Flowers…

We had arranged to meet Jamie at the Columbia Road Flower Market on Sunday and so we took public transport there, picking up Deb on the way. We met for drinks at the lovely and hip Birdcage pub before braving the crowds through the lush market. We bought a couple of smaller plants (there were some very large examples for sale, but taking them all the way back on tubes, trains and busses was out of the question). Jamie took us for lunch at the distinctly carnivorous Flat Iron restaurant before we made our way to Covent Garden for cocktails at Maxwell’s. 

Seaside…

We took a trip down to Brighton for a Saturday afternoon/evening and had a stroll through the lanes down to the shore, which was bright but blustery. We took shelter and had a lovely fish lunch at Riddle & Finns on the Beach before taking time out to watch the new Dolittle film which was a bit of good humoured, light, nonsense (we were just filling time until the gig later).

The Bombay Bicycle Club (check out ‘Everything Else has Gone Wrong’), ably supported by Liz Lawrence (‘None of my Friends’) and by The Big Moon (‘Your Light’) played at the Brighton Centre. They were all great, but I think the venue was to big for their sound and that they would sound even better in a more intimate surrounding.

Wassail…

Recently we joined in the local Wassail celebrations.  

According to Wikipedia, the word wassail comes from the Anglo-Saxon greeting Wæs þu hæl, meaning "be thou hale"—i.e., “be in good health”. The correct response to the greeting is Drinc hæl meaning "drink and be healthy".

The purpose of orchard-visiting wassailing is to awake the cider apple trees and to scare away evil spirits to ensure a good harvest of fruit in the Autumn

The celebrations started with some song and dance at the Star in Dorking, with a Mummers play, Morris dancing by local side the Box Hill Bedlam, Isle of Wight Moonshine Border Morris and surrealist folk double act Huginn & Muninn’s humorous interpretations.

A procession took us to the Dorking West Station where a few more dances took place as others gathered prior to the torch-lit walk up to the Dorking Community Orchard, where there were bonfires to warm the outside, and marshmallows on sticks for the youngsters and mulled cider for the grownups to warm the insides.

Druidic incantations were performed, and the trees were blessed with offerings of toast and cider and evil spirits were noisily chased away with much singing and banging of drums, pots, cans etc.

Post Festive Gatherings…

The last Friday of our holiday break we went into London to catch up with Marc, Heather and Elise while they were over, meeting them at a delightful hole in the wall pub near Borough Market called the Mug House. We continued to Lobos Tapas for a lovely lunch. That evening Sue and I stopped off at Sutton and met up with a few friends to listen to the lively Ska group called Ten Tonne who were performing at the Nightingale pub.

On the weekend we drove up to Tring and had a lovely meal at Terry’s with Katherine and Rod and Jenny and caught up with all the news. The next morning, Terry, Katie, Sue and I had a walk down the canal and over the fields (passing Alpacas) on to the Valiant Trooper in Aldbury where we had lunch before walking back again to Tring Station.

Once back home it was time to get ready for the return to the daily grind.

Our (NZ) Silver Celebrations…

For our (NZ) 25^th Wedding Anniversary we went to Venice for a few days, arriving in the evening of the 28^th Dec at our accommodation, Hotel Carlton on the Grand Canal. We strolled around the immediate area and had dinner out (pizza and Aperol Spritz) at Trattoria Ai do Fradei and a rather expensive drink back at the hotel.

The next day we bought a travel pass for the vaporetto (water bus) and cruised around getting a feel for the city stopping at the Rialto bridge, Academia bridge, St Marks square, Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute, walking through the many mediaeval streets and over bridges straddling picturesque canals, and finding many more squares and churches as we went. We had a lovely lunch out on a patio beside the water at OKE and that evening we went back to the area we ate in the night before and had a few drinks and nibbles in the trendy little TiME Social Bar before having a nightcap at a little café near our hotel that was to become a regular for us.

On the following morning we went out to explore the extravagant Doge’s Palace and spent a good few hours there in amazement.

