West Coast USA, Day Twelve: The Pacific Coast Highway Revisited

I've written before how desperate I can become looking for diving spots while on holiday, and this trip was no different. A quick web search suggested that the diving wasn't the greatest along the west coast, particularly during this season, but this didn't really deter me in arranging a dive for this morning anyway. And yes, it wasn't the greatest - in fact the combination of temperature (it was cold) and visibility (we couldn't see) it may have ranked as one of the least successful dives that I've been on. Nevertheless I'm glad that I went - a highlight was a sea lion, which was new for me at least.

Monterey Bay itself was yet another quiet little beach town, possibly most famous for the links in it's locality. Since none of us had any interest in (or indeed the time for) golf, we stuck to the local views instead, some of which were quite dramatic.

It was then that we decided to head south - for those of you paying attention yes, this was in the opposite direction of our eventual destination San Francisco. We felt that we owed it to ourselves to actually see as much of the Pacific Coast Highway by day as we could, starting with the 17 Mile Drive, a stretch of road that promised much more than it delivered. Still, it was our gateway into Carmel-by-the-sea, another small sea side town which housed a population that didn't seem to do anything but enjoy life.

From Carmel, we just continued retracing our steps south until the sun set. It turns out that this was plenty of time, as we did get to see some wonderful coastal views along the Big Sur

But for me the real highlight were the Bixby and Rocky Creek Bridges.

Our final stop before heading into San Francisco was a McDonalad's in Santa Cruz. I only write about this because of the extremely surprising and impressive Arabic greeting of Salaam given by the Simon, the clearly non Muslim white dude that was serving us our Fillets. Simon was actually surprised by our surprise, and rather than embarrassing the poor chap further we decided to think of our own theories for such behaviour: was it corporate instilled international customer service? Was Simon just more worldly that we often give Americans credit for? Did we all actually mishear? Who knows.

Tonight we entered San Francisco, the final town on our itinerary.

West Coast USA, Day Eleven: Santa Barbara

Another stop that wasn't really on our list, Santa Barbara was a must stop if only to fondly remember the 80's soap we all used to watch with our mothers. But even aside from that, Santa Barbara was a worthy enough stop, a pretty, quiet little town that would have otherwise have been perfect to chill out in. We started with a lazy breakfast after which we spent some time roaming the main street and pier. By this point we were at least half a day behind schedule - the idea was to have spent the daylight hours along the Pacific Coast Highway... But I don't think anyone minded the delay really.

On the advice of a local, we headed to Lizard's Mouth, a nearby hiking trail that promised some great views. Many mistakes were made on this adventure, including omitting to bring enough layers (it was pretty windy and hence cold up there) as well as being particularly risky with fuel - we were on reserve before we even found the place and had to literally freeroll the 10 miles or so back down. But the advice did hold true and the views were more than worth it.

We left Santa Barbara at 3:30pm, the day pretty much exhausted. Next on our list was Pismo Beach, partly as a natural rest stop but mainly to try some recommended food. The drive up was very pretty and green - almost England like, and we once again got to experience first hand the friendliness of the locals as one of our demonstrated how to get a girl's number. At 70mph. With both driving. Sleaziness aside, it was a magical moment.

It turns out that the lazy beach town of Pismo was again a hidden gem worth hanging out in.

But hey, there was always enough time for some Clam Chowder.

But finally our inability to hit a schedule finally caught up with us as we realised the amount of time we had to spend in each place wasn't really up to us any more. In fact it was hurting us by this point: we left Pismo well after sunset and so the Highway 1 was driven pretty much in pitch black. The views we came to see were missed.

We finally came to a stop in Monterey, another small town not 100 miles south of San Francisco.

West Coast USA, Day Ten: Farewell Los Angeles

This being our second and final Friday on the trip, our day was pretty much centred on the mosque and Jummah. As such we managed to start the day relatively early, the idea being to mop up the remaining sights, pray and then head out of the city. Santa Monica was the main highlight where we checked out the pier, biked (myself on a tricycle, naturally) to Venice Beach where we checked out the canals, posed on Muscle Beach and generally horsed around till it was time to go.

Maybe it was the weather but I have to say that Santa Monica and it's surroundings aren't as glitzy as they might appear on the television. Oh for sure, it seemed like a wonderful place to hang out and possibly even live... but there was also something a little underwhelming about the whole place. We got our fill, and then headed to the King Fahad Mosque in Culver City to both offer our Jummah and meet one of my uncles for lunch.

