ILP - Travels

2012 Fuerteventura Travel Report

2012-02-12T15:55:00.000Z

Here I am again, my fourth year of Fuerteventura. After having skipped last years trip due to the Sumatra visit, I have re-organised my travel budgets a bit. One just does need it all: a girly week with mum in the sunshine during winter, and getting grounded in Tangkahan a bit later in the year.

Well, last year skipping made sense as mum accompanied me to Sumatra, thus girly and grounding came in one package. This year I am back to Robinson Club Esquinzo Playa (German site) and feeling the urge to give an update. Not that a lot has changed; my accounts from 2008 and 2009 are still valid. I guess it’s my viewpoint that took a bit of a turn.

Back then I already was quite the Internet girl. I paid some 14 Euros for a week and proudly connected to the world using my blue little Samsung netbook. Then I had to learn that the hotspot situation was a bit thin, rooms didn’t have connection and only on the terrace one could dive into the depth of wisdom and gossip. Pride about my capabilities of handling the equipment however, superseded the disappointment and I was a happy bunny.

These days I found a lot of hotspots but was told that I had to pay €25 per week. Hmmm… this is a bit steep for an all-inclusive club, while a lot of the even smaller hotels offer Wifi for free. Here one gets drowned in alcohol any time of the day but for internet one has to pay… if you know me a little: I went on strike and rather not do internet. Now I am sitting very poshly upgraded with a MacBook enjoying a really rather spectacular view, but can’t read my emails. All I can do is write reviews like this. Ha!

This however is the only minus – the club is constantly striving for sustainability and environmental conciseness, something which I am rather interested in since the Sumatra eco-tourism trip. This year we did a club tour and saw the solar heating, the washhouse and the state of the art kitchen, and we were told about the problems to resource food on an island on which nothing grows. Resourcefulness is a big issue anyway. It is hard to explain to the mainly African workforces that every food that leaves the kitchen and doesn’t get eaten has to be skipped, while their families back home hardly know how to get by.

Different from the olden days, now the buffets don't look as lavish anymore - yet still fantastic - but food is getting brought out on demand to be able to serve things the next day as well. Additionally staff is allowed to dine from the buffet after the guests have left. Robinson front end staff was always allowed to dine with guests, so the club's boundaries between staff and guests always were soft, hence opening the buffet to the workforces behind the scenes is a logic extension of their philosophy. Although the club separates waste it mainly gets dumped in one space, due to Spain’s environmental conciseness not being as vigilant as the German or English; Robinson Clubs however keep going in order to set an example and to be able to push limits. And of course the club cats are still there and happy.

Those cats supply an endless stream of joy for everybody and are an example how ‘out-of-the-box’ thinking can enhance the living environment. Now two new unusual recruits do their duty for the club by keeping the number of pigeons at bay: Buzzards! They regularly give a little flight show and although they don’t actually catch the pigeons, they look threatening enough to make them keep a distance.

This island shows vividly that tourism is a coin with two sides. Without tourism people here wouldn’t have a proper living, but with tourism a whole bucket load of issues arises and I am glad that Robinson Clubs are addressing those.

Another thing that didn’t change is the Aloe Vera Information Centre in Jandia. I was so glad to hear that they receive quite a bit of custom through ILP, which means that people read my website. Yay! If you are in the area you might want to consider doing an Aloe Vera workshop. Participants will be able to get hold of an almond, olive scrub powder, which mixed with Aloe gel is a fantastically rejuvenating peeling.

As for the fun part – you may know that every time we are here we do something special – this time it was a buggy tour. We already got worried we might run out of options. We already had done the catamaran, jet-ski, Segway, Lanzarote, and an island tour. So the buggy it was. We could have gone on Quads – four wheeled motorbikes on which the passenger sits behind the driver – but we chose the buggy which basically is a go-cart and in which one sits next to each other.

Such a fun! Following the guide like ducklings their mum, we were the last in the row and bit the dust. Criss-crossing the countryside we went to the West coast first, a rugged beachfront where swimming is not possible due to strong undercurrents dragging everything out to see.

Then back to the East side we saw surfers like we never saw them before. This is the surfing Mekka. Every year the windsurfing world championships are held here. Splendid territory!

On our way we stoped at the restaurant Bahia La Pared, which I can highly recommend. The fish is superb and the variety is amazing. This is the nice thing when doing those extra trips, one gets in touch with local people and businesses.

Like the visit to the zoo; I even had the opportunity to meet my cousin who I hadn’t seen in 17 years. She is working at the sea lion department and since arrival day I already had seen her on brochures and posters advertising the zoo. We had heard good things about the zoo and had planned a trip anyway. So this was not just a great opportunity to catch some local flair but have a family reunion as well.

A small thing, which however made this trip particularly nice is the impact individuals have in the service business!

The lovely fella who manages the arrival and departure of guests, takes care of the suitcases and has a way with people which makes one feel welcomed and valued, and which is so different from the fake receptionist behaviour one finds all too often the more expensive the hotel is; the bar tender who remembers so well the favourite drink and with a wink attempts to tease the guest into trying something new; and last but not least the cleaner who day after day replaces the welcome flowers. Those were beautifully scattered over the bed, and when she found them ‘rescued’ in a jar, she kept replacing dead heads. I felt reminded of Chip Conley's TED talk in which he describes how important it is to value the efforts of staff. Robinson Clubs surely create an atmosphere in which individual style can thrive. Every time I come to my room those flowers put a smile on my face.

Thank you, guys. You made my days!

More pictures of the trip on Picasa

Bar Restaurante Bahia La Pared: La Pared - Pajara, Tel 928 54 90 30, Opening hours 12-22.

Quad/Buggy Tours: Quad Adventure Excursions, Tel 928866552

Fuerteventura 2008
Fuerte - The Island
Fuerte - Dirary & Club Life
Fuerte - Shopping (unfortunately La Ola is closed now)
Fuerte - Jet Ski
Fuerte - What else?

Fuerteventura 2009
Travel Diary
Travel Read

Yeeehaw! I am off!

2012-01-28T10:54:00.002Z

Sorry, no advice... just sheer joy of going away! It's my annual girly week with mum to Fuerteventura, 20-22C, slightly windy, beach, all inclusive... my favourite club holidays at Robinson Club Esquinzo Playa.

