Brunch in Paradise

Sundays in India ... I don't even know what to say. By now we have experienced many unbelievable Sunday afternoons. Today was spent at the Dusit Devrana Resort with some good friends and some  new friends. Sanjay dropped us off and we entered ... heaven really. 

"Dusit Devarana New Delhi is set against a quaint background ensconced by nature. Surrounded by over a thousand mature trees, meandering water bodies, regally columned verandahs, elegant interiors, spacious guest rooms equipped with state of the art technology; it is an ideal destination for the leisure and corporate travellers alike. Designed by Khun Lek Bunnag, the Dusit Devarana resonates understated yet elegant spaces."

"Dusit Devarana New Delhi
Catering to the high-powered, discerning sophisticate, Dusit Devarana New Delhi is a significant niche offering that leverages Dusit Hotels and Resorts, Thailand’s leading premier hotel company’s rich cultural heritage and history of service excellence and Bird Group’s intellectual expertise as well as network to offer an intimate, high-end sanctuary experience. The resort reflects the ultimate in luxury and refinement, providing an enriching experience through artistic touch points and a modern yet timeless aesthetic. With personalized, discreet, flawless service and privacy for each individual, Dusit Devarana New Delhi provides an escape from the everyday world – a sense of renewal, a renaissance of the mind."

Where are we? We walked and walked through some amazing spaces with a reflective pool, a huge 3-ton copper door, round, soft curves and past coloured glass windows to get to the reception and out the other side where the restaurant was.

4 years ago these premises were a farm house being rebuild by an architect and a team of builders. The owner gave them free hands, with only one condition - not a single tree must be cut down. And it was not.
"New Delhi - March 31, 2014: It is with great pride that we announce that Dusit Devarana New Delhi won the NDTV Design & Architecture Award in the category of ‘Landscape Design of the year 2014’ recently." - source

 One great dish after another just kept coming.

Two of the creators of the lovely food, both from Malaysia, and the managing director Birgit.

Birgit took us for a tour of the place after the meal.

 The 8-acre property is very nicely designed with spaces for prayer and meditation ...

...massage,fitness and swimming ...

 

 ... and of course sleeping and relaxing.

Everything in the room from lighting to unlocking the door when room service arrives - of course after having seen who it is in the security camera - can be controlled via an app on your digital device.

The sinks weigh a few hundred kilos each!

The shower is a room by itself and you can also have a steam sauna in it.

This metal disc turns constantly throwing different shades every second.

When this door is closed and you stand outside looking in, you see the magnificent flower below.

The drop off/pick-up area is surrounded by a wall that looks like a hedge - it is in fact 350 000 articifial leaves and very impressive!

Thanks, GK and Birgit, for a lovely day.

Surprise surprise

Our last night in UK for this time was summed up so well by Maia, that I will let her speak on her own:

"It all started at my uncle's and aunty's house in England. We were getting dressed for the big surprise party for my mother that we had planned for weeks. We went outside and it was very cold but we walked anyway. When we got to the restaurant she was really surprised and said double thank you to my cousins, uncles and aunties and to me and my father.

After all the thank yous we ordered food and drinks. The grown-ups talked and talked and talked ... I was starting to get bored so I played on my new iPad that I got for Christmas.
In the mean time of all the talking my mum got a badge that said "birthday girl" on it.

When all the food came we ate and then we ordered desserts. Right after that the lights went out and all the service guys came out with a big smile and a birthday cake and put it on the table in front of her. 

She was so happy that she cried. Meanwhile we all sang "happy birthday". 

The cake was chocolate, my favourite (NOT). 

We ate the cake and took ALOT of pictures.

It was starting to get late so we went back home. When we got back we were so exhausted we fell asleep right away."

Crocodile Dundee at Witney

Our tour d'Angleterre took us next to a town in Oxfordshire called Witney where Ian's cousin Anna lives with her husband and daughter. Together they run a B&B - The Laurels, which we can highly recommend if you would ever find yourself in this part of the world. We were lucky, they had a couple of vacancies over the holidays, so we got a room at the inn.

Great food, lovely company and a nice day out at the ... Crocodile Farm?!

Crocodiles of the World

"The zoo owes its beginning to one man – our founder Shaun Foggett.
From the first scribble on a notepad right through to the building's construction, Shaun has been the driving force behind the zoo and the Crocodiles of the World organisation."

"The ultimate aim of Crocodiles of the World, and all those working for the conservation of crocodiles, is to see wild populations of all crocodilian species recover to unthreatened numbers and to promote well managed and sustainable use of resources in crocodile habitats."

It is a truly amazing place! Imagine finding crocodilians and hard work to recover threatened species - in Oxfordshire!

 Feeding time

We learned a lot and had a good and completely unexpected day out.

Sausage rolls, Christmas pud and a wee mince pie

It was a wonderful albeit hectic week in UK. Ian's family has spread out a bit so we have the good fortune of seeing a bit of the lovely English countryside visiting aunties, cousins and childhood friends. 
We had a very nice couple of days just outside Abinger Hammer south of London with the family.

Christmas Day presented itself with the most fabulous weather, perfect for a long walk to work up a good apetite.

After almost an hour's walk we arrived in the little village of Abinger Hammer and crossed the bridge ...

... looking the other way was a quaint little house that used to be a mill - the stream was running under it so probably one would find a water wheel inside.

We went in and did find a water wheel, and a nice watering hole ...

Brilliant! Just what we needed.

 Merry Christmas everybody

Well, at some point we had to get back to the turkey. On the way I spotted this door and had to take  pic :-)

Before everybody went into a food coma time to check out if Father Christmas had been in the night.

 Jem got his share as well. "Wait for it, wait for it"

 "Go"

Father Christmas seem to have left his elf behind. Oh, well, pick him up next year. He's nice so we'll keep him.

Off to the kitchen whoever has the urge.

 

What time is it Maia? Oh, lovely watch there ;-)

We had a lovely Christmas Day and the traditional Bubble and Squeak on Boxing Day, with a famous visitor ... times three.

Thanks! See you next time.