2023 In Music

 

Hi guys it's that time of the year! I'm going to waffle away again about the music that I've loved this year 🎼. I've been doing end of year music blogs since 2016 (I'll list them at the end of the blog) and I love a good natter about music and sharing what I've loved each year. 

Gig-wise this year I demonstrating a stunning lack of variety in going to 3 gigs ... all of which were Yungblud 😂. In February I saw him at Wembley Stadium and although I'm a relatively new fan (I've been a fan for 5 years now) I still felt a real sense of pride seeing him in such a big venue. 

At the hotel pre-gig

The show starting

In April I saw him again twice in one evening in Brighton at the Chalk venue (you can read about the show here) which is probably some kind of new record for me as I haven't even managed to see 30 Seconds To Mars twice in one day 😅 (more from them later). It was a really nice contrast from the big Wembley show to see him 'unplugged' in a tiny venue. I think he's planning new music (a couple of new songs have already been released and are linked further down the page) and possibly a tour next year so I have my fingers crossed he'll get a mention 5 review blogs in a row after making his debut in 2020 😄.

Onstage at Chalk

2023 introduced me to some new artists which always makes me happy, step forward Last Dinner Party & Master Peace , both have new albums out next year which I'll hopefully be covering in a year's time! 

This year's song list is quite lengthy so make yourself comfortable with a beverage of your choice and click each 'title' to take you to the YouTube video. 

Bring Me The Horizon - Amen

Foo Fighters - Hearing Voices

Edward Reekers - Good Citizen

The Killers - Your Side Of Town

Olivia Rodrigo - Bad Idea Right? & All American Bitch

The Last Dinner Party - Nothing Matters

Picture Parlour - Norwegian Wood

Master Peace - I Might Be Fake & Loo Song

Ghost - Phantom Of The Opera

Yungblud - Hated

Yungblud & Bring Me The Horizon - Happier

Green Day were finally back this year, releasing 3 songs off of their upcoming album Saviours (released in 21 days time but who's counting ....) and due to my vast amount of excitement I thought I'd give them their own 'mini spot' on this year's blog ahead of next year's review. They've released 3 songs off of the album so far The American Dream Is Killing Me, Look Ma, No Brains and my favourite Dilemma. I can't wait to hear the rest of the album as it sounds like a real return to form, I look forward to reporting back!

Ok you were all forewarned .... here come 30 Seconds To Mars .....

30 Seconds To Mars - It's The End Of The World, But It's A Beautiful Day

The only album on this year's list comes from my favourite band (joint with Green Day, Lady GaGa & Yungblud of course) and in all honesty on the back of the first two singles that came off the album I didn't think it would make the end of year list 😕. To give some context 30STM have been my favourite band since I discovered them in 2007 and I fell in love with their rock sound immediately. Their 2009 album This Is War is, in my opinion, utter perfection. Whilst their sound has gone more 'electro' over the last two albums 2013's Love, Lust, Faith & Dreams and 2018's America I wasn't quite prepared for how different they would sound upon their comeback. 

The album's lead single arrived in May in the form of Stuck and whilst I wasn't convinced I gritted my teeth to see what came next (as an aside I do like the video, apart from the snake 😱). When Life Is Beautiful dropped I was gutted as I hated it, I still have to skip it now when I listen to the album. Thankfully the next two singles Get Up Kid and next year's tour namesake Seasons were better. When the album was finally released in September I was relieved as the songs on it were actually a lot better than the singles *phew*. 

There are some songs I really like on the album; Avalanche is reminiscent of LLFD's Do Or Die and is going to sound great live. Shannon takes lead vocals on Midnight Prayer and his voice blends perfectly with Jared's on the chorus. The lyrics spoke to me as someone who often reaches her darkest times around midnight. My favourite song on the album is World On Fire and is the song I'm most looking forward to hearing on tour next year.

So all in all whilst the album has continued the band's journey into more electro territory I actually do quite like it and will award it a 7/10. I also figure that I'd rather the band tried new sounds rather than getting bored re-making the same songs again and calling it a day. 

So that's it for 2023's music. I have two gigs booked for next year so far - Green Day at Wembley Stadium in June and, in case you hadn't picked up on the hints above, I'm seeing 30 Seconds To Mars in April for the 20th time ........ 

I'd love to know what music you guys have enjoyed this year, pop me some recommendations in the comments of where you've read this from - IG or Facebook.

Happy New Year!

Love Jen

XxxX

PS Here are my previous year's music blogs -

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

Snap Happy - 10 years with my camera

 

This Christmas marks 10 years since my beloved Canon EOS 1100D camera first came into my life. My brother and sister-in-law had been using DSLRs for a couple of years and after seeing how great their photos were I wanted to play too! 

