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Plymouth At Its Finest – 05/07/2022 to 11/07/2022

After our fantastic whirlwind few days in London we headed down to Plymouth via train, excited to show Ashley and my mom where we live and all of our favourite things in the area. (And by sheer luck the weather was OUTSTANDING the whole time they were over.) Once we arrived at our home we took a bit of time to show off our quaint and lovely house and to unwind before heading back out again. When coming to Plymouth one of the most beautiful things about the city itself is the Hoe and the Barbican area. We parked up and did a mini loop, showing off the gorgeous sea views, Mayflower history and beautiful old houses. Liam’s parents came out and met us for a quick drink on the Barbican, before we went for one of the best meals of the trip. When I asked my mom if there was any British food she wanted to try, fish and chips was at the top of the list. So we knew we wanted to take them to Rockfish, our absolute favourite seafood spot in town. We got traditional fish and chips, along with freshly caught whiting and mackerel, with some chilli calamari. A seafood meze! The plates were wiped clean with all the fish and the triple cooked chips getting a solid 10/10 review. It was a perfect first day sharing our city with my family.

it was only while writing this blog that I realised I took shockingly few photos, too busy enjoying the time with family! So shoutout to Google for this Rockfish stock image

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LDN 2022 – 02/07/2022 to 05/07/2022

Every visit to London is special for one reason or another; whether it is before a flight, a weekend stay for some sightseeing, or going with friends for an event. This most recent trip however, was probably the most special in recent memory for both Emily and I, as we were meeting her mom, Carmen, and sister, Ashley, for their first time visiting us in the UK! For Ashley this was even more significant as it was her first time over to the UK full stop, so a real landmark visit. No pressure then!

Sat here, trying to work out the size of a mortgage on this place!

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Guaranteed all weather fun: Woodlands – 12/06/2022

Rides, slides, taboggan run! Guaranteed all weather fun! With the jingle playing on loop inside my head all day, Emily and I visited a childhood favourite of mine with friends. Woodlands is a small family theme park, but I think for every kid growing up in Devon in the 90s it represents a piece of nostalgia. Sunny days, too much sunscreen and scraped knees. Peak life when aged 6 to 12. Luckily the nostalgia hit, and because we all had so much fun, Emily did as well. Who doesn’t want to be a big kid for a day?

One of the “bigger” rides at good old Woodlands

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Eden Festival – 17/05/2022 to 02/06/2022

The Eden Project is something that has been on my “to visit” list ever since moving to Plymouth. It consistently ranks amongst one of the top things to see in the south west of England, and with good reason!

Like something from a sci-fi film

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Birthday Walk: Bridges on Dartmoor – 09/01/2022

Happy New Year! My sister celebrates her birthday in January, my sister, her husband, her family, our mum and dad, and Emily and I decided to celebrate with a walk around an old family favourite of ours: Magpie (Bedford) Bridge. Somewhere filled with fond memories of summer days long since lost, spent splashing and building dams. The weather was a bit more dreary for this walk though!

Dartmoor CAM Walks

Stock image of my memories!

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Christmas Garland at Cotehele – 04/12/2021

National Trust properties up and down the country have special events for Christmas and the festive season. We are very lucky that one of our local houses, Cotehele has its very own Christmas tradition dating back to the 1950s – the Christmas Garland.

Emily eyeing up her future home

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Bananas at Minions: Cornwall – 04/09/2021

Making the most of some of the recent September sunshine, Emily and I went out with my sister and her family to Minions in Cornwall. All being busy people, it isn’t too often that we all have calendars that align these days. And there really is nothing better than sharing a family adventure. So spending the free time we do have together is really made all the more special by being able to visit such beautiful places. All the better that they are not too far from our homes.

Beautiful Bodmin Moor

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An Old Favourite: Dartmoor – 28/08/2021

Getting a kitten and ongoing restrictions to international travel has made Emily and I pretty inactive recently. Maybe one day the world will be fully back to normal and a vanity project travel blog will feel a little less of a vanity project, but as it stands at the moment we don’t have too much motivation to post and provide updates. Over the past bank holiday Emily and I did visit one of my favourite hikes on Dartmoor however, and it was the first time she braved the ridge at Leather Tor! Slowly but surely she is catching me up on all of my old haunts. You can read about the full hike here.

Plenty of dramatic views with this hike

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Lukesland Gardens – 11/04/2021

Sometimes you find out about places purely by chance and Lukesland Gardens was one of them. Emily and I planned to go to Endsleigh Garden centre in Ivybridge and find a Dartmoor walk that started not too far away to make the best use of our Sunday. While trawling google maps for suitable parking places, points of interest and routes to walk, I stumbled across the Gardens. Intrigued, having never heard of it before, we decided to roll the dice and check it out.

Magical

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A New Hope…Cove – 02/04/2021

After a few months off, Emily and I were keen to use our recent (government approved) freedom to get back on the coastal path this Easter weekend. Taking our car on its first longer drive (longer being further than Sainsbury’s!) we headed out early to Hope Cove, planning to arrive before the beach-goers.

The early start paid off with Hope Cove all to ourselves

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