Category Archives: holiday

Joys of Online Booking Systems

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We have a Pepys themed walked with the Berkshire branch of the Cambridge Society in London for Saturday 29th March.  I’ve always wanted to see “The Mousetrap”, so after much dithering (& gasping at ticket prices) we decide yes & I try to book tickets for the evening performance on Saturday. 

The website I use has several points during the booking process when it warns you it will time out if you do not complete the “form” within so many minutes. I struggle through and am not timed out.  Finally, the stupid website announces it needs my Verification details, ie not the PIN nor the three digits on the back of the card, but some other stupid number.  I’ve never set one up with the bank, but Steve, unbeknown to me, has.  Website times out, so Steve says out of the way and he’ll do it on his card.  Much hissing and panicking as Steve logs into the site but it still demands he types in all his details.  He gets the tickets.  Curiously they are not the ones it offered me.  Never get the same twice running, he says.  I look more closely.  Why did you book for Friday 28th, I ask?  Much screaming ensues.  What to do?  Go up two days running?  Sell them on ebay? 

 

Inspiration strikes me and I ask if Steve has any points from his hotel stays left over?  Result – we’re going up Friday morning & will stay overnight on Friday and we’re even getting lifts to and from the station.

Norfolk

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The weekend saw Rosemary and I travel to Norwich to stay with Mike and Ann.  Took masses of photographs which will be up the the site soon.  Saturday saw us go to Winterton-on-sea for a walk along the beach and sand dunes in the bright clear sunny weather we are at last having.  The windmills on Scroby sand acting as a futeristic backdrop.

Sunday  was a broadland day at the South Walsham.  Here they have walks through the wood which is cut through by masses of dykes.  Lots of wildlife, very quiet and peaceful.  Took masses of photos of which one or two are reasonable.  There was the opportunity to take a boat trip on two broads, Soth Walsham Inner & Outer ones, which allowed me to take some close-ups of the bird life.  Rosemary will fill in the names of these.

Silver Wedding Anniversary – July 10

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We don’t seem to be able to remember our wedding date and often when we do, we discover the date’s already gone, but this year we had checked well in advance, because we knew it was our silver wedding anniversary.  We spent it camping in France (about which more to follow eventually; R a big let down on write-ups).  That evening we sat in the car and looked out at the lashing rain on the widscreen.  Far too wet for a bbq, so what to do?  We decided to walk into Mayreuis (Languedoc-Roussillon), the campsite’s local village, and ate a pleasant meal in a local restaurant.  And, oh yes, it rained as we walked back and dived into our tent.

So it was a lovely surprise when we got home to hear from R’s brother Steve & sister-in-law Marilynn in Canada.  They had remembered; most impressive!  They said to watch out for a gift in the post.  Several weeks into August (we suspect it got held up in the various rotating postal strikes in the UK) a parcel arrived.  R waited until the Friday, when S came back from working in Edinburgh, so we could both open it – a lovely silver, footed, International Silver Co dish (brother Steve unsure whether made in the States or Canada) and a gorgeous cut-glass, silver lidded salt & pepper, around 1890 to 1920.  Both much admired by visitors.  But best of all is that M had cross-stitched a celebration sampler which means we now have one, as well as S&G whose celebrates their wedding, and R’s mum & dad whose celebrates their golden wedding anniversary.

Final day in Paris and back home

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Today we visited the Pompidou centre, after a major delay in departure from hotel due to my not being able to find my passport, but finally it appeared in a highly original place.  The Pompidou centre is a building with the services on the outside, it is a truly dreadful, already showing its age with grimy pipes and services.  Each service pipe is colour coded; Green for water, Blue for Air, Yellow for electricity and Red for lifts.

The centre houses a library, which opens at 12.00 a.m and had students queuing an hour beforehand.  As well as the library, there is a restaurant on the sixth floor, with a good view of Paris and tables on the roof each decorated with a rose.  Alas the restaurant priced itself out of our reach, although not quite as expensive as the Jules Verne restaurant on the Eiffel tower.

The building also houses modern art, three floors of it.  Starting on the sixth floor were a couple of exhibitions.   We spent rather too long on Samuel Beckett and the Airs De Paris.  Moving on then to the fourth floor of modern art, the type of art which is represented by the pile of bricks on the Tate Modern.  Again spent far too long in that area.

