Because this blog is just me documenting my life, one day at a time, as it comes, it is inevitable that the periods of activity and interest must subside. Little will happen over the next couple of weeks. Spent all morning doing the photos from the trip, then the afternoon unpacking, the evening reacquainting myself with the local pub and eating out. So this is as good as I could do today.
Amazingly we managed to get money off the university this year to have an end-of-year dinner. Why this particular stone started shedding blood for the first time in my 10 years there, I have no idea. Dan (left, student) and Gary (right, colleague) wait to place our order in the highly distinctive surroundings of the old vault — check out those safety deposit boxes — in the former bank building which now houses Jamie’s Italian in Manchester (its second appearance on the blog, after this one 15 months ago).
Fourth of the promised five-in-a-row from Manchester, where I will spend about 90% of this waking week. Today was the first day of the two-day “Mapping Information Landscapes” research seminar I have spent several months getting organised and it was good to relax at the halfway point with dinner on the fundholder. Considering I spend a reasonable amount of my working life with these three people (in different ways), none have yet appeared on the blog, so welcome, all.
It’s been a strange week, but it ended as many do, and certainly resembled the start of most of those weekends that come just after pay day — that is, we ate out. Here’s to the weekend.
Second, and last, day here at the Högeskolan i Borås, and a very nice lunch at this Indian restaurant with three colleagues, including Ameera, the centrepiece of this picture. It’s been a nice stay here in Sweden, but too short: I hope to be back one day however.
Numerologically interesting day, possibly even apocryphal, or we could just see it as two-thirds of the way to 1,000 consecutive daily pictures. It’s Friday night and I never feel like cooking so went out for a pizza, and snapped this very well-coloured bloom while waiting for the Napoli to turn up.
Lunch here today – and if you can’t find some variety of ethnic food to satisfy you on this street, well, you just ain’t trying.
So this is the real reason I wanted to spend time in Copenhagen: the chance to eat at one of the world’s best restaurants, without a doubt. I made this booking some three months ago, but here we are, halfway through a meal of fifteen (count ’em) courses; I’ve just polished off an oyster that tasted just like the sea, and the chefs even prepared a whole alternative menu for Clare as she is lactose-intolerant, so she’s eating some caramelised onions and, as you can see from the look on her face, thoroughly enjoying it. Behind the oyster you can see what was definitely – and I mean definitely – the Best Butter in the World – and I wish I could have recorded every course. This was definitely the most expensive meal I have ever had – but we got what we paid for, it was definitely the best, too. If you are in the area and have the means, I highly recommend it.
Being 42 