day trip to dover

the plan was to stock up on baby things during the boxing day sales. the reality was further escapism. whiskey cabinet on boxing day and the cliffs of dover on 27th dec. made a mental note to hit peter jones in the evening but wanted to escape from london first. love dover, having first been (and taken a cruise from there!) just before starting university, and again summer 2014. was back a few years later in summer, for a makeshift picnic of roadside stall berries and almost late for an important dinner back in the city. might've gone by (or past) en route to margate / ramsgate two summers ago, maybe three by now. there's a farm shop i like en route but forgot to stop there this time. also managed to mis-program the gps and end up at the wrong end of the white cliffs (near the lighthouse instead of the tea room / visitor centre) which wasn't too bad in retrospect cos saved on parking. but wanted food after the walk and ended up at said paying car park to access cafe for soup. and discounted christmas cards, it must be said.

really lovely weather-wise and the cliffs were crowded with like-minded walkers.

zum see

another cool mountain resto was zum see, which was so good we went two days in a row. got a little lost the first day and accidentally walked halfway up a ski slope (!!!) before realising the correct path wasn't 1. covered in snow 2. sorta parallel to the ski run. because i didn't fancy walking down an icy slope, we found a little path through the woods, went back to the gondola base and tried to get a cab. but the cabbie refused to take us cos, well, there was no road. which meant a 30min uphill hike from base camp. and anxiety about being late for our friends. half the lunch party ski-ed and part of the other half that was going by foot abandoned ship halfway cos it was too treacherous a hike, but for those who made it, the reward was the world's bes millefeuille. home made - crisp, crunchy, flakey with subtly sweetened fresh cream and reason enough to make multiple return trips. 

 

it was a really pretty walk to get there, too.

more lamb's lettuce salad

the millefeuille of dreams

arriving in faroe

casual waterfall drive bys, this one was near the airport. the good weather lulled me into a sense of complacency, thinking that every day would be like this. how wrong i was.

no-choice dinner of roast lamb and potatoes. lamb was overdone but nothing some gravy can't fix.

neist point and trig point

having read lots about skye and seen some amazing photos, i'd some high expectations. didn't have all that much time though and had to focus on one part of the isle. did a scenic walk to neist point. went early before it got crowded with tourists and coach tours.

then for kicks thought it'd also be fun to hurl ourselves up to the trig point. little did i know it'd involve crossing barbed wire, streams and end with a steep incline over a sheer drop to the sea. amazed to have made it up and down in one piece, and probably should've been more careful in retrospect but lived to tell the tale.

bank holiday border crossing

in a perfect world, i'd live in scotland. can't explain my fascination with the place, or maybe i can. love being just a hop away from the border and almost never turn down an invitation north. there's something about the rugged landscape that just draws me in. i feel i could get lost but would still be safe, if that makes any sense at all. i like the blunt nature of the people, how what you see is what you get, no veneers. it's a directness and an honesty i've come to appreciate and i'm sad that i'll soon be too far south for a day trip. the walks are great, fish and chips at berwick always make my day and zooming through the country is my perfect panacea.

sunday strolling

was a little con-ed by the weather, and also a little overenthusiastic after recent bout of cabin fever so jumped at the chance to go walking. which did not end up happening because got lazy and chose to drive from viewpoint to viewpoint, jetty to jetty. pfft :) then walk along the very underwhelming dam while joking that the location scouts are going to go crazy for it and maybe it'll be the set for next bond movie, not.  this quickly descended into a competition to see how many movies featuring dams one could list (i lost, and winning would be a dubious honour!) by which time i'd lost interest and started looking for newborn lambs.

there were a couple of really tiny ones because it was still early in the season, and i might have squealed at the sight of the first and caused unnecessary distraction, which i was roundly chastised for. city girl thrown in country and easily amused? the struggle is real :(

was last at the water in first year and it's not changed one bit despite the multiple signboards talking about the need to diversify plant life because they, too, were getting tired of firs. there's man-made and there's man-made, occasionally man gets it very right (cragside!). maybe i was smarting from needing to restrain lamb exuberance but this was distinctly underwhelming.

cute picnic table though but we'd a greasy fry-up just before and there were too many midges to safely deploy a wicker basket.

