Sunday 26 June 2016

Vanilla for thought #3: Tea flavors to try!

Hey Guys!
Vanilla Here,

About two months back, I was an EDM freak and now it has died down though I still listen and enjoy EDM. I realized this is a nice sort of series to update you guys on my up-to-date obsessions with random things consumers like me will have.

This month, I have been back in the obsession towards teas. It is not that I have just started to drink tea or something but I have been back to drinking tea, in huge amounts. This might have been due to the fact that at the first week of June, I got an extremely bad sore throat after a course that required alot of smelling. My brain was overwhelmed by the smells and the top notes reached my throat, irritating my skin. I have a sore throat and bad cold now as well but not too strong.
I've ended up with a big, and I mean BIG box of tea packs inside and quite hilariously have even more tea packs lying around everywhere in my house.

I decided to show you guys some of my most favorite tea flavors although I personally enjoyed every tea flavor I have ever tried in my life. If you are a tea freak like me or a coffee addict (also me) wanting to step out of your comfort zone, do try out these flavors to get yourself hooked.


English Breakfast Tea

This is my most favorite flavor of tea. The depth of flavor and the intensity if the brew was what captivated me to teas and food. The fist sip is heavenly and till this date, nothing can be more comforting than a cup of English Breakfast with a good book in an air-conditioned room during the summer. The beauty and taste of this tea is really nice as it has an earthy and slightly acidic undertone to complement the more fragrant and delicious taste of the tea.
Its a mix of blends from Assam and Kenya and best known to eat with an english breakfast (which I don't really do but I should try sometime!) I've grown up loving this tea and flavor so I do highly recommend this tea.
For me, I usually drink handmade brews when outside or this Twinings's Tea, which is obviously my most favorite tea brand of all time.
                                        
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Earl Grey Tea

So from the first flavor I introduced which is my most favorite, one can tell I am into very strong tea blends. I really enjoy strong tea flavors but if you are looking for a more lighter and heartier tea to genuinely drink during tea time with a Victoria sponge cake, this is it.
Early Grey has a very light, fresh and slightly minty flavor. It is extremely aromatic and has a weird office-vibe to it. The taste is refreshing in a formal way and it gives you a nice breath. If you are also planning to have some tea bags in your office, Earl Grey is the one.

                                            
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Darjeeling Tea

This is another amazing flavor to try. It is slightly similar with earl grey as it is also another very light and aromatic tea that is absolutely delicious with some gingerbread cookies or even some funfetti cookies which you can make here.
It is originated from tea fields of Darjeeling, India and also has a slight star anise aftertaste. It will also be suitable as a tea to serve during high teas and get togethers with friends.
                                          
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This is all I have for you guys! I apologize for it to be very short but I came back from a very physically strenuous and scary camp. I even ended up getting body pains and bled my knees . This will be my last post for the month and I obviously have a lot of homework to do yet ended up writing for you lovelies! Please bear with me for the next few months and you can always follow me on my social media platforms! Until next time, keep your ice cream cones dripping! (I do apologize if there are typos I am having a major headache as I type this!)  

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Thursday 9 June 2016

My Summer Reading List of 2016

Hey Guys!
Vanilla Here.

I am extremely happy to be posting on time! However, this may not last for so long as I am known to mysteriously disappear and come back with no legitimate reason. So I am crossing my fingers I can at least update twice this month or even thrice as I cannot guarantee posts July on wards. I already have tones of events this June and it has been quiet hectic already. Back to the post, I'm here once again with another bookworm post!

This summer, I have compiled some books that I thoroughly enjoyed and would want to recommend to grab your hands on this summer. If you are bored for the summer and would want to engage in some bookworm action or as a bookworm you suffer from one of a bookworm's nightmare and that is being completely unsure what to read, don't fret as Vanilla's got your back! These books for once vary in genre and do not all have the same genre.


