a tick for January

 

I decided it was time to tick something off for January, for my big year challenge.

I remembered  yesterday that it  was the last day to see the Flying Scotsman at Locomotion in Shildon, which is part of the National Railway Museum at York.

I quickly booked a ticket online, hopped out of bed and headed off the   miles down the road.

Locomotion is so close to my house and its somewhere that I go to quite often, I think its good to support something so wonderful and so local.

I really am not sure if I have ever seen The flying Scotsman before, it may have been at the huge steam cavalcade that came through where I live in 1975, to celebrate the 150th annivesary  of the Stockton to Darlington railway. Its first lines connected the collieries at  Shildon and passing through where I live now, although it wasn't even thought of then, having just celebrated its 75th birthday. It was one of the first new towns from the new towns act brought into place after WWII.

Anyhooo, I digress. I may also have seen it  York, but I'm not sure, so as this was the centenary celebration, it was worth heading off. Good to see something older than moi!!!!

And it didn't disappoint,

If you are ever in the area, Locomotion  is well worth a visit. They change the exhibits often and always have things on in the school holidays.

After all this excitement I as quite hungry, soI then headed off to Redworth Hall which was on my route home, and had a light lunch. 

All in all it was a good first tick of the year and a lovely morning out.

And so I am looking for something else local to collect another tick before the end of January.

Oh yes I also booked another antiques fair, its in May but it will be a new area , I'm spreading my wings.

Have a great week.

2023 was some year

 

Wowsers!  I started 2023 thinking, I might have a summer beach break, who knew I'd pack quite a lot in.

Mid January I got a great deal on a mini break to Amsterdam, so I hot footed it to North Tyne Dock at the end of the month and sailed over to Holland. The weather was kind to me ( although I am a fairly good sailor) and Amsterdam didn't disappoint apart from not enough time.

Got home, came down with covid! after 3 years it finally got me.

I felt pretty ropey and the after effects are still ongoing ( cough and awful fatigue).

That pretty much wiped out February for me.

I headed off to the beautiful cottage in Yorkshire for Easter  weekend in April, the peace and quiet there was just what I needed. 

The cottage is one bedroomed with amazing views, and very close to Sutton bank, not a drive that ever intend to do again, once was enough for me a couple of years ago!

May saw me head off to Tunisia, for a none stop thrill filled week, well breaking my nose within half an hour of arriving at the hotel, has to be a first in my book.

I have been to Tunisia many times, and sometimes the idea of going back is nicer than the actual reality. I had a good holiday, but have no desire to go back  again. It had lost a lot of its appeal under a blaze of neon, fast food and over building. I appreciate that things have to move with the times, so I decided that it was time for me to lay those memories aside once and for all. 

June saw me travelling to Marlow in Buckinghamshire, primarily for work, but also great to have some free time in a lovely town. Fine dining was very much the order of the week and a very tired and over indulged Lainey came back home. 

I also headed over to Leeds for a weekend with friends where we  caught up  with Jason Gillespie, former Yorkshire coach.  great night was had by all.

July had me racing down the A1 and flying out from Leeds/ Bradford to Beauvais, an airport that feeds tourist into Paris, I was the only person on the flight not heading that way, and had booked an apartment in Beauvais. I had four fabulous days, including being escorted to the police station ( long story which involves me taking some cuttings of the local hydrangeas and finding some credit cards on the ground, its in a previous blog).

This was a most amazing place with a fabulous Gothic cathedral and a museum of the local area. You can also have a wander round the local fire station but I never got to do that ( Fireman's daughter so obviously of interest).

My apartment  was in the old town around the cathedral ( the cathedral was literally in the back garden, I kid you not) so timber framed buildings and cobbled streets and the city walls, fabulous for an architecture geek like me.

The end of the July saw me heading over to Sedbergh for the weekend to meet up with friends, Sophie and Terry. A great time staying in a lovely apartment just behind the high street. Lovely bars and fine dining to be had, definitely worth a visit.

I just worked in August, and stayed at home!

September saw me do my first Antiques Fair in 20 years, a good day and it gave me the confidence to do more.

I also headed off to Nottingham to meet my old friend Harry Latchman, I rented an apartment just a street away from Trent Bridge ground and walking distance of West Bridgford. It was perfect for the few days that I was there and handy for everything. 

