Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Author: admin

  • London – Southwark (Borough of) – Kernel Brewery Taproom Arch 7

    London – Southwark (Borough of) – Kernel Brewery Taproom Arch 7

    A group of four us had a great idea to visit some pubs along the Bermondsey Beer Mile (specifically it was my idea, but I don’t mind sharing the credit) including a trip to Kernel, which is a bar that I haven’t visited before and it’s the brewery known for its quirky branding on brown paper labels. Although this is a relatively new location at Arch 7, Kernel were the first breweries to have a taproom along here and they still brew a few doors down from this unit.

    Although I’m sure it’s mostly just me, I found this to be one of the more confusing beer menus I’ve seen, so much so it confused the staff as well when taking orders. I ordered the Export India Porter and the India Double Porter, with the friendly staff member handing me one glass and saying “that’s the India Porter” which I only realised wasn’t entirely helpful when I sat down, it would have perhaps been easier to have beer names than using the beer style as the name. What initially looks to be a beer name are actually the hops which are used, which I noted confused other customers as well. Anyway, the drink needs of our group were quite varied, but there was something for all of us (and primarily me, which was my main priority if I’m being honest) as there were numerous different beer styles available.

    One of my two porters, both were suitably decadent and drinkable.

    This is what I thought to be a welcoming environment in its surroundings under the railway arches with several tables on the ground floor and there’s also a few seats on the upper level looking down. The availability of power points was useful and the whole arrangement is almost inevitably all on-trend given the location and products being sold.

    For anyone meandering along the Bermondsey Beer Mile I’d recommend this bar (which is also very well-reviewed on-line), not least because of its heritage in the area. Kernel brew some really nice stouts and they didn’t let me down on that score, with the staff being friendly and everything was clean and organised.

  • London – Newham (Borough of) – Stratford – ArcelorMittal Orbit Slide

    London – Newham (Borough of) – Stratford – ArcelorMittal Orbit Slide

    We were meant to go on this slide at the Sir Anish Kapoor designed ArcelorMittal Orbit in Stratford, which is the largest piece of public art in the country (the sculpture, not specifically the slide), a few weeks ago. However, it was having technical issues so they let our little party of two adults and two children to the observation deck and rescheduled the date for the slide. We’re rescheduling that separately and since the location let us use our vouchers for three adults instead, my friends Ross and Liam came along with me.

    It’s quite a big piece of public sculpture when you’re standing at the bottom, so I did think maybe I had been a little too brave. The sculpture was designed to be a permanent reminder of the 2012 Olympics Games which were held here, and the Olympic Stadium (now West Ham Football Club) is just over the road.

    It’s possible to see the slide merged in with the sculpture, with some gaps in the metal so that riders of the slide can have a little look out whilst plummeting down. It wasn’t designed like this, but so many people thought that the original sculpture allowed people to slide down that they added the feature in 2016.

    We had seen this a few weeks ago, but this is the slide arrangement. It goes without saying that I was beyond brave, although Ross and Liam were quite courageous as well I suppose. Liam doesn’t let anything stress or worry him, which annoys me, so he was fine. We had a wait in the queue of around thirty minutes, although we had arrived early and so that balanced out nicely. That wait is the worst bit, especially when some people decide to scream loudly down the entire slide when they’re chucked down it. It adds worry to the whole proceedings…. Whilst waiting in the queue, I had a nice conversation with the man behind who was doing the slide with his son, and we both agreed how brave I was.

    They require every rider to wear a hat and elbow protectors and I thought I looked a bloody idiot. But safety first…. After the opportunity for a photo, it was then time for my little slide. They ask you to get partly into a bag thing, lie all the way back and then shuffle forwards before plunging down into oblivion. There’s a sign saying that the staff won’t push you down, although they did help the children gently which was done rather kindly. The staff also spoke a number of languages, so a French speaker was able to talk to the French group which was handy.

    The ride reaches speeds of 15 miles an hour and although the start seemed quite sedate it all sped up quickly. There were plenty of twists and turns, including a corkscrew, before the 40 second ride is complete. There were more twists and turns that I had expected, although nothing too dramatic (although I shut my eyes for some of it). I stopped a bit short of the end, as did Liam, and the guy there was a bit grumpy telling me to shuffle along. Although he was being rude to everyone else, but he’s probably heard every line possible standing there all day. I have to say though that all the other staff (and there’s lots of them at the venue) were very friendly and conversational, so it all seemed welcoming. The venue had been great in responding to e-mails as well, trying to sort out dates and the like.

