Category Archives: Destinations

My blog on my different travel experiences.

Brighton: the “London-by-the-Sea”

Now the lockdown has been lifted, I decided to make a visit to the seaside location of Brighton, to spend time with my mum and visit my sister whom lives in the area. The city is certainly a busy location for visitors with a wonderful mix of urban appeal, coastal scenes and a national park close by.

Brighton is a colourful, and quirky area on the coast, within the city of Brighton and Hove. It is only 47 miles or about an hour on the train from London. I drove to the area from Norwich, and stayed in a lovely AirBnB place just 20 minutes away in Hassocks. In order to truly appreciate the town, it seems important to wonder through the entire breadth of the area there.

Brighton has great public transport links with multiple train and bus connections into the town. Whilst car parking is available in the town, it is very expensive in general. You can access much of the on street parking after 8pm and if you use websites such as ‘JustPark’, you can find cheaper parking spaces that are privately rented out. We took the train on one day, which was great quality and cheap, and we also found free car parking via ‘JustPark’ in a bingo hall car park.

On first arriving, the coastal promenade and pier seemed quite similar to many other UK seaside towns, and my first impression was not good. It seemed quite dirty, and ran down, with a horrible mix of 1960s buildings, letting down the setting of neighbouring Victorian architecture.

As I explored other roads though, it became clear that different elements of the town have their own feel, and have been transformed to meet the leisure demands of visitors and residents. The town has several hills running up from the coast, and as you wonder around, you will find streets that have been painted different colours and other buildings linking to the rainbow icon that is linked to Brighton’s LGBTQIA+ scene.

LGBTQIA+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual) scene

Brighton has historically become a sanctuary for those in the LGBTQIA+ community to express themselves, thrive, and a base for challenging prejudice behaviour. Many key locations such as the Marlborough pub & theatre or ‘the marly’ and Kemp town have been created as landmark locations.

There is also a collection of landmark events such as ‘Brighton Pride‘ and ‘Trans Pride‘, and famous names that have made the town their haven and home, including key figure Oscar Wilde. In recent years, the community have struggled to keep hold of these statement locations, due to increased demand for development of housing, gentrification and the use of the LGBTQIA+ identity becoming an attraction itself, perhaps unethically, through the promotion of tourism. This has led to political friction between economics of the town, and the community identity. Currently, a large part of the LGBTQIA+ community are protesting against Brighton Pride, and other activities that create the feel of LGBTQIA+ people becoming a circus attraction. This phenomenon is known as pink washing.

Throughout the town, there is lots of street art expressing different social issues, topics and just generally impressive art. There is no cathedral in the city but a church that is considered to be the area’s nearest best thing, is St Bartholomew’s church, which is very large. The reason for this, is that the Victorian building was created to be approximately the size of Noah’s Ark, upside down. There is also an upside down house in Brighton… what a strange place!

The Lanes & other popular spots

When it comes to spending your pennies, and enjoying food/drink as well as shopping, it seems that there are three main spots that are popular.

There are several chain stores and restaurants in the cheaper ‘marina’ area down the coast from the centre. This is accessible on foot by walking along the coast, a 20 minute bus ride, or by car.

When walking along the beach promenade below the road, you will see a number of restaurants, shops and attractions in what is known as the ‘seafront arches’. We visited the queer friendly ‘Loading Brighton’, a gaming café linked to ‘the marly’, and spent a few hours there enjoying milkshakes and board games in a few comfy sofas. You will also find the Brighton fishing museum in this stretch of bricked arches.

The most well known location for shopping and eating is an area further within the town, named ‘the lanes’. I had a feeling of what to expect here, as Norwich also has ‘the lanes’ as a concept. In Brighton, it is a network of small streets and alleys, that are bustling with independent shops and eateries. We also went down one road that was temporarily closed, which I can only assume was a Covid related innovation by the council. The retailers and restaurant owners were using this an opportunity to spill out into the street, and create a great market vibe. It was very busy, and full of bargains!

Royal Pavilion

Just beyond the lanes, you will enter into the cultural quarter, this is the home of the world famous Royal Pavilion and Brighton Dome. This estate in the centre of the city is a Grade I listed former royal residence. Building work began in 1787, and acted as a seaside retreat for King George IV. George had an interest in Asian stylings and wanted to design the building and its interior to reflect his interest in Indian & Chinese design, although he never visited these countries himself. John Nash is the architect responsible for the current design, which was interesting to me as I am familiar with this well known Georgian designer. John Nash has also done a lot of work within Norfolk (my home county), in partnership with landscape designer, Humphry Repton, who also influenced the pavilion’s design.

The detail of the decorations within the many rooms is very inspiring to see. Visitors are constantly coming face to face with images of dragons, fish and snakes. Giant chandeliers and beautiful stained glass also hangs overhead. The palace buildings are also surrounded by charming gardens full of roses and shrubberies, the gardens are open to the public at all times.

Once built, this extravagant building was used as a pleasure palace for the King, and later, was a retreat for Queen Victoria, and her family. The building has a room dedicated to information about Queen Victoria’s visits, based on historic records including her own diary entries. She wrote in her first visit “The Pavilion is a strange, odd Chinese looking thing, both inside and outside; most rooms low, and I only see a little morsel of the sea from one of my sitting-room windows, which is strange, when one considers that one is quite close to the sea.” She visited several times with her family, and enjoyed the easy rail connection between London and Brighton. Eventually, she decided to sell the building, as she felt too much amongst the public in the centre of town. It was later sold to the town council, and is the only royal palace in the country that is currently not owned by the crown.

During the First World War, it was transformed into a hospital for Indian soldiers. This was partially as a political move, to provide propaganda to India as an important country within the British empire. This element of the pavilion history is also exhibited within your visit to the attraction.

I truly expected to enter a shell of a building, and was hoping that at £16 per ticket, it would not be a waste of money. I was pleasantly surprised! The pavilions exterior and interior are amazing, and the information available for visitors is widely ranging. The attraction offers an audio tour that you can use on your phone, regular signs, and volunteer guides on duty. We were also told that our tickets would act as an annual pass, which is brilliant, and meant I could come back the following day for a second look!

Surrounding Brighton

We were staying slightly outside Brighton and had access to a car, meaning it was easy to discover surrounding areas. We decided to visit the Jack & Jill Windmill which provided a beautiful view of the South Downs National Park, and we also visited the lovely town of Lewes.

