Borough Market Today And In History

 

Find your way today. Handy maps show you different types of food and drink outlets and places to visit.

 

Learn about the area's past.

I took a photo of this so that I could study it later. If you are reading this map on a phone or laptop you can make it larger. I scanned it with the help of a magnifying glass. You can see how the railway linked various stations and landmarks.

Southwark is south of the Thames. Blackfriars was named after friars wearing black clothes. 

Hawksmoor Steak House sells a book about the steak restaurants, their experiments with cooking, and their recipes. 

The luxury chocolate shop Le Chocolat offered us a free chocolate for each person. We also picked up a history of their chocolate shops in Paris and London, England.

The architecture is impressively grand, varied, stirking, with art deco parts, high yet somehow cosy, and at Christmas crowded. It is closed on Mondays according to Wiki but was open on pre-Christmas Monday when we went there.

Wiki handily tells you about its use as a film location. We heard announcements about beware of pickpockets. We took care not to have wallets in open backk pockets of jeans. Not to walk on the edge of pavements looking at phones, because thieves on motor bikes or ebikes could zoom up from behind you and grab your phone. All went well.

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Borough Market - mulled wine, Prosecco and challah braided bread

Mulled wine, warm wine, with fun flavours.

If you want clothes, go to Brixton. But if you want food and drink, go to Borough Market.

 Nearest stations

London Bridge

Overground 

Underground Jubilee and Northern Line

Hawksmoor Steak Houses, London and UK - the secrets of cooking steak

Hawksmoor steak house restaurants are in several places in London and elsewhere in the UK. The are the gourmet steak houses. If you want a partiuclar cut of steak, or cooked exactly to your liking, this is where to get it. My husband has been to two of their restaurants in London. on the second occasion we went together for a foursome at the Hawksmoor by Borough Market.

I am now a convert, an addict.

Food

Hawksmoor Steak House restaurant, Borough Market, London. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

DRINK

1 Coats and Toilets and Table

Down an elegant and easy broad flight of stairs with banisters to the toilets.

Downstairs toilet. Chequerboard pattern floor tiles. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

The service is impeecable. You can have your coat hung up. If you delay whilst removing essentials from the pockets, you can sit down, as I did. and hand your coat to a waiter to take the coat to the cloackroom and bring back the identifying ticket.

The toilets are downstairs. Not steep stairs. If you are okay with stairs go downstairs where you will fidn more cuibles and space. However, if stairs are a problem or you are i a hurry beause your guest could arrive at any moment, there's a large wheelchair friendly toilet on the ground floor. The light did not come on. A waiter went in and waved his arms overhead and that turned on the light.

Service Charge

You pay about 15% on the bill for service. The bill payers did not mind. We went on a Monday which is bring your own wine day. Each couple brought red or white wine, and the corkage was five pounds for a bottle. 

Bring A Bottle Mondays And Corkage

Corkage, I used to gasp. Now I am more blase and shrug. They give you two sets of glasses, ask about when to serve the wine, bring you an ice bucket, offer ice, refill your glasses, save the cork or stopper on request if you are taking home half a bottle of leftover wine. And happily chat to you about their food or your wines, without rushing off to serve others.

Serving your wines on bring your own bottle Mondays.

Steak.

Ribs. Perfectly done.

Salad.

Our last and long-lasting expense but treasured memory was their huge book.costing  thirty pounds. It reveals how you, or rather they, achieve perfect steaks, including resting steaks after cooking in a low heat oven.

The big Hawksmoor book sold at the restaurant's reception desk. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

Useful Websites\

https://thehawksmoor.com/

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Why Should You Label Photos? How Can You Identify People & Places?

This is about travel photos. Also travel in time, through your old photos of holidays and weddings. Old photos start off being simply out of date but eventually become treasured historic photos.

1 Make sure each travel photo is labelled with the date, country, and the people shown.  

Don't write on the back, especially not over faces or features. If you must write, write along the back of a white edging strip. Indentations of the tip of a pen such as a biro will show through. You can edit out shadows, but this is a time-wasting nuisance. I worked in a photo agency where we were taught to instead write on the back of a sticky label attached to the back. 

