Monday 26 November 2007

Day 160 - Hole In One ... nearly!

gemima the raccoon looks for food

gemima the raccoon looks out for the odd crocodile
gemima the raccoon



ok - my last full day in miami and i am still "at home" ...

the hotel has a "hole-in-one" instructional program that it runs with the local golf course which i filmed the other day for the show. today, clay (chef from azul), ned (from crandon golf course) and myself played a full 18-holes at crandon - which is on key biscayne.

the course is tough - lots of water - sea & fresh ... alligators, crocodiles, iguanas, raccoons and mosquitos the size of elephants. only the last two created any stress - gemima the hungry raccoon followed us about the full 18 holes hoping for food! she was very sweet and very non-confrontational!

hole-in-one - well - hole 13 - over the water - 7-iron ... stopped 4 centrimetres past the hole after bouncing off the pin! i was in agony ... but hey - another day! my shot of a lifetime ... so the hole-in-one package works - almost!!!

what an afternoon though!

so back at the hotel, i smoked cigars on balcony, drank fine champagne and smiled all evening!

i have to leave miami tomorrow -- and the lovely mandarin -- but i will be back ...

4 centimetres - so close but yet so far ....!

Song of The Day: You Missed Again (Genesis)

Weather: ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ





Day 159 - Contemplation

the team
my favourite photo

so - i am here at the mandarin oriental, miami. the team have flown home and i have a couple of days to catch up with friends and do a couple of things for next year's series!

what a year!

n Luxury hotels/resorts filmed: 25 – total “stars” – 125
n Number of suites: 25
n Luxury spas filmed: 27
n Number of General Managers interviewed: 25
n Number of days on the road: 93
n Number of days lost filming due to weather: 0
n Average hours of sleep per night: 6 hours 5 minutes
n Total miles travelled by air: 110,000
n Number of scheduled flights: 17
n Flights by helicopter/non-scheduled: 10
n Number of club sandwiches consumed: 24
n Number of pizzas consumed: 24
n Number of spa treatments: 25
n Number of cigars smoked: 55
n Number of business cards distributed: 138
n Number of hangovers: 0
n Most number of bows in one 3 minute conversation in Tokyo: 16
n Total number of rounds of golf: 0
n Total golf holes played: 11
n Number of visits to a gym: 0
n Number of visits to a swimming pool: 0
n Most loved view: Montage at Laguna Beach
n Most amazing moment: Par on the 18th at St Andrews Old Course
n Most loved features: anything with animals
n Most frightening moments: aerobatics - London, cassowary – Miami
n Number of cooking features: 20
n Number of Michelin stars: 36
n Most expensive omelette: $100 – Beverly Wilshire, Los Angeles
n Most expensive risotto: $175 – The Setai, Miami
n Most expensive haircut: $200 – Leah Journo, LA
n Most unusual hotel: The Club ... for dogs in LA
n Number manicure/pedicures: 17
n Fastest speed in a car: 180 mph – California (on a race-track!)
n Number of “this is amazing”: infinite!

the show starts airing on The Travel Channel from week 1 of January 2008 -

Inside Luxury Travel with Varun Sharma

Premieres on Tuesday, January 8th @ 2030 GMT/CET

2030 GMT/CET Travel Channel Europe & UK

08/01/2008 Inside Luxury Travel - Monaco 1
15/01/2008 Inside Luxury Travel – Monaco 2
22/01/2008 Inside Luxury Travel - London 1
29/01/2008 Inside Luxury Travel - London 2
05/02/2008 Inside Luxury Travel - Hong Kong 1
12/02/2008 Inside Luxury Travel - Hong Kong 2
19/02/2008 Inside Luxury Travel - Tokyo 1
26/02/2008 Inside Luxury Travel - Tokyo 2
04/03/2008 Inside Luxury Travel - Los Angeles 1
11/03/2008 Inside Luxury Travel - Los Angeles 2
18/03/2008 Inside Luxury Travel - Miami 1
25/03/2008 Inside Luxury Travel - Miami 2
01/04/2008 Inside Luxury Travel - LOOK BACK SHOW - from the Four Seasons, Hampshire

Of course, HUGE thank you's to everyone .. but Tim & Alex ... the best

BACK ON THE ROAD IN 2008 !!!!!!

