cap'njack.
Totally in love with Lisa_C
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Yeah it's about 2 1/2 from Gillingham to Milton Keynes (I use the Snowdome occasionally) so probably about 3-3 1/2 hours to Ashford.
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- Thread starter Cyrano
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Yeah it's about 2 1/2 from Gillingham to Milton Keynes (I use the Snowdome occasionally) so probably about 3-3 1/2 hours to Ashford.
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- Jul 15, 2004
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Afternoon All!
I've been a busy bunny, took Lottie to nursery, did a bit of work in the uni library and then the shopping bug called and I popped into Boots for some bargains and our ELC is closing downbut everything had 30% off, so bought some bits ready for next Xmas!
Neils work have said yes to the time off, am waiting to hear back from mine and just finalising the logistics of it all and then hopefully booking later! Think we're going to go with the eurostar rather than flying!
Thats great news
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Bolanette87
<font color=deeppink>The Queen Bee<br><font color=
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I promised you all a little report from our trip to Edinburgh! So, here we go!
My Mum paid for Robert and myself to have a night in the luxury Edinburgh hotel The Witchery, staying in the Old Rectory suite. She also arranged (and paid- God bless her!) for us to have a meal in their Secret Garden dining room- Which has won several awards in the past. Edinburgh is one of my favourite cities, but I hadnt been in years, so this was a lovely treat! Robert had never been to Scotland before, so it was a big adventure for him .
So, on Monday January the 12th, we got a taxi to the train station and boarded our train to Edinburgh. We arrived a little early, and headed off to explore the shops on Princes Street. We decided it would be plain rude to not inspect the Disney Store, so we duly went and had a good look round. From here we headed to several more shops, until we decided it was time for lunch. Having a luxurious meal booked for later on, we decided to just go for something simple for lunch- So we went for a Pizza Hut . The waiter in the Pizza Hut was simply marvellous and friendly, so we had a thoroughly enjoyable lunch. After this, we felt quite full, so we decided to cross the road, and head to the National Gallery of Scotland for a slow wander round:
No pictures were allowed inside the gallery, but I can assure you all that it is well worth a visit! Lots of fantastic paintings and sculptures Entry is free, but we paid a small donation.
We then decided to begin to walk up the steep hill towards the Castle, the Royal Mile, and the Witchery:
It was too early to check in yet, so we had a wander down the Royal Mile and looked in a few of the shops:
Several people were walking around in costumes, advertising the Edinburgh ghost tours- We were laughing at one of them who said to us: I can tell you two are in love! But it wont work, because she is going to cheat on you (to Robert) .With me! We laughed and took his leaflet for the ghost tour, which did look interesting, but we didnt have the time to fit it in this trip.
By now I was incredibly excited about checking in, so we went along to the Witchery and checked in- The staff were very lovely and friendly, and a lovely girl came to help us with our bags (I felt sorry for her as mine weighed a tonne!). She informed us that we were staying her favourite room, so this made us even more excited! We were led to large wooden door, which led to a steep spiral staircase. After climbing many of these steps, we reached our suite. Wow! It was the most beautiful place I have ever seen! The whole room was covered in velvets and sumptuous fabrics, and decorated in a fabulously gothic, romantic style. Old Scottish military uniforms were placed in various corners of the room, along with antique books and other old relics (We werent too keen on the Rams head on one of the shelving units, so we erred away from that corner a bit!). We had a glorious daybed covered in pillows, and our actual bed was simply jaw dropping. Classical music was playing, and there was Champagne (which I took home for my Mum seeing as how we dont drink) and Mineral water chilling in a large ice bucket on the beautifully laid out table. There were also cookies, chocolate, and Witchery slippers for us too. We were given a brief tour of the room, shown how to order breakfast, and then left to enjoy our time there in peace:
I instantly went to run a bath in the tub for two I adored the bathroom- My favourite feature of our suite. Simply stunning. The smellies provided by the Witchery were wonderful and made the whole room smell gorgeous . We then changed into our complimentary dressing gowns, and enjoyed some of the still mineral water and cookies, whilst listening to some jazz music on the CD player. After this, we got changed back into our normal clothes so we could open the velvet curtains and see the view down into the city. We couldnt resist trying on some of the old Military gear, so we played soldiers for a bit!
