Jano holds dinners with 5 whiskies once a month at a restaurant in Pinner.
Right Angela Lansbury of Central London Wine Society.
Saturday, July 11, 2026
Friday, July 10, 2026
Fish Wallpaper at the Fishmongers' Hall
I went to a wine tasting event organised by Goedhuis-Waddesdon at the Fishmongers' Hall.
I thought the fish theme wallpaper in the Ladies Powder Room was delightful. Only when I got home did I realise that fish was an appropriate motif for the building.
The Fishmongers' Association offers guided tours of the building. Treasures and tradition.
https://fishmongers.org.uk/contact/
Thursday, July 9, 2026
Delicious non alcohol imitation bubɓly Champagne from Ackerman via Goedhuis Waddeson
A French winery in the Loire Valley.
UK importer is Goedhuis Waddesdon.
I was at first disconcerted by the name Goedhuis. Then I recognized it as a Germanic language, realized it was like Dutch, and with a little checking I saw a very positive promotion in the name, goes meaning good. A good house, like Waddesdon Manor, a grand house I have visited several times. I remember sitting outside in the sun or shade, after looking at interesting exhibits and learning the fascinating history of the house and its inhabitants.
Goes huis means good house, in Afrikaans, the South African language, also used in a couple of other African countries and a South American country.
The public can buy from their website.
Luxury Presentation Of Zero Alcohol
The capsule (bottle closure or cap) looks like the ones used for Champagne, a cork on a strong bottle to withstand the pressure of bubbles, with a wire cage to hold in the cork (and prevent pilferage of the precious contents).
Plus a pretty foil to finish the expensive, luxury look. To add excitement to any occasion. To make the giver and receiver feel good, when presenting a gift before dinner, and opening it at the start or end of a delightful event.
I am gradually getting to grips with the nuances of zero alcohol drinks, needed when driving. I was a bit disappointed by the canned varieties from other suppliers, which had few bubbles, because cans cannot withstand the pressure of bubbles so well, and disappointing flavour. However, the Ackerman offering was a delight, producing absolutely perfect flavour for me.
Guess Which Grapes In This Zero Alcohol
Looking at the grapes, I found that the white version is made from 60% Chardonnay, a very versatile grape. Plus the delightfully named 40% Melon Blanc. Blanc of course being French for white.
The ros
Prices of Zero Alcohol
Only £13, yes thirteen pounds, a bottle, for white or rosé.
Ideal for drivers and anyone who enjoys socializing without consuming alcohol.
I checked their website for no alcohol wines and was reminded that they also sell driver-friendly beers.
Waddesdon Manor is famous for its gardens, wine cellars, and has a shop. You can book wine cellar tours including tasting up to eight wines from about £20, about once a week. Separate from the house.
Useful Websites on Goedhuis Waddesdon
Wednesday, July 8, 2026
Rupert & Rothschild Restaurant in South Africa - and the name Nadine on the wine bottle
I tasted the wines in London at a trade show.
The event was organized by Goedhuis Waddesdon. 
I was walking about, sniffing, tasting, sipping and spitting into a spittoon the wines, from 20 tables of multiple wines, with water and wafer biscuits from Tesco.
But you can order the wines online to enjoy in leisurely fashion, standing, sipping and savouring your first glass. Then sitting down, enjoying the wine whilst dining, in your home. You will be able to finish an entire glass, and amongst friends and family. Perhaps finish a bottle, or two.
One of the tables which attracted my attention was Rupert & Rothschild Vignerons. Better still, on a trip to South Africa enjoy the wines with locally grown food, remember the saying, what grows together goes together, at their Rupert & Rothschild restaurant. It is set amid the vineyards and farms. With luck and judicious timing, you might enjoy a stunning sunset on the Simonsberg mountains. The restaurant offers a la carte or a special set menu. The local wines and others from around the world.
The Rothschilds in the UK are also famous for commissioning wine bottle labels featuring artwork by numerous famous artists such as Salvador Dali.
The Rupert & Rothschild Connection
The Rupert & Rothschild Connection
The Rupert company in South Africa, in addition to being involved in wines, is also involved in selling luxury goods such as Mont Blanc pens (remember the little white top representing the mountain Mont Blanc) and superior suitcases.
