A Boys Gathering…

Some of my oldest friends from work past and present assembled for a get together at a caravan owned by one of them. We had a BBQ and a few liquid refreshments enjoying each other’s company setting the world to rights. The next day we strolled down to the nearby Cooden beach and some of us went and visited Alfriston village where the Clergy House (the first National Trust property) can be found. 

Wings & Wheels…

Sue and I went to the Wings & Wheels at Dunsfold Aerodrome (home to Top Gear). It was a glorious sunny day and we watch some fascinating air displays (Apache attack complete with pyrotechnics, Typhoon Eurofighter’s ear-splitting flypast, the Red Arrows, a lazy rumbling B17 run, a couple of Vampire jets, and a mock dog fight between a Spitfire and an ME109), there were static displays of cars and several runs up and down the airstrip by others, the military displays both current and historic with tank rides over the fields, and a couple of large planes on display including one modified 747 based at Dunsfold that is used for films. 

Geek Nirvana…

This year I went to the GenCon 50 in Indianapolis with a couple of pals (Kevin and Martin). We flew in and out of Chicago via Iceland and drove to/from Indianapolis (it was a long first day). GenCon is spread across several venues in downtown Indianapolis – the Convention Centre, the Lucas Oil indoor football stadium and in several nearby hotels. It also had a wide range of interests covered with a large trade hall, venues for table top miniature and card/board game events and competitions, many rooms set aside for role-play-games, parades for Cosplay, and talks, demos and films and music. We had booked in to a few RGP events and Kevin was running a couple more, so Martin and I did a thorough sweep of the trade hall. Again, the days were long (but fun) and included some time playing purchases back at the hotel.

On our return leg, we stopped a night in Chicago and had a wonder into town visiting Navy Pier, Grant Park – Buckingham Fountain, the Agora and Cloud Gate (chrome jelly bean) sculptures, and listened to some classical music at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion. The next day we had hoped to visit the nearby football stadium but it was packed with people assembling to watch the partial eclipse, so we gave that a miss and travelled to a nearby park and watched it there before getting an ice-cream by the lake and heading to the airport for our flight back.

Bright Lights…

We sat outside for a while and watched the Perseid meteor shower. We did not see as many as we liked but that was undoubtedly due to us being in the village and exposed to a certain amount of light pollution.

Pub Lunch…

We had a lovely lunch with mum at the Skimmington Castle near Reigate. There is a wonderful example of the Ring the Bull game in the pub too. 

Family Day…

We recently had a family day (Mum and cousins and families) out at Polesden Lacey, where during the summer they have a jazz band playing on the weekend and visitors can gather and relax on their lawn.  

More Garden Madness…

Day out with mum at the eclectic and inspiring garden at Great Dixter and then on for stroll around and dinner at Rye. 

On Your Bike…

The Prudential Ride London cycle race runs through the village several times on its way from/to London, and therefore the roads are shut for the day. So, we took advantage of the ‘lock in’ and viewed it from the local pubs a drink in hand as we marvelled and the energy and fitness of the riders. 

Soul Music...

We saw the energetic Mica Paris perform at the Hideaway in a vibrant and entertaining evening of chat and song as she took us through her history in the industry.

Mum’s Birthday Outing…

For Mum’s birthday, we took a trip into London and visited the interesting and informative Chelsea Physic Garden, the inspiring Design Museum (where we had a lovely lunch in the restaurant), and the serene Kyoto Gardens. 

Another Fine Garden…

We had a day out with mum at RHS Wisley (there is a garden theme to her holiday) and there we saw the talented FB Pocket Orchestra playing jazz. The glasshouse had some impressive blooms in it and it was a lovely day.

Milestone Birthday…

We joined in the 70^th Birthday celebrations for Rob Wilkinson and caught up with a few of our old GPE friends from way back when, and made some new acquaintances getting down to some rock and roll tunes on the dance floor.

Out & About…

We had a lovely evening out in London town with Jamie and Gia, meeting first at the quirky Lord Nelson, then going on to Bala Baya for a very tasty Israeli meal. 

