Logitech Harmony 1000

We all know of the clutter on the coffee table and we have also all heard about the universal remote.

I am tempted to say that B&o pioneered the universal remote some 30 years ago however only supporting their own products in the same range.

More successful were those remotes that you could teach the signal of your old remotes.

For a long period of time, I have been using one of the latter from Cambridge with anice touch screen and everything. It has however always been a problem that the icons were fixed and not everything was available for all devices.

I believe Logitech's new device, the 1000, will cater for this.

The remote comes with a 3.5" touch sensitive color screen as on the picture. You can modify it with a USB connection to the PC but the best part is that most modern devices have already been coded.

Should you want to control devices in the cupboard or in another room, this can also be done by the optional radio transmitter, you then place in the neigbouring room.

This beauty obviously comes at a price. Around GBP 220,00 is the current price for it.....

Motor registration in Denmark

Many times, I have with friends and family discussed the outrageous car taxing policy in Denmark.

Lately we attended a football match between Denmark and Australia in Shepherds, here in London. On the one wall, there were advertisings for Danish viewers to buy a Huyndai Getz for DKR 117,000, which for the same amount of money could buy you a Minor ONE, Small VW Golf or Citroen C4 Picasso in the UK.

Disregard the fact, that I would rather spent DKR 117,000 on busfares than being the owner of a Hyundai Getz, I thought it could be funny to compile a chart of what are the manufacturing prices versus the street price in Denmark.

As an example DKR 300,000 will buy you a very nice car in Denmark but of that price DKR 294,000 will got to the tax man...

When mentioning a very nice car, I refer to a Volkswagen Passat or a well specified VW Golf. Both costing around GBP 15,000 in a reasonable spec....

Christmas in Hawkshead with Brian & Bernadette

During the period from 22/12 to 29/12 we visited Hawkshead in the Lake District with Brian and Bernadette, whim visited from Cape Town.

Click on the picture above to see our 35 favorite photos from the festiver period.

Nicole the cocolatier

On Friday Nicole went to Manchester to attend a chocolatier course, which was a birthday present. She left with the 07.00 flight from London to Manchester, being slightly nervous about what to expect.

I didn't hear a thing from her the entire day and only when I met up her in Manchester in the evening did I get to see what she had been up to...

The course was scheduled from 9.30 in the morning to 15.30 in the afternoon. Initially they went through the history and the theory behind chocolate. Apperantly the chocolate beans grow on trees and when they are ripe they are plucked and barried underground until they ferment.

Apparently the Venezuelan 47% chocolate is the best type (according to Nicole's taste that is).

Thereafter they started on making pralines with all sorts of filings. Some where with a nougat type, some with coconut.

After having done those they went on to make truffles which I think Nicole had a hard time with because the cream and the chocolate started curdling when she added the hot coffee for flavour. The second batch went a little better. She teamed up with another guy, who instead of coffee used brandy for flavouring. The coffee flavoured where the best...

Later in the afternoon they went on to make a coating for a cake and chocolate lollipops.

All in all she came home with more chocolate than we could possibly eat during our continued stay over the weekend in Windermere in the Lake District.

Copenhagen Ultra Light

So far the Blog has contained advice about what to do in Copenhagen during
a weekend break in the summer or in the winter. Only now is there also
advice for a 60 to 90 break, should you arrive via Copenhagen airport...

Although Copenhagen town center is only 11 minutes away it is far better
just to exit the terminal building and walk right, past car park 12 and
over to Statoil. Buy yourself 2 Hapsdogs for DKR 45 and enjoy..

This should not take longer than 30 minutes and thus you still have time
to explore all the tax free bargains...

Apparatus for tail wind whilst cycling...

Jacob Haugaard was around 10 years ago elected into the Danish parliament by proposing:

1. Tail wind on all bicycle lanes
2. Nutella in the army food rations

I think he wished that he had patented his ideas:

Check out www.patentlysilly.com to see for yourself.

A word of warning, Do NOT start browsing the other PATENTED inventions on this website unless you have HOURS to kill.

Personally I can recommend:

1. Article of Clothing with a Novel Attachment Means
2. Bottle Cap Necktie
3. Solar Powered Candle AS WELL AS Lightbulb changing device
4. Illuminated Wreth for the front of a car

And so it goes on as long as you want it to...

France & Barcelona pictures available

France & Barcelona

Sep 5, 2006 - 121 Photos

Click on the thumbnail above to view some of our best holiday photos...

New sofas

 

Visit to Carcassonne

Tuesday we visited the medieval town of Carcassonne.

They say it is one of the best kept medieval fortress in France and maybe
even Europe. It was impressive to walk around in this fully functional
town, catering so nicely for the tourists...

All the towers and walls are intact and quite a few also still have wooden
walkways around.

We are learning and this time we enjoyed our "artisan" (homemade) lunch and
only went exploring for our coffee.

After having explored the rest of the medieval town and spent a good EUR 12
on bisquits for the evening, we devided to take a walk through the
remaining town. The town has a really good atmosphere in the shopping area
as well. We made our way up to Gare SNCF abd bought tickets for Perpignan
to Barcelona on Friday morning. This was the only thing we weren't
completely sure was possible.

At the end of the day we raced home to the house to make a braai.
We made lamb chop for Nic and a nice steak for Mic. I have enjoyed the
steak with a nice bottle of Carbades feom the neighbouring town...

It is 21.45 and we are still able to sit on the terrace, drinking coffee
and our EUR 12 bisquits... They are allright.

Miraval, Carcassonne, Languedoc

This morning we left Avignon to drive to Carcassonne. We stopped at Pont du
Gard the amazing aquaduct sloping exactly 7 percent (As I remember) to
create the perfect stream of water in Avignon.

As we left, I estimated that we would arrive at Bentes house at 18.00 in
the evening. 18.03 and we pulled in, in front of the house. Scandinavian
precision...

Bente had told is the house was just north of Carcassonne, but in actual
fact we ended up 26 kilometres of winding streets later.
The situation is so remote, that I have got to ask Bente where and why she
has managed to find it in the first place?

The drive from Avignon to the house was mostly done on country roads. The
area is truly spectacular. Wine fields as far as the eye can see, until you
engage on the mountain drive. It is in fact more like driving through a
canyon with steep mountain sides both to the left and to the right.

We did the mistake of leaving Avignon, feeling confident that we would find
a supermache that was open on a Sunday. Eventualy wgen we arrived at the
house we had missed both lunch and dinner opportunities.
After having settled in the house we drove 12 km back to Corgues s. Orbitel
where we managed to find the only open restaurant. 2 entrecotes latee, we
were happy people and we could drive back to the house. We are now very
comfortable with road and I am almost not put off by the thought that I
have to drive 7 km to the nearest patisserie in Las Tours.

Although we had glorious plans about using this place as a base for endless
exploration, I think we both agree, that we will be content with sitting
and reading books in the swirley bench, listenibg to the mountain stream.
Only interupted by the churchbells LITERALLY above our heads.