Travel Junkie Girl

18/08/2024

Explored a new place yesterday: one that's been on my NW bucket list for ages! 😎

Wepre Park in Connah's Quay, Flintshire. It's just over the border into North Wales from Cheshire, and it's full of delights!🤩

The woodlands are beautiful & the walk up through the woods from the car park leads to the ruins of Ewloe Castle, a highly unusual castle, as it's built deep in the woods and not at the top of a visible hill or crag as you'd expect of a castle. 🏰

The story goes that back in 1255, the English enclosed Wepre Woods to make a private hunting forest which angered the Welsh, so the Welsh Prince Llywelyn built Ewloe Castle as an act of defiance. The castle fell to Edward I in 1277 however. 🌳

Amongst the woods, there's all sorts of things to discover:

👉 the attractive bridge - Pont Aber, over Wepre Brook (photo 1),
👉 Red Rocks - a 20m high rocky sandstone escarpment (photo 3),
👉 Rosie Pool (photo 11) - a large pond created for sport fishing and the provision of fresh fish for the Old Hall that once stood in the park
👉 the man made waterfall (photo 10) - a weir built to power a small hydroelectric plant to generate electricity for the hall, as mains electric didn't reach Connah's Quay until 1925.

The Old Hall, a Georgian Manor House is no longer there as it was demolished in 1960. The cellars still exist under the current visitor centre. And the formal gardens (photo 12 - 14) next to the visitor centre (photo 15) largely still follow the outline of the original gardens. 🌳

ℹ️ The visitor centre contains lots of information boards about Wepre Park. You can pick up a park map which contains excellent info on the site, as well as leaflets for other places of interest in Flintshire. Look out for info boards throughout the park too.
🚾 Toilets at both the visitor centre and in a separate block opposite the playground.
🍴 Cafe in the visitor centre with seating inside & out.
🚗 Free car park
🛝 Large playground next to the car park
🐶 Very dog friendly. Dogs allowed in the visitor centre/cafe. Dogs are only not allowed in the playground & within the boundary around Rosie Pool as it's a fishing site.

Have you discovered Wepre Park yet?

📍 Save for your future rambles!

14/08/2024

The second of the East Lancashire panopticons I visited on Sunday. This is The Atom situated in the upper reaches of Wycoller Country Park overlooking the village of Wycoller and across to Pendle Hill. And what a view it is... 💜

Like the other panopticons, the Atom is placed to draw attention to the landscape in which it sits and provides both a shelter and viewing platform, as well as being a cool sculpture to look at. 🤩

The panopticon project which culminated in 2007 (4 installations in total) is all part of the regeneration of East Lancashire and the sculptures stand as symbols of that development.

The Atom is constructed from ferro-cement and is coated with a layer of metal based paint. You can see it has weathered and coloured with the elements over the years.

🚗 There is a free car park right next to the Atom
🚶‍♀️ You can also walk up to the Atom from the village of Wycoller. It's a steep path in places, but a nice walk! There are footpaths in all directions so you could incorporate the Atom into a much longer circular route from the Wycoller village / country park car park.
ℹ️ There are info boards in the car park both on the panopticon and on Wycoller memorial forest, which you would walk through to get down to Wycoller. This board also shows a map with walking routes.

📍Save for future days out inspiration!

13/08/2024

Wow, what a structure! 🤩
I've finally been to see the Singing Ringing Tree which has been on my NW England bucket list for years! ✅

The Singing Ringing Tree is a panopticon that sits high on the hills overlooking Burnley in East Lancashire. And as you can see - the views are amazing, especially on a clear bright day which I had on Sunday.😎

As well as the prominent Pendle Hill, you can see as far as Ingleborough, Pen-y-ghent, Stoodley Pike and Winter Hill.

