French Visits and Footing London

Again a bit delayed, but back in mid July we had a visit from Celi, coming over from Paris on the Eurostar (makes a change to all those that take the plane). Personally I think she was trying to escape Bastille Day, although with the amount of tourists in Oxford and London at this time, I wouldn't count it as much of an escape...

Apart from coming over for the organised Harry Potter Tour of Oxford (coinciding with the release of the final film), she also wanted to take on the services of yours truly as tour guide for London.

Ever up for a challenge, I prepared a tour to cover all sorts of interesting sights tailored to her preferences. Usually I make sure quite a bit of walking is involved in my tours, allowing participants to actually see quite a lot of London that they would normally have missed. It also means they get tired a couple of hours before time to come back to Oxford, allowing me to 'reluctantly' suggest stopping off at a nearby pub.

We started off at Paddington, taking the bus across to Camden Market, walking around the stalls and stables for a while, and sitting down on a scooter to eat our lunch. Then took the tube down to Green Park, where we walked down through the park to Buckingham Palace. From here we walked along the lake until we came down to Westminster. Passing Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament we went over Westminster Bridge (taking photos looking back across the River Thames at parliament).

From here we walked along the river (to the left of the bridge when you arrive on the south side) until we got to the Tate Modern. We used their facilities (very clean, by the way) and viewed some of the unusual art and photos on show, as well as the building itself (old power station).

After the cultural part, we walked further eastwards until we got to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, where unfortunately there were no tickets left for todays shows, nor were they doing tours, as a show was currently in progress (tip: get there in the morning to get on a tour).

Walking back the way we had come, we took the millennium bridge linking the Tate Modern to the original Tate Gallery (upon being built, it swayed so much that people got sick, and so it had to be rebuilt to reinforce the stability of it).

Arriving at the other bank of the Thames you have in front of you St Paul's Cathedral. Upon entering we caught part of a sermon which actually mentioned Harry Potter in it (a bonus for Celi!). We then made our way towards Holborn, walking along the roads and observing the buildings around us.

At this point, Celi had not complained at all about having walked too far, or being tired, so for the first time ever, I had to propose having a rest at a local pub outside of Paddington station! Is this a sign that I'm getting weak? Or maybe that she does enough walking around the streets of Paris, to rival my tours? I'll let you decide that one.

Of course, the other days she was here, we also went around Oxford, visiting some colleges, St Mary's Tower, and some of the local pubs.

Hopefully she'll remember the visit favourably (as we did) and come again soon...

(See all the photos here)

Knee Breaking Hills and Bavarian Weddings

A bit late in reporting, but just over a month ago (25th June), Martin and Sibylle got married in a lovely Bavarian village close to Wuerzburg called Castell (from the Faber-Castell pens fame). The weather may not have been playing ball during the weekend, but it stayed dry for the most part and a lovely day was had by all.

We also met up with the rest of Martin's family after a very long time, and were able to chat for a while with Ulrike.

The time around the wedding was spent visiting Wuerzburg with the newly married couple, going up to the palace in the bright sunshine and looking out over the city. We also managed a rushed lunch out on the ramparts (well, Kaesespaetzle for some of us, and cake for the rest).

And where does the knee-breaking hill come into this? Well, in order to get to the church one had to go up a pretty steep hill, which was appropriately named (the pub at the base of it also had the same name)...

So an enjoyable time was had by all, a lot of catch-up from the last decade or so, and a great occasion to do it at. So here's to a long and fruitful life together Martin & Sibylle !

Weddings, Reunions and lots of Food

So just came back from our trip to Italy, taking in the Adriatic coast in Bellaria, and the city delights in Bologna, meeting up with Luca, Laura, Giulia, Noelia, Ramsy, and Jorge, all from Erasmus years in Mainz.

The weather was of course very hot (more breeze at the coast of course) but Bologna's great arches provided enough shade to walk in. The food was, as always, impeccable. Great amounts of fish, shellfish and pasta were enjoyed, and of course, the local wine was savoured too.

