#heddon hall

[goblin-gardener]

My favourite dahlias from my trip to Heddon Hall this weekend 💐

[novaphoto]

The Amazing Skiers of Cypress Gardens, changing of the guard. First frame, world champion and jumping record holder (89'), Nancy Rideout , standing with protege Barb Cooper holding her signature CG brand jump skis, announced her retirement from competition after the Dixie tournament in 1960. Frame #2, Barb Cooper-Clack, the first woman to jump over 100' (1964) holding her pair of the brand new line of jump skis, the Cypress Gardens "Rampmasters." Nancy: https://www.usa-wwf.org/Hall-of-Fame/Nancy-%22Rideout%22-Robertson Barb: https://www.usa-wwf.org/Hall-of-Fame/Barbara-Heddon #waterskiing #waterskijumping #rampmasters #worldchampion #cypressgardens #classicphotography #loveblackandwhite #showskilife #lifeonthewater #makewaves (at Cypress Gardens, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/BxmuCanhtId/?igshid=13c6huhjptooi

[weirdesplinder]

La top ten dei 10 romance più romantici che ho mai letto

San Valentino è appena passato ed eccomi a voi con una nuova top ten romance, ispirata proprio da questa festività. Stavolta vi elenco 10 romance che secondo me sono estremamente romantici.

Si tratta di un’opinione del tutto soggettiva naturalmente e ho escluso volutamente dall’elenco alcuni romance che vi ho già segnalato e suggerito in altre liste. Inoltre quando dico più romantici intendo dei romance storici estremamete dolci o estremamente struggenti. Pure troppo, a mio avviso. Ma tenete conto che io non amo i romanzi che ti fanno stare male da tanto soffri per i personaggi o che non ti danno un completo lieto fine, perciò tranquilli, quelli in elenco sono comunque romanzi che possono piacere a tutti. Solo estremamente romantici per come li vedo io.

1. Summer Breeze, di Catherine Anderson  (inedito in italiano)

https://amzn.to/3pqYwyC

1889. Rachel Hollister non ha messo piede fuori di casa, un ranch in mezzo alle prateria, da ben 5 anni. Vive tra l’altro non nell’intera casa ma solo in una stanza e mezza e tiene barricato tutto il resto. Il terrore l’attanaglia al solo pensiero di uscire. Ma non è sempre stata così, tutto ebbe inizio cinque anni prima quando tutti i suoi famigliari durante un pic nic furono uccisi a colpi di pistola da un misterioso omicida posto su un rilievo. Uno ad uno caddero davanti ai suoi occhi ma la pallottola destinata a lei si limit�� a sfiorarla e farla svenire. Il colpevole dovette crederla morta e Rachel sopravvisse, ma da allora non è più uscita di casa. Sopravvive grazie ad un anziano ranchero che lavorava con i suoi e che le porta cibo e vende i suoi dolci, tramite una fessura tra le assi che barrano le porte. Poi però un giorno lui non viene al loro solito appuntamento settimanale. E’ stato ferito e al suo posto si presenta il giovane ranchero, un forestiero, che lo ha trovato e curato. Rachel dovrà superare le sue paure e fidarsi di lui se viole sopravvivere…. anche perchè chi ha ucciso la sua famiglia la tiene d’occhio e aspetta solo che lei esca per finire la partita.

La mia opinione: questo in realtà è uno dei romance che preferisco, ma in effetti ha una trama piuttosto pesante, perchè avere una storia d’amore con un’agorafobica è senza dubbio problematico. Il protaginosta maschile impiega quasi mezzo libro solo a convincerla a fidarsi di lui e farlo entrare nel suo regno e ci riesce in gran parte grazie al suo cane. Ho veramente ammirato la sua pazienza, il coraggio di Rachel e anche i suoi limiti che in fondo sono credibili. Un romanzo interessante, romantico ma anche pieno d’azione e introspezione, molto intimo con i due nostri eroi chiusi in casa all’oscuro di chi voglia uccidere Rachel. E soprattutto contiene una stupenda lettera d’amore.

2. Caro nemico (My Dearest Enemy) di  Connie Brockway

https://amzn.to/3djD24o

Tra di loro c'erano troppe cose: una proprietà che entrambi volevano ed un destino che non potevano condividere.Avery Thorne ha un unico desiderio: ereditare al più presto Mill House, la proprietà dello zio Horatio. Ma i suoi sogni vengono infranti dalla lettura del testamento: per cinque anni la tenuta sarà affidata a Lilian Bede, un'intraprendente suffragetta, che la erediterà definitivamente se saprà dimostrare di essere una buona amministratrice.La prima reazione di Avery è di rancore e di folle vendetta, ma qualcosa gli farà cambiare idea…

La mia opinione: anche questo è un gran bel libro in generale e molto divertente anche, forse non andrebbe in questa lista poichè non è certo romanticissimo di per sè, ma io trovo terribilmente romantici gli scambi epistolari, in generali, e questo libro si basa proprio su uno scambio epistolare tra due cosiddtti nemici. Perciò per me è molto romantico.

3. Un gioiello raro ( A precious jewel) di Mary Balogh

https://amzn.to/3qpAi96

Priscilla Wentworth è una gentildonna caduta in miseria e costretta dalle circostanze a prostituirsi in un bordello. Sir Gerald Stapleton è stato tradito dalle donne più importanti della sua vita e ora cerca solo il piacere fisico. Quando incontra Priss, si chiede come possa essere successo che un gioiello di grazia, bellezza ed eleganza come lei sia divenuta cortigiana. Nonostante il proponimento di non lasciarsi più coinvolgere in una relazione di cuore, quando lei ha bisogno di protezione Gerald la prende come amante fissa. Ne nasce un sentimento tanto forte quanto socialmente censurabile, per un amore che sembra non avere futuro...

La mia opinione: e qui cominciamo a struggerci siete avvertiti. Lei è una prostituita, lui è...mentalmente lento...Nè l’uno nè l’altro si ritengono degni di essere amati. State pronti a commuovervi, ma in modo composto.

4. Abbandonarsi al desiderio (The Lover) di Robin Schone

https://amzn.to/3apDa0h

Anne Aimes è una zitella di trentasei anni che, dopo essersi occupata dei genitori anziani e malati, si è ritrovata sola. Decisa a scoprire i piaceri che ha sempre negato, si rivolge a Michel des Anges, un gigolò di origine francese noto per le sue doti e la sua abilità. L’incontro tra i due avviene all’interno di un locale ambiguo dove uomini e donne si danno appuntamento per relazioni clandestine. Un luogo insolito per una donna come Anne, molto inibita e convinta di essere poco attraente. Ma anche Michel non è più lo stesso, sfigurato da un incendio, da anni non ha più avuto clienti né rapporti intimi con l’altro sesso, per timore di essere rifiutato. Ma nell’animo di entrambi arde un desiderio di rivalsa pronto a incendiare con coraggio e passione i loro cuori…

La mia opinione: intanto premetto che questo è un romance storico erotico, perciò se non amate le scene d’amore grafiche e dettagliate lasciatelo perdere. Se non amate protagonisti maschili tormentati, lasciatelo perdere. Perchè qui più che tormentato Michel è prioprio rovinato, è frutto di ciò che ha subito. E parlo di prima dell’incendio, poi dopo quello lasciamo stare, perciò qui ci si strugge parecchio. Ad alti livelli. Però è anche estremamente umano e carnale come libro. Molto verace.

