I had intended to try to a post every month for November (as per previous years) but for reasons that still remain unclear, every time I tried to create a new post the screen froze on "loading" and no matter what I did it steadfastly refused to allow anything to be drafted. But we are back now so I had better get cracking in case computer starts to say "no" again!
My last post was in July so I guess the starting point is our Summer holidays - particulaly hectic this year. We had gone back to London for a few days to sort A.'s passport out in early July and had a lovely time in and around Kew Gardens. After retuning to Dubai for a few weeks (the kids and E stayed in Bristol) I came back to UK and headed to Bristol where E's parents were settling into their new house and we all flew off to Spain where we had a great week in L'Escala staying at a nice place about 15 minutes from the beach and a short drive from my Sister's place where they were staying at the same time so plenty of BBQ's and lazy mornings drinking coffe overlooking the kids playing on the beach.
We then went back to Bristol for a few days before heading off to Ireland - first stop my Cousin's house in Killarney. We were only there for 3/4 days but managed to visit - in the pouring rain - an undergound cave with ancient stalagmites and tites. We also took a trip to Valencia island (great lunch of crab claws salad in a little cafe overlooking the harbour) along the Dingle peninsula (lovely part of the world) and we also learned all about the Skelligs - it was a beautiful day so we were also able to see them off shore as well as visiting the aquarium in Dingle itself. We also had time for the traditonal day of surfing at Inch(which the kids enjoyed although the Atlantic waters were rather colder than they are used to...).
After Killarney we drove down to Castletownbere where we met up with the America/London/Cork based cousins at Mary Etnas (and went to the sheep racing held by the Adrigole GAA - not to be missed) and then on to Castletownbere where we met up with Kevin S and various other cousins. Spent a great day at the regatta (by a miracle the sun shone as it had two years ago the last time we had been to the regatta) and we had a great time catching up, pottering around on K.s boat and enjoying the guiness in McCarthys.
We then headed back to Bristol and then on to Maidsotne for the last part of the holiday with Dad and M and B before I returned to Dubai followed by E and the kids a week or so later (due to on-going dental issues with V.).
A busy Summer!
Stats
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Hither and Thither
Just back from the second of two trips back to the UK following my return from HK. Both times the weather was absolutely splendid - London definitely looks at its best in the sunshine. For various reasons I flew with the three main carriers from Dubai back to the UK - Emirates, BA and Virgin - for BA and Virgin I was in the premium economy (PE) cabins. It is quite interesting to compare the three airlines. Emirates remains by far the best in terms of all round service, quality of food and plane etc. (even though it was economy, the seat pitches were not significantly less than the PE seats on the other carriers). Virgin provided a welcoming glass of sparkling wine but apart from that it did not seem noticeably different (apart from the legroom) than their economy offering. Even though it was a 777, the BA plane's entertainment system seemd quite old fashioned when compared with Emirates and Virgin. However, BA did provide some fancy earphones.
I suspect that next time I will probably stick with EMirates unless I had to fly economy rather than PE.
Did quite a lot of driving up and done the M4 for the last trip as we had to get A's passport renewed so we had a night in London staying at the Moran Hotel in Chiswick - nightmare to reach from the M4 (traffic at the Chiswick roundabout on Sunday afternoon was terrible) but pretty convenient to get into Victoria for the passport office and also to go to Kew Gardens where we spent a lovely afternoon potterng aroung the grounds (the kids were particulaly taken with the rowing throught the "Tutti Fruitti" groto on the boating lake - special glasses and banana smells made the experience rather surreal.
We also had a trip around the Tower of London - V. insisted on queuing for the crown jewels so we were all exhausted (although to be fair the queue whilst seemingly interminably long did move reasaonbly quickly) by the time we had returned to pick up the car (now rather dented following an unfortunate altercation with a pillar in the carpark after Saturday's scrapping incident in Bristol...).
Now back in Dubai in time for Ramadan before heading abck to UK for my main hols in a couple of weeks.
I suspect that next time I will probably stick with EMirates unless I had to fly economy rather than PE.
Did quite a lot of driving up and done the M4 for the last trip as we had to get A's passport renewed so we had a night in London staying at the Moran Hotel in Chiswick - nightmare to reach from the M4 (traffic at the Chiswick roundabout on Sunday afternoon was terrible) but pretty convenient to get into Victoria for the passport office and also to go to Kew Gardens where we spent a lovely afternoon potterng aroung the grounds (the kids were particulaly taken with the rowing throught the "Tutti Fruitti" groto on the boating lake - special glasses and banana smells made the experience rather surreal.
