munich eats

went a little overboard and researched where to eat in munich, only to have plans scuppered. but it's ok - book first, talk later! after a long day out to the castles, the last thing any of us wanted to do was to haul ourselves across town. cancelled original reso and got the hotel to book something closer by. not proud of it and ended up being half an hour late for that, because, well, inertia. so the queue was out the door by the time we got there and had to be thick skinned about the dirty looks (sent brother in! always send the scout hehe) as we walked to the head of the queue and to our relief found they hadn't given the table away. thank goodness had foresight to book in hotel's name (tip: resto less likely to cancel reso for fear of damaging goodwill!) and couldn't help but feel smug about not having to queue :) hearty german food and while i initially thought the waitress was trying to scam us (paranoia wahey!) what she recommended (two course traditional german taster with starters and mountain of mains) did work out well. although i think she was trying to push us to order for the table, i saw through her sneaky ploy and ordered two (minimum order) and supplemented that with small sides. hah! (like the bavarian ox tartare below)

german food does not photograph well!

lunch the next day was the only one of my original resos we made. it was a safe choice and surprisingly tourist-free and found ourselves surrounded instead by well-heeled locals. elegant sorts who waltzed in amidst a whiff of expensive perfume. must've sounded pleading in my reservation about being a family from singers on holiday that they gave us a lovely table with a view of the opera house :) gorgeous interiors too with frescoes and the food was excellent. prices up 30% from already touristy hotel muller but hey, go in with eyes open.

consome with dumpling

wiener schnitzel and rosti

venison goulash

deep fried pork (!!!) in bavarian beer

hamsteak under eggs

and i need to sing praises of white beer. i'm not a beer drinker, only starting to drink when i first moved for uni. but i do enjoy craft beer and local ales, and did try to drink something brewed (practically) on site at every pub in the lakes. but if i was in japan, i'd only drink sake and when in munich i only drank beer. no gluehwine, even! just lots and lots of wonderful white beer. so very good and doubt will find better any where else.

day in bavaria

didn't take much persuasion to get me across the channel. was bummed not to spend christmas with family and jumped at the chance for an early celebration on the continent instead. glad to be based on this side of the world and i'd never been to munich. the mister had been twice this year (for BMW driving course and oktoberfest!) so i was more than a little envious. of course the irony is that i get in on friday night and they've booked a whole day out on saturday. we ventured into the country with stops at lindenhof and oberammergau before rocking up to neuschwanstein. tell a lie, while it was my first time in munich, we'd done a similar castle tour about 15 years ago on a skiing holiday while holding out for powder (and not that icky artificial ice). this sort of gave us license to skip the castle tours in favour of food. 

joked that old schwanstein (above) because neuschwanstein (below)

don't usually name restaurants /  cafes unless they're really good because 1) i'm not paid (haha) 2) happy to share if someone asks personally but all too wary that the www is a public space. but hotel muller at the base of neuschwanstein (it's a 30min uphill trek from there!) has the most amazing restaurant. at first glance it looks like a tourist trap and the staff seemed a little overwhelmed by the sudden influx of tourists (weird, you'd think they'd be used to it by now!) and tried to get us to sit in the lobby (???). why on earth we'd want to eat off a cramped coffee table is beyond me. but maybe they thought we were in a hurry to join the castle tour (we weren't). so i held my ground and said, "no thank you, we'll wait for a table inside the restaurant... (bathed in natural light and stunning alpine views)" didn't end up waiting long and the food was served almost instantly. they must have a high turnover! 

so can i just say best. wiener. schnitzel. ever. you know how these things often look deep fried and disgusting? one can almost feel the heartburn from looking at a piccie? well this was different. the veal so fresh, tender and juicy, the breadcrumbs crunchy and fried to golden perfection but not oily (how???)  but it wasn't just that. everything else was amazing. even the salad. salad!!!! frau muller was also a reknown baker so the pudding was worth trying too but i was still reeling from that schnitzel. 