Some sticky address labels lose their stikiness and dry out. Important photos of weddings often have a folded card covering the front or back, with the front protected by acide free tissue paper.

The label contents

Why do you need a label?

Let me tell you about two incidents.

1 Wedding Photos

a I went to the 80th birthday party of a distant relative. An elderly gentlemen produced a stack of photos of his family. Mostly people I did not know. People related by marriage. Poeple who died before I was born. Friends of people I hardly knew. People in the room when they were younger, hardly recognizable. I glanced at them and listened politely. This went on for five minutes, ten minutes, fifteen minutes. 

Then we reached the last half dozen. He said, "I don't know who these are. Don't supposed you know. You don't want to see them, do you?"

As they say, in for a penny, in for a pound. "Yes, I do," I replied, politely.

He said, "I've no idea who these people are."

I gasped, "That's my parents! I know my mother."

"Yes, of course. I know my parents!"

He said, "They are very smartly dressed, him in a top hat. I wonder what the occasion was."

I replied, "It must be their wedding. It's in the Forties. Before I was born."

He looked at it 

"But she isn't in a white dress."

"No. She was a widow. Her fist husband died in a plane in the war in El Alamein, around 1941. In those days brides did not wear white to a second wedding. Besides, fabric was rationed. brides only wore white if they could afford, and obtain, white parachute silk. I don't suppose she would have wanted to wear parachute silk."

He blinked. I was blinking even faster. 

He asked, "Would you like this photo. You don't already have the same one?"

"No. I've never seen it before. I'd be very glad to have it. Thank you so much."

If that photo had been labelled, it could have been easily identified, and maybe given to me much earlier. 

As soon as I got home, I labelled the photo with my parents names, my mother's maiden name, their birth dates, wedding date, and death dates. When my son, or daughter-in=law, or grand-daughter, eventaully receive, inherit all my photos, I want them to know that picture is of the relatives, ancestors, and should be recorded and / or kept.

2 Funeral Photos

For my mother's funeral, and the reception afterwards, I wanted a good picture of her looking at her best, and happy. I meticously went throguh every photo in my father's three shoe boxes of family photos, mostly of holidays.

Most of the photos showed my mother full length, against a monument, with no close ups of her face. These were useful travel and history documents, although I had to ask my father to identify the places. Sometimes he could not remember. However, the unlabelled phtoto pile started to diminish as I matched up the clothes. If my mother had an identifying feature, a yellow dress, or a straw handbag and hat, in a photo which was beside a signpost or museum or landmark, the other photos with her in the same clothes were from the same holiday, the same place, the same year. 

Sometimes a make of car would identify the country, or the decade. 

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Statues of The Travellers and Time Reminders in Singapore and Genoa

 Singapore

More details

Bronze sculpture "La Famille De Voyageurs", author: Bruno Catalano. Inside Flower Dome, Bay South Garden, Gardens by the Bay. Central Region, Singapore.

Photo: Marcin Konsek / Wikimedia Commons

The sculptor is Morroccan and moved to France. He has created bout 30 sculptures. They have a blank space in the middle and a suitcase linking the two parts of the body, upper and lower, representing the past and future of the traveller and linking th two.

Wiki says The most famous of these Traveler sculptures is Le Grand van Gogh,^[5] which is now on permanent display in Calgary, Canada.^[6]

Now, let's move on from travel to time.

Time

The Floral clock at Marina Bay. Jsut one clock. Many hotels worldwide have multiple clocks behind reception to rmind you of the time at home, or where you are travelling on business. 

The local clock (contrasting with the different time you might still be on, or will be going to) reminds you to reset your watch. To be on time for your flight or onward travel.

Labelling Travel Photos

The Rickshaw

I photographed a mural of travellers. in Singapore.

Top Tips From Author And Travel PhotoJournalist Angela

1 Of course, all your own photos of yourself alongside any statue, or yourself with a suitcase, could be labelled or titled The Traveller. 

2 Photos of yourself with others could be additionally labelled The Travellers. For a photo or essay contest. Or a Collection of your travel photos. (Add details of the places and people. See next post.)

