Wonderful Whitstable, by Ella

[caption id="attachment_823" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Sunset in Whitstable[/caption]

Some months ago my gorgeous niece Ella, who is nearly 15, wrote a post about visiting Barcelona. Now she's back with a terrific blog about Whitstable in Kent, her new favourite place....

Over to Ella:

"Holidays in England can often be the best kind. The travelling is easy, the language and customs are familiar, and there are so many cute and quirky little villages to explore. Recently, I’ve been lucky enough to discover one of these; a beautiful fishing town in Kent: Whitstable.

Whitstable is the perfect, picturesque, idyllic small town. It has everything you could possibly want, in terms of location, shops, restaurants and accommodation. Situated in Northern Kent, Whitstable is only a 20 minute drive away from Canterbury, a town rich in history, sites of interest and brilliant shopping opportunities!

When visiting Whitstable, you are certainly not short of shops to choose from. As well as the practical Boots, Budgens, various high street clothes shops and brand new Morrisons, there are some very interesting, unique ‘boutique’ shops, as well as numerous antique shops and a variety of charity shops. Not forgetting my personal favourite – the unbelievably delicious homemade cupcake shop, What’s up Cupcake. If there was one place I wish I could pick up and transport home, it would, without a doubt, be this perfect little shop! There’s no fault to be found in it – the food is incredible, the staff are friendly and welcoming – and even remember who you are and what you’ve previously bought!

The weekend is definitely the best time to be in Whitstable. Saturdays and Sundays are when the town really comes to life – not least due to the opening of the Harbour Village. Open every weekend (until Christmas) Whitstable Harbour Village offers a quirky, cute, alternative variety of stalls – selling everything ranging from oysters, to handmade cushions, to delicious waffles. This really is a brilliant experience – a seaside shopping experience in a beautiful working harbour, with a beautiful view. Whether you’re looking for art, food, gifts, toys, food, furniture or stained glass windows – there’s no doubt you’ll find something you love.

There is a wide variety of accommodation available. Although there aren’t as many B&Bs as one may think, the ones that are found here are certainly no disappointment. In particular, Copeland House is situated right on the beachfront; a perfect location with a perfect view. Many people own second homes in Whitstable, and those that are rented out for short visits make for extremely cosy, comfortable and relaxing places to be. I stayed in Coastguards Cottage, a stylish, well-looked after, comfortable cottage – with a gorgeous sea view.

As well as being a picturesque beach holiday destination, Whitstable is rich in history. Whitstable is famous for its oysters, which have been gathered there since Roman times. In 1830, Whitstable and Canterbury were home to the opening of one of the first railway lines in Europe. The Canterbury and Whitstable Railway was a public railway, and in 1834 the world's first season ticket was issued for use on the line, to take Canterbury passengers to the Whitstable beaches in the summer! There is a museum located in Whitstable town centre, packed with interesting exhibitions and things to do for all the family, including a regular programme of drop-in activities.

The atmosphere found in Whitstable is simply unlike anywhere else I’ve been. It’s a lively and extremely welcoming town; I’ve only encountered a small number of people who HAVEN’T said hello when I’ve passed them! The high street is quirky and vibrant, yet the entire town still has a unique and traditional feel to it; it’s just all-round a brilliant place to be. I can’t recommend it enough."

Read Ella's post about Barcelona and our post on Seven Super Reasons to stay in a B&B

Our blog is nominated for the travel category of the UK Blog Awards. Please vote for us here – it takes less than a minute and we would really appreciate it. Thanks very much.

This week we've linked up with the lovely Coombe Mill at Country kids and also with the Sunday Traveller (just can't write it with one l!).

Who wants to be a Roman gladiator? (Me please!)

[caption id="attachment_817" align="aligncenter" width="720"] Pic by Sandro Bedessi, from Fototeca ENIT[/caption]

As the kids get older, city breaks seem like a great idea for a short holiday. The problem is which city to choose? I'd love to go to Scandinavia (Oslo or Stockholm, for example) and I know that my daughter is desperate to go to Rome. My son, however, does not appear to be particularly in favour of a trip to Italy's capital. But a new offering could change his mind....

