Last night I went to sleep listening to Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata (first performed by the composer in Budapest) and woke up listening to Ravel's Bolero (kept me perked up in Malaysia) ...

And then I found this photograph today of me on a beach at Denis Island in the Seychelles! Even though I am not travelling ... strangely I am!

I keep thinking it's Sunday and I will be working tomorrow ... but it is a Saturday and I still have TWO days of a long Public Holiday weekend in credit! Fabulous ...

I have just spoken to a dear friend in Los Angeles who woke up at 0300 to watch the wedding! She watched the whole thing, slept for an hour and went to work! Her cat was most unamused ...

I wrote an article and watched excellent reruns of Magnum PI. How I wish I had a red Ferrari and a bushy moustache!

Can we have a royal event every year please - an extra Public Holiday!

I have to say that the British taxpayer puts on a damned good spectacle ... bravo to all those invloved. London looked fabulous ...

Will the wedding be remembered for this photo?

Pretty lady ...

I put "wedding" into Google images and got this! How I chuckled!

I feel sick. I have just wolfed down an entire bag of Haribo. Why? Why? Why?

So, last night I was bitten 3 times (in my OWN garden) by midges. Think mosquito ... but smaller ... peskier ... and fearles ... grrrrr ...

Today I have been writing ALL day ... and itching ... and I am still to decide where to go at the end of May after the boys leave me in California ...

hmmm ...

The apple jelly at Costes last week was yummy!

Vegas?

Vancouver?

San Diego?

San Francisco?

I am swamped with work. There is just so much to do before I jet off to California next week for a 23-day trip ... filming two shows of ILT.

For some reason, I have decided to keep bees. Yes - I am buying a hive or two and am booking to go onto a course that will make me an official "apiarist". I am putting in an orchard in part of the garden ... and I think the bees will be a welcome addition to the ecosystem.

Maybe it's due to the gift that Hertelendy Castle gave me ... a hundred sachets of fresh honey from its apiary! It just makes tea and coffee taste so wonderful ...

Right, time for a barbecue! Ah yes - I have got it working ... unlike last year ... and I doing my best to cremate anything and everything for family & friends ... rare? medium? pah ... the choice here is well-done or very well-done!

Back in 2007, my dear friend Paul suggested that we should run the London Marathon. I hastily agreed and put in many, many hours running around Battersea Stadium. A few months later (in 2008) we ran the race. While he finished in some absurd time ... 1 hour 30 minutes (!), it took me over SEVEN! If you look closesly at my knees, you will see "bulges" of pain! It took me nearly 6 months to recover. Before you ask, YES, I did do lots of training! I wore bright yellow by the way so I could be spotted in the dark - lest I finish in over 10 hours!

The day was bizarre! The weather was crazy and I nearly gave up five times ... but sheer bloody-minded determination, encouragement from the crowds and a bag full of painkillers ensured I finished!

ANYWAY - I am pleased to announce that Paul and I are going to run the New York Marathon in 2012! We have not chosen the charity yet ... but ... I am quite excited as I can start training slowly and build up over 18 months!

To celebrate our decision, we nearly guzzled a WHOLE bottle of Tokaji (I can't shake Hungary) ... maybe we will leave that for October 2012. Of course, you are ALL invited to watch, cheer or even join us! Go on ...

p.s. although looking quite wild, I looked quite fit & healthy then! hmmm ...

I placed my first ever wager on a horse today ... £50.00 each way on Majestic Dreams ... at Yarmouth at the "4.15" ... and guess what ... he came in SECOND! Ha! I did not lose a penny ... in fact I gained a "majestic" £2.50 ...

Don't worry though ... I am NOT turning into a gambler ... it's just a one-off. The horse in question belongs to a syndicate in which my friend is a member.

Ah - another sunshiny day ... HAPPY! Back to work tomorrow ... grrrrr ...

Before you ask - no - I am not a jockey! My horse at Hertelendy Castle - Liberty - was quite sweet & friendly!

Tim made a few equine friends in Hungary. He smells of hay ...

The awesome Miguel Vieira from Costes in Budapest looking on as I sample the wine ...

and THEN joins in!

I am taking the weekend off ... and am staying with friends near Oxford. The sun is shining (again) ... th sky is blue (again) ... and I am playing cricket ... drinking wine ... ahhhhh ...


Tonight I am drinking Tokaji ... memories?

katalin and martina

martina

barbara angelus ... hertelendy castle PR ... wonderful :)

Ganbare. It's a defining concept in Japanese culture that loosely translates as: Hang in there; don't give up. Join us (sic) in supporting the Japanese relief effort by purchasing Ganbare T-shirts - available at select Four Seasons properties in the Americas. All proceeds will be directed to the Red Cross to provide essential supplies and medical attention to victims of this tragedy.

I was kindly sent one of these t-shirts which I will wear as much as I can. It was designed by Yabu Pushelberg - hotel designers - who have worked extensively with the Four Seasons. If you can get your hands on a t-shirt do so ... even if that means trotting down to the Concierge at your "local" FS and getting one posted to you. Support the people of Japan ... please!

Glenn Pushelberg and George Yabu

My views today - not Seychelles or Malaysia - but England ...

Home!

