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Staring out on the historic North Berwick links golf course on Scotland’s Golf Coast I’ve been asking myself: why no golf?

When it’s the politicians I should be asking.

The rest of the world seems to recognise the obvious that’s staring us in the face… it’s one pastime where social distancing comes with the territory.

Encore Le Golf

Which is why France, which has been flagged (sorry) up as having particularly draconic lockdown laws, is reopening its courses from May 11.

And Ireland on a limited basis from May 18.

Par-tugal

Portugal, a particular favourite with British and Irish golfers, is even further ahead with Monday slated as the day they tee up again.

While in the USA a poll of golf courses showed 60% already open.

As a sample, how about our friends in sports-mad Philadelphia https://www.visitphilly.com and Philadelphia Freedom?

The golfing world

So it comes as little surprise thar they have been straining at the leash to get back out on the course.

New Zealand and Dubai are further ahead of the curve than the Home of Golf and are also open.

Landmarks: Golf heritage in North Berwick

So why is Scotland which gave the world the sport behind everyone else when it comes to a resumption of the Royal & Ancient game?

Because there are straightforward conditions that can, and are being applied abroad, which can be put in place which will make it possible to get back out there.

The rules

*Confine play to private members

*No competitions

*No raking of bunkers

*No flagpoles.

While, of course, golfers already have putting gloves which they can use to take the ball out of the hole.

Of course my own golfing efforts abroad have been scratchy (no, not the handicap) to say the least.

My golf record

I set a course record high on the Old Course in Mandelieu, Cannes https://www.1golf.eu/en/club/old-course-cannes-mandelieu/ and https://www.google.ie/amp/s/us.france.fr/en/news/article/about-atout-france-0/amp

And had my good pal and proper golfer Jacinta running back to bunkers to collect wedges I’d left behind.

In Las Vegas at the https://topgolf.com/us/las-vegas/ www.lvcva.com and Strip… the light fantastic I shot the neon lights out.

I discovered that I was better at the pitcher of beer than the pitcher of golf balls.

Par excellence

But maybe by the time I’d got to Portugal and the Paul McGinley Golf Academy in Quinta do Lago https://www.quintadolago.com/en/golf/academy/all the practice had started to pay off.

I’d made sure I’d stopped off at Turkish Airlines www.turkishairlines.com Business Lounge to play their driving range.

Now with a golf course on my doorstep I’ll be able to get out to the Old Course.

The Old Courses

Either the original across the Firth of Forth in St Andrews https://www.oldcoursehotel.co.uk/old-course-hotel.

Or the oldest one on continental Europe in the French Riviera.

MEET YOU ON THE COURSE

I’d given up on finding my ciocolatta di calda densa after the owners of Campo de Fiori in the next town went home to Italy,

But Tomasso at Caffe Delle Stelle here in Greystones, Co. Wicklow, put a bit of colour into my grey winter’s day.

Chocolate is a gift from the gods so much so that the Incas believed it had magical spiritual powers.

So who am I to disagree?

And here are a few of my favourite hot chocolate dens.

The Caffe Pedrocchi, Padova https://www.caffepedrocchi.it Venice has its St Mark’s Square and Rialto Bridge and its masses but there’s a quieter, hidden Veneto city.

Where Giotto’s handiwork inspired Michelangelo and you can find St Anthony’s tongue!

This grande cafe dates back a hundred years and hits the right note between posh and prego.

And for more Padova perambulating… Padova – city of frescoes.

The Old Chocolate Shop, Bruges, Belgium: I can’t recall Colin Farrell sipping hot chocolate here in the cult movie In Bruges.

But he would have been more chilled if he had.

This canal city is famous for its choccies but don’t press your noses up against the windows… come in.

The Old Chocolate Shop https://www.oldchocolatehouse.be looks straight out of a nursery rhyme… and you should deffo try the gingerbread and truffles too.

And Bruges is a great release at the end of my World War One Battlefields Tour with https://www.gadventures.com. A pilgrim’s prayer

Jacques Torres Chocolate Shop, New York: I’ve developed a mantra as I’ve evolved… only choose friends who hail from wonderful places.

And it also helps if they have fantastic jobs… as is the case with my old University pal Kate.

She is the Editor of a Food and Drinks magazine in her native New York and took La Famille Murty to…

Jacques Torres’ Chocolate Shop https://mrchocolate.com/blogs/locations/soho-hudson near Greenwich Village where we sampled the rich and silky Wicked.

That is after sampling the bacon-flavoured chocolate in their tasting kitchen. We left with a hamper. And you know what I think of New York but here’s a reminder… Old New York: Hamilton

The Cafe Savoy, Prague: Everyone raves about Vienna, and it’s not to be missed.

But cafe society permeated throughout the whole of the old Austro-Hungarian Hapsburg Empire.

And finds itself stamped all over Prague… Hope springs eternal

The Savoy http://cafesavoy.ambi.cz/en/ is the place to go for your hot chocolate (or two hot chocolates)!

Its Savoy Hot Chocolate which uses hot milk hails from the Dominican Republic; the Savoy dessert hot chocolate is made of Valrhona chocolate and hot chocolate.

It is served with whipped milk and you can add it to the cup to melt with the chocolate.

Hot chocolate is one of life’s little gifts to yourself.

Barcelona for hot chocolate

It can be drunk in hot and cold weather despite what my waitresss Mardy Maria thought as we lunched inside from the 30C Barcelona heat… Surfing the seas in Barcelona

My Catalan isn’t that great but her hand gestures suggested f****** eeji or something like that.

Tell me where your fave hot chocolate is and I’ll share the love.

MEET YOU IN THE CAFE

Tag: www.oldchocolatehouse.be

Golf’s back.. of course