Walking. Gossip. Travel.

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  • London – Brewdog Tower Hill

    London – Brewdog Tower Hill

    I’m slowly working my way around Brewdog locations in the UK, although I have some way still to go. I’m a martyr to my completist urges…..

    This is the Tower Hill location, just a short walk away from the Tower of London and Tower Bridge. It’s a large venue, but unfortunately a combination of an early evening visit just before Christmas meant that it was also not inconsiderably busy.

    I opted for half a Jet Black Heart and the staff member had real problems pouring it, some considerable fobbing meant he spent some time trying to get it to settle. He seemed to know what he was doing, but I’ve never seen a bar have sprays of water to clean down the side of glasses from where the beer was overflowing. I don’t know enough about the brewing and dispenses processes, but they seemed to be struggling a little here with some of the beers. The beer also didn’t taste quite right, the flavours were there, but it didn’t seem rich enough.

    Some highlights from the food menu.

    Behind the bar, which at the time was quiet, although that didn’t last long.

    The beer fridge, with some interesting options. Beers can be taken away, or consumed at the bar for a surcharge of around £2 per can or bottle.

    And some more photos of the interior. The service at the bar was friendly and efficient, despite it being relatively busy. I was impressed that customers were being served in turn, so the bar staff seemed aware of what was going on.

    A growler filler on the bar.

    Anyway, onto TripAdvisor to see what drivel people have posted there.

    “I visited Brewdog last week, ordered a pint of Punk EPA. When I got back to the table I realised there was a fruit fly in my beer. Took it back and barman told me it must have flown in there on way to table, put in his finger to scoop it out then offered the same pint back to me!”

    I liked this one, although as a customer I’d have just taken the fly out myself. Although bar staff taking things out of the glass with their finger isn’t ideal…..

    “1) drunken local men peeing in the sink in the bathroom. A sign would be helpful or an attendant to make sure these neanderthals can find their way to the urinal, and to teach them the difference between their backside and their elbow
    2) another drunken man crawling around the floor on all fours wearing a leather BDSM mask. Perhaps part of a stag-do, but it was still off putting when you’re with children.”

    Fortunately my standards are higher than that, goodness knows what was happening in the pub on that night….

    “This is the worst place to drink in the whole of London. Rude, overbearing staff with shocking customer service skills and bad attitudes all round. I would rather gouge my eyeballs out than ever revisit this place.”

    This one is from Google, where the reviews are normally more sensible. I can safely say that very few people would consider this pub to be the worst place to drink in the city. Certainly nobody would who has visited some of the rougher pubs that are in the city.

    All in all, it’s probably a much more sedate and calm environment during other times of the year, but the staff seemed on top of everything even when it was busy. The prices aren’t the cheapest, but the atmosphere was welcoming and comfortable.

  • London – Tower of London (Cradle Tower)

    London – Tower of London (Cradle Tower)

    The Cradle Tower was built between 1348 and 1355 on the instructions of King Edward III, who wanted it to be used as his private water gate to enter the Tower of London. The exterior of the gate is in the photograph above, with two rooms either side of the entrance, where porters were accommodated. The King used the gate frequently and it was protected by a drawbridge and two portcullises, of which the traces of one are still visible in the stonework.

    The gate, from inside the Tower of London.

    A fireplace in one of the porter’s rooms, which had a view to the front so they could see if anyone was trying to enter that they either needed to welcome, or repel.

    The other porter’s accommodation has been turned into a recreation of what the room may have looked like in the late sixteenth century, when it was used to imprison John Gerard. He was a Catholic priest, at a time when this wasn’t acceptable to the Monarchy, who was tortured in a bid to get him to reveal the names of other Catholics, but he never gave anything away. In association with John Arden, who was imprisoned nearby within the Salt Tower, they managed to escape from the Tower in October 1597, in a quite spectacular fashion via the moat and River Thames. Gerard faced intimidation throughout much of his life, and he did well to survive to the age of 72, dying in July 1637.