The main reason for this trip, however, was the wedding of Giulia to Simone. This took place in a town high above Bologna with great views across the valley.

The church ceremony was the usual Italian affair (I'm told) with people standing up on pews and chairs to be able to catch a glimpse of the bride on her arrival. Inside it was actually very hot, but this was taken care of with the white fans that were provided to guests.

Then off to the villa where the celebrations were to take place, stopping by at Vale's to pick up our luggage. In the grounds of the villa there were tables set up as well as some marquees in case of bad weather. In fact there was a thunderstorm during the night, seemingly getting closer and closer, but all that was felt by us were 4 drops of rain.

You can imagine what the food was like. Well, maybe you can't, but it was amazing. Having a huge central Italian cheese to nibble off was definitely one of the highlights. The wedding cake took the form of an ice-cream cake (apparently very common in the summer in Italy). and afterwards the men were invited to change into their swimming trunks and wear braces (Giulia's idea - don't ask) and to brave the waters of the outside swimming pool. Considering it was by now 1am, you could imagine how cold the water was when you saw Giulia herself attempt to enter it, realised it was too cold, and jumped out again immediately.

Of course there was a lot of dancing going along too, and everybody had a roaring time. Even the baby in a pram outside managed to sleep through everything (something in the milk?).

So congratulations to Giulia and Simone, and may you have a healthy and enjoyable future together!

Mexican suitcases, decriminalising pianos, and wimbledon grunts

Slightly late round up this week, seeing as there were weddings, visits and generally a lot to do.

A Mexican has hit the record books as one of the most inventive escape attempts made from jail. He hid inside a suitcase that his girlfriend had brought in, and claimed to contain dirty laundry. The fact that she had trouble taking it out as it was so heavy, tipped the guards off, apparently.

With the 2012 Olympics hitting the news every other day, here's something that might need to get sorted out before the actual start of the event. On the online olympics store, they were selling a keyring with the union flag on it - done incorrectly. It begs belief that these sort of things can get so far before anyone notices...

Another piece of red tape created by the previous government, this time one not so much talked about. Apparently it has been illegal for bars, pubs, hotels to play pianos without paying a licence fee. Now a bill is going through the process to get this act revoked, and allow people to play musical instruments in public places without requiring an entertainment licence.

Now that Wimbledon is over, some of you are probably relaxing in the pure sound of outside birds with no more grunting sounds coming from the women players on court. Well, so that you can prepare for next year, there is now an application that allows you to turn down various aspects of the sound - including the grunting. Yes, you can remove it completely, or turn it up even, if you're into that sort of thing...

And finally, taking religious rules to the extreme, an Austrian man has claimed that having a pasta sieve on his head is his religious headgear, and so has had his driving licence photo taken with it on. And it was accepted. This must join the ranks of Health & Safety, and Political Correctness, and hopefully should get sorted out with some common sense soon.

Keep your hat on...

News snippets you could live without

German companies are moving over to advanced security in the workplace now. When in meetings that are of a secretive nature, they put a biscuit tin in the middle of the table and participants place their mobiles into it. Of course there is some scientific backing to this, but in order to make sure you don't trust something that isn't secure, The Register has done a test and found out for you which biscuit tins will work. Read it here now...

In Australia, a man has come up with a great business idea that is bound to make a profit. The government is giving out tax credits for people that reduce the output of greenhouse gases. As there are many camels around the area, he reckon that by eliminating them would cause a huge reduction in gases due to the reduced methane from lack of camel wind. Novel is definitely a word for it...

3D printing is slowly becoming a reality, and what better way to first use it, than to start 'printing' of your first bikini set. Yes, the scientists have concentrated on the things close to their hearts and produced 3D printable bras too. Rumours that pressing a button on your mobile will automatically undo them, are as yet unfounded...

In the US, a man is trying to get out of a series of charges made against him including drunk driving, and speeding, as he is claiming he was at the time having intimate relations (my words, not his) in the back seat at the time. Just how one can drive at that speed whilst under the influence and being busy in the back of a car has yet to be understood, but I'm sure it'd make the Guinness Book of Records...

