Tuesday 5 March and Wednesday 6 March 2024

On Tuesday we drove to Padstow mainly because Rick Stein comes from there and we wanted to have a look at his restaurants, maybe have lunch. However, having previously dined at his restaurant Bannisters in Mollymook, on the NSW mid coast and been fairly unimpressed, we decided on a pasty, a pint and a glass of water, before heading to Plymouth. Padstow though, was a pretty little fishing town.

We had booked the Drake Hotel in Plymouth, a beautifully renovated, boutique hotel within walking distance to the Theatre Royal Plymouth. Laura Jane’s eldest son Sebastian was one of the principal actors/puppeteers in the ‘Life of Pi’ play and it was opening night in Plymouth.

We met Laura Jane at the theatre, as Sebastian had secured seats in the dress circle in what was almost a packed house. The play featured actors animating models of life sized animals similar to ‘War Horse.’ The lighting and sets were amazing and the play fantastic. We met Sebastian after the performance and the fans of his were trying to get to him, whispering, ‘That’s him! You sure? Yes, he was the tiger’s head.’

After the nerve wracking drive to Padstow using the GPS and all the ‘B’ roads, we decided to plan the remainder of our car travel, regardless of the time taken, using the A and M roads, or in our parlance, ‘roads bigger than goat tracks and mostly Freeways.’

Our trip back to Westhumble on Wednesday morning was completed in two legs of two hours, with a stop for coffee and some gourmet supplies mid way, using A and M roads in glorious sunshine. Flashy never wants to drive or be a passenger, on a B road again where possible.

Arrived back at our country estate in time to light the fire and make the gins.

3 metre hedges both sides, almost wide enough for a small car. How'd you like to meet the local farmer in his tractor?
Ah, now a real road. Still great hedges but wide enough for two small cars. A bit problematic when you  meet the local school bus or a bloody great semi.
Blurry shot of Plymouth
Fine waterfront buildings in Plymouth
The great man himself. Sir Francis Drake, saviour of England, scourge of the Spanish, successful pirate and once Mayor of Plymouth.


Comments

  1. Anonymous10 March 2024 at 00:08

    Just wondering, have our intrepid travellers been kidnapped by gypsies, fallen down an old Cornish tin mine or exploded from a surfeit of Cornish pasties and clotted cream? Graeme

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
  Sunday 24 and Monday 25 November 2024 A big couple of travel days on the train from Nice to Paris which was a comfortable six hours on the TGV. Our Paris station, Gare de Lyon was a taxi ride to our overnight two star hotel within walking distance of Gare de Nord, because we are departing there on the Eurostar to London tomorrow.  This was another good train trip at just under 300 kph and 2.5 hours. Alyssa was waiting for us at St Pancras and we had a long and lovely lunch in Searcys Brasserie and Champagne Bar, a very nice and well presented restaurant within the station. Very reasonable bill at the end – until you realise it’s in pounds! The train to London Bridge, then to Marden in Kent was seamless and Johnny collected us for the 20 minute drive to Kilndown, where we will be house sitting with Truffle the naughty dog for a couple of weeks. It has been interesting to reflect on the various train journeys we have taken throughout Italy and France. One of the great advant...
Read more
Image
  Thursday 14 November 2024 We found a wonderful little café today for breakfast with the locals. The cruise ship Americans with the little bloke with the flag on the stick – he gets around, eh? They went elsewhere. Excellent cappuccino, cannolo and ham and cheese roll.  Then a painful hobble around the outside walls of San Gimignano ended with a coffee and the purchase of a shirt in the local market. By this time, it was almost lunch and our mate Kevin, from La Chaine des Rotisseurs in Cairns, now living half the year in Florence, arrived to collect us.  We are now back in three layers and puffer jackets because despite the clear blue sky, the temperature is in single figures and the wind and shadows are, how shall I put this?   Very bloody cold! Lunch was at Bottega Torciano, a 10 minute drive down the road. It specialises in Florentine steak. That is a 1.5 kg T-bone, cooked rare. We shared this and had some healthy grilled vegetables and potatoes – about three...
Read more
Image
  Thursday 7 November 2024 365 days since we departed Cairns today. It seems like a fast year over four seasons. Today was also another warm, sunny day. I’m not sure what this will mean for the coming European summer, with the floods and such. Plus, what will the Trump win mean? Today we caught the train to Pompeii to do a guided tour of Pompeii and Herculaneum with an archaeologist guide. Very scientific of us. Not just a guide, but a real archaeologist! There were 20 in the group, mostly Americans. And the cruise ship mob were there as well – mostly Americans too. Our guide was, according to Lady P, a bit of a hunk. He also spoke heavily accented English ten to the dozen, which meant you got brain strain trying to pay attention to the excellent content he was delivering. Nonetheless, the Pompeii tour was excellent – again without the summer crowds. A break for lunch before the bus to Herculaneum. Both cities were covered in 15 metres of volcanic ash and mud, killing all l...
Read more