Get Even More Visitors To Your Blog, Upgrade To A Business Listing >>

Blog Directory  >  Life Blogs  >  My Life Blogs  >  Tales from a Caffeinated Weka my-life Blog  > 

Tales From A Caffeinated Weka Blog


bloggingcafechick.blogspot.com
A coffee snob, bookworm, café junkie, baking connoisseur, music critic, armchair traveller, chocoholic, sunshine lover and cupcake queen.
Chocolatier For The Day
2021-08-15 04:50
Three years after a fun evening of chocolate making for Wellington on a Plate in 2018, I returned to Wellington Chocolate Factory yesterday for another chocolate making session. Chocolatier… Read More
Rice And Shine
2021-08-07 03:10
Wellington on a Plate has returned to its usual August calendar, promising a month of culinary adventures for the region's foodies. We got our campaign off to a great start with Rice and Shi… Read More
2021-05-23 04:59
The New Zealand International Comedy Festival takes place in Auckland and Wellington during May each year. Well, most years. 2020 was obviously an exception. The festival kicks off with a ga… Read More
Winetopia 2020
2020-10-11 03:49
Winetopia came to town this weekend. More than 50 wineries offered 30 ml tastings of their products in our own takeaway Spiegelau glass. We explored some new wineries and also enjoyed listen… Read More
Digital Nights - Van Gogh Alive
2020-09-13 05:48
Of all the immensely talented impressionist and post-impressionist artists, Vincent Van Gogh (1853-1890) is probably my favourite. I'm an art admirer but not much of a visual artist myself… Read More
Winter Wrap-up
2020-08-30 07:50
Winter 2020 has pretty much come and gone. Like most of this year, it's been a novel one. Somehow the days seem long yet the months have raced by. I struggle to recall what I've been up to… Read More
Life After Lockdown
2020-05-14 04:48
Today marks eight weeks since I arrived home from my whirlwind trip to Bangladesh. Two weeks of self-isolation in the spare room away from Mr Weka on my return morphed into a 4.5 week long c… Read More
Lighting Up A City
2020-04-07 05:43
Two delights have mesmerised me since childhood: fairy lights and fireworks. Events that feature both are sure to make me smile. I got to experience some beautiful lighting displays in Bangl… Read More
The Noisy Streets Of Dhaka
2020-04-01 05:28
I blogged about traffic in Dhaka while travelling to Bangladesh last year. We may complain about traffic jams, commute times and the state of roads in developed countries, but Bangladesh's t… Read More
A Whirlwind Trip To Bangladesh
2020-03-22 04:48
This is a very surreal post to write. What a week it has been.For several weeks I've been excitedly looking forward to returning to Bangladesh for a second stint of professional volunteering… Read More
The Summer Of Plums
2020-01-16 06:10
Several years ago, I noticed some beautiful spring blossoms appear above our fence. A year or two later, we noticed a tree on our property that seemed to be growing some kind of fruit. What… Read More
2019 Ta Da! List
2019-12-31 01:30
2019 has almost finished and a new year beckons tomorrow along with the promise of shiny fresh starts, hopes and possibilities. Some insist that we're also about to start a new decade and ar… Read More
Christmas High Tea At The Intercontinental
2019-11-30 06:20
I set myself a Christmas watershed of 1 December 5 years ago as a way of managing the annual Christmas madness. For some reason I'm feeling quite festive this year so lifted it a day early… Read More
Chocolate Masterclass At Baron Hasselhoff's
2019-08-18 08:18
I love chocolate. The Hands-on chocolate masterclass at Baron Hasselhoff's caught my attention in the Wellington on a Plate programme. After enjoying the Wellington Chocolate Factory Find yo… Read More
Psychological Gastronomy High Tea
2019-08-11 07:55
Artisan at the Bolton Hotel hosts a great high tea. Their 2019 Wellington on a Plate event is Psychological gastronomy and described as "a not-so-traditional high tea" where savoury and swee… Read More
Homemade Exfoliating Facial Scrub
2019-08-10 04:35
Not meI have very sensitive skin. It has led me to follow a very simple daily skincare routine with just two products: light cleanser followed by moisturiser each morning. I rarely wear make… Read More
2019-08-06 07:03
 The Lion King (2019) has been remade as a computer animated live action movie.I've been in two minds about this since first hearing about it earlier this year. Sometimes newer isn't im… Read More
Winetopia 2019
2019-07-14 08:12
As an occasional wine drinker but keen wine sampler, I am pretty spoilt with the wine tasting options in my neighbourhood. Each month we are visited by a winery or distributor with 6-8 wines… Read More
