well yes - that is true - it doesn't stop raining in Lancashire - it's the opposite of Herault!
I have been scarred by those childhood dry-ski memories!
Will promise to give it a go!
It is funny though, I do feel threatened in big cities so I never carry a handbag and I always make sure my husband's wallet is not in his back pocket or else I spend the whole time fretting over anyone who gets too close. Not sure if it is living in the sticks for a while which did it but I am still paranoid even after spending lots of time here in London.
I was terrible in Barcelona - I spent the whole time clinging onto my handbag - ridiculous! That's when I was 'told' not to carry it anymore.
We thought we saw our house on one of those rent a dream villa ads shown on UK T.V so its hard to motivate ourselves to take a holiday when we live in a popular holiday destination, that being said we have taken the Camping-car to Spain, Italy, the lakes and Chiantishire, Up to Close to Hambourg and back again via the Auverne and naturally a whole lot more of France.
Devon and Cornwall ? I lived there so glad to be away during the summer when its full of wanabe surfers and in the winter.......................
We go every January for 8-9 weeks to Mauritius. We just got back 3 weeks ago, and I'm now writing this from Guadaloupe. We got invited to a French friend's birthday bash (he lives here). just had time to repack, but we couldn't miss the opportunity. It's hot!
We’re having 10 weeks in the UK as we’re renting our house out as a gite. We have friends nearby who will look after the gite while we are away.
We have Oxford, Arran, Newcastle and more touring once we pick up the caravan on the programme. In the Autumn we’re planning a trip along the NW coast of Spain to Compostella (no we are not walking). We are right on the pilgrim trail - ‘hopital’ in the village just 50 metres from the front door.
We are great travellers: been round the world twice. Planning on a longer trip next year in the Spring once we are more settled here.
Oh you should try it, learn with the kids,they will obviously pick it up far quicker, (no sense of fear when they're little) Rossendale, infact any dry slope, ha that's a laugh, they're the wettest places ever, are THE worst places to learn, hurts to blooming much when you fall over. It doesn't hurt in the snow. (Well obviously it depends how fast you're going when you fall -won't go into that, brings back painful memories)
No it is fab, and it's a great holiday.
Suppose it's what you're used to. I'm from a small town and hate big city's, mind i do love Paris, i used to love Manchester when i was younger but was there the other week and felt very unsafe, must of got used to being in the middle of nowhere. Love our frequent visits to Toulouse though.
We are near Pezenas in Herault - I've never been skiing although husband has been lots in the past. He's keen to take the kids, I've only been on Milton Keynes snow slope and Rossendale's dry slope - so not really tried it.
He wouldn't mind trying snowboarding either - his ski boots are extremely dusty buried in our garage somewhere but I hope we'll get out on the slopes soon. I think it will be funny seeing the girls on skis.
Ah - I love London - my husband's been working in Canary Wharf for a while now and it's the first time I've spent a lot of time here and now I really love it. The museums, parks, accessibility, even the tube! It's been a great experience for us and our girls, will miss it, but I also can't wait to get back to Herault and the sunshine as it's bl**dy freezing here in London at the moment!
Hi Suzanne, must admit that's one thing we do miss about England, going hiking in the lakes then a good old pub lunch afterwards.
have you not tried skiing? We love it, it was one of the reasons for choosing this part of France, unfortunately with school, work and weather, we don' seem to make it up there often enough hence the reason for booking a weeks skiing holiday for next year. Also our teenage daughter is now to old/cool/whatever for skiing and is trying to learn to board, so a week of classes everyday really is the best way to learn. Especially as we both ski so can't teach her any boarding at all.
We love Cornwall too, been a couple of times, surfing in the past. What i really don't like is London. Last year we drove back to Barrow to visit family & friends, it took full 2 days of driving to get there but on the way home we stopped in 2 different places and made it a bit of a little holiday to places we hadn't been, which we really enjoyed. Broke the driving up a bit too.
Whereabouts are you if you don't mind me asking, we're near Mirande?
Canada, Madagascar, Namibia, but as the number of kids was increasing, the number of miles travelled got smaller the tents were traded in for simple holiday-houses first and then real holiday-homes with enough space (:-)) so now it's Ireland, Sweden and lately Corsica (I know it's France, but the Corsicans beg to differ). This year we're thinking of going to the north of Spain and Portugal, a coastal trip down to Porto....(if I can manage a 3 week holiday away from my grapes)
That's the one, Suz. Looks brilliant but definitely not cheap and not at all sure we could take the relentless organised tourism. We're too used to deciding for ourselves what we want to do and when. Having seen far too many people on the "safari of a lifetime" in Kenya being driven at high speed in clouds of dust past the sort of wonderful game-viewing opportunities they'd paid to enjoy, all because they had to be at a given lodge in time for lunch, we have a very jaundiced view of package tours!
