Weekly wonderings 3

There is no other word for this week other than 'intense'. Exhausting, demanding and debilitating are also adjectives that spring to mind.

I'm exaggerating, of course, but I have had so much to do that by the end of the working week I was feeling very run down and finding it difficult to switch off. As a result, last night I reluctantly cancelled my plans (sorry Ian and Hayley!), crawled into my favourite PJs (which are actually not pyjamas at all, but the softest, comfiest jogging bottoms - find them here) and collapsed into a heap on the sofa with my laptop, book and Apple TV on in the background.

So what's got me so busy this week? Well, first and foremost, it's been my job - namely the upcoming planning for my imminent trip to Nepal. We're visiting some of the young Ambassadors that are part of our Generation Amazing programme, and that I travelled to Brazil with earlier this year for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. One of these Ambassadors, a 14 year old girl called Muna organised the first ever football tournament for girls recently in her rural community and this got me thinking just how many very young people are making monumentally positive impacts on our world. One such movement that I'm sure you've all seen doing the rounds on social media recently is The Girl Effect which is lobbying for the empowerment of girls in order to address some of the most persistent development issues we face in the world today. If you haven't seen this video yet, I urge you all to watch it!

And then take a look at this declaration which was put together by 508 young girls living in poverty across the world, with the support of several development organisations. Inspiring or what?!

Because I've been so shattered this week, Rich and I haven't done much more with our evenings over and above lying in the dark in front of the TV. We popped on another Christmassy film (this time Home Alone 2), caught up on some TV from back home and watched copious amounts of football.

It's been so nice to have a few evenings in a row without our mobile phones in front of our faces, which made me think it was about time we re-created 'blackout night' as we had started doing once a week a while ago (see Hannah Maggs' post on what this entails). Watching this might convince you to do the same!

In order to escape the office for a little bit and have a proper welcome session for a new colleague, my little CSR team at work treated ourselves to a rare lunch out of the office on Wednesday, at The Anvil Rooms in the Tornado Tower across the street from where I work.

This place is probably my favourite restaurant in Doha - for their tender steak, their warm homemade bread, the service, the views...

But mainly for their decadent and creamy truffle mash...

A hug in a pot

My obsession with this dish has made me wonder exactly what it could be that makes truffle so addictive. According to the science boffins, it's a combination of the unique, rich taste as well as the exclusivity of the ingredient (i.e. we're more likely to covet it because it's hard to come by and expensive!). Did you know that Truffles have been consumed by us as far back as Ancient Greek and Roman times, when they were thought to be an aphrodisiac - oo-er! And did you know that they are currently sold for as much as $6,000 for a pound. Rich has always told me I have expensive taste.

For the dab handed ones in the kitchen, here is a great idea for a Christmas dinner side dish using truffle oil.

Finally, it was a pretty exciting week for me as a blogger, as I did my first piece of (awkward!) filming for a restaurant and my first interview for an entertainment website. It got me thinking about my blogging journey and how vital it is for a past time to also be a passion if it's to lead you anywhere. I am by no means a blogging guru, I'm a long long way from my little blog being anything more than a daily hobby, and it will always be first and foremost something for Rich and me. But little things like this are exciting all the same.

Now I'm looking forward to next week - Nepal followed by the UK and HOME here I come!

December is just getting better and better!

What has got you ticking this week?