A journey to middle England

On June 2oth we set off for my birthday week end in Middle England, a beautiful place with a myriad of things to do and see. On the saturday we headed to Stratford upon Avon, on arriving in the area we parked at the Park & Ride, and took the bus into the town. From there we walked to the station to meet our lovely friend Lisa, on holiday in the UK. It was so good to see her again, I have known Lisa since I was 15.....is it really that long?? Anyway, off we went to explore the town, first stop was the market and then a wander around the shops. The weather was a let down, with several drizzly showers. June weather at is best - ha ha! We had lunch at a Chinese buffet restaurant, which turned out to be a good choice, lovely food and a good selection. After lunch we headed to the park to take the boat ride, Paul and I have done this before and its a lovely relaxing way to spend an hour. However they weren't running the usual trip due to a regatta on the river, and we decided to give the alternative a miss. Instead we visited Tudor World, a new attraction which takes you on a journey through Tudor England, it was enjoyable but we did spot a couple of errors on their information boards, I think they need a better proof reader. Later in the afternoon we stopped at a tea room for afternoon tea, the scones were served warm with clotted cream and jam....YUM!!! The day flew by and soon it was time to say good bye to Lisa, good byes always make me sad. 

We returned to our car and drove to our Hotel in Warwick, we had dinner there and a quiet evening. On sunday we headed to the Cotswolds, a beautiful part of the country. Our first stop was Bourton in the Water. The town is very pretty was was heaving with tourists. Coachloads were arriving!! We spent about 3 hours exploring the shops and having tea. From there we drove on to Moreton in the Marsh, a quieter and less touristy town, but honestly I preferred it. We had lunch and a wander around the shops, its just a lovely place to while away an hour or two. I was sad to leave and hope its somewhere we can return to soon. 

In the evening we had drinks at the hotel - they had a happy hour from 6-8pm, two huge glasses of wine for just over £4!! We then had dinner at the Cape of Good Hope, a canal side pub a short walk from the hotel. They sure did a good roast dinner, there were huge slices of roast beef and plenty of them. I think we had half a cow between us!!! After a very nice dinner, we headed back to the hotel. For anyone who hasn't been to this part of England before, it really is work a visit.

On Monday we checked out of the hotel and headed into Warwick, where we discovered a lot of the shops don't open on a Monday. How very provincial!! However we went to the park which is really lovely and also visited St Mary's so that Paul could do some brass rubbing. Its actually fun to see the picture appear. When we left the church we had lunch at Merchants, and then sadly had to head home. We hadn't planned to come back so early, but I had an appointment in Ashby de la Zouch I couldn't miss. Some of you might guess what that was.

It was a good week end, and though I couldn't get away from the stress,we made the most of it. I will always make the most of it!!!  The stressful times are almost over!

Happy birthday Mr Ivans

Well this week end was special, Paul has a birthday coming up on the 8th and I wanted to fill the whole week end with fun. The celebrations started on Friday evening with dinner at the Chesterfield with our friend Rachael. It was a nice evening, and a lovely meal. It was good to unwind with a glass of wine, and some good company.

On Saturday we were up early to head to Nottingham, we arrived there just after 9am and headed to the Broadmarsh shopping centre for a coffee and a look around. A large part of the centre has been closed off for a long time due to renovations. So not really much to see, however we were planning to visit the caves, and they didn't open till 10am. The entrance is in the shopping centre, which is built over a large series of caves. Just after 10am we headed to the caves, and found their was a tour setting off at half past, there was only us and another couple. It was great to have such a small group. The guide was very informative, and the tour took about 50 minutes. Throughout the tour he stopped to tell us about the history of the caves. The city of Nottingham has more man-made caves than anywhere else in Britain. There are over 500 caves dating back to the Dark Ages, the last of which were in use until as late as the 1940`s. The caves have been used as a tannery, bar cellar, and mostly recently as an air raid shelter in WW2. When we left the City of Caves, we headed down to Las Iguanas for lunch, one of our fave restaurants. Lunch was fabulous, especially my starter!! I had roasted coconut butternut squash taco's! We both had raspberry coolers to drink, I can highly recommend them.

After lunch we had a walk up to the cathedral church of St. Barnabas, its a beautiful place. We spent a little while there just taking it all in. The choir had just started to practice, and they were pretty amazing. I wish we had got to hear more. We did do a little shopping too, but honestly the city was now so crowded you could barely move. But it was a lovely day, warm and sunny with a pleasant breeze. I really wanted to pop into HMV. And luckily they had what I wanted, The new Taylor Swift album and the DVD 'Walking on Sunshine'. By the time we got home we were both shattered. 

In the evening we watched my new DVD which I had been wanting to see for ages. Walking on Sunshine is fantastic. With beautiful Italian scenery and a wonderful 1980's soundtrack, its one of the best movies I have seen in ages. I absolutely loved it.  Definitely one I will be watching again and again.

Today Paul and I went to Dobbies Garden centre at Mancetter for afternoon tea, another pre-birthday treat. It was so nice, sandwiches, scones and jam, and finally an assortment of cakes. So yummy, and as we hadn't had any lunch we managed to finish it all. We also spend a couple of hours looking around the garden centre, I got the most gorgeous vintage stationery, and I think Paul might have bought someone special another birthday present!! Once again the weather was lovely, and we so enjoyed the day. I loved looking around all the summer houses etc outside, I can imagine us having one out in our garden. Don't think it will ever happen, but I can dream. 

This evening we've been watching DVD's and I surprised Paul with a birthday cake. Complete with candles. Nearly set myself on fire lighting the darn candles....OOPS!!! And the celebrations aren't over yet! But I think so far Paul has enjoyed his pre-birthday celebrations.