After a hefty haul of pizza it was finally time to head out of LA. Unsurprisingly we were behind on schedule - we actually left the city at 4:30pm - but I suspect none of us had any expectations of any schedules by that point. As such, we decided to randomly stop at a cute little beach cafe in Malibu for an unwarranted amount of dessert and milkshakes before finally arriving at what became our final destination of the day, Ventura.

To be clear this was not part of the plan; heck I hadn't even heard of Ventura before arriving here today (my first thought was to try Santa Barbara). This, again, turned out to be a bit of a gem as we followed some suggested advice and caught the second half of a comedy gig being played not too far from our hotel.

It was a great way to end the day, and indeed mark our departure of SoCal. Our road trip along the Pacific Coast Highway had begun.

West Coast USA, Day Nine: Today Is Culture Day

After prioritising our list of things to do we settled on starting the day at The Getty Museum. This is probably the top most attraction in LA for anyone with a vague interest in museums or art, and it was well worth checking out. The building itself was interesting enough, while it's collection had more than enough breadth to keep us busy for the morning and beyond.

It was actually so good, we lost all track of time - make sure you budget for just how much there is you'll want to see there. Although The Getty turned out to be the most wondering of timesinks, it did mean that we had to cancel our planned trip on a studio tour. Instead, we headed to The Broad, another excellent cultural highlight of LA, this time hosting a selection of fine modern art. It was no Tate, but pretty good nonetheless.

And that was all the tourism for the day. Like yesterday, our timekeeping and efficiency left a lot to be desired... and yet I don't feel that I missed out on too much. We had dinner plans with a friend of mine down in Long Beach which would have been nice to have seen in the day time, but we settled with Compton and Skid Row by night instead. Quite.

West Coast USA, Day Eight: Hollywood

Perhaps I spoke too soon? It seems that we have fully embraced the lazy-start-long-breakfast way of starting the day, and as such pretty much started our exploration of LA at around noon. For an early starter like me this was a disaster - flexible and meandering schedules only work if you have the time in which to flex and meander in. On the other hand breakfast at The Griddle was pretty awesome, and to be fair we did manage to squeeze in a quick look at Rodeo Drive and Beverly Hills (I looked out for the Walshes but no go).

Today was all about Hollywood really. After parking up we spent more time than we really should have noting the Stars on the floor and the handprints of the TCL Chinese Theatre. We even got roped into taking a drive by tour of Hollywood, Bel Air and Beverly Hills. I won't bore you with the list of alleged celebrity houses we saw but I guess it was all part of the Hollywood tourist trapping. In total we spent 5 hours obsessing over the whole thing - oh and as a tip, if you want a really decent view of the Hollywood sign don't drive to any promised viewpoint: you can see it well enough from the viewing platform of the Dolby Theatre.

Cutting our losses, we headed to the Griffith Observatory. Now this was more like it - starting from the drive up, to the views from it's hill, to the architecture of the observatory to the actual science of the whole thing it really is a special place.

There were science demonstrations, experiments and we even regressed to schoolchildren and bought tickets to a show in the planetarium. My only regret is that we only had two hours or so there, but even that much time salvaged the whole day for me.

Our final task for the day was to catch a basketball game. Lakers was the target, and so we headed down to the Staples Centre to see what we could find. To say the mission was a failure was an understatement; a lack of research left us with pretty unrealistic expectations on how much it would cost to watch a game. We consoled ourselves with a cosy dinner at a lovely Italian called Osteria La Buca... after which we gorged on cheesecake at The Factory of such things. That was all a pretty decent turnabout if you ask me.

West Coast USA, Day Seven: San Diego

Our ad hoc trip into Mexico yesterday meant squeezing the rest of our schedule. I was probably the least bothered about this; as I have learned in previous trips the lack of schedules always adds a huge amount to any tour that I've previously been on. The trick is to prioritise what you want to see and forgive the rest, and in our case San Diego had a clear priority: The USS Midway. Actually wait, no. The first priority was actually breakfast, and with a little help from Google* we found a pretty amazing 24 hour place on the way.

We made the rookie mistake of ordering one breakfast each, when each could have supported a small family for days. But hey, welcome to California I guess. Aside from that there was something pivotal about this morning's breakfast, kind of like a formal transitioning from a vacation that was busy and scheduled to a holiday that was whimsical and dynamic. Despite the extra calories I actually felt lighter for it.

Back on the tourist trail, we eventually made it to the USS Midway, a deommissioned aircraft carrier that had been re-purposed as a maritime museum. Needless to say it was pretty awesome. The fact that it was a real life aircraft carrier was amazing enough, but the museum side of things was just as top notch... and once again we found ourselves struggling to consume it all. It was pretty late in the afternoon when we left for La Jolla.

