Blickling Estate

We visited Blickling Estate with the Billericay and District Resident's Association (BDRA).  The coach took about 3 hours to get there and a similar amount of time coming back.  Such a distance is not really a viable day trip in a car, because I would be exhausted by the drive and not enjoy the place we were visiting.  It is a National Trust property, so we knew what to expect. 

We were met and greeted by a member of staff (volunteer?), who gave us guide sheets with a gold sticker to identify us as the coach party. After this, we ate our lunch and got a cup of tea from the outside café.  15p extra for a take-away cup and a discount for a re-usable (bring your own) cup. The cups are good quality, but there is no way they cost more than a couple of pence each. I appreciate what they are trying to do, but that price is too much.  

The into the house:

The grand entrance staircase was not always here, but was moved from another location by one of the former owners.

In the ceiling above the staircase is the Boleyn Bull.  A sign that the Boleyn family live here at one time.

Oriental artefacts fill the house.  One room is particularly impressive, with had painted Chinese wall paper.

This tapestry has a 3D element, and is shown under a special light in a darkened room.  It is on an angled table so that it can be easily seen, but not easily photographed.  The picture doesn't do it justice.  It will soon be wrapped back up and put in storage for 5 years.

The stained-glass window above the main stairs was once given to a church, but has now been returned. it is visible from the corridor opposite the tapestry.

The final picture to show here is the Peter the Great room.  Russian influence is also important in this house.

There are many other treasures and a lot of work is done by the National Trust to look after them and restore them.  There are displays about the work.  

Outside, the grounds are lovely, and the walled garden is ready for planting in most places.  Some plants are already in, and others are perennials and are always there.

There is also a museum dedicated to the air force troops who were billeted there in WWII.  They flew bombers from Oulton Airfield and made important contributions to the war effort.

A very good day out.

Bird Song

30 March 2024

The alarm sounded at 5:40, way too early when you normally wake up at about 8:00.  We have to be in Norsey Woods for the Bird song walk at 6:30.  It doesn't help that the freezer suffered a minor malfunction, but we got there.  Binoculars and phone app to hand to identify the birds from their song and if possible to see them as well.  

The guides and the other enthusiasts put us to shame with their knowledge and easy identification.  It will take me a long time to be that proficient.  The app (Merlin) identifies birds in real time, allowing me to watch the bird come up, just as the song starts.  It is very helpful.  We walked around for about two hours, and I am slowly getting used to locating birds with binoculars, that's another skill I have to learn.

There is a great-spotted woodpecker at the top of this tree - you'll have to trust me because I only had my phone with me, and even zoomed in it is just a blob.

The sound of the birds was amazing, and I remembered an incident from school life.  One of the teachers in junior school asked if someone could get up early to record the dawn chorus.  A boy called Andrew volunteered, and was very enthusiastic.  Unfortunately, he couldn't get up early, so we never did hear the dawn chorus from his house.

From our house, it was amazing, but I was never an early riser, so probably missed the best of it.

Today's walk in the woods, and the birds we heard, was very impressive, but I suspect it would have been better 50+ years ago.

We definitely heard Chiffchaff, Robin, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Wren, Wood-pigeon and the sound of woodpeckers pecking.  We also disturbed a Muntjac.

Dogs & Puppies

8 January 2024

I woke up thinking about Nina, a Dalmatian that my sister got for her 11th (I think) birthday.  She was scatty, I think that's the best description.  It was our job to take her for walks in the evening, up to the top of the road and down the hill to the brook at the bottom.  Sometimes we would take her to the recreation ground, a mainly open grassed space with a number of football pitches and a children's play area.  We rarely let her go free (off-lead) there, she always thought that coming back (or not) was some sort of game.  We would let her off in the woods that we backed on to - as long as there was plenty of time.

It was the time she had pups that was the memory I woke up with.  I can't remember how many she had, it may have been ten.  There was a runt in her litter - all the others were a similar size, and we named them all.  The runt was a lot smaller and was called 'Littely' (for obvious reasons).  Us children, in our early teens perhaps, made far too much fuss of this tiny pup.  So, its mother started trying to kill it.  She would sit on it and prevent it from feeding.  Mum changes her name - I don't remember what to, but it was enough to fool the dog into believing that the runt was gone.

We kept one of the pups - a male we called Monty.  He was nominally my dog.  That's a story for another time.

The mystery of the missing museum

Our walk today started from Harlow Museum.  The car park was closed, so we parked in a nearby road.  A notice on the door said it was open at 9:30, we were well past that.  Never mind, we set off, but because we are not good with understanding where we are, we headed the wrong way.  

We soon came to Harlowbury Chapel, which it appears is not open to the public, but is thought to be the oldest intact building in Harlow, it dates from the Normans. 

Harlowbury Chapel from Marigolds recreation ground

Arriving at the Green Man, we have now joined the prescribed route and know (roughly) where we are.  So, having achieved that major milestone, it is time for tea.  

The Green Man

Having enjoyed our tea, and the unordered home-made chocolate cookie that was provided with it - it was time to continue.  On the green opposite there is a British Oak, it is surrounded by a sturdy little fence with a plaque that reads:

BRITISH OAK

Planted in Commemoration of the

CORONATION

of

His Majesty

KING EDWARD VII

by voluntary subscriptions

June 26TH 1902

 

We left the area down a footpath between the ambulance station (now disused), and the fire station (still in use, with a rescue fire engine inside!)