Lewes is built on the hills of the Ouse Valley, and is a delightful country town, with plenty of historic buildings and pleasant green surroundings to enjoy.

At the top of the hill is the castle which was built shortly after the Norman invasion in 1066. The battle of Lewes took place here and was one of two important battles within the Second Barons’ War. King Henry III was staying within the safety of the castle and nearby priory before heading into battle against the 6th Earl of Leicester, Simon de Montfort. The king was defeated in this battle. There are several pieces of interpretation around the site that you can access for free, that provide information about the battle and key locations. You can buy a ticket to enter the castle enclosure and museum, or walk around the castle walls and through the castle gate for free, as it is part of the public walkways.

Within the town, you will also find several other buildings varying in age, from Norman, to the Tudor period and beyond. Some key locations include the priory, Ann of Cleves house, and also the pretty St Michael’s church which has a round tower dating from around 1200.

The town has many of the normal shops and chain cafes, but also hosts many independent retailers with unique goods to trade, and lots of information on the walls to tell you the significance of the street you are on.

Overall, I was very happy with my weekend in Brighton and the surrounding area. It definitely offers a diverse range of activities depending on your interest. I know that I have only scratched the surface though, so I look forward to going deeper into the area’s offering in the future.

Hikes, rainbows and sunsets in the Lake District National Park

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A few months before the country locked down due to the pandemic, my partner surprised me with a weekend trip to the Lake District National Park. Considering it was January, we had a great time exploring the beautiful scenery in this area.

Driving around the Lake District, we found ourselves making good use of first and second gear, as we climbed the huge hills. It is a long drive from Norfolk but very pleasant, as you get into lakeland and can enjoy amazing views, and feel like you are suddenly in another country.

We stayed in a lovely little B&B, (of which there are many..) in Bowness on Windermere, on the side of the Windermere lake; England’s largest lake. This is a busy village in the National Park, and has several amenities, and The World of Beatrix Potter attraction. We did see this from the outside, but we didn’t go in. Even though I loved ‘Peter Rabbit’ as a child, I cannot really get away with it now! Interesting fact though… the area gets lots of Japanese visitors, as they love Beatrix Potter stories!

We had a great stay in the B&B as it felt really traditional but had lots of nice modern decor. Plus we had great breakfasts, could get recommendations/free maps and also they gave us free fudge!

One of the other great things about staying in Bowness on Windermere, was the close proximity to the lake’s ferry service. There is an information centre and booking office where you can buy tickets for the ferry cruises that run regularly up and down the lake. The Windermere Lake Cruises company offer several boat services taking different routes around the lake, you can also charter a boat. We crossed the lake to Ambleside and it was quite a rainy trip across, but it was January… and it meant we had rainbows! There was some information provided on the cruise and there was an inside and outdoor space.

When we arrived in Ambleside, the sun came out and we started a 3 hour hike up Loughrigg Fell. This ‘low fell’ felt very mountainous to us, and clearly I am not ready for Scafell Pike quite yet!

The hike had absolutely beautiful views and different things to see on the way up and down…. including a false peak (be ready for that heart wrenching moment). We had a tasty picnic on the way up, and were sat next to a bird of prey that was simply perching on the cliffside.

Bird sitting on the rocks at Lake District hike

After being battered by wind at the peak, we started carefully making our way down. On the way down, we enjoyed views of the lakes, streams and a huge watery cave. When we eventually finished we could enjoy sitting on our cruise back looking over our gorgeous photographs, and relaxing. Later in the evening, we took advantage of a special pamper package that the B&B had running with a nearby health centre, and spent the evening in the pool and jacuzzi, soaking our muscles!

There were also plenty of places to dine out in the area and relax. We had a couple of lovely dinners both near to our B&B in Bowness on Windermere, and in Windermere town itself. If we had been there for longer than a weekend, we would have visited more of the towns and villages around the lake. Unfortunately, we only really had the Saturday, and then a long drive back on Sunday. We did drive from the top to the bottom of the lake before turning out on a misty morning, and the views were still breath taking.

I think I would definitely visit again for some more hikes, mixed in with good food. I would like to stay for a week. I would probably stay there during the winter again as well as I hear it is very busy in the Summer, and I wouldn’t want too many tourists to spoil our tranquil experience.

Autumn fun in Bury St Edmunds

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In the Autumn of last year we made a day trip to Bury St Edmunds & National Trust property, Ickworth House. The autumn colours were lovely, and I ticked another cathedral off the list!

Bury St Edmunds is a short distance from where I live, so it is a great choice for a day trip. The town is named after St Edmund. Edmund was the King of East Anglia, and was killed by the Vikings in 869, (the detail of which is depicted in art at the Cathedral). He became a saint and a martyr, and was buried at the town. His shrine made Bury St Edmunds popular with pilgrims. Today, the town is a great location for visitors to enjoy, with lots of opportunity for shopping, events and great dining experiences, as well as the below attractions.

St Edmundsbury Cathedral & Abbey

Originally built as a church as part of the wider abbey complex in Bury St Edmunds, the previously called ‘St James’ church didn’t become a cathedral until 1914. It certainly deserves to be a cathedral, from the sheer size of it! You can see the scale of it as it dominates over the rest of the town centre.

On entering the cathedral, you are welcomed by a volunteer (like all quality cathedrals…) and can pick up one of their useful information leaflets which will allow you to have a self guided tour. The cathedral also offers tower tours, I wish that I had done this on the day, and I think I will need to return in order to take advantage of this experience and hopefully see great views.

The cathedral has lots of information and imagery regarding St Edmund, and other big names from local history. There is also a large lego model of the cathedral which you can donate £1 to add a brick. This was quite impressive, and I don’t really like lego, so that means a lot! They have paused the “building work” during the pandemic but you can still put a donation forward online for your brick to be added, and see some photos. Check it out on the cathedral website here.

Next door to the cathedral, are the ruins of the original abbey complex. You can also see the old abbey gates still in tact in front of the road. The abbey was actually in existence before the town, and was used by Benedictine monks. The monks actually designed the town to be in a grid formation to benefit them economically, and the abbey did prove to be one of the richest in the country for some time. The abbey has a history of good and bad fortune over the centuries until eventually in 1539 is was stripped bare during the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

I enjoyed wondering the large area and trying to work out which rooms the different foundations might have belonged to. My partner and I also enjoyed trying to improve our photography skills, as there are so many different shapes and shadows to photograph. The abbey ruins are part of the abbey gardens which is a public park which everyone can enjoy. I thought that it was very nice that the park and ruins were settled into each other, as it means that the community engages with the site regularly. Whilst we were exploring the ruins, we actually came across a community gathering for a Remembrance Day memorial service which was very moving.

