snowleopard10

She drinks gin and pocari sweat – I’m intrigued! Also she’s clearly going to be a huge literary talent and I want to be one of her fawning admirers from the start. And her blog cheered up my lunchtime considerably today.

Only kidding – as if I’d dream of revealing the secret location of Bohemia! Let’s just say they drink a lot of absinthe there.

We had a lovely time last night and Woo lived up to her glamorous online reputation. Her lecturing boots were simply fabulous and her kazoo-playing can only be described as magnificent. I wish her all the best for her future adventures in the academy!

Wildcranberries is an International Woman of Mystery and they don’t come along very often. Glamorous, bohemian and musically-talented, she also has a pragmatic side that understands the challenges of printing headed paper the right way up and how important it is that X should mark the spot.

I feel called upon to assist her in her quest for a pomegranate mojito, and possibly bore her on the subject of Bloomsbury architecture at the same time. Only 2 days to go, can’t wait!

We have Things to discuss. Dirty coffee mug spycams and treasure map printing aids to begin with, and band membership, kazoos and different exotic doctoral accessories to continue with.

Cocktails! Day after tomorrow! Hurrah!

Where to start? I admire Turandot for her remarkable vocabulary, temerariousness, cogent objections to the word “civilised”, picnicking skills, shoe fetish, and ability to create a Jolly Roger out of bread rolls. Now that’s something Bertie Wooster never thought of.

because she is great FUN!
oh! and I’d like to hold in my hands the famous pirate bag and see how many bottles of inspiring liquor (+ corkscrew) it can accomodate

aRRRRRRRRRR!

It was fantastic to finally meet the legend that is Agent Z, founder of Ziida, in her Berlin HQ. After breakfast martinis and the ritual Smashing of the Martini Glass, we went to a suitably conspiratorial establishment in an arch under the railway, where we consumed pumpkin beer and debated the finer points of whether a pub owned by an Irish person is the same thing as an Irish pub.

The second time we met, Zanna took us for some very fine spatzle at Spatzle Express, and then we went on a whistlestop tour of Berlin’s finest quirky little shops. I’ll never forget her insightful commentary as we walked along the street: “Shoe shop. Record shop. Book shop.” etc. We went into the bookshop where she disappeared into a back room. It turned out to be an exhibition of exploding suitcases, which I suspect was Ziida code for something.

Later on, over cocktails, I was honoured to help with Mandarin practice by reading out the English translation of the famous Lily Wang / Peter Brown dialogue. But Z saved the best for last: the Ordeal of the Intense Waiter at the Vietnamese restaurant. We all got out alive so I think we must have passed. What an amazing time we had!

Snowleopard is just magnificent at organising and planning Breakfast Martini parties and promenades. Everything was perfect down to the last detail of the profiteroles to add that little extra something, and although the tapdancing hobbits weren’t performing that day, it didn’t matter at all, it just gives us an excuse to do it all again!!

Snowleopard’s entries always inspire me. She certainly gives the impression (and perhaps it is all a bluff) that she is a confident, charming and ‘together’ sort of person – and a darn good drinker.

I am truly sorry I won’t be able to make it to London this year to visit her in the zoo. I hope I won’t be missing out on any world premier readings of her toxic jelly screen play…