June 2012 Jubilee Week

Friday 1st June – Bath Marina and Caravan Park

We decided to be on our way tonight rather than first thing tomorrow morning, just in case the park and ride was not running on the Bank Holidays. We had emailed the site to check this would be OK and they confirmed this would be fine by email.

We headed off and half an hour into the journey I realised that although we had the Sat Nav we did not have the charger to keep it charged up.
We decided that we would have to manage with maps and carried on our way, using the Sat Nav sparingly.

We arrived at the site about 7:30  but the office was closed and there was no paperwork for our pitch. We decided to find an empty pitch for the night and sort it out in the morning.

It was cloudy but a dry night and we were able to eat outside before setting up the TV and retiring to bed to watch it.

Saturday 2nd June

We woke to a cloudy, damp start, before breakfast Billy went over to the office to sort out our pitch. It turned up there had been a mix up and our paperwork had been forgotten. They also had us booked in for 57 nights for some bizarre reason!!!

Because of this they asked us to move to another pitch as they had overlapping bookings. We weren’t totally sure why we had to move as the pitch we had to move to was the one next to us. However we could see it would make the receptionist’s job easier so moved to the new pitch. Later we saw that the people who took our original pitch came with friends who pitched next door to them so perhaps it was just as well we moved.

Once moved we headed off to Bath on the park and ride. It was a good job we had arrived the night before because as we had guessed the park and ride would not be running again until Wednesday as it did not run on Sundays or bank holidays.

We wandered down to the river and around the streets of bath where we took some snaps.

 

we then walked the streets of Bath, in and out of the shops and ended up buying some bunting and some really useful boxes so that Billy tidy up the Motorhome garage. I doesnt matter if we are at home or in the garage, he always has a garage to sort!!

As usual we had dinner with Tesco rewards, today it was Ask Italian, where we tucked into a 3 course meal of pasta and pizza. Billy was happy as they had his favourite Calzone.

We wandered round a bit longer then headed off to catch the bus back to the site.  Once back at the site we found somewhere to hang our bunting and put our flag up.

Sunday 3rd June

Woke to rain today, we had planned to have a relaxing day at the van.

Billy sorted the garage arrange items into his new boxes and realised that he needs more boxes!!!

In the afternoon we tuned into the Royal pageant on the TV as it rained all afternoon so we settled down with drinks and nibbles. It was lovely to see all the boats on the river Thames and Queen on the Royal Barge enjoying herself even though it was such awful weather both on the Thames and where we were. It reminded me of the time we were in Cardiff and stuck in the van watching the Canadian Grand Prix.

I don’t remember venturing out of the van, apart from toilet breaks. I cooked dinner once the pageant was over but that too had to be eaten in the van  because of the weather.

Monday 4th June

Woke up this morning and as it was dry so we decided to get the bikes down and cycle along the canal path to find something for breakfast. We ended up in Bath and Café Rouge, where we tried to use our Tesco vouchers but because we ordered Café Compleat, which consisted of baguette, French toast, orange juice and a latte we ended up paying for it, as vouchers can only be used for food.  Never mind, we know for next time.

We retraced the steps we had taken on Saturday as Billy remembered seeing a clock that may be suitable as an alarm clock in the van.  We did not find the clock but did find our way back to Ask and another Calzone for Billy to use up the last of our Tesco Ask vouchers. This time we only had the one course though.

When we returned back to the van, the sun was shining so we poured ourselves an aperitif and relaxed in the sunshine until the sun went down.

Tuesday 5th June - Bristol Baltic Wharf

Woke this morning to rain again but we were leaving today for our next site in Bristol.

We set up the Sat Nav but the battery had run out so we had to revert to maps (like in the old days). It was a caravan club site we were heading for but the book only gave us directions from the M5 and not from Bath.

We had not been to the site before but the instructions in the book did mention the SS Great Britain so we headed off in the direction of Bristol and then followed signs to the SS Great Britain, we arrived at the site where it was still raining at 12:30.

We set up and then Billy got speaking to the warden about our future and we were invited over to the office for a chat in the afternoon. We had a snack and then headed over to the wardens for a natter and a cup of coffee.

