David Currie

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.

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.)
(more…)