We spent a very happy half-term weekend in Shropshire. Some of our friends had been to the area a few years back and recommended it for a short break, so we decided to follow their advice.
We stayed in a cottage (a converted mill) -- in the hamlet of Vennington, about 30 minutes from Shrewsbury. It was lovely -- lots of wooden beams and floors, white walls and a wood burning stove, just perfect for cosy nights in.
As for sightseeing, we visited Ironbridge -- to admire the iron bridge, of course. It is quite hard to imagine that this now picturesque, steep valley was the heartland of the Industrial Revolution -- but it was.
There are several museums to visit in and around Ironbridge, but being on a short break, we visited just one -- Blists Hill. This is a living museum, which recreates a small Victorian town, complete with mine and working steam railway. The 'residents' (staff who are dressed in the clothing of the day) are very knowledgeable and eager to answer any questions that you might have. We really enjoyed our visit here, finding the museum both informative and entertaining. This is a really good way to engage young people with history.
We also visited Shrewsbury, which is a lovely medieval market town. We spent a long time wandering round the abbey, which is beautiful, and enjoyed lunch in one of the cafes on the market square.
Finally, we managed to fit in two National Trust properties -- one on the way there and one on the way back. Attingham Park is a Palladian mansion -- we particularly enjoyed the extensive and very interesting 'below stairs' area here. Wightwick Manor is a Victorian manor house, built and furnished in the style of the Arts and Crafts movement.
We thoroughly enjoyed our weekend in Shropshire and, if you are looking for a short break somewhere in the Midlands, would certainly recommend it.
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
31 October, 2017
23 April, 2017
Lost in Translation
On the plane journey back from our trip to India, I watched one of my favourite movies -- Lost in Translation. I have seen this several times over the years, but never seem to tire of it. It is by turns funny, moving and rather sad.
The film focuses on two apparently very different types of people who are trapped in a hotel in Japan. The first is a disillusioned, middle-aged actor (played by Bill Murray) who is there to film a commercial for whisky. The second is a young, recently and unhappily married woman (played by Scarlett Johansson) who is accompanying her photographer husband on a shoot.
The humour in the film focuses on what it is like to be lost in an utterly foreign environment -- in this case jetlagged and lonely in a country where everything is just so different. Japanese showers seem to be made only for short people; the running machine in the gym unaccountably speeds up with no warning and it's impossible to get off; the hotel curtains open automatically at a pre-set time, no matter whether you are asleep or awake; why does it take twice as long to say something in a foreign language as it does to say the same thing in English.
Murray and Johansson, both lost and lonely, strike up an unlikely relationship and find that they have more in common than appearances might lead one to expect. They are both in failing marriages, they are both questioning the direction of their lives, and, of course, they are both trapped in Japan.
This film does a fantastic job of communicating feelings and experiences rather than objects and events. It's a hard thing to do, but this film excels at it. That's why I love it, I think.
The film focuses on two apparently very different types of people who are trapped in a hotel in Japan. The first is a disillusioned, middle-aged actor (played by Bill Murray) who is there to film a commercial for whisky. The second is a young, recently and unhappily married woman (played by Scarlett Johansson) who is accompanying her photographer husband on a shoot.
The humour in the film focuses on what it is like to be lost in an utterly foreign environment -- in this case jetlagged and lonely in a country where everything is just so different. Japanese showers seem to be made only for short people; the running machine in the gym unaccountably speeds up with no warning and it's impossible to get off; the hotel curtains open automatically at a pre-set time, no matter whether you are asleep or awake; why does it take twice as long to say something in a foreign language as it does to say the same thing in English.
Murray and Johansson, both lost and lonely, strike up an unlikely relationship and find that they have more in common than appearances might lead one to expect. They are both in failing marriages, they are both questioning the direction of their lives, and, of course, they are both trapped in Japan.
This film does a fantastic job of communicating feelings and experiences rather than objects and events. It's a hard thing to do, but this film excels at it. That's why I love it, I think.
22 April, 2017
India celebrating twenty years
We have recently come back from an amazing holiday in India. We don't normally visit such exotic locations, but this was in celebration of our twentieth wedding anniversary, so was something rather special.
