UK Italy Germany 2014

Photos: Gottingen, Eisenach and Arnstadt

joanimil — Mon, 25 Aug 2014 10:13:00 GMT

Photos: Wharfedale, Cotswolds and Lake District

joanimil — Wed, 20 Aug 2014 14:00:00 GMT

Photos: York and Benslow

joanimil — Mon, 18 Aug 2014 11:01:00 GMT

Photos: Italy

joanimil — Mon, 18 Aug 2014 08:22:00 GMT

Down to earth

joanimil — Fri, 15 Aug 2014 08:50:00 GMT

We had a little wait in Sydney for the flight to Canberra. I must say transfers seem so well organised, easy and smooth these days, as we moved almost seamlessly from plane to bus or train or new terminal wherever we went, but maybe we were just lucky.

But what! A turbo prop awaited us out on the tarmac... Now this did feel like very hard work, not only to get up off the ground, but SO VERY NOISY in comparison to our super modern, streamlined, whisper quiet Airbus; however this old plane delivered us efficiently, safe and sound a short time later onto the runway in sunny Canberra, from where I could see Simon's tall figure with Lucy beside him in the window, waving from the lounge. After six weeks we were all very happy to be reunited, but unfortunately we had to force ourselves to deliver Lucy to school, (luckily only half an hour late), then Simon drove us home.

Joy of joy, the wattles along the highway were putting on a riotous welcome for us, already in their spring garb, and on our arrival home we disturbed two fine grey shrike thrushes under the eaves of the back verandah, who then proceeded to fearlessly serenade one another (and us), with many variations of their melodious spring song.

However! Oh dear, disaster! A walk down to the veggie garden revealed the gate open and many veggies trampled and eaten, including ALL the rhubarb leaves!! Maybe the pesky possum and swamp wallaby will leave us alone for a while now though, as they nurse severe (we hope NOT fatal???) stomach upsets!

Despite this little setback we took our morning coffee out on the front verandah, dusted off the spiders webs, glad to bask in the warm sun, and enjoy once again that incredibly true blue sky, and, not least, the enthusiastic vocal spring hijinks of the frogs on the dam.

HOME! BLISS!

Floating home

joanimil — Wed, 13 Aug 2014 16:43:00 GMT

Day 42, time to pack up for the last time, to re-aquaint ourselves with our big bags, and all those superfluous things in the cupboard we found we did not need after all, (which were left at Ed's where we were lucky enough to have a palatial dressing room and a bedroom), while we took two small cabin bags on our various excursions from London. But hey we aren't complaining that the weather was always so mild that jackets were never needed. Raincoats yes, we were very glad of those for the occasional downpour, but most of the rain fell while we were tucked up in bed or busy inside. I rather took to travelling light, (What! says Richard) although of course it is easier in summer when everything packs flat, and dries easily overnight. Good old Ryanair cheap fares only allow cabin bags free, so we saved big time on extra baggage.

Ed very kindly insisted on driving us to the airport for our 8.40pm flight (even though it was around rush hour), which meant setting off at 4.30. We arrived in plenty of time, but it took Ed rather longer to drive home. Thank you Ed!

Our first flight to Singapore was in a Boeing 777, which we found very comfortable for the 12 and a half hour hop, even though it was full, and we loved the touch screens! Sitting at a window seat I could lean the cushion on the cabin wall, feet up on my long suffering husband's knees, and hey presto, sleep! Most unusual for me, as until recently I was a very nervous flyer.

I think airlines are at last getting the message about what passengers should be eating on long haul flights and Singapore Airlines is to be congratulated for putting this into practice. We were served little sealed bags of, surprise, surprise, freshly sliced cold apple, very refreshing actually, and roasted UNsalted peanuts. Who wants to eat salt when your sinuses are totally dried out by the airconditioning up there? During the long night there were help yourself trays at the back with sammos, whole fruit, cut up fruit, cheese and biscuits, and OK - salty chips too.