La Jolla is, apparently, the fancy part of San Diego. Apart from a few shiny cars it didn't have much of that vibe, but that could be due to the classiness of the rich people around rather than their bank balances. It was clean and lush and oh my the sea lions were smelly. I could just about see it as a laid back place to retreat to, which in actual fact was a vibe I felt across the city as a whole. This feeling carried on through to a simple dinner consisting of fish tacos and some luscious desserts with some local friends; much fun and good conversation was had on this, our final and only night in San Diego - we left for Los Angeles right after saying our goodbyes.

West Coast USA, Day Six: An Impromptu Tijuana

Tijuana actually was originally on our itinerary - it got cut mainly due to scheduling concerns but also partly due to a growing reluctance to cross another international border. A few minutes with the chap who dealt with us at the car rental place changed that; not only was he from Tijuana, but he commuted from there every day. The way he pitched it Tijuana was extremely accessible and it would have been a crime not to make a visit. So we decided there and then to give it a bash. And he wasn't wrong: less than 30 minutes driving and we were in Mexico. It was so easy that we didn't even have to stop our car at the border; so no stamps, no customs, nothing. I guess the USA don't really care about those leaving the country, but it did make us wonder if we'd have any trouble getting back in. So no, we didn't have a plan - just a car and a tank full of gas - so we did one of my most favourite things to do on holiday: we winged it.

Our first stop was on encountering a local street market. This is as close as you can get to hitting the bullseye really: we were pretty much the only non residents there and so got a great insight to Tijuanan life.

And of course... we stumbled across a mosque while we were exploring.

Unfortunately it appeared to only open during salaat time, so we didn't get a chance to meet any local Muslims. Boo. After chilling out beach side in a cafe we backtracked back north by foot to the border as it hit the Pacific. Like all borders it was a little jarring as there really didn't appear to be any difference in soil between here and there.

We then headed into the central part of Tijuana, mainly to fulfil the shopping needs of those in the party. A couple of us did manage to absorb some of the locality by randomly walking around, including a brief visit ot a mostly closed Tijuana Cultural Center. It might just have been the inevitable naivety that comes with being a tourist... but we really never felt at all unsafe, even after dark. Well until we hit Zona Centro that is.

Our final stop before aiming to head out, Zona Centro, or downtown, was where we were advised to go to pick up souvenirs (in my case the bane of my travels: fridge magnets). It might just have been the time of day (ie late), but the place did feel pretty seedy and intimidating. We even got stopped by the police on our way out which was less fun than it sounds (especially since it was my driving licence that he took away albeit temporarily). The long story short is that we were glad to finally be heading back to California. Of course what we didn't realise was that although it was easy getting out of the States, getting back in was always going to be a little more difficult.

All in all, the border crossing took three hours, 2:55 of which was us waiting in a car queue. In hindsight we should have aimed to have gotten back before rush hour, but I guess it's not every day one gets to check out Tijuana.

Oh and as a side note don't bother ever trying to order a fish burger from McDonald's past 11pm - apparently they would have long turned their fryers off by that point. Sheesh.

West Coast USA, Day Five: Leaving Las Vegas

We didn't really do much this morning on this, our last day in Vegas. The plan was actually to leave much earlier but we didn't manage to hit that particular target - but failed logistics aside, we were finally leaving Las Vegas.

A friend suggested that we check out something called the Valley of Fire. It was in the opposite direction to where we wanted to actually go, but some quick research convinced us to give it a try. It turned out that this was a great decision; in many ways I found the views more inspiring than those I saw yesterday in the Canyon. It was pretty alien to be honest, and another example of exactly how diverse the USA can be.

Although our time in the Valley of Fire was unmissable, it did suck up more time that we wanted to; in fact we didn't really have much time at all to see much of San Diego when we arrived close to midnight. However that in itself gave us a great excuse to try the 24 hour diner that is Denny's, so I guess we managed to remain tourists till the end.

West Coast USA, Day Four: The Grand Canyon

The insanely early start was actually worth it, as we were driven to Boulder City airport to catch our helicopter ride. Due to my size and weight I pretty much got a prime seat and so was subject to some spectacular aerial views of Hoover Dam:

As well as the Nevada Desert:

And of course some fantastic views from the bottom of the canyon itself:

But having seen it, I have to say that I was a little, tiny bit underwhelmed. I think I'll just have to put it down to desensitisation. Is it possible to have seen it all?

