Burgh Island and Devon

One of the most famous connections to burgh island is Agatha Christie. Her holiday home, Greenway  is about a 40 minute drive from the island. It is truly in a glorious spot. The views from the garden are lovely.

It seems she didn't write at her home, but went to the island, particularly when the weather was bad. It seems she used the island as the inspiration for And Then There Were None.                                         

 The hotel has a sea pool called the mermaid pool, and to be honest, only a mermaid could enjoy it in May. However the British are nothing if not hardy, and i saw two brave souls take to the water.          

   

Just when I thought nothing else could surprise me, we had a fly over of five biplanes. We were standing on the terrace, and they flew low over our heads, appearing from above the hotel. It is  something I will always remember.                                                                                                       

We donned our glad rags for the final evening and said goodbye to this little gem of a place out of  time. There was one final treat though. On our last morning, the tide was in so we had to use the sea tractor to get back to the mainland. It was also very foggy. As we drove off, the Burgh Island     hotel disappeared into the mist. A perfect way to end a magical weekend.         

                             

                              

                                  

 

Back to the 20s

I like Art Deco. I wouldn't say I'm crazy about it, but it is interesting and different.                         This month is our twenty fourth wedding anniversary. I knew hubby had planned a trip away but not the destination. I guessed Saville, so was somewhat surprised to be told we were going to an island off the Devon coast. I was even less impressed when I was told, it gets cut off by the tide twice a day and has no mobile reception or wifi! WHAT is the man mad? Oh well, I had better go along with it I suppose.

As we drove down the hill to Bigbury-on-Sea ( not Bigly as I told someone! ) we were treated to a stunning view of the hotel in all its glory.

It is there, honest, you just have to zoom in. 

We were met on the mainland and driven across the sand to the hotel. Walking though the doors, we realised we had stepped back in time. The place is perfect. 

Last day !

The last full day in Courmayeur was lovely. The weather not so much, but Hubby had a ball. There was a fall of snow early in the morning which meant there was there was thick powder on the top runs. He was buzzing when I met him for lunch.

Lunch had been arranged at a very popular restaurant at the top of the gondola. Well, it was actually at the other side of the piste, which when you are on skis is not a big deal, but being on foot meant hiking across the piste, uphill, through soft snow, through the fog. 

Things did not get off to the best start. Our reservation had been cancelled somehow, and after a rather stressful negotiation and a 45 minute wait in the fog, a table was found. But boy was it worth the wait. The food was superb. Chieccos, is a first class restaurant.  What had not started out in a promising manner, turned into one of the best meals I have ever had.  We happily rolled back across the piste. Phil and I did a bit of a Cha Cha Cha to some house music that was coming from the very loud après ski party going on. We all agreed it was the perfect end to a fantastic week. And yes,  I did walk across a snow covered piste with a handbag.

                                                      Broccoli flan with truffle.

On a clear day...

Looking out the window, I can only see a few yards. The weather in the mountains is certainly changeable. A couple of days ago it was crystal clear. A perfect day to go up the mountains for a look at the view. The first stage is on a modern gondola which can hold 120 people. This takes you to the access point for skiers. The second ride is in a bubble lift, which holds 6 and is quite cosy. The third lift is a cable car which would not have looked out of place in an old James Bond movie. On the way back down we stood back to let the skiers get on , the cable car drooped by about a foot as the 19 people got on. It sways and bounces against the side of the station as it comes in. The forth lift was an even older cable car. Honestly if Jaws had been riding on the roof, I wouldn't have been surprised .
But it was worth it. The view from the top is fantastic. Mount Blanc is stunning. It really felt as if we were on the top of the world.

Aosta.

One thing about not skiing whilst on a skiing holiday, is that it makes you look around to see what else is out there. It was suggested we go to Aosta as there was a craft fair on we might like. The very helpful staff at the bus station sold us a return ticket for €7 and down the valley we went. Perhaps it isn't the most picturesque valley but the mountains are always worth a view, and I love looking at local villages, of which there were quite a few on the way. An hour later we arrived in Aosta.
It is a very old town and most of its Roman wall and towers are still intact. We went in through the Praetorian Gate which still has some of the marble it was faced with. I did manage to get a peek at the Roman Theatre through a fence as I was too mean to pay €7 for the privalage. Not that you could see a lot as it was mostly covered in snow. We were there for the fair after all.

 

The town was buzzing. The  Foire de Spain Ours is held every year on 30-31 Jan. It started in approx 1017 so this is its 1000 year or there abouts. I had a quick look on the oracle that is Wikipedia and it seems it was started in memory of an Irish monk! We get everywhere.
There were lots of handicrafts, mostly made from wood. Also some wicker work and felt. A number of the stall holders were wearing felt hats.
I have found in the lady who is also a non skier in the group, a soul mate. She takes no persuading at all to stop for coffee and cake. While we were having a rather thick chocolate and enormous frangipan , an elderly gentleman left the cafe. With his very large nose and pointy felt hat, I couldn't help but wonder if this is where gnomes come from .
One stall was selling odd sticks with ribbons and bells on the end. We asked the stall holder what theywere and she explained it was a local instrument which is placed over the shoulder and both ends beaten with a small stick. It was fantastic to see a group playing them just before we headed in for coffee.

Ski holiday without skis

Yes, we are off again. This time to the Italian Alps. Hubby has been wanting to go skiing again for almost 15 years now. But life sort of got in the way and it hasn't happened until now. The slight fly in the ointment is that I lost my nerve a number of years ago and so I am quite happy not to slide down a mountain with planks of wood strapped to my feet. So here we are in Courmayeur which despite the French name is in Italy. This is a very pretty alpine village at the foot of Monte BIanco ( Italian again). There are a diverse group of adults in the party. Neighbours, neighbours friends and relatives, twelve in all. We are in two chalets and ours has a stunning view of the mountains. The down side of that is to get such a view the approach to the chalet is up a very steep slope. I have to stop 3 times before I can get to the top but I am putting this down to the altitude, not my general un fitness.

Luckily there is another lady in the group who also does not ski. We have been here two days now, and between us we have been trying various coffee shops. They have all been very good so far. No one makes hot chocolate better than the continentals. We did travel up the mountain to meet the rest for lunch today. That is the thing I miss about skiing, being in the mountains. Hopefully on the next clear day we will make it up to the very top.

Cienfuegos

Cienfuegos has a very different feel to the places we have so far seen. It's architectural heritage is more French than Spanish with wide boulevards and a French colonial feel to the buildings.  The main square is large and open with its very own mini Arc de Triomphe. The most spectacular building is the Casa de Cultura Benjamin Durate which was once a private Palacio. It is being renovated and will be a museum once finished. It has large airy rooms and beautiful iridescent tiles in one corridor.

The area we stayed in had lots of homes in art deco style and a number of large buildings one of which is the yaught club
We dropped in for a daikiri.  The area is on a promentory which sticks out into the bay. At the end is El Palacio del Valle. It was built in 1894 by an Italian architect who had a wild imagination. The dining room would not look out of place in the Alhambera. The stairs is heavily art nouveau and other rooms have an Italian or French feel. One guide book describes it as kitch but we liked it's insane mixture.   The roof terrace had lovely sea views and we watched pelicans diving for their dinner as we sampled their cocktails. A nice way to end our visit to a lovely city.