The Raja Monkey restaurant in Hall Green has an international reputation in the world of curries and again was one of the more unusual entries in the #keyofthecitybrum project. I was nearing the end of my key quest and I was wondering how to organise a visit to the restaurant. Unbeknown to me, Sandy and Sian were very interested in having a meal at the restaurant and so we booked on the Thursday when the opening ceremony to the Commonwealth Games was taking place. We arrived to a warm welcome and shown to our seats. We remarked on the décor of the restaurant which gave it a middle eastern look. Then we received our special menus for the #keytothecitybrum. Both Sandy and Sian went for the traditional curry option whilst Jim and I went for the special menu.
The Special Menu
The special menu had an Indian food base but was heavily influenced by Bangladeshi food preparation. There were three courses and when the food arrived the waiters explained in detail the source of the food. There was also a lot of pride in what they were serving.
To StartTo FollowTo Finish
At the end, Sandy and Sian said “one of the best curries they have had”. We reflected that the restaurant has a wonderful family atmosphere. The food was superb with excellent service. Thanks to #keyofthecitybrum for allowing us to discover this wonderful establishment.
LightEntranceShadows
A wonderful meal @rajamonkey and highly recommend visiting the restaurant.
The sign of a good meal.
My Journey with the Key If you wish to review my journey then I have published all my visits on my blog as follows.
Aston Hall is a beautiful Grade 1 listed building near to the Aston Villa football ground and is considered to be a leading example of a building from the Jacobean era. When I arrived at the Hall, a wedding party was setting up. Two Lamborghinis drove up and parked outside the hall. They provided great photographic opportunities.
Fast Cars in front of the Hall
I went into the house and as it was an early Sunday morning I found that I had the place all to myself. I have been to the Hall several times and always find it fascinating. So many highlights including the room where King Charles 1 stayed during the Civil War. The staircase where there are the remains of cannon ball damage in the wood which have not been repaired. The Long Hall always takes your breath away with its simple magnificence. I made my way to the staircase which leads up Dick Garretts room. Dick Garret was a servant accused of stealing food and then took his life in the Attic room named after him.
Canonball damageThe Long HallCivil War memories
Just before Dick Garretts room there is a grandfather clock and to the left a door followed by another door which has a lock. My key opened this door which opened quickly and noisily. Once through the door, there are several rooms that you are able to access. You enter the first two which are unfurnished and then the last one that is furnished with bed, mirror and writing desk. I realised that I was all by myself in this secret area. Aston Hall is supposed to be the most haunted place in Britain. Not only is there the ghost of Dick Garret but a Grey Lady that is seen around the Hall. Fortunately, I did not encounter them or any other ghosts.
The room with the entrance to the secret chamber.Empty roomShadowsThe door with the lockQuestions?Items on the table
Or was the ghost already there, I will never know?
The High Vis festival this year was at the Tea Works on Canal street. The wide open setting allowed for a range of Graffiti artists to ply their trade on the surrounding walls. I went to the festival with my family on the Saturday afternoon.
In ProgressDetailsAnnatomix at workPenguinFinal touchesColourful
The street art painters were in good form as well, with many ready to chat with you and let you know what they were painting. All the walls were in action and several artists were already working when we arrived. Seeing Annatomix painting was a bonus. The family were keen to get back to the shops and I only discovered her working on her scorpion design on the way out. There were many different art works on display but due to timing, most of them were works in progress. I will go back later in the week to check out the finished artwork. Stay tuned. The queues for the children’s art painting were slow moving and we did not get a chance for the grandchildren to try out some painting. There was just a high demand in that area and we will be ready for next year.
Redbull gapTaking offMind the gapTake a lookWatch out skaters aboutThe rail
We loved the skate boarding and the energy around the place. The skate boarders were excellent and there was the opportunity to get up close and see them in action. There was a gap which the skaters jumped over before turning around on the ramp. All the skaters negotiated the RedBull Road gap successfully and there was also a rail to skate along as well. The boarders are very skilful and also fun to photograph.The High Vis event is organised by Graffiti Artist and I am already looking forward to the next event in 2023.
Tea WorksDiscussing techniquesTea WorksResident DJPenguinPlanning the next stepsDiscussions
We were promised lots more activity during the B2022 Festival linked with the Birmingham Commonwealth games. When a readymade garden in the middle of Birmingham was announced, it really caught the public imagination. PoliNations was not like any other garden, attracting huge anticipation on what to expect. This display was stunning and so different to what had gone before during the festival. PoliNations is difficult to sum up in a few words. I will try to describe the scene but I am aware that the gardens brought out different personal experiences from those who went.
