Reading’s Style Before Substance Maps
On my trip today, I’d planned to have lunch in Carluccio’s, so before I left, I looked up the address and the walking route from Reading station.
So after taking the photos of the station, I walked into the town centre and traced the way my mind told me to go. I had hoped to get help from a map, but all I had were ones like this.
Reading’s Style Before Substance Maps
Stylish they may be, but they aren’t the best, if you want to find a street, you’ve looked up previously, as there isn’t enough detail and no street index.
Luckily in the end, I found a local who knew where Carluccio’s was and I walked there and had an excellent lunch.
Londoners like me, are very used to good maps, as I can always remember them from my childhood, when every Tube station had a local map. Now every bus stop does, like this one at the Angel.
Local Street Map At The Angel
At the Angel too, there are also informational maps of the area, with all of the major buildings and landmarks indicated.
informational Map At The Angel
Reading’s maps may be stylish, but they are useless if you’re not a local and don’t use a smart phone.
But say you want to find Carluccio’s at Islington, you would just say
The restaurant is by St. Mary’s Church, opposite the Almeida Theatre.
Both places are mentioned on Islington’s informational map.
Perhaps the maps in Reading, were designed, by trendy smart phone freaks, who don’t realise how a lot of people think and operate.
The problem was made worse at Reading, because there was no local information or map at the station. This was probably due to the rebuilding. I didn’t even notice the finger posts, I saw the last time I was in the town. Have they been replaced by the maps?
The Joy Of Global Warming
Bjorn Lomborg likes to provoke and this article in the Sunday Times certainly does. He starts the article like this.
As I fly into a snow-bound Britain, I realise that you might be asking where global warming has gone as you shiver in the coldest March for 50 years and wonder what you will do if gas has to be rationed. I have been involved in the climate debate for more than a decade, but I am still amazed at how wrong we get it. Let us try to restart our thinking on global warming.
Yes, global warming is real and mostly man-made, but our policies have failed predictably and spectacularly.
He then goes on to say that Kyoto has failed.
But he does produce a solution that could be a win-win situation for everyone.
He says that we should spend money on research!
He is right!
Just look what has happened to products like computers because money has been spent on research!
I have heard some wacky ideas to generate energy and cut carbon dioxide emissions over the last few years. Some of them might just be the things we do to save the planet.
But then engineers and scientists have a track record in digging us out of the holes that politicians and others have got us into.
Where for instance would Britain be today without the genius of Henry Royce, Lord Hives, RJ Mitchell, Alan Blumlein, Alan Turing and Sydney Camm. Under a Nazi jackboot perhaps?
But they and others answered Churchill’s plea and gave the country the tools to finish the job.
A similar massive effort today on a world-wide basis would I believe solve the problems of global warming and create a world fit for our descendents.
The same approach could be used on all of the major problems of the world like cancer, providing clean water, housing and food production.
The Awareness Of Coeliac Disease
According to the Restaurant Manager, there were twenty-four people on a gluten-free diet out of a total of 1,800 passengers.
But what surprised me was the number of passengers, who on seeing my bread or asking, why I declined a roll and hearing the answer, said that they knew of a coeliac or had one in the family.
Without doubt, the awareness of coeliac disease is increasing and this can only be a good thing!
Lisbon’s Metro
Lisbon’s Metro is modern, fairly extensive and impressive.
I used it several times and especially after I found there was a station by the Cruise Terminal.
One thing to note is that there is a very large El Cortes Ingles built on top of the São Sebastião Metro station, which is on the line that goes to the Cruise Terminal. The shop had a massive food department, so I suspect, it had a selection of gluten-free food.
Chocolates On Oriana
I’m always wary of the chocolates, that hotels and indeed cruise ships, put on your bed at night.
Chocolates On Oriana
This one was from Whittakers Chocolates and the excellent Restaurant Manager certified they were gluten-free. I had no trouble with them, although there was another sort, I didn’t sample.
My caution stems from a night a few years ago, in a five star hotel in Spain, where the chocolate had a biscuit inside. Luckily my late wife, C, was acting as food taster and after eating her chocolate, quickly ate mine as well.
Food For Armies
I like translation mistakes and this is a good one.
Food For Armies
Pate of campaign is probably an easy mistake to make.
The Worst Of British In Gibraltar
If there was a lot of good things from Britain, there were also some that I consider a bit tacky or down-market.
Quite a few of the shops would be familiar to British visitors and there was also a Morrisons supermarket by the docks.