Album of Series: Ghosts

Weather: Four Seasons!

Sunday 25 November 2007

Day 158 - Mixed Emotions

No photos today as I lost my camera - which has now turned up at a golf course on Key Biscayne!

Last night we filmed a slice of Miami nightlife ...

We met with Miami socialite Carol Bell - a very sweet lady indeed. First we had dinner at a fabulous Indian restaurant on Ocean Drive called Ishq run by the delightful Kavita & Sham. The food was simply delicious ... and reminded me of home.

We then went on to SET - a groovy nightclub on Washington Ave ... an achingly trendy place with fabulous looking people ... definitely a "seen" (sic) ....

TODAY

We filmed at The Victor on South Beach. Built in 1937 as a hotel - it was reopened in Feb 2005 - has 91 rooms & suites ... and was designed by Jacques Garcia (Hotel Costes & Old Course Hotel, St Andrews) ... is very sexy ....!

We were looked after admirably by Chesa - The Vibe Manager ( I won't get into this now!) ... who - among other things - suggested the excellent Blackberry Hand Massage -- for "addicts" ... Edgar pounded my poor hands!

THEN by 1 p.m. ... it was all over. We celebrated by having lunch at The Setai - courtesy of Hans - the GM - with a glass of champagne! I think we all were quite emotional - happy & sad ...

BISH, BOSH, BASH ... only we know what that means and who each one is!!

Song of the Day: Hot! Hot! Hot! (The Cure)

Weather: Windy & Sunny

Saturday 24 November 2007

Day 157 - And so it goes & so it goes ...

inner sanctum at the casa


so - 2 days left ... and then ... it's over for this year ... yay? sniff? hmmm....

another fabulous day here though.

up early and out with festus (driver) and tanya (lurvely pr) and head to the nearby dock for the "south beach experience". we jump onto a boat/yacht thing and motor through the waterways to south beach. the mandarin has a little area on the beach for its guests - in front of the casa casurina ... a members club.

the casa was built in 1930 - basing the house's design on that of christopher columbus' son - deigo - there is even a brick that dates back to 1510. in 1992, designer gianni versace bought it and spent millions turning it into his miami pad. he was killed on the steps of the casa in 1997. it was bought by a chap & his wife in 2000 and has turned it into a 10 bedroom hotel/club.

you can't walk into this place though ... and its design is garish, bright ... & VERY versace ...totally amazing ...

back to the hotel for a rest before we headed out to crandon for the "hole in one" experience. the club/hotel pro alex took my golf game apart (very easy!) and assembled it again! the course looks amazing - it's on key biscayne ... there are crocodiles and mosquitos the size of houses on it! i joke not!

off to film some miami nightlife ....

Song of the Day: I Hear the Secrets that You Keep (The Romantics)

Weather: Wierd

Friday 23 November 2007

Day 156 - Midnight at The Oasis

i'm a fan ...of the fan
alex is distracted
rest & relaxation

in every city i have a "home" - somewhere where i feel i can curl up and sleep ... and feel entirely comfortable. the mandarin oriental miami is such a place ...

we left the fabulous turnberry quite early and arrived here just off brickell avenue in time for a very early breakfast and even earlier spa treatment - courtesy of gladys in the mandarin spa which is simply terrific. i had the kundalini - which uses semi-precious stones to chill you out!

then we filmed the whole hotel ... azul (restaurant), cafe sambal (trendy lunch place), public areas, pool, private beach ... yes - the ONLY private beach in the US ... which was man-made on the island where the hotel sits ... its called oasis and on friday there's "barefoot" - a huge party! i am off there later ...

we have a great driver with us here - festus from nigeria and a wonderful pr - tanya - who are looking after us.

i have just interviewed the general manager jorge gonzales -- who has been here 8 years ... and every time i come back, it still feels fresh!

long day tomorrow - last full day of filming!!!! whoo-hoo!!!!

