Monday, August 30, 2021

Holiday at Home

We are meant to be on holiday at a rainforest resort in Queensland, but we are in lockdown and not going anywhere. Design Diva is meant to be staying in our house and caring for our cats, but she is not. When she has done this before, she has sent regular pictures of the kittens so that I know they are okay. As this is all gone topsy-turvy, I have been sending her pictures of them instead.  


As we cannot travel in reality, we are using our imaginations and addressing the concept creatively. Our first virtual destination was Italy.
 
Film: The Godfather
Aperitif: Something with limoncello
Starter: Antipasti with Prosecco
Main: Sausage pancetta linguini carbonara with Sangiovese
Dessert: Was meant to be biscotti but we were full so we had a selection of Italian reds instead
Playlist: Puccini; Rossini; Giorgio Moroder; Self Preservation Society (from The Italian Job); Verdi; Dean Martin (That's Amore); 10,000 Maniacs (Verdi Cries); Maneskin (Italian Eurovision winners); Ani diFranco (sounds Italian)
Added bonus: Italia 90 highlights


For our next holiday at home, we went to India. This next cocktail is not really anything to do with India, but I wanted to use the blue stuff. 


Film: The Darjeeling Ltd
Aperitif: Sassi Lassi Coacktail
Starter: Handmade raita with samosas and pakoras
Main: Chicken madras with garlic naan and Young Henry's IPA


These are the daily cat photos.


And our evening's destination was Russia, brought to you by:
Film: Battleship Potemkin and The Way Back
Aperitif: Borscht Cocktail and a Black Russian
Starter: Borscht
Main: Mini Chicken Kievs (okay, so that's slightly cheating), fried ceps, corn on the cob and boiled potatoes with caper butter, served with Russian Imperial Stout
Dessert: White Russian
Playlist: Tchaikovsky; Prokofiev; The Wedding Present (The Complete Ukrainian John Peel Sessions); Dustyesky; Billy Bragg (The Internationale)


Next stop, Mexico:
Film: Coco
Aperitif: Michelada
Starter: Tortillas with salsa and guacamole
Main: Chili con carne
Playlist: Los Chavos and Terrorvision (Tequila)


The morning cat photos.


The only place we travelled to on this day was up Mt Painter (fourth photo with a Prisma filter)


Daily cat photos with and without tongue, and bonus appearance by Him Outdoors.


On the last day of our holiday, we went to the UK. It is the place I want/ need to go more than anywhere. We had a holiday booked there for July 2020 which was cancelled and I have been desperate to return. I am so grateful to Australia and New Zealand for granting me citizenship - I am so happy to live here and be welcomed by these wonderful countries. More than half of my family and friends live on the other side of the world and my heart aches to see them again. Meanwhile:

Soundtrack: Bauhaus; The Jam; Theatre of Hate; The Buzzcocks; The Cult; Killing Joke; Ned's Atomic Dustbin; Mekons; James; The Primitives; The Damned; Siouxsie and the Banshees; Echo and the Bunnymen; The Specials; The Fall; The Cocteau Twins
Film: Wrath of Man
Aperitif: Gin and tonic
Starter: Ploughman's platter with bubbles (yes, okay, it's French, but the UK has the second highest consumption)
Main: Roast lamb with Yorkshire puddings (I know this is unconventional and that Yorkshire puddings technically only go with roast beef, but I like lamb best), vegetables and home-brewed brown ale
Bonus drink: Fuller's ESB
Pudding: Rice (Insert Peter Kay gag here)
Bonus: Football - Liverpool v Chelsea and Burnley v Leeds (the most beautiful football and the most passionate fans you will see)
Added bonus: The After Eight Mint game

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