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My New Years Resolutions

Hola everyone.

The new year is literally just around the corner and in prospect of this I’ve been thinking pretty much about 2017 and what I achieved and what I’d like 2018 to be like and what my goals are.

I have to say that 2017 has been a pretty crazy year for me. I mean, I started off the year with my last month of living in Berlin and then I got back and continued university and recently I found this amazing university course in the UK and just an hour ago I started applying for it. I mean, how crazy is that? And I flew to Zürich to see Ed and then to Amsterdam to see Martijn. And I got to visit three new cities in the UK – Liverpool, Blackpool and Manchester – and flew to Paris with my mum and got a new, unbelievably beautiful tattoo there. I just started writing my first Bachelor thesis and I’ve just got this semester until February and then the last one and then I’ll be already finished with my Bachelor in Vienna. I seriously can’t believe how fast the time has flown by. And apart from all these huge things, I accomplished so much more and made so many more experiences and and and. I met new people, started new friendships, had quite an amount of exams, attended looots of concerts and started a job as a magazine journalist. I cried a lot but laughed even more. Went on many adventures and got out of my comfort zone. And when I look back at it, I don’t think I’d change anything (apart from all the bad stuff that happened and is happening in the world right now, but let’s not get started on that).

But there is a new year coming up and I want it to be a new start, a new beginning. A new year to meet goals, turn dreams into reality and so so much more. So I thought why not make a list of my personal new years resolutions? Let’s go.

I really want to stay the optimist I am – it doesn’t work all the times, but sometimes it’s the only thing that brightens up a shitty day
I want to dive even deeper into the topic of my heart – music.
I want to experience more, learn more, see more, hear more, feel more.
I want to meet new people, new cities, new cultures.
I want to get even more out of my comfort zone. Of course it’s scary, but those are the moments life turns from good to exciting.
I want to stay healthy.
I want laugh louder, cry harder and live every moment to its fullest.
I want to show the people around me that I love them and that they literally mean the world to me, because they all deserve it.
I want to go to as many concerts/festivals as I can – those are my happy places and I’m kind of addicted, so…
I want to read even more books, listen to even more songs and bands and watch even more movies.
I want to meet up with my friends and family as often as I can. I know it’s hard, because we all have our own lives and own tasks and jobs and so on, but when I look back I don’t remember the hours I spent scrolling through twitter on my phone, I remember the evenings I spent with my friends, drinking a Chai Latte and laughing about stories of when we were young.
I want to stop pressuring myself so much. I know I’m a perfectionist and that’s actually something I like about myself, but that changes when I start treating myself badly.
I want to continue working as hard as I do now or even harder (I know this kind of doesn’t go with the resolution above, but I’m sure there is a way to combine those two things).
I want to cuddle even more with my family and my pets.
I want to take even more pictures, cook more meals and maybe find a new fascinating hobby I can be passionate about.
I want to try out new things and new activities, maybe some kind of sport or something like that.
I want to try and start being punctual – this is actually the toughest aspect of this list, I am literally never punctual.
I want to go to sleep earlier and change my sleeping schedule – it’s slightly getting out of hand right now.
I want to be nicer to the people I love, I want to forgive more and stop freaking out because of little, stupid things I will probably have forgotten about an hour later.
I want to finish my Bachelor and try to get the best grades possible.
I want to nail my two Bachelor theses.
I want to keep faith and believe in myself, even when the times are hard and I feel like everything is getting too much (like now, when my to-do-list is literally far too long – I can do it and I know it).
I want to get into BIMM (the university in the UK) and find the cutest little flat ever.
I want to continue being this curious and childish and easily excited and funny.
I want to love more.
I want to continue writing this blog, as I love it so much that I can’t even describe it.

So guys, there you go. Those are my new years resolutions or let’s say those that I can think of right now. I’m pretty sure I could come up with about a hundred more if I had more time. But I want to try and make every single one of them and stick to them. Mostly because they all mean quite a lot to me. And I think this way 2018 can’t be anything but another amazing year.

But guys, what are your new years resolutions? Do you even have some? And do you stick to them? This is actually my very first time of writing them down like this, so wish me luck. And guys, I wish you all a happy new year and I hope you’re all doing good. I wish you all the best. Thank you so much for 2017. It’s been an amazing year and I’m more than thankful that I could spend and share it with all of you. Thank you. And, as always, thanks for reading. Here’s to 2018. x

Christmas Is Coming

Hola everyone.

First of all, sorry for not posting anything last Friday. I had my last exam of this year in the evening at 8 o’clock and I basically spent the whole day studying and preparing for the exam and then I just didn’t have any time at all, to be honest. So yeah, I’m sorry.