And if you were appalled about the guy that sold his internal organs in order to get an iPad2, then you might find the latest financing attempt of a like mind. A young lady from China decided to auction off her first time to someone that would get her the latest iPhone. Apparently after finally getting the deed done she went to the store to find out there were no white ones left in stock...

So sit back and dream of the time when such stupidities did not exist, and people would sell off their sticks to have the latest fire-maker...

Jericho Street Fair and Communication Problems

On 11th June in Jericho, Oxford, the annual Jericho Street Fair took place.
Well, apparently this is the case. Getting there at 7pm there were just two tents up. One housing the band, and one the beer. I suppose it was a very efficient setup. Food stalls were also sparse, with a few lonely sausages on show at the Big Bang stand, and the scraps of leftovers of Asian food.

The music kept the crowd happy, and the beer was refreshing, but something was lacking.
That's when I heard the voice of Alessio (ok, he was calling my name) who had also turned up. We then headed off to the Gardener's Arms, where a hearty meal and a drink were consumed. So all in all it was worth the exploratory trip.

Waiting at the gate to depart from Heathrow knowing that the flight was already running late, I was looking out over a lovely sunny blue sky to be told over tannoy "We currently have another hour of delay. This is due to weather". It wasn't just me who looked out of the window with a frown on our faces. In a later announcement it was added "due to the weather in Frankfurt", which I duly checked on my phone to see that it was dry there too. After a good hour and a half we finally boarded and were underway, to be told by the captain that the delay was actually due to some work on the airport tower they had just finished, and apparently the staff weren't trained yet how to use it. Apart from the training part, the thing that really got me, was the fact that the communication was so bad that they each told us different stories.

Well, the bad weather did start this morning in Mainz, so maybe they were just 12 hours early with their forecast the night before...

Off tonight to casa del lobelto for a surprise dinner of je ne sais quoit. Let's hope the heavens don't break...

Wantage Wedding and Ali's German Vegetable Escape

Before the month of May was out, I had to venture back to Mainz. Despite the long hours in the office, a few hours were enjoyed each night with various friends: Carlitos, Ali, Diani and Jan.

The main event of this month has to be the italo-anglican wedding between Hannah and Diego on June 2nd. The celebrations were accompanied by the afropean choir, as well as some musical talent shown by the bride and groom themselves. Now off on their honeymoon, they are missing the miserable weather we are currently experiencing, which is very nicely planned on their part.

Germany has caused a bit of a furore by blaming an outbreak of E.coli on Spanish cucumbers. Straight away they banned Spanish vegetables, but apparently without any actual proof. After causing huge amount of suffering to the farmers in Spain it was announced that in fact they could have been mistaken, that it might actually have come from a bean sprout farm just south of Hamburg. So nothing like pointing the finger first and then actually trying to find the truth...

In fact, they still don't know for sure the real biological cause, but are merely following the pattern of the outbreak. I wonder whether the EU, EC or whatever body feels responsible here are actually going to act on this blatant shift of blame, to another country's detriment?
What if it was found that German cars caused large radiation doses in all passengers? With the same amount of investigation (all people with high radiation doses had ridden once in a German made automobile) maybe then they will feel the other end of lousy research and despicable marketing.

So, in order to escape the ban on vegetables, Ali came over to visit us again in Oxford. Unfortunately the weather didn't hold up for the trip to London and was a little wet, but visiting the food festival in Reading was nice and bright. Hopefully she left with some good memories too. Next time we can see more dinosaurs...

Enjoy your meat...

Flying History

Don't worry, I am not planning on giving you a long-winded story on the history of flying from the Wright brothers to the Space shuttle, although I might keep that for later on :)

A couple of weekends ago the Abingdon Air and Country Show took place. There must have been a good few thousand visitors there, with many stands selling home made marmalade, chutney, cider, as well as games to play. Of course, the main attraction was in the air. Paratroopers, biplanes, trainers and gliders were all present, but the thing everybody wanted to see was of course the Vulcan. This is the last flying one around, yet is still able to impress. It's silence and near invisibility whilst coming towards you turns into a rip-roaring ringing of your ears as it speeds away overhead. Definitely something to be experienced !