5. Amare un libertino (When He Was Wicked) di  Julia Quinn

https://amzn.to/3pr0m2u

Quando Michael Stirling, il più audace libertino di Londra, incontra Francesca Bridgerton è amore a prima vista. Un amore non ricambiato: Francesca sta per sposare suo cugino John.E anche se un evento improvviso libera Francesca da qualunque vincolo, Michael non osa confessarle il proprio amore e per dimenticarla parte per l’India. Ma al suo rientro, inaspettatamente, Francesca gli chiede consiglio per trovare un buon marito: potrà Michael sopportare di gettarla tra le braccia di un altro?

La mia opinione: non il mio preferito della serie #Bridgerton, ma sicuramente tra i miei preferiti, e sicuramente per me il più romantico, perchè lui la ama in silenzio da anni, e c’è un lungo e duraturo scambio epistolare, e come vi dicevo, io trovo le letttere terribilmente romantiche. Qui lo struggimento c’è, ma a livelli normali e poi alla fine ripaga.

6. Adorabile sconosciuto (The Perfect Stranger) di Anne Gracie

https://amzn.to/3b9nf5i

Faith Merridew ha abbandonato la famiglia e l’Inghilterra per un uomo che le ha giurato amore eterno. Una volta in Francia, però, scopre di essere stata ingannata.  Con il cuore a pezzi, incontra Nicholas Blacklock, giovane reduce di Waterloo. Disposto a salvarle la reputazione, Nicholas le propone un matrimonio bianco, seguito dal suo immediato rientro a Londra. Solo che Faith ora sente di appartenere davvero a quest’uomo tanto generoso, ma anche misterioso. Riuscirà a fare breccia nel suo cuore?

La mia opinione: Cosa c’è di più romantico che innamorarsi un bellimbusto che ti promette per sempre e poi dopo che tu hai lasciato tutto per lui ti molla? No, ditemelo. Questa trama è la base di non so quanti fiilm rosa. In più poi abbiamo un bel tenebroso che le vuole salvare la reputazione, di cui lei s’innamoa, ma lui nasconde un oscuro segreto. Questo è proprio il classico romance che ti fa dire, ma sta poverina mai una gioia? Tutte a lei? Struggimento a go go.

7. Dietro la maschera (Tapestry) di Karen Ranney

https://amzn.to/2ZjILin

Per lady Laura esiste un solo uomo al mondo: Dixon Alexander Weston, conte di Cardiff. Alex ha fatto ritorno dalla battaglia navale di Quiberon col volto gravemente sfigurato e ora vive rinchiuso nella sua dimora di Heddon Hall. Dopo averlo atteso per quattro anni, Laura Ashcott Blake, vicina di casa del conte, decide di intrufolarsi nel suo cuore facendosi assumere come domestica. Tra i due la passione scoppia impetuosa e travolgente. Alex all’inizio non riconosce in lei la ragazzina che tanto lo adorava, ma non appena scopre la verità, subito si celebrano le nozze. Dopo un anno di felicità assoluta, però, riuscirà il loro amore a superare un’altra guerra?

La mia opinione: altra classica trama struggente. Lui torna dalla guerra sfigurato e provato sia fisicamnte che mentalmente, lei lo ha aspettato per anni fedele e innamorata e lui manco la riconosce. Ma lei imperterrita nonostante lui non sia più come prima, lo vuole amare  lo vuole curare, a forza di provarci riesce ad entrare a far prate della sua vita, la felicità sembra a portata di mano, ed ecco una nuova mazzata in arrivo. Per la serie mai una gioia anche qui. 

8. Giorni di gloria (Morning Glory) di LaVyrle Spencer

https://amzn.to/2Zsy5hb

Elly, vedova con due figli e in attesa di un terzo, è una donna forte e coraggiosa, ma tutti la considerano pazza a causa della sua ritrosia, conseguenza di una terribile infanzia. Figlia illegittima, è stata tenuta dai nonni, fanatici religiosi, rinchiusa in casa per anni e anni. Will, attraente, onesto, intelligente e gran lavoratore, ha avuto una vita difficile. A Whitney, una cittadina della Georgia, spera di gettarsi alle spalle il passato. E' rimasto orfano piccolissimo ed è convinto che nessuno potrà mai amarlo davvero. Un uomo e una donna, con i quali la vita non è stata generosa, portano con sé ricordi angosciosi, timori e insicurezze che sembrano offuscare la serenità della loro unione. L'amore che nutrono l'uno per l'altro, però, è talmente forte che li aiuterà a superare ogni difficoltà.

La mia opinione: questo è un poco struggente per il passato dei protagonisti, ma poi è semplicemente romantico (ma con una vena malinconica) perchè non puoi non fare il tifo per loro. Certo non è la trama più innovativa di questo mondo. Avrò letto almeno dieci romance simili ambientati nell’America di fine 1800, ma questo è scritto molto ma molto bene.

9. The shadow and the star (inedito in italiano) Laura Kinsale

Kinsale alterna qui due storie correlate. Una, ambientata alle Hawaii, segue le vicende del giovane Samuel Gerard, la cui infanzia è stata un incubo, ma poi quando trova una casa con la benevola Lady Ashland, diventa il protetto dell'enigmatico maggiordomo giapponese Dojun, che lo allena nelle arti marziali e nell’autodisciplina. La seconda storia, è invece ambientata nella Londra del 1880, dove la povera ma rispettabile Leda Etoile scopre che Samuel, ora adulto e straordinariamente bello, è dietro una sconcertante serie di furti. Disoccupata e senza fondi, Leda accetta un posto come segretaria di Samuel e soccombe gradualmente al suo fascino. Samuel pensa di non avere alcun interesse per Leda, e pensa anche che l'addestramento di Dojun fosse disinteressato. Ma ha torto su entrambi i fronti.

La mia opinione: trama mollto atipica che apprezzo, eroe che ha sofferto tanto ed è cinicamente il frutto del dolore che ha passato, e oltre a questo quando crede di poter prevalere sugli altri e vendicarsi, scopre di essere solo una pedina in mano altrui e quindi ancora una vittima in realtà. Per questo gli si può perdonare il male che lui fa agli ma solo in parte. Questo forse non è un romanzo per tutti, ma resta estremamente interessante e struggente, ma di uno struggimento che lascia un poco di amaro in bocca.

10. The Bridal Veil (inedito in italiano) di Alexis Harrington

Emily Cannon non è la sposa a cui Luck Becker aveva scritto, ma la sorella di mediocre bellezza e troppo alta. Quando sua sorella è morta e Emily è rimasta sola al mondo, in un raro momento di impulsività ha deciso di prendere il suo posto come sposa per corrispondenza. Certo non è bella come lei, ma in fondo il futuro sposo non aveva mai visto la sua interlocutrice e poi se non possiede la bellezza, Emily ha molte altre capacità, e dopo una vita passata con genitori che le hanno sempre detto che non era bella o speciale, non è che non si aspetti molto. Eppure ci rimane comunque male quando Luck la vede e subito la rifiuta. Luck però non può fare lo schizzinoso, ha bisogno di una madre per sua figlia, e accetta di sposare Emily, che per di più dopo il viaggio non ha più un soldo. Ma mette subito in chiaro che lei sarà una governante non sua moglie sul serio. Emily china la testa, ci è abituata e accetta. Nel suo baule ha l'abito da sposa e il velo di sua sorella, ma nopn li indossa per la cerimonia, dopotutto non è un vero matrimonio, e ripone anche quel sogno di un matrimonio in bianco, in un cassetto. Come se non bataase quello che trova a casa di Luck è un vero disastro. Sua figlia è una piccola selvaggia aizzata dalla suocera di Luck che ha trasformato la casa in un santuario dedicato alla figlia morta. Una famiglia veramente disastrata. E sarà un duro lavoro per Emily cercare di rinire questo nucleo famigliare distrutto da vecchi rancori e segreti mai rivelati.

