Saturday 20 July 2024 - Lincoln

The alarm woke me this morning. The room has air conditioning, so it was easy to sleep last night, even though the aircon did turn off some time during the night.

I eventually went down to breakfast just before 8am and apart from Rosanne not being there, there were the Backroads group plus leader & driver and about 5 other people. The place seem deserted. I just had toast, OJ, coffee & yogurt & fruit.  I left just on 8:30 and there must be a large tour group staying, as I think the majority of them decided to have breakfast at 8:30, so the breakfast room filled very quickly.

We left on your walking tour, crossed the road and were at the Lincoln Cathedral.  Apparently Lincoln is celebrating the 1940's this weekend, so there was a display of cars and a bus from that era, just outside the Castle walls.  Many of the locals were dressed appropriately for that era.  I was almost arrested by a bobby but he decided that he needed to arrest a man, so I was saved from that ordeal.  Lots of local stalls either selling their own wares or selling on behalf of a charity.

We all visited the Castle and viewed Lincolns' copy of the 1215 signed Magna Carta. There are only 4 original copies that survive. Two are kept in the British Library (one of which was badly damaged by fire in 1731), one in Salisbury cathedral, and one here in Lincoln castle.

Rosanne and I wanted to take the hop-on hop-off bus around Lincoln but had just missed one and didn't want to wait for another hour, so to fill in the time, we visited the Cathedral and as the admission price (Charlie had bought the tickets earlier and handed them out) included a walking tour within the Cathedral, we did that, to fill in the time.  By the time that the Cathedral tour was finished we managed to get on the next hop-on hop-off bus. We only did the one loop, which took just under an hour. There was a stop conveniently outside our hotel, so that gave us time to go to our rooms, freshen up and have time to go back to the Cathedral for the Choral Evensong at 5:30pm

The choir was magnificent and I wish that I had had my phone out, so I could have recorded some of the songs.  The service lasted just under an hour and we caught up with Jackie at the end of the service.  Back at the hotel there was a wedding reception going on. I think the whole show started this morning and has been going on all day.  Anyway, Duncan came down and the 4 of us decided to have dinner in the hotel, so one of the tables in the bar area was set for 4 for dinner.  Then Michelle our tour driver arrived, so we had another seat set and the 5 of us ate dinner.  The local staff were fantastic.  We had a lovely meal. I had a Salmon starter and a 3 ice cream dessert. Rosanne & Michelle opted for the Lamb main, Jackie only wanted the 3 ice cream dessert and Duncan had the Salmon starter and I can't remember what else.  Great company and great discussions.

Back in my room around 9pm and will pack, ready for our departure tomorrow on our way to Cambridge.  Breakfast from 7:30, bag out by 8am and we depart at 9am.

That's it from me for today.  Photos posted on Flickr.  Night all and only 5,8956 steps today.

Friday 19th July 2024 - Peak District to Lincoln

Awake at 5am. Showered, dressed, sorted the luggage to put out before I went down to breakfast at 7:20. Another light breakfast and then went for a walk around the grounds.

We were all onboard and departed the hotel at 8;45, to visit the local St Mary & All Saints Church and had a photo stop to see it’s twisted spire. It is so big that it's often mistaken for a cathedral and, in fact, it's the largest church in Derbyshire. 

There is a wedding story about that.  The most popular story about the Spire is that it was so amazed to hear of a virgin being married in the Church that it twisted round to try and see such a wonder for itself.

We departed there about 9:10 on our way to Sherwood Forest, where we arrived at 9:50

We departed Sherwood Forest at 11:35, after a walk through part of the forest, on the way to our lunch stop  in Newark.

Arrived in Newark around midday. Charlie took us on an orientation tour and then left us to have lunch. We all ate at a riverside eatery next to the River Trent. It was called The Swan & Salmon (I think) I had a starter size seafood salad. Very fresh and delicious.

Back onboard at 2.30pm, for our trip to Lincoln where we are staying for the next 2 nights.

Arrived at the hotel at 3:20 ish. 