The weekend after it was time for Hannah and Diego to celebrate before they tie the knot. So appropriately there was a Han-do for the girls and a stag-do for the boys (+Nina). Great fun was had by all involved, with few people waking up early the next morning...

This weekend saw a surprise visit from Will who was up in Oxford on Saturday. A brief visit to the Turf Tavern was duly rewarded with thirst-quenching beverages. Last time this place was visited was at new year with Luigi, Roberto and Ali. Unfortunately it was closed then. I can confirm that it is as good as it looked though :)

Well, the weather isn't quite sure what it's doing, with very gusty winds shooting the clouds across the skies. When the sun becomes unhidden though the temperature goes up dramatically. Let's hope the icelandic volcano eruption doesn't combine with these winds though - could become unpredictable.

So, keep your hat on...

Wallingford Walks, Oxford Colleges, Cambridge Duke & Duchess

With Maria over here visiting us, a few touristy things were in order. In Oxford, a few colleges were actually open and so we took the chance to go around them. Merton provided us with some interesting quads, whereas Lincoln will be remembered for being completely green (and that's not just the lawns).

A day trip to Wallingford was also organised (Agatha Christie area). Although we didn't see any murder mysteries going on, we did have a lovely walk around the old castle gardens and meadows (you probably saw the photos on the right hand side of the page) before getting the bus back to Oxford.

The Royal Wedding on April 29th 2011 was not seen in London by us. Not too keen on the 4am start people were having to make to be able to share a push and shove with other people trying to get a photo. We did set up the TV to record the whole day (just in case), but decided to head off to Blenheim Palace for their big screen showing on their south lawn, picnicking with the other families, cheering and waving flags. They also had a jousting competition and some falconry, which was great after the main event had finished with "I do".

All in all, a very busy weekend, and the weather held out marvelously for it...

Royal Wedding and Birthday Celebrations

There might be a little fuss going on around here at the moment. Something to do with a royal wedding maybe? Basically you can't switch on the TV, radio, open a paper or go into a shop without coming into contact with this royal event. So where are you going to be for it? At a street party? In London outside the palace? Glued to the front of the TV with the other 2 billion people? Why not let me know through the new poll on this subject...

Today is he day before the wedding, but is just as important (if not more so). It's Olga's birthday ! Yes, not mentioning her age, but she celebrates a new year today and we hope to celebrate it accordingly later on when she gets back from work. Happy Birthday !! :)

So, a bit of a short post today as also need to prepare for Maria's visit, and still need to clean the place...

Statistics is not all boring maths

...it can be physics too :)

So, I thought you might like to hear a bit about who's been visiting this site, and what they're doing on it.

First off comments. These are the things you can leave at the bottom of the posts to express your opinion. It seems there have only been 3 comments so far, done by two different people. So now you know how they work, why not go ahead and say something (nothing obnoxious though please).

Next to the button for posting comments, there are icons for emailing the post to someone, tweeting it to your followers, or posting it on your wall in facebook. So why not give it a go and help spread the word, you can look all Web2.0ey as well and impress your peers.

The polls don't seem to be going down too well, only a couple of participants over the last 4 polls makes me wonder if it's worthwhile continuing with them. So how about writing a comment below to tell me if you want them kept?

Since moving over to the new site (back in August 2010) we have been having more visitors nearly every month. In fact, April has the highest hits yet!

Regarding the most popular posts, currently one from 2009 has the most hits (I'm not going to say which one, as I prefer you to visit the new ones). All the later ones have actually a quite low amount of visits, although this might be because until now, the links that I posted were to the site in general and not to specific post.

Referral sites have google doing it's bit at the top, followed by facebook, then nbgecko, stupidforce, anathemaesto, nuestrobarcodecolegas and lajirafitarayada. Thanks for your support!