72 hours in my world

Not every week end has to have grand plans to make it special, sometimes catching up with a friend for dinner can get your week end off to a splendid start. On Friday after work I met my dear friend Jill for dinner at The Merry Monk. Glad I booked a table, it gets busy in there. I walked in to be greeted by a big smile.... one of the students I worked with at college now works there behind the bar. It was lovely to see him, and how far he's come in the past few years. Jill is the sort of friend everyone should have, a special person who makes you feel better by just being around. Easy to talk too, kind and thoughtful, what more could you ask for in a friend. Dinner was lovely, and reasonably prices as we were able to order off the lunch menu. And even better, I was able to use my gourmet card to get 25% off. I had a lovely time and it cheered me up no end.I couldn't have asked for a better start to me week end.

On Saturday Mr Ivans and I went to Derby to look around the shops, I needed a little retail therapy. I found some books in the works. One of those books was the sequel to The Woman in Black  -  Angel of Death. I am reading that now, its not that creepy at all. I am looking forward to reading the other two as well. I also got some lovely stationery. Surprisingly, Clinton's, Paperchase and the works all had lovely stationery and at very reasonable prices. It would have been so rude not to buy some. Once we had done all the shopping we wanted to, we headed to Papaya Thai for lunch.....yum diddily! You can't beat a set lunch - for me Thai fish cakes followed by green Thai curry. Lovely treat for us both. Life's so full of stress and misery, sometimes you just have to let it go and live for the moment. 

On the way home we stopped at a garden centre in Findern. I love garden centres, even tho I always think the merchandise is over priced. But we stopped, we mooched about and I took photo's of the flowers. It was fun! I loved my Saturday, we made the most of every minute.

We woke up to pretty awful weather on Sunday - rain, strong winds and grey skies. Really?? This is June? But you know, never one to be held back and kept indoors. We braved the elements, and headed into town. We went to the cinema to see San Andreas, great movie and one that needs to be seen on the big screen. I loved the movie, but cried as they flattened San Francisco. We have been there twice and love the city, the horror that this could actually happen one day is too much to comprehend.  After the movie, we did a little shopping, I wanted to get Paul a couple more birthday presents.. Mission accomplished. It was such a miserable day we were glad to get home in the end. 

As usual the week end seemed to end before it started, they are never long enough, and now I am faced with the horror of a 5 day week at work. Monday is always too hard to cope with,  but who knows....maybe one day I'll wake up and find myself thinking.....ah Monday, it ain't so bad. Ever the optimist, that's me!!

A walk through history and beauty

Bank holiday Sunday, has a lovely ring to it.....mostly cause you know its closely followed by Bank Holiday Monday. We woke up at mum and dad's house, and after a hearty breakfast (mum will keep feeding Paul till he goes....POP!!) we set off for the station. We got the train into London and once we arrived at Victoria headed to the underground. We traveled to Holburn so that we could do a self guided walk (#9 Mandy!), once there we decided to stop and have a coffee, Holburn is a nice area and had a nice feel to it. We enjoyed our coffee and people watching. Finally we dragged ourselves away, and off we went on our walk. We'd only got around the corner when I had to stop to take a photo of a coffee bar - it was called Philomena's, which is my mum's name. The walk took us through theatre land, past the lyceum, the Novello etc. I love going to the theatre and was totally distracted by all the shows! I couldn't help noticing that there was a matinee performance of the lion king. So I persuaded Paul to come into the box office, I just wanted to know if they had any seats left...LOL....they sure did at a ticket price of £125!! Me thinks not!! We swiftly moved on. The walk took us past the outskirts of Covent Garden, and on to Somerset House. We'd never been there, its an impressive building, with a beautiful courtyard. You can actually go into Somerset House, its full of exhibitions etc. We had a little look around, but it was very crowded, hot and stuffy. Not a winning combination, especially for Paul who was still feeling a little wobbly. We carried on with our walk which took us down on to the Embankment, past Cleopatra's Needle and into the Embankment Gardens. So many tourists, London is as popular as ever. We sat in the gardens for a little while then made our way along Villiers Street onto The Strand. We had hoped to have lunch at a little Thai restaurant we'd been too in the past but when we got there the place was closed, we were so disappointed. SO we had to wander around till we found a pub. We did find somewhere nice in the end, and it was quiet inside. It was a relief to sit down and cool off a little, and of course to enjoy a nice lunch.

After lunch we decided we wanted to get away from the crowds so we headed to Pimlico, once there we stopped at a pub on Millbank, right by the river and had a soda. Any place in London is good to sit and watch the world go by. Finally we went to the Tate, a very favourite place of mine. We spend a happy couple of hours looking at the paintings. So many beautiful pictures, truly amazing. I can now say with confidence that I much prefer Constable to Turner, but more than anything I love the Pre-raphaelites. I was sad to leave the Tate, but we finally had to but not before stopping at the gallery shop and buying a mounted copy of the Lady of Shalot. I love the painting, though I will always detest the poem! A childhood trauma that I will never forget!

We returned to Penge to have dinner and hang out with my parents. We were both shattered by then, we must have walked for miles, but all in a good cause.

high society

At last it was Friday, and our long week end, had started....lets not mention that i was nearly an hour late leaving work and came home in a terrible mood!! It was a bank holiday week end and both of us had booked a couple of days off, so for us it was a 5 days week end....yippee!! On Saturday we were up early to head south, our first stop was Polesden Lacey, a national  Trust property that we hadn't been to. Its a beautiful place, surrounded by extensive gardens and woodland. Lots of families were there enjoying the lovely day....playing, picnicking etc. We explored the house, what a beautiful place! It was home to famous Edwardian hostess Mrs Greville, who entertained royalty and the celebrities of her time. The Queen mum once remarked that it was a delicious house!! It certainly had the wow factor! e felt as though we were walking in the footsteps of a lot of famous people. We had a lovely few hours, and walked a lot...not bad considering. Paul is still not back to 100%, bless him!

