Tuesday 26 March 2019, King's Heath and home

The forsythia was in full bloom everywhere

We had our last breakfast at the Ibis Styles - fairly basic but not bad. We packed and checked out of the hotel, our home for the last four nights. We drove to Hugh's. Jess was also there with her smart haircut! We had a coffee and then strolled round the Kings Heath gardens, enjoying the spring daffodils and forsythia.

Then we drove to the Red Lion nearby for lunch. I had a huge chicken salad sandwich - too big to finish! And a dry white wine and soda, or two. After dropping Hugh off at home, we set off to Birmingham Airport.

Enjoying the sun in Kings Heath

We had to drive around to find a petrol station that wasn't exorbitant and then took our hire car back. We checked in, went through security and then relaxed in Departures - maybe a bit too long as we got the final call for our flight to Zurich. In any case, it took off a bit late but we arrived on time at 21.40. We caught the train and bus home - temperature a chilly 2 degrees. I made a list of things to do next.

We had a very good trip to the English Midlands and it was fun to catch up with the Clixby Clan. Looking forward to seeing everyone at the next joint family event.

Monday 25 March, Birmingham City Centre

'The Last Of England' is a favourite

After breakfast at our hotel. we found the bus stop

A Leonardo sketch

in the Hagley Road into Birmingham City Centre. Jess and Julie had warned us about the construction going on there and we had a very tortuous ride.

We got off the 12A bus at the back of Baskerville House, and headed straight to the City Art Gallery. There was free admission.

Some delicate jewellery from the Hoard

It wasn't our first visit to the gallery, as we went once before with Jess to see the famous Pre-Raphaelite collection. I enjoyed seeing all the same artworks again, as well as the new Leonardo sketches room.

We also admired the Staffordshire Hoard of exquisite Saxon gold jewellery. Afterwards we had a coffee in the extensive cafe and lunch room.We declined to order a champagne at our table.

The St. Martin's Church altarpiece

The Bullring bull 

After the museum visit, we went inside nearby St. Martin's Church where some of Richard's ancestors were baptised or buried. It was interesting to see the choirstalls, the elaborate carved altarpiece and the stained glass windows. Then we had lunch at nearby Cafe Rouge but we were short-changed on the wine measures.



Afterwards we took a photo of the famous bronze Bullring bull and then went to M&S again, a bigger one this time but with still rather drab clothes on sale, but I bought a few tops. We also went into Boots and a stationery shop. Then we managed to find the bus back to our hotel.


We had wine, peanuts and crisps and watched the football European Championship qualifier match against Montenegro. England won 5-1. I slept badly again - too many changes of bed.

Sunday 24 March, lunch at Hugh and Julie's

Peacocks strolling around the gardens

I still need to post my cards. I have set up a WhatsApp group for the adult members of Clixby Clan. I asked Paul to confirm Tam's phone number. Tam replied that she liked the pictures.



After breakfast, we went to visit the nearby Birmingham Botanic Gardens - completing a set. We arrived just after it opened at 10am and found lots of families visiting. It wasn't our first visit but we enjoyed seeing more magnolias. We saw the peacocks strutting around, checked out the hellebores, and noted the rhododendrons coming into bloom. We also saw lots of daffodils, some stinking cabbage, camellias and the tropical plants. It was a very pleasant morning.

Perfect Yorkshires with our Sunday Lunch chez Hugh

I love Jess's hair

Then we headed to Hugh and Julie's for Sunday lunch. We enjoyed coffee in the garden. Jess was also there and it was a pleasure to see her, but Joe had to work at the guitar shop. For lunch we had a very nice chicken with lots of veg and roast potatoes, plus an apple crumble. We also took along a Chilean Chardonnay which we helped to drink!


Then we headed back to the hotel for a rest and to watch Diamonds Are Forever. I remembered the song but not the whole story.


Later we went out to TGI Fridays nearby,  where we shared three starters and I had two pina coladas. Back at our hotel we watched Planet Earth Live in our room.

Saturday 23 March, Clixby Reunion

I woke at 6am and managed to find my way to the bathroom in the dark. I got up again at 8.20, and conquered the shower. We went down for breakfast, which was OK but there was a lack of knives. I had a rather sweet muesli with banana, a hard-boiled egg, toast and Marmite and coffee. There was good news on TV this morning - Isis has been eradicated from Syria. I wondered where Assad was lying low.

The Clixby Clan at the Fleur de Lys in Lowsonford

I had chance to write postcards to my garden friend trio, and we waited for Hugh to pick us up. We admired his new red car. We drove by a cross-country route to Hugh's house in Kings Heath, collected Julie and set off for the Fleur de Lys in Lowsonford to meet the other Clixbys.

On our canal walk with Frannie and Doug

We were the first to arrive and found our reserved table in the very busy pub. Paul and Tam arrived next, followed by Frannie and Doug. We ordered lunch and I opted for sausage and mash. Mine was a bit dry, but I had three drinks of dry white wine and soda. After lunch we all went for a stroll by the canal.

Hugh, Julia, Paul - a rare sighting

At Hugh's we did the Metro crossword and played the Pointless board game with their app. Julie gave us a lift back to the Ibis Styles. We missed Casualty but watched an old episode of Taggart on the Drama channel.

Friday 22 March, Oxford to Birmingham

Breakfast at Quod!

We got up a bit late and read our copy of the Guardian posted under our door. We went down for breakfast in Quod - what luxury! I had pancakes with toffee syrup as well as freshly squeezed orange juice and coffee. The people at the next table were reading the Times. I wrote postcards to Matthew and Laura. We checked out and left our bags in the car at the hotel car park.

