Monday 30 May 2011

Operation Hungry Hippo!

And there was me thinking that the Row Zambezi madness would not start until we left for Zambia at the end of July.  How wrong I was!
Operation Hungry Hippo was to be a team building, survival training weekend, and it certainly turned out to be just that.  Despite the fact that we were in the most beautiful part of West Sussex, there was no time for relaxing and enjoying the scenery.
The day started with a 'small' run to the camp area, followed obviously by a few exercises and stretches, before setting up camp and being shown the 'facilities' (and very plush they were too!!).
Things we may find useful when out in Zambia included the importance of team work, how to build a good camp, fire-lighting and general first aid.  I certainly learnt a few new things, for instance, how easy it is to start a fire with a Pringle!  Or a mobile phone!
On top of that there was the more physical stuff, like running up and down hills carrying heavy logs, wading across a river to fetch the previously mentioned log (now I know how a dog feels!), and obviously lots of press-ups for any reason that our PT guy could think of.
The bit I was not so keen on was how to skin and joint a rabbit - the main reason I turned vegetarian was when my father fed me a rabbit I had previously cuddled each day (not realising the concept of a small holding being that you eat everything you produce!).  I watched with interest whilst everybody else got very hands-on.  I did manage to add a little finesse to the day by finding fresh water mint for a nice cup of mint tea after our meal!
It was interesting to see what they cooked for us (disappointing too that they didn't make us do it, as I was dying to get cooking over an open fire).  I am hoping to be a little more adventurous once out in Zambia - we have a long, hard trip ahead of us, and I think moral will need to be kept high with as much good food as we can muster.

Tuesday 24 May 2011

Chocolate Heaven

So, having worked liked a demon for two weeks to cycle the length of the country and get myself toned, slimmer and fitter, I then return to a week of forced chocolate intake!  OK, so maybe it wasn't forced exactly, but some people just have no willpower where chocolate is concerned, and when it's some of the best chocolate money can buy my willpower definitely goes out of the window!
The first chocolate obstacle was a day of photography for the front cover of Observer Food Monthly magazine.  The feature we were to show covered small food producers and included The London Honey Company and Duffy's chocolate - my sweet tooth went into overdrive!  What a fun day, 'playing' with such great ingredients - be sure not the miss the mag when it comes out next month.
Last night I organised for a few friends to join me in a chocolate tasting at the very innovative Artisan du Chocolat in west London - what an experience.  If you want to be cured of eating chocolate for a while this is the event to attend - every single one of us reached a point of being unable to taste more chocolate, despite the amazing morsels being offered!  Not only did we learn about the varieties of cocoa, chocolate flavours and how Artisan make their chocolates (they conche and refine their own beans), we were also treated to cocktails (bellinis, made with pulp of the cocoa pods, and gin fizz made with matcha white chocolate  - these recipes can be found on their website).  If that wasn't enough, we were given a 'break' from chocolate eating, which involved us eating a chocolate fondant with salted caramel ice-cream!
I think it may be a while before I reach for the delicious chocolate covered stem ginger I bought just before we left!

Tuesday 17 May 2011

LEJOG

Wow, what an adventure, I can't believe we've made it back in one piece!  967 miles of peddling, with only a couple of wrong turns and one puncture - how lucky were we.
But a bit of advice for those intending to attempt this madness - the prevailing winds from Cornwall to Scotland did not exist.....at all!  We pretty much had a head wind for 75% of the trip.  And to be honest, finishing in John O Groats is not that great - there is nothing there, not even a pub within free-wheeling distance.  So my advice would be start at the top and cycle down - that way you will also avoid all the obvious comments of 'why are you doing it uphill?' - very annoying!
As for food along the way - for the first couple of days we ate constantly.  I think our bodies went into shock with all the exercise and we craved everything.  Luckily that started to wear off after around 4-5 days and we settled into a more sensible eating plan - good breakfasts (with eggs for much needed protein), then snacking every hour before stopping for a good lunch.  And we did find some great places too.  One that has to be mentioned is The Wellington, an award winning pub in the village of Wellington in the beautiful Herefordshire countryside - well worth a diversion.
Our snacks consisted of Mule Bars, Trek Bars and other similar healthy bars, but we soon got pretty bored with those every hour, and on reaching Scotland switched to wonderfully sweet Scottish tablet and shortbread!
Once our support vehicle joined us in Oswestry things became much easier on the catering front and with the catering being done by our support man Dave, we could control much more what we ate (i.e. we could cut down on chips!).  We were hoping to try a few regional foods along the way, but did struggle to find them - we passed many oyster beds along the Scottish Lochs, but didn't spot a restaurant along the route where we could sample them.  Cullen Skink soup at the Kilmartin Hotel was creamy and delicious, but perhaps not the most sensible choice when having to cycle another 30 miles over steep hills into Oban directly after eating it!
My favourite part of the whole trip has to be the stunning Isle of Arran, which is lucky really, as the sea conditions were so bad we got stuck on it for longer than anticipated!
I would definitely recommend the trip to anybody who wants to really see our great country - there is no better way.