On leaving Polesden Lacy we carried on around the M25 and finally arrived at my parents house at 5.30pm.....to find no one home!! Mumsy and Popsicle had apparently headed to church early, so we were left to wander the streets for an hour or so. Actually it wasn't all that bad, ha ha. We went to Sainsburys to get some stuff for a picnic, big mistake! I ended up spending a fortune. I bought a travel hairdryer and one of those fancy Douw Egberts coffee bottles, both of which I couldn't find locally. I also treated myself to the new Marian Keyes novel, I am looking forward to reading that. Once all our shopping was done, we were forced to seek refuge in the pub. A large glass of wine worked wonders. My parents joined us there at about 7pm for dinner. The meal was lovely, however the staff were dozy and pretty useless. We did eventually get the meals we wanted. By the time we got back to my parents house we were both tired, and really didn't have the energy to do much except hand over a big bag of presents to my dad. We won't see him again before Fathers Day and i wanted him to have the presents. Dad obviously had no plans to wait till June to open the presents, and I have to be honest -  I was glad, cause I had the pleasure of seeing him open everything. Apparently the fudge was a good choice! It was a lovely end to the day. After bidding everyone a good night, it was off to my childhood bedroom for a good nights sleep.

further insights from the hay bale.......

At last it was Saturday and I was free from the constraints of work, it had not been a pleasant week and I was truly glad it was over. We were up reasonably early so we could collect a parcel from the sorting office, then we were our way to Kedleston. We arrived nice and early before the crowds had even started to gather. We parked up at the National Trust car park and walked back down to the Food Festival. This time Paul was able to come with me, and I was so happy about that. We had a hot chocolate and then made our way to the big tent to look around all the stalls. There was all manner of things for sale, cakes, cheese, wine etc. I love to look around the stalls, and sample all the goodies. This time it was way less  crowded and I was able to get near the stalls!! We bought something for lunch, and we also got a few other goodies to bring home. There was also a tent full of stalls selling gifts, and I found one selling nothing but wooden pens. Yes, Paul's eyes lit up so he chose one and I got it for him for his birthday which is just around the corner. When we had done our first round of the stalls we went outside to sit on the hay bales (yes!!! there were more hay bales, aren't they the popular thing these days) and eat lunch. Nothing better than sitting in the sun, listening to live music and eating good stuff. At noon we went to a cookery demo by Denise Tollyfield, very entertaining. She made  Mediterranean picnic pie and coleslaw, she was funny and informative, I actually feel I learned something. After that, we decided to have another hot drink, listen to the music for a while longer and then head over to Kedleston Hall. We did buy a few goodies from the fair, and it was good to support local producers. The walk over to the hall involved trying to side step a lot of sheep poo.....I mean I know shit happens...but really....that much????

Kedleston Hall wasn't as busy as I thought it might be, so we were able to wonder around the house at our own pace and enjoy its splendor. The place really does take your breath away. The National Trust site has this to say about Kedleston - It was designed for lavish entertaining and displaying an extensive collection of paintings, sculpture and original furnishings, Kedleston is a stunning example of the work of architect Robert Adam. The Curzon family have lived here since the 12th-century and continue to live at the Hall. Lord Curzon's Eastern Museum is a treasure trove of fascinating objects acquired on his travels in Asia and while Viceroy of India (1899 to 1905). The Hall was used as a key location for 'The Duchess', the Hollywood blockbuster starring Keira Knightley. 

By the time we left the Hall, we were ready to come home. It was a lovely day, and even better cause I got to spend it with Mr Ivans. This evening we have been chilling out and watching films - City of Ember (ok-ish) Ice Age (an old favourite) and now the Matrix (a classic). As usual the day has just flown by too fast.....boo hiss!!!

Thanks for reading, it has been interesting to see that people from so far away are taking the time to read my blog. The internet has made the world a much smaller place, somewhere that you can easily reach out and touch someone's life.

March of the Elsa clones

At last the day had arrived, after months of waiting!! Of course, life never goes to plan and this last week has not been without its challenges. With Paul having been so poorly, it wasn't till this morning that I knew for sure that Paul would be able to come with me. Thankfully though he is still not 100%, he was just about up to it. So we left at 8.30am and headed to Nottingham. We arrived at the park and ride, left the car and caught the bus into the city centre. Once we got there we made out way to the Joseph Else to have breakfast. In case anyone was wondering  Joseph Else taught modelling and sculpture at Nottingham School of Art where he was also principal from late 1922.We both enjoyed breakfast, when we left the pub we slowly made our way to the Ice Arena, we just followed the procession of little Elsa's. It was really quite comical, like an army of clones!

We were of course on our way to Disney on ice....woo hoo!! After all these years, I finally got to go! The show started at 11am, and I think we can safely say it was a sell out. It was with much excitement we waited for the lights to dim, and the hosts to skate out on to the ice. And then it was time ...... Mickey and Minnie were on the rink and the fun began. It was amazing, they performed songs from The Little Mermaid (it was wonderful), Beauty and the Beast, Tangled and of course....Frozen. The sets and costumes are truly beautiful, so much work and effort goes into these shows. There was short interval, which gave me just enough time to go and get us an ice cream to share. Looking around the crowd was amusing, there were dozens of Elsa's in the audience. Frozen has truly become a global phenomenon! I am really glad I finally got to experience Disney on Ice, it wasn't cheap, but it was a great show and I would highly recommend it.

After the show we made our way back into town, we stopped at the Pit and Pendulum for dessert and a soda, also a good place for a rest before heading back to the bus stop. It turned out the desserts were on a 2-4-1 offer, and everything only cost us £4 - bargain! We had originally planned to spend the day in the city to look around the shops etc, but Paul was tired and definitely not up to that.But it was still a wonderful day, and one I am so glad I got to   share it with Paul. As we wondered through Nottingham, I thought how long it had been since we were last there and how much I would like to come back and spend a week end.

I did fleetingly pop into Paperchase, and can I say they have really upped their game. They have some wonderful notebooks and writing paper at the moment, and some notepads at very reasonable prices. I hope they continue to stock them. I came away with a pretty note book....what do you mean - did I need another notebook?? Er.....YES!!! 

When we got home we were both shattered, its been a long and stressful week, but at least now its ended on a high and I have some lovely memories.

 

Live from the hay bale......