During my first two years there I filmed and wrote quite elaborately, but now it will all be about re-fuelling and gaining focus for the month to come. Hope you enjoy the travel accounts from previous years.

Fuerteventura 2008
Fuerte - The Island
Fuerte - Dirary & Club Life
Fuerte - Shopping (unfortunately La Ola is closed now)
Fuerte - Jet Ski
Fuerte - What else?

Fuerteventura 2009
Travel Diary
Travel Read

Love

Back in Town

2011-11-12T09:21:00.000Z

Yay! the joys of November... We are back in Tuebingen, my favourite little town in Germany, foR the wine fair. Oh, I am so much a creature of habit: we are in the same hotel with view on the river Neckar, and it seems that the number of swans has increased;when I woke this morning and looked out of the window 16 of this beautiful creatures had breakfast,dipping their long necks into the cold water. Brrr... Last year the weather was warm, this year it is rather nippy with 0C predicted tomorrow morning.

This time we are a bit smarter, though. We travelled with an empty suitcase... Well, full of blister foil it is. We will hit town now and tonight we will stock up on a few bottles of wine and some whiskey, I hope.

... And this is the first time that I am trying to block in the i-world entirely. A year ago I still used my cute little netbook and a camera, this is my first real test for the iPad with iPhone... Oh, how posh am I? However, the equipment disappoint's at least the standard browser. The i-World onl works well if one is familiar with the app-world. Thus this post has to be bland, no pix and not spell-checked. I find it somewhat peculiar that a good thousand pounds of equipment only work if a vast crowd of people produce bazillions of little code snippets for it. Strange world...

However, this is about our short holiday and not an IT blog. The sun just came out, and a town is waiting to be hit. So let' press the publish button and get out there!

Have a wonderful weekend!
Always yours
Rika

My Wonderful Tangkahan - Prelude 2

2011-07-23T09:42:00.000+01:00

The Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme - SOCP

After having visited what was formerly the Botanic Gardens and which is now Ian Singleton's new project for conservation and education we moved on to the SOCP centre which as we are told is located kind of back to back to the Botanic Garden and hence protecting each other from unwanted visitors.

Now: The SOCP was an very emotional affair for me, and to introduce you to the matter with some facts and stories directly from Ian, please have a look at this video which is provided on YouTube by the centre.

I saw those animals. I saw those cages. One part of me wants to shout out: Oh how cute! the other part of me drives tears into my eyes because I should not see them there, I should not be able to find them cute.

There we were at the SOCP


The cage in which dad, mum and the two babies live

Mum and one of the babies. We could not get too close, to avoid infections and to not make her too nervous.

Dad, in the adjacent cage

Ian Singleton and Jess McKelson from RAW discussing projects

RAW is supporting the SOCP whenever possible, e.g. part of our fee for the day trip was used as sponsorship for the programme. Jess now will be putting focus on helping to find a suitable site and funding for mum and her twins, so that she will be out of the cage and raise the little ones in a safe environment as naturally as possible.

Some might ask if all that money and all that effort is worth it. I have heard voices saying, that with the same amount of money so much more can be achieved in South America where land is cheaper and circumstances are less difficult; that the approach of rescuing individuals is not helping for the bigger picture.

Well, I have a few things to add. Firstly, if confronted with an individual - who would be able to put it down for cost reasons? Secondly, orangutans play a vital role in preserving rainforest as gardeners of the jungle, as they distribute seeds over far distances. And thirdly, this is what I found on Wikipedia about their conservation status - critically endangered:

from Wikipedia: distribution of orangutan in Sumatra

The Sumatran orangutan is endemic to Sumatra island and is particularly restricted to the north of the island. In the wild, Sumatran orangutans survive in the province of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam (NAD), the northernmost tip of Sumatra.The primate was once more widespread, as they were found more to the south in the 19th century such as in Jambi and Padang.There are small populations in the North SumatraLake Toba forests. A survey in the Lake Toba region found only two inhabited areas, Bukit Lawang (defined as the animal sanctuary) and Gunung Leuser National Park The species has been assessed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2000. It is considered one of "The World's 25 Most Endangered Primates." A survey in 2004 estimated that around 7,300 Sumatran orangutans still live in the wild. Some of them are being protected in five areas in Gunung Leuser National Park;

It is estimated that today only around 6000 Sumatran orangutans still exist. Not a lot! Every individual is important to enrich the gene pool. These 6000 do not live in one big area in which genes would be exchanged freely to maintain a healthy population. Roads and logging have cut the population into small groups already, some of them too small to avoid inbreeding. The fresh genes of those two babies are very much crucial for the bigger picture of orangutan survival in Sumatra. They need and deserve our help!


Socialisation cages

The resocialisation approach at the SOCP is pretty much hands-off. Although it appears a bit sad that those little ones are behind bars and don't get cuddles, it is their best chance for getting an ape lifestyle quickly. Humans might be good in cuddling, but they fail miserably in ape-ish skills. Research has shown that these little ones learn much faster from each other. In those cages they bond quickly and like street children they are able to survive in their environment at an earlier age then they would if getting used to a humanoid lifestyle.


Good luck, little fella!

You can support the SOCP by donations via their website.

My Wonderful Tangkahan - Prelude 1

2011-07-22T07:54:00.000+01:00

Now that the scene is set by the previous blog update, let's move on to the actual diary snippets. So there we were, starting our journeys from our homes in Germany and Ipswich to meet at London Heathrow.

I arrived early and the sensible thing to kill some time is with muffin and cappuccino. And then eventually, the trip felt real: Mum arrived!

We killed some more time together, so much to talk about, checked in our luggage, and then boarded the flight to Munich which should deliver us to an aircraft with nice and cosy business seats which had our names on them. So far so simple, so far so Heathrow... delayed by thunder, delayed by sick passenger, delayed by paramedics not arriving, delayed by paramedics not knowing what to do... there the nice and cosy business seats had lift off without us.

Arriving in Munich we moved into a good hotel and got re-booked to ... Singapore Airlines!... woohooo!

