Arcticterntalk.org

The blog of a travelling psychiatrist and football lover. Who happens to be a halfway decent photographer. Takes a cynical view of the world

Archive for the tag “bread”

Reflections on Milan


View from Bedroom window. Sheets or large underwear?

View from Bedroom window. Sheets or large underwear?

This post I have to admit is a little unfair as being there for 2 days spent most of it underground in a conference room, cut off from the world seemingly. Awful telephone reception and little better wifi connection ( which at least was free). And then when one factors in a 12 hour sleep, to recover from missing a night, you can agree that my views of Milan are not exactly complete.

On balance I was not enthused about the city. The trip from Linate airport to the hotel did not inspire me and neither did the driving ability of the taxi driver, who gave a decent rendition of having ADHD. Those who are not familiar with ADHD just need to understand that the key symptoms of impulsive behaviours and/or inattention are not ideal qualities in a taxi driver in a busy city centre. The first learning was that pedestrians who step onto a crossing should consider a few things. Making a will would be obligatory and consideration to not crossing would also be a good judgement to make.

The streets were not full of colourful fashionistas nor shops and the restaurants did not make me want to jump out of the taxi. The same process was repeated on the return journey. The positives? Well certainly not the costs. Lets talk cocktails, not that I was offered any. In Spain where I was sunday night, a Pina Colada would cost 3.50 euros, and in the hotel here 11.50. The fact that they were advertising their drinks and prices in the elevator suggests they considered these prices reasonable.

On a positive note the food was good. A large lunch buffet and a meal of Salmon in breadcrumbs with aubergine that got me thinking it might make a good dinner party dish.

Rooms are always small in Italian hotels but this one really was. The view from the bedroom window was not exotic but did make my mind question whether what was hanging out was sheets or rather large underwear.

So I make my biased and unfair decision that Milan is off my holiday destination list. But lets give it a second chance as I am returning on friday and hopefully may see a little more. I may even take my camera.

You Grumpy Old Baker. You did it again!


Saturday equals visit to the Grumpy Baker. Last week he was grumpy for no reason, today he had a reason. Someone had asked him for a specific cake, but sadly that cake was hanging from the ceiling. sadly also the string was twisted and the cake could not be got down by the assistant. Enter Grumpy Baker, who was also in charge of the coffee machine out the back. He could get it down either. huge pole arrives, stick that is not nationality, and it would seeem that Grumpy Baker, (can we call him GB?) was either going to explode, spontaneously combust or create a hole in his nice bakery ceiling. Luckily the string untangled and the deed could be completed. tune in next saturday for the next edition of Grumpy Baker.

You Grumpy Old Baker- but you are the best


For many years we buy bread, croissants and other stuff from an Italian bakery about 3 miles away. So it means a special trip and finding somewhere to park is sometimes complex, but it is worth it. This is the best bread in the area by a long way. There is usually cabaret in the shop for no price added. The actual baker, who I think runs the shop with relatives, might be wrong, is a little bit grumpy sometimes and very grumpy at others. Dont get me wrong, he is not rude, just a little bit on the Victor Meldrew scale. This is a compliment to him. Yesterday his grumpiness was in full swing. ” Can I have 60 grams of …..” ” no the smallest we do is 100 grams and have not done 60 grams minimum for years”. He gives short shrift to anyone who does not have their precise order on the tip of their tongue. Yesterday a full blown moaning session because 3 consecutive customers wanted half a Bavarian loaf ( delicious actually), or small loaf. He had none.

But we will miss these characters when they go. Tesco is not a good second option. we should be embracing our small shops and thats why my effort to buy bread from Grumpy Baker is well worth it!

Breakfast From the Co-op New Malden


A very cold day in UK. About freezing all day and will fall later with promises of snow even to reach London. All football locally cancelled. The only option was a trip to wycombe v Tranmere. This I declined for various reasons that include, all games usually get called off at Adams Park , not exciting opponents and the nonsense trying to park near the ground at Wycombe. So stuck watching TV and being grateful to Sky. So not much to blog about today. The only real news is that i bought tickets and booked hotel to visit Cayman Islands later this year and bought also a nice breakfast from the Co-op. the latter sounds strange but trust me their bread is better than all other supermarkets and their rolls are delicious. they now do tiger bread rolls, which all three of us consume rapidly. My only other sensible comment today is that blueberries are a very underrated fruit.

Breakfast selection from the New Malden Co-op

Breakfast

Frosty Car

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