But the positive thing is, the exam was pretty easy and I think I pretty much nailed it and since then I’ve been in such a good and christmasy mood. Which also quite surprises me, as I felt anything but christmasy the last few days and weeks. I actually thought it would stay like that – but here I am, feeling the whole christmas magic filling up my heart. It’s actually so shocking that christmas is just around the corner. And that the year is really coming to an end. It feels like days ago that I came back home from my time in Berlin. So, so crazy. But I guess we are all also pretty much looking forward to 2018. At least I hope so, because I am, honestly. I mean, 2017 has both been one of the shittiest years for the world and one of the best years for me. So it’s kind of complicated to really decide on how to look back at this year. So I really do hope that 2018 is going to be a better, even more amazing year for me, for us, for the world. Because we really need it.

But that’s not what this post is about. It’s about feeling all christmasy, so let’s get right to it. So, my parents just came home today from their vacation and actually, yesterday, I had planned on going to a ball. I mean, I seriously have one of the most amazing dresses ever. I’ll once show it to you, I promise. And it would have been the ball of my own school, so yeah, I had planned on going. But then I basically lost every single sense of motivation I had. I remember standing in front of my mirror, dressed in this beautiful, breathtaking dress and I just didn’t want to go. So I stood there, looking at myself, and then I suddenly had a really cool idea. Because last year, when I got home for the holidays from Berlin, my parents had already put up the tree and the house was all christmasy and I loved it so much. So I had the idea to do the same for them and put up the tree myself. At one o’clock in the night. Yes, I was this motivated.

So, I took out my phone, put an indie christmas playlist on (thanks Spotify) and got to work. And it was so soothing, I can’t even describe it. Do you know the feeling when you’re just so comfortable and happy, that it feels like you’re cuddled in a big pillow made of happiness and love? Because that’s what I felt like right there and then. I mean, it still took my quite some time to finish the tree, but I enjoyed every single second of it. And now I’m sitting here, the tree right across me, sparkling with its shiny lights. And I still get this bubbly, happy feeling. I guess christmas has really got me now. And my parents were indeed really surprised and happy when they saw the tree today. And that just made everything even better.

And I, of course, had to take some pictures of the process and the tree. I really hope you enjoy them. And maybe I can transport some of my happy feelings to you through them. That would be amazing.

But guys, have you also already put up your tree? Are you feeling all christmasy? Oh, and please, tell me what you think about the tree. I got inspired for the colors when I walked past the big tree at university – it’s also blue and silver and gold. And I thought, oh wow, that really looks cool. So I just reconstructed this here at home, for us. And I am actually really proud of the outcome. But what do you think? And what do your trees look like? I’m really curious to know. And yeah, I wish you all an amazing week and I hope you enjoyed this post and the pictures and, as always, thanks for reading. x

Happy Friday

Hola everyone.

Right now it’s eight pm on this Friday evening and I’m sitting in my apartment in Vienna, thinking about what I should tell you guys first. Fall Out Boy is playing in the background and to be honest, I couldn’t be happier.

There is something quite exciting and also slightly frightening happening tomorrow, which also partly happened today. Let’s get right to the point. I am currently taking my IELTS exam. The exam that determines your level of English and the one exam that decides whether I’ll be able to go to a university in the UK or not, because in the UK you need to have a special level in order to be even allowed to apply. So yeah, you could say that this exam is pretty important and the results are even more. Wish me luck guys.

I have to say, I can’t really tell you how I feel about the exam – I’m taking writing, reading and listening tomorrow – because on the one hand I am really nervous because the results are so important for my future, and on the other hand I’m super excited because I just love the English language so freaking much and I know that I am good at it so I actually look forward to showing off my skills a little bit. It’s a little bit complicated.

But today I already had the speaking part of the exam and as far as I can tell, it went pretty pretty good. I had to talk about my family and friends and education and that kind of stuff, so it wasn’t that hard to come up with good answers. But I think it really showed that I was quite nervous, I literally couldn’t stop talking. The examiner had to always stop or slow me down, I was just babbling on and on. I mean, not that that’s something bad. Actually I think it’s far better to talk too much than not enough. But yeah, that was that part. I am really happy that it worked out and I can’t wait for the results, really.

And apart from that another really amazing thing happened today. God, how long has this day been? I feel like I’ve been awake for 40 hours. Anyway. Today, I tried to get tickets to see Fall Out Boy I’ve on their next tour. I actually tried getting some yesterday, but the presale didn’t work at all, so I really placed all my bets and hopes on today. And guess what? I seriously managed to get some pretty awesome seats and I am literally internally screaming in happiness. I mean, how awesome is that? I really got tickets to see Fall Out Boy, one of my favorite bands on this planet. And not only that I’ll be seeing them for my birthday, no, I’ll also be in London, my favorite city ever. Oh my god.

