Update Dublin Airport

Delivered our ‘baby’ to Southampton for shipping home and hired a car for the drive to Kent.  It was quite late in the day so we drove far as Winchester where we visited their famous Cathedral.  Very Impressive.  Stayed the night in a great pub B&B.  Yummy food.  (I know always thinking of my stomach – jeans definitely getting tighter as exercise not equalling the intake of said food! 

Next day- a leisurely drive through Sussex and Kent (garden of England).  Very scenic, as trees often overhung the road forming an arch of beautiful autumn hues.  We don’t have the multitude of deciduous trees that they have here and having been such a wet summer the foliage on the trees is very lush and therefore the autumn display particularly spectacular this year (according to locals). On the way we visited Petworth – a stately home sitting within the grounds of a huge park-like a country estate.  It has the one of the largest collection of paintings and sculptures in Britain.  The interior was very grand.  Highlight for us was a huge room decorated with intricately carved panelled walls by Grinling Gibbons the ‘artist of the time’.  Took our breath away and that’s saying something after all the stately homes we’ve seen.  Also called in to Sissinghurst to check out its famous garden.  Very beautiful even though past its prime.  Spring would be the ideal time.  That night stayed in ‘Borth-y-Gest’ in Herne Bay, another lovely B&B. 

The following morning, after visiting Joy Park School in Kent, we drove north to Banbury to stay with Gail and Darrel.  On the way we again drove through the Cotswolds, stopping to explore the quaint Chipping Camden, take photos and have a bit to eat (the best scones we’ve had in the UK).   Also checked out the gardens at Hidcote.  As the brochure said ‘it doesn’t get any better than this’.  I thought Sissingham’s gardens were spectacular – how wrong could I be.  This garden was exquisite with numerous ‘garden rooms’ each with their own unique character, as well as woodlands and extensive terraced areas.  Quite magical especially with all the autumn colours.   Great night spent catching up with Gail, Darrel, Anne and Peter.  Next morning up early and drove to Hollyhead in Wales and caught a ferry the Dublin. 

Loved Dublin.  Very vibrant night life.  To maximise our time we did a walking tour after visiting Kilmainham Goal.  Had the best pie of the trip – chicken, mushrooms and whiskey in a thin pastry – divine.  Yes I know food again but in my defence I needed to ‘fuel up’ before our two hour walking tour!  Good city to end the European leg of our holiday.  Off to Dubai and new experiences.    

What we’ve been doing since Ireland:

Lake District

After a star filled night in Scotland after disembarking off the ferry the morning brought heavy rain.  Text Sally in The Lake District to say we were on the way.  Return text informed me the weather was ‘vile’ there.  Undeterred we headed off.  Fortunately by the time we reached Carlisle the weather had cleared.  We entered the Lake District via Lake Ullswater.  Very scenic.  All the trees were varying shades of autumn tones and made a stunning backdrop to the lake and hills.  From there, we wound our way over the Troutbeck Hill where we had camped with Michael over 20 years ago.  Very like Scotland with bracken glad hills rearing up and then as we climbed the valley and rivers below were magnificent.  Sally feed and watered us and showered us with Lakeland hospitality.  It was great to catch up with her.  After that we drove to Hawkeshead to Beatrix Potter’s house which is a ‘time capsule’ full of her favourite things.  Her books funded the purchase not only of this house but 14,000 acres of local land which she bequeathed, along with drawings and personal papers, to the National Trust.  In later life she became a very respected farmer and sheep breeder.  One very smart lady!  We camped in Hawkeshead, explored the village (all full of Beatrix Potter stuff) and had dinner at one of the local pubs. 

The next day started wet so we canned our planned walk and instead explored Grassmere then visited the Stott Park Bobbin Mill.  It was built to produce bobbins vital to the spinning and weaving industries in Lancashire.  From there we did a speed tour of Sizergh Castle famous for its ornate wood panelling then headed back towards Wales.

Wales: We spent the next day travelling across North Wales (Snowdonia).  Once again very scenic.  We stopped at Llwyngwril where Taff is from, photographed various points of interest and caught up with some local at the ‘tea and chat session’.  They picked our accent and some had even been to NZ.  Great fun, lovely people.  From there we returned to Donna and Owains and have been getting the van ready for Nick and me to take it to Southampton tomorrow to ship to NZ.  Once we’ve done that Nick and I will hire a car as I have organised to visit a school in Kent.  We will then make our way to Hollyhead to catch the ferry to Dublin stopping to visit Peter and Anne and Gail and Darryl on the way.  Two nights in Dublin then home via Dubai.  Looking forward to seeing family and friends.

                                         This is the best campsite in England. They treat you
                                         like your part of the family. Thanks Gail and Daryl.

                                            Cliffs of Moher from Doolin

                                               

Ireland

We left from Wales on our whistle stop tour of Ireland.