Ambulance Station and Fire Station

Then across some fields and around others, the path is shown as a straight line on the map, but is anything but on the ground, finally we arrive at the church.  I'm pretty sure that the route we were supposed to have taken was different to the one we took, but again we got to where we were supposed to be.

St. Mary's and St. Hugh's

The picture does not do the building justice, other angles would be required to show its true extent.  As we are now where we should be, it is time for lunch, in the almost adjacent pub - The Queen's Head.  It's Thai food, but not spicy and very tasty.  There appears to be only one other customer, and he seems to have a 'work from pub' day as he desperately tries to find a stronger Wi-Fi signal and power for his laptop.

The Queen's Head

From there it is a straight forward walk across fields and building sites until we get back to where we started, and via the cycle path route that we should have followed on the outward journey.

We have passed many old buildings, houses that were established and provided for the 'poor widows' of the parish.  They all appeared to be in good condition and occupied.  Old Harlow speaks to us of a different time, unfortunately it appears it is about to be overwhelmed by the 'little boxes' that make up modern housing. The ones we saw looked cheap.

So what of the missing museum?  On our return, we tried again to get into the museum. The indicated large wooden door is firmly locked, and so are the gates next to it.  Round the back, the car park is now unlocked.  Ever hopeful, we try the first wrought iron gate - it opens  - we are in the walled garden.  Through another wrought iron gate and we are in a courtyard.  There is a glass door with 'Welcome' etched into it.  That too is locked, it also has a paper sign that says 'Exit'.  On the other side of the courtyard is a paper sign saying 'Entrance'.  We were fooled again.  The door opens into a very small foyer with a reception desk, but no receptionist.  The doors on the other side of the foyer are both firmly locked, we can hear voices, but whether they come from people physically present is unprovable.  The museum appears to be there, but in reality it is missing.

We left, disappointed, and headed home.

Half Term Escape 7 - in to battle

Battle Abbey

A quiet day for us today.  I decided to go to Battle Abbey, Jo came with me.  The first hurdle is English Heritage trying to sell you membership.  It's getting a bit old, I'm not going to buy one because I don't know when I'll use it next.  I was last at the abbey when I was about 12 years old.  My memories are foggy, at best.

My impressions today were that the presentations need quite a bit of TLC.  Some are difficult to read because the words have rubbed off, and some are impossible to read.  These are 21st century problems, the ruins of the abbey, along with my fascination with the battle it commemorates, remain.  We struggled with the audio guides too, so abandoned those.  The view from the top of the Abbey is amazing.  The Battle Museum at the other end of the High Street is small, but well-organised, and staffed with enthusiastic volunteers.  From there I learnt that the gunpowder for the November 5th incident was manufactured in Battle.  They also have a 200-year-old effigy of Guy Fawkes.

The bonfire, before it was lit

In the evening, we went up the road to Cowbridge fireworks, where the bonfire almost didn't start in the torrential rain.  We got soaked, but we all enjoyed the show. Yes, even the small boy who doesn't like loud bangs.

Half Term Escape 6 - to the tower

Today is the only day with pre-booked events.  Both these are in Eastbourne.  This morning, however, they were not uppermost in our minds.  We were up earlier than usual, and I had already bathed when the water supply turned a muddy brown.  I went for a chat with the road works guys, who predictable denied all knowledge, but said that today they are ¼ mile down the road.  Buying water is added to the schedule.

We arrived at The Sovereign Centre with plenty of time to spare, so had a drink, and then I departed off to see the Martello tower, while the others got ready for their swim (or water fight). 

After about 20 minutes walking along the promenade, I came to the tower.  I was met by a worker in a high visibility jacket and carrying a clipboard.  I guess you know the type already.  He warned me about heavy lorries and advised me not to go on.  I had seen the track, I knew what to expect, and I quite definitely had my wits about me.  I was not deterred, and he finally agreed he could not stop me.  So to the tower I went.

In truth, there is not much to see. There is something on top of it that looks modern and is something to do with monitoring shipping, perhaps.  I found a similar device on a pole as I entered the harbour area leading to the marina.

After the swim, we ate a pre-prepared lunch in the car, then made the short journey to 'Tenpin'.  Arriving too early, we visited the neighbouring Sainsbury's and bought drinking water - just in case.

The bowling alley is also full of arcade machines, as are many of these places, so a game or two was played. When our lane was ready we began, I started with a strike, and then went downhill, not scoring well again until the end of the second game. 

Another wait until we could get our evening meal.  As this is the last evening we can have a meal this holiday, we visited the Horse and Groom at Rushlake Green.  The food was excellent, the portions enormous, and the staff friendly and helpful.  Definitely one of the best evening meals I've had.  Even Thomas ate loads.

Half Term Escape 5 - a bit of a battle

View from the Car Park

So far, the early morning weather update has been encouraging.  The previous day's forecast of rain all day has changed to cloudy with a low chance of precipitation.  Today we visited Hastings.  The site of the battle is further inland at a place aptly named Battle, but it is Hastings that is remembered for the famous defeat in 1066. Nevertheless, the view from the Car Park was not promising.  

We set out to find lunch.  The Master's Fish Bar looked good, particularly as they offered grilled as well as fried fish.  We put two small tables together and eventually ordered the food. It seemed like quite a wait, but eventually the food came and it was very good.