    We were allowed back up to take photos of the surrounding area, although I’d already done that a few weeks ago. I’ll add photos from that in a separate post this week (how exciting for my three readers…..). We walked back down the 430 or so steps back down, although they do let you go down in the lift.

    Whilst walking down it’s possible to see the slide winding its way down. It’s not cheap to go on the slide, about £17 each, but I had Virgin vouchers that I needed to use up. I admit to being a bit worried whilst waiting at the top, as I tend to be concerned about throwing myself down a huge tunnel, but it was an enjoyable experience and I’d do it again. One of the staff said that the split of screamers and silent riders was about the same, although I was obviously silent and placid and didn’t yell loudly, which Ross and Liam also fortunately replicated as I didn’t want us to be a raucous group.

    So, all very lovely, and I’d recommend others to chuck themselves down the slide as well. It’s not cheap, but as a staff member said, it’s an experience that can be crossed off the bucket list and it’s suitable for children of around eight years or older (and up to 22 stone, but beyond that there’s a danger of getting stuck). For those who are even braver, you can abseil down the tower as well.

  • London – Newham (Borough of) – Ibis Canning Town

    London – Newham (Borough of) – Ibis Canning Town

    I’ve worked my around a good number of the Accor hotels in London, well, other than the expensive ones as I’m not that decadent. This Ibis in Canning Town is new to me and is located opposite the Underground and DLR station in the beating heart of Newham.

    The check-in was efficient and what appeared to be a manager was standing near to the reception desk welcoming and talking to guests. I thought that was a nice touch, there was a really warm feel to this hotel in terms of the welcome. They gave me a room on the top floor and the interior was the Ibis brand standard affair, but spotlessly clean.

    Well, that really is very lovely as Ibis don’t have to provide a welcome gift. Some other Accor branded hotels do, although often don’t, so this was another nice little touch. My loyalty is easily bought with popcorn and a drink.

    The extensive view from my window, a reminder of when I got the DLR every day into Canning Town when I lived near here.

    For the welcome drink I went for Meantime London Lager, a perfectly acceptable option for a chain hotel, although I was slightly puzzled when asked if I wanted ice with it. The hotel has done well here with its cafe, as they have a limited amount of space and it was busy with what appeared to be a combination of guests and locals. Hotels often have quite anonymous and quiet cafe bar set-ups which aren’t really much used, something that didn’t happen here. Although the flip side of that was that I couldn’t get any work done as the set-up wasn’t conducive to that as it was a little too loud, so I didn’t linger for long.

    The view from the hotel room at night. The window in the room opened which meant that I could listen to the sound of traffic and activity, something I find quite relaxing (who needs the quiet countryside?).

    I particularly liked watching this, the three levels of Canning Town platforms and the bus station in front of it, there’s quite a lot of integrated transport going on there.

    As another one of my irrelevant asides and a clear sign that I’m spending too much time in Accor hotels, but there has been a switch from the white dispensers to the black ones. This hotel had one of each, but the ‘Rock Your Body’ ones are often broken, such as this one, not really a very well thought through design as around a third of these dispensers I’ve had just don’t work (they’re full, but the mechanism at the top doesn’t do anything). It’s not ideal from Accor, although I accept that it’s not the world’s most pressing issue at the moment…..

    Anyway, I very much like this hotel, with friendly staff, clean rooms, a nice touch with the welcome gift and the views over the River Thames. It’s well reviewed on-line and it’s a quick journey into central London given how near the Jubilee Line station is, and it’s a short DLR journey to get to London City Airport and the ExCeL centre.

  • Norwich – St. Peter Mancroft Church (Gaia Earth Art Installation)

    Norwich – St. Peter Mancroft Church (Gaia Earth Art Installation)

    I missed this Gaia art installation by a couple of days when it was in Hull a few weeks ago, so I was pleased to see that it was coming to St. Peter Mancroft Church in central Norwich. The installation is designed by Luke Jerram to encourage people to think about environmental issues and also our place on the planet.

