Ireland for Easter

14 April 201215 April 2012 | Richard

With my 50th Birthday falling on Good Friday, GT decided to take me to Ireland with her kids to stay with family. Her mother has a house in Co. Carlow and there’s another family cottage (beautifully renovated and refurbished) to stay in just down the road … and that’s what we did: GT and I in the cottage and her kids staying at her Mum’s.

Thursday 5th and we went shopping and meeting and greeting family before settling down in the front of a log fire with a book and a bottle of wine.

Friday 6th brought a big surprise present from GT: a trackday in a Ferrari to be arranged by me to suit me! Then after lunch we headed over to Altamont Gardens for a wander around. A pity we couldn’t get closer to the spooky house:

Saturday 7th and I decided that after a few weeks break from running, I’d give the dodgy calf muscle a workout with a short 3.2 mile run whilst GT carried on for another 11.5 miles. She’s a machine! And all this before breakfast, after which we went for another walk out and about. The Irish provide handy hints for you when planning your next serial killing too:

Then on for a wonderful meal in the evening at the excellent Sha-Roe Bistro 20 mins away in Clonegal, with delicious food and wine before a drink next door then back to the cottage.

Sunday 8th saw us heading up toÂ Fraughan Rock Glen for a walk up to the upper waterfall and a few snacks before we headed back down to the pub for steaks and proper Guinness for lunch.

Monday 9th was the only day that rain was forecast for, so we spent it at an activity centre in Carlow and I finished off the last of theÂ Stieg Larsson Dragon Tattoo/Millennium Trilogy books on the Kindle App on my iPhone. I’d also seen this wonderful farmhouse on an earlier drive, so a photo opportunity presented itself.

Tuesday 10th and GT and I started the day with another run before we headed off to Glendalough for more walking and sightseeing around the place after a couple of Guinnesses with lunch at the Hollywood Inn.

An early night and then back off to Dublin Airport on Wednesday.

Great long weekend!

Dear Lazyweb…

28 February 201228 February 2012 | Richard

… I need some help. BlueCo would quite like me to take next week off using my carried-over holidays and frankly, I could do with a break.

Now I would prefer to go to Corralejo yet again and hang out with my friends at the Rock Island Bar but I really want to fly out on Monday and back again on the Friday and sadly flights aren’t looking hopeful for that sort of itinerary.

So I think a city break might be better with flights from London City Airport – a short ride away and a quick and efficient terminal – to either Amsterdam or Barcelona. A nice bit of luxury for my stay, so 5* hotels for a bit of pampering as it won’t add too much to the overall cost.

With Amsterdam, it’s probably the NH Grand Hotel KrasnapolskyÂ as it’s central for all the museums, canals and sights and I’ve heard of it, but where to stay in Barcelona? TimeOut has some suggestions, but which one would be best for a chic, luxurious and cool base? Preferably close to some great restaurants, bars and cafÃ©s.

Recommendations?

Corralejo Midday Run

23 October 2011 | Richard

So we took our running gear out to Fuerteventura but in the end only managed to do one run … at midday … in the heat and humidity. What do they say about mad dogs and Englishmen?

Fuerteventura Easter 2011

7 May 20117 May 2011 | Richard

I thought it was about time I took the kids – if you can call them that: 19 and nearly 15 – away with me on holiday, so over Easter I took the two of them to the luxury villa I’d stayed at before in Corralejo on Fuerteventura.

The villa had its own heated pool as well as a heated jacuzzi which meant we could relax around the pool, have a night-time Â jacuzzi or swim to cool down.

We used it as a base before driving out to other parts of the island or to the long, long sandy beach and dunes.

Then our evening would consist of heading into Corralejo itself for a really nice meal in one of the nicer restaurants before heading to the Rock Island Bar to chill out, have a few drinks and listen to some live acoustic rock music. And my girlfriend and friends could keep tabs on us with the audience webcam!

Anyway, here are a few photos including one of the baby mouse that I rescued from our pool one morning!