February, all wrapped up...

Seeing as I only managed one update on here during February I guess I'd better try and bring things up to date a little!

The best part of the month, by a huge margin, was spending a week at Center Parcs. We’ve been countless times before but I still love it just as much as ever. The food, the drink, the wildlife, the messing about in the swimming pools, the water slides, everything. And also just being able to relax and do absolutely nothing too! Being able to spend the week with very good friends was the icing on the cake - thank you, Mark, Sheila, Adam, Charlie and Ben! When can we go back? Highlights, for me, included...

Monday, our evening meal was in Huck’s, the American themed restaurant. Here, I was able to sample my first ever “Pat’s style” Philly Cheese Steak. This combination of shaved roast beef, sautéed mushrooms and onions on garlic bread covered with melted cheese is something that my American friends have raved to me about for years but I’ve never seen it on a menu over here, until now. I think it’s fair to say that it may not be the healthiest thing to eat on a regular basis but it was well worth the wait and I loved it! The ice cream that I shared with Lynda went down rather well too!

Cheese Steak.

Ice cream - for two!

On Tuesday Mark and I took ourselves off to the spa for 3 hours of chill-out time. Perhaps “chill” isn’t the best word to use when describing the spa as the steam rooms have temperatures that are just about hot enough to cook your Christmas Pudding in! The effect is certainly relaxing though and I’d recommend it to anyone.

Our evening meal on Tuesday was in the Italian restaurant and was equally as enjoyable as the one the previous night. Pizza was the most popular choice with our group, closely followed by pasta. I chose Risotto, just to be different. Lynda & I also shared an excellent bottle of wine, which certainly helped lighten the mood - it was very, very good! Ben, in true Ben style, provided the entertainment. All he needed was a spoon.

Ben and his magic spoon.

Wednesday started off rather more energetically - Mark, Sheila and I went for a run before breakfast! Now that is something I don’t tend to do when on holiday I can tell you! We only covered a distance of around 2½ miles but it was enough to make my legs burn for the rest of the day and part of the following one too. I may cycle a lot but I use a totally different group of muscles for that, apparently!

Chaffinch.

Greylag Geese.

Mute Swan.

The rest of the day was much more relaxing. We spent time watching the local wildlife coming for food we had put out, we went swimming, and we sat in the warmth of the swimming dome reading and listening to our MP3 players. Life was good in there. Outside, it was very cold and snowing. The evening was then spent in the on-site pub where, once again, we all ate and drank plenty. Somehow, whilst waiting for our food to arrive, we found ourselves taking part in our own mini music quiz. I’ve still not quite worked out how it happened but we certainly dragged up some strange songs/artists between us! Nena - “99 Red Balloons”! Splodgenessabounds - “Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps Please”! Hmm, maybe I’ll stop there!

Thursday saw a more gentle start to the day. Breakfast in one of the restaurants, a gentle stroll around the forest and village paths and then a game of ten-pin bowling. I enjoyed the game very much, even though I played terribly and finished with a score of 118 - somewhat short of the 180/190 games I used to play years ago. It was still great fun though. The lighting in the bowling area was a little different to your run-of-the-mill alley as well!

The bowling alley.

We didn’t have an evening meal as such on Thursday but instead chose to spend time, after dark, in the swimming dome. The place takes on a totally different feel once the sun goes down and the subtle, coloured, lighting comes on. Food wasn’t missed out on though and we made good use of the fast food available inside the dome. A quick stop off at the on-site supermarket, on the way back to the villa, allowed me to pick up some extra supper to go with the cold beers that we had waiting in the fridge. Well, when you’re on holiday you have to eat and drink at every opportunity, don’t you?

An evening by the pool.

Friday was the final day of our break and once again we returned to the swimming dome, before Lynda and I spent a very relaxing afternoon at the spa. In the evening, before heading for home, we enjoyed another great meal in Huck’s - I had the Cheese Steak again, Lynda finished the holiday off with a cocktail!

Lynda with her cocktail.

As a result of our holiday, the weather and also work, I’ve not been out birding at all since the end of January. No new birds have been added to the “10-Mile List” but I have picked up a few species for the year outside of the area. A brief trip to Hampshire gave me views of a Red Kite as we drove along the A34 near Oxford.

At Center Parcs I did manage to keep an eye out for birds around our villa and also spent an hour or so in the wildlife hide. By the end of the week I’d recorded a total of 40 species. New birds for the year were Egyptian Goose and Siskin. All being well, I should be able to get back to my local birding again this coming weekend.

So, that just about wraps things up - apart from the cycling. That will be updated in the next day or two with (for me) some exciting news and photos! Safe to say, I’m feeling like a little kid at Christmas and have a grin from ear to ear!

Center Parcs, again...