The panopticon project brought 4 different sculptures to East Lancs back in 2007. I've been to see the Halo (above Haslingden) many years ago, but had never got round to the other 3, until now. (The others being 'The Atom' at Wycoller and 'Colourfields' at Corporation Park in Blackburn)

The idea was to bring arts & culture into the outdoors to highlight and enhance landscapes and bring people out to explore and get in touch with their environment. They kind of act as symbols of the regeneration of East Lancashire. 🫶🏼

This one is more than just a cool sculpture though. It actually sings. The galvanised steel pipes harness wind energy to produce sound... apparently a 'low tuneful song'. Though I visited when it wasn't particularly windy, so the occasional low pitched whistle was all I heard.

Not all of the pipes sing however - some are just structural. They are tuned so they sing in harmony by having holes cut in the underside of the tube. It's just fascinating in my opinion!

🌳 There's plenty of land around the tree to sit with a picnic and there's a couple of benches as well.
🚗 There is a small car park nearby with a beautifully gravelled path to reach the sculpture making accessibility easy. It's only a short walk, but there is a reasonable gradient on part of the path.
🌮 Bins are situated in the carpark.
ℹ️ Info panels about the panopticon and the site are in the carpark and along the path.

📍 Save to your bucket list now for future reference!

What do you think of the tree? Cool... awesome.... or just plain weird? Are you a fan?

11/08/2024

Time to celebrate Worcester's architecture 💜
These are just some of the beautiful buildings I saw while following the Waddle of Worcester sculpture trail last week.
🫶🏼

10/08/2024

*NEW* on the Blog:
My Top 10 Beaches in Lanzarote.

From beautiful coves and wide windswept golden sands to wild and rugged black lava sand and pebble beaches, I've got you covered! There's a beach to suit everyone in here...

Discover the best beaches in Lanzarote from beautiful coves and vast windswept golden sands, to wild & rugged black lava sand and rocky pebble beaches.

06/08/2024

Spent a brilliant two days in Worcester following the great Waddle of Worcester sculpture trail!

Penguins are my absolute fave creature ever, so the moment I knew there was a penguin sculpture trail hitting the UK this year, I knew I'd be going... 💜

Unfortunately I hit Worcester on 2 of the hottest days of the year (last Thursday & Friday), so it was a bit uncomfortable walking round the trail... 🥵 Lots of mocktails were consumed at various establishments along the way and I found a wonderful spot to lie down under a tree by the penguin up at Fort Royal Park, admiring the beautiful view over the city and Malvern Hills.

So... here's the deets fellow penguin enthusiasts....🐧🐧🐧

The sculpture trail features 40 giant penguins painted by artists dotted around outdoor spaces around Worcester, as well as 40 small penguin chicks located throughout the shopping centres and city centre shop windows decorated by local school and community groups. 🎨

The penguins waddled into Worcester on the 22nd July and will be with us until the 15th September, at which point the large penguins will be spruced up ready for auction to raise money for local St Richard's Hospice. The chicks will be returned to their groups as a lasting memory of the event.

The trail is a fab way of exploring Worcester and the sculptures have been placed at many of the city's big attractions, highlighting what Worcester has to offer! You will clock up lots of steps finding them all. 🐾👣

There's a pop up shop in Crowngate shopping centre where you can pick up trail maps and lots of ace merchandise, and you can download an app (£1.99) to find all the locations, collect all the penguins codes and gain rewards along the way.

Have you been penguin spotting yet and which is your fave bird? 🐧🐧🐧

Wild in Art

27/07/2024

Of course, my trip to Woodside Wildlife Park was not all about the penguins! 🐧🐧 (See previous post)

The first meerkat photo sums up what most of the animals were feeling on the hottest day of 2024 so far! I've never seen meerkats in this position before... Scroll to the last few photos to see more of the heat exhausted meerkats! 🥵

Woodside is a lovely little wildlife centre, also known as Lincoln's Zoo as it sits just a few miles east of the city. We went on a Friday so it was quiet - I've never been the first person to enter an attraction before, but I managed it here! 💪
I'm sure it's far busier at weekends and during school hols of course.

There's a wide variety of animals to see including Canadian Lynx, Hudson Bay wolves, Red Pandas, Colombian Black Spider Monkeys, lemurs, otters and of course Humboldt Penguins.

