Burning sunshine and delicious meals are two of the memories of my past week of travels which included stays at three travel Lodges in the Midlands, Nottingham Riverside, Nottingham Donnington and Mansfield. Pity about the cricket.
The cricket was to have been a four day championship game during which Durham would secure their third championship win barring misfortune in their two remaining games of the season. In the event having lost three championship games in succession they are at risk of finishing only fourth. The match was over just after tea on the third day. I shall return to the cricket later and first concentrate on food as this week is going to be the last week of my self indulgence this year with from Tuesday a major effort to lose substantial weight even if this means the inability to concentrate on writing and other work. Losing at least a stone before Christmas has become a priority.
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I did not commence the journey south until after lunch on Sunday as I wanted to complete the third part of a writing project in four parts, where the intention has been to finish before departing. For lunch there was a pork steak with onion rings, mushrooms and chicken pieces in batter plus potato wedges and in the evening a perspired chicken and bacon pasta salad. The day had commenced with a bacon roll. This morning Friday 26th August, the start of the Bank holiday weekend I purchased a large bacon bap from the bakery adjacent to the Mansfield Travel Lodge which revealed another example of the land of variable pricing as the special officer was the bacon roll in white or brown bread with brown sauce and butter if wished. As there was coffee available in the room I asked just for the bap thinking there would be a reduction in price, silly me £2.15 for the bap on its own all day but with the coffee special offer until 11am and it was good coffee for only £2.05. Oh the joy of the land of variable pricing.
On the journey back I stopped at the Blythe service area on the AI where I have stayed at the Travel Lodge on several occasions in past times and refused to pay £2 plus for various sizes of Costa Coffee noting a vending machine where for £1.30 there was coffee with milk and sugar which I sat in the same seating area in the food court as for Costa Coffee.
Earlier in the day I enjoyed a piece of chicken breast topped with cheese, bacon and BBQ sauce, some chips and cut chopped lettuce followed by apple crumble and custard as part of a 2 x 2 course meal deal for £9 in total. The previous evening at the same Inn I enjoyed chunks of beef in a red wine sauce, new potatoes in their skins, small onions, broccoli and another vegetable not remembered again as part of a deal this time 2 for 1 main course which worked out at around £5 per dish. Earlier in the week I also enjoyed at the same venue large strips of chicken with thick slices of bacon and salad followed by a different kind of bread and butter pudding which was described as cake, also with custard. On two days the main meal eaten at lunch time was a carton of spicy chicken wings eaten cold and requiring plenty of facial tissues to wipe away the colouring from mouth and fingers. I eat one at my seat in the middle tier of the Radcliffe Road stand at Trent Bridge and the second on a bench below the stand in the shade £5 for the two cartons.
For two other meals there were crusty small baguettes purchased from the Coop store across the road from the ground with salami and olives around £3.50 per helping and on two other days a large bap filled with Turkey, coleslaw, lettuce sand tomato around £2.50. Breakfast, part from this morning and the day of departure comprised two small pain au chocolate individually wrapped in a pack of at least eight, may be ten. One other pain au chocolate was purchased with a cheese twirl. Oh there was another bacon bap purchased on the Wednesday morning in the Member’s Bar plus coffee and on the On Tuesday I could not resist a huge scone with a giant dollop of cream and strawberry jam with tea for £2.99. 0h the joy of food now abandoned.
Because of two session in burning sunshine I consumed a vast quantity of Water including two 1 litre bottles from the M and S at Donnington Park, one which I consumed sitting in the general seating area accompanied by almost all a box of oblong dark chocolate Jaffa cakes in a double box special offer of £1.20 with ten cakes in each box, the second was shared. After investing £1.10 for a bottle of Pepsi from a machine on the thirds floor of the stand on the Monday which I enjoyed I lost the cash on the Wednesday before the out of order notice went up. I found another machine which provided energy sport’s drinks and tried one which had a fruited flavour which was OK but not thirst quenching. A bottle from the close to the Rent Bridge Inn cost £2. Cans bought on two occasions from the Coop were 75 or 85 pence and from the machine at the Riverside £1 where I enjoyed one on the three nights of residence. Ne purchased at a garage in Nottingham cost 75 pence.
For once on such trips I did not use tins of baked beans or rice pudding, pot noodles or tins of sardines on plain crackers,, the latter I though I had left at home but found in the food for emergencies bag together with a carton of Pâté which I spread in chunks on two bread rolls which had to be defrosted. Not one Danish was enjoyed and I took no fruit and of the cuppa soups I enjoyed two on the first and second nights.
