Cheers to the New Year

Just in time for a quick post before year end and I am so looking forward to what I hope will be a bright New Year. For me, this year is marked by a sense of loss and change.When I turned 40, I lost my Mother. When I turned 50, I lost my Father. I turned 60 this year and although the losses have not been anywhere near so personal - how could they be - I am sad to be losing such as the world-stage dignity of the Obama's and our country's place in the EU. I'm sorry for the pointless loss of wonderful Jo Cox. Also, for the people of Nice and Berlin - both locations full of happy holiday memories for me. And all year, so sad to see the stream of poor migrants crossing the Med and from the war in Syria - maybe more peaceful times coming there in the New Year?  Now after that vent against the world, I need to add how grateful I am to have enjoyed a successful year in my own mini world of work as well as many super-happy times with dear friends and family. I shall be out later this evening, raising a glass to 2017 with some of my closest friends and I know just how lucky I am. May the New Year be a good one for us all!   

Rescue the reindeers!

This time last year I took a short break to celebrate Thanksgiving with my friends in New York. We had great fun including touring the wondrous shop window displays already glittering at Macy's and Bloomingdale's and Saks. It set me up for Christmas back here as folks in New York were already buying their Christmas trees and so preparations just knitted all together. My friends aren't quite so jolly this time around as they are still recovering from the shock of Donald Trump's victory, reminded of him always by the nearby mass of ugly Trump-constructed apartment blocks that run the length of Upper West Side, towering over the Hudson. In the run up to Christmas back here in the UK, the annual super brand Christmas TV ads can usually raise a smile. And yes, once again £5bn of investment does not disappoint. My favourites are the Waitrose Robin ad and Buster, the bouncing boxer dog for John Lewis. But you can bet someone will spoil it all. The Wildlife Aid Foundation reckons that the John Lewis ad is misleading and might encourage people not to take proper care of their garden equipment and its potential risk to pets and wild animals. This stance is at loggerheads with the Wildlife Trusts which is benefiting financially by donations from John Lewis this Christmas and reckon that the campaign encourages people to care for their local wildlife. Lighten up there, folks - it's only make-believe! What about those poor reindeers, strapped to that sleigh all night with Santa - maybe that's where our animal rescue focus should be?     

Stand Up for Labour

Last Sunday evening a friend and I went to a comedy show at Questors Theatre in Ealing called 'Stand Up for Labour'. Invited via local members, it was obviously in aid of the Labour Party though we didn't know quite what to expect and so very pleased to say that it was a great fun. With a sell-out audience, star turns included Shappi Khorsandi, musing on her Iranian heritage and life as a single mum living in Ealing. Jeremy Hardy also had us all in stiches with his observations on the fortunes and misfortunes of his mate, Jeremy Corbyn. Surprisingly funny performances were also given by our local MPs, Rupa Huq and Ruth Cadbury and then Steve Pound managed the auction like a pro. The final performance was a 'team talk' by John McDonnell, also of course, a local MP. Everyone is asked to "Get behind Jeremy..... to sweep the Tories from power." My friend and I skipped home after such a jolly evening, motivated to continue to 'fight the good fight'. So all the more disappointing to read in The Guardian just the very next day how Labour backbenchers will be calling for MP's ballots to show their dissent from the party's leadership, where they reckon Jeremy is out of step with public opinion. I'm pleased we had such a laugh on Sunday night because it stored up at least some positive vibes with which to weather the on-going misery of political disagreement.

Running on

For a few years now, at least one morning a week, I go out for 'a little run'. I run for about 20-25 mins and I don't know how far but it's definitely not 5km. That's the magic distance for all the Saturday 'Fun Runs' around the country, one of which is close to me at Osterley Park. I've been reading in the National Trust magazine today about Osterley and the many other National Trust locations that offer masses of different running opportunities. As well as the weekly 5km parkruns, I read that there are monthly 10km trail runs (in my dreams) plus night-time runs with head torches - also in my dreams! Anyway, I'm beginning to think that if 140,000 people can run every year at National Trust places, then I'd better pull my socks up and join them. Going the extra mile, as it were, is definitely on my mind today.The Ealing Half Marathon took place today as well as friends and colleagues who were walking 11 miles across 12 London Bridges today, in support of the Isabel Hospice out in Hertfordshire. And coming home from an evening out in London last night, I noticed groups of women setting up for the Shine London Marathon Night Walk, for Cancer Research. So I think it's time that I upped my game - surely I too could make a 5km session one Saturday soon ......     

