Goodbye England, Hello Canada

For the last couple of days,  London was covered in white - kind of saying "goodbye" before we finally move to Canada.  Considering the last two cold winters and really rainy summers, "Global Warming" theory does not work...

This time around, the transport was working quite well (I guess local councils learned a lesson from previous year fiasco) and couple of our friends (Rob and Ira) came  over for the weekend to say goodbyes. In addition to the traditional visit to a local Nandos restaurant and (failed) attempt to deplete my Whiskey supply (Rob, take care of those lovely bottles of rare single malts that are now in your caring possession), we went to explore the "Abbey Wood".

Having lived in the Royal Arsenal for almost 4 years, we always wanted to explore the area but never had a chance - it was always raining and there is always tomorrow. There are really nice trails for weekend walks and thanks to the freak weather this weekend it was "extra" beautiful...!

Germany... Here I Come!

For the next two weeks, I will be spending some "quality" time in Gütersloh, Germany. Lufthansa will take me there, but who will take care of me there? At the moment, I'm struggling to find an hotel there since all the website are in German and majority (if not all) are actually B&B. When that will be sorted, I need to find a way to get there from the Paderborn/Lippstadt airport...

Recipe: Crunchy Oat Cookies

Ingredients: Wheat flour (1.5 glasses) Oat flakes (1.5 glasses) Butter (100gr) Sugar (0.5 glasses) Milk (20ml – tiny bit!) Seeds and nuts

The first step is to preheat the oven to 170C (fan assisted). Then, mix butter, sugar and milk in large bowl. Separately, mix flour and oat flakes, and add it to the bowl with butter and sugar. The reason we do that separately is to make cookies crunchier. Otherwise, you can mix everything together in one go. If the nuts/seeds are too large, crush them a bit and mix it with the rest of the ingredients. The end result (dough) should be a homogeneous, quite solid, brownish mixture.

With dampened hands, otherwise the dough will stick to your fingers, divide the mixture into even portions and shape them (round shape is way outdated!) as you like on a baking tray. I tend to use non stick baking paper rather than buttering the tray.

Bake for 12-15 minutes; let it cool for a minute or two and they are ready to go...

Bonn Appetite!

P.S.: This recipe was shared by Irina Antonova and you can see the whole process at http://picasaweb.google.com/john.markh/RecipeOatCookies

Rain is Back...

The autumn and the rain season is back to London...

Day Skipper Course (Part 1)

I don't know if it is to prepare for a lay off (the recession is not over) or retirement, but here I'm doing a yacht day skipper course following which I will be able to take a yacht out in tidal water all by myself.

Click here to see the photo album of the first two days in the water.

Ay ay skipper!

Weekend in Venice

Ohh Venice, beautiful Venice... Venice is a city of curved bridges and canals, beautiful architecture, hidden plazas and churches... a truly unique city.

It is impossible to drive in Venice and probably unnecessary around it. From the airport, there are two options to get into the city: ATVO Express (€3.00) and ACTV 5 (€2.50). You can buy tickets at the public-transportation booth in the arrivals terminal, which also sells 12- to 72-hour ACTV tourist tickets. If you stay outside Venice, there are numerous busses going everywhere, including Rome. We took the express bus to Venice and from there line 53E to Dolo, a small town between Venice and Padova. Villa Gasparini, a hotel where we stayed, is located on the outskirts of Dolo. Luckily, the bus stop is only 50m from the hotel because there are no sidewalks in Italy. Everybody is either driving or driving...

After a quick shower, we went to a nearby pizza (what else?) restaurant for a bite. Although there are a lot of Italian restaurants in cities such as London, Toronto, Tel Aviv and New York, you cannot compare it to a real Italian pizza; it is thin, crispy and loaded with goodies! On the other hand, stay away from their beer...

The day after, we sent to explore Venice. Since we stayed outside (in Dolo), our starting point was Piazza Roma (central bus station). So, without further due, here comes John Markh “A Parfect Day in Venice” guide:

From Piazza Roma (bay 4B), walk through souvenir booths and cross the small canal. Take left, then next right (just next to Mercure hotel) across another bridge which will take you to a small plaza where you can fill your water bottle. From there, walk back in the direction of the bus station and follow signs to Piazza San Marco. Don’t afraid to be adventurous and take small detours; there are signs every couple of blocks and you might discover a hidden gem which will make your journey more special (you might as well write your own guide to Venice). The rout should take you to the Academia (bridge) where, if you have a moment, you could take right to the waterfront to get a well deserved ice cream and fantastic views. Walk back to the Academia bridge and continue to Piazza San Marco. Piazza San Marco was a centre of political and religious life in Venice for centuries and it is plainly displayed by the wealth of decorations and beauty of the place. Walk around and if the line is not to look, go inside Basilica to marvel at gold mosaics and up the Campanile (bell tower) for marvellous views.

From there, take left along Riva degli Schiavoni (the waterfront) and admire the views, crowds of people and turn nose up at all the trinket stands (you can do better for souvenirs elsewhere). When the crowd thins, take a table at one of the waterfront cafes and enjoy a slightly overpriced pizza or salad and bottle of wine (better service, quality and price the farther down you go....).

After a refreshing snack, find your way to Arsenale and either take a vaporetto (water bus) or walk the mazes of Venice to Rialto Bridge. Wander across with the incredible hordes of tourists and continue over bridge and through the mass of souvenir stalls to the outdoor markets - if you like seafood keep wandering a bit further up this main drag to the incredible outdoor fish market - quite a sight!

From here, start following (loosely) signs to Piazza Roma (bus station). It will take you through San Polo district. If you go to the far end and turn right, you should see Antica La Corte Birreria. It is a great local place for pizza, salads, light meal and dessert for a reasonable price at Campo San Polo. Also, there are number of interesting shops where you could buy souvenirs or Moreno glass for a decent price. Exit into the sunlight and go further up to Campo Santa Marguerite - very active place with lots of bars, small pubs and shops.

This was an unforgettable weekend...

Check out the photo album at http://picasaweb.google.com/john.markh/20090816Venice#slideshow.

Ciao, John.

Traveller Tips: Don’t stay in the Venice itself; it is a complete nightmare to drag your luggage through all those bridges. On the other hand, don’t stay too far as you won’t be able to use the ACTV tourist tickets. If you use public transport, buy your tickets in advance (from ACTV ticket office or from snack shops). When you buy on board, it usually costs more. However, if all you have is a €100 note, the driver might let you ride for free! In Venice, plan your route carefully as there are only 2 bridges across Grand Canal itself and it could be a really long walk between those two. There are plenty of fountains with drinking water in Venice itself; all you need is a 1l plastic bottle to fill and refill when needed.

Microsoft Windows 7 available to pre-order!

I don't write it often, but Microsoft did it right this time. For the last two months I'm running Windows 7 RC (Release Candidate) and it is brilliant. Not only it boots fast, but it works faster and the battery life is at least 20% longer then with Windows XP.
You can pre-order Windows 7 with 50% discount on Amazon if you are into "legal" (hopefully you are):

• Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B002DUCMT2?ie=UTF8&tag=itsmyli04-21
• Microsoft Windows 7 Professional E http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B002DUCMTC?ie=UTF8&tag=itsmyli04-21

Enjoy,

John.