Out And About | A Zestful Quest

I’ve been to Broadway Market with M. and W. a cute buzzing little farmer market in Hackney with a range of organic products and produce from soap to cheese to vegetables to cakes and crafts, fish, pasta and fresh baked wholegrain bread chock-full of seeds. It was busy when we got there but in a good way. I bought some really nice award winning mature Cheshire cheese some smoked cheese, coriander/garlic olives and a fresh chorizo sausage.

It was a beautiful day, the weather was amazing so we had lunch at the park. M. and W. gave me a gorgeous Royal Albert tea set, ‘Elfin’ from the 1950’s. Pastel green inside, a floral pattern on the outside and of course guilded rims, much nicer than the Noritake set. It’s original English which is what I initially wanted, it’s a really special gift! When I got home I baked a rosemary and garlic focaccia and had a delicious dinner with two different cheeses, chorizo and olives.

It was such a nice relaxing day!

——————————

Broadway Market is a thriving and growing hub of community life, featuring fabulous restaurants, arts and crafts and local business. Traders and residents for over 15 years have fought to build this community and revive its market, and promote café culture, specialist shopping and local business growth. The new market will be opening from 8am till 6pm with 40 stalls offering a varied selection of goods including [read more –>]:

* Organic rare breed pork/veal/venison

* Sea food and fresh fish

* Handmade cheese butter and butter milk

* Organic breads/cakes and pastries

* Health products

* USA street clothes

* Vintage clothing 50/60/70

* Along with a number of snack foods and health drinks

——————————

1950’s ‘Elfin’, such a sweet and generous gift!

Fresh organic [apple] juices

Yummie cakes, bread and pastries

Healthy snacks on the right

I’d almost forgotten what it feels like to wake up by the sound of birds in the morning or to get your shoes all dirty with thick greasy mud or peat, having to walk across a bog trying to stay dry [mission impossible] or cycle to the top of a steep hill on a mountain bike… I was in New Forest, National Park near Southampton, over the weekend to visit friends. I went sailing with them in Croatia in 2006 facing some hectic gales and hail and thunderstorms at the time.

The trip to the south was crap since the M25 was the usual Saturday annoying kind of M25 where you sit in solid traffic for hours moving 50 mph -if you’re lucky- because there’s some serious rubbernecking going on literally over ‘nothing’. Because of this there was a two hour delay which was reduced to one hour at arrival due to the exceeding of speed limits the moment the rubbernecking zone was finally passed *sssh*.

Later that day I went to Lymington with M. to visit the local market and the pet shop. Lymington is a nice little place, slightly touristic but not in an annoying way. On our way back to the car, we sat down on the quay for a while to relax and enjoy a Cornish pasty and the view of the sea, the boats and the old! train going across the water. In the evening we went out for a pint and a curry at the local pub and the Indian restaurant in Ashurst.

Sunday we cycled most of the day through the New Forest, the weather was amazing: for two days it has been sunny and warm: perfect to go for a bike ride, speed down a hill, watch the wild horses or sit near a babbling stream for half an hour to enjoy a picnic while basking in the sun. I had some quiet time sitting next to a stream listening to the birds and the sound of the water. I came back with a ‘Katjang’ tan and totally relaxed: holding on to this while I can…

Coz today, it’s pissing with a strong wind and grey sky that’s about to burst with thunder any moment now.