Gambolling Through Ghent; A Wanderers Guide.

As a day trip from Brussels (only a half hour train),  I've found that either many people haven't heard of Ghent, preferring to explore the chocolate box streets of Bruges, or they adore Ghent so much that when a blogger (me) visits, they spam them via instastories with recollections of days spent there and memories made. True story.

Disclaimer: I was a press guest of VisitFlanders in Ghent, 

but all planning, mischief and thoughts are all mine.

We fell into the former camp on our trip to Brussels and explored Bruges, but genuinely regretted only being able to fit one city in, vowing to return one day.

A Salisbury City Break: Exploring the UK in a Meandering Manner

A medieval cathedral city in the southern English county of Wiltshire, 9 miles south of the iconic prehistoric stone circle at Stonehenge. The city’s ornate 13th-century cathedral has a 123m spire, a working 14th-century clock and an original copy of the Magna Carta (the Great Charter), a key document from 1215 A.D. And Fudgehenge (keep reading, it'll become clear.).

Salisbury.

English Traditions: Bell Ringing in Churches

One of the moments in my life that I'll never forget is hearing the Church bells pealing as Mr Kiwi and I took our first steps as a married couple.

Our favourite song was playing, many of our favourite people around the world were smiling all around us and that bloke who had just vowed to stand beside me through thick, thin and endless photographs of doorways (that wasn't in the vows, it was implied) took my hand.

72 hours in Chester

Chester is the first holiday I've ever booked through the power of Instagram alone. We had been looking for somewhere as a long weekend break (well, I say we, but I had actually been put on a travel ban which Mr Kiwi now mostly denies, his baby blues all innocent) when I spotted that a friend of mine had day tripped up to Chester. It was beautiful.

So firing up the laptop, I booked us a cheeky little Cheshire staycation.

Staying at the Old Vicarage, a luxury guesthouse in Cornwall

When an intriguing proposition to review the Old Vicarage near Truro landed in my email inbox, I knew that it was all the excuse I needed to book in a long weekend and breathe in the fresh air of Cornwall, somewhere I've been meaning to explore forever.

Disclaimer: We were excited guests of Jon and Marilyn at the Old Vicarage and eviivo

but all of our enthusiasms are very much our own...

From London we plotted a 4-day weekend beginning with two nights at the Old Vicarage, around 2 miles from the Cathedral City of Truro in the small but lovely hamlet of St Clements. The six bedroom luxury guesthouse dates back to the 1500s and is a literal stone’s throw from the banks of the beautiful Tresillian River.

Pocahontas and her connection with Gravesend, Kent

Sometimes I feel that this country isn't real, that Britain is actually a storybook tome, disguised with trees and chimneys to fool the reader into thinking that we are living on a rock. In actuality perhaps if we prodded it a little bit harder and peered a little bit closer that we would see the seams between worlds. (That got a little bit Matrix in style, sorry!)

But seriously, it sometimes seems as if each corner has a knight on pure white steed about to charge (Temple Church), damsels defending their land (Queen Boudicea in Epping Forest), incredible feats of daring (Bletchley Park) or wizards ready to enspell the world (Stonehenge) and the tales are such a rich tapestry of fascination - especially for an expat like myself.

Becoming a Cowboy at the Beaumont Ranch, Northern Texas

Do you ever find yourself having a literal 'pinch me' moment? At the end of our fortnight we hit the tarmac, rolling out of the gleaming Dallas city centre - on our way back to Austin to sadly fly home - we headed for one last adventure to round out our Southern America roadtrip.

We cruised along the long, smooth highways tucked in behind a semi-truck or two (how I preferred to drive whilst in the States that is slowly and smoothly) along dusty highway shoulders that definitely had a tumbleweed or two for decoration.

The longer that I've been blogging, the better that I think our travelling choices are getting - and the more fun that the researching that we do becomes. However, this revelation flew quite out of the window when totally by chance I discovered that it's actually possible to stay on a working Texan Ranch as a tourist and set about booking us into an accommodation experience, rather than just another beige hotel.