Unfortunately, this amazing band again decided that my country isn’t worth a visit, so, as always, I have to get to them if they don’t come to me. And thankfully I really do have the most amazing, coolest parents on earth, who said that they would make my big wish come true and fly to London and see Fall Out Boy together with on my birthday weekend. I could start crying just by the thought of it. I can’t even begin to tell you how thankful I am. Sometimes I seriously have no idea what I did in order to deserve such awesome parents. And oh god, I love this band so much, I can’t believe this is happening. Holy moly.

So yeah, that was my day. After the exam I went for some christmas shopping and now I’m back home and already thinking about which part to prepare for first – writing, reading or listening? To be honest, I’m really not that nervous about tomorrow. Because I know my abilities. And I just love this language. I know I can do it. And I just have to tell that myself over and over again.

But guys, how was your day? I hope you had an amazing Friday. And I hope you enjoyed this little update or whatever you could call this. I’ll of course keep you updated on my IELTS results. And yeah, until then I wish you all an amazing weekend and, as always, thanks for reading. x

Let’s get cooking

Hola everyone.

Today I’d like to talk about something I myself am and probably the whole population (at least I hope so) is very passionate about. Food and cooking.

I just love cooking. And food. I mean, of course. It’s food. How can you not love food? But according to other people, cooking and food are two completely different and separate things. And I in some points have to agree. And this may come as a shock now, but sometimes I truly enjoy the cooking part more than the eating one. Super crazy, I know. But I just love it so freaking much.

But actually I think the whole cooking aspect and the huge interest for food pretty much lie in my genes. My mum is a professional health manager, dietologist and vegan nutritionist. And it was always normal for us to cook meals at home. So it was always normal for me to think about food and the ways you can work with it and turn it into amazing, super delicious meals. That’s the most fascinating aspect of cooking. For example, you take a plain potato and just by boiling it and then frying it in butter in a pan you can turn it into one of the tastiest pieces of food ever. I mean, who doesn’t love fried potatoes with ketchup? Everyone. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The possibilities in cooking are literally endless and that’s what I love so much about it. It’s so creative.

I actually know quite a lot of people who don’t cook themselves and it shocks and surprises me every single time. Because cooking is such a big part of my life and such a big hobby of mine. It’s something I do to calm down. I forget everything around me. And it makes me so happy. I even have my own Spotify playlist just for when I’m cooking. I think that says it all, right?

But of course I understand that some people just don’t get so often in touch with food as I do. And most of the time those people actually want to cook and want to learn how to do it. An here comes my tip for everyone who wants to start cooking – find yourself someone, preferably a cook of course, who inspires you. That special person was Jamie Oliver for me. Besides my mum and my grandma, of course. But Jamie is and always has been my biggest idol when it comes to cooking. I still have no idea how he does it, but somehow this guy can take a plain carrot and peas and turn them into the most beautiful dish you will ever lay your eyes upon. I mean, even just a bowl full of cabbage looks mouthwatering beautiful in his books. Plain cabbage. Seriously? Jamie, please teach me your ways. And besides that, all of his recipes are just so damn inspiring and creative and tasty. Whenever I’m looking for a nice meal to cook, I usually just search for something on this website, because he and his recipes never let me down. And judging from all the videos and articles I’ve seen from him, he seems like the nicest person ever. And his kitchens in his TV shows are always literally kitchen goals. I know they are sets, but I have no doubt that his kitchen at home looks just as amazing or even better.

Okay, so that’s that. But in order to not just repeat myself in a post I’ve already written, I thought, as I’ve been cooking quite a lot in the past months, I’d share my favorite meals with you guys. Let’s go.

