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Sherborne & Cirencester – Day Six

Bradford on Avon Canal

The breakfast experience in the hotel was a little chaotic but the food was excellent. I chose waffles with fruit compote which arrived with a spoonful of clotted cream on top. Clotted cream, or any other cream, is not what I enjoy (or expect) at breakfast, I removed it and put it to the side of the plate.

We had booked to visit the Peto Gardens, Iford Manor at mid day which left us with an hour to fill. We headed towards Brass Knocker Basin with a view to walking to Dundas Aqueduct however we ended up by another stretch of the canal  at the locks in Bradford on Avon. Apart from seeing a WWII pill box this stretch of the canal had nothing much of interest so we continued to the Peto Gardens, where before setting off to explore the garden, we had lunch on the terrace outside the newly built tea shop and restaurant. We enjoyed our lunch, in my case a cheese and red onion sandwich (lunch of the week), in glorious sunshine. The owner was there chatting to one or two people and filming a short promotional video.

Iford Manor

The garden is spectacular and whilst from my previous visit my lasting memory was the garden structures this time the flowers were equally as prominent. I was glad to have the guidebook because I lost the one from my previous visit before I had chance to read it. It explains the history, garden structures and statues. Before leaving the garden, we revisited the café for a drink, choosing a shady seat to cool off.

Pathway to Dundas Aqueduct

We still had time on our hands and were more successful in finding Brass Knocker Basin where we parked and walked along the canal to Dundas Aqueduct. I wished we could have spent more time there as there was lots to see.

Piazza Fontana

Mr C had sourced an Italian Restaurant, Piazza Fontana, for our evening meal. When we arrived we found that it had a lovely outside seating area with a Mediterranean feel to it. I chose sea bass with shrimps, lemon butter and rocket followed by affogato. The food was delicious, the service was excellent and the menu extensive so we decided to book a table for the following night, our last in Cirencester.

We then walked the short distance to The Fleece for a nightcap before retiring for the evening.

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8 Comments CherryPie on Jun 30th 2021

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Sherborne & Cirencester – Day Five

Ground Plan

After breakfast we checked out of our hotel and drove to Stourhead House & Gardens in glorious sunshine. We signed in at the National Trust reception area before heading through to the house and gardens. It was around 20 years since our previous visit and it was our first visit to the house, which contains some interesting items. After our tour of the house we entered the gardens and found its colours to be spectacular. Before continuing on our journey to Cirencester, we lunched in the National Trust Cafe where to our pleasant surprise, we found the food options more varied than we have come to expect from a National Trust tea room.

Kings Head Hotel

Outside our hotel in Cirencester we parked in the drop off area as advised by the hotel. Mr C was harassed and told to move his car, by an angry van driver that happened to arrive a few moments after us. Mr C moved to a nearby space whilst we checked in to the hotel. We were given a lovely welcome pack which included local points of interest and a walking tour of Cirencester. After unloading we moved the car to a local pay & display car park, freshened up for dinner and made our way to the hotel bar.

I ordered a dry sherry, which the bar tender, after offering cider, eventually found with the help of Mr C.  I was then asked if I would like a 125, 175 or a 250 ml glass. At this point I gave up and said don’t bother whilst thinking that if you have got the drink in your chiller so you should know how to serve it. Mr C asked how we should pay the bill (his G&T) and the young man who was serving us hadn’t got a clue.

A Room without a view

The restaurant turned out to be not quite our thing. The menu blended from starters to main courses with some options being either. We chose fishcakes which we thought would be a main course. It turned out to be starter size for Mr C and not even big enough for a main course for me with my small appetite. Although the meal was brief it was delicious. During our meal we got chatting to a couple on the table next to us and found that they had got married the Saturday before. She was struggling with her arm in a sling, having tripped up some steps and broken it on the Bank Holiday weekend just before the wedding.

Cirencester Market Place

When we had finished chatting, we stepped out of the chaos that was the hotel’s bar and dining arrangements into the calm of the street. We crossed the road to the Fleece Inn where we soaked up an enjoyable relaxing atmosphere.

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2 Comments CherryPie on Jun 28th 2021

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Sherborne & Cirencester – Day Four

Almost Deserted

After breakfast we headed to Stonehenge for which we had pre-booked tickets, arriving earlier than our ticket time but were able to go in due to the low number of visitors. I have never seen Stonehenge’s car park so quiet.