We were told that the pub next door to the site, Cottage Inn, did good food so we ventured over there for supper. There was nothing exciting on the menu, I ended up with scampi and chips and Billy had fish and chips, very average meal :(
I can imagine it would be a lovely place to sit outside when the weather was good.



Cottage Inn outlook



Outside backgate of campsie



 Wednesday 6th June

We were going to catch the river taxi into Bristol but the earliest one was 10:50 and we were ready to go at 9:30 so instead we caught the bus into Bristol, with the intention of returning on the river taxi. We wanted to go to Clifton Triangle but the bus did not go there so they dropped us into town and we hiked up the hill to Clifton Triangle. We wandered around the shops, which were quirky and different to the normal shopping centres, but then I had to have my fix of Marks and Spencer so we headed back down the hill and across to Cabot Circus and the usual shops. This was a hike and a half and once there we did not stay long, just long enough to buy a pair of trousers and a pair of jeans from M & S and shelter in the shopping centre from the rain.

We then decided to return to Clifton Triangle, this was very tiring as it was back across town and up the hill. However we knew we would ne able to rest at the top of the hill as we were going to have our tea (courtesy of Tesco again) in Browns restaurant. We ended up having a 3 course meal, Flatbread, Belly Pork and Brownies and it was scrummy :). Plus the additional surprise that the cocktails were half price so I indulged in a couple of West Indian Yellow Birds – lovely :)


 

Recuperating

in Browns














We left Browns at 6:30, we knew we would have missed the river taxi but we had recuperated, the rain had stopped and the sun was shining so we were ready to put one foot in front of the other and walk back along the river to the campsite. On our return we put the chairs out and enjoyed a lovely cup of tea watching the sun go down.

Thursday 7th June

Today we left Bristol and it was raining again and headed off for the next part of our trip.

Our next destination was Bourton on the Water and we arrived  at 13:30 but it was still raining.

We were staying on a Camping and Caravanning CS site and found it quite easily without the Sat Nav, although it was down a long lane that was full of potholes.

We found the field and a space with EHU and pitched up for our stay.

Not only was it raining but it was getting very windy, we ended up spending the rest of the day in the van, reading and catching up with everything.

We decided not to venture out and I grilled a couple of gammons with fried potatoes and veg, which we both enjoyed. By the end of the day the wind had got much stronger, we were pitched under a tree which meant it was difficult to sleep and we spent the night tossing and turning listening to the heavy rain on the van.

Friday 8th June


When we woke up it was still windy but the heavy rain had stopped. Billy was worried about how we were going to get off the field.  He was wondering whether we should leave and go somewhere else. I said that hopefully by Sunday the field would have dried out (the weather forecast was looking dry for Saturday but not for Sunday).

We said we would stay put and monitor the weather. We decided to get out and blow the cobwebs away and see what Bourton on Water had to offer.

As we headed off down the long lane some other campers were heading in the same direction. They had been to the site many times before.  They asked if we were going to Bourton and said that that Slaughters were very nice too.

It is a small world too as it turned out they were from Reading and Emsworth and they had relatives that lived in Gosport (my home town).  At the end of the land they turned right where we went left into Bourton on the Water.

I was surprised how close we were to the Village Centre. We had been to Bourton on Water years ago so were not surprised about how the river runs through the village with bridges going across. They call it Venice of the Cotswolds.

The rain had stopped so we strolled around looking in the many shops and after a couple of hours stopped for dinner at one of the many tea rooms/restaurants. We both had pie, I had chicken and leek and Billy had steak and kidney. We then headed back via the co-op for some bread and the Countrywide Farmers shop.

Back at the site the ground looked as if it had dried out by the wind and whilst the sun was shining I decided to put the bunting up inside the van.

We enjoyed the sunshine whilst it was out by sitting outside and then we spent the evening relaxing in the van.

Saturday 9th June


We woke up today and it looked as if it was going to be a fine day, we just needed to decide whether to go off on our bikes or use our legs.

We decided to go for a walk as we were not sure of where we would be able to cycle but knew there were several public footpaths around.

We headed off to Lower Slaughter, as we had heard the Slaughters were pretty. We were following a route that I had copied to my blackberry from the internet the night before.

We knew were going the right way as there were others walking the same route. I guess everyone had been waiting for the rain to stop and had the same thought once it had stopped.