La mia opinione: qui invece ci si strugge per la povera protagonista che subisce da una vita, e viene trattata a pesci in faccia pure dall’uomo che più ha bisogno di lei. Non si può non amarla nei momenti in cui dimostra un poco di spina dorsale, e quando finalmente lui inizia a trattarla bene. Ma io non perdono, e ho sempre un po’ odiato questo personaggio maschile, nonostante sia il risultato di un passato difficile questo non lo scusa, visto che pure lei con tutto ciò che ha subito sarebbe giustificata se fosse scontrosa e cinica, ma non lo è. Comunque quando alla fine Emily potrà usare il prezioso velo da sposa della sua antenata realizando tutti i suoi sogni come merita ci si sente ripagati. O quasi.

[bigyack-com]

World’s leading chefs name their favourite restaurant meals of 2019 - more lifestyle

The world’s leading chefs get to eat some of the world’s greatest food. So we asked a bunch of them for their best meals of 2020.Here’s what they had to say.Atomix, New YorkChef Junghyun Park serves contemporary dishes inspired by Korean cuisine at this small restaurant in Murray Hill, where tasting menus are served at a counter. “It was my best meal of the year by far,” says Floyd Cardoz of Bombay Canteen, in Mumbai. (Cardoz previously opened Tabla and North End Grill in New York.) “The staff were very hospitable and gracious,” he says. “The food was amazing, well prepared using Korean techniques and seasoning. The plates were perfectly designed and help tell the story.”104 E 30th St, New York, NY 10016Bab Al-Yemen, Amman, JordanThis simple restaurant in the Jordanian capital serving authentic Yemeni food is the pick of Asma Khan, of Darjeeling Express, in London. “They serve gigantic portions of rice and meat, like mandi with chicken (a traditional dish with meat cooked in a tandoor oven); zurbian with lamb (a rice dish similar to biryani); and Yemeni madghot (another traditional rice and meat dish); And then the dessert I will never forget: Masoob malikia- warm toasted banana, bread, cheese, cream, honey, golden sultanas and nuts,” she says.Abdullah Ghosheh Street, Amman; +962 6 533 1880D’Berto, O Grove, SpainThis is a traditional restaurant in Galicia, known for its focus on local seafood and fish. “It was my best meal of the year,” says Jose Pizarro, of Pizarro restaurant in London. “The whole experience was amazing, just walking around makes you hungry. The welcome from Berto and his family makes you feel at home. For me, the lobster al ajillo, with plenty of olive oil, chili and garlic, is to die for.”Av.  Teniente Dominguez 84, O Grove, Pontevedra; +34 986 733 447Blue Hill at Stone Barns, Tarrytown, New YorkChef Dan Barber’s farm-to-table restaurant in Pocantico Hills is the pick of Layo Paskin, once a superstar DJ and now owner of Palomar in London. A lengthy tasting menu costing $278 is served. “I sat down for lunch at 1 p.m. and got up at 8 p.m., 26 courses later.” he says. “It was my best meal by far in 2019. It’s almost impossible to choose a best dish but let’s go for : Tree Fermented Apple, Diver Scallop and Black Walnut, Stone Barns Mache.”630 Bedford Road, Tarrytown, NY 10591; +1 914-366-9600Clove Club, LondonChef Isaac McHale’s contemporary restaurant in Shoreditch is the pick of Ashley Palmer-Watts, executive chef at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal in London. “It was beautifully executed cooking with a great respect for the ingredients: It was decadent, well-balanced and was a joy to experience,” he says. “A couple of the many standout dishes were the Cornish lobster, scallops with potato and truffle; and also the hare royale, utilizing every part of the hare. Delicious!”Shoreditch Town Hall, 380 Old Street, London, EC1V 9LT; +44 (0) 20 7729 6496Corte Comedor, Buenos AiresChef Wolfgang Puck of Spago in Beverly Hills picks this barbecue restaurant. “I had the grilled sweetbread and I loved it so much that I went back to the kitchen, talked to the chef-owner, Santiago Garat, and asked for another plate, though I had gout at the time. It was worth having another attack, my best dish of 2019. It’s a very casual restaurant adjoined to a butcher shop and they serve what they butcher.”Migueletes 2301, Av. Olazabal, Buenos Aires, C1428; +54 11 4781-2166Disfrutar, BarcelonaThis contemporary restaurant was opened in 2014 by three friends who had worked together at El Bulli, five times winner of the title of World’s Best Restaurant. It’s a place for creativity and imagination, with constantly evolving tasting menus and dishes such as gazpacho in a sandwich. It’s No. 9 on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants and served the best meal of 2019 for Virgilio Martinez of Central, in Lima. “Wow! Wow!” he says. “I love it when this technical approach and perfect execution, hospitality, meaning all go together.”Carrer de Villarroel, 163, 08036 Barcelona; +34 933 48 68 96  Frantzén, StockholmThis contemporary restaurant in Stockholm is the pick of two great chefs. Elena Arzak, of Arzak in San Sebastián says: “Great creativity, respect for the product. Björn Frantzén makes you really dream.” Mark Birchall, whose Moor Hall in northern England holds the title of top U.K. restaurant, says:  “Every single dish was exquisite but particularly memorable was an amazing fish course; Alfonsino from Norway, sea urchin XO, yuzu kosho beurre blanc with sea-buckthorn oil.”Klara Norra kyrkogata 26, 111 22 Stockholm; +46 8 20 85 80Güeyu Mar, Asturias, Spain“I love this place,” says Nieves Barragan of Sabor in London. “It’s in the middle of nowhere, really relaxing and laid-back right in front of the beach, so all of the seafood and catch of the day is extremely fresh; it’s exactly the kind of restaurant I want to eat at when I’m abroad and travelling. The standout dish was tuna belly cooked over coals and served with warm egg yolk and fresh peas. It gives me goosebumps just thinking about it.”Playa de Vega, 84, 33560 Ribadesella, Asturias; +34 985 86 08 63MIL Centro, Maras, PeruThis restaurant north of Cusco served the best meal for Kyle Connaughton of the three-Michelin-star SingleThread in Healdsburg, California. “It’s the restaurant project of Virgilo Martinez at the Moray archaeological site,” he says. “An amazing meal and an inspiring project. Every bit of food was perfect and delicious. It also had purpose and the hospitality was so warm and genuine.”Vía a Moray, Maras 08655; +51 926 948 088Noma, CopenhagenChef Rene Redzepi’s pioneering restaurant divides the year with seasonal menus and it was the Game & Forest menu that particularly inspired chef Ana Ros of Hiša Franko in Kobarid, Slovenia. It features such as reindeer heart tartar and sorrel, with egg-yolk sauce and ants. “The food was really amazing,” she says. “I couldn’t believe how light it was, yet so faithful and tasteful.”Refshalevej 96, 1432 Copenhagen K; +45 32 96 32 97Sabor, LondonSpanish chef Nieves Barragan has developed a following in London for her authentic and unfussy cooking, showcasing great produce. “I eat there a lot,” says Chris Galvin of Galvin La Chapelle in London. “I love the variety of specials while there are always the seasonal classics, the staff, deep flavors and deliciousness, coupled with the drinks and buzz always make me feel happy to be alive.”35-37 Heddon St, Mayfair, London W1B 4BR; +44 (0) 20 3319 8130Sat Bains, Nottingham, EnglandThis two-Michelin-star restaurant with rooms is a destination for food lovers and is the pick of French chef Claude Bosi, who himself holds two Michelin stars at Claude Bosi at Bibendum, in London.  “It’s one of the top places in England,” Bosi says. “he’s got a dish with smoked eel that’s absolutely beautiful. His style of food, you want to take your bread and finish the sauce with the bread. That is a sign of quality. Good strong flavor with his own identity. That is the beauty of it.”Lenton Ln, Nottingham, NG7 2SA; +44 (0) 115 986 6566 Lo Scoglio da Tommaso, Massa Lubrense, ItalyThis restaurant on the Amalfi coast traces its history to 1958, serving local cuisine using ingredients from the sea or the family farm. It is a favorite of Francesco Mazzei, of Sartoria in London. “It’s so authentic,” he says. “The mum and dad are in the garden, the sister’s on the floor and the brother’s in the kitchen. Their most famous dish is Spaghetti alla Nerano, with basil, zucchini and Provolone cheese. That dish alone is worth the flight from London.”Piazza delle Sirene 15, Marina del Cantone, Massa Lubrense NA; +39 081 808 1026SingleThread, Healdsburg, CaliforniaThe restaurant at SingleThread Farms served the best meals of the year to another two great chefs. Daniel Boulud, of Daniel in New York, says: Chef Kyle Connaughton and his wife Katina bring the most genuine experience in food setting and service, inspired by nature with the best expression of a Japanese ryokan in Sonoma.” Clare Smyth, of Core by Clare Smyth in London, says: “It would have to be SingleThread Farms because it was amazing, but also incredible weather sitting on the rooftop having a drink before dinner and looking over the countryside. The produce was incredible at that time of the year (end of August).”131 North Street, Healdsburg, California CA 95448; +1 707-723-4646Richard Vines is the Chief Food Critic at Bloomberg. Follow him on Twitter @richardvines and Instagram @richard.vines.(This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.)Follow more stories on Facebook and Twitter Read the full article

