Tag: love

Live Music is Back (kinda)

Hola everyone.

And welcome back to a new post and a new week. I hope you’ve all had a great weekend and a fantastic Monday and that your Tuesday is going well so far. I, for my part, had a great weekend, which is partly thanks to the topic of today’s post that we’ve all gathered together for today. I’m here to share something very very very special with you guys and something that has made me more emotional and happier than quite a lot of stuff that’s happened the past few months. And yes, we’re talking about music. Good old live music. But let me start right at the beginning.

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Those of you who’ve been following my blog for quite a while now will probably already know this, but for those of you who are new to this blog (welcome. thanks for being here.), let me tell you a fact about me. I freaking love Amber Run. And no, I’m not talking about some cool movie or a crazy online game, I’m talking about one of the best and most underrated bands of this current time. And this in itself could still be understood as a massive understatement. That’s how good these guys are. Last year in October, I had the absolute pleasure of not only seeing this crazily talented trio live for the first time, but also getting to interview them before their show in London. And let me tell you, they weren’t just three of the kindest and most grounded people I’ve ever met, but the overall night was one I will definitely never forget. The only way I can possibly describe the experience of seeing them live is by comparing it to stepping into pure musical heaven – check out the full review here. I mean, Joe, their lead singer, could sing me the alphabet and I’d quite certainly call that the best song of the century. It’s a voice I wish I could crawl into and surround myself with like a blanket. That’s what it feels like – a warm, cuddly blanket. And don’t even get me started on the other two guys, Tom (their uber-fantastic bassist) and Henry (the beast on the piano). All three of them singing together and harmonizing the way they do is what true heaven must sound like, for sure.

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Okay, so, that’s Amber Run. I love them. I think you got that. But let me get to the point why we are really here today. This talented indie group just gave me the chance to attend my first concert ever since the Corona hell broke loose – but in a different way you would probably expect. Actually, I was meant to see them live in May, but thanks to the pandemic it fell flat. And in order to reconnect to their fans, the guys decided to still put on their show, just a bit differently than they are usually used to. Because instead of a crowd, there were cameras in the room with them and instead of being there with them, I was sitting on my couch at home. Sounds weird, but that’s what concerts look in 2020. And still, it was a concert, and every time I closed my eyes, I imagined myself there at Omeara with them and the feeling that gave me is indescribable.

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During all these weeks and months without being able to attend gigs and without live music, I’ve been feeling like a part of myself, a part of my soul, has been ripped off me, like I haven’t been complete anymore. Which figures, as gigs are literally my life. There isn’t a place on earth where I feel happier than when I’m standing in the middle of a crowd, music blaring through the speakers and one of my favourite bands smiling down at me from the stage. That’s my kind of heaven. The heaven I’ve been missing more than anything else ever since our world got hurled into utter chaos. So when I saw that Amber Run would be doing a real gig, at a real concert venue in London and streaming it live to everyone’s homes, I felt like I had got some part of that heaven back. Suddenly I was able to buy a real ticket for a real concert again, have something I could get excited for, something I could count down the days for.

 

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In a weird sense and despite not really being able to attend the concert in a way I would nearly do anything for right now, the show gave me something back I had been missing for so long. The happiness I can only ever experience while listening to live music, while being at a live show. Obviously, the streamed show can’t really hold up against the show I got to attend in October, but it’s the closest to a live gig any band has brought me to the past few months and for that I’m eternally grateful. Naturally, that is also because of the guys’ phenomenal talent that only seems to grow and improve over time. My parents watched the show together with me and I think my mum fell just as much in love with them as I did while seeing them live for the first time. Thankfully, we both still have our tickets for their unplugged show in December, which I’m hoping won’t have to be rescheduled again, and I seriously cannot wait for this special evening to finally come around.

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And I know you’re probably thinking that live-streamed gigs can never be the same as actual live gigs, and I couldn’t agree more, but that show on Sunday also made me rethink my opinion a little. Obviously, it wasn’t the same, but I haven’t felt the excitement of going to a concert in so long and that show gave me parts of that back. For example, when they suddenly started playing ‘The Weight’, which is easily one of their most heartfelt and beautiful songs and one I discovered and fell in love with after seeing them live, I nearly jumped off the couch and shouted OH MY GOD THEY’RE ACTUALLY PLAYING THAT SONG!!!!!????!?! And whether that moment happened at home while watching a stream or live at an actual gig, that kind of shock and happiness I felt right in that moment would have always been the same. Even more so when Joe suddenly started singing a new, yet to be released song titled ‘I Hope It’s Not Like This Forever’ (very fitting for the current time), which I’ve still got stuck in my head.