Song of the Day: Batdance (Prince)

Weather: Lazy, Hazy, Maisy

Thursday 22 November 2007

Day 155 - Thanksgiving

over the waterfall
steve murphy surveys the waterway
6-iron to the green - BUT do i get there without getting wet?

thanksgiving ... what is it?

well, the initial "Thanksgiving" feast, held in 1621, was really a traditional English harvest celebration. The Pilgrims shared it with the Native Americans because they had taught the colonists to plants crops and hunt wild game.

Without the Native Americans, the Pilgrims may not have survived the harsh winter and been able to celebrate their first harvest of plentiful crops in the New World. The colonists' first harvest feast lasted for three days. Food was served all at once, instead of in courses, so people ate whatever they pleased in the order that they desired.

.The more important members at the feast were given the best pieces of meat, while the rest of the diners ate whatever was closest to them. Since the Pilgrims didn't use forks or plates, they ate their meal straight off the table with spoons, knives or their fingers. They used large napkins to wipe their hands and also wrapped it around food when it was too hot to hold.

The history of Thanksgiving demonstrates that feasts like the one at Plymouth were held throughout the colonies after fall harvests. However, all thirteen colonies did not celebrate Thanksgiving at the same time.

In 1789, George Washington became the first president to declare Thanksgiving a holiday. By the mid-1800s, many states observed the Thanksgiving holiday. Meanwhile, the poet and editor, Sarah J. Hale, had begun lobbying for a national Thanksgiving holiday. During the Civil War President Abraham Lincoln looking for ways to unite the nation, discussed the subject with Hale. In 1863 he gave his Thanksgiving Proclamation declaring the last Thursday in November a day of Thanksgiving.

In 1939, 1940, and 1941 Franklin D. Roosevelt, seeking to lengthen the Christmas shopping season, proclaimed Thanksgiving the third Thursday in November. Controversy ensued, and Congress passed a joint resolution in 1941 decreeing that Thanksgiving should fall on the fourth Thursday of November, where it remains. What is Thanksgiving today? At its heart, it's a holiday where family and friends congregate to catch up, reminisce, tell jokes, share scrumptious food and generally give thanks for all the good things in life-exactly what they did at the very first Thanksgiving.

so there we are!

tim & alex filmed round miami - picking up shots ... i stayed here at the isle and worked all morning BUT played golf in the afternoon - 18 holes - with only caddie steve murphy to keep me company!

last week jack nicholson played here ...

i didn't do too badly! but afterwards "needed" a golf massage in the willow stream spa to take away the pain! haha!

it was excellent ...

leaving here early tomorrow ... sadness .... i love it here.

AND YES - i hit the green in 1

Song of the Day: Sign your Name (terence trent d'arby)

Weather: lovely

Wednesday 21 November 2007

Day 154 - Thanksgiving Eve

the hole of doom ... with a waterfall too!

this is the view from my suite - the island green of the 18th at turnberry isle. i am playing this tomorrow for real! can't wait!

a quiet day ... staying at the fairmont turnberry. there are 392 rooms including 36 suites.

we spent the day filming everything from the excellent general manager darrell schaeffer ... in the presidential suite to my suite and the flamingos and the beach and ... and ... . i once stayed there for 4 nights - and had sooooo much fun!

in 1970, turnberry had 2 courses and a small hotel ... now its huge! and lovely!

its 15 minutes from south beach and is a wee oasis on the mainland.

we then did a wee cooking feature with the exec chef hubert des marais ... using only local ingredients! yummy!

ended up at the cascata grille for dinner. only a few - but tough - days to come.