Christmas Day 2013

I'm not going to give a great long history of how I learned to use the camera as quite frankly I didn't 😆 For years it's been completely on 'Auto' or 'Sport mode' for airshows and I'm only just starting to use the manual settings .....

Instead I want to share some of my favourite photos I've taken over the years (they aren't all of planes I promise!) and why I like them so much.

Sunset Blossom Spring 2014 -

Sunsets and blossom are two of my favourite things to photograph and when they combine it makes Jen happy! This was taken on a slightly chilly April evening at a local park and was probably the first photo I'd taken on the camera that I was really happy with.

Autumn Leaves September 2014 -

Despite being a bit of an Autumn-phobe I do love the colours involved and the particular light that the season has. By this point I was used to crouching or crawling around on the floor to get a decent photo (and yes I still carry a plastic bag in my camera bag to kneel on) and I managed to get down to 'leaf level' for the shot. 

Sheffield Park Autumn 2021

Whilst we're on the subject of Autumn light I really like tree and rushes being backlit. I also like the red of the leaves that have dropped onto the white of the rushes as it makes a nice contrast. Sheffield Park is famous for it's stunning Autumn colours and I love going there each year to snap photos. 

Shooting Star Summer 2017 -

To be upfront I take absolutely no credit for this photo despite it coming from my camera. A bit of a back story, Chris, Vana and I went out to watch (and photograph) the annual Perseids Meteor Shower that happens in August each year. We went down to Norman's Bay as the darkest location near to us and it was such an amazing evening. We saw so many shooting stars and Chris set my camera up so that all I had to do was hold down the button for as long as I wanted. Hence him getting the credit for this lucky photo 😅

Fireworks July 2017 -

On the theme of things in the night sky I managed this shot of a fireworks display. I haven't managed a decent fireworks shot like this since but I can always hope!

Raindrop August 2014 -

I've always had a thing about waterdrops despite being a very rain-averse person I love watching rain drops and photographing them. I like how reflective they are and despite being small they still have so much detail to offer. This was taken whilst I was stood at the end of the road waiting to watch the Typhoon during Airbourne 2014. 

Bluebells May 2022 -

I'm lucky to live near one of the UK's most famous Bluebell Walks at Arlington and I love going every year with my camera in tow. I chose this photo because of the way the light is only hitting the bluebells and branch in the middle and keeping the others in the shade. It makes it look even more magical and I can imagine fairies peeking out from the shadows at the passers by. 

Barn Owl in Stratford-Upon-Avon September 2018

Back in 2018 my best friend Helen and I went to Stratford-Upon-Avon for a few days (you can read the full blog here) and I absolutely loved  Mary Arden's Farm (cute animals what more could I ask for). One of the highlights of the day was watching a falconry display which featured this beautiful Barn Owl. I had the camera on the aforementioned 'Sport Mode' and was able to get it mid-flight heading towards us. 

Animals In Vienna Zoo - November 2019 & November 2023

Both times that Mum and I went to Vienna we visited it's famous zoo (you can read about both visits here (2019) and here (2023)) and I took the camera along to photograph the animals. With the zoom lense I was able to get some decent photos when the animals were further back in their enclosures. The Leopards and Panda are from our 2019 visit and the Spectacled Bear below is from our visit last month.

Also after seeing the Spectacled Bear's 'resting bear face' I can see where Michael Bond got the inspiration for Paddington Bear's "special hard stare".

Starling Murmuration February 2023-

During the winter we get some spectacular Starling Murmurations at the pier and the camera was able to take these lovely photos of the birds against the sunset. I also have a video of it below- 

Harvest Moonrise, Port Grimud September 2022-

Using the zoom lense and the 'no flash' setting I took this photo of 2022's Harvest Moon rising over St Tropez reflecting the sunset. This was probably the best 'moon rise' I've ever seen (you can read a blog about the holiday here) .

Ok guys you've avoided them until now..... here come the planes!

Red Arrows 'Diamond 9' & Vulcan XH558, Farnborough Airshow, July 2014 -

As soon as I got my camera my thoughts turned to getting a zoom lense so that I could finally take decent photos of aircraft. The lense got it's debut on a blisteringly hot day at Farnborough Airshow 2014 and I was overjoyed with the results. The photos came out clear and crisp and even on auto the shutter speed was able to snap the aircraft's movements instantly rather than taking a moment like my 'regular' digital camera.

In action with my beloved camera and zoom lense at Airbourne 2018

Red Arrows Close Pass, Airbourne 2014 - August 2014

 

Nowadays I'd be slightly cross at how dark this photo is (I'm starting to learn a tiny bit about ISOs) but I was, and still am, so pleased with this lucky shot of the Red Arrows 'synchro pair' performing one of their close passes. The shutter was playing ball and I got them just as they crossed. 