We also had a trip around the Tower of London - V. insisted on queuing for the crown jewels so we were all exhausted (although to be fair the queue whilst seemingly interminably long did move reasaonbly quickly) by the time we had returned to pick up the car (now rather dented following an unfortunate altercation with a pillar in the carpark after Saturday's scrapping incident in Bristol...).
Now back in Dubai in time for Ramadan before heading abck to UK for my main hols in a couple of weeks.
Bonkers in Honkers (Part 6)
After the rather late night last night we had a very quiet day today - again heading off to Stanley for breakfast at Rolf's and then on to Shek O to take advantage of the beautiful weather. If anything the beach was even more crowded than yesterday. After a relaxing couple of hours sunning ourselves we headed back to the Hotel for a quick change into our travel clothes and then headed off to the airport for our flights back. Whilst there were a couple of Lions shirts to be spotted (catching flights on to Oz) we were sharing our flight back to the Middle East with the London Scottish ruby team who had apparantly beeen touring in HK.
The flight back was uneventful and we were back home by around 11:30pm. All in all a really fabulous trip.
The flight back was uneventful and we were back home by around 11:30pm. All in all a really fabulous trip.
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Bonkers in Honkers (Part 5)
The day of the big game dawns bright (but not so early after our visit to Stanley last night..) and we travel back to Stanley for the "classic" breakfast at Rolf's (Spyagia) down on Main Street. Then onto Shek O again by taxi as it is another fantasticaly clear day. By the time we arrive (just before Noon) it is alrady very crowded and after the umbrella ladies have worked their magic we are happily reclining in our deckchairs surrounded by what appears to be most of the population of HK. I swam out to the pontoon and the view back to the beach clearly showed how crowded it had become with very little sand visible between the arrayed sun-worshippers.
Having had such a massive breakfast we did not bother with lunch and headed back to the Hotel at around 4pm in order to get ready for the evenings entertainment. After a quick shower and change of clothes our next challenge was to find a taxi to the Hong Kong Stadium.
In theory we could have walked it in around 25 minutes. It was however over 75degress and the humidity made such a plan very unattractive. However, on a Saturday afternoon taxis were plentiful but fully booked no matter where we stood and waited (at the hotel, out on Wong Nai Chung Road and then at the bottom of Stubbs Road). A couple of taxis stopped and the occupants offered a lift - but only had space for one until one chap kindly gave us a lift in his cab to a nearby restuarant where he was meeting a friend to walk on to the Stadium and let us have his cab thereafter. It turned out (small world) that he knew a former colleague of mine in London. In any event, we arrvied at the Stadium in good time to enjoy a pint of beer, buy some Lions shirts and then take our seats high in the stand amongst a sea of red (Dad and I were also wearing our newly acquired shirts although they were not really suitable for the sub-tropical heat and humidity of HK - we certianly felt hot and sweaty up in the stands - goodness knows what the players must have been feeling at pitch side!).
The match was keenly fought albeit with frequent water breaks. Given the temperature and humidity the players certainly made a huge effort (including Mr Farrell who ended up getting involved in some fisticuffs with a South African clubmate). The Lions were deserved winners although the extent to which this provided a menaningful prelude to a tour of Austrlai in Winter is somewhat debatable. Neverthe less the corwd (c.29,000) certainly enjoyed it and we made many friends (including a bunch from Austalira celebrating a 50th birthday of one of their number - they had sponsorship and everything!)with fellow Lions travellers as we all made our way towards the post-match celebrations in the direction of the Casueway Bay an Wanchai.
Predictably Wanchai was heaving and after a couple of drinks dad and J headed home and I caught up with some old friends. I go t abck at arpudn Midnight and J was still at the Hotel bar and in consequence we decided on a night cap which ended up being one of many as various Lions supporters trcieled in from the vairous bars and joined us for a few drinks (including a chap from Nepal who seemed to ahve used the Lions tour as an excuse for a medical safari which included various check ups en route).
Having had such a massive breakfast we did not bother with lunch and headed back to the Hotel at around 4pm in order to get ready for the evenings entertainment. After a quick shower and change of clothes our next challenge was to find a taxi to the Hong Kong Stadium.
