Posted by
Sille Bliss
I love when we travel to new places in our area, places that we drive through and near almost every day but always miss by going a different route. I always feel excited like I did when we went to Exmouth and Portland today.
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| Poole to Exmouth 2hr drive |
Technically I've never been down to Exmouth but we drive past it on the motorway all the time. So it was pretty cool to go down and see it. It's about 20 minutes from the motorway and from there you drive through an 'area of natural beauty'. You see these 'Area of Natural Beauty' locations all over the map in England and they really area what they say, especially with the sun peeking through the trees.
Drive to Exmouth on the B3180 near Woodbury
Exmouth is in Devon, right at the border of Dorset and right on the coast, but instead of going down towards the sea like I usually do, I decided to take a walk in the town where everyone seemed to be at this time of the morning. People doing their shopping like always but also enjoying the sun that was out.
Drive to Exmouth on the B3180 near Woodbury
Exmouth is in Devon, right at the border of Dorset and right on the coast, but instead of going down towards the sea like I usually do, I decided to take a walk in the town where everyone seemed to be at this time of the morning. People doing their shopping like always but also enjoying the sun that was out.
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| Exmouth, Devon. England. 2016.02.16 |
It was very cold out but the sun was shining which made it a bit more bearable and being able to have a real reason to use sunglasses was nice too... oppose to only using it to hide my sleepy eyes.
After leaving, we headed back towards home but to Portland Isle. Throughout usual route on the motorway but also another new route a way we have never gone before... exciting! :)
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| Exmouth to Portland |
The new route we went through was from Bridport, West Bay area along the coast via the 'scenic route'. The sign said so itself and again they were right. I have always passed this 'scenic route' sign but we always continue through the motorway and go towards Dorchester anyway to get home. This route takes you out of the way if you aren't heading towards Weymouth or Portland, but this time we were. Photos and videos do not do this view justice... it's a must see in person to really see the beauty, but I took them anyway! :)
I took another video of our route up to Portland.. it's a bit long and boring but if you still want to see then by all means....
I'm trying to do more videos this year, and maybe even get to the point of talking in them and such but for now it's basically stuff here and there.
While in Portland before heading home we made a short detour the opposite direction towards Southwell, to a view point on the cliffs over Freshwater Bay. It was even more cold now than it was in the morning because the sun was going down. We didn't last long up there!
I took another video of our route up to Portland.. it's a bit long and boring but if you still want to see then by all means....
I'm trying to do more videos this year, and maybe even get to the point of talking in them and such but for now it's basically stuff here and there.
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| Portland, Dorset. England. 2016.02.16 |
While in Portland before heading home we made a short detour the opposite direction towards Southwell, to a view point on the cliffs over Freshwater Bay. It was even more cold now than it was in the morning because the sun was going down. We didn't last long up there!
Posted by
Sille Bliss
It had been awhile since we had a cream tea and after searching Groupon for a bit one day, I found this awesome deal for afternoon tea for two. Oh yeah! Last time we had afternoon tea was on my birthday 2014! So we were definitely due for some.
It was at this cool pink posh looking hotel in Bournemouth called The Norfolk and the cream tea was divine.
There was so much, we tried our hardest to finish it all but at the end we had about 4 full pieces of cakes left that we decided to take one bite of each cake then left the rest. It was some good stuff!
Finding that groupon deal reminded me that I have to go back on there from time to time to find stuff like this on there. It was a great price!
The last week of January we headed out to the Isle of Wight. It's been a little while since we've been so it was nice to hop back on the ferry and head out there for the day. This time we came in through the Lymington to Yarmouth side. It's much shorter to get there since it's at the tip of both ends and we don't have to sail through the long ol' canal in Southampton where we usually get on from. This route is much nicer towards Lymington, and even from where we get off in Yarmouth on the IOW is a nice little route. There is less traffic and more nice scenery both ways. And since we live so much closer to Lymington, I don't see why we'd go to Southampton anyway to catch it.
It was a gloomy day with grey skies, even some rain but the water and views are still beautiful no matter what the weather is like.
