Welcome to VLOG 2, a week in the life of a furnished holiday let rental. In this video we’ll look behind the scenes of a LEGO Youtuber and what the kids get up to. It was a busy week doing some maintenance on our LEGO themed Holiday Lets / Airbnb Short Term Stay accommodation in Margate and Broadstairs (about 75-90 minutes east of London UK ). Sun is starting to come out, summer is on the way and lockdown looks to be easing.
We mention about our first Family Bricks Live stream which will have Kevin Hinkle, Nathan Dias, Sarastarbricks, Caz Mockett and LamborghiniWaffleSauce. We have a tour through both Macatsim Seaview Sunset Holiday Let in Margate, and Macatsim Ocean Outlook in Broadstairs (further details and booking information can be found www.macatsim.com )
We crossed the 300 YouTube subscriber mark and comment on the reaction to the last video about the possible future of the LEGO store. Have a flick through some live illustration cartoons from London Bridge Bricks livestream.
Then onto time with the kids with another Harry Potter film, Father’s Day, a treasure hunt, bubble making and roasting some marshmallows. Quick veggie / vegetable garden update and end of with the sunset from Macatsim Seaview Sunset rental.
Time codes to the Video:
0:00 Introduction
0:24 Where is Margate & Broadstairs?
1:02 Margate Main Beach / Macatsim Seaview Sunset Short Term Holiday Let Vacation Rental Airbnb
2:01 Family Bricks First Live Stream
2:37 LEGO Themed Holiday Let Tour
4:04 Margate Tourism and Corona Virus
4:30 Broadstairs Viking Bay
5:09 Inside Macatsim Ocean Outlook Sunset Short Term Holiday Let Vacation Rental Airbnb
6:50 300 Subscriber Milestone
7:25 LEGO Store Video Feedback & Comments
8:24 London Bridge Bricks Livestream … and cartoons
11:14 Harry Potter
12:07 Father’s Day Haul
12:37 Pirate Treasure Hunt
12:54 Creating / Blowing Large Bubbles
14:14 Roasting Marshmallows over the fire
14:32 Vegetable Garden update
15:17 Sunset from Margate Macatsim Seaview Sunset & Government easing tourism restrictions
Transcript from the Show
This Week, The Week That Was Tuesdays
G’day Everyone, Matt Elder of Family Bricks here and welcome to the second VLOG of This Week, The Week that was. Bit of a change here, down at Margate and right in the heart and it is actually high tide now so down here checking on a couple of holiday lets we have in the area. And oh, the sun is coming out, it is a nice day down here.
Where is Margate / Broadstairs?
So you have the center of London there, that is the M25
which runs there. You literally go down the A2 onto the M2 and then break off
onto the A299 and you’ve got Margate there and Broadstairs there. So from
Margate and Broadstairs to the M25 junction 2 is about 60 minutes to drive, or
you can get some of the trains that go down in about 80-85 minutes.
So get little spot for a weekend getaway or a week as you can be out of London
and down their in an hour, hour and a half at the beach. So you don’t waste a
whole bunch of time travelling but able to get down and sand in between your
toes, kick back and relax.
Train station is just over there, its like a 10 minute walk and you’ve got Dreamland there and lots of shops and everything. Lots of places to eat. And we actually have a holiday let just up there. So its great, any time of year you can just sit up there and watch the view. And down over there you’ve got the Turner Contemporary Museum, light house, couple little micropubs and things over there. And then you’ve got the main old town just behind all these buildings here and the high street over there so it’s a great little spot.
Just down here doing a little bit of maintenance as you can imagine recently, basically the business has been pretty much crushed as nobody has been going on holidays. Hopefully in the next couple of weeks that might change which will be great cause in the last couple of years, Margate in particular has really got a lot of nice great restaurants , bars, pubs and things, and the area really needed it.
These days it lives off a lot of the tourism.
Family Bricks First Livestream Details
And then also this week going to have the first livestream. Actually going to be streaming from down here, something a little bit special, so its going to have a really nice backdrop. Going to have a few guests on for that. Guests hoping to have on will be Kevin Hinkle, Caz Mockett, Lamborghini Waffle Sauce, Sarastarbricks, and Nathan Dias. Some great people in the LEGO community.
Will be Friday night 8pm-11pm UK time. That is GMT+1 which will probably be about 3pm in America EST . So we will go inside and check out the flat then got to Broadstairs and check that one out as well.
