I visited the Monterey Bay Aquarium, with the family, a few weeks ago.  It is simply fantastic. In fact, I cannot praise it enough.  Its huge, well laid out, super clean and the exhibits are amazing.  A full list of the exhibits in the aquarium can be found on their website, here. I loved the gigantic Kelp Forest tank, which consists of  4 huge viewing windows into the expansive tank that has all sorts of  marine line to watch (including...

I can never suppress a chuckle or snort at these “How to pronounce” videos on YouTube.  Sometimes you have to watch a few of them in a row for it to get you. Pronunciation Manual – YouTube

What? Marie Sharp’s Habanero Pepper Sauce Where? Check out Marie Sharp’s website. I picked up my bottle from the Tortilla Mexican Grill (they have a nice hotsauce rack), in London. Ingredients Red Habanero Peppers Fresh Carrots Lime Juice Vinegar Garlic Salt Comments This is a mouth watering, delicious sauce.  The first time I tried it I was licking my lips for the rest of the day!  The heat is surprisingly tame, given that its a habanero pepper sauce.  And the flavour is excellent – perfect blend of...

Some photos, and a short video, of an evening walk through Zurich during a recent visit. It was my first time in Zurich and I’d love to return.  Super clean – especially the water in the rivers & lakes!  The sunshine & 28C definitely helped.  :-)  After work I took a stroll through the city and then along the edge of Lake Zurich.  The locals were out in force, eating at the lake-side restaurants, enjoying the sun and soaking up...

BBQ Lamb:  I followed a Steve Raichlen recipe (Cape Town Lamb) from his Barbecue Bible last weekend and spit roast a leg of lamb.  I added some hickory wood chips for extra flavour.  It couldn’t have gone any better and made for a delicious Easter family lunch. 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce 1/4 soy sauce 1/4 cup packed brown sugar 3 tbsp Dijon mustard 1 tbsp dry mustard 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice 3 tbsp vegetable 3 cloves garlic, minced 1...

A few photos from a 2 day trip to Milan at the beginning of March.  Was lovely and mild in the evening, making for very pleasant strolling.  From San Babila into Piazza Duomo (to see the impressive Duomo Cathedral) and a segment of Corso Buenas Aires - the busiest shopping street in Milan.

I attended the TEDxIC conference hosted by Imperial College in London last weekend & really enjoyed the experience.  There were 3 sessions of talks, of which I was able to attend the first 2.  The talks were a wide range of diverse topics, from spray on clothes, to neurotechnology, to computer history, to laughter!  I personally enjoyed each of the talks & look forward to the next opportunity to attend a TEDx event.  Follow @TEDxIC on Twitter. The speakers I saw were:...

The canals are all frozen solid in Amsterdam from the recent freezing temperatures across Europe.  I guess the tourists will just have to walk…

I visited Ferrari World on a recent trip to Abu Dhabi. It’s a theme park by the famous car manufacturer that boasts the fastest roller coaster in the world, Formula Rossa:   You’ll accelerate up to 240km/h and see what 4.8 Gs really feels like. You’ll scream over the track and 52 meters into the sky before flying through the chicanes, inspired from some of the most famous race tracks in the world, and across the finish line, with an...

I travelled to Abu Dhabi (and the UAE) for the first time last week.  Everything appeared very clean, calm, orderly and polite there.  Obviously its a limited opinion given the short time I spent there but a good first impression all the same. I visited the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque there and was stunned by its size and beauty.  Its an immense building capable of holding more than 40,000 people.  Below are some videos and photos to try and do it justice:...