Theatre space

As I awoke this morning I tuned in as usual to BBC R4 and heard the introduction to the Sunday Service which today was from Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh. I've just come home from a few days up there at the Festival and it grows larger and larger every year. So I was frankly surprised that there were any church buildings left which, for the month of August anyway, were still being used for their original purpose and not turned over to yet another Fringe venue. One of the best performances I saw at the Festival this past week was Alan Cummings in his cabaret show at The Hub which itself is a former church building and which becomes the Edinburgh International Festival Box Office and prime venue, just under the Castle on the Royal Mile. I remember seeing Alan Cummings nearly 10 years ago at the Festival, in 'The Bacchae' albeit at the 'proper' King's Theatre and it remains one of the most powerful performances I have ever seen.
Also this week I saw a couple of shows at one of Edinburgh's newest venues which isn't a church building for a change but rather another type of theatre - a 'demonstration' theatre. This intimate, steeply tiered and seated, cold and bleak space was formerly the 'operating theatre' at what was the Veterinary School at Summerhall in Edinburgh. It makes for a rather chilling performance space and perfectly suited to shows with little or no props or staging including the brilliant staged reading of  Judith Kampfner's  'Henry Darger Is'. And on that note of brilliant 'stripped down' performances, last night back here in London, I saw the American Fiasco Theatre Company (or Theater Company, as they would say) production of  Sondheim's 'Into the Woods' which was equally simple in staging and props but also wonderfully evocative - less distraction and so more concentration on the actors and the text which I love.

Fabulous Fiss

Friends who read my blog from afar are impressed by how much travelling I do though I always have to remind them that it's usually less than they themselves do and much less frequently than back in the day when I worked for BA or VFB. Having said that, I do want to officially mark my entry into the 'proper' overseas walkers community. Earlier this month, for just a few days, I joined a Ramblers Worldwide Holidays walking tour in the Austrian Tyrol. From a flower-bedecked hotel in Fiss - delicious food and wine, super-soft beds and duvets, bathwater warm swimming pool and choice of spa saunas - my first views of those craggy peaks looked very welcoming in the summer sunshine. The first day was challenging but enjoyable - zigzagging down from 2400m cable car station. The flower-filled meadows were wonderful as was our lunchtime break overlooking the Lechtaler Alpes and late afternoon, coffee and cakes back at the hotel. But as I had been warned, see how speedily the weather can change in the mountains. Later the next day, were hit with torrential rain showers which tested my new all weather kit as well as having to walk along a 1km wasserweg which tested (and failed) my old walking boots as we paddled our way through the tunnel under the mountain. Not so much fun dripping back later to the hotel but still a tremendous sense of achievement and fun to spend time in the great outdoors with such a lovely group of walkers. So maybe in future blogs from me, there will be less from the cultural hot spots and more from the paths less travelled?  

Flamin' June

And the month started so well...... it was my birthday and with parties, lunches, dinners,teas and treats, I have celebrated with friends and with family. And then came the second half of the month. Just this time last week, shock and disbelief and still reeling from the Brexit result - the start of ongoing uncertainty. Then my beloved Labour Party beginning to unravel. Then England's awful defeat to Iceland. And today Boris pulls out of the Tory leadership race - you couldn't make it up. At least I found time to watch Andy Murray winning at Queens and Wales are still in the Euros - until tomorrow night that is. Reading an interesting article from The Guardian on the impact of football on European culture, one does wonder whether, if the referendum had happened this week, after that England football result, the vote might have been even more in favour of Brexit? If you define football as an economic sector, then Europe is a winner using a financial and technical edge to draw players, audiences and investment from across the world and winning five of the seven World Cups since 1990. According to David Goldblatt "European football is technically brilliant and furiously competitive and benefits from the high level of specialised education, openness of labour markets and the ease and speed of knowledge and technology transfer". We would all do well to remember that, as much of the country looks to withdraw from European co-operation and yet still enjoys the thrill and wonder of European football played by our near neighbours, if not by our own countrymen.   

In praise of Northumberland

Having been to Newcastle several times before and even visited as far as Morpeth, I was unprepared for the sweeping landscape and dramatic history of greater Northumberland. I'm just back from a few days there, staying in Howick and therefore close to not only their stunning gardens but also Craster and its famous Robson's Smokehouse. I can honestly say that their smoked kippers are unlike any others I have tasted - succulent, gentle and buttery. On another cold, wet day we were immediately brightened by hot tea and scrummy cheese on toast at the also much recommended wonderland of Barter Books in Alnwick - easy and friendly and so conducive to browsing and exploring and ultimately, buying! The changeable weather didn't stop us roaming the countryside where the iconic Whin Sill rock formations became a familiar sight; at Bamburgh, Cragside, around Dunstanburgh and most amazingly, on our boat trip to the Farne Islands, those columns teeming with nesting gulls and guillemots, cormorants and shags. Finally, we heard such stories of poverty, hardship and sacrifice and of ingenuity, generosity and bravery. On the last day of our break, the sun came out and we walked the length of Bamburgh beach to Seahouses and back, paddling most of the way, watching kite flying, children fishing in rock pools, families with their dogs and all of us with so much space and open air between us to really bask in the freedom. Happy times!  

