Travel Tuesday- sailing in Devon

We had a last minute opportunity to go sailing with my inlaws for a few days, so we jumped at it! We drove 3 hours down to Dartmouth in Devon to join them on the boat. They were moored in the Dartmouth Hotel Marina, lovely facilities with individual ensuite private bathrooms. Any of you who sail and are used to the typical coin in the machine for a 3-minute, lukewarm shower that gently drizzles over you so you feel like you're still covered in soap suds would appreciate the fact that each cubicle had its own bathtub, power shower, sink and toilet. They also played music & had proper hair driers- not the makeshift hand drier, turn your head upside down underneath it in hopes of getting a rough dry. 

Ok enough of my excitement about the facilities! 

The view from the water of the marina, Dart Hotel apartments and the Britannia Royal Naval College. 

Dartmouth is a great seaside town equipped with lovely restaurants, culture, hot men from the Naval Academy (gotta love a man in uniform!!), boutique shops, and gorgeous scenery. You could easily spend a week down there and have something different to do each day. Here's my top three choices for each genre: 

Restaurants: 

Cafe Alf Resco's for brunch 

www.cafealfresco.co.uk 

The Crab Shell- the best crab sandwich! 

The Floating Bridge Pub- it doesn't have a website, but has lovely food and a roof terrace! 

Boutique shops: 

Danielli's- great ladies clothing & accessories boutique

http://www.danielli.co.uk

Paul Barclay- he's designed loads of nautical artwork, and I also commissioned my salon sign- he's awesome! 

www.paulbarclaydesigns.com

Gifts for Gentlemen- they don't have a website, but it's a store dedicated to men, whether you're looking for stocking stuffers or a sentimental gift for a special occasion- they've got it all! 

Culture: 

Castle- this castle is lovely to walk around and has a gorgeous view out to sea, but it's also great to look at from the water as you enter or exit the Dart Estuary! 

www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/dartmouth-castle

Art galleries- there are lots of art shops/galleries as you meander up and down the cobbled streets. 

Museum- a little museum inside a 1600's merchant house

http://dartmouthmuseum.org 

Outdoors: 

Walk to Kingwear- you can take the chain ferry or the lower ferry over to Kingswear and wander around the quaint seaside town which have some lovely sea views, a little church and a steam train. 

Sail to Dittisham- a little town at the top of the Dart Estuary which makes a nice day out and has some good pubs. 

Enjoy the seafront and quay- besides the beautiful view, various wildlife and buzz of the town it also has a lovely garden to enjoy the flowers or a park to watch cricket or for kids to play! 

The rose garden down on the quay. 

View of the sea and Dartmouth Castle from the top of Kingwear. 

Whether you visit by land or sea this quaint seaside town is a must visit in the West Country! 

Motivation Monday- a garden for the elderly

During a family holiday in Dartmouth we went for a lovely walk exploring the area. Dartmouth has two ferries- the upper & lower ferries- very original names! The upper ferry is a chain ferry that links Dartmouth and Kingswear, both quaint little towns. Kingswear has a steam train that runs along the coast and there's a path that runs parallel to it, beautiful walk on a sunny day! 

The chain ferry and view of Kingswear. 

Kingswear as you can see is built into the hillside, which makes walking around it very steep! Great exercise, especially for the legs, bums & tums as you venture up and down stairs and steep little lanes. 

As we were climbing these almost vertical steps, named the Alma Steps we came across a tiny little 

garden for the elderly. I thought it was a very thoughtful location and environment for those less able to have a rest halfway up the steps. 

By just looking through the archway you can see the entire postage stamp of a garden, but if you needed a rest to catch your breath it's a very picturesque spot that has a couple benches surrounded by plants and flowers that looks out onto the Dart Estuary. 

"A population that does not take care of the elderly and of children and the young has no future, because it abuses both its memory and its promise" -Pope Francis