The Wonders of the Isle of Wight with Steve & Michaela

The Wonders of the Isle of Wight

In the evening we played games of bingo, watched the brilliant entertainment and of course danced the night away!

We visited the Train Story Museum, The Isle Of Wight’s newest attraction. We had such a great day there and even took a steam train ride through the Island countryside. 

 In Alum Bay we were astonished by the view across the Needles. We went into the sand crafting shop and filled a bottle with beautiful different coloured sands. Then we visited the fantastic Glass Blowing Factory and watched many items being made whilst we were there.

We enjoyed leisurely walk around lovely village and wandered into a variety of small gift shops where some of us bought presents to take home.

At the Isle of Wight Donkey Sanctuary, we had a great time and all loved petting the cute donkeys and ponies. The sanctuary shelter for more than 100 animals.

Yorkshire Dales, TV Soap Country with John & Candy

Yorkshire Dales, TV Soap Country

We were ready to go visit “The Woolpack” pub in Esholt. In the village square there was a market and we wandered amongst the stolls before setting off to the original Emmerdale pub. We all loved it and enjoyed talking about Emmerdale episodes over a drink. 

 We went to the “Carding Shed” in Jackson Bridge, where we had a look at the beautiful vintage cars, motorbikes and bicycles. Then we went to Holmfirth and visited “Sid’s cafe” where we had photographs taken next to the pictures of the cast.

We boarded on a vintage bus that took us around the town and the countryside where all the different scenes were filmed.

In Aysgarth Falls in the Dales, we had a picnic in the sun by the side of the river. For dessert we had Betty’s famous scones with jam and cream. 

At the Wensleydale Creamery we watched a demonstration of cheese making and tasted all the different cheeses. Yummy!

We headed off to the coast and Whitby, where we drove to the abbey and saw the harbour area and the whalebone arch that commemorates Whitby's historic link with the whaling industry.

 Another day we visited the amazing National Railway Museum in York.

In Ripon we saw the horn blower in the square performing a ritual which has been going for hundreds of years. 

Blackpool with Phil & Tini

Blackpool

We had a wonderful stroll along the beachfront with the pier and the fascinating Blackpool Tower always in sight.  At the top of the tower there were breathtaking views on the horizon. Some of us even stood on the glass floor. Wonderful!

 

 We visited the fantastic Madame Tussauds wax museum. We had so much fun having our photos taken with all the famous people on display.

At the Blackpool Ballroom we were amazed by the beautiful room dating back from 1894.

At the zoo we had a fun time watching the giraffes being fed, the massive silver back gorillas, the baby lion, the big tigers, the orangutans pulling funny faces at us and many more animals. What an amazing day! 

We had an amazing time at  the SeaWorld centre and were fascinated by all the different species of fish and especially liked the shark tunnels.

We had a day out in Liverpool, stopping at the museum, where we visited the interesting and exciting exhibitions about bugs and sea life. 



After lunch we went straight to the birthplace of the Beatles: The Cavern Club. We were super lucky and managed to sneak in the VIP area and had a great time there, listening to music and singing along to the world famous Beatle's songs. 

Italy - Sun & Sea with Derek, Wendy & Isobel

Italy - Sun & Sea

We all headed to the beach in the beautiful sunshine. Some of us went swimming in the sea whilst others enjoyed paddling, playing bat and ball, frisbee and some went on the fun trampolines, a first experience for a few of us.

We found time to relax by the pool and to take a dip when we felt the need. 

We enjoyed visiting different old towns where we walked through cobbled streets, enjoying looking at some of the
ancient buildings, churches and lots of small shops. 

We all enjoyed tasting all the different flavours of delicious Italian ice cream. Yummy!

We stopped for a drink at a stunning
hotel/spa set in the mountains with breathtaking views down into the valley. We continued our journey to Rocca Calasico where we came across a lovely restaurant located at a height of 1460 metres and overlooked by the ruins of its castle dating back to the Middle Ages. 

During our holiday we took lovely strolls along the beach stopping for

lunch and having drinks in the beach cafes. In the evenings we went out for  lovely meals and enjoyed trying some traditional meat and fish dishes.