Last Weekend

I'm a bit late writing about our outing last weekend but I just don't know where the time's going at the moment. Well I do, I'm trying to help Eleanor out as much as I can at the moment, she's still got a few weeks to go before her due date but she looks ready to pop at any minute, and she's still working. Just over a week to go now until she takes some annual leave before her maternity leave kicks in.

Anyway, back to last weekend, both Eleanor and Jacob were working on the Saturday so we had Jack for the day. It didn't rain but it was a bit damp. It didn't stop us from taking him to the park, though it did stop him from going down the slide as it was wet. He managed a good amount of time on the swings and he loved throwing the conkers we'd taken with us into the stream from the bridge above. They landed with a very satisfying splash!

On Sunday we decided to pay Haworth a visit. Home to the Brontë sisters, the above photo shows the Parsonage where they lived.

It was Remembrance Sunday so we decided to pop into the church, it was very quiet as the service was being held at the War Memorial.

The inscription on the pillar shows where the Brontë family vault is situated. Anne is buried in Scarborough where she spent her final days.

It was a misty day as you can see looking out into the distance in the photo above. The road we usually take into Haworth was closed so the sat nav brought us in a different way, over the moors, and the fog was so thick we could barely see beyond the front of the car. Then all of a sudden we were through the fog and it was completely clear. A strange experience.

We usually visit Haworth a few times each year, it's a lovely place to have a mooch, but we'd come this time especially to pick up a few Christmas gifts at the Cabinet of Curiosities. This was once an apothecary where Branwell Brontë bought laudanum and other drugs. It's now the most beautiful shop selling bath powders, soaps, candles and gifts.

The windows are always dressed for the seasons.

We had a wander up and down the cobbled Main Street. It's lined with gorgeous independent shops and pretty cottages. I loved the poppy display in this window.

Some of the cottages on this street are available for rent, I can't think of a more charming place to stay.

We spent a couple of hours in Haworth before popping into Knitters Paradise at Coldspring Mill in Cullingworth, which is a couple of miles away. It's such a brilliant wool shop, so much choice. Unfortunately, I went with something in mind which they didn't have and so I came away empty handed, which I'm pleased about as I'm trying not to make unplanned purchases where yarn is concerned. We then moved onto Robertshaw's Farm Shop where, along with picking up a few yummy treats, we visited the animal barn. Meet Georgie, isn't he gorgeous.

Our next stop was Bingley Five Rise Locks. 

The five interconnected locks are part of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal. It's amazing to see them in use, though no boats were passing through them on this occasion.

It's a lovely place to take a walk. I like to see all the boats moored at the side of the canal, I always look for their names, some are traditional, others are funny and make me smile.

We didn't walk too far. I'm struggling a bit at the moment with what I believe to be plantar fasciitis, I've got so much pain in my heel when I walk.

There's a wonderful cafe here and by now, I was ready for a cup of tea.

Of course, you can't have a cup of tea, or coffee, without a sweet treat. I went for a Bakewell slice and Mick opted for the chocolate mocha cake.

We're still getting some crisp autumn days and it's nice to get out and make the most of them before winter arrives. Unfortunately, I've got some shopping to do tomorrow which is not how I enjoy spending my weekends but needs must!

Mick's 60th - November

I've been arranging monthly surprises for Mick throughout the year as it was his 60th birthday in August. November's surprise was the very first thing I booked, way back last year, before he'd had his 59th birthday. Yes, that's how long some of these surprises have been in the planning.

We both love going to the theatre to see musicals and Six, the modern retelling of the lives of Henry VIII's wives, is one we hadn't yet seen, though we've both been wanting to see it. I grabbed some tickets as soon as they were available to buy hoping Mick wouldn't see it advertised as it would have taken some explaining why I didn't want him to purchase tickets for us. As it happened, he did eventually see that it was touring and coming to Leeds, but by then the tickets had all gone. 

We went to see it on Tuesday, it was opening night, and Eleanor and Jacob came with us. We cut it fine arriving at the theatre with minutes to spare as the main road into the city centre was closed and anyone who knows Leeds will know the chaos that ensues when this happens. The roads were gridlocked and though we set off in good time, we only just made it.