The afternoon was a free one, which I used to explore some of the remaining corners of the strip. I also did some halal food recon and was surprised at the options that were available.

Today was also the date for the main event of the trip; the reason I had made it out here in the first place. A dear university friend hosted a wedding party tonight at Joe's Seafood Prime Steak and Stone Crab. It was an intimate affair, with no more than 40 of us, but it was nice because of it; these were people I have known for almost 20 years after all.

But despite the partying I did endeavour to grab an early night; we're due to leave tomorrow and it'll be another early start.

West Coast USA, Day Three: A Jummah in Sin City

I'll be honest - I initially was wondering whether or not there were any Jummah facilities in one of the most decadent and sinful cities in the world. In hindsight I was being silly of course - it'd be hard to not find a mosque in any reasonably sized city these days, and Vegas proved to be no exception. We actually had a choice of venues, but picked the closest one we could find to the strip.

The khutba itself was insightful and progressive; the congregation young and enthusiastic. It's always refreshing to see a budding Muslim community and we spent some time talking to the locals to get a better picture of what it was like to practice there. And of course get some food tips - even though halal food wasn't impossible to find in this town it's always nice to get recommendations... even though that resulted in us having a turkish grill for lunch.

In the evening a few of us treated ourselves to a show - we watched Cirque Du Soleil's O which we were told was one of the best productions on the strip by the troupe, if not by anyone on the strip. It was pricey (even though we restricted ourselves to the cheap seats) but worth it: the whole show was pretty overwhelming and I suspect even a second or third viewing would have us missing stuff. What we did see was magnificently impressive.

We ended the evening hanging with the wider wedding party at Planet Hollywood. It's actually becoming quite interesting to see all the different themes and vibes the different hotels have, and Planet Hollywood was no less unique (and no, I'm not referring to its Pleasure Pit). Otherwise I didn't really party that hard and was in bed by midnight (if only for the early start the next day).

West Coast USA, Day Two: Viva Las Vegas

It's probably missing the point checking out the strip during the day, but for me it did help gauge the exact size and scale of the strip and the buildings it held. Being a bit of a walker, I scoffed at all the warnings I got about walking - although possible it did take an absolute age to get around by foot. I have to admit that it was initially fun doing so; even during the AM there was lots to see and experience, especially for those who people watch. After a while, however, the whole thing did start feeling slightly superficial and even tacky. I'm hoping a proper look during the night will confirm exactly what the fuss is all about.

After a Korean BBQ, we headed to Down town, otherwise known as Fremont Street. This apparently was the original strip, and in some ways appeared to have more of a vibe and authenticity to it - albeit not in every way good. But there were icons to see, including those during a drive down that street of chapels. So tacky it was good.

We rounded off the evening with a Japanese dinner and then caught a comedy hypnotist show. Of course I didn't for once believe anything that was happening on the stage this evening... but equally of course I didn't volunteer myself just in case.

West Coast USA, Day One: What Happens In Vegas...

It occurred to me as I was waiting at the gate the significance of this particular time away. Not because of the destination (I've been to the USA before) nor the context (I've been to destination weddings before) but because I was leaving two days or so before my parents were due back from their own two week holiday. This would result in a whole month without seeing them, which, given other facts - that I'm pretty old now and a month isn't really an incredibly long period of time - doesn't sound that special but still remains the longest contiguous amount of time that I would not have seen them. That made me equally proud and sad.

It's also relevant that I've been having a bit of crisis when it comes to travel. Call it boredom, fatigue, ennui... I just don't seem to have much of a passion for it any more. In fact if I'm being honest I'm not sure I ever did really - most of the more amazing places I've been to have been pretty circumstantial more than anything (I've lost count of the number of destination weddings I've been lucky enough to be invited to), and I can only think of a couple of trips that I drove and planned myself. I mean don't get me wrong: there are very few trips that I didn't enjoy and even love, and I'm grateful that I've been able to see more of the world than most... but when I sit down and think about it the vast majority of the best times I've had in my life have happened within a 10 mile radius of my home. I'm okay with being labelled as spoiled or someone who's taken his travelling for granted... but it's usually only with the benefit of experience one realises that the things we chase in life aren't actually all they promise to be.

So yes. Vegas then. It probably would have been something I wanted to check out a decade ago, but given the above it was fair to say that I was looking forward to the company during rather than the location of this trip. Still, considering the distances involved it made sense to beef up the trip, and I have to admit I am interested in checking out the rest of the West Coast.

