GYIL

John and I are currently in Uganda as part of GYIL, the rather strange but affectionate name we have given to our Gap Year In Learning! We have been given a sabbatical by school and on 4th September we set off for Uganda for our round the world tour. We are so fortunate to be doing it and we are definitely loving being here. We are keeping a separate blog for the year - www.newlandswiththekirklands.wordpress.com

One of the things I blogged about was the lack of sweet treats here - or at least the ready to eat chocolate bars that I'm used to buying at the station- or more accurately luckily being given at the end of the school year by pupils! So I did a shout out for easy recipes that fit the ingredients we have here and I have really enjoyed having the time to try them out, and to share them with our new friends. Now I no this interest isn't likely to maintain itself much beyond Uganda but I love the thought of being able to make some of these again back in the UK so I'm going to try and blog about them but I thought it would be better to do so on here rather than main blog - which shockingly people actually read!! I was going to put all the recipes in this post which photos but actually I think I'll do separate posts. So look out 😉 

Here is my plea that I blogged:

On a different note, I was wondering if I could ask a favour from the many friends I know who are wonderful bakers! I have realised that if you want something for a sweet treat here that isn't fruit, then you have to make it! And I have made banana muffins three times and 2 loaves of banana cake and really thinking it was time for a change! So I wonder if anyone fancied and had the time to send me a recipe to try? There are through a few restrictions so please don't get any ideas from the bake off!!

• It has to be an easy recipe as I'm not an experienced or proficient baker!
• The relatively readily available ingredients are white and brown flower (plain and self-raising), caster sugar, icing sugar, oats, bicarbonate of soda, margarine (or more accurately Blue Band, apparently you had it in the UK too before fridges were common?), sometime eggs, vanilla essence, bananas, pineapple, oranges, lemon, cornflakes (?!).
• We have a gas oven, hob and grill but there are no markings on the gas knob so it can't be a recipe that's too particular on the temperature!
• We have scales and measuring jug but no measuring cups or tablespoons! I've just been guessing so far!
• We have a microwave and hand whisk but no electric mixing things.
• There is a muffin baking tray and cases. There is a loaf tin and small and medium cake tins.
• We have foil, baking paper and cling film.
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• Thank you so much if this makes you think of a recipe and you are able to send it! I promise to try and share a photo of you when I attempt it!

Dance Tonight - Paul McCartney in Liverpool! TO FINISH

This week we certainly had an adventure: two nights in Liverpool with the purpose of seeing Paul McCartney in concert - and what a time we had :-)

So much to write about and not sure where to start!  I want to get it all down but I only have 8 minutes till I need to start making cheesy red pepper muffins for some Christmas eve lunch visitors and I still need to finish the Mark post and write the Fighting Talk one and this ramble is surely not helpful!!  I might try bullet point it as a way of getting it down quicker...

• John has said the two people he has always wanted to see are Paul McCartney and Bob Dylan and back in about October he got emailed priority ticket application for Paul's On the Run tour.  I said he should go for it and in the process we invited Mum and Lizzie along who were very keen.  We weren't able to get the tickets for some reason.  But we set Mum up to get them when they went on general sale on Thursday morning at 9am.  She had two computers on the go and managed it by 9.30 am!  Woop woop, way to go Mooms!  They were in two sets of two on opposite sides of the Echo arena in Liverpool - the final date on this latest world tour.  We then booked in to the Premier Inn for the night of and night before the concert.  Excellent!  Time for excitement to start mounting!!
• (post 8 minutes and muffin making and eating and some other things like getting a yule log, dropping off yule log and then hoovering) So, I never considered myself a Beatles fan.  A few years ago we went on a cruise where there was a Beatles tribute night and I decided yes, I didn't like them, except for one song that I think might have been peppermint twist - though is that even Beatles?! Then my first two years teaching year two involved the Swining 60s topic and I found a growing affection for them.  Then John has been playing me some Paul music to get me acclimatised.  I have definitely found that I prefer it the more songs I know at a concert.
• We met at Liverpool station on Monday afternoon and made our way on foot down to our hotel which was on the dock area - Albert Dock.  Liverpool had a big regeneration for or resulting in it being European Capital of Culture in 2008.  The docks was definitely one area of that. 
• duckmarine tour
• premier Inn
• Beatles Story
• seats
• songs
• dance tonight with choreography
• christmas and bagpipes