Reflections of 2017

I love New year, I've always loved New Year. I love looking back on the year gone by, then tomorrow I will look forwards to the year ahead. It's been quite a year. We started waking up in a cottage in Norfolk and ended our year having an epic December away from home, so have shut the doors and not going anywhere for the New Year. Highlights of this year -

• Got stuck at the top of a ski jump in Oslo when the lift broke down and we had to be rescued.
• Multiple English heritage sites
• I joined Women's March in London but spent the entire time in Grosvenor Square as it was so rammed, it took hours to leave the square, then I had to leave. So 'marched' is an over exaggeration. But I was there.
• Cottage holidays - Norfolk, Hull, Cornwall
• Big birthdays - Dad's 60th and Al's 40th
• Countries visited - Norway twice, Germany, Belgium, Denmark. First cruise together
• Poppy hunting - Essex and Derby
• Rediscovered my love of archery
• Ali discovered that clapping at the London marathon equates to steps on her fitbit. She did over 30,000 that day!
• I got my Nespresso machine!
• Lived the high life in the Windsor Enclosure of the Windsor Horse Show and loved being so close to the Queen again.
• Afternoon tea - The Shard, Fortnum and Mason twice (one of them included seeing a naked bike ride)
• Visits - HMS Belfast, Thetford forest, Royal Yatch Brittania, Krays tour of London, Althrop house, Liverpool to see our friends from Australia, Wendy and Roger
• Theatre - Curious incident of a dog in the night time, Matilda, Royal Albert Hall for classical spectacular (complete with indoor cannons)
• Brownies - Space centre visit, raising money at Great British get together on the hottest day of the year, marching with Girl Guiding in London pride, the best Christmas craft day to date. Winning tickets to go to Parliament was amazing. They loved it.
• Stepping down from the Women's Network - Hardest thing I've done but was so completely overwhelmed by the thought that went into my final committee day. My handbag cake ill go down in history and sharing my cake with my Brownies, and telling them what I do for work, was the best
• Para athletics - We've been huge fans since 2012 and this year spent 3 days at the games.  
• TV- In the audience of Celebrity Big Brother, Great British Bake Off Extra Slice, Women's Hour, Insert Name Here and Generation Game.
• Speaking at women into leadership on my birthday. 800 people in the audience! Loved every second.
• Award - Winning the outstanding contribution award at the local community awards. Over the years I've been the association secretary, newsletter writer, dog poo lead, baking for the community café, been behind the bar and occasional caretaker. I like to move roles.
• Bake off  - Yet again I baked an item a week during the Great British Bake Off and found homes for all of them.

So, it's been pretty full on. Next year I'm already looking forward to Prince Harry's wedding, visiting Bristol aerospace, afternoon teas, more cottage holidays and more random visits. Alas this year we could do without being stuck at the top of a ski jump.  

Cornish Christmas 2017

This year we thought we would try something new - Christmas in a cottage. We've visited Sloe cottage before and Ali loved the open fire, so we booked it for Christmas week. We were greeted with festive decorations inside and outside the cottage, a fully made up table and gorgeous welcome pack of Cornish produce - including Cornish tea, Cornish Coffee, Cornish cheese biscuits and Cornish shortbread.

Alas the cottage emailed us a few days before we arrived. They had changed the open fire to a log burner. Ali was distraught but it was fab. During the week we ate, slept, drank, and went on lots of doggie walks -

• Watergate Bay - a lovely walk along the sandy beach
• Camel Trail - it never stopped raining. The wind was blowing sideways with the wind. After a day in the cottage, it was nice to get out and listen to the rain on the hood. Thank goodness for our Antarctica clothes.
• Perranporth - with it's trailer nativity, huge waves, wind which blew us along the beach and gave us a big exfoliation of the face because the sand was blasted on us.
• Newquay - Thai red curry pasty
• Bodmin and Wenn steam railway - I adore the smell of steam trains. The old fashioned tea room selling pasty's, tickets hatch and Victorian platforms.
• Par Sands - over the dunes to Par Sands for a short walk
• Seaton Valley Countryside Park - with woodland walk and beach at the end of it.

We played games every night and laughed and laughed. And the best bit, going to Midnight mass on Christmas Eve in Bodmin. It was magical surrounded by over 30 Christmas trees and singing carols.

Aurora - reflections of our Christmas Market Cruise

We docked in Southampton at 7am, needed to be out of our cabins at 8 and breakfast finished at 8:30. Our departure time was due to be 10am so a little waiting around and time for cruise reflections. It was an easy holiday, we didn't need to do much thinking, we could just relax and be taken from place to place. I have developed a habit of taking the tea tray biscuits twice a day so that they are replenish. I'm not sure why, food is available 24 hours a day!