Inside Macatsim Seaview Sunset Tour
Inside the flat you have 180 degree view out over most things. It is high tide at the moment. When it is low tide, the water goes out past the breakers and this is the lounge room. Its great as in winter or any time of year , just sit here and look at that view. TV there if you wanted to, Playstation with LEGO games and quickly come through, full kitchen there with everything you need. This is a 2 bedroom, and we have the bathroom, full bathtub and a toilet over there.
You come into the 2 bedrooms at the back. Good size master, another TV up there and in here the second bedroom and a LEGO wall. And you can see that is something that the last guest has made. Down in here, you have the LEGO draws with all sorts of different bits and pieces. People really enjoy that, some LEGO lights and another TV. You can put the playstation in here and have the kids in here.
Corona Virus Changes
A lot of the businesses have switched over to doing takeway offerings, putting up signs for social distancing and barricades to help flows through shops and out the front. Beach gear and nik-nak shops are opening up. Lifesavers are down on the beach and being active on patrols. Just trying to adjust and be ready for when tourism gets the green light. More outdoor spaces that can handle social distancing.
Your cafes, restaurants, fish and chips and takeaways, pubs and all those sorts of things.
Broadstairs Orientation
And here we are in Broadstairs at the main beach, Viking Bay, main lot of shops there, great little ice cream shop there, Morelli’s, and we have our flat just there. So great little spot to watch everything. Looks like a gorgeous day down here. And everything in the town is really close. You’ve got most of the main shops, pubs and everything just there, and then about 10 minutes walk that way is Broadstairs Train station.
Inside Macastim Ocean Outlook Tour
And here we are, this is the view from the couch, first storey, everything close and accessible. So this is the view from the master bedroom. So the master bedroom a really good size there. Has its own en-suite, nice shower, toilet and all that sort of stuff. Go through, it is a 3 bedroom. Go into bedroom 3.
Kids room, double bunk London Red bus bed, which everyone loves. Kids love climbing on that and playing, sleeping all over it. View from there, and then if we go into the 2nd bedroom, again another really good size. So superking that can be split into 2 separate singles. Main bathroom, full size tub that is great for families, having a wash after the beach.
Here is your kitchen, diner, lounge. It sleeps 8 so great for grandparents, parents and kids. Or 2 sisters and their families, and the kids and the cousins. Again the view from the couch so sit there and enjoy that. Playstation, video games, movies all down in there as well. 48, think 42 inch screen and then a full kitchen here as well.
Main beach in Broadstairs which is Viking Bay which is literally across the road from the flat. And you can see they are getting all the rides and trampolines set up for tourist season.
Family Bricks 300 Subscribers Milestone
And the channel hit a milestone during the week. Hitting the 300 subscribes with is absolutely fantastic and jumping up and down, or yoyoing between 299 and 300 subscribers for a little bit so good now we are over that and past that. Thanks to everybody who watches and who comments. I try to respond to every comment that everybody leaves there. Really do appreciate all the support and maybe being a little analytical speed a little bit too much time watching the analytics but have noticed the people who subscribed are watching more and more of the content which is great. So thank you very much and really appreciate it.
LEGO Stores Video Controversy
I recently released a video about the LEGO stores reopening and my thoughts on it (see link around the video). It seems to have struck a chord with people and very polarizing, as you can see from the comments in that video. Everything from “how dare you be negative?!”, right through to “totally agree and having the same experience”.
My concern is you have LEGO shops in premium retail space that have been closed for 3 months, you’ve removed the key experience from it discouraging top customers from coming into the store. Online from other retailers, LEGO has always been cheaper and the experience was the differentiating factor.
There are ways to bring that experience back in a curtailed fashion and suggest these in the video. LEGO is a numbers company and won’t continue to bleed retail money and would be financially responsible to consolidate and/or close stores, which we don’t want to see, when a key tweak might make a huge difference to the bottom line.
I don’t know if people sound off after watching the first 30 seconds of the video, or just keep thinking LEGO will keep losing money in retail space to maintain a presence (which I just don’t see as viable). Think it is good to have a conversation around this so interested in people’s comments.
London Bridge Bricks LiveStream and Cartooning
Live streaming with London Bridge Bricks and this is what it looked like from the other side of the camera. Got all the markers and things setup so can grab colours and do whatever I need with that lot.