Next stop, the Arcades for Thomas and Ray, and shopping for the rest of us.  The town has a great variety of shops, even the big banks are still there.  There are also most of the big chains.  We found what we were looking for, after a long search, and a few other things were purchased, 'because we were there'.  We met in the arcade, where the streams of tickets were being gathered, and the last games played.  The queue for prizes was long, and mostly consisted of small, indecisive children and their disorganised parents.  We went along to the East Lift, to experience some Victorian engineering.  Thomas was worried about the speed at which it would come down.  I explained the mechanism, and he was then relaxed and happy.

Here are Thomas and his parents standing in front of the view from the top of East Cliff, just in the country park. Once down at almost sea level again, we visited a couple of museums, both free and relying on donations.  The Fishermen's museum, with a fishing boat inside and an explanation of the 3-story tall black garden sheds - they are for making nets and are unique to Hastings.

The second museum was all about ship wrecks.  Yes, it had at least part of a recovered wrecked ship.  The next important stop was at the ice cream booth opposite, where we learnt that he really had to open, because the summer had been so poor.  This was his battle.

Our final event was crazy golf.  This is a Jo and Thomas 'thing'.  We chose the pirate course, and I, as usual, was right at the bottom of the scoresheet.  Jo took over for me as I went to buy more parking time.  I did better on my return, and with her 2 hole help.  I also scored the 'extra hole' to win a free round, which we didn't collect as it was too late to go round again.

Half Term Escape 4 - cut off from civilisation

Today, the road works begin.  I walked out of the drive to see what was happening.  According to yesterday's signs, the road is closed.  That means no way out of the house in either direction.  We would be marooned. They are repairing the road edge, goodness knows why, it is nowhere near as bad as a lot of the local roads we have driven on.   There was a trench down the side of the road 30-40cm wide, and about the same depth.  There were loads of lorries and road carving equipment, and may be a dozen men standing around.  They promised to let us out and back in again.

With our new-found freedom, we visited the Observatory Science Centre at Herstmonceaux Castle.  I had never heard of it, but it is the most amazing place, and ideally suited to primary age children.  The video shows Thomas turning a giant ball of rock, this is made possible by the carefully constructed stand that it is in and the power of water under pressure.  The whole place is covered with experiments and demonstrations, almost all are interactive.  There were also two presentations, one on the telescopes and another on astronauts.

Thomas showed off his knowledge to the astronomer presenter, who was hugely impressed with his knowledge.

If you decide to visit, and you should, even if you don't have a primary school aged child to bring, the on;y thing to be aware of is the general lack of facilities.  The toilets are small and hodden away, the café is tiny and the burger bar just a caravan.  The choices are therefore limited and the service is slow.

Despite these drawbacks, I had a wonderful time, and so did everyone else.

Half Term Escape 3 - Bad Choices

Today we visited the Bluebell Railway.  We arrived at Sheffield Park station in plenty of time for our train and had a wonder around the yard. Our engine today is number 80151.  We are in a third class carriage, in a single 12-seat compartment.  Although it has been refurbished, the seat is almost completely unpadded, making the 40-minute ride less than comfortable.  There are two stops and a tunnel before we get to East Grinstead.  Almost as soon as the door is shut behind us, I notice that there is no handle on the inside.  So, to open the door, you must lower the window and use the outside handle.  The lights are switched on before we enter the tunnel, they are very dim. As we go in and our eyes adjust, all we can see is the blackened brickwork of the tunnel walls.  The ride through the tunnel is bumpier than the ride we have had so far, which makes the walls just that bit more threatening.

We arrive safely in East Grinstead, having played eye-spy for a lot of the journey to keep the grandchild entertained.  We make our way into town looking for somewhere to eat.   As we walk along a path that is below the road level, we pass a box of Bonios (dog biscuits) and Thomas falls over as he turns to look at them.  He is not really hurt, so we continue on our way.  We find the shopping mall and a place called
Carlo café bar.  Lunch beckons.  Inside there are games to be played, and scrabble is chosen.  This proves rather challenging for the six-year-old, and also for me, as my first set of letters contains no vowels, and it is the fourth time round before I can place even one of them!  Never have I lost so badly. 

I suspect the games help to cover up the slow service.  When the food arrives it is hot, but not everything is delivered, one thing because they are out of it and another because it is forgotten.  No one is enthusiastic about their food, but it fills a hole.  They are apparently part of a chain that uses different names for all their café bars.   We won't be going back.

I had read several very poor reviews of the Bluebell Railway, talking about grumpy, disinterested staff.  None of that for us, all the staff were pleasant and helpful.  Especially the lady in the buffet at East Grinstead - we were her only customer.

Back to Sheffield Park, in a different, more upholstered carriage, it was a more pleasant journey.  A quick (sadly) visit to the museum, and it is closing time, so we leave for the house.

Half Term Escape 2 - Cold Water

Rising reasonably early, we got ready quite slowly.  I decided on a bath, even though I had been offered use of the downstairs shower.  The water was just hot enough, but there was nowhere near enough for a proper bath.  

Never mind, the microwave worked, and Liz mastered the arger quickly enough.  So a cooked breakfast for most, but the usual porridge for me - maybe tomorrow.

Then a packed lunch was made, and we headed to Blackberry Farm Park, to see the animals, and meet one of Liz's friends who lives locally.  They have a good selection of farm animals, various breeds of pigs, sheep, goats, chickens, and a couple of cows. There were also donkeys, alpacas, and llamas.  Most of the animals are conditioned to come to the fence for food, which is sold at the entrance. The children's play areas, including soft play, are extensive and varied. We played skittles with Thomas, and raced pedal go-karts round a track.  There is a tractor ride and a 'land train' of sorts, that looks like fun, but Thomas was not prepared to try it.