[canaldelmisterio]

Silky, el fantasma juguetón de Northumbria

Silky, el fantasma juguetón de Northumbria

Silky, el fantasma juguetón de Northumbria

Se dice que Silky es el travieso fantasma que se desliza en torno a las casas de campo de la región inglesa de Northumbria. Varias leyendas cuentan la misteriosa aparición de este fantasma envuelto en su tradicional seda negra.

Silky merodea los bosques, las granjas aisladas y los senderos de Belsay, cerca de Morpeth. Es una imagen que…

[businessliveme]

These Are The Best Restaurant Meals of 2019 of Top Chefs

(Bloomberg) — The world’s leading chefs get to eat some of the world’s greatest food. So we asked a bunch of them for their best meals of 2020.

Here’s what they had to say.

Atomix, New York

Chef Junghyun Park serves contemporary dishes inspired by Korean cuisine at this small restaurant in Murray Hill, where tasting menus are served at a counter. “It was my best meal of the year by far,” says Floyd Cardoz of Bombay Canteen, in Mumbai. (Cardoz previously opened Tabla and North End Grill in New York.) “The staff were very hospitable and gracious,” he says. “The food was amazing, well prepared using Korean techniques and seasoning. The plates were perfectly designed and help tell the story.”

104 E 30th St, New York, NY 10016

Bab Al-Yemen, Amman, Jordan

This simple restaurant in the Jordanian capital serving authentic Yemeni food is the pick of Asma Khan, of Darjeeling Express, in London. “They serve gigantic portions of rice and meat, like mandi with chicken (a traditional dish with meat cooked in a tandoor oven); zurbian with lamb (a rice dish similar to biryani); and Yemeni madghot (another traditional rice and meat dish); And then the dessert I will never forget: Masoob malikia- warm toasted banana, bread, cheese, cream, honey, golden sultanas and nuts,” she says.

Abdullah Ghosheh Street, Amman; +962 6 533 1880

D’Berto, O Grove, Spain

This is a traditional restaurant in Galicia, known for its focus on local seafood and fish. “It was my best meal of the year,” says Jose Pizarro, of Pizarro restaurant in London. “The whole experience was amazing, just walking around makes you hungry. The welcome from Berto and his family makes you feel at home. For me, the lobster al ajillo, with plenty of olive oil, chili and garlic, is to die for.”

Av. Teniente Dominguez 84, O Grove, Pontevedra; +34 986 733 447

Blue Hill at Stone Barns, Tarrytown, New York

Chef Dan Barber’s farm-to-table restaurant in Pocantico Hills is the pick of Layo Paskin, once a superstar DJ and now owner of Palomar in London. A lengthy tasting menu costing $278 is served. “I sat down for lunch at 1 p.m. and got up at 8 p.m., 26 courses later.” he says. “It was my best meal by far in 2019. It’s almost impossible to choose a best dish but let’s go for : Tree Fermented Apple, Diver Scallop and Black Walnut, Stone Barns Mache.”

630 Bedford Road, Tarrytown, NY 10591; +1 914-366-9600

Clove Club, London

Chef Isaac McHale’s contemporary restaurant in Shoreditch is the pick of Ashley Palmer-Watts, executive chef at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal in London. “It was beautifully executed cooking with a great respect for the ingredients: It was decadent, well-balanced and was a joy to experience,” he says. “A couple of the many standout dishes were the Cornish lobster, scallops with potato and truffle; and also the hare royale, utilizing every part of the hare. Delicious!”

Shoreditch Town Hall, 380 Old Street, London, EC1V 9LT; +44 (0) 20 7729 6496

Corte Comedor, Buenos Aires

Chef Wolfgang Puck of Spago in Beverly Hills picks this barbecue restaurant. “I had the grilled sweetbread and I loved it so much that I went back to the kitchen, talked to the chef-owner, Santiago Garat, and asked for another plate, though I had gout at the time. It was worth having another attack, my best dish of 2019. It’s a very casual restaurant adjoined to a butcher shop and they serve what they butcher.”

Migueletes 2301, Av. Olazabal, Buenos Aires, C1428; +54 11 4781-2166

Disfrutar, Barcelona

This contemporary restaurant was opened in 2014 by three friends who had worked together at El Bulli, five times winner of the title of World’s Best Restaurant. It’s a place for creativity and imagination, with constantly evolving tasting menus and dishes such as gazpacho in a sandwich. It’s No. 9 on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants and served the best meal of 2019 for Virgilio Martinez of Central, in Lima. “Wow! Wow!” he says. “I love it when this technical approach and perfect execution, hospitality, meaning all go together.”

Carrer de Villarroel, 163, 08036 Barcelona; +34 933 48 68 96

Frantzén, Stockholm

This contemporary restaurant in Stockholm is the pick of two great chefs. Elena Arzak, of Arzak in San Sebastián says: “Great creativity, respect for the product. Björn Frantzén makes you really dream.” Mark Birchall, whose Moor Hall in northern England holds the title of top U.K. restaurant, says: “Every single dish was exquisite but particularly memorable was an amazing fish course; Alfonsino from Norway, sea urchin XO, yuzu kosho beurre blanc with sea-buckthorn oil.”

Klara Norra kyrkogata 26, 111 22 Stockholm; +46 8 20 85 80

Güeyu Mar, Asturias, Spain

“I love this place,” says Nieves Barragan of Sabor in London. “It’s in the middle of nowhere, really relaxing and laid-back right in front of the beach, so all of the seafood and catch of the day is extremely fresh; it’s exactly the kind of restaurant I want to eat at when I’m abroad and travelling. The standout dish was tuna belly cooked over coals and served with warm egg yolk and fresh peas. It gives me goosebumps just thinking about it.”

Playa de Vega, 84, 33560 Ribadesella, Asturias; +34 985 86 08 63

MIL Centro, Maras, Peru

This restaurant north of Cusco served the best meal for Kyle Connaughton of the three-Michelin-star SingleThread in Healdsburg, California. “It’s the restaurant project of Virgilo Martinez at the Moray archaeological site,” he says. “An amazing meal and an inspiring project. Every bit of food was perfect and delicious. It also had purpose and the hospitality was so warm and genuine.”

