And relax! Blimey, we don't seem to have stopped since we packed in school at the end of term. We moved on after a wonderful week in York, and are now looking forward to few days relaxing days here near Spurn Point in East Yorkshire. And I can hopefully get caught up on some blog stuff too. Like this one. Right, let's go:
We've been to York before in the caravan - a couple of years ago we were lucky enough to get a pitch on the popular Caravan & Motorhome site near Rowntree Park around this time of year. With the city within walking distance it was a great stay but far too short to give this lovely city the time it deserved.
This time however we were heading to York Caravan Park - an adult only site under the Tranquil Parks umbrella. The usual excellent facilities were promised, as was a bus stop right outside the site for car free access to the city. And it's er, pubs.
The journey was as straightforward as promised - no winding country lanes or narrow city streets to negotiate. A couple of turns from the A64 and we were pulling in to the site, noting the promised bus stop by the entrance. There will be a site arrival video soon - hopefully by the time the next blog comes out.
We were welcomed by Andrew who gave us a an overview of the facilities and some useful info about said buses before directing us to our pitch. Our creaking motor mover ensure Patsy could pitch nose in and enjoy the lovely view of the little lake.
There was no rest for the wicked though and we needed to complete the filming for a product review which some of you may have seen - of the Solwise WiFi Aerial Booster Kit. Trust me, it's no Spielberg blockbuster but you can find it HERE and my written review HERE. We're using it on our third site now and it really is proving invaluable. Filming , such as it was, was frequently interrupted by the appearance of rain clouds who decided to deposit their contents at the most inopportune moments.
After an excursion to the nearby Monks Cross Retail Park to procure some provisions, dinner was promptly taken at the nearby carvery and a quiet night in Patsy followed after availing ourselves of the excellent facilities - immaculate ensuites with shower cubicles big enough to hold a party in.
Thursday brought with it our first incursion of the trip into the city of York, catching the bus from right outside the site entrance. The Coastliners ply their trade between Leeds and the Coast - Whitby and Scarborough to name but two - stopping at York, Tadcaster and Malton on the way. Return fare was £3.20 with day ticket options available too. Within around fifteen minutes we were deposited at the end of York's famous Shambles and went for a wander to get our bearings, pausing to enjoy the sun, a coffee and a very talented piano player in Parliament Square.
Our friends Neil & Dave - staying on the aforementioned York Rowntree club site joined us a short while later and thoughts inevitably turned to er, research.
First on the list was the Shambles Tavern, located, get this, in The Shambles. A delightful little bar at the front with six hand pumps and many, many more bottled ales to choose from. Food was available but we declined heading instead for a nearby butchers for pork pies and sausage rolls. Yep, the diet is going well.
After an amble around The Shambles it was time for the research to continue in the Golden Fleece.
Nothing new to try ale wise and the Sales Prevention Officer behind the bar clearly wanted to be somewhere else, but otherwise, what claimed to be York's most haunted pub was ok.
Last up was The Three Tuns - another great old fashioned boozer - there's plenty to choose from in York - with the more usual friendly service we love so much in this part of the world.
The belly was starting to wonder what was going on and whilst we could easily have stayed and eaten out we decided to head back to the site and make inroads into some of the grub we'd procured the previous day. The Cadac was fired up and cremation duly performed before having a relatively early night.
Friday was catch up day - sleep, laundry and the blog mainly, finally getting the review of the Solwise kit finished. An early dinner was taken in the 'van then we headed back into York on the bus to meet up with our friends again in preparation for the evenings entertainment, namely a Ghost Tour, preceded our course, by a pint, this time in the Blue Boar.
Well, the ghost tour, sorry, Ghost Hunt was great. Starting at the bottom of The Shambles and weaving our way around York's oldest streets we were regailed with ghoulish tales from days gone by. The 'Ghost Hunter' picked me out to assist in his storytelling several times - I can't imagine why, it's not as though I stand out (!) - and it was really entertaining seventy-five minutes or so for six quid. I regret not taking the DSLR so the pictures are not great, but you get the idea. The Ghost Hunt was just one of several tours that run and we enjoyed it so much, we'll doubtless do another on our next visit.
So, Friday night in York. What's one to do? Yes, we hit a pub or four and what a wonderful collection too. In roughly the right order, thanks to Facebook check-ins, there was: Pivni, followed by Ye Olde Starr Inne. Third on the list was House of the Trembling Madness, the bar of which and the off licence it sits above has to be seen to be believed:
and finally The Punch Bowl, ensuring that we missed the last bus home and had to get a cab. It was a cracking evening though I'm not sure my liver and wallet would agree, though having said that - at no point did we pay as much, or as more, for a beer than at home, even paying, as we were, city prices.
Right, enough. Lot's more to come from York. Yes, more pubs but some actual sightseeing too. Until then, Cheers!