Archive for the ‘Food’ Category

The Last Lunch

Sunday, August 10th, 2008

661Along with most of the rest of our belongings, the baby carrier will be picked up by the sipping company tomorrow so we decided that, despite the rain, we would take our last family walk in the Nordmarka. We drove up to a deserted Frognerseteren this morning and walked to Skjennungstua for lunch. Having seen only a couple of people on the way there we were a bit concerned that the hut might be closed but we needn’t have worried – it was doing a brisk business when we arrived. The Norwegians are obviously late risers at the weekend as we could probably have sold our parking space when we arrived back at Frognerseteren!

Mountains and fjords

Saturday, July 26th, 2008

616Having waved goodbye to Christine’s Mum at Geilo station the next leg of our journey took us away from the railway and up on to the Hardangervidda plateau. Perhaps due to the bright blue skies overhead it didn’t look quite as bleak and barren as I had imagined it to be. It was a pleasant enough drive though with some nice white peaks in the distance and the odd glacier to add to the scenery.

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Norwegian Constitution Day

Saturday, May 17th, 2008

532The 17th May is yet another public holiday in Norway although sadly, this year, a Saturday. This time it is the National Constitution Day, celebrating Norway’s declaration as an independent state in 1814 (although still under Swedish rule). The day is very much targeted at the young and as we ate our breakfast we could see the local children gathering at the school for the raising of the flag. Unfortunately, it was to prove to be the coldest National Day for fifty years and at this point was actually snowing!

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Wednesday @ WSTC

Thursday, May 8th, 2008

The first slot of the day was one of those rare occasions where I wasn’t quite sure what to attend. In the end I opted for Alex Polozoff’s "Large Topology Tactics and Tradeoffs" presentation as I have great respect for his opinions. The emphasis here was not so much on the technology but the processes and the people. Most of it seemed common sense (at least to me) but the presentation should be a useful resource for anyone embarking on large scale WebSphere topologies.

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Ian and Sarah wed

Sunday, April 20th, 2008

523After much feverish preparation masterminded by the bride’s Mum the day of the big wedding finally dawned. The sky was overcast but the wind had turned as promised and there was no longer a danger of the marquee disappearing over the cliff! Ian had laid on a surf lesson in the morning and eight hardy souls appeared at the appointed time. I took Emma along to spectate whilst I took some photos. The waves at nearby Praa Sands were just right for beginners (or so I’m told) and a few managed to get vertical on their boards if only for a short time.
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Chilworth Chow

Saturday, May 19th, 2007

By way of diversion from the lack of baby, we went out to the nearby Chilworth Arms for dinner last night. It’s the first time we’ve been there since it changed hands and ceased to be The Clump. Although Christine is unsure about the new external colour scheme (as the locals are uncertain about the provenance of the new name and insignia) the extensive refit has made the dining area a much lighter an airier place.
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Persian dining in Düsseldorf

Friday, April 20th, 2007

I’ve spent the last two day’s in the German city of Düsseldorf. Sadly I didn’t see much more of the city than the view through the window of the taxi going to and from the airport. We did, however, eat out at a very nice Persian restaurant in the city centre on Thursday night. Of the four of us, I was the odd one out when it came to deciphering the menu. Two of my companions were native German speakers and the third, an American, could read pharsee. As well as being able to give excellent advice on menu choices, I’m sure his banter with the waitress also helped with the service.

Grey day at Osborne House

Thursday, March 22nd, 2007

306As forecast, the weather took a distinct turn for the worse today and, where yesterday we had been able to watch the cross-channel ferries from our bedroom window, this morning we could barely see the end of the garden through the grey drizzle. Consequently we decided to pick an indoor attraction: Osborne House. By now it had become clear to us that the Isle of Wight doesn’t really open for business until Easter and Osborne House was no exception. During the winter months you have to be booked in for a tour of the house and, although they scheduled a new tour for us, we still had an hour and a quarter to kill beforehand. This was more than enough to explore the grounds as the walled garden and Swiss cottage were also closed. (We were starting to wonder exactly what we were paying for at this point.)
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