Ickworth House

After enjoying the town centre, we made our way to Ickworth House. This National Trust property is on the outskirts of the town, and is a great place for a walk! It is a country house shaped like an observatory (formally it is called a ‘rotunda’), which is quite cool and was originally built in the 18th century. The entire place has an Italian theme to it, and you can really tell this in the look of the building and gardens.

When we visited, the outside of the front of the house was covered in scaffolding which was a shame, but it still looked great at the back, and we could still go inside and see what was once the servant’s quarters and kitchens.

We mainly enjoyed going on a long walk across the parklands, where you can see great views and lots of sheep! We really enjoyed seeing all the autumn colours, and it made some great photographs. This was especially the case when we found a tree that had dramatic roots that were over spilling into the stream (photo below). There are multiple different walking routes available within the huge parkland area, and many of them will take you past key monuments/structures/views, such as St Mary’s church that lies within the estate, and is the oldest part of the grounds.

I think I will definitely make more visits to both the town and Ickworth House in the future, as I really enjoyed myself and it was great to stretch my legs on the walk! If possible, I think I will also try to check out the West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village & Country Park. It is a totally reconstructed early Anglo-Saxon village, and looks like a lot of fun to explore and maybe attend a re-enactment event. They do archery there… I am AWESOME at archery! Obviously I was born in the wrong era.

Alcazabas and flamingos in Almeria & Granada

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In 2019, before the world fell into Covid chaos, I holidayed in the province of Almeria, in the Andalusian region, south of the Iberian Peninsular in Spain. This two week trip was full of relaxation, culture and of course lots of opportunities to practise my spanish!

Andalusia is in the South of Spain and is well known for its Moorish architecture, hot climate, and dry landscapes. We found a brilliant apartment to stay in within the Almeria province, in Las Marinas near Roquetas de Mar. The town had plenty to enjoy, including shopping areas, a beautiful beach, and a bull ring (though we didn’t go inside the bull fighting complex). We found our apartment on AirBnB, and spent much of our days chilling by the pool and the evenings singing karaoke on the balcony.

Whilst staying in Las Marinas we hired some bikes (which I negotiated for in espanol – and got compliments for it… just saying..) and enjoyed cycling up and down the coast on the bike lanes available along the promenade. We also went off road into the Paraje Natural de Punta Entinas – Sabinar, a nearby nature reserve at the end of the beach. The reserve had several salt lakes which attracted wild flamingos. It was great to see the birds in their natural environment. The reserve is patrolled so you cannot get too close to the birds or go too far off the tracks, but you can still see everything wonderfully.

We spent two days enjoying the actual town of Almeria. The city is on the coast, and is popular as a cruising destination, and you can see lots of cruise ships rolling into the port. Whilst we were there we also visited the Almeria Cathedral, built in 1524. The cathedral’s original purpose was to be able to serve as a cathedral-fortress, because it was built for both religious worship and to shelter the population from attacks by Barbary pirates. The architectural decoration outside is really intricate and there are large spaces around the building to show off its magnitude. You can also access self guided tour information.

A must see monument, that we visited was the Alcazaba in Almeria, which is a Moorish fort. This would have been of extreme importance to the Muslim conquerors in the area at the time of building in 955. Whilst there are several remaining alcazabas left in the peninsular today, Almeria’s is the largest Muslim citadel in the country. When visiting you can see detail in the sculpting, simple gardens, and most interestingly the use of water flowing throughout the passages of the area. You can also rely on getting some great views from this structure, on the top of the hill.

Interesting fact… when we were visiting we felt like there was something familiar about one of the gardens. It turned out that we were right! The spot is used in one of our favourite TV series – Game of Thrones! It poses as part of the House Martell.

Spot for Game of Thrones scene at Alcazaba in Almeria

Wider Almeria

During our stay we decided to go further afield to take in some of the wider landscape of the region and took a coach tour. This region is actually the driest part of Europe, and you can really see that in the landscape, which is covered in rocks, deserts and vast spaces. Whilst travelling along the roads, you will also notice thousands of plastic structures across wide areas, these are actually greenhouses, where tomatoes, peppers and other fruit is being grown commercially. I think it does spoil some of the landscape’s beauty, but I suppose this is the way of doing agriculture in this region.

The area’s Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park conserves most of the coastline and has special geological qualities linked to a volcanic setting. The park hosts remains of some historic buildings and also interesting locations such as Los Escullos. Los Escullos is a famous natural location because it is an area of fossilised sand dunes! So wierd! The area of Cabo de Gata was also used for many of the dry desert scenes within Game of Thrones and other TV & film productions.

Granada & the Alhambra

Two and a half hours from Las Marinas is the beautiful city of Granada. We decided to take a day trip here, but I will definitely be returning to explore more of the city. On travelling to Granada, the landscape changes as you climb to new altitudes and pass the Sierra Nevada mountain range. We travelled by coach as a large group and then spent the first few hours enjoying lunch in this pretty city with beautiful fountains and plazas all around.

I had desperately wanted to visit the famous Alhambra complex in Granada, but tickets need to be booked quite far in advance, and there is no ‘buy at the door’ option. I decided to try my luck, and using my skills in espanol, I managed to secure us with tickets from our tour guide. There was a catch though… the security restrictions at the complex are so strict that he could only sell me six tickets that were already in the name of other tourists that had not shown up. So we all became a group of Germans temporarily, and had to keep our fingers crossed that we wouldn’t get found out on their spot checks on IDs. We got away with it, and it was so worth it!

The Alhambra is another alcazaba and also a palace complex, and is extremely well preserved. It was the final stronghold of the Moorish rule in Spain, before Catholics reconquered the country. The Muslim designs are created to provide tranquillity and contemplation, and also happen to be amazing works of art! When looking at some of the ceilings, you would be forgiven for thinking that your eyes had gone funny, because of the impressive 3D sculpting. Using faces goes against the Muslim tradition, and so many walls have beautiful Arabic passages carved into them, with examples including:
“And the peninsula was conquered with the sword” and “There is no victor but God.”