The partnership started in 1998, with the first vintage of Chardonnay, named in honour of Baroness Nadine de Rothschild., wife of the late Baron Edmund. The wine is fermented in French oak barrels, to give extra flavour, and a lasting finish.
I could not see a picture of Nadine on the bottle, unlike Veuve Cliquot. But I found information about her on Wikipedia which told me she had written several books, and led me to a website on her films.
If you do an internet search you will find that the wines are widely available through your usual regular suppliers, such as Amazon.
They also produce extra virgin olive oil.
Useful websites for buying Rupert & Rothschild wines in the UK
Useful Websites for Rupert and Rothschild wines and restaurant meals in South Africa
They are also on Facebook.
PS Updated July 10.
You can also see Nadine and her late husband online.
Nadine was a film star before she married.
A reasonably priced Waddesdon wine
More details from
www.waddesdon.wine.co.uk
Olive oils
Estoublon olive oil from France
The one at the front is softer and sweeter.
The one at the back was too spicy and made me choke and cough.
Protect Your Spectacles
I went into the Hatch End opticians to fix my glasses. While there I bought a red spectacles glasses cover, brand icons the case. Just what I need when travelling on holiday, and at home. I can put down my glasses on the bedside table, knowing that if they fall or are knocked over, the lenses are protected from scratches.
Advantages Of The Bright Colour Spectacle Case
The bright colour means I can find my glasses in a hurry when looking for them.
I can see if I have left them behind on the bedside table when checking out of the hotel.
Alternative Conservative Colours
You might prefer a dark colour to be less conspicuous. Less distracting, when taking off your reading glasses when giving a public presentation at an overseas business meeting or conference presentation. Or to co-ordinate with your conservative colour scheme of clothing.
Prices
I paid ten pounds. I wanted the item right then, in the colour I preferred. The price of ten pounds maximum was just right for me to pay for a small item, as a thank you to them for fixing the fit of my glasses for free.
Afterwards I looked on line. The manufacturer will send it at six pounds 35 and free postage if I want another. but I am also interested in a case with a carry strap.
Come back for more information, analysis, opinions and recommendations later.
Useful websites
https://www.theglassescaseshop.co.uk/search?q=icon%20the%20case
Updated text and additional websites on Thursday July 9th 2026.
Saturday, July 4, 2026
German Words Which Are The Same As Or Similar to English
The Same word German - English and English - German
Baseball - baseball baseball - Baseball
Basketball - basketball basketball - Basketball
Cousin - cousin - Cousin
popcorn
Park - park park - Park (capital initial letters in German for nouns)
Sandwich - sandwich sandwich - Sandwich
Similar Words German - English
fisch - fish
garten - garden
hallo - hello
hund - dog / hound
mann - man
milch - milk
musik - music
singen - sing
wasser - water
Similar Words English - German
bed - bett
beer - bier
hello - hallo
man - Mann (double the n and use an initial capital for a noun)
here - hier
milk - milch
music - musik
sing - singen
Useful websites for learning and translating German
translate google
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London Fun At Museums of Illusions - and more worldwide
The opportunities for fun in London seem to be expanding.
I loved the Absurdia museum I visited on holiday in Tenerife in the Canary Islands in June 2026. I put photos from that in an earlier post.
Angela at Absurdia in Costa Adeje, Tenerife, Canary Islands. Photo by Trevor Sharot.
Now I have seen online not one, not two, but three such places in London. The prices vary. If I simply wanted some funny photos at the cheapest price I would opt for the upside down house .
The Upside Down House, London, England
The Upside Down House takes one of the illusion ideas which you also find included at the other attractions, but expands upon it with multiple rooms.
Worldwide - Most Affordable Museums of Illusions
If you are driving through Europe to Belgium or another country with Belgium en route the capital
s Belgium boats of the first Museum of Illusions. They are offering, in July 2026, the attractive and competitive price of 12 Euros for an adult. You can take in one toddler under six free with a paying adult. You also get small reductions for teachers and students who have an identify card showing their status. As the supermarket ad says, every little helps.
