Bring forth the Easter Bunnies!

As I was away this weekend I decided to do something a bit "arty" with the hooligans after school today..

It seems that after almost 5months of winter weather, spring may finally be making some headway, and with spring comes Easter. In Switzerland the shops start to fill up with chocolate Easter bunnies, they don't do the egg thing here, just solid choccy bunnies...fantastic!

So inspired by a window display of choice bunnies in out local confectioner shop, I armed my self with some coloured paper, plain paper, pritt stick, sticky tabs and kiddy scissors and set about  drawing some shapes on plain paper.

Then scanned the designs on the onto a variety of coloured paper and drew some circles on another...Once armed with a bunch of shapes on paper the hooligans set about cutting out with no real idea of what they'd be making...After some very intensive cutting out work, they had a pile of cut out blobs, funny banana shapes, white almost circles and very confused faces!

So, I put the first one together so they could see what they'd been working towards...

What a great reaction :) "Oh cool Pa, easter rabbits!!!"

Go on then lads, get sticking...

Once they'd spent time sticking their various rabbit designs together, I gave them some double sided sticky tabs and they set about putting them onto the window in little groups...

Such a simple idea and so much joy :D

Now bring on the chocolate ones please!

To Ski or not to Ski?

And so it's back to business after our half-term break, a little ski trip that didn't go entirely to plan....

AXALP

This year we visited the very small, but very beautiful Bernese ski resort of Axalp. Located about a 1hour drive from us at the end of the Brienzersee, up a winding mountain road sits a small village at an altitude of 1540m above sea level. Axalp has a few great restaurants, a hotel, a ski hire shop, village store and lots of holiday villas, chalets and apartments. Unlike some of the larger resorts in the area, Axalp is never overcrowded, a sprinkling of different nationalities give it a nice feel with visitors from UK/Germany/Netherlands and Swiss and it's location allows you to make the most of some really beautiful views across the Bernese Alps and down to the lakes from the various ski runs, snow-shoe trails and sledging paths sprinkled over the mountainside.

First Evening View

We rented a small chalet which was situated right on the mountainside over looking the lake, beautifully appointed with everything a small family could need.

Chalet Interior

Best bathroom view ever?

We hired our skis, boots and poles from the very friendly and extremely reasonably priced shop and booked the hooligans into the Axalp branch of the Swiss Ski School, who's tutors are really first class and speak multiple languages including English. So impressed was I, that I booked a couple of 1-2-1 lessons as i'm not the worlds greatest skier. Infact Mrs S and the boys make me look like an imbecile when I take to the slopes, so a bit of extra "pro-coaching" was just the ticket!

Getting Better!

ALL GOOD SO FAR!

Now, in the week before we left for Axalp, BIG and small had been struck down with the dreaded coughing virus that has spread like wild fire in the village school, after a couple of days off they seemed to be doing well and both really looking forward to getting on their skis again..The night before we left BIG started sneezing and spluttering but aside from a runny nose we decided all was well, after all we have spent a lot of money on a wide variety of thermal underwear, ski clothes, boots, gloves, hats etc. You name it we've got it...you see, in Switzerland there is no such thing as bad weather, only the wrong clothes!

So, after loading the car with all of our gear and the all important sledges, we set off for Axalp, arriving mid-morning after a lovely drive up the twisting mountain roads through the snow line and up into a winter wonderland! After unpacking we decided upon a spot of sledging before lunch and duly headed up to the nursery slopes to career at high speed on some beautifully prepared snow, BIG was travelling at such a rate of knots that he was literally flying off some of the little jumps, lots of fun!!

BIG Taking Flight!

After a quick lunch back at the chalet, we kitted up and headed for the ski-school, the hooligans went off with their tutor Marilyn and I met my tutor Marcel who, after making sure I had my basic ski handling together, took me off up to the top of the mountain (2000m) on the chair lift and we started working on my (non existent) carving skills, allowing me to turn with my skis parallel using the edges for grip, rather than my usual slightly apprehensive "SnowPlough" safety first style!

As a musician I'm always so paranoid about falling and breaking something but, with Marcels patient and humorous approach I was able to take my basic ability to the next level and feel so much more confident as we headed down on the beautiful runs!

As we got down to the lower slopes I was very proud to see both BIG and small skiing really well in their group, after our lessons had ended we managed to get a few runs down the lower slopes together, mainly with the boys beating me to the bottom of the run with ease, they are utterly fearless!