There is also of course some amazing fountains, pools and rose gardens, which will make you feel like you are in a little piece of heaven. We were told in the tour that the layout and movement of the sun was carefully considered in the design of these gardens by the Sultan and for the benefit of his wives and court, to carefully consider water, light and shade. Apparently, the sultan’s wives would have separate areas to enjoy away from the gentleman’s sections of the palace. It seems that the use of water features has an especially important part to play in Moorish architecture, and this may be because it was so precious to them, in such a dry part of the world.

The complex is huge, and there is quite a lot of walking involved. It is also important to make sure you are well hydrated beforehand. They are extremely strict and so do not allow visitors to drink within the buildings section of the tour (which is the first part). We were boiling and I was forced to dunk my head under a water fountain as soon as we moved into the gardens.

This is an amazing place to visit and I will definitely return. I love the culture, language and architecture of this region, and I am already planning a road trip around wider Andalusia, for when the world opens up again! In the meantime, “hasta luego”!

Historic Ely and Stained Glass Museum

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As I sit in my room, unable to travel due to Covid -19, it seems like a good time to catch up on my draft blogs! So… this short piece is all about a day trip we made to the city of Ely.

Ely is a small city (second smallest in England) in Cambridgeshire, less than two hours drive or train journey from where I live. If you have read my previous blogs you will see that I have a strong interest in history, and especially churches. So for my birthday a few years ago, we decided to visit Ely as I heard lots of good things about the cathedral there and the special Stained Glass Museum!

It was really easy to travel to the city and park and the drive was actually quite pleasant as you pass by many long stretching fenlands. The area is actually so clear and flat that you can see the cathedral dominating the landscape as you approach the city.

The Ely cathedral site was originally a monastery founded by St Etheldreda, the granddaughter of an East Anglian King. She died of ill health, and later became a saint, and a shrine was built for her at the site, which pilgrims to the area would visit. In 970 it was refounded as an abbey for Benedictine monks (same as the Norwich Cathedral)! The current building was created in the 11th century and the abbey became a cathedral in 1109. It continued to have a monastic purpose until 1539 when Henry VIII dissolved all the monasteries in England. Unfortunately, St Etheldreda’s Shrine was destroyed due to this, but there is a marker within the cathedral, to show visitors where it once stood, and St Etheldreda is still remembered there.

The cathedral itself is famous for its unique Octagon tower and for being a very long cathedral (fourth longest in the country at 537ft). It does seem as if the cathedral goes on forever and it looks quite magnificent against the landscape there. It is actually nicknamed the ‘ship of the fens’. When we went, we found lots of interesting features to discover inside, especially some of the poses of various statues and the grandeur of the lady chapel and art there.

Tower Tour

We were welcomed quickly on arrival by volunteers, and decided to book onto a tower tour to climb the various levels of the cathedral, see the lantern area and get up onto the roof! At the time, I think that we paid around £20 each for this, but from looking at the website today, it seems that they are charging more at the moment, due to the extra safety measures in place.

The views throughout the tour were brilliant! It seemed extremely high when climbing the steps, and you had to be a little careful in places. As you’d expect, the higher you get, the more narrow and un-nerving the climb can become. Getting up to the roof is well worth it though, to see the detailed stone work of the roof design up close, and the view of the city and fens stretching out in front of you.

The coolest part of the tour, in my opinion… was the lantern area. The octagonal shape came about following a rethink of the tower when the original Norman one was replaced. It took eighteen years to build and apparently the shape is a symbol that relates to the link between earth and heaven, and time/ eternity. The whole cathedral is centred around the octagon.

The lantern (an internal open space within the tower structure), really blew me away. Mostly, because of the materials used. The lantern area is constructed by hundreds of tons of wood and lead. You can see how raw this wood is up close though, the giant (60ft long) oak beams are pretty much entire trees diagonally stretching the space. Each one is around 1000 years old and still extremely strong. When we went on the tour, you could look up close and touch the wood, and it feels like you are actually able to visualise the ancient forests that these would have travelled from. The oak beams also have a number of graffiti markings carved in from key times in history, which adds to how special it is!

Stained Glass Museum

Of course, the other amazing thing to see in the cathedral is the Stained Glass Museum! I love stained glass, and had been hearing about the museum for a while. I believe there is only the Ely museum and a museum in central London that specialises in the history of stained glass. In Ely, you can pay a little more for your cathedral ticket, so that it includes the museum entry too.

When we visited, the museum was under some refurbishment, but we were still fully able to enjoy our visit. There was an introductory video explaining to visitors how stained glass was originally made, and some of the history. They then have a full gallery of stained glass over time from different locations. The varying images and stories within the stained glass was really interesting and the craftmanship is so professional that you can really respect this ancient art. Something that I picked up from the visit which I have found useful since, was the fact that you can tell the older glass from the later glass, from the colour pallette used. Originally the artists only had use of a very limited number of colours and methods to place them on the glass. Artists used yellow frequently, so if it is heavy in yellow and little else, it is probably quite old!

Loved all the below windows!

We spent a lot of time enjoying the cathedral, our tower tour and the stained glass museum, and with the addition of lunch, the day was almost gone. We did have time for a final short walk around the city and lovely waterside before heading home, though. This is when we realised that Ely was also the home of Oliver Cromwell!

Oliver Cromwell was an English General who took over the ruling of the British Isles in 1653 under the name of Lord Protector. This was after he led armies against King Charles I during the English Civil War. He ruled the country as a dictator until his death, five years later.

Oliver Cromwell’s parents were from Ely and he lived here with his own family for about ten years. You can visit their former house which also houses information about the civil war and doubles as the Tourist Information Centre. Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough time left to visit, but I certainly would like to come back and visit this as the English Civil War seems really intriguing to learn about, when the Parliamentarians (Roundheads) and Royalists (Cavaliers) fought for power over the way Britain was governed.

Overall, I thought Ely was very pretty, and the history is fascinating. I will definitely return as it is so close to Norwich, and perhaps spend the weekend there, next time.

The best of Tuscany; Florence & Pisa

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This is a blog that I meant to post a while back but didn’t get around to it. Hopefully, it will make some good post lockdown reading… Please check the actual websites for attractions for Covid-19 related information, I have not updated the information to reflect any new rules.

