Knowsley Safari Park

Last week we made a trip to Knowsley Safari Park which is located on the outskirts of Liverpool.The park is home to many animals including elephants, giraffes,lions,tigers and baboons.Baboons attracted the most attention as they climbed on our cars and demanded food.The tour lasted 2 hrs and finished with a free Sea Lion show.

Later that night we ate dinner at Mayur which had plush interiors and served contemporary Indian food.
We had Paneer Tikka Shaslik which is Indian Cottage Cheese in a zingy marinade skewered with char grilled vegetables.



Malai Kofta-vegetarian dumplings served in creamy sauce.



Sukhi Miloni Sabzi which was made up of snow peas,cauliflower,baby carrots,broccoli,potatoes and beans tossed in spice paste with a touch of asafoetida and tamarind pulp.



Dal Bukhara-slow cooked black lentils.

Exhibitions

Last week i attended two very different exhibitions-Curve Art & The Ramayana.

Curve Art-by an Austrian artist Hans Schabus presents an installation of 461 chairs,dramatically arranged on a 90 degree angle along the crescent shaped wall. The chairs were sourced from Barbican Centre which depict the diverse nature of activities which take place there.

The Ramayana -over 120 paintings from the British Library 's lavishly illustrated 17th-century manuscripts of the story are on display.The exhibition explores the story of the Ramayana and how it has been represented and retold over the centuries and in different countries and cultures.

Bank Holiday Weekend

Friday evening started with the trip to my local Leisure Center for Badminton. I have started to play Badminton after almost 8-9 yrs and actually look forward for it.

For dinner we tried our local Pizzeria which was a disaster and vowed never to go there again.

Saturday we saw Little Venice near Paddington. There was Canalway Cavalcade going on in full swing.There were colourful boats lined up across the canal.There was a variety of trade and craft stalls of books,handmade,jewellery,giftware,glassware,food and many more around the canal.
For dinner A made some finger-licking Quesadillas with Mushrooms, onions and peppers.

On Sunday we made a short trip to Canterbury with our friends N&R.It was a nice little city and since the weather was extremely good, the place was bustling with tourists.

The famous Canterbury Cathedral is a huge Cathedral which has high gothic ceilings and lots of stained glass windows.

Canterbury Public Library on High Street.


Punting Trip




The Marlowe Theatre is one of the largest theatres in Kent.


We had lunch at Cafe Venezia where i had Jacket Potatoes with Chargrilled Vegetables and side salad.

A had Cheese and Spinach Cannelloni

MIL had Pasta Primavera

Sunday we went to St James Park and took lots of pictures of Tulips which were in full bloom.

For dinner A made some very tasty Mushroom sandwiches and that brought our very busy but interesting weekend to an end.

Random Notes

• This week we watched Happy Go Lucky which was a sweet movie & Tashan which was a disappointment as it turned out to be a movie where you should leave your brains at home.Akshay Kumar seems to be the saving grace of the movie.Anil Kapoor overacted.Kareena plays a bimbo and Saif is an underdog in the movie.
• Friday evening we celebrated my BIL 33rd B'day at Wagamama where i had vegetable dumplings filled with cabbage,carrots,water chestnuts,onion,celery and Chinese leaf for starters and Yasai Itame which was a bowl of noodles with fried tofu,red and spring onions , red peppers, portobello mushrooms and beansprouts in a spicy coconut and green chili soup. We ended our evening by having Pineapple cake for dessert. Thereafter we rushed to watch Three and Out in West India Quay and laughed to our heart's content.

• This Saturday it was such a lovely weather .. bright and sunny with no sign of clouds i decided to take a walk on my street and came across these beautiful Tulips that i couldn't resist taking a picture.In the evening we attended Zee Cine Awards at Excel Exhibition Center.Even after shelling out $100 for tickets i was still disappointed with the seating arrangement.I think it also made the difference as we have once watched IIFA live and kept comparing between the two.
  
  
  
• From this Sunday i started playing Badminton at my local gym in Wanstead.This year i decided that i will be involving myself in more physical activities like taking up some sports..and so Badminton twice a week.In the afternoon we visited Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge built for Henry VIII in 1543.It was built so he could watch and participate in deer hunting however it is unclear as to he ever ventured in the forest.After that we drove towards High Beech which looks out over the Lea Valley to London beyond.We had a light lunch of Jacket Potatoes/ Nachos with Dips and Chips at Kings Oak Pub.
  