After this, we simply relaxed and enjoyed being in such a fantastic suite. Before long though, we had to tear ourselves away as we had our dinner reservation at seven thirty. We got changed, and wandered down to the Secret Garden. We were shown down a stone staircase lit with candles to simply the prettiest restaurant I have ever seen. Completely candlelit and simply the most romantic setting for dinner with the one you love:
Menus were brought over promptly, and we ordered a large bottle of Speyside Mineral Water (My new favourite thanks to this trip!). After placing our order with our very obliging and lovely waitress, we chatted, and enjoyed seeing various other dishes coming out of the kitchen (The seafood platter for two looked absolutely amazing!). The food we had, well, words cannot describe how lovely it was. The best dining experience of my life, made all the more lovely by the fact we were enjoying fantastic Scottish produce. To start, Robert had Sliced breast and potted leg of borders Partridge with a beetroot salad and Cumberland sauce:
I had the Scallops with ginger and lemongrass, and they were spectacular. Huge, fresh, juicy scallops served in the shell. Absolutely divine.
For mains, Robert ordered a medium rare Aberdeen Angus Ribeye. He was slightly sceptical at first as ribeye is far from being his favourite cut of steak, but this was something special. There was very little fat on the steak, and the meat was of such good quality. I dont eat red meat, but I tasted this and asked for more. It was stunning!
I ordered the Barbary Duck (which was a replacement for the Mallard on the menu) and it was the best duck dish I have ever eaten. The meat was slightly pink, so perfectly cooked. The truffle cream that came with dish was out of this world.
I also ordered a side of buttered sugar snaps and they were fantastic. Perfectly cooked and utterly scrummy! Puddings were next, and these were my highlights of the meal. Robert ordered the Chocolate Torte with Milk Chocolate Sorbet, which he really enjoyed.
I was seriously indulgent and ordered the Pudding Selection. This has got to be the most wonderful dessert I have ever eaten in my life.
On my plate, I had a small amount of every dessert, which was: Pannatone bread and butter pudding, Rhubarb Trifle, Pistachio Biscotti, Chocolate Torte, Milk Chocolate Sorbet, Iced Pistachio Parfait, and Vanilla Ice Cream in a Brandy Snap Basket.... Bizzarely, my favourites were the two I didnt expect to enjoy- I dont like trifle, but the Rhubarb trifle was delicious. And Ive never eaten any form of bread and butter pudding before (My Mother has a thing against bread in desserts) but the Pannatone bread and butter pudding was to die for. Simply incredible. Overall, a wonderful experience that I shall remember forever.
After dinner, we retired back to the Old Rectory, changed into our robes, and collapsed to watch TV on our daybed. We then retired to bed, and I had the most wonderful nights sleep- The bed was so amazingly comfortable! I want it back!
We woke up the next day and listened to some music together, before there was a knock at the door. Breakfast time! A lovely smiling lady came in with our hamper of goodies, which we requested to unpack ourselves.
My word! What a breakfast (I shall add pics to the Food Pics thread later)! We had Croissants, Pain au chocolat, cold cut meats and cheese, a fruit plate, ruby grapefruit, cereal, a pot of coffee, orange juice and milk. We hadnt ordered everything available either! We enjoyed our lovely breakfast together, and then had another bath before getting ready to check out. We didnt want to leave at all! The Witchery is an amazing place and I hope we can return someday.
After checking out, we headed to the Castle. The Witchery is literally moments away from the Castle, so we didnt have far to walk:
We had an absolutely fantastic day exploring the Castle. The weather was perfect (Not hot, not cold, not windy, not rainy. Just perfect!) and we had a great explore.
