Monday 12 September 2011

Item 96: Summer Barbeque - London

summer bbq
Location: London, United Kingdom

Take that London! You may be rainy and windy with temperamental bursts of sunshine, but I got a barbeque in before the end of Summer! 

After seeing the weather forecast for a 26 degree day, with a day's notice I managed to round up a good group of random friends, gather them around the mini-Weber on a Saturday evening and light up the coals to make the most of the last outdoor-eating opportunity for the season.

On the menu:
- Old English and Pork and Apple Sausages
- Organic hamburgers straight from the local butcher
- Lamb chops marinated in garlic and rosemary
- Roasted peppers
- One corn on the cob
- Mixed garden salad
- Chang's oriental noodle salad (ingredients care of the Australia shop)
- Bananas warmed on the barbie for dessert
- Apple and strawberry crumble cake
- Kelly's Cornish clotted cream ice cream 

We gambled on the English weather and came up trumps on the night. Can't wait until next Summer for the next barbie. 

Item 96: Summer Barbeque? CHECK!

Monday 5 September 2011

Item 95: Bergen, beautifully romantic

Bergen
Location: Bergen, Noway

Arriving by train in the afternoon, we made our way to one of the top hotels in Bergen. Having only eaten at the station en-route we were very excited to hear the hotel offered afternoon pancakes in the restaurant and also fruit for those who were health concious. 

After a satisfying afternoon tea, we took the Floibanen funicular up to Mt Floyen which had a few intermediary stops along the way, signifying how high the mountain was from the town. The lookout had beautiful views of the city which were covered in sunshine. We were told that it would only take half an hour to walk back down, and as we wandered downhill, past suspecting trolls and traditional Norwegian wooden houses we wished we were as fit as the people making their way up-hill for the steep incline. 

In the evening, we took advantage of our accommodation for views of the city from the hotel's tower.  It was a gem that we hadn't realised we'd booked. The location of our hotel allowed us to tick off more things on our list very quickly.

For one, Bryggen Hanseatic Wharf was right next door so the beautiful historical waterfront was at our doorstep. Similarly, the fish market was down the road  and we were shocked to find whale meat on sale for the same price as tuna, actually we were disappointly shocked to see it on sale at all!

We found ourselves with the second day's afternoon in Bergen to spare. It was a Monday and the Art Museum was closed. It was the perfect excuse to spend some time in Juhls Silvergallery (well, it's like a museum), by the wharf treating ourselves with a small piece of art to take home to remember our wonderful time away.

Item 95: Bergen? CHECK! 

Item 94: Norway in a Nutshell... Bergen to Flåm return

Location: Flåm, Norway

I picked my friends' brains for inspiration when I planned my final bank holiday of Summer: Norway in a Nutshell round trip from Bergen. I'd seen amazing photos and heard only good things. And friends, you know your stuff! This was one of my  most revitalising short breaks since coming to London four years ago.

My travel buddies and I collected our tour tickets from Bergen train station on Saturday morning and began our first day's travel via train, bus and ferry to the town of Flåm. The entire journey was filled with steep declines down to where the valley met the Sognefjord, Norway's longest and deepest fjord. Vibrant greens were dotted with pretty little houses along the coast, covered with mist for the morning. A sense of atmosphere posed the threat of down-pour which luckily started and finished during the second half of the cruise before docking at the harbour for our one-night stay in Flåm.

With the extra time in town, we were able to enjoy its peaceful  ambiance after all the tourist buses had left. In the afternoon, we went for a two hour hike up to the ecological farm which provided views of the fjord and valley from above, along a river, past the waterfall and enjoyed a cup of apple juice from the locally grown produce on the way back down.  We arrived back in good time for a casual and tasty dinner at the Fretheim hotel cafe, one of the four restaurants open that evening (and the only one not booked out).

The next morning we woke to find a healthy sized rabbit munching on the pretty flowers outside our hostel, happy the sun had come out for our journey on the famous Flåm railway, one of the world’s steepest railway lines. Again the scenery was amazing, and the train provided commentary and a stopover at at Kjossfossen waterfall. A perfect photo opportunity as we kept a look out for the local seductive forest creature - Huldra.

The mystical spells of the stop were broken by the whistle of the train conductor and it was back on board for a short transit at Myrdal station on to a commuter train back to the city of Bergen.

Item 94: Norway in a Nutshell? CHECK!