2019-05-05 07:11
The phenomenon that is Cats - The Musical is sweeping up and down the country this month. Based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, a collection of poems published in 1939 by TS Eliot, C… Read More
2019-03-11 06:20
I know it happens all the time. I'm not the first person to experience it and will not be the last. It's probably happened to someone you know, or maybe even you. It's something travellers p… Read More
2019-02-28 09:29
Traffic in Dhaka is renown by anyone who has visited or knows about Bangladesh. The word Traffic always has a capital T. Sometimes it is referred to as 'the Traffic'. A short journey of a fe… Read More
Downtown Dhaka
2019-02-25 06:21
After a very short visit to Malaysia, I have now arrived in Bangladesh. Yesterday, I took a stroll around the streets of downtown Dhaka. After arriving in the middle of the night then teachi… Read More
The Lights Of Kuala Lumpur
2019-02-24 02:51
Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia, is described as the city of contrast and diversity. When an opportunity came up to visit this incredible city, I grabbed it with both hands. Altho… Read More
I Would Not, Could Not In The Shower
2019-02-12 04:27
We had an interesting conversation in the office last week. I have no idea how it started but clearly remember the moment it changed tack. Someone (it might have been me) stopped and asked a… Read More
Pick-a-path Story Walk: Auckland Edition
2019-01-15 05:19
Travelling for work or business can be an adventure made all the more fun if you have time to explore a new neighbourhood. It might a restaurant I've seen online, coffee recommended by the T… Read More
Brain Stuff Podcast
2019-01-07 23:59
I've listened to more podcasts during the past two years than ever before. They are a convenient way of accessing information and entertainment on the go and an easier way to multitask when… Read More
2018 Highlights Reel
2018-12-30 22:26
2018 has been an epic year for me. A lot has happened and, while there were some rough patches, it's the first year in many that I can say has been a good one. As we prepare to move into a n… Read More
2018-12-16 07:18
Of all the gifts I'm blessed with, music is the one I'm most grateful for. Music is the blood that runs through our family. It's who and how we are. It's our identity. It's a passion we shar… Read More
2018-10-21 02:47
Louis Sergeant has a new home at the top of Lambton Quay. The decor has been refreshed and now boasts a street-facing store front to entice hungry customers in for afternoon tea. There are f… Read More
Petit Fours At The InterContinental
2018-09-14 03:11
I'd heard that petit fours on the InterContinental Hotel Lobby Lounge dessert menu are Wellington's best kept foodie secret. I'm already a big fan of high tea at the InterContinental. Yester… Read More
2018-08-26 07:01
Wellington on a Plate wrapped up its tenth birthday today. We ended a foodie fortnight by saving the best for last. Two hours of power at The Arborist was described as a kiwi take on yum cha… Read More
Mad Hatter's Tea Party With A Twist
2018-08-25 05:14
High tea two weekends in a row? It must be Wellington on a Plate. The Mad Hatter's Tea Party with a twist was held at the festival hub behind Prefab Cafe. This dapper couple were suitably dr… Read More
2018-08-19 06:54
Wellington on a Plate continued today with Homegrown high tea, an elegant high tea experience at Artisan Dining House in the Bolton Hotel. High tea featured a range of handcrafted gourmet te… Read More
Find Your Inner Chocolatier
2018-08-18 03:06
I've long been a fan of the Wellington Chocolate Factory. Their story of how they locally produce bean to bar organic fair trade chocolate is as legendary as their salted caramel bars at Chr… Read More
2018-08-11 07:53
Wellington on a Plate's 10th birthday kicked off yesterday and promises to be the biggest and best one yet. August is the time where foodies in the Wellington region happily gorge indulge to… Read More
The Menagerie Variety Show
2018-07-29 05:42
The Menagerie Variety Show took centre stage at The Opera House last night. Described as "the the world of the odd, intriguing and strangely compelling", I can assure you that the performanc… Read More
June Snapshot
2018-06-29 04:32
It's the middle of winter. Matariki is here and we've passed the winter solstice. I like to imagine that it's a teeny tiny bit lighter each evening, but suspect it's more likely wishful thin… Read More
Rarotonga Highlights Reel
2018-05-24 03:51