We saw everything there was to be seen, and also dined in the Queen Anne Café, which was absolutely wonderful (Again, pics shall be added to the UK Community Boards Food Pics thread.). The restaurant was a courtyard with a glass roof, simply beautiful and a great place to eat!
Robert had a Scotch Beef Burger and Chocolate and Pistachio Brownie, while I had Seabass and Dark Chocolate Cake. After the Castle, we looked in some of the shops along the Royal Mile, where I bought a cuddley Aberdeen Angus (I love Aberdeen Angus!). We then headed down to Princes Street again, stopping to photograph a Police Box to tell my younger brother wed seen a Tardis!
On Princes Street, we purchased an Edinburgh Mickey Mouse magnet from the Disney Store, and Robert bought some books from Waterstones. We then headed to Waverely Train Station to get our train home.
All in all, we had an absolutely wonderful time in Edinburgh, and we cant wait to plan a return visit! I have lots more pics from the trip on facebook, so if youd like to see them but dont have a profile, feel free to PM me for the links!
Bob xoxoxoxox
My Mum paid for Robert and myself to have a night in the luxury Edinburgh hotel The Witchery, staying in the Old Rectory suite. She also arranged (and paid- God bless her!) for us to have a meal in their Secret Garden dining room- Which has won several awards in the past. Edinburgh is one of my favourite cities, but I hadnt been in years, so this was a lovely treat! Robert had never been to Scotland before, so it was a big adventure for him .
So, on Monday January the 12th, we got a taxi to the train station and boarded our train to Edinburgh. We arrived a little early, and headed off to explore the shops on Princes Street. We decided it would be plain rude to not inspect the Disney Store, so we duly went and had a good look round. From here we headed to several more shops, until we decided it was time for lunch. Having a luxurious meal booked for later on, we decided to just go for something simple for lunch- So we went for a Pizza Hut . The waiter in the Pizza Hut was simply marvellous and friendly, so we had a thoroughly enjoyable lunch. After this, we felt quite full, so we decided to cross the road, and head to the National Gallery of Scotland for a slow wander round:
No pictures were allowed inside the gallery, but I can assure you all that it is well worth a visit! Lots of fantastic paintings and sculptures Entry is free, but we paid a small donation.
We then decided to begin to walk up the steep hill towards the Castle, the Royal Mile, and the Witchery:
It was too early to check in yet, so we had a wander down the Royal Mile and looked in a few of the shops:
Several people were walking around in costumes, advertising the Edinburgh ghost tours- We were laughing at one of them who said to us: I can tell you two are in love! But it wont work, because she is going to cheat on you (to Robert) .With me! We laughed and took his leaflet for the ghost tour, which did look interesting, but we didnt have the time to fit it in this trip.
By now I was incredibly excited about checking in, so we went along to the Witchery and checked in- The staff were very lovely and friendly, and a lovely girl came to help us with our bags (I felt sorry for her as mine weighed a tonne!). She informed us that we were staying her favourite room, so this made us even more excited! We were led to large wooden door, which led to a steep spiral staircase. After climbing many of these steps, we reached our suite. Wow! It was the most beautiful place I have ever seen! The whole room was covered in velvets and sumptuous fabrics, and decorated in a fabulously gothic, romantic style. Old Scottish military uniforms were placed in various corners of the room, along with antique books and other old relics (We werent too keen on the Rams head on one of the shelving units, so we erred away from that corner a bit!). We had a glorious daybed covered in pillows, and our actual bed was simply jaw dropping. Classical music was playing, and there was Champagne (which I took home for my Mum seeing as how we dont drink) and Mineral water chilling in a large ice bucket on the beautifully laid out table. There were also cookies, chocolate, and Witchery slippers for us too. We were given a brief tour of the room, shown how to order breakfast, and then left to enjoy our time there in peace:
I instantly went to run a bath in the tub for two I adored the bathroom- My favourite feature of our suite. Simply stunning. The smellies provided by the Witchery were wonderful and made the whole room smell gorgeous . We then changed into our complimentary dressing gowns, and enjoyed some of the still mineral water and cookies, whilst listening to some jazz music on the CD player. After this, we got changed back into our normal clothes so we could open the velvet curtains and see the view down into the city. We couldnt resist trying on some of the old Military gear, so we played soldiers for a bit!
