VernetteOutLoud

Tea Time, Hotel Normandie

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Sometimes, I drink tea.

I know, I know…a coffee-lover like myself talking about tea. But you’d be surprised to know that I love a good cup of tea almost as much as I love coffee.

And I’ll have you know that the little girl in me, still loves a tea party – complete with all the little cakes and sandwiches that are the stuff of the best pretend tea parties of my childhood.

These days, instead of my plastic tea set, I get to sip from lovely real tea cups and snack on all the pretty petit fours, often with the company of a friend equally game to try something a little different.

Every Wednesday, Hotel Normandie has  Afternoon Tea which is quite affordable. There are three menu options to choose from and you will have a hard time deciding which of the delicious treats to start with first. There is also live entertainment, which adds to the ambiance.

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Give me all the things! You have a choice of savoury and sweet and believe me, you will think you can eat them all. But they add up. Choose wisely. Don’t be like me. I was oinking by the end of our evening.

 

If you’re in the mood for a little something different on a Wednesday, you can find them here.

Featured image via Unsplash

Weekend Away, Grand Riviere

Staycation:
A holiday spent in one’s home country rather than abroad, or one spent at home and involving day trips to local attractions.

Sometimes a reset is in order.

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Coffee Break: Novella Cafe

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I just love discovering little cafes in and around Port of Spain. It not only gives me options when I choose not to brown-bag it to work but it’s also a welcome respite when I’m having a stressful day at the office.

Enter: Novella Café. Open since September last year, I like the fact that they are not that new to the scene. After almost a year, they would have had a chance to settle in and sort out any teething problems that comes with being a new cafe in Downtown, Port of Spain.

I was immediately struck by the decor, which is mix of modern with quaint little touches apparent in the little owl figurines and owl themed decor dotted through-out the café.

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Don’t mind if I do!

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Chocolate Macarons FTW!

While the cafe does not offer a lot of seating options, that did not stop the steady stream of patrons who visited while I was there. Take-out seems to be quite popular with the lunchtime crowd.

Thankfully, we – my cousin and I, were able to score a seat at one of the tables and I was able to enjoy my coffee treat comfortably. Cappuccino and macaron get in my tummy. This sweet treat was particularly good!

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The menu offers affordable options: salads, subs, smoothies, dessert bites and coffee. For lunch, I had the California Salad – since I’ve been California dreaming lately. I’m still bummed that I missed BlogHer16. And it really doesn’t help that all the reports have been superlative thus far.

The California is an interesting mix of lettuce, red onions, cranberries and arugula topped with walnuts and feta cheese.

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My cousin and I chatted about vacation plans and how we should stop clock-watching at lunch and just enjoy the coffee and each other’s company. What’s funny, is that when I returned to the office, I had one of my most productive days for of the week. Just proves that a midday coffee break goes a long way towards maintaining my sanity and improving my productivity.

Find Novella Cafe, Monday through Friday – 7 am – 3pm at 87-89 Frederick St., Port of Spain. (Please note: They will be closed from August 15th until August 29th. They will open on August 30th but will be closed for August 31st – Independence Day.)

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I love hearing from you, leave a comment below or come on over to Instagram and say hi!  

 

Finding My ‘C’ Spot

As life gets more hectic, getting four friends together for an evening of wine and some painting took some coordinating and the patience of our awesome facilitator Simone.

Last Saturday after many stops and starts, we finally made it to CSpot Studio for some painting and sips.

Click here for more info on CSpot.

Click here for more info on CSpot.

The target!

The target!

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My thoughts at the start: There is no way my painting is going to look like the original.

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Aaalll the burshes!

So many choices.

So many choices.

Photo credit: Ruhi F.

Photo credit: Ruhi F.

At this point, as the painting is shaping up...I'm amazed. Photo credit: Ruhi F.

At this point, as the painting started shaping up…I was amazed.

My Masterpiece!

My Masterpiece! Never mind the wonky bird.

Our facilitator Simone, kept things lively. A genius idea, this “finding your C-Spot”. She had everyone chuckling with many veiled references to techniques on finding your creative soul. The laughter certainly helped ease the anxiety about perfection or questions about skill.

She has only been running the sessions since July of 2015 but already the idea is catching on here in Trinidad. Sessions run for two and half hours and can be tailored to your needs – private sessions, birthday celebrations etc. She also runs creative sessions for kids – of course tastefully tailored for the audience, which I think is a great idea for family fun and if you’re already thinking about things to do during the August Break.

An artist herself, Simone said that she wants to enjoy what she does as much as the creatives who come to the sessions. Thus, she would not paint the same thing two days in a row and there was evidence of quite a few options in rotation. Here are some other options available for creatives:
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An evening well spent discovering our creative spots, definitely next level girls night out ish! I certainly recommend this session and will be back, as soon as I can synchronize watches with my friends once again.

Cheers! Girls Night Out was a resounding success!

Cheers! Girls Night Out was a resounding success!

Wordless Wednesday

Forest Point Beach Toco