Useful Websites

https://brunocatalano.com/

https://www.museidigenova.it/en/la-metafora-del-viaggio

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Travelers_(sculptures)

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Amazon Ordering numbers ASIN mystery solved

 

I was on the Amazon website looking at the details of the Arctic Storm cagoole when I saw it had an ASIN number. What's that?

Handy Wiki told me, and you.

ASIN is Amazon's own number for each product. Like the ISBN for ordering books. 

Useful websites

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazon_Standard_Identification_Number

Christmas Hats, Jumpers And Seasonal Jewellery For Travellers

 

Angela Lansbury, the author, wearing a Christmas jumper, brand F & F. Selfie Photo by Angela Lansbury.

Where To Buy Seasonal Outfits

You used to be able to buy Christmas themed knitted jumpers only from party shops and specialists. But nowadays supermarkets and chain stores have lots of seasonal jumpers, tee-shirts, and pyjamas, as well as socks, caps and jewellery. 

If you are travelling and can't pack buulky seasonal clothes, you can buy small items and travel with Santa hats and jewellery, such as ear-rings or brooches. Brooches which flash lights are in London's novelty and souvenir shops if you are out in town, downtown as the Americans say.. 

DIY Decorative Items To Wear

You can take headbands and childrens novelty head gear such as reindeer andlers and stick on flowers. You can cut pieces out of old birthday cards, spray them with glitter, and stick them onto hoop ear rings, or hang small novelty items such as cake toppings on hoop ear-rings.

Warmth While Travelling

I have worn my jumper to several events. It is warm for travelling, walking in windy streets even sitting at home at my desk. The alternative if you have only a tee-shirt is to wear several layers for outdoors when travelling, starting with a thermal vest, ending with a thick ski jacket.

My Jumper

Holly has prickly green leaves and red berries. The leaves and berries are still there in Christmas time in the UK.

Six set of holly designs have little red bobbles attached instead of the flat red knitting yarn berries.

This one, the label reminds me is from F and F. F & F is the brand of Tesco. 

On Christmas Day take photos of yourselves for next year's Christmas card. With Christmas trees and other displays.

I expect prices to come down on Christmas goods after Christmas Day. Time to stock up for next year.

José Feliciano - Feliz Navidad (Official Audio)

A favourite Christmas song in Spanish. Feliz Navidad by Jose Feliciano. 

Feliz means happy. Navidad means nativity. That's the Spanish greeting equivalen to merry or happy Christmas.

The song includes the English words Merry Christmas.

He is from Puerto Rico (which means rich port in Spanish). 

Duolingo just fixed its greatest weakness - and added short chats

I am learning Italian. From Duolingo. Every Day. Ready for a holiday in Italy next year. Anything about Duolingo interests me.

I liked watching this video and hearing somebody else's view, and learning about forthcoming developments.

The animated cartoon figure asks you a simple question. You answer. It answers and asks another question. And a third time. Then it says, I have to go and goodbye, to which you reply goodbye.

I love the little animated figures..I assumed Duolingo was employing animators. I was very interested to learn they had bought up an animation company.

I was also interested to learn that in settings you can turn off the figures congratulating you, and encouraging you to continue even when you have made mistakes. But I shall keep the figures. I like Duo the way it is.

You can also download Duolingo abc to teach children to read. It is Duolingo abc. 

Useful Websites

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.duolingo.literacy

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Winter Celebrations Worldwide

 

UK

Turkey with stuffing.

Christmas cake

Christmas Carols

Christmas Crackers containing a paper hat and a riddle and usually a tiny toy or puzzle.

Christmas Pudding

Mince Pies

On Fridays a Toastasters International Club, Online Dynamic, meets to practice speeches. I gave a speech about winter festivals around the world. I also gave this in person at HOD the evening before.

Ice Skating on artificial Outdoor Rinks

Pantomime

Santa's Grotto in Department Stores

TV family films such as The Sound of Music and American movie Home Alone, a slapstick comedy about a child who beats a couple of bungling would-be burglars.

USA

Candy Cane. Red and swhite spirals of sugar, resembling a shepherd's crook. They recall the story of the shepherds who, as the Christmas carol goes, watched their flocks by night.