Small on the Bugellift

Back to the chalet for 4:30 and a rat on the terrace in beautiful sunshine before a fondue with the family, that's the traditional swiss bowl of melted cheese on a table top burner, you eat it by dipping chunks of fresh bread on the end of long forks. delicious and very filling! Both boys were exhausted and after getting them ready for bed BIG started to develop a bit of a fever and a nasty hacking cough...

Sunshine on the terrace

After a sleepless night where we split the boys up, BIG in with me coughing all night and small with Mrs S so at least they got some sleep.. breakfast time rolled around with a huge load of fresh overnight snow and lots of coffee, BIGs fever had subsided and he was absolutely determined to go back to ski school and carry on his holiday, what a little trooper...despite my reservations over his coughing, which was not great at all, he got himself ready and both boys looned around in the snow outside whilst Mrs S and I got ready. The cold air seemed to actually help BIG and his coughing was much better by the time we headed up to the piste.

Morning View after the snow 

Looning Around

Another full on afternoon of skiing between some particularly heavy snow showers was enjoyed by all until the wind picked up and the storm clouds closed in...Mrs S took the hooligans back to the chalet after ski-school and I got some time to practice my carving on the mountains before the weather put paid to anymore fun, time to head home I tool a wrong turn and ended up way out of the village with no chance to get back up the mountain on a lift, so with a blizzard smashing in around me I took off my skis and walked 20mins back, arriving home looking like a very knackered snow man, I was greeted by a very sickly BIG and a rather worried Mrs S.

BIG had pushed himself so hard that he literally had no energy left and had a raging temperature and that nasty cough had returned worse than ever. We got him into bed and lit a fire as the storm outside raged on for the rest of the night..BIG was once again unable to sleep for his constant coughing and so without a doctor in the village we took the extremely hard decision to head home the next morning and call in at our kinderartz (Children's Doctor) on the way.

When the north wind doth blow!

In the morning BIG was so exhausted we left him in bed as I ventured into the village to inform the ski school and return out skis..much to my surprise everyone was extremely sympathetic, I was refunded all of the remaining rental money and ski school payments and even given money back for the days we would miss on our family ski pass. That certainly doesn't happen everywhere and I must really express my thanks to the Axalp ski team for their generosity and understanding!

Last Morning

BIG was so exhausted that we had to carry him to the car and he slept the journey home and also in the waiting room of the doctors...the doctor told us he just had a particularly nasty bronchitis and that we had absolutely made the right decision to bring him home, armed with inhalers and other meds we arrived back home to unload all of our gear and get BIG straight to bed.

That evening we were called by the rental chalet owners who wanted to check on BIG and also offer us to finish our remaining 3 nights whenever we liked, either sometime in the remaining season or sometime next year, whenever was good for us!

BIG has gone on to make a full recovery and was back at school this morning, we didn't get the chance to fully enjoy our trip to Axalp this time, But we are very relieved we took the decision we did. It could have been much worse if we'd have stayed longer. Despite missing out we are happy in the knowledge that thanks to the generosity and understanding of the lovely people in Axalp we can visit again and hopefully finish off what was shaping up to be a great holiday!

And what about small, how did he feel? He doesn't care..."Skiing is stupid Pa, there is no Star Wars lego in Axalp"

All's well that ends well :D

All Good!

 

The Great Potty Training Adventure!

I have read a lot of blogs on the  brilliant topic of getting the small ones out of nappies, and after sharing some ideas we used for both our boys with friends recently, we were delighted to hear our tips worked just as well for them. So why not share them with the readers of my Blog?

Now, I don't profess to being any kind of potty training guru in the slightest but, a few years ago (how time flies) it was time to tackle the subject head on...The huge expense of having both boys in pampers (25 CHF a pack out here) was becoming ridiculous, we seemed to spend as much on nappies as gas for the car and furthermore changing nappies was, of course, not my favourite way to spend a significant chunk of my day..

We had tried some time before during a previous hot summer with the trusty potty but, BIG absolutely hated the thing, he'd rather go on the floor than sit on the bloody pot!

Then, one day,  Nana sent over a great book from England "Pirate Pete's Potty" All about a little kid getting used to doing wees and poos on his potty and not in his nappy. (I believe there is a girls version too.) The book has a charming little story with some lovely illustrations and a little button that rewards a good result on the pot with an enthusiastic cheer! The book worked well with BIG as he loves stories and it at least made him want to have a go at the task in hand, if only just so he could get a cheer by pressing the little button. Unfortunately BIG still hated the pot and despite a few weeks of almost getting there, BIG would rather go in the nappy...  He knew exactly what he was supposed to be doing and even insisted on pressing the little cheer button each time he did something in the nappy.....Thanks to Pirate Pete we were almost there but, ultimately I had to go back to the drawing board...