    Also imprisoned here was Anne Askew, who was punished for being a Protestant, the reverse of what Gerard suffered from just a few decades later. She may have been the only women tortured at the Tower of London for her Protestant beliefs, as well as the only female burned at the stake. The story is enormously gory, she was imprisoned here in June 1546 and was tortured on the rack, with her joints being forced apart, so her shoulders and hips were dislocated. She still didn’t reveal any information and she was burned at the stake at Smithfield, at the age of just 24. She was brave even at that point, screaming only when the flames were nearly at her head, but despite the efforts of others, she refused to recant.

    There was a large fire at the Tower in 1841, with the Cradle Tower used to throw vast amounts of explosives from, in a bid to minimise the damage to the site. The media reported at the time that, “it is stated that no less than 9,084lbs of powder and ball cartridges were thrown into the moat by the tower”.

    The upstairs of the tower is inaccessible to the public, but is less interesting historically as it was entirely rebuilt in the nineteenth century, although the upper portions had been derelict and damaged for at least a century before that. There was a report in the media in 1961 that the tower had been cleared of the armoury that was being stored there, which was being moved to the new armouries museum.

  • GeoGuessr 2 – Location

    GeoGuessr 2 – Location

    It’s only a few of days until the second GeoGuessr adventure, the principles of which are detailed here. The first one, at St. Osyth, proved to be sufficiently interesting to justify the next one.

    Above is the next location, which means it’s a trip to the Midlands. How lovely. There will be posts on here, as well as on my very under-used Twitter account at https://www.twitter.com/pubsandwalking.

  • Overheard Conversations in Pubs I

    I normally just post overheard conversations in pubs (nearly always Wetherspoons) on Facebook, but listening into other tables (it’s hard not to) provides me with a steady of flow entertainment. My favourite today, overheard in Wetherspoons, is between what I imagine is a married couple.

    WOMAN – “What are you ordering?”
    MAN – “Fish and chips”
    WOMAN – “You don’t want that”
    MAN – “Oh”
    WOMAN – “You like the steak pie”
    MAN – “OK”

    Food ordered….. Steak and kidney pudding duly delivered

    WOMAN – “How’s the food?”
    MAN – “It’s OK”
    WOMAN – “Is it as good as the fish and chips?”
    MAN – “No”
    WOMAN – “You should have got the fish and chips”

    I’m endlessly inspired and amused by people. I need to get out more.

  • My Pub of the Year for 2019…..

    My Pub of the Year for 2019…..

    I’d add at this juncture that this list is nearly entirely for my own record (I forget a lot of things, this helps me to remember), I’m not anticipating the national media to be delighted “oh look, Julian likes that pub, that must be important”. But to the two people who read this, I’ve visited goodness knows how many hundreds of pubs this year. And, some have really stood out for me. Incidentally, if I happen to visit any exceedingly good pubs in the last two weeks of this year, I’ll just have to shove them into next year….

    So my five favourites of the year……

    Liverpool – Head of Steam : Comfortable, exciting and a depth of knowledge from the bar staff.

    Ingleton – Old Post Office : A quirky micro-pub with an abundance of friendliness from the staff and some intriguing beer options.

    Sheffield – Gardeners Rest : Knowledgeable staff, a bar billiards table and excellent beer choices

    Cambridge – Calverley’s Brewery : This brewery tap room had staff who were engaging, conversational and keen to offer samples of their beers.

    But there was one stand-out pub of the year for me, which I’ve enthused about to anyone who will listen.

    Hull – The Hop and Vine : Perfection in a pub, not because of its decor or range of beer, but because of the engagement offered by the landlord. I’ve watched their beer selection on Facebook over the last couple of months and it’s well balanced and clearly thought through. And even my one little negative comment about their slightly rickety sign is now already irrelevant as they’ve replaced it with a nice new one.