Last Autumn I visited Florence and Pisa with a friend and it was a great opportunity to do a fun twin centre trip within the Tuscany area.

We decided to visit Florence as it is a bucket list destination known for its beautiful architecture and cultural atmosphere. We wanted to make the most of the close location to Pisa and so decided to spend two nights in Florence and then travel by train to Pisa and stay one night there. This was especially convenient because our flight was from Pisa.

A city of art

Florence is well known for its art galleries, specifically art from the Renaissance period. We visited the two main galleries; Uffizi and Accademia, but everywhere you went housed some sort of artistic reference. Even the walls of buildings had sculptures, frescos and patterns to admire.

With the style of art that is popular here, you can see hundreds of different views and interpretations of the same religious stories over and over again. Some really popular ones included of course; The Annunciation (Mary finding out from Gabriel that she would give birth to Jesus), The adoration of the Magi (the presentation of gifts to Jesus by the three kings), and The Crucifixion of Christ (I think everyone knows this story).

museum florence

museum florence

There were also some really odd ones that caught my eye such as the ‘Birth of Venus’ by Sandro Botticelli. This painting from the 1400s shows the Greek goddess, Venus arriving nude on the shore of what is most likely Cyprus, fully grown in a large clam shell.

Birth of Venus

Another interesting piece that I really liked was ‘The Seven Virtues’ by Piero del Pollaiolo which Botticelli helped complete. It was commissioned by a court, for the judges’ high seat backs. The court decided that they wanted a painting of each of the virtues — the “three Christian values” (Faith, Hope, and Charity) and the “four universal values” (Temperance, Prudence, Fortitude, and Justice). These were really interesting, with each lady looking different in their expressions and holding something different in their hand; for example faith who holds a crucifix, justice who holds a sword and globe, and hope who holds her hands in prayer.

Seven Virtues

The Uffizi gallery is probably the most popular attraction in Florence and holds a massive collection of paintings across an absolutely huge building. People can spend a whole day in this gallery, but on average you should allow up to 3 hours. There is also a good chance that you will have to queue for a long time! We waited over an hour to get into the building.

The Accademia Gallery is much smaller and it houses many sculptures.

museum florence

It is also home to Michelangelo’s David, the most famous statue in the world. Originally located in Piazza della Signoria where there is now a copy in its place. There are other copies of this icon around the city including a bronze statue at the Piazzale Michelangelo.

Michelangelo’s David

Piazzale Michelangelo

The amount of art in this city was simply overwhelming and after a few galleries we felt completely mind boggled by it all. If you have no interest in art at all, this probably isn’t the place for you!

The historic buildings

With strong catholic connections, Florence holds many historic churches and buildings. The most popular one to see is the Duomo (Cathedral) along with the Giotto’s Campanile (Bell Tower) and Baptistery. You can get access to all these buildings and the museum on one ticket, but again be prepared to queue for a long period of time to get into the cathedral, and also for the bell tower.

You can pay extra to climb the dome of the cathedral which we considered doing, but after climbing the 414 steps of the Campanile we didn’t have the energy to climb, plus the tower is actually taller than the Duomo so the views were probably just as good if not better.

Duomo view from bell tower, Florence

Florence Bell Tower

Baptistery Florence

Duomo

Baptistery

Duomo

The opening times of the buildings can be quite frustrating as they don’t open until 10am so if you want to make an early start then you have to find some way to fill your time before you can go in. We had an extra large breakfast! Also be aware that these are catholic buildings where you will be required to cover up! We kept light cardigans and leggings in our bags so we could quickly cover up without carrying around too much weight the rest of the day.

Santa Maria Novella

The Santa Maria Novella church was also a lovely place to visit though we did find the pricing very difficult to understand as it didn’t seem to be well communicated to us when we tried to go in.

Viewpoints

There were a couple of great viewpoints that we found in Florence, including Piazzele Michelangelo, which is quite far from the centre, and is best travelled to by bus. Especially as to reach it by foot you have to climb a lot of very steep steps! The Piazzele is very popular for tourists and can be quite busy; with people, vehicles and food vans. Apparently it looks great at sunset but we only saw it during the day, it looked very pretty during the day as well though.

Piazzele Michelangelo

La Terrazza Continentale is also a great place to view some of the city centre. This was more of a special find… a roof bar tucked on top of the Continental Hotel. This is a very fancy bar and quite expensive, so we just had the one cocktail with our free snacks! It started raining too so we didn’t stay long but it was great to see the views and feel part of the Florence night scene. Also the elevator was very cool, but I will leave you to discover that yourself!

A couple of free sliders at La Terrazza Continentale

La Terrazza Continentale

The town of Fiesole

Whilst in Florence I wanted to take the opportunity to visit the town of Fiesole just 300 meters up the hill from Florence. My grandmother had often told me about the town as she lived their with my mother around 30 years ago and so I was curious to see it for myself.

This has a very different feel to the City of Florence as a very quiet local town only a short bus ride away which has great views of Florence and what seemed to be local vineyards and farmlands. There was also a lovely little church and a site of Roman ruins to see. We were only there for around two hours so I am sure there is plenty more to explore in the town for next time I visit the Tuscany area.

Fiesole Roman ruins

Fiesole views

Fiesole Roman ruins

Fiesole viewpoint

The train journey to Pisa was only around 10 Euros and takes about one hour. This short journey meant we could still have a full day in Florence before leaving for Pisa to have dinner in a lovely Pizzeria in Pisa and explore the city in the evening as well as the following day.

Pisa

The city of Pisa is normally just an excursion for many tourists but it was really interesting to see the city by night as well as day. The city actually has a booming nightlife with a large university residing over the river, the city fills with students by night and has a number of bars and cheap eateries to enjoy.

Pisa

Leaning Tower of Pisa

Baptistery

During the day we looked around the shops, saw Pisa’s Duomo, and baptistery and also their bell tower better known as ‘the leaning tower of Pisa’. The tower is normally open for tower tours but was sold out when we were there, I also don’t know that I would want to climb up a tower that is mid way through falling down! Apparently the tower keeps falling and so every so many years they have to refill the dip with cement again and prop it back up… sounds a bit risky to me!

There was also a museum that gave some background about the tower and an exhibition of different fresco paintings available to see.

Overall, this was a fun area to spend a few days, and I would definitely return. I would probably book more time away next time and spend some time in the rural parts of the region to see the contrast, and taste some of the local foods.