Vulcan XH558 Over Boats, Airbourne 2015, August 2015

When we found out that Vulcan XH558 would be appearing at Airbourne for the final time Dad and I decided to watch her from Beachy Head to get the best view possible. Of all the many photos I took of her that day this was one of my favourites where she's framed by all the boats gathered to see her with the bay in the background. You can read about the airshow here.

F16 Dropping Flares Airbourne 2017, August 2017 -

Sometimes it's nice to zoom out a bit like this photo of the epic Belgian F16 dropping flares. I like that it's got the movement of the plane and the flares exploding. 

Blackjack Lighting Up, RIAT 2022 - July 2022

The zoom lense and 'sport mode' did their job when the RAF's Typhoon 'Blackjack' shot low over the campsite. It was able to catch the afterburners' path as it streaked over our heads. You can read all about RIAT 2022 here.

RAF Tornados Inbound, RIAT 2018 - July 2018

 

Tornados are my favourite ever aircraft and I'd never gotten a really 'decent' photo of one until RIAT 2018 when I got this nice, clear shot of this RAF pair en route to thunder over Fairford's runway. You can read about RIAT 2018 (with a bonus cute Esme photo) here

Vapour, Duxford Flying Finale 2022 & Airbourne 2023 - October 2022 & Airbourne 2023

The Typhoon performed late afternoon at Duxford's Flying Finale in 2022 (read about it here) and the autumn air threw a cloud of vapour behind it. At Airbourne this summer (read about it here) the Typhoon was silhouetted against the blue sky which would normally annoy me as you can't see it's paint scheme but here it allows the white vapour to 'pop'.

Red Arrows Passing, Duxford Battle Of Britain Airshow - September 2023

It took me another 9 years to get a decent 'Red Arrows passing' photo. This time the lighting played ball after a cloudy, drizzly start to the show. By this time I'd learned to manually set the shutter speed to it's fastest setting to catch the moment they passed. You can read about the show here.

'Rathausplatz Markt', Vienna - November 2023

I've been learning how to take photographs in low light and it's been quite hit and miss so far. The markets in Vienna are beautifully decorated and lit beautifully and I used a low aperture and slower shutter speed to get the gold and purple lights with a bonus appearance by a nearly full moon. 

Thank you for revisiting my photos with me, I'm looking forward to finally moving onto camera settings other than 'auto','no flash' and 'sports'. 

Love Jen

XxxX

Back to Vienna 🎄🍹🐼

 

Last week Mum and I went back to one of my favourite places Vienna! Back in the Autumn Dad suggested that Mum and I might like to go to a Christmas market this year and there was no other choice. When we went to Vienna for the first time back in 2019 (you can read about it here) we were overwhelmed by it's beauty and lovely Christmas Markets and I was so pleased to be going back. 

When it came to booking our hotel we immediately booked Hotel Graf Stadion where we stayed before. Last time we found it really comfortable and the staff really friendly and this time was no different. Last time our room was on the ground floor but this time we were up on the second floor which meant we got to use the world's tiniest but prettiest lift 😂

It was an early start to drive up to Gatwick (thank you to Dad for the lift to and from the airport).

Corney wrapped up and ready to go

When it came to getting on the plane my little Autistic self was overjoyed that we needed to walk from the tarmac onto the plane which meant I got to stand and watch other aircraft moving around. 

Living up to my sunflower lanyard .....

All set

When we arrived in Vienna we got the City Airport Train into the city centre, it makes life so much easier and only takes about 20 minutes. 

The train

After a slight palaver getting to the hotel (the stretch of the underground that stops by our hotel was closed for repairs) we got booked in and decided to go for our first Melange of the holiday at Cafe Rathaus which was the site of our first ever Melanges 4 years ago. 

It's very pretty and Art Deco

Melange

Mum with her Melange

Inspecting my mystery pudding that turned out to be very nice

Later that evening we headed to our 'local' market at Rathausplatz (basically just behind our hotel) which is the biggest of the markets. 

The town hall in all it's glory

Some of the pretty decorations for sale

And of course a market meant punch! We had Orange punch. Like last time you pay a 'deposit' on the mugs (5 Euros) which gives you the option of either keeping them or returning them and getting your deposit back. We didn't keep these particular mugs but we still came back with a good collection.

After the mugs were returned we headed off to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner and the obligatory Hurricanes. 

Corney enjoying his throne.

We woke up to rain showers for our first full day in the city so we decided to have a wander around between showers and go to a couple of museums. Like last time we got ourselves a pair of Vienna Passes which cover transport on the tram/tube/bus and various attractions like the museums, palaces, zoo etc. They save you a lot of money on individual tickets so I'd definitely recommend getting one (you can have them for a variety of time periods - 24, 48, 72 hours etc). 

