New York Cruise Days 3&4
Sunday 26th June
Our second night’s sleep was no better than the first but at least we had some rest. Dining plays a large part in cruising particularly on a long voyage like ours. We had already decided before we left that all our meals would be taken in the main restaurant. We could have upgraded for a small supplement to have fine dining at the Todd English restaurant but we thought this was a step too far and everyone who did go said that the food was no different to the main restaurant. We could also have gone to the buffet restaurant but we had decided not to visit this one because of hygiene considerations. You should use the handwash provided but a lot of people do not bother and as the buffet area is a walk through area people are walking past all the time. Some people also pick up a plate then change their minds and put it back again. You might think that people on an expensive cruise are wealthy enough to have good habits when it comes to personal hygiene but this is not the case and in fact the reverse is often true.
Anyway we always went to the Britannia restaurant for a sit down meal which meant two hours for breakfast, two hours for lunch and even longer for dinner. At dinner we always sat at our specified table but at breakfast and lunch you turned up when you liked between the opening times and were allocated a table depending on whether you wanted to share an eight seat table or eat alone on a small table. We always opted to share and by doing this we met different people for each breakfast and lunch and although we did not always like them we met many interesting characters.
One such example occurred at breakfast which we shared with a Scottish couple. She had to use a wheelchair and he was on a restrictive diet after suffering heart trouble. He went to great lengths to make sure his every need was catered for. The tea had to be delivered ‘hot hot’ at the right time. His toast had to be fresh and hot and his butter had to be Benecol. I did agree about the toast which was always warm and dry having travelled by a circuitous route from the preparation area but the tea could be replenished at any time. In general I always thought that complaining spoilt the meal for everyone and it was best to keep ones mouth shut. We did learn that his wife had been instrumental in the design of wheelchair access for the Queen Elizabeth liner and they were regular travellers with Cunard so I suppose they were only getting their money back.
Sunday morning was celebrated by doing four circuits of the deck. The sea was moderate and the fresh breeze made it quite cool. We went to Giancarlo’s lecture on the Sistine chapel with reference to the frescoes on the wall and ceiling. In the afternoon we went to the Illuminations theatre which was set up for a planetarium film called ‘Cosmic Collisions’. We had to obtain tickets for this show as the screen had to be lowered over the centre of the theatre and there was restricted seats which reclined so you could look up to the ceiling.
At dinner we started on our second bottle of red wine and the dress was semi-formal. This was followed with a show by the ‘Cunard Singers and Dancers’ with an Italian theme. It was visually very attractive and well produced.
Monday 27th June
After our normal breakfast we went for a six lap walk around the deck or 2.2 miles. The sea was very calm and the weather sunny with a cool breeze. We then decided to take a walk round the ship taking photographs and trying to find as many rooms as possible. Unfortunately there were other people on the ship and they kept getting in our way. When we went on the top deck part of it was barriered off because the ship’s crew were doing an exercise which involved evacuating a casualty by helicopter from the top deck. Obviously not many helicopters have enough fuel to get to the middle of the Atlantic but I suppose it could come in handy sometimes. There was a line dancing lesson in one of the ballrooms, a bridge session in part of the library and a talk on the pictures of Rolf Harris in the Art Gallery.
This particular cruise also had a competition whereby any passenger could join a small group to write and perform their own song. We did not join this competition or go to the concert at the end of the cruise but we frequently came across small groups in the corridors playing mouth organs or guitars and singing short phrases. Nevertheless we managed to take quite a few photographs and see most of the accessible parts of the ship. Although we were not allowed on the bridge there was a small viewing gallery in which we had to shuffle sideways to allow other passengers to rotate towards the viewing window.
One of the rooms we came across was the internet café where we managed to log on to access our e-mail inboxes. After lunch we went to the theatre for a short hour long production of ‘Hamlet’.
Our dress for dinner was semi-formal but we had to dress an hour earlier as we had to attend a cocktail party given by our tour operator ‘Bath Travel’. Bath travel had a man and wife representative team on board for the whole trip. They were very helpful although we did not have any major problems during our holiday. Free champagne was a big attraction for the party but being rather a small contingent we got to have a long chat with the Commodore and his wife. We talked about the Queen Mary 2 of course but also about the Hythe Ferry which we were both familiar with. I realise he has other things to think about but for a few minutes we could have been having a chat in our local pub.
In the evening we went to a show featuring an Irish comedian. He had been doing the job for many years but he still had to work hard to get any laughs from the multicultural audience.
Monday, 29 August 2011
Tuesday, 9 August 2011
New York Cruise Days 1&2
New York 2011 Part 2 the Voyage out Days 1&2
Friday 24th June. This was our sailing day; the day we had been looking forward to for a long time. We knew our boat was there because we had seen it when we had walked down to Hythe village in the morning. It was called Queen Mary 2 and although it is the oldest Cunard ship it is still the biggest and the only true ‘Ocean Going Liner’ in their fleet. We were supposed to be at Southampton Ocean terminal for 3pm but it opened at 1pm and by 1.10pm we could wait no longer and packed the bags in the car and left. There had also been a lot of road works on the A326 and we were a bit worried in case of delays but in the event the roads were clear all the way to the terminal.
On arrival at the cruise terminal we drew up to the hanger like building and took our luggage out of the car. The luggage was put on a trolley, we handed over the car keys and got a receipt and walked up the escalator to the arrivals lounge. Here we were given a ticket with ‘D’ on it and told to sit down amongst the hundreds of other passengers. Passengers with the letter ‘T’ were being called when we arrived so we had to wait about an hour before A, B, C and then D was called. At the check in desk our passports were checked together with our cruise tickets and credit card then we were issued with a cruise card each. This card was used to open our cabin door and had to be produced for any purchase such as drinks or other items. We did not get a receipt for any items but on the last day of the cruise we got a paper print out of everything we had purchased which was totalled up and debited from our credit card.
