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Catch up with Lars, Lachie and Chiara

Wednesday/Rāapa We spend the morning walking around and catching up reading at another place on Jægersborggade called The 1612.  On the way there we see an early morning soccer training in the park over the road - one female and all the rest were males. She nearly scored a goal - Bend it like Beckham....

Nørrebro, and Cycling Copenhagen

Tuesday/Rārua We head to a street nearby called Jægersborggade, in the neighbourhood called Nørrebro.  It has in recent years turned from a dodgy street to a very hip one, host Steven tells us.  It has around 40 shops - art galleries, organic produce shops, vintage clothes, ceramics and jewellery designers, as well as bars, coffee shops and restaurants.  It is very cool.  There is a Michelin-starred restaurant Relæ, which we did not go to. We did in our few days there go ...

Travelling Day from Florence to Copenhagen

Monday/Rāhina We got a hotel with a swimming pool. While I was in the pool Bill tried a gym thing he had bought. (This is a "Don't go taking a photo for the blog look", Ed.)  Then we had dinner at the hotel and then it was an early night....

Leaving Siena

Sunday/RātapuWe say goodbye to our hotel and the lovely Valerie and Francesca. Here is the breakfast room of our hotel. It was called Relais degli Angeli Siena https://www.facebook.com/relaisdegliangeli/.  It has only 3 years of operating. We loved our stay here and would highly recommend it to others who would like to visit Siena and see the Palio. ...

The Day after the Palio

Saturday/RāhoroiAfter your contrade wins, the next day you begin the 'tour' of solemn protectors and to the allied and friendly contrada with the compares, ensigns, drums, the Palio, and sometimes the winning horse and jockey, all escorted by various contrade members. Siena comes to resemble a playpen in which many of the toddlers have hairy legs. That night you start your victory dinners. You have as many dinners as Palios you have won. Selva/Forest have won 28 now. You have a BIG celebra...

Today is the Palio

Friday/Rāmere There is a final trial early in the morning (the sixth trial) - the Sienese call it 'the bad trial' because every fantini wants to look after their horse for the race later in the day, so they go very slowly.    Then early in the afternoon all horses go to get blessed in their contrade chapels or outside it. (This depends whether the chapel has steps to it or not.)  The jockey/fantini attends a blessing ceremony for himself and his horse, where the contrade priest p...

The Day Before the Palio

Thursday/Rāpare More learning about the Palio. Fiorenza told us of a good Facebook website with videos in English for this year's Palio - place2b siena paliolive# - so we watched those for a while. This one below is from Bill though. Each day there is so much chanting in the streets, as each contrade takes their horse to and from the trial, with their horse at the front and then they all follow. chanting. This is Caterpillar/Bruco contrade. They are chanting things like "We will be victorious, ...

Second Day in Siena

Wednesday/Rāapa We talked to Valerie, the receptionist at the hotel we are staying at, who has lived in Siena all of her life. We asked lots of questions about the Palio, the Siena horse race that we have come to see (that is much more than just a horse race), and then went to the main Piazza del Campo, where the Palio will take place on Friday.  We had been to exactly this spot once before, on a family trip when Lachie was living in Italy.  It was exciting to know this time we were g...

Bologna with Chiara as Tour Guide, then to Siena (partly on the Fast Train)

Tuesday/Rārua Chiara and Lachie come and have breakfast with us at Verdenoce. Lachie obviously wants to eat his breakfast and does not care for my blog. ...

Appenino Tosco-Emiliano National Park

Sunday/Rātapu  We head to Tosco Emiliano National Park to walk, specifically to the Rifugio Segherie dell'Abetina Reale where we will have lunch....

Cycling the Countryside Around Reggio Emilia

Sunday/Rātapu Today we are cycling outside Reggio Emilia. The Ficarelli/Prandini's have six bikes. They are now put in the shed as about a year ago while locked in the yard, someone climbed over the fence and stole one. Paulo has been working for days on getting the bikes ready for us. Lachie gets the bike with one gear and dubious brakes - he is young and fit and can handle a rough bike! The rest of us are not so robust. So off we go. It’s also pretty easy to get around.  Chiara ha...

A Quieter Day in Reggio Emilia

Saturday/Rāhoroi Today is the All Black test - Australia play the All Blacks in the Bledisloe Cup in Perth, so we asked Lachie (the computer scientist) if there was a way to watch it on the internet?  Lachie said he would find a way.  So we had a morning answering emails, and walked around the grounds of Verdenoce.  I saw a smallish turtle in the river/pond at the back, and just as I was about to take a photo, it dived. Here is the back view of Verdonoce....