Vía a Moray, Maras 08655; +51 926 948 088

Noma, Copenhagen

Chef Rene Redzepi’s pioneering restaurant divides the year with seasonal menus and it was the Game & Forest menu that particularly inspired chef Ana Ros of Hiša Franko in Kobarid, Slovenia. It features such as reindeer heart tartar and sorrel, with egg-yolk sauce and ants. “The food was really amazing,” she says. “I couldn’t believe how light it was, yet so faithful and tasteful.”

Refshalevej 96, 1432 Copenhagen K; +45 32 96 32 97

Sabor, London

Spanish chef Nieves Barragan has developed a following in London for her authentic and unfussy cooking, showcasing great produce. “I eat there a lot,” says Chris Galvin of Galvin La Chapelle in London. “I love the variety of specials while there are always the seasonal classics, the staff, deep flavors and deliciousness, coupled with the drinks and buzz always make me feel happy to be alive.”

35-37 Heddon St, Mayfair, London W1B 4BR; +44 (0) 20 3319 8130

Sat Bains, Nottingham, England

This two-Michelin-star restaurant with rooms is a destination for food lovers and is the pick of French chef Claude Bosi, who himself holds two Michelin stars at Claude Bosi at Bibendum, in London. “It’s one of the top places in England,” Bosi says. “he’s got a dish with smoked eel that’s absolutely beautiful. His style of food, you want to take your bread and finish the sauce with the bread. That is a sign of quality. Good strong flavor with his own identity. That is the beauty of it.”

Lenton Ln, Nottingham, NG7 2SA; +44 (0) 115 986 6566

Lo Scoglio da Tommaso, Massa Lubrense, Italy

This restaurant on the Amalfi coast traces its history to 1958, serving local cuisine using ingredients from the sea or the family farm. It is a favorite of Francesco Mazzei, of Sartoria in London. “It’s so authentic,” he says. “The mum and dad are in the garden, the sister’s on the floor and the brother’s in the kitchen. Their most famous dish is Spaghetti alla Nerano, with basil, zucchini and Provolone cheese. That dish alone is worth the flight from London.”

Piazza delle Sirene 15, Marina del Cantone, Massa Lubrense NA; +39 081 808 1026

SingleThread, Healdsburg, California

The restaurant at SingleThread Farms served the best meals of the year to another two great chefs. Daniel Boulud, of Daniel in New York, says: Chef Kyle Connaughton and his wife Katina bring the most genuine experience in food setting and service, inspired by nature with the best expression of a Japanese ryokan in Sonoma.” Clare Smyth, of Core by Clare Smyth in London, says: “It would have to be SingleThread Farms because it was amazing, but also incredible weather sitting on the rooftop having a drink before dinner and looking over the countryside. The produce was incredible at that time of the year (end of August).”

131 North Street, Healdsburg, California CA 95448; +1 707-723-4646

The post These Are The Best Restaurant Meals of 2019 of Top Chefs appeared first on Businessliveme.com.

from WordPress https://ift.tt/369o8ar via IFTTT

[troop2017]

First off, my apologies for most of the photos appearing here at the start – I’m having a spot of bother again getting them where I want them!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Apart from visiting Hadrian’s Wall sites when in inland Northumberland we also went a little further afield, visiting the Angel of the North, Beamish Museum and a Sunday afternoon in Newcastle.

Beamish museum was somewhere that I was aware of and keen to visit.  I love ‘living’ museums like this where the exhibits represent how we used to live, often with buildings saved from different areas and rebuilt in the museum.  Similar museums around the country include the Weald and Downland near Chichester, St Fagans Folk Museum in Cardiff, Blists Hill Victorian Town near Telford and the Black Country Museum in Dudley.  I have been to each of these museums (except the Black Country Museum) at least twice, and as a result often shout excitedly at the telly when I see a location I recognise (as they’re often used for filming!)

We actually visited Beamish twice.  There were 2 reasons for this, the 1st being that they are one of these, really pretty annoying, attractions where your entry fee allows you to visit for a full year.  This is all very well if you live in the area and are likely to visit more than once – but how about a cheaper price for those of us who are just visiting?  We missed out on Leeds Castle because of this policy (and saw many others turning round and leaving), and need to visit Chatham Docks again before May in order to use our tickets again before they run out…

Anyway, the main reason we had to return was that a couple of days after our first visit there was a big classic car show being held.  So that was reason enough to go back….

Beamish is a living history museum located in the village of Beamish, near to Consett.  There is an awful lot of walking available as you make your way around the site, between the pit village (and a quick tour down a real pit shaft – not far but very interesting), the town, the hall and the farm.

Entrance to the pit at Beamish

On the way down the pit

Where the miners worked (only without the light…)

The Pit Village at Beamish

Don’t despair however there are plenty of transport options; old trams and buses run frequently and there is no extra charge for these.  There are several houses that have been rebuilt and dressed in the style of the day, both in the pit village, the town and also the hall.  Don’t miss the tower as you exit the hall – this is the most interesting part of the building!

Over the 2 visits that we made we managed to see every part of the museum and were suitably impressed (at £19 each though that’s a good thing!)

On the way to the museum we had visited the Angel of the North  , the iconic sculpture designed by Anthony Gormley which you cannot miss as you drive by!  There is free parking and an information board at the bottom of the hill that the angel is sited on, and she is really an awesome sight!

We returned to the van via Consett as we needed to get fuel.

After our 2nd visit on the Sunday we headed in to Newcastle to have a look.  We ended up having some lunch – I found out that Weatherspoons now operate a system where you’re able to order online, including your drinks!  Brilliant!  (However, I also think this is old news, just like when I got all excited about the automatic ordering in McDonalds…)

After lunch we headed off to have a look around Newcastle.  I’m not sure how far we walked, but it was a far way.  We were impressed with the city – it wasn’t what we were expecting at all.  Added to the grand old buildings there was a definite vibe about the place even on a Sunday afternoon in September.

Finally in this area, on the Saturday between these 2 visits to the museum we decided to have a lazy day but ended up heading out for a drive, visiting Heddon on the Wall and then Prudhoe Castle.  We also found where the British Masters was being held (we’d seen signs for parking as we’d been driving around the area for the previous week) at Close House, which was busy preparing for the tournament that was being held the following week.

Prudhoe Castle is an English Heritage property, but whilst a pleasant enough way to spend, maybe, half an hour, it wasn’t one of the better properties we’d visited.  Put it this way, it’s one of the properties that we would have been fed up to have paid out £12 between us if we hadn’t been members….  However, if you do go make sure to visit the room above the gatehouse 🙂

  So our time in Hadrian’s Wall country came to an end, but not our time in Northumberland.  We had 11 more nights and 2 more sites on the coast to visit before moving on to Scotland!

Keep travelling 🙂

  Latest instalment from our journey around the UK in our motorhome. It might give you ideas! First off, my apologies for most of the photos appearing here at the start - I'm having a spot of bother again getting them where I want them!

[alexander40wong]

David Bowie’s London, Berlin and New York

Following his death in January 2016, tributes to David Bowie sprung up all around the world, showing that he was truly an international icon.

Although his lyrics were often cryptic, with fans and critics puzzling over the deeper meanings to both his biggest hits and bootlegged obscurities, the influence of cities in Bowie’s work was clear to see – from the Philadelphia soul sound of the Young Americans LP to his brief (but memorable) stint in LA, which resulted in both the album Station to Station and the film The Man Who Fell to Earth, both key works in Bowie’s catalogue.

However, there are three cities that played a particularly important part in his life – London, Berlin and New York. Here’s our guide to the sights and neighbourhoods in these cities that shaped Bowie’s life and music.

London

Bowie street art, Brixton

South London

Brixton High Street

Born in Brixton on 8th January 1947, David Robert Jones spent the first six years of his life in the area, living at 40 Stansfield Road, and attending the nearby Stockwell Primary School.