My favourite fizz

I'm very fond of a glass of prosecco and often choose to drink that when celebrating meeting up with friends. But no more! I've just returned from the most fabulous weekend away with friends in Champagne, near to Epernay, and I'm powerfully reminded of what I've been missing! It seems that I'm definitely not alone in shifting my tastes over recent years. In 2015, sales of prosecco in Britain overtook champagne to become the country's most popular sparkling wine for the first time. Not only in value (over £182million) but more than double the volume of champagne and Spanish cava combined.
But - visit any private Champagne house and vineyard as we did and see and understand the extraordinary care, attention, love and just back-breaking work that goes into the growing and hand-picking and fermenting and bottling that has to take place, year in, year out and surely prosecco doesn't even begin to compare. We spend a fascinating morning at the family house and cellars of 
RENÉ JOLLY in Landreville. After riddling the hundreds of bottles of champagne (now automated but still done by hand less than 100 years ago) until the lees settle in the neck of the bottles, the owner, Pierre, then personally disgorges by hand the plug and cap from every single bottle - under massive pressure.
Tasting the House's range of champagnes and understanding the unique flavours of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay was a further delight. Our appreciation of the terroir and the family's expertise in harvesting such fine vintages from it since the 1700s extended to some serious purchases. And remember, champagne is not to be laid down but drunk as soon as possible - santé !

Heathrow VIPs

Heathrow air traffic controllers manage around 100 flights in and out of the airport per hour. The five London airports together (Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, London City and Luton) will handle over 1 million flights in and out of their terminals this year, a new record. I know about increases in air traffic partly because I live under the Heathrow flight path, albeit only when the wind is an easterly, and partly because this week I visited the Heathrow Air Traffic Control Tower. The team there - essentially one central supervisor with two controllers, one for take off and one for landings - view their wide world from the highest visual control room in the country, 87 metres above the terminals and taxiways. I joined my fellow Fellows of the Tourism Society for a 'behind the scenes' visit to Heathrow and our small group were taken on an escorted tour to the platform of the Tower just below the controllers. We were warned to speak in low voices so as not to distract the controllers from their highly concentrated work, just above our heads.
In addition to the Tower, our group was also treated to the luxurious hospitality of 'The Ultimate Airport Experience', namely the Heathrow VIP service. Next time I'm stuck in one of those queues, I'll be reminding myself that for a mere £2,000, I could instead be relaxing in the calm sanctuary of a VIP suite. But maybe the delays and pesky paparazzi haven't become so unbearable - yet !

Slipper orchids slipping away

Continuing with the horticulture theme, I'm just home from Kew Gardens, a special visit for the Orchids Festival which this year celebrates flora from Brazil. Some years I don't make it (how can I be busy for 28 days at a stretch?!) but this month I did and once again, all was breathtaking. Having said that, I could have done without the life-size 'explosive' Carnival dancer structures, with all their feathers over-powering the beautiful orchids and bromeliads. However the airborne installations and planting around pools and boulders were all as stunningly wondrous as ever.
Reading around my visit a little, I discover that orchids are the largest family of flowering plants in the world, with around 28,000 species. The very extraordinary slipper orchid which has a starring role in Kew displays, is just one 'subfamily' but many species are close to extinction. Across Asia, Europe and the Americas they are threatened by such as land development in China, wildfire in Mexico, deforestation in the Amazon plus over-collection or downright theft in all areas which are not protected. So that's another cause to campaign for, championed here by the wonderful folks at Kew Gardens.

Garden therapy

The last day of January and it feels like it's been a long, long month. Getting back into the swing of the day job has been tough. So January blues have to end now and where better to cheer us up and remind us of the joys of summer to come than the new exhibition at the Royal Academy, 'Painting the Modern Garden'. I was luckily invited to a preview so have already smiled my way along glorious garden paths, deep into masses of colour, around heady corners of radiant blooms and of course, across Monet's magical water garden bridge. The exhibition is both dreamy and exhilarating, making you want to both stop and stare but at the same time, race on to see what the next room has in store. From my time working with the folks at Chelsea Physic Garden, I know only to well how much work it takes to make a garden thrive and for plants and flowers to display at their best. I learned that Monet employed six gardeners at Giverny as well as he himself being a designer and expert horticulturalist. All that natural beauty didn't happen by chance! So I'm re-inspired to work harder in my own garden this year, to make my little patch of Hanwell more colourful than before. Roll on spring!