As my friends will already know, the past week has not been a great one.....a poorly husband, job applications to complete, and never ending stress at work. I had looked forward to this Bank Holiday week end, an extra day off work and Paul and i had plans. Sadly things don't always turn out how you anticipate and with Paul being taken ill with labrynthitis, it was clear he wouldn't be able to go out with me at the week end. Thankfully he was feeling a bit better by Saturday, he was able to at least stand up and was eating again, but a day out at a food festival? Was never gonna happen! So after much thought, I decided to go on my own. Paul didn't want me to miss out, and in all fairness I think he wanted me to go and get sausages and cheese - he didn't want to miss out on the goodies. It turned out to be a day of reflection and quiet contemplation for me. A long drive, and a chance to think. My confidence has taken such a pounding in recent years, I needed to prove to myself I could do this on my own. And while I missed Paul so much, I truly enjoyed the day and my own company. 

It took me an hour to get there, I left really early and was there and parked up by 9.30am. So glad I went early, I was able to park in the National Trust car park, really near the entrance. The food festival started at 10am, so first I went to Hardwick Hall and had a cup of tea and some very nice shortbread. Then at about quarter past i walked back to the food festival. It was already very crowded, its certainly a very popular event. I spent a couple of hours there looking around the stalls, that's when I could get anywhere near them. Mostly I seemed to be doing battle with pushchairs, wheelchairs and killer back packs. I did however get everything I know Paul would love - HECK sausages, a variety of Lymm Farm cheeses, chutney, oatmeal biscuits, Ceylon Orange Pekoe tea (for my mum), curry spices and a large slice of red velvet cake. Not a bad haul for one so little.....there were times I wished I was a food taller, it was hard to get near some of the stalls or to see what was on them. I did also watch a cookery demonstration, where the chef made herb crusted salmon with a tomato, cream and vodka sauce (the sauce did not look visually appealing I have to say). The best part of the day was sitting on a hay bale eating a steak pie (delish!!) while listening to live music. I love people watching, and there were certainly enough people there to make it entertaining. By this time the sky was looking grey and rain looked imminent so i decided to head back to the car, drop off my shopping and then head to Hardwich Hall to explore the house. We have been before, but its a beautiful house and everytime you go there is something new to see - amazing tapestries, beautiful furniture and amazing artwork. I loved being there surrounded by such history - what a wonderful and at times tragic tale Hardwick has to tell. While Bess of Hardwick was a woman ahead of her time, and furnished a house to rival a palace, her grand daughter Arbella viewed Hardwick as a prison, albeit a beautiful one - like a bird in a gilded cage. 

 As I left Hardwick, the rain  finally started to fall, never heavy but still wet enough to be annoying. Luckily though I had missed it, and was on my way home.

Life is a journey....follow the path!

After a pretty awful week at work, we decided to make the most of our saturday. So we were up early and off we set for Warwick. Its about an hour away from here, and a place we love to visit. When we got there we headed to Costa for coffee and then headed to the market for a look around. Its a small market but lots of nice things to look at. We bought the most enormous cherry scone (could have sunk a battle ship!) and there was a stall selling all sorts of interesting crafty things too, where  I found a lovely little bottle of fairy dust.  

We made our way through the town looking around the shops and walking down all the side streets to explore. We discovered parts of the town we had not seen before. We came upon St Mary's Church, and decided to go in and have a look around. Its a lovely church, steeped in history, with a tower that if you're brave enough you can climb to the top of. There are 162 steps, today neither of us felt we had the energy. But as we explored the church, we found a corner set aside for brass rubbing, and there amongst the plaques was an Alice in Wonderland scene - needless to say I just had to have a go. You pay your money at the gift shop and they provide you with everything you need, paper, wax, masking tape etc. I really enjoyed it, and I have a lovely reminder of the day. The rubbing turned out really well. 

When we left the church we went in search of the post office, which thankfully we posted. I had a whole of letters to post.  They are all on their way now. Luckily the Post office was right next to the market square, which is where the Thai restaurant was that we wanted to try for lunch. Paul and I both love Thai food, and we weren't disappointed. My green Thai curry was delicious.  It was nice to have lunch in quiet  and pleasant surroundings.  After lunch we continued our journey through Warwick, a few shops to look in and of course I had to go check out Aspire. Then we carried on to St John's Museum, its free and full of interesting telling the history of Warwick. We love to go there and look around. When we came out of the museum we went to sit in the garden, while we were there we noticed a gate. Curious minds wanted to know what lay beyond, so off we went. Once through the gate, we found a path which we followed, it led us to St Nicholas's park. What a gem, its beautiful! There are lots of places to sit and chill out, or you could go boating. There was a large children's play area, and cafe too. The park was full of families, and surprisingly lots of teenagers too. Some were playing with a Frisbee, something we haven't seen in ages. It was nice to see so many people outdoors enjoying the park, even though the weather wasn't great today. At times it was sunny, but then the clouds would blow over again. Thankfully tho we only had a light shower, which didn't last long. I was so sad when we had to leave. I loved the park, and could have stayed a lot longer. But we had done so much walking today, we were both shattered when we came home.

Recipe for the perfect week end......

......take one beloved husband and one best friend, throw in some half decent weather, some fabulous meals out, a visit to a Hobbit like house, and some serious shopping. Throw in some unexpected fun, and mix well with a half baked evening of charades.  Serve in a relaxed atmosphere and enjoy.

So there you have it! This sums up last week end, which yes.....I am only just writing about. This is what happens when you are spending  every minute of your spare time job hunting. Now there is a soul destroying occupation. But I have happy thoughts of last week end. Friday saw Mandy arriving, and we had a lovely night out at the Chesterfield. Just us girls, a nice meal, wine and so much to catch up on. The evening flew by, and can I just say there were some rum characters in the pub!! Paul came to collect us, he came in time to join us for a drink before we headed home.