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What that show made me feel even through a screen is proof for the fact that music always has and always will find a way through all the hardships that will come its and our way. It will always be stronger than that and will always reunite us. Always. And I’ll always be in love with it. And Amber Run. Simply for making me feel at home when I’ve felt lost for so long.

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So yeah, and that’s that. Here’s a very loving and very excited review of my first concert after four long months. I will honestly be forever thankful for Amber Run putting up this show and letting me experience live music again. I hope you enjoyed reading all about my experience and if you check the guys out, which you really should, I hope you fall just as much in love with them as I did – you can follow them on twitter and Instagram or listen to them on Spotify or YouTube. Please don’t hesitate to leave your thoughts and comments down below. And until then I wish you all a great week and, as always, thanks for reading. x

Let’s go for a hike

Hola everyone.

And welcome back to my blog and also, depending on when you’re reading this, another lovely start of the weekend. I hope you’ve all had a great week and that you’re doing well. I, for my part, am doing pretty good. I’ve been spending the past few days tinkering about either in the garden or the kitchen and I’ve also recently taken on doing yoga again, which is making me feel at ease, thank god. I seem unable to get this feeling of like I’m hanging in the air off of me. One second I feel great, and the next the realization of everything that happened the past few months and the longing for the summer that should’ve been hits me like a train, which always drags me back to that sad hole I was stuck in for so long. I guess that’s what all the newspapers have been saying – this whole ordeal hits and affects us, the youth, way harder than anyone would think. But I know that we as a whole are strong enough to get through this together. I will do too.

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Anyway, spending a lot of time surrounded by nature has helped me quite a lot in processing all of this, and thankfully I went on another little hike a few days ago with my parents. Actually, I visited them on their holiday for a day to wander across the mountains together, which actually wasn’t that far away from where we were on our last trip (click here), and I’m so glad I went because it was just so damn beautiful. There are only so few things that can beat the view you have when you’re up on a mountain and looking down on the world. It kinda makes you feel infinite.

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And as I knew the trip would be absolutely magnificent, I obviously took my camera with me to take a few shots, which I would like to share with you today. Basically, the whole hike consisted of lots of greenery, little to no people but even more cows. It was lovely. And I hope you think just the same about the pictures. The only bad thing that came from the whole day was that I had immensely underestimated the strength of the sun, which lead to a little surprise in the form of an intense sunburn on my shoulders that I’m still coming off of. I’ve now moved onto the shedding phase, I feel like a snake.

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Alright, and now I’m gonna stop oversharing again and let the pictures do the rest of the talking. As already mentioned, I hope you enjoy the pictures and please don’t hesitate to leave your comments and thoughts down below, I’d love to hear them. And until then I wish you all a great weekend and, as always, thanks for reading. x

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The Incredible World of DARK

Hola everyone.

How are you all doing on this fantastic Friday? I hope so far you’ve had a great week and that you’re all feeling well. Personally, I’ve had a super busy week, juggling free time with my new job at my mum’s company and my also new job as editor-in-chief of our uni magazine LDN (link here), which the team and I have been trying to give a huge makeover and thereby rejuvenate it and turn it into the amazing paper it can and should be. And I know it sounds a tad stressful as a whole, but, actually, I’ve really been enjoying it. I’d rather be busy and happy doing more stuff, than wandering around the house, not knowing what to do with myself. And it kinda makes me enjoy and savor some chill and free time even more, which is actually what I want to talk about today – a very specific, but incredibly amazing TV show that has been ruling most of my free time the past two months. As seen from the title and the cover picture, you can probably guess which show I am talking about. Exactly. DARK. Probably the best show I’ve ever watched in my life. But let me start from the beginning.

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For those of you who don’t know DARK yet – my god you’re missing out -, here’s a short intro: DARK is a German sci-fi thriller series co-created by the great Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese and produced by Netflix. Set in the fictitious German town of Winden, the show starts right during the aftermath of a child’s disappearance, which exposes the secrets of, and hidden connections among four estranged families as they slowly unravel a sinister conspiracy which spans several generations. Throughout the series, DARK explores the existential implications of time and its effects upon human nature.

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I’m purposely not going to reveal any more about the plot, as literally everything is a spoiler and as this is literally one of the best, if not even the best series I have ever seen, I don’t want to spoil this perfection of a show for anyone. What I need to add though is that the show is in German (although it has been dubbed and translated into many other languages), so if you don’t speak German, I would highly highly highly recommend watching the OV version with subtitles. No dubbing can come close to how perfect the voices of the German actors go with the show and with the overall feel of it. Seriously.