Plum pudding (like Christmas pudding) is available all year, although more prolifically at Christmas.

Turkey is eaten for Thanksgivingso most Americans don't want to eat it again at Christmas.

BELIZE

Used to be called British Honduras and still has British traditions with an added Central American flavour.

Christmas carols played by steel bands.

Fairy lights on palm trees. (The lights are not installed by cranes but by local agile young men who climb the tree, sometimes hanging upside down as a stunt to amuse and astonish passers-by. 

FRANCE

Yule logs cakes with chocolate topping, recalling the tree trunks chopped up for fires giving light and heat in winter before we had electric lights and heating..

GERMANY

Stollen - a cake or soft sweet bread with sultanans, shaped like a log, with a rod of yellow marzipan horizontally down the centre. 

Marzipan is ground almonds mixed with fine sugar, bound together by liquid such as egg white?

ITALY and Roman Catholic churches

Nativity scenes in churches.

Panettone, a large dome shaped soft sweet dough bread. Nowadays you can buy it not only with traditioal luurious cut dandied peel and sultanas, but, instead chocolate chips, and fillings ingredients and numerous flavours. 

Italians claim it comes from Northern Italy, specifically Milan, and a specific bakery.

SPAIN

Panettone, same as Italy.

Songs such as Feliz Navidad.

VENEZUELA

Panettone.

Winter Solstice Celebration Food - for Persian Yaldā Night, and Persian Poet Hafeez

 The Date of December 24th for Christmas Eve and Dec 25th for Christmas Day was formalised by Roman Emperor Constantine who had established Christianity as the official religion in the 

Yaldā Night

The ancient soltice celebrations date back more than 2000 years. The occasion was and still is celebrated in Persia (now Iran) 

In which countries is it celebrated. According to Wiki Iran,^[1][2] Azerbaijan, Iraqi Kurdistan,^[3][4] Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan,^[5] Turkmenistan, Dagestan and Turkey.

It is called Yaldā Night or Chelle night. 

Yaldā  means birth. Chelle means fortieth.

\

Yaldi's Delightful Food

The food eaten is red such as water melon, pomegranate or other fruit symbolising the sunrise.They also makes cakes resembling a red watermelon with a green skin. The shape can be a disc or a quarter dome

 Celebrating the triumph of light over darkness, poems are read, composed by the Persian Sufi lyric poet Hafeez (1325-90).

'A shirt of leaves on the trees;

like the festival clothes of fortunate people.'

Wikipedia

Fear is the cheapest room in the house. I would like to see you living in better conditions.

What do sad people have in common? They have all built a shrine to the past.

 A-Z Quotes

A dream about Hafeez inspired another poet, Daniel Ladinskyy,  to write

Even
After
All this time
The Sun never says to the Earth,

"You owe me."

Look
What happens
With a love like that,
It lights the whole sky.

You can see a monument to Hafeez in Germany

On Yalda night families gather and, in addition to Persian poetry, stories are told, and music is played. 

In London at SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies), Westminster and other places have music and other events to celebrate.

To visit a Persian style Restaurant or try Persian dishes.

Tripadvisor and Time Out rate the Persian or Iranian restaurants in London.

What is the Solstice

The winter Solstice is the longest night. The shortest day. The syllable sol means sun.

Useful Websites

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/507656/Yalda-Night-a-celebration-of-light-and-togetherness

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g186338-d28003682-Reviews-Chef_Javad-London_England.html

 

Restaurants and Food More About Kafe Ador, Izgara, Tesco

 

Kafe Ador drinks.

As you see, they have coffees, teas and infusions, smoothies, sodas and soft drinks.

Cafe Ador main menu.

Kafe Ador cute kids' menu.

Bring along your own washable crayons. Or use a pencil and pen and ask if your child can take it home to finish colouring it in later.

Kafe Ador is open early, from 8.30 am for breakfast. That's handy for people working nearby. Or a working breakfast.

Apart from the fabulous decor, what do I remember about my first visit to Kafe Ador? The tasty spinach in puff pastry tart. The huge croissant. 

Walking along The Broadway, to Tesco for yogurt, I pass the Izgara sign.