Saturday was a lovely sunny day, but COLD!!! we were up early and off to Derby we went. First stop was Intu to do some shopping. We all found something we wanted, for me it was mostly stationery from Paperchase, boy have they upped their game! It was wonderful to look around, and nice to come away with some shopping. We had lunch at Papaya Thai, lovely quiet restaurant tucked away in a side street. Their lunch time specials are a bargain at a fiver and very tasty. Its a haven of quiet away from the busy and noisy mall! After a very pleasant lunch break we walked into town to enjoy the St George's day celebrations. We didn't know about these in advance, so it was a wonderful surprise. There were Morris dancers, live singing and a lovely craft fair! Loved looking around the craft fair, lots of nice things to look at....and buy! It was actually the high light of the day for me. It was a lovely afternoon albeit a bit chilly in the wind. We finally walked back to the car park, and headed back to Swadlincote. We had to call in at Sainsburys to do some shopping. But we stopped for tea and a wonder around the clothes dept. It was fun, we were quite late getting back, but what a great day.

Saturday night saw Christmas come to Gresley, complete with Christmas dinner, crackers and presents for all. What a hoot, and presents are always nice. You know, I love Christmas.....so why limit it to December!

Sunday saw us up early to head to Stoneywell, it was a grey day but still not too bad. We arrived there around 10am and were whisked off from the car park in the mini bus. We took the tour around the house, sadly we were herded around with a tour guide this time and not exactly rushed around, but not  allowed to linger either. I think we would all have liked more time to soak up the atmosphere. Once we had done the house, we went for a walk around the woods, oh my gosh we found fairies!!! I love walking around the woods, so calming. We explored the gardens too, but there was a little drizzle in the air. What a shame. We headed back to the car park at about 1pm and drove over to Flagstaff park for lunch at the Brewers Fayre...YUM! Then we headed home, sadly housework and stuff to catch up on. 

We did go out for a lovely meal at our local Indian restaurant in the evening. Lovely food, and excellent company. We walked home, all very full up and happy. The evening was spent playing charades much to Paul's horror. Bless him, its really not his thing. But with much protest, he did have a go. All to soon the week end was over, and with heavy heart I had to say good bye to Mandy of  Monday morning. But at least I am left with happy memories.

windy week ends!

Why is it that it can be warm, and sunny all week and come Saturday morning the sky is grey, its cold and its raining? But you just have to get up and make the most of it! So for us Saturday was a fairly quiet day, we headed into town to do the usual food shopping. A wonder around town, and a visit to the supermarket and the post office and most of  our errands were done. We decided to treat ourselves to lunch at Cafe Zen, and then headed home. A busy afternoon followed, a spare room needed making up for a special visitor! This is the first time our new sofa bed will be used and boy did we find out the hard way that making up a sofa bed isn't easy. The sheet did not want to be tucked in, and the duvet put up a fight too. But we got there in the end!

Today we woke up to a nicer but VERY windy day. We got a couple of things done and then headed off for an adventure. Our journey didn't get off to a good start, the sat nav's charging lead burned out, luckily it had just enough charge to get us to Wellesbourne and back! It took us about an hour to get to Charlecote House, i had been wanting to go here for a while. Charlecote Park is a grand 16th century country house, surrounded by its own deer park, on the banks of the River Avon near Wellesbourne, about 4 miles east of Stratford-upon-Avon. Its been the family home of the Lucy family for over 900 years, and with this in mind we took our very own Lucy with us. She was very excited at the prospect of a road trip to rediscover her heritage!! We were astounded at how busy it was,  but once we started exploring the crowds seemed to disperse. First we had tea in the orangery restaurant and then explored the house. What a beautiful place, and clearly steeped in history. Once we had done the tour of the house, we made our way outside to explore the gardens and outbuildings. There was a coachhouse with a collection of the families former carriages, a wash house and brewery and the kitchens were also open to look around. We found the gift shop, and a used book store. Paul found a very old children's book that looked like it had a history of its own, so I invested 50p and bought it for him. Books fascinate both of us, not always for the story itself, but like in this case, the actual history of the book. 

The house is actually surrounded by a deer park, there were lots of them about. They are very tame, and totally at ease with the many people walking near by. They occasionally look up and peer at you, then carry on with whatever they were doing.

We brought lunch with us and braved the wild winds to sit outside and eat. LOL....that was fun! I really loved the place and hope we can go back again. We didn't have the time to visit the garden centre next door. Maybe next time.

The drive home was uneventful, and we were back in under an hour. I have to say I love being a member of the National Trust, definitely something i will continue to do. Though following a comment from Paul earlier today, I shall be careful not to let myself be cloned into a typical NT visitor! LOL! Break out the pink tutu and feather boa!

March 5th - Ships Ahoy

This was our last full day in San Diego and as you can imagine we were both feeling a little down. Neither of us wanted the holiday to end. But we got up, went out for breakfast and then headed to the Embarcadero to make the most of our last day. We spent the day at the Maritime Museum, what a find!! Its not that expensive and there is loads to see. I thought it was all based on one ship...but NO!! There were several ships to explore and two submarines. We started by exploring the Dolphin, a submarine and then went on to look around the other ships - the Star of India, the Berkley, the Surprise and the Medea. All amazing and beautiful, being aboard them spirited you away to another era.....one of pirates and long sea voyages. The Star of India for example  was built in 1863 at Ramsey in the Isle of Man as Euterpe, a full-rigged iron windjammer ship. Oh, if only a ship would talk....this one would have some tales to tell. I decided against going on the Russian submarine, apparently it was very small inside and you had to climb thru the doorways, which was a real struggle for some people. Paul went on his own, but didn't stay very long. Your admission entitled you to come and go all day as you wanted. So we left for a while to have lunch at Anthony's fish restaurant a short walk away. The fish was very fresh and delicious! In the afternoon we went on a historic bay cruise. It was wonderful, as well as enjoying a bay cruise we got to hear about the history of the city, the bay front and its long connection with the navy. We sailed right under the USS Midway, which was pretty cool! It was a wonderful day, we loved every minute of it. The maritime museum was a real gem, not somewhere we had actually planned to visit, but somewhere we would definitely visit again. While we were there we saw a group of school children, all kitted out with sleeping bags etc. They had come to spend the night on the ship as deck hands. They were even being hoisted aloft in a boatswains chair. Lucky kids, it looked like fun!!

