Posted 7:01 AM by Lodger
WIMBLEDON:
Emma and I went to the Championship for the third time this past Saturday... our first weekend experience, and more importantly, our first show court experience!

We woke up very early (3:30 - arggh!) with keen enthusiasm, took a minicab to the queue, and settled in behind 840 or so fellow crazies hoping to get showcourt tickets for the day. It was a beautiful, clear morning, the atmosphere very positive, a perfect day for sitting in a queue for 5 hours or so.

I read, Emma marked papers, we both ate cheese rolls and strawberries, and the queue snaked along in irregular forward pushes, supervised and controlled beautifully by wonderful volunteer stewards who, from what we could tell, contribute their time for the love of it all.

Both of us were resigned to the fact that we would not get show courts. There were to be 250 tickets each for Centre Court, Court 1 and Court 2. Being about 840 in the queue, we figured we had a very outside chance of getting something, but would be happy with ground tickets. But when the lovely little man with white hair and an 'honourary steward' armband came along, he had a whole fistful of Court One wristbands left. The wait was worth it.

We entered the grounds about 10AM and play on Court 1 didn't start until 1PM, so we had plenty of time to soak up the atmosphere. The grounds are beautiful. The Lawn and Tennis Club is a very special place and Em and I both felt a real pleasant vibe from spectators and staff alike. We've both watched Wimbledon on television most of our lives and being there in person really brings it all to life. The deep forest green you see on TV is everywhere, complemented by endless guardinias, both purple and blue. On a sunny day it would be a great place to be even without the tennis.

So we leisurely passed the time, saw part of a demo of young tennis players doing drills on court 14, watched a bit of two junior girls singles matches, including one involving the number one seed (Russian, of course), scoped out the Wimbledon shop for goodies for ourselves and loved ones, and, finally, at about 12:30, after a german sausage and a beer, found our seats on Court One.

Our seats were amazing, behind the baseline at one end, perfect for seeing a deuce court serve coming in at you at about 130mph! We saw three matches: Andrei Tursunov(Russia) Vs. Ivan Ljubocic(Croatia), the conclusion of Mario Ancic(Croatia) Vs. Wawrenka(Switzerland), and Amelie Mauresmo(France) Vs. Nicole Pratt(Australia). Of the three, the first match was by far the best, a five setter pulled out by Tursunov after being down two sets to love. It was a tense match that drew out great tennis from both players at times, but in the end it seemed that Tursunov was better conditioned to handle the +30 weather. It was definitely hot in there! One spectator passed out and had to be taken out on a stretcher by medical staff, delaying the match for several minutes. Ljubocic was particularly concerned, directing a ball girl to bring over ice and an umbrella to relieve the poor woman. In the end, she appeared to be alright, and the match continued. From then on Em was firmly behind the Croatian, won over by his thoughtful and caring nature. I kept supporting the Russian... he was the underdog, and, at the time, down a couple of sets. And as you know, my guy won. Well done Andrei!

The next match was less competitive. A tight battle the day before (one set apiece) until delayed due to darkness, on Saturday it never reached the same levels of tension and excitement as the day before. Ancic dominated from the start, and finished off the match in two fairly easy sets. So it wasn't all bad for the Croatia on the day.

Australia also had mixed results on the day. On court two, Leyton Hewitt, who is in good form in the tournament so far, won with relative ease. Unfortunately, his countrywoman one court one, Ms. Nicole Pratt, did not fair so well. Ranked 127 in the world, the fiesty veteran put up a valiant fight, at times enduring the crowd to her with her endlessly plucky effort. But in the end, Mauresmo was never really threatened, winning 6-1, 6-2. Credit to the Aussie fans in the crowd though: true to form, they were enthusiastic in support to the end, giving her a good cheer at the end of the match. Go Aussie!

When play finished on Court One about 6:00, neither of us felt like anything to eat just yet in the stifling heat, so it was off to 'Henman Hill', I mean, er, 'Murray Field' to watch the third set of the Murray/Roddick match on Centre Court. If you watch tennis, are British, or both, you know what happened. In the performance of a lifetime, Murray, using a wide repertoire of shots and the home town crowd support, knocked off number two seeded American, Andy Roddick. Poor Roddick looked shattered after the match, but true to form, was gracious in defeat. And importantly, on the day England went out of the World Cup (on penalties, again!), Brits at least had something positive to celebrate.

After the match, we found a nice place on the hill, drank some red wine, ate some sandwiches, and enjoyed the cool evening breeze. The end to a perfect day.

GORDON RAMSAY'S

On 7 June, Duncan, Astra, Winnie, Scott, Emma, and I went to Gordon Ramsay's Restaurant on Hospital Road in Chelsea. We each saved up so we could enjoy what was for some of us a first fine dining experience.

In short, I loved it. You see these Michelin star chefs on television and hear about 'mixing flavours' and 'classic French cuisine,' blah, blah, blah. It can't be that good, right? After all, food is food.

True.

But there's food.

And then, there's food.

Won't go into too much detail, as I'm actually very hungry as I write this. The short version:

Started with the lobster and lagoustine ravioli, one of their signature dishes. Amazing! The lobster meat was sweet and tender, the sauce lovely and creamy.

Had foie gras stuffed braised pigeon in a port jus for the main. This was the dish of the evening for me. The pigeon was served with a subtle horseradish mash and parsnips, and each bite was heaven. I constructed every forkful with the utmost care, making sure each mouthful had a bit of each of the ingredients. The mix of flavours on the tongue was like nothing I've ever tasted before. I'm not a food critic. I know little of either the science or the art of cooking fine food. So I won't pretend to be able to do it justice here. But trust me. That was some damn fine pigeon.

Had the cheese selection for dessert, let the waitress select for me and mostly enjoyed it, although starting to learn that I like strong bleues, but only medium soft cheeses.

Of course, you go to a restaurant like this to enjoy good food and wine, but what mostly hits you during the evening is the service. It's one to one service, i.e. we had six people, as well as the maitre d' serving us. Our water glasses were always kept exactly two thirds full, and there was always someone there, but it was like they weren't there. They just swooped in and out attending to your every need in an almost invisible manner. They make it so easy spend an entire evening eating, I'm surprised more rich people aren't grotesquely obese. I would be if I was stinking rich. But then I'd have a personal trainer, wouldn't I?

Anyway, there was a down side. After a great dining experience that lasted almost five hours, we all woke up the next day feeling varying levels of illness. I just felt yucky and lethargic as, I imagine, the foie gras and pigeon fat sludged their way through my body's unsuspecting arteries and liver. But Emma and Duncan both felt quite nauseous. A fine dining hang-over, I guess.

But, I still say it was worth it. No pain, no gain, right?

Should mention, the next day, I had a cornershop samosa and crisps for lunch. An amazing mixture of flavours on the palette, the congealed squidgeeness of the refrigerated samosa blending perfectly with the satisfying crunch of the crisps...