Museums of Illusions Worldwide
AUST|RALIA
Trickd Illusions, Gold Coast
https://trickd-illusions.gold-coast-tickets.com/
BELGIUM
Museum of Illusions, Brussels, Belgian
https://illusionbrussels.be/en
CANARY ISLANDS
Handy websites for Museums of Illusions
Absurdia, Tenerife, Canary Islands
UK
Museum of Illusions, London, England, UK
Paradox Museum
Upside Down House
Twist Museum, Oxford Street, London
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Friday, July 3, 2026
Sri Lankan Restaurant Praba In South Harrow - For Moreish Masala Dosai, Apams (hoppers) and More
Colourful Sir Lankan restaurant, Praba, In South Harrow
Dancing Light Decor
Praba restaurant's overhead lights changing colour. Photos by Angela Lansbury.
Central ceiling decoration, changing colour. Momentarily disconcerting, even irritating. Then intriguing, interesting, attractive. Finally, forgotten when your food arrives. Meanwhile, look around.
The toilet is downstairs. Handy for those who hate stairs and saves time.
Indoor stairs lead upstairs. What is up there, we wondered.
Masala Dosai
I ordered masala dosai. A huge 'pancake'. Filled with potato.
Dips
Served on a wide metal tray, like a thali, with three dips. White - yogurt and something? Red - tomato based? Darker red - spicy - red pepper?
Leftovers
When I asked for my leftover food to be packed up to take away, they gave me a round transparent box with a lid. Like to to pack my leftovers.
Later I commented to my husband, 'No risk of them forgetting and throwing it away. Or giving you the meal with missing items. No need to worry your food might have got contaminated.' (My husband says to me, drily, 'You can find something else to worry about.')
Service
The service was obliging although a bit erratic. They happily allowed three of us to all pay separately. They also said a group of us could come in after a meeting ended at 10 pm and order just drinks or desserts (having eaten earlier). And they were happy to let me take away the leftovers.
The menu could do with more translation. Apam is a thin pancake cooked and served in a bowl. An apam is also called a hopper.
The waiter got confused and gave one of my dishes, coconut apam, to another person who had three apam oreos. (Made with American oreo biscuits, which seemed very strange, but my club's President, who is Asian, ordered three of the oreo Apams.) So my friend got to pay for something extra. And I was not able to try out the dish which was new to me.
They were out of mango for mano lassi and could offer only sweet or salted lassi. So one of my friends ordered the sweet lassi instead.
I shall definitely go back. I loved the masala dosai. It was just right for me. Soft like a pancake. Not overcooked to a brittle crisp.
Leftovers Next Day
I had taken home the spicy dip which I had hardly touched. It was still too spicy, especially without the large helping of bland potato which I had had in the restaurant. So, at home, I added two tablespoons of yogurt to cool down the effect.
The test is, will I go back? Yes. I hope to try an apam. To get mango lassi. I might indulge in my family's favourite, gulab jamun (known to us from Tandoori restaurants which feature the cuisine of northern India.)
Getting There
South Harrow is on the H12 bus route from Stanmore via Hatch End, and Rayners Lane.
South Harrow station is on the Piccadilly line.
Useful Websites About Praba Restaurant and Sri Lankan Food
https://www.prabarestaurant.co.uk/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appam
https://lankawebsites.com/blog/culture-traditions/hoppers-appa-traditional-breakfast
Apam/hopper mix
https://www.theasiancookshop.co.uk/mdk-easy-hopper-mix-appampancake-mix
Hopper cooking pan about £14 plus £4 or £5 postage from various sellers on ebay
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/226323175045?_skw=hopper+pan
Royal Gulab Jamun dessert from Tesco supermarket online £4
https://www.tesco.com/shop/en-GB/products/
Travel to South Harrow
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Harrow_tube_station
https://tfl.gov.uk/bus/stop/490G000752/south-harrow-bus-station/
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Terrific Michelin Restaurant in Tenerife - El Taller - what you taste and see
How Spanish food has improved, like English food, over the past few decades. On Tenerife, the largest of the Canary islands, we were looking for a special place to celebrate my husband's birthday.