    The earth gently revolves and there’s some background music as well to support the whole arrangement.

    The installation certainly brought lots of visitors to the church and apparently it was popular with families last week during Half Term. There was a friendly team of volunteers at the entrance to the church who were giving Gaia bookmarks out and welcoming people, which I thought was rather lovely. I also saw the church’s shop doing a brisk trade in various different items such as Christmas cards, so it seems to have been a worthwhile project for them.

    There are a few similar installations to allow for multiple events, but there’s a list of where Gaia is going to be in the future at https://my-earth.org/tour-dates/ and it’s at Keele for three weeks this month, which I can imagine will look suitably exciting in the chapel. This is all free of charge for visitors and I liked the whole air of optimism behind the project, which seemed evident in the friendliness and warmth of the volunteers. An uplifting experience I’d say.

  • Dublin – National Museum of Ireland (Bog Bodies)

    Dublin – National Museum of Ireland (Bog Bodies)

    Firstly, I did wonder whether it was appropriate to take and upload photos of dead bodies, but I noticed that the museum themselves did extensively, with no shortage of other imagery available on-line.

    There are four different bog bodies on display at the National Museum of Ireland, perhaps not really being displayed with a great amount of dignity. Three of those bodies are below, preserved because the conditions in the bog effectively mummified them. There are around 100 bodies of this type which have been found around the world, some of whom are Soviet soldiers from the Second World War.

    This is Gallagh Man who was discovered in 1821 when peat cutting and his body dates to around 200 and 400 BC.

    This is Clonycavan Man who was only discovered in 2003, when a peat harvesting machine was being used. This poor man hasn’t had an ideal time of it, as it’s thought that he was murdered, perhaps as part of a sacrifice. Although historians often use the reason of sacrifice, when it was maybe just as likely there was some sort of dispute. Anyway, the body dates to between 200 and 400 BC.

    This is the Baronstown West Man who was discovered in 1953 when workmen were peat cutting. He lived in the early Iron Age between around 200 to 400 AD and he was aged between around 25 and 30.

    There’s plenty of information in the museum’s exhibition about the individuals, as well as reconstructions of what they looked like which does bring them to life somewhat from the rather exposed state that they are currently lying in. The preservation is though quite incredible, allowing archaeologists to get a deep understanding of the bodies, not least because the internal organs have mostly survived to some degree. It’s clear from reviews that the bog bodies are what most visitors consider to be the most intriguing part of the museum.

    There’s more information about the bog bodies at https://www.museum.ie/en-IE/Collections-Research/Irish-Antiquities-Division-Collections/Collections-List-(1)/Iron-Age/Bog-Bodies-Research-Project.

  • Dublin – Porterhouse Temple Bar

    Dublin – Porterhouse Temple Bar

    I went to Porterhouse Central in Dublin a few years ago, so when Liam and I were in Dublin a couple of weeks ago we (well, I mainly) decided to try the Porterhouse Temple Bar located near to the River Liffey.

    It was a Saturday evening and quite busy, with this photo being taken during a lull in proceedings. We were taken to a table which was suitable for our drinking needs, with the ordering process being efficient. It was perhaps a little soulless though in terms of the service, the downside of a busy bar. Although it’s Temple Bar on a Saturday evening, it would be unfair to expect exceptional personal treatment, but everyone was friendly.

    The lighting didn’t make for great photos, but it was a convivial atmosphere with plenty going on in terms of the internal decoration.

    I was going to get a photo of the drinks menu, but they took it away, so I made do taking a photo of the one in the toilets (there were no other customers in there). Not quite as decadent, not quite as clear, but it shows the various beer styles.

    There were three dark beers, so I had half a pint of each to save me burdening myself by having to choose. I think I got them in the right order for putting on Untappd, although it was slightly fiddly as they all looked the same. They were all brewed by the brewery who operates the pub, the Porterhouse Brew Co and I thought they were all pretty much of an equal quality, which was decent but not exceptional in terms of the richness of taste. The three beers were the Irish Stout, the Plain Porter and the XXXX (that’s the name, I haven’t forgotten what the beer was called). As a random aside, it reminded me that Dublin is a great place to get dark beer given the whole presence of Guinness ensuring that stouts and porters are never far from the mind of the customer.