I was fascinated to hear about the new Gladiator Weekends at the Rome Cavalieri hotel. Aimed squarely at families (parents in search of culture and kids in search of fun), it includes a Gladiator lesson where you will learn ancient combat techniques along with details about the life and times of the gladiators. You even get the right kit, plus a guided tour of the Coliseum (where, of course the gladiators fought for their lives).

The hotel itself looks super luxurious, and families booking a deluxe room get another for half-price. The kids are even offered pizza making sessions (someone has done their homework on what children enjoy doing.....)

Prices start from 1960 Euros per family for two nights, which is around £1,550, so it's not cheap. However, it does sound terrific fun and it is part of the Waldorf Astoria group so you'll be enjoying luxury!

Robert meets an alligator....

[caption id="attachment_810" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Robert's new friend![/caption]

When Robert went to Florida in the summer, he not only went to Space Camp, he also met some alligators and even held one! He had a brilliant time doing this and wrote about it for a lovely Australian website called TravelThereNext. We were thrilled to find out that he was one of two runners-up in their kids' travel writing competition and are very proud of him.

Here's a taste of the article...

"My name is Robert and I am 9. I recently went on an amazing holiday to Florida in America, and while you might expect me to tell you about theme parks, I'm not! Instead I'm going to tell you a boat trip where we saw real alligators. You don't see those at home.

My dad and I had a wonderful time on an airboat ride in Florida's Everglades, but it wasn't just the boat that I loved, it was what we saw too.

Firstly we got into a boat that was so fast, the wind was blowing everyone's hair backwards. Some even got into my mouth. We had to put an earpiece on so you could hear our tour guide over the wind and we could also ask questions through the ear piece.

We were on the St John's River and the scenery was beautiful, with all the plants, flowers and grass. It was such a nice day and once we got into an open space we saw cows running through the water which was really weird. I had never seen that before.

When we were in a small forest we saw our first alligator. They were quite hard to see with all the trees, but when you got a good view of them they were amazing...."

Visit TravelThereNext to read more about Robert's adventure and see some more pictures.

Our blog is nominated for the travel category of the UK Blog Awards. Please vote for us here – it only takes a minute and we would really appreciate it. Thanks very much.

Read about Robert's trip to Space Camp at Kennedy Space Center

A Visit To The Sherlock Holmes Exhibition at the Museum of London

I had wanted to visit the Sherlock Holmes exhibition at the Museum of London ever since it opened - I have read loads of the books and am obsessed with Sherlock on BBC! Mum and I visited it on Sunday, and were not disappointed.

The exhibition is full of drafts, magazines, films, pictures from London during the time of Holmes and props from the BBC TV show, including the coat worn by Benedict Cumberbatch in the Reichenbach Falls at the end of series two. I thought that this was really cool, and something I definitely would not have expected to see.

[caption id="attachment_785" align="aligncenter" width="768"] Benedict Cumberbatch's coat[/caption]

We learnt lots from the exhibition - I hadn't known that A Study In Scarlet, the first Holmes book, was originally published in Beeton’s Christmas Annual in 1887. However, it was only when the stories were printed in the Strand Magazine that they became well known. Copies of the magazines were on display, and they were wonderful.

A large portion of the exhibition is what life was like during the times Holmes existed, and what the places he visited would have looked like. Therefore, walls were covered with photographs and paintings of these times. Although many of these were fascinating, I felt that there were rather too many, and the sheer amount of them was slightly overwhelming.

My favourite part of the exhibition was seeing a film of Arthur Conan Doyle talking in a filmed interview from 1927. He talked about the take off of the Holmes books, describing them as a “monstrous growth from a comparatively small seed”. His voice was incredible - a strange mixture of English and Scottish - and I was amazed that I had the chance to listen to it.

Mum and I also saw lots of manuscripts, photographs, typewriters, forensic kits, maps, and books throughout the rooms. We got to see Conan Doyle's actual handwriting and a postcard that he sent to his son, which I thought was brilliant.

Something we also really enjoyed was the room at the end of the exhibition, which is full of props and costumes from film and TV adaptations of Holmes. As I said before, a major highlight was a coat worn by Benedict Cumberbatch, but there was also loads more, including the "wall of rats" from a Sherlock episode.