I've fought against the cabin steward every day and the tucking the duvet under the bottom of the bed. Why oh why? When you are 6 feet talk, the tuck is seriously not needed and just a barrier for the feet.

I have become a meerkat mid morning when walking along the corridors when the stewards are cleaning. I've developed a habit of making sure I look in everyone else's cabin to see how flamboyant it is, or how messy they leave their cabin.

I now feel it's acceptable to have pudding for every meal, most days multiple puddings, including at breakfast time. This needs to end when back at home.

Time changes on board ship. When we arrived we were shocked to hear breakfast was from 8am. We get up at 6am and are out the house at 7am for work. Time has changed though, and the addition of morning and afternoon naps was a treat. Likewise, this needs to stop on return to the UK.

Being on such a big ship, I was worried we would feel surrounded by people all the time. But it's not like that. A cruise ship is a bit like London, so many people that you can be invisible most of the time.

A lovely way to start the festive period, weight definitely gained, sea sickness in abundance, but a lovely way to celebrate our anniversary.

Aurora - an emotional day in WW1

I'm speechless. It has been such an emotional day immersed in World War 1 history. We had an hours drive to our first stop and the guide gave us an overview of the Great War from 1914 and what kick started the war, through to Armistice Day.

The first stop was Tyne Cot Cemetery which was the first goosebump moment. 12,000 headstones and names of soldiers. Many of the headstones only said 'an Australian soldier, known unto God'. The bodies were never identified. New Zealand asked that their soldiers were listed at the cemetery as it's close to where they fell, so none are listed on the Menin gate, out next stop. As we drove through the countryside, I kept thinking of how boggy and wet it must have been in the trenches. The land is incredibly flat and wet.

Our next step was the Menin Gate in Ypres, with 55,000 names of soldiers without known graves. The guide told us that 100,000 are still unaccounted for, and every day the Belgian farmers uncover shells and bodies. At the Menin Gates was a display of poppies with personal messages. The scale of the sheer number of names was astounding and upsetting.

We stopped at St Georges Memorial Church, which was dedicated to the 500,000 men. Everything in the church was dedicated so the walls are covered in plaques from benefactors which gave to the church in memory of their pupils who went missing in Flanders. I found a chair from a brownie pack and guide pack.

We had 3 hours inside the 'In Flanders Fields' museum, voted the best museum in Europe and I can see why. It's interactive, with personalised bracelets with activate stories at the exhibits. It was the Christmas story that got me. The hologram actors gave their story from the German, English, Belgian and French point of view. They sang 'Silent night' together and that choked me up. It was so wonderfully presented to give the stories about how fire was stopped on Christmas day, they left the trenches, exchanged gifts, had photographs taken and sang together. Then the next day they were back to being enemies. What struck me is that nobody wanted to be there, it was there duty, but everyone is human.

A quick pit stop of quattro frommagio pizza and buying some chocolates, then for the museum again. At the end of the museum are panes of material holding the names of all conflicts since  1918. the last pane had space for more conflicts, which made me well up again.

A truly emotional day, but I'm so glad to visit Flanders fields and pay my respects.

Aurora - An unexpected day at sea

We hadn't anticipated another day at sea. We were meant to be in Amsterdam. Today was quiz day, there wasn't much else we haven't done on board. The day started with the big pub quiz, then a talk on the history of afternoon tea, another hot tub, individual quiz on books where Ali scored  2/20, quiz on fictional dogs and then ending the day with a quiz on British Comedy. We seriously need to leave the ship now.

Aurora - hot tubs before breakfast

A hot tub before breakfast is becoming quite the norm. Alas at lunchtime on our sea day we were informed that due to terrible weather in the next 24 hours, we will not be stopping at Amsterdam. It also meant another sea day which nobody was looking forward to. In the afternoon we tried bingo and I just asked for what people normally get. I didn't know that 5 games of bingo would be £15! Alas we didn't win but it was fun trying. Back to dinner on my own due to Ali being sick.

Aurora - anniversary in Oslo

Our 5th year wedding anniversary, our 7.5 year anniversary of getting engaged and 10 year anniversary of being together. The ship docked right in the centre of Oslo, under Arkershus which is visited back in Feb. A short walk into town and to the tram to Vigeland sculpture park. It was cold, -4 degrees. We wanted around the paprk in the snow and then back to the centre of Oslo to warm up and lunch. We visited the Christmas market but was surprised to find out where the stall holders were from...Bristol. The sheds were built by a man from Yate! Lunch of potatoes and Raclette and then a walk to the palace which is one of the few places we didn't visit on our last trip. We watched the changing of the guard and slowly walked back to the ship.