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I think what makes this show even more special for me, is that I got to watch it with my best childhood friend Maria, who I usually very rarely get to see as I obviously live in London and she lives and works in Vienna. But – and this is going to sound super insane – thanks to the quarantine (crazy, I told you), we were both forced to stay at home and as we only live minutes apart from each other, we spent most of the quarantine watching movies and tv shows together. And DARK was one of those shows – or more like the one show that ruled our weekly and daily tv marathons. I remember googling which shows to watch on Netflix and DARK immediately seemed like the most promising and interesting one, even before I had watched the trailer, which then sealed the deal. Usually, I am not that attracted to German-produced movies and shows, so I think both Maria and I went into that first episode with a bit of uncertainty.

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But after like the first five minutes, that was more than forgotten. I can’t remember the last time I had such a fantastic, thrilling, and exciting TV/movie experience. We fell in love with the main character Jonas in an instant. And the amount of times this show has made us do multiple facepalms, made us cover our faces in shock, even made us jump off the couch out of utter surprise. It’s truly insane but in the best way possible.

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So far, we’ve seen the first two seasons of the show (I even watched it twice) and as the third and last season has been released last Saturday (happy apocalypse day btw, for all my DARK lovers out there), I couldn’t be more excited to finally get behind all the mad secrets and hidden stories of Winden. But as much excitement I feel towards the prospect of finally getting to see the new season, the thought also gives me this somber, even sad feeling. It’s sad to see this show end. But I know the last season will be a hell of a ride. And I’m more than ready for it.

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I probably don’t have to mention that I HIGHLY recommend watching this show, I think I’ve made it very clear that you all need to watch this show right now. Honestly. You will not regret a single second of it, I promise. And for all of my fellow DARK fans, I’d love to hear what you think about the show – but no spoilers, please – so don’t hesitate to leave your thoughts and comments down below. And until then, I wish you all the best weekend and, as always, thanks for reading. x

A Holiday at Home

Hola everyone.

And welcome back to my blog. And a new Monday. And with that a new week. I hope that you had a lovely weekend and that you’re looking forward to this week. I’m sorry for not posting anything last week, but I’ve got a good excuse – at least partly. Last week, my parents and I went on a little holiday trip to Styria – about a two-hour drive away from us – for their birthday, so I didn’t really have enough time to post on here. But on a positive note, I finally have time today to share all the beautiful snaps with you that I took during the trip, so let’s get right into it. I hope you enjoy them.

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The first stunning place we drove to was what we call here “der grüne See”, which basically translates to the green lake. I know, we Austrians are a very creative folk. But actually, it’s a very fitting name as the lake really is green. Basically, the lake is surrounded by the most amazing, super fake looking mountains, which are usually covered in snow in the winter. But once that ice melts, it naturally flows down the mountains into the lake, which until then is completely dried up and just a huge trough in the landscape. So the whole lake consists of melted glacial ice, which is completely clear, and the flora and fauna that consist in it, which give it its green colour as soon as the sunlight hits the water. Honestly, it’s definitely one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited and I’m not surprised that it was once voted the most beautiful spot in the whole of Austria.

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The second location we visited – one that came with a lot more exhaustion and time consumption – was the “Bärenschützklamm”, which I have no idea what that translates to. Basically, a “Klamm” is a gorge in the middle of one or two mountains, filled with trees, waterfalls, lakes, and anything else you could dream of. About 100 years ago, the Grazer Alpenclub made the gorge accessible with suspended ladders, which has become one of the most beautiful, thrilling, and most well-known hiking trails since then. Overall, the trail consists of 164 ladders and I think about 4000 steps and from beginning to the end takes about 90 minutes to go through. I’m not going to lie, it was definitely one of most exhausting hikes I’ve ever been on, but also one of the most beautiful because once you reach the “Klamm”, there’s literally nothing else but nature. I mean, once you’re in there, you don’t even have reception anymore, so it really feels like you’re turning off the rest of the world and going to a place that has never seen anything industrial. Even the ladders are made from wood. I truly truly truly loved it and regardless of how done I was after it, I’d totally do it again.

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There you go my lovelies, those are the two highlights of our holiday trip. To put it short, I really really really loved everything we saw and did during the trip and if there’s one good thing to come out of this whole quarantine, “you’re not supposed to leave the country”-thing, then it’s definitely getting reunited with my own home country and being reminded of how truly beautiful it is. In the past, I never really got to appreciate its beauty, so I’m glad I do now.