He found a Michelin standard restaurant. A place where the ingredients, tastes, and presentation would be a surprise, something we could not or would not do at home. (That is a challenge, because my husband is a keen cook. He downloads recipes in French and translates them. He consults three version of the same dish. He shops for unusual ingredients, ordering Jersey potatoes online to get the right texture and flavour.)
The name of the restaurant is El Taller. This is Spanish for workshop, studio, repair shop, or garage, depending on the context, the surroundings.
Wine muscat.
9 couses
1 chocolate ball with sweet tomato soup centre
Two or four or six of each dish. Dishes placed in a pair, a square or a line.
Even at a distance you can enjoy seeing the speed and dexterity. The unexpected tools. A giant syringe squirting a fountain of liquid. A sprinkle of seasoning. An entertainment.
We liked it so much that we booked a return visit for the last night of our stay. Again, it was full of flavours which tickled our tastebuds.
Useful Websites
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Update on July 3rd 2026.
Spanish, Italian and Portuguese Names
The Spanish, Italian and Portuguese name Seve has nothing to do with seven, which spell checker keeps pushing, but comes from the Latin and means serious, or grave. Seve is certainly a serious cook or chef. One source of the restaurant's ingredients is the family's farm. Alternative suggestions for the origin of the name are that it is Basque or French for severe, strict, or sap in a plant, all of which are suitable, appropriate names for the owner of a restaurant.
The surname Diaz is very popular, in the top twenty surnames in Spain. Names ending in ez mean son of. Di would probably be derived from Diego, in English Jacob. I think of Jacobson shortened to Jason.
We chose the shorter, cheaper set tasting menu, only 9 courses. One course was the breads, hot breads, with flavoured butters, in fancy shapes.
Eye-Catching Cute Cutlery
Another eye-catching feature was the elegant cutlery, with slim handles. I asked for the brand and looked it up. You can get a set of five for under fifty pounds, so two sets for a couple of youngsters or retired people at under a hundred pounds, to transform special occasions, or every day.
But Amazon has a similar set of slim handled cutlery in gold colour
24 pieces, 4 pieces of knife, fork, rounded spoon for soup or dessert, and tea spoon, for six people, dishwasher safe, at only £14.39.
Thursday, July 2, 2026
Spanish Food and Drink Museums, Sherry & Tee-Shirt Souvenirs
Spanish food, including some containing sherry, from Camino in London. Photo by Angela Lansbury.
Afterwards we had Spanish canapes, including dark, thinly sliced Iberian ham.
But my Spanish favourites were the tiny brick-shaped yellow, egg tortillas. Filling and satisfying.
The canapes were prepared by a company called Camino. If the name rings a bell, maybe you have in mind the Camino Real (Pilgrim's Way) in Spain, the pilgrimage route. Camino in Spanish means path, pathway or route.
I looked at the Camino menu online and they have sherry in lots of dishes, the ham, and in peppery sauce.
Sources of Sherry
Where can you buy sherry? Everywhere,
We buy from the Wine Society which cost only about £40 a year to join and will deliver as little as one bottle for free. Their sherry bottles range in price from under ten pounds for a half or full bottle, to over £100.
You could hold your own sherry tasting, buying two or three dry sherries, and two or three sweet ones, including the ultra-sweet Pedro Ximenez.
You can also buy sherry vinegar in Waitrose supermarket.
SHERRY SOUVENIRS
Tee-shirts with the word Sherry
Tee shirts sold on line include,
1 Christmas tee shirts with the message,
GET MERRY WITH A SHERRY
Long sleeved, various colours including black, burgundy called maroon, pink and more.
From Baby Originals Ltd on Ebay.
£18.99, postage £2.99.
https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/n8cAAOSwGqFlCa3Q/s-l1600.webp
A short sleeved version is £9.99, eg in red, plus 1.99 postage.
On Zazzle you can have a design created by somebody else or yourself printed on products including: invitations, mugs, key rings, paper plates, fans, cushions, caps, aprons, bottle openers, pens and tote bags.
