80 DAYS OF SUMMER – DAY 45 & 46

“This is Manchester, we do things differently here.” Tony Wilson If you have no idea what 80 days of summer is all about, then where have you been!? Don’t worry you can catch up here. But basically for 80 days, I am going to make sure I do something every single day that makes the most of […]

“This is Manchester, we do things differently here.” Tony Wilson

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If you have no idea what 80 days of summer is all about, then where have you been!? Don’t worry you can catch up here. But basically for 80 days, I am going to make sure I do something every single day that makes the most of summer, some things will be new some won’t. This challenge is to show that life is really made for living, no excuses, no wasting days! Just happiness every single day!

Days 45 and 46 were my birthday weekend and the weekend I turned the big 34!  It was also the Bee in the City weekend.

“A colony of giant Bee sculptures is winging its way to the streets of Manchester this summer…

Wild in Art and Manchester City Council are bringing all of Manchester’s communities together for Bee in the City, one of the most spectacular public art events the city has ever seen. Over 100 Bees are waiting to be discovered on this free, family-fun trail, taking in the city’s landmarks and undiscovered gems. Each Bee has been designed by a different artist and celebrates the unique buzz of Manchester, from its industrial heritage to its vibrant music scene”

The bees will be in Manchester until the 23rd of September, you can find out more here.

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Aimee is my biggest blogger fan and my biggest fan in life full stop. Forever sending me links for places o visit and things to do for my blog and to make sure I have a life outside work. She is also the one person who looks after my health even more so than myself. Forever telling me off about how much I do, what I eat and how much I sleep she really is the best friend you could have. To start my birthday celebrations we headed to Manchester to celebrate the start of the Bee in the city events (an instagrammers dream) to celebrate my birthday and to drink lots of delicious cocktails and for some tipsy shopping.

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She also bagged us some tickets to see the hives on top of the printworks. Who the hell knew there were beehives on top of the printworks! After getting trapped in a lift for 10 minutes we finally made it to the roof, unfortunately, the roof area is closed off so no views (gutting I know). We had a little talk for 30 minutes and discovered they actually sell the honey f=taht is made up there. It has made me realise what the hell goes on, on the rooftops of Manchester!

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Rock N Roll

“This Bee is covered in spiky-looking musical soundwaves which create a feeling of chaos and sudden change. The flight paths of bees may look equally random to us but bees are actually great navigators, constantly finding the most efficient routes to take. We reckon that everybody will set their ‘flight paths’ to Liam Gallagher’s cool Bee, featuring his signature and his Rock n Roll insignia.”

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The Bee of Hope, Community & Respect.

“This bee features the design ideas of students Laiba Qureshi, Laiba Asif, Emma Whittaker, Hadia Arain, Lukhman Miah and Salman Khan. The cogs and binary patterns pay homage to Oldham’s industry and the flames feature in the school’s emblem, The Torch of Knowledge and Skills. They also symbolise reflections on the Manchester Arena attack. Ariana Grande’s lyrics are on the wings and 22 flowers represent those who lost their lives. The message from the Radclyffe students is ultimately one of hope, and the belief that love, community and respect for all will rise from the ashes.”

By far the prettiest and most meaningful of all the bees.

Manchester has always been in my favourite city in the UK and possibly one of my favourite cities in the world. It holds so many memories for me from childhood, love, breakups and just general life. I have literally been visiting Manchester weekly for the last 20 years and have never gotten bored of it, I am still finding new places and rediscovering old places. There are places in the city that I always return to and places that are now off limits as they are too painful. I feel like my whole life has been built around this beautiful city.

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Bee a rainbow!

“This Bee is a symbol of hope perched upon a sky of dreams. In her bright rainbow hues, she celebrates the diverse worker bees of Manchester. She is a cheerful explorer, always looking for her next adventure. Her energetic colours and whimsical character will inspire happiness and hope in all who meet her.”

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Cheeky little cocktail stop, well it is my birthday, after all, would be rude not too!

Hilda Bugden

“Lee – a Liverpool art teacher and illustrator – has taken his inspiration from Manchester’s most iconic street, with a design based on one of its most famous characters (someone who was always buzzing about!). The art celebrates strong Northern women that we can all relate to, whether it is family members or some of the residents of television’s favourite street.”

Rubee

“This Bee is inspired by the famed and fabled gemstone – ruby. Asides from its bright colour, it is a desirable gem due to its hardness, durability, lustre and rarity. Rubee has been ‘transformed’ and shows how the worker bee, one of the best known symbols of Manchester, is precious to the hearts of Mancunians. The design is depicted as a geometric pattern.”

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This is Manchester!

“Taking inspiration from Manchester, the design celebrates the cityscape under a rainbow bee: silver eyes reflect those who look at it and the surroundings of the sculpture (and nod towards the Manchester nightlife!). The rainbow references an inclusive and welcoming city and its communities, whilst the skyline’s iconic buildings connect today with the Gothic architecture of the past.”

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Can we just take a moment to talk about this dress, I got it a couple of weeks ago from Primark for the bargain price of £15, could possibly be my new favourite dree although the sizing isn’t great on it so I had to get a large size but still, how pretty is it! I am very tempted to go buy a second one for when this one dies a clothes death!

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The Birds and the Bees

“Manchester is a warm and welcoming city and people from all over the world have made it their home. This witty Bee, disguised as a bird, celebrates the fact that peregrine falcons have also decided to make Manchester city centre their home. The falcon’s feathers and markings inspired all the patterns and colours that are featured.”

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Colourfull Manchester Skyline Bee

“Originally from Kenya, Meha is now based in Manchester. Her colourful, illustrative Bee takes inspiration from Manchester’s ever-changing skyline. It tells a story about the bustling city and the worker ‘bees’ that have shaped it, and incorporates aspects of the city’s architecture, music scene, street art, sporting background, sculptures and industrial past, along with the individuals that make the city.”

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I promise no more bees, I could literally share them all with you, they are all so beautiful and such a fun way to celebrate Manchester. But I don’t want to ruin it for you, I highly recommend a trip to Manchester to do the Bee Trail. There is an app you can download and add all the bee codes too. Each code unlocks something including free drinks and discounts off food.

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Is there a more perfect food on this earth than ice cream!

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One last drink before a bit of shopping and heading home, the day was utterly perfect and an amazing way to celebrate my birthday with my babe Aimee. I am a lucky little ducky and luckily I woke up on my birthday without a hangover, total win!

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Day 46: 

Was my actual birthday and a day I decided to keep private. Over the weekend my family received some bad news that will change all our lives so we decided to have a day all together as a family and share as much love as possible. Although the news wasn’t great we are all staying positive and decided that celebrating my birthday was the best thing to do. It is extremely rare that our whole family gets together, in fact, I can’t remember the last time we did. Every year I duck out of Christmas day so it literally could have been years. The day was lovely I got lots of cuddles off this little one and to be honest it was nice to take a break from my phone. It is safe to say already that year 34 is going to be the best one yet, I have lots of adventures planned and ready to start a new chapter. I remember saying in December that I wanted 2018 to be the year that didn’t have any change in (i needed a break from all the changes). Well, that’s not gone to plan, maybe 2019 will be that year!

 

 

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