Afterwards that we took the vaporetto out towards the islands, passing the Arsenal and the spectacular Building Bridges sculpture by Lorenzo Quinn of hands clasped over a waterway, and the hospital (conveniently located opposite the cemetery island). We stopped first at the island of Murano famous for its glass making both ornamental and functional (it is thought the Venetians popularised the use of glass to correct poor eyesight). We had a simple lunch at Bar Fornace before catching another boat out to Burano, famous for its lace making and colourful buildings, and there had a snack at Sue-Zo before watching the sun come down over Venice.

Back at Venice we went for a lovely meal at Luna Sentada, a place recommended by the hostess at TiME. I tried cuttlefish with black ink pasta for the first time (it was good but I’m not sure I would have it again).

On New Years Eve we started out exploring the Ghetto area and several noisy, smelly and interesting food markets. We took the boat over to explore the Chiesa di San Giorgio Maggiore church before continuing for a late lunch at Terrazza Dei Nobili (calves’ liver in polenta, calzone). We watched the sun set for the last time this year and had a rest back at the hotel before venturing back out to the promontory opposite St Mark’s to watch the spectacular fireworks display.

For our last day in the city we took a gentle stroll around this enchanting city, stopping at the touristy and expensive Trattoria da GiorgioAi Greci for lunch.

The water taxi back to the airport was rather bumpy and uncomfortable and later, as the plane was about to land at Gatwick, the pilot had to suddenly abort due to the fog obscuring the runway and go around again, getting the computer to eventually land it. We were rather glad to get back home, exhausted from a fabulous holiday.

Christmas with the Ashtons…

We hosted Christmas this year starting with the Christmas Eve gathering of friends for our now traditional Jamaican inspired buffet.

We had 10 people around for Christmas Day which pretty much filled our small house. The fare was traditional with turkey and gammon and all the trimmings and went down a treat.

And on Boxing Day we had another, smaller, gathering of family around for more of the gammon, this time with homemade pickles.

Our (UK) Silver Celebrations…

For our (UK) 25^th Wedding Anniversary (we had our wedding in the UK on the 23^rd Dec, and a church blessing  in NZ on the 31^st Dec) Sue took me to watch the latest Star Wars film (she’s a keeper). I loved the film (Sue had a nap). Later we went and had a lovely Thai meal at the Giggling Squid in Reigate. Before the movie we went for a champagne brunch and a walk around the park in Reigate (coincidently which happened to pass by the HopStop beer bar). 

Dragons, Superheroes, and Chocolate Cake…

It was Ollie’s 14^th birthday recently (the younger of our Godsons) and we joined his family for the celebrations. He proudly showed us his newly acquired Bearded Dragon that he had named Max (Sue and I were not so keen to get up close and personal with it). We had bought him the Munchkin Marvel game as he is a big fan of the comics, and I tried (badly) to teach him how to play. Sue however impressed everyone with the chocolate cake that she had baked for him, which topped of a lovely meal with them all.

London Culture…

As part of a get together for his birthday we visited the National Portrait Gallery with Terry and Katherine (we understand it is due to close for 3 years soon). We didn’t get to see everything and we needed to take a break for lunch in between, where we went to a pub called the Sherlock Holmes that has a room upstairs made up to look like the famous detective’s, complete with a creepy model of the man himself. After we did finish with our visit to the gallery, we had a drink in one half of the Ship & Shovell, a pub split in two by the Craven Passage.

As Terry and Katherine left for home, Sue and I ventured over the river to the Royal Festival Hall to listen to some free live jazz. While we were there we picked up a couple of tickets for the Calexico + Iron & Wine show that evening (they have worked together before and we have seen Iron & Wine perform, but never Calexico, who I was eager to see). After a quick bite to eat in the nearby Ping Pong we went back to the venue and watched a very good gig (the main act was supported by Irish musician Lisa O’Neill). After the show, we had a reviving cocktail in the Black & Blue opposite the station while we waited for our train home.

A long but entertaining day was had.