Spanish Sherry, Sweet Or Dry - Special Flavours Revealed - where to try and buy
A Suitable Setting For Spanish Sherry Tasting
I was invited to a tasting of six Spanish sherries at the Spanish Embassy in London. It is not just a building in Belgrave square, amongst the elite of ambassadors residences and offices. It has lovely shady garden of flowers at the back. Inside the walls are adorned with paintings from the prestigious Prado art gallery in the capital of Spain, Madrid. But on a hot day in London, to taste Spanish sherry, we sat indoors around a grand, long table.
Angela Lansbury, left. The Ambassador. Emma, Right. Photo by Trevor Sharot.
As the lady ambassador, Emma, said, in her introductory welcome, the alliance of Spain and England as trade partners, goes back several centuries. Spain acted as producers and sellers of sherry, the British favourite. England is one of the top three buyers. The greater numbers of Americans being a little ahead of us, although we match the Americans in enthusiasm. I remember as a student going to sherry parties held by the professors, when I was at University College, London, in the late 1960s.
The popularity of sherry goes way back to Shakespeare's time. He mentioned sherry many times in his plays. So did other famous authors. For more than a hundred years poet laureates were paid in advance with a barrel of sherry. Charles Dickens drank sherry, mentioned it many times in his works and gave it to a long-lived pet parrot.
What is special and different about sherry, compared to ordinary wine? A slide show revealed or reminded the audience of how sherry is produced. It's redundant to say sherry is from Spain. That's like saying Spanish wine comes from Spain. The name sherry comes from the English pronunciation of the Spanish city name Jerez, at the heart of the production of sherry.
The head of the organization which is charge of defining and controlling the use of location names, showed us the slides. Wine making in the area now known as Spain started with the Phoenicians who also introduced their alphabet. The denominations of origin started in Spain in 1933.
One of the slides reminded us of the solera method. New wine is poured into the top barrel. In the classic slide, easy to demonstrate and understand three barrels are piled on top of each other and connected. Drip, drip, drip. In the old days they probably relied on gravity. But the solera system can be used horizontally, aided by pumps.
Only gradually over the years will the flavour change, the good and bad years balancing each other out, but you would select only the best grapes for this lengthy process. So your bottle of sherry might contain the crops, the vintage, of vines from several years.
The old French oak barrels add more flavour. The oldest wine has the strongest flavour. Older bottles which have corks lose a little of wine to evaporation, so the flavour intensifies. But you are drinking a blend, from the lowest barrel. You have as many as 120 different varieties in your glass!
Dry Sherry
Sherry is not a spirit but a fortified wine. The sherry is made in a bodega, where the wine ages in a cool cellar.
Yeasts
Each bodega has different yeasts! These yeasts add their own unique aroma and flavour. So even if you use the same grape variety as your neighbour, the results are different. The best results might come from different soil, being on the right or left bank of a river, lower or higher on a slope, being in more sun for more of the day, benefitting from a breeze or wind. Areas around Jerez have ideal, varied, conditions.
The first three wines were made using the most important local grape variety Palomino.
The first three sherries we tried were dry. Although I am a lover of sweet wines, I found these dry wines very pleasant.
Comparing Colours
We looked at the colours. Ranging from the first two, pale yellow, amber, then red, more intense colour, more intense flavour.
Then we swilled the sherry around and sniffed it. The first fina had a yeasty note.
The dry wine is drunk before meals as an aperitif to stimulate your tastebuds. Great for tapas, tiny tastes, which was originally a piece of bread or meat or pie across the top of the glass of wine.
Sweet Wines
But the overwhelming delight was the three sweet sherries. Each has its own different, distinctive aroma and flavour.
First Sweet Sherry
First I tasted, honey, butterscotch, caramel. After comparing colours, aromas, flavours, the lasting finish, I rated each wine out of seven, like we do at the Central London Wine Society, which meets on two middle Wednesdays each month at the Civil Service Club. All the dry wines had reached the level three of acceptable, in fact beyond that, 4 for good, maybe 5 for very good.
But the first sweet wine surpassed them at 6 for special, superb, interesting, different, delicious. Given an opportunity and need, I would buy it, if it was within my budget.
The last two hit the rare rating of 7. Wonderful. Must buy. If expensive, ask for it for a treat, a birthday dinner, or a Christmas dinner or celebration. Highly recommended.
