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Summer is the time to get out of the confines of the house and enjoy the weather. While it may not be sunny all the time, this is the best period in the year to enjoy what nature has to offer. You don’t even need to go far or out of the country. Just take a look around you and you will find a lot of options.
One of these is a floating picnic at the River Thames. The best online resource for this kind of outing is Visit Thames, which compiles most anything that you can do related to the river. There are lots of restaurants by the river, from the outskirts of London to the Cotswolds. The Guardian recently had a feature on these floating picnic outings and suggests these:
The Beetle & Wedge Boathouse in Moulsford near Goring (beetleandwedge.co.uk) makes up hampers of cheese, salads, gravadlax, baguettes, melon and strawberries, then puts you in a wooden launch that seats up to 10 people (one hour boat hire £50, hampers from £15pp).
Or cruise the Thames in style from Marlow on the Compleat Angler’s Edwardian-style electric launch, while tucking into poached salmon, sandwiches, salads, scones, cheese and biscuits and strawberries and cream (macdonaldhotels.co.uk/compleatangler, boat hire £75-£95 per hour, hampers £25-£36).
If you want to pack your own hamper the website also lists boat hire companies such as Cotswold Boat Hire (cotswoldboat.co.uk), based in Lechlade, which has open-top motor boats from £80 for four hours for up to five people, and rowing boats from £15 per hour.
Now that sounds pretty good to me. What about you?
There are certain things that one associates with a nation. In our case, we have fish and chips. We have our flag. We also have British Airways. While the (former) national flag carrier might not be as popular as other symbolisms, I am pretty sure that BA has a place in the hearts of the British.
News has been going around that the airline is in trouble. The question that is hanging in the air right now is whether or not BA will really go under, for good. According to a feature by the Times Online, Willie Walsh, the chief executive of the airlines might very well say this one day:
“I am sorry to say that despite our efforts today we have been unable to secure further funding from our banks. The cash drain we sustained as a result of the rolling programme of industrial action by cabin crew and ground staff means we can no longer continue as a going concern. British Airways has this evening been put into administration.”
However, according to experts quoted by the Times Online, Walsh is exaggerating the situation. They say that he has an ulterior motive, which is to get the unions ready when the talks about cost cutting come up. Indeed, if everyone thinks that the airline is in dire financial straits, the unions will probably not have such a hard stance against the airline.
Then again, Walsh’s statements are strong – they might be strong to be crying wolf. Right now, we do not know the real situation, but what we do know is that there are people who want to save BA.
Are you yearning to get away from your tedious daily life? If you cannot find the time to go on a week-long break (or longer), or you do not have the cash to spare for an exotic vacation this spring, why not keep within the boundaries of the country and spend some time in the local scene? You may not know it but there are so many places within the UK that you can visit without breaking the bank, while at the same time discovering something new.
One such place is Bodwin Moor in Cornwall. With its awe inspiring landscapes and natural beauty, Bodwin Moor is the perfect place to go to get away from it all. And another plus? This area is largely undeveloped. This means that you would not have to compete with too many tourists if you visit.
But just because it is not that developed, it does not mean that you will not find a good place to stay. There are a number of comfortable bed and breakfasts and farmstay opportunities in the area. If you like roughing it, you can opt to go camping as well. Let me tell you, camping is not exactly roughing it, though, as you get proper beds and wooden floors inside the tents at Belle Tents.
Some areas of interest that you should NOT miss if you go to Bodwin Moors include the Cheesewring (a natural formation of rocks) and the numerous mines in the area. For more detailed information on tourism in Bodwin Moor, read The Guardian’s feature.
There is no doubt about it – beer is the refreshment of choice for majority of the British. Indeed, it has been referred to as the country’s national drink many times over. So what is the big deal about beer? Perhaps, in order to answer this question, it would be necessary to go back in time and see how beer came to play such an important role in the British culture.
Stason.org provides a brief but neat narrative about the origins of beer in the UK:
Something like beer has probably been drunk for many thousands of years. For centuries it has been an accepted part of northern European lifestyle. The largest brewhouses were to be found in religious institutions that catered for a complete community, but otherwise brewing was on a domestic scale. 19th century industrialisation had a profound effect on the size of breweries and started a continuous process of takeovers and mergers with breweries and brewing companies getting larger and more powerful. The wealth of the brewers lead to their establishing what today we call franchises – the tied house where the publican is a tenant of the brewery and sells only their beer.
Fortunately there are still breweries where you can see the traditional processes used for the last two hundred years.
In the 60’s the production of keg beer, increased rapidly. By filtering and sterilising before it left the brewery, then adding gas at the pub, the beer was easier to keep, always looked clear with lots of nice fizz. The economics of this operation and the marketing opportunities arising from it lead to an acceleration in the continuing process of takeovers, eliminating small brands, closing smaller breweries to build larger, more modern ones. Also at the time many brews suddenly became weaker.
I’d say that there is still a lot of pretty strong beer in the UK today. In the next posts, we’ll talk more about this beverage.
When it comes to fashion, British brands are not always the foremost things to come to mind. There is, however, something new that the UK has to offer in terms of street wear – Aerosoul. To be honest, I do not own any item from Aerosoul but from what I have seen, it would be worth buying this brand.
So what is Aerosoul all about? This brand was founded in 1998 by Leke Adesoye, a graphic designer. His vision back then was to create a British brand for street wear and reach out to the rest of the world. Judging by the success that Aerosoul has achieved, Adesoye has fulfilled his vision.
In a feature article on October Online, further information is provided:
London-born Leke began his design venture in the early nineties when, greatly inspired by the burgeoning drum n’ bass and hip hop scene, he sought to capture that energy and innovation in his clothing.By skilfully fusing different elements of these disparate yet interwoven tribes, Aerosoul managed to reach out to several at once. His much-loved “Junglist Movement” T-shirts became the underground logo of a generation, but the brand was soon to establish a wider clientele.