In theory we could have walked it in around 25 minutes. It was however over 75degress and the humidity made such a plan very unattractive. However, on a Saturday afternoon taxis were plentiful but fully booked no matter where we stood and waited (at the hotel, out on Wong Nai Chung Road and then at the bottom of Stubbs Road). A couple of taxis stopped and the occupants offered a lift - but only had space for one until one chap kindly gave us a lift in his cab to a nearby restuarant where he was meeting a friend to walk on to the Stadium and let us have his cab thereafter. It turned out (small world) that he knew a former colleague of mine in London. In any event, we arrvied at the Stadium in good time to enjoy a pint of beer, buy some Lions shirts and then take our seats high in the stand amongst a sea of red (Dad and I were also wearing our newly acquired shirts although they were not really suitable for the sub-tropical heat and humidity of HK - we certianly felt hot and sweaty up in the stands - goodness knows what the players must have been feeling at pitch side!).
The match was keenly fought albeit with frequent water breaks. Given the temperature and humidity the players certainly made a huge effort (including Mr Farrell who ended up getting involved in some fisticuffs with a South African clubmate). The Lions were deserved winners although the extent to which this provided a menaningful prelude to a tour of Austrlai in Winter is somewhat debatable. Neverthe less the corwd (c.29,000) certainly enjoyed it and we made many friends (including a bunch from Austalira celebrating a 50th birthday of one of their number - they had sponsorship and everything!)with fellow Lions travellers as we all made our way towards the post-match celebrations in the direction of the Casueway Bay an Wanchai.
Predictably Wanchai was heaving and after a couple of drinks dad and J headed home and I caught up with some old friends. I go t abck at arpudn Midnight and J was still at the Hotel bar and in consequence we decided on a night cap which ended up being one of many as various Lions supporters trcieled in from the vairous bars and joined us for a few drinks (including a chap from Nepal who seemed to ahve used the Lions tour as an excuse for a medical safari which included various check ups en route).
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Bonkers in Honkers (Part 4)
Up at 9am to find breakfast. We decided to walk to the parade of shops/pubs/restaurants in Happy Valley beind the race track gievn taht it was such a pleasant (albeit slightly warm) and sunny morning. Unfortuantley the Jockey and the Stable which I had in mind would probably do breakfast were both still closed so we ended up at a pub which I recalled visiting ater the 7s one year - cannot now remember its name and had a full English breakfast.
Given that it was such a beautiful day we decided afterwards to take the bus to Stanley again and then head on over to Shek O beach. Having collected our trunks from the hotel we caught the No. 6 bus which took us over the top of the Island (again fabulously clear views as we travelled down Repulse Bay Road). We then picked up a cab from Stanley Plaza to take us around the penisular to Shek O. This is a lovely drive as you are moving along the other side of Tai Tam Bay from where we used to live and can see Red Hill, Pacific View and Stanley in all its glory.
We got to the beach at around noon and the "deckchair ladies" in their large hats sorted us out some shade and places to sit (HK$90 for a deckchair and an umbrella - and she will install it all for you!). Despite the blazing sunshine I have never seen these ladies wear anything other than long trousers/jeans and full length shirts - they must get extraordinarily hot!
Shek O beach is set in a bay with cliffs at either end and a wide sandy beach dotted with lifeguard platforms. The car park adjoins the beach (and is usually extremley chaotic) and there are various small kosks and restaurants on one dside of the car park selling food, soft drinks and beach toys. There is one road in to Shek O (past a very exclusive golf course) and there is a lovely art deco bus station just as you get into the village. On weekends its gets very crowded as it provides easier beach access than the neighbouring beach up the road at Big Wave Bay.
We had a very lazy afternoon sunbathing and swimming (the water a little cooler than Dubai) and J and I bought some chips and samosa from one of the little kiosks in the car park for lunch.
I left Dad and J on the beach later in the afternoon and headed back to the Hotel to get changed and then on to the tailors to pick up my new suit. I then headed over to the office to meet up with some of my former colleagues for a few drinks. I ended up going for drink with N at The Junk in Wanchai where we ran into one of the many old style consultants (MB) who appear to have been in Hong Kong forever.
I then headed back to Stanley where I met up with Dad and J at Spyagio on Main Street where I had one of Rolf's famous tenderlion steaks. Rolf is another character who seems to have been in HK forever. Originally from Austria he used to manage a large hotel before coming to Stanley and making Main Street his home (he used to operate the restaurant Main Street before moving to the end of the road taking the chef with him). We then went for a couple of beers in Smugglers - another part of the HK environment that never seems to change (- still as seedy as ever!) and then headed back to the Hotel for a final beer and then to bed.
