What to do on a (cold) Sunday afternoon in London while the marathon is on? Why not visiting Sicily: culture and conquest at the British Museum? The exhibition offers an insight of the history of Sicily, from the Greek settlement to the Norman conquest. I was particularly pleased to see that the exhibition is sponsored by Regione Sicilia (the regional administration) and to see that some of the exquisite objects on display were lent by Sicilian museums to enrich the collection of the British Museum. I hope to see again similar partnerships as this is exactly what is needed to boost tourism in Italy.

After the exhibition, Robert and I made our way back to Waterloo station, trying to avoid the crowd around the Embankment due to the London Marathon. While strolling around Covent Garden, we spotted ‘Enrique Tomas: Jamon Iberico Shop’ on Neal Street. It was a pleasant surprise, as we really enjoyed sandwiches from this shop when we went to Madrid in 2014. Feeling peckish by looking at the fresh jamon y queso through the window, we decided to have a snack. I found the ingredients in my sandwich very fresh (including the bread), although for over £5 a sandwich I would have expected a bit more jamon.

Anyway, we carried on along Neal Street and we were approached by Victor outside Sakare’ Cosmetics who gave us a sample of mineral bubble bath and invited us to try some products inside. After the initial indecision, we decided to follow him inside the very modern shop. I had never heard of Sakare’ cosmetics before, and, having a very delicate skin, I am always a bit reluctant about trying new cosmetic products (just in case I get a rash!). Victor reassured me that the Sakare’ products are particularly recommended for dry skin, eczema and psoriasis – I was happy to give it a go and, as you can see from my photos, I was also happy to purchase most of the lotions I tried!

The first product I tried on my hands was the Deep Cleansing Salt Scrub (£44.99 for 200ml) followed by a Luxuriating Body Butter (£39.99 for 200ml), which left my skin incredibly soft. Then we moved on to try the Mineral Peeling Gel (£65 for 50ml), which was the product I enjoyed the most from the initial sample. Victor was happy to show me other products for my face, particularly to help my dry and delicate skin (and the initial sign of ageing, sigh!). I ended up buying the Aqua Puffiness Eraser (£230 for 25ml) with collagen for my eyes, a Collagen Firming Mask (£189.99 for 100ml) and an Intensive Nourishment Mud Mask (£150 for 100ml) – this one was particularly interesting as it has to be removed with a magnet due to the high concentration of iron and other minerals. Victor offered me an amazing discount – I paid £350 for all the products mentioned above!

I also tried a 24k Gold Mask (£300 for 100ml) which was fantastic but decided not to buy in this occasion as I wanted to try the other products first and see what the results are.

Of course I couldn’t wait to use my new beauty products, so as soon as we got home I spent an hour in the bathroom applying the new purchases – I have to say thatI can already see the difference… and so does Robert – if he says that, it must be true!