We arrived in Lower Slaughter and could see what they meant by pretty, the River run through the village just like in Bourton but without the touristy bits.

We had been told that the Salvation Army were in the village hall serving tea and cakes so we had to see what was on offer and indulged in tea and went halves on Carrot cake and lemon drizzle cake,

Then went on our way, hoping to walk it off.

We followed the River Eye across to Upper Slaughter, through sheep meadows and past the Manor House.

Upper Slaughter seemed to be smaller than Lower Slaughter but had the same Cotswold stone houses. The other walkers we had seen earlier were not walking with us anymore, we climbed up past allotments, across fields, under trees, over stiles and through kissing gates. 

We stumbled across a hamlet, Little Aston and then made our way along the river Windrush back to Bourton on Water.

 

Today Bourton on Water was full of tourists and there were a few stalls with a duck race taking place on the river, we stopped for an ice cream and then made our way back to the van with the sun still shining so we sat outside and watched the sun go down with a glass of Pimms,.

Sunday 10th June
Today we left for home stopping at our usual services at Tiverton for a bacon sandwich, cooked in the van and a latte from costa.

11th to 13th May - Brixham

Friday
Billy went off to work and left me to do the housework and get ready for another weekend away.  This time we were meeting friends of ours who have been living in their caravan in the UK.  I made a chilli so that we would not have to cook when we arrived at the site.

Billy was home about 2pm so we were able to leave at 4pm arriving at Brixham about 4.30 pm. 

We found the site and our  friends made us a cup of tea on arrival.  It was a lovely evening but a bit chilly to sit out.

We returned to our own van to tuck into our chilli and then our friends joined us afterwards for a catch up as we had not seen them for sometime, and of course that included a few glasses of wine.


Saturday
After a good night's sleep, in the drop down bed, we had our breakfast and then headed off, walking in the direction of Brixham.  We followed the directions to town centre and it was downhill all the way to the harbour.
It was a lovely day and it felt like we were on holiday. 

We mooched around the shops then stopped for a coffee and slice of home made cake!

We then found a fishmongers and bought some fish for tea, scallops, cod and smoked haddock.
Then it was the big walk up the hill back to the site.


We stopped for a breather half way up the hill

 The sun was still shining when we arrived back at the site so we decided to sit outside and get the Cadac out to cook the fish. 

 

Then of course there was the washing up, which again was done outside. 

 

When the sun went down we retired to out friends van to pick up where we had left off the night before. 

Sunday
On Sunday, after our cooked breakfast (grilled without fat) we headed off for Berry Head, not knowing what to expect.  We were surprised by how close it was and the sight of the breathtaking scenery.

 

There were lots of people out walking, it is an ideal place for dog walking and to top it all there is a cafe where you can either sit outside and enjoy the fresh air or sit inside.

Once back at the site we said our goodbyes, our frends were staying for another couple of weeks but we had to head back as we had to get back for work :(

On the way back, we listened to the radio as it was the last day of the footbal season.  Man City and Man Utd were playing in separate matches and it was ver exciting listening to both matches. 

Before going home we called into see my niece and family.  It was my Great nephews 2nd birthday and we had been invited over for a slice of cake.



May Day Bank Holiday weekend - Minehead

Friday 4th May

I was looking forward to my Friday off, so that I could get my housework done followed by the ironing.  I could then go shopping before making sure the van was packed up and we we were ready to go when Billy got in. Billy would do his packing up of the van on on Thursday night and hopefully we would be able to leave about 4pm on Friday.

However this all changed because when Billy came home  on Thursday eveninghe said that there was not enough work and that he was not working on Friday.  He decided that because he was off on Friday he would wait and pack the van up on Friday morning.

Friday morning I was able to put the hoover over and get the ironing done, whilst Billy put the bikes on the back and packed up the van.

I sorted the fridge and freezer food, including a home made fish pie that I had frozen to take with us. Billy said it would defrost in the fridge as we were travelling.

We were on our way by 12:30 and winding our way along the exe valley when bang our wing mirror had been hit, we were on a bridge when a white van decided he too would be able to go over the bridge and at speed. We stopped to check the damage but needless to say he did not stop. Billy was able to put the mirror back in place but the indicator cover was broken and the black has been scuffed and cracked. Our shiny new motorhome was not shiny anymore :(  We continued on our way and ended up setting up at the Minehead Caravan Club site by 4pm.

