July 20, 2009
We’ve just returned to Sydney from a trip through Europe and the US and haven’t had the time to write the trip up yet, but this picture is important.
It’s the chair along the Via dell’Amore (“Lovers Walk”) in Cinque Terre, Italy where we got engaged in June. Padlocks adorn the rails behind the chair. The idea is for couples to lock theirs and throw the key away. Our lock is directly behind the chair.
March 20, 2009
We’ve had no shortage of problems with our Internet service provider Orange here in London. I’ve complained about it in the past here and here. There have been many times where they’ve given us grief and I didn’t bother to write anything because they’re not worth the effort. In short, they are just crap and don’t seem to care. It also doesn’t help that for the past 6 months, our Internet has been dropping out for a few minutes every hour or so. We know that it’s about to happen when our router “clicks”.
I had a chuckle today when I went to their website because I needed to call them and this is what I got when I clicked on “contact us” link.
It sums up their customer service nicely.
March 2, 2009
Usually when wintery temperatures hit, I dive into a bundle of woollen layers and my hibernating tendencies kick in. This winter, I was adamant to make the most of the cold weather and decided to hit the slopes with Ian, Lawrence, Minjoo and Madhu.
We had an early 3am start for the 7:40am flight on Sunday morning. After a short flight, there was an unexpected 2 hour wait for the shuttle transfer at the airport. Another 90 minute drive later, we finally arrived at our destination (Les Gets) around 2pm. Snow was abundant, parked cars and chalet rooftops were blanketed with snow and there was forecast for more snow the following Saturday. We had arranged a chalet for the six of us. Our rooms were wonderfully rustic; each was equipped with a quaint ensemble of functional furniture, traditional wooden walls decorated with vintage skis and shuttered windows which overlooked the village and its overshadowing mountains.
Les Gets (pronounced “Lay Shay”) is part of France’s famous Portes du Soleil, high in the mountains of Haute Savoie. The ski village is a charming, meandering affair of traditional wooden lodges with a very French feel. There is also an open-air ice rink in the village centre. The main streets are lined with shops; a rustic mix of butchers, bakers, craft shops, ski hire vendors, as well as an array of bars, restaurants and hotels.
After a quick change into ski-pants and fleece, we were off to get fitted with our ski equipment at the ski-hire shop. While Lawrence and Madhu were happy with their skis, Ian, Minjoo and I were keen to give snowboarding a go. Given that we’d never snowboarded before, we all agreed that it’d be a good idea to learn proper techniques so we signed up for 5 half-day group lessons with Ecole du Ski Francais (ESF).
Our instructor Jean-Marc was wearing a bright red ESF ski jacket and matching trousers. It was impossible to miss him in the snow but difficult to spot him when there were so many ESF instructors around! During the first lesson we learned to stay on our snowboards while sliding near-effortlessly down a very long gentle slope. Unfortunately after that, we had to unbuckle our snowboards and carry it back all the way up the slope. We had to do this a few times. It wasn’t long before my fitness, or lack of fitness rather, started to show with every step feeling like my feet were velcro-ed to the snow.
Much to my relief, we eventually left the baby slope to go on the Chevanne Express chairlift and I got a taste of sliding down a real slope. And taste I did. Luckily the snow was powdery near the top of the mountain so my falls were somewhat cushioned. Jean-Marc finished the lesson by teaching us to slide down the slope forward and backward by controlling the tilt in our snowboards.
We returned our equipment at the hire shop and strolled back to the chalet and were welcomed by our lovely hosts, delicious smell of coffee and log fire warmth. We eased ourselves into the snug sofas opposite the fireplace and enjoyed some afternoon tea while we waited for dinner.
Next morning, I awoke to brilliant sunshine which is always a good start to put me in the mood for adventure. Following a hearty traditional breakfast of sausages, eggs, tomatoes, freshly-made pancakes, cereals and yoghurt, washed down with plenty of pressed apple juice and a cup of coffee, it was time to get out on the piste. While the skiers Lawrence and Madhu ventured out to some red runs, Ian, Minjoo and I went on the Chevanne Express again for some practice. I was much better on the second run and made it down without falling once. Ian made even more progress and Jean-Marc upgraded him to another class.