I have commenced to have the road network structure in an around Nottingham in my head although this has been achieved with much trial and error over the five days of the visit. On Sunday I was fairly confident of find my way to the Riverside taking the Nottingham Derby, Brian Clough Way A 52 road from the M1 just passed the Trowell Service area where I have stayed for the cricket on three of my visits for County Championship games this decade The stop is useless for future stays because the cross over road from the Northbound Lodge to the southbound towards London or vice versa has been closed. I had forgotten the correct turn off the A52 to join the A453 to the Riverside Lodge and continued until the A52 cease to be a dual carriage way ring road and continues to towards the junction who leads to the MI Nottingham South and the spur to the Donnington Park service area. I retraced and found me way to the Travel Lodge.
In the morning on my way to the ground I misjudged a junction turning and found my way into the Meadows but could not find my way out without retracing the route. I then had difficulty in find my way to the stadium but managed to find a park place in a side road a few minutes walk from the ground.
On the way back I got lost three times in the Meadows Area which has the River Trent on one side and the A453 on another and where the Council has a £200 million reorganisation and development plan underway. I spend about half an hour drive in, around, back and forth before finding my way back to the Travel and about 40 mins for a journey which should take ten.
On the Tuesday I need to find my way to a village south of Mansfield and decided again taking the route from the Trent which I have attempted before as well as from the Nottingham South off MI and gambled that I would not have to spend hours in traffic going through the city using the well signposted A 60 route to Mansfield and Doncaster. This has I discovered joins in A52 inner ring road going North across the city. This result in spending only 40 mins or so to my destination which was over ten times the distance.
The only problem on the way back is that I missed the right traffic light junction back up passed Nottingham Central Station and continued across the Trent to the cricket ground, doing the circular tour back over the Bridge and from there I then knew how to get to the Travel Lodge without finding my way into the Meadows.
The following morning I found my way directly to ground with my car fully loaded as unable to get another cheap night at the Riverside I took the option at one over half the price at Donnington. Once before I had taken the route but in darkness and from a further distance and I had forgotten the build up of traffic approach the main roundabout. This time leaving around 5pm as the match had ended I found myself in a stream of slow moving traffic for almost the whole length of the journey along the A453 to the roundabout, approximately 7 miles. But which I found of interest as given the day light I was able to get a good view of that part of the city and surrounding countryside. The roundabout enables you to join the M1 at Junction 24 or take the spur to the Donnington Spur to the Services area at 23a.
Here the Travel Lodge is unique as it forms two sides of the Inner courtyard of services with the inside rooms of the two levels overlooking the all night long stream of visitors to Costa Coffee below my window. There is a lift only on one side and you reach the other by a second floor level walk way. It has the advantage of an M and S store and WH Smiths as well as the usual fixed price range of a fast food burger and chicken outlet where the basic meal now costs around £7 to the general hot food supplier offering fish and chips, all day breakfast, meat and veg perhaps curry menu where again the main course plus coffee or soft drink will set you back £10. My beef here being too lazy to see if the air conditioning was working is that one could not open the window even a little.
The following morning on my way back to the Mansfield area, I travelled along the M1 north to by now very familiar central route into Nottingham at Junction 25 Sandiacre but this time instead of going south on A 52 ring road I went north on the A 60 joining up with the road from the city centre, a road which I have now travelled in both directions.
There is a third spur from the M1 travelling from the north into Nottingham. I have used the A610 especially when travelling also to get the Park and Ride at the Forest or to go the village when staying at the Northwood bound Travel Lodge as he 610 is just a short distance
I noted from the Meadows Development plan that two new metro tram routes are planned which I presume will be extensions from the present route which ends at the central station.
On the fifth night I stayed at the Mansfield Travel Lodge which is on the west side of the town and where I have mastered less my way around the town although I have some good mental images but where I am not always successful in getting to the M1 in the way I had intended. The town can be reached from the North junction 29 which is before the Tibshelf service areas and which is used by the National Coaches on the way to London On the Thursday I arrived via the 617 to Newark Link which I also used on the following morning as I was making an after lunch visit to Newark, It was on this Journey which usually took 20 mins I had to add over a further hour because of the volume of traffic before the bank holiday. I had planned to join the A1 at Newark for the journey home but seeing the link road was full I took the 617 to Ollerton joining the 614, the two sides of the triangle but a clear way without holds ups as also was the situation on the A1 although going south there was nose to tail, stop and go traffic for the greater part plus continuous rain and spray.