There also didn’t seem to be too many shops selling the usual junk aimed at tourists. I bought nothing in Gibraltar except for a coffee.
Gluten Free Food On The Oriana
I had been a bit worried about getting gluten-free food on the cruise. But to be fair, the food was generally good to excellent and I certainly didn’t have any problems.
I should say that although, I’m a properly diagnosed coeliac, I think that if I was to eat a couple of slices of regular bread, it wouldn’t do me that much harm. Not that I’m going to try. But I’m definitely not supersensitive!
According to the restaurant manager of the 1,800 or so on the ship, twenty-four were on a gluten-free diet. This number probably gave us all a bit of safety, as if it was typical for a cruise, they would be getting quite a bit of practice in dealing with those needing a gluten-free diet. And as they say, practice makes perfect.
Initially, at dinner, they wanted me to choose my meal the day before. I wasn’t having any of that, as I like to stick to a balanced diet and how would I know, what I would eat at breakfast and lunch, so that I could properly choose the dinner.
I had seen the menu and noted that there were three starters, two soups and six or more main courses. So I felt that there must be something I could eat, perhaps by removing one element if required. The only day I was in trouble, was when most of the main courses had a small problem or I didn’t like them and I was left with just Norfolk turkey. As an Ipswich Town supporter, you don’t eat oversized budgies from our Northern neighbours.
So I swallowed my prejudices and had a very nice turkey and vegetables without the stuffing.
One thing that surprised me about the food at dinner was the variety. As an example, I was surprised to see tuna steak on the menu.
Tuna Steak For Dinner
And very nice it was too!
I should also note these points about the dinner.
1. The staff were very knowledgeable and one told me, that they used flour in the cream soups, so he said stick to the clear ones, of which there was usually one.
2. Many of the main courses were meat and vegetables and you could generally have them plain.
3. I didn’t really look at the vegetarian options, as they weren’t for me.
4. I had gluten free bread every night and it was served separately.
5. I didn’t have puddings, except for ice cream, which was delicious and someone thought it was made on the ship. In one instance the ice cream came with a biscuit and the waiter took it back immediately he put it down and then got me another. And it was another and not just the original with the biscuit removed! We’ve all had that in restaurants, haven’t we?
The real problem about dinner was the company on the first night, who were a couple who didn’t speak to me or each other for that matter! After that experience, I was moved.
Breakfast wasn’t a problem at all, with many things I could eat. There was gluten free toast, which was quite nice and as it was very similar in taste to that in the Hope Street Hotel, I suspect they made it themselves from some sort of standard mix or recipe.
A Typical Breakfast
Towards the end of the cruise, I’d settled down to a breakfast like the one shown, which I ate in the buffet restaurant, with good views of the sea. The toast hadn’t arrived, if you’re wondering, why I have marmalade and no toast.
The bacon wasn’t the usual mass catering rubbish, with a lot of fat, but lean and tasty. I sometimes had an egg, but I find that too many are not good for me, so I usually limit myself to three a week. The beans incidentally were Heinz, as I heard someone ask!
If I have a small problem in the buffet restaurant, it’s that the labelling could be better. For instance, the beans could have been labelled Heinz, which many and not just those on a gluten-free diet would find comforting. With better labelling, staff wouldn’t probably have to answer the same questions over and over again.
I usually had salad for lunch, if I actually needed to eat and they were very acceptable. Again, in some instances the labelling could have been better, as sometimes they mixed up a few vegetables and ham to create special salads.
If there was a problem, it was in the lack of gluten free cakes and biscuits. There were some, but they weren’t to my taste, as they had coconut in them and that’s something I can’t abide. So I would recommend that you take a few of your own. I did! But I didn’t take enough!
Another problem, was that I think I might have put on a kilo or so!
Dressing For Dinner
Three nights on the cruise were black tie.
I wore a new shirt and the result seemed acceptable. Well to me at least. Note the safety pin in the trousers. I never remove them after clothes have done a trip to the dry cleaners, as you never know when you might need them, as I did in this post!
The Maverick
This ship was docked in front of the Oriana in Casablanca.
For whatever reason, I don’t know, it was stuck in the port, so the captain of the Oriana sent some of our food to keep the crew of The Maverick going for another few days.
The Maverick
I would assume that the owners didn’t have the money for port fees or something.
Everybody thought it was right, that the Captain took the action he did. But then it is a law of the sea to help fellow seafarers.
The Anonymous Widower 