have to agree the best views of a castle are from the outside? or maybe that's me being sour grapes having not gone in but did go in as a teenager and must've been forgettable because i don't remember it now. and i do remember most other things, whether i want to or not! gimme food over culture anytime :)

team dins

had my clinical group round for dinner recently and realise how i lucked out with this bunch. everyone is nice, and that's often harder to come by than it sounds. i mean there seems to always be one or two people to prudently hold at arm's length, to say 'hmm i'm not so sure about so and so...' but in this happy group of eight, i'd love to work with anyone. it's a good team! and in true all-inclusive, "let's embrace diversity" fashion, did chips and dip (M's secret texan recipe!) that i fell for last thanksgiving, a massive cheese board, veggie (lentil bol) lasagna and lamb lasagna with a side salad. funny how lamb is the least offensive meat! H (pictured!) very kindly brought banana bread fresh from her over - and i'd a tiramisu on the go too. the mister had sponsored the cheese plate (aww!) and i'm a self-confessed feeder. it was so great to watch them try different cheeses and slowly a smile would creep up their faces and their eyes would light up! kept the bubbles going (tesco's finest rose wins hands down, trumping the more upmarket italian proseccos!) and then mulled wine at the end. 

before dins, it was a long day where almost all of us got yelled at by patients, so much so the supervisor had to sit us down at the end and make us talk about happy things, like what we were doing that evening. so important to re-enter earth's atmosphere and get re-oriented, you know? so this mid-rotation gathering was a much welcome distraction. and i've only experienced this with medics but they did the dishes and cleaned up the flat before leaving. felt like a terrible host but they insisted, and we all ended up squeezed in my tiny kitchen as someone washed, someone dried and the rest of us provided moral support.

scottish foray

(sorry to the unsuspecting fellow passengers across the aisle!)

one thing to remember if ever fortunate enough to take the east coast train north is to sit on the right hand side if the weather is good. because, seriously, the coastal views are stunning. was up for a spontaneous stockholm mini-reunion and because this was the weekend desmond was wrecking havoc, standard class was sold out and i resorted to a firstie. how it all came about was nothing short of fortuitous timing. i'd sent out the annual, "guysssss i need your current mailing addresses please!!!" and found out that A was going to be in europe for work, flying into ed to visit K and his blushing bride. realised i could afford the time and invited myself to their tete a tete, because i'm shameless that way :P 

there were some anxious texts exchanged because of the hurricane, and there was no guarantee my train would leave in the morning. all was going according to plan when suddenly we stopped outside berwick and waited what seemed like forever (70min) before continuing. this naturally scuppered plans because i'd only 4 hours in edinburgh! meant to arrive by 11am and booked the 3pm out. something about bags on the overhead lines. so we sat like sitting ducks in the stifling heat (NO POWER! no light would be tolerable because it was a lovely sunny day but no ventilation???) which was pretty unpleasant. a train had to come from behind us, overtake us, fix the problem then go ahead to scout there were no other issues. the mister was still sleeping but i may or may not have sent a flurry of angry texts to anyone who'd listen (sorry my dear support network, i'll try to be better in 2016!!!) and of course A and i were on fb messenger the whole time lamenting the sheer inadequacy of UK trains. her hyper-efficient japanese sensibilities could not believe that a little rain caused such disruption. recounted this to a scottish friend after who suggested i remind her about the tsunami. touche!

did eventually make it to edinburgh, by which time we were horrendously late, then A's train for that afternoon was cancelled and we spent another hour trying to find alternative means of getting her to dumfries. it was frustrating enough as an english speaker to try to get assistance amidst the mayhem that was waverley, what more for A when it's her third/fourth language. we were sent from pillar to post, from one unending queue to the next, and the staff were polite but unhelpful. again, it was said scottish friend who helped get a taxi to take her to dumfries because a >2h taxi ride is the only way to get around this country... 