Back on the fifth floor was the type of modern art which did have some originality and graphical excellence.  Here there were pictures by Picasso, Leger, Jean Dubuffet, Matisse and Salvidor Dali.

Getting late, we went and ate in a nearby café, both of us opting for the Spaghetti Bolognese, far better and far cheaper than the night before.

Off to see La Defense du Temps, a special  clock in the Clock Quarter; disappointingly it was being worked on and hence not showing the correct time.

Back to the hotel to pick up the bags, then through the Metro in the rush hour and onto the RER to the airport.  Terminal 3 at Charles de Gaulle airport is not nice having very few amenities, no good food, no reasonable bars, and an extremely bad announcement system which is impossible to understand with all the echoes.

Paris on Saturday

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We started the day a little later than normal after an excellent breakfast in the Radisson. 

Out on the metro, changed onto the line which takes us into the Latin zone.  First stop was a visit on the Pantheon.  This is where the great people of France are entombed.  We visited the tombs of Voltaire, the Curies and Victor Hugo and a few other famous authors.  At 11.00 we took the tour on to the roof.  This allowed us to take pictures from a height inside the building, and to take pictures of Paris from just below the dome of the Pantheon. 

 The Pantheon Paris

Next it was of to see the Notre Dame cathedral, stopping on the way for a coffee.  In front of the cathedral was a Fête du Pain; just what we needed.  We bought an Artisan Pain to go with the remains of yesterday’s Camembert. Trekked around the inside of the Notre Dame, looking at the Rose windows.

The Notre Dame Paris

Orsay was next on the agenda.  This building is an old railway station converted into an art gallery. Some very fine clocks adorn it. The building is definitely worth looking at, as are some of the pictures.  Large collections of Monet, Manet, Mondrian.  As usual in a Paris museum you were allowed to take photographs.

 picture.jpg

The evening was spent visiting the erotic museum.  This contained examples of erotica from many ancient cultures.  Afterwards we had a rather poor meal at a Creole restaurant nearby.

 

The Louvre and La Defense

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Today the sun shone on us, at least to start with.  Visited the Louvre first.  Here we visited the rooms of Napoleon the third, objects d’art, sculpture and various modern sculpture. 

 The Louvre

We felt we had to see the Mona Lisa, but it was probably the low point of the trip.  Pictures will appear on the website in due course.

Walked along Champs Elysee to the Arc de Triomphe, stopping on the way for a coffee. (Off the Champs Elysee where we could afford one.)

Caught the metro to La Defense to see the the huge office block built as an arch.  This area is the business district with many new office buildings.  It is a continuation of the Champs Elysee, a whole straight road from the Louvre, the Obelisque, Arc de Triomphe and La Defense.  (Except the latter is slightly slewed – which must be intentional, but don’t know why.)

 La Defanse

Here we ate lunch, some camembert and bread, on the steps of La Defense.  We walked back from the Arch, through the business district, over the Seine and caught the Metro to the hotel from Pont de Neuilly.  Stopping only for a pint of lager at an Irish pub. Almost a reasonable price of 4 Euros from the seemingly bilingual barman.

Managed to catch Rosemary in the doors of the metro.  I was holding them open for her, she was not quite quick enough and they slammed shut on her.  Not quite the same as British underground doors.  These French ones really slam shut hard (or so I am told).

Now it was on home to the hotel, and back out for supper at a local restaurant where we ate a couple of courses.

Paris arrival

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First day of our long weekend in Paris.  Up at a reasonable time to try and get a good seat on the Easyjet to Paris.  Despite checking in a few minutes after the opening time, we still seemed to be in the boarding queue B.  Where were all those others who were loading before us.

Flight was uneventful, with this table cloth of white below us all the way. 

At CdeG we moved on to the RER for the 30 minute trip to Gare de Nord.  Here we caught the metro to the nearest stop for out hotel (Porte de St-Cloud).  Trying to buy a ticket was daunting.  It was lunch time, so all the ticket offices were closed.  So had to use a machine. At least they could be trained to speak English. Bought a ticket for the week, reasonable price, but later looking at the ticket we now realise it expires on Sunday.