By lunch time you can find deals at sister restaurant Izgara, meaning grill, which has Turkish dishes, which runs lunch time fixed price deals in Hatch End. They have another branch in Edgware.v.

Izgara in Hatch End, showing board with lunch time deal. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

Tesco

After five, when Kafe Ador is shut, Tesco express has half price deals on some of their bakery (not bread) to tide you over until you are ready for evening dinner at Izgara which is brightly lit at night. Izgara is owned by the same person as Kafe Ador. 

A Tesco almond croissant.

As I write this on December 20th I am thinking that here's the winter solstice, meaning the longest night, and winter dark evening in nroth west London when it is a pleasure to see lights in the restaurants along Hatch End as well as the street lights up the lamp posts.

Toast and fruit at Kafe Ador. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

Hatch End was described in a local paper as the restaurant capital of north west London. 

Bus H12 from Stanmore to South Harrow stops a few steps from Kafe Ador and Izgara going towards Stanmore. Or the H14 to Northwick Park.

A pedestrian crossing takes you to the other side of the road for the H12 bus going towards South Harrow via Pinner.. And the H14 via Harrow on the Hill bus garage and railway station from Northwick Park Hospital.  

Walking back from Kafe Ador, passing Izgara, beyond the end of the shops in Hatch End rilway station. 

Bus Announcements

Outside the station is another bus stop for both buses - handy for getting off if you accidentally got the H12 bus going the wrong way, as I did yesterday on my way to a Toastmasters International meeting in South Harrow. Fortunately, there was a verbal anouncement, as I was in a seat at the front and could not see the direction board announcements.)

 Useful Websites

Transport and Transport For London

TFL

https://tfl.gov.uk/plan-a-journey/

https://tfl.gov.uk/bus/route/h12/

https://tfl.gov.uk/bus/route/h14/

https://tfl.gov.uk/overground/route/lioness/

https://www.mylondon.news/news/transport/tfl-confirms-london-underground-trains-30612817

https://www.mylondon.news/news/transport/tfl-making-huge-change-london-30618454?int_source=nba

https://harrowonline.org/2024/12/20/festive-travel-and-roadworks-update-for-harrow-residents/

Kafe Ador

https://www.kafeador.co.uk/

Izgara

https://www.izgara.co.uk/

Tesco

https://www.tesco.com/store-locator/pinner/tesco-express

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Kafe Ador - Top Marks For Decor - My Favourite Dishes - Owner Revealed

 

I had my eye on Kafe Ador for some time, wondering when it would open and who were the owners. Now I know. Read on and all will be revealed.

Delightful Decor

Let's start with what I loved. The delightful decor. Jungle green. Flamingoes and parrots in pink on green. 

That's on the left, the side with a large plate glass window and lots of light. The tropical jungle theme is all over the walls.

A different decor feature is on the right. 

We chose a larger oblong table further in, conveniently nearer the food display. 

Croissants Or Spinach Pastry?

At the front on the counter top was a display croissant, the size of two or three loaves of bread. Also a semi circular concentric spinach pie roll in puff pastry. That was my choice. My husband wanted a croissant. I did not tell my husband, Don't.  I can get croissant from Tesco, cheaper, hot first thing in the morning. And yummy almond tart from Costa, which is fattening, in a more cramped place, or try Pastoluccio which is Italian which others like - for ice cream, which you also get in Minori next door. No, for me it is the unique and healthier spinach tart.

I was rewarded. It was superb. Moreish.

Coffee and Cake

My husband drank all his coffee in record time, without leaving me any, so he must have liked it.

Cakes

Angela with the tiramisu. Photo by Trevor Sharot.

We were given a little piece of chocolate cake and tiramisu 'on the house' which I shared with my calorie-counting husband. We agreed that the chocolate cake was not very chocolatey.  The outright winner in the cake contest was tamisu, moist and moreish. Yummy. 

My husband is a tiramisu fan. I follow chocolate desserts from place to place the way that some people follow football teams. Nope, not here. I have switched allegiance. I would order tiramisu next time.

Tropical Theme Toilet

The parrots and flamingoes are even making it a joy to visit the ladies toilet. Just one large ground floor wheelchair friendly area with which is huge, spacious. 