US Roadtrip Diary: Our Louisiana Plantation Stay

Leaving behind the zooming traffic of the motorway, we turned from the busy I-110 to a gently curving US Highway 61 shouldered by dark trees and the occasional Mom and Pop business. The late afternoon sun broke over the horizon and our SatNav announced that were almost at our destination, the Butler and Greenwood Plantation.

Having followed the Mississippi River upstate from New Orleans slightly past the historic town of St. Francisville, we steered Bonnie along the curving driveway arcaded with Spanish Moss draped Live Oak trees, parting to reveal the kind of house that only seems to appear on movies. A deep wraparound porch hugged the timber frame and the late afternoon sunshine dappled the lawn.

Disclaimer: We were excited guests of the Butler and Greenwood Plantation but all of my enthusiasms are very much my own...

We were greeted by two of the real owners (a tabby and a grey cat respectively) before the porch screen opened and our friendly host for the evening peeped out. Welcoming our grateful selves to sink into her verandah sofa, Anne Butler gave us a map of the St. Franvisville area alongside a few recommendations before telling us a short history of her beautiful family home passed through the generations, before arriving at the current iteration of B&B cabins in the grounds.

A Christmas corner of London: Oxford Street and Picadilly Circus

I usually avoid Oxford Street and Picadilly Circus as much as possible, preferring to duck along the lesser visited lanes that run alongside the main thoroughfares the times I absolutely have to brave the area.

The one month where I make an exception is December.

It would be impossible to talk about London at Christmas without mentioning the shopping heart of my favourite city. Commercial greed and the chaos of thousands of visitors aside, each corner you turn is another festively trimmed doorway of cheer.

A visit to the Roald Dahl Museum, Great Missenden

Even though I'm always chafing at the bit to get overseas (recently being accused of going away "too much" which is impossible in my estimation) I've consciously tried to explore my adoptive home island as much as possible.

A friend coined the term 'permatourism' which is bang on the money - being a permanent tourist, even when in our home countries. Seaside trips, highland vacations, day trips to quirky museums, even London staycations where we explore a different neighborhood of this sprawling city.

The 10 best castles in the world (IMHO)

My inner princess never thought this was possible. My own country has a history of around 150 settled human years, so the magic of walking through thousands of years of history never quite loses the unique frisson of delight.

Suits of armour that tell tales of bravery and hardship, kitchen hearths that fed hundreds of (in)famous dignatories and hard working servants, windows that saw enemy arches living up their longbows and sighing maidens dreaming of their loves, moats that were filled with all sorts of exotic contents and drafty castles walls that witnessed history that changed the lives of nations.

Yeah, I've got the castle wandering bug bad. If there is a castle or palace near where we are (and by near I mean within 2 hours train ride) you can guarantee that I'll be making my way there, scheming how to get closer or researching ways to sleep there (Prince Harry, watch out).

The day I broke Southwark Cathedral

Many moons ago when I was much younger and freshly arrived on these ancient shores I did a Bad Thing which probably, really should have got me deported. I don't have many regrets, but this is definitely one of them. It wasn't anything illegal, violent or intentionally nasty and it brought tears to my eyes.

I was volunteering with a charity outfit called Cathedral Camps, a mentoring programme that works quite closely with the Duke of Edinburgh scheme and teens from all over Europe who want to improve their English. Spending a week living on or near a Cathedral and working odd jobs for them - ranging from vaccuming towers to repainting railings - whilst exploring the city at night (we were lucky enough to have a special tour of St Pauls, a night at Shakespeares Globe for the Merchant of Venice and of course the delight of Leicester Square of an evening) we slept in a hostel and cooked in nearby kitchens.

Nuremberg daytripping from Munich

Another popular day trip from Munich is to Nuremberg. Infamous for the dark history that the Nazis brought to an otherwise pretty (and unhappy to be selected apparently) city that was subsequently almost levelled in the World Wars that followed, we were curious to explore the history of this Bavarian city.

I must confess Nuremburg wasn't our jam (unlike our trip to Wendelstein Mountain and the clear alpine waters around Neuschwenstein Castle with a touch of tourist dodging, both definitely were!)

Mount Stewart, Northern Ireland

Every blogger secretly wants to discover hidden gems right? I mean it's practically in the job description: Chatterbox required for hours sat in front of a screen editing words and photos about unusual things. Must bring own mug and discover 'hidden gems'.

Mount Stewart isn't a hidden gem, it is one of Northern Ireland's diadem rocks, second to the actual rocks of the Giant's Causeway. The opening hours were flexible (to say the least) on the rainy day that we visited, so we wandered through the gardens whilst the grey clouds threatened.

Friday figments and photos: Are you going to Scarborough Fayre...

This week has been a whirlwind of delicious chaos (and at least one night collapsed on the couch.) Amongst other tidbits, we discovered a pop-up garden overlooking the busiest Street in London...

We attended the dreamiest wedding in Scarborough...

Middle and Inner Temple Inns; a touch of bewigged architecture

Old buildings are my favourite. Forget the souless glass sheathes of modern day architecture, gleaming constructions punctuated with steel and plastics that can think. I ♥ creaky wooden floors with patinas of long since gone families living their lives over drunken levels, I ♥ the beauty of wattle and daub walls keeping the weather away, I ♥ the stories of love, loss and challenge conquered by people of yesteryear.

 

At our wedding, the vicar asked us to stop for a moment and consider the wealth of emotion contained within the 11th Century Saxon tower we were standing under. It's probably ridiculously fanciful, but it was one of the most memorable phrases that have stayed with me over the years.

10 London day trips - last-minute and no car required

As reliably as the hands tock around the face of Big Ben, us Britain dwellers get excited about every single bank holiday that the Queen has arranged for us. 'Free' holiday days where pretty well everyone else also has time off, your annual leave allowance isn't compromised and often the sun doesn't shine (I wish her majesty would have a word with the BBC weather team, maybe get the Royal Meterologists to divert the gulf stream for a day or two). In short, freedom.

Broadstairs Beach

But, sometimes those days seem to creep up (unless you're as crazy as I am - calendar on the wall in January just in time for the year goals linkup, bank holidays marked in pink & annual leave allocation eked out as evenly as possible) and the weekend rolls around where it isn't jam packed with boarding flights, wrestling your way through kids or rolling the dice around a family roast.

10 reasons you should visit Winchester in the rain

At only an hour or so by train from Waterloo Station, Winchester is a perfect day out from London. It has good food, little windy cobbled lanes, good shopping, a great selection of restaurants, fascinating history and good brunch.

The reason it took me several years to pop down there? Sheer laziness.

72 hour city break in Vienna, Austria

Vienna is grand, elegant, perfectly compact, leafy, full of delicate baked goods peddlers, brimming with history and a thousand other superlatives. It’s one of those cities where you mention a visit, and everyone – and I mean everyone – exclaims “Oh, I LOVE Vienna!”. There is plenty to do for culture vultures, spas for relaxation weekends, cake on nearly every corner, gardens galore for picnics, museums for ghosting. Just all the things.

All in all, Vienna is a fantastic European city break. (Can you tell we enjoyed it?)

108 Marylebone Brasserie Restaurant Review(ed again)

Call me utterly biased, but you can't beat Marylebone on a sunny evening. Elegant with a side of eccentricity, a few minutes walk from the chaos of Oxford Street, the quiet streets of Marylebone are alive with contented chatter and the occasional clink of glasses.

 

 Disclaimer: We were invited guests of 108 Marylebone but my (very many) opinions are 

only ever my own, and proof is in the pudding (and the many, many times I have visited.)

Many of the lanes are ringed with period facades, leafy nooks and boutiques perfect for window shopping dreamily. We may have wandered through several of the above before arriving at our dinner date destination, The Marylebone Hotel, or more specifically the 108 Marylebone Brasserie.