There's plenty of talks, demonstrations and feeding times to watch. There's a barn theatre where the 'amazing animal show' takes place, and you can always take part in a VIP encounter like I did with Penguins.

If you like a zoo, I can highly recommend a trip to Woodside. 🫶🏼

Do you have a fave zoo animal? Meerkats definitely come in a close second to penguins for me! 🐧

25/07/2024

Bucket list item: ✅

Penguins are my fave creature ever and getting to meet and feed these Humboldt Penguins was amazing! 🐧🐧🐧

Thanks to the amazing team at Woodside Wildlife Park in Lincolnshire for a brilliant experience and making dreams come true! Their VIP penguin encounter was excellent.

Keeper Toby was very knowledgeable, approachable and happy to answer any questions!

There were just 5 of us doing the experience, so we all got plenty of fish to feed the ravenous bunch of birds! Anyone would think they'd never been fed as they scrambled over your shoes and each other to sn**ch fish out of your fingers. But no...they're just super greedy! 😂

We also got to see behind the scenes, learn about the water filtration process, how the penguins are looked after and of course, get our fingers dirty preparing the fish with necessary medication for the birds. Luckily we did not get tasked with making sure each penguin got one of the medicated fish. We instead provided the distraction that enabled Toby to manage this, lol...

🐧🐧🐧

Cannot recommend the experience enough...if you love penguins, this is so worth doing! The birds are just so adorable, each with their own quirks and characters.

One particular penguin called Ketchup (photo 1, 8 & 9) who was hand reared due to both his parents passing away, thinks he's really a human and stood with the keeper when all the other penguins were in water awaiting food at feeding time. He seemed to think he deserved his own supply of fish and could just help himself from the bucket! 🤦‍♀️😂

The VIP encounters are done at the beginning of the day, so then you get the rest of the day to spend in the wildlife park as you wish! This for me included several more trips back to see my beauties. You have to catch normal feeding times where you see the penguins racing across their pool from one end to the other after their food.

📍 Save to add to your bucket list! And any questions about the experience, drop me a comment below 👇

28/06/2024

This looks like a fantastic trail and one I hope to get to soon! Go check it out...🤩

26/06/2024

After an aborted attempt at visiting the Cotswold town of Malmesbury back in 2017, I can't believe it's taken me 7 years to get back here to see the beautiful abbey.

The current abbey building dates back to 1180, although it's actually the 4th church to have stood on the site. The abbey once had a great spire, taller than Salisbury Cathedral's, but unfortunately in the late 15th century the spire collapsed, followed by the tower a hundred years later.

Only the nave of the once massive abbey still remains: It's a beautiful light & airy space.

The wall behind the altar at the east end of the nave was built to close off the large nave when it became a parish church in the 1540's following the dissolution of the monasteries. 

Things of note to see:
⭐The hawk-like grotesques & dragons that are carved above the arches. (photo 8)

⭐The ceiling bosses are beautiful & include some figurative ones that have been repainted in their original colours. (photo 5)

⭐The memorial tomb of King Athelstan who called Malmesbury home, originally crowned King of Wessex in 925 and who became the first King of all England. (photo 3)

⭐15th century illustrated bible made up of 4 books. The illustrations are stunning. (photo 6)

⭐Stained glass windows, inc the William Morris designed Luce Memorial window.

⭐The hypnotic "Wonder" sculpture installation by Tom Lawton (photo 7)

⭐The arched entrance to the Norman porch is made up from 3 concentric arches which depict the story of creation (inner arch), Old Testament narrative (middle arch) and the life of Jesus Christ (outer arch) 

⭐Carvings of the 12 apostles in the porch itself. (photo 9)

⭐The peaceful garden of remembrance around the side of the abbey where the quire & transepts would have been. Two of the soaring arches which held up the transept crossing are still intact & this is by far my favourite view of the abbey.

💷 Free to enter but donations welcome
🚾 Toilets, shop & refreshments available
🚗 On street parking throughout the town & on the market square. There is a long stay car park at river level below the abbey with a footpath leading up to the abbey & town.