The fragrance always remains on the hand that gives the rose Hada Bejar
To put it simply, Victoria square was transformed into a garden. The paving stones, concrete, and other parts of the square were covered with grass and flowers. There were 5 manmade trees with large umbrella like canopies. These trees were 40 ft high and towered above the landscape with the trunks covered with colourful patterns. At ground level, there were walkways through a garden of plants. Access was by several entrances which lead to different zones. Iconic plants such as apple, fern, roses and tulips were featured. Other parts of the garden were called Fringe, Sunny or Temperature zones and had flowers to match the theme. The map shown provides a key to the different areas.
Map of PoliNations
The sensory garden had varieties of flowers based on those you would normally find in the City. I visited twice. Once while it was raining and the second time when the sun shone. I enjoyed all the textures, interaction with people and the use of mirrors on the public seating.
Mirror in the GardenMirror, Mirror
There was a full programme of events including music, dance and theatre which were held on either the large stage or the many smaller places through out the installation. I was not able to attend these shows but my visits during the day gave me a flavour of the place. PoliNations was magical but quirky, natural and surreal. The diversity of the place was displayed in the range of flowers, the colours on offer and the people passing through. The place eventually caught up with you and made you sit down and take in the uniqueness of everything.
Taking Time Out
PoliNations was a photographers delight allowing you to take a range of pictures. There were many stunning pictures taken using drones but I am a simple foot on the ground photographer and this is my interpretation of the place. A simple search on Instagram shows the variety of pictures that were taken. Please enjoy my pictures of my visit to PoliNations which serve as a memory of an extra-ordinary visit.
More pictures to view of PoliNations in the rain and the sun.
Rain does not stop people from enjoying the gardens.Take it slowRelaxTake it easyHave funSand and handsRainSelfie timeGreat interactions either live or virtualPolNationsThe Floosie in the Jacuzzi and PoliNations
Taking part in the @24hoursproject did challenge me in my photography. I learnt about it from a fellow photographer who also happened to be the UK ambassador for the project. When Anu told me about the project then I just had to get involved. After registering and donating to the designated charity, I got ready for the day. The charity chosen by the 24 hour team was supporting the work of Yonton Te which means “heart of the tree”. The donations will go to a local community in Chapas Mexico and the website provides more information on this worthwhile cause.
Hours 1 to 4
The theme of the 24 hours was to document the general human condition with emotions of love, humour, sadness, joy, fulfilment, pain, loneliness). As you will see from my photographs, I strayed away from the brief. This was not my intention but I was so focussed on getting a picture done once an hour that I forgot about the theme. Reviewing the photo feed of the project, many people went into their local cities, whilst I decided to base my 24 hours around my life at home. You will see that my first 8 hours evolved around sleeping and my breakfast. Also there were not many people stirring in Knowle village early on a Saturday morning.
Hours 5 to 8
At 10:00 am I went into Birmingham. By chance, my train driver was Yo Naysan, a fellow photographer. As the train pulled in he stuck his head out of the driver’s window and said hello. On arriving into Birmingham, I met up with Anu and her partner Kate and wandered around the city. I photographed the PoliNations display in Victoria Square, the Library of Birmingham, Gas Street Basin and the University of Birmingham, Exchange. There were people queuing for the book of remembrance for the Queen.
Hours 9 to 12Hours 13 to 16
Many of these are linked to tackling climate change and foolishly I did not take pictures of people. However in my outtakes I did and you will see many of these were fun pictures. Driving back home I pondered my contribution to the 24 hour project and took several pictures in the village at night. To recap, the main aim for this project was to experience 24 hours of pictures and see if I was able to complete the task. I succeeded in this task next year will be able to tackle the project in a different way as I know what to expect.
Hours 17 to 20Hours 21 to 24
And just for fun here are my outtakes of the day.
Selfie at PoliNationsWatching table tennisBirmingham TramThree’s a crowdAlright Bab
When we are away on our family holidays, we always seek out a trip out to a brewery or equivalent. In Cornwall we visited the St Austell’s brewery and last year we visited the Glengoyne whiskey distillery whilst we were staying at Loch Lomond. This summer, we booked a holiday home in the Herefordshire countryside.
Outside seating area
Our research of the area around Hereford led us to the Wobbly Brewing Company which was not too far from our Holiday home for the week at Swinmoor House. The brewery has a rising reputation, and we were keen to taste their beers. We got a lift to the trading estate in Wobbly on a warm August evening. The Brewery is in a lock up unit on the Beech Business Park. When we arrived, there were several comfy chairs and benches outside the entrance with the brewery is located towards the back of the unit. They had a terrific range of beers available and throughout the evening, we tasted many of the beers on the list. We also tried the gin flavours on offer. There was food available, and service was friendly and efficient.