  
  
  
  
  

Stratford -Upon- Avon

This saturday we decided to visit Stratford-upon-Avon for a day and became one of the hordes flocking to see buildings connected to William Shakespeare or his descendants. We started quite late in the morning and reached there around lunch time.It is a small place with a very nice high street and almost all attractions are in and around the high street.

First we saw the Shakespeare 's Birthplace which was entirely reconstructed in the 19th century but in the original Tudor style. We also saw the Harvard House, home of John Harvard of Harvard University.

Also the Town Hall built in 1767, traces of 18th century graffiti on the front of the building saying "God Save the King".

We had a sumptuous lunch at Cafe Pasta of Buttery Gorgonzola and spinach gnocchi with cream, white wine, red onion and toasted pine nuts and A had ricotta and spinach ravioli with a homemade spicy roasted plum tomato sauce.
Thankfully we didn't face any big traffic jam and the whole drive went smoothly. Unfortunately after my very bad experience of the horrible traffic jam two weeks ago - i still get jittery of going anywhere by car

Meme

I love reading meme from other blogs and since i started my own few days ago i would like to tag myself.




• Last Movie You Saw In A Theater : U Me Aur Hum
• What Book Are You Reading: Sari or Sins by Nisha Minhas
• Favorite Board Game: Ludo
• Favorite Magazine:Good Housekeeping, Femina, Filmfare,Zest
• Favorite Smells:roses,anything which is cooking good.
• Favorite Sound:Birds chirping
• Worst Feeling In The World:Loneliness
• What Is The First Thing You Think Of When You Wake?What tasks i have to finish today!
• Favorite Fast Food Place: None
• Future Child’s Name:Left for the future
• Finish This Statement. “If I Had A Lot Of Money I’d… have bought myself a house and would be travelling around the world.
• Do You Drive Fast? No
• Do You Sleep With A Stuffed Animal? No
• Storms-Cool Or Scary? I like storms but i should be in my house.
• What Was Your First Car? I have never owned a car myself but OUR first car was Honda Passport
• Favorite Drink:Nariyal pani
• Finish This Statement, “If I Had The Time I Would .... enrol myself in cooking classes.
• Do You Eat The Stems On Broccoli? No
• If You Could Dye Your Hair Any Color, What Would Be Your Choice?Black
• Name All The Different Cities/Towns You Have Lived In. Bhilai,Jaipur, Shaktinagar, Nagda, Kota,Ghaziabad,Houston,London.
• Favorite Sports To Watch:None
• One Nice Thing About The Person Who Sent This To You:Since i tagged myself ,there is none.
• What’s Under Your Bed? Suitcases full of clothes.
• Would You Like To Be Born As Yourself Again? Yes, of course.
• Morning Person Or Night Owl? Morning person always
• Over Easy Or Sunny Side Up? Sunny side up
• Favorite Place To Relax: My home
• Favorite Pie:I dont eat pies
• Favorite Ice Cream Flavor:Chocolate, butterscotch

The Week Gone By

We watched 21 and enjoyed the true story of MIT Blackjack Team.
Attended Piano and Organ recital at St Lawrence Jewry.

Friday started with a trip to Museum of London and browsed through London's Burning and Weather Permitting exhibitions and ended with U Me Aur Hum.

The Weekend

My weekend started with a lavish dinner at London Durbar in Ilford.We had Vegetable Seekh Kababs / Paneer tikka for starters and Dal Makhani/Paneer Butter Masala/ Kadai Paneer and assorted breads for mains.It was a fun-filled evening with cousins and siblings and kids.After dinner we decided to watch Krazzy 4 which was a disappointment but was manageable.


Saturday started with a trip to Heathrow to drop off our cousins and then started the worst ever traffic jam i have ever seen in my whole life!!Almost all our afternoon was spent sitting in the car and thinking when we will be able to reach our home.

Sunday was just lazing and pottering around the house.We saw Munich- based on the book Vengeance :The True story of an Israeli Counter-Terrorist Team by George Jonas.

We did some grocery shopping for the week and ended the day by watching TV and some soup and bread for dinner.