Second Day in Reggio Emilia

Friday/Rāmere Reggio Emilia is famous for the Reggio Emilia pedagogical approach for kindergarten and primary school teaching.  It was born and developed in Italy in the 1950's by Loris Malaguzzi.   From Wikipedia: "It is based on the child as a bearer of rights and needs, on its potential, on its ability to build knowledge. In this approach there is no predefined methodology: final objectives are established, but subsequent planning, reconsideration of ideas and communicati...

Another Ferrari Museum, then to Reggio Emilia with Lachie and Chiara

Thursday/Rāpare We started the day at the other Ferrari Museum - this is where Ferrari's are manufactured and there is a test track. We did not see any cars on the track. Here is the Prancing Horse which has been slightly modified each year. It first came out in July 1932 when a friend of Enzo Ferrari said if you paint a horse on each of your cars you will have good luck....

Fly to Bologna, Drive to Modena

Wednesday/RāapaThis is a travel day. It is 2 hours to get to Bologna from Stansted, though it is more time than that in the airport. (We allow three hours before the flight. It is an 8.30 flight, and we are there just after 5.30, the airport is already packed, it is summer holidays time.)...

Cambridge to Stansted, via Laundromat

Tuesday/RāruaWe leave Forest of Arden. I ask to get a photo of the lady who makes my omelette every day, and Vicky, who I'd named Chirpy (she was always so happy). Then they all ended up in the photo - omelette maker Sogand on my left, chirpy Vicky in between us behind, to my right Yolande (restaurant breakfast supervisor) and Lauren.  Boys at the back Norwin and Rahul. The main chef Trish behind me to the left.  And on the right, Yidong.  I may have muddled some but you get the ...

Forest of Arden, and Meriden (and the last day of the cricket)

Monday/RāhinaWe chilled in the morning at Forest of Arden. It is a great place to hang, with great breakfasts and a great coffee shop, gym and pool. We found out more about the Forest of Arden Country Club. "In the Middle Ages it was a priory. The Forest of Arden is the setting for Shakespeare's play As You Like It. In 1729 it was an estate with deer and oak trees. During the war there were extensive huts used by thousands from the British Forces scattered on the property. There are f...

Fourth Day of Cricket/ Kirikiti, For me a day at Forest of Arden

Sunday/RātapuBill found another long time Oxford friend (Sir) Peter Donnelly to go to the cricket with today....

Third Day of Cricket/Kirikiti

Saturday/RāhoroiI returned to the cricket with Bill.  Nearly the same seats as the first day. A lovely lunch again in the hospitality room. ...

Second Day of Cricket/Kirikiti, Geek Retreat for Me

Friday/RāmereBill had found that his South African mate Nick Mallett was in the country, so he invited him to the 2nd day of the cricket as I was happy to  do my own thing. I chose to go to Geek Retreat with my game....

First day of The Ashes at Edgbaston (in Birmingham)

Thursday/RāpareTest cricket between England and Australia is played for The Ashes. Australia are the defending holders of the Ashes, having won in 2017–18. The series has been going since 1882. It is played over five tests and each test over five days. We were going to the first test. Prior to the Ashes series, Australia had its top-order batsmen David Warner, Steve Smith and Cameron Bancroft available for international selection, who were banned f...

Forest of Arden

Wednesday/RāapaHad the day just chilling here, walking, gymming, swimming and catching up on reading and emails. We have loved having time to read the newspaper.  Bill covers every section. I am a few less. Articles are so interesting.  Since being on holiday we have mostly had two meals a day. You would think we would be slimmer. Maybe marginally. We are partial to a few chocolates left on beds and biscuits in rooms so maybe that defeats the two meal regime!...

Dublin to Birmingham

Tuesday/Rārua We flew to Birmingham around midday. Ryanair - quite an experience, but it got there more or less on time.  ...

Belfast to Dublin

Monday/RāhinaDropped Bill off at Robin's Hobby Cafe. It really was my kind of cafe, with board game playing and the right name!  I think Bill was the only one there, but at times it can get busy.  A picture from their Facebook page. ...

To Belfast, The Titanic, and Another Hurling Semifinal

Sunday/Rātapu We drove from Portrush to Belfast early, in time for our usual newspaper read and morning coffee in a nice cafe there.  Then to the Titanic Belfast exhibition.  (From Wikipedia) "Titanic Belfast is a visitor attraction opened in 2012, a monument to Belfast's maritime heritage on the site of the former Harland & Wolff shipyard in the city's Titanic Quarter where the RMS Titanic was built. It tells the stories of the ill-fated&n...