I can tell you, one day less Singapore yet travelling Singapore Airlines instead was worth it. Half of the time it was raining in Singapore anyway, Sentosa Island was a bit of a disappointment and a rip off as mum knew it from some years back mainly for a lovely place with butterflies and beaches, whereas now it basically is a kind of Disney World, and shopping was out of the question as we were overloaded anyway.

So we were glad to move on to Medan the next day. Not that it was nicer there, in contrary, but it brought us closer to the actual adventure.

Medan, a vast area of houses, rich, poor, markets, dusty, hot, and hellish traffic ...

The Grand Swiss-Belhotel Medan is the best hotel in town and the place where one wants to stay. For taxis look for the blue ones, but even then be very vigilant and better get the tour operator or a hotel to pick you up, 50.000 IR is not cheap but a fair price. There is a modern mall accessible from the hotel with fantastic restaurants and coffee places so no need to go out into the hellish atmosphere of the city without a guide.

We had arrived a day early for contingency and to kill the additional time we had booked a trip to the centre of the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme. We got lucky that Ian Singleton the director of the program (and scientific advisor of Orangutan Land Trust, my main charity) was available to show us round. First stop was the botanic gardens, the latest part of the project where an education centre is to be established on a grand scale: This will be conservation live and close-up. I am hoping to be able to go back in a few years time and to see what he has achieved.

Education garden on a larger scale

First impressions of jungle greeneries...

... and the respective creepies.

... and tomorrow I will tell you about the orangutans at the SOCP.

Little fella in quarantine... and he is one of the lucky ones!

My Wonderful Tangkahan - A preview

2011-07-21T07:59:00.000+01:00

My mum and I had planned this trip for more than a year; so much nerves spent on how to break it to our husbands, find good flights making the best use of mum's air miles to be able to travel business, and then the biggest question of all: What to pack!

We had to provide for three parts, none of which we were entirely sure what the requirements were.

Step 1: Singapore

Due to business class we could carry 30kg, and we wanted to look a bit pretty in a town like this.

Step 2: Green Lodge, the jungle home

Due to small airline between Singapore and Medan/Sumatra we had 23kg, and we would be mainly wet

Step 3: Elephant Jungle Patrol

We would only have a backpack each and had no idea what we would need.

We kinda did well, but my shorts were too thick material and didn't dry well, the cute shoes I only wore once in three weeks, and my leather hat, the one bulky thing I almost left at home, became my trusted friend and I feel a bit like Indiana Jones now.

I started collecting feathers and even a porcupine hair/pin to attach to it, unfortunately one is not allowed to take natural materials out of the country... so I left it back. Well, they let me through security with a pocket knife in my backpack... I could well have smuggled it in my suitcase I guess, but this is not the country to try the authorities, the more that I want to go back.

See, and that is the reason why I decided to be quite resourceful with the material I wrote during the trip. The initial plan was to do a big publication on this travel blog... until I met the children of the English School.

English School in action: Quiz winners receiving books

This is not even a school as we know it. Twice a week they gather at the beach or whatever place they find to learn English, something that is so essential for them to get a good future. I would like to support them, and help them to find a proper room and to build a library, and hence I decided to produce a little booklet from my diary which I will sell for their benefit. Hopefully next summer I will go back, bring some stuff that they need, and see how things go.

So here I will tell you snippets of the trip and progress of my plans for the English School. I have befriended our guides and tour managers on Facebook, who are the supporters of the school on location, and they will keep me informed.

Kristin

Bimbim

Ika

To wrap up for today: It was a fantastic trip, and it exceeded all my expectations! I did things I never thought I would do, I saw things only few people get to see, and I never felt better than in this heat and humidity. More snippets and background info to come soon, so stay tuned!

The day before...

2011-06-27T13:06:00.000+01:00

It's always the same, isn't it? The few days before a trip one would either wish the ground opens and by some magic one would just be there and everything sorted, or some dear soul would announce:"You know what? Why don't we just stay at home?"

Time is never enough, suitcases are always too heavy, and surely there are things cropping up last minute. And it doesn't even matter if it is a long or a short trip. The effort of thinking things through is the same. At least a longer trip hopefully makes the effort worth the while, but it bears more risks of getting it wrong, too.

Oh my...

Tomorrow morning 9AM I will be leaving for the airport, I still have a pair of pants to fix, I am sure that I packed the wrong clothes and not enough of them... seriously!... usually I take more clothes for a one week trip and this time it's three weeks... just that this is what airlines let you cary. They should provide space for the length of duration... and they should just have a price list for overload. If one could just book for it... So my suitcase is full of insect repellent and water depurification tablets but no socks... crumbs...

Additionally we have lovely weather here, could be sitting on the patio with a cold coffee with vanilla icecream, instead I am procrastinating on my computer because I am dreading to pack and re-pack my suitcase for the gazillionest time, and anyway, for Singapore and Sumatra they have thunderstorms announced for the entire week.

But all the moaning and growling won't help me, will it? So off I go and pack, and taking a shower would be a good idea as well... Oh those elephants and orangutans better be bloody gorgeous!

See you in three weeks time then - again: 'Oh my!' Me and no internet for three weeks - Well, I might eventually read that book that I have sitting around since almost three years.

Nope, he is not coming! Although hubby thinks it a good idea...

Ta ta
xxx

Dim T - Restaurant in London

2011-03-24T06:27:00.000Z

What a wonderful finish to a great night out to London. On occasion of hubbies birthday we saw the HurlyBurly Show and of course one has to attach a nice dinner to it. Question usually arises, though: Before or after the show?

Before the show, one might feel the strain of digestive activity while cornered in a seat between a lot of people, but at least one doesn't go hungry, while after, one might already be tired or has a train to catch. This was the first time that we dared the latter, and it was fabulous for various reasons. First and foremost came the avoidance of above mentioned tight spot, while hunger was tackled by a decent slice of cake for afternoon tea, and second, the restaurant we chose was well worth the wait. On recommendation we had asked for a desk with a view, and I am not sure if that would have worked out that well at an earlier time with the restaurant fully booked. Additionally, the night light made it all even more worthwhile.

