Piano Restoration – Part 2 鋼琴大翻新 (二)

Our Yamaha U1 piano had been delivered to the workshop for nearly one week and various components were gradually dismantled. Just received call from A. Hanna & Sons Pianos that additional issues were found by technicians and we were invited to their workshop for a discussion.

To be honest, not a good sign!

鋼琴運回 Workshop 已經差不多一星期,内部零件亦續步被拆開移除。剛收到琴行通知,維修技師發現了更多問題,邀請我們到 Workshop 看看及相討。

怕且情况並不樂觀!

Piano Restoration – Part 1 鋼琴大翻新 (一)

Just as mentioned in my previous post, our Yamaha U1 piano was about 20 years old. It was used by my boy’s cousin for her piano learning and subsequently passed to him. It carried two wonder stories of learning and development in music. From random playing with their little fingers to achieving Grade 8 certification and if possible, we would like to have the stories be continued.

正如之前的一篇説過,家中的 Yamaha U1 鋼琴已有約二十年歷史,原本是兒子表姐自小的學習伙伴。一座漆黑的鋼琴盛載着兩個音樂成長故事;由只懂亂敲琴鍵,到取得八級資歷,如果可以的話,我很希望這故事能一直延續下去。

Round Trip Ride – Putney Heath 走一轉系列 – Putney Heath

For the past cycling trips, I used to take those relatively flat roads and footpaths. In this round of my Round Trip Ride, I would include some bike climbs in my visit to another adjacent district, the Borough of Wandsworth and with Putney Heath as my destination. The return trip would go through Richmond Park and back to the Kingston twon centre. The total distance was estimated to be around 29 Km.

過往的單車路線大多是以較平坦的車路或小徑為主,今次會嘗試加多一點爬坡路段。行程以 Borough of Wandsworth 的 Putney Heath 為目的地,回程會穿越 Richmond Park 返回 Kingston 市中心,行程預計約 29 公里。

Driving in UK 英倫駕車日常

I had about 30 years of driving experience in Hong Kong and it wouldn’t be any surprise that I would pick up driving in UK. Once accommodation was settled, I started by car buying exercise.

在香港開了差不多三十年車,到了英國自然心思思想買車,居所安頓好後便開始我的買車行動。

Round Trip Ride – East Molesey 走一轉系列 – East Molesey

There are seven Local Government Districts adjacent to Kingston Upon Thames. Wimbledon and Raynes Park that I recently rode to belong to one of these, the London Borough of Merton. In this round of my Round Trip Ride, I will share with you my visit to another district, the Borough of Elmbridge. The destination is East Molesey.

與 Kingston Upon Thames 接壤的地區政府管轄區(Local Government Districts)共有七個,早前往 Wimbledon 及 Raynes Park 時已到訪過其中一個,亦即 London Borough of Merton。今次要介绍的行程會到另一個區 Borough of Elmbridge,目的地是 East Molesey 市。

Meal Deals 平價午餐

In UK, we normally cooked our dinners and would only go to restaurants during weekends or holidays. As my son was at school during weekdays, making lunch for just two of us became quite uneconomical and we normally ended up having instant noodles, pasta or bread instead.

在英國的日子,晚飯都是在家煮食,通常星期六、日或假期才出街食飯。至於午餐,因兒子上學,剩下我和太太兩人煮飯就變得頗不化算,又不知煮甚麼餸,往往只是吃個公仔麵、意大利粉或麵包就算。

Round Trip Ride – Wimbledon 走一轉系列 – 温布頓

In my previous posts, I had mentioned that I found it a bit boring cycling in parks within the Kingston. So I changed my mind and planned to visit nearby areas with my bike. Not only served as great exercises for me, but also help me to understand more about the areas nearby.

上一篇提過在 Kingston 市內公園踩單車有點悶,於是改變想法,打算到鄰近地區走走,運動之餘又可熟習其他地方。

Short Ride – Bushy Park 灌木公園單車遊

There are several places near Kingston town centre that are great for walking and cycling. These includes Barge Walk and Hampton Court Home Park that I had visited before as well as Bushy Park that I am going to introduce in this post.

Kingston 市中心附近有數個適合漫步或騎單車的著名景點,包括早前我去過的 Barge Walk,漢普敦公園及今次要介紹的灌木公園(Bushy Park)。

UK Immigration – Six Months Summary 移居英國 – 半年小體驗

Dated back in late April when I first arrived in Heathrow Airport, it was cold at 7 to 8℃. Despite I had my thick jacket on, I still couldn’t stand the cold weather. Next came the UK summer where I had enjoyed some lovely warm and sunny days. Stepping into late autumn, weather is getting colder and colder. Temperature suddenly dropped back to 6 to 7℃ and I have to put on my thick again.

記得四月尾到達倫敦,剛踏出機埸,氣溫只得七、八度,雖然已穿上厚厚外套,但還是有點吃不消。往後有幸過了一個陽光普照,和暖的夏天。轉眼半年,剛踏入十一月的深秋,這幾天氣溫又驟降到六、七度,又是時侯重新披上我的羽絨外衣了。

A Night with Eric 與神共聚

Haven’t listened to Eric Clapton’s songs for quite a while. I believed having only his “Riding With The King” album in my iPhone is the major reason why the chance of presenting his songs under Random Play mode was so low.

Tonight, I came across Eric’s latest album through YouTube’s Ads Algorithm.

很久沒有聽過 Eric Clapton 的歌,原因可能是手機中只有他和 BB King 的 “Riding With The King” 大碟,在 Random Play 模式下很少遇上,

今晚剛巧就碰上 YouTube 在其廣告演算法下推介的新歌曲片段 。

Handed Down 傳承

I was deeply attracted by a YouTube video while I was aimlessly browsing the internet before dinner. The video was taken from the “Car SOS” TV series broadcasted in the National Geographic Channel. The title of the video was “Car S.O.S – Fiat X1/9 | Car S.O.S Full Episode 2021”.

晚飯前在網上漫無目的地瀏覽了一遍,突然被一條 YouTube 片吸引著。影片節錄自國家地理頻道播放的「汽車修復」(Car SOS) 電視節目,標題是 “Car S.O.S – Fiat X1/9 | Car S.O.S Full Episode 2021″。