Snow business like snow business

So. Snow.

Even everyone in Australia is probably aware of the 'issues' the snow has caused over here in the UK. Anyone trying to travel to or from has probably experienced them first-hand.

Beyond the odd day off work, a slip here and there, and the occasional 100km/h spin (540 degrees to exact!) on the A31, the snow has provided us 'tourists' with nothing more than a lovely white backdrop for the lead up to Christmas.

It of course goes without saying that Henry was delighted with his frosty new playground. You can see more wintery photos on our flickr page: 'It's Snowing Again...'

Catching up

So now that I've got the rest of the week off, and have now recovered from the Christmas Day oyster food poisoning fiasco, I thought it was about time we caught up with some of the bits and bobs that've been happening this side of the pond.

Needless to say, paying attention to the cricket scores hasn't been one of them.

So the next few entries might be a little bit haphazard in terms of chronology, but hopefully it'll put together a bit of a picture of life in Kingston over the last 6 months or so.

Shannon's Goodwood track day

Shannon's 31st Birthday present - a 'Slicks and Spokes' track day at the historic Goodwood race track

The real Stig...

A few training laps in the Alfa Romeo...

Before jumping in a Formula Ford 2000....

A change of pace with the E type Jaguar...

Then some wind in the hair with the AC Cobra...

Portugal

In August, we were lucky enough to be invited to the wedding of Carlos and Christine, friends we met through Conran. Carlos' family are from Portugal, and the wedding was held in the Duoro region of Northern Portugal.

We stayed in the town of Regua, in the Upper Duoro region, in the heart of Port wine country.

Interesting colours and textures in a rundown part of the town of Regua...

A sleepy square, near the cathedral, with a terrific cafe where we had a super-cheap and super-delicious meal, in the background.

Regua at night, with Nossa Senhora dos Remedios church lit up on the hilltop in the background...

The beautiful bride Christine, and her dad, arriving at the church...

Nossa Senhora dos Remedios...

The view from the top of the hill, outside the church. The previous wedding party is having photos near the fountain, looking out over Regua. (Smoke from a bushfire in the background)...

Inside the church...

Christine and Carlos, tying the knot. The ceremony was half in Portuguese, half in English. Their lovely Portuguese priest had recently learned English especially for the ceremony. He had only six lessons with Carlos' sister, and he did really well!

The happy couple...

This photo reminds me of our wedding day. This is Carlos' Portuguese 'Little Nan'...

After the ceremony, we were taken over to a Quinta (winery) in Lamego for the reception...

The barrel room in the quinta...

We could smell the delicious port wine through the wood of the barrels, the room smelt divine...

Carlos and Shannon, looking handsome...

Recovery by the hotel pool the next day...

Following our recovery from the wedding festivities, we hit the port wine trail through the Duoro Valley, following the Duoro River visiting several Quintas along the way....

Barrels of port at Quinta do Tedo

A break for lunch at Vintage House, Pinhao...

Lamego...

Before flying back to the UK, we called into Porto and toured through Vila Nova De Gaia, where all the port lodges are located. The grapes are grown in the Duoro Valley along the steep banks of the river Duoro, and where they are made into port wine. The climate is much cooler in Porto, and therefore it's a more suitable location of storing and bottling the port. The port used to be transported down river in the old style port boats. It's done by truck now, but the lodges in Porto are still the main hub for storage and distibution of port around the world.

Port barrels at Grahams...

The most recent vintage, 2009, was a pearler. So stay tuned for the next 20 years and we'll let you know when it's ready for drinking!