The restaurant we went to was 'Dim T' an Asian restaurant serving a wide range of dishes from all over Asia, and Chinese teas. Having secured a taxi in front of Garrick theatre we arrived at More London Place (Tooley Street) in a jiffy and only had to take a brief walk to the waterfront.

I only very rarely cross the Thames, and to see the Tower Bridge and the Tower of London together from this side is just very impressive, but to sit in a restaurant, and to eat good food while having this view is extraordinary.

My red 'Thai Curry with duck' was delicious and Detlef's 'Fire Cracker Prawns' were definitely crackling, at least when he decided the chilly should be eaten in whole it brought tears to his eyes. The boy just loves is hot! We had Dim Sum for starters which are not entirely my favourites, but that is more due to my personal liking rather then the quality of food. Detlef was happy to step in for me while I enjoyed the spring rolls.

We went there on a Saturday, had booked for 9:15 and about half an hour later the restaurant slowly emptied, and hence it was no problem to get a table at that window. After the starters we swapped places so that the birthday boy could have a look at the panorama as well.

This is a restaurant we definitely will visit again, the prices are absolutely reasonable, the food is delicious, the view is priceless, and I even had the perfect company. A lovely night time walk across the bridge brought us straight to the Tube station and only a short while later we sank into our train seats in perfect timing.

What a wonderful night out!

The HurlyBurly Show, London

2011-03-23T09:24:00.001Z

OK, I might not be the best person to review a show, I have issues! But reviews are always about a personal point of view, aren't they? So let me explain mine.

Since forever I find that shows are too loud. I don't know if I am too sensitive or if the worl has gone rather deaf around me... The phenomenon however already occurred about 20 years back in Berlin when I watched 'Cirque de Soleil'. The show was breathtaking, but my head had swollen to the size of an exploding star. It was the same when I watched 'Fame' in London a few years back. And that brings me to another issue: If I go to a show, especially in a city like London, I am expecting a blast.... and Fame was... well, ok-ish. I however have seen better shows by the entertainment team of my holiday club. And I don't mean that condescending; those guys were incredible!

So, here I am telling you about a London night out on the occasion of hubbies birthday. We both like burlesque, there are not a lot of shows of this type in London, this part of the world seems to be a bit squeamish, and when we found the 'HurlyBurly Show - A Contemporary Burlesque Revue' we of course had to go. Raising another issue: Squeamish is not a word that would describe me. My honeymoon location was chosen for the nude beaches and I have thrown my bra in photo shoots, so I expected quite a bit.

Travelling from Ipswich we arrived well in time, there are nice coffee places like Caffe Vergnano on Charing Cross Road just a hop from the Garrick Theatre. Picking up the tickets from Box office was straight forward as had been the online ordering before, and there we were sipping our drinks and waiting for the show to start.

Interval was only 10 minutes so one could order and pay for drinks before, what was a good decision to have taken as otherwise one wouldn't have been able to go to the loo.

The theatre is on the small side, typically English, cosy and nice to be in, but we had booked rather late, all the good seats were gone, and I initially was worried that the heads in front of me would spoil the view, but I could see the stage perfectly well from seat R3 in the stalls.

And then the show started and all that I am writing now has to be seen on the background of the above: It was an entertaining show and we enjoyed it, but it was LOUD! And not just loud... the sound system was not very pleasing on the ear. Brass music went straight through the head like a power drill. Towards the end I had to hold my ears close and we may have shouted at each other on our way home with people in the train thinking: 'Oh well, typical old couple, a bit deaf already.' And that was how we felt, numb-ish humming in the ears for a few hours to last.

Performance wise I'd like to pass hubbies judgement: 7/10. The girls were good, especially one dancer was really inspiring, but I saw the DVD of the Crazy Horse Show with Dita von Teese and I'd say: 'They might take on that one dancer mentioned above, and then they would train her.' But my judgement might just be spoilt by the telly.

And finally the show itself. Again a hubby statement: 'I'd like to have it a bit naughtier'. See, there were a lot of naked rears, stringy costume and boobs with tassels, but we were missing the 'tease' bit in it. It was very much 'Revue' and not so much 'Burlesque'. We missed an arc of suspense going through the show. The numbers rolled one after the other, but except of the solo of the dancer mentioned above, which was quite at the beginning, I wouldn't be able to pick a highlight, and I surely wouldn't be able to determine a peak point of the show.

It nevertheless was an entertaining evening and the show is very watchable. If you don't want to get engaged in interaction with the audience, then don't sit in the front; the people who did, surely enjoyed it and there was a lot of 'whoohooing' and whistling going on. So people did have a good time!

For us the show was inspiring as we now decided to make show going our new hobby. We will get ourselves well fitting ear plugs, and off we will go into the London nightlife!

The Court Restaurant at the British Museum

2011-03-23T00:02:00.000Z

first published in 2008
I don't think we ever spent so much money on so little food before…

… but what food it is!

Remember? When I did the review on Milsoms at Kesgrave Hall which has a really posh reputation I said that I either don't understand what posh means or that I am just not.

The Court Restaurant (London's Do&Co) works the other way round. You will enter as a normal person and you will dive into a world of dining that will make you feel posh without being awkward about it.

The waiters are of professionalism and kindness that our kind of people rarely encouter. They are around and of service without being noticeable. I don’t like restaurants where they think the ultimate service is to show up every 10 minutes and to ask if everything is OK. Not here! These waiters are trained to catch your eye when needed.

Although the noise from the museum’s Great Court can be heard, it is as if one is sitting on an island away from it. Like living close to an outdoor swimming pool; it’s good to know that there are people having fun and life is buzzing, but one doesn’t have to be part of it right now. It is peaceful, white noise.

We had booked online, were a bit early and got lucky so that we were guided to our table swiftly and addressed by a waiter in German. A little bowl of exquisite olive oil was filled and a basket of a house made variety of little breads was offered.

From a previous visit I know that you can ask for another one to go with the starters, as we had greedily eaten the first one in a jiffy.

Well, then the anguish of choice. You may find it annoying, but for me this suits my new lifestyle: The menu changes rather frequently, meaning that you can’t order the same thing again.

One has to take chances, although there is always a safe choice like chicken. And those spices they use... Very international, most of it a bit Asiatic, always brilliant!