We booked in and collected our ticket to visit the stones (most of the site is open access). It was was refreshingly quiet, I put this down to no coach tours or travelers from abroad. It was a delight to be able to view the stones without large crowds. This more than made up for me not being able to visit them as part of my birthday celebrations last year.

The Cursus

The walking route has been changed since our previous visit and does not automatically take you past the Cursus. The new walk leads to a signboard that indicates several points of interest (and the amount of time needed to walk there) We chose the path to the Cursus before walking along it rather than retrace our steps.

Power Play

Whilst viewing our surroundings a school group turned up and it was lovely to hear the school teacher instructing his pupils on how to walk and behave as they walked through the field full of cows. At one point as we walked along the path near to the Cursus, two bulls were having a head-butt tussle directly across the pathway in front of us, causing us to pause until they had moved far enough away from the path so that we could continue our walk to the stones safely.

Stonehenge from the Heelstone

It was amazing to see the stones so quiet, The first time I visited from school many years ago when I didn’t really appreciate what they were or the fact that at that time I was able to stand between the stones and look up at them. The sun. was playing on the stones turning them from grey to white. Back at the visitor centre, we enjoyed a picnic lunch from the cafe, eating it outside at one of the picnic tables.

Chilling outside Sherborne Abbey

After our visit we returned to Sherborne where we spent too much money in the cookshop before enjoying a slice of Dorset Apple cake accompanied by Elderflower Presse at a pavement table outside the Three Wishes Cafe. We then enjoyed a quiet moment soaking up the atmosphere on a bench overlooking Sherborne Abbey.

Garden Room View

For our last night in Sherborne we dined in the hotel. Ben, who had been serving us during our stay, said his goodbyes as he would not be serving breakfast in the morning.

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12 Comments CherryPie on Jun 26th 2021

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Sherborne & Cirencester – Day Three

Forde Abbey

Our destination for the day of our anniversary was Forde Abbey, a place that we had not visited before. Our journey there was quirky – there were many sudden junctions and eroded markings and, for some reason, the SatNav has changed the way it navigates saying bear left/right when the junction is a left/right turn and when it states turn left/right it should say bear left/right. I upgraded to the latest map a couple of days before we travelled, before this the bear/turn directions seemed more accurate.

Ruby Red Devons

The gardens are wonderful and the architecture of the house and former Abbey interesting. A lovely herd of Ruby Red Devon cows were in a field just outside the boundary fence. The spectacular Centenary Fountain is the tallest powered fountain in England. We enjoyed lunch in the walled garden, sitting outside the undercroft. I chose cherry cake; it just had to be done. The staff were so happy to have recently opened and enjoying the visitors’ return.

Cerne Abbas Giant

On our way back to the hotel we detoured to Cerne Abbas to see the newly chalked giant on the hillside. We then visited the village to find the Holy Well and the Preaching Cross that are located within the burial grounds. The Holy Well was lovely and peaceful, although another couple followed us into the space so we left them to it. I had hoped to return after they had gone but that was not to be because, as we retraced our steps past the Holy Well on our way to find the Preaching Cross, the couple were still there and, to my dismay, clambering over the well. We visited the garden of St. Mary’s church but sadly did not have chance to visit the church as time was getting on.

Anniversary Champagne

When we arrived back at our hotel room we found that the pre-ordered champagne and box of chocolates had not arrived. Mr C had to chase it up and when our order arrived it wasn’t exactly presented in an elegant way. The box of chocolates turned out to be four chocolates served on a bed of small pebbles. Not exactly what we had in mind.

Anniversary Dessert

We dined in the hotel, choosing the tasting menu option. The speed of delivery was much better than our previous occasion when we were rushed through the meal before we had chance to savour the wine that accompanied the dishes. However the final dessert course failed to be delivered until the wine waiter came back to check if we had enjoyed our experience and noticed our untouched wine glass, spare cutlery and the absence of a dessert plate.

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12 Comments CherryPie on Jun 24th 2021

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Sherborne & Cirencester – Day Two

Breakfast

We awoke to glorious sunshine and made our way down to the breakfast room. I was pleasantly surprised to find that some items were available to select from the buffet rather than to order. This included a fresh fruit salad served in a sealed Kilner jar. The fresh fruit option is one of my favourite breakfast choices when I am on holiday. A full cooked breakfast was available to order but, as usual, I only selected a few items from the menu.