It took me another 3 lessons before I got the hang of linking my turns…yes, slowly. Jean-Marc corrected my habit of crouching to balance rather than standing up straight, leaning down the slope on my turns to turn quicker and have much more control. I did fall over a few times but each time was followed by a laugh. Eventually I managed to make it about a kilometre without sprawling in the snow.
Next day we took the gondola bubble ride ourselves to Mont Chery. When we were reached the top, I was transfixed by the amazing view – Morzine alpine valley with the Les Ges village outstretched below, surrounded by snow-laden trees. Skiers and snowboarders were carving effortlessly through the powdery snow, throwing up a fine spray of icy mist in the blazing sunshine. Off in the distance was famous Mont Blanc. Its huge white dome dominated the jagged skyline.
Later that afternoon, Jean-Marc took us on another blue run which had a much steeper gradient than the Chevanne Express. All was well until I caught a mogul while turning from heal to toe on my snowboard. After falling down with some force, I continued sliding down the mountain on my front with snow flying everywhere. I eventually slid round with my feet pointing downhill and put on the brakes with my snowboard. It was both spectacular and painful. There were many more subsequent moguls with some as high as a hill so I had to slide down the run instead. Towards the end of the run, there was a long icy flat which Jean-Marc warned us about. I tried to keep the momentum but caught a toe edge and landed with a big thump on my knees.
We had to go back up the mountain for a second run on a button lift. Getting onto the lift on a snowboard was certainly not as easy as it seemed. Each person in our group tried it but without much success. It was all about getting the right tilt of the snowboard, leaning back so the weight was on the back foot without sitting on the seat and holding onto the pole to maintain balance. I was so happy when I finally got it on my 3rd try. The second time on that slope was better. By the end of the lesson, I was so exhausted and a little bruised as the slopes were getting icy but nothing a little rest and apres-ski couldn’t fix.
Our final lesson was on Friday. Jean-Marc took us to the blue run on Mont Chery. The snow up there was so powdery. He showed us some new techniques to turn on steeper slopes and make tighter turns by twisting the snowboard, as well as traversing through really powdery snow. All things considered, I was really glad we took the lessons. Jean-Marc was a great teacher. It was definitely worth learning the basics especially since it was the first time.
We took it easy on our last day. The weather was beautiful so we went up on Mont Chery again. After lunch, we all got together to do a red/blue run and made our way down to the Chevanne Express. While Lawrence and Madhu went off for another couple of red runs, the rest of us opted for a couple of drinks and enjoyed the company instead. We finished the day with a lovely dinner on the last night together at a restaurant in the village centre.
I had a fabulous week and really enjoyed snowboarding. Although it may be a while before I get out onto the slopes again. Til then, I really look forward to next time.
February 6, 2009
Last weekend, Ian and I took a short trip to Dublin. We had intended to visit Dublin at some point in time and when we saw Ryanair deals being advertised, we thought why not? The flight was at 6:25am which meant we had to leave around 4am to get to Luton Airport.
Dublin was originally founded as a Viking settlement and the city has been Ireland’s capital city since the Medieval times. All of the street signs are written in both English and Irish Gaelic. It is built on either side of the River Liffey where most of the older buildings are on the south-side of the river. This city is the birthplace of many literary figures, there are many monuments to commemorate writers such as George Bernard Shaw, Oscar Wilde, William Butler Yeats, Samuel Beckett, and James Joyce. Dublin, nowadays, is a historic city supporting a modern and high-tech population.
Our arrival at Dublin airport was earlier than expected; in fact it was so early that nothing much was open. We waited for the ticket/information desk to open at 6am and bought two 3-day bus tickets (€13 each). The trip into the city took around 45 minutes. There was a bit of morning peak-hour traffic but we had plenty of time so we weren’t worried. Our plan for the day was simple, we were going to hop on a bus to visit Newgrange which was 1.5 hour away, north of Dublin. We decided to check into the hotel before heading back out towards the tour’s meeting point on O’Connell Street at 10:30am.