I usually go for the safe choice ordering chicken – this time we both went for the exotic option on the starters, driving up the price a bit more.

We were so excited about our starters of ‘Caramelised Scallops and Tuna Rolls’ and ‘Salad of Fried Squid’ – can you imagine, me and squid – that we forgot to take pictures. Scallops are a kind of big mussel which – again, me and Scallop but I had to try – is really, really nice.

However, the Court Restaurant would be one of the few places where I would dare ordering them. My squid was absolutely superb and served in a little basked made out of fried potatoes – don’t ask, you have to see it – and that tomato, avocado medley with lemon aioli; ahhhh!

And I usually don't like avocado. And so it went on with the main course, which we eventually remembered to take a photo of. From there you can see that it is not a lot. It is not a restaurant where you can get away with just having one of the courses. However, due to breaks in-between one is eating slowly, thus getting a filled feeling with less food. This actually is a very healthy way of eating a meal.

BTW: They have a real thing going with peanuts. This peanut sauce for the Chicken Sate is heavenly. We once had a curry based on peanuts and it was of the same quality.

After the desert I was so full that I wouldn’t have wanted a single bite more, yet didn’t feel stuffed, so that I could enjoy the rest of the day without carrying a baseball in my tummy.

It’s a shame that from the pictures you can’t fathom the kind of flavours unfolding in these dishes. Usually, if I like something I start stuffing my face and eating faster. Here I was indulging in mingling aromas and needed ages to get through my desert. I’m not making this up. I’m usually more of a gourmand rather than a gourmet, but at Court Restaurant I’m starting to understand how food should be.

Unfortunately anniversaries have the odd nature of only taking place once a year. I'm looking forward to finding another reason to go back there soon.

Milsoms Hotel and Restaurant at Kesgrave Hall

2011-03-22T23:50:00.001Z

First published May 2008

When we bought our Christmas trees sort of around the corner in our area we were always wondering what kind of mansion that might be, back there behind the trees.

Now we know: It has become a Milsoms Hotel and Restaurant. Didn’t tell me anything at first except that you can eat and sleep there - until I was told that it is one of the poshest places around. Apparently there is a Milsoms at Colchester (next town) and it’s famous. Gosh, I don’t seem to have a lot of poshness in me, have some catching up to do in that respect.

However, hubby and I were invited to the one in Ipswich. And I have to say – this is a really interesting concept and you have to understand it otherwise the visit can go horribly wrong.

First of all, they don’t take bookings. So if you have plans for afterwards better show up for the earliest slot possible – but if everybody is thinking that way?... let’s just not go any deeper there.

Probably it’s a good thing that Ipswich is a rather dead area and nothing to do afterwards anyway. Thus it all seems to be about having a good time there… and to leave the money of course, although prices are not too bad for a posh place.

So you drive there, walking is not a good idea as the street doesn’t have any pavement to walk on, you get to a nice big car park and don’t find the stairs which lead down to the mansion – which is a beautiful house and the setting is just lovely. They have a big terrace to sit and it is all very open and welcoming – just that the silly stairs were hidden behind a car and either it wasn’t signposted or we were too stupid to see it.

Hence walking the long way round on the gravelled streets hopping and skipping along to get the stones out of the sandals we arrived with the last bit of poshness having vanished from at least my appearance. Detlef is much better in keeping his countenance.

Luckily our hosts were already there so we were guided through the further proceedings: Go to the bar, get a drink, sit in the lounge and have a chat. OK, I can do that. The place has an interesting style of decoration. Loads of leather and really big old looking sofas and arm chairs combined with contemporary tables and lights. Daring, but very nicely done.

The ambience is very warm and welcoming – until a short person tries to sit comfortably. The seats of the armchairs are about the length of two thighs and leaning on with the back was impossible except if I would have taken the calves up as well. Hmmm, as we already have established that I’m not really posh anyway I could have been sitting there with my feet sticking out and it might even have been ok.

Then we got called to the table – don’t wear bare back top if you want to lean on – or choose your chair carefully – about half of them are upholstered with reindeer skin, the rest of them is leather. I was dressed appropriately, however just thinking how well that would have gone down with my sun burn. So I shipped safely around that cliff.

Again we were lucky that we were invited so the procedure of ordering was quickly explained to us. Milsoms is organised like a pub. There is a nice little tile on the table telling you the table number, a pad, pencil and a pile of menus. You choose, write it down and they pick it up or you can bring it to the bar as well. Drinks are served at the table.

That gives a nice and relaxed atmosphere and people are actually dealing with the matter of choosing rather than chatting while the waiter is waiting impatiently. Just one tiny little hiccup: The menu is not as straight forward as a pub menu. It has some weird words in it which the English guests didn’t know either. And it doesn’t list the ingredients which may be of concern to people with dietary needs. Did you know that clam chowder is made with pork? Googelled it: Now I know. Sometimes it’s made with wine, didn’t know that either. That is not really good if you have Muslim guests and if there is nobody coming taking orders who you could ask.

So most of us went for the obvious choices. I had a warm goats cheese as starter with beetroot. Well, I thought I’d put up with the beetroot as I usually don’t like it. However, that dish was lovely! The cheese was soft and creamy – goatie, yes – but without the slightest bit of a sting and I don’t know what they did to those beetroots – they must have been grown in heaven and not in earth. Altogether a tasty small bonne bouche for people who don’t want to be filled by the starters already. Just loved it!

The pasta starters were big portions and looked delicious as well. The others I didn’t track as I was happily occupied with my own dish.

Main dishes were delicious as well, although I wouldn’t lift mine into heaven. I had ordered organic chicken breast and got a leg. What I quite liked as the leg has more flavour anyway. However, if they take whole chickens apart and use the bits they probably should have it on the menu as part of chicken instead of breast. There is a choice of side order like mixed veg - nice but unspectacular, gem salad – well, it’s salad, or fries which looked nice as they were surely cut from a big potato. The people who had them liked them very much.

For desert I went for typically English, so I had the first bread and butter pudding of my life: Yummy!

When I asked the lady who picked up our pudding orders how often she has to come back because it was unreadable the response was: Very often!