We then walked on to the ship having our photo taken on the way and straight to our cabin 5.142 which was on the port side. A vase of flowers was waiting for us together with a half bottle of champagne courtesy of Cunard. Our cases arrived shortly after and Joan did the unpacking. There is a lot of paperwork associated with a cruise. You get a daily written program of events and a newsletter placed on your bed every night and just outside your cabin on the wall is a docket for any personal communication that arrives when you are in bed. The first item of interest was the sail away celebrations on the aft deck which we decided to attend. Unfortunately the drinks and nibbles were not free so after looking round and noting that Southampton Water looked much the same as it always does we returned to our cabin. We could have broken open the free champagne in our cabin but we had to attend the safety exercise almost as soon as we got back. This involved picking up a life jacket from the wardrobe in our cabin and walking in an orderly manner to the muster point. Here we were shown how to put it on and what to do in an emergency.
The next event was the early sitting for dinner at 6pm. This was in the Britannia restaurant and we were allocated table 152 which we used for dinner during the rest of our outbound voyage. Two other couples made up the compliment of six for the next seven dinners. Our dress on the first night was informal. The first and last nights are always informal as the cases may not have arrived on the first and have probably been packed on the last. We had a bottle of Beaujolais which we drank over the first two nights.
After dinner we wandered around trying to get our bearings and looked into the theatre which had an introductory show in progress. We did not stay long before we went upstairs to the Winter Gardens for a drink. The Winter Gardens is a large room with country scenes painted on the walls and ceilings and potted plants dotted about between cane chairs and tables. One wall has a water feature running down. The room was used later to show Wimbledon on a large screen television during which it was very busy. On this occasion however the room was nearly empty and we were able to sit looking out the windows as lights came on in the dusk along the south coast. This was the last time we would see land for the next six days.
Saturday 25th June. We had a poor night’s sleep mainly due to the noisy ventilation which we had to put up with throughout our trip. There was a large ventilator outside the cabin door and together with the in cabin ventilation provided a humming noise which we could not get used to. The ship was very stable however and did not move in even the moderate seas. Moderate was the largest seas that we experienced over both trips but we were told by some passengers that even in the roughest seas the ship hardly moved. I took a half of a seasickness tablet as soon as we got on the ship and took further half tablets if I felt it coming on. Seasickness does not seem to get worse in rougher seas but there is a slight roll that you are not aware of. Once whilst sitting on the toilet I noticed the shower curtain move about an inch one way before going back and repeating itself.
After breakfast we went for a walk round the promenade deck and did three circuits. Three circuits was equal to 1.1 miles. During the morning we went to a lecture on ‘Art Deco’ by the painter/historian Giancarlo Impiglia who had actually painted some of the pictures hung around the ship as well as a portrait of the queen apparently. In the afternoon we went to a classical concert by a Japanese pianist called Hiroaki Takenouchi who was very good.
Our dinner dress for the evening was formal in tuxedo and black suit. This was also an opportunity to meet the captain with free champagne or wine. In practice we had to join a queue, were introduced, had our photo taken then whisked away for a drink. This was also our introduction to the class system on board the ship as part of the room was barriered off for the first class passengers. They did not have to meet the captain he had to meet them. After the drinks we went to our normal table for dinner and the second half of the Beaujolais bottle. We then went to a concert by a female singer who had played the lead in ‘Phantom of the Opera’. She had quite a powerful voice when singing but her narrative was a bit drawn out. So ended our second day at sea.
Friday 24th June. This was our sailing day; the day we had been looking forward to for a long time. We knew our boat was there because we had seen it when we had walked down to Hythe village in the morning. It was called Queen Mary 2 and although it is the oldest Cunard ship it is still the biggest and the only true ‘Ocean Going Liner’ in their fleet. We were supposed to be at Southampton Ocean terminal for 3pm but it opened at 1pm and by 1.10pm we could wait no longer and packed the bags in the car and left. There had also been a lot of road works on the A326 and we were a bit worried in case of delays but in the event the roads were clear all the way to the terminal.
On arrival at the cruise terminal we drew up to the hanger like building and took our luggage out of the car. The luggage was put on a trolley, we handed over the car keys and got a receipt and walked up the escalator to the arrivals lounge. Here we were given a ticket with ‘D’ on it and told to sit down amongst the hundreds of other passengers. Passengers with the letter ‘T’ were being called when we arrived so we had to wait about an hour before A, B, C and then D was called. At the check in desk our passports were checked together with our cruise tickets and credit card then we were issued with a cruise card each. This card was used to open our cabin door and had to be produced for any purchase such as drinks or other items. We did not get a receipt for any items but on the last day of the cruise we got a paper print out of everything we had purchased which was totalled up and debited from our credit card.
We then walked on to the ship having our photo taken on the way and straight to our cabin 5.142 which was on the port side. A vase of flowers was waiting for us together with a half bottle of champagne courtesy of Cunard. Our cases arrived shortly after and Joan did the unpacking. There is a lot of paperwork associated with a cruise. You get a daily written program of events and a newsletter placed on your bed every night and just outside your cabin on the wall is a docket for any personal communication that arrives when you are in bed. The first item of interest was the sail away celebrations on the aft deck which we decided to attend. Unfortunately the drinks and nibbles were not free so after looking round and noting that Southampton Water looked much the same as it always does we returned to our cabin. We could have broken open the free champagne in our cabin but we had to attend the safety exercise almost as soon as we got back. This involved picking up a life jacket from the wardrobe in our cabin and walking in an orderly manner to the muster point. Here we were shown how to put it on and what to do in an emergency.
The next event was the early sitting for dinner at 6pm. This was in the Britannia restaurant and we were allocated table 152 which we used for dinner during the rest of our outbound voyage. Two other couples made up the compliment of six for the next seven dinners. Our dress on the first night was informal. The first and last nights are always informal as the cases may not have arrived on the first and have probably been packed on the last. We had a bottle of Beaujolais which we drank over the first two nights.
