Dear Diary...
This is my diary. How things are. Or something. Please note that the diary is archived month by month, so feel free to click the links for the archives (which now will go back five years maximum):
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Monday 4th May - Rasperry Beer-et
It was a nice leisurely morning for me and The Love In My Heart. She had a good sleep which was much welcome and needed, and I got up and sorted a few bits around the flat. Later on I made us some bacon toasted sandwiches for breakfast, and we did note that the repeat of the highlights from yesterday's Miami Grand Prix was on. As we had both not stayed up to watch that as they were on at a really late time last night, we thought that it was well worth a watch now - I had an idea of the result but not sure how it managed to get there either.
We did watch that over breakfast, and found that it had been a close call all race, with some tactics changing after an early safety car when Isaak Hadjar went off and Liam Lawson had collided into Pierre Gasly. Some went for an early tyre change to try and use that and see if they could get to the end of the race on them, others waited in case any rain fell and that might force the change anyway. In any case, the rain did not surface til late on, and Kimi Antonelli won ahead of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. It had been a good weekend for Lando as he had won the sprint race too, so all good. Charles Leclerc got demoted to eighth after a time penalty.
We got ourselves ready to head out, and set off earlier than planned. This way we could stop off on the way to where we were having lunch and take advantage of the reasonably good weather. So we got the train to London Victoria, and that was busy but we got a seat, and then after a quick mooch in Oliver Bonas, we headed off to Victoria Market Hall where the lovely roof top bar was waiting for us, and I had a Camden Stout with The Love having the Camden Hells. The sun was partially out and we had a nice view from our seats, so no complaints there really.
After a drink there it was back to Victoria, and on the tube to Warren Street, with a short walk from there over to Euston Square, and off to the Crown and Anchor pub on Drummond Street. We had not been there for a while but we did note that when we had booked a table, we had our usual table with my name on, and one of the staff there recognised us, so that was all lovely. I had the Harveys Best Bitter, a staple of the Sussex brewery's ales and always lovely, and The Love had a Camden Hells. I ordered some food, and all was good there - the cheeseburger The Love had was really good, as was the fish and chips I had too.
We did stay in there for another drink too, and I did note that they had a new beer from the Kirkstall Brewery, which was a little pink in colour (which we know Little Miss E would have liked the colour of) and it was a raspberry blonde called Ripple Effect. Apparently, it's part of their small batch series so it was nice to get that and enjoy it, and I had Prince's classic Raspberry Beret in my head due to that (make that tune of the day) and so all was well there. It was nice to relax and it was a sad moment seeing The Love off on her train back home, but happy we'd had such a good weekend.
Sunday 3rd May - Elizabeth, My Dear
The Love In My Heart had a well deserved lie in this morning. As much as I know she adores Brian the cat, when he does do his soft proddding with his paws to wake her up early in the morning, it means she cannot always go back to sleep, and so having a good night's rest for me was important for her too. Of course, some of The Love's family were checking in on Brian over the weekend, so he would be fed, watered and fussed over, but I can imagine not having any interruptions is good. I know when we go on holiday and if there are blackout curtains she really does enjoy a peaceful night's sleep.
Once we were both up, I made us some breakfast and we thought about what to do for the day. She had mentioned she wanted to see the new Queen Elizabeth II Garden in Regent's Park, and that made sense to look at. I did note also the Canal Cavalcade weekend at Little Venice, and also the Sicily themed event at the Islington Design Centre near Angel, so we had options if the weather turned a bit rubbish. With that in mind, we thought it best to start at Regent's Park whilst the weather was good, and so took the train to Farringdon and the tube to Great Portland Street, as it was a short walk from there to the park.
We entered the park, got to the Broad Walk and walked along there, and soon spotted the little coffee shop by Chester Road and also a section which had some temprary fencing. This was in fact for any possible queue to get in the Queen Elizabeth II Garden, but there was not that much of a queue at least for us. Sensibly, you enter at one end and exit at another, and this also included some lovely plantations, wild flowers, and a nice balcony which doubles as a place for birds to come to, with the night time having some gentle bird noises in and this will then attract them. That was the busiest part, but good to see.
We exited there and agreed it was lovely, then headed to the Queen Mary's Garden, with its many different types of roses, the water features and waterfall, which you can walk to the top of, and its greenery, making it all a very calm and idyllic place too. We did then note the large café close to the open air theatre, and stopped off here for a drink. It was not the cheapest at £8 a pint (meh!) but it was good to sit and people watch. In fact I noted that Manchester City Women had scored a last gasp winner at home to Liverpool, thus keeping the WSL title race in their own hands. Plus if Arsenal draw any of their games in hand (due to their Women's Champions League involvement) then it is now ours.
We walked towards the lake with the pedalos heading around, and on the other side of the bridge, lots of ducks and geese all with their little babies looking cute and adorable as they walked along the grass, close to their parents, and headed towards the water. We exited the park via the Hanover Gate and past the signs for Lord's Cricket Ground close by, then on to the towpath for the Regent's Canal. We followed the canal westbound, then along the paths above Maida Hill tunnel and then would divert a little around a closed path, and then to Maida Hill itself, and thought "ah, why not stop here?"