The Second Sweet Sherry
The second, totally different, more intense, aromatic. Herbal. Flowery. What was it? Oranges. Seville oranges, Bitter oranges. Sweet oranges. Tangy, like lemons. Lip-smacking good.
Third Sweet Sherry - Sweetest - and Best?
The third sherry came from the kingdom of the Pedro Ximenez grape. Known as PX for short. Pedro is Spanish for Peter. The ending ez means son or offspring, like Peterson is son of Peter. So Ximenez means son of Simon, pronounced Shimon in Hebrew. Maybe he was a soldier, or a Catholic Cardinal, according to which myth, legend or speculation you prefer.
Colour very dark and dense.
Aroma
Finally, the third, the sweetest. Burned caramel aroma. Rich.
Flavour,
Raisins, caramel. Unctuous. Syrupy.
Pairing with Food
A dessert wine with dessert? Perhaps PX is better as a contrast with a savoury cheese, a slightly salty blue cheese. (Like that other famous pair, Portuguese Port and stilton.)
However, one favourite use for PX is to pour it over ice cream!
Useful Websites
Information on Sherry
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedro_Xim%C3%A9nez
Sherry in Literature
https://www.sherry.wine/news/sherry-literature
Buying Sherry
https://www.thewinesociety.com/buy/wines/fortified-wine/sherry
Spanish Food
Sherry Tasting Visits
Sherry Museum
https://www.getyourguide.com/jerez-de-la-frontera-l413/palacio-san-dionisio-jerez-wine-museum
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Wednesday, July 1, 2026
Cheese, chocolate and wine in Switzerland
Chocolate Visits
I visited the Alprose chocolate factory museum on my last visit to Switzerland. We got off the train and a short walk later we saw the statue of the cow providing milk for the chocolate.
Inside is a museum starting with the history of chocolate which started as a bitter drink. You can still have drinking chocolate, but sweetened. Later the addition of milk and sugar turned it into my favourite, milk chocolate. But dark chocolate is supposed to be better for your heath. Then along came the addition of nuts and numerous flavourings and shapes.
We ended up in the shop. A kind of chocolate heaven.
Next on my travel to Switzerland wish list is the Lindt museum in Zurich.
Cheese Visits
The Alpine Dairy of Morteratsch makes cheese and runs tours twice a day.
Useful Websites on Swiss Chocolate Museums and Factory Visits
Cheese Visits Websites
The Alpine Dairy of Morteratsch
https://www.morteratsch.ch/en/activities/summer/alpschaukaeserei/
Chocolate Visits Websites
https://www.viator.com/tours/Zurich/Lindt-Home-of-Chocolate-Museum-Entry-Ticket/d577-5575861P6
There's no shortage of chocolate museums, and advice.
https://swissfamilyfun.com/switzerland-chocolate-factories/
Winery & Vinyard Visits
https://www.swisswinecellar.ch/en/wine-route/german-speaking-switzerland
https://www.swisswinecellar.ch/en/map
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More Swiss German, standard German, translations explained
In Duolingo in addition to the listening and speaking exercises there are quizzes where you match the English word to the word in the other language. Sometimes I get confused, in Spanish or Italian, because I do not realise that I am being asked for a noun not a verb. For example, I am asked to translate fall, American English for British autumn. I think I am being asked for the verb to fall.
However, in German you can distinguish the noun cook from the verb cook because the noun starts with a capital letter. When I see the word cook in English, is the German the word for a cook, or to cook? Google translate solves this problem.
English - Standard German
the cook - der Koch
to cook - kochen
English - Swiss-German - German
Switzerland - schwiz - Schweiz (both the German and Swiss-German words start with sch but standard German has an extra e)
cook/chef - Choch (Swiss-German), Koch (Standard German, with initial capital for a noun)
Useful Websites
https://studyinginswitzerland.com/swiss-german-vs-german-differences/
Preview Of A Hiking Holiday In Switzerland
My hiking holiday friends are considering a holiday next year to German speaking Switzerland. A German speaking member of the group recommended the region.
One of the main areas to visit will be his favourite, Pontresina, which has cheap or free transport. At least it did last time he was there.