No. 1: Scat            by Carl Hiassen
           Fiction/Thriller
I was totally obsessed with this book back in February when I first picked it. It was a really engaging and fun book. This story is about two students who are in the class of an infamous Biology teacher named Ms Starch. There were nasty rumors spread around about her and she has a background very few were aware of. One day, a notorious boy by the name of Smoke agitates her until an incident occurs. Soon enough, the kids go on an excursion to a swamp to get caught in a sudden fire. People doubted Smoke to set it as Ms Starch goes missing. So, both these students (Nick and Marta) must uncover the reasoning behind the strange happenings and find out whether Ms Starch is alive. Though most students were happy of her not returning, the substitute teacher proves to be a wacko of some sort. Its quiet funny and very nice. It once again gives us an eye opener on certain global issues of this world in a fun and understandable way. Definitely 3 out of 5 ice cream cones despite being a bit cliche.


No. 2: Inferno          by Dan Brown
           Mystery/Thriller
I know, I know I am completely late to the Inferno party but I cannot help it. I featured The Da Vinci Code in my top 5 of 2015 but I could not find Inferno then. I was searching for Inferno since 2014 but only found it this year at a book fair with the hardback edition. The bookworm inside me emerged and I got it.
I am very happy that it was worth the buy and has re-read value in my opinion. Once again Dan Brown has done his homework about the deep cultural and symbolic meanings of the beautiful city of Florence ( and a bit of Istanbul). Professor Robert Langdon from Harvard is once again in hot water as he gets chased by radicals who follow tranhumanism and finds himself in a hospital, shot in the head and unaware of what had happened. As he tries to understand what led him to Italy, he encounters many issues and gets hunted down.
Da Vinci Code was focused on the works and everything about Leonardo Da Vinci. However, Inferno focuses mainly on Dante Alighieri and if you do not know him; you will be well aware on almost everything about him by the end of the book. Solid 2.5 out of 5 as the some parts of the ending was upsetting and not too interesting.


No. 3: The 6th Target      by James Patterson
           Mystery/Thriller

I hope that by now, I do not need to emphasize on my love and admiration on James Patterson and his works. He has been one of the first and most inspiring authors I was exposed to when I started reading YA. Once again, this shows how difficult it was for me to get his books of the Woman's murder club series. One of my first posts was about 4th of July, the 4th book in the series. Yet now I'm only at the 6th book in the series as it was difficult to get hold of it in my local library.
Lindsay Boxer has to face a killer and kidnapper at the same time. A shooter suddenly comes abroad on a cruise and shoots 6 people, one of them being her closest friends. As the fight for justice on the crazy shooter is held within the hands of law, she also needs to face kidnappers who kidnap children and their nanny's, killing off the nanny and not asking for ransom of the children.
As Lindsay struggles with the crazy happenings around town, she also needs to sort out her personal problems with her former lover as well as deal with mysterious cases of death in her friend, Cindy's apartment.
Alot of thing occur in this book and it is quite messy to be honest. Yet James Patterson is able to harmonize them though the book gets a boring here and there, the messiness is very evident throughout the book until the ending, where everything is actually properly sorted out with a cliffhanger to end with. Sadly, this gets a 1.5 out of 5 ice cream cones :(. [Its still a great summer read if you ask me!]


No. 4: Remembrance    by Meg Cabot
           Romace/Paranormal

The weirdest genre combination if you ask me. However, I have not completed the book and therefore will not rate it. There are 2 reasons to it. Firstly, I had almost no time with my busy schedule (Add me on snapchat @itsmevanilla to know more about my life this June!!) and secondly, the book just weirder and more complex as I read it. I would not exactly say it is a bad book. I was just confused as it was a part of a series I have never read so I had no clue of the information and plot of the preceding books.
Some women loves a ghost and she is getting engaged with him. She reunites with some other guy she used to be close with and finds out about him wanting to sell her old house (the one the ghost died in). Its quiet confusing as I explain. But it is not too bad as it has some humor and sarcasm to it. It is a great pick for the summer if you are feeling adventurous to try out something new.



So that's all I have for my summer reading list. Not a lot I agree but I promise to pick up some new books this sunday. I do hope you guys subscribe to my blog (the box is at the top right hand corner) and you get to follow me on my journey of life and such!! Until next time, keep your ice cream cones dripping!!


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