Between the news (anything with Trump that is) and anecdotal evidence, I was expecting lots of immigration woes during my travel to the States. It all started promisingly with me being picked for a "random search" at the gate just before boarding. I complied of course, but was surprised when I was declined any kind of report or receipt that the search had happened - even more so when the G4S chap was honest enough to say "give me a break mate, it's the US who've asked for this". But the really surprising thing was that the above was the only incident I have to report. Everything else was seemingly fine - even US immigration went quickly and smoothly, so much so that I felt a bit cheated that I wouldn't have to recite the whole spiel about being there for a wedding with all my friends etc. But still, brownie points to the USA. Maybe they don't actually hate Muslims after all?

We got in late to Las Vegas, but there was still enough time for me to check in and race to the Rio to catch the Penn and Teller show playing there. It was a lot of fun, both in terms of the magic and general level of entertainment. I only really had time for one magic show during my stay in Vegas and I think I picked the right one.

That was all there really was time for today, so after briefly checking out some of the bright lights I headed back to my hotel to catch some rest. I still wasn't sure what Vegas had to offer someone who doesn't gamble, drink or visit strip clubs... but I thought I'd make an early start finding out anyway.

Food: DoubleTree Restaurant, Docklands

So here's a strange one: a restaurant hosted by a hotel that was undergoing a change in ownership, management and layout. Needless to say it wasn't the ideal place to enjoy a dinner - the food came late, the service wasn't up to par and even the toilet was actually donated by a vacant room on the second floor. Even the name doesn't appear to have been decided upon.

To be fair it's probably not fair to review the place. But the food was okay and after a discount we didn't lose much apart from time. Perhaps I'll have a better review once the place is finished.

Food: Rodeos Burgers & Shakes

After such a spate of actually-not-that-bad burger joints recently, I guess the run had to end at some point. And unfortunately for Rodeos it did here.

The big shame is that Rodeos isn't that bad - the food is decent and the value and service are certainly there - but that it's just not special enough. Scratch the surface and you almost have a posh fast food place.

If I was ever passing I would stop by for a bite. Seeing as how Rodeos is placed south of the river this seems unlikely. But hey if you happen to be in the vicinity you probably can't do better.

Film: Star Wars: The Force Awakens

There's nothing like the start of a new trilogy in a franchise to make you feel old. Was it really over 16 years ago that we were introduced to the much hated Jar Jar? Apparently so. Except I seem to have better memories of the middle (or first?) three films; I found that I enjoyed and loved them as much as the classic trilogy, which probably means I'm not a real fan or something.

This personal context is important when considering the latest in the series of such a genre defining set of films. Like everyone else I was excited, force feeding the previous six films (in order of release, naturally) to the kids in the next generation in order to nurture the same anticipation we would hope to have for the seventh. Regardless of whether it fell short or not we would have enjoyed the experience I'm sure.

And yes the film was good. It had the same pace and action as the previous, and invoked some of the feelings I was looking for. However I am quickly coming to the conclusion that I don't like Abrams messing with my memories; alongside Star Trek he has this unique ability to temper and mute any deeper feelings of poignancy I was looking for. As such, some bits did jar (a few not really his fault). The cast was pretty awesome apart from a few head scratchers, and all the standard ingredients of set pieces, dialogue and hammy acting were all there.

We chose to watch the 3D version which although was able to provide a few extra thrills during the action sequences was still a personal distraction and thus made the film more effort to watch than would have been otherwise.

But overall none of the detail matters really. The film is more than Star Wars enough and provides everything you would expect to some level. Recommended.

Film: Bajirao Mastani

Amongst most film industries, Bollywood particularly demonstrates a correlation between the type of a film and the actors in it. You pretty much know what you'll get from the cast list of each, and regardless of my personal bias a Deepika movie now implies great things. Well, apart from Chennai Express. And Happy New Year. So maybe all Deepika movies are great except for the ones that also star SRK then.

So running with the theory we have yet another film with Deepika and Ranvir. I loved the last one, and I also enjoyed this too, if only because it was more or less exactly the same. Having said that it's worth going to watch even if you're not a Deepika fanboy, just to see some of the performances within. Deepika seems to get better and better with each film, but alongside Priyanka and Ranvir (albeit never in the same number) there's a lot for those who wish to just veg out on the song and dance side of things.

So a decent jaunt then, with my only criticism being to do with the run time - the film does labour a little. Despite that it gains nothing less than a recommendation from me.

Food: Red Iron Burgers

Well before Stax, Loaded and even the famously disappointing Meat and Shake there was Red Iron Burgers. This was, at least for me, the place where the whole halal gourmet burger fad started - something which I feel gives it a pretty decent status in the now well saturated market of the stuff.