Lunch was eaten in the café, so the packed lunch became packed tea.  The food was simple, but nicely presented and well cooked.

On our return to the house, we relaxed, ate our packed lunch and later watched the USA F1 GP, on my laptop - during which we broke out the new cheese board, a present from Liz and Ray for our 40th anniversary, and tried the various cheeses.

Very enjoyable, and quite fattening.

Half Term Escape 1 - Misfortune

I didn't read the email correctly, or perhaps at all. So, when I was asked whether I'd contacted our host, I was surprised. That was Friday, we travelled today, Saturday.  But, it's OK, because Thomas has a party to go to, and we can't get into the house until 16:00.  I phoned about 9am, to find that a mobile connection was almost impossible, he said he'd phone back in two hours, which he did.  The connection was better, but still poor, and there was a lot to communicate.  We got there, with pen and paper and lots of 'please repeat that'.

Liz and I agreed to meet in Royal Tunbridge Wells, so that we could shop for food for the week.  We set out on the 1-hour and15-minute journey with nearly 40 minutes to spare.  The M25 near the bridge took care of about 15 of our contingency minutes.  The Google Maps diverted us to go down the A22 instead of the A21.  As we arrived at the A22 junction, it tried to send us back up the motorway, presumably to go down the A21. Liz went down the A21 and arrived 15 minutes ahead of us, we were about 10 minutes late.  

In RTW, we walked across town to 'The Cheese shop' and bought a selection of cheeses to eat during the week, and to christen the cheese board she had bought us for our 40th wedding anniversary. We get quite wet getting there, and wetter still going back, so stopped for a coffee.  While there, I took a call from our host, giving me a new number to call on if there were problems. He had suffered another misfortune.  The reception on this call was great!

Leaving RTW we headed south to Lidl to do the food shopping.  There was a beer festival and steam train at the station, but we couldn't stop as we had a table booked for 18:30, and our ETA at the house was now 18:00.

On arrival all the instruction we received had worked well, and we found the place without problem, we were all ready for a meal and a rest when we finally arrived at the Merrie Harriers.  The food was very good.

On returning to the house we found a number of flies in our bedroom, mostly dead, but there were more live ones the following morning.

The house looks great, and is very spacious, but in some ways not hugely practical.  Our bedroom is upstairs, there is no shower, only a bath.  More of that tomorrow.

Hunstanton

Friday

For our 40th Wedding Anniversary, we spent a long weekend in Hunstanton, on the North Norfolk coast.  The journey up to Norfolk was relatively uneventful, although we did stop at possible the worst designed service we have ever stopped at. FourWentWays is on the A11, south of Cambridge.  There is a lovely big roundabout, off which there is a tiny entrance, the road narrows as it goes through what appears to be a pedestrian area into a higgledy-piggledy car park that was partly flooded.  We snacked at Greggs, not a good choice, but perhaps the only option.  The toilets were awful, nowhere near large enough for the numbers passing through.

Arriving in Hunstanton in the early afternoon, we parked up by the theatre because we had promised not to arrive before 3pm. At the Princess theatre, we dropped in at the booking office and in front of a poster with the words "SOLD OUT" emblazoned across it for tonight's performance, I asked "You wouldn't have anything for tonight would you?"  We had interrupted him, he was just processing a cancellation.  If you don't ask - you don't get! 

We booked for the following night as well.

A quick sandwich and cup of tea in the 'cash only' sandwich shop meant we were fuelled up and ready for the rest of the day. We then drove to "Rosamaly" to book in and chose our room - "The Honeymoon", with a four-poster bed and very pink.  There was little space in the room, but plenty of storage under the bed.  We went to investigate the town.  It is a planned town and benefits from not having grown up randomly over many years.   

That evening we ate at Henry's, who claim to be the third-best Fish and Chips in the country.  They are good, but third best? - maybe, not.  The theatre is just around the corner, so on to see Gilbert O'Sullivan.  A very enjoyable evening and a good chat with the remaining 4 of the party of 6, whose cancellation we had benefitted from.  I remembered more of his songs than I expected to.

Saturday

After a lovely breakfast, we drove a little way up the road to Titchwell Marsh RSPB reserve and spent most of the day looking for birds.  Here's my list:

Canada geese
Mallard. m+f
Blue tit
Chaffinch
Common gull
Moorhen
Coot
Avocet
Brown bird, long pinkish straight beak, tip is black, white underneath - black tailed godwit
Brown mottled duck, black beak
Lapwing
Sandwich Tern
Pink footed goose
Great white egret

 

We had lunch at the reserve, but it was fairly basic, and not too good.  Following some ice cream, we left the reserve mid-afternoon and returned to the B&B.  There we ate salads that we had bought earlier in the day and got ready for our second theatre trip.  Marty Wilde also put on a good show, with lots of well known rock and roll songs.  But the mood in the theatre was quieter - the audience that bit older, so no tearing up seats and partying.

Sunday

Another lovely breakfast and an Anniversary card from our host made breakfast that bit more special.  Afterwards we walked up to the lighthouse and a little along Hunstanton beach.  The cliffs are amazing.

We got so far and then had to turn back to get to our Sunday Lunch at Legge Cafe.  On the way, we read the plaques about St. Edmund and the Wolf.  There was a classic Morris Minor show on the green in aid of the Air Ambulance. How these now ancient cars are kept is such good condition amazes me.