Given that it was such a beautiful day we decided afterwards to take the bus to Stanley again and then head on over to Shek O beach. Having collected our trunks from the hotel we caught the No. 6 bus which took us over the top of the Island (again fabulously clear views as we travelled down Repulse Bay Road). We then picked up a cab from Stanley Plaza to take us around the penisular to Shek O. This is a lovely drive as you are moving along the other side of Tai Tam Bay from where we used to live and can see Red Hill, Pacific View and Stanley in all its glory.
We got to the beach at around noon and the "deckchair ladies" in their large hats sorted us out some shade and places to sit (HK$90 for a deckchair and an umbrella - and she will install it all for you!). Despite the blazing sunshine I have never seen these ladies wear anything other than long trousers/jeans and full length shirts - they must get extraordinarily hot!
Shek O beach is set in a bay with cliffs at either end and a wide sandy beach dotted with lifeguard platforms. The car park adjoins the beach (and is usually extremley chaotic) and there are various small kosks and restaurants on one dside of the car park selling food, soft drinks and beach toys. There is one road in to Shek O (past a very exclusive golf course) and there is a lovely art deco bus station just as you get into the village. On weekends its gets very crowded as it provides easier beach access than the neighbouring beach up the road at Big Wave Bay.
We had a very lazy afternoon sunbathing and swimming (the water a little cooler than Dubai) and J and I bought some chips and samosa from one of the little kiosks in the car park for lunch.
I left Dad and J on the beach later in the afternoon and headed back to the Hotel to get changed and then on to the tailors to pick up my new suit. I then headed over to the office to meet up with some of my former colleagues for a few drinks. I ended up going for drink with N at The Junk in Wanchai where we ran into one of the many old style consultants (MB) who appear to have been in Hong Kong forever.
I then headed back to Stanley where I met up with Dad and J at Spyagio on Main Street where I had one of Rolf's famous tenderlion steaks. Rolf is another character who seems to have been in HK forever. Originally from Austria he used to manage a large hotel before coming to Stanley and making Main Street his home (he used to operate the restaurant Main Street before moving to the end of the road taking the chef with him). We then went for a couple of beers in Smugglers - another part of the HK environment that never seems to change (- still as seedy as ever!) and then headed back to the Hotel for a final beer and then to bed.
Monday, June 10, 2013
Bonkers in Honkers (Part 3)
A very quiet start to the day after the excitement of the night before commencing with a visit to the office to pick up my asiamiles vouchers for the turbojet to Macua. I had a chat to some of my colleagues and promised to join them for a drink tomorrow evening. We then headed off to the ferry terminal (on HK Island)and swooped my redeemed asiamiles for three return tickets to Macau.
The Turboject is a catamaran which heads off to Macua every 15 minutes or so during the day for the 1 hour trip down the Pearl River Delta to the former Portuguese enclave. I used to visit Macau fairly regulaly when based in HK and it always provided a welcome contrast to the hustle and bustle of its bigger brother. These days Macau is very much about the huge casinos which have been built over the last 5 years or so (Venetian, etc.). However, it still has some of the old world charm of the rather sleepy town left by the Portuguese and our first port of call was to the expat mainstay Fernandos on Coloanne Island. Macau itself is a series of Islands linked to the mainland by huge bridges that stretch over the Peal River and Fenandos is around a 30/40 minute taxi journey froom the ferry which takes you over one of the many bridges and past the airport to the forests and bays of the Island. We also went past the Westin Hotel - a rather old-fashioned and (in contrast to the opulent new casino-hotels we passed on the way) rather dated looking member of the Starwood group.
We arrived at the tail end of lunch time so were easily able to get a table (no booking allowed and generally a wait during peak periods). Fernandos started life as a beach hut diner next to Coloanne beach and was established (it is said) by a former chef at the Lisboa HOtel. I am not sure if that is correct but nevertheless a trip to Fernandos was always a popoular part of the itinerary whenever we came to Macau and it did not disappoint. We all had crab in a pot - a sort of hotpot with a whole crab and various herbs and vegetables cooked in a superb sauce. It must have taken a good couple of hours to eat - trying to break into the crab (and avoiding burning ones mouth on the suace which remined piping hot throughout the meal) was part of the fun but did take up some time. The bread accompnaying the meal (and the Portuguese wine) was superb and we were very replete when we eventually finished!