It was well worth it though, we all thoroughly enjoyed it and had a great time. Each woman tells her own story, and just as each of the wives of Henry VIII were very different, so were the songs each one sang. It was funny in parts and poignant too, but a real feel-good show.

Before going to the theatre we went for a meal at Nando's. Can you believe that this is the very first time that Mick and I have eaten here. Eleanor had been working so we didn't have a lot of time to linger over food before the show but it was okay, we enjoyed it and we'd definitely go again.

This surprise was a bit different in that Eleanor and Jacob came with us. I had asked Daniel and Jasmine if they'd like to come too but they're not really into musical theatre so they declined and looked after Jack instead. We all had a wonderful evening.

Mick's 60th - October

As it was Mick's 60th birthday back in August I've been arranging little surprises throughout the year to celebrate the occasion. I'd been hoping to organise something each month and so far so good, although the surprise this month had to be changed.

Storm Boelo hit Yorkshire last weekend and along with the devastation it caused in it's wake, it left my plans in tatters. It was too late to sort something else out for the weekend, though we didn't really want to leave the house anyway with the storm raging, and unfortunately, I couldn't move what I'd arranged to another day so I had to think of something else fast as the end of the month was approaching. We're also rather busy this week with one thing or another but Mick managed to move some work engagements to other days and took yesterday off. Meanwhile, I started wracking my brains as to something fun I could book at short notice and came up with The Crystal Maze Experience.

You may remember this television programme from the 90s where teams had to solve a series of challenges in the Crystal Maze in order to win time for the final challenge in the Crystal Dome. Years ago, when we used to visit St Anne's for weekends away with our extended family, we always used to have a trip into Blackpool to visit the Crystal Maze attraction there, it was something we all looked forward to. It's a long time now since it was in Blackpool but since then, new Crystal Maze Experiences have sprung up in London and Manchester so I thought it would be fun to cross the Pennines and give it a go. 

We were put into a team with six other people and the whole experience lasted over an hour. It was exactly like the TV show, we had a guide who came round with us, just as Richard O'Brien did in the programme, and the maze was split into four zones: Aztec, Medieval, Industrial and Futuristic, and four task categories: Mental, Physical, Skill and Mystery.

It was brilliant fun, the theme music played as we raced from zone to zone, trying to complete the timed challenges and earn crystals. Each member of the team had a go at two challenges each, Mick won crystals on each of his, his tasks were physical and skill, I earned only one, my tasks were mystery and mental, and the team together earned eight crystals in total. I would have liked to have taken some photos inside but unfortunately this wasn't allowed.

Salford Quays is just a couple of miles from where the Crystal Maze is situated so afterwards, we drove there to take a river cruise.

The Princess Katherine took us through Salford Quays and the Manchester Ship Canal onto the River Irwell. The onboard commentary was very informative telling us about the buildings we could see and Manchester's industrial past. It was really interesting.

We've never visited Salford Quays before but it's the home of the BBC and ITV, including sets like the Coronation Street tour. The Imperial War Museum North is here, along with The Lowry Theatre and Quayside Media City, leisure, shopping, restaurants and bars. It's definitely somewhere we'd like to visit again as we just didn't get to explore it all as the time we had was limited.

Mick had to be home for a prior engagement but in the evening, we went for a pizza at a fabulous restaurant within walking distance of our home. They serve authentic Neapolitan pizza made by chefs from Naples. It was a good job I'd made a booking as the only vacant table when we arrived was ours, a testament to how good the food is here. We'd never been to this particular restaurant before but we shall definitely go again. Having recently visited Italy we can say that the food was as good as anything we'd had there. It was a lovely way to round off the day, and though my plans for October changed at short notice, we had a thoroughly enjoyable day.

Happy News

I've got some very happy news to share, I'm going to be a granny again.