We had landed at Laville, an Italian restaurant with a seating area that overhangs the Regent's Canal. We were pleased to get a table for two, and a view over to the canal. The ones next to the edge of the restaurant have th the best views, but still lovely wherever you're sat. We had a drink and some lunch - The Love had the spaghetti bolognaise and I had the special of the papardelle with veal ragu. Both were stunning with fresh pasta, lovely sauce and well presented. We both enjoyed the vibe and the atmosphere in there, and really had a lovely meal so that felt relaxing.
We walked then along the Regent's Canal to Little Venice, and the Canal Cavalcade was in full swing, with boats going round the little triangular island here and plenty moored up alongside the canal too. There were also stalls with all sorts of crafts and gifts and some were lovely. We also did note that on the other side of canal, once you crossed the bridge, you had food and drink stalls and beer stalls too, so that was something. It was very busy and we did enjoy the vibe, but wanted to be somewhere quieter a little so after an unsuccessful attempt in Vagabond (because the staff were non-existent and people were having all sorts of issues with the self-service beer taps) it was a move next door.
And this was a good move all told - we went to Union, by the canal, and it was much better. For a start, a pint of Landlord on cask and a pint of Camden Hells for a mere £11.95, which is a bargain for central London. The atmosphere inside with a window view to the canal was good, and the music was at a sensible volume but not too loud either, so we definitely enjoyed that. It was a good vibe and that was a nice way to wind down on the Sunday afternoon too, so all good. We walked to Paddington for the tube to Farringdon and the train home, and had had a lovely day. Tune of the day is the excellent Disco Inferno by The Trammps, which Shaun Murphy walks out to and he did tonight in the World Snooker Championship final.
Saturday 2nd May - A Stroll Around Beckenham
It was going to be a nice weekend for me as The Love In My Heart would be coming down to see me, and it's always nice when she comes down to be honest. It does mean that we can do different things together and also saves me taking the train, and instead she would be doing so. Because of the May Bank Holiday it means she can stay til Monday, and we get the whole of the Sunday to do as we feel like, so that's good. I was up and having everything all ship shape and sorted for her arrival, having already had a Sainsburys delivery and so on, it was good to be able to get on with a few things.
Her train left on time so that was good, and I knew I could then just meet her at East Croydon later, as she knows her way here. It was getting nice and warm outside too so that definitely was good, and once I knew the train had arrived at London Euston, I was ready to go whenever she told me the train was leaving Victoria. I was able to see the semi-final snooker walk ons with Shaun Murphy and John Higgins - the latter having I Am The Resurrection by The Stone Roses, so tune of the day of course. As it transpired, engineering works meant less trains but she was good to go on the East Grinstead one, and made my way to the station to meet her - and she was looking as lovely as ever.
I had given her some ideas for this afternoon as to what she would like to do and suggested heading to Beckenham might be nice. She agreed and so once we had dropped the case off, we headed to East Croydon once again and headed on the tram to Beckenham Junction. She did remark that the curve in between Harrington Road and Birkbeck reminded her more of being on a model railway (due to the slower speed needed for the turn) and also spotted the junction where the tram crash had happened, and noted how much slower that corner was being taken now.
We soon arrived at Beckenham Junction and not before long we were on the high street in the centre of Beckenham, with the lovely independent bookshop, plenty of independent restaurants and coffee shops, and a real sense of being a village vibe. Although there were a fair number of charity shops, one having this delightful Emma Bridgewater melamine tea set in a mini picnic basket, perfect for dollies' tea time (thinking of Little Miss E and Little Miss O as ever) and was good to see the place being busy. We did stop off in a couple of the independents or ("little shops") as The Love calls it, and they had some excellent gift ideas and homewares, plus some Miffy items which looked super cute.
We stopped off at the Br3wery bar too, which had their beers. The BR3 part is also a clever play on words, as the Beckenham postcode (part of Bromley) is BR3, so you can see what they did there. I did like the chocolate stout but The Love was less impressed with the pilsner, in her view it tasted a bit flat. It was nice to chatter anyway and the vibe was very relaxed, which we both liked. We headed back to the tram station and literally just in time before the rain decided to come down a fair bit, which showed on the windscreen and the windows of the tram as we headed back to Croydon, stopping off at The Green Dragon for a drink and some lovely chilled atmosphere, even with screens showing the football.
Later on I made us both some tea, and we settled in for some royal stuff on Channel 5 (as is The Love's preference) and then over for the World Championship Snooker semi-final. And what a match that turned out to be, with Mark Allen up against Wu Yize. No quarter asked or given, and at 16-15 up Mark Allen had a simple black to win the match, but he twitched and missed, Wu potted it and forced a decider, then put up a superb break in the final frame to win. Mark was gracious in defeat, stating if you miss that sort of ball you don't deserve to be in the final, but that miss is going to haunt him for some time..