Its location of Uxbridge did mean that I wasn't really given much of a chance to visit Red Iron, and so it's a little ironic that I finally have; and that after already sampling most of what London has to offer. The cynical side of me couldn't believe that it could have lasted as long as it had - particularly when the newest and closest to me is also my current favourite. It almost seemed an exercise in futility to even bother.

But! It turns out that with age does indeed come experience and prestige; Red Iron turned out to be actually rather good, and that in all the places it counts. The service was great considering how busy the place was, the cost was decent (a healthy £15 per head for a burger and fries each, and shared wings and milkshakes) and most importantly of course the food was pretty amazing.

So yes, it seems that the original can be the (or at least, one of the) best. Red Iron easily gets a recommendation from me, it's just a shame it's so far... but then again, that's just another exercise in trying to figure out excuses to visit.

Film: The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2

Considering my distaste with the decision to split the last book into two, I actually rather enjoyed this, the concluding part to the whole Hunger Games franchise. I'm a little torn actually - I can never quite forgive authors and film-makers for the labouring of this whole young adult girl-power-for-the-sake-of-it theme we've experienced for the past decade... but if Mockingjay proves it is actually possible to enjoy something for what it is and overlook the flogging of a dead horse that went into its making.

Jennifer Lawrence was good once again, and once again her supporting cast was adequate. The action scenes were rare but of a decent quality, and I might be getting old but I'm sure the ending was changed somewhat from the book (considering I enjoyed the film that was probably for the better).

All in all though my conclusion is unchanged - Mockingjay Part 2 is only worth watching if you've so far invested fully in the franchise. Anyone else should just pass this one by.

Food: Al Kareem

Sometimes it's the simple things in life which brings the most reward. Al Kareem offers a very simple menu, a very simple decor, very simple service and wraps it all up with simple prices. What results is a very pure experience - it's just you and the food - which makes it very easy to determine exactly how awesome it is.

And awesome it was. Puri, Chana, some... Potato dish. It really was great. And very unhealthy, but some things are worth it. Recommended (but perhaps in moderation).

Trapped In A Room, With A Zombie

Room escape games have been gaining popularity for a while now - a few of my friends have raved about them and their mixture of fun, teamwork and gaming, and it seemed like one of the better team activities to try.

The one we booked had even more of a twist: it was set in a laboratory whose resident mad scientist had turned into a zombie. This made the game not only about the interaction between the twelve of us who attended and the puzzles, but also with the wild card element of someone who wanted to eat our brains (okay, fine, tag us out of the game).

As such is the nature of such things, it would be less than useful for me to talk too much about the evening. It was a whole lot of fun though, both with respect to the game itself and its puzzles, but even more so as a way to spend time with friends - you know, working as a team to achieve a single goal and all that.

Of course I have nothing (yet) with which to compare this variant of room escape, but I think the zombie did add more than a bit of fun to the proceedings. I'm sure other room escapes are as enjoyable though so when it comes to recommending I'd say to pick and do any one (or two, or three!) since you're bound to have a laugh either way.

Film: Tamasha

Okay, I'll admit it... a new film with both Ranbir and Deepika has had me excited since the first shots from set came out. And yes, that's purely because of my affinity to that film. Of course I went in with trepidation - these things inevitably disappoint after all.

But you know what? Tamasha wasn't actually that bad. Of course the first thing that hits you is how great it looks (of course that could just be a personal assessment, and Ranbir is looking a little tired) but the story is quite off beat for what is actually another broken-man-needs-fixing love story. The talent is also there, the chemistry between the two protagonists now almost inevitable. The music, despite not impressing during their air play, fits wonderfully in with the rest of the film too.

So yes, Tamasha was good and definitely recommended. Will it be as classic as YJHD? That only time can tell.

Film: Spectre

And just like that, here we are with the fourth in the Daniel Craig series of Bond movies. It's astonishing to think that it all started almost a decade ago, and looking back I seemed to have enjoyed the transformation of the Bond movie to something a little more mature and darker that the usual.

And yet ironically the fourth movie seems to throw us back to the realm of the fantastical - and not always in a good way. Sure, the action is crazy and the cars lovely and the girls hot and the one liners snappy. But when you consider the level of manic of the villains, how dastardly their plans are and even the manner in which they are willing to expend harm... it all gets a little 70's and 80's at times.