Eleanor and Jacob are having another baby and Jack is going to be a big brother. Of course, as soon as I heard the news I pressed my knitting needles into action. They're not finding out what they're having, they want it to be a surprise just as it was with Jack, which means I either knit neutral colours or I knit double, one for a boy and one for a girl. I'm sure the one which isn't used will come in somewhere down the line. I just loved the Toadstools Romper by Julie Taylor which I made for Jack, this time I've changed the embroidery on the pink one from toadstools to daisies. Julie Taylor also has a Daisy Cardigan pattern so I've taken this flower design from there.

I envisage a very busy Christmas this year as the new baby is due Christmas week, how exciting is that. We can't wait to welcome another little one into the family.

Our Sorrento Holiday

In my last post, Mick's 60th - September, I told you about our visit to Pompeii. That was on the Monday. On the Wednesday we visited the island of Capri.

Again, we made our own way there catching a ferry from the port in Sorrento. We'd caught the first shuttle bus from the hotel at 9am but in hindsight, we should have caught an earlier ferry than we did because Capri was packed and there was so much queueing. It's a beautiful island though.

The first thing we did when we got there was take a bus from the port up to Anacapri, the mountainside town on the west of the island. The buses were supposed to be every ten minutes but we waited ages in the queue until we finally got to the front and onto a bus. The roads are not for the faint hearted, twisty turny and barely wide enough for two vehicles.

From Anacapri we took the Monte Solaro Chair Lift to the highest point on Capri. Again, a very long queue. I'm not a lover of heights but the chair lift isn't too high from the ground, passing over gardens, vineyards and lemon groves, and takes about twelve minutes each way. The views are amazing.

The chair lift takes you to the highest point on the island where you can take in 360 degree views looking out over the Faraglioni Rocks, the Gulf of Naples and Mount Vesuvius. There's also a restaurant. We came back down on the chair lift before exploring a little of Anacapri and having a meal in a lovely restaurant there. Afterwards we got a bus back to the port, yes, another long queue. We would have liked to have explored Capri Town on the eastern side of the island but we just didn't have time after all the queueing. I think the secret to Capri is to arrive early to avoid the queues.

The Friday was our favourite day, we climbed Mount Vesuvius. We took a train to Pompeii and then a bus which takes you to the upper parking area at 3280 feet. Vesuvius stands at about 4203 feet so you have just under a thousand feet to climb. This photo was taken from the bus before our ascent.

There's a steep gravel path from the car park which takes you to the crater rim. It's a bit of a cardio workout but there were a couple of children doing it, and some oldies. For me, the hardest part was coming down again, goodness, my knees were complaining.

It's so worth it though, it was quite emotional reaching the rim, especially after visiting Pompeii and knowing the devastation that this volcano wreaked in the past and will again some time in the future. It last erupted in 1944 during WWII destroying nearby villages.

The views from the summit over the Bay of Naples are amazing.

Looking down into the crater. How amazing is that, to be able to look down into an active volcano, it takes my breath away just thinking about that.

Of course, visiting Pompeii on the Monday and climbing Vesuvius on the Friday all tied in and we looked out from the third station, the final resting and turnaround point, and somewhere down there is Pompeii.

We raised our glasses of wine and thought about the volatile forces of nature and those who have succumbed.

In between our excursions we spent some time in Sorrento. Again, we didn't get to see everything we wanted to, there's so much more to explore if we return. We loved Sorrento, such a pretty city, a scenic cliffside resort, bustling with tourists.

I just loved the historic stone alleyways where you could pick up souvenirs or sit at a pavement cafe for a drink or something to eat.

The architecture of these alleyways feature limestone and lava stone arranged in a grid formation characteristic with the ancient Greek-Roman world.

We ate wonderful meals, pasta in restaurants overlooking the Bay of Naples whilst watching the sunset.

Pizza at alleyway restaurants. Actually, this was a wonderful place to eat, fabulous food and attentive staff. The evening of our visit to Vesuvius, a perfect day from morning till night.

Desserts a plenty. We shared this Torta Caprese, chocolate and almond flourless cake. It was scrummy. 

We ate more than our fair share of gelato. Of course, Sorrento is famous for lemons and the lemon flavour gelato from Sorrento is something else. Mick was sampling the tiramisu flavour here but he concurred with me that lemon is best.

