Doha

Back here again for another project implementation. It's at least a couple of years since my last trip and quite a lot of new building in evidence, not least the new airport, which is a vast improvement on the old one.  But still nothing to do in the evenings, which is made even worse on this trip by the fact that we are staying in a serviced apartment, with no bar to retire to after work.  So I will be taking the opportunity to update this blog for the whole of the last yer to fill in the many gaps.  Expect to see a load of very out of date posts appear in your mail box if you are a subscriber to this blog.

Topsham Ash Scattering

NOS Alive - Lisbon

Alison's 60th, Devon

Muse at the O2

From the intimacy of a Hanwell pub to the expanse of the O2 arena in the space of one day, but then I can't imagine Muse playing at the Inn on the Green somehow.
As usual with Muse, the show was on an epic scale and featured drone orbs to fit in with the theme of their latest album, plus the inevitable sci-fi themed visuals.  The set included all the standard Muse favourites plus a few songs from the Drones album, with the crowd singing along in all the right places.  

Hanwell Hootie

In spite of living just down the road from Hanwell for over ten years, I had never attended the Hootie, which is very similar in principle to the somewhat better known Camden Crawl.  Basically all the pubs in Hanwell, plus several pop-up venues, each host a selection of live bands for the afternoon/evening.  Judging by this year's event, it has now become possibly too popular for its own good, with most of the venues being absolutely rammed with capacity audiences.  We enjoyed a couple of bands before calling it a day.  Well worth the effort, but hard work!

Vancouver 2016

A few days to relax after skiing and show Alison around the delights of Vancouver.  Our hotel was in an excellent location next to Canada Place, and well placed for getting around town on foot, including the famous Gastown area, which was definitely more salubrious than when I was previously there ten years ago.
Our itinerary included the inevitable ferry trip to Granville Island, and a very pleasant cycle ride around Stanley Park and False Creek on the excellent city cycle tracks.

Skiing in Whistler

Our skiing vacation continues, with excellent snow conditions, and for the first few days at least, sunny skies. We are steadily working our way through the numerous restaurants and bars in Whistler Village, and now that we have fully adjusted to the time zone, starting to sample some of the musical entertainment available here.

Some recent substantial snowfalls have freshened up the pistes, although they didn't really need it. The only downside being reduced visibility while it is snowing.  A couple more days of skiing before we head off to Vancouver for the remainder of our holiday.

Whistler 2016

This is, I believe, my third time skiing in Whistler, but the first time for Alison.  We chose Canada this year because of the good snow record and the overall quality of the piste grooming.  Turned out to be a good decision in view of the poor snow in the French Alps this year.

With day one under our belts, we were both pleased that we were able to pick up pretty much where we left off at the end of our season in Morzine last year.

Lumiere London

An entertaining evening wandering around some of the many spectacular lighting installations in London's streets this week.