After a well-earned extra hour in bed last Monday, Lynda and I packed our bags and headed off to Center Parcs, Sherwood Forest. The plan was to have a relaxing few days of doing nothing at all. I’d expected to be in no fit state to do much after my BHF cycle ride but, as it turned out, I had very little in the way of side effects other than a bit of stiffness in my knees. Rubbing Aloe Vera heat cream into my knees soon sorted them out, so we were fit to go.

The village square.

We arrived at C.P. at just after 10:00AM and had a steady walk around to check on anything that may have been new since our last visit. Nothing much changes other than a couple of the food outlets have undergone a name change and a new take-away food shop has opened. It felt good to be back in the familiar surroundings of Sherwood Forest again after visiting other parks in recent years. A leisurely stroll gave us a chance to find our villa too - a nice woodland location but a little too far from any water for us to get many waterfowl visiting us to be fed.

Villa 310 - our home for the week.

After brunch, in Café Rouge, we walked up to the wildlife centre and wildlife hide. I guess we must have spent a good couple of hours here just watching the birds come and go at the feeding stations. Most of the common woodland species were noted with the highlights being Sparrowhawk, three Great Spotted Woodpecker, Goldcrest, Nuthatch, Goldfinch and also Siskin. Large numbers of Coal Tit were constantly making visits to the feeders and, as we set off back to the village square, a single Grey Wagtail put in a brief appearance on the Country Club roof. Monday evening was spent in the villa, with the TV and a few drinks.

Tuesday started with breakfast in Café Rouge. We were on holiday so there was no point of even thinking of breakfast in the villa, let someone else do the cooking. Breakfast for me at Center Parcs usually means just one thing, a full English. I now have a new favourite... Eggs Benedict! Lynda had the Eggs Benedict when we arrived on Monday and said how nice it was, after having the same on Tuesday I have to agree. As well as tasting great they would have been better for me than the full cooked breakfast too!

Café Rouge.

The main part of Tuesday was then spent in the swimming dome. We swam, we went down the water rapids, and I went down the water slides. Lynda turned chicken, once again, and refused to go down the slides. On the very rare occasions that she will go on the slides, she screams - such a girl! If Lynda had dared to go down the big slide than I guarantee she would have screamed this time. The slide now has a lot more unlit sections and felt as though it was even faster than it used to be. All good fun!

The swimming dome, at night.

After working up a fair old appetite we chose to eat in Strada, the Italian themed restaurant. Lynda enjoyed a very nice, and rather large, pizza whilst I had a bowl of Risotto that can only be described as gorgeous. The bottle of red wine that we had added the finishing touch to a great meal - even if it was a little strong for 6 o’clock in the evening! I hadn’t realised just how good the wine was until the waitress brought our desserts to the table. When she asked who had ordered the “Panettone Al Forno” she was met with blank looks from Lynda and I. “Bread And Butter Pudding?”, she asked. That I did understand and I managed to confirm that it was, indeed, mine! The walk back to the villa helped to clear our heads, a little.

Wednesday started, once again, in Café Rouge. Again, I had the Eggs Benedict and again it was delicious. Lynda chose the continental way to start the day and opted for a basket of pastries with butter and jams. We then took a stroll around the lake to work off a few calories before heading to the Sports Bar for late morning coffees. It’s hard work being on holiday! The coffees were also a good way of washing down the rather large cookies we enjoyed there too.

A view over the main lake.

Our evening meal on Wednesday was enjoyed out in the rain, stood on the lakeside beach, with hundreds of other people. It was the night Center Parcs had their Guy Fawkes Night fireworks display. Thankfully, the rain wasn’t very heavy so it didn’t spoil the evening. Lynda went for typical bonfire night food and had a hot dog, with two sausages in it. I “made do” with Sweat and Sour Chicken with rice and prawn crackers! All good stuff on a cold, wet November evening.

We skipped breakfast on Thursday, yes you did read that right, and instead had brunch in the Pancake House. It’s not very often that we go to Center Parcs and don’t have pancakes, this time we had two each! I had a breakfast pancake to start with that had eggs, bacon, mushroom and tomato topped with baked beans. Lynda made light work of a ham and pineapple pancake. I followed on by having a traditional pancake for dessert - just the pancake with lemon juice and sugar. Lynda satisfied her sweet tooth with Fruits of the Forrest Crumble, on a pancake of course!

The Pancake House, viewed across the main lake.

After that little lot we didn’t feel like doing anything too energetic so we settled for a walk around the lake and then headed back to the villa. The rest of the afternoon was spent sat in front of the TV and also watching the wildlife that visited our little part of the forest in search of food. The birds were friendly enough and would happily feed close to us.

Two Pheasants come for food.

One of the squirrels was a little too friendly and insisted on helping himself to the food, straight from the bag!

The squirrel helping itself.