Overall, mum and I really enjoyed our visit to the Sherlock Exhibit at the Museum of London, however we felt the fixation of life in Sherlock's time was too great. We spent a good hour and a half going round the rooms and I would recommend it to any Holmes fan out there.

Sherlock Holmes: the man who never lived and will never die is on at the Museum of London until April 12 2015. Tickets cost: Adult £12.55 (£11.45 without donation) Child/Concession* £10.45 (£9.45 without donation)
Flexible family tickets, £9.95 (child) / £10.05 (adult) per person (£8.95 child/adult without donation). Children under 12 go free.

Our blog is nominated for the travel category of the UK Blog Awards. Please vote for us here – it only takes a minute and we would really appreciate it. Thanks very much.

This week we've linked up with the Weekly Postcard where others share their places of interest too!

Beautiful London: night-time poppies at the Tower of London and more

I feel very lucky to live in London, despite the crowds, the mess, the noise, the bustle. Because London is a fantastic city, full of a mix of wonderful people and containing the most fantastic art, culture and history.

On Sunday afternoon, Jess and I walked from the Museum of London (where we saw the Sherlock Exhibition, more on that soon) via Bank and to the Tower of London where we saw the poppies. The display is to mark 100 years since the start of World War I and although they are now being dismantled, but there are still more than enough to make an impact. What an impressive scene.

It was dark by the time we got there, which made it even more moving. And as we walked by the Thames, I was struck once again by the beauty of my home town.

[caption id="attachment_791" align="aligncenter" width="940"] The Shard on a foggy November evening[/caption]

Jess turned to me and told me how much she loved London too, and how there was nowhere else like it. She's right.

[caption id="attachment_790" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Tower Bridge on a foggy November night[/caption]

More from us on London:

Harry Potter, Platform 9 3/4 and the new King's Cross

The Drake Fun day at the Golden Hinde

 

Blair Drummond Safari Park in Scotland (by Robert)

 

[caption id="attachment_766" align="aligncenter" width="940"] This is baby Bruce, a white rhino calf[/caption]

In half term Jess, Dad and I went to Scotland to see my grandma. One day we all went to Blair Drummond Safari Park in Stirling, which was really good fun.

The first thing we saw we we got there was the rhinos, including one which was only 3 weeks old. Bruce is a white rhino and was born on October 12th. He weighed eight stone at birth, so he was already much bigger than me. His mum is called Dot and when started walking around, Bruce followed right behind her. It was so cute.

One of the clever things about the park was the giraffe viewing platform. Usually at places you have to strain your head upwards to look at the giraffes but at this safari park you are the same level as the animals which made it even cooler.

There were lots of animals at the park and lots of things to do as well. There were puzzles to complete and machines to use. My favourites were the diggers, where you had to work out how to control picking up the sand and dropping it somewhere else. I also liked the rhino and elephant puzzles. You were given lots of different pieces which together made an animal. Me and Jess raced each other. I won. There were lots of competitions to enter too, and I enjoyed the drawing contest the most.

Another thing I liked about the safari was the funfair. It had lots of rides and games but I must say that the roller coaster, which was so slow, and the arcade were quite disappointing. In the arcade there were those games where you put a coin in and lots of coins fall out the bottom. I put a 10p in and saw a pound's worth of coins fall through the gap, yet none actually came out for me to collect. My favourite ride was the slide it was so fast and so high up.

But my favourite bit of the whole day was the sea lion show. The man would mention things that sea lions could do and at that exact moment a sea lion would demonstrate what the man was talking about. Whenever you clapped, the sea lions would clap as well - it was really funny.

The best trick was when one of the animals went into a pool, picked a basketball up on its nose, swam to the side of the pool, got out and jumped onto a stool. The ball stayed on its nose the whole time. Another of the tricks I liked was when the man said "sea lions have lots of predators. One of our sea lions will act one out." Then the sea lion jumped into the pool put his arm out and swam around. It looked exactly like a shark.

One of the highlights of the day was the chimpanzee island. We went round the island on a boat and learnt lots of very interesting things that I never knew before. When Jess and I were on the pedal boats we could see people zip over us on the Flying Fox zip wire (we also had a go, and it was great).

