Pancakes, Hector and the Search for Happiness & 13.8 km Afternoon Bike Ride

Given that we had enough ingredients and that Alastair really likes them, and that he will be away in Mexico for a week - I decided to make Swedish style pancakes for brunch.

I spent the early afternoon watching: Hector and the search for happiness whilst waiting for the weather to get better.
The movie is about a psychiatrist searches the globe to find the secret of happiness - and below are some of his notes from the trip:

It had a slow start, but as it sounded promising so I decided to give it some slack until Hector started travelling. It was well worth it and an interesting film after all. Recommended for a rainy afternoon.

My Friend David Malcolm had set me a challenge to cycle at least 10k. So Alastair and I cycled along the old railway line to Bethesda for a beer at the Tap House and a late afternoon lunch at Cafe DeLuxe.

3.4 km Afternoon walk & 2x 2.3 km Evening bike ride

Needed to go to Giant and buy cheese, but had about an hour free - so made a walk of it.

In the evening we were invited to Eliana and Carlos. Debating how to get there we finally settled on Metro + Bicycle. So we took the Metro to Grosvenor and cycled from there.

My friend David Malcolm commented that this was not much exercise, but then that was not the point - it clearly states "Bike ride Transport". However = he has now challenged me to do 10 km tomorrow. Perhaps I take Alastair out for lunch somewhere 5 km away - let's see.

The evening was very nice with great grilled meet and interesting"Swedish" wine, bought on their road-trip down through New York State.

It was great to catch up with Eliana and as both Carlos and Alastair are in Mexico next week, we might meet up one day.

Coconut coated chicken thighs with a mango sauce

Take bonefree chicken thighs (or brest if you prefer) and flatten them out. Season with salt and pepper. Dip in whipped egg and then in cocnut flakes.

Finely chop mango, onion, red pepper and ginger. Add crushed garlic.

Cook onions, peppers, ginger and garlic until soft, while you pan-fry the chicken. Finally add mango and some creme fraiche to the sauce. Serve with rice.

Dogwood Tree Blooming & Chicken Noodles

Our Dogwood tree has finally started blooming. It is actually two trees planted together - one white and one pink, but looks great together. I have been told there are yellow ones as well, perhaps we should add another, but it will be much smaller :-(

Dinner was Chicken with noodles.
Chop chicken, spring onions and peppers, Stir-fry until soft.
Coock noodles according to the instructions and rinse in cold water.
Mix in noodles with chicken and vegetables - serve with chilli sauce.

Garden update

It is nice to have an unknown garden, although we have now lived here for 11 months so have discovered most things by now.

 My sunflowers, having grown very well in this hot and humid climate, have just started to flower. They are much taller than me and I so far have a yellow and a red one!

 It is a bit sad we are going away today. There are a lot more flowers on the way, but I hope they will still be here when we come back.

We also have some lovely pink flowers on the tree outside the middle bedroom and some new yellow flowers behind the watering hose.

Fort Lauderdale weekend - Day 3

Day 3 was spend kayaking around the canals. We did just over 5k (3.5 miles) along this strech in the middle. It was quite hard work, but very interesting to look at the houses on the water, and we saw a large bright green Iguana.

Kayaking followed by an American size ice cream, which was enough - no more meals needed!

We drove down the cost to Miami beach, but as I clearly remembered from my last visit, some 10 years ago, parking was an absolute nightmare, so we did not stop, just dropped off the car and enjoyed a few hours in the lounge, before heading off in separate directions (me home - Alastair Peru)

Fort Lauderdale weekend - day 2

View from breakfast place

Day 2 we found a nice place for breakfast, serving crepes with strawberries, cream and mimosas. Not a bad way to start the morning.

After breakfast we went for a little exploration trip in the rented electric blue car, and managed to find a new Hard Rock glass for me, as Hard Rock Cafe, Hotel & Casino at Hollywood, FL.

 Afternoon = reading and lazing by the pool.