15/17 January - A Weekend Away

Friday was the start of a scheduled weekend away with some friends which was originally planned to watch the match between Basingstoke and Newport County Football Clubs (I am not a regular supporter, just a hanger-on). Unfortunately the snow intervened and the Basingstoke ground was declared unplayable on Friday morning. Interesting that this was the only match in this league to be affected by the weather. Nevertheless, the abandonment of a match doesn't need to disturbed the best laid plans and there were hotel rooms booked and paid for that simply could not be forfeited. So, five intrepid guys made the journey through dull and misty weather to The Holiday Inn, arriving at 1700hrs. After checking in the first job was to find the location of the nearest pub - nobody wants to pay hotel prices for liquid sustenance. A bearing was fixed on the Golden Lion, about 10 minutes away on foot under normal circumstances, but the pavements were still covered in snow, which slowed progress. Our Friday night meal was included in the hotel package which meant a short visit to the Golden Lion, which turned out to be very useful. A quick chat with the landlady secured our evening meal for Saturday and then back to the Hotel for food and a game of cards before retiring. The rest of the weekend passed uneventfully apart from our decision to replace the match with a visit to the cinema to watch the new Sherlock Holmes film, which turned out to be very good. We were back home by 1200hrs on Sunday. A welcome short break with a complete change of scene with good company.