That said, I don't think I minded that much since I did thoroughly enjoy the movie overall. I didn't even mind the convenient plot twists and retcons encountered; if anything I saw them as bonuses. So in conclusion, yes, a recommendation for a more hybrid throwback of a Bond movie.

Food: Rocco's

The hunt for a food bargain really does take you to the most unexpected of places. I never thought I'd spend a Saturday night in a small hotel in Gidea Park (!) but here I was with a bunch of friends ordering hand made pasta.

And it wasn't half bad. The food was adequate and the service friendly - this was a place with a maximum of 20 covers and it far exceeded expectations if scale was anything to go by.

And the best bit? A meal of three courses (well two and a half since we shared desserts) came to the princely sum of £8 each... which is a veritable bargain in anyone's book. That said, the preference would probably be to pay a little extra for a better overall experience, which kind of proves that the bill isn't everything.

Food: Proper Burgers

You know, I'm tempted to actually go ahead and create a "burger" tag - it seems like food reviews these days have become synonymous with fatty patties and hipster decoration.

But then a place like Proper Burgers comes along and, quite frankly, it makes digging through all the dross out there kind of worth it. The food was great, with my Brisket 4, a combination of patty and pulled meat, being pretty much sublime - if I have one comment it was the the 4oz patties were a little on the small side. We did overdo it with the desserts, not being able to resist ordering both the mess and the apple pie - all quite uniquely made on the premises and tasty for it. I think that demonstrated a larger sense of pride that Proper Burgers has over its contemporaries.

Service was top notch, although the place was pretty empty this Thursday evening. Price wise, we hit a expensive £16 per head although as mentioned we did go overboard with desserts. The Brisket 4 was also a special - all in all I think you could get away with a decent meal at around the £11-12 mark which isn't too bad for such good food.

If there were any downsides it was the hipster level infinity of the place (a wall of audio cassette tapes? Please). But hey, with food like this I can rise above that. Recommended.

Food: Chai Ki

After having such a great time at its sister restaurant I, perhaps foolishly in hindsight, expected more of the same from the Canary Wharf location in the brand new Crossrail Place.

Instead we received all the things the lack of which I felt made Roti Chai so great. An overpriced menu? Check. A slightly hipster atmosphere and clientèle? Check. Good food that wasn't as great as it should have been? Check.

To be fair the service was great and ambience was good enough to allow our party of four to have a decent time. Quite frankly though even Dishoom was better than this place, with Roti Chai still topping both. And at £35 a head the bill was a bit of a shock, although some diners were a little frivolous with their ordering - with a little discretion I think you could expect a bill of around £25 which is still a little on the pricey side for what we got.

So not really a recommendation here - although a final qualification would be that, unlike Roti Chai, Chai Ki doesn't offer a street menu - something that could have been the missing ingredient tonight.

Film: Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension

The first Paranormal Activity (2009!) was made with a budget of $11,000, and was instantly a cult hit as well as achiving a certain level of success at the box office. As the franchise as progressed, the budgets have increased and, perhaps unsurprisingly in a cynical world, the effectiveness of the concept has decreased.

The genius of the films is of course the implied horror - the door closing by itself, a creaking off camera, and the various witnessing of other things we weren't meant to see. But with budget comes a need to make this more explicit - instead of allowing our imaginations to run riot we're spoon fed the scares. Eventually you're left with a more regular ghost story, albeit one shot from the peculiar viewpoint of a character operated camera.

Such is the case with this, the sixth (and allegedly final) chapter in the Paranormal Activity series. That's not to say that it was a bad film; on the contrary I really enjoyed it and was caught squealing in terror more than once. It just was on the same trajectory as the previous sequels were on and so disappointed.

But still, if you're looking for a bit of a scare you can't go wrong with this and in that context it earns a recommendation anyway.

Egypt: Faith After The Pharaohs

The British Museum is hosting an exhibition covering the transient period of faith in Egypt; from the Pharaohs and their many gods to the lasting dominance of the Abrahamic religions.

It's a neat theme: transience itself brings with it a sense of organic change and humanity, something that is often juxtaposed with Godly concepts like religion and faith - thus bringing a possible challenge to the sensibilities of most people of faith.

Otherwise it's the usual gallery of pottery, crafts and literature. The exhibition is on the small side, so could probably be combined with a tour of one of the museum's other rooms. Otherwise it's pretty standard fare that just falls short of a recommended visit.

Food: Band of Burgers

Move on, nothing to see here.

Okay fine. The food was good - I mean it was most certainly not the worst burger I've tried. Otherwise BoB was pretty much another in the long list of gourmet burger joints, this time in Camden.

