Day 32 - Firemen, faggots, and cobras ... oh my!

Now, before you get all up in my face about my using what you may consider to be a politically incorrect term in the title of today's blog, remember I am in another country. And, I might add, this is the home of the English language, so their use of a term should take precedence. So, stay with me, all will make sense ... and, hopefully, forgiven.

Our landlords, Alan and Caroline, had invited us to join them for a lunch drink in the pub of the nearby village of Longborough (where we walked on Day 29). Alan, we learned, is the godfather of several friends' dogs, and so finds himself dogsitting and dog whispering fairly regularly. He had to head to the Coach and Horses Pub in Longborough to return one such dog, a beautiful Labradoodle named Noodle, and suggested we go with him and Caroline for a drink and a chance to get to know each other.

Alan and Caroline had reserved a lovely table in a window nook, complete with plenty of pillows. You could easily find yourself sitting here without even realizing a couple of hours had passed by. And that is precisely what happened as we chatted and laughed with our wonderful new friends over a bottle of wine and ultimately a delicious pub lunch.

UK faggots...so in demand you can buy them ready formed,
and with more sauce. Source: www.barelyedible.co.uk

And this is where I explain faggots, as Phil had a couple for lunch. Stop; I know what you're thinking. Okay, so they are two handful-sized balls of meat. Seriously, stop! Get your mind out of the gutter and let me continue. Faggots are a traditional dish in the Midlands of England, and have recently been making a comeback on menus looking for retro dishes. They are made from meat off-cuts and usually pork offal (think heart, liver, entrails, and any leftover fatty bits...that sort of thing), all ground together (the English term is 'minced'... much nicer, isn't it?). Then to cover up the repulsion concoction, bread crumbs and lots of herbs are added. Think haggis, and you are getting close, only haggis formed into large meatballs. Phil, of course, is Mr. Sustainability, so why not give them a try?!

The reality: faggots are actually quite tasty. And no, I never thought I'd find myself typing that sentence. Stack some chips and a healthy helping of gravy on the plate, and you have yourself a meal that's sure to put hair on your chest, if not a layer of plaque in your arteries. If you doubt me, or find yourself curious as to how to make these round, fulsome delicacies, check out The Great British faggot from the BBC.

After returning to our flat, and having a rather decadent Saturday afternoon nap, we went for a long, leisurely evening walk through the surrounding neighborhoods with our new matching English Heritage umbrellas as a light rain was falling off and on.

Our quest was a fire training site we had seen on a map. The Fire Training College of Moreton sits on what was once the RAF Moreton in Marsh. The RAF base opened in 1940, serving as a training site for the next eight years for mainly Vickers Wellington bombers. The nearby Wellington Aviation Museum at the far end of town (which we are waiting to see with our son when he ventures over for a visit) is dedicated to those who passed through the base for training.

Today the college provides training through the full range of a firefighting career, from new recruit to Chief Officer. I'll let you know when I next smell smoke.

Source: www.fireservicecollege.ac.uk/

Darkness falling, we made our way back to the High Street, to dine at that other quintessentially English of cuisines: Indian food. The Hassan Balti, an Indian and Bangledeshi restaurant, is one of three...yes three...Indian-inspired restaurants in the small town of Moreton, which only proves my point that the English consider Indian food a fixture of their diets. At the Hassan Balti, Phil was rather pleased to find they had Cobra beer on tap.

After a nice meal, we took a stroll past the Bell Inn to see if we could find a spot to listen to the band of the evening, but the place was packed. So we continued walking down the length of the high street and then home to call it a night!