His family then moved even further into the South London suburbs, to Bromley, living at first on Cannon Road, then Clarence Road and Plaistow Grove. Bowie attended Bromley Technical High School, now Ravens Wood School, and studied the saxophone with musician Ronnie Ross, at his house at 6 Irvine Way in nearby Orpington.

Although Bowie’s time in Brixton was relatively brief, the town centre was the centre of London’s tribute events to him after he died, and you can still see the mural of him at Tunstall Road, near Brixton Station.

Soho

Denmark Street, Soho

While growing up in the suburbs, Bowie had his sights set on central London – and Soho in particular – which was just starting to swing. Several of his early songs focus on the London scene, which he had first hand experience of, from playing gigs in his early groups at the rock venues that were springing up around the city, and there are plenty of Bowie-related sights to explore in the area.

Denmark Street was the heart of Britain’s music industry in the 1960s, and Bowie spent much of the time when he was starting out at the Giaconda Cafe at number 9.

The Giaconda closed down in 2015, but you can still visit another of Bowie’s regular watering holes – The Ship on Wardour Street -which was one of his favourite spots to meet journalists for interviews.

Just off Regent Street, you’ll find Heddon Street, where the front cover image of the Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars was photographed – there’s a plaque on number 15 marking the exact spot.

Beckenham

Inspired by cutting-edge London venues like the Drury Lane Arts Lab, Bowie moved back to South London, and set up his own equivalent – the Beckenham Arts Lab, at the Three Tun Pub at 157 Beckenham High Street.

Initially Bowie lived in a flat at 24 Foxgrove Road, near Beckenham Junction Station, before moving to an apartment in Haddon Hall, Southend Road with his then girlfriend, Angie, who he married at Bromley Registry Office on May 19th 1970.

Both Haddon Hall and the Three Tun Pub are now gone (the latter is now home to a Zizzi restaurant, but its place in rock ‘n roll history was marked with a plaque in 2010), but you can still visit the Croydon Road Recreation Ground, where Bowie organised a festival in August 1969 – an event he commemorated in his 1970 single, Memory of a Free Festival.

Aylesbury

Hop on a train from Marylebone Station, and head about 30 miles north to Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire. The pretty market town might seem to be a long way from swinging London, but it plays a major role in some of Bowie’s key works from the period.

In 1971, Bowie played a low-key gig at the town’s Friars’ Club, debuting some of the songs off his much-anticipated album Hunky Dory.

The show went so well that he kept his backing band from the night, later renaming them the Spiders From Mars for Hunky Dory’s follow up – Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.

The market square mentioned in the Ziggy Stardust’s opening track, Five Years, is believed to be Aylesbury’s, and the square will soon have a statue of Bowie as a tribute, after a successful fund-raising campaign from fans.

And that’s not the only link Aylesbury has to Bowie’s career – he also played the Friars Club twice on the Ziggy Stardust tour, including the opening night of the tour. For the second show, Bowie transported some of the world’s most influential rock critics to the small market town, as well as art icon Andy Warhol.

The Friars Club itself closed and reopened a number of times, but, following its 40th anniversary celebrations in 2009, it remains open for good, and still stages gigs at the town’s Waterside Theatre.

Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith

Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith

The Ziggy Stardust story came to an end in West London, at the Hammersmith Odeon. At the final date of the album’s tour – captured on film as Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars: The Motion Picture – Bowie killed off his creation, announcing to the crowd that this was the last gig that he’d ever play (needless to say, it wasn’t), before launching into Rock ‘N’ Roll Suicide.

Still one of London’s most famous concert venues, the now Eventim Apollo also hosted fellow Bromley-native Kate Bush’s record-breaking live return in 2014.

Berlin

Schöneberg

After a brief, but troubled (and drug-addled) period living in LA. Bowie moved to Berlin in 1976, along with his friend, former Stooges-frontman Iggy Pop.

Inspired by its architecture and history (as well as the famous interwar novels of writer Christopher Isherwood, who Bowie had met earlier in the decade) Bowie had a long-standing fascination with the city. He was also attracted to Berlin as it was a very cheap place to live at the time, and despite already being one of the most famous musicians in the world, it was also a place where he could live a fairly ordinary life, undisturbed by the locals.

The period Bowie spent in the city became one of the most productive in his career, inspiring not just his own “Berlin Trilogy” – the classic albums Low, Heroes and Lodger – but also Pop’s The Idiot and Lust for Life, which Bowie co-wrote and produced.

Bowie and Pop rented a flat at 155 Haupstrausse in Schöneberg. The area was, and still is, the centre of Berlin’s gay district, and Bowie was attracted to the vibrant scene.

He regularly hung out in the Anderes Ufer cafe, just a couple of doors down from the apartment. Now known as Neues Ufer, the cafe hasn’t changed too much since then – although there are now a few portraits of Bowie on its walls.

Neukölln

He might not have got its name quite right when he wrote about it on the Heroes record, but the district of Neukölln played an important part in Bowie’s stay in the city.

He first arrived in town at the district’s Tempelhof airport, and filmed scenes for Just a Gigalo in the imposing Stadtbad Neukölln on Ganghoferstrasse. Dating back to 1914, the swimming baths are still open – and just as impressive – today.

During the 1970s, the area was particularly deprived, and its housing blocks were the childhood home of Christiane F. a young drug addict whose autobiography became a sensation, later turned into a film soundtracked by and featuring Bowie.

Today, however, it’s one of Berlin’s trendiest areas, close to vibrant Kreuzberg, while the former Tempelhof airport site is now the city’s largest park, which hosts sporting events and music festivals.

Hansa Tonstudio

Hansa Tonstudio

Bowie, Pop and producers Tony Visconti and Brian Eno created some of their most famous works at the grand Hansa studios – including all of the Heroes and Lust for Life LPs.

Found at the edge of West Berlin, the studio’s view of the Berlin Wall inspired the lyrics to Heroes’ title track. Bowie watched Visconti’s secret rendezvous with his then-girlfriend outside the studio and transformed it into the story of two lovers who had been separated by the Wall.

Hansa studios are still in use today, and there are often tours around the complex, so you can explore the famous building and its impressive decor.

Potsdamer Platz to KaDeWe

Potsdamer Platz

During the period that Bowie lived in the city, Berlin was still very much a run-down, divided and even dangerous city.

For his comeback single in 2013, Where Are We Now, Bowie reflected on how much the city had changed, documenting a journey from Potsdamer Platz, to the Dschungel disco and the KaDeWe department store.

During his time in the city, at the height of the Cold War, the less-than-3km trip was a difficult journey, crossing the divide of the then-desolate wall-side surroundings of Potsdamer Platz to the relative opulence of Dshungel (known as Berlin’s answer to Studio 54) and KaDeWe. Now, in 2013, it was as simple as jumping on a train (you can do so too – just take the U2 line from Potsdamer Platz Bahnhof and hop off at Wittenbergplatz).

Today, Potsdamer Platz is a bustling area, surrounded by shops and offices. Dschungel closed down, but you can stay in its former home – which is now the Ellington Hotel (inspired by the club’s previous life as a jazz venue).

SO36

One of Bowie and Pop’s regular haunts that hasn’t changed much today (relatively speaking) is the SO36 club, in Kreuzberg. Bowie and Pop spent many nights at the club, which was the centre of the city’s punk scene. It still regularly hosts gigs by both local and international rock acts, as well as parties, gay nights and a monthly roller disco.

For a rather more refined night on the town, head to the Paris Bar at 152 Kantsrasse in Charlottenburg – an elegant French restaurant, whose steak frites Bowie was particularly fond of.