Infamous facesSitting next to the beerThe selection boardBeer and food is idealThe Wobbly Brewery
By the end of the evening, we were the last customers and one of the team, Taylor, gave us a quick tour of the working part of the brewery. We left with a couple of cans of the Gold variety. Overall, I would recommend the brewery as a pub visit with a difference and was very similar to another outing that we took to the Burning Soul brewery in Birmingham. Such independent places should be supported as the beer is always served with enthusiasm and gives a different taste variety to the mass-produced offerings from the larger companies. Well done on Wobbly and yes, we did leave a bit wobbly.
Taylor gave us a quick look at the working end of the brewery.Creative ceiling decorationsEyes shut not Wobbly!
Swinmoor House was our holiday home for a week in August. The house was set in the beautiful Herefordshire countryside near to the village of Madley. Comfort and space were qualities that spring to mind about Swinmoor and the well equipped games room was a favourite with all the family.
The grounds around the house were beautiful with dramatic views towards the Black Mountains in Wales. In the garden, there was a traditional tree swing that hung from branches of an old oak tree. We have so many memories around that swing and my grandchildren loved it. There were squeals of laughter whenever they were on the swing and whilst all the family enjoyed taking turns, it was the younger two grandchildren sitting together who enjoyed moving back and forth through the air. I took several photographs of the grandchildren and the family by the swing. I hope you enjoy the pictures. There are several pictures of Swinmoor House is in the background. If you are looking for that special place to take a family holiday then Swinmoor House is highly recommended.
Living near Birmingham, any night sky photography is severely limited due to light pollution. During lockdown there was the chance to undertake star trail photography and I featured this in a previous article on my website “Stars in the Sky”.
In 2022, our family holiday was deep in the Herefordshire countryside at Swinmoor House, Madley. We were blessed with several clear nights with little cloud cover. I had never seen so many stars up above for a long time. Such clear nights were a great opportunity to get back into taking pictures of the stars. I use the StarWalk2 app which has a virtual view of the night sky.
Setting up the camera on a sturdy tripod, I am considering 3 settings. For the aperture, I wish to get as much light as possible, so I set my camera at f/2.8. For the shutter speed, I need a long exposure and 25 seconds is selected. Any longer and I would start creating star trails which would show the stars as lines. I will come back to this later. To allow sufficient sensitivity, I set the ISO at 800. My camera is a Canon D5 mark IV and the lens is a Canon EF16-35mm f/4L. The wide angled lens captures a broad viewpoint which is useful when featuring the sky in the photograph.
Firstly, I do a few test shots with the ISO set at 32,000 to provide viewable pictures of the scene and allow me to compose the picture with a strong foreground object which in this case was Swinmoor House. Also, I turned off as many lights in the house as possible but balanced the need for some to provide a focal point for the picture.
The Ursa Major Constallation in the night sky.
The first picture is of Ursa Major which was very bright and identifiable in the sky. It is also nicely framed by the surrounding trees and the house. The second picture was the night sky looking out over the Sagittarius star cloud better known as the Milky Way. Unfortunately, there was some cloud cover and light pollution in this direction. However, you can make out the milky way in the picture. These were the best pictures I could get during the week of the Milky Way due to cloud cover.
The Sagittarius Star Cloud seen from the Garden.
Editing was done on the RAW files correcting the lens profile, adding contrast and bringing out the shadows. Next I reduced the highlights and took the strong house lights down. The Ursa Major stars were bright and I helped a bit with some dodging. Finally I produced good pictures of the night sky.
Two nights later there was another clear sky and this gave me the opportunity to have a go at star trails. The camera set up and composition was as before although this time the exposure was increased to 30 seconds. The Canon camera has a built in intervalometer which I set at 1 second. Therefore, the camera shutter would be open for 30 seconds, shut, quickly process for a second before opening again. This continuous cycle was possible as I had a fast SD card in the camera for the processing of the pictures. Once I was happy everything was working properly, I left the camera to take the pictures. I was very tired and started at 10.30 and eventually after a few rounds of pool in the games room, switched the camera off at approximately 11.45. I am sure I could have gone for a longer time period but it would have meant leaving an expensive camera unattended during the night. The next morning, I collected all the jpg pictures (124 of them) into one folder. I downloaded the StarStaX freeware software and pasted the pictures into the program. I clicked a button and watched in amazement as the stacking software created the picture. There were a few edits required to remove stray light and the picture was cropped to provide a pleasing result.
Creation of star trails above Swinmoor House, Madley, Herefordshire.