Huish Episcopi

Suitably replete, we set off towards the Fleet Air Arm Museum for which had booked a ticket and timeslot as required by current Covid-19 restrictions. We had time to kill so we drove past the museum ending up in the delightful village of Huish Episcopi. Mr C parked to allow me a photo opportunity of the church. Whilst deciding on the best angle to photograph the church, I noticed the war memorial and and a sign that indicated we were only a few miles away from Muchelney Abbey, a place  we enjoyed on our previous stay in Sherborne.

Fleet Air Arm Museum

After taking advantage of my photo opportunity we returned to Fleet Air Arm Museum where we spent over three hours. My favourite items in the museum were; the Short ST17 with its flimsy wings and rattan bucket seat (a crazy prospect for flying) and a Concorde prototype which we were able to board and observe how tiny the cabin compartment is.

We had lunch in the museum before heading towards Glastonbury with a view to walking up to the Tor or perhaps visit the Chalice Well Garden. We quickly changed our mind when we saw how busy both Glastonbury and the Tor were. There was a queue to visit the well and a swarm of people looking like ants on Glastonbury Tor.

Barrow Mump

We had a rethink and drove to Burrow Mump where we climbed to see the ruins of St Michael’s church and the spectacular views from the top of the mound. After this adventure it was time to return to our hotel and freshen up before our evening meal in The Grange Hotel at Oborne. It was a fine dining experience; I chose Duck Leg with fondant potato and spicy red cabbage, followed by Chocolate Torte with Orange and Berries. There was a slight hiccup with the wine not arriving at the table but when we pointed this out the wine arrived within moments. We loved the place so much that we would like to stay there when we next visit the area.

The Eastbury Hotel

We returned to the Eastbury where we got chatting to a couple about life, lockdown and that they were staying in the Eastbury due to winning a prize that including a stay in the other hotels in the Peter de Savary collection. From our conversation it seems that everyone has experienced the same trials and tribulations that working from home entails and the same losses and isolations due to Covid-19.

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6 Comments CherryPie on Jun 23rd 2021

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Sherborne & Cirencester – Day One

Journey

We set off on our journey in glorious sunshine; planning to have lunch on the way. The SatNav was advising  an hour’s delay on the motorway so we decided to take a detour which led us to a lovely café that we have previously visited, The Café Craycombe at Fladbury in the Vale of Evesham.
Cafe Craycombe

We enjoyed our lunch sitting outside soaking up the rays.  I chose a tuna and sweetcorn baguette which was delicious.

Gloucester Services

After lunch the motorway delay seemed to have subsided so we rejoined it, stopping off at Gloucester services for a drink. Inside the services was hectic so I found the perfect seat overlooking the outside pool and the wildlife area. Back on the road the SatNav detoured us off the motorway onto delightful country roads although towards the end of our journey we got stuck behind a tractor on a narrow lane with no chance of overtaking.

Sloe Gin

We eventually arrived in Sherborne and, after a slight confusion with parking, we checked in to the Eastbury Hotel. We were taken to our lovely room overlooking the garden. After unpacking our bags we took advantage of the complimentary Sloe Gin that was conveniently waiting for us.

Nightcap View

We freshened up before walking to The Green restaurant for dinner. The food and service was as good as we remembered it from our previous visits in 2019. I chose skate wing followed by meadow fresh nougat. We returned to the hotel for a nightcap where I sampled the local Sherborne Castle rose wine. I wasn’t disappointed.

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7 Comments CherryPie on Jun 19th 2021

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Belated Birthday Meal

Belated Birthday Meal

The day when I should have been packing for my twice (due to lockdowns) postponed holiday in celebration of my significant birthday last November was busier than planned.

In the morning I attended one of my former WW leaders’ coaching sessions. After being made redundant in late 2020 she has set up her own business as a weight loss coach. On the way home I called in at a local garden centre for an anniversary card but ended up with a new pair of shoes for my holiday.

This holiday was now due to coincide with our anniversary and we had extended it from four to seven nights. I had not dared to look forward to the holiday in case it was postponed again so I was totally disorganised and without a plan for what I needed to pack. I managed to get everything organised but not entirely packed before it was time for a late afternoon visit to my in laws to celebrate our anniversary with them.

Later we were invited to dinner in a local eatery by a couple of family members for a belated birthday meal. This celebratory meal meant that now I had officially reached the age of my significant birthday. We had an evening of laughter and I ordered what turned out to be a whale of a cod.

When we returned home we had a nightcap on the patio looking forward to our holiday as the sun set.

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14 Comments CherryPie on Jun 18th 2021

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