Quirky Traveller's Tales

Myriad stalls line both sides of Skipton High Street on Market Day, selling everything from home made jam, via chunky knits to Greek olives.  Whatever the weather the stallholders always seem to have a smile and a cheery greeting.  On both sides of the road, substantial, but not imposing, Victorian buildings jostle for space with a few older building and an occasional modern interloper in between.

Skipton Market and Holy Trinity Church

This quaint Yorkshire market town on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales is the ideal place to see modern-day rural England.  Skipton Castle testifies to the town’s ancient history.  Originally built in 1090, it was replaced by a sturdy stone castle to fend off attacks from the Scots further north. In 1310, Edward II granted the castle to Robert Clifford who ordered many improvements to the fortifications; he died in the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314.  During the English Civil War the castle was the only Royalist stronghold in the north of England until December 1645.

Skipton Castle

Nearby, the 14^th Century Holy Trinity Church is the final resting place of Henry VIII’s niece, Lady Eleanor Brandon and there are also five Earls of Cumberland and an impressive memorial to 3^rd Earl, George Clifford.

The Woolly Sheep Inn

Sheep Street has lots of quirky little shops, boutiques and was the site of the old prison. Being on the tourist route, in an understated and genuine way, there are plenty of restaurants, pubs and cafes to quench thirst and tempt the palate.  A very popular and traditional pub is The Woolly Sheep with excellent choice of real ale and comfortable rooms.  One of my favourite places for a very unusual atmosphere is The Russian Tea Room – check out the window display of Russian dolls, costume and food.    Drop in to the pretty Three Sheep Tea Rooms for a great cup of Yorkshire tea and a bite to eat.

The Three Sheep Tea Rooms

Also on High Street is the Skipton Town Hall & Craven Museum.  When I visited recently there was an indoor market selling – I bought some brightly coloured wools for my latest knitting obsession!  My son got a Manchester City football pin and a couple of second hand DVDs – bargains galore here.  Upstairs is the fascinating little Museum showcasing artefacts from days gone by, including the very surprising hippopotamus skull, from the far-off days when they apparently roamed the surrounding countryside …

Indoor market wool stall

You can walk along historic The Leeds and Liverpool Canal, take a boat trip or just sit and watch the beautifully decorated barges, narrow boats and other craft drift slowly by.  The Canal Basin also has some great little shops in the converted warehouses.

Photo by LeedsLiverpoolCanal.co.uk

The Millenium Walk takes in a lot of the town as well as the Leeds Liverpool Canal.  It’s a great way to explore the industrial heritage of Skipton; originally a wool town, it went on to trade in  the more lucrative cotton industry and was the home of Silko Cotton.  My grandmother had hundreds of these brightly coloured reels in an ornate wooden sewing box in her front room.

So, next time you’re in the fair county of Yorkshire take time to visit Skipton – and see if you can find that hippo’s head …

In the fourth of our series of interviews with Holiday Homeowners from around the world, British expats Boz and Polly Cannon share their secret to a more laidback and active lifestyle and offer an insight into their new life in Frigiliana, in beautiful southern Spain.

 After working for 23 years in the Royal Navy then spending 5 years commuting from Petersfield Hampshire to London working in high pressure IT environment, Boz Cannon and his wife Polly, an NHS administrator, decided it was time for a change. In 2002, they bought a luxurious two bedroom apartment in a small complex in Frigiliana, Costa del Sol, with incredible 360 degree views from the balconies and roof terrace, both down to the sea and to the mountains.

After returning to London, Boz found out his  CEO had been fired, so that very same night they decided to cash in all their investments, sell the flats and move lock, stock and barrel to Spain. Less than three  months later they arrived for good.

1.  What first made you fall in love with Frigiliana and why should people come here?

We fell in love with Frigiliana, in southern Spain for so many reasons, it just seemed to have everything we could have ever dreamed of.  We had always loved the outdoors, so with the hills of the Sierra Tejeda and the Almijada Natural Park on our doorstep, the Mediterranea Sea  ten minutes away and the Sierra Nevada ski resort just 90 minutes away we could now play to our heart’s content. After our previous hectic lives, the moderate pace of life, lack of road rage,  low crime levels, lack of materialism and the fact that the Spanish have maintained family life and values, was a true joy to become part of.

 2.  What’s the ‘best kept secret’ you would tell any visitors not to miss?

This one is very easy. El Acebuchal is a small aldea (hamlet) about 5km from Frigiliana which was an old staging post on the trade route from the coast into the province of Granada. During the days of the civil war, the village was abandoned and  fell into ruins but back in 1998 Antonio Garcia “El Zumbo” and his family, who now own and run the restaurant there and who lived in the village as children, decided to renovate some of the family properties, which sparked off a full scale renovation of the village. El Acebuchal has now been reborn as a beautiful whitewashed pueblo with lovely cobbled streets and a wood fired oven in the main street, where Antonio will often cook a whole roast lamb or suckling pig.