After dinner we wandered around trying to get our bearings and looked into the theatre which had an introductory show in progress. We did not stay long before we went upstairs to the Winter Gardens for a drink. The Winter Gardens is a large room with country scenes painted on the walls and ceilings and potted plants dotted about between cane chairs and tables. One wall has a water feature running down. The room was used later to show Wimbledon on a large screen television during which it was very busy. On this occasion however the room was nearly empty and we were able to sit looking out the windows as lights came on in the dusk along the south coast. This was the last time we would see land for the next six days.
Saturday 25th June. We had a poor night’s sleep mainly due to the noisy ventilation which we had to put up with throughout our trip. There was a large ventilator outside the cabin door and together with the in cabin ventilation provided a humming noise which we could not get used to. The ship was very stable however and did not move in even the moderate seas. Moderate was the largest seas that we experienced over both trips but we were told by some passengers that even in the roughest seas the ship hardly moved. I took a half of a seasickness tablet as soon as we got on the ship and took further half tablets if I felt it coming on. Seasickness does not seem to get worse in rougher seas but there is a slight roll that you are not aware of. Once whilst sitting on the toilet I noticed the shower curtain move about an inch one way before going back and repeating itself.
After breakfast we went for a walk round the promenade deck and did three circuits. Three circuits was equal to 1.1 miles. During the morning we went to a lecture on ‘Art Deco’ by the painter/historian Giancarlo Impiglia who had actually painted some of the pictures hung around the ship as well as a portrait of the queen apparently. In the afternoon we went to a classical concert by a Japanese pianist called Hiroaki Takenouchi who was very good.
Our dinner dress for the evening was formal in tuxedo and black suit. This was also an opportunity to meet the captain with free champagne or wine. In practice we had to join a queue, were introduced, had our photo taken then whisked away for a drink. This was also our introduction to the class system on board the ship as part of the room was barriered off for the first class passengers. They did not have to meet the captain he had to meet them. After the drinks we went to our normal table for dinner and the second half of the Beaujolais bottle. We then went to a concert by a female singer who had played the lead in ‘Phantom of the Opera’. She had quite a powerful voice when singing but her narrative was a bit drawn out. So ended our second day at sea.
Wednesday, 3 August 2011
New York Cruise Part 1 introduction
Holiday Cruise to New York 2011
Part 1 Introduction
It was towards the end of 2003 that we moved from Southampton to Hythe on the Waterside and it wasn’t until early 2004 that we started looking for a dentist. We had trouble with our NHS dentist in Southampton before we moved; the practice was going private and although they kept us on we had to make do with a German locum. The chances of getting a NHS dentist in Hythe however was even more remote and the nearest we were offered was about thirty miles away. This was even more frustrating by the fact that a dentist had a private practice just around the corner. We therefore decided that the private practice might be the better option but we were worried that we might not have enough money if we had to have extensive dental work.
We could have got medical insurance or a dental plan but in the end we decided to do it ourselves by putting aside so much money every month into a Cash ISA. Initially we paid for the routine check-ups as we went along so that the money could build up and we continued to do this over the years as fortunately we did not have any expensive treatment.
The money in the Cash Isa built up until in 2010 we had enough for an expensive holiday and we set about finding somewhere to go. We had been on P&O cruises over the years and visited most of the cities of Europe but P&O did not sail to America. Cunard did do this trip however so we decided to investigate whether a trip to America might be possible. The Cunard brochure gave a cruise to New York, Boston and Halifax before returning to New York then back to Southampton. We thought we might be able to sail to New York and spend the five days in the city before picking up the boat for the return journey. When we put this idea to Bath Travel they phoned Cunard and confirmed that we could do this by booking one journey to New York and a second journey from New York to Southampton.
We went ahead on this basis and booked the two trips with the idea that we would book our accommodation at a later date. However about an hour after we had returned from Bath Travel we got a phone call to say that the company had already thought of this option and had a package with hotel and tours for the full trip. Since this would save us having to look for our own hotel and the hotel they used was the Marriott Marquis on Times Square we booked the whole tour.
As the time of our cruise drew nearer we tried to get as much information about New York as we could. We borrowed books from the library and spoke to the travel agents who were very helpful. Also we bought a book from Waterstones called the AA ring book of New York which we found very useful and carried it with us wherever we went in New York. We wrote down a list of the places we would like to visit and the day we would like to visit bearing in mind that we would be there on July 4th which is a public holiday in America. The hotel in common with most places in America was on a room only basis so we would have to look for somewhere to eat our breakfast, lunch and Dinner on each day. Having done all this we knew that by the time we reached New York our plans might be changed.
Part 1 Introduction
It was towards the end of 2003 that we moved from Southampton to Hythe on the Waterside and it wasn’t until early 2004 that we started looking for a dentist. We had trouble with our NHS dentist in Southampton before we moved; the practice was going private and although they kept us on we had to make do with a German locum. The chances of getting a NHS dentist in Hythe however was even more remote and the nearest we were offered was about thirty miles away. This was even more frustrating by the fact that a dentist had a private practice just around the corner. We therefore decided that the private practice might be the better option but we were worried that we might not have enough money if we had to have extensive dental work.
We could have got medical insurance or a dental plan but in the end we decided to do it ourselves by putting aside so much money every month into a Cash ISA. Initially we paid for the routine check-ups as we went along so that the money could build up and we continued to do this over the years as fortunately we did not have any expensive treatment.
The money in the Cash Isa built up until in 2010 we had enough for an expensive holiday and we set about finding somewhere to go. We had been on P&O cruises over the years and visited most of the cities of Europe but P&O did not sail to America. Cunard did do this trip however so we decided to investigate whether a trip to America might be possible. The Cunard brochure gave a cruise to New York, Boston and Halifax before returning to New York then back to Southampton. We thought we might be able to sail to New York and spend the five days in the city before picking up the boat for the return journey. When we put this idea to Bath Travel they phoned Cunard and confirmed that we could do this by booking one journey to New York and a second journey from New York to Southampton.
