Munchner Christkindlmarkt

Enjoyed a few days in Munich this week taking in the Christmas markets.

Two snowy days and two sunny days, so the best of both worlds.

Believe me, there is no recession in Munich. The streets are alive with people and the atmosphere is amazing as the sun goes down around 16:00. Everyone just heads to the Gluhwein stalls until 21:00!

On one of the snowy days we ducked into this antique shop and discovered an "aladdin's cave" of chandeliers, furniture and paraphernalia!

There wasn't too much outdoor dining either!

So back to the Cotswolds and miserable wet weather. There is something to be said about sub-zero temperatures and sunshine. Good for the soul!

Twickenham 01/12/12

The day started off well enough. Uneventful drive into London and found a carpark under the All Blacks hotel for the day. Coffee with the coaching staff and it was great to catch up with Aussie after many years. Even "the boss" was upbeat at this time of the day!

The seats were pretty good too...

Fortunate to have Alice and her mate Sophie on one of side us, and another of Aussie's coaching mates on the other. Milton Haig who is now coaching the Georgian National team.

Sadly, from an All Black supporters point of view it all went down hill from there. It was great to be at Twickenham however and it is a great stadium. 

I don't think I have ever seen England play a better game of rugby and with them hosting the next World Cup, they have something to build on.

I have had to remind our friends and colleagues back home today however, that it has been awhile and they have had nine years to work it out!

The Grand Ole Duke of York.....

November is not normally the best month to travel as the weather can be a bit dicey, but with a new set of wheels, we thought it opportune to venture forth and see a bit more of England that we haven't seen.

We had heard many good reports of York being a good "city visit" so took off for a couple of nights, passing through Sherwood Forest on the way. Totally underwhelming but had to stop for the Pic at least!

Our hotel was within the city walls and under the shadow of the York Minster. Quite a remarkable edifice and much stained glass. Our guide told us that 85% of the stained glass on the planet was in Europe, 85% of the stained glass in Europe is in Engand and 85% of the stained glass in England is in the York Minster. Can't help thinking she was extolling a bit of an urban myth!!

Anyway, there is much history to take in within the city walls, as much of English history occurred close by in days of yore. Romans, Vikings, Normans, Saxons, etc.

The city walls are very much in tact and the old gates well preserved. Despite the ubiquitous white vans!

York is also very well known for one of Europe's best preserved medieval streets, The Shambles. Very spooky at night!!

From York we drove Eastwards about an hour for a couple of nights at Whitby. For no other reason really than Whitby was where James Cook set sail to discover New Zealand and Australia.

We were a little disappointed that the replica of the Endeavour was not still moored in the harbour. It is now resident in Australia. They have a miniature version in Whitby, but I don't know why they bothered!!

I was very fortunate during our time in Queenstown to be invited over to Milford Sound in 1995 when the Endeavour replica visited NZ and was moored up against the bush in the Sound for a few days. A very memorable sight.

Whitby these days is a thriving English seaside resort with good fishing and many visitors. I would hate to go there during school holidays!! We had to avail of the local Whitby crab and the local Fish and Chips were well promoted, but any fishing village should be able to boast about their own Fish and Chips?

Another claim to fame is that it is the home of Whitby Jet, a precious gemstone. The Jet comes from fossilised Monkey Puzzle trees dating back to the Jurassic period, 180 million years ago. Mining has been banned but it still appears in the cliffs along a seven mile stretch of the coast, especially after heavy seas. The raw product is quite grey or brown in colour but when milled is very black. Hence the term "Jet Black"!

Whitby is also known for it's Cistercian Abbey ruin which overlooks the cliffs. Closed for the winter but was quite an impressive sight just the same.

Who knows where the road may take us next? And by the way, the Passat performed beautifully and we felt much safer than travelling the open road in the Jazz.

A new set of wheels....

We picked another set of wheels yesterday. VW Passat Estate. Much more versatile than the little Honda Jazz, and a lot more secure on the open road! Nice!

We have a few days off next week, so will give it a little run and make friends with it.

Blenheim Palace

 Blenheim Palace is just one of many spectacular attractions within easy driving distance. Just over an hours drive away and we ended up spending a whole day here as there is so much to see.

 Blenheim Palace is the birth place of Sir Winston Churchill.

The gardens and grounds are spectacular, and these days apart from thousands of daily visitors, it is quite the wedding venue. Eat your heart out the Catering Department!

Carolina on my mind....

Been awhile since my last post, but hey, been a busy summer and other things have taken priority.

We have been to New York though and spent a few days with Patrick. Golfing all the way and flew down to Hilton Head in South Carolina for P's birthday. Hilton Head is a golfing mecca, and though we had five games of golf on 3 courses, there are literally dozens to chose from!

It will interesting to watch the Heritage Classic next April, now that we have played the course.

We didn't have the course to ourselves however, and made you think before retrieving your balls from the water hazards!!

Enjoyed several local delicacies including Gumbo, Shrimp and Grits, Lobster, Crabs to name a few.

Timing was great too, as we just missed Hurricane Sandy by a couple of weeks!

Annie get your gun!

Spotted on the croquet lawn twice today! How bold?

Unbelievably, we have venison on the menu tonight.

Run, rabbit, run!

The Magic Roundabout.