3.  Where’s the place to go to just hang out, people watch and generally soak up the atmosphere?

In terms of just hanging out, there is no better way to get a feel for the life and soul of the village than to take  an evening  ‘paseo’ (wander) through the village. Join in with the locals as they parade through the narrow alleys and winding lanes, often with four generations of the same family in tow. Great grandparents with their walking sticks down to babies in pushchairs, they all stop to chat to their lifelong neighbours and friends.

4.  What would you recommend visitors either treat themselves to while they’re there, or take home as a souvenir?

A visit to Frigiliana would certainly not be complete without sampling some of the local delicacies. There’s the locally produced Frigiliana wine, made of the moscatell grapes that are harvested in August, taken to the local press in the village and then transferred to huge barrels where the juice is left to ferment for three months or more with no additives whatsoever. Another  favourite is the locally produced cane honey, still made in the original factory in the village. For the carnivor, a plate of ‘Choto’ (goat) in garlic and almond sauce is an absoute must.

5.  Finally, what are the most ‘quirky’ things to do, see, eat, visit or experience in this place?

The Axarquia region of the Costa del Sol plays host to a vast array of adrenalin fuelled adventure sports. There’s canyoning, a relatively new sport to Spain, but also parascending, skydiving, climbing a ‘via ferrata’ and kayaking. There are also dozens of caves in the area, including the world famouse Nerja Caves, that take the visitor to a whole new subterranean world with immense galleries, wierd and wonderful rock formations, and prehistoric cave paintings reputed to be almost 20,000 years old.

Frigiliana apartment owners Boz & Polly

Holiday Homeowner Q&A is brought to you by HomeAway.co.uk, the UK’s leading holiday rentals website with over 320,000 properties worldwide. From cute studios and city apartments to rural cottages and country homes, large luxury villas, quirky conversions and more, there are thousands of unique places to enjoy a more authentic and unusual holiday.

The UK is home to a number of unique travel destinations, which means it’s ideal to consider if you have a wedding coming up and are looking for an unusual location. Of course, the traditional “destination wedding” generally aims at a tropical beach setting or something of that nature, but if you want to make your wedding particularly distinctive or fun, you may want to consider one of the many beautiful, popular and culturally interesting places the UK has to offer.

Brides at Leighton Hall, Lancashire

Having a wedding away from your home town is not without its complications. However, the important thing to remember is that this is your wedding and people can help you to make it happen.  You can order all the food and drink, the cake and other essentials from Marks and Spencer, book accommodation in advance, and trust that with excellent planning it will all fall into place by the time the wedding day arrives! So, instead of worrying too much about the details in the early stages, concentrate first on picking a fun and interesting destination. Here are a few examples to consider.

The Lake District

Champagne is served at The Gilpin

One of the UK’s most beautiful, well-known and more remote destinations, the Lake District offers you the kind of getaway that most locations only aspire to offer. It is very common to host weddings in countryside settings or by lovely bodies of water, but in the Lake District you can have both and truly feel as if you are in the loveliest place on earth.  And it’s absolutely perfect for the smaller, more intimate marriage ceremony.

Stratford-upon-Avon

Anne Hathaway’s Cottage – photo by MW Errikson

If you are looking for something a bit more quirky, why not host a Shakespearean themed marriage in or around Stratford-upon-Avon, the playwright’s birthplace? This popular tourist destination offers a wide variety of venue and accommodation options for both small and large gatherings for the kind of unique, more unusual wedding that many people long for.

Medieval Castles

Leighton Hall in Lancashire

Similarly, if you want a different sort of themed wedding, or a historical backdrop to your ceremony, there are entire regions full of medieval castles in England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.  Can you imagine how impressive the wedding photos will look?  Many of these places have convenient accommodation and can offer complete packages for a truly memorable occasion for the happy couple, family and guests.

Blackpool

Blackpool Tower & Beach – photo by Visit Blackpool

Finally, if you like the idea of a seaside wedding and more fun than the typical tropical setting, consider Blackpool. This famous resort offers an almost carnival-like atmosphere with its sea views, iconic Tower, three Piers and Pleasure Beach that is quintessentially English.  This type of destination offers you a great blend of the traditional and unique, with a guaranteed British twist to your special day.

This article is brought to you by Marks & Spencer

Although Spanish cuisine may vary by region, one thing always remains the same – that Spaniards adore their food and drink, and lots of it. You’ll need to bring a hearty appetite with you when you’ve got your cheap flights to Spain but to make the most of the fantastic local flavours, you should know how to eat like a local too.

We Brits are often told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but this couldn’t be less true for Spaniards whose breakfast, or ‘desayuno’, may consist only of a pastry and juice. There’s good reason for the light breakfast however, which is that Spaniards take their main meal of the day at lunchtime. 