My parents in law have booked a Viking river cruise down the Rhine for their 50th - they are going in August, all being well with Dad's health. They are going from Amsterdam to Basel - looks lovely.
Sort of thinking about a cruise down the Rhine or the Danube to mark our 50th wedding anniversary. For the 25th we started in Tokyo and wandered home to Kenya across Asia, but nothing so adventurous this time. Looked at one cruise yesterday. They wanted $6,000 dollars a head so I think that one might just be a non-starter. That and the fact the company's based in California! Otherwise dinner at the Train Bleu in the Gare de Lyon with the family will be the highlight.
Hi Pam - Lake District is also on my list - absolutely love it, would really like our girls to enjoy walking holidays in the Lakes as I did when I was a youngster - my friend's parents have a farm in Aspatria that does B&B so hope to go there one day too. Oh and yes we too are not far from the Pyrenees and have not yet been skiing - my hubby wants to take the girls skiiing this Winter - I'm up for the hot chocolate and cosy fire with Jasmine (4 year old) whilst he can take Izzy and Maisy out on the slopes I reckon.
Andrew Devon & Cornwall are up there on my list too, probably next year. Love the South West. Actually I do like a lot of England, so perhaps in future for visits we should combine a family visit and a small holiday break somewhere rather than just touring round everyone again.
But we live in the sun now, we're not supposed to have holidays anymore, we're here so that our family in the UK can come to us for their holidays aren't we? Catering all summer long .......Or at least that's how it feels sometimes.
Since moving here almost 3 years ago apart from a couple of trip back to the UK to see family, 'Up North' (Sorry Andrew, i am the absolute opposite, we come from the Lake District which is beautiful, you can keep the South for us, can't stand it.) we have driven to visit our friends in Portugal for a week and that's it. Planning on visiting them again this summer now their new house is built and also planning a skiing holiday to the Alps next winter, as despite living just over an hour from the Pyrenees we haven't managed more than a couple of days skiing this winter.
But must admit, when you live in the sun with your own pool in the garden, why would you want to go and share a pool somewhere with other people, (just call me unsociable) Our holidays usually tended to be either skiing, Diving or city, sightseeing holidays anyway, we've never gone for a week lying in the sun sort of holidays.
Suzanne, I'll spare you all the nasty details, but aside from absolute the filth, the constant rip-off attempts, the fact that the Moroccan ATMS stole nearly $600 of our money (we got it back later), the undercurrent of ethnic/religious tension, the "fish bone incident" (I swallowed a fish bone in Essaouira & it got much worse later that evening in Marrakech & I was hospitalized. The medical staff was fine, but they do not remove the IV or let you leave until you pay the entire fee in cash) was the final straw. We actually came home a week early. It's not even an inexpensive place any more. Whenever I speak with someone who says they loved their trip to Morocco, I find that they have been there at least 10 years ago. Things are different now.
My husband & I both grew up in NYC & then lived in SF for nearly 30 years so both are home to us.
We will be going in April to Turkey and the Greek Islands. Last year was to the US in March, Spain in June, Germany in July, and the US again in October but that was an unusual year.
oh no Holly, that's a shame. We went to Morocco about 10 years ago to Marrakesh but I think it has become a lot more popular since then. I wouldn't go back though to Marrakesh, maybe one of the coastal cities.
I'd love to go to NY - husband has been 3 times but I've never been - it is definitely on my 'Wishlist'. We have friends in San Fransisco and have an open invitation to go back - we went in 2008 before kids but I can't imagine the flight - 10-12 hours stuck on a plane with my 3 - urrrgh. Would love to see our friends though it's been 2 years since we last saw them. Maybe next year when Maisy is a bit older.
We went to Matraia in the mountains just outside Lucca (Puccinnis birthplace - and a hell of a long way from Hartlepool). It was beautiful, apricots straight off the tree in the morning and olive oil from the trees that surrounded us.
Still got the woman's mobile N° it was dead reasonable too.
Yes I think I could happily spend the next 10 years visiting different areas of Italy - we did once consider hiring a camping car to tour round but that would be mad now with 3 kids I think.