Everything is naturally brand new. But also well-thought out, welcoming with co-ordinated pink. Catherine Kidston hand wash. Gold easy to operate lever door handle. 

Swift Service From Staff

The staff were friendly and helpful. You only had to look up and somebody came over straight away. They helped us log onto their wifi. And answered all our questions. They are open from 8.30 am for early breakfasts until five. Seven days a week.

The little menu was on the table. But not the big menu. I was able to photograph the big menu. And the kids menu. Which I am sharing with you, and for my own reference as I plan to go back again, and the website hasn't yet caught up. The website seems to show coffee with a biscuit. Puzzling. We were not given a biscuit and I didn't see any to buy.

Who are the owners? The owner also runs Izgara along the street. Turkish. A big busy and succcessful restaurant with lots of lights and bright decor. Figures. No wonder. Ador means a perfume.

To sum up. Spinach in puff pastry is excellent. So is the tiramisu. 

The toast platter looks lovely.

My apple drink was insipid, not worth the price. I would not order that again. There is lots more to try.  

Merry Music

Background music of jolly Christmas songs was playing. Just loud enough to lift your spirits and keep your conversation private. But not too loud. Perfect.

Prices

The drinks are pricey. The fifty percent off the food offer lasts a month from the Monday when they opened. And they are open seven days a week. So now is a great time to go.

If you already love Izgara, here's a smaller place, a cosy cafe with a bright colourful decor. (More photos from Angela are being added shortly.)

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Do You Know Ten English Family Name Meanings? - Ten Popular Jobs - And Statues To See

 It is easier to remember people's names if you recall the jobs which the names mean, probably a job held by their ancestor, or even their ancestor's boss. I have at least one book about family names, and several about first names.

Names associated with jobs

1 Archer (like author Jeffrey Archer), 

2 baker

3 barber

4 bishop

5 carpenter - made wooden items, spoons, furniture, housing

6 carter (who drove carts or maybe made carts)

7 clark  (clarkson was the son of a clerk, writer come secretary, or maybe a religious cleric)

8 Cook or cokson meaning son of a cook

9 cooper - maker of barrels

You can see a stue of comedian Tommy Cooper in Wales near Caerphilly Castle. More details in Wikipedia.

Statue of comedian Cooper near Caerphilly castle, seen in the background, in Wales. More details in Wikipedia.

10 draper made drapes or curtains

11 gardener or gardiner - worked in gardens

That is more than ten, but there are many more.

glazer - person who makes windows

knight - roade around on a horse

Lee means shelter in English, and in Chinese Lee or Li means plum tree

Statue of Bruce Lee in Hong Kong. Photo in Wikipedia.

miller - ground corn at a mill

Priestley - priest's woodland clearing, owned by the church. A common name in Yorkshire in England, and Scotland in the UK, also the USA and Canada. See the statues of Priestley the scientist in Yorkshire. See the statue of author-playwright J B Priestley whose time-slip play An Inspector Calls is used by many schools for English O level exams.

Statue of J B Priestley in Bradford, Yorkshire.

shepherd - looked after or herded sheep

smith - usually blacksmith, since a silversmith would be called silver, or silverman, and a goldsmith or person working wiht or selling gold bards or gold jewelery and items might be called gold or goldman

tailor/taylor- sewed by hand, later by machine (as in Elizabeth Taylor the film star)

Bust of Taylor in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

Another Believer - Own work

Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico (2021)

thatcher - who created thatch or thatched roofs, made of bundles or dried straw, before clay was dried and made into tiles (as in Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher). A statue of Margaret Thatcher is in Grangham, Lincolnshire, England. A bust of her is outdoors in the Falkland Islands, in the capital, Stanley.

Statue of Margaret Thatcher in England.

weaver - wove textiles

wheeler - made and repaired wheels for wagons

woodman - worked with wood, or in the woods

You an buy books about statues, such as London statues (I have that one) and on surnames (I have one of those, ) and on baby names (I started collecting books on baby names when my son was born  more than 40 years ago and I now have more than ten books on baby names. Magazines on Parents and babies often give away books on baby names with their springtime editions. Some first names are derived from names of parents. 