Song of the Day: Take it Easy (Eagles)

Weather: SCORCHING

Tuesday 20 November 2007

Day 153 - National Berry Day

fore better than botox
vrooooom
pimp? moi? nahhh!
woke up to bright sunshine. from my suite, i can see the 18th green of turnberry isle ... its a wee island green ...

meet up with hiro - the resort golf pro - to play the 18th - as its the signature hole. i do get over the water onto the green but tim misses the shot and i have to try & try again ... with limited success! oops!

the fairmont turnberry isle in 1970 was a 2 golf course, small hotel resort ... it was then a rafael hotel, then mandarin oriental and after a 100 million $ + refurb, it opened as a fairmont last december .... has 392 rooms inc 36 suites ... one of which i am staying in. i have stayed here before and had one of the funniest weekends of my life!

legend has it that macca proposed to mucca here (still known as mr & mrs mccartney ... for now) and she chucked the ring out of the window. the staff went on a hunt to find it ... and they did ... and were rewarded handsomely.

at 12 i headed into the excellent willow spa ... where i had a "better than botox" facial ... ie a face treatment with no injection. alex says that for a second i looked around 17! whoohoo!

we then headed down to bal harbour to meet with antonio from a company called "the advantaged" - basically one of the best yacht/boat charter companies in miami. we basically "played" in a packet boat - which included the MOST frightening but fun speedboat journey of my life - 80 mph on the water with 8 foot waves ... i thought at one stage that "this was it" .. thankfully not! i did get to drive it too - THAT was fun!

from there it was off to meet the excellent madeleine - from c madeleine's - possibly the best vintage couture store on earth! she has millions of pieces ... for both sexes - from all the top designers ... and more. she is a real character ... !

the likes of p.diddy (puff daddy, sean coombs - whatever his name is!) & chloe sevigny shop here - the clothes and accessories are superb! i am now the proud owner of an original 1985 "goonies" t-shirt!!! chunky!

why is it berry day? have just eaten a punnet of blackberries, am drinking berry juice and i am at turn-berry! haaaaa!

Song of the Day: Hourglass (Squeeze)

Weather: lurvely!

Monday 19 November 2007

Day 152 - Living It Up at The Ritz

a morning tennis workout
pedicure on camera
someone is tickling my feet

Its all about Ritz-Carlton Key Biscayne today...

KB is 5/10 minutes from Downtown and 20 minutes from South Beach and is an island "tropical oasis" ... with a village and the RC resort. The RCKB has 602 rooms inc 38 suites ... my suite 745 - 1 bedroom overlooks the Ocean ... its not snazzy .... just functional and homely.

First up, tennis down at the club that has 11 courts ... with tennis pro Mark who really helped my back-hand which has been languishing in the depths for a while.

Next up an interview with Marco Selva the GM on the 9th floor Club Lounge ... entertaining ... we marvelled at the fact that the resort was full over the weekend but didn't seem that way ... it is 12 acres with beach though ... so everyone could have been sitting in the sun while i was working!

Two drinkie features: Rum - the resort has 53 rums in the RUMBAR - i sampled the $750 one ... and an excellent tequila interview with the only tequila sommelier in the USA! I sampled a $72 a shot tequila... not a lime or salt in sight!

Finally a trip to the spa where lovely Giocanda gave me an excellent and colourful pedicure ... I have happy feet!

A great day ... a great resort!

We've moved on .... up to Aventura ... to Turnberry....I hope the sun shines!

Song of the Day: Call Me (Blondie)

Weather: Rain or Shine (is that Five Star??)

