With Christmas fast approaching, our December salary is in imminent peril. If you’re desperately seeking a cheap present idea for Secret Santa, you can’t go wrong with a Christmas wreath. Costing up to £75.00 in the shops, you can knock one up for less than a tenner. And it can all be done in your lunchbreak. Read on to find out more.
Giving blood may not be the first thing that springs to mind to do during your lunch break. But you could end up saving three lives in that one precious hour. Being of a squeamish disposition, I’ve procrastinated about giving blood all my life. And it was only when a close family member received an emergency transfusion that everything changed.
Buried seven metres below the frantic roar of City life lies a temple shrouded in mystery. First discovered on a bomb site in 1954, the reconstituted temple now resides at the site of Bloomberg’s swanky, new European headquarters in the heart of the City. Brought to life with the help of truly immersive sound and light effects, the London Mithraeum is the perfect lunch break sanctuary to delve into during a stressful day. Listed in the World’s Top 100 places to visit, I couldn’t resist a sneak peak at this subterranean gem.
If you’re a fan of the Sky Garden, you’re going to love 120 Fenchurch Street – the City’s lush, new roof garden which opens to the public in August this year. A high-rise, outdoor oasis of tranquillity, the garden offers 360 degree views across the capital from a truly verdant vantage point. As an admirer of both gardens and high-rise towers, I was excited to be invited for a sneak preview last week.
Roof garden at 120 Fenchurch Street
Kicking off on the 1 April, the Royal Air Force marks its 100 year anniversary with a calendar of special events and activities running until the end of November. I was lucky enough to get a first glimpse of the RAF 100 Aircraft tour when it recently jetted in for a brief pit-stop at in the Guildhall Yard in the City of London. Nipping out for a sneak peek during my lunch break, I was instantly in awe of these magnificent flying machines.
Eurofighter typhoon aircraft at the Guildhall Yard
A fun palace made out of giant inflatable Liquorice Allsorts is the first thing that springs to mind when I stumble across Villa Walala during my lunch break this week. A bold mirage in a sea of corporate glass and chrome, the villa invites you to fling off your work shoes and jump head first into this bouncy castle on steroids.
Sign post for Villa Walala, Exchequer Square, Broadgate
Tucked away below the City’s high-rise monoliths is the Bevis Marks Synagogue. Dating back three hundred years, it is Britain’s first ever Jewish house of worship. Retaining all of its original features, it’s a hidden gem that passes most office workers by as they scurry to and from the Gherkin. Intrigued, I popped along during my lunch break to take a look.
Front entrance at the Bevis Marks Synagogue in the City of London
Scuttling to and from work in perpetual darkness has left many office workers, like myself, weary and depleted. Was it only a month since the Christmas holidays? Rallying to the rescue is the food and juice bar, Crussh, who have very kindly opened up the capital’s first pop-up vitamin D and light box therapy bar. Seeking the light, I scuttled round during my lunch break to get a well-earned dose of artificial rays.
Vitamin D pop-up bar in Crussh in the City of London.
With street food markets popping up all over London, we’re practically tripping over Yum Buns and Korean dumplings every time we leave the office. Intrigued by colleagues who happily spend half their lunch break queuing for an £8.00 burrito, I joined in the action at the Guildhall street food market.
Guildhall Street Food Market
Pop-up restaurant stars, Terry and George, were on hand this week to teach a class of bewildered bloggers about the benefits of whole grains. From wholemeal pizza to cakes infused with rapeseed oil, their simple, tasty recipes gave me food for thought for my lunch break leftovers. Fitting easily into the lunch box, I thought I’d share their whole grain tips for healthy lunch breaks.
healthy whole grain lunch break tips with Terry and George