1958 Mark 6 Saracen

From DriveATank.com:

This 1958 Mark 6 Saracen is now for sale. It has only 205 miles on the clock from new! There were a group of these Saracens sold by the British MOD that were “cold war reserve” meaning they were stored in a shed and never used unless war usage required. This vehicle is equipped with the optional machine gun turret on top and has all of the modern factory updates found on Saracens of its age. It has reverse flow cooling, which pushes the hot air forward rather than into the crew compartment like many of the early models. It has the large comfortable driver’s seat with a tall back and reclines. The interior is fitted with foam insulation that is covered by vinyl to keep the crew compartment cool and quiet. This Saracen even has the “up-armor” package. This means that it was upgraded with even MORE armor by the British Government. This Saracen even has the original pick axe and shovel mounted on the fender. This Saracen is in excellent shape especially for being over 50 years old and all original! The best part of the Saracen is that they are street legal. They have headlights, turn signals, horn, and four way flashers. A Saracen can be registered as a motor vehicle or if you would rather drive on your acreage, skip that part. Either way this Saracen is sure to be 10 tons of fun.

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The Smallest Car in the Largest City in the World (1913):

Queen Alexandra ordered a miniature Cadillac car for Crown Prince Olav (later King) of Norway and – never ones to miss an advertising opportunity – the manufacturers arranged the filming of the car’s departure from the factory, where it is waved out by an enthusiastic male crowd.

This mini marvel continues its jubilant journey through the streets of London – past the Bank of England, around Trafalgar Square and on to Hyde Park. As crowds cheer and leap in front of the camera, desperate to be preserved on film, the driver’s composure and deadpan facial expression remains one of the most entertaining aspects of this Edwardian glimpse of British pride.

The film ends with some charming footage of a tea party, in which three children run into trouble with the law for speeding!

Again, posted by the BFI. Jeremy drives the smallest car in the world at the BBC – Top Gear (2007):

Jeremy drives the Peel P-50 through central London and into the BBC offices. From Top Gear.

Okay, I have been taking photos since my desktop was packed up and none of them have made it online yet … but that is about to change …

Here are the first ones, from Cliff’s Birthday trip to Wychwood Brewery in Witney.

Unfortunately, none of the photos inside turned out well … anyway, more photos to come soon!

The BBC has a great new program that I have been watching on iPlayer called Around the World in 80 Days.  It is part of their charity appeal for Children in Need and is a very interesting program.  Based on Phineas Fogs fictional adventure, this program has six pairs of celebrities racing around the world for charity (there is only one rule: No Flying).  While you may say, “what another travel program” or “another reality TV show”, it is not that simple.  This is real travel!  They miss trains, get turned away at borders, have car trouble, and everything else that happens when you travel.  But, that is not why I am writing this post … it is because in the last episode (which I have not actually watched but needed to post about this before the auction ends), John Barrowman (of Captain Jack fame) gets a pair of custom cowboy boots from Rocketbuster boots.

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Okay, while in Italy, we visited several vineyards!  One of our goals for the trip was to drink great local wine from places that it is nearly impossible to get it from anywhere else.

Jill on the Dievole Winery Tour

While we were there, we visited a total of five vineyards and a couple of wine stores.  So, here are our experiences …

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Hams with tails @ Falorni

Meats on display @ Falorni

One of the best reasons to go to Italy is for the food and Tuscany – especially Chianti – is no exception!  While we were there (and even now, because we brought some stuff back), we enjoyed a range of traditional foods and great produce.  From the simple items that we found at the Coop in Radda to the wonderful meats that we purchased in Greve-in-Chianti at Antica Macelleria Falorni, we never had bad food on our trip!  While we had several very good experiences at local restaurants, my favorite meals consisted of the wonderful prosciutto and salami produced throughout the area. Read more »

The Bedroom

The villa that we rented in Tuscany was wonderful!  It was a little one-bed vacation apartment located near the small town of San Sano and between the larger towns of Radda-in-Chianti and Lecchi-in-Chianti.  This meant that it was only about 25km from Siena, which meant that you could parked in Sienna in less than an hour (even accounting for missed turns on the way); and, it was only a little over an hour to Florence (40km or so).  Overall, it was about as perfect of a location as we could have asked for! Read more »

Okay, I have finally got around to posting our trip photos … to see the gallery, click here.

In the next few days, I will be posting more information about what we did and where we went.

Recently, the Hairy Bikers visited Oxfordshire on their Food Tour of Britain.  The show featured many of the food hotspots of Oxford and the surrounding area, including the Covered Market and, most interestingly, Foxbury Farm.  As many people know, we regular order food from Foxbury and have enjoyed many doorstep conversations with Colin – the farmer behind Foxbury’s farm shop and great produce!  From Foxbury, the Hairy Bikers got the ingredients to make a traditional skinless Oxford sausage … here is a PDF of the Oxford Sausage Breakfast (from the BBC) … something that we definitely want to try!

Additionally, they learned about quinces … another very traditional British food and quince cheese is my favorite part of any quality cheese plate.  Quinces are a strange looking fruit but they make some wonderful products.  The local producers that they visited make a whole range of things from quinces … unfortunately, they do not have a stockist in central Oxford, so it may be harder for me to find some to try.

Tuesday was our second anniversary and to celebrate, we went to Malmaison on Monday night.  As with the last time that we went, we started the night at the upstairs bar.  They have a great cocktail menu but Jill still went with the same drink she got last time – a rum-based strawberry and balsamic vinegar concoction.  This time I went for one of their current specials – a fresh raspberry drink.

Unlike last time, we did go for the Homegrown & Local menu.  Instead we ordered off the regular menu because Jill saw the Steak Frites on our last visit and has been dreaming of them since!  So, we got some Serrano Ham with peaces and cheese to start.  Then, we both got Steak Frites for our main with a side of string beans and shallots.  It was Jill’s first time ordering a rare steak … which she did because it was a thin steak and they did not offer a medium-rare option.  I am happy to say that she enjoyed it!  The one difference between our mains were the sauces – Jill went for the bearnaise and I went for the garlic-butter.  The garlic-butter was not just very good on the steak but it was nice on the fries.  About the fries, they were some of the best ones that I have ever had … and Jill thought that they were the best she had ever had.  To go with the meal, we had a bottle of their house red (not the same one available on the Homegrown & Local menu) which was a Malbec-blend from Argentina.  It was a very easy drinking wine.

So, I would highly recommend the Steak Frites, especially the fries.  From our experiences, the Oxford Malmaison is the best restaurant that we have eaten at in the UK.  So, if you are looking for a nice place to eat in Oxford, check them out!