My haircut was two weeks late after I had to cancel my original hair appointment due to mum being admitted to A&E after a fall. You can see from the photos that there is a reason why my hair needs cutting every four weeks!

Later in the day we enjoyed baked fish with lemon cream sauce, it was delicious.

After breakfast we went to the Cathedral to see if we could purchase a guide book because the shop did not open until later in the morning. When we got there the information desk was in the process of being set up ready for the day. Mr C didn’t want to linger so we took the short walk to the Guildhall in order to take some photographs.

By the time we had finished the Cathedral shop was open. We couldn’t see any guide books on display so we asked the assistant if there was one. He said there wasn’t a specific guidebook but we could purchase several books on different aspects of the Cathedral or we could have some collated, photocopied fact sheets on various Cathedral features; I opted for the latter.

Next we visited the Roman Remains of Fishbourne Palace which were simply excellent. There was a small museum, a large collection of floor mosaics as well as formal and plant gardens.

Before we left, we thought it would be fun to lunch on the Roman Platter which included chunky olive bread, hummus, olives, feta cheese and salad. Amply sufficed we made our way to West Dean Gardens, which were especially delightful in the sunny weather.

After wandering round the gardens we stopped for a drink and I had a piece of cake. As we were about to leave Mr C realised that he had lost his spectacles. He checked with both places we had visited but unfortunately they had not been handed in at either place.

We dined in Brasserie Blanc for the second time and found that the restaurant had a particularly lively and enjoyable atmosphere that evening. Earlier in the day Mr C bought a magnifying glass as a temporary measure to do the job of his lost spectacles. Whilst we were in the restaurant it fell out of his pocket onto to the hard flooring, causing the glass to crack but, luckily not to break.

We returned to the Park pub which was even more lively than it had been the night before. We wished we had found this pub earlier in the week.

This was yesterday evenings meal which we quickly assembled after a pre dinner visit to deliver a birthday gift. A perfect dish to enjoy on the patio before the sun went down.

The weather has now become cooler and rainy…

Belly pork and black pudding accompanied by onion mash and red cabbage…

Delicious

More about our visit to the ‘Haunch of Venison‘ can be found at the end of my ‘Salisbury Day Two‘ post.

I was up early and ready to set off, but unfortunately Mr C was sluggish which meant we didn’t set off until 11.20am. After we had filled up with petrol and checked the car tyre pressures it was almost time for lunch.  I was driving so Mr C was tasked to think  of a suitable place for lunch before I faded away…

He was equal to the challenge and came up with an inspired choice; a tea shop that he had noticed on one of our recent excursions.  After suitable refreshment, which for me was a cherry scone and a locally made raspberry and pear juice, we resumed our long journey north.  We stopped briefly for a cup of tea in Kirby Stephen and arrived at our Newcastle destination (the Vermont Hotel) at around 5.30pm, just in time to unpack and relax before dinner.

I was impressed by the outcome of the refurbishments to the Vermont, which had been taking place when last I visited in March.  We decided to eat in the hotel; the meal I chose was delicious. We got chatting to one of the waitresses who told us some of the best places to visit in Newcastle and Northumberland,  including one of her favourite secluded beaches for seal watching.  Afterwards we moved to the reception area for a nightcap before retiring for sleep.

As I drifted off to sleep the road traffic noise faded away to be replaced by the distinctive sound of trains…

This weeks prompt was:

So, what’s cooking? What meal do you start the day with? What ingredients do you lovingly assemble to create a nourishing meal? What holiday treats are you making or indulging in?
Maybe you’re NOT cooking, but admiring and enjoying a meal or treat made just for you?

I have not done any cooking worthy of a photograph lately, but…

On my recent visit to Attingham I enjoyed this kitchen table loaded with traditional Christmas fair, it brought back many happy memories

The meal in this restaurant was a trip down memory lane.  The food was as good as ever, but the service wasn’t quite so attentive as it was on the previous visit there.

Absent friends were dearly missed.

I am sure you can see from the pics that the food was juicy and succulent.

For more of this weeks PhotoHunt pictures check out tnchick.