A Time to Relax

Church today was filled with kids, which means summer holidays must have begun.  The service was filled with laughter as we tried to learn a bible verse (Luke 19:v10) and failed miserably, with the adults mumbling and stumbling in unison, much I feel to the amusement of the surrounding children.  I had coffee and a quick chat afterwards with my new friend then had to dash off to buy bread before heading home for a quick lunch which happened to be homemade grilled pepper soup (recipe below).  A friend of mine was coming from Oxford today to see another friend of mine in Southampton, and we decided to meet at the docks, so waltzing out again, I set out to meet them.  After a bit of hunting I spotted them wandering in a park close to the agreed rendezvous, it turned out they had gotten a bit lost en route.

Seagulls gliding along the water

My friend who has now lived in Southampton for close to a year still didn't know the docks properly so off we all strolled towards the Mayflower Park.  This place is spectacular on sunny days and watching the sun set over the sea is just breath taking.  Sometimes, it sets over the hill which is equally wonderous to look at.  We siddled down the concrete slope leading to the waters and perched on the edge to while away a few hours watching the seagulls flutter over bread and watching the water ripple over the seaweed and concrete slope edge.  With the sun warming out faces and feet we caught up on people we haven't seen in a while and the current of state each other's lives, shortly interrupted by a drunken wanderer who started joyfully proclaiming the tastiness of pigeons and seagulls.  After a brief polite and rather amused conversation with him, he happily ambled off away down the pier leaving us once again to the calm quiet of the sea and seagulls, a gentle warm breeze blowing against our shoulders.

The Mayflower

After some time with the sun still strong behind the clouds, we moved on to Harbour Lights for a well deserved coffee on the terrace overlooking the boats.  We caught the tail end of the Inception crowd but once we were served our coffees in their colourful and mismatched cups, we settled down for another few hours outside looking at the rows of shiny white boats all safely docked, bobbing gently up and down.  Isn't it amazing how fast time flies when with good friends? Sadly the day came to an end and we walked our seperate ways, the Little Lady getting a bus home and the Anthropologist making his way back to Southampton Central train station going back to Oxford.  Overall, a very good end to the week I feel.

 Looking out onto the docks

Grilled Pepper Soup
(Serves 2)

Ingredients:

• 2 Small Onions
  
• 1 Clove Garlic
• 1 Carrot 
• 4 Small Red bell peppers
• 2 Tomatoes
• A generous pinch of mixed herbs
• 1Tbsp Vegetable oil 
• Salt and Pepper
• Bread and Butter to serve

Method:

1. Over a low heat, add enough oil to coat the base of your pan.
2. Chop the onions and carrot, crush the garlic and add to a pan and gently fry for 5-10 minutes with the lid on, stirring or shaking occasionally until soft.
3. Meanwhile, halve the tomatoes and pepper, removing the pepper seed and lay skin side up on a grill pan.  Set the grill to high and grill them until their skins are charred and remove to a bowl and clingfilm until cool enough to handle - about 5-10 minutes.
4. Peel the pepper and tomatoes and chop roughly and add to the pan along with the herb and about 1 pint water.  Bring the pan to the boil and lower the heat simmering the soup for 25-30 minutes until all the vegetables are tender.
5. Blend the soup roughly, season with salt and pepper and serve hot with bread and butter.

 Grilled pepper and tomato soup