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Category Archives: Hall for Cornwall

Birthday, ‘Gravy’ and Courtney Pine

1   Birthday breakfast for the lovely Mr S with our croissants kept warm in the beautiful Tree of Life bread-warmer.

Birthday breakfast

Birthday breakfast

2   Thence to Truro for some bookshop browsing and dinner at ‘Gravy’  where we had the most delicious pre-theatre dinner. We hadn’t been there before but we’ll certainly go again. It is a very welcoming place with imaginative and well cooked food, ‘deliciously uncomplicated’ as they say themselves.

Mr S started with crab cakes with a watercress salad and I had meltingly soft gnocchi tossed with spinach, and chili oil, topped with tomato concasse and parmesan shavings – both starters beautifully presented and truly scrumptious.

Mr S then had Sea Bass served on oven roasted vegetables and new potatoes with a romesco sauce which he found very tasty.    I had the Supreme of Cornish chicken which was stuffed with wild mushrooms, onion and thyme,  oven baked and served with dauphinoise potato, chantenay carrots and a red wine and shallot sauce. That, too, looked a picture and was delicious with every flavour discernible, truly a treat, which, since it was for a birthday, was most appropriate!  We had a very good bottle of Merlot with all this, were served beautifully in lovely surroundings and would highly recommend a vist to any of my readers who live in Cornwall!

Truro Cathedral

Truro Cathedral

3   We followed dinner with an amazing concert – Courtney Pine on the saxophone and playing a new instrument he called a Ewi – and Electronic Wind Instrument which he had just been given by the makers on his tour of Japan and  with which he was experimenting. Its range was unbelievable and the sound amazing!  I have to confess that some of the wackier pieces didn’t appeal but overall it was a very enjoyable evening. Courtney Pine is such a genuine and warm individual who really appreciates his audience.

Courtney Pine amongst the audience

Courtney Pine amongst the audience

 

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Story-teller, Cactus and Moscow City Ballet

1   The little story-teller figure is a Pueblo Indian character and is honour of my Dad whose novels are behind the little figure in the photo.

Pueblo story-teller and novels by David Wiseman

2    The ‘Christmas’ cactus in beautifully in flower already.

‘Christmas’ cactus

3   We’ve been to the Hall for Cornwall this evening to see the marvellous Moscow City Ballet performing Romeo and Juliet. It was brilliant!

Moscow City Ballet, Romeo and Juliet

 

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Singing, Maypole Dancing and Simon Amstell

1  Just ten of The Ingleheart Singers and Claire went to sing at a special birthday party in a field this afternoon. We practised first in the Garden Centre at Lelant, and found ourselves with a very appreciative audience there and then at the party much appreciated again which was lovely.

The Inglehearts at the party

2   After the singing came the Maypole dancing which was just delightful.

Maypole Dancing

3   Just come back, chuckling all the way home,  from seeing the lovely Simon Amstell (he of Grandma’s House on BBC TV) at The Hall for Cornwall in Truro – made us laugh a lot – always a  good thing!

 

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Elephants, Embroidery and ‘Always Look on the Bright Side of Life!’

1   I love elephants! I’ve loved them since I was very little and today this beautiful story came in to my inbox and reminded me of our encounter with a herd of elephants after our Voluntouring in Mapoch, South Africa. The lovely Mr S spotted them from a long way away, we found them and watched them playing in the water for about 40 minutes. It was absolutely magical.

http://delightmakers.com/news-bleat/wild-elephants-gather-inexplicably-mourn-death-of-elephant-whisperer/#.T7AQOKty_Jo.facebook

Elephants enjoying the water

Leaving the water

Teenage elephant, reluctant to leave his playing

Mother and Baby

2   This beautiful embroidery is one of three made for me by Grace, the sister of the teacher at the school in Mapoch, near Pretoria where we, with local builders, built a classroom.

Grace’s beautiful embroidery

Sisters under the skin, Grace, me and Sibongile and their babies

3   We’ve hardly stopped laughing all evening! We’ve been to see ‘Spamalot’ at The Hall for Cornwall. The place was packed and the whole audience loved the show.

 

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