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Anyway, I hope you enjoy the pics just as much as me. If you’re ever in Austria or even live here, I’d highly recommend visiting both of these amazing sights. They truly are worth the drive. Also, if you do go there, don’t forget to take your cameras with you, because if you’ve ever needed them, it will be there. And until then I once again hope you enjoyed this post. As always, please don’t hesitate to leave your thoughts and comments down below. And I wish you all a lovely week and, of course, thanks for reading. x

Look what quarantine made me do

Hola everyone.

And welcome back to my blog. How are you all doing, my lovelies? All doing good? I hope you all had a lovely week and that you’re looking forward to the weekend. Today, I thought it would be nice to share another few short stories of and insights on life during quarantine. Thankfully, that horrific time has come to an end here at home in Austria a long time ago (should be over a month now), but whenever I slow down and reflect on those strange one and a half months of lockdowns, anonymity, unfamiliarity and distance, I notice that I was a different person before compared to who I am now. But let me explain.

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To put it short, I did some things during quarantine and during the past three months that I probably would have never ever done if life was still normal. If I was still in London, if gigs were still happening and if our local cinema wasn’t singularly playing dumb, boring movies. Humans are a very adaptive and creative species, which I noticed by my own actions. Even my mum was surprised by most of the stuff I did. That’s how strange I was acting. And I know this must sound super dubious and weird, but actually it’s anything but, as most of the things I did happened in the kitchen. Not strange, but very very delicious.

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I mean, as probably everyone stuck at home, I’ve been cooking a lot. And that’s saying a lot too, as I usually already cook about twice or even three times per week. But because of quarantine and because I needed to find a way to let my creative spirit run free and do something I’ve never done before and something that would keep me engaged and interested, I’ve been cooking even more. I just needed a bit of a challenge. Also, somehow I finally got to make and cook all the stuff I had been planning on for years, so that’s quite cool too.

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My very first project was stinging nettle spinach. You’re probably thinking ‘what the hell is that’. Well, it’s that interesting green plant you can usually find on roadsides and in the woods in late spring. Oh, and the ‘fun’ part, once you touch it it stings like hell. You probably know what I mean by now. Here in Austria it’s pretty common to go into the woods and harvest some of it to cook with it – make spinach, tea, soup, whatever. And when I was still very young, I remember my mum once made me pureed spinach from nettles and I’ve been wanting to recreate that ever since. And thanks to quarantine, I finally got the chance. The stuff you do when you’ve reached another level of boredom. But actually, it was pretty cool to make and tasted amazing as well. I highly recommend it – here’s a recipe for you to try.

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And speaking of staying local and being one with nature – the next thing I made was elderflower syrup, another long-planned project of mine. The amazing thing is, when we bought the property for our house, this big patch of land, it already included a few trees and a huge elderflower bush. So the syrup I made wasn’t just homemade but also homegrown. And yes, I’m pretty proud of that. Anyway, the process of making the syrup was super fun as well and oh my god the taste. It tastes so freaking good. I mean, I usually like building myself up and being my own biggest fan, but this time literally everyone I had try the syrup agreed that it is absolutely stunning. And with some frozen berries and a few mint leafs it makes for the perfect summer drink. You should definitely try it – here’s a recipe.

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To stay with the summery theme, the last thing I recently made is perfect for anyone who loves frozen yoghurt and fruit, but doesn’t have a frozen yoghurt place in town (like me) – a yoghurt bark. Inspired by the amazing Jenna Joseph (thanks Jenna), I made the probably easiest icecream on earth. It really is just spreading out greek yoghurt and mixing and topping it with literally anything you like – chocolate, fruit, nuts, anything. There are no limits whatsoever. And once it’s frozen and you can break it all apart and enjoy it in the sun, it’s just the best thing ever – here’s a recipe for you.

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And last but not least, the quarantine has also given my green thumb an intense push. I mean, I’ve always had a green thumb – my room is literally filled with plants, I currently own 17 – but before the quarantine, it was limited to indoor plants. But all of a sudden I’ve been helping my mum with the garden, repotting plants, checking on them on a daily basis. I think that’s actually what surprised my mum the most. And the cherry on top of all of this is definitely that I recently planted my very own lemon trees. I know, lemons and me, what a coincidence (ha). But, seriously, they are just the cutest and I call them my lemon babies and have been looking after them all day and all night. I know that the journey together with them will be a long one and that it’ll take years for them to grow tall and strong, but that’s what I’m here for. Also, I think they’re just so beautiful and elegant once they’re bigger, so it’s definitely worth the wait. They’ll hopefully be with me my whole life. For any of you who would like to plant their own lemon tree, here’s how.

