We arrived at breakfast to find that it was ‘to order’ as starters and mains. Everything was there although perhaps not in quite the right order for me personally. I opted for the American stacked pancakes with berries. The breakfast room was a little chaotic, so rather than linger at the table we returned to our room where we could chill out before walking to York Minster in time for when it opened.

As we walked to the Cathedral we took in a few of the ice sculptures that were part of the Ice Sculpture trail that was taking place over the weekend. Mr C toyed with the idea of visiting the Yorvik Centre but soon changed his mind when entry was slow and the queues were getting longer.

When we arrived at York Minster we waited in a short queue before we were able to enter the Church. Once inside we tried to book in at the ticket desk, but the computer said ‘NO!’. This meant entering the Minster took a little longer than anticipated. The Minster was as spectacular as always. I particularly enjoyed the display (which included a full size replica) about the statue of Queen Elizabeth II that was commissioned for her Platinum Jubilee but which was installed in a niche on the West front of the Minster after her death.

We spent longer in the Minster than we had anticipated leading us to join the queue for Betty’s tearoom later than was ideal. The queue was the longest I have experienced. During the 40 minute wait I was bumped and pushed by several members of a family who were queuing behind us. For some reason bodily contact with me was acceptable; some people have no concept of manners or personal space. Our waitress was lovely as was our sandwich and cake. Before we left we had a conversation with the manager about lockdown, its consequences and the length of time staff had worked there. She is quite rightly proud of the lovely, loyal team that provide us, the customers, with one of the ultimate lunchtime experiences.

Next we embarked on the wall walk which I had initially intended to do on my own whilst Mr C was attending a trade show. I had a change of plan because I thought he might enjoy the wall walk too. We started the walk at Bootham Bar but due to our late lunch we only made it as far as Clifford’s Tower. Dusk was arriving so the wall walk was left to be completed the following day after the trade show.

After our hectic day we chilled out in our room before having a pre-dinner drink in the hotel bar, where the bar man talked us through all the local gins; I chose Spiced Apple (with cinnamon spice)  whilst Mr C opted for a more traditional Gin. We dined in the hotel. I chose Haddock and Chips and was advised that the portion was large portion but when it arrived, to my relief, I found it to be a modest, manageable portion.

Our meal was accompanied by Lily Kersby who was performing in the hotel bar area. She has a beautiful voice and it was a shame that she was singing to herself. After dining we joined her, which she appreciated. For her last song of the evening she sang the Proclaimer’s ‘I will walk 500 miles’ which made me smile because it is the adopted song for the #walk1000miles Country Walking Challenge. I couldn’t resist showing her my badges and explaining how that had become a special song for me.

After a good nights sleep it was time to sample the hotel breakfast. In all sorts of ways, it was a vast improvement on the offering during our recent stay in a Cotswold’s hotel. There were several choices of cooked items and a continental option. I chose the continental option and was served with granola, fruit compote, yoghurt, fresh fruit and mini pastries (freshly baked), perfectly presented on a plate.

We had booked an early time slot in the Pump Room so after breakfast we set off at pace through The Stray (no time for photos) to make sure we got there on time. It took us a little while to find which street the Pump Room was in but we managed to arrive before it opened. Once inside we found it to be a museum rather than anything else. It wasn’t possible to sample the water due to Covid-19. Perhaps that was a blessing because I am told that the water tastes quite foul.

We spent the rest of the morning walking around the nearby Valley Gardens, ending up near the War Memorial and Bettys Tea Rooms for lunch. I chose a salmon, prawn and lemon sandwich followed by three dainty cake delights.

We walked back to the hotel so that we could pick up the car to drive to the nearby RHS garden at Harlow Carr where we had an enjoyable afternoon exploring the gardens.

Back at the hotel I was sitting and relaxing before dinner when I heard voices at the door and a comment ’someone is already in here’. I got up to find two people entering our room. They were most apologetic and beat a hasty retreat. As they left I could hear them say to each other ‘it is the room number we were given’. Clearly it was because they were able to enter with the card key they had been given. I felt sorry for them but a bit disturbed about the security breach of the mix up.

When we went for dinner we queried the episode with the hotel receptionist, who was most apologetic and said she would be raising the incident with her manager the next day. We had another enjoyable meal, in my case fish and chips, which was even larger than my meal the previous day. We arrived back at our room to find that our card key didn’t work. It had obviously been cancelled along with the other peoples’ keys. By this time the hotel reception was closed, leaving Mr C to hunt down the restaurant manager to help us with the problem. Luckily he knew a man that could fix the problem!

A orange globe appeared in the sky and stayed all weekend which is rather strange and unusual for a bank holiday.  I had a busy weekend spring cleaning, but also found time to chill out and read for a while.

Today the weather was too good to miss so we headed out in the direction of Ludlow and decided to have lunch in Clun.  Unfortunately ‘The Green Man’ festival was taking place so the tiny village was heaving with people.  It always pays to do your homework beforehand…

We struggled through Clun and headed out along the country roads. We found a hidden gem of a tea shop near Clungunford.  All the food was home made and I overheard that they had been up late last night getting all the food ready for today.  I can confirm the food was delicious and will certainly go back again if I am in that area.

After lunch we went to Ludlow and this also proved difficult.  The roads in the centre of the town were all closed because there was a fun fair in the street for the bank holiday week.  Eventually we found a parking space and navigated our way on foot through the fun fair to the rather more peaceful grounds of Ludlow Castle.

It was a perfect summer’s day in spring

These are the first of the photos that I took on my mini break to Nottingham to celebrate my Mum becoming a lady of a certain age.  The first photo is of the Tea Room which was the first port of call when we arrived at Hardwick Hall.

You can read about the weekend here and you can read about Bess who built Hardwick Hall here.

Earlier in the day I had noticed a perfect shop for morning coffee, but I was overruled and told that it wasn’t the right time for morning coffee.  I did however manage to work my way back there for afternoon tea

The shop is associated with a hand made chocolatier of  over 30 years. The drinks are served with home made chocolates and the hot chocolate drink is served with real chocolate too.

I have to confess to succumbing to a cup cake, although it did have meringue on the top rather than butter sugar cream

PS: The days walking tallied up to 9 miles and I ended up with sore feet, I think the treat was well earned Later in the day everyone else was in bed by 10pm!!