Man Cave…

The attic room (controversially called the ‘Man Cave’ by Sue) has mostly been the storage area, computer room and a spare bedroom, and has over time become full of more junk. Recently we have spent some time reorganising it (moving units, buying more shelves and boxes), and getting rid of some of the clutter, so that we can move the various board games from downstairs up and put them out on display. There is still a lot of stuff that has been collected that will need to be reviewed to see if it is worth keeping (much of it is things such as ticket stubs and programmes from old shows, guide books of places we have visited, and other paraphernalia that has little material worth but a great deal of sentimental value). I did find a newspaper from the moon landing and another from the Silver Jubilee amongst others, some of Jamie’s baby teeth in a box, an old Mega Drive console, a box of Lego and branded material from many of the companies I have worked for. Still, that is a project for another day.

The Nerd Herd…

Now a new regular event for a few of us is the Essen Spiel, an enormous gaming convention in Germany with now six halls full of board/card/dice/role-playing games, live action materials, collectables and all manner or related items. It is one of the largest (if not the largest) event of its kind in the world, which for the most part is about selling you your next favourite game. Naturally it focusses on the European market and style of Euro games, but there are still a few AmeriTrash games and several exotic flavours from other parts of the world.

We continue to stay a little way out from Essen at the Handelshof in Mulheim an du Ruhr in what has become a family home away from home, where they provide us with a space to play our games.

The only game I bought this year was called Ishtar, a simple ‘gateway’ style of game. One of the reasons is that I need to reorganise my game storage as I have run out of space.

In addition to the gaming our little sub-group of gamers also enjoy a good meal and social interaction over a glass of wine or two. And this is usually catered for by the Mausefalle restaurant nearby, where we usually all go for the Pork Knuckle and the Apple Strudel, and this year was no different.

However, we also found another restaurant nearby called Ratskeller that also had some very lovely food.

As our party included English, South African and New Zealanders, we were drawn into watching the World Cup Rugby, unfortunately as is the case with these competitions, there were winners and losers.

It was however entertaining to be part of the buzz in what seemed to be the start of a joke (an Englishman, South African and a Kiwi walk into an Irish bar in Germany…) the bar in question being amusingly named Fritzpatricks.

Some of the older regulars were absent from the hotel this year but we hope that we can encourage some younger folk to join us in the future.

New England in the Fall…

Our big holiday this year was to Eastern Canada and the USA to see the autumn colours in the trees. We went with Sue’s sister Debbie, flying out from Heathrow to Toronto and returning from Boston.

Toronto

We arrived late into Toronto airport and took a cab to where we were staying in an AirBnb high in a tower block downtown (next to the Scotiabank Arena).

Early next morning we walked over to the St Lawrence Market for breakfast (where we partook of local delicacy the Peameal Bacon on a Bun). On the way, we saw some fun street artwork, including a dog fountain (water comes out of the mouths of the dogs), a mural of a pealing façade and a collection of bronze ice hockey players outside the stadium. After breakfast we went up the iconic CN Tower for a panoramic view of the city and lake. It was turning into a bright clear day with a cool breeze as we walked down to the waterfront, past the old train roundhouse (now a museum and brewery), and caught the ferry across to the islands and back for the views. Afterwards we wondered uptown to the Rex Hotel to catch some music and have some lunch. From there we walked around looking at the sights (Historic buildings, statues, the Toronto sign, the theatre district etc.). That evening was the first match in the new ice hockey season at the stadium next to our apartment, so we joined in and experienced some of the hype in the sports bar as the Toronto Maple Leafs took on the Montreal Canadians.

Niagara on the Lake

After breakfast, we picked up a car and drove on towards our next destination, stopping for some wine tasting and a fabulous lunch at the Trius Winery in Niagara on the Lake.

Niagara Falls

After arriving at Niagara Falls we walked from our hotel to the funicular railway that took us down the cliff to the waters edge and our boat ride, wearing our fetching red ponchos that protected us a bit from the incredible spray coming off the amazing waterfalls. In the evening, we ventured up the Skylon Tower for an elevated view of the falls (lit up at night) and a cocktail, and then we walked down and went into the quiet Queen Victoria Place Restaurant for nibbles and another drink (I had a beer flight) where we had a great view of the fireworks. As we walked back through the neon flashing, bass thumping streets, we stopped to have a ride on the SkyWheel before turning in for the evening.