We had two and a half hours in Singa, and lo and behold after coffee at a cafe I realised that I could put my feet up on an L shaped couch, (yes without shoes of course) behind the scenes where it was deserted, and with my head comfortably back on the low arm rest, hey presto off to sleep again for an hour. This was good!

The next plane, for the seven and a half hour haul, was a huge double decker A380. These modern planes are amazing. Sitting over the wings it was astonishing to see how far they stretched into the distance, and I must say even the engines are beautiful to look at, as they were softly lit for take off and landing, though I am sure this was not for my enjoyment! The seat belt sign came on only once in the whole journey, and that was a mistake for sure, as nothing happened worthy of note. Sleep wasn't quite so ready to beckon however, even though we had an empty seat beside us. The cabin was so spacious there was a big gap between seat and wall, with nowhere to rest a pillow, so I watched the movie 'In Secret' based on a novel by Zola, which kept me entertained with its tumultuous plot of love, murder and intrigue. No touch screens this time, but this plane floated: we floated effortlessly up, powered seemingly effortlessly through the night, and finally floated down to Sydney, very early on a fine and cool sunny winter morning.

St Martin in the Fields and a night at the Proms

joanimil — Tue, 12 Aug 2014 21:19:00 GMT

The daily free lunchtime concert at St Martin in the Fields sounded a good idea to ease us into a proposed Proms musical finale to end our adventure. Expecting a concert of Beethoven and Ravel on the piano, we were surprised to see on our arrival an announcement that the concert was to be given by a Cuban guitarist. The pianist was unwell. Certain that we would enjoy it anyway we settled into some vacant front row seats while another 120 or so trickled in to the church behind us. An athletic looking suntanned young man also came to the front, unaccompanied by an usher, but with a dog on a harness. As he felt his way gingerly into a seat we realised he was absolutely and totally blind. His beautiful labrador promptly sprawled obediently at his feet, whereupon he was given a tennis ball to chew by his master. Would this man be totally unaware that he was about to hear a guitar recital I wondered? But no, a priest welcomed us and announced the program change. The affable dog moved little during the whole concert, lying just a few feet from the performer.

The guitarist was a very handsome young dark Cuban, elegantly bald, by the name of Ahmed Dickinson, possessing a seemingly effortless technique and a beautiful round mellow sound the like of which we had not experienced. He played all from memory, including a post modernist piece by Leo Brouwer, exploring all kinds of finger sounds and percussion we had neither seen nor heard before. I suggest you catch him on YouTube or CD if you can.

After lunch in the busy crypt cafe, we were off to Oxford Street again to complete our shopping, then on to Knightsbridge, before walking through Hyde Park and along the Serpentine to the Albert Hall for our prom concert, and the pre-concert talk at The Royal College of Music next door.

James Ehnes played the Walton violin concerto with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, who also played the glorious Sibelius 5th symphony, both favourites of ours. These works were greeted with rapturous applause by the huge audience, which prompted the violinist to give a beautifully poised and pared back rendition of a Bach solo violin Partita. However even he would have had no idea how truly fitting a way this was to conclude the Milners' Musical Adventure 2014, in the steps of JS Bach.

Oxford Steet shopping & farewell dinner

joanimil — Mon, 11 Aug 2014 21:11:00 GMT

This was catch our breath day - washing, blogging, writing postcards etc. After lunch we took the bus and tube to Oxford Circus (door to door 20 minutes), where Richard reluctantly succumbed to some retail therapy, actually, buying presents. In the evening, Lisa took us out to her favourite French restaurant for a farewell meal. Unfortunately Ed was feeling too tired after his busy weekend running a spider workshop and driving to Woodhouse Eves, and had to go to bed early. We were then down to a party of four, as Yas is now in Botswana doing some voluntary work at an AIDS hospital as part of her medical training.

The food was superb, tender duck breast with sour cherry sauce, seafood pie, baked sea bass, followed by magnificent shared desserts of lemon tart, chocolate fondant, frozen berries with custard, and a syrupy pear pastry. YUM!

This was very special to have an evening with Lisa and Nikki, with a toast to remember our absent family Ed and far away Yas.