We flew out to Delhi and spent the first half of the holiday full-on sightseeing in Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. Particular highlights for me were:
We then flew down to Cochin in the south. This was the relaxing part of the holiday and we spent quite a bit of time swimming in the hotel pool. We did some sightseeing, however, and the thing I particularly enjoyed was the day cruise that we took on a houseboat along the Kerelan backwaters. We had the boat to ourselves and were looked after by the captain and by the on-board chef who cooked us a delicious lunch in the boat's galley kitchen. We spent the day drifting along and watching the world go by, including women washing clothes, dishes and their hair in the river.
All of us found India an incredible experience -- it is just so different from life in the West. The traffic is crazy, the colours are vibrant, the poverty is on a different scale altogether. It simply feels like a different world.
The trouble is that we are now hooked and wondering when we can next afford to visit somewhere truly different!
We flew out to Delhi and spent the first half of the holiday full-on sightseeing in Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. Particular highlights for me were:
- In Delhi: visiting the spice market (a beautiful ancient building with an overpowering scent of spices that made us all sneeze!), a rickshaw ride through old Delhi (exhilarating!), visiting the Sikh temple (the kitchens where they prepared enormous cauldrons of daal over huge open flames to feed scores of homeless people every day were incredible).
- In Agra: the Taj Mahal at dawn was lovely -- such beautiful light and far fewer crowds than in the middle of the day.
- In Jaipur: sitting at the elephant pool watching the elephants commune with their keepers.
We then flew down to Cochin in the south. This was the relaxing part of the holiday and we spent quite a bit of time swimming in the hotel pool. We did some sightseeing, however, and the thing I particularly enjoyed was the day cruise that we took on a houseboat along the Kerelan backwaters. We had the boat to ourselves and were looked after by the captain and by the on-board chef who cooked us a delicious lunch in the boat's galley kitchen. We spent the day drifting along and watching the world go by, including women washing clothes, dishes and their hair in the river.
All of us found India an incredible experience -- it is just so different from life in the West. The traffic is crazy, the colours are vibrant, the poverty is on a different scale altogether. It simply feels like a different world.
The trouble is that we are now hooked and wondering when we can next afford to visit somewhere truly different!
14 November, 2016
Truncated
We had a rather truncated family last week, as my other half was out of the country on business.
However, the kids and I completed the week successfully, despite the multifarious demands of work, school, freelancing and home. We also managed a fun, albeit very local weekend.
On Saturday we popped into Abingdon and had lunch at The Mousehole Cafe. This place has actually been open for over a year and we've been meaning to go for ages. It is very pleasant -- situated in the basement of the town hall with very friendly staff and a small range of freshly-made food. We had sandwiches and cakes and very much enjoyed our lunch. In the evening we watched the film "Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason". My husband and I saw this years ago when it first came out, but the kids haven't seen it before. They enjoyed it -- and it certainly was a bit of entertaining fun.
On Sunday, we got some fresh air, going for a walk along the Thames path. We do this route quite often and always enjoy it. The walk was very muddy this time, though, due to Saturday's heavy rain. We wound up in one of the local Costas for a hot chocolate, which was a pleasant treat.
The other member of our family arrived back from the airport on Sunday evening, tired and bearing gifts. It was lovely to see him again -- and now we are no longer truncated!
However, the kids and I completed the week successfully, despite the multifarious demands of work, school, freelancing and home. We also managed a fun, albeit very local weekend.
On Saturday we popped into Abingdon and had lunch at The Mousehole Cafe. This place has actually been open for over a year and we've been meaning to go for ages. It is very pleasant -- situated in the basement of the town hall with very friendly staff and a small range of freshly-made food. We had sandwiches and cakes and very much enjoyed our lunch. In the evening we watched the film "Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason". My husband and I saw this years ago when it first came out, but the kids haven't seen it before. They enjoyed it -- and it certainly was a bit of entertaining fun.
On Sunday, we got some fresh air, going for a walk along the Thames path. We do this route quite often and always enjoy it. The walk was very muddy this time, though, due to Saturday's heavy rain. We wound up in one of the local Costas for a hot chocolate, which was a pleasant treat.
The other member of our family arrived back from the airport on Sunday evening, tired and bearing gifts. It was lovely to see him again -- and now we are no longer truncated!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)