We had such a wonderful week and we may return to the area at some point in the future, there's just so much to do there, you could never get bored.

Mick's 60th - September

I'm arranging monthly surprises for Mick right the way through 2026 as it was his 60th birthday in August. I'm a little late in telling you about his September surprise as it actually ran over into October.

I knew that Mick had been wanting to visit Pompeii so I thought it would be a nice surprise to arrange a holiday to nearby Sorrento. This is one surprise which Mick knew about in advance as I wanted him to have the enjoyment of looking forward to the trip. I did keep it a secret until his birthday, I'd wrapped up a guidebook which I gave him to open and that's when I told him we were going to Sorrento. We flew out from Manchester on the 27th of September for a week.

I'd been tracking the weather and it was in the high 30s through August. I chose the time of year for our visit based on the predicted temperature, I knew it would be no fun at all exploring Pompeii in the extreme heat. As it was, it was still in the high 20s when we visited, still quite hot but I'd booked a hotel where we could relax in between our excursions.

We stayed just outside Sorrento in Sant'Agnello, a quiet clifftop town overlooking the Gulf of Naples. It was close enough to walk into Sorrento but the hotel provided a good shuttle bus service which ran at various times throughout the day. It was very handy. The train station was just a short walk away so this was handy for exploring further afield.

There was a lift to take you down to the small public beach but we ventured down the ramps and stairs, winding our way through the tunnels cut into the cliffs, and used the lift to take us back up again.

We arrived last Sunday and, wasting no time, set off to visit Pompeii on the Monday. We didn't book any organised trips on our holiday, we just used public transport hopping on and off trains and buses as required and it was so easy.

I can't begin to tell you how vast Pompeii is and how much there is to see there. I was speaking to someone who had visited three times and each time they choose a different part to explore. That would definitely be the best way to do it if you knew you were going to return, but as we only had the one day we did as much as we could but only really touched the surface. The one thing we did notice was how Vesuvius looms over Pompeii, it must have been terrifying for the people when they realised it was erupting.

The city of Pompeii was buried under nearly twenty feet of ash, pumice and pyroclastic flows when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79AD. It wasn't rediscovered until 1748 and it's remarkable how well the buildings have been preserved.

An invention of modern times being viewed through the skylight of Casa degli Amanti, or House of the Lovers.

The Teatro Piccolo, or Small Theatre. Holding 1300 to 1500 spectators I wouldn't exactly call it small but there's a large theatre too, the people of Pompeii certainly enjoyed their leisure activities.

The Amphitheatre of Pompeii was the most impressive building of all for me. It measures 135m long and 104m wide and was built to host around 20,000 people.

Inside, the amphitheatre is just as striking. It was poignant standing there thinking of the gladiators who fought and died there.

And the tunnels through which the gladiators were led into the arena. 

There's lots of artwork to see in Pompeii, this on the wall of one of the brothels. Yes, there were brothels in Pompeii, quite a lot in fact.

But I think the thing people think about most when they visit Pompeii are the people who died in the disaster. When hot ash and pumice buried the city, it completely encased the victims. The bodies completely decomposed over many years and what was left behind were cavities inside the hardened ash which mirrored their final shapes. In 1863, an archaeologist invented a method in which to pour liquid plaster into the cavities and once hardened the surrounding ash was chipped away to reveal the final shapes of the victims.

It's heart wrenching to see how people were trying to protect themselves. Most of the victims died from breathing in a dense, choking cloud of hot ash and poisonous gases, others died from thermal shock from the high temperature pyroclastic flows and others were crushed inside buildings or hit from falling masonry or killed from earthquakes which were happening at the same time as the eruption.

The saddest of all are the casts of the children.

The excavations at Pompeii are still active. About 15% to 33% of the city is still buried so work to uncover more will continue for many years.

I think I'll leave it there for now and I shall tell you about the rest of our holiday in my next post.

Pompeii is somewhere Mick's wanted to go for a long time and it didn't disappoint, there's just a taster in this post. We spent the whole day there and we could go again and spend another whole day seeing things we haven't already seen, it's huge, but so very interesting.