We went ahead on this basis and booked the two trips with the idea that we would book our accommodation at a later date. However about an hour after we had returned from Bath Travel we got a phone call to say that the company had already thought of this option and had a package with hotel and tours for the full trip. Since this would save us having to look for our own hotel and the hotel they used was the Marriott Marquis on Times Square we booked the whole tour.
As the time of our cruise drew nearer we tried to get as much information about New York as we could. We borrowed books from the library and spoke to the travel agents who were very helpful. Also we bought a book from Waterstones called the AA ring book of New York which we found very useful and carried it with us wherever we went in New York. We wrote down a list of the places we would like to visit and the day we would like to visit bearing in mind that we would be there on July 4th which is a public holiday in America. The hotel in common with most places in America was on a room only basis so we would have to look for somewhere to eat our breakfast, lunch and Dinner on each day. Having done all this we knew that by the time we reached New York our plans might be changed.
Friday, 22 July 2011
Coulters Dean
Waterside Natural History Society visit Coulters Dean
The area to the northern edge of Queen Elizabeth Country Park is full of ups and downs. No sooner have you got to the bottom of a down than you have to go up and when you get to the top of an up you have to go down again. This produces quite a challenge for those cyclists and walkers’ going along the South Downs Way but it also provides some delightful side valleys one of which is Coulters Dean. We had to travel about fifty miles to get there and the weather forecast was for heavy showers so we were not too optimistic about our chances of seeing anything. When we arrived at Buriton village we turned right along Kiln Lane to the car park at the top of the hill. From there we walked east along the South Downs Way before branching off into Coulters Dean.
The footpath took us alongside a wooded area which stretched up the hillside but the meadow to our right was what we had come to see. At this time of year the ground is a patchwork of colourful wild flowers and even below the dark threatening clouds the pinks, blues and yellows lit up the meadow. The site which covers a relatively small area is a SSSI managed by Hampshire and IOW wildlife trust which contains some unusual plants but it is their profusion which makes this site special.
The Broad Leaved Helleborine was particularly abundant in the shade of Beech trees along the side of the wood. A Helleborine is a type of orchid although it gets its name by being confused with Hellebore or Christmas Rose; both of which produce leaves up the flower stem. Round Headed Rampion also occurred here in abundance with its dark blue flowers that bring back memories of a small bottle with ‘Quink’ written on the label. The root of Rampion used to be eaten as a vegetable and is still classed as a herb.
Herbs were prolific in the meadow; besides the Rampion there were Marjoram, Thyme and Wild Basil all of which would not be out of place in a kitchen garden. The thyme with its vivid pink flowers covered several of the old ant hills which themselves are a sign of how old the meadow has become. Although the thyme formed a low growing mat the pinkish white flowers of Squinacywort formed an even lower covering. This rather attractively named plant is also a herb and was once used to alleviate the symptoms of Quinsy. Quinsy is an inflammation of the throat around the tonsils which is treated nowadays by antibiotics. Squinancywort, a member of the bedstraw family, has four petals and although the flowers are rather small their effect is increased by their large number.
Members of the Campanula or bell flowers are particularly adapted to the chalk downlands. Besides the Rampion, Clustered Bellflowers and Harebell grow in the meadow with the taller Nettle Bellflower growing at the side of the pathways.
When we eventually walked out of the meadow the sun reappeared from behind the cloud which was a signal for numbers of small white butterflies to appear and flutter like snow just above the ground. Unfortunately the sun did not last very long and the rain came down in earnest as we walked back into the woods. The path through the woods led us up over the hill into the next valley from where we picked up a footpath marked Staunton Way. On arrival at a metalled road we turned left to walk back up to the South downs Way and back to the car park.
Although the weather was mainly rain showers the walk was a pleasant one and worth it for the wild flower display alone which would have won prizes in any flower show.
Wednesday, 22 June 2011
Pylewell Park
Waterside Natural History Society visit to Pylewell Park
The government has recently published its ‘National Ecosystem Assessment’ report and our visit to Pylewell Park was an opportunity to carry out our own assessment of the value of the countryside. The idea of putting a monetary value on the countryside for the year 2000 was that the value can be compared in future years to assess if it has improved or deteriorated. Some of our members could set the benchmark a half century earlier and regularly say what has happened since but this does not stop us checking the current state.
We started our walk from the end of Shotts Lane to the east of Lymington and walked down a track towards the shore. The intention was to walk along the shore eastwards and turn back inland along the old smugglers route called Tanners Lane. When we reached the Solent Way footpath we were to turn westwards and back to Shotts Lane thus walking round Pylewell Park and house. The tide level was low when we arrived; we had seen the level as we drove through Beaulieu, so we went along the shore as soon as possible.
The dry weather in the spring and early summer followed by heavy rain in June has upset the flowering times of many plants. Some of the early flowering ones have had a short flush of weak growth before going quickly to seed then flowering again and the later ones have tried to flower early before putting on a spurt of vegetative growth. The result of this confusion is that there is a great variety of plants in flower at the moment. Amongst the umbellifers Cow parsley has turned to seed in the hedgerows but has been replaced by Hogweed and Rough Chervil. This latter was suffused with purple but Hemlock Water Dropwort on the contrary was an innocuous grass green colour, exactly the opposite of what you would expect a poisonous plant to look like. A patch of Celery leaved buttercup was seen in a boggy stretch of path with its small petals and large pineapple shaped seed heads.
Plants along the shingle beach have adapted to the conditions and add variety to those growing inland. The yellow Biting Stonecrop and pinkish white English Stonecrop gave a rockery effect to the shore whilst Common Centaury grows inland or on the seashore. Scarlet Pimpernel and Sea Campion were also seen as well as Sea Milkwort. This latter plant is not a member of the milkwort family and is unusual in not having any petals. The sepals take the place of petals and are a pink colour so the plant survives quite happily with its adaptation. A single Yellow Horned Poppy plant that had established itself will surely start to colonise the area.