Sunday 18 November 2007

Day 151 - Photos for Friends

for timmy
for moo
for laura

the weather was superb today which was just as well, as we were headed over the bridge and back onto south beach to discover "art deco".

we met with george neary - from the tourist board - who knows everything to do with art deco & indeed miami. we met at the news cafe on 8th & ocean drive where gianni versace had his last meal (he lived next door at casa casuarina) ...

we then ventured up & down collins & ocean taking in the art deco buildings .. some of them totally amazing. it was enjoyable ...

there's a fab beach where pretty girls play beach volleyball. i watched only for a minute ... or so ... (!)

we then headed to the ritz-carlton south beach to meet with malcolm - the tanning butler! yes - he wanders around applying and advising on tanning creams etc! he's a character!

then back to key biscayne for resort filming

early start tomorrow

Song of The Day: Crying (Roy Orbison)

Weather: Superb

Saturday 17 November 2007

Day 150 - Waaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!

ready
steady
waaaaaaahhhhhhhh
i'm alive!

DAY 150??!! where has the year gone???????!!!!!!!

action packed day..

at first light we headed up to homestead, an hour from miami and met up with the guys from maimi skydive.

my first skydive was at lake taupo in new zealand ... i promised then that i would never do one again ... and here i am ... never say never obviously.

greg frank, my instructor, has jumped 12,500 times out of plane ... erm ... is that sane?

ANYWAY - yes, 13,500 ft, jump, waaaaaahhhhh, landed ... no bump .... NEVER again ...

after a brief rest and large glass of whisky, we headed to azul - the award-winning restaurant at the mandarin oriental, miami. i love this hotel.

last time i stayed here, i cooked with the adorable chef michelle bernstein ... but that was 3 years ago and now there's chef clay conley - who plays golf - so therefore he IS great!

so - we cooked two fish dishes, one with jack (fish) - a shashimi - and one with tuna - a curry ... both delicious and both supported by fabulous wines. more on the mandarin miami later in the week, when i am there...

phew - after this, we drove up to fort lauderdale to do something "different" ... a luxury yacht, luxury treaure hunt where the prize was a $50,000 diamond necklace. it's not the sort of thing we do but it worked quite well and tim & alex assure me that it will look great! so!

Song of the Day: Batdance (Prince)

Weather: Sunny but chilly

Friday 16 November 2007

Day 149 - The Day I Nearly Exploded Through Over-Eating

yummy yummy tasty tasty
cigar and mojito
mr blue sky & mrs white beach

checked out of the setai early. while the sun is shining, its very cold - 6 degrees ... am i in miami or stockholm?

first up, a visit to the sunny isles - 20 minutes up collins avenue - the home of aqualina. the building is IMPOSING! it's huge - i has nearly 200 private apartments and a hotel - with 97 rooms & suites - squeezed in the middle ...

filmed.

ended up in il mulino new york - the miami arm of the big apple's favourite italian restaurant. the chef is the VERY excellent ... michele mazza. he prepared for me the GREATEST, MOST FABULOUS spaghetti carbonara i have have ever, ever, ever had. i had to eat two full plates of the stuff because it was so delicious. alex and tim were appalled.

the hotel looks out over the atlantic - has white sandy beaches ... and it's just perfect! i am sad i am not staying there ... BUT one day ... maybe very soon ... i will be there. the gm and pr are lovely and the whole place has a feel of pleasant affluence ...

i will NEVER forget that meal though...

then a 30-minute drive to the ritz-carlton key biscayne ... i have not stayed in a r-c for work in a while ... a fab start though when the adorable pr rachel pinzur met us with strawberry cocktails and my suite had a goodie-basket filled with golf stuff AND a wee bag of stuff for the moo.

the next few days are setting themselves up nicely ... i see fun, food and flying in my crystal ball!