This one looks very like my second car, and is also an ex-police car.  However, they did a better job on this one, there is no dent in the roof where the blue light was removed.

Lunch was excellent.  There was a lot of banter between the regular customers and the owner.  You can tell a restaurant is good when it has regulars that return again and again.  Now very, very full, we walked around the parks and greens of Hunstanton for a while.  The town is well-kept.

There is not much to do in the evening.  We tried the other fish and chip shop because there was a choice of that of Pizza, nothing else was open.  It was not so good.  Then we went and had a game of bowls at the 10-pin alley.

Monday

Our last breakfast with Bob and Sandy, after which we headed to Ely and visited the Cathedral.  Deciding not to take an octagon tower tour as we were not feeling fit enough. Still, we wandered round and appreciated the architecture.  The place was full of school visits.  We had a very good sandwich, and a free cake (because of the wait) at "Marmalade and Jam" for lunch and wandered along the canal, getting ice cream from the historic ice cream van.  Ely is a lovely city.

We made our way home, but the warm weather and a full stomach meant I needed a break to wake myself up a bit, so we stopped in Saffron Walden for a cuppa.

A very enjoyable weekend.

 

 

 

Norsey Wood Tree Identification Walk

These are my notes from today's Tree Identification walk.

Ash - one of the trees I recognise, it was covered before I got started

Hazel - one of the trees I recognise, it was covered before I got started

Oak (sessile), acorn has no stork, leaf has a stork. straight trunk
Oak (English) acorn stork, leaf no stalk

Field maple, paired leaves, Ridge branches, palm like leaves oldest at Downham church (St Marys)
Sycamore (maple family) red stork

- black spots{tar spots} fungus
- dormice feed on it honeydew aphids

Sweet chestnut (bought here by the Romans?) alternate leaf

- coppiced - useful timber. Fissures are stretch marks. Pale blotches are lichen.
- pollarding - cutting above ground

Broom prefers acidic soil (in pea family) root nodules fix nitrogen

Gorse (which we didn't see) has spines

Birch heart shaped leaf, uneven teeth, catkin tree males long, female tiny flower

- hermaphrodite
- pioneer tree - quick to colonise

Hawthorn lobed leaf variable - single seeded. 1 stigma

- rose family
- bark platelets flake off

Midland hawthorn (which we didn't see) - ancient woodland - berry is 2 seeded. 2 stigma

Laburnum elder rose

Laburnum wayfaring tree

Blackthorn - spines but less on older trees - sloes

Spindle tree pink flowers, orange berries. Very poisonous. Lichens grow on branches

Elder leaf smell, flowers and fruits - insects & starlings Wart on stem (20ft tall) jelly ear fungus golden yellow

Holly, less spiny as it gets older

Fungus russula, the red is washed out by the rain

Hornbeam dropping branches, similar to beech, rough, serrated, curled, raised pronounced vein. Hairs in axel point veins meet stem, bracts with seeds - finches squirrels, dormice
-bark smooth very dense timber, used for cogs in flour mills

Common Buckthorn food plant for brimstone butterfly
Leaves in small groups

Goat willow    Early sulphur yellow catkins, Fissured trunk with starbursts
Leaves - rough upper, wavy edge, greyish underneath, oval, almost round
brittle twigs

Aspen (poplar) succouring young heart shaped, goes circular
Flattened stalk of leaf - leaf trembles

Cherry (wild) very serrated, leaves in clusters (rosette), gnarly stork, grooved stalk. Black glands near leaf bottom Bark grey rings around trunk

Rowan (mountain ash) 7–8 pairs of serrated leaflets. Flat head of white flowers

Darters dragon fly

Four days visiting the Jurassic coast

Monday

We travelled around the M25, down the M3, the A303, and some lesser known roads. We ended up in Weymouth, in the early evening, only slightly later than estimated.  One room for the three of us, with 4 beds, a microwave, fridge/freezer, and a larger than normal sink.  The accommodation, 'The Florian' is OK, especially considering it was booked fairly late.

Our eldest grandson is with us, this is his holiday more than ours, so we give him as much choice as possible.  He chooses fish and chips and eating on the beach.  The first fish and chip place has already run out.  This is after all the warmest, driest day for some time, but we soon find somewhere else.  We eat on the beach, then walk the length of the beach looking for fossils, but not knowing the best places or techniques we find nothing.  We return, eating ice cream on the way, in time for the fireworks. It is an 8-minute spectacular display from a barge in the bay.  We all wonder how all the 'dead' fireworks affect the marine life.

------------

Tuesday

Evidence of Ammonites

The day starts with breakfast, prepared in the room.  The provided selection is not great, but we have some of our own food too, so we make do, and everyone is ready to travel in plenty of time.  This is the high light of the trip and the excitement is building.  We drive for about 45 minutes to Charmouth, where the parking machine makes things difficult, but I managed to get a ticket at the third attempt.  Later, as we prepare for the guided tour from the Heritage Centre, there is a long queue of frustrated people at the machine.

The centre staff are wonderful and take us to a good site.  They also provide instruction and guidance, and will evaluate any rock, or piece of Victorian rubbish they are shown.  We spend a lot of time searching, fingers in the sand, moving rocks, occasionally breaking rocks.  We have a great time.  When the 'tour' time is up, there is a little get-together to see what's been found, then we are allowed to do our own thing.  We keep searching for another 45 minutes before the tide forces us to return to the centre.