I had hand washing to do and Rosanne just wanted to rest.  We agreed to meet in the bar at 6:30pm for a drink.  A large drink. :). Were chatting away when Len & Cyndy came in.  They had changed rooms because of the state of the 1st room they were put in. Apparently Charlie took photos of their 1st room and will be forwarding to the company. Apparently an old dirty room. Mould in the bathroom, filthy carpet etc. Not nice at all. My room is dated but it is clean. Shortly after that, Duncan arrived. Jackie had gone to their room and he was in the bar to buy a bottle water. He eventually left around 9pm. I hope Jackie wasn't to thirsty.

Len, Cyndy, Rosanne & I all left shortly after. I was back in my room by 9:30 and will be heading for bed once I update this and post some photos on Flickr.

Photos posted.   Steps today 9,405.

Thursday 18th July 2024 - Chatsworth House Visit

I woke at 5am this morning and decided to get up then, as I was wide awake. Showered, washed my hair, dressed. Ran the hairdryer over the washed socks, to help dry them and then tried to find out why my photos wouldn’t sync on the MacBook. Tried a number of googled suggestions but nothing is working.

I won’t be able to post photos on my Flckr page until I find a way of getting the pics to sync or a way of getting them onto my hard drive.

Went down for breakfast around 7:15ish. Not especially hungry so just had toast, coffee & OJ. Back to my room to put things away and then left to have a quick walk around. Have found a quick way to get from my room to the outside.😁😁

We were all early today, so got away at 8:45am on our way to Chatsworth House.

We arrived at Eyam Village first up at 9:30 ish. It’s known as the Plague Village. You can read more about that here. https://www.eyamvillage.org.uk/

We departed there at 11:15 after listen to the bell ringers practicing, then had a photo stop at the Monsal viaduct and away again at 11:35.

Arrived at Chatsworth House at 11:50.

Viewed the house and finished that just before 1 pm. By then I had met up with Jackie & Duncan so we all then got on a train being pulled by a tractor that went around some of the gardens further afield. That only took about 15 minutes. We then went to a cafeteria for some  lunch. After that, they headed for one of the hothouses and I headed for the fountain.

The bus departed at 3pm for Bakewell. 30c outside according to the onboard temp gauge.

We spent about 45 mins in Bakewell and departed there at 4:35. Its their Festival week and the places is very busy. 

We should be back at the hotel around 5:20.

Dinner was at 7pm and the meal was delicious. I had Fried Seabass Filet  for the main and Chocolate Chip Brownie with vanillas ice cream for dessert.  Great company and fun conversations. finished dinner just before 9pm and headed for our rooms as the bags need to be out st 8am and we are travelling again tomorrow, leaving at 9am for Lincoln.

No more photo on Flickr yet, as I still can't get the photos to sync on my MacBook. :(

Night all.  Steps for today 14,108

EDIT UPDATE - Photos now posted

Wednesday 17th July 2020 - North York Moors to the Peak District

The alarm at 6am woke me this morning.  A nice sunny day outside. After sorting the luggage and packing everything up ready for a new day, I put the luggage outside the door and went to breakfast at 7:20. 

I was the 1st one there. Michelle arrived soon after and then Cyndy & Len.

I decided to have a hot breakfast and ordered Royale Eggs. Soft poached egg on a muffin with salmon slices. Delishes. I’ll have to start taking photos of my food.

I went back to my room and then decided to go looking for reception, as we didn’t go there when we checked in. This hotel, has various areas with rooms all over the place. To get to the. Dining room, you had to go up to the 1st floor, walk along a couple of corridors, walk through a function room, down some stairs, along another couple of corridors and there is the dining room.

Similar instructions on how to get to reception but after the last arrow, nothing. Obviously I eventually found it but boy, what a rabbit warren. Certainly walked a few steps just to check out..

We got away at 8:55am. 1st stop was at a Captain Cook memorial at 10:15. 2nd stop was at the Rievaulx Abbey, at 10am.

We departed there around 10:15 on our way to York.

We were on the outskirts of York around 11:15 and Michelle dropped us off at 11:30ish. All to meet again at 2:30pm

Charlie did an orientation walk and we then did our own thing. Duncan & Jackie, went looking for a loo. Rosanne & I tagged along. 40p to have a pee in York. 

We then went into a M & S and had lunch in their Cafe and on the way out, bought something for dinner tonight. 

Rosanne wanted to do a hop-on-hop-off tour, so I joined her on that. I had visited York back in 2000 and spent a few hours there way back then, so was happy to see other parts of the city apart from the CBD/ Shambles etc..