lengthy pre-amble and travel angst aside, it was tick tock tick tock because by the time we'd everything sorted, we were 90min away from my train back south. ducked into a simple chinese resto off the main street and it was as if time stood still. calmed down and wonderful catch up. A and her friend had visited and stayed with me last year but hadn't seen K since leaving stockholm summer 2010 and in that time he's gone on to finish his phD, start teaching at ed uni and got married (in that order!). he was the sweetest housemate in stockholm. while the rest of us would lock our food cupboards (trust no one!) his was always open and invited us to help ourselves. he also took it upon himself to cook for the house and i once offhandedly mentioned i missed tandoori chicken and came home (probably hungover) that night to a pile of chicken he'd cooked and kept for me :') selfless to a fault, he'd go home once a year and in the lead up to that would spend all his money on gifts for his sisters and their families. he explained that as the only son, the expectation was that he'd provide for his sister as he'd one day inherit everything from their parents. well, that's only equitable if their parents had something to pass on? when in fact they didn't and everything his parents had (house etc) he'd gifted them. but that's K for you - biggest heart on earth and we used doubt there was anyone 'good enough' to match his generosity. so one can imagine A and my delight when he and C found each other. she's absolutely perfect for him and while i don't believe in karma, this was the best possible outcome. they're all loved up and googly eyed in a non-gross way and she's wonderful to and for him. to risk sounding catty, there are +1s i adore, and +1s i feel friends could've done way better than. but hey, it's not about me, is it :P but it's sad i guess because in the case of substandard +1s i feel myself pulling away and sort of disengaging because i find it hard to affect interest.

what's nice was that while stockholm was our springboard and we had a lovely little house together, it didn't make up the bulk of the conversation. it was a good five years ago but i'm glad our friendship has evolved with us. lots of current and future talk (always healthy!) and i'm reminded how lucky i am our paths crossed, albeit briefly, all those years ago.

sunday roast and coast

the weather's been weird and at the first sign of blue skies it was time to break free. fancied a sunday roast in the country and didn't have far to go based on jamie oliver's (i think it was him!) recommendation. scored the last two top for the noon sitting and was charmed by the sweet proprietress and the hearty, home-made fare.

driving across a river might've not been the brightest idea but hey no harm no foul.

was toying between going to the coast when we spied brown sign for a different beach. figured it was too late to head to the beach shack (in december, silly) i'd originally wanted to go to and changed course to make it in time for sunset. turns out my sense of direction is non-existent and we ended up east instead of west. did see some colour gradient change and made do with that, and some colourful beach hut we took wannabe hipster photos next to.

b

the b never fails to attract a crowd and boy was it busy on a pre-christmas weekend. seems like everyone went from christmas shopping to needing a winter warmer! find the door bs kinda haughty, presuming only there for drinks as who'd be so stupid as to think they could waltz in without a lunch reso :P it's as if they derive some pleasure from smugly turning people away. but hah wouldn't eat there (food's not great) and was just after mulled wine that wasn't in a styrofoam cup (the mulled wine at the pseudo christmas market was all in disposable cups...) so that suited just fine.

warmed up then ducked indoors to avoid the rain and chanced upon this sweet little deal. lindisfarne oysters going for £1 a pop (when it's usually £2.50!!!) even with my abysmal grasp of numbers i knew it was a good deal. tried not to fall for their loss-leader trap and got the house white and nothing else. win big lose small?

have also passed a furniture shop with alarming regularity but failed to venture in to their cafe. it reminded me of cafe string in stockholm where the furniture is for sale. clever tactic but pity the flat white came as a cappucino but was too tired to send it back and left it undrunk. need to get better at polite, constructive feedback. find i'm too shy / apologetic to be any good at it. probably why commercial litigation wasn't for me :P

it's beginning to look

don't usually run on nerves but had excess nervous energy before psych exam and felt the need to expend it. last thing i'd want was to be all pressure of speech (hahah) during the assessment. also haven't exercised in over a month and thought to get the circulation going. it's embarrassing, really, when classmates talk about running times and i'm so easily impressed. but running slowly is better than not running at all? did a short one and stopped to take more photos than actual running but it did the trick and i was less antsy when it came to my afternoon slot. 