OK just had the stream with London Bridge Bricks tonight and initially was going to draw some 2×4 bricks for some artwork for my own promotional stuff but just started drawing and doing some gags and things like that so, just had some fun with that. These drawings , I think there are about 30 , and was just basically whatever the conversation was just doing 30 second little gags and things.
So talking about something at some stage, I couldn’t remember what it was now. LEGO Batman or something like that. A crazy Joker and looking at that in terms of adults playing with LEGO like a Boba Fett Slave 1 and swooshing around, pew, pew, pew. So the Joker looking at it and going “and they think I’m crazy”. The top couple are probably some of my favourites, I wont’ go through them all.
Probably end up on Instagram or something. One of the guys does a lot of work in a van, which might need a bit of a wash. Then Mario, to be able to afford all the LEGO mario you are going to need some wheelburrows of cash.
Then got talking about one of the guys , and doesn’t really drive or anything like that so combining it with another joke that there is recently a LEGO Ducati model, which is all good apart from the seat is underdone. So just riffing off that.
Baby Yoda and Gremlins Gizmo Similar Designs
Then Yoda talking about a Christmas special that people try to block out of their minds. Don’t know if you’ve ever noticed with Gizmo from Grelims, his design is very very close to baby Yoda. Its sort of almost like the big eyes, big ears, round head, nose shape and that. And on they go. So many of them. So think it was received well. People in the comments seemed to be having a good little chuckle and laugh. And think the guys on the stream are quite cool and they are able to make fun of themselves and have a good laugh. Didn’t really plan it and it organically happened.
It reminded me of a variety show in Australia years ago called Hey Hey Its Saturday and they use to have a cartoonist on that who’d just be doing gags as they are going off live. So just felt like I was channeling that a little bit and it was fun and maybe do it again some time.
By the end of it as you are constantly drawing and trying to come up with ideas and things like that , do feel exhausted by the end of it. Hopefully if anybody was in the chat during the livestream and saw it, love to know the feedback on it and if it is all good, might try to do it again at some stage in the future.
Harry Potter
Harry Potter.
[dramatic music playing]
Oh, going to need two at a time for this one. Looks all dirty
Yeh, yeh, yeh, yeh …. Oh. Man down. Man down.
Don’t pick them. This looks ready. They should have been picked 2 days ago.
Fathers Day LEGO Haul
So Father’s Day in the UK and this is my haul from it so anyone would think I might like LEGO. These are chocolate moulded bricks and pieces from someone who I believe is just starting to do these sorts of things. Some great cards from the boys and everything. Stormtroopers from the little troopers and some cards. And a t-shirt, which I think might be the first LEGO T-shrit I’ve got. Sad to admit that. Hope everyone had a great Father’s Day.
Pirate Treasure hunt.
What the?! We found the treasure.
Bubble Making
What have you got there? Don’t know what it is. Think it is some sort of bubble maker.
There we go. Oh
Oh my. Its going
No, no… oh my
Just a bit more.
Oh
Look, no no… its getting away
I did it. I had it
Ok, just give it a sec
Oh wow…. Mine …has… bubbles.
Time to make a really big bubble. That’s mine. That’s mine.
Ones going to pop in the atmosphere. Yep it did.
It doesn’t look like it. Do you want a hand?
I like them, I like them.
I like marshmallows.
Garden Update
Just a bit of a garden update. As you can see there, cauliflower is coming through a little bit, that one there and that one I don’t think is doing anything yet. And then there is in there a purple one. Over here some of the broadbeans are really starting to come in. A huge bean there. And on this one here, some coming off there. And the lettuce might be over done. And some more beans and the lettuce is getting eaten.
Blueberries in the last week have really started to ripen up. Its always interesting as you get some of them ripening at very different speeds to the others.
Sunset From Margate Flat. www.macatsim.com
Finishing Up And Government Easing Lockdown Restrictions.
That’s it for VLOG number 2. Just had government confirmation holiday lets / vacation rentals/ short term lets can open in under 2 weeks time on July 4th which is great news. Be sure to join us for the first Family Bricks live stream on Friday June 26 8pm UK time, 3/5pm USA eastern and 5am Australian time. Here are some other videos you might be interested in. Until next time when we talk about all things LEGO and lifestyle.
