Tip-Top Road Trip

The Guardian Picks up on Souvenir Summer...

2009-09-25T04:32:00.000-07:00

This is an article we forgot to put up before that we read when chilling round the pool at Cowley Manor. It pretty much confirmed our thoughts that a lot of Brits had the same idea about holidaying at home this summer. I wonder if our souvenir purchases made up a huge part of the souvenir numbers?! Watch this space to see the final pictures of our souvenir car!

The Cotswolds

2009-08-20T15:06:00.001-07:00

Our last stop was the Cotswolds. We finally managed to leave the Gower after being temporarily trapped by cows hanging out on the road in front of us. Heading straight down down the M4, we got to the Severn Bridge and low and behold there was a joke-like divide behind England and Wales; a clear line separating the grey cloud over Wales and the glorious blue skies in England. Laters Potatas to grey sky! (at least it hadn't rained in Wales for once though). We headed up the M5 and stopped off for a tip-top but very melty ice-cream at Winstones on Rodborough Common in Stroud. The common was full of people with exactly the same idea. Next onto Nailswrth to pick up some souvenirs and then and then through the tiny country lanes to Cowley Manor. We were going to stop in Cirencester before but decided to stop after for a salad supper instead. If you're going to do the Cotswolds, you might as well do it in style like the celebrities and do it in the sun too! A five-star luxury spa, Cowley Manor's C.Side Spa (and the hotel for that matter) is a more exciting contemporary take on your traditional Bath Spa retreat. The interior and furniture is all specially designed by young British designers. The only problem was that somehow I had misplaced my bikini and had to wear a quick-grab black and white spotty pound shop number. Don't worry I wore it with style - making pound shop cool, yet again.

The Gower Peninsula- Wales

2009-08-20T13:26:00.000-07:00

The journey from Blackpool to Wales began late due to ages sorting the piles of stuff we had collected along the way and haphazardly stuffed in the boot (The hotel guests thought we were nutters with our bags of rock, fishing tackle and extensive tea-towel collection sprawled out across the car park!). Instead of doing the whole five hour plus journey at once we decided to break it up with an overnight stop in Herefordshire. The hotel in Hereford was nothing to write home about and we would definitely have stayed in one of the Woodland Tipis (or yurts) nearby instead if we could have stretched to their two night minimum.

Just the thought of another cooked breakfast in the morning made us feel full. By this point in the week it was definitely diet o'clock so we made a swift exit. We took the scenic route down through the Brecon Beacons passing the turning for Abergavenny where the Green Man Festival takes place this weekend: 'Cradled in a beautiful valley, the Green Man Festival is an indie-folk fairyland where antler-wearing Druids lead processions of children past wishing trees' (2008 Observer review by Tamzin Lewis). The Druids have even blessed the sight this year so that it won't rain (if you are one of the lucky ones to have a golden ticket, i'd pack your wellies just in case...). After the Tom Tom trying to drive us into rivers and freaking out about new roads it wasn't aware of, we finally arrived at Pilton Moors to drop off our stuff. Having booked their converted shepherd's hut, complete with a wood-burning stove, us two city girls were pretty over-excited about this back-to-nature adventure.

We spent the afternoon exploring the AMAZING surely-can't-be-British beaches. Three Cliff's Bay has been rated one of the top ten places in Britain to watch the sunset (Worm's Head in Rhossilli not far behind). We ran into the sea, lay on the powdered white sand for a bit and then went and collected wild marsh samphire. On our trek back up to the car we also munched quite a few blackberries. They didn't feel so great swimming around our bellies along with the salty samphire when we were reminded by massive horse poos that we only had fifteen minutes to make our hack at nearby Clyne Farm and had to peg it up the steep hill (REALLY glad we skipped the full-English). My first memory of horse riding was when I was nine. The horse got scared of some pigs and bolted back to the stables, going straight through bushes; low branches smashing me in the face. My second experience was a long horse-riding trek on the beach and through the rainforest in Dominican Republic, bareback, only having the bolting experience to draw from. Anna somehow managed to convince me it was a good idea though and thankfully it was third time lucky. The horses were calm and well trained and the view from Mumbles (we cracked up when we found Mumbles means breasts in English) was the best. We could see right across the Gower, out to sea and over to Swansea. There are other riding schools but this is particularly good because you are so high up. For more experienced riders you can go on day-long hacks down to the beach too (hence the poo on the paths). They also have tipis you can rent at the farm and various other activities if you feel like being a hunter-gatherer sort.