We have lunch at the café, then we walk up the hill to the east of Charmouth, on the coast path in the direction of Stanton St. Gabriel.  It's a long climb for us oldies, and Jo stops part way.  I continue to try to keep up for a bit, but am defeated easily by the youngster.  After a rest, I make it to the top, and the views are worth the pain.  On the way up, he has a conversation with his family.

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Wednesday

The chosen activity for Wednesday was fishing, but I couldn't find any boats with spaces, other than ones that had 40+ spaces available.  So, we settled for some visits to museums in Dorchester - The Terracotta warriors (disappointing) and The Tutankhamen exhibition (quite good).  When it was time for lunch, he chose a little tearoom.  I thought it looked good for the 60+ age range, not the 10ish age range. It turned out to be an inspired choice.  Not only did they prepare the sandwich he asked for, which was not on the menu, but they were to appear on TV that evening.

Returning from Dorchester, we visited Nothe fort.  The organisation was brilliant - this is how to do heritage sites.  A guide explained all there was and suggested a route around it.  We were soon running up steps and down slopes, and into and out of the innumerable little rooms with different displays about how the fort worked at different times.  There is even a 'ghost passage' - a must for a 10-year-old. 

Back at 'The Florian', I asked, "What do you want for tea?" I had said we'd like to find a country pub that was a bit more upmarket for our last evening.  The answer "Chicken nuggets".  The question and answer exposed a hole in the internet.  Looking a pub menu and looking specifically for the children's menu is a nightmare. I must have visited 30+ sites before I found one that also had a table available.  So, off we went for an 18:45 booking, to a little village near Dorchester.  The food was good, but the service was slow, and there was the constant pressure of viewing a TV program to see what the tearoom was like on the TV.  

Back again at 'The Florian', the TV has only a few channels, and none of the +1's.  So we got the laptop out and played around for a while until we found out how to stream the program. It was worth doing.

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Thursday

 

Up early, and all packed and ready to go slightly before the scheduled departure time, we had a short chat with our host, and set out for phase 1 of our journey home.  We arrived at Stonehenge just as it was starting to get busy.  This is an expensive attraction.  When I first visited, dad stopped the car at the side of the road, and we walked across a field.  We could touch and climb on the stones, we were the only ones there.  I think that's why it has such meaning for me - a very special place.  Now it's protected, the car park is a mile or more from the site and buses are provided to get you there.  It's still a special place, especially for our 10-year-old, who loves to draw it.  He took loads of pictures, with the aim of improving his sketches.

Alabama 2023 - July 17

It's hot and humid today, despite the high cloud cover making it quite grey.  The nail polish has been out and was fun for a while (not for me, that smell is awful). There is not much to do in the heat, so after a brief spell of shopping, we return home.  That's our second visit to Pet care, where small rodents and both fresh and saltwater fish are on sale.  The children love that store, and enjoy looking at the fish, the crustaceans and the rodents (who are mostly hiding).  I can't imagine a shop like it in England.

On return home, we have ordered a new phone for Jo, who has had charging problems for a while, but worse since we got here.  Only easyfundraising.org.uk had some problems, so we won't get anything for this purchase. I tried a local attachment to VPN, a UK attachment to VPN, and nothing at all, but it just sat there waiting for some weird site, and didn't connect. Everything else worked OK.

Here's the URL that doesn't work https://www.kqzyfj.com/click-1612532-13359509?sid=166824431&context=loyalty

Alabama 2023 - July 16 - Sunday, but not Sunday

Sunday here is not like Sunday at home. Firstly, there are apparently no trading restrictions. Secondly, there is no church to attend, but church still dominates the pattern of the day.  We rushed to get lunch before the church crowds finished their services and swamped the restaurants.  Thankfully, the queues were short. 

In the afternoon we went to get 'snow cones', crushed ice with a flavoured sauce dribbled over it.  Then played with the children until dinner time.  Robert had cooked steak for Jo, and Catfish for me.  Both were very good.

In the evening, we walked Maiev to the courtyard house and back, about a mile.  There were fire flies in the little piece of woodland where the rain water drains away, toads on the side of the road, and bats flying around the tops of the trees.  It was still uncomfortably hot.

Alabama 2023 - July 15 - Quiet

The day started watching the Ladies final at Wimbledon.  It was a quiet day, spending time together, and playing with the children.

Albama 2023 - July 14 - Sad News

We had some bad news - Jo's mum passed away, and news reached us in the early morning, just after midnight.  We were, understandably, up late. The day started with watching Wimbledon.  A lot of the time was spent talking about our families and their history - what we could remember.  Robert showed us his grandfather's rifle with the presumed Japanese writing on it. It is a historic object and cannot be fired.  We were unsuccessful in our translation attempts.

Alabama 2023 - July 13 - The long road home

There is one primary objective for today, get the Suburban back to the rental company on time.   The secondary objective is to have breakfast at The Ugly Diner.  To achieve both of these we require an early start, so we are packed as much as possible, the night before, ready to leave at 6:30.  In the morning from 6 am, the house is a hive of activity, and everything is set the way it needs to be for check out.  The car is loaded, even the children are ready.  We leave on-time, we arrive at the restaurant at 7:03.  Breakfast is ordered, and eaten.  The whole experience is as good as the other day.

Then there is a 270-mile journey out of Gulf Shores, back to Auburn.  For a while we are in commuter traffic, but once on the Interstate it is a straight forward journey.  We arrive back in Auburn in time to unload and return the car to its rightful owners.

