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Bed and Breakfasts - Romantic and Relaxing

Thankfully the days are long gone when staying at a bed and breakfast entailed sleeping in someones spare room with basic amenities (possibly including a tired shag carpet) and a shared bathroom down the hall. Hardly romantic!

In fact, the change is so pronounced that smaller boutique hotels are now incorporating some of the successful qualities of bed and breakfasts into their renovations. The bywords of good quality B&Bs are perfect for those seeking a romantic retreat: intimacy, cosiness, high quality surroundings and a relaxed quiet friendly atmosphere.

According to the Travel Industry of America, over 42 million people in the USA had at least one trip last year for occasions such as a honeymoon or anniversary. This is a market to which bed and breakfasts have responded. Many are in attractive older homes which ooze charm, furnished by antiques set in lovely dcor. You can lazily luxuriate in fine linens on a comfortable bed, soak in a two-person bubbling whirlpool bathtub and snuggle up in armchairs to enjoy the ambience of a fireplace - just the place for a romantic break.

At our Victoria bed and breakfast we love to hear the oohs and aahs as our guests first enter their room, beholding the beauty of the surroundings they have chosen for their special time. It is very rewarding. Even more rewarding has been the discovery that some guests have become good personal friends.

Personable hospitality is provided by the innkeepers in whose home you stay. They are not there just for an eight hour shift for a pay cheque twice a month. Their livelihood depends on what they offer and how they offer it, so you will rarely be disappointed.

Planning.

Whilst there can be pleasure in acting spontaneously it is best to take some time in advance to plan your retreat away. Use the internet to research B&B websites in your area of choice to find the right amenities and setting at the right price. Browse through local B&B associations websites as well as those of individual establishments. Some will feature romance packages. Perhaps the trip could be a surprise for your partner.Plan to stay for more than one night to allow time to unwind and enjoy the locality as well as to relax. If the occasion is special it merits paying a little extra to enjoy the finer things of life. Remember that a B&B may be less expensive than an equivalent hotel if only because a full memorable home-cooked breakfast is included in the overnight rate.

Activities v non-activities.

Togetherness in a different environment is wonderful therapy. Mix rest and activity; perhaps reading in gardens or strolling on a beach and visiting a local attraction or browsing through antique shops. (Leave work behind no such conversation, no laptop, perhaps no cell phone.)Bring special treats with you like favourite CDs and DVDs, wine, chocolates, bubble bath etc. Do check if candles and massage oil may be used. Bed and breakfast hosts are glad to extend genuine helpful hospitality so ask your innkeeper for local recommendations - cosy restaurants, a spa, shopping guidance, activity suggestions and the best places for whatever you are interested in.

If this is your first bed and breakfast experience it will probably not be your last.

posted by xtrx @ 8:50 AM 0 comments

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow - The Art of Presentation by TV Antique Show Valuers and Appraisers

Clearly, many shows are carried by the personality of the presenter though they frequently reflect a triumph of style over substance. This, arguably, excludes Dickinson, who dominates the screen, demonstrating boundless enthusiasm and an opinion on almost everything. He is somewhat redolent of the eponymous Lovejoy, that roguish, careworn but charming dealer, so successfully played by Ian McShane in the BBC series, but his piece de resistance surely has to be his hair. Whatever authority he may exude examining a Victorian tortoise shell box or a chipped Minton plate, one cannot but be drawn to his vertiginous mullet, a shock of hair so dense it could comfortably accommodate a nest of birds. I think he could probably make a passable living as an Elvis impersonator such is his showmanship but this is in marked contrast to another member of the bouffant brigade, the erstwhile host of The Antiques Roadshow, Hugh Scully, who looked as though hed taken a dose of mogadon every time he stepped in front of the camera.

Then again, The Antiques Roadshow experts generally come over as a pretty uninspiring crowd. Some of them are well qualified on their specialist subjects and, indeed, are often a fount of knowledge but Ive seen more verve from a blind man crossing a busy dual carriageway. They come from near and far, many representing leading auctioneers, but their delivery and mode of questioning are so entirely predictable, this show must possess the most threadbare autocue in television history. Can it be a complete coincidence that The Antiques Roadshow is scheduled alongside another BBC stalwart, Songs of Praise, a programme that appears to be populated by precisely the same audience, albeit the host is in a frock? Perhaps theyre all seeking salvation for ghastly misjudgements or overinflated expectations.

Anyhow, some experts are notably well informed so should, for example, James Braxton of Edgar Horn or Roy Butler of Wallis and Wallis pop up on your screen talking about Tunbridgeware and guns respectively, please pay attention. These guys know what they are talking about. The problem is that the producers seem hell bent on incorporating all manner of rubbish in their desire to be egalitarian and inclusive and fail miserably in the process. It would be far better television, frankly, if the nominated expert took one look at a given object, profusely thanked the owner for shlepping it over land and sea, and then recommended it for firewood. Why has The Antiques Roadshow not created a Christmas special of all those unmitigated disasters brought in by the deeply earnest, deeply greedy and deeply ignorant? Dont you secretly long for a sarcastic appraiser to enquire You really dragged this piece of crap in here thinking it was worth something? What do you use for brains? Stop wasting my time! Is anybody home at Broadcasting House? And is anybody listening?

Part two in the series of articles by Howard Lewis.(Read part one... The Price is Right: Appraisal, Valuation and Inspired Guesswork or the Rise of TV Antique Shows and the Collecting Bug in the invaluable blog at www.invaluable.com).

posted by xtrx @ 1:26 AM 0 comments