The majority of you seem to be using Firefox now with IE reducing each month. Mobile browsers are also being used more frequently. Windows is installed on just over 60% of visitor's computers, although linux variants are gaining.

This month the UK is top of the country list, with Germany, USA, Russia, Belgium (thanks Jordi), Netherlands (must be Bas), Spain, Colombia, Latvia, Georgia, Ukraine, Singapore, Cambodia and Iran (?).

So from all these statistics I can tell that me readership is so out of the ordinary, that there's no typical reader !

Circolombia, Persian Paddington, Midnight Tango

With no visitors around last weekend, we went out to The Roundhouse in Camden to see an amazing production from Circolombia called Urban. The stunts were stunning, and the show is really worth visiting if you get a chance, the performers taking part being disadvantaged young people from Colombia.

Whilst in London we wanted an early dinner before catching the train back to Oxford. It was news to me that around Paddington there are a lot of Persian restaurants and shops, but not one to shy from new experiences, we entered an Iraqi, Persian and Kurdish restaurant called Valentino. We can definitely recommend many of these dishes. We tried the mixed starters, which really were tasty, and for mains tried the meat platter, lamb shanks, spinach stew and mixed pulses stew. We were definitely well fed at this chance visit, and will return.

After taking Tango lessons back in Mainz last year, we were missing it a bit. So when we heard that a show was coming to Oxford based on this dance and with a storyline, we thought we better give it a try. so off we went to see Midnight Tango. We were probably the only ones not knowing who Flavia was (UK TV didn't really make it over to Germany) but that didn't matter. Most of the tunes we had heard and danced to were played here, and the variety of dancing on the stage really was spectacular. What a way to get back into the spirit, now let's google tango courses in oxford...

What a cultural time !

London Tour #1

Is far from the first tour I've done around London, but it is the first one I've decided to write down for other people to try out, so here goes:

Time Needed:: 1/2 Day
Best Time to Start: 11am
Weather Required: Dry, sunshine best
Starting Point: Covent Garden Tube Station
Tickets Required: Zones 1 & 2

When arriving at Covent Garden Tube Station by tube, make your way up the 193 steps to street level (be aware this is not for the faint hearted).
Exit to the right and head down to Covent Garden Covered Market.
Here you can enjoy the architecture of the market (both inside and out), watch solo artists perform inside (this time there was an opera singer) as well as outside (jugglers, magicians), see great food dishes being prepared (two huge paellas were being cooked) and wander around the different stalls and shops.

Once hunger is no longer ignorable, make your way back up towards Covent Garden Tube Station, but turn right at the road before you get there. You will see the Bridge of Aspiration twirling across the road linking the two buildings together. Head underneath this, past the Ballet school, and on your left will be The Masala Zone. Have lunch at this great Indian restaurant (try the Thali plate of assorted flavours) to get back your stamina for the next part of the tour.

Now head back to the tube station you arrived at. If you are feeling up to it, take the stairs going down (be warned, this is more strenuous on the back of your legs than climbing up them), Go down on the piccadilly line (the purple one) towards Heathrow Airport and get off at Green Park. Here you need to change onto the jubilee line, towards Stratford/Greenwich. Get off at Canary Wharf.

Canary Wharf is a very modern area of the London Docks, with high glass buildings housing some of the country's most influential financial institutions. You need to head along the road following the signs for the DLR (Docklands Light Railway).

Go up to the platform for the DLR going towards Lewisham/Greenwich. Get in the back of the train if there are spare seats (there is no driver), as the train will leave the way it entered.
Traveling higher than street level is great for looking around this area, especially with the sun reflecting off the buildings and water. Leave the train at Island Gardens and walk towards the river. Here you have a lovely view across the Thames to Greenwich (pronounced Grenich) on the other side.

Now go into the circular building and go down the stairs into the tunnel (not as many stairs as Covent Garden tube). Walking along the tunnel just think of the amount of water flowing above you with a few feet of solid concrete and metal between you...

