And so it's time to depart on another adventure. I found I was suprisingly calm with no signs of panic, just excitement at the thought of what lay ahead. The extreme panic attack and vertigo of March 2017 were hopefully a one off.
The trains to Bristol were again running late which meant I caught the one before I had intended and arrived very early. But no problems as that gave me ample time to spend a penny or two and enjoy a skinny latte from Starbucks. Next came a leisurely wait on Platform 9 for the train to Southampton. The indicator board showed that it was running on time - that is until 2 minutes before it was due to arrive when all of a sudden it's arrival was deleted. I had a fair idea of what that meant - a dreaded platform change - so slowly made my way towards the lift. Sure enough the next we hear is that it's going to be arriving on Platform 3. Myself and a young mother with three small children manage to get into the lift whilst a throng of others make for the stairs in a mad panic. Just because the platform had been changed did not mean the train would be held up to allow passengers to get to the correct platform - oh the joys of travelling with GWR. The subway thronged with a rush of people and I was carried along in the crowd. Waiting and then catching the lift UP to Platform 3 was not an option so summoning all my strength I dragged my heavy hand luggage up the stairs. Gasping for breath at the top I found the train had arrived and was disgorging its passengers - just time to dash for a door and heave myself and my luggage aboard.
There was one empty aisle seat near the luggage racks which looked ideal. But there was a lady asleep in the window seat, a carrier bag on the empty seat plus an array of empty sandwich packages on the pull down drinks tray. Was the seat empty or did she have a companion who was visiting the toilet? I woke her up and asked if the seat was free - she was NOT happy! But I had no sympathy because as it turned out the carrier bag and array of rubbish were hers. She was even less happy at having to squeeze the bag under her legs - but at least I disposed of the rubbish for her. At Bath Spa a lot of seats became available and I was able to move elsewhere. The rest of the journey was a joy as we sped through the Wiltshire countryside in brilliant sunshine.
At Southampton a taxi took me onward to the wonderful old and quirky Star Hotel. The owners are gradully refurbishing the premises but rather than take out a massive bank loan its a matter of when money becomes available then another room gets redecorated. I was fortunate in that I was allocated Room 2 - revamped with modern wallpaper, glittery framed bed and newly tiled bathroom (or to be more accurate, Shower Room). But even this was as quirky as ever: a towel rail almost falling off the wall, a tile missing revealing pipework under the sink, a stylish sink with plug that it seemed impossible to raise or lower, crystal bed knobs that were loose and sitting at precarious angles. I smiled and thought of Fawlty Towers!
The afternoon was spent in the Southampton shops and then on to the Mayflower Park to wave Arcadia off on her latest cruise. No matter how many times I watch a P&O liner leaving port it still brings a lump to my throat. The passengers onboard enjoying their sailaway waved from the upper decks and I waved back. Tomorrow it would be me aboard Oriana.
Returning to the hotel I ran into hundreds of bikers who were in town for a regular meet up. What a sight.
Hopefully there would not be a lot of noise outside during the night as I wanted a good night's rest. As it happened that was not to be - and it had nothing at all to do with the bikers. Room No. 2 was above the old coach house overlooking the small hotel carpark and next to the back yards of adjoining premises.
Somewhere a generator or air conditioner droned away in the background - no problem if it had remained a constant low level noise but every now and then it would switch itself off. The silence was then wonderful but when it turned back on 10 minutes later the noise seemed even more intrusive. Never mind, I managed. At least until 5.30 am when the Weatherstone pub took delivery of a large order which meant metal trolleys being pulled over cobblestones for a full hour!
Note to self: also worth remembering that the rooms in The Star have neither air conditioning nor heating so staying at this particular hotel in the height of summer or depth of winter would not be advisable.
The trains to Bristol were again running late which meant I caught the one before I had intended and arrived very early. But no problems as that gave me ample time to spend a penny or two and enjoy a skinny latte from Starbucks. Next came a leisurely wait on Platform 9 for the train to Southampton. The indicator board showed that it was running on time - that is until 2 minutes before it was due to arrive when all of a sudden it's arrival was deleted. I had a fair idea of what that meant - a dreaded platform change - so slowly made my way towards the lift. Sure enough the next we hear is that it's going to be arriving on Platform 3. Myself and a young mother with three small children manage to get into the lift whilst a throng of others make for the stairs in a mad panic. Just because the platform had been changed did not mean the train would be held up to allow passengers to get to the correct platform - oh the joys of travelling with GWR. The subway thronged with a rush of people and I was carried along in the crowd. Waiting and then catching the lift UP to Platform 3 was not an option so summoning all my strength I dragged my heavy hand luggage up the stairs. Gasping for breath at the top I found the train had arrived and was disgorging its passengers - just time to dash for a door and heave myself and my luggage aboard.
There was one empty aisle seat near the luggage racks which looked ideal. But there was a lady asleep in the window seat, a carrier bag on the empty seat plus an array of empty sandwich packages on the pull down drinks tray. Was the seat empty or did she have a companion who was visiting the toilet? I woke her up and asked if the seat was free - she was NOT happy! But I had no sympathy because as it turned out the carrier bag and array of rubbish were hers. She was even less happy at having to squeeze the bag under her legs - but at least I disposed of the rubbish for her. At Bath Spa a lot of seats became available and I was able to move elsewhere. The rest of the journey was a joy as we sped through the Wiltshire countryside in brilliant sunshine.
At Southampton a taxi took me onward to the wonderful old and quirky Star Hotel. The owners are gradully refurbishing the premises but rather than take out a massive bank loan its a matter of when money becomes available then another room gets redecorated. I was fortunate in that I was allocated Room 2 - revamped with modern wallpaper, glittery framed bed and newly tiled bathroom (or to be more accurate, Shower Room). But even this was as quirky as ever: a towel rail almost falling off the wall, a tile missing revealing pipework under the sink, a stylish sink with plug that it seemed impossible to raise or lower, crystal bed knobs that were loose and sitting at precarious angles. I smiled and thought of Fawlty Towers!
The afternoon was spent in the Southampton shops and then on to the Mayflower Park to wave Arcadia off on her latest cruise. No matter how many times I watch a P&O liner leaving port it still brings a lump to my throat. The passengers onboard enjoying their sailaway waved from the upper decks and I waved back. Tomorrow it would be me aboard Oriana.
Note to self: also worth remembering that the rooms in The Star have neither air conditioning nor heating so staying at this particular hotel in the height of summer or depth of winter would not be advisable.
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