I have had a quick look at it. The area is on the Eastern side of Switzerland, nearer to Germany, hence the language.
The Countryside in Pontresina, Switzerland
The countryside offers:
summer hiking,
winter skiing,
a cable car.
If you want to venture further, trips to:
St Moritz, and
trips on a red train.
The Culture in Pontresina, Switzerland
For those interested in food and culture:
the Museum Alpin, and
the Alpine Dairy of Morteratsch which makes cheese.
Useful Websites about Pontresina and Switzerland
Not be confused with the Alpine museum in Bern, Switzerland:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Alpine_Museum
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_museums_in_Switzerland
https://www.morteratsch.ch/en/activities/summer/alpschaukaeserei/
Also see my posts on Swiss-German language.
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Tuesday, June 30, 2026
Starting Swiss-German - using alphabets and notebooks
A ONE YEAR PLAN
In preparation for a trip to Swiss-German speaking Switzerland next year, 2027, I am learning German on Duolingo. However, I am also checking in which ways Swiss-German, even Standard Swiss German, a hybrid, differs from Standard German. Where should I store this basic, vital information?
I already have an A5 desktop size book for Spanish, which is half empty to come back to Spanish another year, or to start German.
I have a second, smaller A6 pocket book for Spanish. This lighter notebook, was carried around on my recent trip to the Canary islands of Tenerife and La Palma.
I can turn it upside down. Start my German from the back in the opposite direction. The only problem is that the ribbon marker is now upside down. I can stick in a second piece of ribbon.
DIARY FOR DAILY WORDS
For my German speaking trip next year, I planned to learn ten words (or more) a day for a year. Over 365 days that would give me a useful vocabulary of 3,650 words! Okay, I started a bit late, but over one thousand words is a really good basis.
I wanted to write words I learned every day, not randomly on pieces of paper but in a book for a consecutive record. So I wrote the letters a to z vertically down my lined page in an A4 desktop diary.
The German Alphabet
I knew from learning Italian and Spanish that there might be some missing letters of the German alphabet, saving space, or extra letters, taking up more lines. So I googled German alphabet.
The first websites which had useful information quickly switched to a page asking me to sign up to a German course. No. This would cost money in the long run. Irritatingly, it would waste time with creating passwords and reading contracts and agreements. So I scrolled down and found Wikipedia.
Spelling out your name
I discovered that German, Austria and Switzerland use different words when you are spelling out the letters of your name or a city or another word.
Starting with A for Anna, I remember the names ending in the letter a. Anna, Berta, Ida, Rosa. Another easy to remember girl's name is Marie.
Another group to remember, is the rich ones, pronounced ich. Heinrich - German for Henry. Heinrich, Ulrich and Zurich.
More male names are Charly, Daniel, Emil, Gustav, Jacob, KAISER, Leopold, Niklaus, Otto )like Anne Frank's Father, Peter, Theodor (like the American President), Viktor, Wilhelm.
That leaves four funny strange ones:
Quasi (meaning almost in Latin), Xaver, Yverdon.
Swiss variation
Therefore, spelling my name Angela, in German-Swiss speaking Switzerland would be Anna Niklaus Gustav Emil Leopold Anna.
Now I can see why the Germans moved from using first names to using place names. You could get confused if the first letter of your name is Anna, but your name is Angela. It also sounds absurd to spell a female name with letters which are the initials of male names. However, here are the Swiss-German variations in case you hear them.
You might need to know these words when spelling out names and numbers in your surname or email for a restaurant. Another occasion would be asking a telephone operator to repeat the name of their restaurant or shop or business.
Useful Websites
Hyde Park Corner Underground Station's Historic Moments in Murals
If you take the train to or from Hyde Park you enjoy an unexpected treat. The slopes down to the station are decorated with enchanting murals and informative text.
You can read about the Duke of Wellington who led the forces which won the Battle of Waterloo, commemorated in Waterloo station. Wellington's house, number one, London, is overhead and can be visited.
But if yoy only want to stand and stare, there are peaceful scenes of the river Thames and the Serpentine.
I was interested to read that the Serpentine landmark was not natural but created by a queen who was a keen gardener.
