Paignton: The Gurkha Curry! (27.8.2025)

This is a very sought after place with tables having to be booked weeks in advance. The cuisine is Nepalese (Gurkha) and is exceptionally good. The children enjoyed the rice and poppadoms – and it was a good experience for them. I was shocked to learn that the average price of a burger nowadays is around £8! Can you believe that! Even curries are not that cheap nowadays and so I am grateful we were guests and not hosts. As my mother is bed-bound abs could not attend in person – we ordered a curry to take home for her! We had a wonderful time surrounded by our family.

Adrian - Scarecrow Graduation!

Northants: Adrian & Gee Graduate as Scarecrows! (28.7.2025)

Being fans of the books and various dramatizations of “Wurzel Gummidge” – we were thrilled to lean of a local (Northants) “Scarecrow Course” sponsored by the Labour government as a job creation scheme. As this is a wealthy area – the local landowners are always on the look-out for suitable candidates for this partly government funded training course. Initially, we had to watch all the Jeepers Creepers films and learn to run smoothly through the corn fields.

Adrian & Gee Valentine Cards! (15.2.2025)

Until this year, I was completely unaware that February 7th is “Rose Day” in the UK! This falls just before St Valentine’s Day (Fedrusty 14th). I think many people conflate these two rituals as roses are often given on the 14th. I suspect there is an involved explanation for all this – perhaps pre-Christian (Pagan) verses Christian, etc. Whatever the case, Shakespeare seems to have known both these dates. Both dates are designed to renew assertions of love and affection between men and women.

When Radios Were Real!

UK: “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now!” Especially For Gee (from the Kids) – Remembering Spectrum Radio! (1.2.2025)

In the old days there was a thing called “Spectrum Radio” (I think on AM) that used to separate the 24-hour cycle into 24 different hours broadcasting music in languages different to English. I believe “Cantonese” (kind of our local Hong Kong language – despite being Hakka with a distinct language of our own) – was broadcast in the evening between 6pm – 7pm. In the early 1990s, I used to teach ethnic Chinese children English in the Sutton area. In the evening, our local Chinese community was much larger then than now – and we used to visit one another for dinner and a cup of tea. On occasion, and long before we were married, me and Gee used to listen to Spectrum Radio together – listening to contemporary (English) tracks rendered into Cantonese. Gee remembers “My Heart Will Go On” (Celine Dion) – the theme from the hit Movie “Titanic” – sang in Cantonese! Our children – Mei-An and Kai-Lin – have designed a post on this blog around our memories!

Gee's Birthday Treat - Cornish Cream Tea!

UK: Gee’s Birthday Treat – Cornish Cream Tea! (5.12.2024)

The box is delivered by a private Courier and contains four scones, four pots of jam, four tea-bags, two-bags of biscuits, and a pot of clotted cream! We breakout the best China tea-pot and tea-cups and saucers to consume this magnificent gift! As my parents live in Devon, we often visit nearby Cornwall and appreciate the history and old buildings. Cornwall is essentially a “Celtic” region of the UK with kilts, bagpipes and a Gaelic language all of its own!

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