Month: February 2007

The farmers’ market which fills the streets of Dives-sur-Mer every Saturday also takes in Les Halles, the mediaeval market hall whose wooden timbers are beginning to show their age (about 700 years, I believe). It’s still also used as a kind of community centre for staging banquets, concerts and...

The Bright brothers make this dry red (12.5 percent) in the Mendoza region of Argentina, in the foothills of the Andes. It’s a pretty full-blooded red to have at lunchtime, with ripe fruit tastes giving it quite a kick. To say that I drank it with eggs Florentine would...

I ordered them from the Bistrot du Port to take away. This is very near where I stay at Dives-sur-Mer in Normandy. When I returned in 7 minutes, they were ready, in two metal cauldrons topped with foil. “Oh, just leave the containers outside our door tomorrow,” I was...

I’m a great believer in drinking from nice glasses. Paper or plastic cups seriously detract from the enjoyment of pleasant drinks, indoors or out. Some of them no doubt have a good scientific basis for what type of drink demands a particular glass, but some are probably just traditional....

The party on HMS Belfast was interesting. Knowing the ‘getting home’ situation from London Bridge at 1am, I drove there. Sobriety all night therefore may have led to my confusion about the place  (alcohol seems to rationalise). The bar and dance areas were so distanced by long, light and...

Despite the name and location, this is a Chinese restaurant in a safe part of London, a short walk from Liverpool Street station. A number of us from the office decided to go there for dinner to celebrate Chinese New Year, and it was one of the best Chinese...

After the massive enjoyment of the Clare formal hall (see below), I simply couldn’t refuse when out of the blue, the day after, I was offered a ticket to Trinity’s best weekly formal. It’s designed exclusively for graduates or people who could graduate but haven’t yet, perhaps to take...

Taking part in what I call LEMON this weekend, its actual name is LIMUN, or London International Model United Nations. Luckily It is taking place at Imperial which is rather near my house. This way I get home cooking and free accomodation, my collegues get slightly more local accomodation...

Last night, I was the lucky recipient of an invitation to dine in Clare College’s magnificent hall. It was part of the Central European Society’s annual list of events and the number of languages I heard reflected the popularity. There must have been thirty people in our group, which...

There was half a pork pie with grainy Arran mustard, plus some black and green olives and feta cheese. The salad itself had lettuce, cherry vine tomatoes, mushrooms, yellow pepper, bacon, anchovies, spring onions, purple onions, plus some Caesar dressing. And there was some mature cheddar cheese, plus a...