All over the place, UK. Saturday/Monday 7/16-June-2025.
It all started with Elles Bailey, our favourite blues/Americana singer, being chosen as a support act for Rag’n’Bone Man. We were really pleased for her as this will give her fantastic exposure to an audience who will not previously have had the opportunity to hear her music.
We thought this was too good to miss especially as we also like Rag'n'Bone Man so we decided on a trip back to the UK. We booked tickets for the first of the series of concerts: Friday night at the Guildhall Square, Southampton. And obviously fit in a cheeky Southampton parkrun the following morning.
We booked our flights for a week away with the plan of doing a small road trip along the south coast to visit our friends Bob and Lynne in Ringwood where we used to live, my second cousin in Bournemouth and possibly our friends on the Isle of Wight. But then it all went a bit haywire.
Firstly, Mary realised that she had left her purse with credit cards and driving licence in Penrith. Then our hi-fi in Italy blew up (well just never powered up when we plugged it in). So we bought ourselves a replacement to be delivered to Penrith with the plan of bringing the dead one back for repair and swap out for the new one.
Also, due to a calendar mix up, we had to vacate our Italian home a day early to make way for some Home Exchange guests. We decided to bring our flight forward and take a longer road trip.
The trip to Penrith was to be a quick out and back on the train to pick up the stuff but when we looked at car hire for the rest of the trip it was outrageously expensive. Six weeks' long stay car park at Heathrow was one third the price of 10 days car hire. So we decided to catch the train up to Penrith to collect our own car, use it for the road trip, drop it off at Heathrow (where we will be returning in August) and get the bus down to Gatwick for our return flight.
Day 1, Saturday 7th - Cisternino to Gatwick:
As always Saturday morning starts with parkrun which we were able to do at Salento as we had a late afternoon flight. Despite the heat, I managed a respectable time of 29:14 and a number 3 finisher position.
This was high position made possible by the fact that we had no tourists to boost the numbers; it was just some of the regulars. It also meant that the token sorter did not have too onerous a task!
After parkrun, we came back for a quick shower and final cleaning and tidying before our HomeExchange guests arrived later that day.
We parked up at Bari long stay and had an uneventful flight to Gatwick. We knew that the flight would land too late to catch a train up to Penrith so we had booked ourselves into the Gatwick Hilton. A snack and a couple of glasses of wine in the bar ensured a good night’s sleep.
Day 2, Sunday 8th - Gatwick to Penrith.
We had an uneventful train ride up to Victoria, across London arriving at Euston in time to buy some lunch for the journey.
At Penrith, it was a drop off the bags and a quick change at home in time to go out with friends Andrew and Sarah. By a stroke of luck our favourite local band, Bare Wires, was playing at the Boot and Shoe at nearby Greystoke and it gave us a chance to hear their excellent new singer.
This was followed by supper at Grants of Castlegate. That was, of course, followed by the ill advised nightcap in Fell Bar ensuring another night of deep sleep.
Day 3, Monday 9th - Penrith:
Mary had some errands to squeeze in (stereo repair, opticians) and a physio appointment while I was mostly pottering about including a trip to the recycling to clear out all the rubbish before our Penrith Home Exchange guests arrived.
Day 4, Tuesday 10th - Penrith to Cranham:
After a trip to the chiropodist for Mary, we set off from Penrith. We took the opportunity of this road trip to break our journey south at Cranham, just outside Cheltenham, and spend the night with our friends John and Andrea as we haven’t seen them for ages.
We spent a very pleasant evening with them including a pub supper at The Butchers Arms in nearby Sheepscombe. As we left the building we were treated to an exhibition of traditional English Morris dancing.
Day 5, Wednesday 11th - Cranham to Ringwood:
As per our original itinerary, a visit to our friends Bob and Lynn in Ringwood, which is where we lived for 13 years in Ibsley, a small village couple of miles north on the A338.
Having some time to spare we decided to make a slight detour via Stonehenge on the way. The first time I went to Stonehenge was over half a century ago! Back then it was basically an open field and you could wander in and around the stones and sit on them with no restrictions. Now it is much better managed. There is an excellent visitor centre some distance from the site with a shuttle bus to take you to the stones.
They have an audio guide app which provides useful little snippets of info at various points. And even better we are English Heritage members and got in for free!