October once again saw me racing down the A1 to Leeds airport, and this time flying out to Limoges.

What can I say, this was a beautiful city and the people were wonderful, I stayed once again in the old town behind their Gothic cathedral and in an apartment on a cobbled street ( make that hill, my glutes still haven't recovered). The timber framed houses were beautiful, the botanic gardens were so peaceful and the 'old town' was just wonderful. I would go again, it was such a wonderful place.

I'd no sooner emptied my bag, then it was time to pack my case for my birthday getaway and the start of my big birthday year. 

Yes the next 12/13 months are going to be fun packed as I head towards being 60.

So I nipped off to Spain to celebrate being 59, I booked a hotel in Torremolinos and was not disappointed, it was set in a very Spanish area, no English/ Irish /Scottish bars, no pizza restaurants, just prefect for me.

Had a great time visiting a Museum of crystal and china in Malaga, and finding the first hotel in Torremolinos, I liked it so much I intend to go back.

December saw a quick trip down to Berkshire for a retirement /Christmas 'do', and then me coming down with flu. Not the best start to the run up to Christmas.

I spent Christmas again at the lovely cottage in Yorkshire ( again), complete with chickens

 And enjoyed a  visit to stay at my friends new home in a tiny hamlet near Malton .

I rounded off 2023 with a meal for one at my house and an early night.

Time to get the energy levels up ready for the next chapters.

Christmas in Yorkshire

 

I had decided to spend Christmas in Yorkshire, at the lovely cottage that I hire often. I was no sooner settled in then I headed out to see 'the girls' who have been not allowed out on my last two visits due to avian flu.

They all looked very happy to be out and about, and came running down the field as I got to the fence. Obviously thinking there was food, and disappointed to find that I had none.

Christmas Eve was lovely, having been invited to lunch with the owners of the cottage and their family.

So very nice.

Christmas morning saw me  go out to feed the girls and be watched by the wonderful Herdwick sheep in the other field.

I had a very quiet day, which is just how I like it.

I was packed and away on Boxing day which was a beautiful crisp winter day, blue sky and sun.

I was heading over to stay with my friends Martin, Alison and Lily, who had moved to a hamlet outside of Malton called East Lutton, this added up to another tick for places I hadn't been before, but I ended up ticking off another place.

I had decided to not take a trip up Sutton Bank, my last trip up there I had promised would be my last, so I set off across country.

I passed through the village of Coxwold with the most stunning church, 

This is St Michaels Church and stunning to say the least. I didn't have time to stop but will be heading back this year.

The church is a fifteenth century church with the usual octagonal tower added later.

So a trip is in order.

I headed to East Lutton and had a wonderful time with good food and drink, including a secret recipe cocktail, which was exceptional.

I set off home on Wednesday just in time to hit the latest storm, and after fighting through flooded roads and hideous rain, I got back home, emptied the car, and settled down to having some time at home.

And so the new year begins and time to fill the diary with new adventures.

A quick get away

 

A couple of weeks ago we headed off to Easthampstead Park, a Victorian Mansion house in Berkshire.

One to tick off the 'Big Birthday list' of places and things I have never been to/done.

On what had to be the worst day to travel due to horrendous rain, we arrived after 7 hours and just in time to sit down to eat!. 

It was a retirement/christmas party and set in a marquee in the grounds ( there are over 80 acres of park and woodland).

It was a good evening although for me the food was in very small portions.

The bedrooms were  spacious and well presented

Mine sadly though had no working heating, and at 1.00am when I got back to my room, I did not want to go to reception, so made the best of it.

Breakfast was good and the service in the restaurant was really good. I did however find the staff on the reception, slightly 'robotic' and not too communicative.

The reception and overall hotel decor was wonderful and the hotel was immaculate.

The grounds ( as far as I could see) were stunning even on a drab winter morning.

Overall it was a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't hurry back.

I will however say that as I was obviously building up for a bout of the flu, I was not really taking in a lot of the surroundings.

So December has a tick and I still have one more place to go to this month, that I have never visited before.

Happy Christmas

Spain the debrief

 

Ahh Spain, no longer the land of stuffed donkeys and flamenco posters with your name printed on, you really have to be a certain age to remember these. I love Spain and I always have, from bus tour holidays to Northern Spain to living in Southern Spain, I just love it. I had made the decision to go somewhere that I hadn't been before, and chose Torremolinos and  Cordoba. I had flown to Malaga a lot but never been to the city , so that was on my super organised  itinerary.