Before dinner at Fairyhill (great award winning food, mainly locally sourced but mainly full of quiet couples much to our disappointment, or theirs to our arrival?! Although the staff were very friendly) we just had time to check out Mewkslade and watch the sun go down at Worm's Head. Mewkslade is only a beach when the tide is out. On the walk down, there were hundreds of rabbits hopping about and we were the only ones to see the waves crashing against the rocks at this time. If you visit the Gower in Autumn apparently there is hardly anyone around and you can can often have the beautiful beaches to yourself. Pretty. Damn. Cool.

Blackpool

2009-08-17T15:51:00.000-07:00

The bright lights of the Golden Mile are back on the trendy map it would seem. Firstly it is the hometown of Little Boots whose kaleidoscopic-style video for the single Remedy

(coincidentally by our friend David Wilson) is reminiscent of the flashes and whirls of the funfair attractions on the Blackpool sea-front. As your Aunty will probably tell you, Strictly Come Dancing was filmed in the lavish Tower Ballroom and as soon as we mentioned that we were going to Blackpool everyone made us promise we'd pay it a visit. More like something you'd expect to find in a gold-plated Rococo Palace, rather than a tacky English seaside resort, it is pretty amazing to get close up and see it in it's full glory when not distracted by the fake tans, highly-sequinned dresses and colourful lights seen on television (as much as that is right up our street too). The old biddies, quietly dancing away on the massive parket floor to the sound of a wurlitzer was perfect entertainment for our high tea. The circus show, which we visited after, lasts two hours is split into two parts. The first hour being a trip down memory lane and the second half, a modern circus. The traditional first half wins hands down- we left just after the interval. We then went up to check out the Charlie Cairoli exhibition (which seems to be the part that other vistors miss out- FOOLS) Viktor and Rolf would be wetting themselves over the costumes on show. So desirable, we were wondering if anyone would notice the sound of the display cabinets smashing and us walking out dressed like glitzy clowns. No joke, we would rock clown costumes everyday if they looked anything like these!

So Blackpool is the kitsch capital of England. There is no denying it and anyone who knows us will know we are suckers for kitsch. If plans go ahead to turn the Golden Mile into a Las Vegas style strip, lined with massive casino hotels, I reckon Anna will booking the whole of Tiffany's Hotel out and giving Elvis a call to marry her at her shotgun wedding. (That's if Carmen Petulengro, the famous South Pier palmist's predictions come true...)

Kettlewell and the Yorkshire Dales.

2009-08-16T14:34:00.000-07:00

We were intrigued by Kettlewell's Scarecrow Festival after reading about it on the web. A typical English countryside tradition, we couldn't miss this one. Armed with macs and wellies, we parked up and walked a round route of the village photographing all the Scarecrows (we have just had to upgrade our Flickr account to upload them all for your viewing pleasure as it would be far too many to put on the blog). The whole village participates in the week-long festival and come up with some pretty dodgy, hilarious, mostly faceless creations. Some of our favourites are pictured below. Although rainy, it was a funny day out and even if the Festival isn't on, the village is stunning (and has a hotel); amazing gardens, a cute village shop and a river running right through the middle (many of the gardens backing on). Serious Postman Pat country odd-job village.

Being Sunday, we couldn't miss out on a Sunday roast with some (extremely serious) local Yorkshire puddings so we stopped in nearby Kilnsey to take a break. You can also partake in a bit of pony-trekking or rock-climbing (geeky team-building outing spotted!) here and there is a Sunday Farmers Market in Grassington full of local produce to delight.

Morecambe

2009-08-16T14:14:00.000-07:00

Whilst in the area, we decided to drive through Morecambe to visit the Winter Gardens and the Annual Sandcastle Festival, including the 'Super (hmmmm...) Sandcastle Competition'. We were expecting Manor houses and Cinderella Palaces (maybe we should have got there at 9am to register ourselves) instead, we got twenty very damp, very sandy kids with average castles. (ohh so mean!) Very little else to do, the Winter Gardens Building was a tiny enough reason to put this town on the (pass-through) map for us. Bowled over by the architecture and crumbling interior, it would be a shame to see this building disappear like so many others of its kind (the lavish Ballroom next door has already been knocked down). A committee is campaigning to save the building and see it restored which would be incredible. Let's hope they find the money they need. We also learnt that many Victorian seaside resorts have/had a Winter Gardens building, which makes us want to visit and photograph them all!

