Having recently been to Florence we have been hoping to plan a trip to Pompeii some time, and  were most excited to learn about the plans for the Pompeii and Herculaneum  exhibition, which is on until September at the British Museum. John and I are going in June all being well but I was lucky enough – having already planned one of my fairly regular little jaunts down to London – to be able to attend  a private viewing of the exhibition this morning with our daughter Ruth whose official invitation most generously included me!

What a treat! The exhibition is beautifully mounted, with hundreds of wonderful  relics never before seen in this country or even possibly ever outside Italy. I went round it twice, once during the private viewing and then again, with an audio visual thingy afterwards.

So many things struck me, it’s hard to know what to begin with, but perhaps it is the human element. You feel you are almost intruding on the lives of people going about their daily chores and pleasures  one moment and and in the next  destroyed by the erupting Vesuvius.

Their  ghastly tragedy is our great fortune, because, thanks to the ferocity and nature of the eruption so much was preserved for us to view now, over two thousand years later.

An interesting fact which i had not appreciated is that the two cities were affected in very different ways, and at different times, although equally devastating. Pompeii was covered by several feet of ash and afterwards was revisited by people returning to rescue items and presumably by looters and many centuries later was much easier for archeologists to explore.. Herculaneum was buried much deeper, and hit by a hotter wall burning gas which meant that everything was instantly carbonised, and preserved, but was harder to retrieve.

Another very striking thing I found was how civilised their society was; this is before Christ, when one suspects that in this country people were lagging behind more than somewhat. There was widespread if not mass literacy, slaves were frequently given their freedom, woman had (more or less) equal rights although they were not allowed to vote, trades flourished, houses were and elegant sophisticated and well furnished – apart from their toilet arrangements: apparenty these were normally situated in the kitchen so that human and catering waste could be dealt with simultaneously. They loved their gardens, feasting and entertaining; they had boundary disputes between neighbours, and so on… It all felt quite incredibly ‘normal’.

Which of course makes the tragedy that befell them all the more heart rending. Ironically, in one of the scenes depicting a banquet there is a notice imploring the guests to eat and drink as much as they could , because ‘tomorrow we die’. Little did they know.

Alicia and Stephen, off to explore the White Peak in a sidecar from Russia

There are so many things to do while you’re staying in Tom’s and Douglas’s Barns that even the the choice of ‘usual’ things can be overwhelming. There’s which walk to go on? Where to go? Shall we visit Chatsworth, Haddon, Hardwick, Keddleston, Lyme Park or Sudbury? Or perhaps Tissington (the Well Dressings are on as I write (May 9-15 2013)… Then again, there’s the World Heritage site at Cromford, or Buxton Opera House or even Alton Towers or the various caverns. You can hang glide or make chocolate.

I’m only just getting going – haven’t mentioned the wonderful pubs and Farmers’ Markets, Chatsworth Farm Shop or the Cheese Shop but before I bore you rigid if I haven’t already, there’s one activity that wouldn’t necessarily come immediately to mind.

And that is Bill Purvis’s Sidecar Safari. We knew of it, and indeed knew that Bill offered Peak District Premier Cottages guests a half price discount but we hadn’t actually seen it in action. It took (as so often) our guests to introduce us to what’s available locally. Alicia and Stephen were staying for their honeymoon in Tom’s Barn last week. They packed as much as possible into their stay, including a trip in the Safari Sidecar, planned for after lunch on Tuesday.

Great was the excitement. At 2 o’clock Alicia and Stephen were waiting in their outdoor kit (Bill provides proper motor cycle gear), John had his camera at the ready while I fussed around excitedly as we waited for the sound of a motor bike.

Greater still was the excitement when we could hear it coming up our hill and turning in the gate, gleaming in its Russian khaki beauty. Helmets and jackets were donned and off they went, to Biggin, Hartington, the Manifold Valley, Wetton, Stanshope and Tissington and back through the ford (twice apparently!).

They returned about 3 hours later, glowing with fun and achievement, and Bill looked as if he had throughly enjoyed it too. Alicia and Stephen say it was the highlight of their stay: they’d had a wonderful sightseeing trip passing through some beautiful scenery, with lots of friendly waves from everyone they passed. And they were so grateful for the half price discount Bill gives all our guests (we’re wondering now if John and I will qualify too..?).

£475 for Tom’s Barn, Friday 17 to Friday 24 May (i.e. this coming week)

We are not used to Tom’s Barn having an empty week, especially considering I spend so much time writing emails explaining to disappointed enquirers that we are full when they want to come.