Woodhouse Eves - The Wheatsheaf

joanimil — Sun, 10 Aug 2014 20:55:00 GMT

A Milner/Jarvis family reunion midway between Yorkshire, Cheshire and London was planned for this Sunday lunch. Sue and Graham drove us there through an incredible tropical rain event (blown over from the US!), then we continued on to London with Ed and Nikki. Unfortunately Alan and Chris could not come because Alan was not well. However we had an excellent lunch in a busy pub chosen by Alan, then happened to find a large country park nearby, Bradgate, where we went for a bracing walk during a break in the weather. The walk took us alongsinde a large reservoir with lots of bird life, and to our surprise, we also saw dozens of fallow deer among the fern and bracken, most already with very fine antlers, which no doubt will grow even bigger for the rutting season in October.

The Red Lion, Burnsall, Wharfedale, Yorkshire

joanimil — Sat, 9 Aug 2014 19:42:00 GMT

Sue and Graham took us on a day trip to the Dales where, by special request, we had lunch with the locals at the Red Lion, a very special honeymoon stop for Richard and I, just 2 days after our wedding. It has not changed much since our stay in 1969, parts of it dating from 1600, with low ancient beams and a warm, dimly lit and cosy atmosphere. It was originally the Ferryman's Inn and is right on the wide banks of the River Wharfe.

After lunch, we took a long peaceful walk along the riverside in beautiful sunshine with pretty views of the Dales. We later discovered that this walk traverses the Dales for 80 miles, all the way to Bowness on Windermere in the Lake District where we had stayed with Alan and Chris a few days earlier, a trek that would be a great idea for a return visit. After home cooked cakes and tea back in the village cafe we drove back high over the fells, enjoying vistas of rocky crags and vast seas of purple moorland heather. We counted ourselves lucky to have totally clear weather, allowing us to see the views at their very best ever.

The Farmhouse Bakery

joanimil — Fri, 8 Aug 2014 19:32:00 GMT

Right next door to Scampston Hall is a bakery which is a must visit if you ever happen to be in the area. The baker is an amazing woman in her 40s who lives with her husband and family in an old house on site where she has converted the old stables into her shop, cafe and kitchen.

Tables are set inside, outside and in a field housing the chicken and turkey run, which is where we headed. This place has a very homely feel. Our friend starts work at 3am seven days a week after 4 hours sleep, which she says is all she ever needs. Everything in the shop is made personally by her; the bread of the day, cakes, friands, slices, hand molded pork pies, little quiches, cream slices, large and small fruit cakes, jams and chutneys, all the pastries, custards etc. etc. And all very reasonably priced. The other staff start work at 10am as the customers arrive.

Faced with an impossible task of choosing something from this array, my choice eventually was the cream and custard morello cherry slice, which was light as a feather, earning it a 'best ever' label from me. Graham bought some pork pies to take home.

This busy lady was more than happy to chat to us at the end of her very long day about her life and work, in her wonderful Yorkshire accent. (She used to be a solicitor!) She told us it was her lifelong sleep habits, or lack of them, which had prompted her to think of a way to make good use of the wee small hours of the morning in a productive pursuit. She told us she would continue for perhaps another 6 years, then turn to teaching others how to run the business. I'd say it would be a totally impossible act to follow.

Scampston Hall and The Walled Garden

joanimil — Fri, 8 Aug 2014 19:26:00 GMT

We set off in a shower of rain which soon passed away and the weather stayed fine for the whole of our visit until the journey home.

The garden has a high brick wall and is divided by formal high box and ewe hedges into long rectangular beds, with plantings including a meadow area, topiary, vegetable plots, avenues of lime trees, a sea of flowering grasses and a riot of flowers. Created by Lancelot Capability Brown in 1772, 'Englands greatest gardener', it features lakes and parklands and some very ancient trees, making the estate well worth a visit.

We were surprised to be greeted at the door of the Hall by the elderly owner, Sir Charles Legard himself, a member of the family which has owned this Regency English country house since 1690. It is a relatively modest but aristocratic home, still occupied by the family. The guide showed us many family portraits, paintings, books and photographs, while we admired its high ceilings, beautiful staircase and fine architecture.