Song of The Day: Saved by a Woman (Ray Lamontaigne)

Weather: Confusing

Thursday 15 November 2007

Day 148 - Up, up & awayyyyyyy!

adam the instructor
tim noses in the briefing
there's me
sunset over dowtown

early start as we head down to one of my favourite places on earth ... fisher island.

coming off the highway, you pop onto a ferry and sail for 5 minutes to this island paradise ... that is home to the rich & famous of miami and is home to the hotel & resort.

was originally home to karl fisher (developer of south beach) who swapped it for a mega-yacht with the vanderbilt family. the vanderbilt familt used it as a winter home until it was sold to the present owners who have built luxury homes there ...

the old family house is now the base for the 45 all suite hotel ... run by very dear old friend heiko dobrikow ... we laughed, chatted and sadly did NOT play golf, as the course is re-opening on december 15th ...

i have had so much fun on fisher ... i can't wait to go back!

then we headed out to opa-locka airport - 30 minutes from the setai. here i had a real flying lesson with a company called cirrus that makes the best selling single propeller plane in the us. i don't want to give much away ... as the show will have a large feature. all i will say is that along with my pilot - adam hahn & other pilot carroll leboeuf - we had a FABULOUS time ... was it safe? of yes - its the only plane that has a parachute on it if you get into trouble ... parachutes ...hmmmm....

last night at the magnificent setai ...

Song of the Day: Look of Love (ABC)

Weather: hot


Wednesday 14 November 2007

Day 147 - I Spoke to The Animals ... REALLY

the rainbow's end
baby kangas
wary of the cassowary
a pea for peanut
peas for pumpkin & peanut

it's not often that i get back to my suite and drink a large glass of champagne BUT today has been so excellent that i just had to! my emotions have been taken to extremes as i will now explain ....

first thing, i headed to jungle island - 15 minutes drive from the setai ...

here i met up with pr - brigitte who in turn introduced me to the "vip" tour guide ryan jacobs ..

jungle island is a "jungle in a concrete jungle" that has some amazing animals including a liger (tiger/lion mix) and a bengal tiger (HUGE) ...

first up, in the enclosure with some hungry baby red kangaroos ... they nibbled at me ... in a lovely way. could things get better ... YES!

next, the cassowary - one of the most dangerous animals on the planet. the cassowary has killed 9 zoo-keepers in 20 years ... its related to the veloceraptor (dinosaur) ... and even though its a flightless bird ... it has serious issues with anger and death. it is a killing machine ... and comes from north australia and indonesia. you are NOT allowed to keep these birds as they kill ... i cannot stress how dangerous these birds are ... anyway, i was 10 cms from one of these birds as she sniffed and eye-balled me! i was terrified! totally terrified ... absolutely terrified ... but could things get better .... OH YES!

to end the visit, i met up with two baby orangutans ... peanut and pumpkin ... babies bred in captivity ... who are just adorable. i even got a kiss from one of these lovely gentle babies ...
i love animals and the morning was just the most perfect ... ever ... i am still totally mentally exhausted by the visit ... awesome ... i love my jobs for days like this ...

in the afternoon, it was work hat on as we headed back to collins and the ritz-carlton south beach. opened in 2003 - it has 375 rooms inc 41 suites. it was built in 1953 under architect morris lapidus - and was THEN called hotel dilido - its now one of the hottest properties on south beach.

we got through the afternoon being looked after by the lovely "south beach" jennifer and stunning "regional director" michelle - both the best prs r-c has ... great hotel ... with the world's first (& only?) tanning concierge ....

ok - i am too tired to write more!!! watch the show!!!

Song of the Day: Love Plus One (Haircut 100)

Weather: Mixed

Tuesday 13 November 2007

Day 146 - Here Comes The Summer Sun ...

sunshine breaking over the
erm...setai?
the tower
cheerz
the aliens have landed

every now and then, i hear about a hotel that screams "MUST VISIT" and the setai is one such. in the stable that includes the datai in malaysia and the chedi in oman ... it has all the right credentials ... and now i am pleased to say that this place is FANTASTIC!

i am 5 hrs behind myself so i was up at around 3 a.m. wandering around my suite. its a 2-bedroom with a large kitchen, lounge, 2-bathrooms and an enormous balcony with stunning views over the atlantic. its contemporary ... with a real asian feel - dark wood furniture ... eastern artifacts etc.

the service is flawless ... very impressive indeed.

i am in the tower - 40 floors of glass built in 2004 ... where there are 50 suites that are managed by the hotel. the "other" building is art-deco - built in the 1930's - that houses 85 rooms & suites. today has been all about the hotel - restaurants, sommelier, suites, views etc ... the weather has been fair ...

i am so pleased to be in miami - great memories and lots of work & partying to be done over the next couple of weeks.

al & tim are happy! they love the hotel and walk around smiling ...

we are being overfed ... i think may run the marathon in london next year - that will work of the excess blubber.

off for some more filming now ... as its dark ...