Hyde Park Corner's underground station is on the Piccadilly line which starts or ends at Heathrow terminals.
I discovered these delights on my way to the Spanish embassy to taste dry and sweet sherry.
Come back to my blog later to read about this.
Monday, June 29, 2026
Secrets Of Swiss German language, restaurant words, raclette, and cooking spaezli
Can you recognize the words for bread and butter and breakfast in German?
Learning German
I have been learning German on Duolingo. I can recognize bread, butter and breakfast. But now I am planning to go to German speaking Switzerland.
Swiss German
What's different about Swiss German? In some ways, from an English speaker's point of view, Swiss German is German made easy. Let's start with the easy bits.
Firstly, Swiss German is easier for English speakers to read because it uses the double s instead of the vertical squiggly s which most English speakers don't have on their laptop keyboard.
Swiss German speakers are likely to understand standard German, so learning German will help you to be understood when speaking, as well as helping you to read signs and menus. In fact there's a hybrid language, Swiss standard German, which is used for writing and formal situations, which is closer to standard German spoken in Germany.
Swiss German is also spoken in Liechtenstein, which is sandwiched between Switzerland and Austria.
French in German Speaking Switzerland
You will probably recognize
fondue (literally melted, usually melted cheese in a large pot for dipping meat and/or vegetables)
and chocolate for dipping fruit
raclette - melted cheese (often raclette cheese) served on boiled potatoes, or on bread as a snack, with black tea or white wine
They use the French word merci for thank you.
The word for little is li added on the end of a word, notably for bun (little bread), kitten (little cat), hundli for puppy (little dog), like the English doggy and dolly.
Swiss-German - English
Brot - bread / loaf
Brötli - little bread (bun?) or roll
Hend Si ... ? - Do you have ...?
merci - thank you
merci vilmal - thank you very much (literally thanks many times)
rösti - (Same as standard German) grated, fried potato, like American hash bowns
Hash browns, also spelled hashed browns and hashbrowns, are a popular American breakfast food consisting of finely julienned potatoes that have been fried until golden brown. Hash browns are a staple breakfast item at diners in North America, where they are often fried on a large, common cooktop or grill. Wikipedia. Julienned means cutting into long thin strips.
Spätzli In Switzerland they are called Spätzli or Chnöpfli, in Germany Spätzle - is an egg noodle dish, with pieces of a lumpy shape.
According to wiki, it is the Swabian and Alsacian diminutive of Spatz, thus literally 'little sparrow'.[3] Some linguists derive it from the word “clump”, meaning dough which tends to form clots.[4]
Swiss egg noodles. From Wikipedia. Photo taken by Kobako.
Znüni - elevenses (snack in a mid-morning break)
English - Swiss-German
Do you have ...? - Hend Si ...?
bread - Brot )
bun / roll - brötli (Swiss-German)
croissant (French and English and German) - gipfil (Swiss-German)
chocolate - schoggi (German Schokolade)
I am - ich bi (Standard German is ich bin)
thank you - merci (French and Swiss-German) - (German danke)
German uses capital initial letters for nouns. English and French use capital initials only for proper names (Places and people, personal names).
Useful Websites on Swiss German and German
https://www.swiss-german-online.com/at-the-restaurant.html
Simple and comprehensive
https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Swiss-German_phrasebook
Detailed and technical
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_German
Clear, amusing, but fewer words
https://studyinginswitzerland.com/swiss-german-vs-german-differences/
For Standard German
Translate Google
https://translate.google.co.uk/
Food Terms in German
https://www.switzerlandisyours.com/E/guide/basics/food-terms-german.html
You can find Swiss delis in the Finchley Road in Dublin, Eire; London 0 though that might just take its name from Swiss Cottage; and New Zealand.
Food articles
https://www.mashed.com/289205/what-is-spaetzle-and-what-does-it-taste-like/
Entertaining article with recipe and picture of a device for making spaezli:
https://www.helvetickitchen.com/recipes/2015/10/15/spaztli
Spazli maker on Amazon £7.99 plus £4.99 postage to a UK address.
Websites updated Wed July 1st 2026.
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