Sunday, April 30, 2006

Yeah Man

Gotta mention this place. Good wholesome Caribbean takeaway grub - and what a name! This is the ony pic I have at the moment but the Curried Goat with Rice and Beans (or purple rice) is great. There'll be pics of this place in the not too distant future.

The coolest-named takeaway on the planet.

The Cow

Famous gastro-pub and just down the road. This place specialises in seafood and is proper pub to boot. There is a restaurant upstairs but why go to a restaurant when you want pub-grub. Though it can be difficult to get a seat, I reckon we'll be back.

Doesn't look much from the outside.

Or on first entry, come to that.

But, then there's this: Cow Pie (actualy Rabbit and Prawn Pie), and Crab and Chili Pasta, all washed down with a couple of beers. Divine.

So, where are the cows? Aha!

Followed by a very unbrisk waddle along the canal.

Stopping only to admire the impressionism that some of Notting Hill's backstreets are displaying at the moment.

Saturday, April 29, 2006

The Elgin

Looks like the prime candidate for the local. Why? Well, there's a pool comp on Thursday night - that seems to start at a fairly random time - and, hey, I won it already (40 quid bar tab, no less). There are screens everywhere to watch the footy on, including a really big one for the really big games - Spurs holding Arsenal to a 1-1 (away) draw that could mean a Tottenham place in the European Cup next year while Spurs supporters were outnumbered 10 to 1, to pick a match at random. Good beer, reasonable pub-grub and a not-too-stuffed-around decor makes this a prety good place to have just up the road.

Some outside drinking seats out the front.

All ready for the pool comp.

The original Victorian mirrors,

glass,

and panelling.

Footy. Either one of the better Premier League linesman has caught yet another Arsenal player off-side, the cheating gits, or the baldy head, four-eyed spazo is giving off-side during another heroic Spurs attack on the Gunners goal even though they where clearly nothing like it. You decide.

Hampton Court

This is a couple of short train journey's away so it's an obvious day-trip.

Hampton Court is pretty synonymous with Henry VIII and all that. At the same time, it is a very pretty Tudor manor set in magnificent gardens, not forgetting the maze (more of which later). Onward...

The main entrance.

One of the many courtyards.

A cut-away showing what the place looks like with everyone eating. Sadly, they didn't chuck their bones on the floor - but there was nothing to say that they couldn't grab hold of the serving whenches, so that's alright.

I only got one shot of the inside before being threatened with a suitably Tudor punishment for disobeying the no-photos sign. Something involving my gonads and a wild boar. Anyhoo, here's a painting of some people hanging out in a pretty landscape. Probably by some Italian bloke.

The gardens are a tricky call - they are all spectacular - and represent some different garden fashions though the ages. Here's a few random shots:

The wild end.

Bit more formal.

Very formal indeed.

A statue of a chick with her bum hanging out.

mutter mutter...nice house...mutter mutter...gardens...mutter mutter...where's the pub...mutter mutter


As you might have heard, Henry VIII had chick trouble. And plenty of it. When he wasn't divorcing them and cutting their heads off, he was prying them off one or another courtier. All in a days work for a Tudor king. If that wasn't bad enough, look at all the bad press. Wife No.1 was the French king's sister and, when it became pretty apparent she wasn't going to deliver on the successor front and therefore needed the elbow, the Pope (who was a puppet of the French court at the time) got all involved and pissed off. It's enough to make you want to out and form your own church.

Why, I ask, go to all that trouble when you have an obvious solution right on your doorstep?

Yes, the maze! Women, as we know, couldn't navigate their way out of a paper bag. All you have to do is lead her into the centre of the maze and make a run for it. Sorted.

Here's one I did earlier:

Is there a map I can rotate?


And that's the last I saw of her.

It's not all doom and gloom, though. I did get this in the shop on the way out:

Standard Bearer

Saturday, April 22, 2006

The Science Museum

Definitely not a Kim thing so, while she was off sorting out work stuff, I jumped on a bus and took myself down there.

The main entrance on Exhibition Road.

I didn't bother with everything - that can take a couple of days. There's some space stuff:

A model of Sputnik 1.

The Apollo 10 Command Module - this baby went round the moon, but didn't stop.

A mock-up of the lunar landings.

Some older forms of transport:

Stevenson's Rocket - the first practical steam train.

A Spitfire hanging from the ceiling - I probably had one of those at home when I was about 9.


A Spitfire in bits all over the floor - I definitely had several of these at home when I was 9.

And some other odds and sods:

The original Watson & Crick DNA model - this looks like a bit of bum cell to me.

And they are knocking up a working Babbage Difference Engine though I'm not sure if you could get Linux running on it.

The Market Bar

Our closest pub. Right on Portobello Rd close to the geographical centre of the market, this place gets packed on a Saturday. The rest of the time, though, it is a pretty cool place to hang out. There is a good selection of beers and there are a couple of footy screens. The modern decor - think minimalist - sits well with with the old style of the building. It even has a real fireplace going on cold days.

Right on Portobello Road.

Candles & old drippy candle-holders above the fireplace.

The bar looks pretty good with this horse leaping out of it.

Obligitory trendy 'art', thankfully kept to a minimum.

Friday, April 21, 2006

Oldies Visit - Dad 1

As part of the point of being here is to visit my family, we dropped in on my dad for Sunday lunch. His place is in Hertford.

My dad and me in the garden.

It might not look like much but this pond is a frog-producing powerhouse - a group of animals that are quickly going extinct in the UK.

I got this model of a Hawker Tempest made in the Philippines a few years ago - the aircraft type my dad worked on in the RAF during WWII. I left it to him to paint it.

The front garden.

The run-around.

Shocking News from Home

Nicole Kidman, seen leaving The Basement last night, hits a new personal confidence low.

What it seems? Or a thinly veiled plea for Tom's return?

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Dublin 3

Last day:

St Stephen's Green - with a name like that, it's gotta be good.

A fairly large park near Dublin centre, it's got something for everyone - and the ducks.




Dunno what that slob's doing there.

Like most modern saints, St Stephen as his own shopping centre.

Not U2 again. Woot!

And home...

When Oompa Loompas Go Bad
Everyone at Dublin airport was either white as a sheet or orange! I have no idea.