We were all back onboard the bus at the appointed time  and on our way to the Ringwood Hall Hotel & Spa, Chesterfield.

It’s been warm today. The wind a bit brisk on occasions but no sign of rain.

According to the bus temperature weather gauge, its 14.6c inside the bus & 25c outside.

We had a quick comfort stop at a sculpture park and were back onboard and on our way again by 3:45.arrived at the hotel around 5pm. Filled in the appropriate paperwork and went to my room, 134, where the luggage had already been delivered to.

Sorted out the clothes for the next 2 days and did some hand washing. 

Rosanne & I had arranged to meet for a drink around 6:30pm before heading back to our rooms to eat dinner.  We chatted to almost 8pm then headed back to our rooms. Turns out that her room number 2xx is actually on the ground floor of the hotel.  At least my room 134 is on the 1st floor.  I'll check the grounds out properly some time tomorrow.

For some reason, none of the photos that I took today are syncing with my MacBook, so I can't post any photos on Flickr.

I'm heading for bed and keeping my fingers crossed that it will fix itself overnight. Otherwise I might not be able to post any more photos.

Night all.  Only 8,119 steps today

EDIT UPDATE.  Photos have now been posted.  I think it was an internet problem with the hotel.

 

Tuesday 16th July - Trip to Whitby and return

 My first non coughing night, so had a good nights sleep. Only had to get ups once during the night.

Finished up-dating the blog for yesterday and posted photos from yesterday too.

I had a good nights sleep with no coughing but now get a runny nose. I need to find a pharmacy today to buy more tissues.😁

We got away at 9am and it’s a wet day.

Captain Cook worked at a local drapery shop in Staithes, where he would stare out the window, longing to be out to sea. 

We arrived in Staithes around 9:30 and walked down the main narrow road to the harbour. A  very pretty coastal town.

Michelle drove the bus down the narrow road and we climbed on board around 10:15 and we were on our way to Whitby.

We arrived in Whitby around 10:30. After taking photos of the Captain Cook Memorial, then visited the Museum. The museum was quite interesting and the guy who was talking was very well informed.

After that was lunch time and back to the bus at 1:30.

A small fish & chips was still to big for me, but I have now had fish & chips in England.

We were soon at the Abbey after that and we were meeting again around 2:45.

From the Abbey we are heading through the. Moors National Park where we had a photo stop. On the road again at 3:15.

3:20 and we stopped at the heartbeat town, Aidensfield and then back to the coach after the steam train went through at 4:20pm. Back on board at 4:40 heading to the hotel.

Arrived back just before 6 pm.

Dinner is again at 8 pm and tomorrow we head for York

Breakfast at 7am, bags out at 8am and we depart at 9am.  I’ll finish this after dinner as I’m going for a walk.

Before dinner started, Charlie handed out envelopes to us all, which said that the visit to Sandringham was cancelled and we would be going to Burghley House & Gardens.  We all knew that months ago. Apparently Charlie didn't.

The food, once again was delicious but again, I could not finish the main. It was a mushroom risotto.  I don't think I'll bother with 3 course dinners again.  Far to much food for me.

Dinner finished, we all stayed talking and then looked at our watches and decided that bed was next, Got back to my room at 9:45pm.

Have posted some photos on Flickr.   Steps. 12,163

Night all

Monday 15th July 2024 - Edinburgh to North York Moors

 Monday July 15

I had another crappy coughing night though not as bad as the previous. Went down to breakfast  sometime after 7am. Just had toast, yoghurt, orange juice and a banana. A very nice hotel and the shower was the best of all the hotels so far. Easy instructions to follow and not having to try and guess what various taps did.

Checked out around 8:30. Our driver, Michelle & van arrived just after 9 and we 6 plus tour leader Charlie, were loaded onboard, along with our luggage and we departed around 9:10am

10:00am and we were at the borders.

Farewell to Scotland and hello England.

We stopped at the Berwick Garden Centre at 10:25 for a comfort stop. On the road again at 10:40.

11:20 photo viewpoint of Alnwick Castle.

It has been in the hands of the Percy family since 1309.

