“Let’s spend the weekend in the Dales” Renu said. She travelled by train from London to Darlington with Bailey and took a taxi to Richmond. That afternoon Rani and I drove up from Harrogate. We met up at the Bishop Blaize pub in Richmond’s Market Square and drove to our rented cottage in the little…
The morning was bright and sunny. The rain and north winds of yesterday were gone. The day was right for a walk in the country. I drove to Brearton, a small village just outside Harrogate and walked along narrow lanes in to the country. A white and brown cat followed me for a while. Sheep…
This year I spent the Easter weekend at home with the family, chatting, drinking, eating and taking Bailey, my daughter’s little dog for walks. The television was not switched on even once and no one missed it. Here are the wines that were uncorked: 1. Manzanilla Solear, Barbadillo – in half bottles that can be finished easily…
Originally posted on HMWS Blog:
? I never though I would run into Etienne Hugel in Colombo. It all started with an e-mail from David Ling in the Hugel office in Riquewihr, Alsace. “I did not want to waste any time in telling you that Etienne Hugel and his wife Kaoru are in Sri Lanka at…
CRICKET WORLD CUP The 2015 Cricket World Cup started last week and in the first game, New Zealand thrashed Sri Lanka. People here are in shock. Cricket is almost a religion in Sri Lanka and this small tropical island has produced some of the top cricketers of the world. The other day I came across…
I spent Valentine’s Day on the beach in Sri Lanka. I drove to Kalutara and checked in to the sprawling Blue Water Hotel, one of my favourite places on the south coast of the island, built in a minimalist style by the late Bevis Bawa – one of the top architects of Sri Lanka. At…
A MARSH BECOMES A BIODIVERSITY CENTRE Kotte Marsh, situated just outside Colombo has always been a good spot for an evening walk watching waders and the odd nesting Paradise Flycatcher. At one time, there were plans to drain it and build a housing complex. There was an uproar from nature lovers. It is now being…
LUMPRICE Lump rice is a Dutch Burger delicacy popular in Sri Lanka (The Dutch ruled Sri Lanka from 1640 until 1796). The dish consists of rice cooked in meat stock and served with chicken curry, Frikkadels, Brinjal (Egg fruit)) paella, Chilli & Onion sambol, Prawn blachang, Ash Plantain fries and a full boiled egg fried in coconut oil –…
CRAB CURRY & PLANTAINS The local fishmonger has fresh sea crabs on Sundays. They make wonderful crab curry to be eaten with red Basmathi rice and washed down with Tanqueray and tonic. Fresh king coconut water is another great thirst quencher, isotonic and rich in potassium. Bananas here are called plantains. They are relatively small…
I flew to Sri Lanka in search of warmth and sunshine and for a break from the British winter. A new president was elected and the Pope arrived in Colombo to canonise the first Sri Lankan saint. Harrogate was covered in fresh snow the day I braved the M62 to Manchester. Traffic was horrid and…
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