Song of the Day: breathe (prodigy)

Weather: who cares? i am in miami!

Monday 12 November 2007

Day 145 - Welcome to Miami .... baby!

i am here
on the way to The Setai, I spotted this place ...

GREETINGS from a tower suite at The Setai, South Beach, Miami!! MIAMIIIIIIIII!

Yes - the last shoot for this series has commenced and it's sunshine, cocktails, sandy beaches ... erm ... and hard work for the next 2 weeks.

OK - last night was a dreadful "travel dinner" - the company was more than perfect, it was just the event that sent me into spasms of boredom. first time ... last time. thankfully my hearing only came back this morning (post-Sex Pistols) ... so i am not sure that all my senses were in place anyway.

This morning, I left home at around 6 am to catch the BA flight to Miami. It was a painless trip ... I just slept. As usual, I was treated like a 4th class citizen at Customs here in the States ... and I was clean-shaven too!

It's just 7.3 miles from Miami International Airport to The Setai ... one of the finest hotels in Miami. I am in a 2-bedroom suite overlooking the Ocean, South Beach and the City ... it's damn amazing.

I was met by hotel PR - Devyani - who is great fun ... tomorrow should be a hoot.

More on Miami, The Setai and life ... in a few hours!

Song of the Day: Miami (Will Smith)

Weather: Sunshine baby, SUNSHINE


Sunday 11 November 2007

Days 143 & 144 - Sex Pistols at Dawn ... Never Mind The Bollocks (!)

vacantpretty vacant


one of the most surreal weeks on my life. on one day i was at the four seasons in hampshire (cue vivaldi) and then the next, i am having my ears blown out by the sex pistols at the brixton academy (cue ... noise).

actually, the concert was VERY good ... old fashioned rock n' roll ... (methinx punk maybe dead) ... loud, rude and brutal. the crowd was very mixed ... mostly mums & dads aged 50 + ...
johnny rotten snarled and sneered through the entire 1 hour 15 minute set ... his comments were amusing and while contraversial in the 70's were no worse than the kids tea time tv fodder of today.

my gig-buddy paul (city lawyer) was at an original sex pistols concert and was it was a trip down memory lane for him ... by the smiles afterwards, he was VERY happy! i am rather deaf today ... i hope my hearing improves for my formal dinner tonight and for the flight to miami early tomorrow. the home stretch is here .... whoo-hoo! i can't believe it has been 144 days since this whole thing started ... 16 days to go ... of filming ... then ... well, we'll see ...

2008 is already being planned ... ideas on a postcard please (haha)...

OK - off to pack!

Song of the Days: Anarchy in the UK (Sex Pistols)

Weather: who cares?


Friday 9 November 2007

Day 143 - Diwali

spa heaven
byron
casper

Zooooooom! Left the FS Hampshire at 4.30 in the morning and it took 56 minutes to get back home. I think I may have strayed over the 69 mph mark a couple of times ...

It's Diwali today and it has been crazy. Not only is it tidy up time after the last couple of days of filming BUT it's get ready time for Miami next week.

Everyone needs a cocker spaniel ... our distributors Emma & David have two handsome chaps - byron and casper who are almost (!) as lovely as the moo ... very waggy tail and ear licky too. I spent a heavenly hour or so in Camden talking business and playing with the pups.

Cocker Spaniels are THE best!

Just a quick note today ... off to see the family!

Song of The Day: Happy Talk - Captain Sensible

Weather: brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
 
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