Chapter 38

2008 - 2014

Holidays

2009 - Low Cloud Formation on the island of Madeira
This is another difficult chapter to write because it is so easy to become a boring list of places.  I have tried to pick out some highlights but have not found that easy.
Beryl & Ian NIVEN
We were back in Tenerife in April/May of 2008 and it was a significant holiday in that we met Beryl and Ian NIVEN at Beverly Hills Heights where we were staying.  This friendship resulted in number of joint holidays and, although we haven’t met up for a while, Maria keeps in touch by telephone.  We met up with them again in Tenerife in 2009 and 2011 and we shared their apartment in Madeira in both 2009 and 2011.  On the first visit to Madeira we jointly hired a taxi to take us around one half of the island and a good trip it was.  The lead photograph to this chapter might give some idea of the low cloud formations that exist over the island.  This cloud system provides all the water for the island and the collection and distribution of the water is a fascinating process.  Although we enjoyed our second visit, my left knee was giving me a good deal of trouble, making walking a painful experience.  
2009 - Mull of Galloway
Beryl NIVEN
John & Maria TURNER
After our 89th Entry reunion in 2009, we drove from Southport to Stranraer to stay for a few days at their home.
2009 - Portpatrick
  We had some delightful days out in good weather, with a private visit to the Mull of Galloway Lighthouse and visits to Portpatrick and Port Logan, which some may remember as the setting for the BBC series ‘2000 Acres of Sky.’    
In 2010 we went to Gran Canaria for a week sharing an apartment, which was very cramped, old and tatty.  It did, however, have the benefit of being at ground level with a little garden.  We decided that we would not try to get moved as the options were by no means certain to be any better.  The restaurant food was very good and well priced and there were pleasant walks in each direction from the apartment either to the port of Puerto Rico or the  beach at Amadores.  There was also a boat trip to Mogan, a delightful little town which the girls enjoyed because there were shops to wander round.  
2011 - Ian & Beryl NIVEN
In the June of 2011, Beryl and Ian flew down to Newquay to spend a holiday with us.  Once again we were blessed with good weather and  explored much of the Cornish coast, including St. Ives and Padstow. 
Italy
2009 - Assisi
Maria, John & Amy TURNER
In September 2008 we visited Andrew and Amy and we had time to ourselves wandering around Florence, whilst they had a meeting with regard to their photographic business.  In October 2009, by  which time, Amy was expecting Chenin, we were back again with a visit to Assisi among the highlights.  I helped Andrew a little with the building of Polytunnel Beds.

For anyone not knowing what I am talking about, the following photos show the early and final stages of construction.
In August 2010 we went back and this time, because Amy and Andrew had a wedding to photograph on the Amalfi Coast, we travelled with them and stayed in Maiori so that we could help to look after Chenin. 
2010 - Maiori
John & Chenin TURNER
This turned out to be quite difficult because Chenin was used to being breast-fed and, late     in the evening, she would not be satisfied with anything else.  Goodness knows what the other hotel residents thought that we were doing to the baby.  Eventually, by playing, over and over again, the one piece of music that we had on Maria’s phone, and singing along, we got her more or less settled until Mum appeared to finally resolve the problem.
2013 - Lake Como
John & Chenin TURNER
  In October 2011 we spent another week visiting and spent a very pleasant day out in Perugia.  We missed 2012 but were back again in May 2013 when we included a visit to Lake Como where Amy was photographing a wedding.
The temperature at  Como in May should be in the 20˚s but this year it was about 13˚ so, although we had a good time, it was very chilly to sail across the lake to visit various little towns.  As it happened, the day that we left the temperature rose to about 23˚.
2014 - Umbria
Chenin, John, Lois & Maria TURNER
Our latest visit was in March of 2014,  when Lois was about 6 weeks old and the adjacent photograph was taken.
Wales 
Buckshorn Cottage, Ponthir, Wales
Over a period of many years since we met up with Dag and Virginia DALGLEISH at the 89th Entry Reunions, we have spent many short breaks with them at their lovely cottage in Ponthir, near Newport.  They have kindly driven us for miles around many interesting places in South Wales,  including Cardiff, Crickhowell, Ross-on-Wye, Caerleon, Monmouth, Chepstow to name but a few.  A visit to St. Fagan’s National Museum of Welsh Life was particularly memorable and well worth a visit as was Dewstow Gardens near Caerwent.
2012 & 2013 - Devon. 
2012 - Woodland Bridge Country Club
In February 2012 I had a partial knee replacement and was not able to go on our annual holiday to our timeshare in Tenerife.  We asked RCI to find us somewhere close to home where we could spend a week and they came up with the Woodland Bridge Country Club, Holsworthy, Devon, which is only about an hour and a half away from us.
2012 - Woodland Bridge Country Club
We spent a very happy time there in a small but adequate apartment, which Annette shared with us for a weekend.  There was a lovely indoor swimming pool and we spent an hour or so every morning there before breakfast.  Our friends Sarah and Tony PARSONS came     to visit one day and we had a look around the local town of Holsworthy, which is very small with not too many shops to browse in but pleasant nevertheless.  One day we went to Arlington Court, a National Trust property, north of Barnstaple.  Also there is the National Carriage Museum, which would be very interesting to many people.  The house itself was interesting and the guides were knowledgeable.  The only trouble is the location, which is rather remote.
April 2013 - Llamas
In 2013 we had another RCI exchange to Devon, this time we chose the Alta Lyn Barns, a private property near Lynton, which listed a Llama Farm as an attraction.
April 2013 - Alta Lyn Barns
To say that we were disappointed with the accommodation is an understatement and we actually left after five days because we had  explored all of that part of Devon that we wanted to.  I have included a photograph of the outside area, which gives an idea of the dilapidated state of the place.

