It’s not just life, it’s PROVENCElife© PROVENCElife 2007 For Travel Tips
Click here ►Travel Tales by Glenis Bartle
Which was your best ever holiday? The beach holidays with our children at Skipsea in Yorkshire and Par Sands
in Cornwall were fun and memorable. But as grown ups, it was unquestionably cruising
Lake Nasser and then the Nile. Approaching Abu Simbel from the lake and
seeing it at night are marvellous experiences. We were there when Princess
Diana was killed, so missed the UK national depression. We were also
there over the Millennium. To be away from the purple and silver overpriced
rubbish that seemed to dominate everything in the UK during that period
was a bonus. The tranquillity of the Nile was as timeless as always, and as
the Egyptians pointed out “2000 years? So what? This is our 7th Millennium”
Which was your worst holiday? A self catering holiday in Anglesey in north Wales for a week
with 2 small children and a baby – it seemed like a year. The weather was as foul as it could be for a
beach holiday and entertaining 3 little ones when you couldn’t even see the beach through the rain was
the proverbial parent’s nightmare. We went home 2 days early. But we did learn to say
“LlanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllLlantysiliogogogoch” the longest place name in the world.
The best hotel you’ve stayed in? Does the QE2 count as a hotel I
wonder? It was certainly the absolute, best service and accommodation
that I’ve ever stayed in. Fabulous suite with 2 dressing rooms.And dining
in the Queen’s Grill on just about anything you could ever fancy to eat is
an experience I’d recommend to anyone who likes their food.
The worst hotel you’ve stayed in? Or in this case refused to stay in! Torquay 1978, a last minute
decision to get some sunshine on the English Riviera. I usually feel that if it sounds too good to be true –
probably is, so why did I forget this in 1977? As we pulled up outside the ‘hotel’ around 11.00am, after the
usual “lets go overnight to miss the traffic” decision…never a good idea after a long week at work followed
by frantic packing for a family of 5… we realised why it was a bargain. The palm trees painted on the
outside walls of the hotel were an indication of just how much down market I’d strayed for a bargain. When
we were shown the family room, we had to virtually climb onto the beds to get into the room. And the top
bunk of the set was only 8 inches from the bottom one. “Oh, we’ve lost the catches for ‘em, but they’ll be
OK won’t they?” the chain-
that had certainly missed the interior design boat –
colours. We were offered tea in grubby, cracked cups with no saucers. Taking a sideways look at my beloved’s
scowl I decided that we’d forfeit the deposit. I explained that our three little poppets needed a run on the beach
to stretch their little poppet legs, made sure that we had left nothing in the room and beat a hasty retreat to
Paignton on the premise that we were less likely to bump into this awful woman from the awful hotel.
What do you need for your perfect holiday? No housework or cooking and preferably a very large ship.
What do you always take with you? Far too many clothes, never wear half of them.
Worst experience on holiday? Remember Torquay and Anglesey!
What’s the biggest packing mistake you’ve made? On a holiday to the Red Sea we
decided to pop over to Jordan for a few days and see Petra (marvellous place) it was too
good an opportunity to miss and we were somewhat bored with the beach. We packed a
few light clothes for sightseeing, dressing for high temperatures and sunshine. However,
we discovered as we drove up from the port of Aquaba that the army had been called only
2 days earlier to clear the snow and unblock the road. We needed warm woolly coats, but
there were none to be had, so I bought the large, traditional checked head-
‘souvenirs’ for the family and wore them all at once, draped round me like cheap pashminas
– I looked like a bag lady, but avoided pneumonia.
Where do you want to go next? There are 101 places that we still have to visit –
we may well go back to the Nile next, we never tire of it.
Click here ►Travel Tales by Glenis Bartle
Which was your best ever holiday? The beach holidays with our children at Skipsea in Yorkshire and Par Sands
in Cornwall were fun and memorable. But as grown ups, it was unquestionably cruising
Lake Nasser and then the Nile. Approaching Abu Simbel from the lake and
seeing it at night are marvellous experiences. We were there when Princess
Diana was killed, so missed the UK national depression. We were also
there over the Millennium. To be away from the purple and silver overpriced
rubbish that seemed to dominate everything in the UK during that period
was a bonus. The tranquillity of the Nile was as timeless as always, and as
the Egyptians pointed out “2000 years? So what? This is our 7th Millennium”
Which was your worst holiday? A self catering holiday in Anglesey in north Wales for a week
with 2 small children and a baby – it seemed like a year. The weather was as foul as it could be for a
beach holiday and entertaining 3 little ones when you couldn’t even see the beach through the rain was
the proverbial parent’s nightmare. We went home 2 days early. But we did learn to say
“LlanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllLlantysiliogogogoch” the longest place name in the world.
The best hotel you’ve stayed in? Does the QE2 count as a hotel I
wonder? It was certainly the absolute, best service and accommodation
that I’ve ever stayed in. Fabulous suite with 2 dressing rooms.And dining
in the Queen’s Grill on just about anything you could ever fancy to eat is
an experience I’d recommend to anyone who likes their food.
The worst hotel you’ve stayed in? Or in this case refused to stay in! Torquay 1978, a last minute
decision to get some sunshine on the English Riviera. I usually feel that if it sounds too good to be true –
probably is, so why did I forget this in 1977? As we pulled up outside the ‘hotel’ around 11.00am, after the
usual “lets go overnight to miss the traffic” decision…never a good idea after a long week at work followed
by frantic packing for a family of 5… we realised why it was a bargain. The palm trees painted on the
outside walls of the hotel were an indication of just how much down market I’d strayed for a bargain. When
we were shown the family room, we had to virtually climb onto the beds to get into the room. And the top
bunk of the set was only 8 inches from the bottom one. “Oh, we’ve lost the catches for ‘em, but they’ll be
OK won’t they?” the chain-
that had certainly missed the interior design boat –
colours. We were offered tea in grubby, cracked cups with no saucers. Taking a sideways look at my beloved’s
scowl I decided that we’d forfeit the deposit. I explained that our three little poppets needed a run on the beach
to stretch their little poppet legs, made sure that we had left nothing in the room and beat a hasty retreat to
Paignton on the premise that we were less likely to bump into this awful woman from the awful hotel.
What do you need for your perfect holiday? No housework or cooking and preferably a very large ship.
What do you always take with you? Far too many clothes, never wear half of them.
Worst experience on holiday? Remember Torquay and Anglesey!
What’s the biggest packing mistake you’ve made? On a holiday to the Red Sea we
decided to pop over to Jordan for a few days and see Petra (marvellous place) it was too
good an opportunity to miss and we were somewhat bored with the beach. We packed a
few light clothes for sightseeing, dressing for high temperatures and sunshine. However,
we discovered as we drove up from the port of Aquaba that the army had been called only
2 days earlier to clear the snow and unblock the road. We needed warm woolly coats, but
there were none to be had, so I bought the large, traditional checked head-
‘souvenirs’ for the family and wore them all at once, draped round me like cheap pashminas
– I looked like a bag lady, but avoided pneumonia.
Where do you want to go next? There are 101 places that we still have to visit –
we may well go back to the Nile next, we never tire of it.