Windsor

This was our first visit to Windsor and it was a nice day out with Em and Woodsy. The Queen wasn't home the day we visited but it was nice to see where she spent a bit of her time. After waiting in line to get in, we got our audio guides and walked around the designated areas to listen to the commentary. We headed up one of the towers to look out over the Castle, however the rain decided to bucket down at that point so we didn't get to see a lot. Windsor Castle is really lovely and the town itself is very quaint. The good thing about the tickets is that they remain valid for a year, so if you think you missed out on something you can go back and visit without having to pay again!

Listening to my audio guide - shhhh

Lovely grounds at the Windsor Castle

Em, me and Woodsy by the gardens and with part of the Castle in the background

Nice lawn!

View from the tower

Another snap from the tower



Southend on sea

A cracker of a day meant we had to head to the beach! Southend-on-sea is about an hour and half away from where we live so we thought we would head there for the day. Southend-on-sea has the longest pleasure pier in the world. It was interesting to see how different the beach was to back home and how packed it was as well!

When we arrived it was around lunchtime so we had to have the traditional fish and chips by the seaside. After filling our bellies with fat, we made our way down the 1.33 mile pleasure pier. It is so long you can take a train down the end instead of walking, but being the healthy bunnies we are we walked there and back. After our walk we checked out the theme park and with Em and I being the adrenalin junkies that we are, we had to give the rollercoaster a go. It was awesome! Coming down from the high of the rollercoaster we made our way to the arcade where we all became addicted to the 2p slotty machines. We aren't the biggest gamblers but at least we had fun!

Pleasure pier

Me getting ready for the walk

The train tracks and probably the most sensible option! (especially on a hot day)

Me, Em and Cath - we made it to the end

Nice view from the end of the pier

Paul and I at the end of a nice day



The Shard at night

Well the Shard is now all complete with people now working and living there. The night it opened they decided to put on a light display. It was a tad boring but was good to go out and have a nosey, better than sitting on our bums watching t.v!

OooOoO blueeee

Ahhhh yeloowwwww



New guys to London

YAY! They made it :) Emma and Woodsy at the local pub on their first day in London!

 

Me, Em and Woodsy



Olympic grounds

The Olympics are coming! Sooo before it gets too crazy we wanted to have a wander around the area and see how the park was coming along. We could only view the park from the John Lewis department store which had a view of it but here are the pics we could get...



Ash's birthday!

Its my birthday! Unfortunately most of the day was spent at work, but when I came home I was suprised to find some nice flowers on the bedside table along with some lovely presents. And I was taken out to our favourite local Thai restaurant where I opened the rest of my pressies. I had a lovely day :)

 

Lauren and I with my bag of pressies and the little EDF energy mascot - you might see him in more photos on van tour!

Our lovely dinner

My beautiful flowers from Paul

Scrumptious lime cheesecake made lovingly by my big sis



Wales - Queen's Jubilee weekend 2 - 5 June 2012

Another long weekend was upon us and we now had our home away from home (the van) so we thought why not head to Wales for a nosey around! Our first stop was Cardiff where we wandered the streets to see what it had to offer. We walked past the Cardiff castle which looks very impressive however we didnt make it inside. The night we chose to go to Cardiff there was a rugby game on and the streets were pumping, as the stadium is right in town. After a bite to eat we decided it was time to find somewhere to stay so made our way to a campervan park for our first sleep in the van!

Cardiff main centre

Cardiff castle

On our way to the campervan park - unfortunately the weather wasn't the best



In the morning we found a campervan store that sold all the stuff required to set up the little van. We bought the essentials so we could cook breakfast and have a nice cuppa! Off we headed to Swansea to have a look around. After having a look around Swansea, we headed down to the water for a walk along the breakwater. Unfortunately the weather was crap and very windy so we headed back to the van to warm up a bit.

First breakfast in the van!

Swansea

Nice statue down by the water

Me in Swansea - weather wasn't the greatest!

Onwards and upwards, or slightly further around the coast, we made our way to Gower Peninsula. The Gower Peninsula was declared U.K's first area of outstanding natural beauty back in 1956, and I would have to agree with that. The beaches reminded me of the ones back home, in fact a lot of Wales reminded me of N.Z. Thankfully the weather picked up and we could go for a nice walk along the cliffs and look out at the magnificent view!

Beautiful view from our walk
 

At the beginning of our walk

Threecliffs bay
 

After visiting some of the coast, we headed inland where we made our way towards the Breacon Beacon National Park. On the way we stopped in at the Aberdulais tin works to learn a bit about its history. The tin works date back to 1584 and are currently being reconstructed to show how it would have looked when it was in full working order. There is also a waterfall at the site which is now used to produce energy for the community. It has the largest electricity-generating waterwheel in Europe.

The tin works and the reconstruction taking place

Ashlea standing in front of part of the waterfall

The waterwheel

Lovely afternoon tea to celebrate the Queen's jubilee


On the road again towards our final destination, the Breacon Beacons National Park. One of the roads we drove on didn't have any fences to keep the sheep in, so it made for a very stressful drive as you try and miss the sheep. We found a campervan park to spend our last night at and it had a little pub on site which we went to for dinner and a drink. On this particular night there was also some live entertainment which wasn't too bad! We looked into going horse riding and were lucky enough to find one right outside the campervan park, so in the morning we headed off on a nice ride through mountains and captured a nice view of the area. All in all it was a great trip to Wales and we look forward to seeing more of what it has to offer.

Watch out for the sheep!

The pub at the campervan site

Lovely view from the top

All over!