Hmmm, we might be a bit too researchy, computerish, number spoiled – but why on earth don’t they number their dishes?

Altogether it was a lovely evening and the few quirky things add to the fun as one is never getting bored there. The ambience is lovely, the staff is very kind and skilled and there are loads of them.

The only thing that bothers me is the 'not booking table'. If I were to go with Detlef alone that might work, but I might be too German for that if I would have to entertain guests. In our case we knew that two of our guests had to leave for London that night and the gentleman next to me had a very subtle and sweet way of looking at his watch and keeping his calm.

So basically: ‘Yes, great place!’ with a teeny weeny ‘But!’

A Posh Day Out in London

2011-03-22T23:40:00.001Z

July 2009

It was the occasion of our Silver Wedding Anniversary! Something special needed to be arranged and hubby was in charge. A party was out of the question: This would be OUR day and it needed to be perfect. And perfect it was!

We live close to London, so 'a day out in the city' is nothing special per se. Others however pay a lot of mony to get there. So we started off with the realisation that we are actually rather lucky to have a great location so close to home - so 'London' was decided upon.

Then of course one would like to be pretty, wearing heels, possibly dress and cute handbag as opposed to backpack. Transport needed to be arranged accordingly: 1st class train tickets and enough cash for taxi rides.
Turns out that some of the more modern taxis accept credit card, but since we had the cash we spent it.

This kind of travel arrangement allowed for my favourite dress and the 5 inch heels and I felt very 'Sex and the City' indeed - A perfect start into a perfect day.

On arrival at Liverpool Street Station first action always is a rather un-posh visit to the loo worth 30p – thank God for the machines to change coins, that really can save the day – then clothes, hair and make-up check; London here I come.

Taxis are located behind platform 10, and off we went to the British Museum. Don’t get me wrong, the museum is one of the best places in the world to brush up on culture and history, but what we were after is the restaurant; for us one of the best places in the world to have lunch.

A few years ago we discovered it by chance and from then on we visit it for our anniversaries. Do&Co Court Restaurant never disappoints and yet again it was a wonderful experience. The booking was made online, the confirmation came promptly and on arrival it became clear that Detlef’s mentioning of our silver anniversary was picked up upon.

We were greeted with a glass of Prosecco which we thoroughly enjoyed. I have to admit: In regard to everything sparkly we are utter laymen. We usually just don’t like it, but this was a fine glass, and since breakfast was long forgotten, I got into swing quite nicely even ordering a beautiful glass of Rose wine. Not too bad for somebody whose usual order is a Diet Coke, alongside a comment: ‘No thank you, no alcohol it gives me migraine’.

A tiny bit tipsy I was brave again in my order and going for fishy things and oh those pasta were divine. I did not get disappointed. Have you ever noticed that pasta is getting cold very quickly and if one is lucky the restaurant heats the plates before serving? I have no idea what sort of dishes they are using: The plate was at room temperature and the pasta stayed hot to the end.

We were dining for two and a half hours; chatting, eating and drinking guided through our courses with the subtle attendance of the waiters, which we already enjoyed so much during previous visits.

Avoiding one of the typical London summer rainfalls we strolled through some of the exhibitions and then caught one of the taxis in front of the museum to get to Kensington Gardens. I was prepared to have a short walk to get to Kensington Palace which is located in the park and cannot be accessed directly by car.

We of course visited the exhibitions, had to however cut it a bit short for a good reason. We were after more food, or better: The experience of food!

The Kensington Palace Orangery restaurant only serves afternoon tea until 6PM in summer and we definitely wanted to indulge in this most typical of rituals which describes Englishness better than anything else. Oh my goodness, did I misjudge the amount of food involved. Try the ‘Champagne Tea’!

Firstly, I had never better tea. I have been drinking a lot of Earl Grey tea of all sorts: I now know how it is supposed to taste! Oh yes, there is ‘tea’ and there is ‘TEA’. Secondly, I now know what the fuss is about sandwiches. Common people might think it’s something bland with no crust served at the wrong time of the day… Oh no, these salmon-dill sandwiches were exactly what I needed at that moment in time and they were just superb. Then things turned - oh well, really really bad: Scones with clotted cream. I didn’t know what clotted cream is… Now I know! How can they do that to me? That is sweet butter… No, not sweetened butter; it is non-salted butter which is very very fresh and creamy. Being German and not used to salted butter anyway... a dream! And all of that with berries.

One would think that it can’t get any worse but it did: Belgian Chocolate cake with cream – the clotted version again. Detlef had gone into strike by then, he is not a real cream fan and the chocolate cake was a bit too dry for his taste. Well, he wouldn’t know when heaven falls down on earth. Just try a bit of cream with the cake… a sensual explosion. Gosh was I lucky that I chose the dress that is most forgiving of big meals!

We definitely needed a walk. So off we went up North through the park up Queensway to Whiteleys - a bit of a different, less posh but a wonderfully bustling cosmopolitan world all of a sudden. After a stroll through the mall we took a taxi right in front and headed back to Liverpool Street station. While waiting for the train we helped ourselves to a well deserved cappuccino and used my new iPhone to research locations for our next trip to London.

A perfect finish for a posh day out in London!

Please, envy me!

2011-01-12T08:46:00.000Z

The deed is done, the flight is booked, the deposit is paid: I'm going to Sumatra this summer. No, I am not just talking about it anymore, as I usually do, I actually am going to do it.

Almost three weeks, and here is the itinerary:

28th June, 11:55
An airplane will arrive in London Heathrow at terminal 5 with a woman on board. She eagerly will make her way through the traffic to get to terminal 1 and then, ... you will hear two screams echoing through the whole of the UK... that is when my mum who just came from Frankfurt will meet me.

28th June, 17:10
Two ladies will be lounging in their business class seats to enjoy the flight with a stop in Munich to then arrive on

29th June 15:55
in Singapore where they will stay in the Orchard Hotel for 3 days. Mum has been there before, loves it and wanted more. Always listen to your mum!

2nd July 17:15
after a short flight the two will arrive in Medan on Sumatra to take rooms in the Swiss-Belhotel Medan, to stay for two nights before they will be heading into the jungle.

