The five of us were able to sit at the same breakfast table that we had the previous morning. I opted for eggs Benedict but found that there was a little too much hollandaise sauce for my taste. One of the lifts was out of order, delaying progress to and from the hotel rooms to the amusement and frustration of the guests due to it stopping randomly at some floors and not at others. This meant that we set off for Tynemouth more than half an hour later than we had intended. The concierge shuffled the cars around on the car park and parked mine next to the Ferrari that is always parked outside the hotel.

On arrival at Tynemouth, we were lucky to find two convenient car parking spaces. Once the cars had been parked we went for a walk past the Spanish Battery and the Life Brigade Watch House before making our way into town to find a tea-shop. Mr C’s first choice of tea-shop, which was the last one we came across, proved to be disappointing. As we arrived, a table became free and we made our way to sit down at it. Whilst we were making ourselves comfortable the waiter told us to go away for five minutes whilst he reset the table. After such a rude reception there was no way I was going back and the others felt the same. We made our way back along the street and entered a small (almost hidden) tea-shop that I had spotted earlier. It was very full and busy but we were squeezed onto a table and made very welcome.

Our next port of call was Tynemouth Castle and Priory which we all enjoyed for different reasons. By the time we had finished exploring the grounds it was time for a late lunch. We chose a cafe near to the seafront and sat in a corner table overlooking the castle remains. We lingered for quite some time, talking about history, philosophy and the current migrant crisis including the view that many migrants probably have no intention of observing the culture of the countries that they are migrating to. Eventually it was time for my brother and his fiancée to return home and for us to make our way back to the Vermont.

As we arrived back in Newcastle the traffic was queued up for a long way past St Nicholas’ Cathedral and we could see lots of policeman, police cars and an ambulance directly opposite the Cathedral.  We struggled to find a restaurant that was open on a Sunday evening, but eventually settled on Cafe Rouge where we had an enjoyable meal. Whilst walking back  to the hotel after dinner, we noticed another police car and ambulance in the same spot as we had seen the earlier incident.

Back at the Vermont, we noticed a lot of security guards outside its Livello Cocktail bar area. One of the security guards got into the hotel lift with us and we got chatting to him. He told as that the security guards had been drafted in because there was a private function taking place in the Cocktail bar. We had a nightcap in the hotel lounge area and arranged to have breakfast at an earlier time the next morning.

THIS MONUMENT
was erected in 1845 by Public Subscription to the memory of
ADMIRAL LORD COLLINGWOOD
who in the Royal Sovereign on the 21st October 1805, led the British Fleet
into action at Trafalgar and sustained the Sea Fight for upwards of an hour
before the other ships were within gun shot, which caused Nelson to exclaim
“SEE HOW THAT NOBLE FELLOW COLLINGWOOD TAKES HIS SHIP INTO ACTION”
He was born at Newcastle-upon-Tyne 1748 and died in the Service
of his country, on board of the”VILLE-DE-PARIS” on 7th March 1810
AND WAS BURIED IN ST PAUL’S CATHEDRAL.
THE FOUR GUNS UPON THIS MONUMENT BELONGED TO HIS SHIP THE
“ROYAL SOVEREIGN”

More ‘Someone You Love’ can be found in the gallery.