With restrictions still firmly in place and no wish to fly off to âforeign climesâ, we decide to visit the Isle of Wight. Friends had recommended a hotel, likening it to Fawlty Towers, so curiosity and a desperate desire for a break, found us in Southampton last Monday morning.
As usual, nothing ever goes exactly according to plan! We had a ferry booked for 4:00 pm. We were over an hour early so I rang the ferry company and asked if we could change our booking, âNo problemâ, came the cheery reply, âjust let your hotel know your new ETAâ.
We waited in the ferry queue, as usual choosing the wrong one! Ours hardly moved and time was marching on. Finally we arrived at the gatehouse and I showed the surly looking woman in the kiosk the bar code on my phone. I was told that we were an hour early. I could see my husbandâs hackles beginning to rise. He doesnât do queues at all well and was already irritated.
I explained about the ticket change and were told that it hadnât been registered and the ferry was full! We were shown the exit and told to come back at 3:30 pm. After calling the ferry company again and being told that the person who had helped us earlier was new and had no right to change our booking, we got compensation and the early ferry! By the skin of our teeth!
The hotel was spotlessly clean. The staff were nothing like Fawlty Towers! My husband thought it was because the building was old and a bit âshabby chicâ. Iâll find out when I see our friends again …. The seating in the dining room was arranged with care. The hotel was only three quarters full and we had to book for breakfast and dinner to avoid gridlock at the entrance. I couldnât fault them. Masks were worn inside the hotel and only taken off when we sat down at our tables.
The weather was fantastic! Day one saw brilliant sunshine with highs of 24C. Almost too warm for my husband but just perfect for me! We walked to âThe Needlesâ, originally four stacks of chalk but one had collapsed in a storm in the 1700âs. This collapsed stack was shaped like a needle, not the three remaining! They are detached from the headland and a lighthouse, which has saved many lives over the years, was built at the end if the third stack.
We visited the Old Battery which was initially built to protect the naval dockyards at Portsmouth from French invasions and now maintained by the National Trust. Further up the headland we saw the New Battery which was eventually used to secretly test British space rockets from the 1950âs to the 1970âs. Later, guns at both the Old and New Batteries were strategically placed to offer protection during both world wars. These guns were initially thrown into the sea when no longer in use, but were later salvaged for display!
Making our way back, twenty thousand steps later and a very happy Fitbit, we saw the different coloured rock formations along the cliff at Alum Bay. A spectacular sight with the sea shimmering in the brilliant sunshine. A two seater Spitfire flying circuits overhead was the cherry on the top for my husband! A day to remember, so different from the months stuck at home struggling to sort out my mother in lawâs house and both mothersâ on-going probate issues!
The next morning dawned bright and sunny. After a good breakfast we headed off to Fort Victoria. Another challenge because the tide had only just begun to go out. We had to scramble over rocks and thick shrubs to reach the public footpath. Unfortunately we took a wrong turn at the fort so our circular walk wasnât quite as expected. After trying to get wifi access as we had somehow gone âoff pisteâ we had to come back along the same path! Something we always try to avoid!
That afternoon we had booked a visit to Osbourne House, Queen Victoriaâs âholiday cottageâ! We donned our masks but were only allowed to enter in pairs and should have kept to these restrictions. However, this proved impractical. My husband likes to study and read up on every item displayed so we were soon overtaken. It did surprise and annoy me when members of the public seemed to forget the two metre rule and leaned over my shoulder to examine paintings. I had to remind a few of them! We wandered around the gardens and I loved all the old trees, shrubs and the masses of rhododendrons planted so many years ago and still flourishing. I decided that I could live there!
So, after a very enjoyable three days not having to worry about meals and away from unpleasant family disagreements, we drove to the ferry and headed home. Back to our new normal and already planning another few days away somewhere closer as the weather would soon be changing. We need to do our bit for the economy and the hospitality business!
I have always loved autumn. This year it is tinged with sadness and huge uncertainty. We have lost some dear family members and the coronavirus shows no signs of departing our fair shores! But the sun is still shining today and I watch as the leaves from our ash tree slowly lose their grip and flutter down on to the newly mown lawn. Life carries on. The seasons havenât been affected. There is some normality still in this strange, troublesome world. Thankfully I donât have a crystal ball. Imagine, on New Years Eve last year, I had peered into it and seen the misery and devastation of 2020! Just doesnât bear thinking about! đ
Jenny Burrell 