When you get out at the other side, you are in Greenwich. Follow the road, and the signs, into the town centre and towards the observatory. When you reach the entrance to the park, walk along the right hand path enjoying the green grass and the people relaxing. You will see a steep incline on the right hand side, which you should go up. Once you reach the top, you deserve a sit down on one of the benches overlooking the town. From here you can see the Millenium Dome, the town of Greenwich, and in the distance Canary Wharf.

Once you've relaxed a little, go down the path you just came up, and follow the path to the right to go up the other hill (it has steps). At the top of here you will find the Greenwich Observatory, which is where the GMT line can be found (look through the railings if you don't want to enter).

Once you've maybe looked around the observatory, head back down through the park to the gates that you arrived at. Now is the time to make up for those walks, and head into one of the pubs for a local ale, and maybe a bite to eat.

Once you have finished, you can get the DLR to Canary Wharf (straight from Greenwich, no need to walk under the tunnel again - sorry, did I forget to mention that?), and the tube to where you want to carry on to.

Scannable Zebras, Controversial Stamps, The Germans Are Coming

Finally, what life has been lacking since the invention of the barcode scanner has become reality. Yes, you can now find the price of zebras (or verify it's the same one) as scientists in Chicago and Princeton have developed a zebra scanner !

You can get a tea-towel, mug, t-shirt, and of course, stamps to celebrate the upcoming Royal Wedding. However, what you might not have been expecting were the New Zealand stamps that allow you to tear Kate and William apart. Not the most diplomatic of moves...

The weekend also saw Christiane come over and visit. Walking around Oxford, visiting Magdalen College (pronounced maudlin), topping up at the old sweet shop, and of course, having lunch at Jamie's. The weather also played along with some nice sun and reasonable temperatures. A trip was also made to London, details of which will follow in my forthcoming London Trips guide. All in all, a great weekend !

Of course, you can see the photos from these trips over on the right hand side of this blog, where you can confirm the good weather yourself :)

Sit back, relax and listen

It has come to my attention through one of the few comments left behind by visitors to this site, that since the change of style, content and location, some of you were actually hoping for a more comparative study of the differences between living in Oxford and living in Mainz (thanks, Carlitos).

One reason this has been left out so far, is the fact that I am not exactly unbiased, and wouldn't want to offend too many people. But then again, since when has that stopped me?

So without further ado, I will include a couple of comparisons, and try to keep them in the future posts.

First up, Sundays. In Mainz these mostly consisted of walking down to the river and then walking back, as long as the weather was good. Otherwise they would be spent at home wondering when the rain was going to stop. Here the forgotten shopping gets done at the supermarket, cycle trips to local villages for a pub lunch, trips into Oxford to see the current festivals (this weekend is the chocolate festival and the Oxford Literary Festival), and we haven't even ventured over to the river yet...

Another comparison would be the food. I know that lots of people have pretty bad ideas of English cuisine, whether through the school exchange family only feeding them fast food, or the many articles (Daily Mail-esque) and TV programmes showing some dysfunctional family feeding their kids burgers, frozen fries and ketchup (Jamie Oliver is of course doing a good job of changing the TV-watcher's impression of English food). Of course there are people that do live like this, but that is the case in any country, and if you don't move in those circles, you won't experience that here either.

So what does one typically do for food over here? Well, typically is a difficult concept. Meat is a popular foodstuff bought at the butchers or local supermarket. And unlike Germany's choices of pork and chicken, we have a huge selection of beef and lamb too. It's not just the selection, but the quality as well. Last weekend I spoke to a lady from Spain who was selling tapas, and her husband who was from Germany and grilling meat, and they both said that they were amazed by the quality of the meat over here. The husband was astounded to see the cows moving freely in an open field, get slaughtered and the meat packed up for the supermarkets whilst it is still warm. As opposed to the cows being stuck in cages and it being days before their meat is actually shipped off to anywhere to be packed, which he was used to back home.

Of course I could go on for ages on the food subject, but I think this might start to bore you, my beloved reader. So maybe I should just give some examples of what we have eaten, and where we have been (it's not all pork and potatoes here...).

If you're not convinced, photos will surely follow...