Me in Florence

Madrid: Memoirs of fancy parks and poor pronunciations…

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Last week, I travelled to the capital of Spain with the aim of having a relaxing week away with my partner and put the nine months of Spanish lessons i have had into practise. The holiday in the end was quite different to what I expected.

After some very difficult months, I packed my bag and was on my way to my budget flight to Madrid, crossing my fingers and toes that the flight wouldn’t be delayed and the infamous airline wouldn’t take my cabin bag from me. Thankfully the flight was okay but I did realise that I had forgotten probably the third most important item on this holiday… the Spanish dictionary and phrasebook! What a plonker! Well now I knew that the holiday would be somewhat more challenging…

We decided to take the Metro into Madrid from the airport, which would have been fine if I had done any sort of research previous to the holiday, but instead we got to the platform and realised we had no idea where we were going. Embarrassing for me really. Eventually we realised what we needed to do but the ticket options weren’t great, we ended up opting for the 10 trip ticket + airport travel but in hindsight this was a bit of a waste because we walked almost everywhere and returned to the UK with four unused journeys. Never mind! But a tip for those of you thinking about a visit, just get the airport ticket, because your 10 trips don’t count towards your journey back to the airport and you may find yourself having to pay extra to get back through the security gates… (Not that I’m talking from experience or anything *cough* cough*)

On arrival to the address of our apartment, (another AirBnB bargain) we had to enter a local hair salon to get the keys, and the apartment owner did not speak a word of English. But thankfully! I remembered the word for keys! LLAVES! Remember that one, you never know when you might need it. So after a lot of challenging conversation and frantic hand gestures, we made it into the apartment which was in the centre of Madrid, and a great price at £49 per night, although was missing some essentials.. like toilet paper. But just a minor thing!

Next on the list was to plan our visits to attractions and local hot spots for the week, of course I was trying to relax so managed to narrow this down to only about three locations per day, not bad I’d say. We were on a serious budget, but there is a surprising amount to do for free in Madrid, even some of the top ranking attractions.

We headed out to fill our apartment with those must have essentials at the local supermercado, and then hit the Mercado de San Miguel, a classy market full of local cuisine for the all important Tapas ingredients. This market is one of many in Madrid devoted to stalls of Ham, Olives, Fruit & Veg and lots of seafood.

Parks

It was boiling hot when we were there and so we wanted to take advantage by strolling in the local parks, we spent a full six hours within the El Retiro Parque in the East of the city. This popular park is full of attractions to enjoy.

Lake at Retiro Park

Lake at Retiro Park, Madrid

There is a lake which you can sail around and a beautiful monument alongside it with strange figures of mermaid like women riding various animals. There is also a few gorgeous buildings, one is a glasshouse with a pond in front of it filled with turtles.

Hidden away on one end of the park is also a peacock park where you can spot the birds hiding in every corner and formal hedge lines and fountains.

Peacock Park in Retiro Park

My favourite part of the park though is the Rosaleda or Rose Garden, which is very pretty, full of fountains and neatly trimmed rose bushes. Very beautiful.

Me at Rosaleda at Retiro

Retiro park – rosaleda

Me at Rosaleda at Retiro

There are so many other parks and gardens in the city to relax in as well, they all seemed to be taken well care of, and are clean and tidy.

One of the other reasons we spent so long in the Retiro park was because it was close by to the Prado art museum which is worth a visit. The museum is free during the week between 6pm and 8pm and we waited outside ready to go in, but turned our back for a moment and there was a queue of hundreds of people that had been formed. It would have taken an hour so we decided to give up and come back another day and pay, which was worth while because we ended up getting buy one get one free! The museum was full of paintings and sculptures, including some really brilliant work showing examples of heaven and hell and the artist’s perceptions of those journeys.

Palacio Real

The palace is also a lovely monument to view, we didn’t pay to go in, as the queue was quite long and we didn’t feel like it but the outside was pretty and it is right next door to the Cathedral. The Cathedral has great colours everywhere and a variety of chapels.

Evenings

In the evening, the city becomes very vibrant with street performers in all the large plazas, and the Spaniards have their late night dinners and high street shopping trips. One of the nights we stayed in Madrid we booked to enjoy a tapas dinner with a show in one of the many tablaos.

We chose to visit Torres Bermejas because of the wonderful decor replicating the interior of the Bermejas Towers of the Alhambra in Granada , which has a great Arabic feel to it. We watched an hour (with a break in the middle) of Spanish Flamenco dancing, singing and guitar playing, which was excellent. You could watch the show and just have drinks for about 30 Euros, but add another 25 Euros and you will get your dinner thrown in, ( a tapas that is, of course). The food was lovely as well, so generally a splendid night of entertainment and food.

There are also a few good view points to oversee the city; the Temple of Debod which is a park with ancient Egyptian monuments as well as the tower, Faro de Moncloa, which is a little towards the outside of the city but cheap to do – only three Euros. The downside of this attraction is that it has no facilities other than a vending machine so make sure you get some food on the way from one of the many restaurants alongside the Oeste Park next door.

An overview of the city

One of the other great things to do, to get a real feel for the city is to take a tour of Madrid. We spent some time considering whether we should do a bus tour or a walking tour but after looking at reviews and considering costs, decided to go for a walking tour. We took a free city tour with a gent named Miguel, which gave us a great overview of the city and its history and allowed us to discover a number of streets, alleys and landmarks that we would have never noticed on our own. For example did you know Madrid hosts the world’s oldest restaurant? Or that in many of the convents you can go and buy freshly baked cookies from the local nuns?!

I never knew until we had the tour that we had been walking around a city with such a mixture of origins. I had been passing through streets of Austrian, African, French and Roman influences. Much of the city is also influenced by the different religions and cultures that came with these countries.

We heard that the origin of the Flamenco music and dance that we had enjoyed a few nights before was an outcome of the oppression in Madrid and the persecution of Gypsies, Jewish and Muslim people within Spain during various invasions. It remained very dominant in Andalusia in the South of Spain where much of the original African migrants were dominant. We plan to see a bit more of the Flamenco art during our stay there next Summer.

Unfortunately, we took the tour at the end of the week but it would have been much more useful to go at the beginning. That’s what we get for being indecisive!