And now we have a week, without a single enquirer, not even someone who wants to book and  bring along Aunt Myrtle and three teenage kids (I’m serious – we do get requests like that but we always take them seriously and redirect them to friends and colleagues who are better placed than we to accommodate large family groups).

Anyway, rather than leave it empty we decided we would let Tom’s Barn, just this one week in glorious May, at the mid-winter rate of £475 (no lower winter rates for dogs unfortunately – they still will cost £25 each, extra.

If you haven’t been before and want to check out what other people think, have a glance at some of our TripAdvisor reviews.

Even if it’s no good to you, please do spread the word.

We can’t wait to let you know about a lovely holiday cottage we stayed in last week.

Obviously, we hope that if ever you want a holiday in the Peak District you will look no further than our Tom’s and Douglas’s Barns. However, we do understand that the time may arise when you feel like going Welsh, and with our holiday cottages being firmly rooted in the Peak National Park we can’t help you with that.

Only, actually, and this is our secret…we can! Our soon to be revealed secret is only 50 yards or so into Wales but 50 yards is all it takes… Corisande and Angus, two of our daughter Ruthie’s greatest friends, have been converting an old mill cottage overlooking the Wye (near Hay-on-Wye). Both of them know and love our two cottages and we have been only too glad to share all that we have learned  over the years.

They have  given everything a great deal of careful thought and have bounced many ideas back and forth with us. Our final privilege was to stay in their cottage last weekend, to sample it and feed back our thoughts. And what a pleasure it was to do that; because they have done everything so beautifully we found ourselves coming away with a few tips ourselves. It is always good to find oneself on the receiving end because it can feel very different. As owners one can feel sure one knows what will be nice for guests but only a guest can truly know.

There is still a lot to be finalised: the name, for example. Just as we used to fondly but unimaginatively  refer to Tom’s Barn as ‘the barn’ until we were told that there were at that stage already 17 cottages called  ’the Barn’ in the Peak District, so they realistically call their cottage ‘mill cottage’. When we looked up Mill Cottage in Wales there were dozens so they are wondering now whether to change the name before it is too late, making it more identifiable.

Because they really do have a unique property, and one they don’t want get muddled up with scores of run of the mill (sorry – couldn’t resist that!) cottages. They are still awaiting a grading inspection so have not started advertising yet and of course there is masses of behind the scenes paper work one has to provide – access policies, risk assessments, Terms & Conditions – horribly tedious but essential.

When they do we will be sure to let you know. Meanwhile, you will be needing to have the basic facts. It sleeps two, in what is a very spacious cottage. Everything is brand new and excellent quality, and we were extremely comfortable. The 6′ bed was very superb, and the bedlinen crisp white 400 thread count cotton. All the curtains and cushion covers have been specially made, from beautiful Welsh tweed. The kitchen was very well equipped; the sitting room – with log burner – very welcoming. There was no mobile signal, so like us they have provided a landline and wi-fi.

There’s fishing (by arrangement), walking – including Offa’s Dyke, Hay on Wye with its famous bookshops and other lovely shops as well and of course the famous Hay Festival.

The big lack at the moment is a website but that is in progress. We’ll be sure to let you know the minute they go live and meanwhile, will be delighted to direct any enquiries to Angus and Corisande. And my big lack is not having at the moment any photos of the interior; these are all mine and I was so taken with the breathtaking views. John has some of the interior which i shall ask him for, meanwhile as well as the river here is Corisande showing John how to get down to the water.

The skippers, viewed from the galley

We have been away for eight days and I must admit, have had a wonderfully relaxing and fun time, helped no end by uninterrupted sunshine and warmth and blissfully peaceful stretches of water where there seemed to be no one else but John and me and our two very good friends Erica and Colin on our boat and some wonderful views and birds.

Hopeful plans that I might sit on the deck of our Norfolk Broads gin palace composing one enticing blog post after another were soon dashed by the fact there was not at any stage the slightest whisper of any  internet connection or mobile phone network.

The outcome was that I had an even more relaxing time on the ‘ocean’ wave than i had expected and that we returned home to 396 emails to deal with and not a single word of a blog post composed!