Gosh, I've been home for a month and not finished all the travel posts I have drafted. There are so many wonderful things to see and do in the Cook Islands, so this highlights reel will help… Read More
2018-05-08 06:36
A highlight of our holiday was an evening at Te Vara Nui Village. Te Vara Nui is a traditional island village that was built to honour Mama Vara, who is now in her 80s yet was there to greet… Read More
The Colours Of Rarotonga
2018-04-28 19:14
My love of flowers and bursts of colour meant that my senses were thoroughly indulged in Rarotonga. The plant life looks and smells so beautiful, especially the tropical flowers growing in a… Read More
Kia Orana, Rarotonga!
2018-04-26 21:23
Kia orana! May you live a long and fulfilling life.I have recently returned from nine glorious days in a tropical paradise.What's not to love about the Cook Islands? It's small and easy to g… Read More
Black Sheep
2018-03-07 02:50
It's podcast binging season. Black Sheep is a programme for history buffs. Written and presented by Radio New Zealand's William Ray, each episode delves into the history of an infamous kiwi… Read More
Lost And Found
2018-02-19 22:43
Last month, I received an email informing me that I'd won a $200 voucher to spend at a big ticket retailer as part of a monthly promotional draw. How exciting! The voucher was couriered to m… Read More
2018-01-30 20:04
It's back to school for many this week. There are family photos of children in pristine, oversized school uniforms all over Facebook and posts about teachers enjoying their last gasp of unst… Read More
2018-01-18 21:44
A while ago, my nephew had commandeered my phone when an email notification popped up with the subject line You've been paid. Here's how our conversation went:"Hey, I've been paid!" he annou… Read More
What To Do With Stuff
2018-01-14 05:47
I have a love-hate relationship with stuff. I'm not a shopper by any description but I still find that stuff accumulates and hangs around until it reaches a tipping point that triggers a big… Read More
Toll House Biscuits
2018-01-07 05:42
Good Bitches Baking is back in action for 2018, spreading home baked sweetness in the community. My first bake for this year is a version of Allyson Gofton's toll house biscuits. I substitut… Read More
Ice Cream Spiders
2017-12-30 04:28
It's warm and sunny in Wellington today. Sure, there's wind - but that's to remind us of which city we live in. After a few wintry days inside, I decided to spend an hour wrangling the hebe… Read More
Catching Up
2017-12-27 08:16
'Tis the season for catching up:With neglected friends and familyWith unwatched TV seriesWith untried recipesWith unread books and blog postsWith saved podcastsWith unfinished blog postsWith… Read More
High Tea At The InterContinental
2017-11-18 03:32
Team building exercises can be tiresome. Some are bearable. It turns out that a 3-hour long scavenger hunt around Wellington's CBD brought out the competitive side of my workmates and ended… Read More
Kevin Bridges - NZ Tour
2017-10-01 08:54
Paying it forward really can work. After abandoning two sets of Wellington on a Plate tickets last month due to illness, I was rewarded with free tickets to a comedy show from a colleague in… Read More
Two Thumbs Up
2017-08-21 05:12
The winter lurgy has well and truly visited our home this past week and is yet to fully leave. It brought with it some nasty symptoms and a raft of questions about its status. Have you been… Read More
2017-08-15 09:56
It's that's time again: Wellington on a Plate has kicked off. Seventeen days of food, fun and more food. Wellington is a great place for foodies to be in August each year. I have four festiv… Read More
2017-07-16 05:00
After sampling many high tea menus in recent years, I had finally worked my way up to the top. High tea at Louis Sergeant is a very special affair. The tables are set with white linen and th… Read More
Chocolate Dipped Macaroons
2017-06-24 09:04
I'm a Good Bitch Baker this weekend and felt like trying something different. Thumbing through a new cookbook, I came across a recipe for chocolate dipped macaroons. Remember macaroons? They… Read More
High Tea At Aston Norwood Gardens
2017-06-21 07:17
Kaitoke Country Gardens at the base of the Rimutaka Hill has undergone a makeover in recent months and has now been reborn as Aston Norwood Gardens. The venue is positioning itself as more o… Read More
2017-05-28 07:10
The plan was to cycle around the Martinborough vineyards and taste wine at a leisurely pace. We'd stay in the town centre, pick up a wine map and head out on two wheels each to explore the b… Read More