To make sure our calorie count didn’t fall too low we topped up our food intake at the Indian restaurant on Thursday evening and once again it was a very nice meal. We started off by sharing poppadoms and pickles before moving on to our main courses. I’m not an expert on Indian food by a long way, but I do know that I like a good Chicken Jalfrezi - it was on the menu so I stuck with what I know! Lynda took the cooler option of a Vegetable Korma. Being the gentleman that I am I did offer Lynda a small taste of my meal; her face said it all, it was way too spicy for her taste! That’ll teach her to pinch my food.

All too soon it was Friday and the last day of our little holiday. After breakfast, once again in Café Rouge, we headed off into the swimming dome for one last time. We swam, we messed about on the water rapids and we went on the water flume. As per normal, Lynda screamed halfway down the water flume and that only made me rock the inflatable rubber raft even more as we sped along. I didn’t quite manage to tip her out of the raft, but it was close!

One of the water slides, at night.

The last three hours of our week at Center Parcs were spent in Aqua Sana, the on site spa complex. Lynda and I have used Aqua Sana a number of times now and we still enjoy it just as much as we did on our first visit. Spending time in the spa pool and the various steam rooms was the perfect end to a great week, even though I did emerge from the spa smelling of all the different aromas that were used!

Don't worry - we'll be back soon!

A week in Hampshire...

Doesn’t time fly when you’re having fun! Lynda and I spent last week (Tuesday to Sunday) visiting her aunt and uncle, down in Hampshire, and we had a great time. The journey down was nice and easy and took us just under 2½ hours. Tuesday afternoon and evening was spent catching up on news both here at home and down in Andover.

On Wednesday, I was able to get out and do some birding for the first time in a number of weeks thanks to the local knowledge of Lynda’s aunt and uncle; they took us to a new, to me, birding site, Blashford Lakes near Ringwood. We spent almost three hours at the reserve and recorded 38 species. Birds seen included Great Crested Grebe, Little Egret, Wigeon, Teal, Pochard, Buzzard, Green Sandpiper, Kingfisher, Great Spotted Woodpecker and a flock of around 40 Siskin. After a very enjoyable morning at Blashford Lakes we drove just around the corner to The Alice Lisle pub for lunch. The morning had been good; a good pub lunch is always more than acceptable!

Blashford Lakes.

Little Egret.

The Alice Lisle Inn.

After lunch we took a drive down to Bournemouth, to see the sea. I can report that the sea was there, as was the beach. For some reason no one was swimming in the sea though - that may have had something to do with the rather cool temperature! The sea was very calm, the sky a rather nice shade of blue but it was far from warm out on the pier. Fingers crossed, it will be a lot warmer when we visit again next spring with the Derby RSPB Group.

Bournemouth beach.

Thursday saw the four of us out and about in the countryside again, this time for a 5½ mile walk with the Andover U3A walking group. We started off at the Deane Gate Inn and completed a circular walk taking in the lanes and footpaths around the villages of Deane and Oakley. The walk took us just under 2½ hours and after changing out of muddy walking boots (some of the tracks were a little waterlogged!) we then enjoyed our second pub lunch in 24hrs! Being off work can be tough at times!

Autumn trees near Oakley.

Oakley church.

Deane Gate Inn.

On Friday I spent the morning reading whilst Lynda, her aunt and uncle went shopping. By the time they returned I had finished my book, which I had only just started reading. This came as a bit of a surprise to Lynda as I’m not the fastest of readers! I can often pick up a book, read for just a few minutes and then put it down again. Seeing me without a book to read prompted Lynda’s uncle to look out a few novels he had finished with - I now have more than a dozen Patricia Cornwell books to read. Cornwell is one of my favourite authors at the moment but I think it’s going to take me a while to get through this little lot!

Most of Saturday was spent visiting another of Lynda’s aunts and uncles, this time in the picturesque village of Wildhern. The morning was spent catching up on what had been happening in the world, over a cup of coffee, before having ploughman's lunch. We were treated to a delicious home grown salad, fresh bread, cheeses, jam and a glass of cider. The food was all organically grown and it tasted all the better for it. I did have to earn my lunch here though... Lynda’s uncle had a pumpkin in the garden that needed bringing inside before the frosts arrived and asked if I could carry it in for him. “Not a problem, I’ll do that”. Once the pumpkin was inside, and eventually balanced on the scales, we found that it weighed in at just over 77 lbs! I needed my lunch after that!

Saturday evening saw us at the theatre - not something you hear me say too often! Don’t worry, I haven’t developed a liking for opera or anything like that, we went to see Gyles Brandreth. The show is best described as “An Evening With Gyles Brandreth”; the author, broadcaster, actor and former MP delivered a non-stop talk that covered such a wide range of subjects it would be hard to list them all here. One thing I will say is that it was a very funny evening. At times, some may have found him to be a little close to the knuckle with his comments and views but he was certainly entertaining.