After this, we simply relaxed and enjoyed being in such a fantastic suite. Before long though, we had to tear ourselves away as we had our dinner reservation at seven thirty. We got changed, and wandered down to the Secret Garden. We were shown down a stone staircase lit with candles to simply the prettiest restaurant I have ever seen. Completely candlelit and simply the most romantic setting for dinner with the one you love:
Menus were brought over promptly, and we ordered a large bottle of Speyside Mineral Water (My new favourite thanks to this trip!). After placing our order with our very obliging and lovely waitress, we chatted, and enjoyed seeing various other dishes coming out of the kitchen (The seafood platter for two looked absolutely amazing!). The food we had, well, words cannot describe how lovely it was. The best dining experience of my life, made all the more lovely by the fact we were enjoying fantastic Scottish produce. To start, Robert had Sliced breast and potted leg of borders Partridge with a beetroot salad and Cumberland sauce:
I had the Scallops with ginger and lemongrass, and they were spectacular. Huge, fresh, juicy scallops served in the shell. Absolutely divine.
For mains, Robert ordered a medium rare Aberdeen Angus Ribeye. He was slightly sceptical at first as ribeye is far from being his favourite cut of steak, but this was something special. There was very little fat on the steak, and the meat was of such good quality. I dont eat red meat, but I tasted this and asked for more. It was stunning!
I ordered the Barbary Duck (which was a replacement for the Mallard on the menu) and it was the best duck dish I have ever eaten. The meat was slightly pink, so perfectly cooked. The truffle cream that came with dish was out of this world.
I also ordered a side of buttered sugar snaps and they were fantastic. Perfectly cooked and utterly scrummy! Puddings were next, and these were my highlights of the meal. Robert ordered the Chocolate Torte with Milk Chocolate Sorbet, which he really enjoyed.
I was seriously indulgent and ordered the Pudding Selection. This has got to be the most wonderful dessert I have ever eaten in my life.
On my plate, I had a small amount of every dessert, which was: Pannatone bread and butter pudding, Rhubarb Trifle, Pistachio Biscotti, Chocolate Torte, Milk Chocolate Sorbet, Iced Pistachio Parfait, and Vanilla Ice Cream in a Brandy Snap Basket.... Bizzarely, my favourites were the two I didnt expect to enjoy- I dont like trifle, but the Rhubarb trifle was delicious. And Ive never eaten any form of bread and butter pudding before (My Mother has a thing against bread in desserts) but the Pannatone bread and butter pudding was to die for. Simply incredible. Overall, a wonderful experience that I shall remember forever.
After dinner, we retired back to the Old Rectory, changed into our robes, and collapsed to watch TV on our daybed. We then retired to bed, and I had the most wonderful nights sleep- The bed was so amazingly comfortable! I want it back!
We woke up the next day and listened to some music together, before there was a knock at the door. Breakfast time! A lovely smiling lady came in with our hamper of goodies, which we requested to unpack ourselves.
My word! What a breakfast (I shall add pics to the Food Pics thread later)! We had Croissants, Pain au chocolat, cold cut meats and cheese, a fruit plate, ruby grapefruit, cereal, a pot of coffee, orange juice and milk. We hadnt ordered everything available either! We enjoyed our lovely breakfast together, and then had another bath before getting ready to check out. We didnt want to leave at all! The Witchery is an amazing place and I hope we can return someday.
After checking out, we headed to the Castle. The Witchery is literally moments away from the Castle, so we didnt have far to walk:
We had an absolutely fantastic day exploring the Castle. The weather was perfect (Not hot, not cold, not windy, not rainy. Just perfect!) and we had a great explore.