Useful Website

ancestry.com (I tried loading up the link but it wiped out the entire post, so I have just given you the generic name. Add name meaning.)

https://www.oxfordreference.com

wikipedia.com

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Inspector_Calls

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Sleeping Instantly, Anywhere - For Pilots, the Military and Travellers -And Travel Writer Angela's Solutions

 

Sleeping girl, painting.

What is the cure for insomnia? How do you sleep in crowded or noisy places?

Noise & Sleep

I remember staying in a hotel in Lisbon on a travel press trip. The bedroom was overlooking a busy noisy main road. I could not sleep.

The manager told me that he could not move my room becuase the hotel was full. But, he assured me, everybody who had that room said they got used to it and slept well the next night.

He was right. After my exhaustion from the first sleepless night, I fell asleep instantly the second night.

Travellers Needing Sleep

However, that might not be ideal when you want to be awake to drive or operate machinery. Drivers and pilots need to be alert. So does anybody who is going to negotiate a dangerous river or other tricky situation. You want to feel alert if you simply want to enjoy sightseeing the next day.

Sleep Disturbance

What can disturb you abroad. Noise such as city centre cathedral bells in France. 

In Italy, we were kept awake by the tooting of cars and lambrettas.

In China we had hoped to sleep late on a weekend morning. But the traffic outside started early. Vehicles braked, screeched to a halt, tooted, at the traffic lights outside.

On my honeymoon in Morocco I was woken at 5 a.m. by the local mosque's calll to prayer. I leanred this when I phoned down to recetions and asked, "Is there a fire alarm?"

In Singapre a droning noise outside my window disturbed my nap. Mist was wrising. Was it a fire? I called the management office. No, the were 'fogging', which was done every Friday, to kill mosquitos.. 

Sleeping Pills

Some people take melatonin. Sleeping pills can leave you drowsy next day.

Coffee And Caffeine

What if you have had too much coffee? You might keep waking to go to the toilet. My doctor in London told me to drink no more than three coffees. The third should be no later than after lunch and should be deaffeinated, which is not completely caffeine free but has low caffeine.

Military And Night Watch Staying Awake

The military reputedly often rely on drugs to keep awake, when driving at night, or keeping watch, when it is dark, quiet, no movement. 

Then what sends them to sleep later, in daylight, when the world around them is noisy?

Pilots' Problem With Sleep Solved

I've previously read about clearing your mind by counting sheep, counting to 100, relaxing your body head to toe, and focussing on your favourite summer or winter or cosy indoor scene. 

You can also clear your room, turn off all lihts, listen to music.

Angela's Sleep System

One method is to get rid of stress. Stop watching the news or TV late at night. Watch a comedy or ready a humorous book.

Stresses Solved

If you have a stressful situation to deal with, think of three things. Worst case scenario, your lost item is gone and you report it missing and buy another one. 

Neutral situation, while waiting for it to be returned, you go out shopping. 

Best case scenario, your lost item appears under a towel in the bathroom. Meanwhile somebody else has bought you a better replacement, or you treated yourself to a better replacement.

I imagine phoning a friend or family member. They listen and offer sympthy or solutions. I end on a happy note not to strees them.I thank them for listening.

Than I switch places. I pretend they have the problem. I suggest solutions. If they say they've tried everything, I say soothing things.

I fast forward to the future. This time tomorrow, next week, next month, or next year, this problem will be solved.  

Activity

What else do I do? I learn languages on Duolingo. This drives out all other thoughts. Gradually I get tired and start nodding off. 

In bed, I do exercises, leg lifts. Then when I am tired, I take a few deep breaths, yawn and relax.

Fantasies

I indulge in my favourite fantasy. I think of swimming in Singapore. I imagine a romance.

Finally, I imagine that I have ignored a wake up alrm clock, which turns off. Then somebody is calling me to get up, but I am reluctant to do so. Instead I am hiding under the covers, keeping still, breathing very quietly, ignoring them. Sometimes, I discover this is true. I fell asleep last night and it is now morning.

In the unlikely event that none of that works, I plan my day or week ahead. I try counting to ten in French and other languages. Each time I make a mistake, or come to a blank, I start again at one.