Well, at least that was the plan. At 10:15am, we were still on a bus stuck in traffic. It didn’t feel like we were moving at all so we got off and just ran. I never felt so exhausted but we ran along the whole of O’Connell Street and managed to make it on the tour bus…only just. Our tour guide Mary was fantastic and very knowledgeable on Irish history. It was a nice change to be able to gaze outside at the Irish countryside. Our first stop was the Hill of Tara. Those who have seen the film Gone with the Wind may know that Scarlett O’Hara’s family plantation was named after the Hill of Tara. It’s an archaeological site near the River Boyne which used to be an ancient royal site of the Irish High Kings. Unfortunately it’s now also a sheep grazing area so we had to navigate carefully around the many “hot spots”, quite tricky especially when seriously muddy as well, to get to the standing stone in the middle of the site called Stone of Destiny at which the High Kings were crowned.
We didn’t get to see the Hill of Tara from above but here’s a photo to show how it looks.
Then it was back on the bus for a short drive in the Boyne Valley to our next stop, the Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre, home to one of the most famous Irish prehistoric sites Newgrange. It is a Neolithic passage tomb and ancient ritual place. Apparently it was built over 5000 years ago, which means it is 500 years older than the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt and 1000 years older than Stonehenge in the United Kingdom. The passage grave was pretty much hidden as a mound until it was uncovered in the 17th century and excavated/restored between 1962 and 1975.
We actually got to go inside the sacred chamber. The stone ceiling of the chamber was dome-shaped and watertight. It is strong enough to support over 250,000 tons of earth over the top. What’s so amazing is that it is still standing as it is after 5,000 years! We weren’t allowed to take photos inside, so we can’t post any up here unfortunately. There were some Neolithic stone engravings (including some spirals, diamonds and zigzags) and also some graffiti left behind from the 17th century.
During the winter solstice (between December 19 and 23), the rising sun shines through the roof box above the entrance and illuminates the whole chamber with golden light. Our tour guide showed us an re-enactment of this event with artificial light. From the intense pitch black, a faint orangy light slowly moved across the long passageway and onto the chamber floor as she gradually lit up the light to simulate the sunrise, the roof of the chamber remained dark. There’s actually a lottery where 100 people get chosen each year to experience this during the winter solstice. It’s really the luck of the draw – last year was the first time since 1967 where it was cloudy during the whole winter solstice period so the “lottery winners” didn’t get to see a thing!
The exact purpose of Newgrange, as well as the meaning of its artwork is still unknown but many theories have been put forward. Our tour guide suggested that it may have been built by an affluent farming community who were sun-worshippers. Some have suggested that the rays of light illuminating the sacred chamber once a year was a promise of renewal for their dead and perhaps the spiral engravings symbolised eternity. Others even say that the white wall could be fake and was incorrectly built during restoration.
Clockwise from top left: Newgrange megalithic passage tomb; entrance to Newgrange; entrance stone; white quartz and granite stone wall.
Clockwise from top left: Stone circle; countryside surroundings; ancient observatory building; kerbstones at Newgrange.
The next day’s agenda began along the cobblestone streets of Temple Bar (that’s the actual name of the street). There were plenty of pubs, music venues, art galleries and because it was a Saturday there were also some markets in Cow’s Lane and Meeting Point Square.
Clockwise from top left: Looking down Temple Bar; colourful pub on Temple Bar; food market menu; window of a random pub; book fair on Temple Bar.
Clockwise from top left: Liffey River; art exhibition at Temple Bar; street painting; Bronze Ladies Statue.