Moving along

What a week! Seeing The Canterbury Tales at the local theatre (very amusing), cycling around Yarnton (keeping fit), and enjoying the sunshine. It definitely looks like summer is on it's way...

From an administrative view, I have taken the time limits off the polls on the right of this blog, so that if you didn't happen to read it within a week of being published (why not?) you can still cast your vote ! They now default to a whole year.

Also you will see the ability to follow new posts by email, just fill in your email address and let the blog come to you.

A new section has also been created to keep you up to date on mobile apps of interest. At the moment they link to the owner's own page, but in time they will point to my reviews of the one's I have installed and tried out.

And for those of you wanting to know how many other people have been viewing this site recently, there is now a number and small graphic depicting the number of visitors over the last 7 days.

Monday saw a surprise visit from Martin and Sybille as they decided to go for a quick trip from Wuerzburg to London via Oxford. It was great to catch up with them after so long and to hear their amazing news. Now for the preparations...

This weekend sees Broad Street taken up with the chocolate festival, which should be great for lent...

Last but not least, who could forget that today is Diego's birthday ! Why not go onto facebook and send him your wishes.

Stop counting those calories...

Flatulant Dentists, Takeaway Jobs Ban and Gardening Vice

Straight onto the news today. A dentist has been reprimanded after coworkers and patients complaining about him breaking wind. Apparently he found liked to do it whilst his employees were on lunch break. Although the case is being judged by the medical council, I think it might be an interesting prospect if he was put in a cell for a few days. I'm sure his habit would stop pretty quickly then...

According to our friend Hugo (not Victor, Chavez), capitalism killed the martians. Yes, he must have kept hidden some compelling evidence to come up with that one. Maybe it's stored in the same place as the proof that the big bang was a western attempt at taking over Venezuela?

In a blow to cheap takeaways filling up our streets, the government has prohibited migrants from outside the EEA coming to the UK in order to work in takeaways. Yes, no longer will the server of your kebab or vindaloo be a person of non-EEA descent, just the food itself...

On that same theme, police are looking for an 18kg stick of kebab meat that was stolen from a takeaway in Trowbridge. If you see someone walking around the city with a huge piece of meat under their clothes, you might be sensible not to get too close, especially when it starts defrosting...

Visitors to Hamburg will soon be able to travel directly from the Garden Show grounds to the Reeperbahn via cable car if plans go ahead. No longer will you be forced to wander around watching meaningless flowers all day, but hop on to the cable car telling your wife you'll meet up with her in a couple of hours...

On a sad note, the BBC Caribbean radio service has been stopped due to funding cuts. Let's hope someone high up realises the effect this will have on independent news service in this region, and will relaunch it soon.

If you thought that the defense cuts that took place in the UK were a good way of saving money, you might want to read this article which discusses the role of the UK military in Libya, and the effects the choices in the cuts have meant to our ability to play any military role in the future. Seems a pretty compelling point of view...

And if you are filling in your census forms on the 27th March, before you have fun writing down Jedi as your religion etc, you might want to pause for a moment over the words "your data is protected for 100 years". This used to be the case, indeed the data from the census 100 years ago is now available for perusal. But, there was not a labour government around then who was whittling away all privacy of the population. Laws that came into effect after the previous labour government lost the election, and before the new coalition came in, mean that although your data COULD be kept private for 100 years, it is not guaranteed to be so. In fact, the list of the people who can use and pass on this data is nearly as astounding as how little chance you have to know what has been passed o to whom. Hopefully someone in this government is listening and wants to take up the case to reverse some of these privacy-stealing laws...

Now where is my Guy Fawkes mask?...

When the Cure is worse than the Problem

As men get older, they start to worry about losing their hair (especially it seems, if they are of Valencian descent). Many resort to medical treatments to try and get that fluffy stuff back up on the coconut, sometimes with success. However it has now been claimed that the chemicals used for these treatments have actually been found to cause the user to become impotent. Yes, before you spray, maybe it's worth considering the consequences fully...