Article Analysis

The method in the article below is, to sum it up, start physically. Relax from head to toe, think of feeling warm and cosy in each part of your body as you relax it. Then relax mentally. Visualise a calm and cosy, still setting. For example, outdoors, on land, sleeping in a hammock. At sea, floating gently, waves flowing slowly backwards and forwards. Indoors, on velvet bedspreads or cushions or pillows in a dark, black room.

Useful Websites

://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-14200749/military-sleep-method-nod-hack-expert.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_behavioral_therapy_for_insomnia

Hawksmoor Steak Restaurants For Perfect Steaks and BYO Mondays

 The name of this steakhouse group conjures up visions of hawks and moors and wildlife in rural England. The resstaurants serve steak. Not just any steak, but a whole vairety of steaks. Cooked to perfection. 

Britain is known for its beef. Sunday lunch is traditionally roast beef and Yorkshire pudding. Horrisons, a popularly priced supermarket chain started out specilising in formed food in England.  Yuu can find roast beef and Yorkdhisre pudding for Sunday lunch, often only Sunday lunch, all gone by Sunday evening, in the budget chain popular priced pubs.

Here at Hawksmoor, the meals are more expensive, for special occasions. The steak is done to perfection. Perfect steak, even when cooked rare, not tough, the outside well cooked but not overdone.

They have several restaurants in prime locations in London, England. Covent Garden, Borough Market.

If you are a gourmet, and also a wine buff, the day of the week to go is Mondays, which is alwo their bYO day.

The corkage charge is about five pounds per bottle, any size bottle including a magnum which is the size of two bottles, enough for four people drinking carefully, more if anybody doesn't drik red wine or doesn't drik any one.

I signed up for their newsletter, where you give your birthdate, day and month, not the year, in the hope of getting a birthday offer. They ask your favourite location. Mine would be the art deco branch overlooking Regent Street.

Travel Tips

1 Monday is BYO day.

2 If you or one of your group is bringing a magnum, check out the bus and train routes so you don't have to walk far, nor drive far.

Useful Websites

Hawksmoor Locations

https://thehawksmoor.com/locations/london/

TFL

How Long Does It REALLY Take To Learn a Language?

The easiest languages for English speakers include Esperanto, Swedish, and Dutch, Italian, French.

Other languages with the same alphabet are also easier. 

Easy in the sense of fewer rules, but also the number of hours required to study. The number of hours is not a guesstimate. The American dipolmats and miltary have to train staff on language courses for postings to foreign countries. Interpreters are trained in schools designed for this purpose. A very interesting video on You Tube shows what is required and done. 

The military interpreters who volunteer and have an aprtitue and the dedication commit to several hours a day for most days of the week as well as evening homework. Far longer than I would ever commit.

They are expected to be fluent in a year or maximum a year and a half.

They are fluent before they set foot in the country.

However, amateur polyglots often go to a coutnry speaking not a word and learn by immersion as well as intensive study.

O the oriental languages, Indonesian and Malay are easiest.

Of the African languages, Swahili looks easiest. 

Mail box topper in London

 Snowy scene on top of a mail box.This one has three little snow white characters with hats and neckties, and a green tree.The colours are red, white, green, black and yellow.

In Cortenay Avenue, on the H14 bus to Northwick Park Hospital from or to Hatch End.

Useful Websites

Wiki post box toppers (American mail box toppers)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post_box_topper

TFL (Transport for London) H14 bus route

https://tfl.gov.uk/plan-a-journey/

https://tfl.gov.uk/bus/route/h14/

TravelwithAngelaLansbury.blogspot.com

Posts with pictures showing mail box toppers.

Kafe Ador open In Hatch End

 

Christmas tree in Kafe Ador, which opened Monday December 16th.2024.Photo by Angela Lansbury.

Balloons in Kafe Ador. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Pastries, sandwiches and snacks, they say.

Opening offer if you have the leaflet for dine in.

414 Uxbridge Road, Pinner, Middlesex HA5 4 HP.

Useful Website

https://www.kafeador.co.uk/

I visited and reviewed on December 18th 2024. See the lateer post.

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