4th July
Hoping to be well acclimatised by then, they will join a group of four more people and the tour guide from RAW Wildlife encounters to begin their once in a lifetime experience called 12 day Elephant Odyssey.

15th July
The two ladies will emerge back into city life, and as I know them they won't be too keen into diving back into the noise and closeness to people. But good things have to end and after another night in Medan they will be heading home on the

16th July 18:00
This time the stop in Singapore will be brief and back it goes over night for a stop over in Munich on the

17th July
where mum will leave the plane to take the train home, while I will do another hop back to Heathrow arriving in the morning. That will be the day for which their husbands should brace themselves as they might not get a single word in. Almost three weeks away with limited means of communication... poor things, that will be a tidlewave of reports and stories breaking over them...

The final leg of a short journey

2010-11-15T11:42:00.019Z

If you have too much money and feel like wanting to waste a bit of it, you should fly via Stuttgart airport and have a breakfast. We paid Euro 26.65 (£22.54) for

2 small luke-warm cappuccinos,
1 small bottle of water
5 buttered Brezels
1 croissant
1 smoothie

The Brezel however, although overpriced, was delicious and we don't regret having taken a few for home as well.

Now we are at the gate already and my computer decided to restart itself without letting me save. Grrr... and no… I am not grumpy, just a bit tired. That's the thing with those early bird flights - ours is at 6:40. Again, we wanted to play it safe and went to the airport hotel the night before and because they had it a bit reduced we decided to go for the name: Moevenpick has a reputation and it is just across the street from the airport, as opposed to the one we stayed on our way in. Turns out: This one is a bit of a weird place, too. Nothing is essentially wrong with it, but it doesn’t feel quite right either. The ambiance is not to my liking – oh, well that is fair enough, but they do everything to appear posh and I just find it pompous. And then we had the oddest of rooms so far. They may not do this for twin rooms, but our double had a glass wall to the bathroom, the loo had a frosted glass swing door with a hole instead a knob. I am not squeamish, but a girl sometimes needs a bit of privacy, don’t you think? ... and I don't know either why the rail for the towel is IN the shower, but that might be just me...

Additionally, it is somewhat interesting to see that apparently it is posh to have blue light in the bathroom. This time it was the loo cubicle that had it.

And of course they are charging a fortune for a small bottle of water which can’t be closed again and hence not be taken away.

We however figured that the whole effort of getting to the airport the night before an early flight was not needed. The airport is only a 25 minutes, very straight forward drive from Tuebingen. So next time we may just stay in our lovely Hotel Domizil for an additional night.

The flight was pleasant, as I slept through it... and at the airport we got picked up by our dear Paul from PBTravel, who since forever is our first choice for airport travel. After an exciting weekend and a short night sleep it is the perfect end to a trip when being chauffeured to the front door.

Then we found the cats happy, the cat sitter still in one piece, and all is good!

Tuebingen 2010 ... and still lovely!

2010-11-13T09:00:00.008Z

Sitting at breakfast and having swans cruising in front of the window… how would that be for starters into a weekend off from home?

I have been in Tuebingen several times before but never in this style. Flight to Stuttgart, car at the airport – we took a detour via Lake Constance which cost us about four hours of driving – but one can estimate a drive of approximately 30 minutes and there you are.

We are staying at Hotel Domizil this time and, oh boy, is it lovely! Bang in the middle of town at the river Neckar – hence the swans – with beautifully decorated rooms of decent size, wifi – ask at front desk for login, nice bathroom, all very clean and absolutely silent. We didn’t hear a single thing all night. Brilliant! It comes with a parking garage (extra 10 Euros per day) a few foot down the street, although it now turned out that one doesn’t really need a car here, everything town is in walking distance. For this trip we had planned for this detour so the car made sense, but it is already decided that next time we just might hop onto the train from Stuttgart which needs an hour or so.

And there will be a next time, not only because our friends live here. This is just a very nice place to be, dropping the mind into holiday mode rather instantly. Detlef hadn’t been here in about 12 years and yesterday afternoon we got stuck in traffic jam on our journey, were tired from a horrible hotel night in Stuttgart and altogether a bit grumpy. So we decided to have a stroll through town to find one of those sweet little coffee places for a boost of caffeine and surely for the fantastic cakes. Once we entered those small uphill streets which lead to the church and market places, my rather technology minded husband couldn’t help but say: This town makes up for every traffic jam and fatigue, it’s just so worth it being here! Believe me, this means something.

I can highly recommend it as a destination for a long weekend! Lake Constance is two hours drive away – really worth a trip, Ulm and the most beautiful countryside of Swabia Alb and Black Forrest are just around the corner. Tuebingen is a university town, so it wonderfully combines old architecture, culture, a vibrant shop scenes and fantastic food. What else to wish for?

Chocolate! From 30th November to 5th December 2010, 70 stalls with chocolates will guide the visitor through a path of chocolate delights, or what about the Christmas market from 10th to 12th December?

I would love to hear your impressions from this – and other – German locations which you really fell in love with. Send me your stories!

Tuebingen, lovely town in Germany

2010-11-09T07:23:00.002Z

Tuebingen is the most gorgeous little town located in the South-West of Germany. It has a University since the 14th century - yep, learned that on a guided tour and even remember it - it is set in the beautiful landscape of the Swabian Alb and it never fails to surprise me.

View Map

My friends had organised a guided tour - the best one I ever had - the guy was very witty and knew the slang spoken in this area very well.

So we got to listen to a lot of little anecdotes arising from the social make-up of the old town.

On one hand there were the professors and wives, very sophisticated and well spoken and on the other the working people, either working for them or not really wanting to have anything to do with the upper classes and the attached snobbism.

A great way to learn more about the history of a town. And one still can see the differences in the kinds of houses today.

Of course Tuebingen has a modern part like any other town in Germany and England, but the old part is just wonderfully picturesque.

And like any good German town there is an Italian ice-cream maker.

Tuebingen is not the best of all wine areas - an old saying goes: 'The thirst makes it go down and the stinginess keeps it there!'

However in the meantime there are a few decent, fresh wines which go very well with a lunch meal.

And so we went for a wine tasting after the tour.

If you ever were in the region, ask where you can taste a 'Schiller'. It's the fresh cold orange one.