We had a brief wander along the beach and then headed to the old town where we pottered around some of the churches and the ruins of St Pauls before heading back to the ferry terminal for the trip home.
Despite the huge late afternoon meal, we decided to go for a quick drink in the evening and ended up at the Darby - just along the road from the Hotel where we did a few quiz questions and managed to eat some samosas and potatoe skins.
The Turboject is a catamaran which heads off to Macua every 15 minutes or so during the day for the 1 hour trip down the Pearl River Delta to the former Portuguese enclave. I used to visit Macau fairly regulaly when based in HK and it always provided a welcome contrast to the hustle and bustle of its bigger brother. These days Macau is very much about the huge casinos which have been built over the last 5 years or so (Venetian, etc.). However, it still has some of the old world charm of the rather sleepy town left by the Portuguese and our first port of call was to the expat mainstay Fernandos on Coloanne Island. Macau itself is a series of Islands linked to the mainland by huge bridges that stretch over the Peal River and Fenandos is around a 30/40 minute taxi journey froom the ferry which takes you over one of the many bridges and past the airport to the forests and bays of the Island. We also went past the Westin Hotel - a rather old-fashioned and (in contrast to the opulent new casino-hotels we passed on the way) rather dated looking member of the Starwood group.
We arrived at the tail end of lunch time so were easily able to get a table (no booking allowed and generally a wait during peak periods). Fernandos started life as a beach hut diner next to Coloanne beach and was established (it is said) by a former chef at the Lisboa HOtel. I am not sure if that is correct but nevertheless a trip to Fernandos was always a popoular part of the itinerary whenever we came to Macau and it did not disappoint. We all had crab in a pot - a sort of hotpot with a whole crab and various herbs and vegetables cooked in a superb sauce. It must have taken a good couple of hours to eat - trying to break into the crab (and avoiding burning ones mouth on the suace which remined piping hot throughout the meal) was part of the fun but did take up some time. The bread accompnaying the meal (and the Portuguese wine) was superb and we were very replete when we eventually finished!
We had a brief wander along the beach and then headed to the old town where we pottered around some of the churches and the ruins of St Pauls before heading back to the ferry terminal for the trip home.
Despite the huge late afternoon meal, we decided to go for a quick drink in the evening and ended up at the Darby - just along the road from the Hotel where we did a few quiz questions and managed to eat some samosas and potatoe skins.
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Bonkers in Honkers (Part 2)
Wednesday dawned bright and sunny and we kicked off the day with a visit to the "Flying Pan" in Wanchai for a fry up. This establishment is something of an institution - providing fried breakfast 24 hours per day - and is handily located at the corner of Luard and Lockhart Roads. After fortifying ourselves for the day ahead we set off for Stanley on the No.6X bus - sitting on the top deck is the best way of seeing the sights on the way to Stanley past Ocean Park, Deepwater Bay, Repulse Bay/South Bay and Ma Hang. The views were as clear as I have ever seen them with the many islands (and the huge container ships making there way to and from the Harbour)surounding HK clearly visible.
On reaching Stanley I took J. around the temple next to the plaza (containing the skin of the last tiger shot in HK - in 1941 outside the police station in Stanley) and then to the small fisherman's temple around the corner in what is now a small country park. We had left dad (who had already seen the temples on previous visits having a coffee in Saffron (now relocated at the ground floor of the plaza) - and our first disappointment of the day was finding that Saffron no longer made their chocolate caramel slices - a mainstay of our mid morning coffe breaks in HK. Dad was most dischuffed.
We soon put this behind us with an extended visit around Stanley Market. E. had carefully briefed me where she wanted me to go (mini-Boden is apparantly all the rage) and so we stoked up on Children's clothes, Rugby shirts (from the rugby shirt shop in the market - it is apparantly going to close down as the Chinese factory has been relocated to Vietnam and the owner cannot now get them cheap enough) as well as belts and a rucksack for me. After an al fresco lunch at the sitting our area overlooking the harbour next to the market, I headed back to Admiralty in the afternoon for a suit fitting and then joined Dad and J back at the hotel to prepare for the evening's excitement at the Racecourse next door at Happy Valley.
