Cars in the Park

Second visit to see Cars in the Park in Harpenden. They really get a good turnout here and there seem to be more every year...

 

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Go Ape

Went to Go Ape for my birthday. We'd not been before but there is one on the Chase to which we had been meaning to get to for some time. It was excellent, but surprisingly high...to be fair it's pretty safe, you're clipped on double if not treble times. The zip wires were the most exciting though...very long and very fast...great fun....



 

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Everyman...

We enjoy going to the cinema but don't like it when there is a whole bunch of kids in it...so we've been looking for an adult cinema that isn't a true "adult" cinema if you know what I mean

Anyway, we found the Everyman chain...our nearest is Hampstead and it's fantastic...a fully licensed bar, chairs in which you can really relax, your own "suites"...it really makes going to the cinema pleasurable once again!

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A dogs life

Chief really does not realise he is a "Working Dog"...he is such a wuss it is untrue. The only thing he works is the camera...

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Jubilee celebration

The Queens Jubilee arrived and what a miserable day it was...we headed into London but to be honest it wasn't really worth it. You see, the problem with a pageant along the Thames, is that everything is lower than the embankment, meaning that unless you're in the very front row, you simply cannot see anything...of course it wasn't aided by the fact it was freezing cold and wet as hell...still it is heartening to see how many Londoners still turn out for their Queen...we wouldn't have missed it...

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Birds Nest

Having arrived back in Beijing, I was able to visit the Olympic Park and the famous Birds Nest stadium. very impressive although there is something a little sad about the fact that the whole site is rarely used nowadays...it is also interesting in that the Park is built on the North / South line that runs throughout Beijing, from the Mountains to the Forbidden Palace.

Every athletes name was engraved in the stone, both for Olympic and Paralympic.

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Toad in the hole

We spent some time in Sichuan province...this is the place where food is HOT! We have a version of this in the UK but it is nowhere near as hot as the real thing...

The first problem is the menu...indecipherable...unfortunately this does lead to my colleagues ordering some strange things, in this case, toad. To be honest it simply tasted like chicken...

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China

Had to travel to Beijing with work again. I went for a week this time, however i made sure I had an extra day in order that I could get to the Great Wall. I booked a trip with the hotel, which took us to the Ming tombs as well as to the Great Wall. Unfortunately the weather wasn't great but it was still an amazing sight...will have to try again when I next go!



Of course there was the obligatory selling job...this time a jade factory...actually quite interesting and a factory that used to make armaments in communist time, but now makes water filters! Very odd...

 

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Birds of prey

A while back I booked a Groupon Bird of Prey experience. We've used Groupon a few times and have always felt it good value. This one in particular was in Biggleswade and was pretty cheap. If I'm honest we weren't expecting much...

How wrong were we? Turned out to be a really great day. You were able to get really close to the birds, including handling them...

They are incredibly majestic creatures, surprisingly heavy and I also did not realise just how long they live...many live for several decades, often reaching 40 or 50...quite amazing...

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Skiing...for the first time in a long time...!

We decided early on in the year that we would definitely get a skiing holiday in this year. I learned to ski when I was young and used to ski a lot but I'd let this lapse over recent years. SJ is a boarder but also hadn't been for a few years so we decided this year was the year for a restart...

Well, it was...on the day we booked the holiday, SJ decided to do a little run with the dogs...100 yards later and a completely popped calf muscle, that was the end of the holiday on that particular date...hurriedly rushed flight back from Aberdeen and a 7 hour wait in A & E and the outcome was crutches and rest. Nt good with a skiing holiday booked in 4 weeks...

We decided to delay the holiday for as long as possible and rebooked for a further 4 weeks in advance. Amazingly, SJ managed to get to a point whe she could board and ski...I must admit, I did not think this would be possible from where we were on the night of the popped muscle...

We went to Tignes, a high altitude resort in France and I can confirm skiing is like riding a bike...you never forget. From the moment I stepped off the chairlift, it was like I had never been away...absolutely amazing...

I skied pretty much all of L'Espace Killy ski area, going across to Val D'Isere and the other peaks on more than one occasion. Desire my antiquated 195 cm skis and my very old boots, it was an amazing holiday and I vow we will not miss another year going forward.

One last word on the new shorter skis...they are very easy to use and make skiing so much easier! Having learnt on long, stiff skis, these new models are a revelation. Have to say though that I did take a secret pride in my old skis...they've served me well and I doubt a lot of the new generation would find it so easy to ski on them...

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