Which reminds me, I really need to go back to Stax.

Film: Back to the Future Trilogy

I'm not really one for "my favourite" questions. Ask me what my favourite song or country visited is and I wouldn't really know. The same goes for movies: the best I can answer that question is: "I don't have an ultimate favourite movie, but I know Back to the Future is in my top ten and I'm always able to watch it when it's on".

I was pretty young when Back to the Future was released here in the UK. What's striking is that I still remember the first time I had heard of the film: it was on a BBC breakfast show, and they showed the scene where a relatively unfamiliar Marty McFly creeps into a deserted house that is full of clocks, jacks up a huge speaker system and trashes himself and the home on his first riff. Now I knew the film was about time travel, but apart from the clocks on the wall there was nothing I saw in that scene that related to time or even science fiction. And yet, somehow, I knew I had to watch it. Another memory: Shreddies were running a promo for the film and I managed to collect at least three of the adventure books on offer.

And yet I don't quite remember if I had watched Back to the Future in the cinema. Parts 2 and 3 I do remember, and that vividly, but as it stood BttF was the one that would have always been relegated to the smaller screen. Until today, of course, the future day on which Marty and Doc arrive in part 2. When I heard that cinemas up and down the country were planning on playing not just one but all three films from the trilogy I just knew I had to see them.

Of course the films themselves are pretty perfect - and I don't think that's just nostalgia talking. There's just not much that comes out of a negative assessment of the films. For a start the soundtracks are perfect, with the main theme still making me well up each time I hear it. The screenplays are amongst the tightest I know - I can't think of any scene, shot or script going to waste, which is why even the previously intimidating six-plus hours we spent in that single sitting actually flew by. I never looked at my watch once. This lack of fat in films is most certainly a generational thing, but Back to the Future did the best out of its contemporaries.

Then there were the cast and characters. Doc Emmett Brown did inspire me to both science and science fiction; I shared the love of Jennifer Parker (both of them); I was simultaneously intimidated and allured by Lorraine Bains; and of course I wanted to be Marty McFly (and yes, I bought a skateboard). I over each viewing of the movies I learned all their lessons and experienced all their feelings.

As a genre Back to the Future tends to be mislabelled as science fiction. Now I'm not a movie buff, and most certainly am not in a position to override the more obvious and well established categorisation of the films, but I really don't think the primary driver of the films is sci-fi; in fact if anything they're really bad time travel movies. What these films are really about are the plots (of which there are sub-plots) and character development (of which there are many progressions). In that context time travel merely becomes a prop on which to hang themes of survival, interpersonal relationships and escape, of which it may have been possible to transpose all to a different story, but not at the same time. It's this genius that allows us to have a third part which is almost exclusively set in the Wild West but still fits in perfectly with the rest of the series. And of course it also allowed us to have a baddass flying DeLorean. And I have to admit, watching the three films back to back as a trilogy did have an enhancing effect - there were themes and references I didn't notice before, and an increased appreciation of part 3, which was previously considered by me to be the weakest.

It's a testament that the film is still going strong. It's difficult to see which films released this year we'll still be watching and talking about in three decades' time. On a personal note I'm glad I got a chance to revisit the trilogy in the cinema and then write about my love of the series. I do still hum the theme to myself often, I do still pretend to be driving a flying DeLorean or riding a skateboard, and I still get goosebumps each time my speedo hits 88mph (on private track days of course).

And after watching the trilogy my my opinion has actually changed; the trilogy is no longer one of my favourites but the favourite. In some ways it always has been, but I achieved the explicit realisation the moment I watched Marty McFly race down Main Street in a DeLorean toward a clock tower in order to consume a lightning strike that would send him home. All with a tear in my eye. If something that invokes that reaction is not something that can be considered the favourite I can't imagine what else could.

Book: HorrorStor, Grady Hendrix

I tend not to read too much horror - I think the last time I really engaged with any was way back in the Point Horror days. But I cam across this novel (in paperback of all things!) and it seemed like an easy enough read so I thought I'd give it a try to see if it could convince me to explore the genre in more depth.

I think the first word that came to mind was trashy. Horrorstor isn't a very sophisticated read. The plot is daft, the characters one dimensional, and the writing accessible (which after two years of WoT is actually quite welcome). Overall the book is quite fun, both in its story of an Ikea-a-like store going crazy as well as how the physical volume itself resembles an Ikea catalogue, and since it's such a cheap read it's hard to knock it too much.

I wouldn't go as far as recommending it however, but if you have it and a few hours at hand you could probably do worse.