Wednesday 12 May

For anyone who is interested in diary writing, this may be something to pursue. I am sure I did it last year and will try to do it this year.

http://www.massobs.org.uk/write-for-us/12th-may

The aim is to capture a record of the everyday lives of people across the UK. I suspect that fewer people keep a paper journal nowadays, so much is electronic, like this blog. So a data base will give future researchers something to analyse.

I had high hopes of warmer weather today. We sat outside but could not remain there for our dinner time. The temperature is dropping steadily. We still have the central heating kicking in, which seems profligate for the middle of May. The laburnum is gradually picking up speed but lack of warmth and water is taking a toll elsewhere.

I watched Rick Stein in Vienna, a repeat, like so many other TV programmes at present. But oh a wave of nostalgia overcame me. He walked down the Naschmarkt, an open air market with many food stalls, some traditional Viennese but many Turkish as well. He went to a restaurant for traditional goulash which in Austria is predominantly beef and onions, with paprika seasoning, but no peppers or tomatoes. It is utterly delicious I have to agree. He finished with Wiener Schnitzel and I thought of the wonderful local hostelry in Grunau where we ate schnitzels that filled the dinner plate.

So to finish with the archetypal Viennese march. Here Barenboim seems to be shaking hands with every member of the orchestra!