Meet the Team: Hello Aspen

Name: I’m Abi/Aspen Glencross, nice ta meetcha 🙂

Blog, website, youtube, twitter, facebook, etc: 

rollercoastermonkey.wordpress.com

(London adventures. Welcome to funky town….) An off the beaten track guide to London 🙂

@GollumCrackCorn

https://www.facebook.com/abi.glencross?ref=tn_tnmn

 

Tell us about yourself and what makes you tick:

Okay I’ll try and condense it. I am a 21 year old jolly, bizzare, gangely Chemical Engineering placement student.

I am originally from Cornwall, where the folks still live and I (less often now!) pop home for a bit of a surfing/horseriding/pasty jolly 🙂 and to see the wrinkleys!

I go to uni in Bath, home of the student and old person. But fancied a crack at the big city. So moved into a house in North London with 4 cool cats (thanks gumtree!), my new bike Frank and a good supply of pumpkin pasta, and set up camp in July 2012.

Intro over onto more exciting stuff!

So I’m a bit of a kooky character. Whether it be clothes, food or events I am always up for trying something new and exciting. I quite like being spontaneous and paddling in the pool of the unknown.

At the moment I am partaking in a bizarre mix of jobs. A couple of days a week at a chemical engineering consultancy (Jacobs), a few shifts a week at a restaurant (Flat Iron), going to castings (for Nevs model agency) & blogging for ONIN and my own blog 🙂 I’m loving it its proper exciting!

 

Likes:

·        Pumpkin pasta, Maggi, frozen peas, iced coffee, cereal, pink lady apples, caramelised onion hummus, rhubarb compote, chai latte and 90% of the awesome restaurants I’ve managed to dig out in London (Where I’m from the main restaurant is Wetherpoons….)

·        Climbing Trees, finding and going to cool events (SECRET CINEMA!!), raves and doing all this stuff with good friends 🙂

·        Blogging (now I’ve discovered it!)

·        Working in Flat Iron (go there, the best steak EVER!!!)

·        Sport in many shapes and forms. Swimming, Tri, Running (running to work makes me happy), Cycling, Horseriding, Surfing, Badders, Fencing, Lax. Always on the go 🙂 I have to admit I do love that warm fuzzing feeling you get when you do an event for charity.

·        Meeting the awesome, crazy & interesting people of London. There are so many it’s great!

·        Going to good restaurants, street food, markets. Okay anywhere with good food.

·        Sunshine!!!

 

Dislikes: 

·        The tube in rush hour (who doesn’t  It the sweaty Betty with armpit in your face that does it for me….)

·        People that are downbeat when they really don’t have a reason to be, we only live once guys!

·        The cold. After I couldn’t turn the boiler on for a week in winter, the cold and I are no longer friends.

·        Unmelted cheese. Just don’t ask.

 

If you had to choose anyone to play you in a movie who would it be and why:

I think I’m suppose to say Keira Knightly as people keep telling me I look like her! (very flattered) But to be honest Gollum fits the bill. Gangely, uncoordinated and really likes shiny things. Its been my nickname for years.

How long have you been writing for:

Only a couple of months, I’m a bit of a newbie! Proper country bumpkin didn’t really even know what twitter was until then! Cept my friend Will Young (not THE will young 🙂 used to use it to stalk celebs, I just thought he was a bit wierd……

 

What made you start blogging or writing:

I started a journal and scrapbook to document my year placement in London, I quite like finding stuff off the beaten track. Then I though I would love to share these adventures with people so they know this stuff exists! Also I’m looking at getting into advertisement/brand management etc. and was advised to start a blog. So I got ON it 🙂

 

Outside of writing what do you do:

I looove sport. I run a lot (it makes me happy), you can see the city pretty damn well running and cycling. Seeing friends (going to the bizzaro events with them!), working my many jobs 🙂 and constructing my book on ‘an off the beaten track’ guide to London, which is aimed at living here on a intern budget. I’m always busy which is fab.

 

What is your favourite place in London and why:

Hmmmm this is a difficult one, as its very much mood dependent. If I’m peed off, or feel like musing at the weekend, I’ll cycle or run to primrose hill and write up there. Or to Hampstead Heath, find a tree to climb and write. Both are peaceful and a bit like the country.