Pasta with tomato sauce and tuna
- This is literally my go-to comfort food and I usually cook it at least every two weeks if not even more often. Also it’s pretty easy too. Just grab your favorite noodles and favorite tomato sauce, elevate them and make them tasty and there you have it – super fast and easy comfort food for all you pasta lovers out there.
Mashed potatoes with pretty much anything
- This is the kind of meal that I immediately associate with my home. Mashed potatoes is the meal my mum raised me with, because she never wanted to feed me those typical baby food glasses. So she just made her own. And since then her mashed potatoes are the best mashed potatoes I will ever eat in my entire life. Nothing can beat the love of a mother.
Ramen or Pho
- Here comes the asian aspect of my culinary favorites list. I actually had my first Ramen last summer, in Brighton at the local Wagamamas. It was a seafood ramen and the moment I tasted it, my life changed. Since then I’ve been on the mission of finding the best ramen / pho in the world. Right now my favorite is the bowl you get at the popular restaurant called Monsieur Vuong in Berlin. It’s freaking amazing. If you ever get to Berlin, you need to check by this awesome restaurant.
An amazing salad
- Since I’ve been living on my own here, I’ve discovered my special love for a good salad. The important part is the dressing. If the dressing is good, I could eat tons and tons of salad. Like caesars dressing. Oh my god. So good. So yeah, I’m one of those people who actually love eating salads. But not for the healthy aspect, but because I could just bury myself in a good salad. Oh and of course the more colorful and freaky the salad is and the more various ingredients are in it, like fruit or nuts, the better.
Any kind of rustic stews
- Yeah, I love stews. Comfort food right there and then. I mean, what’s easier than chopping vegetables, putting them into a pot of soup and just waiting for them to cook? That’s pretty easy. Seriously. And it’s literally one of my favorite dishes to cook in winter when it’s cold and rainy outside and I know that I can later curl up on the sofa with a nice, hot bowl of stew. What a dream.
Pasta, pasta and more pasta
- I’ve already mentioned one of my favorite pasta dishes, but let’s be honest. It’s pasta. How could you not love pasta? And what else should I say? It’s pasta. It even tastes freaking amazing just by adding butter to it.

So, there you go guys. That’s my love for cooking and some of my favorite dishes. Honestly, I could go on and on and on with babbling about food and my most beloved meals, but I think it’s better to stop now. And I mean, I haven’t even started about my love for baking and desserts. God. Desserts. But I guess I’ll have to save this for another day, another post. Until then I hope you enjoyed this little one here. Please don’t hesitate to leave a comment down below so we can all talk about who much we love food. How amazing does that sound? That would be my favorite discussion ever. And yeah, besides that I wish you all an amazing week and, as always, thanks for reading. x

Quick update

Hola everyone.

You know what? I was just thinking about what to write today and then I thought, it’s been quite some time since I just talked to you guys, about everything and nothing. And I thought the weekend is just around the corner and I’m quite in the chilled mood, so why not chat a little bit today? So, maybe get a cup of tea, put on some good music and enjoy me babbling about things.

First of all I have to say that today started off amazingly – I woke up to Joe (= Joe Sugg) posting literally the cutest videos of Conor on his Instagram site and they just made me so smiley. But that’s no surprise, actually. I mean, what else can I do besides being happy at the look of Conor, smiling widely, wearing a goddamn white shirt? That’s basically the most natural reaction to something like this. And I’m really glad that Conor looks happy again and doing better. Thank god. Seems like the sunny LA is working miracles on him.

And yeah, I just had another exam on Monday, which I gladly aced. It was the last exam of one of my optional courses and I can’t even begin to tell you how happy I am that this is finally over. I mean, I literally chose this myself and god, it was so damn boring. I mean, actually the last exam, so this one, was pretty interesting. But all the others ones… Nope, not at all. And if you’re wondering which subject I’m talking about – it was culture anthropology. And I have to say that I expected it to be more on the “this is how cultures work”-side, but no, actually I learned about small tribes in Africa. I’m a hundred percent sure that this could be the most interesting subject ever for other people, but for me, not so much. But yeah, I finally finished it and I’m really glad about that. And it also means that I now have some time to chill and relax until my next exam in December. After nearly two months full of studying and thinking about all the things I still had to do and always feeling bad when I did something else than study, this feels like being on holiday.

Oh and right now I’m actually on my way home. I’ve now been in Vienna for over a week and I seriously can’t wait to get home again, even if it’s just for two days. I think I’ll always be one of those people who just can’t wait to get back home. Pretty paradox if you think about it, as I’m planning to move to the UK next year. Ad speaking of that, I know I always babble about my future and amazing colleges in the UK and I know, I have something new every single time. But this time it’s different. I really found my place to be. It’s a music college where I could study music journalism, including all the PR, marketing and amendment stuff and that’s literally so amazing and exciting. And, yes, I know, I said that I first said that fashion journalism was my dream, then lifestyle journalism and now music journalism. But I’ve noticed something. If I want to get a good job that truly makes me happy, I just need to pick one that I can work with. I mean, I love fashion. I really do. But I noticed that I just don’t spend hours with it every day. It’s not my biggest hobbies. Other than music, which is basically my whole life. Apart from the not-playing-a-musical-instrument-part, I would say I live music. Seriously. I spend hours and hours on and with music. It’s a subject I can work with, which I know I’m good at. And then I found this college and it just made click. So yeah, I’m currently trying my best to get a spot at this amazing college. Wish me luck. Oh and if you’re interested, the college is the British and Irish Modern Music Institute.