👉🏻Save this to include in your next trip to the Cotswolds!

21/06/2024

Highlights from a wonderful cruise around the Scottish Isles with Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines on their ship 'Balmoral'.

It was an 8 night cruise from Newcastle taking in Shetland, Orkney, Loch Broom & Ullapool, and in theory Harris & Lewis, but unfortunately poor weather stopped us docking there and instead we ended up in Tobermory on the Isle of Mull.

This is my second cruise with Fred Olsen and I just love their smaller ships, itineraries, what entertainment and enrichment they put on, especially on sea days and above all else, their service & food. I can't recommend them enough! 💖

Have you done a cruise before? Where should my next cruise take me to? Safe to say, I'm swiftly becoming addicted to cruising! 🤩

26/05/2024

Fallen just a little bit in love with Budapest 💜

I've been wanting to visit the Hungarian Capital for so long. My mum and I had had this trip planned in our heads for the last 15 years, and finally we made it happen! 🥰

We spent 4 days packing as much as possible into our Budapest city break. We love a sightseeing bus tour so we took out a 72 hour ticket towards the end of day 1, which provided us our means of getting around for the duration of our trip. 🚍

The bus ticket also included a cruise on the Danube which is a wonderful way to see the city as well as a free walking tour, which we didn't do as I covered the area on my own walking route while looking for Budapest's endearing genre statues (see last photo). 🛥️

I adored St Stephen's Basilica - where you can also go up to a panoramic viewing terrace on the dome for superb views. (Photo 2)

Fisherman's Bastion (photo 1) and the Buda Castle district lived up to the hype - gorgeous architecture, amazing views and wonderful atmosphere. Matthias Church became possibly my favourite place in the city. The interiors are stupendous! ⛪

Heroes Square, the Ethnography Museum (photo 11), the central market, the parliament building and 'Shoes on the Danube' (photo 7) - all just wow! And we finished off our trip with a walk around Margaret Island - a green heaven in Budapest full of things to see and do, including remains of a Franciscan Church and a Dominican Convent. 🌿

Budapest - I need longer in your city... I've just not had enough time here... I will definitely be back! 😘

09/05/2024

I discovered a new place to walk Bailey this week! 🙌🏼 Always a joy to find new paths as I get bored of walking the same ones over and over! 🤩

This is Lyme and Wood Pit Country Park, located between Haydock and Newton-le-Willows, Merseyside. 🌿

This country park only opened in 2012 after much work by a local environment company to restore and regenerate the site from 2 collieries: Lyme Pit and Wood Pit, which were operational from the 1870's until the 1970's.

🐠 Several fishing pools have been created and there's a large network of informal paths criss-crossing the site. I say informal, as many are grassy and/or muddy, as opposed to tarmac/gravel. I do not recommend walking here after lots of rain! Not unless you bring wellies...🌧️

⛰️ There's a high piece of ground in the middle of the site called Skylark Hill which gives fantastic 360° views and on a clear day, you can see for miles. The trig point shows what you can see and in which direction, from the Blackpool Tower and Mersey Gateway Bridge to the Welsh Hills, Beeston and Winter Hill. I even spotted Shutlingsloe on the path up to the viewpoint.

🚘 Car park available & parking is free.
☕ A pop up cafe that runs from the container in the carpark, which is currently only open on a Sunday (and bank hols if the weather is nice) Excellent cakes & hot chocolate!
🧺 Picnic site next to the car park. Benches by the fishing pools and top of Skylark Hill.
ℹ️ Information Centre in the container in the car park. I am currently unsure as to whether this is open outside of the cafe times. Gives brilliant info on what insects, birds, plants etc you can find on site. You can pick up a map of the site here too.
🐕 Dogs need to be on leads by the fishing pools. Poo bins in the car park and by other entrances to the site.
🚾 None unfortunately!

🌟 Save this for your future walks inspiration!

Have you discovered Lyme & Wood Pit Country Park yet?