    Some of the decoration outside the toilets.

    And enjoying the drinks. I note that I always look slightly grumpy…..

    Although this is a touristy and busy location, it’s still a really good pub with a friendly ambience, an interesting atmosphere and a comfortable environment. Although I went for a dark beer fest, there are numerous other beer types available brewed by Porterhouse. The service was timely, the prices were reasonable and I’m fairly confident from my experience in their other venue that the food would also be of a very acceptable quality. It might be a little touristy, but that shouldn’t deter tourists from going at least for a quick (or not quite so quick) drink……

  • Neatishead – Death of James Cubitt in 1821

    Neatishead – Death of James Cubitt in 1821

    I hardly dare let myself read old newspapers as I get endlessly distracted, which has happened again when looking at what was happening in Norfolk exactly 200 years ago. I thought that this (clicking on the image makes it larger) was really rather sad, a mother left begging in the local press after her husband James Cubitt died. The advert notes that the farmer and his wife were already in “pecuniary difficulties” and there were five infant children.

    James died at the age of 40 on 18 September 1821 and was buried at Neatishead Baptist Church on 23 September 1821. This church was relatively new, having opened in 1811 and it’s still there and used for worship over 200 years on. The first pastor at the church was William Spurgeon and it was he who supervised the burial of James. James had married Clarissa Harcourt (daughter of John) on 18 July 1810 in the Church of England building in Neatishead and he was the son of William and Mary Cubitt.

    The financial arrangements lingered on for some time, there was ultimately a creditors’ meeting held in January 1823 to discuss the matter, held at the White Horse pub in the village which is still trading. Which is something that I find quite intriguing in itself, as James would have known the village church, the baptist church and the village pub, all of which are still standing and used for their original purpose. Clarissa died at the age of 61 in January 1843, 23 years after the death of her husband.

    Anyway, an irrelevant distraction and a little reminder of how different things were 200 years ago.

  • Dublin – National Gallery of Ireland (The Virgin and Child Triptych by Tommaso del Mazza)

    Dublin – National Gallery of Ireland (The Virgin and Child Triptych by Tommaso del Mazza)

    Following our visit to Dublin’s National Gallery of Ireland a couple of weeks ago, I felt the need to post separately about a few of the artworks.

    Not wishing to sound even more dull than usual, but I do find medieval artworks such as this really quite intriguing. Primarily as they were produced for a religious purposes, which means that they would have been extremely important to someone at some stage several hundred years ago. This triptych was painted on panel by Tommaso del Mazza, an artist working in Florence at the beginning of the Italian Renaissance. The gallery put this work at circa 1400, but the Getty Museum note that he wasn’t active after 1392, so this is probably from around 1390.

    I’m not an art expert, so I’ll pinch the text from the gallery themselves:

    “In Christian art, saints are usually easily identifiable by their attributes. In this case Saint Lucy, standing on the right, is recognisable because she holds an oil lamp, while Saint Bernard kneels beside her wearing the robes of the Cistercian order. The identities of the two saints in the left panel remain a mystery. The small figures are portraits of donors, individuals who commissioned the altarpiece as a votive offering to God. They are depicted comparatively small, while the Virgin and Christ Child, the most important figures, are large. Tommaso del Mazza painted in a stylised late-Gothic manner using brilliant colours.”

    There’s more information about the artwork on the gallery’s web-site, but other than it was presented to them by the mining magnate Sir Alfred Chester Beatty in 1951, there’s no further provenance. Which is why I’ve posted this really, it’s one of those artworks that has such a potentially fascinating history, as this was likely in a church or used for private prayer by a wealthy individual. They’ve done well working out who painted it, which was a relatively recent discovery, but its provenance seems to be lost. I very much enjoyed my visit to Florence last year and I perhaps walked by the very location where this was painted. I suspect I’ve decided to wax a bit too lyrical here so will stop now….

    So, there are no great revelations or thoughts here, but it’s a painting that I liked and decided I’d better briefly write about before I forget it.