Later that year I was away with the band in France for a few days, staying with the bassist and his young family one night we were sharing stories on toilet training (maximum Rock n Roll)  His wife said "Oh you must try the little toilet steps, the girls hated the potty so, we found these and they started using the toilet immediately" Off we all went upstairs to the bathroom there sat a little set of robust and colourful plastic steps that sat on the existing toilet seat, brilliantly allowing little ones to safely climb up and use the toilet, there were even a couple of handles for them to cling on to....bloody brilliant!!!

I ordered said Toilet Step from eBay and we eagerly awaited their arrival, in between times I came up with the idea of an award chart...Our boys are very competitive and love a little challenge...


The idea is the child get awarded a sticker for each wee or poo they do on the toilet / potty and after several successful attempts they get a small prize... for BIG and later on Small,  this was a ChupaChups lolly....when the ultimate goal of being nappy free was reached, the Grand Prize was a much prized Star Wars Lego set. I set a target of one month to be free of the Pampers forever....

And so the steps arrived, the Pampers were ditched and replaced with "Pull up's" and the chart was duly put into action, BIG was super keen to impress and despite a couple of small accidents, he was going great guns in the first week, there were a few times he just was so engrossed in whatever he was doing he couldn't make the bathroom in time, the Pull Up's were a bit of a godsend there...

BIG absolutely loved the steps and felt like a proper big boy by using the toilet, he also loved sticking the stickers on his chart and was able to see his own progress..the surprising side effect was that small, who at this stage was still a little too small to potty train, also wanted to sit on the toilet steps, and did so often whilst still wearing his nappy, it got him into the habit early simply by watching his older brother...


Anyway, after 17 days of stickers and prizes, BIG was out of nappies for good and 6 months later we did the same with small. The plastic steps allowing them to use the grown up toilet, coupled with the excitement of a sticker chart and the prize incentive, certainly provided our two hooligans with the required amount of enthusiasm to make a sometimes painful and thankless task, relatively simple.

Finally we were nappy free, my early morning super sensitive nose was extremely thankful, I seemed to have much more time on my hands and we had saved a significant chunk of cash to boot!

So to all parents out there doing the whole potty training thing, stick with it...there is a light at the end of the tunnel, honest.  Your nose and your bank balance will thank you in the end, just find a suitable form of inspiration for your little ones and you'll be nappy free in no time!

Cooking Up A Storm for Valentines Day

 BEEF WELLY

I’m no Jamie Oliver but have always enjoyed getting stuck in and creating stuff in the kitchen. My dishes, whilst not always pretty to look at, usually taste pretty good….so I’m told.

As it was Valentines Day yesterday and I was at home on kids duty, I thought i’d whip something up for Mrs S to enjoy when she came home from a hard day at work. And so, after dropping the boys at school in the car (not my ususal practice) I hit the supermarket and purchased:


Beef Fillett
Garlic
3x Shallotts
Fresh Rosemary
2 x Chillis
Parma Ham
Puff Pastry
Asparagus
New Potatoes

This is the basic shopping list for my Beef Welly, loosely based on a beef wellington but minus the mushroom and chestnut bit which neither of us really like..substituted with something that has a bit more kick!

So let’s get stuck in…

Heat oven to 200 and season & splash beef with some olive oil, then roast in a tray for 15 mins untill medium-rare, when it’s done stick it in the fridge to cool for 20 mins. 

Cover with foil so the meat sucks back up the juices.

Whilst it’s cooling down, prepare your chilli / garlic / shalllots….this is usualy the mushrooms and chestnut bit but this is a little spicier alternative that I came up with.

Peel and prep 3 shallots, 2 chills (if you want it spicy), a couple of chunks of Garlic depending on your taste and some fresh rosemary and blitz the lot in a processor 

until well chopped like bread crumbs.

Lay out 2 large bits of cling film and spread out your parma ham slices to suit so they overlap a bit.

 

Cover the ham in a thin layer of your chilli & shallott mix then place the cooled beef in the centre. 

 

Use the remaining shallots mix to cover the meat and using the cling film, draw the ham around the fillett and roll into a sausage shape. 

 

Twist the ends of the cling film to hold it in place..stick it in the fridge whilst you prep the pastry.