08/05/2024

Come and follow the flock of Shaun the Sheep sculptures on a mini trail around Tatton Park...
🐑🐑🐑

12 super sized Shaun's are dotted around the National Trust gardens, allowing you to discover all the best spots along the way.

🎨 The Shaun's have been designed and painted by local and regional artists and many of the designs are based on plantings and features from within the NT gardens.

You can pick up a trail map and activity sheet from the entrance booth (£1) which has plenty to keep children amused along the way.

The trail is on until 23rd June, so there's oodles of time to come see the flock!

💷 Admission charge for the gardens, though they are free for National Trust members. The usual car parking fee applies to all: (N.T. members included).

So, who's up for some sheep spotting?
Tatton Park Wild in Art

02/05/2024

Spring at Tatton Park 💜

These are the National Trust gardens within the Tatton Park estate - always a joy to visit! The gardens always look a little different every time I visit, with different plantings done by the National Trust team, so there's always something new to see.

If you visit before the 23rd June, you'll be able to spot the dozen Shaun the Sheep sculptures dotted around the gardens. There's a sneak peak of a couple in amongst these snaps!

🐏🐑🐑🐑🐑

25/04/2024

Just some of my fave snaps from a day out in Blackpool following the Elmer Sculpture Trail. I had a blast of a day, with amazing weather, which always helps when you're at the seaside!

🐘There are 33 large Elmer sculptures, one of which is a book bench with a mini Elmer sat on it (see photo 1). Half of the sculptures form a line along the promenade between the North Pier and the Solaris Centre where the giant mirror ball installation is, with the other half dotted around the main shopping centre area, extending to Blackpool North railway station.

🎨 The Elmers are super colourful, featuring lots of seaside themed and Blackpool specific designs. There's an Elmer that has been given the illuminations treatment (photo 4), a "Strictly-fied" Elmer (photo 10) and one chopped in half to become a stick of infamous Blackpool Rock! (Photo 2)

👣 If you want to walk the whole trail, to give you an idea of distance - from the station at one end of the trail, to the Solaris Centre at the southern end is about 3 miles, but add on another mile to wander around all the shopping centre Elmers. You can then catch the tram back up to the Tower or North Pier as there's a tram stop right by the most southern Elmer. A single tram ride will cost £3.50 and you pay the conductor on the tram.

TOP TIP: 💡
If it's a sunny day when you visit: consider catching a tram to the Solaris Centre and walk north up the coast to avoid spending the whole time with sun in your eyes. I did not do this but wish I had!
😎

The Elmer sculpture trail is in until 9th June, after which the Elmers will be auctioned off to raise funds for Brian House, the Fylde Coast's only children's hospice.

🚗 Coming by car? Park in Banks Street car park (behind the station) as it has reasonable charges, always lots of space and puts you by the northern most Elmer outside the station.

So, who's up for a day at the seaside with Elmer? 🌊🦀⛱️

18/04/2024

Fantastic anniversary trip away to Portsmouth for my 10 year wedding anniversary, exploring the Historic Dockyard - the Warrior, the Victory, the Mary Rose and the Explosion Museum; finishing off with the Spinnaker Tower and a walk along Southsea front to the Castle and Naval Memorial.

The views from the Spinnaker Tower are superb - we had such good weather for it. Should I go again, I'd love to time going up with sunset - just imagine the view!

Even after 2 trips to Portsmouth recently, there's still so much to see and do. Tickets for the Historic Dockyard are valid for a year, so our next trip is already planned for later in the year, where we'll hopefully see the rest of the dockyard attractions including the Submarine Museum.

Have you been to Portsmouth? Where else do I need to see? Portchester Castle is on the agenda as it looks tremendous even from across the harbour! 🤩

13/04/2024

My first sculpture trail of 2024 took me to York to see this delightful new sculpture shape - the Snook: a particularly bookish little devil of a character.

I wasn't sure initially if I liked the creature to start with, but by the time I was half way through the trail, they had won me over!

