This has been a month of nothing much happening. Her Liz didn't send back our Passports so we had to cancel our trip to Bruges. We were clearly told that our Passports may be held until August before we can even enquire about progress. So that means no travel for us until we get them back.
We may just curl up and whither away...
No .
We probably won't.
Some nice things did happen in March. Let me remind ourselves of the highlights
I got out the jet spray and cleaned all the winter moss off the rear yard's pavers.... WHAT A HIGHLIGHT HUH? I could hardly contain my enthusiasm right up until the pressure line sprung a leak. New part now ordered on interweb. Why this is really a highlight is that the jet spray machine thingy was a cheapy on price clearance a few years back and I never thought I'd find a replacement bit. Love the interweb.
Far far far more of a Highlight is the arrival of Gail's new company car. Well, nearly new. It is one of the cars in the company pool but it is only a few miles used and quite nice. Not as zippy as the Mini ,Gail says but I think it drives in a more relaxed manner, the controls are all a bit softer and more comfy. Nice big diesel engine with turbo charger so enough oomph for the average speed freak... Gail is not so sure yet.
It is always a pleasure to have our neighbours David and Caroline over for a quick chat, some cheese and wine..... They had just come back from Berlin and were full of tales of museums, galleries and towers when they arrived and full of cheese and wine when they left some 5 hours later. We were all rather full to be honest. Another nice night but we needed a day to recover... Just as well we had the day 'cos we needed to clean the house and make the bed for Matt and Loretta who were coming to visit from West Oz via Ghent in Belgium....
Immediately upon their arrival and before they could unpack the car we set to in the back yard to seriously discuss the merits of Gail's famous PINKDRINK and yorkshire cheeses. March did have some rather nice weather .... It was early Spring I suppose.
It was really nice to catch up and chat before taking a walk to Wetherby shops and then home for a drunken chicken diner, not us drunken, the chicken was drowned in chinese cooking wine and mirin and herbs, served with rice and bok choy. An easy and tasty meal. We needed the sustinance as early next day we were heading off to Holm for a morning tea and scones with Tina and Rod, Lucy and Rosco before driving a mile or so down the road for a lunch booked in at Holmfirth Vineyard and Winery.
Its a rather special place with its own restaurant and a small vintage range. The only remaining 2011 wine from their grapes was a rather high tannin dry red with light fruit and shallow finish. But it didn't claim greatness over uniqueness and being so far north in England it still amazes me there is a vineyard here at all.
As the days are getting longer we had time to return home, have a rest, then go for a walk along the golf course to the Windmill for a slow ale in the sun. Rather a nice day .
Which concluded with a fine meal at the Beehive in Thorner. Its not the first time we have eaten in this ex-pub in a little village closer to Leeds but we always enjoy the food and thought it a safe bet to take our international friends to. We started with Margaritas (well the non drivers did) then we all had a twice baked tuna souffle for starters and different but delicious mains and eventually waddled off home for a well earned sleeep.
Its always tough to suggest things to do for visitors as there is so much to choose from in Yorkshire but Matt indicated that a trip to the coast would be nice so we headed off to Staiths and Whitby, for a coffee and stroll around Staiths and lunch and shops in Whitby.
Whitby has a number of Fish restaurants that claim to be the best in England but as Graveley's (Leeds and Harrogate) have opened a branch overlooking Whitby North beach we elected to try them out this time. Very nice , very fresh, good service, great view. The pic didn't capture it but there was a donkey ride just below the white rail. We didn't have a donkey ride....just as well for the donkey.
Whitby is most famous to Aussies as the place where James Cook was schooled in navigation and seamanship and did his aprenticeship. There is a Cooks museum now where he lived and studied. By the time we got there, after a nice long lunch, it was shut. Open until 3pm November thru March then open till 5. A bit of interweb research would have been handy. Never mind, we chatted to an old museum guide who was most ..... chatty. And then hit the shops.
The girls tried their feet at a fish pedicure, Ret's first experience but Gail was an old hand having had a go in a Wetherby beauty salon a couple of months ago and of course we used to let our fish in our Lane Cove back yard nibble our feet while we sipped wine.......so, so many years ago now.....
Another Highlight of March was the arrival of three bottles of Sticky fizzy. We must thank Jon and Kylie, now resident in Adelaide South Oz, for alerting us to this treasure. Thank dÁrenburg's cellar door staff for shipping it to West Australia for us, and mostly thank Matt and Ret for lugging it all the way from Western Australia, through Belgium and Manchester, all the way to Wetherby for us.....
I should give some tasting notes for this tipple I suppose, seeing as though so many went to so much trouble to ensure we could taste it. It is a botrytis chardonnay with bubbles..... not methode champenoise, but with bubbles. To be honest, I guess as it is the only fizzy sticky I have ever heard of let alone tasted, I am not a good judge. But I
have tasted it and it is a decent botrytis Chardonnay with bubbles and because of that is is dangerously drinkable. You have to like a botrytis hit wine, which we do, and bubbles, which we do, bubbles which we do and big deep honey-thick dry lingering velvet in the mouth....... well,,,,,, three out of four isn't bad. It's a good fun accessible after dinner or dessert drink, if just a bit light on the palette. BUT! its a fizzy sticky, never heard of it, and now we have drunk it. So there. We have two more bottles and we are prepared to share. If you are quick.
Finally for March, Gail's white planted bulbs have started to come out. The white tulips and daffs will increase in number as will the ground cover flowers and the summer daisys but here is what it all looked like in late March.