Lynn cooked a delicious venison stew and we had a good old natter catching up.
Day 6, Thursday 12th - Ringwood:
After a relaxing morning waiting for the rain showers to pass we had a delightful walk round Blashford Lakes Nature Reserve.
Walking around the lake, we stopped at various hides and were fortunate to catch multiple sightings of kingfishers which was a real treat.
Unfortunately, they move too fast to get a decent picture so here is a more sedate photo of a swan and cygnets.
We passed a whole clutch of Scarlet tiger moths which had just hatched out. They were very lively and, like the Kingfisher, impossible to photo. I did manage a screen grab from a video clip but even so the black and white parts of the wings were a blur.
That evening we dined with two other friends in Antepli Turkish restaurant. I am getting to really appreciate Turkish restaurants having had some excellent meals over the last couple of years. Lamb is one of my favourite meats and they do it very well. Most lamb served in Italian restaurants just does not seem to be the same quality.
Day 7, Friday 13th - Southampton:
Finally, the gig that prompted this whole road trip. We had an early supper of Thai style tapas at Mango Above Bar and went in early to see if there was any seating we could grab. Any perches were already occupied but we did find a bit of fence to sit against.
The first support act was Glasgow singer, Kerr Mercer. Not a band as such just him and a fellow guitarist. He sang a number of excellent self-penned compositions and got a good reception from the crowd. He also did good banter with the crowd including "If you can't understand what I'm saying ask for a translator".
Elles was second support act immediately before Rag’n’Bone Man. She mostly sang songs from her latest album “Beneath the Neon Glow”. She was on great form and put on a rocking show that really caught the audience's attention. I am sure she will have acquired a bunch of new fans as a result.
Rag’N’Bone Man rounded off the evening singing songs from both of his albums plus one new composition. I was fully expecting the encore to be “Human” but he actually chose that as the last song of the main set at which point we started threading our way through the crowd while he did two encores.
A great concert with three excellent acts.
Day 8, Saturday 14th - Bournemouth via Ripley:
Saturday was another packed day. First of all we did Southampton parkrun which was my hundredth tourist location. I emailed the Run Director a couple of days prior and got a shout out and a round of applause.
Then it was back to the apartment for a shower and check out by 11 which worked well as we had a 70th birthday party in Ripley to attend. Jane was a contemporary of my sister's from their very first day in primary school so we have known her for 65 years! There were a number of old acquaintances there so it was great to have a catch up for a couple of hours.
Then it was a drive down the A3 to spend a couple of days with my second cousin Effie.
Day 9, Sunday 15th - Bournemouth:
As Effie no longer has a car, we take the opportunity when we visit of going on an outing. This time we decided on a trip to Kingston Lacy. It was our first visit and Effie had previously visited the gardens but never been inside the house itself. It was a beautiful sunny day for the trip and our NT membership cards got us in for free. We spent the morning exploring the gardens including a Japanese tea garden.
After lunch in the cafe we did a tour of the house which was fascinating.
Kingston Lacy has a dynamic history. Over centuries the Bankes family built, altered, embellished and rebuilt their house. Their wealth came from extensive estates and profitable marriages, including inherited wealth from Caribbean plantations supported by the Atlantic slave trade.
William John Bankes created the house we know today between 1834 and his death in 1855. Forced into exile for homosexuality, at that time punishable by death, he lived in Venice and remotely remodelled the house, creating lavishly decorated interiors such as the spectacular Spanish Room. Displaying remarkable paintings by renowned artists like Rubens, Van Dyck, Titian and Brueghel, the house is a miniature ‘national gallery’ for the South West, and includes Bankes' collection of ancient Egyptian artefacts, the largest private collection in the UK. [National Trust :: Kingston Lacy]
That evening we dined in a local Italian restaurant, which might seem like coals to Newcastle, but it was a very different style to the Italian food we get in Puglia.
Day 10, Monday 16th - Bournemouth to Cisternino:
Because of the logistics of flying in and out of different airports we drove from Bournemouth up to Heathrow and dropped off the car at purple parking long stay. That way, our car is in the right place when we fly back to Heathrow in August to avoid the Pugliese heat. We then got the bus round the M25 to Gatwick. From there it was the usual flight back to Italy, pick up our car from Bari long stay car park and drive home in time for a late night snack, a couple of glasses of Verdeca and bed.