In general, it was a pretty nice place to visit, with lots of places to see cheaply, and the culture was really interesting. Word to the wise though, many of the people living and working here do not speak English, so don’t assume that you’ll get by because your a tourist going to tourist places. Remember your phrasebook! I think my boyfriend is pretty thankful that I knew enough Spanish to ask for food and beer, shame I still haven’t mastered understanding the responses back though.

Adios!

Pembrokeshire Coast, Wales

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Amroth beach

Newgale to Solva Walk

This Summer I took a family trip to the Pembrokeshire coast in Wales. This was a fabulous trip full of activity and fun, and one I would definitely be keen to repeat.

We stayed in a small seaside village called Amroth which was a lovely area with a sandy beach and a few nice bars. It was also close to the National Trust property of Colby Woodland, which was a nice natural attraction to explore nearby to our cottage. The village was also perfectly connected along the coastal path.

Colby Woodland

Colby Woodland Stream

Colby Woodland Money Tree

Getting active

There are tons of walking opportunities in the area with the coastal path providing plenty of connections to local sights, views and seaside towns. We did two main walks whilst staying there for the week.

Our first long distance walk was from Newgale to Solva. Newgale is a popular surfing spot, full of campers and water sport shops. The walk from here starts with a steep hike to the top of the cliffs, and took us up and down among the hills before flattening to a more pleasant stroll. The walk took us through views of the sea, beaches and Oystercatchers, and ended with us walking through fields of cattle and one last walk over a shingle beach before reaching Solva. This was a pleasant little seaside town where we could enjoy a well deserved lunch. This five mile walk took us around three hours to do and was very rewarding to complete.

Newgale to Solva Walk

The next walk we decided to go for was much more flat and so for me more leisurely. It also had a lot of different terrain to keep it interesting. This was the walk of Stackpole Quay around the coast and turning back through Bosherston and the Eight Arch Bridge.

Much of this area was covered by the National Trust, meaning there was plenty of very good car parking and cafe facilities. The first part of the walk is only a short inclining trail towards Barafundle Bay, which is one of the UK’s most beautiful beaches. We stopped here for a first break and enjoyed the sunshine before continuing on.

Me on Stackpole walk

Barafundle Bay

Next we found ourselves going through some foliage before coming to the cliff side of Stackpole Head. From here, the next section of the walk was an exploration of the cliffs, where you could see many people taking advantage of the great rock climbing opportunities. As the cliffs end, we found ourselves at Broad Haven beach, a huge sandy beach with plenty of visitors and more opportunity to get some food.

Bosherston Lily Ponds

From here there is the option to continue walking along the coast towards St Govan’s Head and Chapel or inwards to Bosherston Lily Ponds. Unfortunately, St Govan’s Chapel sits within a military training ground which means it is closed to walkers during certain times when training takes place. This conflicted with our walk which meant we couldn’t visit during our walk. Instead we went inland to the Bosherston Lily Ponds. This was a beautiful area with millions of lilies jam packing the water and plenty of wildlife. It was a truly unique outdoor area, unlike anything I have seen before.

Eight Arch Bridge

Bosherston Lily Ponds

After seeing the vast large ponds, the walk continues on wards to the Eight Arch Bridge, which is very picturesque. Apparently, otters can be regularly seen from this spot, although I didn’t manage to see any! Did see a Heron though! Another thirty minutes or so through farmlands will take you back to Stackpole Quay. This was a gorgeous six mile walk, and I would thoroughly recommend it!

Kayaking in Tenby

Jellyfish in Tenby

Kayaking in Tenby

With Pembrokeshire also being a coastal area there is also plenty of opportunity to get active on the water. There are plenty of spots to do this, but we decided to head to Tenby, which is a very popular seaside town and a good place to get out on the water. We decided to hire a couple of kayaks for a few hours and explore the sea. We found a number of small beaches only accessible by water, and we even had a huge jellyfish pass under our boats. I saw a number of massive jellyfish whilst exploring the water in Wales, apparently they had a particularly high number of them over this Summer due to the warm climate.

Someone we saw coasteering!

We saw a number of people coasteering in Pembrokeshire whilst there, meaning they were jumping off the cliffs into the ocean… but I wasn’t quite brave enough for this!

Caldey Island

Caldey Island is a peculiar island off the coast of Tenby that we decided to visit. It is inhabited entirely by a community of monks. This was a particularly interesting attraction for me as a lover of religious tourism. Regular trips can be taken to the island from the dock in Tenby over to the island. Once on the island, visitors can explore the various landmarks, including; the old priory, the lighthouse area, various monastic ruins, the island’s churches and even the monastery’s very own chocolate factory! We did indulge in some delicious monk made fudge! There is also a few shops on the island for visitors and trails to explore.

Old Priory on Caldey Island

Chocolate Factory on Caldey Island

Monastery on Caldey Island

This was a brilliant experience and very unusual!

We also visited St Davids whilst in Pembrokeshire, which is a well known town and famous for it’s St Davids Cathedral. Unfortunately, I was not allowed to take any photos of inside the cathedral, but I must tell you that this was one of the most beautiful cathedrals I have ever visited. I can see why they need the town after it!

St David’s Cathedral… plus cheese

St Govan’s Head & Chapel

Whilst we didn’t manage to see the chapel during our walk we luckily managed to reattempt a visit later in the week. We were successful in finding the hidden away chapel, which was another unusual site in Pembrokeshire, tucked away in the rocky cliffs. The steep walk down to the little chapel is well worth it, and does make you wonder why they chose to build a chapel in such a strange place. Head to the chapel to discover the legends surrounding its history, which involves Irish pirates and a mystery bell.

Heatherton World of Activities

We did decide to take a break from all the walking one morning and visited Heatherton World of Activities. This was an interesting attraction which included all sorts of activities for kids and adults, from Mini – Golf to Go Karting and Tree Top Climbing. On arrival you buy a number of tokens which you can use for various activities. I got extremely excited to be victorious in Mini- Golf, and Archery, however I did find that I need a lot more practice on the Pistol Shooting.

Castles!

Wales is the place to be when you want to find a castle! We were on castle overload this holiday, but I loved it! We went to visit Pembroke, Corfe, Carew, and Manorbier Castles, as well as Lamphey Bishop’s Palace which is another set of ruins. Many of the castles offered free tours, guidance, and activities such as falconry experiences. This was a great way to enjoy a few hours and learn a little history whilst you’re at it.

