jamie goode's wine blog: St Paul's and football

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

St Paul's and football

Just back from a very warm game of football. There were nine of us, so we doubled up with the guys who play on the pitch next to us and played eight a side (they were seven). It's a good number - especially if, like us, you play on a large pitch. The game is played in a very good spirit: competitive, but always with respect for the opposition. For me, this means that a crunching tackle that leaves an opponent flat on the ground is followed by a handshake and an apology. I'm still red faced, though, an hour after the game. However, I must report that my workrate has improved since Fiona and I began running together every second day. We may be incredibly old, but we're not going down without a fight...

On a beautifully hot day (how much would I pay for this weather on Friday when I'm going to the Oval for day two of the final Ashes test) I found myself in St Paul's Cathedral. We're so used to amazing sights and experiences these days that we take this sort of place in our stride. But imagine how it must have looked to someone back in 1697 when the first service was held here. To someone from that time, this would have been a mind-blowing edifice, with its scale, the intricate, beautiful interior decoration, and the cavernous dome. [Forgive the camera phone picture above - it's all I could get because they get very upset if you try to use a proper camera inside the cathedral.]

I'm trying a great value Shiraz from the Languedoc: Asda Extra Special Shiraz from Jean Claude Mas. Brilliant stuff: ripe and meaty. And you can often get this for £5 (regular price is, I think from memory £6.07).

5 Comments:

At 8:48 AM, Anonymous Ben Smith said...

Jamie,
Funnily enough I was outside St Pauls the other day thinking just the same thing - it's a massive building and hugely awe inspiring - and yet as Londoners we tend to forget all about buildings like this. Have you been up to the stone gallery up top - the view is amazing!

 
At 6:39 PM, Blogger Ben said...

Talking of difficult places to take photographs, there are some interesting articles on the BBC Viewfinder blog about people innocently taking pictures who are then accused of terrorist acitivies. There is a campaign by some press photographers to stop this, but it must also impinge on amateur photographers too.

 
At 8:14 AM, Anonymous Keith Prothero said...

Incredibly old----come off it!! I have been running just about every day of my life and I have kids older than you

 
At 5:13 PM, Blogger Jamie said...

You have to be careful taking pictures on the streets these days - I've heard some scare stories too

 
At 5:14 PM, Blogger Jamie said...

Ben s, yes, the walk up to the top of the dome is pretty cool

 

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