A week in Worcestershire

After spending my birthday at the Severn Valley Railway (see previous blog post) we then spent the following week on holiday in Worcestershire in a little village called Cookley. Here's a run down of our week.

Monday mini-golf

We had a lovely sunny day and went to Wolverley to play mini pro golf. This was great fun, with little fairways, greens and sand traps!

Plus, of course, the fun obstacles that are found on minigolf courses, like windmills...

...and lighthouses...

...and bears, oh my!

It was a close run round, with Cathy edging the 18 holes by three shots. If only I hadn't hit so many mini bunkers!

Or gators!

Tuesday train travelling

We parked at Stourbridge Junction (winner of the World Cup of Stations in 2021) and got the train into the centre of Birmingham. We met up with Connor for lunch in a great independent cafe restaurant called Weyland's Yard. He was very polite as I did the old person thing of fumbling with my phone trying to take a selfie.

Wednesday wetness

We went to Kidderminster for a look around. It was raining. There isn't much positive to be said about Kidderminster town centre. It really seemed to be struggling. 

Thursday thrills 

Going a bit further south, we visited Worcester. I hadn't really been into the centre before. There were three toy shops - an impressive number for a fairly small place. I also found a bookshop with a suitable section considering I had just turned 47.

We also went to the cinema and watched the new Shazam! movie, which carried on the fun antics from the first movie. In the evening we went to a pub and decided not to join in the pub quiz... although we ended up helping the team next to us with several answers. (I find it hard not to respond to trivia questions!)

Friday football

On the final day of the holiday we went up to Shrewsbury. I went with my mum, brother and all four nieces and nephews to watch Shrewsbury Town v Peterborough. It was the first football match for my youngest niece and nephew and they got certificates to prove it.

And met Lenny!

They also got given chocolate Easter eggs. "Sharing" them was probably the highlight of the occasion for me as well, considering Shrewsbury slumped to a dismal 3-0 defeat.

Saturday sayonara

And on Saturday we drove home... 

Day out in Worcester

It seems a perilous place, albeit with free parking if you're willing to explore side streets. I got accosted by a slightly intense emotional mugger (you know, pours out his woeful life story, then asks you for cash) who seemed to have stalked us from when we left the SPCK Bookshop.

We had pizzas at a nice Italian restaurant, which a local mouse seemed to like too, because he kept popping up from among the cracks in the floorboards.

Then, much later, outside McDonalds, we witnessed the unfortunate sight of a 'well built' young lady adjusting her short shorts and standing on the street corner in just her thong in the process. Shudder.

The reason we were in Worcester was to see Nizlopi play at the Marr's Bar, a venue described as 'intimate' in the pre-show publicity. That must be 'intimate' as in 'tiny and rammed to the rafters'. It was the third time we've seen the band live, following Greenbelt and the excellent show last year at The Point in Cardiff Bay.

With hit-and-miss support from some random competition winners, it was a great night out. As before, they chose to play a couple of songs out in the audience, which, with the lights down, made the night very special. As an added bonus this time they played 'Clear' with the awesome rhyming couplet of 'shaolin' and 'towel in' (you've got to hear it to get it), which they'd promised us last time but didn't sing.

With the curfew curtailing the gig at midnight, they weren't allowed to do an encore (boooo! to midlands licensing laws!). After braving the aforementioned horrors to get drinks at the home of the golden arches, we drove off into the night, arriving home in the wee small hours, tired but happy.