We strolled along to the town and I went to M&S. It was a small branch and didn't have a full selection. I managed to get some underwear and socks, and some black and white trousers. Richard went up Carfax Tower.

In the Oxford Botanic Gardens

Then we visited the Oxford Botanic Gardens, scene of at least one Inspector Lewis mystery. The plants all had proper Latin labels, and there was a conservatory and a literary trail. Very interesting. Afterwards we had lunch at nearby Keepers. I had fish and chips and a glass of Chardonnay. I was sad to leave Oxford after lunch.

Queens College Oxford - I was sad to leave

We drove round the M42 and M5 to Birmingham; there was a queue of traffic on the motorway but Google Maps on my phone did a good job. We arrived at the Ibis Styles in the afternoon and unpacked a few things. Our room was quite basic but OK. Richard discovered Tesco Express nearby and bought some red wine and some crisps for our tea. We watched Pointless and Eggheads. I did the codeword in the paper but we got stuck on the cryptic crossword. My back was hurting.

Thursday 21 March, Malvern to Oxford via Hidcote

Tam, Paul and Richard in their lovely garden

We slept well in our high bed and were up at 8.30 for a shower and a nice breakfast of muesli, boiled egg, croissant and coffee. I love a good breakfast! We caught up with yesterday's Guardian and its various supplements. I saw that Lady Warnock, the pioneer of embryo research who was a Fellow of St. Hugh's Oxford, had died. We said goodbye to Paul and Tam until Saturday.

In Hidcote Gardens, it looked familiar

We checked Google Maps and decided to head to Oxford via Hidcote Gardens - the Manor was closed. We set off towards Evesham, continuing down increasingly smaller roads - luckily the Gardens were signposted.

Once inside the garden, it looked familiar with its clipped hedges, ponds and garden rooms. We had a very pleasant stroll all round the extensive gardens and saw the magnolias in bloom, as well as daffodils and mimosa. After our tour, we had a nice lunch in the very popular cafe - coffee and an egg roll for me.

The manicured lawns and magnolia blossoms at Hidcote

Then we drove on to Oxford and headed straight to the Old Bank Hotel, located on top of our favourite restaurant, Quod. Parking was reserved round the back of the hotel, and a space had my name on it! The receptionist came out to greet us and we found our third floor room overlooking the Radcliffe Camera and St. Mary's Church. A great welcome back to one of our favourite cities.

View of the Dreaming Spires of Oxford from our room at the Old Bank hotel

We strolled round the shops and I bought postcards and stamps. Dinner was also reserved at Quod - I had avocado vinaigrette followed by seared tuna with green vegetables, followed by a chocolate mousse. We opted for a glass of prosecco while admiring the paintings, and enjoyed a bottle of South African Chenin Blanc 2018 Secateurs. A very pleasant evening!

Inside Quod, our favourite restaurant in Oxford

Wednesday 20 March 2019, at Croombe Court

Our stay in Malvern - Croome Court

On the Chinese bridge at Croome

We enjoyed a very nice breakfast at Paul and Tam's, with cereal, fruit, boiled egg, croissant and coffee. Then Paul took us to Croome Court,  a nearby stately home. They didn't have reduced prices for seniors! The grounds were landscaped by Capability Brown, and we strolled round the small church, the lawns and over the Chinese bridge.

Inside Croome church

Then we entered the house and first looked at the display of tapestries by Grayson Perry, which were huge. They reflected his rather jaundiced view of life in modern Britain and were very compelling.



Then we went upstairs to see 'What is Home?', a display reflecting the thoughts of young people in care. I was pleased to see in one module, a copy of an Enid Blyton Famous Five book, which was the first proper book that I read. We also looked at their archive and had a coffee and flapjack. It was a surprising visit.

Grayson Perry's tapestries filled the walls of the downstairs rooms

On the way back to Malvern, we had a drink in the garden of The Swan pub, and then we went inside Malvern Priory with its stained glass windows. I took lots of photos. We headed home via Waitrose, always a pleasure, and we bought a Guardian.

Colourful window in Malvern Priory

In the evening, Paul and Tam had booked a curry at Anupam where we enjoyed a very nice meal of shared dishes. It was nice to have a longer chat with Tam.

Tuesday 19 March 2019, Heading to Malvern

I started the day with a phone call from the dental clinic in Zurich, making a two-and-a-half hour appointment for 9 April! Something to look forward to then! We watered the balcony plants and went to the Apotheke for a few essentials for our trip to UK, and also to Migros.

We made a list of shopping for the UK. Then we packed, including some Swiss wine and cheese. We had lunch at home and shut down the computers, before catching the 15.05 bus to Thalwil station where we caught the fast train to the airport. The weather was sunny but cold.

At the airport, after checking in our two bags, we went through the usual security and passport checks before having a drink in the Montreux Jazz Bar - a cool glass of Sancerre for me. Our Swiss flight left on time at 17.15 and arrived slightly early in Birmingham at 18.10 - the UK is an hour behind Switzerland.

We collected our hire car from Europcar, a Vauxhall Corsa. Richard noted that the petrol tank wasn't full and took a photo of the petrol gauge.

We set off and headed to Malvern via the M42 and M5, arriving at Paul and Tam's a bit earlier than our 8pm prediction. They made us very welcome. Tam had made a lovely quiche for tea, with salad and a glass of red wine. Our room is up two flights of stairs.