It was at this cool pink posh looking hotel in Bournemouth called The Norfolk and the cream tea was divine.
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| The Norfolk Hotel 2016.01.15 |
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| Afternoon Tea for Two Lovers! |
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| One Serious / One Silly |
The last week of January we headed out to the Isle of Wight. It's been a little while since we've been so it was nice to hop back on the ferry and head out there for the day. This time we came in through the Lymington to Yarmouth side. It's much shorter to get there since it's at the tip of both ends and we don't have to sail through the long ol' canal in Southampton where we usually get on from. This route is much nicer towards Lymington, and even from where we get off in Yarmouth on the IOW is a nice little route. There is less traffic and more nice scenery both ways. And since we live so much closer to Lymington, I don't see why we'd go to Southampton anyway to catch it.
It was a gloomy day with grey skies, even some rain but the water and views are still beautiful no matter what the weather is like.
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| Lymington Harbour from Ferry 2016.01.22 |
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| Driving along the coast from Yarmouth to Cowes on the IOW |
The appointment was in Cowes a few miles from Yarmouth. It's usually very busy here in the summer along the esplanade, but during this time of the year with this weather, it was a ghost town.
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| Along the Esplanade. Cowes, IOW 2016.01.22 |
I didn't go out much since it was a drizzling day, so I spent most of my time the car keeping busy. When it wasn't raining I was hanging at the benches facing the channel, but that never lasted too long. It was cold and windy there by the sea, it was much warmer and cozy in the car. Since it was a Friday, we decided to stay the night over and come back the next morning. The next day was just as gloomy as the day before. It was still nice to have a nice cozy romantic night away :)
Oddly enough, two weeks later we were back at the Isle of Wight again.... we've never done visits this close, but as always I was ready. This time the weather wasn't so bad. Still cold yes and still windy as ever but no rain, yah! We were also back in Cowes...
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| Yarmouth Castle - back view |
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| Yarmouth |
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| Lymington Harbour from Ferry on the way back 2016.01.23 |
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| 2016.02.05 |
And back in the same little area... I decided to have a walk along the esplanade... and I wasn't the only one out and about either this time.
Before going for my walk I saw the big ferry from Southampton coming by and had to take a vid of it. What caught my attention was all the alarms from the cars going off. It was quite a windy day so I guess the ferry was moving a little more than usual and had all the cars going crazy.
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| The Titanic saled past this point on 10th April 1912 on her maiden and only voyage. |
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| Cowes Castle, now The Royal Yacht Squadron |
When I got to the castle in Cowes, I found these signs on the walls pretty cool. I wonder if it was really true... guess I'll never really know. :)
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| WARNING - Starting cannon may fire at any time |
Took another short video from my walk... The view was pretty nice and relaxing.. especially the sound of that water.
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| Cowes, Isle of Wight 2016.02.05 |
So after walking around a bit I needed to pee and started looking for the loo There are public toilets everywhere in England, you don't have to look far before you find one but finding one that is clean is more hit or miss. These that I found were not called toilets like all the others, they were called 'Public Conveniences'. I found it pretty funny.
Yes they were convenient but OMG they were freaking filthy. Now usually most of the public toilets I've been to in England are pretty clean, there is always someone coming in throughout the day cleaning them but maybe the cleaners were off for the winter? Ew. Please tell me where the toilet seat is?
This was also weird to me.... who the hell would buy or rent a flat (apartment) with a balcony right across from the public toilets?? That is what this is in the photo below. It's not like you will ever have privacy so you can't open your door or even curtains if you wanted to. And wouldn't it smell? It's so low as well that I'd be scared that someone might try climbing up or something. Such a weird place for a window much less a balcony. When I was coming out of the toilets I could see straight towards the window. Strange!
After all that palava, I went back to my cozy spot in the car and waited for my Babz to get back from his appointment so we could get back home.