After an extra hour in bed on Sunday, due to the clocks going back an hour, it was time to start and think about heading for home. After such a relaxing week it was a bit of a wrench to pack the car and face the motorways again. The journey home was made just a little easier by the thought that we only have one week back at work before Lynda and I have another break, this time at Center Parcs! Roll on next week!

Spa day...

I want a Japanese Salt Steam Bath here at home! Heated seats and walls, a room temperature of 45°c (113°f) and humidity between 90 and 100%. This was, once again, my favourite “treatment” at the Nottingham Aqua Sana Spa. The other spa rooms are all very good too but, for me, they don’t quite match the Japanese salt.

We arrived at Center Parcs at just before 9:00AM, managed to park right opposite the entrance to the spa and checked in at reception. After a brief and very friendly explanation of our day over a cup of coffee from one of the staff, we headed off into the spa. Some 5 hours later we re-emerged, feeling very much relaxed and, a little disturbing for me, smelling of a wonderful mix of the aromas used in the various steam rooms! Lemon, Camomile, Sage, Rosemary and Eucalyptus are all used at some point. I may suggest a new spa room... the Whisky Steam Bath!

Lunch in the Conservatory Café- included in the price - was very tasty, and healthy too. Lynda had a Jacket Potato with a Coriander Chicken Salad; I had a potato with a Rice & Mushroom Salad. We then undid all the good of the first course by having dessert - Carrot Cake for Lynda, Lemon Drizzle Cake for me! Well, too much healthy food in one day isn’t good for you, is it?

After lunch we spent a while sat outside on the balcony of the spa, wrapped in two huge great big fluffy blankets to keep warm! I can imagine this to be a great spot to be on a snowy winter’s evening. Having let our lunch go down a little we returned to the spa rooms for another hour or so before heading off into the main village.

As the weather wasn’t too good, lots of heavy rain showers, we didn’t spend too much time looking around the village square but there have been one or two changes since we last visited back in October 2006. Starbucks now have a coffee shop there, the Country Club is now a “contemporary gastro pub” (their words, not mine!) and a couple of new shops have opened. Other than that it’s business as usual.

The swimming dome is much the same... we both came back with bruises from the water slides and rapids so things can’t have changed too much! One small step forward was that Lynda managed to go down both the Raft Ride and one of the water slides without screaming! Now that is progress!

Having enjoyed around 3 hours in the pool area we headed back out into the village again. We walked to the far end of the park and had a drink in the gastro pub before returning to Luciano’s, the Italian restaurant. Once again, nothing much changes here; the food was great, the service spot on. The Nottingham Center Parcs is still the best as far as we are concerned. The staff are always great, the swimming dome is, we reckon, the best and the park layout is superb.

At just after 10:00PM we decided it was time to make tracks for home. By 11:30PM we were tucked up in day, relaxed and very happy. This morning we didn’t drag ourselves out of bed until after 11:00AM so, I guess, it must have been a tiring day out too! Roll on November when we return to Sherwood Forest!

IT'S THE WEEKEND!!!

Yeah, that’s right... it’s the weekend! Lynda and I have now finished work for the week and have a three-day weekend to look forward to.

The week so far...

I’ve managed to use the bike to get to and from work for three days, today I had to take the car so that I could get petrol for the weekend. The weather has been cold and wet at times but the only time it caught me out was on the journey home on Tuesday. The rain had stopped by the time I left work but, foolishly, I chose the long, riverside, route home so that I could get an extra bit of a “workout” and also do a little birding at the same time. In the end all I managed to do was get myself, my clothes and my bike caked in mud! It was fun ploughing through all the puddles though! Sorry for all the extra washing Lynda!

The birding-by-bike hasn’t turned up anything too surprising over the past few days with only Monday evening turning up anything of note... 2 Great Crested Grebe on the river in Alvaston Park; 2 Greylag in a field between the river and the Alvaston by-pass; a Great Spotted Woodpecker drumming in the grounds of Elvaston Castle; numerous Sand Martin (tricky getting a count when cycling!); 5 Chiffchaff along the river path and a single Blackcap in Alvaston Park.

So, onto the weekend. In a little under 12 hours Lynda and I will be in the Aqua Sana Spa at Center Parcs, Nottingham, and we can’t wait! We’ll spend the morning in the spa, have lunch in the Conservatory Café and then, if it isn’t raining, we’ll have a quick look around the village to see what’s new. The rest of the afternoon will be spent messing around in the swimming dome. In the evening we’ll replace all the energy used up on the water slides and rapids by having a meal in one of the restaurants on site.

At some point over the weekend I’d like to get out and do a few hours birding but, if the weather isn’t too good, I may well just have two days of doing very little apart from chilling out. This weekend will be all about unwinding before what looks like being an even more stressful week at work next week - but that’s another story!