Ottawa

We had an early start today as it was a long drive today to get to the Canadian capital of Ottawa, which we found to be a very attractive city with some lovely buildings and public sculptures. We ate at the ByWard Market area in the lovely Fish Market restaurant, where I had a flight of beers and the girls enjoyed some good seafood. We had a nightcap in the lounge of our lovely hotel, The Metcalfe, and turned in for the night.

Montreal

We dropped off the car when we got to Montreal and checked into our small, quaint hotel, Auberge Le Pomerol, with its very helpful concierge. He recommended a delightful BYO restaurant nearby for dinner. In the meantime, we wandered down to the old town and soaked up some of the historical sights and we made enquiries about taking a train up to Quebec the next day – it turned out to be prohibitively expensive so we gave it a miss. The recommended restaurant was called O’Thym and had a very inventive and delicious menu in its small and intimate venue. We enjoyed it immensely.

The next day we went up to the delightful market at Little Italy for breakfast, explored the lovely streets and park, had a few drinks at a nearby Dieu du Ciel! brewery (all good apart from Deb being stung on the backside). We had lunch at an interesting restaurant called the Caribou Gourmand and walked up Mont Royal to the Chalet to get a panoramic view across town. That evening we went out to the House of Jazz for dinner and listened to some fabulous music played by some very talented musicians going by the name of Snooksta and the Gangstas.

Burlington

We had planned not to take a car across the border as it seemed to be an expensive option so we booked tickets on the Greyhound bus from Montreal to Burlington airport where we picked up a new rental car for the USA.

Stowe

On our way to our destination of Stowe we stopped for an ice cream at the Ben & Jerry’s factory (they started out in Burlington). At Stowe, we took a short walk up a hill to get a view of the pretty town, drove up into the mountains to see the Von Trapp resort, and had a couple flights of beer at their brewery. We started to see the fabulous autumnal colours in the trees that make this area such an attraction for the ‘leaf peepers’. We checked into our cabin in the woods at the Golden Eagle Resort, and walked back into town for a meal at Plate and then to listen to Jacob Green playing at the Tap 25 bar.

Jackson Falls

The next morning after our breakfast at Black Cap in Stowe we drove through the beautiful countryside, stopping at little towns and at spectacular viewpoints along the way to Jackson in the White Mountains National Park. We found a fun bar (the Wildcat Inn at Jackson) for lunch and had an explore of the nearby covered ‘Honeymoon’ bridge and the delightful Jackson Falls themselves. We ended up at our old time grand Eagle Mountain hotel where we watched the sun come down over the green, yellow and red countryside from rocking chairs on the veranda with a cocktail in hand. We later returned to the Wildcat Inn for dinner that evening.

Bar Harbor

Our journey now took us to the northern coast of Maine and the island of Bar Harbor where we had another AirBnb. A couple of Americans had told us of a bar here called the Tap & Barrel (whilst we were in the queue at the Rum and Gin festival at the Oval), so we went there and had a great time sampling the local brews and talking to people at the bar.

We spent our time the next day exploring this pretty island and the Arcadia National Park from seashore to mountain top. That evening we ate at the local Atlantic Brewing Midtown venue, washing down our food with a flight of beers each.

Portland

We had a small, unimpressive, (but cheap) AirBnb place to stay in at Portland (Maine not Oregon), but as it was we were pretty tanked up by the end of the night so it hardly mattered. Earlier on we had a walk along the water front we stopped at the Shipyard Brewing Company to sample their beers (it turns out Portland is well known for its breweries), the staff their recommended a fish restaurant to try. J’s Oysters was on one of the piers and was a fun place, at the bar we got talking to many people from near and far and we recommended a few other places to visit. The first was a micro-brewery called Gritty McDuffs and the second a bar called Novare Res with an amazing selection of beers (and a competition with an engraved cup held in a safe for people who managed to drink all their beers in a year). Then we ended up at quirky restaurant called The North Point for dinner before staggering back to our apartment.

