“There are thin lines of creamy fat running through the maroon flesh like a road map; a thicker layer wrapped around the outside and here and there oval islands of it, the colour of creme fraiche, set among the meat. This fat is crisp to the touch and plentiful; it is what will baste the…
Author: southstarbrew
Travel: Milk of Human Kindness – London Day 3
“I think that if you say Cheddar is one of our most generous gifts to humanity, people might consider you a bit odd –” Ned Palmer We started the day with a family breakfast of waffles at Mary’s. Then we set off under London on the tube Tate Modern our destination. We emerged next to…
Pub Carpets – An indicator of quality
“If you are asked why you favour a particular public-house, it would seem natural to put the beer first, but the thing that most appeals to me about the Moon Under Water is what people call its ‘atmosphere’.” George Orwell I have a theory. Like all theories it is not absolute. Any theory which demands…
Travel : The Power of Light – London Day 2
“And Turner has drowned you in this moment, pulled you into this terrifying chasm in the ocean, drenched you in this bloody light – exactly the hue you sense in your blood filled optic nerves when you close your eyes in blinding sunlight.” – Simon Schama Last time I was in London my trip was…
Travel : The Longest Day – London Day 1
“I do find London exciting. Much as I hate to agree with that tedious old git Samuel Johnson, and despite the pompous imbecility of his famous remark about when a man is tired of London he is tired of life…I can’t dispute it.” Bill Bryson There are a few ratios or rules in travel which…
Travel : Safety First – Chiang Mai Day 4
“In too much of the West, everyone wants the guarantee of safety, and never having to make any decisions.” Anthony Bourdain On the fence of the hospital in Chiang Mai a huge sign proclaims or urges the sentiment “SAFETY FIRST!”. For better or worse it is a vain plea. The city operates in a faster…
Travel : Penalty – Chiang Mai Day 3
“Over the next two days, Mrs. Smegma persecuted me mercilessly, while the others, I suspected, scouted evidence for her. She reproached me for not turning the light off in my room when I went out, for not putting the lid down in the toilet when I’d finished, for taking the colonel’s hot water – I’d…
Travel : Whanau – Chiang Mai Day 2
“Khrxbkhrạw pĕn h̄nụ̀ng nı p̄hl ngān chînxek k̄hxng ṭhrrmchāti” ~The family is one of nature’s masterpieces~ Thai proverb I started the day heading out in search of coffee from the place I went to the day before. When I got there it was closed and curiously the hours said it should have been closed the…
Travel : Luddite – Chiang Mai Day 1
“The true test of any hotel, as you well know, Diane, is that morning cup of coffee”Agent Cooper Twin Peaks The new day started with a fresh , if not entirely new experience. Despite growing up on instant coffee I haven’t had any in over 20 years. When traveling I will always opt for the…
Travel : Departures
“It’s the fear of what comes after the doing that makes the doing hard to do” Tony Kushner – Angels in America I am sitting in bed writing this in a hotel just outside the moat and fortified wall of the old city of Chiang Mai. Walled cities are going to be a reoccurring theme on…
Raise the Dawn 