All Geek to me…

The UK Games Expo event has grown steadily over the years and now it is the 3^rd largest table top and hobby games convention in the world with attendances over the three days of 30,000. It suffers in some parts due to this popularity with many ‘hit’ games selling out quickly in the trade halls and with space for people to play (an important attraction for this event which caters for RPG, miniature and board/card games in open play or organised games) becoming difficult to find. It is something that is likely to evolve and change over time and for some of us the change in emphasis from play to sales is regrettable.

We were, however, able to find somewhere to play most of the time and got in a large number of different games both old and new. 

Mater’s Tour…

Mum has arrived for her holiday, escaping the NZ winter for the northern hemisphere’s summer. She is over for a couple of months and is spend some time with us, her brother and out on a holiday in Europe. We did not give her much time to settle as we were off the next day for our first trip. A sign of things to come.

Overseas – sort of…

We drove down to catch the ferry across to the Isle of Wight where we were staying at the Silver Glades Caravan Park with friends Bill and Linda. The site is a remote and peaceful location near Yarmouth with only ten caravans and little else there, a perfect retreat in amongst mature gardens in an area designated of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

We arrived earlier than the others so had a visit to the pleasant little town of Yarmouth and had a look around and a bite of lunch. In the evening when Bill and Linda arrived with had a relaxing evening snack and a few drinks while we caught up.

The next day we drove out to the Needles and the National Trust’s Old and New Batteries home to the Victorian and modern coastal defences and secret rocket test site perched on the point of land next to the rocky outcrops that give the place its name. Later we drove down towards Ventnor stopping for a pub lunch and an ice cream before returning to our site and an evening meal in Yarmouth.

Sunday we had booked tickets for the IOW Festival (primarily so that big fans Linda and Sue could see the headliner, Rod Stewart). It was a lovely afternoon but out location opposite the main stage was in the middle a large space that become windier later on. Still we enjoyed several acts such as The Shires, Imelda May, George Ezra, and Bastille, before Rod Stewart came to the stage performing for several hours with a few costume changes and great supporting band and backing singers.

Bill and Linda had to leave before dawn to get back for work on Monday, but we had more time and so visited Cowes town and (via a chain ferry) Osborne House (holiday home for Queen Victoria), where we had a delightful afternoon tea before catching the ferry home.

Spanish Holiday…

We took a week out and travelled with Mum, Terry and Gill to central Spain for a week visiting several historic places and immersing ourselves in the Iberian culture.

We flew into Madrid on a week when a heat wave was sweeping this part of Europe. It was 41 degrees when we arrived but cooled down a bit as we drove up to our first stop in the southern part of the Castile and Leon region, Segovia.

The region has been exposed to many different cultures over time, each leaving an imprint on the architecture and culture of the place, and in Segovia you can see some of the early megalithic zoomorphic monuments commonly called verracos (for their boar like appearances), the famous Roman aqueduct, many mediaeval churches and grand buildings and evidence of the Spanish Civil War.

Our accommodation was the lovely Hotel Infant Isabel well situated in the heart of the old town on the Plaza Mayor opposite the towering cathedral. That evening we soaked in the atmosphere of the square which, as it was Saturday, was a busy with local families and tourists alike eating and drinking and socialising late into the night.

On our first full day we walked down towards the river where we had a great view of the Alcázar (rumoured to be the inspiration for Walt Disney’s fairy tale castle), through the tree lined park, up on some of the remaining city walls, and around to the amazing aqueduct.

We had two nights at Segovia before we travelled onto our next destination. On the way we stopped briefly at the lovely Our Lady of Soterraňa monastery at Santa Maria la Real de Nieva.

Then for a walk through the run down Arevalo with its grand castle (currently being restored) where Isabella grew up. We had lunch here before continuing.

Another brief stop was at Madrigal des las Atlas Torres – birthplace of Isabella the Infanta.

Then we arrived at the grand university city of Salamanca perched on high ground dominating the river Duero.

Our hotel was the NH Salamanca Palaciode Castellanos with a lovely atrium at its centre like an old cloisters, again well located in the middle of the historic old city.

We had three nights here and managed to see quite a lot, though there was so much more we didn’t get around to. We visited the old and new cathedrals side by side, the charming Convento de Las Duenas, the Convento de la Anunciacion policed by a small nun, the little circular church of San Marcos, the amazing hidden ceiling at the Monesterio de Santa Clara (along with its fascinating museum on early Spanish life), the Casa Lis museum of Art Nouveau / Art Deco, the Roman bridge, and the Plaza Mayor among many more.