The weather was quite windy during our walk so we were not surprised when we did not see many butterflies. We did however see a few Meadow Browns, a Red Admiral and a Small Copper. Birds were also difficult to see but quite a large flock of Canada Geese were resting on the mudflats and the usual Black Headed Gulls were fighting for anything in sight.
Our walk was a very enjoyable one with a wide range of wild flowers and scenery. How did we value the countryside after our walk? Well ‘priceless’ seemed to be the majority decision.
Friday, 15 April 2011
Exmouth with Shearings
Exmouth Coach Tour
On Tuesday 4th April we embarked on a coach tour to Exmouth with Shearings. We did not have to meet our feeder coach in Southampton until 10.47 so we had plenty of time to make our own way from Hythe. The weather being good we walked with our cases to the ferry at 09.45 and arrived in Southampton town Quay at about 10.00. It took a good twenty minutes to walk to the National Express coach station and we stood waiting for the coach. It arrived on time and was a ‘Grand Tourer’ coach so we travelled in comfort to Membury Service station where we were due to pick up our holiday coach. It was a good job the coach was comfortable as we had to call at Eastleigh, Winchester and Basingstoke before arriving at Membury. We got lost twice, once at Winchester where the driver missed a turning back on to the motorway, and once at Basingstoke where the wrong postcode was entered into the satnav.
On arrival at Membury an official lady boarded the coach and informed us which coach bay and time to be at for our onward travel. Unfortunately she did not use the coach speaker system and the coach being one of the latest was quite long. All this and people standing in the aisle meant that us at the back could not hear what she said. She seemed quite surprised when we got off the coach and asked what she had been talking about. As we had about an hour at Membury we toddled off in search of refreshments. The café upstairs was a drab affair with basic wooden floors, metal chairs and canteen tables. The food I had was a toasted cheese and ham Panini squashed flat by the toaster; quite the worst food I have had in a long time. On top of this at £17 it was one of the more expensive and poor value for money.
We boarded our holiday coach that would transport us for the rest of our holiday and met our driver Graham for the first time. He introduced himself and took us all the way to Exmouth with commentary as we went. We learned lots of interesting facts like Somerset is derived from Summer settlement. Originally the Somerset levels were flooded in winter and the monks came down from the high land in the spring to graze their animals and plant crops on the fertile land. Since then dykes have been built so the water runs off to the sea on one side and the river on the other.
The coach went along the M4 and the M5 motorways before turning off at Exeter and we soon arrived at the Grand Hotel in Exmouth. We were greeted by a blue hydraulic platform in front of the hotel which stayed there the whole week doing repairs and painting to the hotel façade.
Shearings obviously go to great lengths to pick their hotels because they are all the same. All are old terraced houses with walls knocked out to accommodate dining and function rooms; passageways are constructed on multiple floors and bedrooms are identical. If you want a bit more luxury you have to pay for it in the form of their ‘town and country hotels’. One such, as the driver pointed out, was next door to our hotel and had been refurbished to the tune of millions of pounds.
The meals, as we found out that evening, are also specified to the last pea and could be found on any Shearings holiday. Having said that we never had any complaints about our food and the waitress was very efficient and helpful. This was also helped by the fact that a free glass of wine was provided with every meal and a selection of free drinks given on production of your room card. It was waitress service only in the restaurant and she got very upset if anyone came to her serving table and tried to help themselves. We met our dining companions for the first time on this evening who were a couple called Dave and Dorothy who like us were from the north east and had moved down to Southampton to live in retirement.
After dinner we moved in to the function room and sat at the same table as Dave and Dorothy and were joined by an elderly gentleman by the name of Kevin. Kevin was a southerner through and through although originally from the north west but he was fascinated by the north east accent and sayings which he would try and prompt us to speak at every opportunity.
The Tuesday was our first full day of touring and Graham was waiting with the coach at 09.30. Most of the places on our holiday ended with mouth but the general theme on this day was the moors of Devon so we headed inland and our destination was Tavistock which you will notice does not end in mouth. The weather was dry but overcast when we set out but a light drizzle started when we disembarked from the coach in Tavistock. We had two hours to explore on our own and did not fancy wandering around to no purpose so on seeing a local tourist information office we asked for a town walk. They not only provided us with a town trail document but gave us a plastic folder to keep off the rain.
The walk itself started by going uphill to a viaduct carrying a disused railway line which we walked along through a steep sided gorge. At the end of the gorge we turned left through a modern housing estate to join a canal along which we walked back towards town. The canal was replaced by a river as we neared the town centre and the weather was changing to a steady drizzle. We missed off the last bit of the route so we could visit the indoor market which we had been told was worth a visit. The market contained a good selection of stalls including second hand furniture, old mantel clocks, haberdashery and various food stalls but we did not buy anything.
We re-joined our coach at 12.30 and proceeded to Princetown for our lunch. Princetown is famous for Dartmoor prison which is not located there by coincidence being miles away from anywhere. According to Graham our driver Dartmoor is no longer a top security prison but has been downgraded to category ‘C’. It used to house the ‘Axe murderer’ before he escaped with help from the Kray twins who apparently arranged for his killing and burial.
When on holiday you generally hope for good weather but on this day the drizzle had changed to heavy rain and fog. This weather was exactly the sort you read about in books like ‘the hound of the Baskervilles’ and ‘Jamaica Inn’ which is used to give a sense of menace to the story. How anyone can enjoy living in a land of moors, bogs and granite rocks is a mystery but some people obviously find it romantic. Looking out of the coach window we could only imagine the conditions through the rain and fog but an occasional sight of moorland ponies with rain sodden coats reminded us of the real dangers of getting lost on the moors.
Our visit to Princetown was limited by the weather to lunch at ‘Lords Gifts ‘which was a rather basic affair although somewhat cheaper than Membury Services. After lunch we boarded the coach and travelled to the ‘House of Marbles’ near Bovey Tracey. To get there we descended below the cloud level and the rain had stopped when we entered the factory cum shop. There was a lot of marbles for sale and a glass blowing area but marbles are no longer made on site. One feature that was absorbing was a ball race covering one of the end walls of the building. Balls the size of snooker balls are lifted to the top by a motor driven chain drive and they run under gravity along wire channels initiating levers and rotating ball carriers that divert the balls according to the order in which they start.
