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Daily Mail
15 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Traveller shows off genius suitcase packing method ahead of two-week holiday: 'How did I NEVER think of this?'
A traveller has revealed her 'brilliant' suitcase packing method for a 16-day summer holiday, with many saying they wish they had thought of it sooner. Silje Werner, from Stockholm, shared a 'satisfying' video showing how she stacked her holiday wardrobe neatly while the luggage was standing up on its wheels. Packing your suitcase upright can help maximise space, making it easier to pull out a specific dress, shirt or a pair of pants you want to wear on any particular day - without having to create a mess from rummaging through everything. By loading from the bottom up, you're pressing down on the clothes to compact them, so you get extra storage space to fit in souvenirs or spontaneous purchases from your trip. 'Next time you're travelling, try out this packing hack,' Silje said in her video. 'I'm blown away.' Silje said she was packing for a summer trip to Albania so she wanted to see all the outfits she packed vertically. 'It really helped me stay organised during my two-week trip,' she explained. 'I really like this way of packing... Everything was perfectly in place after two flights and I managed to keep it organised during my 16-day trip. 'I find that packing this way gives you a good overview of what's in your suitcase... It's so handy.' Silje said the other side of her suitcase was filled with three pairs of shoes, two hair styling tools, a towel, several sunscreens, two camera tripods and more. She said her suitcase came to a total of 18.5kg. Those who packed their suitcases using the same technique insisted it was 'better' than packing cubes because they could retrieve what they want to wear without disturbing the rest of their belongings. 'Packing cubes are terrible and bulky. This is the best method - my mum has been doing it for years,' one shared. 'Realistically you save more space with this method than you would with packing cubes,' another pointed out. 'I'm packing for a trip tonight and this works better than packing cubes,' one said. 'I pack exactly like that BUT I actually pack behind the liner. Open the zipper of the liner attach a zip tie on the zipper to make it easier to open and close. Then pack just like this, close the liner and then lock with the straps. I even add a purse or anything else right under the straps and it works out beautifully,' another added. Packing your suitcase upright can help maximise space, making it easier to pull out a specific dress, shirt or a pair of pants you want to wear on any particular day - without having to create a mess from rummaging through everything Many were 'mind blown', with one saying: 'This is actually pretty brilliant.' 'Why didn't we ever think about this sooner?' another shared. 'Now that is impressive,' one said. 'Very smart! I never thought of that,' another revealed. 'Why am I seeing this AFTER I was fighting for my life?' one joked. 'This makes so much sense,' another added, along with a crying emoji. However, not everyone agreed, with some suggesting they swear by packing cubes. 'Good idea but packing cubes are the best,' one said. 'Packing cubes keep everything organised,' another shared. But some defended the upright packing method, with one pointing out: 'Y'all saying packing cubes... This video is literally for if you don't have an alternative to anything like that and you have to hurry up... People never take a simple hack.' Another agreed, saying: 'Exactly... People are so irritating. Not all your clothes can fit in those tiny packing cubes.'
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
The best coffee shops and cafés in London
Like many world-beating cities, London is fuelled by coffee. Although the capital was an early adopter of the brew back in the 1600s, tea reigned supreme for several centuries. The arrival of speciality roasters Monmouth in Covent Garden in 1978 paved the way for the drink's 'third wave', and by 2007 we had our first World Barista Champion in James Hoffmann, who set up east London roastery Square Mile the following year. Today, there are thousands of coffee shops across the city, from one-off indies serving exclusive roastings of single-origin beans to fast-growing chains and designer imports. And the most popular order? The flat white – a nod to our friends in Australia and New Zealand. All our recommendations below have been hand-selected and tested by our resident destination expert to help you discover the best coffee in London. Find out more below, or for further London inspiration, see our guides to the city's best hotels, pubs and bars, shopping and things to do. Abuelo If you like your coffee with a side order of slick design, head to this architect-owned spot minutes from Oxford Circus. Grab a magazine, sit at the marble bar and cool down with an iced matcha or latte made with dulce de leche. Abuelo's owners combine Argentinian and Australian heritage, so the single-origin beans all hail from the Americas via Wogan roastery in Bristol. There's a short brunch menu and, mercifully, no Wi-Fi, so expect to see people chatting rather than stooped over their laptops. There's another branch in Covent Garden. Algerian Coffee Stores The aroma of freshly roasted beans greets you as you stand in line at this cult-status coffee shop that's stood on