And besides that, there hasn’t much happened. Oh, right. Two amazing bands – Coasts and The Hunna – announced a tour together for next year and I can already not wait to see them. They are both bands I got to know through Spotify – thanks Spotify – and I immediately fell for them. And now that they are seriously visiting Vienna, I’m quite shocked to be honest. I pretty much expected them to be two of those bands you always listen to but will never be able to see live as they are just far too unknown in your country. But seemingly I was quite wrong and I’m so glad about that. If you’re interested, here are are one of my favorites from them:

So guys, that’s pretty much it. It makes me really happy that I’m able to talk to you guys and that I get to share all of this with you. And I really really hope you enjoy it too. Oh and please don’t hesitate to leave your thoughts and comments down below. I’m really interest in what you’ve been up to. And yeah, until then I wish you all an amazing weekend and, as always, thanks for reading. x

New Music Friday

Hola everyone.

Another beginning of the month, another music list, right? And as it’s just the beginning of November, I thought we’d start this one off together with some amazing music. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

For this month – and this won’t come as a surprise – my music is pretty heavy on the EDM side right now, due to Martijns show and my longing to relive the show over and over again. But of course there’s something for everyone on there – at least I hope so. So, let’s get right to it, shall we?

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Area 21 – Girls

The EDM fans among you will probably know this – Area 21 may not sound like Martijn, but it actually is Martijn together with the singer Maejor. And I don’t know about you but I’m literally addicted to this side of him, no joke. I usually don’t listen to this kind of music, but I could bury myself in this. And don’t even get me started on how amazing this is live. Holy moly.

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Saint Raymond – Nightcrawling

He is back. FINALLY. I can’t even begin to tell you how happy I am that Callum is finally back with awesome new music. And I’m still so thankful to Ed for taking Callum on tour with him and introducing me to him in 2014. Thank god.

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Hippo Campus – Monsoon / Tuesday

I found this band through another Spotify list and I’m so happy that I did. Just another reason for me for being so deeply in love with Spotify. And this band, oh my god. And this song. I have to say, when I found this song as a live version, I nearly fell off my chair. Seriously. Like, how is it possible to sound this good live? And there is that part when the upbeat part starts and it always feels like a spark of light lit up in my soul. I love it so much. Goosebumps guaranteed, every single time.

And as one song is far too less for this amazing band, I have of course got another song of theirs to show you. This one is called Tuesday and it’s literally such a calming song. I can’t really tell why, but it just is. And it’s literally the most perfect song to listen to while cooking. Actually all of their songs make the most perfect cooking playlist.

The 1975 – Milk

Yes, that really is the title. I really have no idea why, but somehow The 1975 thought they’d just upload this song again, as it is actually pretty old. But that doesn’t make it any less amazing. And that’s how I found it again. I especially love the guitar in this one. And personally I’d say it’s one of their best songs ever.

Brooks & Grx – Boomerang

And another EDM track – what a surprise. And again Martijn, of course. Yes, he has more than one side projects, here under the name of Grx. I can just say that when I heard this live I freaked out completely and since then I’ve been listening to it every single day and am falling for it more and more. The drop is freaking amazing. What an awesome piece of music.

BØRNS – 10.000 Emerald Pools

Some of you may know this song from the movie “The Space Between Us” – one of my favorite movies ever, just to mention it. To be honest, the first time I heard the song I thought that Børns was a woman. Really. But the fact that he’s a men doesn’t change the awesomeness of the song. I really really really love it and I think it’s truly a one of a kind song.

Zuli – follow you

Another song I found through Spotify. Thanks Spotify. It’s the kind of song that perfectly describes my taste in music. Especially the end of it and the guitar part. What can I say? It’s just a great song that puts you instantly in a good mood.

Tom Rosenthal – Pingu in the Igloo

What other good way to end this list is there then to end it on another amazing piece by Tom Rosenthal. I’ve already introduced my love for this guy and his music to you, so of course I had to include him here too. It’s the perfectly calm song, for a nice evening on the couch, preferably with tea and a comfy blanket.

So there guys, there you go. Here’s a small selection of the songs and music I’ve been listening to the past weeks. I hope you enjoy it. As always, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment down below. I’m really curious whether you know or like the songs or not. Oh, and yes, that is indeed Martijn in the cover picture. And, yeah, until then I wish you all an amazing weekend and, as always, thanks for reading. x