We returned to our hotel, had dinner, and settled down for our evening’s entertainment. The entertainment provided followed the same pattern on the next three nights of our holiday but the presenters were different. On the first night it was a female singer and she began with a game of bingo. We did not join in for this one but we did subsequently and lost every time. After the bingo there followed a quiz which we attempted every night. Our first attempt gave us joint first place but we lost the decider question. The quiz was followed by a few songs from the singer and the evening concluded with records to which we could dance if we wished. At the end of all this we were more than glad to get to our beds.
Wednesday was an optional excursion half day to Teignmouth and Dawlish which we opted to do. I thought the driver said Tinmouth initially and I had quite a bit of trouble finding it on the map. We got there by following the coast westwards from Exmouth but we had to travel a fair way towards Exeter before we were able to cross over the river Exe at Topsham. Again according to Graham Sir Trevor Macdonald had a house here but was a naughty boy and had to sell his house to pay alimony to his wife. Teignmouth turned out to be a pleasant seaside resort and we had a good walk along the coastal path. The path is between the sea and the main railway line to the west built by Brunel. On our return to the town centre we decided to have lunch in a café called ‘The Pickwick’ and settled on the Devon crab sandwich. This turned out to be the culinary delight of our holiday. We returned over the moors via Dawlish to our hotel at about 13.15.
The afternoon was time at leisure and we decided to go on a river boat trip up the Exe estuary. We knew the boat left at 14.15 so after the coach got to the hotel we walked directly up to the marina from where the boat departed. When we got to the quay we were one of the first to arrive but as the boat got ready to embark passengers a coach drew up and about thirty people got off for the boat trip. The boat was almost full when we left. All boat trips usually begin with emergency procedures and this one was no exception. The only difference was that the procedure in case of emergency was to go over the side and walk to the shore. We knew that the tide was low but the skipper told us that the depth was only three feet maximum and that the exe had a tidal range of about four metres. Having being reassured in this way the boat moved slowly up river winding between mud flats. Even so we were not able to go very far inland before turning round and heading towards the sea. The skipper told us that the Exe was a favourite spot for bird watching and explained the different types of birds as we went along. He did however miss one bird that we and a few passengers saw and that was an Osprey which swooped down to the water a couple of times before being chased off by other gulls.
We returned to our hotel, had dinner, and settled down for our evening’s entertainment. This evening we tried the bingo and won the quiz outright. The prize was a bottle of champagne perry with a strength of 5% which we had difficulty disposing of as no one wanted to drink it. The entertainment was a guitarist by the name of Steve Davis who played tunes from around the world on a variety of guitars including a Russian balalaika. He was generally accepted to be very good.
Thursday was a full day touring starting with a trip to the city of Exeter in the morning. We decided to spend our time in Exeter with a visit to the cathedral even though it cost £3 each entrance fee. The cathedral is a very pleasant sanctuary from the noise and bustle of the city streets and the entry fee was well worth it. A friendly guide explained everything we needed to know but I was most interested in what the cathedral was like in the time of Henry V111. The cathedral was spared the ravages of monasteries but during a normal day the clergy were separated from the common people by a wood carved enclosure from within the cathedral. Outside of this area people carried out their daily activities to a general background of prayer and music.
After our visit to the cathedral we just had time to find a bank ATM and have lunch at a Café Nero. Our coach then transported us to the seaside town of Sidmouth. Sidmouth is a typical seaside place and the day turned out to be a very warm and sunny one. We decided to walk through a park and up a steep hill overlooking the town where we sat at a wooden bench on a grassy knoll. After a short rest we walked back along the promenade to the town centre for an ice-cream. The day being hot and with us having our fill of seaside towns ending in mouth we sat on a covered seat in a small park near the bus station. We were soon joined by an elderly couple who I assumed was on another bus tour but it turned out they lived locally and had just come for a day out.
The last evening followed the same routine as those previously but was hosted by a fair haired lad of small stature who was probably older than he looked. He was jokey and laughed a lot at his own words but he was difficult for us to hear and the bingo and quiz were quite an ordeal. Luckily we did not win the bottle of champagne this night. His singing was a bit amateurish too.
On the Friday we had to get up early in order to have our cases outside by 07.15 and we set off on our long journey home. Unfortunately my wife had contacted a stomach bug and was violently sick several times on the journey. It took her nearly a week to recover. We cannot say exactly where she caught the bug so don’t know if it was anything to do with Shearings but we will be a bit more cautious next time.
On Tuesday 4th April we embarked on a coach tour to Exmouth with Shearings. We did not have to meet our feeder coach in Southampton until 10.47 so we had plenty of time to make our own way from Hythe. The weather being good we walked with our cases to the ferry at 09.45 and arrived in Southampton town Quay at about 10.00. It took a good twenty minutes to walk to the National Express coach station and we stood waiting for the coach. It arrived on time and was a ‘Grand Tourer’ coach so we travelled in comfort to Membury Service station where we were due to pick up our holiday coach. It was a good job the coach was comfortable as we had to call at Eastleigh, Winchester and Basingstoke before arriving at Membury. We got lost twice, once at Winchester where the driver missed a turning back on to the motorway, and once at Basingstoke where the wrong postcode was entered into the satnav.
On arrival at Membury an official lady boarded the coach and informed us which coach bay and time to be at for our onward travel. Unfortunately she did not use the coach speaker system and the coach being one of the latest was quite long. All this and people standing in the aisle meant that us at the back could not hear what she said. She seemed quite surprised when we got off the coach and asked what she had been talking about. As we had about an hour at Membury we toddled off in search of refreshments. The café upstairs was a drab affair with basic wooden floors, metal chairs and canteen tables. The food I had was a toasted cheese and ham Panini squashed flat by the toaster; quite the worst food I have had in a long time. On top of this at £17 it was one of the more expensive and poor value for money.