The trail features 21 Snooks dotted around York city centre with just 2 of them slightly out of town at the Poppleton Bar Park & Ride and Delta Hotels by Marriott (by the Racecourse) - you could do with a car to access these two. All the others are fully accessible on foot and easily doable in a day.

You have until Thursday 25th April to see these bookworms, before they leave the streets of York.

Have you seen the Snooks yet? Which is your fave? 🌼

12/04/2024

I'm back, after a 3 month social media break!

This Easter, just two small words were uttered and a day out was immediately planned...

Lego Dinosaurs... I mean - you had me at Lego, but add the dinos part and it was just a case of where and when??

🦕🦖🦕🦖🦕

The answer is Southport, Merseyside. Starting on Good Friday, the 29th March and continuing until 14th April 2024, 12 large scale Lego Dinosaur creations are dotted around Southport town centre, five of them being situated outside in Lord Street Gardens and therefore accessible at all times of day.

The rest are on display in various high street stores and half of these you have to go scout out. A few are plain to see in shop entrances, like at the British Heart Foundation and Boots. Others like those in Sports Direct and M&S, you have to go searching!

They are SO COOL!!! 💜💜💜

So, if you're a Lego fan, you've just got this weekend to go see them before they vamoose! 🤩

Download the map online to see their locations (they are all pretty close together) and this doubles as an activity leaflet with other Dino related things to see while you're in Southport. Have fun! 😍

🦖🦕🦖🦕🦖

07/01/2024

St George's Chapel: Windsor ⛪

A beautiful church in the grounds of Windsor Castle that has seen many a Royal Wedding: most recently Harry & Meghan, Princess Eugenie & Jack Brooksbank and Lady Gabriella Windsor & Thomas Kingston, all three couples marrying in 2018 - 2019. 💍

You can go inside as part of your Windsor Castle tour, but unfortunately no photos are allowed.

🎧 audio guide available

What fabulous architecture, though I always think of chapels as small intimate places, whereas St George's Chapel definitely has cathedral vibes! 😍

06/01/2024

Just before Christmas, I visited Windsor for the first time. Wow, what a castle! 🤩

After seeing it so frequently on TV, it was ace to finally see it for real! The architecture is stunning, though it was such a shame you aren't allowed to take photos inside. The same goes for St George's Chapel too.

Who else loves a castle? Along with cathedrals, they will always be the first thing I head to when visiting somewhere new! 😍

04/01/2024

Let's talk: 2024 Bucket Lists! 😍
I keep a list of places that I want to visit over the next year or so in the Notes app on my phone; however I stumbled across a great idea by (go follow her on insta for NE England travel inspiration) to pop that list into a post and pin for easy reference: I figured this would keep reminding me to check my list and book some of them in!
So let's see how I go in 2024! 🤩

Cheshire:
🌍 See Gaia at Norton Priory (9-28 January) ✅
🎨 Look around Castle Park Arts Centre in Frodsham ✅
🏰 Visit Cholmondley castle
🍨 Indulge in all of Cheshire's ice cream farms
❄️ Do the snowdrop walk at Rode Hall
☕ Have a cuppa at Tabley House
🥾 Hike the sandstone trail
🚶‍♀️ Walk out to the Hilbre Islands
🏰 Explore Ewloe Castle & Wepre Park
🥾 Walk the Ladybrook Valley Interest Trail
🫖 Have afternoon tea at Davenports

The Wider North West
🏚️ Explore Rufford Old Hall
⛵ See the Ship sculpture at Half Moon Bay, Heysham
🛸 See all the Lancashire panopticons ✅
🚶🏼‍♀️ Follow the Irwell Valley Sculpture Trail
🪨 See Gunnerkeld Stone Circle, Cumbria
🌳 Rediscover the sculpture at Grizedale Forest ✅
🌺 See Preston's Parks & Docks
🚗 Visit Lancaster
⛰️ Follow the Pendle Sculpture Trail
🥾 Hike Helvellyn
🪨 Find Mayburgh Henge near Penrith