A delay of an hour flying out did not set the holiday off to a good start, but super quick transfers and a fabulous hotel, soon had me a holiday mode proper.

The hotel was less than a minutes walk to the beach. Perfect.

The hotel has two pools, one  in the gardens and one on the roof. Perfect

The staff on reception, in the restaurant and cleaning staff were all excellent. Perfect

The hotel was on the ball and gave you a sheet with all info needed. Perfect.

My suite had everything that I needed and more. Perfect

Restaurants, bars, shops and supermarkets were all less than a minute away. Perfect.

The sun shone and it was hot. Perfect.

As you walked out of the back of the hotel you were actually less than  seconds to the beach, in that walk there were  supermarkets on the left, and restaurants on your right. The hotel could not have been better placed, in high season it would benefit from this position as not on the main drag with bars etc.

When I arrived on Sunday the restaurants on the right were packed with Spanish families having lunch which is always a great recommendation.

There were some interesting finds on my stay as I have said previously. La Parc de Bateria is a wonderful space, which has manicured lawns and not a weed, fallen pinecone, leaf or dead branch in sight. Great attention to the maintenance of the park. The boating lake water was crystal clear.

Having spotted this from my balcony, I googled it and then went to visit.

This is also how I found two buildings which were of historical significance to Torremolinos and La Carihuela. The building that looks like a ship and Hotel residentia Miama.

Its amazing what you can find, both of these were less than  minutes walk from my hotel.

Malaga did not disappoint, a beautiful city, great train links from Torremolinos to Malaga and a very quick  half hour  journey.

I never made it to Cordoba, as I changed my plans very quickly so that instead of racing around like a mad woman, I slowed down, and sunbathed and swam in the sea, something that I love doing. I ate lovely food, tasted lovely cavas and above all relaxed.

I loved this little corner of Torremolinos. It seemed to be in its own little bubble, no English bars, Indian restaurants or pizza place. There were a couple of  Dutch bar/restaurants but the majority of the area I was in was Spanish bars, cafes and restaurants. It was lovely.

Would I go back again? Actually I would, and I am looking at possibly Christmas next year.

A perfect start to my 'Big Year' 

HUGE thanks to the long suffering Dale for all the time that he put into sorting this holiday, and every holiday that I've booked with him, and that's a good few. He always goes the extra mile. If you would like more info follow the link.  https://dalesidebottom.notjusttravel.com/

A tad overcast

 

I decided to head to the beach early yesterday morning, and  have breakfast there, I was getting tired of the squabbling of people in the dining room over who wasn't queuing properly for pancakes/fried eggs/ coffee/ napkins/life, for goodness sake, we are all on holiday there is enough food to go round and  round again, WTAF is the problem.

Once out of the hotel I noticed that it was a tad overcast, but I headed off any way. I spent the morning and early part of the afternoon at the beach, as the wind changed direction and blew slightly colder I decided to head off and find a hotel I had spotted on my walk on Monday.

This is the Hotel Residentia Miami, I'd wandered past on Monday and was quite curious about it. It struck me as a typically early Spanish hotel with a hint of faded Hollywood glamour.

Well I wasn't far wrong.

The original Villa built on this site in 1948 for the  renowned Flamenco dancer Lola Medina who wanted a summer retreat in the fishing village of Torremolinos. She had the interior decor done by Pablo Picassos cousin Manolo Blasco. Although very well known and respected Lola  began to struggle with debt and sold the villa to friends who had previously owned hotels in Deauville and Paris.

By 1957  the villa was extended to make the hotel that is on the spot today, the interiors are still very similar to the original. It became the first hotel in La Carihuelo.

The hotel is currently closed for the season, something that is also a blast from the past. All of this has made me very curious, so I think that it may be on a 'to do' list.

I'll be on booking.com later.

I've had some brilliant history finds this holiday.

I went back to the hotel and had a couple of glasses of cava on the house, for my birthday, sitting around the downstairs pool which was deserted, making it a perfect spot.

Came in and had a chat with the receptionist form Basingstoke.

Cava tasting for the evening

Dubois

Brut.

Well it was very dry and after one small glass I had indigestion, something that I rarely get.

so that got a big thumbs down and a pour down the sink.

Happy Friday