The plan was to have the fish pie for tea but by 7pm the pie had not defrosted.  Off we went to see if there was a take away in walking distance. We were pleasantly surprised as within 5 minutes walk we found, an Indian, Chinese, kebab/pizza, fish and chips and a co-op (if we wanted to cook). We ended up with Chinese and very nice it was too.
After dinner we then both sat reading our kindles until Graham Norton was due on the TV.  We thought "lets try the TV", thinking it would take ages to sort the aerial.  We were pleasantly surprised when we switched the TV on and we had a very good picture. We watched GN and then decided it was time for bed. We decided to try the drop down bed this weekend for the first time. We were both surprised how comfortable the bed was and the added advantage were the shelves for drinks, clock etc.

We do not have a shelf beside the fixed bed, although Billy is working on this. At the moment we open a cupboard and use this for drinks etc.


Saturday 5th May

After a good nights sleep, we decided on cereal for breakfast and then headed off to see what Minehead was like, it was a very grey day. Minehead is about a 10-15 minute walk from the site but not a very pretty place, mind you it may be totally different if the weather had been better. We wandered down the street looking around the shops, but when we reached the seafront, the tide was out and the sea was very brown.

We didn’t stay long at the front to take a couple of photos but soon moved as it was so cold.

We headed back up the street and stopped off for a coffee and a snack in Coasters. There were lots of lovely goodies to choose from but Billy and I were good and I had jacket potato and beans and Billy just had beans on toast.

We then headed back to the caravan site to set up the TV, in order to watch the FA cup final. I popped the fish pie in the oven at half time, thinking it would be ready by the time the football had finished. However this was not to be, the fish pie was not ready until 8:45 but it was worth the wait.

After our meal and washing up we read a couple of magazines and headed off to the drop down bed again. I decided to try getting out the bed from my own side rather than disturbing Billy. I used the cab seats to get down and this worked fine. Another plus for the drop down bed.

Sunday 6th May

This morning we had bacon and egg for breakfast and then settled for bike ride. We had picked up a cycle route leaflet from the information office at a caravan site and thought this would be something we could do. After all it said it was “Easy”.

However, once out of the site we were on our way to Dunster.  We soon found out that the route was through country lanes and at the top of a steep hill! We have not been cycling for nearly a year and I found this too much so ended up walking up the hill.

Half way up the hill

Once at the top, Dunster is a lovely village with a Castle. The sun was shining so we parked our bikes and took a look at what Dunster had to offer. If you want a cream tea there are several tea shops, plenty of cafes for snacks and restaurants for a proper Sunday lunch. We did not succumb though. We did find ourselves in some lovely little nick nack shops but again we left well alone. Ah no, I forgot we bought some morello cherry jam with port.




Dunster shops and restaurant           Castle in Background



 Old Yarn Market - Dunster

We found our bikes and continued on our way.  This time it was downhill and then flat onto a cycle track, a lot  easier! We chose not to take the cycle track into Minehead as we had done Minehead the day before but headed back to the motorhome for some lunch and to sit in the sunshine. We stopped off at the co-op for some bread to go with cheese we had in the fridge. The sun was still shining when we arrived back so the chairs came out and we tucked in to the bread and cheese, oh and we had to try the jam!

Bank Holiday Monday (7th May)

Woke up this morning to heavy mist and drizzle,  We packed up and headed back home. 
We drove back via Barnstaple as Billy wanted to go to B & Q and maplins. We knew the car park was OK for the motorhome. We hummed and hahhed over whether we should go via Porlock Hill (1 in 4) but decided in the end not to go that way because of the weather,  the scenery would have been lost in fog anyway.

Easter Romsey Caravan and Motorhome Show

Good Friday
Arrived at Romsey where my sister met us at the gate with her husband and 2 dogs.  They were on the start of a short break in their motorhome and had saved a place for us.  This time we had prepared the curry the night before and the four of us tucked into this in our van.

Saturday arrived and Billy and I walked into Romsey, (10 mins walk), as we needed to find a bank.
We returned and walked around the show, we were not interested in the motorhomes as we had just bought ours, but wanted to see the accessories.