In the evening we made out way back to Mission Valley and had dinner at Gordon Biersch, lovely meal. For the time I have to say I wasn't impressed with the service, our waiter didn't seem very interested at all. His loss when it came to the tip!!! Finally we headed back to the hotel to print out our boarding passes, and to finish our packing. Sad times! I know holidays have to end, doesn't mean I have to like it! San Diego is the most amazing place we have ever been, somewhere we would both like to live. Maybe one day!

March 4th - Bridges and Gaslamps

Ah.....another sunny day in San Diego.....bliss! We loved Coronado so much we decided to go back again, only this time by bus. It was actually way cheaper and more efficient. We took the trolley to 12th & Imperial and from there caught the 901, which took us all the way to the Hotel Del. Much easier than the previous days journey. It also meant we went over the amazing and beautiful bridge. Its so high you feel like you're heading off to heaven! When we got to Coronado, we headed straight to the beach, we sat there for a while then went for a leisurely walk. I cannot express how beautiful it is. We did eventually drag ourselves away to look around the town, its a lovely place with some interesting shops. I stayed away from the office supplies store! 

We left Coronado mid afternoon and headed to the Gaslamp Quarter. Its spread out over a large area, and its a bit over whelming, restaurant after restaurant.  The Gaslamp Quarter extends from Broadway to Harbor Drive, and from 4th to 6th Avenue, covering 16½ blocks. It includes 94 historic buildings, most of which were constructed in the Victorian Era, and are still in use with active tenants including restaurants, shops and nightclubs. There are plaques outside the buildings, but some were so worn you couldn't read them. It was a bit like walking around London where there are also plaques outside so many of the buildings. We weren't very hungry at that point so we just kept walking and looking around. We eventually stumbled across  Westfield Horton Plaza which is a very pleasant and built on staggered levels. Unusual, and fun to look around it is a five-level outdoor shopping mall located in downtown San Diego known for its bright colours, architectural tricks, and odd spatial rhythms. It was fun to look around. Thought the Sanrio shop was very disappointing. 

By this point we were hungry and decided to have dinner at The House of Blues. They had live music which was great, though I am glad we were sat well away from the stage. The food was great and the staff very pleasant. We shared quesadilla and sliders.....double yum!  After dinner we made our way to the trolley station, and back to the hotel We liked the gaslamp quarter, but both agree we liked Old Town and Seaport village much more.

baa baa....little lamb

Today I think we could almost believe spring had arrived. We set off from home at about 10.15am and headed to Calke Abbey, I wanted to go early cause I knew it would be busy there. We were there a little after half past, and decided to go and have a coffee while it was still quiet in the restaurant. After our coffee we headed to the stables to check out the Vintage Craft fair. I love these events, but do think a lot of the stuff is over priced. One of the stalls was selling silver jewellery and some of the items were in excess of £80....really.....at a craft fair!!? We walked on by, this was a looking expedition.

Once we finished there we headed to the gardens, it was a beautiful day - much too nice to be inside. We walked to the church and spent a few minutes enjoying the quiet and solitude. People came, looked and left. No one stayed to soak up the atmosphere or enjoy the moment. On leaving the church we followed the signs to the farm to check out the lambs. Its lambing season, and though we didn't see any lambs being born, we saw several newborn lambs, oh my god they were so cute. I wanted to sneak one into my pocket and bring it home. Think they would have noticed?? We spent quite a while at he farm, then carried on exploring. We actually found part of the grounds that we had not seen before. Not sure how we'd missed it! I love Calke Abbey and the fact its not far away. By the time we were ready to leave, the place was heaving, so many people there!! Very glad we went early!!

This evening has been an expensive one, having paid for my car tax I kind of decided to treat myself to tickets to the Good Food Show in June. Paul and I have been before and its a brilliant day out! And then I was on a roll....looking at Lastminute.com I found tickets for The Railway Children for only £12.50!! God bless flash sales! I guess we won't be anywhere near the stage....or should I say the train tracks. But a night out at the theatre in London for £12.50? Not to be missed!

If you go down to the woods.......

Taking a short break from writing about San Diego to tell you about our adventure today. Whilst looking at the National Trust site earlier in the week, I noticed a new property. One you had to book in advance for as they limited the number of visitors. Ooh I thought, something to do at the week end. Apparently you had to book first, and then they email you instructions on how to get there. All quite mysterious! So I booked and off we went this morning. Nothing like an adventure to start your week end. We had received our email, and luckily found our destination without too much trouble. We had to park and wait for a mini bus to come and collect us. We didn't have to wait long, and were soon on our way down the road to Stoneywell. Built as a summer home by Arts and Crafts architect-designer Ernest Gimson for his brother Sydney, Stoneywell zigzags from its rocky outcrop, amid rhododendrons and heather. Every turn conjures childhood memories of holiday excitement, dashing down the winding steps –– one way to the fort, the other to the woods beyond. The house is a marvel, built into the side of a hill. Its built on several levels with steep stairways leading up to each level. Each room was an unusual shape, quirky and like something a hobbit would live in. The house was a family home and lived in till only 2 years ago. How lucky to live somewhere like this, its fabulous. After exploring the house, we headed back to the stables for a drink in the tea room. It was quite chilly outside and a hot chocolate was most welcome. I have to say tho that the current tea room is way too small, and they are so not geared up for potential crowds. There were quite a few people there today, so imagine what it will be like in the summer. So unless they are keeping the number of visitors to a minimum, the tea room is going to be over run. 

After a hot drink, we headed to the woods and had a nice long walk in search of those elusive teddy bears and the picnic goodies.....

If you go down to the woods today
You're sure of a big surprise.
If you go down to the woods today
You'd better go in disguise!

For every bear that ever there was
Will gather there for certain,
Because today's the day the
Teddy Bears have their picnic.

Possibly our singing scared the bears off.....who knows! The walk through the woods took us over 2 little bridges and across a ravine.....Paul tried to convince me it was just a ditch.....I know better!  From the woods, we walked around the garden, and a couple of hours later we bid a find farewell to the lovely house. The bus took us back to the car park. We decided to stop and have some lunch at the Flagstaff, a platter of starters to share...yum yum, all washed down with Stella. Good times!