Impressions: The countryside is beautiful.  Some of it like the Highlands of Scotland, some like England and others part very New Zealandish.  The South West counties have colourful fuchsia hedges everywhere.  County Claire and further north lots of stone walls.  Some accents, particularly in Gaelic speaking areas totally unintelligible to our NZ ear, other areas have that lovely lilting Irish brogue.  The people are warm and friendly.  And the weather? – well as the Irish say ‘three seasons in one day’.  However, we were pretty lucky there as we really only had significant rain on the morning of our first day.  I wish we’d had more time there to explore and get a real feel for the country.  We drove clockwise from Rosslare.

Waterford: What did we do there? ‘The House of Waterford Crystal Tour’ of course.  A close up view of the manufacturing process and facilities.  Very interesting.  I was surprised at the range of sporting events that have crystal trophies such as the ‘Superbowl’.

Cork and Blarney Castle.  The castle itself is a bit disappointing – just a ruin.  Of course we all kissed the ‘Blarney Stone’ so now have ‘the gift of the gab’.  Just as well I’m not toooo germaphobic!  Interesting poisonous garden.  Even saw mandrake growing for all you Harry Potter fans.

‘Ring of Kerry’- Very picturesque. Lots of photos in between the showers.

Dingle Peninsula – Very much a Gaelic speaking area. Again very picturesque and Ireland turned on brilliant sunshine.  Yummy seafood chowder at Daingean (Dingle).  Ryan’s daughter was filmed on the Peninsula for all you film buffs.  Big surfing area.  Brrr too cold for us.  Golden beaches.  The ‘wild colonial boy’ was also born near here.

‘Cliffs of Molher’ – Limestone cliffs that rise 214 metres above the sea.  Very windy and it was a calm day! Again brilliant weather.  We could see the Aran Islands.

Northern Island:

‘Giant’s Causeway’- spectacular formation of regular, closely packed hexagonal stone columns.  Such a beautiful day that we walked along the cliff first before working our way down to the rocks.  The hand work of Finn MacCool the giant so the Irish say. 

Carrick-A-Rope Bridge – connecting the mainland to the island over a 30m chasm.  Once again the 1.25km walk along the cliff was glorious.  Beautiful ocean and beaches below.  So clear we could see the Scottish coastline in the form of the Mull of Kintyre.

Dark hedges at Ballymoney – check out the photos.

Glens of Antrim – scenic route around the coast to Belfast.

Belfast – Titanic Belfast.  Brand new exhibition housed in a futuristic looking building over six floors.  Covered the story of the Titanic from her conception in Belfast, through her construction and launch, to her famous maiden voyage.  Especially the 3D trip through the levels of the ship.  A stunning museum.  Back to the UK by ferry from Belfast to Cairn Ryan in Scotland.

Since London we been to:

Oxford: Here we did a guided walking tour and visited Exeter College, the Radcliff Camera, Exeter’s most well-known building and Britain’s third largest dome, and the College of Divinity where scenes from Harry Potter were filmed.

Windsor Castle: The Queen’s weekend retreat. No personal meet and greet – pretty poor hospitality really!  However, the State and Semi-State rooms we had access to, were lavishly furnished.  Many of course had to be restored after the disastrous 1992 fire.  Queen Mary’s Doll giant house is truly amazing.  Built to scale and has solid silver plates, electric lighting, running hot and cold water and flushing lavatories!  I kid you not.  Wonderful photographic exhibition spanning the Queen’s reign.  All the most relaxed shots were taken at ‘horsey’ events.

Spent time with Gail and Darryl and Peter and Anne.  Great fun and wonderful hosts.

Big Pit – Wales.  Again an entertaining and informative guided tour followed by a great museum with a succession of simulations explaining the mining process – all for free!  We have been paying about 15 to 18 pounds ($30 to $36) entry per person into most venues lately so a lovely surprise.

 

Staying with Donna and Owain while we organise shipping the van back to NZ then we are off to Ireland on Wednesday.

                                                Visiting with the Peter and Anne

                                                                             Help

                                                             Trafalger Square

                                                  Bomber command Memorial

                                                     Bomber Command Memorial

                                                            changing of the guard

                                                             Westminster

                                                                      London Eye

London

Rented a two bedroom apartment, in Marylebone, just 5 minutes from the Baker St Tube.  Excellent location, really central and had every modern convenience including a bidet.  Cheaper and more spacious than staying in a hotel and we could cook if we wanted to. Weather was good, only had rain on one morning which we spent in the British Museum seeing the rest of the ancient antiquities that the British had managed to ‘obtain’ from Greece, Rome and Egypt.  London is looking stunning in the wake of the Jubilee celebrations and the Olympic.  All the buildings have been cleaned and everything gold has been repainted.  Very sparkly.  Quite a lot of Jubilee exhibitions on at various venues too.

Highlights  

Tower of London – hilarious ‘Beefeater’ guide who took us on an introductory tour, gave us a rundown of the history and ‘dished us all the dirt’.  We then spent several hours exploring the tower environs including the various towers, the ravens and of course the crown jewels in all their splendour.

The Globe Theatre – reconstructed using 16^th century techniques to resemble the 1599 open air theatre where Shakespeare wrote many of his great plays, thanks to the drive of the American actor San Wanamaker.  Even has wall hanging from NZ quilt makers.