You can make your own pastry but with limited time before the hooligans came home, I opted for some pre-prepared Puff pastry…

Cut a nice slab of pastry for the base and stick it on a baking sheet, brush the edges with an egg wash and take the beef from the fridge, pop it in the middle of the pastry after carefully unwrapping it.

 

Lay another slab of pastry over the meat coating the edges of the pastry in an egg wash and gently fold it all up into a parcel, being careful to not pierce the pastry.

Coat the whole thing in a bit of egg wash and slap it in the oven 

Cook at 200c for 25 to 30 mins depending on your wish for medium or well done.

I served mine in thick slices with some gravy, oven roasted new potatoes 

and bacon wrapped asparagus.

Lovely job, very tasty and a very happy wife!

Brilliant Butties

The Butty is a wonderful thing, a very English thing...

According to Wikipedia, Butty may refer to:

Sandwich, a food made with two pieces of bread encompassing a filling.
Northern England colloquialism. A buttered (normally white sliced bread or bun) sandwich. Most commonly used for bacon sandwiches (bacon butties) or chip sandwiches (chip butties).

Why am I writing about it?

Well as an Englishman abroad, my family and workmates are often staggered at the breadth of fillings with which one may choose  to construct a Butty. It is the ultimate, all purpose snack food.

It seems that outside of ol' Blighty the Butty really has limited appeal, the people of my adopted homeland mainly seem to look at me and shake their head when they witness the construction of a butty. Personally I can't see what all the fuss is about...

Just last night my good lady wife looked on in despair as I painstakingly built a fantastic Spag Bol Butty for my tea. And it seems no-one in Switzerland gets the chip butty at all, especially when it's accompanied by a large chunk of cheddar cheese (Really not the done thing over here but, I can't give up my Cheddar!!)

I do however have a cunning plan ... I recently, covertly introduced the crisp butty to tea time...Filling up a soft "Wegli" roll with Walkers crisps was an instant hit with BIG and Small. 

I have started a quiet Butty revolution and need only sit back and watch it grow, as long as Mrs S doesn't find out, i'll be fine!

The Psycho Parent From Hell

..It's Monday and I'm still in the midst of that early morning fog of having transitioned from 4 days of life as a musician to that of early morning Dad on the school run...

What is crystal clear however, is my anger over an incident that happened to small at the end of last week whilst I was away with the band...

My brilliant wife was starting her bit of the week with the hooligans and had done all of the things we have to do in order to get them out of the house for 7:55am. That part of the day in the bag, she settled down for some office work at home, some home schooling for BIG who has been off school for a week with a chest infection and prepared the lunch for small  (In Switzerland kids come home for lunch everyday) At around 12:20 Small literally fell through the front door in a terrible state, screaming, shaking, crying and holding his eye...

After around 15 minutes of trying to calm him down and find out what the hell had gone wrong, a rather disturbing story came to light...

On the way home from school, small and his little group of mates had been kicking a football around, another group of kids joined in and a little scuffle broke out between a couple of them, resulting in one little lad getting punched...

The little fight broke up and the two groups of 6 year olds carried on walking home, at this point a lady, parent of the boy who had been punched, appeared from her house and started chasing the group of boys including small, down towards the busy main road through our village, screaming and shouting as she ran after them...Of course they ran as fast as their little legs could carry them...

2 of smalls mates short off down the farm track to where they lived leaving small high tailing it down the main road...The very angry lady eventually caught up with small and grabbed him by the hood and rucksack and started shouting in his face

"If you ever touch my son again, I will punch you!"

In her anger it would appear that she also poked him in the eye whilst shouting in his face, then, letting go of him, he fell over and sat on the street shaking, in floods of tears as she walked back to her house......

My wife phoned me in the studio to recount the story and ask what she should do....I could hear the absolute distress from small in the background and it was difficult to keep my composure as she recounted this most absurd event.

My initial reactions were:

1. Call the school and tell them what happened.
2. Call the Police and report the incident.
3. Find out if any of the other boys saw what happened
4. Take a picture of Small's eye showing the red mark from a finger.


After many calls here and there, my wife was able to piece together the story from some parents, as recounted above..She decided to take small back to school and confront the very angry lady on her way. After making sure he was safely back in school Mrs S came across the angry lady and confronted her with a "what the hell were you thinking laying hands on my child?" The angry lady started crying and admitted she had chased and attacked the wrong boy, as her son had in fact been hit by someone else. In her anger she saw a group of boys running away and assumed it must be them and so gave chase...

