Sunday, August 30, 2009

Devon and Cornwall

After leaving the spa we decided we'd drive down to the South West. I didn't really think that through though did I! Lets drive for an hour north and then for four hours south the next day... MMM.. Ah well! It's all fun!

We Stayed at the Kitley House Hotel which I am sure is a beautiful location for weddings. In fact there was going to be a wedding there the day with left - with a dove release. I think the guy behind reception was relieved when I responded to this info byte with a look of digust and an "Oh god really?" He cheerfully replied by pointing out that there were sparrow hawk es near by. Poor doves! Anyway... i digress.

Kitley House Hotel is a beautiful old Manor house which was built by the Bastards. No, I'm not swearing or being mean, that really was their family name. Believe me LOF found this hilarious and took every opportunity to discuss what the Bastards had done or had been doing. Those Bastards did that!" etc... The Bastards built the house and then it has been passed down through many families (including a relation to the woman who wrote "Old Mother Hubbard" which was apparently based on the basement dwelling housekeeper at this very house) and eventually turned into a wedding money making machine.

Downstairs is lovely with large ballroom style lounges and restaurant areas. The bedrooms though have seen better days. Grafton did the whole antique furniture and gaudy bathrooms and it amused me but it did, kind of, work. At least they didn't leave you with a room with a broken towel rail and dusty radiators. (Lof took pictures of these... I have no idea why!) It was comfortable but the rooms did not match the loveliness of downstairs. It was a beautiful house though with lovely grounds and I enjoyed the fact that it was dog friendly so there were often little hounds about to coo over.

We didn't spend all that much time at the hotel anyway. We had far too much to see. The first place we went to was the Eden Project which I have decided is actually the Moch project! It was so exciting to see how a bunch of lovely people had taken an area of land that we had ruined with digging and mining and turned it into some thing so beautiful. Those people deserve a lot of praise and if you haven't been then I really thin you ought to!

I loved the symbolism of the whole place. It's like a beacon for the rest of us to work towards. I have also decided that we need a giant, symbolic seed at the entrance to the new academy. (no rude jokes please). lol

Ater we'd eaten local produce, watched a beer making demo, sampled some pasties, wandered around the bio mes and watched kids (and their very competitive Dads) make Dens in the Summer Survival section of the quarry we drove off to Torquay.

Newquay seems to be like a mini broad street with a beach behind it! Definitely schoolies heaven! It rained the whole time we were there but i did insist on sticking my toes in the sand!(The last sand I stepped on was in Adelaide!). A nice beach there with plenty of crazy people actually in the sea!!!

The next day we set of for Tintagel Castle. When we got there it was so windy they'd closed it and you couldn't go up. You could however walk on the hills on the right hand side of it. English Heritage are apparently more cautious about health and safety than the National Trust (who owned the bit on the right) we had a wander around Barras Nose and took loads of beautiful pictures of the waves crashing on the rocks.

Modershall Oaks Spa

We decided that a spa was in order and after much deliberation chose Modershall Oaks Spa in Stone (Nr. Stoke on Trent). We'd been to Whitlebury Hall a couple of times and although it is beautiful we decided we'd go for a smaller place; Whitlebury can be a bit busy at times.

We weren't disappointed by Modershall at all. It's gorgeous. The bedrooms are a million times nicer than those at Whitlebury. Full of luscious fabrics and eastern style lamps, we stayed in a ' tent room' No. It isn't a tent outside with no bed but a room styled like something from Laurence of Arabia - only much more stylishly done! Each of the rooms have their own covered decking area and access to an outdoor hot tub. The view was of a field with horses in. Lovely.

When we arrived we had a cup of very well made coffee in the bar as well as a lovely lunch and then went to explore the grounds a little. We meandered through the woodland walk (which is just over a mile). That was lovely and we really were the only ones in that wood. It was peaceful and quiet and beautiful. The walk leads you back , in a circle, towards the hotel and it's tennis courts. and there's another, shorter walk, which leads you to the other side of the large fish pond and lawns at the back of the bar. Lovely.

The spa itself was small but so quiet that it felt very relaxing. The hydrotherapy pool was lovely and relaxation was very easy to achieve! Dinner that evening was served in an intimate surrounding and was delicious! I ate vegetable Jenga - which made me laugh but was yummy!

The staff at the place make it very special as they are all very friendly and accommodating. More importantly they can all make a kick ass cup of coffee! ;)

Everything about this place is lovely! I would heartily recommend it to anyone. It's different to Modershall because it's smaller but that just meant it was even more luxurious and relaxing!


Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Car Booty!



We took a boot full to the Studley and sold some of it. Making about 85 squid!
We're gonna go again next week to sell more stuff :) As soon as we arrived we were bombarded by people asking if we had any mobile phones. I did and sold an old K700i for five quid - that's 25p more than I would have got on one of those trade in your phone sites (lol). Then the old stereos went and walking maps.
It was fun!

It is amusing how much people are NOT prepared to spend. Span, tried to sell your chocolate fondue set for you... no one would pay 4quid!! LOL. Still got it ;)
Got rid of the old playstation and game cube though.

Bizarrely, the people who bought our house were 4 cars down from us. (eik!) I avoided their eyes - I didn't want to hear about what they'd done to my lovely house :(.


Ah well, Next week we have a fire place to sell... ooooohhhhhhh!

1 Year Anniversaries


Saturday was our one year wedding anniversary! I can't believe that it has been a year already. It just goes to show how time flies and how, i expect, the next 4 months will be gone in a blink.

We couldn't go back to Grafton Manor for a meal as they had another wedding on! The cheek of some people - stealing our wedding anniversary! In stead we opted for Arden Cote Manor's - The Lodge. It was lovely! We had a table at 6, which meant we were the first people in the restaurant and got a table with a lovely view of the lakes and ducks. The food was lovely and the service good. It was a lovely evening.

After that we stuffed our faces with the chocolates that Mini had given us and drank champagne :) Lovely! Thank you for all of the lovely cards! I honestly didn't expect a wedding anniversary to be like a birthday! Awesome!


We're off on a little mini road trip soon - starting in a spa - so we'll be able to carry on chilling out together for a few more days yet. Can't wait :)

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Bday Saturday!


This Saturday saw the celebration of two birthdays:
Ann of No.15 and Rebecca of Pinsents.
That meant I was invited to a lovely lunch with cake and chocolate mud cake (as well!) and then to a 1920s shin dig in the evening where I got to eat even more birthday cake!

Woo hoo!

It was a lovely day :) although I did have to go for a run today to make up for all that chocolate and sugar... and I am so addicted that there are currently 15 cookies baking in the oven. SUGAR FIX!!!!!

NOM!

Wednesday, August 05, 2009

New Year in Adelaide Confirmed

So now the plans grown larger!

We land in Mlebourne on the 30th and stay in our usual travellodge on Southbank. The next day we fly out to Adelaide and I've booked us into Semaphore caravan park for a week. That means we'll be in Adelaide for New Year and by the beach for a week to recover (mid summmer) on the beach ! :)
Yay!

I've also been sorting out the kitties. I've lodged their import permit (with the help of Lindsey) and I'm now trying to organise their flights and transport down to the airport. At the moment it doesn't look like they can travel at the same time as us or fear of being swapped in favour of some more lucrative Christmas Post! Poor kitties. Maybe if i dress them as elves??