A short stroll along the River Liffey and it was on to Trinity College next. Situated in the heart of Dublin city, Trinity College was founded by Queen Elizabeth I in 1592. It is also home to the Book of Kells, an illuminated gospel book which dates back to the 8th Century. Unfortunately, the original Book of Kells at the Old Library was under maintenance until the end of February so we didn’t get to see it this time (they were charging €8 to see the replica, which we thought was a bit unreasonable). We decided to wander to Oscar Wilde’s birthplace and his statue instead. Ian reckons the statue resembles the TV presenter Jonathan Ross (who he also “cyber-stalks” on Twitter and hence knows what ice cream Wossy ate yesterday).
Clockwise from top left: Courtyard inside Trinity College; the Old Library where the Book of Kells is kept; Georgian architecture inside Trinity College; the Berkeley Library.
Clockwise from top left: Plaque at Oscar Wilde's birthplace; Oscar Wilde statue; Molly Malone statue; St. Stephen's Green shopping centre; St. Ann Church; Purnell monument.
The afternoon was spent at the National Museum of Ireland. Some of the highlights include the Iron Age bog bodies which were just repulsively interesting (it’s amazing how well the skin and hair are preserved) and many artefacts from prehistoric and medieval Ireland. After a quick coffee and cake fix at the museum cafe, we visited St. Stephen’s Green then headed back to Temple Bar for dinner.
Clockwise from top left: National Gallery of Ireland; The Gate Theatre; Georgian architecture; National Museum of Ireland; entrance to National Museum of Ireland.
Clockwise from top left: Fried mushroom; boxty; bangers and mash; Irish stew with Guinness.
The following day we walked north and visited the Garden of Remembrance, Dublin Writers Museum and Dublin Castle. We spent a fair amount of time at the Chester Betty Library. I lost count of how many ‘wows’ I let fly with while going through the exhibits. The highlights for me were the Yongle Dadian (Great Encyclopaedia of the Yongle Era from 1406), papyrus manuscripts, some Egyptian Books of the Dead and beautiful Japanese painted scrolls. I was just blown away; the Chester Betty Library has an amazingly wonderful collection of illuminated manuscripts, paintings, sacred texts, prints, drawings, rare books and decorative arts from all over Asia, the Middle East, North Africa and Europe.
Clockwise from top left: Garden of Remembrance; Children of Lir sculpture; the Wall of Fame; Dublin Writers Museum.
We visited a few more landmarks in the afternoon, including the Literary Parade, St Patrick’s Cathedral (the largest church in Ireland, founded in 1191), Christchurch Cathedral, the Law Courts, Fishamble Street and were absolutely knackered by the time we reached the building where Handel’s Messiah was first performed. We discovered a quaint little bakery/cafe on Cow’s Lane called Queen of Tarts. Their chocolate fudge cake is fantastic! 
Clockwise from top left: Map of Dublin Castle; part of Dublin Castle; Belford Tower; St. Patrick's Cathedral; plaque commemorating Dublin writers; Literary Parade.
Clockwise from top left: Medieval overpass; Christchurch Cathedral; remains of the Chapter House; the Law Courts.
Clockwise from top left: Fishamble street; where "Handel's Messiah" was performed for the very first time; ceramics by the stairs inside Queen of Tarts I call them "conscience"; looking down from the top level inside Queen of Tarts.
Saving the best for last (if you like stout – Ian doesn’t), we visited the Guinness Storehouse on our last day and went on a tour that takes you on a historical journey about the “black stuff”. As we zig-zagged through all six floors of the storehouse, we learnt about the making of the Irish stout and the history of the brand. Every drop of Guinness in the world has been brewed in Dublin for 250 years and it is the roasted barley that gives the stout its distinctive dark colour. Given that it was my first Guinness, I was so excited when I found out there was a demonstration area to show people how to pour the perfect pint (or “point” as the Irish says it). Ian insisted that he wanted to have his pint at the Gravity Bar on the top level so he watched as I “double-poured” myself a pint. The head was certainly very creamy and it tasted better than I expected but still, it’s quite a heavy drink. The Gravity Bar has a nice panoramic view over Dublin but we didn’t spend much time there as we had to get to the airport for our flight.