Ever wonder why some languages have held on, despite all the odds, then an interesting piece of research has been published, claiming there is a mathematical formula to work out if a language will survive living alongside another more prominent one. Maybe that will make the welsh feel safe again...

Now for those of you who are fans of Jamie Oliver. On his website he is currently offering free recipe books in return for filling in a short survey. Go on, tell him what you think !

Another great saver for those of you with Thames Water. They are currently giving away some fancy shower heads, plus other water saving devices. Just fill in your details here and you'll be sent them through the post. No cheaper way to save money...

Despite only one entry in the last poll, I persevere and have made a few changes to the site to hopefully make it more appealing to you. Gone is the Google AdWords bar, as well as the Amazon search widgets. Nobody was using them, so I presume nobody will miss them. The polls were becoming a bit difficult to read in a half-width column, so I have now made them full-width. Hope you approve.

Talking of polls, this week's is asking whether there should be a section to list the current special offers I think you will be interested in? At the moment they have mentioned in the blog posts individually, but if you skim-read (why? surely the content is worth reading in it's entirety?) you might not have realised that you could be saving money, receiving free things, or having a cheap holiday. As a taster I will put it in already, and you can let me know what you think (more detailed feedback can always be written in a comment).

Get voting !

Murcian Visits, Palacial Deals, and Thrice Uncle

Last weekend saw murcian Ali come and visit us in Oxford. We had a full program organised, so no sooner had she got off the bus, we set off to Bicester Village, the famous high class shopping outlets. Of course despite the 70% discounts, many of the products are still in a league of their own. No sooner had we found a good selection of jackets for Ali, than the price tags of over 400 pounds came into view. But it makes for a great excursion if you leave your credit card at home.

A cup-cake fair for neighbour Kate's London Marathon run to raise money for St. John Ambulance was also supported, coming away with a box selection of them for later :)

A trip down to London was also in order, meeting up with Andres and heading off for Camden Town. Despite it being a Sunday, this place was heaving, as always, and it really made for a lively atmosphere whilst wandering around the markets. We didn't find the Arepa&Co stall, but were filled up with the huge plates of Chinese food that were mixed for us. We made our way through the clothes, food and chucherias, and headed back towards the City. Buckingham Palace was passed, as well as a leisurely walk through the park until we got to Westminster to take a look at the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben's tower (we didn't visit Little Ben) and then went off to Chinatown via Leicester Square, stopping for a cup of tea and piece of cake. Wow, what a full day that was!

The sun came out on Monday, which is why it was perfect for a visit to Woodstock (England, not the festival in the US). After a filling late lunch at one of the local pubs we visited Blenheim Palace (where, incidentally, they currently give you a free annual pass when you buy an entry ticket). The history of Sir Winston Churchill, plus of the palace itself makes for a very entertaining tour of the building. Of course the grounds are also quite amazing, so we'll be using that annual pass to have a picnic in the summer.

There have of course been many birthdays in between posts, including those of Jordi, Lourdes, and Javi. Felicidades to you all !

And to top off the week, it seems I have become an uncle for the third time. Welcome to the world, Mary-Jane !

The Non-Carnival Planner

In Barranquilla they're singing curramba whilst dancing in the sun, in Mainz they're shouting Helau! whilst marching through the streets, and here we're not doing anything of the sort. Yes, londoners like to celebrate carnival too, but aren't as mad as the Rhinelanders, and decide to celebrate in August when it's nice and hot (relatively speaking).

Further to the mention in my last post about the breast milk ice cream, it appears the police have now stopped the sale of these products pending further investigation.

The Panama Canal took a long time to build, many were killed through disease whilst building, and everything that could have gone wrong did. But now there might be an alternative in the pipeline. Colombia is apparently in talks with China to build an alternative passage from the Pacific to the Atlantic. It will be interesting to see how the planning comes along, and if as many problems occur. Let's just hope it doesn't have as many leaks as the Yangtse Dam did when it was finished...

And this week a call goes out to Carlitos who is off visiting Luigi in Paris. Let the Louvre be warned...

On a final note, you have just 12 hours to vote in the latest poll on this page...