I had such great intentions today! After seeing my Papa I was going to cut the grass, play golf, go for a jog or a swim, reply to over three hundred emails, write two articles and/or buy a garden shed! I DID see my Papa ... and erm ... slept in the sun ... drank a bottle of fine Pinot Noir from Oregon (the 2007 Domaine Drouhin ... "old faithful"!) ... smoked a Davidoff Short Perfecto ... and tickled Moo's tummy a few times ...

It is Easter ... and I have been VERY good and not eaten any chocolate eggs ... but instead have been wolfing down muffins and Haribo ... I do feel rather sick now ...

It is a "holiday" period so I will not get all original and instead post a couple of photos everyday from the last trip ...

I wish I could fly like a Malev in the sky ... I wish I was a bird ... a blue-tit maybe ...

A real blue-tit

James is deciding whether to eat poached chicken gizzard or not ... does he or doesn't he? Find out tomorrow ...

Oh no! That's it! We are off home!

Had a wonderful evening in Pomo d'Oro, a local Italian (pizza! yum!) - eating wonderfully, drinking moscato, dancing on tables (only joking) ... but it was a lovely way to end our time here in Hungary.

So many memories: Hertelendy Castle: Liberty - my horse, the pond, skeet and the peace .... Pecs: gloves and Sauska wines ... Budapest: Baths, darling Katalin (tour guide), Costes (yum) and my now favourite Four Seasons city hotel in the world - Gresham Palace!

I will be back in a couple of months ... I feel it ...

We have a few days off now for some well-earned R&R and then off to California! Yay!

 Farewell Hungary, Farewell Budapest... we love ya!

 It's all about the view.

Mark my words, in two years, he will be the Boss!

 Martina ... PR ... and Camera Assistant/Runner (unpaid)

 Darling Steffie ...

Balazs Taroczy - the greatest Hungarian tennis player ...

It's been a beautiful day here in "Budapest - the Beautiful City"!

The sun has been shining and sky blue ALL day ... and we have been zooming about ... slowly.

First up, a visit to the Szénchenyi Baths. Last time I was here, it was -3 degrees ... and although the water was 38 degrees, it was not much fun! Today, the Baths were filled to the brim with young & old ... worshipping the sun and the healing properties of the hot-spring water. There are dozens of baths here in Budapest and the locals start their day here either for a swim ... or a hot soak! Lucky people!

After a quick lunch we headed to Costes - the most lauded & applauded restaurant in the city. The Michelin-starred Chef - Miguel Vieira - from Portugal - taught me how to prepare a nice summery crab salad and a truly amazing dessert ... chocolate dome filled with ice-cream, pear, crumble and covered in hot chocolate and cardoman sauce! The boys didn't get a taste! Ha! The Chef is a lovely fellow and Costes is a MUST for all gastronomes who visit Budapest ... oh AND I drank some TERRIFIC Hungarian red wines! Yay!

An early Diary as we are all off to catch the sunset and then celebrate the end of the episode with pizza and moscato!

 With Katalin at the Szénchenyi Baths ... a holiday snap if I have ever seen one!

 The Michelin-starred restaurant ... Costes

 Chef Miguel Vieira

 I am looking more and more like Mr Bean ... !Oops!

 What a lovely chap!

With Franz Lizst in "his" square

My first trip of the year back in January was to Budapest.

Having visited nearby Prague in 2010, which was visually stunning, my expectations were high – thankfully I was not disappointed. Off the bat, I will say that with Prague, what you see is what you get, with Budapest it’s much more of an exploration. Budapest was created in 1873 when three cities were amalgamated: Obuda (Ancient Buda), Buda and on the other side of the River Danube, Pest.

Today, we (Tim. James, Martina and "THE" guide to the stars Katalin) travelled around the city filming, having fun, eating ice-cream and filming some more.

Heroes' Square, Opera, St Stephen's Basilica, River Danube, The Shoes on the Promenade, Parliament Building, Buda Castle/Palace, Fisherman's Bastion, The Citadel ... the bridges! ALL IN ONE DAY!

One of the most fun days we have ever had and the sun was shining & the sky was very blue!

There are many famous individuals, that you may or may not know, who hail from Hungary including: Bela Bartok and Franz Liszt (composers), Johnny Weissmuller (the original Tarzan), Harry Houdini (escapologist), Zsa Zsa Gabor (actress), Alexander Korda (film producer/director), Bela Lugosi (the original Dracula), George Soros (investor and philanthropist), Erno Rubik (the Cube inventor), Judit Polgar (arguably the greatest female chess player of all time) and Laszlo Biro (inventor of the Biro pen).

I LOVE BUDAPEST ... I LOVE HUNGARY!

The best guide in the world - Katalin Czeller and the lovely PR (Four Seasons) Martina Vavrova ...

 Heroes' Square

 St. Stephen's Basilica

 Opera House

 James took this one!

 Parliament Building with "the" flag .. budapest is AMAZING! the stories are fabulous ... for instance - outside parliament is this flagpole with the magyar flag with a huge hole in the middle. in 1956, the russians took the maygar flag and popped a hammer & sickle in the middle. magyar students cut a hole in the flag in defiance and were shot & killed for their trouble ... this is a memorial to those brave souls.

Shoes on the Danube Promenade

Martina and me goofing about at The Citadel

Ah! Lovely Katalin!

Tim took this one!

Lucky horse gonads near Buda Castle!

The Four Seasons Gresham Palace ... yum!