She was extremely apologetic and after venting her fury in return, my wife went home to stew a bit and call me.... I was still steaming with anger and couldn't understand why she hadn't yet reported it to the school and Police...

Mrs S decided to go to the school and seek with smalls class tutor who was extremely supportive and understanding and offered to help in any way she could....The very angry lady  was waiting for my wife and small at the end of school with an apology, a box of chocolates and more tears..

Small was having none of it and having graciously and reluctantly accepted an apology, walked off home leaving my wife feeling rather awkward standing talking with a crying, remorseful very angry lady, as a bunch of other parents filed past...

A few days on and small, aside from a red mark under his eye, has shown no after effects of the incident, he has just bounced back to his usual noisey, boisterous self...

I however, can't seem to let this go...

Why would you as a parent, lay hands on another child without a full picture of what has happened? Why would you terrify a little kid and then leave them crying in the street? Why would you not confront the parents of a child you suspected of bullying your child, to find out exactly what happened?

I am still enraged about what small endured at the hands of the very angry lady and despite an apology from her to my wife and son, I am worried about just what I will say when I see this lady or her husband at some point this week on the school run....

I can't help but feel it should have been reported to the Police..I don't care that I've been told by half of the village that they are a really nice family...she assaulted my kid for fuck's sake!!!!

Am I over reacting?, should I just accept the apology and move on as my son clearly is...

I just don't know.....grrrrrrrrr

Big Boys Toys

My other job, the one which doesn't involve trying to get felt tip off the sofa, chocolate out of the rug, dog poo off the stairs or rebuild broken Lego sets and cook sausages, sees me playing drums for a band, sometimes I get time off from both jobs for a bit of "Dad Time"

One such recent opportunity for "Dad Time" was the adult equivalent of being let loose in the toy shop with an unlimited budget. Thanks to a fan of the band I work in, I was invited to an exclusive British Sports Car taster day in the Alpine town of Interlaken, Switzerland.

Being nothing short of a massive petrol head I was completely over-excited at a project of hooning around in some great motors in the Alps, so I polished my shoes, put on a nice pair of jeans, a shirt without raspberry jam on it and made my way to Interlaken.

I was met in the lobby of the Grand Hotel with a lovely breakfast buffet and got chatting to some of the other guests in the holding area, some were there to buy, some were there to try and some had no idea why they were there at all..whilst nosing around trying to find the Gents, I happened to go through a door into the courtyard where I was greeted by a fabulous sight....

1. McLaren 650s
2.Bentley Continental GT Cabrio
3.Bentley Flying Spur
4.Rolls Royce Ghost
5.Rolls Royce Wraith

These were the fabulous creations I had come to drool over, drive, and enjoy...  As luck would have it I seemed to be in the right place at the right time, and was invited over to have a look around the fantasy garage, I started with something very subtle..

McLaren 650S

This amazing machine looks like it's doing 200mph when it's sat still, understated it is not and in the company of the other cars on offer, looked like a cartoon style superhero! I was invited into the cockpit with a warning to "Watch your head, Sir" as I unceremoniously fell in, past the doors, ass first over the deep sill into the carbon fibre tub, coming to rest in the very snug drivers seat. The cockpit is small but comfortable and beautifully upholstered in alacantra and leather with complementing orange stitching. There are a handful of control buttons on the carbon centre console along with a small screen and iPod style navigation wheel and directly ahead a single dial on the digital display dashboard. It's got all the mod cons with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Air-con, DAB Radio but, alas, no space for child seats :) 

I was joined in the cockpit with my guide (Ralph) who was there to make sure I could operate the machine and keep an eye on me to ensure I didn't get into all sorts of speed related trouble and wreck his very expensive car. He explained all the controls and paddle shift gear box and then invited me to press the big START button...I did just that and was rewarded with a symphony of twin turbo V8 exploding into life just behind my head... it made me do this...

After being told we'd start with all of the driver aids switched on, Ralph told me to pull back on the right hand gear paddle and we slowly moved off..my heart in my mouth. Interlaken is a super touristy place and the picture book Swiss style buildings with a backdrop of the snow topped Eiger was no match for a bright orange McLaren making a sedate but noisy path out onto the main promenade..I felt like an A-list celeb as literally hundreds of tourists started taking pictures of the car as we drove out of the town toward the autobahn. Despite having the power of a planet, the 650s was really easy to drive at low speed through the small town roads, the steering light and pedals responsive to the slightest touch. As we headed down the ramp onto the autobahn, Ralph checked over his shoulder pressed a couple of buttons on the console and instructed me to change down 2 gears and give it the beans..