    And I’m pleased to be leading a group of eight or so from Hike Norfolk to Hull next year, and I might accidentally lead them back to this pub……

  • Hike Norfolk Awards 2019

    Hike Norfolk Awards 2019

    I had a slight problem this year when writing the text for the Hike Norfolk awards, which was primarily that I had forgotten much of the material I could have used, as I hadn’t blogged sufficiently. 2019 was the second year that we had given out awards, but the first time that we’ve actually gone to the trouble of having actual awards to give out, similar to the Oscars. I say “we”, but I really mean Steve went to the trouble of getting them.

    Anyway, there were 39 people at the Christmas meal, and there would have 40 if Gordon had turned up, who managed to hear the announcement of the below awards.

    BEST DRESSED WALKER : Clare

    QUOTE OF THE YEAR : Dave

    BRAVEST MEMBER OF THE YEAR : Sarah L

    MOST RAUCOUS WALKER : Sarah H

    MOST MISCHIEVOUS WALKER : Susanna

    NICEST PERSON OF THE YEAR : Łukasz

    MOST EXPENSIVE ITEM OF THE YEAR LOST : Richard

    ANIMAL LOVER OF THE YEAR : Clive

    BEARD OF THE YEAR : Poppy (winner of the public vote)

    CANOEISTS OF THE YEAR : Dylan and Leon

    The text of the awards ceremony speech is far too gossipy for this blog and is just a little beyond the pale, so I had better not post it here. Gordon’s solicitors are never far away and he might pursue a very expensive legal case against me…….

    Photos are available on social media and the Hike Norfolk WhatsApp group, but above is one without too many faces, including one of my two apprentices who handed out the trophies….

  • Cheshunt – The King James

    Cheshunt – The King James

    There appear to be no Good Beer Guide pubs in Cheshunt, so my first port of call instead was The King James. It’s an interesting location as part of a shopping arcade, being relatively small inside for a Wetherspoons. CAMRA note that “the pub takes its name from King James I, whose royal place – Theobalds – stood about 1.2km away”. I’m not sure when it opened, but it was around 2000, so not one of the earlier pubs operated by the company.

    There were no dark beers available, although the member of bar staff recommended this winter ale, which is Rosey Nosey from Batemans. It was well kept and at the appropriate temperature, but no real depth of flavour or interesting taste. I’d struggle to complain about the price though, as with my 50p off CAMRA voucher, a pint cost the grand total of £1.49. And when having a sample of the beer the member of bar staff also poured the best part of a third of a pint, so extra value was provided there…..It was entirely drinkable though.

    My usual go-to meal of southern fried chicken wrap and chips, costing the grand total of £4.69 including unlimited coffee. Pretty decent quality as well, the chips had some firmness to them, the chicken wrap was evenly filled and everything tasted as it should have done. Although I’ve never seen a coffee machine in Wetherspoons so rarely used, I only saw a couple of customers use it in the over two hours that I was in the pub. Anyway, everything was clean, the pub was organised and there was a relaxed feel to the location.

    Onto TripAdvisor….

    “To the staff who work there…you could not cut it, in a normal pub..sooner The James closes, the better. You arent up to JDW standards.”

    The above punter seemed displeased, although I thought that the staff were performing well as they smiled, made eye contact and seemed genuinely helpful. There are a fair few reviews complaining about other customers, but everyone seemed entirely well behaved to me.

    All in all, perfectly acceptable.

  • Norwich – Primark

    Norwich – Primark

    I try and avoid anything related to shopping whenever I can, but I needed a new belt and I didn’t know where else in Norwich might sell them. Well, I knew where might sell them, but at a price that was ideally less than £5. Norwich’s Primark re-opened in the week and I entered to be confronted with what can only be described as what I imagine walking through the Gates of Hell would be like. The store appeared to be full, with excited shoppers galore all over the place.

    Incidentally, this is where I heard one of my favourite quotes of the year:

    “We can’t steal in here, imagine getting banned from Primark for ten years, can’t risk it”.

    That’s one way of avoiding shop-lifting I suppose….

    In the distance, there’s a blue “pay here” light. That’s how long the queue was, around 45 people from what I could count. A poor member of staff was reduced to standing with a large sign saying “queue starts here” to bring some logic to the proceedings.

