Blogs from Durham County, England, United Kingdom, Europe - page 6

Ok, so two days ago we met up with Ron who had hired a car to drive up to Durham to spend a bit over a week here and visit Adrian's family. The drive from London was a long 5 or so hours so we were hungry and tired by the time we arrived here. Adrian's family lives in Chester Le Street, which I later learnt is in fact a small suburb, not a street. This place is quaint and cute, with a very close knit village feel to it. Everyone seems to know everyone and there are plenty of trees and parkland everywhere. The weather has again been superb since we arrived, which we expected and were told to be much worse. The first night we arrived, we were greeted by the start of Adrian's ... read more

Hi everyone, Since we arrived home I've had some time to finally get my website built. It's an online gallary where people can buy some of my better photographs from. Please take a look at: Photography by Martin Hurton It's not all my travel pics, although there is a good "Mountain" section from our adventures in Peru. Hope the New Year is off to a good start for you. Keep in-touch, Martin. ... read more

We left the cheap hotel in the industrial estate and drove back to Whitby where there is the remains of an old Abbey on a cliff overlooking the sea which was built back in Saxon times. This was another place run by English Heritage and it had an excellent audio guide which we listened to in detail. After leaving Whitby, we drove into Durham where we stopped for lunch. Durham has a castle and a cathedral which are located on the top of a hill at one end of the town. Unfortunately the castle is used as a college for the Durham University and we were unable to go through it, however we did get a good photo of the cathedral from the other side of the river. We had learnt our lesson with parking in ... read more

Consett. To the uninitiated, young or disinterested, Consett might not ring any bells at all. To those who remember the economic problems of the late 1970's, early 80's and even more recent times, Consett is perhaps synonomous with heavy industry and its demise. In particular, the steel industry. Having visted the area previously (well, Middlesborough, actually) I had a rough indication of what to expect: industrial, bleak, sulpherous. In the event, it was not all like that. Bleak, certainly, but more in the way of high up and windswept . Industrial? Nope. It all seems to have gone. Sulpherous? No way. In fact, there is a fabulous wooded valley running from Consett down towards Cumbria with stunning views, forests and lots of agriculture. I stayed at the Derwent Manor Hotel at Allensford. A really nic... read more

Untitled This is the first day of our adventure….and what do you know we start with a flight delay. All good though, because it gave us more time for sushi and to hang out with the family. Sushi was excellent and we made it back to the airport for about 8:20, and we were told to go through security at 8:30. Well I’m kinda paranoid about missing flights, so I go and check the flight on the big screens, and there is no sign of a flight delay so the flight is on time and still leaving at 8:35. My stomach drops, and of course I run back to James in a frantic state…..its 8:30! So we clear customs and I bust running to the gate….I kinda left James at security too.  Of course ... read more

We are travelling to the other side of the world. We will be leaving the beautiful city of Durham and flying to Singapore. I am in trouble already as I have not done any packing. Update on Packing - bag is not big enough for all the clothing needed. However, now that Wendy has helped there is- magically- plenty of room. Is the bag a Tardis in disguise? We will be on our way SOON. Will the hotels I have booked be in receipt of our booking? Will the campervans be roadworthy ? Will BA be flying? What will we forget, only to remember on the plane? All these worries , and lots of excitement. ... read more