The cricket was to have been a four day championship game during which Durham would secure their third championship win barring misfortune in their two remaining games of the season. In the event having lost three championship games in succession they are at risk of finishing only fourth. The match was over just after tea on the third day. I shall return to the cricket later and first concentrate on food as this week is going to be the last week of my self indulgence this year with from Tuesday a major effort to lose substantial weight even if this means the inability to concentrate on writing and other work. Losing at least a stone before Christmas has become a priority.
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I did not commence the journey south until after lunch on Sunday as I wanted to complete the third part of a writing project in four parts, where the intention has been to finish before departing. For lunch there was a pork steak with onion rings, mushrooms and chicken pieces in batter plus potato wedges and in the evening a perspired chicken and bacon pasta salad. The day had commenced with a bacon roll. This morning Friday 26th August, the start of the Bank holiday weekend I purchased a large bacon bap from the bakery adjacent to the Mansfield Travel Lodge which revealed another example of the land of variable pricing as the special officer was the bacon roll in white or brown bread with brown sauce and butter if wished. As there was coffee available in the room I asked just for the bap thinking there would be a reduction in price, silly me £2.15 for the bap on its own all day but with the coffee special offer until 11am and it was good coffee for only £2.05. Oh the joy of the land of variable pricing.
On the journey back I stopped at the Blythe service area on the AI where I have stayed at the Travel Lodge on several occasions in past times and refused to pay £2 plus for various sizes of Costa Coffee noting a vending machine where for £1.30 there was coffee with milk and sugar which I sat in the same seating area in the food court as for Costa Coffee.
Earlier in the day I enjoyed a piece of chicken breast topped with cheese, bacon and BBQ sauce, some chips and cut chopped lettuce followed by apple crumble and custard as part of a 2 x 2 course meal deal for £9 in total. The previous evening at the same Inn I enjoyed chunks of beef in a red wine sauce, new potatoes in their skins, small onions, broccoli and another vegetable not remembered again as part of a deal this time 2 for 1 main course which worked out at around £5 per dish. Earlier in the week I also enjoyed at the same venue large strips of chicken with thick slices of bacon and salad followed by a different kind of bread and butter pudding which was described as cake, also with custard. On two days the main meal eaten at lunch time was a carton of spicy chicken wings eaten cold and requiring plenty of facial tissues to wipe away the colouring from mouth and fingers. I eat one at my seat in the middle tier of the Radcliffe Road stand at Trent Bridge and the second on a bench below the stand in the shade £5 for the two cartons.
For two other meals there were crusty small baguettes purchased from the Coop store across the road from the ground with salami and olives around £3.50 per helping and on two other days a large bap filled with Turkey, coleslaw, lettuce sand tomato around £2.50. Breakfast, part from this morning and the day of departure comprised two small pain au chocolate individually wrapped in a pack of at least eight, may be ten. One other pain au chocolate was purchased with a cheese twirl. Oh there was another bacon bap purchased on the Wednesday morning in the Member’s Bar plus coffee and on the On Tuesday I could not resist a huge scone with a giant dollop of cream and strawberry jam with tea for £2.99. 0h the joy of food now abandoned.
Because of two session in burning sunshine I consumed a vast quantity of Water including two 1 litre bottles from the M and S at Donnington Park, one which I consumed sitting in the general seating area accompanied by almost all a box of oblong dark chocolate Jaffa cakes in a double box special offer of £1.20 with ten cakes in each box, the second was shared. After investing £1.10 for a bottle of Pepsi from a machine on the thirds floor of the stand on the Monday which I enjoyed I lost the cash on the Wednesday before the out of order notice went up. I found another machine which provided energy sport’s drinks and tried one which had a fruited flavour which was OK but not thirst quenching. A bottle from the close to the Rent Bridge Inn cost £2. Cans bought on two occasions from the Coop were 75 or 85 pence and from the machine at the Riverside £1 where I enjoyed one on the three nights of residence. Ne purchased at a garage in Nottingham cost 75 pence.
For once on such trips I did not use tins of baked beans or rice pudding, pot noodles or tins of sardines on plain crackers,, the latter I though I had left at home but found in the food for emergencies bag together with a carton of Pâté which I spread in chunks on two bread rolls which had to be defrosted. Not one Danish was enjoyed and I took no fruit and of the cuppa soups I enjoyed two on the first and second nights.