    Nearing the front of the queue…. In fairness, it took me nine minutes to be served, which is way too long, but since it’s a new store on a Sunday shortly before Christmas, I suppose that’s inevitable. The queue was well managed and the staff at the counters were all young, enthused and efficient.

    The prices here are ridiculous though, certainly a throwaway culture. But, it’s what people demand and the clothing is affordable and the quality looked entirely reasonable to my untrained clothing standards eye. They had hiking socks at prices so low that they were almost not worth washing and the stock range in the store was enormous. And, particularly important for me on this visit, they had a belt which cost £4. Most lovely.

    Anyway, that’s pretty much my entire clothes shopping blogging done for the year.

  • London – London Liverpool Street (Overground)

    London – London Liverpool Street (Overground)

    Heading to Cheshunt, I realised two things, that firstly there was a direct Overground service there and, also, that it departed from London Liverpool Street railway station. Network Rail, with their usual quality of customer service, didn’t seem to have much information on where I could catch this service from. Although, fortunately, it transpired to be much easier than I had expected as the Overground service uses the standard platforms.

    There is some Overground signage on the platforms, although it probably needs better signage around the concourse, with my train departing from Platform 1.

    The service got busier as we progressed towards Cheshunt, but not dramatically so. The carriages could probably do with an upgrade at some stage, but they’re clean and sufficiently comfortable given the short journey length.

    Disembarking at Cheshunt.

    And, here we are, the journey takes around 30 minutes and it ran perfectly to schedule. The journey is meant to cost £4 via London Overground, although it’s possible to go by train which is slightly quicker and also more expensive. I’m hoping that my Contactless card was charged the appropriate amount, with I assume the lower amount always being charged. Although, I’m unsure how that works exactly….

    Personally, I’d rather that this service was returned to the rail network as I can’t quite see what benefit Transport for London are adding by operating this journey. It was run by Abellio Greater Anglia until 2015 and there appears to have been nearly no investment in the service since. If it had continued to be part of Greater Anglia, then perhaps it would have received new carriages with power and more comfortable service.

  • Greater Anglia : Norwich to London Liverpool Street

    Greater Anglia : Norwich to London Liverpool Street

    I’ve taken this journey from Norwich railway station to London Liverpool Street railway station many tens of times before, but this is the first time that I’ve had a ticket on my phone to show, rather than a simple paper ticket. I was hoping that it might be as advanced as the ones used by Deutsche Bahn, albeit theirs was hardly reliable, but instead it’s just a QR code. Functional, but not exciting.

    I got 10% off this journey as part of a promotion offered by Greater Anglia, with first class being just a few pounds more than standard.

    Travelling at 11:30 in the morning has the advantage of meaning the carriage was relatively empty. The train is comprised of something like eight standard class carriages and two first class carriages. However, due to the forthcoming replacement of these carriages, they’ve been using first class carriages in standard class, but have declassified so anyone can use them. Fortunately the crew made an announcement that customers in declassified first carriages might want to move to actual first class carriages.

    The crew members were all polite and helpful, with the train being clean and tidy. Other than the windows that is, these needed cleaning so that customers could actually see out of them. The wi-fi was broken on the train, although I don’t use it, but the power points were functioning and this was more important to me.

    First class means free drinks and snacks from the buffet car, with the snacks being very lovely, although the coffee was not exactly packed with flavour. Well, it was packed with a bland and bitter flavour, but not much else. Greater Anglia also apparently don’t stock sparkling water any more, so it’s just still water which is available. Greater Anglia need to do more here, especially since they don’t give them out any more at weekends as apparently customers abused them. By abused them, I suspect they meant that they asked for them. I’m not sure how much Greater Anglia really lost on biscuits, but there we are….

    The train left on time and arrived into London around four minutes late, due to some congestion near to London Liverpool Street. The fare for this journey was around £18, which I thought was entirely reasonable given the free snacks and drinks. It won’t be long before the new carriages are being used on the mainline, at which point the journey might become even more comfortable.