Royal Albert Hall – once again a ‘live wire’ guide.  Did you know it was funded by selling seats or that the artists hire the venue or that the queen has a royal retiring room?  Got to see the ‘Royal Box’ too.

Stunning new ‘Bomber Command Remembrance Monument’ that dad flew to the UK for the opening.

Buckingham Palace State Rooms – only open for a few months of the year (timing is everything).  Lavishly furnished.  Also had a special exhibition of royal jewellery worn over the past 200 years. The ball room is was something to be seen.

The Royal Mews – Supposedly one of the finest working stables and home to the royal collection of historic coaches and carriages.  We saw the royal coach used in wedding processions and the dazzling gold state coach used in every coronation since 1821 and needs 8 horses to pull it as it is so heavy.

Westminster Abbey – where most British monarchs have been crowned since 1066 and the ‘great and good’ have been interred. Expensive to see a church - 16 pounds but the up side was that we got to listen to the silky voice of Jeremy Irons as he did the audio guide commentary.

Winston Churchill’s War Rooms – the original underground headquarters that sheltered Churchill and his wartime government.  Quite a rabbit warren.  They just walked out and left it.  Gave one another perspective of what life during the blitz was like. Also has a huge interactive museum attached.

Houses of Parliament – these too are only open to visitors when parliament is not in session.  Officially called ‘the Palace of Westminster’ and when you see inside you can understand why.  They truly are quite palatial, especially the House of Lords.  They have renamed the tower where ‘Big Ben’ is the ‘Elizabeth Tower’ to honour the Queen in her Diamond Jubilee year. Bet you didn’t know that!

Harrods – well of course one has to go.  Just as expensive as I remember.  I was even asked if I had a ‘Harrods card’ when I was making a purchase.  I obviously look like the sort of client who shops there regularly.  Of course I am not surprised by that!

Great Museums – London has them all.  The Tate, the Natural History, the Albert and Victoria.

Changing of the Guard – beautiful fine day and very crowded.  Once again something you have to do.  Great to see the pageantry.  The mounted police do a wonderful job controlling the masses.

Finally the shows!!!!!!!!!!  What a choice.  We saw ‘Let it Be’, ‘Wicked’, ‘Lion King’.  Probably ‘Wicked’ was by favourite.  Would have loved to have seen more.  Billy Elliot, Top Hat not to mention all the plays.

Back in England

Stayed in Guisborough with Helen (Andy’s mother-in-law) who thoroughly spoilt us all – not that we were complaining!  Spent a day exploring the nearby west coast. Whitby - where Captain Cook was born.  Very picturesque and has the ruins of a beautiful Abbey and yummy fish and chips.  The abbey became the renowned backdrop for Bram Stokers Dracula making Whitby the Goth capital of Britain.  Bet you didn’t know that!  Visited several other quaint villages.  One called Staithes had an Arts Festival on, where people hosted artists in their homes.  Saltburn had a display of knitted figures depicting various Olympic sports attached to the railing of the pier done by the ‘mysterious secret knitters’.  Very clever.

Bid a sad farewell to Helen and headed south across the edge of the Yorkshire Moors stopping at Rievaulx Terrace and Castle Howard, where Brideshead Revisited was filmed.  What we loved about this place, apart from being quite spectacular, is that it is lived in by the family who have their own private apartments.  The rooms that we saw had family photos scattered about and are used either by the family for entertaining or for functions to help raise the 2 million it takes to keep Castle Howard going.  Mind you they do own five villages and huge amounts of farmland which is tenanted which also bring in income.

York: Rain again but you get that.  The UK has had the worst summer for 100 years so we have been pretty lucky with the weather so far.  Once again Nick and I have seen York at its best weather wise so not to worry.  Lots to do at York where you can dodge the rain anyway.  York Minster, Northern Europe’s largest Gothic Cathedral with its stunning stained glass windows was our first stop.  Followed by a walk around part of the wall and then a visit to ‘The Shambles’.  Jorvick – the interactive, multimedia museum that has recreated the original Viking settlement that gave York its name was next.  My personal favourite was the York castle Museum that has the last 400 years of York’s past from the civil war to the 60s.  Lots of rooms dressed as they would have been in various time periods, a Victorian Street complete with sound effects, a section on the swinging sixties and the York castle Prison.  A great day out despite the weather!

 Hay/Straw Bales

These huge cylinder shaped bales lie like statues on the golden grass everywhere in the paddocks of Europe and the UK.  Are they never to be collected and find a home in a snug warm barn?

Oxfordshire

Staying with friends (Gail and Darryl) at their motor camp near Banbury.  Having a great time catching up with Peter and Anne who are friends of dad’s and whom we stayed with last time.

Wednesday/Thursday  I visited two schools in Birmingham, both of which specialise in children with autism.  Very interesting.  Nick patiently waited in the car reading and doing puzzle books.  Also visited ‘Packwood House’ (Well we had to for Tina and Nigel) , which has been lovingly restored to its former Tudor splendour.  Beautiful garden and a famous collection of yews.  Off to London next. 

  

                                                              Canal boating North Wales

                                                                      Edinburgh Castle

                                                                               Britania

                                                                  Stirling Castle