More so, Aerosoul has gotten some prominent names in the British music scene to model their clothes:
The fact that many who’ve modelled for the label have since blown up on the British urban music scene is demonstrative of Leke’s intuition.Included in these, too numerous to mention artists are: Estelle, Roots Manuva, Damage, Paradox, A.I , Karl hinds, Rodney P, TY, Omar and Normski.
Perhaps it is time to head on over to Aerosoul’s web site and see what they have to offer.
I know this is one day late but I just became aware of a Valentine’s Day campaign in Britain for this year. Though it is a day after Valentine’s Day, I am sure you can still do something to help out this cause. So what is it all about?
Arena Flowers, one of Britain’s leading flower shop, has teamed up with the British Heart Foundation and came up with the concept of selling flowers for a cause. The idea is simple and has been around for years – for each Valentine’s tulips bouquet that the flower shop sells this year, they will be donating £1 to the BHF’s cause. By the way, there are four different types of tulips bouquets available. In addition to this, they will be donating 50p for each Heart of Chocolates and Large Heart of Chocolates products that they sell.
If you are not the type who buys and gives flowers on Valentine’s you might want to make a change this year and do so – for any other reason! More than that, you can actually go straight to the BHF’s web site and make a direct donation. A mere £24 can pay for one hour of a BHF Heart Nurse’s time. It may seem little to you but it will make a world of difference to someone else! There are also many other ways that you can help the BHF’s campaign. If you want to know more, I suggest that you visit their web site and do your part in this worthy cause.
When I think of London, I cannot help but think of Buckingham Palace as well. In fact, it is a must for any visitor to the city. Buckingham Palace is the official residence of the Royal Family in London and is the venue for state occasions and other royal events. Of course, it is one of the major – if not THE major – tourist attractions in London.
Buckingham Palace was built in 1703 for the Duke of Buckingham (yes, hence the name). It was originally dubbed the Buckingham House but succeeding extensions and improvements of the building prompted its becoming the official royal residence of the British Monarch. The first royalty to occupy the palace was Queen Victoria in 1837.
Today, Buckingham Palace is normally closed to visitors, though of course, anyone can stand outside and try to catch a glimpse of the royal edifice. There is some good news for the general public, though, as from March to April of 2008, guided tours will be carried out. What is in store for those who want to take these tours? Well, an expertly guided tour of the 19 State Rooms. Visitors can feast their eyes on masterpieces created by renowned painters, antique English and French furniture, and the architecture of the palace itself. To end the tour with a bang, champagne will be served at the Grand Entrance.
If you are interested in taking the tour, contact the Royal Collection at (0)20 7766 7322 or send them an e-mail at specialistsales@royalcollection.org.uk.
Motor car enthusiasts look up to this brand with respect – and why not? Aside from its beauty and performance, it is one of the symbols of status with its price tag. The Jaguar was founded in 1922 by William Lyons and William Walmsley, two motorcycle enthusiasts. They named their company Swallow Sidecar Company. It was only in 1945 that the name Jaguar was taken on by the whole company.
Five years later, Jaguar had it made when a series of sports cars and saloons were released. These were as stylish and as elegant as can be. Since then, the company has had several mergers and is now considered a subsidiary of Ford Motor Company. This is a quite interesting thing as what was originally purely British has become part of an American group. Despite this fact, however, the Jag remains as prestigious as it was way back when it began.
Jaguar has had several notable models, with the current ones being very much sought after by many car enthusiasts all over the world. The current models are:
Model US Type Price Range
XJ full-size luxury sedan $64,250 – $116,000
S-Type Executive luxury sedan $46,500 – $66,500
X-Type luxury entry level luxury sedan and wagon $33,500 – $37,500
XK sports car/Coupé/Convertible $75,500 – $93,000
As you can see, the price range of the different models is well into the luxury car range. Though it is not that rare to see a Jag on the streets of various cities worldwide, it is still not common to see one.
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Posted on Nov 12, 2007 by Jodie in English Education, English Traditions, English TravelPeople love to read and hear poetry and other literary arts. Some would listen and learn from their message to the reader while some would simply be amazed at how they were constructed with such enthusiasm and imagination. Whatever the case may be, English literature has been known to be rich and capable of rubbing on people who try their hand on poetry and prose.
Much can be traced to the ancestry of English literature and arts. A lot of the famous writers trace their roots to the homelands of England. Charles Dickens for one, is a famous poet that everyone is particularly familiar with. Among his famous works include that of Oliver Twist, David Copperfield and the seasonal holiday tale of the Christmas Carol.
To this day, much of the familiar prose that people read would be immediately associated with the famous writers such as Dickens. It is not surprising to note why this came about considering that England is indeed rich in the arts and culture.
[tags]oliver twist, charles dickens, literature, prose, poetry[/tags]
Everyone is familiar with having desert at the end of a good meal. Deserts can take the form of ice cream, cakes and other known sweets to top of an appetizing meal. In Britain, pudding is something that is known as a common desert to consume. Pudding is usually composed of bread, or other forms of cakes, paired with various add-ons such as raisins, alcohol and vanilla. Pudding is prepared in different ways, and the variants would depend on what the server would normally want to offer to their customers.
Pudding can be paired with other deserts as well. It is in particular that ice cream is normally the first option to be paired with it. Fruits are also another good addition to the normal pudding servings. Some also make unique sauces to complement the pudding served, making it something different from the usual cakes and pastries that are offered as deserts for people after a hearty meal.
[tags]pudding, british food, british desert[/tags]
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