Back on board we had a photoshoot with the ships photographer. We had our pictures taken at various points inside and outside the ship. A nice memory of our anniversary day.

Aurora - A walk around Copenhagen

Our sense of time has definitely changed. Our afternoon naps have expanded to after breakfast naps. It's a hard life on board. We walked to Kastellet which is surrounded by a moat and a bit like walking around an army barracks but they didn't seem to mind. Rows of red buildings, a windmill and cannons. I made the mistake of stepping on the grass and was swiftly told by one of the guards to get off the grass.

A pit stop at the big domed church for a magnificent view and warm up. Churches are great when travelling in winter.. Lunch in a Smorrebrod Tapas restaurant. I failed on my ordering through and ended up with one bit of rye bread and a small piece of gorgonzola...and a raw egg yolk! Needless to say, I didn't partake in downing the raw egg.

We walked back to the ship via Rosenborg palace with it's beautiful rose garden and Hans Christian Anderson statue. We both agree that Copenhagen is a 'visit again' kind of place.

Aurora - Wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen

Thank goodness for calm seas going into Copenhagen. We walked from the terminal into town via the Little Mermaid. It's easy to spot her, she is always surrounded by tourists. We walked to Amelianborg Palace, home of the royals. Unlike the British Royal Family, the palace isn't behind big gates, and the Royal Family walk around and it's not uncommon to sea them. A quick pit stop in a quaint café for coffee and cake - £15!

Back at the palace, we packed our things in a locker and went for a wander around the gorgeous palace. Home of Queen Alexandra, wife of Edward, once King of England. the best bit was that we were allowed to take photographs in the palace.

Onwards for lunch in Nyhavn, which I remember from my previous trip to Denmark. Nyhavn has beautifully coloured houses and old ships moored alongside. We had a very long lunch to warm up before venturing to the Christmas Markets in the darkness. A walk to Tivoli gardens but we decided to not go inside as rides aren't really out thing. By this time we were shattered so ventured to find the metro to get back to the ship. And success, we made it back safely for our overnight stop in port.

Aurora - the sea sickness kicks in

Oh my, what a rough sea throughout the night. Ali didn't see much of the day as sickness hit her badly, so I had breakfast alone, lunch alone and dinner alone. We really have got into the sea life spirit though with an afternoon nap.

Aurora - freezing our socks off in Hamburg

Our first day on land and our first Christmas Market. We docked in Hamburg and instead of the £8 return shuttle, we needed to stretch the legs, so walked into town. We walked to the Reeperbahn, the red light district of Hamburg and where the Beatles launched their career. A monument of them sits in Beatles Platz. Our plan was to get on the hop on, hop off bus but we did neither. It's so cold that we hopped on and stayed on. The guide was fabulous. We started with the 'naughty mile', which went into the 'church mile' with the St Michel Church and the English church.

The tour took us around the Alster Lake with it's huge expensive houses which cost £20,000 per square metre! We saw the concert hall, the warehouses which used to be so crucial for the port but now a swanky district. We got off the bus and headed for lunch as it was snowing and freezing.

Lunch was an escapade. I always feel it's a good sign to go to the place full of local people. We were in a department store and the ground floor was a series of fast food outlets. I paid for pasta mit Bolognese and stood waiting for it. I stood and stood and stood. All the while being pushed and shoved by the other people waiting for their pasta. A man would shout when orders were ready and they kept staring at me. I know zero amount of German so said 'pasta mit bolognese' as the sign said. He then started shouting at me, then the chefs were shouting at each other. I didn't have a clue what was going on but could tell they wanted to get rid of me. When it finally arrived and I left to give it to Ali, they weren't impressed when I came back for mine. I was later told that after you pay you have to tell the chef what you paid for! How does that make sense? It was an 'experience'.

We walked about the Rathaus Christmas market with it's little sheds and lovely Christmassy smells. We then walked to the white market on the harbour side which is when it started to sleet and really freeze. By the time we got to the gingerbread house market, I lost my Christmas spirit. I was numb with cold.

Onwards, we walked to St Michel's church, onto to find it closed for a school concert. Walking back to the ship, we stopped briefly at the soviet submarine. I was very grateful to see the ship after such a wet and cold day.

Hamburg was good, the best bit being the bus tour. We learned some fun facts like the u bahn which is meant to be their underground is 3/4 overground. Their S-bahn which is meant to be overground is 3/4 underground. Their morning paper is available in the evening and their evening paper is available in the morning. The city also has more bridges than Venice.