Tour

Explore the Cathedral Quarter by downloading these tours onto your MP3 player or by accessing them on your mobile phone through the i-tags on the signboards in the streets.  I suggest doing this tour first thing in the morning when there are not many people around.

http://www.derbycathedralquarter.co.uk/media/

i-tags on the signboard

Follow me on Instagram for more of my city trips https://www.instagram.com/bbjing23/

Please leave me a comment on what city in England  I will do next.  Happy travels.

#ChallenJing40

MY VISIT TO THE CATHEDRAL CITY OF PETERBOROUGH

Hello everyone!  So today, my husband and I visited Peterborough, the second city in England I visited as part of my challenge. We took the Cooks coach from Basildon, Essex.  We arrived in Peterborough at 1130 AM and had 5 hours to spend in the city.  So we headed straight to the Cathedral because I booked a 2 PM Cathedral tour and to be honest we are hoping to catch the tower tour which starts at 1130 AM but when we got there obviously the tower tour already started right on time. They had another Tower tour at 1:45 PM but it conflicts with the 2 PM Cathedral tour we booked.  So the Cathedral volunteer suggested we can just add £2 each on top of our prebooked Cathedral Tour to join the Tower tour at 1:45 PM.  And then purchase a Cathedral pocket guide for £3 to walk around the Cathedral on our own.  Since we had plenty of time to spare due to the rainy weather and we can't explore the city without getting soaking wet we decided to do just that.  It was a brilliant idea at that time until we got up to the tower.  I forgot that I have a fear of heights and the steps leading up to the towers were very steep so WARNING it's not for the faint-hearted.  We understand now why we need to sign a disclaimer form.  I survived it but I was holding the rails for dear life!  But you'll be rewarded with a spectacular view of Peterborough on a bright, sunny day.  For us not so spectacular as it was raining.  But still a great experience I will never forget.

Entrance to the cathedral is free but if you want to take photographs or films you will need to purchase a camera permit for £3.  But since we booked a tour, the camera permit is already included in the price.  There are 3 tours you can book in advance online before you get there or you can pay at the cathedral shop. £8 (£6 concessions) for the Cathedral Tour (2 PM Monday to Saturday), £10 (£8 concessions) for the Tower tours (selected date only) and £8 (£6 concessions) for the Precints tours (selected date only).  They have a special price when you book both the Cathedral tour and Precints tour for the same date for £13 (£10 concessions).   For more information you can check out their website at http://www.peterborough-cathedral.org.uk

I highly recommend you to visit this magnificent cathedral.

After we visited Peterborough Cathedral, we only have time for a late lunch so we went to Argo Lounge.  They are located just right outside the cathedral along Bridge street, right next to Natwest Bank.  I love this place, the food were great, the atmosphere was pretty relax and they have a vegan and gluten free option.  For more information you can visit their website at http://thelounges.co.uk/lounges/argo-lounge/

Despite the rainy weather we enjoyed our day trip to Peterborough.

MY DAY TRIP IN THE CITY OF NORWICH

Today I visited Norwich with my husband.  It is my first time to visit this beautiful city full of history.  We took a coach trip and only had 4 hours to spend in the city so we had to scale down our list of places to see and do.  Generally whenever I visit a new city I always make a list of important things I want to see and do.  It will always include a visit to a Cathedral or church, an old pub to either grab a drink or a quick bite to eat and a special place that is unique to that particular city.  So here are my top 3 must see and do in Norwich if you only have a day or a few hours, in our case. 

1.  NORWICH CATHEDRAL

First on my list of must visit is this 900 year old cathedral.  It's full of history that I suggest you take the free guided tour in order to gain a greater insight into this 900 year old building.  Tour starts on the hour from 1100am - 300pm Monday to Saturday, lasting for an hour and departing from the rear of the nave.  Entrance to the cathedral is free but they have a suggested donation of £5 for adult. And if you're not one of these people who enjoys a guided tour, they also have a welcome brochure provided to all visitors so you can explore the cathedral building at your own pace.  Allow 2 hours at least for your visit. For more information you can visit http://www.cathedral.org.uk

My top 3 favourites from the tour are the roof bosses, the cloisters and the ornate wood carvings of the misericords.

The famous green man roof boss

The Cloisters

one of the beautiful wood carvings of the choir seats

2.  ELM HILL

The most famous street of Norwich with its beautiful cobbled street, rows of character merchant's houses, specialty shops and small cafes.  I loved walking along this street, it's like travelling back in time.