Yes they were convenient but OMG they were freaking filthy. Now usually most of the public toilets I've been to in England are pretty clean, there is always someone coming in throughout the day cleaning them but maybe the cleaners were off for the winter? Ew. Please tell me where the toilet seat is?
All I gotta say about that is it's a good thing I don't sit on the toilet seats. But even being close to it was gross to me... needless to say I didn't bother flushing it either (and I didn't use this toilet, I found one a little less gross).
This was also weird to me.... who the hell would buy or rent a flat (apartment) with a balcony right across from the public toilets?? That is what this is in the photo below. It's not like you will ever have privacy so you can't open your door or even curtains if you wanted to. And wouldn't it smell? It's so low as well that I'd be scared that someone might try climbing up or something. Such a weird place for a window much less a balcony. When I was coming out of the toilets I could see straight towards the window. Strange!
After all that palava, I went back to my cozy spot in the car and waited for my Babz to get back from his appointment so we could get back home.
Posted by
Sille Bliss
It's January 2016!!
It's the new year and I'm ready for more!!
Already I have a new interest in darts, who knew? I don't like to play them but I love watching it. This is even more unusual since I would think playing them would be more fun than watching... for me it's not. Babz is into his darts and watching it on the sports channel here and I hadn't really been that much interested in it. But then this world championship came on and I was only watching because he was and so I needed to know how the scoring worked so he explained that to me. Sounded pretty simple, and there I am suddenly waiting for the next competition and had my favorite players I was rooting for. So yeah, darts.... my new thing. :P
I've also started watching Downton Abbey. OH-MY-GOD! What have I been missing!?? I am loving this show! I am binge watching it and I can't stop but I know I have to or else it will finish too fast and I don't want it to. I am so glad I didn't watch it when everyone else was because having to wait a whole week for shit is just too much for me. I die when this happens for me with Game of Thrones and Walking Dead.
Babz and I saw our first movie of 2016 as well already.... The Hateful Eight. I don't consider myself a Tarantino fan at all, yet I've seen all his movies and like most of them too, a lot. But still, I don't feel like I'm a fan. Anyway, Jennifer Jason Leigh killed it. She kicked ass in this role! So there ya go.
Anyway, so we go back on the road for the new year and we are in Cornwall. Oh how I love Cornwall! I never really thought about how lucky I was to go there as often as I do until recently. Most people who live in Britain only get to visit there once a year on their summer holiday. Expats like me probably only ever visit once or a couple of times ever. And the weird thing about it is that it isn't even that far. About 2 1/2 to 3 hours from me, it's about 4 hours from London. Nothing is really too far here. Let's not forget that England fits into Texas about three times! So why everyone thinks places like this are far, I have no idea.
If you don't already know, Cornwall is a county in England. It's not the kind of counties we have in America. You can think of them more like mini states. They have their border lines and even their own flag.
We live in Dorset, literally 10 minutes outside of Bournemouth. And well, you see where Cornwall is. It's such a beautiful county. So many coves and beaches, dramatic cliffs, never ending moors, breathtaking forests... the list is never ending. There is so much to see and do there. We've probably been about a dozen times since I've been in England and we've still haven't seen and visited all the places I would like to yet.
Once we left Lostwithiel, we headed to a couple of other towns that Steve had appointments in and then we finally settled our heads after a long long day.
It's the new year and I'm ready for more!!
Already I have a new interest in darts, who knew? I don't like to play them but I love watching it. This is even more unusual since I would think playing them would be more fun than watching... for me it's not. Babz is into his darts and watching it on the sports channel here and I hadn't really been that much interested in it. But then this world championship came on and I was only watching because he was and so I needed to know how the scoring worked so he explained that to me. Sounded pretty simple, and there I am suddenly waiting for the next competition and had my favorite players I was rooting for. So yeah, darts.... my new thing. :P
I've also started watching Downton Abbey. OH-MY-GOD! What have I been missing!?? I am loving this show! I am binge watching it and I can't stop but I know I have to or else it will finish too fast and I don't want it to. I am so glad I didn't watch it when everyone else was because having to wait a whole week for shit is just too much for me. I die when this happens for me with Game of Thrones and Walking Dead.