2017-05-06 07:59
When you hear the name Martha's Pantry, it's hard not to think of high tea. Martha's were one of Wellington's high tea pioneers when it enjoyed a big resurgence in the mid-2000s. In its heyd… Read More
Ed Byrne - Outside Looking In
2017-05-01 08:22
The 2017 NZ International Comedy Festival roared into life last week and saw the return of my favourite international comedian, Ed Byrne. After a traditional Wellington welcome consisting of… Read More
2017-04-24 08:13
I have a sweet tooth. I always have. I occasionally give in to it but if I had a choice between savoury or sweet, sweet would win every time.I keep my sweet tooth in check by never drinking… Read More
Missing Richard Simmons
2017-04-01 03:48
Missing Richard Simmons is a 6-part podcast series that hit the digital airwaves in February this year. Created by filmmaker Dan Taberski, it explores the so-called mysterious disappearance… Read More
A Little Bit Green
2017-03-05 06:10
Earlier this week, I attended a presentation with the endearing title, "Are we all doomed?" Naturally, the presenter immediately grabbed the audience's attention. The subject was climate cha… Read More
February Snapshot
2017-02-26 06:05
At the risk of sounding like a giant cliche ... time is going so fast and I can't believe February is all but over. We haven't had much of a summer this year but have still been really busy… Read More
2017-02-05 22:52
It's been a summer of podcasts for me as I gradually clear the backlog of series and episodes that I would listen to "when I had time". Revisionist History is one of them, having been downlo… Read More
2017-01-18 06:28
The baby of our group celebrated a special birthday while we were away at new year. She was turning the big (little) 3-0 and feeling quite distraught about it. She worries her youth is over… Read More
Someone Knows Something
2017-01-15 07:29
I was a huge fan of series 1 of the Serial podcast. A true crime story told over several weeks, I marathoned one episode after another two summers ago and was left hanging out for more. The… Read More
Rule Of Fifty
2017-01-10 07:42
Life's too short to read a bad book. Actually, I decided a few years ago that life's too short for a lot of things, but I'll focus on books for now. You see, I've been reviewing the titles o… Read More
Kayaking To Cathedral Cove
2017-01-06 01:44
Visitors to the Coromandel are spoilt for great scenery with lovely coves, bays and beaches interspersed with hilly landscapes and farmland. Having done most of our exploring on land, we too… Read More
Wine And Liqueur Tasting At Purangi Winery
2017-01-05 02:51
Although the climate in the Coromandel is warm and sunny, it's not really known as a wine growing region. Purangi Estate winery is a great place to stop for food and drink on the way to near… Read More
2017-01-04 05:01
Rangihau Ranch  is a family-owned ranch at Coroglen, south of Whitianga. It has been farmed for 35 years by the current owners, who clearly love the land and everything they do on it. T… Read More
Hot Water Beach
2017-01-01 06:55
Happy New Year! 2017 is going to be epic.We're in the Coromandel for new year. It's my first visit to this part of the country and one that's long overdue. It's a great place to relax with f… Read More
Santa Sleighs
2016-12-23 23:26
Santa's Little Helper has had a very busy December so Christmas baking was scaled back this year. Still, she couldn't resist these cute Christmas table settings that are easy to make and lot… Read More
What Would You Take?
2016-11-20 05:46
What a week! It started with a long, sharp series of jolts in the form of a severe 7.8 magnitude earthquake. It has been a long, unsettled week for those of us navigating the aftermath of th… Read More
October Snapshot
2016-10-23 21:14
The year is speeding along. We've arrived at our final public holiday until the silly season. I don't know about you, but this single Monday off has been a long time coming for me. Everyone… Read More
Pineapple Lump Cupcakes
2016-10-01 23:12
Pineapple lumps are some of my favourite lollies. The chocolate pineapple combination makes it scarily easy to polish off a pack before you know it. Remember this ad? It's not just me who th… Read More
September Snapshot
2016-09-24 07:14
So blogging hasn't been happening much for me lately. I exceed my daily word limit at work most days and don't have any left for reading or writing at night. I guess I don't have to blog; th… Read More
Steptember
2016-09-11 06:45
It's September. It's spring. The days are getting ever so slightly longer and summer is on the way. This means leaving behind the comforts of winter (after the storms pass), getting lots of… Read More