Clockwise from top left: Irish street performers at Temple Bar; Guinness Storehouse; 9000 year lease agreement; ticket machine; €1 donkey (the photo cost us €1, not the donkey).
Clockwise from top left: All Guinness in the world is produced here; Guinness barrels; first Guinness label printing block; Guinness roasted barley; harp in Guinness logo; Guinness bottles.
It was sprinkling snowflakes when we turned up at the airport so I wasn’t too surprised when our flight was delayed by 30 minutes. I kept a close eye on the departure board because some earlier flights to London were being cancelled. We got our boarding passes and waited at the gate. From where I was sitting I saw what started as tiny snow specks had become a full-blown snowfall. Inevitably, our flight was cancelled. Being a budget airline, Ryanair’s one-and-only information desk was at the departure hall outside so we had to walk back out through the winding halls and custom counters. And much to our disappointment, we found a very long queue waiting for us outside.
Just over an hour later, we managed to get a replacement flight to Bristol from the Ryanair counter. Admittedly I was slightly surprised when the lady at the Ryanair counter gave us a piece of A4 paper on which she has scribbled something but only the word “Bristol” was legible and put a smudgy red stamp on it, then she told us to use that piece of paper to get boarding passes from the check-in counters. As expected when we handed over our passports and that piece of paper to the lady at the check-in counter, she gave us a perplexed look and asked “What do you expect me to do with this piece of paper?”. We told her that the ticketing counter had sent us over to get new boarding passes. We were then palmed off to the adjacent counter where we had to queue again. When we got to the front of the line, the lady there tried to send us back to the previous line. We kept calm and told her as nicely as we could that it was that counter she was now trying to get us to go to that sent us to her. After some debate, she eventually gave us the boarding passes.
Another 50 minutes later, our flight was delayed for another hour-and-a-half. While Ian went to get some food and coffee, announcements were made to advise that our flight was cancelled…I could not believe it…Again! Apparently, no flights were getting into London and most southern parts of the UK due to the weather. Of course, this meant that planes bound for London could not take off. So once again, we power walked through the winding halls and custom counters (the gates were actually quite far away, it was about a 20 minute walk). Only this time the queue was so ridiculous you couldn’t even see the end of the queue! It formed a weave through the entire departure hall like an extended version of the queues for Disneyland rides on weekends during school holidays. And I’m really not exaggerating. It was definitely going to take all night to queue. Just as I was going to tell Ian that our best option was probably to find a nearby hotel to stay for the night, Ian decided to call his bank. “What an unusual time to call a bank”, I thought?! As it turned out, Ian just remembered his bank has this concierge service which helps him make travel arrangements anytime anywhere. What an awesome service! I mean, there were some terminals around the airport where we could have gone online to find ourselves a hotel but there were ridiculously long queues for them as well. So thanks to Ian’s bank, we didn’t have to queue. When we got to the hotel, we managed to rebook and change our flight to Gatwick Airport on the Ryanair website without any extra charge.
We got back to London without problems the next day. On the Gatwick Express to Victoria Station, what we saw outside was a different London. Not the usual brown, the city was covered in thick heavy snow – quite a pretty and magical sight. We later found out the whole of London was at a standstill on Monday. No buses, trains nor tubes, schools and airports were closed, apparently one in five people did not make it to work. The weather forecast says there is a chance of more snow later on in the week, hopefully it doesn’t cause as much chaos.
December 7, 2008
When Ian told me about a “Gordon Ramsay’s Taste of Christmas” event happening at ExCel, my first thought was that it sounded like a direct competitor to the BBC Good Food Show and it was.