Beyond:
🎨 See the Disney 100 exhibition in London ✅
🚗 Visit Haworth
🏚️ Visit Chatsworth
🌻 Revisit the National Memorial Arboretum
🥾 Go for a walk at Hawkstone Follies
🖼️ Visit the Ironbridge Museums
💦 Walk to Pistyll Rhaedr waterfall
☘️ Get lost in the Forest of Dean sculpture trail
🪨 Discover the Norber Erratics
💦 Visit Matlock & Lumsdale Waterfall
🪨 Visit the National Stone Centre & Black Rocks
💠 Nose around the Denby Pottery Shop
🚗 Explore the Sculpture Park in Surrey
🥾 Walk up Glastonbury Tor & finish the mural trail
🌳 Wander round Ilam Country Park
🚤 See Hatton locks (21 locks over 2 miles): Warwickshire
🎨 Visit the Raveningham Sculpture Trail, Norfolk
🚢 See where my hubby went to uni - Southampton ✅
🎈 Experience the Bristol Balloon Fiesta

Abroad Hopefuls:
🇮🇸 Iceland Please!
🇭🇺 Budapest City Break with my Mum ✅
🚢 Possibly another cruise...to where...🤷🏼‍♀️ ✅ (Actually done 2 now!)

What's on your 2024 bucket list?
📷 Lanzarote: Dec 23

01/01/2024

Happy New Year 2024 ✨🎇✨

I'm still in festive mode - I still watch Christmas movies into January. My tree stays up till the 12th night! And I'm still eating stollen and drinking mulled wine!

Who else is with me on this? 😘

Or do you have the belief that come January 1st it's: "New Year, New Start...out with the old etc" Are your decorations already down? 🎄

Whichever camp you're in, I wish you a Happy & Healthy New Year and here's to exciting travels ahead in 2024!
🛳️🧳🥾✈️🌍
✨

31/12/2023

I'm not sharing any highlights reel like most as I've been really unwell since Boxing Day - been struck down with a stinker of a cold, cough & ear infection, so not felt like putting anything like that together. 😶‍🌫️

What I will share though is a video from Luminate Cheshire at Walton Hall & Gardens which I visited the week before Christmas. ✨ These light projections give me all the festive feels: I love them! Really enjoyed the Walton Hall trail - I can highly recommend going next year.

How about you? Did you visit any lights trails this year?

Have a lovely New Year's Eve! 🎆
I'm curled up in my pjs with Bailey in front of the TV. No partying for me this year unfortunately, though hopefully I'll make it long enough to watch the fireworks on telly at midnight 🤞🎇

24/12/2023

Merry Christmas everyone! 🌲✨🦌

Yes - Bailey is small enough that his bed in the lounge is technically a cat bed! 😹🤦🏼‍♀️🐕

Wishing you a happy and healthy Christmas and all the best for 2024, from the Travel Ju**ie Girl household 😘🌟
🎄 🐾

03/10/2023

What a delightful little find, Smither Park in Houston is! 💜

A superb creative urban park with fun features decorated with colourful and quirky mosaics. 😍

Part of the Orange Show Centre for Visionary Arts, Smither Park is the creation of artist and builder Dan Phillips and Orange Show board member Stephanie Smither, in memory of her late husband John H. Smither.

Smither Park promotes and celebrates self-taught art with contributions from over 300 mosaic artists. On Saturdays you may even see some artists working on the latest mosaics. 🎨

The half acre plot of land is situated next to 'The Orange Show' on Munger Street and features an amphitheatre and performing space, a pavilion perfect for hosting gatherings, a set of swings, a meditation wall with matching seats under a spectacular weeping willow, an elaborate tower, many creative picnic tables & seats and a 400ft memory wall; all of which are adorned by stunning mosaics! 🧡

Smither Park's decor shows a commitment to sustainability and recycling by re-using and repurposing materials like broken up second hand ceramics, bottle caps, tiles and shells. 🐚
The results are just gorgeous! 🤩

Have you ever seen a mosaic park like this?