3.  THE MURDERERS AND THE GARDENERS ARMS PUB

I like a good old pub with an interesting history to go with it.  This one dates back to 1696.  The trading name is The Gardeners Arms Pub but the pub is famously known as The Murderers due to its grisly and macabre history.  For more information visit their website 

http://www.themurderers.co.uk/#_=_

This used to be an alleyway (The entrance to the Murderers)

Our visit to Norwich was short but sweet but we had such a wonderful time. I hope to visit this beautiful city again.  If you want to know more about the city of Norwich you can visit their website http://www.visitnorwich.co.uk or you can leave me a comment and I will try my best to answer your questions.

Please check out this 40 seconds video clip  of  my visit.

VEGAN AND GLUTEN FREE LASAGNA

This recipe serves 4.

Ingredients:

1 cup green lentils from M&S
1 can Italian chopped tomatoes from Cook Italian
2 garlic cloves chopped
3 small shallots chopped
1 stick celery chopped
1 carrot shredded
1 bell pepper chopped
2 Tbsp rapeseed oil
1 pint hot water
1 heaped Tbsp vegan bouillon powder from Marigold
Free from lasagna sheets from M&S
half a tub of garlic & herb from Creamy Sheese
vegan mozzarella from Vbites

Method:

Saute garlic, shallots, celery, carrot & bell pepper in oil until softened.

Add lentil and cook for 10 minutes.

Add tomatoes and stock (mixing bouillon powder in hot water).

Cook for at least an hour in low heat - the longer and slower you cook the better.

Check the sauce, season according to your taste for me I did not need to add any salt or pepper.

You want the sauce to be nice and thick.

In a 26 x 20 cm roasting tin layer the bolognese sauce, then lasagna sheets, then spread the creamy sheese, then another layer of sauce, pasta sheets, creamy sheese and top with bolognese sauce a thinly sliced mozzarella.

Baked for 30 mins in an 180C oven and further 10 mins on 200C oven to brown the cheese.

Serve hot.  Enjoy!

The bolognese sauce is also perfect for any pasta base like spaghetti, tagliatelle, etc.

Please share your creation on Instagram with a #ChallenJing40

VISIT 40 CITIES IN ENGLAND

As of 2015, there are currently a total of 69 cities in the United Kingdom.  51 in England, 7 in Scotland, 6 in Wales and 5 in Northern Ireland. (Wikipedia)

My challenge focus on visiting 40 of 51 cities in England which I have never visited before.  Here are the list of 51 cities in England:

1.  Bath √
2.  Birmingham √
3.  Bradford
4.  Brighton & Hove √
5.  Bristol
6.  Cambridge √
7.  Canterbury √
8.  Carlisle
9.  Chelmsford √
10.  Chester
11.  Chichester √
12.  Coventry
13.  Derby √
14.  Durham
15.  Ely √
16.  Exeter
17.  Gloucester
18.  Hereford
19.  Kingston upon Hull
20.  Lancaster
21.  Leeds
22.  Leicester
23.  Lichfield
24.  Lincoln
25.  Liverpool √
26.  City of London √
27.  Manchester √
28.  Newcastle upon Tyne
29.  Norwich √
30.  Nottingham
31.  Oxford √
32.  Peterborough √
33.  Plymouth
34.  Portsmouth
35.  Preston
36.  Ripon
37.  St. Albans √
38.  Salford
39.  Salisbury √
40.  Sheffield
41.  Southampton
42.  Stoke on Trent
43.  Sunderland
44.  Truro
45.  Wakefield
46.  Wells
47.  City of Westminster √
48.  Winchester √
49.  Wolverhampton
50.  Worcester
51.  York √

Fun Facts:

*  So what is a city you may ask?  The Oxford English dictionary defines 'city' as a 'large town' or  'a town created a city by charter and containing a cathedral'.
*  In the United Kingdom however, not every city has a cathedral and not all cathedrals are found in the city.
*  Not all large towns in the United Kingdom are officially designated as cities and there are a number of UK cities which are no bigger than an average towns or even villages.
*  There are no specific criteria which automatically grant city status in the United Kingdom.
*  In present times, city status in the United Kingdom is granted by the British monarch, currently Queen Elizabeth II.

Source:  http://www.ukcities.co.uk

So join me in discovering new cities in your own country and share it in any of my social media.  Subscribe or follow me so you will have an up to date information of my challenges with a

#ChallenJing40

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First stop on the list will be Norwich.  Blog to follow after my trip.  Please like and share.

Charity to sponsor to follow.