We went yesterday with Jodie and Steve and were pleasantly surprised at the entrance as we walked through a “Christmassy” hall with falling artificial snow, putting us right into the festive mood. We had booked tickets to see Gordon Ramsay’s first cooking show of the day. The demonstration hall was like an amphitheatre; it was quite packed out and we got seats in the second row The show started with an entertaining bloke who looked a lot like Peter Hellier (but it wasn’t obviously), followed by Mark Sargeant (Head Chef at Claridge’s) and finally Gordon Ramsay showed up energetically in the midst of the crowd. Gordon threw eight inflatable giant “Christmas puddings” at the audience and eight lucky people got to go on stage to sample a parsnip-celery-apple creamy soup, panfried duck breast with caramelised endive and brussel sprouts sprinkled with crushed chestnuts; and a pear and frangipane tart. I really liked the sound of the soup and wanted to try the recipe out. The show ended with some trivia cooking questions.
After the show, we walked around a bit and it became apparently that it really was a Gordon Ramsay show. Half of the restaurants available on the day were his restaurants. There was even a Ramsay-branded pub in the back and of course there were book signings for Gordon Ramsay cookbooks. Eventually the smell of the food available made us all hungry and we managed to get a table to start our sampling…
Clockwise from top left: Pork belly with spiced apple sauce puree; duck with pear chutney and toasted sourdough; red wine braised beef with oyster mushrooms and creamed mash; red snapper with couscous.
Clockwise from top left: Salmon ceviche with chilli, lime and coriander; cuttlefish wrapped in pancetta; hot chocolate fondant; sticky toffee pudding with caramel sauce.
In the afternoon, we went to Angela Harnett’s cooking demonstration where she made one of her family favourites, pumpkin ravioli. Afterwards, we wandered around the various stalls until we found a nice spot to rest our tired legs. Ian and Jodie went and bought some drinks for us to sip on while we waited for the next cooking demonstration with Jason Atherton where he cooked panfried quail.
All in all, watching Gordon Ramsay’s cooking show was great but I still prefer the variety of stalls from the Farmers’ market at the BBC Good Food Show.
November 16, 2008
Here’s some of the tasting dishes we tried on the day.
Clockwise from top left: Salt & pepper squid from Smiths of Smithfield, pan fried scallops from Theo Randall, chocolate fondant with green tea sauce from Sumosan, duck from Kai Mayfair.
Clockwise from top left: Tuna with truffle oil from Sumosan, phad thai from Blue Elephant, salmon broth from L'ortolan, ragú tortellini from Refettorio.
After our satisfying lunch, we went over towards the demonstration hall for our much anticipated Food Icon session. When the presentation started, my jaw dropped. I couldn’t believe we paid to watch a rerun of his BBC Christmas TV programme on a projector screen. Luckily it did improve when Heston began to give an insight to the journey he had with his restaurant The Fat Duck. He talked about how to make the ‘perfect dish’ and how it is relative to each person’s taste, that is largely affected by the flavours of our childhood. He also reckons that the easiest way to open the door to our memories is to bring out that nostalgia through his tasting menu. To demonstrate what he means, we were asked to open up the envelope which we were given at the beginning of the session (and I thought it was going to be a draw for something! lol ) and put a Eucharist-like wafer into our mouths… it brought me back to my childhood memory of playing with my little cousin and we were pretending to eat baby powder…and yes, baby powder tastes awful.
Another highlight of the session was finding that sound actually has an effect on our taste. Heston brought out some stats and figures from a study he did with a professor at Oxford University a few years ago. He found that eating an oyster while listening to pounding waves and squealing seagulls tasted stronger and saltier than when eating an oyster while listening to barnyard noises. This inspired his “Sound of the Sea” dish at his Fat Duck restaurant, which is made of seafood and edible seaweed served on a sand-like tapioca mixture with side-dish of iPod in a shell playing the sounds of breaking waves. While this all sounds very convincing, I am yet to be converted 
Clockwise from top left: Envelope containing a strip infused with frankincense and a thin wafer infused with baby smell, telling the beginnings of Fat Duck, making scrambled eggs ice cream, watching his BBC Christmas show.