I have commenced to have the road network structure in an around Nottingham in my head although this has been achieved with much trial and error over the five days of the visit. On Sunday I was fairly confident of find my way to the Riverside taking the Nottingham Derby, Brian Clough Way A 52 road from the M1 just passed the Trowell Service area where I have stayed for the cricket on three of my visits for County Championship games this decade The stop is useless for future stays because the cross over road from the Northbound Lodge to the southbound towards London or vice versa has been closed. I had forgotten the correct turn off the A52 to join the A453 to the Riverside Lodge and continued until the A52 cease to be a dual carriage way ring road and continues to towards the junction who leads to the MI Nottingham South and the spur to the Donnington Park service area. I retraced and found me way to the Travel Lodge.
In the morning on my way to the ground I misjudged a junction turning and found my way into the Meadows but could not find my way out without retracing the route. I then had difficulty in find my way to the stadium but managed to find a park place in a side road a few minutes walk from the ground.
On the way back I got lost three times in the Meadows Area which has the River Trent on one side and the A453 on another and where the Council has a £200 million reorganisation and development plan underway. I spend about half an hour drive in, around, back and forth before finding my way back to the Travel and about 40 mins for a journey which should take ten.
On the Tuesday I need to find my way to a village south of Mansfield and decided again taking the route from the Trent which I have attempted before as well as from the Nottingham South off MI and gambled that I would not have to spend hours in traffic going through the city using the well signposted A 60 route to Mansfield and Doncaster. This has I discovered joins in A52 inner ring road going North across the city. This result in spending only 40 mins or so to my destination which was over ten times the distance.
The only problem on the way back is that I missed the right traffic light junction back up passed Nottingham Central Station and continued across the Trent to the cricket ground, doing the circular tour back over the Bridge and from there I then knew how to get to the Travel Lodge without finding my way into the Meadows.
The following morning I found my way directly to ground with my car fully loaded as unable to get another cheap night at the Riverside I took the option at one over half the price at Donnington. Once before I had taken the route but in darkness and from a further distance and I had forgotten the build up of traffic approach the main roundabout. This time leaving around 5pm as the match had ended I found myself in a stream of slow moving traffic for almost the whole length of the journey along the A453 to the roundabout, approximately 7 miles. But which I found of interest as given the day light I was able to get a good view of that part of the city and surrounding countryside. The roundabout enables you to join the M1 at Junction 24 or take the spur to the Donnington Spur to the Services area at 23a.
Here the Travel Lodge is unique as it forms two sides of the Inner courtyard of services with the inside rooms of the two levels overlooking the all night long stream of visitors to Costa Coffee below my window. There is a lift only on one side and you reach the other by a second floor level walk way. It has the advantage of an M and S store and WH Smiths as well as the usual fixed price range of a fast food burger and chicken outlet where the basic meal now costs around £7 to the general hot food supplier offering fish and chips, all day breakfast, meat and veg perhaps curry menu where again the main course plus coffee or soft drink will set you back £10. My beef here being too lazy to see if the air conditioning was working is that one could not open the window even a little.
The following morning on my way back to the Mansfield area, I travelled along the M1 north to by now very familiar central route into Nottingham at Junction 25 Sandiacre but this time instead of going south on A 52 ring road I went north on the A 60 joining up with the road from the city centre, a road which I have now travelled in both directions.
There is a third spur from the M1 travelling from the north into Nottingham. I have used the A610 especially when travelling also to get the Park and Ride at the Forest or to go the village when staying at the Northwood bound Travel Lodge as he 610 is just a short distance
I noted from the Meadows Development plan that two new metro tram routes are planned which I presume will be extensions from the present route which ends at the central station.
On the fifth night I stayed at the Mansfield Travel Lodge which is on the west side of the town and where I have mastered less my way around the town although I have some good mental images but where I am not always successful in getting to the M1 in the way I had intended. The town can be reached from the North junction 29 which is before the Tibshelf service areas and which is used by the National Coaches on the way to London On the Thursday I arrived via the 617 to Newark Link which I also used on the following morning as I was making an after lunch visit to Newark, It was on this Journey which usually took 20 mins I had to add over a further hour because of the volume of traffic before the bank holiday. I had planned to join the A1 at Newark for the journey home but seeing the link road was full I took the 617 to Ollerton joining the 614, the two sides of the triangle but a clear way without holds ups as also was the situation on the A1 although going south there was nose to tail, stop and go traffic for the greater part plus continuous rain and spray.