At Porte de St-Cloud took the wrong exit, walked around the whole traffic island the wrong way, eventually found the road to the hotel.  Yes it was only two minutes from the Metro.  My route was 20 minutes.  Efficient check in by the Radisson staff.

Quickly back out to purchase a drink by the Metro.  How expensive Paris is.  Fifteen Euros for two beers.

On to the Metro.  We had decided to view the area of Montmartre.  Took the number 9 to Miromesnil.  Changed to the 13 and rode to Place de Clichy.  Here we walked and saw the Moulin Rouge, Moulin de la Galette, Moulin Radet, Chateau Des Brouillards, Basilique du Sacre-Coeur.

On the way back, (6ish) stopped for a drink in another bar for a couple of beers.  This reaffirmed the belief that Paris beer was expensive. (17.50 for two).  Lovely district by the Metro Pigalle with masses of sex shops, lap/pole dancing clubs and X rated films.  Almost persuaded Rosemary to visit the Museum of Erotica, but alas one exhibit in the window put her totally off the idea. This was a chair with a slit in the seat and a rotating paddle with the paddles protruding through the seat.

Near by we found a French restaurant where we had supper.  Both of us started with terrine starters.  Rosemary with a meat version, while I ate a fish terrine.  Main course was Cassoulet for me, and Tartiflette.  Far too much to eat.  Then back home on the metro. I managed to spay a Scittish woman sitting next to us with lemon from my lemon segment.

My impressions of France. 

How can they run a country where most things close for lunch.  Shutting all the ticket offices for lunch.  I got the general impression that travel was free at lunch.  Gates left wide open.

The graffiti on the buildings next to the rail lines makes the British version look rather tame.

Mobile phones run below ground.  How come we are so backward on London Transport.

 

Guernsey – Friday

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Off very late today, arrived in St Peter Port for lunch.  Had an excellent and large club sandwich in a pub.

 Walked to St Sampson, rather deary place.  St Peter Port is definitely going up market, while St Sampson is going down.

 Tonight we have booked a table at Crabby Jacks for a final meal and drink.  Hopefully there will be some dancing.  Tomorrow up early to bus over to the airport for the flight back to Southampton.

Guernsey – Thursday

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Diverted by puss wanting a saucer of milk.  Walked from our hotel to St Pierre Park Hotel in the centre of the island for their three courses Tennerfest meal at £10.  Very good value, and very well presented, but spoilt by somewhat erratic service and waitresses whose first language obviously wasn’t English, Patois or French.  Coffee being served 10 minutes before the desert course was one example.

After lunch walked back to Vazon Bay via Cobo.  En route we passed by the Guernsey telephone museum.  As usual it was closed at this time or year.  As we were leaning over the gate, admiring a submarine cable with repeater, one of the volunteers who works there was entering and invited us in to view the exhibits.  We had visited before in 1993, and were very pleased and impressed by the amount of work which had been done to enhance the displays in the interim period.  We must of spent a good hour there, and had a very good explanation of the workings of the museum by the volunteer.  Ex-BT, he had worked in the Guernsey Telecoms industry since the 1960s.

Walked about 8 miles.

Guernsey – Wednesday

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Today was another late start; we were off to catch the 12.15 ferry to Herm. Unluckily for Rosemary, who had vetoed my recommended bus as far too late to catch the ferry; we arrived in St Peter Port with ample shopping time. A quick walk up the steps to Pollet Street, a few minutes in Jessops, and Steve was away with a 10-20mm Sigma lens. Back to quay and a cappuccino coffee for Rosemary. The day was sunny with some nice photogenic cumulus clouds, though a little chilly with the Northerly wind. Ferry to Herm, walk to shell beach for a fairly mediocre shell collection (but with a partial ormer), tide was high. We ate a picnic on the beach, provided by Messers Marks and Spencers, and a gentle walk back around the South end of the island. We were entertained by the antics of one of Her Majesty’s destroyers who seemed to be practicing turns and manoeuvres in the sea between Herm and Sark. Good view of the Barclay brothers castle. They apparently ship their staff in from Guernsey by helicopter, and send it out for bottles of olives when their supply falls short. Back at the harbour we caught the 4.35 ferry back to the Guernsey as the sun was setting. Some opportunities to use the new lens for some cloudscapes. Back in the flat a couple of G&Ts, and then supper of Cajun-ed left over chicken with salad.