We were mooching around when we heard someone shout Billy's name and to our surprise they were friends of ours from our time living in Gibraltar.  In fact they left Gibraltar and flew back to the UK the same day as we did.  We had  seen them whilst in the UK as they lived close to where we used to live in Hampshire.  We also knew they had a caravan so thinking about it now it was possible we may meet up with them at the show.  They were not staying on the show campsite but were at a CSMA rally in the New Forest.  We chatted for a while but they were with other friends that we did not know, so we could not really invite them back for a coffee.  We swapped email addresses and said we would be in touch and continued walking round the accessories stalls where we found my sister and husband doing the same.

I then a walked into the Romsey again, this time with my sister.  We returned to our motorhome armed with crusty bread and goodies for a late lunch.
After lunch we walked across to the rapids where we found a Costa, however we had my sisters 2 cocker spaniels with us, Magic and Trixie so could not go in but we did partake in take away lattes.

We spent the evening chatting over a bottle of wine with my sister and her husband.

Sunday
Today, Dad visited us, it only took him half an hour to drive over to see us.
We took him for an early lunch in a local pub, The Malthouse, where we all had a lovely carvery which we would thoroughly recommend.  Dad came back to the motorhome for a while before my sister and her husband left for their next campsite in Henlow.   Then Dad left about an hour later,  Billy and I were staying another night. 
In the evening we decided to walk across to town to Prezzo for supper as we had printed a Prezzo voucher before we left, knowing there was a Prezzo in Romsey.
We had a good meal with bottle of red in delightful surroundings and then spent the first night in our motorhome on our own.  Previously we were either in my sisters van or they were with us in ours.

Easter Monday
We woke this morning to rain so decided to have breakfast and head off back to Cornwall.

California Cross - Hubby's 50th BIrthday

Saturday
We woke up after a good nights sleep, but when we tried to have a wash in the sink we realised that we did not have a plug in the bathroom or kitchen sink, the dealers must have removed these whilst the motorhome was on forecourt. 

My sister was still without gas so we swapped a kettle of hot water with her for a plug.

California Cross is not far from home and it was Billys's birthday.

My niece and her family joined us for the day, my other great niece also joined us as she was staying with them.

Carole and her Great Nieces

Typically the weather had changed, this meant that instead of enjoying the sunshine outside we spent the time in my sisters motorhome.   My neice and her family left late afternoon and we had a rest before getting ready for the evening.

Happy Birthday Billy!

In the evening we had booked a table in the restaurant at the California Inn where we had  lovely meal.
Of course we all had to finish with Bread and Butter pudding!



Mmm.... Bread and Butter pudding


Sunday
We enjoyed a hot cross buns for breakfast and then headed off for Cornwall, via Go Outdoors and Dunelm in Plymouth. 

We decided that we did not want to go back home just yet so we pulled on to the moor at Yelverton and indulged in bacon butties before heading home.

New Motorhome - California Cross

We picked up our new motorhome today.
We arrived at Davan caravans where we handed in our Wildax Constelation camper and picked up our new motorhome - Pilote Aventura.

 

Our handover took longer than expected, and when we headed off we were hungry so decided that we would stop off for something to eat. We did not get far before we came to a standstill on the M5.

People were out of their cars whilst waiting for traffic to move but because we were in the motorhome we were able to see what was going on and also find food and drink. It was not as bad as waiting in a car. 
However it was very frustrating as it was a lovely day and very hot behind the glass.

Once free of traffic we continued on our way to Modbury, where we met my family for the weekend.
We arrived at California Cross about 5pm where my sister had made us a yummy curry for our dinner.
Before we could tuck into it though we had a task to do. The cream had to be whipped to go with the strawberry pavlova, however we did not have a whisk and only had a fork to do this.  We took times in this and after an hour and half and Billy's persistance, the cream was whipped.

More fun later when my sister had a gas leak from the regulator.  This meant she had to use her electric kettle but there was a problem there too.  The kettle kept fusing the electrics, so in the end we kept the kettle topped up and on the boil in our motorhome.

After filling our stomachs we then retired to our motorhome for our first night in our new van, where we had a good nights sleep.