This meal, ‘Comida’ is eaten after 2pm and comprises of several courses, followed by coffee or numerous shots of liqueur. For the most authentic Spanish lunch experience order the ‘Menu del Dia’, a fixed-price menu on which you’ll always find the freshest local dishes.

Say Yes To Siesta

With so much food consumed, it’s no wonder that lunch is followed by a siesta until 4pm! Be aware that the majority of local establishments will be closed during this time while the owners take their naps, so as the old saying goes if you can’t beat them, join them.

This mid-afternoon break means that Spaniards seldom take their lighter evening meal, ‘cena’, until 9pm. In the summer it’s not unusual for dinner to be served as late as midnight, but if you can’t wait that long why not head to the restaurants early to beat the local crowds.

Drink to Tradition

All that food is sure to make you a little thirsty, and as the Spanish have been polled as the fifth-highest consumers of alcohol in the world it’s never the wrong time of day for a drink! Like everything in life though, Spaniards drink slowly, so linger over a great glass of Spanish wine or ‘cerveza’ (beer) while you watch the world go by.

On the other hand if you’re avoiding alcohol or just want to enjoy a refreshing Spanish beverage, try some horchata, a blend of rice, almonds, cinnamon and sugar that is sure to be a hit especially with younger visitors on cheap flights to Spain.

Author Bio: Victoria Cawthorne

Victoria is a travel blogger with a passion for music, theme parks, bikes, sewing, vegetarian food and road trips in camper vans. She has travelled extensively through Europe and North America and even lived abroad too, and has a natural passion for penning her experiences along the way.

The article is brought to you by Jet2.com

Baldry’s Tea Room, Grasmere: Lemon Meringue Pie – the very words bring back memories of childhood, when my Mum used to make the most mouth-watering dessert with her own lemon curd and squidgy meringue.  I never thought I’d say this but … shhhhh – the LMP at Baldry’s Tea Rooms is possibly even better than my Mum’s.  For a quick lunch, their homemade soup is excellent, but you must leave room for a big slice of tart, lemony heaven on a plate.  Baldry’s has a vague air of Fin de Siècle France about it, with fancy gilded mirrors and pretty china and the idiosyncratic window display always catches the eye of passing tourists.  Whilst you’re in Grasmere, you can see Wordsworth’s grave in ancient St Oswald’s churchyard and wander down to the lake to walk off all that delicious food.

Bridge Cottage Tea Shop, Grange-in Borrowdale: turn off the main road from Keswick to Honister, over the double-arched packhorse bridge, round the corner and there you have a perfect little grey slate cottage.  Go through low doorway and find a cosy little table in this small, yet perfectly formed tea shop.  There are always plenty of snacks, light meals (my favourite is the simply scrumptious cheese and ham toastie) and drinks to choose from.  In the height of summer it’s very busy so be prepared to wait – definitely worth it.  Go for a wander beside the clear waters of the River Derwent – there are plenty of pebbles to skim across the water. On your way back make sure you stop off for a walk to Friar’s Crag for one of the best views in the Lake District.

Bridge Cottage Teashop Photo by english-lakes.com

Rattle Gill Café: up a steep lane and round a little bend, alongside Stock Gill water cascade is a vegetarian gem.  I sheltered from a rain storm one day and in the snug vegetarian café wolfed down a delicious bowl of vegetable soup (go for the HUNGRY Monkey bowl if you have a big appetite!) with fresh, wholemeal bread and a very fruitful smoothie.  The friendly owners will make dishes to order and they have a very tempting children’s menu.  Make sure you walk up Stock Gill and wander around Ambleside which, as a popular walking centre, has a large selection of shops stocking everything for the hardy hiker and camping crank.

Poppy Red:  Hawkshead is the quaint Cumbrian village famous for Wordsworth’s school, Beatrix Potter’s gallery, its eponymous outdoor clothing shop and tasty relish.  There are some excellent little shop and great pubs and the quirky tearoom, Poppi Red – so much more than just a place to get a good cup of tea, coffee or glass of wine.  Curious tea pots, quirky plates and a cup cake cornucopia on one side and a jam-packed gift shop on the other. If the weather is fine, grab a table outside, order a drink and watch the world go by …

Low Sizergh Barn Tea Room: one of my absolute favourite places for a cuppa and a cake (en route to the Lake District on the A590 near Kendal), the tea room also has a unique view … over the milking shed.  On any day of the week, mid-afternoon you will find little children, noses pressed up against the glass, gazing down on the black and white cows as they placidly line up to get attached to the milking machines.

In this tastefully converted rustic barn there’s always a great selection of home-made meals and delicious bakes to tempt the hungry visitor.  Once refreshed you may then be tempted to purchase some locally grown strawberries, a pretty jumper or a wicker basket from the vast selection of crafts, food and gifts in their oh-so-very-enticing Farm Shop.