Even though the show was smaller than last year, we were happy we got to see the culinary alchemist himself so it was definitely worth the trek to West London
August 12, 2008
On Thursday 7th August 2008, we caught a late flight from Heathrow airport. Unlike our other weekend trips, this time we traveled mid-week on a Thursday. This was quite rare for us, considering Ian never really likes taking time off work. The main purpose for this trip was really for a special occasion that was to take place on Friday 8th August 2008. No…we didn’t go to the Beijing Olympic Games…my friend Steph was getting married in , Sweden!
The wedding was absolutely amazing! I’ve never been to a Swedish wedding before so it was quite an experience Everything went really well and I really hope the Steph and Karl had a memorable day! XX
After the wedding, Ian and I decided to see a bit of Stockholm since we were in Sweden. Stockholm is built on islands. This capital city is made up of 14 islands, all connected by around 50 bridges. It is well known for its beauty, waterways, parks and buildings. We checked into our hotel and left our bags before heading out for a better look.
First stop, Riddarholmen Island where the 14th century Riddarholmen church and a few old administrative buildings reside. Next, we made our way towards the Stockholm Royal Palace, Helgeandsholmen and the Royal Opera House. After that, we meandered our way around the narrow cobbled streets in Gamla Stan until we got ourselves cold and tired before deciding to try out this quaint hot chocolate shop in Stortorget.
We met up with our friends Andrea & Gord, who were also at the wedding, and had a nice meal at a restaurant called Nalen with them. After dinner, we went around Kulturhuset and took some night shots of the city before heading back to the hotel. We played “fake” poker until wee hours in the morning Wish I had enough energy and stamina to stay up all night though, especially since I won’t see A & G for another while. Miss you guys already!
July 8, 2008
To get tickets to watch the Championships at Wimbledon, one typically has 2 options: enter the public ballot or queue at the gates on the day (early in the morning – they even allowed those camping out the night before to pitch tents). It’s a little known fact that you can also buy tickets online from Tickemaster the night before. The only issue with the tickets you get this way is that there are VERY few made available and they are waaaaaaaaaaaaaay up the back. We didn’t mind of course as we’d never been to Wimbledon and have always wanted to go.
So each night during the Championships, we would both log into Ticketmaster and sit there hitting the refresh button in our Web Browsers. The reason for this was because the tickets became available at 8:30pm. If you attempt to buy tickets before, you’re met with the “tickets aren’t available yet” message. Once it opens however, you need to be VERY quick and VERY lucky. They’re pretty much gone within a minute and if you don’t get it on the first attempt, you should just give up.
We were lucky enough to score ourselves Centre Court tickets for the middle Saturday (28th June) to watch the following 3rd round matches:
That’s right, we got to watch the eventual champion, Rafa Nadal! Needless to say, we were excited.
We took the train there and walked from Wimbledon station, which was full of people heading to the tennis. We could have hopped onto a bus to get to the courts, but decided to take a walk due to the queues. It wasn’t too bad actually and took around 20 minutes. Perhaps it was closer to 30 minutes, but Wimbledon is a really nice area so we didn’t notice (even though most of the walk was uphill). Our excitement probably made the walk much more pleasant as well.
The place was buzzing with activity and we took our time walking around the various outside courts to catch some of the action (including some of the junior matches). After all, we had about 45 minutes before the matches were due to start on Centre Court.
We definitely got our money’s worth, with Nadal’s match finishing around 9pm. It was a fun day, the weather was great (and warm) and we got to experience an iconic, historical event that is on the “to-do” list of many people. Here’s a few pictures from the day (click on each for a larger version).
At the top of the hill where people sit to watch the big screen (affectionately known as “Henman Hill”).
They Royal Box, which on the day included luminaries such as Martina Navratilova, Billie Jean King, Tim Henman, Todd Woodbridge, Sachin Tendulkar, a bunch of politicians, actors, and a few British Olympians.
Jelena Jankovic in action.
Andy Murray and Tommy Haas.
Rafa Nadal in action.
Rafa performing his famous “undoing of the wedgie” move.
And if anyone’s interested, Jankovic, Murray and Nadal were the winners of their respective matches.