Lastly, we went to Breedon Priory to look around the antiques fair. Nice end to the afternoon. Its been a fun day, it was almost spring like, a part from being rather chilly! But it was lovely to be outside, and the woods were beautiful, so quiet and peaceful today. Indeed a place to collect your thoughts and count the daffodils!

March 3rd - When is an island not an island.....

.....when its Coronado of course!! Today was the day I overslept and woke to find it was nearly 9am - unheard of for me to get up so late. But after dashing around we were dressed and on our way to the trolley station. We took the Trolley to Santa Fe Station and from there we walked to Broadway pier. We bought our tickets for the ferry and hung around in the sunshine till the ferry arrived. Its a lovely journey across the bay to Coronado Island, which is not actually an island. The locals apparently think of it as an island tho!! It was lovely to see the water front from the ferry.

When we got to Coronado we weren't sure where to go, after asking someone we found the famous Hotel Del Coronado was on the other side of the 'island' a couple of miles away. So in the spirit of adventure we hopped on a local bus and headed off, couldn't go all that way and miss out on the famous hotel!   When we arrived at the hotel we just had to check out the famous Babcock and Story bar, we stopped for a beer and tortilla chips, and what can only be described as the best guacamole ever! It was silly expensive for what it was, but an experience not to be missed. 

Next stop was the beach, oh my god its beautiful! We just hung out there for ages, soaking up the sun and enjoying the day. We did finally drag ourselves away to go look around the town. There are some lovely shops, including an Italian Gelato store. The pannacotta gelato was scrumpious! Next door was an office supply store and there I found....wait for it.....STATIONERY! Oh happy days, I bought several packs on A4 sized printer paper, they had some lovely designs. I wish I could have had it all, hee hee. Coronado is a beautiful place, boy would we like to live there. Maybe if we win a few million!!

We finally headed back to the ferry landing and got the 5.30pm ferry back. From Broadway pier we made our way back to Mission Valley and headed to Target to do some shopping. From there it was dinner at the Tilted Kilt. Ah, yet another day ended with good food and chardonnay!

March 2nd - Aboard a legend!

Unconditional Surrender

We woke up to a grey and gloomy day.....oh no!! But you know us, never been know to waste a day. After breakfast we headed to the Embarcadero, we strolled through Seaport Harbor and onto The USS Midway, we were both keen to visit. On the way we took a slight detour to see the truly amazing Unconditional Surrender, a huge statue on the water front. I absolutely love it, it takes your breath away! I finally managed to drag myself away. Next stop was the majestic USS Midway - an aircraft carrier that was involved in the Battle of Midway. The USS Midway was America's longest-serving aircraft carrier of the 20th century, from 1945 to 1992. Approximately 200,000 sailors served aboard the carrier, known for several naval aviation breakthroughs as well as several humanitarian missions. It was the only carrier to serve the entire length of the Cold War and beyond. Midway opened as a museum on 7 June 2004. The place is huge, and there is so much to see and do. You start the tour with a short film, and then with the aid of an audio tour, you explore at your leisure. We were there several hours, and finally left just before it closed for the day. It is really an amazing place, you learn so much. You also realise how much the British Navy have to be proud of!! At one point I got to sit in the 'Gators chair....woo hoo!! Won't tell you how hard it was to climb up into it. We had lunch on the Midway which was fun. And can I just say the gift shop is amazing! 

We decided to have an early dinner at the Kansas City BBQ, its a small place famous for being used as a set in Top Gun. We chose to sit inside so we could soak up the atmosphere, its not a fine dining establishment by any means. What can I say about the food....over priced and vile!!! Here is a restaurant that is relying on its fame to draw in the customers, they surely don't care about the food - soggy bread rolls, bland chicken and BBQ sauce that left an after taste! Not pleasant at all, i would never return. 

We returned to the hotel and made the decision to start on the packing, not something I wanted to do. But i didn't want to leave it all till the last night.  Once that was done, it was time to curl up with my travel journal, and an episode of Hart to Hart.....oh my gosh I love Hallmark. I wish I had access to it at home.

March 1st - Girl scouts, red shoes and machine guns

 the border fence and the silver arch

March arrived with a grey sky and rain, weather we're more than used too. We got up, headed to the bakery for breakfast and then hopped on the trolley. We rode it all the way to the end of the line to 12th & Imperial and there we had to change onto the Blue line which we took all the way to San Ysidro. The journey took an hour and we passed some run down looking places on the way. We were also the only tourists I could see on the trolley, mostly it looked like people heading to work. I knew the trolley stopped near the Mexican border, I didn't realise it stopped right NEXT TO IT!! We could have walked across on foot. On leaving the trolley there was a moment of panic, yes that was just after I saw the Mexican soldiers patroling the border with machine guns....but I soon spotted the pedestrian friendly bridge that leads you to the Outlet mall. So off we went, and luckily we found the mall easily. There are actually now two, the San Ysidro Outlet, and Outlets at the border. We stopped for coffee at Ghiradhelli's and bought a lot of chocolate. Yum! As we walked from one mall to the other we passed a cute little girl scout selling cookies, just like we have seen on TV. She was dressed as a cookie and looked so cute, we just had to stop and talk with her. She recommended the mint chocolate cookies, so we bought some from her. I hope she did well, and sold all her cookies. Bless her little cookie crumbs!

We of course had to stop at Sketchers, and we were in there for ages. We both bought new shoes, they are cheaper and not to be missed! I like mine, they're different! We had Chinese at lunch time at the food court and spent a couple more hours looking around. It was very similar to the malls in Orlando. It was so weird tho, as you walked around the mall the border fence was clearly visible, a constant reminder or what lay beyond. We could clearly the see the big silver arch we had stood under days before on the avenue de revolucion. SO close, but yet a world away.