One of the imperial buildings housing part of the university

Whilst the rain was holding off we walked down past the palaces for one of the most important parts of our visit, the historic toilets! Mum has now been able to add the rating of historic toilets to her repertoire and scored them a respectable 4/5.

There were so many cute horses giving carriage rides

We ended up at the Stephensplatz Market which meant Apple Punch and a visit to the snowglobe stall. It's a little known fact that snow globes were originally invented in Vienna and I was really pleased to bring one home with a model of Stephansdom inside it. 

Apple punch

The stunning Stephansdom and it's market

A little piece of Vienna of my own -

After some delicious bacon & potato soup at Wienerwald restaurant we headed back up to the Hofberg Complex. 

Yum!

One of the museums that we didn't have time for on our last visit was the Sisi Museum which is dedicated to Empress Elisabeth aka 'Sisi' which showcased some of her clothing and also the apartments that she lived in. 

After visiting with Sisi I was keen to re-visit the Art History Museum as it was one of my highlights from our 2019 trip. 

One of the amazing ceilings

A cabinet of Eos, sorry Anubis, statues in the Egyptian section

Posing on the balcony -

From the balcony you can look down onto the cafe

And from this vantage point we noticed a couple of spare tables so we thought it would have been rude not to take them up on their offer .....

                                                             Such a beautiful cafe

I was finally able to revisit my favourite Viennese cuisine Sacher Torte!

Accessorised by a Melange obviously

Moments before the Sacher Torte was demolished

Mum with her drink

The museum is also conveniently situated on Maria-Theresienplatz square and of course it's market .... Unfortunately the rain had set in so we had a soggy Amaretto punch and headed back to the hotel. 

Just like airshow weather 😂

On Wednesday we awoke to a dusting of snow much to my excitement! We also had our most important trip of the holiday .... to the zoo!

The overnight snowfall made the walk from the tram to the zoo absolutely beautiful. 

I love snow!

Once we were in the zoo we of course headed to the most important residents ....THE PANDAS 🐼! They looked extra adorable in the snow and we even saw a 'Panda roll' in real life!

Panda roll!

Some other adorable residents of the zoo -

"Paddington Bear gave Mr Brown one of his special hard stares"

It was smiling in it's sleep

Blowing kisses

My other favourite residents of the zoo were of course the Capybaras. I've always like Capybaras but after the genius of the Capybaras in Encanto my love for them grew even more. 

Clearly the best photo of the holiday

Corney made a friend

The snow continued to fall whilst we were at the zoo -

The zoo is in the grounds of the spectacular Schonbrunn Palace and we decided to get the tram around to re-visit it. 

A brief Apfelstrudel stop

We didn't visit the inside of the palace this time but did of course go around the market and sample it's (gin) punch. 

The market's mug had Eos and the buns on them!

We headed back to the hotel via 'our' Rathausplatz market -

I like how the colours came out in this photo

I also sampled the rum hot chocolate .... it would have been rude not to!

We spent our final day visiting a couple of the markets that we missed last time and also to one of our old favourites. There are a couple of little markets Am Hof and Freyung that are across the road from each other. 

After more bacon and potato soup at Wienerwald we went to another of Vienna's prettiest locations the Belvedere. We re-visited Gustav Klimt's 'The Kiss' and the lovely grounds. 

There were still some Autumn colours to be seen

The decor inside is amazing

Then it was time for cake -

Suitably refreshed we went to look around the market. This was one of my favourite markets last time and it was just as good this year. There were a lot of handmade items including these bauble earrings that we both bought. 

I got this lovely bauble too

Such a lovely setting

We came back via the Karlsplatz Market I think Karlskirche is one of the prettiest churches in the city. It also gets extra points for having the most Jen Christmas punch mugs, black until you get close up and there being Christmas details on it. 

Berry punch in the Jen cup

 

Final punch of the holiday

On Friday it was time to head home so I gave into the cake option at breakfast time.

We had quite a lot of time to kill at the airport so we settled ourselves into an Aida cafe (they have a really interesting history so have a look at the link) and I finally managed to try Goulash which was absolutely delicious.

Final piece of Sacher Torte

Our gate at the airport had a good view of the runway and I got a video of our plane arriving. It also gave Mum at least 40 minutes of peace whilst my nose was pressed to the window so everyone was a winner 😂

Corney ready for departure

On the flight home I managed to reach peak Autism by watching Top Gun:Maverick whilst ON A PLANE. Although once again it gave Mum a couple of hours peace so once again everyone was a winner 😂😂

I had such a wonderful time again. Vienna was every bit as lovely as I remembered and I'm really glad we got to see some bits that we missed last on our last trip. 

Until next time ....

Love Jen

XxxX