Challenge #32: Eat a Cornish Pasty (preferably in Cornwall)

I ate something protected. I ate a Cornish Pasty.

I've had many pasties in my life, but never a Cornish one. Little did I know that I was stepping into controversial territory with this challenge. As it turns out, the Cornish pasty is now a protected species.

Recently, the Cornish Pasty has been granted Protected Geographical Indication status. This basically means that you can't call something a Cornish pasty unless:
- it follows a traditional recipe (beef or mince, swede, potato and onion with a light peppery seasoning)
- it is in a distinctive 'D' shape and is crimped on the SIDE (not the top!)
- it is made in Cornwall

Fair enough I say. Although, it does make me wonder about the 'French' fry.

So, being the modern lady, I googled 'best places for Cornish pasties' and found a list. Luckily, one of those places was in village we were planning to visit. So I dragged my parents down some street in Looe to find 'Sarah's Pasty Shop'. Guess what is sold there? You got it. French fries.

After purchasing our pasties, we walked down to the water's edge to enjoy them. I'm not sure how 'traditional' it was of me to cover mine with tomato sauce but hey, it tasted good.

The pastry really was the highlight. Ridiculously golden, thick, yet light. Crunchy. Not sure about the insides but it was fairly tasty. I don't think I'll be rushing out for another one. In fact, the idea of one makes me feel slightly ill. Glad I only got a medium one...

Aside from a slight nauseated feeling, my pasty challenge left me with some interesting facts about pasties. For example, pasties have existed for 200 years and were originally eaten by poorer families and working men in particular. The crimping on the side made a handy handle (ha!) for tin miners and was discarded afterwards because of the arsenic in the mines.

Part of the Cornish identity and now a protected species. Not a bad effort for the pasty really. And not a bad way to fill a hungry stomach on a windy spring day by the sea.

Challenge #22: Participate in a Pub Quiz

Who doesn't love a good pub quiz? You get to show off when you know things (even if they are few and far between), work as a team and drink beer while you do it!

I chose The Goat in Clapham for this particular challenge. They do a regular Monday pub quiz and are well known for their food. I have to say that they didn't disappoint on either factor.

The Goat had made their pub quiz a bit more interesting by awarding extra points for the 'best decorated goat' and a prize for the best team name. We ended up being called "Get your goat, you've pulled" which apparently is a play on the line "Get your coat, you've pulled" which basically means a guy has managed to con a girl into going home with him. According to my housemate anyway, I'd never heard it before. And we didn't win the best team name so maybe the quiz master hadn't either...

We also didn't get the extra points for our 'Where's Goat?" version of the goat. We all felt robbed.

Needless to say, we didn't come last. We came second last. This was even more embarrassing considering that one of the rounds was 'Australia' and 3 of us were Australian...

I did learn some new things though. Did you know that the largest structure built by organisms is The Great Barrier Reef? Or that the quiz master was born in New South Wales?

Love a good pub quiz.

Challenge #38: Picnic at Hampstead Heath

Sunshine in London is more precious than water during a drought. So when the sun does make an appearance Londoners all flock to the amazing parks and commons in the city.

Hampstead Heath is one of those havens. On a sunny day it is packed with people who are picnicking or throwing gigantic frisbees (well, someone did on the day I was there).

As soon as it was obvious that the sun was staying out, I left the house in - shock horror - a t-shirt! This is a sign of truly warm weather in London. (A total freak, it went back to its usual chilly temperatures by 5pm). After grabbing a roll from a supermarket, I met a couple of friends in the park for a picnic. Admittedly, I usually go to more effort than buying a pre-made roll, however on this day I just wanted to be in the sun. A sign that I'm becoming a real Londoner.

I didn't see a lot of the heath in the end, just enjoyed the warmth and the lake, as well as some good conversation with my friends. Which is the whole point of the heath I think. I will definitely go back there and have a better explore but for now I think I can deem this challenge completed!