For various reasons I wasn’t able to lay my potential holiday clothes options out on the bed then reject some, keeping my packing to a sensible level before packing my bag the day before travelling as I usually do.

This left me feeling stressed out packing at the last minute whilst Mr C sorted out some last-minute things and fuelled up the car for the journey to Manchester. Whilst he was out, he picked up a mini fish for lunch before packing his bag.

We set off mid-afternoon for Manchester and our overnight stay in the Premier Inn. The Satnav picked a scenic route to Manchester along roads that we don’t usually travel along. We enjoyed the delightful route enhanced by the glorious sunshine.

When we checked in at the Premier Inn, we found our room perfectly located for a bit of plane spotting as they made their final approach to the airport runway. The experience was enhanced by a live plane tracking app on Mr C’s phone.

We dined in the Griffin rather than our usual Tatton Arms. We were welcomed, shown to our seat and told to order at the bar when we were ready. When Mr C went to the bar to place the order there was momentary confusion when the lady who served him said that that they weren’t accepting any more food orders. The man who had greeted us informed her that we had pre booked so we were not walk ins and she promptly took the order.

A few minutes later someone rushed up to our table and apologetically informed us that our choice of meal (chicken schnitzel) had run out! We took a few minutes to choose other options, in my case scampi. When the food arrived it was delicious. Before we left, I couldn’t resist the urge to have my photograph taken with my VE 80 virtual challenge medal next to Churchill who was part of the Griffin’s VE day decorations.

We returned to the hotel for a nightcap. We found the bar to be scruffy with few people, no atmosphere and no beer (they were waiting for the order to arrive). It was a Friday night!!  The atmosphere was a stark contrast to our experiences there before they rebranded it in 2024. Before the, the bar was fully stocked and the room was full and buzzing.

After this less than satisfying experience, we retired to our room for an early night in preparation for our 7:10 am flight to Rome.

Blenheim Palace was built in the early 18th Century to celebrate the victory over the French in the War of the Spanish Succession.

In particular, it was built as a gift to the 1st Duke of Marlborough, John Churchill, the military commander who led the Allied forces in the Battle of Blenheim on 13th August 1704. It was Marlborough who personally received the surrender from Marshall Tallard, leader of the French forces, following the battle.

To honour the Duke’s heroics, Queen Anne granted his family the ruined Royal Manor and park at Woodstock, along with the promise of funds needed to build a house to mark the victorious occasion. In return, the Duke also ensured that the Palace became a monument to the Queen.

At Blenheim I took two very important decisions; to be born and to marry. I am content with the decision I took on both occasions…” Sir Winston Churchill

Sir Winston Churchill proposed to Clementine Hozier at the Temple of Diana on 11th August 1908.

The year 2015 marks many important anniversaries in relation to our ‘Greatest Briton’, Sir Winston Churchill. These include the 50th anniversary of his death, the 75th anniversary of his first becoming Prime Minister, and the 75th anniversary of his ‘Finest Hour’ at the Battle of Britain.

In this key anniversary year you can read up on all things Churchill from his history, events around the country and news on a new website that aims to centralise all activity.

For more of this weeks PhotoHunt pictures check out Whistlestop PhotoHunt.

This is another theme I struggled with.  I haven’t got any photos of schools or school days and even my photos of fish aren’t quite right because some of the fish are pointing in the wrong direction.  But I shall share this one with you, which is the best I have to hand.

From Wiki:

In biology, any group of fish that stay together for social reasons are said to be shoaling (pronounced /ˈʃoʊlɪŋ/), and if, in addition, the group is swimming in the same direction in a coordinated manner, they are said to be schooling (pronounced /ˈskuːlɪŋ/).^[1] In common usage, the terms are sometimes used rather loosely.^[1] About one quarter of fishes shoal all their lives, and about one half of fishes shoal for part of their lives.^[2]

Fish derive many benefits from shoaling behaviour including defence against predators (through better predator detection and by diluting the chance of individual capture), enhanced foraging success, and higher success in finding a mate. It is also likely that fish benefit from shoal membership through increased hydrodynamic efficiency.

Fish use many traits to choose shoalmates. Generally they prefer larger shoals, shoalmates of their own species, shoalmates similar in size and appearance to themselves, healthy fish, and kin (when recognized).

The “oddity effect” posits that any shoal member that stands out in appearance will be preferentially targeted by predators. This may explain why fish prefer to shoal with individuals that resemble themselves. The oddity effect would thus tend to homogenize shoals.

For more of this weeks PhotoHunt pictures check out tnchick.

He took justifiable pride in his skill and speed as a bricklayer: 90 bricks an hour was not uncommon. His achievements soon became public knowledge and in 1928 he took out a card as an adult apprentice in the Amalgamated Union of Building Trade Workers. *

His skillful work can be seen in the first two of these pictures and another view with the house of Chartwell in the background can be seen in my previous post.  The garden today contains more flowers than vegetables.

*From the National Trust Guide Book

One of the places I visited was Chartwell, which was the home of Sir Winston Churchill for 40 years.  Sir Winston was captivated by Chartwell the moment he set eyes on the valley and saw the house set on the hillside and the beautiful beech woods  and spectacular views over the Weald of Kent.  Before the Churchills moved in, the house had to undergo a lot of alterations to make it suitable for them.  It is just the sort of house that I could live in and it is full of fascinating information about Churchill.