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And with that, we’ve already reached the end of today’s post and the stories of all the stuff I did during quarantine and the past three months. Overall, I think that quarantine was one of the hardest periods of time I and most people had to go through, but looking at what good came out of it, I’d say that it didn’t just have bad sides, but some positive ones as well. Speaking of that, I’d absolutely love to hear about all the cool you stuff did during quarantine to keep yourself busy – even if it’s creating the most beautiful island on Animal Crossing (I envy you) – so please don’t hesitate to leave your thoughts and opinions down below. And apart from that I hope reading about my stories brought you a bit of inspiration and happiness. And yeah, as always, I wish you all a lovely weekend and thanks for reading. x

thatlemonlife presents: LEMON – the magazine

Hola everyone.

How are all my lovely readers doing? Oh my god, it feels like I haven’t been on here and talked to you for ages. I’m so incredibly sorry for the long long silence. You can probably guess why I couldn’t find the time to really post anything… yes, you’re right, good old uni work, innit? But as of Tuesday last week, I am finally free again and also done with my second year at BIMM. Which still sounds so insane to me. I can’t believe I’m already done with my second year and only have one year left to go. Time just flew by, my god.

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But actually, now that I’m finally back, uni stopping me from posting anything on here is more fun than anything, as it is also the reason for me coming back and for today’s post. Because as most of you have probably seen from the title of this post, I want to present you with something today that is probably one of the most special and most meaningful projects of mine that I ever got to share with you guys. And it’s all thanks to uni. Never thought I’d ever say that, but here we are. Thanks, BIMM. But let’s not spend more time talking around it, but let’s get right to it. I proudly present to you – my very first own music, arts and lifestyle magazine LEMON. Can you hear me screaming in excitement?

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Okay, I know, this is super exciting, and, please believe me, I’m more than on the edge of my seat now that I finally get to share it with you. But first, let me tell you how we got here. As I already mentioned, this is all thanks to my university, which made me fall in love with design and specifically magazine design and now for my end project of our ‘Making Magazines’ course had me design and write a complete 16-pages magazine. I know you’re probably thinking what a crazy and difficult task, but out of all my courses, this was one was definitely the one that I enjoyed the most.

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And actually, the whole idea for LEMON began right here, on this very blog. Because in a nutshell, the magazine is a paper version of this very blog – without the sometimes way too personal oversharing and babbling around. From the start, my goal was to translate the feel of this blog, its ambiance, its style, and its fun and passionated character to the magazine and create a paper that is just as sweet, creative, and interesting. Obviously, the look was also just as important and, for me as a perfectionist, also the part I worked on the most and hardest. I think in total I worked on it for about three months, which made it possible for me to create a magazine that I couldn’t be any more proud of. And I even got to include my obsession and love for Twenty One Pilots (I just had to, sorry not sorry). And yes, I’m probably prouder of that than I should be, but I got to put Brad Heaton, the ultimate photographic genius, into the spotlight and my favourite band at the same time and even put Ty on the cover, so I can only see this as the biggest achievement ever.

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Overall, creating this mag has probably been one of the most fun things I’ve ever done and I couldn’t be happier to share it with you, so without further ado, here it is. My magazine LEMON. I hope you enjoy it. Or even love it.

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Omg, this is just so exciting. I honestly hope you enjoy/enjoyed my magazine. As already mentioned, all the design was done by me and all the articles and pieces you can find on the pages were also written by myself. Unfortunately, Brad wasn’t available for an interview, so I had to use some quotes from past interviews and his reddit q&a for my feature on him, but I don’t think that lessened the quality of the piece in any way. His pictures with their magic and striking beauty are the highlights anyway.

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Again, I truly hope you enjoy the mag just as much as I do. This is my first attempt at creating my own magazine and now that I can literally hold it in my hands, it feels like another path for me has opened itself up. It has definitely become a project for me that I want to come back to in the future. Maybe, one day, LEMON will be a real magazine one day and waiting for you to pick it up from the store. How crazy does that sound? Even just the thought makes my tummy fill with butterflies. But until then, here’s the very first version of this super special paper. I’d love to hear your opinions and thoughts, so please don’t hesitate to leave them down below. And, of course, I hope you’re all doing great and feeling well and I wish you all the loveliest week. And as always, thanks for reading. x