It was a wonderful and educational day and you should definitely visit. But remember to bring a scarf and gloves!

The Safari Park is now closed for the winter and opens again in March. Tickets cost £12.60 for adults and £9.60 for children (aged 3-14). Under 3s are free.

We're linking up with Country Kids over at Coombe Mill today. Take a trip over there and you can find lots of other country fun.

Our blog is nominated for the UK Blog Awards. Please vote for us here - it only takes a minute and we would really appreciate it. Thanks very much.

More by me:

The Art of the Brick Lego Exhibition

Groombridge House (see me on a big swing!)

VegFestUK - trying some delicious vegan food!

As some of you may know, Robert has some food allergies - egg, dairy and soya - which make eating out a bit tricky.  That's why we were so excited to hear about VegFest UK, which is a huge vegan and veggie festival, with masses of stalls, cookery demonstrations and talks, plus comedy and other performances.

Intrigued by this, Brian, Robert and I went off to Olympia in London a few weeks ago to see what was on offer. To say that we were impressed would be an understatement. There was just so much to find out about as well as so much to eat - and most of it was delicious. Even Jess, who is particularly fond of food containing butter, cream and eggs (!) wants to come next time.

VegFest takes part in different venues across the UK, with Brighton and Bristol next to host, in March and May next year. It was was full of stalls, which included some clothing and toiletries amongst all the food. We, however, were most interested in what we could eat (although we did like the soaps on offer at the soap deli which not only smelt delicious but were, we were assured, very good for delicate or eczema prone skin).

It's true that some of the stalls offered wares which used soya, but there were loads that didn't. Everyone was extremely friendly and there were masses of samples, which of course we had to try. We were particularly taken with the cakes and chocolates we tried, but also impressed to find a vegan pesto sauce (made by Conserve della nonna) which was delicious (unlike others we have sampled in the past).

[caption id="attachment_725" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Enjoying a cookie[/caption]

Robert was very happy to try a huge cookie from Ms Cupcake, and to get stuck into the new flavour samples from Moo Free, which has become one of his favourite chocolate makes. This is because they knew they wanted to be kid friendly - and made their chocolate taste as near to milk, as opposed to dark, chocolate as possible. This is truly clever, as most the chocolate we've tried has been dark and Robert isn't a huge fan (not sweet enough!). We also liked the new chocolate buttoms from Ombar and ate rather too many of the fabulous Goody Good stuff sweets.

There was so much to see and eat, including some amazing raw juices (particularly from noshraw), delicious coconut milk (Koko was the best!) and yummy desserts from pudology (only one is currently soya free, but they're working on it!). Lots of the produce was also gluten-free.

Although they do contain soya, Brian and I were wowed by Claire Baker's Consider It Chocolates (any vegans out there, we implore you to try them) which were amazing, especially the cinnamon ones. We were also astonished by the array of massive doughnuts and cream buns from the Big Fat Vegan Bakery, although we were too full to try them! We did give the flaxseed milk a go, but, although it's probably good for you, it wasn't the best we've ever tasted (ugh!), while the vegan "duck" was nothing special.

Everyone we met was extremely friendly and chatty. There was even a kids' zone where a pirate taught the children to flip pancakes (yes, really) and Robert powered up a blender simply by riding a bike!

[caption id="attachment_726" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Powering a blender through cycling![/caption]

All in all, we had a lovely time and it was great to be in a place where Robert felt he could enjoy himself and eat like a "normal" child (!) rather than finding nothing tempting on offer. His ticket was free and adult tickets were only £10 in advance (and there are various other offers including buy one get one free).

We will be back again and think that anyone interested in food would enjoy the array of goodies on offer. Now we just have to decide whether to go to Bristol or Brighton!

Read more:

Robert's view on Cadburyworld

This week we've linked up with the Mad Mid Week Blog Hop, hosted by the lovely Super Busy Mum. Hope over there to see more blog posts...

Our Dream Destinations - Where Robert and Jess Would Love to Visit!

Our family is incredibly lucky to visit some brilliant places - we have been to America, Jamaica, Austria and more, as well as living in London, which is full of things to do! However, there are still lots of destinations we would like to visit, and here are the ones that we would most like to go to.