The Lake District and beyond...

2009-08-16T13:23:00.000-07:00

We travelled out of Whitby on the A174 which is probably one of the most beautiful roads in England to drive along, especially in the evening sun. According to locals, at times of heavy snow the road gets closed off which is easy to understand as there are no walls either side of the road! It is literally like driving over open fields. We drove into Keswick as the sun was going down to find our hotel. We had desperately tried to find more rural accomodation, tempted by tranquility and beautiful views but because of the time of year everything was booked-up. Keswick was surprisingly full and noisy on a Saturday night and we were woken up at least four times throughout the night, which although very unlike our normal partying selves, was not expected or appreciated.

It is definitely worth taking time out to visit this vast expanse of countryside. We reckon it would have been brilliant to stay somewhere like The Cottage in the Wood or Willow Cottage with its herb and flower gardens. Rural is certainly the way forward in the lakes. Up earlier than anyone else in our hotel the next day (we thought the keeno walkers would have already trekked halfway up a mountain and eaten their lunch by this point...), not really up for a big walk but totally full of good intentions to go and do a "watercolour challenge" up in the hills, we were greeted by stormy clouds and it proceeded to absolutely piss down so we chickened out and bought the local Gazette to try and work out what to do. Who would have thought we would have to choose between a chilli festival, a sandcastle competition and a Quaker tapestry exhibition? So we took the scenic drive from Keswick to Kendal on which we spotted one for Lauren's sister and any other avid poetry lovers; Dove Cottage where Wordsworth wrote much of his poetry and is now a gallery and museum. After passing Lakes Thirlmere and Windermere, we arrived in Kendal and tried the Quaker Tapestry Exhibition. Not knowing it was closed on a Sunday, we managed to piss-off the Quaker crew as they were having a little meeting and were not that impressed by us trying all the doors to get into the exhibition hall (oooops). Anyway with the prospect of the much-awaited Scarecrow Festival going on in Kettlewell that day, we were not about to hang around.

After Kendal, we passed by a small canal and spotted a sign for a car boot. We had been asking anyone who would listen if they knew of one going on, so it was jackpot for us. After a quick google we worked out that the Borwick's Dock Acres carboot is MASSIVE on bank holiday weekends, six miles to be precise which must be intense! Bargains galore, from job-lots to cheap one-off antiques, everything was basicily 50p which is pretty nuts compared to the prices we are used to. You can look here to find the best of the North and if tempted, make sure you get there early to nab all the best bits.

Whitby and Surrounding Areas...

2009-08-16T12:20:00.000-07:00

As there was a lot of exciting stuff recommended to us in the Whitby area, we hung around the day after we arrived to soak up as much as possible. The day started with our breakfast which was left in a hamper for us outside our room. Not remembering the last time either of us had eaten breakfast in bed, we were very excited by the Enid Blyton/Famous Five-style breakfast of hard-boiled eggs, homemade cheese scones, swiss cheese, fruit loaf, yogurt, fresh apple juice, tea and coffee. Our Red-Riding Hood-themed room also gave us the perfect chance to pull out a wolf Kigu (perfect snuggly, fun road trip accessory www.kigu.co.uk) and pose for a picture.

Leaving the hotel, we decided to try the Dracula experience on our way to catch a steam train. Whitby is where Bram Stoker wrote the famous novel on one of his stays in the neighbouring hotel to ours, The Royal Hotel. Vampire enthusiasts and goths (some taking permanent residence) flock from all over the world to experience the North Yorkshire Seaside Town that inspired Stoker:

"But, strangest of all, the very instant the shore was touched, an immense dog sprang up on deck from below... and running forward, jumped from the bow on to the sand. Making straight for the steep cliff, where the churchyard hangs over the laneway to the East Pier ... it disappeared in the darkness."

from Dracula by Bram Stoker, 1897

We thought we were pretty hardcore but I am not going to lie, we screamed and jumped out of our skin at one point during the experience when a man in a scream mask flew over some railings, out of NOWHERE! So the cheesy little attraction had a bit more of an impact than expected ahem...but moving swiftly on...