The rest of the day is quiet.  We have Culvers, fish and chips (for Jo and I) for our evening meal, and set ourselves to watch Ted Lasso, in a 'mini-binge' we get through a good part of series 1.

Alabama 2023 - July 12 - Once more to the beach

To start the day, we went to The Ugly Diner for brunch.  Its nearest equivalent in the UK is a high street café.  Whatever it is, it is also the best restaurant we have visited.  There are only a few tables, a long one down the middle is the best for us, it is unoccupied, so we are sat straight down.  The drinks are chosen and delivered promptly, as is the food.  This is the first place where the food is really hot when it arrives.

The weather is not good, there are storms moving across the top of the gulf, and we are occasionally engulfed.  It's not a day for beach activities, at least not yet.  So we visit the state park, on the way we stopped to look at some flowers that we had noticed and discussed on two or three trips up and down that road.  They are Swamp Rose Mallow, and in today's overcast, and rainy conditions they are closed up and not at all impressive.  When open, they are beautiful.

Heading to the state park, we come to Peter's Ice Cream and Donuts (English: doughnuts). It is just a few minutes after lunch, so although we go in and order, the children are not very hungry, so do not eat all their ice cream.  It is a nice little place, I'm surprised how many people visit.

Later, at the State park visitor centre we see all sorts of wildlife, mostly stuffed for display, but a number of wild birds that have been rescued following some injury that has left them unable to fend for themselves.  There is also a random tortoise wandering around.

Then on to a supermarket to buy supplies to make sandwiches to eat on the beach.  When we get to the beach, there is very light rain falling, with dark clouds threatening more.  "This is the most English beach experience I've had here" our host says.  In England, though, the temperature would not be in the upper 20's.

We sit on the beach, sometimes visiting the water and watch the wildlife.  A large pod of dolphin pass us, quite a distance from shore, but so lovely to see.  There are pelicans, terns, and black-headed gulls.   There is also a bird that looks like a hawk, seemingly catching things in mid-air, over the sea.  We can't work out what it was.

Madelyn like to be buried

Crab collection, first bucket full

Later in the evening, after the sun had set, we get torches and head along the sand to catch crabs.  The crabs are very nimble, there is a technique for catching them that takes some mastering.  Once in the net, the baby ones can be transferred to the bucket by hand, but don't try it with the larger ones because nip.  It was good to see the children running across the beach, chasing crabs, sometimes losing them down a hole, sometimes losing them in the sea, and mostly catching them and transferring them to the bucket.  When they are first put in the bucket, they are 'mad', but usually calm down in a few minutes.  They were all released back into the sea before we returned to the car.

Alabama 2023 - July 11 - In the water

There was a shark experience on the pier at 10am, it was a bit of a rush to get there in time, but we made it.   The presentation, I think, was aimed at children, but the university students seemed unable to avoid all the long words, the technical names for parts of the shark, or its reproductive methods.  It was interesting for me, and the exhibits - partial skeletons (mainly jaws), and live rays (barbs removed) was interesting for the children. The tank is fairly shallow, and one had escaped a couple of days before.

We spent about an hour before moving on to brunch at Ruby Slipper.  The restaurant had a long wait. The waitress, seemed to be pre-occupied with something, and was not that attentive. The food is mainly omelettes, and was nice enough, but also seemed to take a long while to arrive.  Neither of the waits was timed, but spent with the grandchildren, who are not particularly impatient, so, if they are getting active, we have been waiting too long. The portions in America, at least in this area, are smaller than I remember them, which is probably a good thing.  The prices are also higher, which isn't.

We then drove to Fort Morgan, arriving in the heat of the day.  It was a relief to get into the museum.  The fort was originally built to defend against the British.  It has a chequered history, being re-fortified in times of conflict, and all but abandoned soon after.  WWII saw the most spectacular abandonment, when in 1946 (a year after the war ended) it was handed to the state as a historical site.  On top of the fortifications, there are great views of the oil rigs in the gulf.  If you think of these as ships, it is easy to see how useful the fort was.  Inside the massive buildings, with their high vaulted ceilings, the temperature is more comfortable, and you can begin to see how people survived the searing heat. That is, until you see the dress uniforms in the museum - thick material, tightly buttoned and high necked.

The picture shows us walking through the tunnels, they provide a fantastic echo, and led to a lot of shouting.

There were lots of dragon flies at the fort, I took a picture of one, if you look carefully, you should be able to make out the wings.

After driving back from the fort, and taking a short break, we headed to the Crab Trap Restaurant for an early tea.  The plan was to eat, then go back to the pier and spend some time on the beach, but a storm was threatening.  We were initially told there was a 30-minute wait, at the end of 30 minutes, we were told we could eat outside, or wait another 30 minutes. We decided to eat outside, under cover. 

So, after eating, we went on the beach immediately behind the restaurant, and enjoyed an hour (maybe), on the beach, in the water.  The water is warm, but still requires some acclimatisation.  I enjoyed it much more than I expected to.

A darkness fell, we left the beach and travelled to an amusement arcade, the children loved it, but for me those places are simply a waste of money.  However, the occasional wins are a good life-lesson, I suppose.

Alabama 2023 - July 10 - Deeper South

Alabama is part of the deep south, although it is in the Northern Hemisphere, and North America.  Today we headed further south, and ultimately ended up with quite a long drive through Florida. I have some preconceived ideas about Florida, and as we crossed the state line I was surprised to see how run down  'back-woods' America, it really was.  After about 4.5 hours of travelling in the hired Suburban (7-seats, and colossal, but just what we need), we reached our destination - the A-frame house, or the triangle house, as the children call it. It's on Innerarity Point Road.  It is a unique place, I have never seen anything like it before.  Inside it is well furnished, but there are some odd things - there is no kettle, for starters.