The resulting picture looked great. A couple of satellite trails had crept into the picture and add some nice diagonals. I wish I had not gone to the bathroom during the picture taking as the light from that particular room is very bright. Another wish is to have taken more pictures to get stronger lines for the star trails. Then again, the pattern created is very eye-catching with a strong foreground image of the house setting off the trails nicely. You can see Polaris the North star plus a couple of satellite paths moving diagonally across the picture. What is helpful is the large number of stars as they provide a denser number of star trail circles compared to my previous attempt.
Eighteen months ago, I visited 16 acre wood which is on the HS2 line. I wrote an account of what was happening to this ancient woodland. On a bright Sunday in August 2022, I decided that it was time to give an update on how HS2 is progressing in this area and document their approach to this local beauty spot. Initially my walk over the fields from Berkswell was idyllic and the sun broke through the clouds as I made my way along the boardwalk out of the village. Black clouds on my chosen path began to form as notices from HS2 were being posted to indicate changes in the public footpath. I walked over the fields, up the hills and then made my way through the short woodland link to the next part of the footpath. Immediately I came out of the wood, there were mounds of recently turned earth.
New life created by HS2Strange signs and borders.
As I move onwards I came across the “new pond” created by HS2. It looked like Fort Knox with a notice saying “Ecology Exclusion Area” and “mitigation zone – no entry”. I am unsure what these signs are meant to convey but I guess they make the point that some form of protection is taking place. A mitigation zone is where they are attempting to protect a habitat. However, it looks like Fort Knox with all the Keep Out signs and chains stretching around it.
On the left the disruption by HS2 and on the left the effect on the wood
I see that HS2 is in full swing and the landscape is being scarred by the large earth moving machines. My pictures show on one side, the construction of HS2 which is ongoing and on the other, the state of the 16 acre wood. The words and signs are not welcoming. Trees appear to have been pushed over and the tree balls of soil and roots are upended in the air. There are signs that dictate where you can and can not go. The path is a designated a “pedestrian route” which is a strange term for a public footpath.
Trees upended with the rootball exposed.Will it grow back?Trees are markedWarning signs for herbicide to prevent Rhododendron growth.
The pictures show the state of the area. If only a bit more care and attention was given to what is being done to the environment then I may be reassured by the progress of HS2. As the pictures show, there is a lack of respect for the surrounding environment. There are signs showing Rhododendron herbicide is being used and I assume this is to allow the woodland to regenerate without the interference of invasive plants.
The old pond is drying up.
Finally, I did stop and take some time sitting by the old pond. The area is suffering from a lack of water due to the current drought and there are several trees that have fallen into the water. In the pond, there were dragon flies and damselflies moving around. Nature is on the brink around here and is still trying to survive.
Dragonfly in the pondA common darter rests in the sun
Someone said to me, don’t worry about all this HS2 work as the countryside will grow back and regenerate. I do wonder if this is true and whether we have damaged the landscape irreversibly.
After two abortive attempts to get to Touchwood, one at the wrong time and the other at the right time (but too near the stores opening time), I arrived at the ideal time. Midnight is when the centre allowed #keytothecitybrum holders to enter the shopping centre. As you can imagine, this is not an easy time for most people and as I walked down a dimly lit alleyway in Solihull next to McDonalds, I started to get second thoughts.
In a dark dark street….
The after-hours entrance is not a solubrious placeI as I walked down to the gates and pressed the intercom. A voice kindly welcomed me to the venue, but I had to wait while they did their evening checks around the centre. After 10 minutes I was admitted. In the meantime, two other key holders had arrived. It was a dark foreboding alley, and I was apprehensive as they approached but then reassured when I saw their blue boxes holding the key.
Out of hours entrance to Touchwood
Once inside the main shopping hall, the security people took us to the information kiosk. The key opened a locked box on the desk. Inside were sachets of Cadbury’s drinking chocolate which the security team used to make mugs of drinking chocolate for their visitors. We were then allowed to wander around the deserted shopping centre with our cups in hand. It was a surreal experience.
Box on the deskDrinking ChocolateDrinks on the way
All the shops looked like there were in stasis just waiting for the people to arrive. The area around the cinema was interesting without people around. I think it was the lack of voices and general noise that made the centre feel so different. I loved the Polestar car showroom where all the cars had their headlamps full on. The Apple shop did not have queue outside it but of course it was not open! The restaurants had the chairs upturned ready for cleaning. I spent a good 45 minutes looking around, taking selfies, and looking around the empty shops. Time then to go home and get to bed after my late night visit!
No Queues at the Apple Shop LOLNight time driving in an empty shopping centreNo noisy working machinesCineworld is empty!DarkEmptyNo one aroundThe selfie had to be done.
My Journey with the Key If you wish to review my journey then I have published all my visits on my blog as follows.
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