The North Yorkshire Moors steam train travels from Whitby Station all the way to Pickering which is 30 miles away and stops at various villages along the way (At night it turns into a fine-dining restaurant so for something a bit different you can book a table, dress up and enjoy a luxury, vintage dining experience). Keen to ride the steam train but conscious that we were driving to the Lake District the same day and wanted to arrive before dark, we opted for a short ride to the nearby village of Grosmont. After a beautiful mini-journey through grazing fields and rivers we arrived in time to have a quick cup of Yorkshire tea and pick up some train souvenirs before catching the train to Ruswarp. We spent the next hour in a 1920's style rowing boat on the lake. Not natural rowers (the guy running the boats had to row and give us a swift lesson- how embarassing!) and quite defeated by the strong wind it took us an hour to get the hang of it by which point our time was up!

Having just enough time to check out the cobbled streets on the Abbey side of the bridge in Whitby, we went and found the famous kipper smokery where you can send a kipper home(?). We smelt pretty smoky after just standing outside the rickety old smoke house so I dread to think what that package would smell like, as good as it might taste...

Time for one more cup of tea ('cos that's how things are done in Yorkshire much to Anna's approval) and a little Whitby crab sandwich before we said goodbye to this quirky little town. If/when we return we will also visit The Whitby Museum which is home to all sorts of interesting objects and artefacts. We would also book a night or two in a kitsch caravan at the La Rosa Campsite Extraordinaire to relax and enjoy the festival-style atmosphere.

Whitby

2009-08-15T02:10:00.001-07:00

Whitby was next on the agenda and a much anticipated destination mainly due to the discovery of La Rosa Hotel and Caravan Park. On our journey, we passed through a number of little villages with funny names and stopped in Foxholes, our attention drawn to a jumble sale at the miniature village hall. Armed with some pretty china plates and a yellow jumper, we headed onwards. Our drive through Scarborough and across the Yorkshire Moors was incredible; barely another car on the road, the uninterrupted purple heather stretched for miles. We arrived in Whitby just as the sun was going down and daytrippers were collected on the West Cliff, admiring the golden glow of the low sun in the facing windows. On arrival at La Rosa we were greeted with music from the old grammar phone in The Tea Room and the super-friendly Mandy and Claudia who run the place. Advertised as 'Victorian Seaside Fun' on their playing-card style business card, we were instantly gutted that we were only spending one night in Whitby. The decor of the hotel plays homage to years and years of passionate sourcing and collecting and is an inspiration to the collector, the romantic and anyone wishing for a totally different Staycation. This discovery, follwed by dinner at Red Chard Grill Rooms was the perfect end to the day. For all of you out there looking for a surprise getaway, this is one that cannot fail to impress.

Skegness Carnival.

2009-08-15T01:26:00.000-07:00

Known as one of the original holiday destinations, Skegness was infamous for the Butlins experience where many a generation would have holidayed. We decided to check out their Pet Show at the annual Skegness Carnival as we were passing through on the way to Whitby. Amusing as it was, Skegness is definitely staying in the passing-through category. We did manage to spot some fab ice-cream signage and got introduced to a hamster called snowy though so all was not lost! Worth a mention is the growing trend of companies such as ATP (All Tomorrow's Parties) who embrace the retro cool of Butlins etc and take over holiday parks throughout the UK to throw music festivals. Although it is not new to take over a holiday park for a weekend, many of the parties/festivals taking place these days are more a more arty/trendy affair than your average drum 'n' bass weekender.

Southwold

2009-08-15T01:11:00.001-07:00

We arrived really late in Southwold (Suffolk) on Thursday night and there wasn't much to see apart from the starry, starry sky so we woke up early the next morning to check out the peaceful little seaside village. Very clean and well-kept, the High Street was quietly bustling with locals and holiday-makers catching an early breakfast and picking up groceries for the day. We went into a couple of the little shops to buy souvenirs and then wandered down to the sea. Unfortunately we didn't make it as far as Southwold Pier which meant that we missed out on the 'not to be missed'(!) Water Clock and the Under the Pier Show that we later read about. It is hard to do everything when there is only a few hours in each destination but for anyone visiting Southwold soon, we would highly recommend a visit.

On the way back to the car we went to have a look at the The Electric Picture Palace (although not open until the evening) via Southwold Lighthouse which is a cute cinema based on the first cinema opened in Southwold in 1912 and run by volunteers. It shows a mixture of old new, classic and arthouse films. The manager John Bennett, let us photograph his amazing architect's practice which is full of old books and salvaged pieces and displays the original model of the Picture house.