Before our long drive, we collected lunch from Wendy's, and ate in the car, as the journey started.

In the evening we ate at Sunset Grille, a lovely restaurant on the waterfront, there was a slight delay as the outside tables were closed because of the weather, when it rains here, it really rains. There are rivers running down the sides of the roads in seconds.  Most of the food was good when we got it, and the waitress was superb.
 

We went to the Pier in Gulf State Park.  We saw a blue heron, which didn't look very happy and may have had something caught around one of its legs, pelicans (which Madelyn has decided are really Albatrosses), and watched as a family caught a catfish.

Finally, we watched the sunset, then home to bed.

Alabama 2023 - July 9 - Land of Lego (2)

We completed the Lego build today, well I say we, I mean Robbie, who did at least 95% of it. As with all kits, there were a few mistakes, and a few places where the instructions were not entirely clear. Robbie had measured the time taken on his tablet.  The build total time for all sessions, excluding breaks, was 4:31:48.83. Jo and Madelyn completed theirs yesterday, and did not time themselves.  The picture below was taken by Madelyn.

Later we went to Buc-ee's, it's new(ish) to Auburn. For those who haven't seen one, it's a Gas (Petrol) station.  As with all such places, there's a shop attached, the difference here is that the shop is enormous and stocks almost everything you can think of.  Why would you suddenly need to buy a large gas barbecue on your way across America?  Well, you can get one, and all the things that go with it.  But it doesn't have everything, the cowboy hats come in many sizes, but not mine, how sad.  The place was heaving, I think it has become a local tourist attraction in its own right - definitely an experience.

After that it was nail painting time, my turn will come tomorrow, I think.

Alabama 2023 - July 8 - Playground

We completed another bag of Lego today, perhaps the smallest bag of the kit, tomorrow we will tackle bags 6 (2 bags), 7 and 8.

In the early evening, we played with Mave and watched the birds flitting between the two dead trees just beyond the fence.  Like all 5-year-old dogs, she has calmed down a lot.  She clearly remembered me, but I'm not so sure if she remembered Jo, last time she saw Jo was a long time ago.

Opposite Robbie's school, there is an accessible play area for children, it is a remarkable place, undoubtedly the best play area I have ever seen.  We visited in the evening, once the heat of the day had gone, today has been wet so not as oppressive as other days.  There are climbing frames, percussion instruments, monkey bars, slides, swings and a whole load more, including a zip wire.  It was there last year, and while there are signs of wear and tear, the accessible zip line is closed, some patches of the rubber floor have lifted, and some are worn, there is no sign of vandalism.  The children had a great time, and so did the adults (well, this one anyway).  There is lots of shaded seating too, but unusually for America, not a huge amount of car parking.

We were speculating on its cost, I guessed at about $1,000,000.  I was way off, the actual cost, a matter of public record, was closer to $4,000,000.

Alabama 2023 - 7 July - Land of Lego (1)

To distinguish the subject from the theme park is important for me, as I wouldn't want you to mistake what I'm talking about.  The main activity today was to purchase and start to build Lego kits.  Robbie bought the Chamber of Secrets (76389), and Madelyn bought Friends Hair Salon (41743).  Robbie's was budget busting, but we rarely visit, and it was clear this was the only one he wanted.

I've blogged about children and Lego before, the other grandchild who builds Lego, sorts and plans before the start of the build.  This grandchild likes to jump right in, so the first few pages have been done before I can collect my thoughts, let alone some bricks.  There are 8 bags in the kit, we did 4 today, for a total build time of about 1 hour 58 minutes.  There were several breaks for picture taking to track the activity.

Early progress

Early Progress

Robbie enjoyed taking pictures as much as the build I think, after we stopped building, he continued to take pictures for a while, not just of the Lego, but he started to make a story with a small dinosaur. 

In the afternoon / evening, Robert and Karen's friends came over.  We have met Erica and the boys before, but this was the first time we had met Kwasi.  Robert and Karen prepared another excellent meal for us (salmon cooked in the smoker, chocolate brownie) we had a good time chatting and eating together.

Alabama 2023 - 6 July - Anything from anywhere?

 

Having an old phone that is nearing the end of its life, the original picture I took of this banner was not on my phone when I came to record my first blog of the holiday.  When we arrived at the airport exit, we were met by Karen, her phone already in a call to Robert and the children.  So we got an instant hello. On arrival at the house, we were ushered in quickly to two very happy grandchildren holding the banner. A precious moment, that needs recording, but the recording happens as a memory and must not become part of the event.

Today was a quiet day, the heat outside is oppressive, so we're not going anywhere.  So, you might think there is not much to do, but things at home are still going on - things that should have been completed before we left.  There is a constant stream of messages. There are websites I can't reach from the new laptop, but can from my phone, which makes it much harder to see what is happening.

It is not true that I can do anything from anywhere, I need to be local, move cables around, and reconfigure routers, which means restarting them.  So all that is delayed until I return.  Meanwhile, we play with the children, chat with the adults, a little, and watch Wimbledon.  It's fun, with an underlying dose of frustration.  Perhaps it was better when I didn't know?

We also have technology problems here, Jo's phone has decided not to charge from the charger I bought with me, but it does seem to work with one of the chargers here.