Sorry. I’ll try to make up for it. The silly thing is I love doing the blog, it’s not that I find it a hardship at all. But after such a long silence  the first thing I must do before regaling you with tales of Norfolk is bring you up to date with any news. All I can really think of is that David our lovely joiner made and fitted a new bath panel for the Douglas’s Barn bath while we were away. Janet reports that it looks really good, but we have yet to see it…

We also before we went away, decided – somewhat on impulse – lured by a most enticing offer from the local Honda dealers – to trade in our purple low mileage 2009 model for a shiny khaki 2013 version with 10 miles on the clock. We picked it up yesterday, and since then have lived in terror of at the least scratching it on the narrow lanes, or at worst meeting a tractor head on round a bend. So far, after 24 hours, all is well and unscathed.

A fairly major minor drama arose when we discovered that my key to the old car was unaccountably missing, nowhere to be found. When we were told by Honda that to replace it would cost £250 we realised the enormity of the loss. They gave us until today as the deadline, when they would have to order a replacement… We spent two days hunting and rehunting, lifting cushions, going through pockets, even looking in the washing machine. Almost literally at the 11th hour I found it in a coat pocket, that John and I had both previously checked, but what a relief!

We are also in the process of  updating our  holiday cottage payment process, eventually transferring from our current static card machine downstairs to a ‘virtual terminal’ which we can access wherever we are. It hasn’t happened yet so we may find all sorts of disadvantages but are hoping that it will make everyone’s lives easier. At present, if someone wants to pay by bank card while we are away we have to wait until we get home again to process it…

So that sort of brings you up to date. Tomorrow, or during the weekend, I will tell you more about our actually trip on the Norfolk Broads, and then our little detour home via Wales.

We shall be away for a week from Tuesday 23rd morning early until late evening Monday 30th April. Janet will be around as usual, checking all is well, watering pots and generally keeping things running like clockwork. She will deal with any messages left on the answer phone and will be in frequent touch with us.

All being well mobile signal-wise, we will be contactable throughout, on 07813 686899 or by email.

We’re hoping for some good weather but after last month we’ll just be glad if it doesn’t snow!

Fascinating brickwork and an unassuming sign

We’re always on the lookout for new and interesting places to eat, purely, you understand, so that we can share our experiences with you all, our guests and friends.

We happened to find ourselves in Derby earlier this week , with several hours to kill while our car was being serviced. Lunch time loomed, and I remembered meeting restaurant owner Stuart Baddiley recently at a course in Derby. I had promised him we’d try tp pay his restaurant, Zest, a visit some time, so this seemed the obvious opportunity.

Derby is not exactly in our immediate radius, but we have had several guests coming to us from Derby recently, and other local places only slightly further afield; also of course many of you return or arrive via Derby or nearby, so the following food report may be helpful.

Zest is in George Streeet, off Friargate, and not knowing Derby it took us a bit of finding. Once there, the street is modest and the exterior of the building is not particularly prepossessing, and possibly unhelpfully,  right next door to another restaurant.

Delicious Mushroom Soup

This all serves to create a great contrast when one steps inside – the interior is  modern, clean and uncluttered, and very charming. We were very pleasantly greeted , seated and looked after for the rest of the meal by Matthew, the Zest manager.

The ‘Express’ lunchtime menu was attractive, and reassuringly simple; one is always suspicious of menus boasting countless choices, knowing full well that they cannot be made to order, but will be ready made and merely waiting to be reheated in a microwave and served with a flourish of (handmade?) garnishes.

As unfortunately we weren’t particularly hungry we ordered a sharing board of breads and dips followed by a truly delicious mushroom soup, piping hot. We followed this with sorbets (John) and coffee.

The restaurant was by no means full, but we could see that they were expecting a large dining party in the evening. We will certainly return when we are next in Derby and if ever that happens to be in the early morning, their champagne breakfast looks too good to be missed! Do let us know if you try it.

We have two significant anniversaries in April. Many of you will remember my father, Douglas, who died on April 8th 2004, nine years and  a couple of days ago. Fewer of you will know, unless we’ve already told you, that April 3rd marked the day we had owned Orchard Farm for 30 years.

I will throw in a few photos of Orchard Farm as it was then, and you will see we have made some progress since then, which is always encouraging to remember. The photo at the bottom on the right is actually of the sitting room in the Orchard Farm house. It conveys the filth of 30 years ago, what it does not convey, fortunately, is the stench!

I always think of April as one of the loveliest months;  this year it has yet to prove itself weather wise although it is getting warmer by the day and the spring flowers are bursting forth. (My personal month of all is May.)

However, this year we have a real question mark hanging over April. We have always been fully booked in April in the past but to our bemusement, we have three blank weeks in Douglas’s Barn. Why? Who can tell us?