Facetime

joanimil — Fri, 8 Aug 2014 19:22:00 GMT

Sue kindly arranged a Facetime session with Simon and Lucy at 9 am which was a perfect way to catch up with Lucy's escapades, including losing two front teeth, and showing me the gravel rashes on her back, elbow, and hand from a nasty fall off her bike while riding downhill with friends. No broken bones thank goodness! It was so exciting for us all to chat as if we were in the same room after so long apart.

Twilight Adventure, a walk after sunset.

joanimil — Thu, 7 Aug 2014 18:30:00 GMT

Since it was a beautiful evening Graham and I decided to go for a walk from Kellington to the next village of Beal. We set off at a fast pace along the country road and were there in no time, so we thought it would be pleasant to walk back along the banks of the river. The river has a dyke all the way along to prevent it flooding the low lying villages and fields, making a convenient high level flat track for walking. The river forms huge loops and curves however, which meant that the walk back was considerably longer than the walk along the road, so we maintained our very fast walking speed, enjoying the changes in the beautiful pink sky on our left.

After walking a good while we suddenly realised there were heifers grazing ahead on our path, which made us a little nervous as there was little fencing, and it was too late to turn back. We ducked down quietly to the other side of the dyke and tried to keep out of their way as much as possible, coming across several herds as we hurried along. It became apparent that it was going to take us much much longer than we had anticipated to return, and the sky became less and less pink.... However the countryside is totally flat and we were up on the dyke, which meant we had maximum light from the delicately coloured sunset. We had not brought a mobile phone.

Unfortunately the lights of Kellington were not visible at any time as it lies in a dip, but as we frequently changed direction we could keep our bearings with the local familiar power station always visible in the middle distance. After some discussion Graham decided to take the risk of leaving the river, our anchor, and by guiding us in the darkness across a large bumpy (and rather wet!) field he cut out one enormous loop, and we thankfully joined a long but familiar dirt road leading to the village. We arrived back after almost two hours of fast walking from our proposed half hour stroll, with rather dirty shoes needing a very good clean the next day! Richard was oblivious in bed, and Sue becoming a little concerned.

Yorkshire, lunch in a converted mill in Halifax

joanimil — Thu, 7 Aug 2014 10:16:00 GMT

Next stop a sibling swap halfway between my brother's and sister's places in Cheshire and Yorkshire respectively, at Junction 22 on the motorway. After goodbyes and thank you to Alan and Chris, Sue and Graham took us to an old mill complex in nearby Halifax, now converted to flats and trendy shops, galleries and restaurants. Here we had a wonderfully artistic lunch at a favourite restaurant of theirs, each plate a tasteful(!) design of cleverly arranged delicious morsels.

After that we had time to browse in the gallery next door, with lots of opportunities to buy interesting presents and cards.

Lake District

joanimil — Wed, 6 Aug 2014 18:57:00 GMT

Through the night and next morning the rain continued to pour down, even as we tucked into a full breakfast. I chose porridge followed by Manx kipper, while the others had Cumberland sausages, bacon, black pudding etc.

We braved the rain and headed across the lake on the car ferry to Hill Top, Beatrix Potter's farmhouse. Because of school holidays and the house being small and very busy, there were only timed visits for 8 people, which meant a long wait, too long for us. However I bought a booklet telling the history of Beatrix Potter's life in the Lake District to read later, and we were able to have a good look at the delightful cottage garden and house exterior. We even saw two little bunnies in the field - Peter and Benjamin for sure!

We then drove to Coniston Water and did a very pretty walk, mostly in sunshine, by a rushing stream, obviously fed by a long waterfall we could see high up on the fells, and in turn feeding an old mill.