We boarded our holiday coach that would transport us for the rest of our holiday and met our driver Graham for the first time. He introduced himself and took us all the way to Exmouth with commentary as we went. We learned lots of interesting facts like Somerset is derived from Summer settlement. Originally the Somerset levels were flooded in winter and the monks came down from the high land in the spring to graze their animals and plant crops on the fertile land. Since then dykes have been built so the water runs off to the sea on one side and the river on the other.
The coach went along the M4 and the M5 motorways before turning off at Exeter and we soon arrived at the Grand Hotel in Exmouth. We were greeted by a blue hydraulic platform in front of the hotel which stayed there the whole week doing repairs and painting to the hotel façade.
Shearings obviously go to great lengths to pick their hotels because they are all the same. All are old terraced houses with walls knocked out to accommodate dining and function rooms; passageways are constructed on multiple floors and bedrooms are identical. If you want a bit more luxury you have to pay for it in the form of their ‘town and country hotels’. One such, as the driver pointed out, was next door to our hotel and had been refurbished to the tune of millions of pounds.
The meals, as we found out that evening, are also specified to the last pea and could be found on any Shearings holiday. Having said that we never had any complaints about our food and the waitress was very efficient and helpful. This was also helped by the fact that a free glass of wine was provided with every meal and a selection of free drinks given on production of your room card. It was waitress service only in the restaurant and she got very upset if anyone came to her serving table and tried to help themselves. We met our dining companions for the first time on this evening who were a couple called Dave and Dorothy who like us were from the north east and had moved down to Southampton to live in retirement.
After dinner we moved in to the function room and sat at the same table as Dave and Dorothy and were joined by an elderly gentleman by the name of Kevin. Kevin was a southerner through and through although originally from the north west but he was fascinated by the north east accent and sayings which he would try and prompt us to speak at every opportunity.
The Tuesday was our first full day of touring and Graham was waiting with the coach at 09.30. Most of the places on our holiday ended with mouth but the general theme on this day was the moors of Devon so we headed inland and our destination was Tavistock which you will notice does not end in mouth. The weather was dry but overcast when we set out but a light drizzle started when we disembarked from the coach in Tavistock. We had two hours to explore on our own and did not fancy wandering around to no purpose so on seeing a local tourist information office we asked for a town walk. They not only provided us with a town trail document but gave us a plastic folder to keep off the rain.
The walk itself started by going uphill to a viaduct carrying a disused railway line which we walked along through a steep sided gorge. At the end of the gorge we turned left through a modern housing estate to join a canal along which we walked back towards town. The canal was replaced by a river as we neared the town centre and the weather was changing to a steady drizzle. We missed off the last bit of the route so we could visit the indoor market which we had been told was worth a visit. The market contained a good selection of stalls including second hand furniture, old mantel clocks, haberdashery and various food stalls but we did not buy anything.
We re-joined our coach at 12.30 and proceeded to Princetown for our lunch. Princetown is famous for Dartmoor prison which is not located there by coincidence being miles away from anywhere. According to Graham our driver Dartmoor is no longer a top security prison but has been downgraded to category ‘C’. It used to house the ‘Axe murderer’ before he escaped with help from the Kray twins who apparently arranged for his killing and burial.
When on holiday you generally hope for good weather but on this day the drizzle had changed to heavy rain and fog. This weather was exactly the sort you read about in books like ‘the hound of the Baskervilles’ and ‘Jamaica Inn’ which is used to give a sense of menace to the story. How anyone can enjoy living in a land of moors, bogs and granite rocks is a mystery but some people obviously find it romantic. Looking out of the coach window we could only imagine the conditions through the rain and fog but an occasional sight of moorland ponies with rain sodden coats reminded us of the real dangers of getting lost on the moors.
Our visit to Princetown was limited by the weather to lunch at ‘Lords Gifts ‘which was a rather basic affair although somewhat cheaper than Membury Services. After lunch we boarded the coach and travelled to the ‘House of Marbles’ near Bovey Tracey. To get there we descended below the cloud level and the rain had stopped when we entered the factory cum shop. There was a lot of marbles for sale and a glass blowing area but marbles are no longer made on site. One feature that was absorbing was a ball race covering one of the end walls of the building. Balls the size of snooker balls are lifted to the top by a motor driven chain drive and they run under gravity along wire channels initiating levers and rotating ball carriers that divert the balls according to the order in which they start.
We returned to our hotel, had dinner, and settled down for our evening’s entertainment. The entertainment provided followed the same pattern on the next three nights of our holiday but the presenters were different. On the first night it was a female singer and she began with a game of bingo. We did not join in for this one but we did subsequently and lost every time. After the bingo there followed a quiz which we attempted every night. Our first attempt gave us joint first place but we lost the decider question. The quiz was followed by a few songs from the singer and the evening concluded with records to which we could dance if we wished. At the end of all this we were more than glad to get to our beds.
Wednesday was an optional excursion half day to Teignmouth and Dawlish which we opted to do. I thought the driver said Tinmouth initially and I had quite a bit of trouble finding it on the map. We got there by following the coast westwards from Exmouth but we had to travel a fair way towards Exeter before we were able to cross over the river Exe at Topsham. Again according to Graham Sir Trevor Macdonald had a house here but was a naughty boy and had to sell his house to pay alimony to his wife. Teignmouth turned out to be a pleasant seaside resort and we had a good walk along the coastal path. The path is between the sea and the main railway line to the west built by Brunel. On our return to the town centre we decided to have lunch in a café called ‘The Pickwick’ and settled on the Devon crab sandwich. This turned out to be the culinary delight of our holiday. We returned over the moors via Dawlish to our hotel at about 13.15.