Dropped off at 11:30 departing at 1:30pm

Walked through most of the rooms in main part of the Castle

 

Walked down to the gardens where there are a couple of cafes but I opted for a gelato for lunch.  Very warm in the sun. Around 18c according to the weather app. On reflection, Margot Moore,  I should have given the castle a miss and headed straight for the gardens as you did, as there wasn’t any time let to see any of them. :(

We all met Charlie at the appointed time and are now on our way to Durham Cathedral. According to the buses temperature reading it’s 16c in the bus and outside 23c

The 1.5 hrs we had there passed fairly quickly.

Michelle arrived early to pick us up and we were all ready. Left Durham just before 5pm on our way to Gisborough Hall Hotel.

it's now after 10pm and I'm heading for bed.  I'll finish this off tomorrow and post photos tomorrow.  I need a good nights sleep.  Night all.

We arrived at the Manor House (Hotel)  around 6ish from memory. Being just the 6 of us it was a very fast check-in and I don't think it was done through the usual reception area. We were given our room keys,  ticket  off our choices for our 8pm dinner sitting, shown where our rooms are (very close by) and told how to get to the dining room.  

I spent the next hour or so getting close ready for our 2 night stay and doing some hand washing,

When it came time to leave for dinner Roseanne and I were leaving at the same time as Charlie, so he showed us a shortcut.

I bought a medium wine. Very expensive.  Thankfully I only had the 1. We were also given a free wine with dinner.  The meal was delicious and plentiful, so much so that I couldn't finish the cheese & biscuits that I opted for the dessert.

In bed by 9:30ish and light out shortly after.

Sunday 14th July 2024 - Transfer day from Ibis Hotel to Malmaison in Leith

I switched the light off at around 8:30 last night.  Had a bit of a coughing night early on and then slept through to 4.22am and then back to sleep.  Finally woke up properly, so got up, showered and dressed ready to go down to breakfast at 7am.

Back in the room just after 7:30 and decided to check my paperwork for the tour of the Royal Yacht Britannica.  I thought I had booked for 1:00 - 1:15pm.  Nope, had booked for 11:00 - 11:15am, which means I'll have to check out of this hotel a couple of hours earlier than I planned.  Today is going to be another nice day, cloudy and no rain expected.  There isn't anything that I have the time to visit, before I leave this hotel.

Ibis reception offered to call a taxi for me, so that saved my walking back to the Radisson Blu, as I knew there was a taxi rank outside that hotel and it was only a 5 minute walk away. I left the Ibis some time around 8:30ish and was at the Malmaison about 15/20 minutes later. I know that I had had my luggage stored and took my first photo on my walk to the Royal Yacht Britannia, at 9:11am

I found where I had to go and the guys checking people said that I might as well do the tour then and there, rather than come back later. I was pleased about that. It’s only about a 15 minute walk from the hotel.

After I finished the tour and had taken plenty of photos, I realised that I should have been writing down the names of the cabins or spaces.  I’ll do my best when I post the pics on Flickr.

I’m currently sitting outside a restaurant just across from the tour hotel, after having a light meal and sipping a glass of  Chardonnay,

I got a bit of a shock when I read the “welcome” letter from Charlie, the TD, welcoming me on their "Highlights of Great Britain" tour, as that isn’t the tour that I booked and what all me paperwork refers to. Once I checked the Britain tour online and saw that it started in London, I knew that the letter was a mistake.

The temp has dropped from earlier, the sky is looking very cloudy and the wind has picked up a bit. Think I might do a quick walk around the block and then spend the rest of the afternoon in my room at the hotel. I’ve only walked 6,5k steps so far. On second thoughts I’ll give the walk a miss as it’s started to drizzle lightly and I don’t have my brolly with me. 

Back to the room and have showered, washed my hair and dressed for this evenings meet and greet in an hours time. The hairdryer needs to be fixed though, as the heat is only tepid at the best.

There are only 6 of us on the tour. Leonard (Len) & Cynthia (Cyndy Romaniello  from the USA.  Duncan & Jacky Bridal from Australia but are English. They live about an Hour north of Sydney, Rosanne Hill from Victoria, near Albury/Wodonga and little ol me.  Had a delightful dinner and will be departing from the hotel at 9am tomorrow.  Must remember to put the main luggage out at 8am, so it can be taken down to the 18 seater bus.  Breakfast is from 7am.

And so begins another tour.

I'm having another early night.  Have been coughing quite a bit today but nothing for the past hour or so, so perhaps the worst of the cold is over.

Night all.  Only 7,162 steps today. :)