Cape Cod

Next day we drove on to Hyannis in Cape Cod, had lunch at Spanky’s Clam Shack and bought tickets for the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard for the next day. Later that day we travelled to the farthest point where Provincetown (the landing place of the Mayflower) is situated. A quaint, hippy-like place. Further down the coast, as I took photos of the sun setting over the sea, the girls had a drink in the Bookstore. We returned to our accommodation (a nice AirBnb basement flat in a quiet road near the sea) and we had a lovely meal out in town at the Downtown Bistro.

We spent most of our time the next day over on the picturesque Martha’s Vineyard, though it was very quiet as it had started to shut up for the season. Amongst looking at the quaint towns on the island we had breakfast at Linda Jean’s and a snack at the Black Dog Tavern (quite a brand on the island) before returning on the afternoon sailing. We had an unimpressive meal at a nearby tavern and turned in as the weather was getting worse as a storm rolled in, knocking down nearby trees, and taking out the power for a while during the night.

Boston

On our way from Cape Cod to Boston we stopped at the Plimoth Plantation, a living museum that attempted to represent a replica of an early Pilgrim village and Native Settlement with people dressed in period costume to explain things to you. It was very interesting. At Boston we dropped our car off at the airport as our final AirBnb was nearby. There was some confusion about the apartment which resulted in us initially entering the wrong flat and having to return home a bit earlier than we wanted to as we had been relocated. We took the T up to Harvard and walked through the historic grounds on to where we had pre-booked our most expensive dinner at the Tasting Counter nearby. Next door was a brewery called the Aeronaut where we had a quick drink before going into the eating experience. All the guests sat around the kitchen and watched the chefs work their magic as we were served dish after dish with accompanying wine. Afterwards we returned to the Aeronaut where they had jazz music playing for a while (Adam Janjigan Quartet) until we had to go back to the correct apartment (a mistake about what the first floor means to Americans and Europeans, and the wrong door code).

We spent the day walking around taking in the sights of Boston (including the Faneuil Hall Market, some of the historic trail, the park, Cheers, past the Tea Party Ships, and drinks as the sun came down at the Lookout balcony bar atop the Envoy hotel. That evening we enjoyed a great Italian meal at Bencotto in Little Italy and later the girls indulged themselves in a cigar in the Stanza dei Sigari smoking bar. After that we caught some lively music at a Hennessy’s Bar

The final day we took it easy and strolled around the town a bit more, getting breakfast at the popular Pauli’s, picking up some cakes at the iconic Mike’s Pastry, getting a coffee at the Caffe dello Sport and another at Tatte Bakery & Cafe, until we had to leave for our long journey home.

We saw some lovely countryside and were very lucky with the weather, ate and drank some fabulous produce, and met some interesting people along the way. All in all, a great holiday.

Booze Cruise…

Recently we took advantage of a deal being done by the Majestic France wine store where by if you pre-order a certain value of wine they will provide either an additional discount or free travel on a ferry or the train to get you to their store. And since the price of the wines is about half that of the same wine in the UK, we decided to nip across the channel for a day trip. We were very lucky with the weather as it was a beautiful day with temperatures around the 28C mark. At Sangatte, a short distance from Coquelles on the coast, the long, sandy, beach was almost empty and we could stroll along in peace and quiet watching the ferries sailing between France and the UK. He two were tall cliffs that mirrored those we could see at Dover in the distance. It was at Sangatte that we had booked into Le Blanc Nez restaurant for lovely lunch. We then stocked up on our goodies and trundled back home. If things change with regards to the impact of Brexit we might not be able to do this again so easily, or so cheaply.

Local History…

The Heritage Open Days scheme provides access to historical buildings and we took advantage of it to visit a few in the nearby villages of Effingham and Little Bookham. These included:

·        St Lawrence’s Church, Effingham – where Sir Barnes Wallis (Dambusters) is buried.
·         Manor Farm Tithe Barn and Barnes Wallis Anniversary – a Grade 2 listed tithe barn (one of the largest in Surrey) that held a comprehensive exhibition about Sir Barnes Wallis to mark the 40^th anniversary of his death.
·         Effingham Methodist Church – a quaint church with a small exhibition about local people including Ada Lovelace (Analytical Engine – early computer program), Charles Howard (Lord of the Admiralty who defeated the Spanish Armada), and dinosaurs.  
·         Manor House School
·         All Saints Church, Little Bookham – believed to have originated from about 1100 and containing a Vulgate Bible.
·         Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church

After such a cultural tour, we ended up at the King William IV, a quaint pub with a view across to Ranmore.