The rain stayed away enabling us to have wonderful views as we drove up the valley to the Langdale Pikes - an old climbing haunt of the Milners, and we even saw the climbing hut where Richard used to stay at weekends when he was at University in Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

Surprise double anniversary treat

joanimil — Tue, 5 Aug 2014 19:23:00 GMT

Alan had told us he had planned a surprise for Tuesday, which turned out to be an overnight stay at a cosy guesthouse just out of Bowness on the banks of Lake Windermere in the Lake District. Since we were all married in 1969, this was a double anniversary celebration of 45 years together. We were greeted with afternoon cream tea and a glass of Prosecco in the beautiful gardens sloping down to the lake, with views to the distant mountains. We took a walk down to the lake shore down the narrow twisting road, but were stranded by a sudden downpour and had to call a taxi. But hey this is the Lake District, greener than any grass ever seen where we come from.

Dinner was a very special treat, starting with tantalising morsels of goats cheese, prawns and salami in the lounge, looking out on the misty hills and lake. In the dining room which was full but not crowded, we had an intriguing 'amuse bouche' of tender shredded duck with a light hazelnut crumble, all sitting on a tart apple aspic jelly. Delicious! After that the three course meal! Cold carrot soup with coriander and coconut, tender thick slices of lightly roasted beef fillet, then a custard raspberry cream dessert were my choices, all scrumptious, and served by attentive (and numerous) mature aged staff.

Chester

joanimil — Mon, 4 Aug 2014 17:32:00 GMT

On Monday we took the train to Chester to be met by my brother Alan and Chris. Finding a parking spot took quite a while, but after a lucky break we walked only a short distance through the ancient Tudor city to have lunch at a high class restaurant. Unfortunately it was closed on Mondays! However another nearby proved to be just as good, and Chris kindly insisted the bill was all hers.

The medieval cathedral very close by beckoned us to take a look at its vast interior. It was constructed in the 12th century as a Benedictine Abbey in round arched Romanesque tradition, updated in the 13th century when the whole building was gradually dismantled and rebuilt in the then more fashionable Gothic style. In 1541 it was elevated to cathedral status by Henry VIII himself to save it from the destruction he incurred in the dissolution of all the monasteries. Even after all this turbulent history, 12th century and even Roman masonry remain to this day, as well as a set of original fine and intricately carved quire stalls and tabernacles.

As luck would have it we heard a visiting USA choir rehearsing with the organ for evensong, but fortunately the singing did not entice me to stay, as this would not have been possible. The acoustic however was very impressive in that huge space.

Blenheim Palace and the Cotswolds

joanimil — Sun, 3 Aug 2014 18:14:00 GMT

Today Ed and Nikki drove us to the Cotswolds which took about 90 minutes, but longer on the way back due to the heavy traffic returning to London on a Sunday. First we walked in the beautiful grounds of Blenheim Palace near Woodstock, the imposing ancestral home of the Dukes of Marlborough and Winston Churchill, as well as the Spencer family of Diana Princess of Wales.

We stopped at several picturesque little villages, all with houses made of local limestone, often sited close to a bubbling stream, with quaint names like Stowe on Wold, Broughton, Upper and Lower Slaughter. We had an excellent pub lunch at the Tudor Hotel, followed later by a local afternoon tea with scones and clotted cream. But these were not bland white offerings heated in a microwave, all too common in some places, but substantial little numbers the size of my palm, bursting with plump sultanas, fresh from the oven. Mmmm

Greenwich on the River Thames

joanimil — Sat, 2 Aug 2014 17:00:00 GMT

Saturday was washing day, but late in the morning Ed and Nikki drove us to Greenwich to see the wonderful Royal residence designed by Sir Christopher Wren where Henry VIII and Elizabeth I were born. It was more recently the Royal Naval College (The Cutty Sark stands proudly by), and now houses the Maritime Museum, The Trinity Laban Music College, and is a venue for weddings etc. We were lucky enough to arrive just in time for a guided tour of the Painted Hall which took the 18th century artist 19 years not only to complete, but also to be paid! It has the largest painted ceiling in Europe. It was then very pleasant to sit at a cafe right on the river to have lunch in the sun, after which we took the ferry to Westminster, passing under London Bridge and Tower Bridge.

Our niece Yas just went to southern Africa for a month and sent some wonderful photos of rhinos, elephants, giraffes etc taken on safari today in the Kruger National Park.