In the main square was a sculpture by Miquel Barcelo of an elephant balancing on its trunk which would occasionally issue gas from its upended rear end. We also saw this artists other sculptures and his paintings on the subject of the Divine Comedy.

  

Our final destination was the lovely walled town of Avila.

We stayed a couple of nights at the attractive Palacio de los Velada, based on an old 16^th century palace located next to the cathedral.

It is the imposing walls that dominate the character of this town, with the cathedral integrated into them and with walks along a large portion of them you get a great view of the town and surrounding countryside as you are buzzed by screaming swifts as the flying close picking off insects as they fly. The best view of the town and its walls is from outside up on a nearby viewing area.

The cathedral is another impressive structure and the museum dedicated to Saint Teresa is informative.

We had an enjoyable evening listening to jazz just outside the walls with the band performing in the blocked off road to patrons in the roadside bars.

During our holiday we soon fell into the local custom of taking a siesta in the afternoon to retreat from the worst of the heat and to give us the stamina to continue on with the drinking and eating later in the evening. Something we could really appreciate.

Garden of Delights…

The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden is a revelation with how sculpture and planting can be integrated into a coherent, stimulating whole whilst still maintaining a peaceful tranquillity. Some of the pieces are subtle and blend in with the landscape and planting, others are controversial and challenging and many are whimsical and playful, all are well executed.

Family Day…

There was a recent gathering of the clan at our place and the weather was warm allowing is to sit out in the bright sunshine on the deck enjoying good food and drink and catching up with each other in friendly bonhomie.  

Hankies, Sticks and Real Ale…

As part of the annual pilgrimage by the Aldbury Morris Men, now accompanied by the more youthful Hemlock Morris Dancers, the two sides descended on Norwich to dance and sing and cavort around the locality.

Sue and I took mum up a day earlier travelling through Essex and Suffolk visiting gardens on the way.

Our first stop was at the RHS Hyde Hall, currently showing the Surrey Sculpture Exhibition. This garden has changed a lot since we last visited many moons ago and it is clear they are continuing to expend and evolve as new buildings and gardens are being built. It is a large sprawling area with several different garden types and plenty of space to soak up people so that you never feel crowded out.

Our next stop was at Beth Chatto’sGarden, a smaller and more intimate place centred on several ponds, a woodland area and a large dry garden, a style of gardening pioneered by the celebrated horticulturist.

We then drove onto our hotel at Norwich where the Morris sides would join us the following evening.

The next day was spent wandering around the historic old city of Norwich visiting starting with the spectacular Romanesque cathedral (the other Gothic revival cathedral being just outside the old walls), and then we walked down to Pulls Ferry, along the river to Cow Tower and past the large mill and cut back into the old town up the cobbled Elm Hill towards the Lanes and Market Square (where there is a good view of the large Norman Castle and the lovely Victorian Royal Arcade). Outside the walls near the other cathedral is the peaceful and secluded Plantation Gardens, a hidden gem, ideal for a rest after a long day of being a tourist. In the evening we met up with the arriving Morris at a local pub for drinks, food and music and singing.

A bus was waiting for us in the morning to take us on our tour around the Broads. But first it was up to the cathedral for a few dances and then back on the bus to the Rising Sun beside the water for a dance (and a pint for those so inclined).

On to The Swan Inn near a busy little marina for a few more dances (and drinks).

And then to the peaceful The Pleasure Boat Inn near another marina where we danced some more (drank some more) and had lunch.

Revitalised we continued on to the Nelson Head, a remote and quirky public house full of strange paraphernalia for another dance or two (and a few more drinks).

There had been a plan to dance outside the pub we had been in the previous night, but as we arrived the Lord Mayor’s Parade was assembling and filled up the street with many spectators in attendance. Some of the Morris Men crashed a young group of dancers to much merriment but soon the floats moved off into the city and the rest of us returned to our hotel to freshen up for the evening meal and final ceilidh.

On Sunday the two sides headed off towards another venue (mum travelling with Terry and Gill), and Sue and I went home to some quiet and peace for a few days.