  • Dublin – National Gallery of Ireland

    Dublin – National Gallery of Ireland

    I’ve been to the National Gallery of Dublin a couple of times before, but have forgotten about that as well (there’s a theme here). As entrance is free, I pre-booked tickets for Liam and I to spend an hour here before going to another museum nearby, the Archaeology Museum. It’s quite a substantial gallery, larger than I remember, although that’s not entirely surprising as I don’t remember it.

    The galleries weren’t exactly packed with visitors, although it was busier than these photos suggest.

    I thought that this was quite eye-catching.

    Anyway, I took photos of several of the artworks, always with the intention of writing some sparkling commentary about them. I’m not sure that’ll be happening, but I did note that there were paintings by artists including Titian, Canaletto, Rembrandt, Sisley, Monet, Caravaggio, Rubens, Gainsborough and Hogarth. My own highlight was “Parody of Raphael’s School of Athens” by Joshua Reynolds, but more on that in another post.

    Anyway, all recommended, not just because it’s free, but also because the staff were particularly friendly, the galleries are substantial and everything is clearly labelled. An hour isn’t really long enough for a comprehensive visit, but allowed for a reasonable walk around the collections.

  • Dublin – Guinness Storehouse

    Dublin – Guinness Storehouse

    One of the attractions in Dublin that we had to pre-book as there were limited slots, and indeed none on the Saturday of our trip, was the Guinness Storehouse. I had visited before several years ago, but I’ve managed to forget nearly everything about the experience, which is really why I have a blog as a handy reminder of my travels. It was also an essential I thought for Liam, on his first trip to the city.

    I look hassled and tired in the photo….. Masks were required throughout the Guinness Storehouse, part of the rules in Dublin when we visited. Our tickets were checked on entry and we also had to show our NHS Covid passes, which were all carefully checked. There was an odd arrangement where we got near to the till counter and everything stopped for ten minutes, which was likely just to prevent over-crowding, but they instead over-crowded the ticket area and could have perhaps explained the situation. But, everyone was friendly, so all was well.

    Someone wanted me to take a photo of their group, but I nominated Liam as he’s a civil engineer. Apparently civil engineers don’t get trained in this specific project work, but Liam did a very good job anyway.

    Above are a heap of photos, although that’s really quite self-evident, but I thought I’d mention it in case anyone thought I’d forgotten to caption them individually. The self-guided tour starts with an explanation of the brewing process, then there’s information about the history of Guinness and one of the most interesting areas to me was the collection of advertising items. I hadn’t realised that Guinness had its own transportation network including boats and trains, with a section devoted to those forms of getting their beer across the world. There was also a large room where previous Guinness television adverts were shown, some of which were really quite innovative.

    Well, indeed…… It’s possible to have a beer included and sit in a bar elsewhere at the site, but one of the highlights is sitting in the Gravity Bar and so we paid a bit more for that. We were seated by the window which was really rather lovely, with excellent views over the city and the hills.

    With every ticket to the Guinness Storehouse comes a free pint and although there are a few options such as Hop House 13, it felt appropriate to have Guinness. I think Liam is a convert to Guinness now, so that’s some form of result for them. I was already a convert, it was my gateway drug into a whole world of stouts and porters. Although Guinness probably don’t want their beer referred to as a “gateway drug”, but there we go.

    Our seats gave us excellent views over the city and we were never rushed during the visit.

    Views over the brewery complex from another part of the bar.

    And some of the Guinness branded gates as we walked around the exterior. As an aside, I had been following the situation with David Amess as I received a BBC news alert when inside the Storehouse that he had been attacked. It was when walking past these gates that the news alert arrived saying that he had died, all very sad.

    As an experience, the Guinness Storehouse is something of an essential for many visitors to Dublin, it’s part of the heritage of the city. I’m not sure that the self-guided tour would be worthwhile in its own right, but as part of the whole experience it worked well. It’s not the cheapest at £20 each, but at least there was a free pint as part of the arrangement. As for whether Guinness tastes better in Dublin, I think it does, it seems just that bit creamier. Guinness is made nearly entirely in Dublin (which wasn’t always the case) and so it’s the same stuff, but perhaps the minimal transportation and the knowledge of how to pour it and keep the lines clean is what makes the difference. Anyway, a very enjoyable visit.