to celebrate after, broke out the cute cheese plate dear R gifted me when she stayed and thought to put up some christmas decorations. read somewhere that there should be things that reflect awareness of the seasons so here's me trying to look put-together for once. excuse the chavy taste, it's poundland's finest i'm afraid. but what i like about the window sill is that it's got things from people near and dear to me. the robin in the bell jar was cleverly improvised by C after we wandered round covent garden one day and she noticed me longingly eyeing something similar in a hipster shop but refusing to spend money. the lino print is of local spots i've visited recently and have fond memories of. one of the bottles was a wedding present from my winemaker friend who knows my weakness for californian pinot, the other bottle is almost older than i am and misappropriated from my parents' cellar (shh)... and a thoughtful card from a new friend whose kind words never fail to cheer me up.

scored some local aged tenderloin and did a simple pan fry for dins, then followed a friend's tip and roasted apple (while potatoes in oven) to serve with natural yoghurt for pud.

day and a bit in the lakes

remain resolutely apolitical but was nonetheless pleased to have the day off owing to potential industrial action. this really isn't the forum for whether the junior*doctors should strike and their ongoing battle with the powers-that-be. all too pleased with the day off, decided to swing by the lakes on a whim because, hey, why not? not a huge fan of the lakes. the towns are overly touristy and sell the same things (walking gear, more walking gear) and it's a bit too twee and disconcerting. have a thing about cookie cutter small towns and feel claustrophobic in them (durham, berwick etc) but maybe that's being unfair. sure there's some beauty to be had in each picturesque village if one bothers to look hard enough. that said, glad to have eschewed more commercial towns in the lakes, although i did lament to a friend that the lakes seem to be crawling with sad soggy sorts in waterproofs. 

and sod's law, really, because the more disinclined i was to the lakes, the better the weather seemed to get. not that i'm complaining because with this funny country, you take what you get! blue skies and vibrant colours, it was like looking through a lens on vivid mode. the greens more lush and the browns richer than normal. must be all that rain!

the place we stayed was new-ish and set in a slightly spooky forest, not unlike what i'd imagine the blair witch project to be. there were some really nice things about it - like the lovely, friendly hosts with amazing service recovery, beautiful room and walking gear provided. had a small issue with the loo in original room (ceiling dripped) and they very kindly double upgraded to the best suite (!!!). the minus was how it was tacked onto a less luxurious hotel, with shared facilities. so it felt like a downgrade :/ traipsing across the driveway to use the steamroom and sauna. had the option of breakfast in the room (yes please!) and glad to have done that instead of going to the other side for buffet breakfast at what looked like a dim resto. there was a functional reading room with comp food and alcohol through the day but it was an odd long-ish room that felt stuck on and had no natural light despite the gorgeous setting. it was also being re-carpeted on our second day so we didn't get use of it. that said, when requesting late check out it was £20/h (!!!) but they comp-ed an hour because it's not like we could enjoy the hotel before heading off. did end up going for a walk in their waterproofs and walking shoes, so that wasn't too bad. also, the breakfast while beautifully displayed and served in-room wasn't amazing, probably because it came from somewhat lower-standard resto. felt mass produced. have stayed in places that charged less but served in-room brekkie course-by-course. 

lovely lazy break, leisurely drive in good weather then were shown to the room. should've ruined appetite with cream tea (yummy scones and clotted cream!), read for leisure, went to steam / sauna before heading to the local for dinner. wonderful local ales then back to the hotel. went on a bit of a fires tarting spree and kept it going till bedtime. slept in, had breakfast in bed as late as possible, got late check out then went walking. 

just the right length of time in the lakes before going stir crazy. enjoyable as it was, don't think could've done another night. and suppose that's the point of a mini break :)

morning thoughts

rolling hills and olive groves

i mean how breath-taking is the view? the rooftops reminded me of the istanbul train scene from skyfall, without the adrenaline rush. the mister obliged and let me snap photos of him. we laugh that every holiday album can be captioned 'the mister and his personal photographer go to...' because there are precious few photos of me. undoubtedly more comfortable behind the camera than in front, and maintain i'm completely unnatural and unphotogenic which makes it even harder to photograph. my father is probably the only person who takes satifactory photos of me. the mister has his moments, some turn out better than others and i hated most of my wedding photos because i didn't like how i looked in them, talented as our photographer was. totes not his fault, and also not confessional of body dysmorphia.