One of the joys of living in Ewen is that occasionally we have to venture into nearby Swindon for vehicle servicing etc.. Swindon would not be my first choice of towns to visit, in fact, many would argue that it is a good place to avoid!

This was driven home to me recently when we stumbled onto "the magic roundabout", one of only two similar layouts in the UK. I can understand why they have not persevered with building any more! We were lucky in that we could get off at the first exit. I would be totally at a loss if I had to go from one side to t'other!

A Taste of Home

Stopped off at a little wine shop in Nailsworth recently on the way home from golf and much to my delight discovered that one of his best sellers is Main Divide!

He tried to give me the speal, but I told him I don't need any introduction as it was my "house red" at Braemar Lodge. Unsurprisingly I bought a few bottles for myself and also a few for the boss's cellar. Had a bottle last night and immediately regained the taste of my bar at Braemar. Love it!

I wonder if I can get it on the menu at the Peninsula?

The Ice Age cometh?

This is a satellite image over Italy earlier this week!

No wonder Paris was cold on Saturday night!

The Ultimate Motoring Accessory?

What do you give someone who has "everything", could buy "anything", and has a passion for Veteran cars?

A foot warmer, of course!

Why didn't I think of that?

Spring is sprung, the Grass is Rizz??

This is always a good sign, though I would have to say that the winter has not been too arduous to date!!

Christmas in the Cotswolds.

Broken pinkie

The Boy from NYC

Dad in an apron...

Need I say more!

Happy New Year

Golf in the English Countryside.

So we've had a few weeks to explore the local golf facilities and decided to bite the bullet and join a club. Minchinhampton is 20mins away and has an "old course" which was established in 1889, think "bump and run". In the sixties they bought some more land and established two "new courses", so for the price of one membership you get the choice of two courses and a reduction on the "old" course. Sounds like a deal to us. We now get most weekends off so hopefully it will give us the opportunity of playing in few comps and meeting some locals.

Check it out here

It is supposedly THE course in the area and has regularly hosted local qualifying for "The Open" in recent years.

When in Pheasant country....

Nobody had to tell us it was Autumn...

Nobody had to tell us it was Pheasant season...

You just get presented with game on a regular basis...

The freezer is not full yet, but the way it's going it soon will be....

I am now a bona fide pheasant plucker...

But how do you say enough?

Lucky Dip....with a twist.

I have never really been happy about buying my wine at a discount German supermarket, but sometimes time and circumstances prevail.

New Zealand supermarkets are improving their wine selections, and the Frankton New World wine department has to be one of the best in the country.

English supermarkets are miles better than their Irish counterparts when it comes to wine selection, and I always enjoy visiting "bona-fide" wine shops in this part of the world. Neither country is renowned for their wine production so the shelves are filled with selections from all over the world with equal status. Makes for for some interesting searching and occasional bargain.

However I have now discovered a new method of buying wine, albeit unsustainable as it only happens once a year locally!! The Auction house!

The local auction rooms has a fortnightly sale, mainly deceased estates etc, and they keep the wines for a pre-Christmas "knock down".

I ended up buying 5 lots, totalling 20 bottles for just over £300. Some bottles could be stunning, like a '98 Bordeaux and a '94 CA Cab Sav, but some bottles will be unpalatable, but we will have an adventure for a few weeks each time we get the cork screw out. The decanter will get plenty of use!

So the Lucky Dip starts tonight....and not a screw cap in sight!

Happy Birthday P

Patrick came and had a few days in our new home last week. It was great to see him, though we had seen him last in July when we visited New York.

His birthday was in October, but instead of wasting postage, we decided to treat him to something local while he was here. We have an airfield within 5 minutes of us, one of the many WW11 airfields. They have a flight experience company offering various flying options. Patrick was treated to 30 minutes of acrobatic flying where was in control most of the time.

Do you think he looked nervous?
The grin afterwards was worth it!

Happy Birthday P.

Autumn in Ewen...

It's been a couple of month's since my last post, but settling into life in the Cotswold's and coming to grips with my new computer has all taken it's toll. We are enjoying exploring our new surroundings and there is plenty to take in, like here at the aptly named Burton on the Water.

Being in England, the hunt is never far away, and this was the local hunt club prior to the Ewen Hunt.

We have been away from home a couple of times and enjoyed the coast of Devon and Cornwall. This is the Minack Theatre, THE most dramatic arena on the planet, I would suggest.

A full programme of theatre is provided throughout the summer.

It is not far from Land's End, at the tip of Cornwall. Land's End is privately owned and very tacky, similar to a lot of the seaside in England.

The Eden Project was a very interesting stop on our travels. The biggest Conservatory on the planet?
The autumn colours are just about all gone now, but they have been quite stunning. More so than in Ireland where the season goes from Summer straight to Winter, if your lucky!
We had a weekend in Bath before the weather got too cold but did not "take the waters". Stayed in a hotel in the Royal Crescent, a Bath landmark.
The Cotswold villages do really stand up to the accolades they receive.
We have a "local" just over the road, but don't get too involved. One day they'll get the gardeners and cleaners in and tidy the place up!! Pity, because it could be a gem.
The weather has been sensational and hopefully after the past couple of winters here we may be in for "short winter". That's tempting fate though, saying something like that!
We have even been out a few times checking out the local golf courses. This is the local course at Cirencester, but sadly did not tick all the boxes.
More about golf to follow...