We’re in Poland with some friends from our Cambridgeshire village, staying at their flat near Katowice, which sounds very middle class. Other folk flew, missing out on tram/hat-Gate in Krakow, and a great border town in Gorlitz. Timing it just right, or wrong, we missed their Christmas markets by a day, but the old town… Continue reading GORLITZ
LEIPZIG – TOP ARCHITECTURE, HIDDEN BOOZERS
Once past Braunschweig the German roads became a bit bumpier, and service stations/McDonalds a lot less frequent. Combined with a loss of internet, this produced the sort of search for fuel fun that you really don’t want in freezing fog. Mrs RM and I had always wanted to visit Leipzig. A city with a league-topping… Continue reading LEIPZIG – TOP ARCHITECTURE, HIDDEN BOOZERS
THE BRAUNSCHWEIG QUESTION
Sunday mornings in rural Germany are noticeably quieter than in similar shopping-fuelled towns in England, so we had a quick getaway from Osnabruck. I wish German had an alternative coffee option to McDonalds. Every alternate service station on the main road to Poland brings a giant M that would imperil a lowflying drone. That’s the… Continue reading THE BRAUNSCHWEIG QUESTION
CRAFT BEER & CHRISTMAS CHEER IN OSNABRUCK
Mrs RM wanted to stay somewhere new and German on her birthday as we headed down to Poland. I briefly entertained the idea of Monchengladbach, but a quick sighter on the Duisburg-Dortmund train last year suggested this may indeed be the Deutschland Middlesbrough. Without micropubs (or parmos). Osnabruck has the advantage of a budget B&B Hotel, a… Continue reading CRAFT BEER & CHRISTMAS CHEER IN OSNABRUCK
POLSKI PODROZ DAY 1 – HOOK OF HOLLAND
Day 1 actually started close to Hi-de-Hi Essex, but for reasons that will become obvious I’m saving that report for later. The Stena overnight crossing from Harwich to Hook of Holland is a family favourite. A pleasant drive down the A12 (compared to M11 chaos), easy check-in, spacious cabins, and a smooth 8 hour crossing. I… Continue reading POLSKI PODROZ DAY 1 – HOOK OF HOLLAND
MARKET HARBOROUGH GETS A £2.80 PINT
Market Harborough has a similar population to Dukinfield, but I’m much more comfortable rattling off stuff about this anonymous Leicestershire dormitory town; A posh version of Melton Mowbray Superb award-winning indoor market A few ancient buildings ruined by busy traffic Surrounded by canals (2 adjacent pubs in Foxton) The first place I enjoyed Wetherspoon’s breakfast… Continue reading MARKET HARBOROUGH GETS A £2.80 PINT
MRS RM’S SIGNIFICANT DAY
Tomorrow is a significant day for Mrs RM. This is what she’ll be tucking into tonight on the ferry to the Hook of Holland. For the benefit of readers, the one on the left is craft. The one on the right is an aged 10% beer from Pitfield, acquired from the brewer. That’s mine (joking).… Continue reading MRS RM’S SIGNIFICANT DAY
TWO TRAD PUBS IN TAMESIDE
Micropubs and craft beer bars haven’t infiltrated “Tameside” yet, but no doubt they will. I’ve no idea if the folk of Ashton and Mossley feel any particular affiliation with “Tameside” akin to, say, a “Potteries”or a “Cambridge Boglands”. In 1995 the little CAMRA guide to the nine towns seemed to capture an area distinct from smart Manchester, with… Continue reading TWO TRAD PUBS IN TAMESIDE
LINCOLN’S UPHILL PATH TO CRAFT
Beer talk bores me, but I have been amused by the reaction to Richard Coldwell’s excellent series of posts on his Craft Beer box. Mrs RM clearly has impeccable judgement anyway, but her perception of “craft” as stuff not on hand-pump, often chilled and normally strong is pretty much mine. One of these days she’ll… Continue reading LINCOLN’S UPHILL PATH TO CRAFT
ANCIENT & MODERN IN NEWARK
We spent Monday night in Newark in our campervan. “This is life, this is living”, as Allo Darlin’ once sang. I recently suggested that craft was never going to make it as far along the Trent as Newark and Lincoln, never mind Grimsby and Skegness. I was wrong. This is the sight that greets you… Continue reading ANCIENT & MODERN IN NEWARK
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