OR have a swim and mooch to Brick lane coffee shop for chai latte and read all the magazines out (like WUWO, the stylist etc.) and eat cake 🙂 Ahh I love Brick lane, so bustling and full of life!

If I’m feeling foodie I’ll walk to Camden and sample all their lock market wares. Or back to Brick lane 🙂 I often end up eating lunch for free as I sample everything and cant make up my mind!

If its sunny and I’m with friends I love the street feast at Dalson yard. SO much great food, drink and company. I also love Kick bar with its fussball tables and the box park in Shoreditch both have amazing vibes and energy. The Underworld indie night in Camden, is my fav night out. Great music and an eclectic mix of people. There are just too many to pick one!!!

 

If you could leave any legacy what would it be:

Ooh that’s hard too. I think its gotta be a bit of a cliché one there. Live life to the full, take every day as it comes and don’t worry to much about what might happen. If you’re not enjoying yourself address it and go from there. I really didn’t like London at the start, then after crimbo I was like ‘sort yourself out woman, you only live once’ so I really put myself out there and just got hold of anyone I knew here and started organising stuff, going out and get over being tired (I realised that’s just working life!) I never looked back 🙂

So basically the girl that did everything and made the most of life. Took risks, went with the flow and made the most of opportunities. I love to make people laugh & to inspire others in the sense if you put your mind to something you can do it. Sorry mahusive cliché 🙂

 

What would you like the world to know about you:

I want to try everything, go everywhere and meet everyone! Also even if I come across like I am sure of stuff, I have it together and sorted I don’t. I have mega freak outs just like the we all do 🙂 But only my mum sees that….. 🙂

 

Tell us a weird fact about yourself:

Weird’s my middle name! No I jest haha.

Okay I can skip with my arms without letting go, like a crazy orangutan. I like iced coffee on my cereal and twiglet & jam sarnies. Oh and I went on Winter Total Wipeout last year! My nickname was Abi Tash 🙂 is that enough??

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmCFKGZ7Jv4

After 23 mins and 50 secs I pop in for a chat 🙂

One question I’m gunna add if that’s okay as I’d love to hear peoples answers!

 

What is your favourite place to eat, drink and go out in London and why?

Here’s mine! I totally judge a place on whether I’d keep going there!

Eat: Okay again condensed!

·        Thai Aubergine – Thai in Kings cross, its on tastecard but no a chain! The Lamb massaman, prawn sesame toast and like sugared pork ahhh drool……

·        Dirty Burger – Highgate road near Hampstead Heath – Such lush burgers, fries and onion fries. The best I’ve ever had, I keep going back! make burger sauce with ketchup and mustard and watch as people come out of fitness first and look sadly at you 🙂

·        Flat Iron – Beak street, soho – Even more now I work there, before it was amazing food, decor and device (£10 steak!). But now I know the love Charlie the owner puts into the food and the beef belly they produce and I love it even more 🙂

Drink:

·        Bar 55 Camden – cocktails, everything imaginable. Their menu is a book. Passionfruit anything = magic.

·        Frevds – Cocktails, soho – Love it always bustling at the weekend great drinks. Apple pie one is my fave so far, be careful tho as I fell out of there after only 2…..

·        Camden/Goswell Road/Brick Lane coffee – Great dirty chai, just great drinks and magazines.

·        Chin Chin Labs – Ice cream – Camden – Amazing concoctions made using liquid nitrogen, been back a few times.

·        Shake shack, Covent garden – frozen custard concretes – Rival Ben & Jerrys. Enough said.

·        Merlins beard I nearly forgot Wholefoods! – High St. Ken, Piccadilly, Camden, Richmond – The cool like American market style, they let you try loadsa stuff and the staff are so cool.

Go out:

·        Underworld Camden Saturday Indie night – Music is fab. Buses home to everywhere. Love it.

·        Bar kick – Shoreditch – Fussball tables, great music and bustling. Full of ace people you can just go up to and start a game of fussball. Winner buys drinks. I’ve met some characters here 🙂