this spot since 1887. Most people are here for beans to use at home, with prices displayed on hand-painted wooden boards, but you can buy a shot of the house formula rossa espresso to take away for just £1.20 – or £2 for a flat white or cappuccino. It opens at 10am so it is not one for the early birds. Calico Coffee Lucky Waterloo-bound commuters can drop into this zen-like space for a quick caffeine fix on their way to the office. For those who want to take their coffee appreciation up a notch, head for the counter at the back. Here, rare beans are precision-brewed by a champion barista to show off their complexity and can be enjoyed as part of a three-way flight at the wooden bar. Everything is impeccably designed – from the ceiling light to the takeaway cups – so you'll struggle to tear yourself away. Fleet Street Press London's legal eagles survive on coffee from this indy spot almost opposite the Royal Courts of Justice. Take a seat in the window and watch the silks from Middle Temple rush past as you sip an espresso made with beans from Press's Herne Hill roastery. The owners champion small suppliers, so you'll find craft sodas from Sipp'd, cakes from Lockdown Bakehouse and loose-leaf Milkwood Teas. The den-like basement is perfect for an intimate tête-à-tête and there's a sister site on Chancery Lane (closed at weekends). Formative Designed as a place to showcase coffees from Formative's own Essex roastery, this airy, minimal space is a go-to for all those beanheads out there. The owner is a world espresso champion, so staff are well versed in the brewing arts yet not remotely snobby. Experiment with a 'split shot' – one serving of espresso, one of cortado – to compare the seasonal roasts, such as the fruity Berry Jam, with and without milk. It's a handy stopover en route to Westminster Abbey or Buckingham Palace (though closed on Sundays). Kaffeine This buzzing café on Great Titchfield Street takes its inspiration from the owner's native Melbourne so you can expect great hospitality, appealing food and, of course, fab coffee. Order a long black or flat white alongside brunch favourites, eye-catching salads or an Anzac biscuit. Coffee connoisseurs can geek out with a tasting flight of espresso or cortado shots from some of the world's best roasteries. Just minutes from Oxford Street, it's the perfect pit stop when you're shopped out. There's a sister branch nearby on Eastcastle Street. Monmouth Tourists make a beeline for this open-fronted coffee house on the edge of Borough Market – and with good reason. The baristas prepare flat whites and iced lattes using Monmouth's own impeccably sourced espresso blend and each day, there's a guest filter coffee chalked up on the blackboard along with helpful tasting notes. Perch at one of the counters or nab a spot at the shared central table. It's a paper cup-free zone so bring your own or borrow one for a £5 deposit. Branches in Bermondsey and Covent Garden. Nagare Coffee shops don't come much prettier than this Japanese-influenced place in a Grade II-listed Georgian building opposite Spitalfields market. Tourists and office workers line up to order at the wooden counter, choosing from the seasonally changing coffees roasted exclusively for Nagare at Curve in Margate or one of the special guests on frequent rotation. Sweet treats are displayed in a handsome glass case and come with a Japanese twist – perhaps miso caramel cashew alfajores. The Bankside branch is handy for the Tate Modern and there's another in Soho. Prufrock Founded by a former World Barista Champion, this popular Clerkenwell spot attracts serious coffee heads but it's also a really mellow place to hang out, perhaps at a booth table with a breakfast bun and a flat white. Now owned by east London's Square Mile, you'll find the award-winning roastery's blends and single origin coffees alongside special guests. The friendly baristas can guide you with helpful tasting notes and there's a training school in the basement for professionals and home enthusiasts if you want to perfect your brewing skills. Qima Café It's all about provenance at this Yemeni coffee spot in Warren Street's foodie quarter. Qima's owners source beans from smallholder farmers around the world that they use to make classic espresso-based coffees, pour-overs and signature drinks, including the qishr latte. Coffee has been cultivated and consumed in Yemen since 1500, giving the country a 200-year head start on Europe. Don't miss the delectable and Insta-worthy cakes and desserts from the in-house pastry team, such as the 'crookie', a cookie croissant mash-up with hazelnuts and salted caramel. How we choose Every café in this curated list has been tried and tested by our destination expert, who has visited to provide you with their insider perspective. We cover a range of budgets, from neighbourhood roasteries to high street favourites – to best suit every type of traveller's taste – and consider the food, service, best tables, atmosphere and price in our recommendations. We update this list regularly to keep up with the latest opening and provide up to date recommendations. About our expert Amber Dalton I have lived in London for more than 25 years, where I work as a journalist specialising in food and travel. When I'm not checking out the latest dining spots, find me sipping a pint of cask ale, ideally in a pub garden.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