The afternoon was time at leisure and we decided to go on a river boat trip up the Exe estuary. We knew the boat left at 14.15 so after the coach got to the hotel we walked directly up to the marina from where the boat departed. When we got to the quay we were one of the first to arrive but as the boat got ready to embark passengers a coach drew up and about thirty people got off for the boat trip. The boat was almost full when we left. All boat trips usually begin with emergency procedures and this one was no exception. The only difference was that the procedure in case of emergency was to go over the side and walk to the shore. We knew that the tide was low but the skipper told us that the depth was only three feet maximum and that the exe had a tidal range of about four metres. Having being reassured in this way the boat moved slowly up river winding between mud flats. Even so we were not able to go very far inland before turning round and heading towards the sea. The skipper told us that the Exe was a favourite spot for bird watching and explained the different types of birds as we went along. He did however miss one bird that we and a few passengers saw and that was an Osprey which swooped down to the water a couple of times before being chased off by other gulls.
We returned to our hotel, had dinner, and settled down for our evening’s entertainment. This evening we tried the bingo and won the quiz outright. The prize was a bottle of champagne perry with a strength of 5% which we had difficulty disposing of as no one wanted to drink it. The entertainment was a guitarist by the name of Steve Davis who played tunes from around the world on a variety of guitars including a Russian balalaika. He was generally accepted to be very good.
Thursday was a full day touring starting with a trip to the city of Exeter in the morning. We decided to spend our time in Exeter with a visit to the cathedral even though it cost £3 each entrance fee. The cathedral is a very pleasant sanctuary from the noise and bustle of the city streets and the entry fee was well worth it. A friendly guide explained everything we needed to know but I was most interested in what the cathedral was like in the time of Henry V111. The cathedral was spared the ravages of monasteries but during a normal day the clergy were separated from the common people by a wood carved enclosure from within the cathedral. Outside of this area people carried out their daily activities to a general background of prayer and music.
After our visit to the cathedral we just had time to find a bank ATM and have lunch at a Café Nero. Our coach then transported us to the seaside town of Sidmouth. Sidmouth is a typical seaside place and the day turned out to be a very warm and sunny one. We decided to walk through a park and up a steep hill overlooking the town where we sat at a wooden bench on a grassy knoll. After a short rest we walked back along the promenade to the town centre for an ice-cream. The day being hot and with us having our fill of seaside towns ending in mouth we sat on a covered seat in a small park near the bus station. We were soon joined by an elderly couple who I assumed was on another bus tour but it turned out they lived locally and had just come for a day out.
The last evening followed the same routine as those previously but was hosted by a fair haired lad of small stature who was probably older than he looked. He was jokey and laughed a lot at his own words but he was difficult for us to hear and the bingo and quiz were quite an ordeal. Luckily we did not win the bottle of champagne this night. His singing was a bit amateurish too.
On the Friday we had to get up early in order to have our cases outside by 07.15 and we set off on our long journey home. Unfortunately my wife had contacted a stomach bug and was violently sick several times on the journey. It took her nearly a week to recover. We cannot say exactly where she caught the bug so don’t know if it was anything to do with Shearings but we will be a bit more cautious next time.
Friday, 25 March 2011
Garston Wood
Garston Wood
Our March outdoor meeting was a visit to Garston wood near Sixpenny Handley just over the Hampshire border in Dorset. Sixpenny Handley has nothing to do with money but was derived from two medieval hundreds Saxpena and Hanlega. A hundred was 100 hides. A hide was an area of land about thirty acres which was enough to support a family. Saxpena means hilltop and Hanlega a high clearing in a wood.
We were a little apprehensive about visiting this venue so early in the year as spring had not really become established. On our arrival we found that car parking had been moved to a temporary car park so that renovations could be carried out on the old one. The old car park had been torn up by heavy machinery and piles of earth were waiting to be removed. The track behind the car park had also been damaged by machinery used to clear woodland areas. This walk up the hill was only last year one of the most beautiful woodland walks in the country and will take some time to recover.
A sign near the entrance provided information on why some areas were being cleared. Apparently the fungal disease ‘Phytophtora ramorum’ which is associated with ‘Sudden Oak Death’ has now been found to infect Larch, Beech, and Birch as well as Oaks. Fungus is essential for the breakdown of dead wood but this particular fungus can also transfer to healthy or weakened trees. Larch and Beech trees which do not form a major part of Garston wood had been cut down and the wood was being removed to prevent infection. It is only a few years ago that leaving dead wood on the ground was seen as a good thing to encourage small animals and insects and particularly in Garston Wood where the Dormouse was being encouraged to breed.
Garston wood is managed by the RSPB and although some of the ash and oak trees are very old many of the coppiced hazel trees are renewed every twelve years or so. The hazel wood is plaited to make fencing screens which we saw being constructed during our visit. These screens have been used to keep out deer whilst the younger growth recovers but are now supplemented by wire fencing.
The good news about our visit was that warm spring sunshine had arrived at last. One of the joys of life is walking through mature woodland with warm sunshine on your back, spring flowers at your feet and birds singing in the treetops. Although the flowers were not sufficient in number to carpet the forest floor there were early examples of most spring flowers. Dogs Mercury and the spotted leaves of Lords and Ladies are always amongst the first touch of green trying to push back the memory of a colourless winter. There were some Wood Anemone with their creamy white flowers and a touch of pink. Shiny golden yellow Lesser Celandine flowers contrasted with the pale yellow of the primroses. Early Dog Violet plants were scattered at the side of and sometimes on the paths as if they wanted to be trodden on.
Large queen bumble bees were in constant flight looking for a place to make a hive and hover flies droned around the yellow catkins of pussy willow. The catkins also attracted Blue tits and Great tits giving their chests a yellow tinge from the pollen. Marsh tits and coal tits were also seen on the older oak trees and a Tree Creeper starting on dead wood on the forest floor gradually worked its way up a tree looking for insects. A Nuthatch warning call directed our attention to one part of the woods only for the rustle of Deer crossing our path to make us turn around just as they disappeared from view.
The sounds of bird calls played an important part in our walk with Buzzards calling overhead but the most welcome call was that of the chiffchaff which we eventually located; a sure sign that the summer is just around the corner.
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