Babz and I saw our first movie of 2016 as well already.... The Hateful Eight. I don't consider myself a Tarantino fan at all, yet I've seen all his movies and like most of them too, a lot. But still, I don't feel like I'm a fan. Anyway, Jennifer Jason Leigh killed it. She kicked ass in this role! So there ya go.
Anyway, so we go back on the road for the new year and we are in Cornwall. Oh how I love Cornwall! I never really thought about how lucky I was to go there as often as I do until recently. Most people who live in Britain only get to visit there once a year on their summer holiday. Expats like me probably only ever visit once or a couple of times ever. And the weird thing about it is that it isn't even that far. About 2 1/2 to 3 hours from me, it's about 4 hours from London. Nothing is really too far here. Let's not forget that England fits into Texas about three times! So why everyone thinks places like this are far, I have no idea.
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| England. |
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| Southwest England County Map |
We live in Dorset, literally 10 minutes outside of Bournemouth. And well, you see where Cornwall is. It's such a beautiful county. So many coves and beaches, dramatic cliffs, never ending moors, breathtaking forests... the list is never ending. There is so much to see and do there. We've probably been about a dozen times since I've been in England and we've still haven't seen and visited all the places I would like to yet.
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| Our route from Poole to Lostwithiel. Roughly 2hours/50mins. |
So we're headed out back there for a couple of days. We weren't going as far out as we had in the past but it's always a long drive especially for the time we have to leave in the morning. Thank god for the gorgeous scenery along the way!
Of course every time we go we are up and out on the road before the sun is even out. Usually we are driving for a whole hour before you start to see the sun peeking outta the sky. It didn't help that it was cold, it was very cold... even icy in some parts! But I was bundled and prepared.
Our first stop would be Lostwithiel. We came down this gorgeous little road to get into the town, I don't even know the name of it but it was about 1-2 miles of peaceful serenity!
The last time I was here was 2 years ago (blog post here) and when I came, I only visited the castle while Steve was in an appointment in the town. This time I would be in the town as well. I walked to the church that wasn't far away from where we parked. I tried to go inside but it was surprisingly locked, unless I just didn't pull the handle correctly.
I made my way to the river that was nearby I wanted to see the town's historic bridge. It was definitely old. According to the sign on the bridge the River Fowey was first bridged by the Normans, who founded Lostwithiel. "The Great Bridge of Lostwithiel" first documented in 1280, had nine arches. The foundations of the four most westerly arches are said to be under the street. The Bridge has undergone changes over the centuries and was rebuilt in the 15th century. It narrowly escaped being blown up by the Parliamentarian Army in 1644 during the English Civil War. Over time the river has changed course and the four easterly arches were added in the 18th century. Until the bypass was opened in 1939 this bridge was the main road between St Austell and Liskeard. Today it still plays a major role in the life of Lostwithiel as a central part of town activities and celebrations.
It was pretty cold out so I took a few more photos and vids and decided to head back to the warm heated seats of the car. :)
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| Somewhere near Bodmin. Cornwall, England. 2016.01.13 |
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| Cornwall Sunrise. Somewhere near Bodmin. |
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| Rise and Shine. Somewhere near Bodmin. |
Our first stop would be Lostwithiel. We came down this gorgeous little road to get into the town, I don't even know the name of it but it was about 1-2 miles of peaceful serenity!
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| Road to Lostwithiel. Cornwall, England. 2016.01.13 |
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| St Bartholomew Church. Lostwithiel. 2016.01.13 |
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| St Bartholomew Church grounds |
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| The River Fowey. Lostwithiel, Cornwall. England |
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| Lostwithiel Bridge. Cornwall, England. |
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| Lostwithiel. Cornwall, England 2016.01.13 |
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| Me ifo the River Fowey and Lostwithiel Bridge. (using this cool app I discovered) |
Once we left Lostwithiel, we headed to a couple of other towns that Steve had appointments in and then we finally settled our heads after a long long day.
