Keeping Warm…

We have had a surprisingly mild winter so far and have even enjoyed an evening meal sitting outdoors around a fire pit at the Whittenbury’s where food was cooked over the coals and we sat well into the night along with Paul and Lorraine and Debbie.

Not all Business…

I had a trip away for a few days at a sales meeting and was treated to an outing for evening meal in the Great Hall at Warwick castle. It was a themed event where we all worn tabards and jester’s hats and we treated to entertainment by some talented Mediaeval musicians, a magician, and a host and hostess. It reminded me a little of a school outing I had many years ago, to a venue in Auckland called Dirty Dicks.

Gregarious Glutton’s…

The semi-regular Gregarious Glutton’s outing went this time into London. We met Marc, Derek and Donna at the Botanist for cocktails and then went on to Casa Brindisa (near South Kensington) for some very enjoyable tapas followed by some delicious gelato next door at Venchi and a few more cocktails at Uncle Barts Speakeasy (an intimate and funky little venue).

Culture and Cuisine…

We stayed up in London after our Gregarious Glutton’s evening out and Marc and I went to the Ashurbanipal exhibition the following morning at the British Museum. Afterwards we caught up with Sue and wandered into a few book shops and a comic shop, had coffee at Café Vernano 1882, a drink or two at Clapham before enjoying a most delicious lunch at the trendy eating establishment, The Dairy, at Clapham.

Ole Birthday…

I thoroughly enjoyed a Mexican inspired meal that Sue made for me especially for my birthday. 

More of wot I have heard…

We went to the Harlequin Theatre in Redhill to see Band of Burns perform songs and tunes inspired by the life and works of Rabbie Burns. We met Paul and Lorraine at the theatre after we had a lovely Thai meal at Sia Kitchen above the Junction pub.

The band were amazing with individual members taking turns to lead and provide information in context to the songs and tunes about to be played. They were a very talented group of musicians and we had a wonderful evening.

Just the Two of Us…

Sue and I had a lovely day out with breakfast in Reigate and then watching the very entertaining film, The Favourite, at the Everyman cinema, and then seeing a steam train thunder past as we waited on the platform for our train home again.

Out in the Shire…

Recently we visited Jodie (and Sam the Dog) in Ludlow with Debbie for a weekend of catching up.

We had a bracing walk up at Clee Hill as the clouds closed in and we also had a visit to the quite spectacular Stokesay Castle nearby.

The next day Dawn and Muz also came over to help with some simple DIY and afterwards we all enjoyed a meal and a few drinks.

The following morning before we left we wandered around Ludlow and across the bridges and along the riverside with a great view back to the castle.