Taking Liberty's

Happy New Year! Here is what a new year's eve in tier 3 and as new parents looks like (the soup is for baby, beers are ours 🍻). 

After we lost our beloved Sushi in November, our little grey bunnydle of joy, travel companion, asteri (star in Greek), it got me thinking how much this little wonder has taught me over the past two years. - it is possible to love another pet again after one passes on. I lost my cat of 19 years (had grown up with her) and was devastated after she died, I never imagined I wanted another pet again, until we found Sushi. - life is short so make the most of it and love as hard as you can. - things are better shared I.e. bananas, sofas, breakfast etc. In particularly sofas, her favourite afternoon snack. We won't go into detail about the sofa she destroyed in Athens...  - rabbits can fly on planes if they are strong willed. Sushi was a stubborn rabbit, and after me trying to figure out endless ways to get her to the UK safely (they dont allow rabbits in the cabin on planes), the only option ended up being to take her on the plane and via ferry (which we kn...

Set away in a little cobbled street just away from the old port of Chania is a fairly new bar called Bras de Freres. Having visited when my friend's band were playing there (can't go wrong with a bit of Greek rock), we found the atmosphere pretty ambient with an almost intimate type setting. So when my friend/neighbour Vasilis invited me along with him and his work friends to watch Georgia Dagaki (a famous Cretan singer/musician) I was definitely up for it. A Sunday evening in January in Chania wouldn't usually be a busy night out however on this occasion it was. We managed to bag some seats relatively close to the stage and await the night to begin. Georgia Dagaki comes from Rethymno a city in Crete, east of Chania, and is renowned for playing the lyra, a traditional cretan instrument a little bit like the violin. To celebrate the occasion I swap my usual beers for gin tonics, whilst eyeing up the mojitos (they come in cool glasses and I'm a sucker for cool glasses...

I sit rubbing my hands together and blowing into them; it's so bloody freezing in rainy, gloomy Manchester today. The tram comes slowly but surely into sight ready to take me back to the even gloomier Eccles. But I have a reason to not let the weather drown me with gloom, for tonight I am going to watch a band I discovered almost one year earlier thanks to my Spanish friend Toni who is an expert on all things musical-related. This London five-piece have been together for several years but it's apparent to me that this last year, they're slowly but surely clawing their way into the music business with their unique and diverse sound. Their album, The Witch, released in April this year caught the attention of many, including Depeche Mode, with whom they later went on to tour alongside as part of the 80's electronic rock trio European tour. I make my way back home, deciding to colour my hair my usual multicoloured, unicorn style for fun. Two hours later I am ready, after...

I can't claim I've been a huge Depeche Mode fan for a long time. I always knew and liked their big hits, (Enjoy the Silence, Personal Jesus, Just Can't Get Enough etc etc), but I didn't seem to pay particular attention to a lot by them, until working in Crete and being surrounded by their hugest fans. So when the opportunity arose and Depeche Mode announced their Global Spirit tour I jumped at the chance to go. Earlier this year Depeche Mode released their latest album, Spirit, featuring it's very catchy hit, Where's the Revolution, written by Martin L Gore, the band's guitarist and occasional singer. Being a Manchester girl and all for supporting Manchester music venues, Birmingham wouldn't be my first choice to watch a band, but tickets weren't easy to get hold of and my friend Jamie, who managed to acquire us the tickets, lived close by so it wasn't so bad. Finally the moment arrived when I could sing along clutching a warm cup of beer lo...

Molly Nilsson @ Ride Cycle Cafe, Chania I'm clutching my phone in my hand with my new spotify playlist in full swing, music blasting in my headphones as I'm walking around Chania town, awkwardly reminding myself that I can't just break out into dance in public. It's not socially acceptable in Greece (or most places for that matter, if you're not in some kind of musical theatre production). For those of you who don't know, I am currently living in Greece, Crete to be more specific, it's no Manchester, in fact it's a lot prettier and hotter, but it's as good as a second home to me.  My phone goes off and I get a call from my friend Artemis, who tells me he is coming to Chania and we are going to watch a solo artist from Sweden perform in this quirky little area in the city centre. I'm always game for a gig.  I have a quick skim of her songs on spotify and like what I hear. Molly Nilsson is a Swedish solo artist, mainly based in Berlin ...