Mid afternoon we got the trolley back to Mission Valley and went to the mall there. We went to the cinema to see Project Almanac. Good movie, but it was filmed on hand held camera's and the constant motion made us feel sick. I had to keep my eyes shut for the last part of the movie. It was an interesting story, but one that's been done before - for example the Butterfly Effect. After the movie we went to the Tilted Kilt for pizza and chardonnay. It was a wet evening, we were slightly bedraggled when we returned to the hotel. But an interesting day!!!

rainy day at the border!

Each day was an adventure, something new around each corner in a city that never failed to amaze and impress. This is truly a place where there is something for everyone!

Feb 28th - Tequila, Markets and Mormans

We woke up wondering what weather the day would bring, San Diego were battening down the hatches for bad weather.....still we had to do something.  So we headed to our favourite breakfast spot and then  hopped on the trolley to Old Town.  We ended up spending all day there, its by far our favourite place! There was a free guided walk at 11am which we can recommend. We decided to go on the walk along with a small group of people including a couple from Yorkshire. They had come to San Diego for a week end whilst staying in Mexico. A WEEK END?????? No understanding some people! The walk lasted an hour and took around parts of old town we hadn't seen on our previous visit. We learned more about the history of San Diego, it was fascinating. 

When the walk ended we had a walk around the Mexican market, I love these places they are so vibrant and colourful. We also discovered a coaching museum, and the Wells Fargo Museum, which Paul was very keen to visit. He's always wanted to open a Wells Fargo account, but at least now he has gotten to stand next to one of their stage coaches. 

Next stop was the Tequila Factory for lunch, its nestled at the top of the Best Western Hacienda hotel with stunning views out across San Diego. It had become very warm and sunny by then. We enjoyed BLT's and margarita's out on the terrace whilst enjoying the views. The tortilla chips they brought us out were so good, as was the salsa.

When we left the Tequila Factory, we noticed across the road a sign for the Mormon Battalion Historic site, so we wondered over to have a look. We were greeted at the door by a young lady in costume asking if we would like to come in for the tour - it was free. Turned out to be one of the best bits of the day. First we were shown into a little theatre where they were screening a film about Mormons who have gone on to do great things, it was interesting and filled in the time till someone came to get us and a small group of others to go on the tour. Using staff in costumes, pictures that came to life and staged rooms, they told the story of  The Mormon Battalion, the only religiously based unit in United States Military history who served from July 1846 to July 1847 during the Mexican-American of 1846-1848. The battalion was a volunteer unit of between 534 and 559 Latter-day Saints men led by Mormon company officers, and commanded by regular US army officers. During its service, the battalion made a grueling march of nearly 2,000 miles from Council Bluffs, Iowa, to San Diego. After the tour they took our photo for a souvenir and there was also the chance to pan for gold out in the courtyard. We even got to take the (fools) gold away with us. It was all free, and the staff working there were all friendly, and possibly looking for converts - though they were not at all pushy. If we got the chance we'd go again, it really is worth it. 

Next stop was the Church of the Immaculate conception. Its a beautiful church, peaceful and calm inside. I enjoyed sitting there soaking up the atmosphere. Next door there was a lovely gift shop, they had some beautiful things, and the lady working there was so friendly and spent quite a while chatting with us. After that we visited  Fiesta de Reyes, another Mexican market. Before we knew it, it was 5pm and we hadn't actually done the two things we had gone to the Old Town to do....oh well, such is life!

We stopped at the Fashion Valley mall on the way back, only spent an hour there. It had started raining, and was windy. I didn't particularly like the mall, and maybe we were just too tired to appreciate it. But we didn't stay long but decided to head back to Mission Valley.We ended up having dinner at the Bakery cafe, which was good! Cannot believe what a popular place it is. By the time we got back to the hotel we were dead on our feet. Oh, and the rain made the local news. It apparently only rains about twice a year in San Diego....and we were there to experience it! Water is a scarce commodity to these people so they were very excited about the drizzle....now if they want to see proper rain, they should come to Blighty!!

Feb 27th - Ocean bound!

I woke up excited on the 27th.....today we were going to Carlsbad. I had spent a while working out timings so we would have time to walk to the station, have breakfast and still catch the Coaster. Our first stop was the Corner Bakery Cafe - our usual breakfast of good coffee, croissants and banana muffins....YUM!! The we took the trolley to Old Town, here we had to buy tickets for the Coaster, a huge double decker train. Never seen anything like it, and we were both excited about the train ride itself. It took an hour to get to Carlsbad, we passed through several stations and through some amazing coastal scenery. WOW!! When we got to Carlsbad we stopped at Don's cafe for coffee and pancakes, it was fabulous to sit out in the sunshine eating pancakes! They were so good. We had a wonder around the town and looked in a few shops. We didn't buy much, just a few little things to remind us of our day. We found an Irish shop just selling items from the Emerald Island, apparently there is quite a large Irish community in Carlsbad. And of course with St Patrick's day just around the corner, there was a lot of green everywhere!  As we ambled about town we found an Irish bar called O'Sullivans - of course we had to call in to try the Guiness. We sat at the bar eating onion rings and enjoying a drink. The bar man was friendly and spent quite a while chatting with us.

Then it was off to the beach, the clouds were rolling in and I  feared it might rain, but luckily it didn't and the bad weather seemed to blow over. We loved the beach

and spent ages just walking, picking up shells and enjoying the beauty. Carlsbad is a beautiful place. It was hard walking on the sand, your feet just slid all over the place. I could have stayed there forever! California has a beautiful coast line, it seems to roll on and on with no end in sight. Personally I love the ocean, how can you not! When we got back to town, we had a while to wait till the next train so we headed back to the bar for another drink. We arrived back in Old Town at about 6pm. We were tired by then and decided to head back to Mission Valley and have dinner at the Tilted Kilt. Its a fun place to hang out, and I have to admit the food was good. The BBQ chicken bites are delicious! For those of you who haven't been into a Kilt, don't be put off by the girls ''costumes'' - the girls are totally sweet, and the atmosphere is fun. After dinner we dragged ourselves back to the hotel....one footstep at a time! Walking back over the freeway at night is a challenge cause its so dark. Its perfectly safe, you just have to be careful you don't trip over everything.

https://youtu.be/SEIDep_UMmk