We’ve wracked our brains: “Maybe people are worried about the weather?” That can hardly be true, when we have so many return bookings for the winter months, and anyway, both barns are so cosy and snug once you’re inside you’re as snug as the proverbial bug. “Possibly everyone is going abroad?” – that doesn’t follow, when the next four months are booked solid… “Maybe they sudden;y don’t like Douglas’s Barn?” If you look at our reviews on TripAdvisor you’ll see how very positive they all are.

We’ll probably never know but the ironic thing is, if you want a holiday in Douglas’s Barn this summer you’ll  need to move quickly. Apart from these three rogue weeks in April there is only one week left in Douglas’s Barn between the beginning of May and the end of August. If you don’t believe me, check the availability calendar now!

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The Vanishing World of the Photograph Album

The Format 13 ‘Album Beauty’ exhibition is in the Derby Quad Gallery. The exhibition is free, and remains open until 26th May. It is described as an ode to this vanishing art form, whose purpose apparently was to ‘document and display the mundane’ – the private reality of people’s lives.

Mundane or not, I found the exhibition most touching. One moves through a rather dated personal photograph album. The subjects on the whole look self-conscious, and very carefully still for fear of wrecking the (expensive) film. There are little boys in corduroy shorts, and girls with bows in their hair and puffed-sleeve dresses. There are baby pictures, and couples, cars and bikes. Most have no description at all, so very private.

The two photos I have used are actually from one of our family albums, my father, and my paternal grandparents – his father and mother. I used personal photos rather than risk violating any copyright issues by using the Album Beauty images exhibited in the Derby Quad gallery. These Album Beauty images, once proud personal possessions, are all ‘found’ photos, taken from abandoned, long-forgotten family albums, bought from market stalls or car boot sales and curated by Eric Kessels.

Ask anyone below the age of 40 if they have an album and they’ll probably assume you mean a Facebook album or just possibly a wedding or baby album which is both a record and just possibly an ostentatious desire to impress. Nowadays our ‘reality’ is no longer private. It is brazenly public, viewed on YouTube, Facebook or Flickr, stored in the Cloud, buzzing around the ether like a swarm of flies.

The aim is to impress, entertain, amuse or embarrass, reaching as many social media viewers as possible; or to show the world that one has actually been to Timbuktu, or Derby Quad.

Some of the older generations – my own husband for one – will still carefully document the mundane in albums, for the quiet and private delight of a few.

But private or public, where will these images eventually all end up? Either lost for ever on an outdated memory stick, or mouldering unseen in a junk shop.

So will our reality vanish too, whatever the art form…

Marion Fuller-Sessions
18/3/2013

Easter Sunday has dawned with bright sunshine despite the fact we are an hour ahead of ourselves since yesterday, with British Summer Time.

Things have perked up a lot since this time last week, when blizzards were raging and Parwich was cut off. One can’t keep Parwich from the real world for long and thanks to some amazing work by Derbyshire County Council and lots of lovely local people the vital link was restored pretty quickly. Our little lane up from the grassy triangle, usually the final fatal slippery slope for all concerned was, thanks again to tireless and entirely voluntary efforts from our next door neighbours, the clearest road in town!

Many of us went to church this morning at 9.30, which was quite a triumph given that yesterday it would only have been 8.30. With lots of children present the vicar’s theme was, not surprisingly, eggs: Easter, new life, the unexpected. He had brought several bowls of eggs which he asked different children in the congregation to smash. To everyone’s amazement, and not just the children’s, only one egg had proper ‘eggy stuff’ inside. Inside the others were things like a bunch of feathers, some purple gooey stuff which looked like cherry jam. (In case you’re wondering, apparently he made two tiny holes at either end of each egg, blew out the contents and then with the help of a farmer friend, the surprise contents were pushed in very carefully with an injection needle!)

Anyway, the message was clear: new life, new hope, but it may not bring the expected. The surprises may be good. Now, hopefully we look ahead to better weather and just possibly, the good summer we have been promised for several years now but which has never materialised. Who knows what lies ahead, weather wise, but we can but hope.

But we do know that despite the weather, despite the recession – or perhaps even partly because of it – wonderful guests continue to flock to Tom’s and Douglas’s Barns for that very much special and much needed relaxing, peaceful retreat, in a beautiful part of the world. It means so much to John and me that we are lucky enough to be living here and to be able to help provide that for you. Our lives are enriched by meeting you all – such lovely, interesting people! It is our great privilege, and we are thankful for that.