‘Best job in the natural world': seed collector enlisted as modern-day Darwin to document the world's plants
It was described as 'the best job in the natural world': an expedition botanist for Cambridge University Botanic Garden who would follow in the footsteps of Charles Darwin and go on plant-collecting adventures around the world. Within days of the job advertisement going viral, six people had sent it to Matthew Jeffery and suggested he apply. 'I was already working as a tree seed collector for the Millennium Seed Bank at Kew Gardens, collecting native trees from across the UK, and I'd done a lot of European plant exploring – particularly of alpine plants – on holidays with friends,' says Jeffery, 31, who has degrees in biology and plant taxonomy and had worked in horticulture at Chelsea Physic Garden and Kew. After realising he had the right skills for the unique role, which involves organising and leading international expeditions to collect and observe wild plants and seeds, he decided to apply. 'Every job I've done has been a dream job for me – I've been very lucky – but this job has an incredible potential to work in diverse places and with diverse plants,' he says. 'It was too good an opportunity to pass up.' Jeffery was appointed in March: it is believed to be the first time a British botanic garden has hired an expedition botanist in modern history. 'It's very daunting,' he says – but also inspiring. 'I learn a lot more from talking to people from different places about local plants and their uses than I could ever learn from reading about them in a book. Different cultural viewpoints and histories can also completely change how you perceive something, and add value and insight, so when you come back to the UK, you have a totally different outlook on how you would grow these plants, treat them or even think about them.' Like Darwin, he is excited about exploring the world and hopes to make discoveries with the help of the expert botanists he will encounter. 'It would be really cool to find a new species,' he says. 'Obviously, the people from the country we're working in would be best placed to find that, but just to be there when it happens.' In preparation for his first trip, Jeffery was given advanced wilderness medical training on how to survive and deliver first aid in a remote environment. 'Most of the risks and dangers of the expeditions are the same as they would be in the UK, because there are very few places left in the world that are really extreme and remote – but I might be going to some of those places,' he says. Jeffery recently returned from his first expedition to Croatia where he and his colleague, Andrea Topalovic Arthan, worked with botanists from the University of Zagreb to collect seeds and record data about plants in wet grasslands. 'This is a habitat under threat because of land use change and increasing drought levels,' he says. Seeds they brought home included Eriophorum latifolium, a cottongrass that is rare in Croatia but grows well in the UK. On Plješevica mountain, they also collected data about populations of alpine and subalpine plants, including high-altitude saxifraga and bellflowers known as Edraianthus, taking samples to press and dry for the herbarium in Cambridge. Working alongside local botanists on such expeditions means seeds and knowledge are shared across international borders, helping to ensure rare and threatened plant populations can be protected and boosted in a plant's country of origin, as well as in Cambridge, Jeffery says. After an expedition to South Africa this summer, he is planning to collect more wild seeds from Croatia in September. These will be brought home to Cambridge to diversify the botanic garden's living collection and aid scientific research and conservation. 'What's so interesting about Croatia is the environmental gradient across the country: the coast has a dry Mediterranean climate and as you go inland it becomes much more temperate and continental European,' he says. At the border between the two climates, plants that like cooler, wetter conditions grow next to Mediterranean plants that prefer dry heat. 'And the species overlap quite considerably – so the plants growing at those borders potentially have the capacity to deal with both climates to some degree. They are more adaptable than usual, one way or the other.' Within the space of a few metres, the habitat and species composition of the plants change completely. 'That shows they are very adapted to their specific niche. But it also shows how under threat they could be – how easily you could lose that whole population if the environment changes slightly.' It was while he was in the isolated grasslands with his Croatian colleagues, observing the plants, that the unique set of challenges an expedition botanist must face hit home for the first time. 'There was a mother bear with her cub in the area and we were warned she was very aggressive.' Their only means of defence, he says, was to make as much noise as possible 'so the bear would be aware we were there' and avoid them. As the light started to fade, Jeffery's Croatian colleague Katarina Husnjak Malovec came up with a novel solution: loudly playing a mixture of Croatian music and 80s and 90s hits from her phone. 'We now have a bear deterrent soundtrack,' he says. Find more age of extinction coverage here, and follow the biodiversity reporters Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield in the Guardian app for more nature coverage