New York

Bowie street art, New York

Essex House

Essex House, Manhattan

 After spending much of the 1980s living in Switzerland, Bowie married the supermodel Iman in the early 1990s and moved to New York soon afterwards.

Settling in an apartment in the art deco landmark Essex House at 160 Central Park South, New York reinspired Bowie. Records like 1.Outside and Reality contained references to the city’s life, creative scene, and architecture and earned Bowie some of his best reviews in years.

The Essex House apartment recently went on sale, with an asking price of $6.5 million (although, as it comes with Bowie’s old grand piano, and amazing views of Central Park, that seems like a bit of a bargain).

Even if you can’t afford that, you can still get an experience of staying at Essex House, as the building is also home to the JW Marriott Essex House hotel.

Greenwich Village

Washington Square Park

Greenwich Village has shaped Bowie’s work in several ways. Its folk scene in the 1960s both inspired the young Bowie at the start of his career and was directly referenced in songs like Hunky Dory’s Song for Bob Dylan, and The Next Day’s (You Will) Set the World on Fire, which mentions the famous folk venues Gaslight and The Bitter End (which you can still find today at 147 Bleecker Street).

Bowie recorded the Young Americans album at Electric Lady Studios at 52 West Eighth Street. Founded by Jimi Hendrix, the studio is also still open today – recently hosting Lana Del Rey and Frank Ocean.

Greenwich Village is also home to Washington Square Park, which Bowie named his favourite place in the city.

Lafayette Street, Soho

After Essex House, Bowie and Iman moved to an apartment at 285 Lafayette Street, where he spent the rest of his life.

He was often spotted in the neighbourhood, record shopping on Bleecker Street or browsing the shelves at the Mcnally Jackson bookshop at 52 Prince Street.

The area also plays an earlier part in Bowie’s story. During the 1980s, he met Chic’s Nile Rodgers at the Continental – a bar well-known by musicians, and still in the same place by the Astor Place subway. The two went on to work together on several records, including Let’s Dance – which became Bowie’s best-selling album.

Galleries

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Bowie was a passionate art collector, and you can find some of the city’s best galleries within walking distance of his New York apartments. Lafayette Street is close to a number of private galleries, as well as the innovative New Gallery, which showcases upcoming talent. From Essex House, take a leisurely stroll through central park to some of the city’s most famous galleries, including the Guggenheim – with a world beating collection of modern art, with works by the likes of Andy Warhol, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Also known as the Met, the museum has one of the world’s greatest collections of art, including works by Tintoretto, one of Bowie’s favourite painters (he named his publishing company after the Italian old master).

Theatres

No visit to New York is complete without a trip to its world-famous Theater District, and two of the city’s theatres have a strong Bowie connection.

At the Booth Theater in 1980, Bowie took over the lead role in the hit production of The Elephant Man, and won rave reviews. In 2014, Bradley Cooper also took on the role on the Booth Theater’s stage.

The New York Theatre Workshop, at 79 East 4th Street, just around the Lafayette Street apartment, is where Bowie created one of his final works, the musical Lazarus, which premiered just a month before his death.

Where next?

Why stop there? Bowie was known for his love of traveling, with the subject inspiring several of his songs.

If you’re looking to extend your own Bowie tour, you could head to Blonay, Lausanne or Montreux in Switzerland, where Bowie lived and worked during the late 1970s and 80s, or the Caribbean island of Mustique, where he and Iman had a holiday home.

The V&A Museum’s hit David Bowie Is… exhibition also continues to travel the world, and can be seen at Barcelona’s Museu del Disseny from 25th May, and the Museo d’Arte Moderna di Bologna (MAMbo) in Italy, from 14th July – 13th November.

The post David Bowie’s London, Berlin and New York appeared first on lastminute.com Blog.

from lastminute.com Blog http://www.lastminute.com/blog/david-bowies-london-berlin-new-york/

[updatesportsnews247-blog]

British Masters Golf Live: Tickets on general sale after huge demand

Before its arrival in the North East, tickets for the Masters Golf 2017 Live reinforced by Sky Sports are as of now on general arrangement after each one of the 10,000 free tickets for the opening round were eaten up in just 30 minutes on Friday morning.

Set to occur at Close House, Heddon on the Wall, Northumberland , from Thursday September 28-Sunday October 1, new and existing golf fans raced to abuse the Sky Sports Thursday free ticket offer, which has exhibited a massively surely understood some segment of the opposition since its entry to the European Tour in 2015.

Taking after the excellent demand, tickets have in a flash gone on general arrangement significance fans can now purchase tickets for each one of the four rounds of the British Masters. Tickets are available here with expenses for rivalry days starting from just £15, with the auspicious riser markdown offers running until April 28, offering critical supports on portal affirmation.

Rivalry Director Rory Colville expressed: "The response of fans in the North East and past to our Sky Sports Thursday offer was incredible. "The Masters Golf 2017 Live by Sky Sports has been an enormously well known event with fans over the span of the latest couple of years and the reaction we have had early today underlines that. We've now put tickets on general arrangement so fans can abuse our convenient riser offers and assurance they discover the chance to see a segment of the world's driving players, in actuality, at Close House.

"The Ryder Cup player won the British Masters in the opposition's first spell on the European Tour, declaring the title at The Belfry in 2007 and a while later scarcely leaving behind a noteworthy open door for adequately shielding it 12 months afterward when he lost in a play-off to Spain's Gonzalo Fernandez-Castaño at a comparative scene. He finished third at The Grove a year back when Alex Noren attested the trophy, the Swede succeeding Englishman Matthew Fitzpatrick who won at Woburn Golf Club in 2015.

Neighborliness packs for The Colt Pavilion are in like manner open for the British Masters maintained by Sky Sports. Costs for The Colt Pavilion, which will disregard the eighteenth hole at Close House, start at £275 + VAT per person. The 2017 Masters is shy of what one month away.

Just a few rivalries remain in the keep running up to the chief major of the year. For the people who need to get the movement live up close and personal this is the perfect chance to get your tickets. The sticker cost is persevering strong, be that as it may.

Step by step recognizable pieces of proof are at present esteemed at $8,595 on Stubhub, as of Tuesday, with the resistance round distinguishing pieces of proof for Thursday through Sunday going for $4,690. According to the site, only 17 step by step distinguishing pieces of proof are open for purchase.The school revealed Monday a segment of the purposes of enthusiasm of a 20-year plan to address program prerequisites for an arrangement of recreations, with a couple amusements refreshes sorted out in the accompanying five years - men's and women's soccer, tennis, swimming and lacrosse.

Penn State moreover has a whole deal prepare for a Beaver Stadium makeover - ceasing and general upgrades. Regardless, the football stadium updates are no under five years away.

A normal cost for the Beaver Stadium rebuilds was avoided in Monday morning's release.

The game plan for Beaver Stadium, which won't get to be distinctly powerful until the need updates have been had a tendency to, consolidates:

An extension in chairback seating.

New concessions and food options.

New restrooms.

More broad concourses and additional top notch seating options.

After the redesigns at Beaver Stadium are done, the scene is up 'til now foreseen that would have a cutoff of no under 100,000.

Beaver Stadium, worked in 1960, Masters Golf Live  was last overhauled in 2001. Additionally, the whole deal Penn State comprehensive methodology requires a halting structure west of Beaver Stadium and climbs to Penn State football's Lasch building.

An open presentation of Penn State's 20-year sports organize, set to begin no sooner than the 2018-19 insightful year, is made arrangements for Monday at 3:30 p.m. at Robb Hall in the Hintz Alumni Center. Penn State athletic official Sandy Barbour will lead the presentation and address request from the social event of individuals.

The Penn State presenting will be spilled live on GoPSUsports.com and on the Penn State Nittany Lions Facebook page.