We saw everything there was to be seen, and also dined in the Queen Anne Café, which was absolutely wonderful (Again, pics shall be added to the UK Community Boards Food Pics thread.). The restaurant was a courtyard with a glass roof, simply beautiful and a great place to eat!
Robert had a Scotch Beef Burger and Chocolate and Pistachio Brownie, while I had Seabass and Dark Chocolate Cake. After the Castle, we looked in some of the shops along the Royal Mile, where I bought a cuddley Aberdeen Angus (I love Aberdeen Angus!). We then headed down to Princes Street again, stopping to photograph a Police Box to tell my younger brother wed seen a Tardis!
On Princes Street, we purchased an Edinburgh Mickey Mouse magnet from the Disney Store, and Robert bought some books from Waterstones. We then headed to Waverely Train Station to get our train home.
All in all, we had an absolutely wonderful time in Edinburgh, and we cant wait to plan a return visit! I have lots more pics from the trip on facebook, so if youd like to see them but dont have a profile, feel free to PM me for the links!
Bob xoxoxoxox
cap'njack.
Totally in love with Lisa_C
- Joined
- Jun 13, 2008
- Messages
- 6,061
Great report Bob! Thanks for sharing with us.
cap'njack.
Totally in love with Lisa_C
- Joined
- Jun 13, 2008
- Messages
- 6,061
Just got off the phone to Disney who were happy to sell me the package until I mentioned the NHS discount when suddenly there were no rooms
Going to phone back in a mo and speak to a different CM!
I hope you get a better CM this time. Finger remaining firmly crossed for you!
angel_nix
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 14, 2008
- Messages
- 616
No luck here with the next CM, they're now offering me w/c 22nd March for an extra £100
Think we're going to end up leaving it tbh, the costs are now mounting up too much.Am totally gutted, but so glad we hadn't told Lottie
cap'njack.
Totally in love with Lisa_C
- Joined
- Jun 13, 2008
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- 6,061
No luck here with the next CM, they're now offering me w/c 22nd March for an extra £100
Am totally gutted, but so glad we hadn't told Lottie
That's a real shame, there's only so much extra on top of the original price that you can take before it stops being worthwhile.
I haven't told Kacee about our trip yet, I don't want anything going wrong with new baby's arrival and messing everything up.
Couldn't face upsetting him.
thelittlemermaid83
<font color=green>My reign will be a super-awesome
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- Aug 14, 2007
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- 16,957
Nearly ordered a pizza hut when realised my money could be better spent elsewhere lol.
cap'njack.
Totally in love with Lisa_C
- Joined
- Jun 13, 2008
- Messages
- 6,061
Mmmm pizza hut
Bolanette87
<font color=deeppink>The Queen Bee<br><font color=
- Joined
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- 10,526
Fab report Bob, i'm glad you both had a lovely time. Great pics to. Thanks for sharing
Thanks everyone.... I'd been wanting to stay at The Witchery for ages, so when my Mum asked what I'd like as a treat, thats what I picked!
Jo- It only took us an hour as we live in the very North of England.... If you look on thetrainline.com that should give you a better idea of times from your area....
Bob xoxoxox
thelittlemermaid83
<font color=green>My reign will be a super-awesome
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I know, im still tempted but i think ill stick with toast for a snack later instead of a huge pizza with garlic bread and a large bottle of tango.
Temptation may give in
Bolanette87
<font color=deeppink>The Queen Bee<br><font color=
- Joined
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I left a slice of my Pepperoni feast Cheesy Bites yesterday in Pizza Hut.... I want it now!
Bob xoxoxo
Bob xoxoxo
torsie24
Mummy to a perfect princess.
- Joined
- May 14, 2008
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OMG - now I want pizza!!!I know, im still tempted but i think ill stick with toast for a snack later instead of a huge pizza with garlic bread and a large bottle of tango.
Temptation may give in
Might have to wait for Cafe Mickey....
thelittlemermaid83
<font color=green>My reign will be a super-awesome
- Joined
- Aug 14, 2007
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- 16,957
Ok now im drooling lol.
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