Speedy's Cafe - General Chat about anything you like!

[besleybean]

Have you not seen it before?

We often see them over here...maybe cos our scale is a bit smaller!

[Carol the Dabbler]

No, I hadn't seen it.  But then they mostly work in cities and towns, don't they?  We live out in the country, so I guess the only times we're likely to see them would be either when we're in town shopping or when they're on the highway traveling from one town to another.

So what *does* it say on the doors?

 

[besleybean]

Google Earth?  Dunno,

However, this does remind me of an amusing story that my son told me.

He teaches in a private school in quite a well off area of Italy.

He was showing the kids Goggle Earth/street view and they found this house...

the kids commented on what a cheap car we had on the drive!

[Carol the Dabbler]

3 hours ago, besleybean said:

... my son ... teaches in a private school in quite a well off area of Italy.

He was showing the kids Google Earth/street view and they found this house...

the kids commented on what a cheap car we had on the drive!

This makes me wonder two things:

1. Does everyone in their neighborhood drive a Maserati?

and

2. Did he tell them it was just the pizza delivery?

(Also, thank goodness your son doesn't know where I live!)

 

[besleybean]

Ha.

No, he just explained that it was his dad's car!

[J.P.]

Most probably it's Google's StreetView. (the orange human logo)
Apple started it's own project recently, but their symbol is a binocular. BTW, if you want to virtually drive through Germany, it's the only way.

[Carol the Dabbler]

1 hour ago, J.P. said:

Most probably it's Google's StreetView. (the orange human logo)

I'm sure it is.  They presumably have the name (and logo) copyrighted.  I'm just bugged that I wasn't able to catch the exact wording on the doors of the car -- I kinda think it was something like "Street View Camera Car.")

1 hour ago, J.P. said:

Apple started it's own project recently, but their symbol is a binocular.

I wasn't aware of that -- but then again, I don't have any Apple devices.

1 hour ago, J.P. said:

... if you want to virtually drive through Germany, it's the only way.

Google Street View doesn't cover Germany?

I was surprised just now to find that they do cover my rural area -- but only the county roads, which tend to be about a mile apart.  They don't cover private roads (AKA "driveways") within housing developments.

 

[besleybean]

I don't know if that is a blessing or a curse!

[Artemis]

4 hours ago, Carol the Dabbler said:

I was surprised just now to find that they do cover my rural area

I don't find it terribly surprising.  It's information gathering.  Google wants to cover everything.

 

[besleybean]

It is a useful tool.

[Carol the Dabbler]

I have a new question:  Do people actually eat watercress sandwiches or cucumber sandwiches?  Or are they merely one of those things that everyone assumes are eaten by somebody else?

 

[besleybean]

I do, cos I love them.

[Carol the Dabbler]

Both kinds?

In what sort of situation would you be most likely to eat them?   (They don't sound very filling.)

[besleybean]

Yes, these days they would tend to be part of an afternoon or high tea. So along with scones and cakes and biscuits.(cookies)etc.

[Carol the Dabbler]

That's kinda what I thought -- a snack rather than a full meal.  The question came up on another message board, so thanks!

 

[Artemis]

When I was in Scotland I went to some fancy place (I forget the name of it) for high tea and was very disappointed to see no watercress or cucumber sandwiches.  They've always sounded really good to me, I had been looking forward to trying them.  The sweets were all very pretty of course, but I really wanted the sandwiches!

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

Same experience here, except in England.  Apparently all of the sandwiches were meat, because I don't recall eating any of them.  The scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam were excellent, however.

 

[besleybean]

Yeah to be fair, you will often get some sort of range of cheese, egg and fish with the meat. Not much use unless you specify vegan.

[Carol the Dabbler]

Bev (or anyone else who knows) -- could you describe a "proper" watercress / cucumber sandwich?  One of the posters on that other board said they'd had a watercress sandwich and found it bland, but I suspect they had made it themselves without any specific information.

 

[Pawse]

On 11/3/2022 at 3:08 PM, Carol the Dabbler said:

I have a new question:  Do people actually eat watercress sandwiches or cucumber sandwiches?  Or are they merely one of those things that everyone assumes are eaten by somebody else?

 

I get the burps with cucumber slices. Come to think of it, my mother did too...

[Carol the Dabbler]

25 minutes ago, Pawse said:

I get the burps with cucumber slices.

Many of us do.  But if you grow your own, you can pick a variety that's advertised as "bitter-free" or "burpless" (and be sure to keep the plants consistently watered and fertilized).  I've read that peeling a cuke can remove a significant portion of the bitterness, which is apparently what tends to cause burping.  You can also check supermarkets for "English" type cucumbers, which have much thinner skin (even though the ones sold in the US were probably grown in the US).

Apparently cucumbers actually grown in the UK tend to be less bitter, partly because summers don't get as hot as in most of the US.  Perhaps they tend to grow the thin-skinned "English" type as well.

All of which may explain the popularity of cucumber sandwiches in the UK.

 

[besleybean]

Glad you explained that, cos I don't think cucumber is bitter at all!

[J.P.]

Sometimes they get bitter at the end, but it's getting probably succesfully eliminated by breeding. I still test every one for the taste.
https://www.tasteofhome.com/article/bitter-cucumber-taste-explanation/

[Carol the Dabbler]

12 hours ago, besleybean said:

Glad you explained that, cos I don't think cucumber is bitter at all!

Over here, some are, some aren't, and most are somewhere between.

But please enlighten us:  How do you make a proper cucumber (or watercress) sandwich?  Surely it's not just the veggie between two naked slices of bread!  And speaking of bread, does it matter what type, how thick, etc.?

 

[besleybean]

Daintily and traditionally with the crusts cut off...