Sipping in the Park…

The sun was out for the Pippfest in Dorking and we went along with friends to soak some of it up, along with a few pints of local ale.

The quoted aim of the festival is:

‘Pippfest is an annual festival of music, art, crafts, food & lots more at Pippbrook House. Fun for the whole family and a fantastic opportunity to raise awareness (and fundraise!) for the CHiP project, a community campaign to save this beautiful building for community use.’

Some of the wonderful local bands we watched included:

·         Lifes Circus;
·         Easy Skanking Band;
·         Eclectix;
·         Stephanie Davies & The Super Dynamics;
·         Objayda.

Just for Laughs…

Along with a couple of neighbours/friends we went to see Jimmy Carr perform at the Dorking Halls. To be expected he was very rude, using the audience as part of his act, which did make me feel somewhat vulnerable sitting in the second row, but luckily a vegan gold star lesbian marketing software optimiser took the flack for the rest of us in the hall.

St Albans and Surrounds…

We visited Uncle Terry and Katherine at her home in St Albans and wandered around the town stopping at the Assembly Hall Museum and Gallery where the old Court Room had been converted into a café we also saw the cells in the basement and an exhibition space with Cornish artist Barbara Hepworth’s sculptures and drawings on show. We also spent some time in the lovely Cathedral with an informative guide and also listening to the choir practicing. The following day we visited Wheathampstead (where Katharine and her family come from) and the National Trust property (Bernard) Shaw’s Corner (the house containing many personal items such as his Nobel prize and Oscar statue for Pygmalion).

More of Wot I Have Read…

Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths

This was one of the books on Sue’s Kindle and as I had finished my last physical book I went virtual. I found this to be written in a way that made me think of it like a crime drama serial on TV. It was gentle and uncomplicated without too many surprises and washed over me quite well.

‘Dr Ruth Galloway is called in when a child’s bones are discovered near the site of a pre-historic henge on the north Norfolk salt marshes. Are they the remains of a local girl who disappeared ten years earlier – or are the bones much older?

DCI Harry Nelson refuses to give up the hunt for the missing girl. Since she vanished, someone has been sending him bizarre anonymous notes about ritual sacrifice, quoting Shakespeare and the Bible. He knows that Ruth’s expertise and experience could help him finally to put this case to rest.

But when a second child goes missing, Ruth finds herself in danger from a killer who knows she’s getting ever closer to the truth…’

Festival of Booze…

We have been going to a Gin Festival for several years but last year it failed as a business and the Gin & Rum Festival appeared. As I am not a huge fan of gin, but do like a drop of rum, I was thrilled by the change. Our regular drinking gang joined us (Deb, and the Whittenburys) and we bumped into several other friends at its new venue at the Oval cricket ground. In the line, I also got talking to a lovely American couple who were holidaying in town (turned out he had lived in NZ and had tips on places to visit during an upcoming US holiday).

Unusually for a Bank holiday the weather was hot and sticky so we struggled a bit amongst the crowds in the poorly air-conditioned tasting hall.  But overall, we had a good time and went on to a lovely bar called Mother Kelly’s to sample few beers from their extensive selection before Sue, Deb and I went to Clapham Junction and had a bite to eat (and anther drink) at a quirky bar called Vagabond (you can buy the wine with a card from dispensers, like they do in Vinopolis).

Late Summer Sun…

It was another glorious summer weekend when we visited RHS Wisely gardens with Marc, seeing the new entrance and ongoing expansion work and a sculpture exhibition throughout the grounds. We had lunch at the lovely Withies Inn, and that evening Marc and I were beaten at board games by Sue.