How To Throw A Tapas Party
2016-09-04 06:24
I love entertaining and usually cater events I host myself, often with the help of a few keen volunteer kitchen hand guests. A long, relaxed event serving continuous finger food from start t… Read More
Craft Chocolate And Soda Night
2016-08-27 05:39
Tucked away upstairs at the start of what is known as the Hannahs Laneway is a tiny soda factory that is taking on the Wellington food world. Six Barrel Soda Co make sodas and soda syrups th… Read More
2016-08-15 08:32
It's no secret that high tea is one of my favourite treats. Sure, it's been pointed out to me many times that "you don't like tea". Most high tea venues are happy to exchange their selection… Read More
2016-08-13 06:40
Wellington on a Plate 2016 has started. Two and a half weeks of endless food and local foodie events lined up. Wellington's food scene really comes alive at this time of year.Our first event… Read More
Neapolitan Cake
2016-08-07 09:02
There's so much more to Neapolitan than the ice cream we grew up with as kids. Back in the day, vanilla and chocolate were the predominant flavour options. We hadn't heard of cookies and cre… Read More
Shouldless Days
2016-07-24 06:47
I recently started listening to the Death, Sex & Money podcast by Anna Sale. The premise for the podcast is that it openly talks about the topics we think about a lot but usually leave u… Read More
House Rules For Cruising With Friends
2016-06-29 07:36
So you're going on a cruise! For two weeks! With friends, no less! A girls' only trip! Leave the boys at home!It all sounds wonderful – and certainly is. Imagine: two and a half weeks… Read More
2016-06-27 07:44
High tea on the high seas? Don't mind if we do! I couldn't resist booking a fancy afternoon tea towards the end of our cruise. $A20 for eleven high tea items, coffee and bubbles was excellen… Read More
2016-06-26 05:39
Almost everyone has asked me one common question since I got home from my cruise: "How was the food?" Honestly: it was excellent. Given that the Pacific Pearl is a three star ship and I'd re… Read More
Coffee And Vanilla In Vava'u
2016-06-21 08:03
Hospitality comes in all shapes and forms. Sometimes you encounter it in the most unlikely of places. With a name that means "the friendly islands", we discovered hospitality first hand in t… Read More
2016-06-18 05:19
Nuku‘alofa is the capital city of the Kingdom of Tonga. We'd arranged a private tour of the island of Tongatapu with Toni's Tours. Toni is originally from England and has been living i… Read More
2016-06-15 06:03
Just south of Suva in south east Fiji is the tiny tropical paradise that is Dravuni Island. This is the Fiji you see in postcards: coconut trees along the shoreline, white sand beach, crysta… Read More
2016-06-14 06:41
Fiji, the jewel of the Pacific. Endless white sand beaches, leaning palm trees, pineapple plantations and tropical sunsets.Suva, the capital city, is not like the Fiji of picture postcards… Read More
Cruise Cocktail Class
2016-06-13 05:18
Never have I ever seen as many cocktail menus and signs as during the past two weeks on the Pacific Pearl. I'm not complaining; cocktails and their limitless flavour combinations fascinate m… Read More
Cruising The Pacific Islands
2016-06-12 01:52
I've been cruising! 15 nights on board the P&O Pacific Pearl sailing out of Auckland and making our way around the Pacific Islands. We stopped at three ports in Fiji, two in Tonga and on… Read More
2016-05-22 08:54
Every so often a movie comes along that is a pure delight from start to finish. Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016) is quickly becoming part of New Zealand folklore and providing plenty of laug… Read More
Word Of The Day: Suboptimal
2016-05-17 22:37
Our office is a little unconventional. We work hard, we play hard, we let off steam and we start all over again. For some, the language is colourful. For one in particular, swearing is as na… Read More
2016-05-14 05:43
Two wine tastings this month! This time, the esteemed Brown Brothers were in town from Australia for a short window of time and so we were lucky enough to try their wines on our home turf. O… Read More
2016-05-05 23:43
Ahh, jet plane lollies. These firm packages of sugar and food colouring have a soft spot in many grown-ups' hearts. My nonna would bring jet plane lollies when she came to stay with us durin… Read More

Share the post

Tales from a Caffeinated Weka

×

Subscribe to Tales From A Caffeinated Weka

Get updates delivered right to your inbox!

Thank you for your subscription

×