Full of charm and totally unpretentious, Southwold is the perfect peaceful retreat; an unspoilt, quintessentially English seaside town.

Whitstable

2009-08-13T15:55:00.000-07:00

First stop, the fish market that people rave about. the harbour is small and quaint. A mixture of couples, families and super-friendly locals. Somehow the pace of life just seems EVEN slower than other places in the area. A perfect place for a romantic getaway but easily somewhere you could take your Mum too or hang out with friends. If we were there with any of the above for more than a couple of hours and not driving, we would have happily hung out by the converted fishermans' huts, sipping champagne and eating oysters! Instead we stuck to oysters and pink lemonade.

The High Street has great shops for browsing; a real mixture of vintage trinkets and beautiful small runs by contemporary designers along with antique furniture. Perfect to deck out a little weatherboard/brick cottage on the seafront (please).

Dinner was a toss up between the lovely looking 'Samphire' on the High Street and 'Jojo's' tapas restaurant but we opted for Jojo's as we heard of it through recommendation . A way out of town, down the Tankerton Road, we got there early to secure a table. It was worth the effort - we weren't disappointed. Keen to encourage local trade, they serve fish from a fishing boat that is the first in the area to be awarded a certificate for the Responsible Fishing Scheme. The food was fresh, homemade and bursting with flavour. With weather to compliment, it was like being in the mediterranean.

Margate (via Kingsgate)

2009-08-13T15:49:00.000-07:00

We were toying with the idea of going to Margate as we had heard on the grapevine that Margate is being hailed as the new 'Hackney by the Sea'. Not to mention the faded charm of the esplanade, with artists such as Tracey Emin getting involved in part of the council's current regeneration scheme to support and sponsor artists, it's no wonder that there has been talk surrounding the seaside town. Not quite Whitstable or Broadstairs (but clearly not trying to be either), it is still a way off being cool again but there are definitely the first signs emerging. Wandering round, we noticed the shop windows filled with artists' installations but even more exciting was the Turner Contemporary Space which we stumbled accross just as we were about to leave. Mark parry's ice-cream cone installation was one of the best things in there but there were lots of other things that we wish we could have had more time to appreciate too. You can read about Tracey Emin's proposed piece here.

Just as we were leaving Margate, one of our friends who works for a creative exhibtion planning studio phoned and as a coincidence told us that she is most probably moving to Margate as her office is relocating there. Bizarre, there is a buzz beginning it would seem. We'll be going back soon to see how it is progressing...

Broadstairs

2009-08-13T15:37:00.000-07:00

Still haven't stopped laughing about our Morris Dancing experience today. Lauren was picked out of the crowd as the English Rose to be part of a dance... Apparently they were rusty with that particular dance as they hadn't done it in ages (bet that's what they tell all the girls) English Rose indeed when they finally dropped her back down on the ground and she was pretty red with embarrassment! A seriously fun(ny) day out to be had at the Broadstairs Folk Festival. Dancing and singing and colour and craft and all right by the beautiful seaside so that you can run into the sea and cool off when it all gets a bit too much.

The English Rose

No explanation needed?!

Brilliant ice-cream parlour, retaining all it's original features. No reproductions here, felt like we were stepping back in time to 1950s small town America or something.

En Route...

2009-08-13T15:02:00.000-07:00

After a quick cuppa in The Deptford Project (which has the BEST sofa ever by the way), we headed straight down the A2 to start our adventure. It wasn't market day in Deptford unfortunately (the flea market is on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays) but still a perfect start to the day. Newcross is where all the cool, arty kids hang out these days. Fast up and coming, as soon as the East London extension is finished, we predict a mass exodus from East to South. Cool little shops such as Dance Macabre, run by stylist Celia Arias and friends and deli's such as the Deptford Deli, are dotted in amongst the traditional high street market, longstanding Well Beloved butchers, local barbers etc. Well worth a visit.

Next we hit Stanhill Farm which is so close to London that it makes us wonder why we would ever not pick our own?

Hope the raspberry stains come out in the wash... We didn't really take berry juice into consideration when dressing and both ended up in stonewash denim of all things...

2009-08-13T00:14:00.000-07:00

All packed and ready to go. The sun is out but packed the wellies just in case. My bag has a little compass on it so even if the sat nav fails, we'll always know where we are...