David Jenkins' weblog

Life’s too short to drink instant coffee

Tag: restaurants

  • It’s Swansea, it rains

    It’s Swansea, it rains

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    It wasn’t exactly what Ruby at the Shed said to me as I stepped out after my dinner but it’s pretty close and during my three days in the city I certainly got my fair share of overcast skies and drizzle. I’ve been to Swansea just once before and that would have been in the…

  • Coffee shops, cafes and restaurants

    Coffee shops, cafes and restaurants

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    On the last night of our short break in Florence last year we had dinner in the hotel restaurant because it was a Sunday and options outside were limited. Fortunately it was a very good hotel with a ‘proper’ restaurant and we were expertly looked after by Markus. I grumbled when Markus came to take…

  • Well that was 2024

    Well that was 2024

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    It’s not been a bad year despite ending with rather a nasty tummy bug between Xmas and New Year. However I do seem to be over that as we ease into 2025 so let’s hope that can be as good. Thinking about the highlights of the year, five as usual. My big little finger op…

  • The Medicis and more

    The Medicis and more

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    We’ve just enjoyed a long weekend in Florence. It’s the fourth time I’ve been there but it’s the first time I’ve spent significant time in the city and although last time we did see Michelangelo’s David and visit the Basilica of Santa Croce which is home to the tombs of most of Florence’s great and…

  • A short visit to Northumberland

    A short visit to Northumberland

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    We’ve just spent three nights in Newcastle as a base for visiting castles, houses and gardens in Northumberland. But first let’s be clear about what we mean: Northumberland or Northumbria? This is from the website www.askdifference.com: Northumbria, existing from the 7th to the 10th centuries, was a powerful Anglo-Saxon kingdom that covered what are now…

  • Rome wasn’t built in a day …

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    … but it’s best to be seen a day at a time. And just this month we were there for 4 days and most of that time we were out of Rome visiting Italian gardens.

  • Mozart’s Bistro, Newmarket Races; 17 Jun11

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    Remember wedding anniversary: tick. Arrange suitable celebratory event: tick; we were going to see Jools Holland at a Newmarket races music night. Ensure good weather: oh dear!

  • Villa Ratingen, Ratingen near Dusseldorf; 16 May 11

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    I don’t visit Germany very often these days so I enjoyed a quick trip over last week to visit InterPack, the big triennial packaging show in Dusseldorf. Hotels at the times of big shows double their prices and then double them again but I left it till the last-minute and got a really good deal at…

  • St Pancras Grand; 11 Mar 11

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    The train ticketing systems in the UK defy logic but fortunately if you can find your way around them there are some super deals to be made. Last Friday I needed to begin my day in Catalonia and to end in Sheffield. I didn’t really want to be driving north late at night so the…

  • Brownlow Arms, Hough-on-the-Hill; 20 Feb 11

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    Not a lot of people know very much about Lincolnshire. It’s flat, it’s got a bit of a war-time history as a base for many bombing raids and it’s got a number of sea-side resorts which are known more for the sea breezes than the sunshine. It borders on Cambridgeshire to the north and I…