Cash related support for the Penn State plan is required to fuse charitableness and corporate affiliations. Barbour said in Monday's release that Penn State is searching for at any rate $120 million in altruistic gifts before the short lived, composed exercises begin.

Penn State in like manner released purposes of enthusiasm of the sorted out recreations refreshes set to begin in the accompanying five years - a point of convergence of amazingness, an indoor practice office for more diminutive diversions, another natatorium, another indoor tennis office and rebuilds to Jeffrey Field, home to Penn State's men's and women's soccer field.

*The point of convergence of significance, a 450,000 square-foot office to be manufactured where the East Area locker room is starting at now found, will give locker rooms and office space for the soccer, tennis, lacrosse and field hockey programs and also a 500-space ceasing office.

*The indoor practice office, which can have select Penn State sports camps, will be related with the point of convergence of flawlessness and offer space to the baseball, softball, golf, lacrosse and soccer activities and exercise space for each one of the 31 Penn State sports.

*Penn State's masterminded 100,000 square-foot tennis office will join 10 courts, get ready zones for both men's and women's tennis, seating for 500 fans and a star shop. The tennis office will be discovered west of the field hockey complex.

*The new swimming extent is depended upon to join 130,000 square feet of space, a 10-way, 50-meter competition pool, a hopping extraordinary for contention and seating for 2,500 spectators. The new natatorium will be arranged at the present swimming zone at the crossing point of Bigler and Curtain avenues.

*The Jeffrey field rebuilds join Masters Golf 2017 Live  overhaul home and passing by locker rooms, chairback seating for fans, concessions and restrooms, signify seating for 4,000 spectators and a video board.

[novaphoto]

WOW! HOLY COW! AMAZING! WHAT A PICTURE!... were some of the comments as I showed this picture around yesterday. Future Hall of Fame skiers; CG skier and 1965 World Slalom Champion, Barb Clack-Heddon congratulating Wayne Grimditch for winning the Jr. Boys slalom event in the All-American, an annual Cypress Gardens Spring tournament. Both were inducted into the Water Ski Hall of Fame in 1986. #waterskiing #showskiing #slalomskiing #worldchampion #cypressgardens #lifeonthewater #waterskilife #showskilife #loveblackandwhite (at Cypress Gardens, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bw0EroOhIL_/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1wxyd01ki4eio

[canaldelmisterio]

Silky, el fantasma juguetón de Northumbria

Silky, el fantasma juguetón de Northumbria

Silky, el fantasma juguetón de Northumbria  Se dice que Silky es el travieso fantasma que se desliza en torno a las casas de campo de la región inglesa de Northumbria. Varias leyendas cuentan la misteriosa aparición de este fantasma envuelto en su tradicional seda negra.Silky merodea los bosques, las granjas aisladas y los senderos de Belsay, cerca de Morpeth. Es una imagen que sorprende a los…

[troop2017]

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

After the North York Moors we headed back inland to take a look at Hadrian’s Wall in Northumberland.

By pure chance we stayed on a campsite, a few miles north of Corbridge and Hexham, that was right on the route of the wall – unfortunately there weren’t any sections of wall here, but it did mean that we weren’t too far from any of the main sights.  For us these were: Corbridge Roman Town, Chesters Bridge & Chesters Roman Fort, Housesteads Roman Fort and Heddon on the Wall.

Our first full day saw us visiting Corbridge Roman Town and also Hexham.  Corbridge itself is a very pretty little town which we drove through to find the old Roman town.  This is an English Heritage site (as many of them are along Hadrian’s Wall) and we were really surprised by just how engaging our visit was.

The 1st item of interest that you come to is a Roman road that you can actually still walk along – the bit that is left is believed to be from the 3rd century AD.  We had audio guides and along with the plentiful information boards this kept our interest all the way around the attraction.

Corbridge Roman Town

Corbridge Roman Town

Before heading back to the van we headed to Hexham for a little look around.  As usual we parked a little way out and walked back into town, where we were able to visit the abbey (free to enter), which was very interesting, but there was clearly an event being held that evening (and we were there quite late in the day).  This meant that we weren’t able to visit the crypt which seemed to be a very interesting area.

There is also a moot hall and an old gaol to visit, but we were too late for either!  The town is definitely worth a visit though, and not just for the fact that this is where you’ll find several supermarkets and takeaway options.

Hexham Abbey

Hexham Moot Hall

Hexham Old Gaol

The following day we headed in the opposite direction and found Chesters; 1st the Roman bridge remains (at the end of a 3/4 mile long footpath).  It’s amazing to see how much is actually left and we could also see across the river to Chesters Roman Fort which is where the bridge led to.

So this was our next stop.  Again an English Heritage site with lots of information available.  Many of the Roman remains that we are able to see today in the area were saved due to the actions of 1 man, John Clayton, who inherited the land from his father and started excavations.  He also bought up neighbouring estates when they became available in order to save the ruins from being lost completely.

In the grounds of Chesters there is a museum, built by his son, that houses many of the objects that he excavated over the years.  We visited both at the beginning and end of our visit!

The stand out attraction on this site is the remains of the bath house which are quite extensive.  We were also able to look back over the river towards the bridge remains.

Chesters Roman Bridge

Chesters Roman Bridge with added ‘sculpture’. Apparently these were common and were believed to bring luck!

Barrack remains at Chesters Roman Fort

Bathhouse remains at Chesters Roman Fort

We still hadn’t seen any of the actual wall so we carried on along the road and after a short while we caught our 1st glimpse.  We parked up by the side of the road as soon as we were able and walked back along the Hadrian’s Wall path to see the wall.

The following day we continued further along the same road to visit Housesteads Fort.  Once again we drove into and back out of the official car park (as it was run by the park authorities rather than English Heritage. NB: Corbridge Roman Town and Chesters car parks are run by English Heritage so these charges don’t apply).  They were charging £3 to park regardless of how long you were staying.

The lady at Corbridge Roman Town suggested that we parked a couple of miles away at Steel Riggs where she said the parking was cheaper – we looked but it was actually £4 there!  So we found a layby about a mile along the road from the fort and walked from there.

We made it difficult for ourselves, heading up the hill to join the main path (it wasn’t easy walking!) and when I saw 1 of the bulls at their feeding station staring us down I insisted on retracing our steps and going a slightly longer way around!  We came across a structure at the top of the hill that was probably a part of the wall (there were milecastles along the route, and smaller watchtowers) which we explored a little.

On the way to the fort we came across a short section of the wall that is actually part of the path (much of the actual wall is off limits to walk on), and shortly after this section you get to the fort itself.  This fort’s main attraction is the remains of the latrines where the flush system still works when it rains hard!  We were expecting to be getting bored of the Roman remains by this point, but it actually wasn’t the case – each of the sites has a different reason to visit.

We found a quicker way back to the car by following the tarmac road past the education centre (so no encounters with bulls this time 🙂 ).

Next stop was the town of Haltwhistle, apparently the centre of Britain.  There were a couple of points of interest, but unfortunately not an awful lot was made of these and overall the place was a little depressing.

Before returning back to the van we went off route and found a couple more sections of wall (and also more car parks where daft amounts were being asked to park – they were empty…)

At 1 section I was a little behind Calv in coming back down the hill, and spotted a cow keeping it’s beady eye on me (you have to be careful when they have calves with them).  I had to move fairly fast to get to the gate before the cow got to me!!

We also spotted ‘The Tree’ from Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves!

We also saw another section of the wall at Heddon on the Wall; just a small section though and probably only worth seeking out if you’re actually heading that way.

In my next post I will tell you about the other things we did while staying here: Beamish Museum, the Angel of the North and Prudhoe Castle.

      Hadrian’s Wall Country After the North York Moors we headed back inland to take a look at Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland.