Left Centre Parcs early morning to travel to Hampshire for Holly’s wedding. Arrived at Nige and Carly’s at about 10 am.
Quick turnaround and off to the 1.00pm wedding at Winchester’s St Cross church.
Lovely service but rubbish weather so no real photo opportunities outside the church.
Straight to the reception venue of the Clock Barn outside Winchester.
Great reception and taxied hope at 11pm.
Last day at Centre Parcs
Jamie and Steff went off site early for their horse riding adventure
Irene went to have her nails all tarted up for 2 hours in the morning.
Gym in the afternoon and another badminton session whilst all the ladies spent three hours in the Spa pampering themselves.
Ate out in the evening at the Indian restaurant. Nice meal.
This little chappie was munching away right outside our back door
Jamie had his Falcon adventure early morning where all the kids were allowed to handle some of the birds and instructed about the various types of birds of prey. Parents looked on and learnt something as well.
Canoeing in the afternoon then gym and the pool again
Spotted a beautiful red deer grazing in the wood at the rear of the lodge
Walks around the estate in the morning then more gym for Me and Er.
Josh and me braved the “Aerial Adventure” and the zip wire across the lake at the end.
Ice creams and coffee all round before more badminton and squash for Brad and Kelvin.
Josh and Jamie had their Aqua Jets session first thing for 30 minutes and we all spent the next couple of hours negotiating the rapids, slides, hot tubs, cold dunk pool and the waves.
Badminton in the afternoon and a BBQ in the evening
Getting tired after all this activity
Gladiator Challenge for Josh today pm and Tai Chi for Irene.
Josh was the best of the bunch and Irene came back worn out! (All the stretching)
Moorhen nest near the bird hide
Silly Billy’s around gym circuit
Pancakes for lunch at the “Pancake House” . JP in his photogenic mood. Little poser.
Off on the bikes in the morning to explore some more and found our way around all the facilities.
Bradley broke the gears on his bike and had to walk it back to the lodge
Bowling on Saturday evening , Kelvin won
Left home for a week’s adventure at Centre Parcs with Brad,Nat, boys, Jacob, Kelvin and Steff
Arrived at our lodge at 2.00 pm and spent the afternoon exploring
Last day in Bordeaux.
Went to the Contemporary Art Museum and because the main exhibition area did not have an exhibit ( a new one being constructed) there was no charge. The building itself was worth the visit. It is the old Maritime Bourse. Quite small inside but had some interesting exhibits especially the architecture section.
Had a nice lunch on the promenade before setting off to the airport
JP’s new hat from Bordeaux
Took the train to Arcachon on the coast about 55 mins travelling time. Then immediately took the local bus to the Grande Dune de Pilat which is the largest sand dune in Europe. It’s massive.
Weather a bit cloudy but dry.
Last night we went to a very lively restaurant (mainly because the clientele was young) called Le Plouc . Rustic tasty food and great atmosphere. Charcuterie and Foie Gras to start and then both had Cassoulet. Er didn’t like the bowls. What’s all that about !!! Bottle of Listrac Medoc to accompany.
A few days in Bordeaux again. Couldn’t resist a cheap flight from Bristol.
A beautiful sunny day and very warm in the sunshine but a bit cool in the shade.
Spent the day walking along the quay. First stop the Spring Antiques Fair in the Quinconces and a bit further along wandered through the Sunday food market .
Further along the quay are the Outlet shops and bought a pair of shoes.
Had to stop for a couple of glasses of rosé before heading back to hotel.
Such a nice day this is all we did, strolling around in the sunshine watching the world go by. Great.
The Antique Fair
The fish is so much cheaper than Nice
Some of these loaves were so big they could feed the 5000
It is great to get some sunshine at long last
Had a pleasant night away at Celtic Manor near Cardiff, home of the 2010 Ryder Cup
Arrived at lunchtime and read the Sunday papers from the day before over a light lunch and coffee.
Went for a walk around the grounds of the resort and back through one of the 3 golf courses.Nice views over the Usk Valley
Dinner at the Lodge in the evening, very nice food.
Left after a very good buffet breakfast and visited the Newport Wetlands on the Severn estuary before returning home.
Very reasonable special deal @ £99.00 DB&B
Match day today but kick off not until 7.00 pm so have the day to tour the city. Decided on the open top bus tours of which there are two, one the West Tour and the other the East Tour. € 26 for both and they are hop on hop off. Took the West first and then the East . Took most of the day with a lunch stop at Catalunya square where we swopped routes. Arrived back at hotel at 4.30 for a quick turn around to get the Metro out to the Camp Nou stadium. Great match with Messi scoring 4 out of the 5 goals. Stopped at a pizzeria before we caught the Metro back to the hotel.
Arrived in Barcelona with the boys just after lunch. Found a bar for a little light refreshment before walking to the harbour area. Went for little cruise out on the bay. Walked along the Rambla and back to the hotel. Sunny day but became a bit chilly late in the afternoon. Match day tomorrow at the Nue Camp .
Went to a nice restaurant recommended by the hotel on Carre Para-lel . We all shared tapas and a great paella . Not a tourist area so very authentic. Freebe grappa to finish off. Good day
Managed to ski every day despite the three snowy days which the resorts needed at the lower altitudes. We had three glorious sunny days when we skied at Maria Alm and Saalbach Hinterglem.
JS had a nasty fall and needed 7 stitches in his lip but continued bravely for the rest of the week without further mishap
Jacob Paul was born during our stay at 1.45 am on the 16th January 7lbs 15 oz
Arrived home to 6inches of snow at Bristol Airport a little late after our plane got hit by a vehicle of some sort at Salzburg Airport which damaged the wing. All OK but were a bit concerned for a while