Carew Castle Pembrokeshire Coast

Castle Pembrokeshire Coast

Generally, Pembrokeshire was a lovely place and I would really like to revisit and explore the towns I didn’t manage to make it out to. We had a week there, but I would happily go there for two weeks and spend more time relaxing on the beach as well as getting active. I just need to hope for another week of perfect weather like we were lucky enough to get!

Me at Carew Castle

Bath: England’s Natural Spa

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My partner and I decided to visit Bath in Somerset on our way from Norwich to Pembrokeshire in Wales. This was a great place to stop as it was a nice half way point to break the journey up and had lots to keep us busy during our one night stay. I hadn’t realised until arriving that Bath is actually the only place in England with hot springs and just how important it was to this city’s initial existence.

The Roman Baths

Of course we visited the historic Roman Baths that Bath is famous for. The visitor attraction was well laid out taking you through different parts of the building and the museum before you arrived outside by the main bath. Self guided audio equipment was available to use and there were regular free guided tours to enjoy that gave some insight into the history. It turns out that the springs in Bath were first discovered as warm bubbling mud by the Celts who thought it was a gift from the goddess Sulis. Later when the Romans came along they recognised the water with the god Minerva, but not to upset the locals, they kept the Celt name, and the area became known as Aquae Sulis, “the waters of Sulis”.

The tour was brilliant and explained to us all the strange beliefs that the Romans had which the baths played a key part in. For example 130 metal tablets were found at the bottom of the baths which Romans visiting the bath had written on and thrown in, in an attempt to curse people they didn’t like, mainly people that had stolen their clothes. We were also able to handle replicas of the sort of tools servants would use to shave and clean the visitors to the baths and the process in which people came in and used the facilities.

The baths were lost for a number of years when they fell into disrepair, however they were rediscovered by the Victorians whom rejuvenated them. This is evident in the baths when visiting, the only original remains is the building work from the knee down, above that is Victorian & Georgian additions, which were put in place to replicate the original Roman layout.

Overall the museum and attraction experience were top notch, we even got to try a taste of the water at the end… although I was not a fan of the taste, it was a nice touch!

Mask

Part of statue

Curse tablet

Thermae Bath Spa

Previous to visiting the town, we had read that going to the Thermae Bath Spa to bathe in the spring waters was a must, so I was really excited to do this. The Spa experience was expensive though and difficult to decide on, because you are given an option of either paying for the single small Georgian bath to bathe in, or the more expensive package of all the modern other baths, wellness suite and rooftop bath, but this excludes the Georgian bath. So already before going in you have to decide if you want the historical atmosphere or the relaxation factor.

We went for the more expensive package to get more out of our ticket and see more of the attraction, in hindsight though I think this might have been the wrong choice. Whilst the facilities were good inside, and quite clean (which is a very important factor in a public bath), I did find the experience to be quite underwhelming and overpriced. The main bath indoors just had the feel of a leisure center pool, and the rooftop pool had uninspiring views and crowds of people inside it. The wellness suite was somewhat interesting but each room was quite less than you expected, except for the Roman steam room which was quite good because it had just SO much steam and felt slightly more authentic and themed than the rest of the spa.

For the price we paid, I had hoped to be amazed by the spa but if you weren’t reading signs that said you were in the spring water, you wouldn’t even know you were in a Bath spa, rather than any other spa in the country. Having spent time abroad at the Blue Lagoon in Iceland and at Turkish and Roman spas elsewhere, it was quite disappointing.

Bath Abbey & Georgian Architecture

All around the town of Bath is Georgian architecture and the matching Bath stone. This includes at the Bath Abbey which was beautifully designed with huge and detailed stained glassed windows. The building was unusually covered throughout with wall and floor memorials, many more than you would normally see in a church or cathedral of this size. We were very lucky to witness the choir whilst visiting as well giving us a great atmospheric visit, and whilst inside we could hear the hymns, stepping outside was a square full of musical busking.

Bath Abbey

The town center has plenty to offer shoppers with a variety of local independent and chain stores, as well as street traders and entertainment. We really enjoyed looking around and seeing what was on offer, including having a delicious dinner at the Aqua restaurant. We read the great reviews for the restaurant and decided to see if they could squeeze us in. We managed to get a table and had a lovely evening. The restaurant was set out to match the bath theme with blue mosaics and was set in a former church so immediately got a ‘big tick’ from me. We had a great waiter that offered us a selection of Italian cuisine. I had the Linguine Gamberoni & my partner had Pork Cheeks, both meals were amazing. I would highly recommend the restaurant for a bit of fine dining.

bath

In general, we really enjoyed Bath and I would be happy to stay there again on my next trip to the West side of the country. It has great history, shopping and lots of outside places to enjoy.

Surrey on a hot weekend!

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Last month, myself and my partner visited Surrey’s Kingswood village and the nearby national trust venues. This is a great area to spend exploring the English countryside and traditional English gardens.

Kingswood in Surrey is a lovely small village with beautiful homes, quality shops and quality dining choices. This also happens to be the home of my grandfather and so I had the pleasure of spending time there.

Whilst in Kingswood, we enjoyed a fabulous meal in the Kingswood’s Arms which I decided to write a seperate review of…

Very close to Kingswood village are the beautiful views of Box Hill and the Surrey Hills. This is a great area to take a walk and explore the countryside, and you can see across Surrey from this viewpoint. With this being a National Trust site, there is also a cafe, shop and toilet facilities available.

There are also a number of National Trust properties surrounding the wider area. We decided to make a visit to the popular ‘Chartwell’, which was once the home of PM Winston Churchill.

Chartwell House

Chartwell Gardens

Chartwell Queen’s signature

Chartwell Roses

I had expected this to just be a house, but on arrival I realised that this was not only the house the Churchill lived in but also an entire estate of rose gardens, parkland, large ponds and trails. You can enjoy self guided tours of Churchill’s home, and discover his best works of art within his old studio. It was a brilliant place to spend time in the sun, and learn about one of England’s most important figures in history. With it being a National Trust site again, it also had all the visitor facilities you could need.

Chartwell House

I only had a few days in Surrey this time, but I know there is lots more available to do there. In previous visits I have taken quick trips into London (only 40 mins away), and taken drives down to the coast. You’re also close to the South Downs National Park, Epsom Downs Racecourse, and Albury Park.

More destination reviews coming soon!