April 2013
Ilfracombe - Maria TURNER
To be fair to the area, there are some lovely places including Lynton, Lynmouth, Ilfracombe and Dunster where the castle is a National Trust property.



April 2013 - Dunster Main Street & Castle
    Anita HIRD and Jim ROSE
2013 - Scruton, North Yorkshire
Jim ROSE & Anita HIRD
Anita and Jim are another couple with whom we have spent time over recent years.  Anita is a friend of Maria’s from schooldays and they have always remained in touch.  Anita was widowed some time ago and since then has met Jim with whom she now lives,  steadfastly refusing to marry him.  They now live in Scruton, close to Northallerton in Yorkshire and we have spent a number of long weekends with them exploring the lovely Yorkshire countryside towns and villages.
2011 - Cold & Windy
 Richmond, North Yorkshire
Maria TURNER & Anita HIRD
Whenever we have stayed with them, Jim has done all the driving and apart from some lunches eaten out, Anita  has cooked  everyday; these two things together mean that staying with them has been a real holiday for us.  In 2011 they came and stayed with us, which meant that we could pay them back in kind for the number of times we have stayed with them.
2012 - Fountain’s Abbey,North Yorkshire
Tenerife
In addition to the holiday with Beryl and Ian in 2011, we have been back to Tenerife on a further three occasions.  In September 2012 we went for two weeks and stayed in the Hollywood Mirage.  For the second of those two weeks Dot and John joined us after an eventful 12 hour delay in flying out.  We hired a car for three days and did some touring although, as we have been before Dot and John spent one complete day going around the island by themselves.
In September 2013 we spent two weeks at the Beverley Hills Heights and it was during this holiday we met Anita and David PRICE and became quite friendly.  Anita is German and has quite a heavy accent which we found very difficult at first, however as the holiday progressed she became easier to understand.  The only time we spent time with them was at the pool so it was quite a casual friendship.
September 2013
Beverly Hills Heights
Anita & David PRICE
The photo was  taken on the day that they left and Anita was not terribly happy about it.
After we returned home, Maria and Anita were in fairly constant touch via email and Anita wanted us to go out to Tenerife during 2014.  In the end, we  decided to go in September and have just recently returned.  Mostly we just met them around the pool but we did go out for a meal on two occasions and did visit one another’s apartments for drinks.  Maria and I did spend a fair amount of time in Los Cristianos just walking and drinking coffee.  As will be explained in the next paragraph, this will probably have been our last visit to Tenerife so we took the opportunity to look around some of the places by the sea that we love.

To end this chapter, I will say a few words about our timeshare and the benefits and problems we have had over the years.  We originally bought two weeks holiday in the Beverly Hills Club; we had a very nice one-bedroomed apartment that slept six and thoroughly enjoyed it but decided that it wasn’t exactly what we wanted to do every year and decided to try and sell the weeks.  This proved to be virtually impossible and so we carried on, even buying an extra week because we were assured that doing that would get us onto the priority sales list.  What a joke!  Eventually we tried not paying the maintenance fees for the extra week; this brought us a solicitor’s letter threatening us with being pursued in court for the outstanding fees.  Eventually I relented for my piece of mind and paid.  In 2013 we found out that ‘something’ was happening with the Beverly Hills Club but were not sure what, or how it was going to impact on us and other owners.  In January 2014 we were contacted by Silverpoint, who owned the complex and were offered three choices; the first option was to exchange, like for like, our apartment with one in the Beverly Hills Heights or the Hollywood Mirage; secondly we could upgrade our apartments with something better in the Heights or Mirage; there was an additional cost involved with this option.  Thirdly, we could relinquish all claim to future use of the apartment but with no payment to us.  In the first and second cases we would have to carry on paying maintenance fees, currently about £1000 per annum and continue with our holidays.  In the third case, we would no longer have to pay any fees but, of course, would have no right to use any of Silverpoint’s holidays.  We decided to get out and make our own decisions on where we went on future holidays.  However, we had paid our maintenance fees for 2014 and so we had the right to have two weeks’ holiday.  That is how we came to choose our two weeks in the Hollywood Mirage and which has now brought to an end our association with Timeshare.  Overall, ownership has been responsible for many happy holidays in really good accommodation but the downside has been the constant hassle from sales reps to upgrade our apartment or increase our number of weeks.  We shall definitely not miss that.

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