daddy i want a pony

the weather hadn't been great and when there was a sudden stretch of sun, i was eager to banish the cabin fever. far from outdoorsy / athletic (don't let the pictures fool you!) but thoroughly enjoyed this venture to the country that had a walk involving wild (!) ponies (!!!) who were so tame they sidled up for nuzzles and cuddles, and a leisurely lunch at berwick before heading home. there was a freak snow storm on the way back (scary!) but that's february i suppose!

day and a bit in the lakes

remain resolutely apolitical but was nonetheless pleased to have the day off owing to potential industrial action. this really isn't the forum for whether the junior*doctors should strike and their ongoing battle with the powers-that-be. all too pleased with the day off, decided to swing by the lakes on a whim because, hey, why not? not a huge fan of the lakes. the towns are overly touristy and sell the same things (walking gear, more walking gear) and it's a bit too twee and disconcerting. have a thing about cookie cutter small towns and feel claustrophobic in them (durham, berwick etc) but maybe that's being unfair. sure there's some beauty to be had in each picturesque village if one bothers to look hard enough. that said, glad to have eschewed more commercial towns in the lakes, although i did lament to a friend that the lakes seem to be crawling with sad soggy sorts in waterproofs. 

and sod's law, really, because the more disinclined i was to the lakes, the better the weather seemed to get. not that i'm complaining because with this funny country, you take what you get! blue skies and vibrant colours, it was like looking through a lens on vivid mode. the greens more lush and the browns richer than normal. must be all that rain!

the place we stayed was new-ish and set in a slightly spooky forest, not unlike what i'd imagine the blair witch project to be. there were some really nice things about it - like the lovely, friendly hosts with amazing service recovery, beautiful room and walking gear provided. had a small issue with the loo in original room (ceiling dripped) and they very kindly double upgraded to the best suite (!!!). the minus was how it was tacked onto a less luxurious hotel, with shared facilities. so it felt like a downgrade :/ traipsing across the driveway to use the steamroom and sauna. had the option of breakfast in the room (yes please!) and glad to have done that instead of going to the other side for buffet breakfast at what looked like a dim resto. there was a functional reading room with comp food and alcohol through the day but it was an odd long-ish room that felt stuck on and had no natural light despite the gorgeous setting. it was also being re-carpeted on our second day so we didn't get use of it. that said, when requesting late check out it was £20/h (!!!) but they comp-ed an hour because it's not like we could enjoy the hotel before heading off. did end up going for a walk in their waterproofs and walking shoes, so that wasn't too bad. also, the breakfast while beautifully displayed and served in-room wasn't amazing, probably because it came from somewhat lower-standard resto. felt mass produced. have stayed in places that charged less but served in-room brekkie course-by-course. 

lovely lazy break, leisurely drive in good weather then were shown to the room. should've ruined appetite with cream tea (yummy scones and clotted cream!), read for leisure, went to steam / sauna before heading to the local for dinner. wonderful local ales then back to the hotel. went on a bit of a fires tarting spree and kept it going till bedtime. slept in, had breakfast in bed as late as possible, got late check out then went walking. 

just the right length of time in the lakes before going stir crazy. enjoyable as it was, don't think could've done another night. and suppose that's the point of a mini break :)

wild sheep chase

am always up for a bit of weekend adventuring and jumped at the chance to go a'exploring. did want to sleep in too, especially with the clocks going backwards hehe so planned for a relatively late (read: civilised) start. there was a patient tip off about a stately home with walled garden and i was the incompetent navigator who cannot read a map. went way off course (GPS doesnt' work in the country, i'm afraid, and the OS map was wonderful, pity i couldn't make sense of it!) but turned that to our advantage by going trainspotting before re-routing. i mean, who even has an OS map nowadays? nerd alert... did eventually make it to stately home but alas the entry fee was prohibitive and i'm way too cheap to spend £12 on entry, much rather eat my £££ instead of paying to get in only to spend more money at the cafe. it was also rammed at 3pm and uh if it gets dark at 4pm i'm not gonna get much outta the visit, no? did get a little hangry and set off in search of sustenance. there was talk of a cute village farm shop but not much of a recollection, apart from it being near a roundabout. which obviously led to a grand tour of the neighbouring villages but eventually made it in time for last order for sunday dinners, and sort of got quarantined in the late lunch section, separated from all the tea sipping ladies in the parlour. oops.

trainspotting was fun, didn't see a train, was too cold and miserable haha but with views like that, who's complaining.