This was our rescheduled trip to Lincoln after we had to cut short our Easter trip due to mum being ill. We chose the dates to coincide with our wedding anniversary.

We set off early enough to reach the Daisy Made Ice Cream and Coffee shop in time for lunch. We know from previous visits that it is good and, on the plus side, it is located just outside Lincoln.

After lunch, a ten-minute journey and we were parked at the back of Cathedral View, the B&B we were staying in for the next few days. We made a quick phone call to let the proprietor know we had parked the car and were about to set off into town when a lady who was servicing the rooms noticed we had arrived. Although it was too early for us to check into our room we were given the keys in advance.

Admin sorted, we walked the short distance to Lincoln Cathedral. When we stepped inside, we were enveloped by the peace and quiet within. The atmosphere was calming and we spent some time exploring the various spaces within. I was reminded why I was drawn to Lincoln for the Easter service, which, unfortunately, despite best laid plans, I was unable to attend on my first trip to Lincoln this year. The Cathedral is currently hosting the ‘Table for the Nation’, a 13-metre-long table made from a 5000-year-old fossilised oak tree trunk.

We took advantage of Lincon Cathedral café where I enjoyed a refreshing Elderflower drink accompanied by a slice of Cherry Bakewell traybake. Suitably refreshed I spent time in the Cathedral shop where I purchased books on the cathedral, the oak table and the Forest Stations artworks that are displayed in the nave of the Cathedral.
Next, we spent a short time walking around the Cathedral quarter calling in at the Visitor Information Centre to purchase ‘Lincoln – A Walking Guide’ so that we could locate some historical places of interest that we hadn’t previously seen.

It was now time for us to check into our room, unpack and chill out before a pre-dinner drink in the Wig & Mitre which is located next to Brown’s Pie Shop where we dined. The food was every bit as good as I remembered it from our first visit of the year. The waitresses were lovely and we were able to have a banter and giggle with them.

We had a nightcap in the Wig & Mitre before retiring to Cathedral View and the cosy bed inviting us for a good night’s sleep.

Miraculously, we left home and picked mum up on time. Twenty five minutes later, after topping up with petrol and returning home to fetch Easter gifts that we had forgotten to pack, we eventually left our locality.

We had a good journey apart from our decision to stop in Newark for lunch. The traffic there was horrendous, adding half an hour to our journey. Eventually, Mr C dropped mum and I off outside a café he had seen whilst he found somewhere to park the car. We entered the café and joined the queue. The three ladies in front of us turned around and left saying ‘he obviously doesn’t want us’. We were now at the head of the queue, the proprietor asked if it was a table for two to which I replied ‘a table for three’. His answer was “NO!”, followed by a pregnant pause before adding ‘only tables for two’. We beat a hasty retreat and went into the café next door.

Mr C was bemused when I phoned him to tell him where we were, he was already looking for us in the first café having found a parking space near to where he had dropped us off. Lunch in the second café was lovely; I opted for a cheese and chive scone. The rest of our journey to Lincoln ran smoothly and we realised that the café on the outskirts of Lincoln that we normally use was nearer than we had thought. It would have saved a lot of hassle all round if we had realised this and gone there.

We checked into Cathedral View guest house and got mum settled in her room before going to find our room which was just what we hoped for. Mr C’s parents had arrived just ahead of us so we had a chat with them before collecting our bags from the car.

We decided not to unpack straight away, heading into the Castle Square and the castle grounds beyond, where we found Dragons!

We bumped into Mr C’s parents who were out exploring, and had a cuppa in a delightful tearoom where there was a sharing of coffee and walnut cake (not me). It was now time to head back to our room, unpack and chill out. This didn’t go quite according to plan… We called in to tell mum what time we were going to pick her up for dinner but, as we tried to enter the outside door, the key broke in two. Luckily, we were able to retrieve the portion that was in the lock. It was then that Mr C realised he had tried to use the wrong key.

Back in our room Mr C rang the B&B owner to confess the breakage and it was agreed that the problem could be sorted out in the morning over breakfast. The key that was broken was the one to our wing of the house and Mr C’s parents had a key to get in there.

We had an aperitif in the Wig & Mitre before dining in Brown’s Pie Shop. The food was delicious and we had banter and laughter with the waiter. Due to the misadventure with our key we had to retire to our room earlier than usual where our nightcap was just a cup of tea.