I did just that and the world exploded into a cacophony of noise and blurred vision as the McLaren suddenly turned from a sedate but noisy, town friendly sports car into a cross between a Saturn 5 rocket, Concorde and a heard of angry dragons..Utterly overwhelming, in seconds I was suddenly travelling at waaaaaay over the speed limit... 

After calming down a bit, enjoying the drive, the power and the spectacle of the thing we exited the autobahn onto a small straight road where Ralph instructed me on the Launch Control function.. 

Press this, Turn that, Set the revs here and then let your foot off the brake....

Booom, once again the Saturn 5 rocket was hurling us down the road at a furious pace..Now stamp hard on the brakes, came the instruction...I obliged and was rewarded with a sensation akin to someone trying to simultaneously pull my face off and suck the internal organs out of my body... in a fraction of the time it took for us to reach ridiculous speeds, we were at a stand still and the only thing I could muster was a very eloquent..... Fuck Me!

Right, let's try the magic carpet ride next, suggested Ralph..The Rolls Royce Ghost

The Rolls is nothing short of enormous, everything about it is just huge, the radiator grille, the bonnet (The Hood for my US readers) the doors and of course the price tag! You do get an awful lot of motor car for your money. This beautiful example was finished in a deep midnight, metallic black lacquer with a complementing silver metallic bonnet (Hood) the picture does absolutely no justice to the beauty and finish of this vehicle. Climbing into the incredible interior is an elegant affair, none of the embarrassing drama of the McLaren, one simply climbs in through the power assisted doors and sits in what can only be described as the most comfortable armchair ever. It really is like the most exquisite lounge room on wheels.  Once the door has gently closed itself, you are cocooned from the outside world in an almost silent and very comfortable atmosphere. 

Right, lets go! said Ralph..

OK, how do I start it? 

Its already running... he replied. 

I couldn't even hear let alone feel that the huge engine was on, there was no indication on the dashboard, there was a just a large speedometer and a large power gauge and a temperature gauge. 

I put it in drive, gently pressed the accelerator and we glided from a standstill, effortlessly out onto the road.

Despite it's size the Ghost was just amazing to drive, you hear nothing, you feel nothing you just breeze along at what ever speed you desire.... fast, slow, left , right...it's literally like you are flying on a magic carpet, it responds to the slightest touch with no drama and no fuss...it just wafts. The lack of usual sensations you experience in a normal vehicle are, at first, a little alarming but I soon got used to it and just enjoyed the experience....The only time I actually heard the massive Twin Turbo V12 was when I put my foot to the floor and saw the power dial shoot right up, there was a slight rumbling noise as the huge car literally surged forwards with frightening pace--The Rolls Royce Ghost can only be described as a unique and very special experience...intoxicating!

Next up, I channeled my inner Premiership footballer and mounted the mighty Bentley Continental GT Cabriolet. Ralph was happy for me to take this trip solo and so the first thing I did was put the roof down..it's a little rule of mine, I mean why buy a cabrio and ride around with the roof up?

It's a cracking car this, big yes but not planet sized like the two Rolls', plenty of room for the boys and Mrs S and I swear the boot is big enough to get most things in. It looks great, it sounds great and it's fantastic to drive...I wouldn't really fancy parking it in the underground supermarket car park on shopping day and I can't say Mrs S would be too happy about that either but at least we'd get everything in..A brilliant drivers car, a real sports GT and a proper show offs car :)

Honorable mentions for the Bentley Flying Spur, a lovely machine for real drivers without the spectacle of the Rolls Ghost, understated but a bit "Old Man" for me...

...and the Rolls Royce Wraith, beautiful but my least favourite vehicle in the pack, just seemed a little bit pointless, a massive 2 door sports car for people who don't want the sensation of driving a sports car..or for people who just want to show off...Perfect for your footballing types.

After tooling around in these incredible machines I was gifted some really beautiful coffee table books on the three marques as a souvenir of my day and headed home in my muddy Volvo XC60, not sporty, not fast but perfect for carrying drums, going skiing, mountain biking, going to the DIY store and hauling my little family around.

 I made a good choice in my trusty Volvo but, if I had too, and if I had the means...the McLaren and the Ghost would be on my shopping list.....and the Bentley GT for summer alpine cruising....

Yeah right...dream on Pa, what's for tea?

Special thanks to Schmol AG Zurich