Robert:

My dream destination would be on the shores of Barbados. There would be a beautiful, white sandy beach just outside my front door, as well as the sea to play in just a couple of metres in front. I want to visit because I have always wanted to live on an island with palm trees and sunny weather!

Barbados is the perfect destination because it has everything that I want. I want to go there because it's not as crowded with buildings and there is so much nature to explore. I would always be able to have fun as there are so many things to do there, such as water sports, making sandcastles, hiking, fishing, tree climbing, swimming and relaxing in the sun. The food and the different restaurants look absolutely delicious and there is a big variety to choose from.

I want to visit Barbados because it looks like the perfect place for adventure and learning new things. It also has much better weather than London!

Jess:

I cannot stress how much I would love to visit Pompeii - it is packed full of fascinating history, and it amazes me how everything is perfectly preserved in time.

On the 24th of August in 79AD, Mount Vesuvius erupted, spewing tons of molten ash, pumice and sulphuric gas into the atmosphere and onto the town below, Pompeii. The city remained buried and undiscovered for almost 1700 years, before a group of explorers rediscovered the site in 1748. They found that underneath a thick layer of dust and debris, Pompeii was mostly intact.

This thrills me, and the thought of seeing a city frozen in time sounds incredible. Visiting Pompeii would be an unbelievable opportunity to learn about everyday life in the ancient world, and seeing the architecture, paintings and bodies of the people in the town would be amazing.

As well as this, our school's Latin textbooks are based on Caecilius, a wealthy merchant who lived in Pompeii. His house still stands today and I would love to visit it! Overall, Pompeii sounds like a fabulous place to visit.

This post is an entry for the #Flying100 Family Holiday Challenge, celebrating how flying allows us to make memories and ‘be there’, in association with #Flying100. Find out more at ttp://bit.ly/flying100

Where else would we like to visit? Check out our Pinterest board!

The Art of the Brick Lego Exhibition, by Robert

[caption id="attachment_712" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Starry Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh, in Lego form![/caption]

The Art of the Brick is an absolutely amazing exhibition which is traveling the world. My grandpa, Jess and I went to the one in London, which is in the Old Truman Brewery on Brick Lane and we all really liked it.

The Art of the Brick is a set of over 85 sculptures and paintings; the twist is they are all made from Lego. All the amazing pieces of art together use over one million Lego bricks and were all created by one fantastic man, Nathan Sawaya.

When we went, I was surprised by how many people were there, we had to wait forty minutes to go in. One of the things I liked about it was the video at the start. Nathan talked about what he does for a living and he made a special bit of the small film just about London.

[caption id="attachment_713" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Venus de Milo, in Lego form![/caption]

The first bit of the tour was one of my favourite parts as all the sculptures and paintings were based on famous artwork such as the Mona Lisa, the Thinker, the Venus De Milo and Starry Night. I really liked how in some,  like the Scream and the Kiss, the background was 2D and the people were 3D.

[caption id="attachment_714" align="aligncenter" width="225"] The Kiss in Lego form![/caption]

There were also lots of everyday objects like pencils, cellos, musical notes as well as animals, creatures and lots of people.

One of the sculptures was a six metre long T-Rex that used over 80,000 Lego bricks. It was absolutely incredible and very very big.

For me the best bit was in one particular room which was all to do with London. There was a red telephone box, One Direction, The Beatles and even a "keep calm and build on" sign, they were all made out of Lego.



At the end you were allowed to make your own sculptures out of Lego although mine wasn't nearly as good as the ones in the exhibition. You could also play the Lego X-box games which were really fun.

[caption id="attachment_718" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Robert and a new Lego friend[/caption]

It was such a great day out, and as it has now been extended, and doesn't leave London until April 12th, you should definitely visit.

For more information on Nathan Sawaya and his work, please see here.

Tickets (in London) are different prices depending on the day (they cost more at weekends). On weekdays, adult tickets cost £14.50 and children's cost £8. Family tickets (2 adults and 2 kids) are £40 on weekdays and £47 at weekends.

Read more from me:

My 5 top tips for visiting Legoland