We had already looked at the runners and riders and had made some tentative selections. We arrived at around 6:30 after a two minute walk through the underpass from our Hotel (literally opposite the race course). The Stable Bend Terrace was fairly full when we arrived and the BBQ in the middle was smelling delicious. We had booked the international buffet (HK$500 each for all you can eat and drink) and we soon got stuck into the food!). The first race was incredibly successful for all of us as we backed the first winner at 5.5 to 1. We also won on the second race (although mine was only a place). However,the main excitement was the arrival of the British Lions rugby team enjoying a bit of R&R before their game against the Babarbarians on Saturday. We had been sitting next to a couple from England who were on the table next to us and who had said they were travelling with the Lions and knew the coaching staff. However, they had not mentioned that the Lions would actually be watching the racing with us and as you can imagine it was a matter of particular excitement for our little party with Dad and J getting some autographs (including Owen Farrell) and photos with the team (including the mountainous Richie Gray). It also transpired that the couple we were talking to were big mates with the Lions coach Warren Gatland. We only relaised this when (after the team had gone home - presumably becaude of a 10pm curfew) he came over to the table and we were able to have a chat to him (and take the obligatory photos). Whilst our selections (certainly for the last few races)were not particulaly successful (although I think Dad won some more money) we had an absolute blast talking about the rugby.
We were the last to leave the racecourse and managed to find our away back across the road to the Hotel where we decided that it would be a good idea to have another drink at the outside bar (where J managed to knock over a glass leading to plastic glassses outside for the remainder of the stay!). I managed to break my room key in the lock when I went to bed and it was touch and go whether the maintenance man would be able to get it out (he did - eventually). I also managed to trip over on my way to the loo later in the night and spent a good half an hour trying to stem the flow of blood from my nose and then another half an hour trying to make myself look less like the victim of a car crash. All in all an eventful day.
On reaching Stanley I took J. around the temple next to the plaza (containing the skin of the last tiger shot in HK - in 1941 outside the police station in Stanley) and then to the small fisherman's temple around the corner in what is now a small country park. We had left dad (who had already seen the temples on previous visits having a coffee in Saffron (now relocated at the ground floor of the plaza) - and our first disappointment of the day was finding that Saffron no longer made their chocolate caramel slices - a mainstay of our mid morning coffe breaks in HK. Dad was most dischuffed.
We soon put this behind us with an extended visit around Stanley Market. E. had carefully briefed me where she wanted me to go (mini-Boden is apparantly all the rage) and so we stoked up on Children's clothes, Rugby shirts (from the rugby shirt shop in the market - it is apparantly going to close down as the Chinese factory has been relocated to Vietnam and the owner cannot now get them cheap enough) as well as belts and a rucksack for me. After an al fresco lunch at the sitting our area overlooking the harbour next to the market, I headed back to Admiralty in the afternoon for a suit fitting and then joined Dad and J back at the hotel to prepare for the evening's excitement at the Racecourse next door at Happy Valley.
We had already looked at the runners and riders and had made some tentative selections. We arrived at around 6:30 after a two minute walk through the underpass from our Hotel (literally opposite the race course). The Stable Bend Terrace was fairly full when we arrived and the BBQ in the middle was smelling delicious. We had booked the international buffet (HK$500 each for all you can eat and drink) and we soon got stuck into the food!). The first race was incredibly successful for all of us as we backed the first winner at 5.5 to 1. We also won on the second race (although mine was only a place). However,the main excitement was the arrival of the British Lions rugby team enjoying a bit of R&R before their game against the Babarbarians on Saturday. We had been sitting next to a couple from England who were on the table next to us and who had said they were travelling with the Lions and knew the coaching staff. However, they had not mentioned that the Lions would actually be watching the racing with us and as you can imagine it was a matter of particular excitement for our little party with Dad and J getting some autographs (including Owen Farrell) and photos with the team (including the mountainous Richie Gray). It also transpired that the couple we were talking to were big mates with the Lions coach Warren Gatland. We only relaised this when (after the team had gone home - presumably becaude of a 10pm curfew) he came over to the table and we were able to have a chat to him (and take the obligatory photos). Whilst our selections (certainly for the last few races)were not particulaly successful (although I think Dad won some more money) we had an absolute blast talking about the rugby.
We were the last to leave the racecourse and managed to find our away back across the road to the Hotel where we decided that it would be a good idea to have another drink at the outside bar (where J managed to knock over a glass leading to plastic glassses outside for the remainder of the stay!). I managed to break my room key in the lock when I went to bed and it was touch and go whether the maintenance man would be able to get it out (he did - eventually). I also managed to trip over on my way to the loo later in the night and spent a good half an hour trying to stem the flow of blood from my nose and then another half an hour trying to make myself look less like the victim of a car crash. All in all an eventful day.
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