Day 318 - Star Struck

Cold and wet and grey and miserable...here at least: the complete opposite on the TV at 08:00 this morn ing as I got up early to watch the first day of the Test from Newlands in Cape Town, South Africa. With clear blue skies and a fantastic backdrop, this must be one of the most attractive cricket grounds in the world.  And England won the toss. And they had a good day with the bat too. Excellent.

Very good too was our lunch spot for the day: together with my son and his girlfriend, we drove over to Sunninghill to meet up with my aunt and uncle.  I had consulted the oracle that is Tripadvisor and identified the local pub there as a destination. Called "La Cloche" at the Carpenters Arms, it  is a French owned typical English pub and served a menu that would not be out of place on the other side of the Channel.  And très bien it was too!

Back home to watch the last few overs of the cricket and some delicious butternut soup for an early supper before paying our first visit to the newly-renovated Everyman cinema in Esher.  This used to be a rather tired Odeon and has only just reopened in its new colours. I was very impressed: a very different foyer (basically, a classy bar) and some very friendly staff.

We were there (finally) to see the new Star Wars: the Force Awakens.  We had all been carefully avoiding all reviews etc but were aware that these had been positive so had high expectations. 

Always dangerous, but no on this occasion: the plot line was perhaps familiar (just how many Death Stars can a bunch of rebels destroy?) but at the same time there were lots of amusing linkages to the previous films.

It was fun to be reacquainted with the likes of Han Solo, C3PO, R2D2 - and of course the fantastic music of John Williams.  The special effects didn't disappoint either - and now just another 2 years to wait until the next episode....