Red and white grapes are mixed right from the beginning and give the wine a very nice flavour. Although, the whole experience was almost a bit fatal for me. Not being used to alcohol and not having a lot to eat was not a perfect combination. Luckily my friend got hold of some 'Brezel', another speciality of the area.

People think that the best Brezel come from Bavaria, but that is not true. Tuebingen's bakeries are the best I have found so far, not just in regard to the bendy pastries.

After the joyful experience we strolled a bit more through town edging our way closer to the area of the river Neckar where my friends have a punt. Yes, like in Cambridge the Neckar allows for punting.

And here I proudly announce: I made the acid test. The river Neckar is split into two arms and before they merges back together there is a small gap connecting the two arms right before the column of a bridge.

From the streaming of the water the other side is very sandy and if the boat gets stuck one has to get into the water and lift it out. Well, what can I say: I passed with honours!

punting girls

The views are just stunning and the wildlife is manifold. We even saw a heron flying between all the boats.

To see more pictures please have a look at the gallery. Unfortunately I only can give you a hint of the beauty of this town. I promised myself to go back there for a photo trip. There are so many more things to discover.

... and a little appendix!

2010-10-23T18:34:00.002+01:00

I just had a long telephone call with my mum to discuss all the material and to help her translate the material Jess had sent. Well, turns out: I do not own a single piece of clothing we are supposed to bring. That'll be fun!

Shopping cotton based materials never worked for my shape. During the last winter sale I drove a shop assistant bonkers because non of the 'oh so loose cut' outdoor trousers would want to accommodate my thighs. I think I need to find an army shop!

And then they are recommending to bring Leech socks! What the heck is that? Particularly long ones?

I'm just kidding. I am very much looking forward to it and it actually sounds like the adventure I have been hoping it would be. I don't mind the leeches, I have more of a problem with big insects... argh!

Sumatra: The Dream come True

2010-10-23T16:03:00.010+01:00

This will be the page that keeps all the Sumatra posts together.

24th October 2010

I can't believe that about 10 month have passed until I now eventually have further news on my dream. Time went by so quickly, IL site has changed to IL project in the meantime and ... well, we all didn't get any younger.

So, what happened?

After I had discovered the trip I confessed my wish to hubby and although he initially had his concerns he made his peace with it eventually. Concerns in a worrying kind of way, with him not being in my proximity while wild animals and jungle would. The thought that he would not be able to come to the rescue should I turn into a damsel in distress made him somewhat reluctant to my plans.

He however came round to my point of view having to admit that on his various trips to Canada and Mexico he had encountered all those wildlife matters, and that no thought ever crossed his mind to not do it because I wouldn't be able to come to the rescue. Double standards... dear boy...

Now almost a year on hubby has confidence in my travelling skills, my mum is as excited as I am, her husband found his feet again as well ... and most importantly: The trip is booked and the deposit is paid.

4th - 15th July 2011

my mum and I will be travelling with
Raw Wildlife Encounters
to
Sumatra

Below I will be linking all the posts relating to the trip for you to find them all in one place. I hope you will enjoy reading about it as much as I will enjoy writing it:

How it began: Sumatra as an Eco Tourist

2010-10-23T11:30:00.003+01:00

10th December 2009

Yes! I am determined to do this. So brace yourselves, in the future there will be quite a few updates on that matter.

Let's start at the beginning: Michelle tweeted a Tweet - 'I highly recommend this tour company: Raw Wildlife http://www.rawildlife.com.au/index.html'

Innocently I clicked the link - as you do when you are on Twitter - expecting well, a link of a tour company but nothing utterly mind boggling, and then I got hit by something that felt like a hot iron in the neck.

OK, I admit: For a lot of you this might not be the holiday of your dreams, but I love big wild animals especially Elephants and Apes. Ever since I got the book from Jane Goodall about her life between chimps when I was about 15, I wanted to go into the jungle and observe animals. But then one gets married, settles down and is thinking: 'Well, there are nasty, big insects, and they bite, and it's hot and humid, probably it's not that nice anyway'. This is how dreams are getting forgotten.

Now that I was sitting in front of this screen my dream was streaming down my neck like a flow of something very hot, I had to take off my jumper. Reading on, the tension grew and all the thoughts I ever had about this subjects flooded my brain within a split second - between all those noises there was one voice shouting louder than all the others: I need to do this with my mum... alone with her... without hubby... sh... he will never approve, ... and started crying.

I know: Pathetic!

This trip seems to have it all, the environmental approach, the 'not just being a tourist' but being integrated as much as that is possible within the short period of 12 days, the animals - Elephants AND Apes, the jungle, and most importantly the soft approach. I have been looking at other trips, and usually one has to be a tough, well trained, weather proof, 20 something year old, '...Get me out of here' style. With me be being almost 50 while mum is hitting the 70 soon we are running out of time to make this dream come true - can it be that a thing like this is running in the genes? I know that my granny would instantly have joined us as well...

So I enquired about the price and tried to get a bit of background information, hoping for a 'nice' email to come back. I have this thing of writing to people and if the response is too business like I am becoming a rather cautious. Well, what can I say: I got the loveliest email!

Jessica, one of the tour directors explained how Michelle came to recommend the company: The two are friends and she is assisting the Nyaru Menteng project with an 'Enrichment Program' teaching the staff how to keep Orangutans interested and make them learn all the stuff they need to know if they want to behave like proper Orangutans, and to prepare the ones who are waiting for release back into the wild. So she will be going to Nyaru Menteng in January 2010 for 6 weeks - gosh how I envy her!

The tour is rather expensive though, I was told around A$4180 incl. VAT, excl. flight. I had a rough check about flights, the visa will cost extra, and of course it depends on the exchange rate - that makes an approximate £3000 for the two weeks. Please be aware that these are rough numbers and that the basic price can change as well. So if you are interested, always enquire details first.

So given that mum has an incredibly busy travel schedule and I have to smartly manage my annual leave and my expenses during the next year, we are aiming for the first quarter of 2011. I am determined to stop buying stuff now... in 15 month time I should have managed to save the one or the other quid towards this wonderful dream!

Can't wait...!