Having enjoyed my recent weekends away, I reckoned it was time for another one. We didn’t really have an agenda, or any special reason to go to any special place, so it was a case of having a look at what took our fancy. We didn’t want to travel too far, but we wanted to go somewhere we hadn’t been before. I got a good old fashioned map book out and had a gander at the cities surrounding Manchester in an ever increasing circle. As you can imagine, we had at least visited most of them, if not indeed stayed overnight at them. The first place to stick out from the crowd was Lincoln. The reason beingŸ?íŸ?íŸ?íŸ?íŸ?íŸ?íŸ?í.. there was no reason! I Googled Lincoln, and noted that it appeared to have everything we would need and more, so I classed it as a decision made. A bit more research led me to the fact that most of the City Centre accommodation was booked up, but I was able to book in at a hotel called Huckleberry’s Bar and Grill located at 30 Clasketgate, Lincoln, LN2 1 JS ( www. huckleberrysbarandgrill.co.uk ). It was well located very close to the Centre, had a Restaurant in case of emergencies, and had a Bar! Happy Days! Rooms were booked in Paula’s name, and the journey was planned with precision. Well, the postcode was typed into the Sat Nav! Suppose that’s as much planning as is required nowadays. We left Manchester Around lunchtime on a Friday, and by mid-afternoon the newly installed Manager at Huckleberry’s was being introduced to Paula Falisa. He was totally unfazed, helped us carry luggage upstairs, and made sure we were aware of all the facilities available to us. He was also helpful with regard to places to eat, both for Breakfast and for Dinner. We made ourselves at home, unpacking our various outfits and shoes etc. and then decided to go and explore Lincoln a little. We had a wander around the shops, and quickly spotted Stokes High Bridge Caf€÷ – A traditional caf€÷ serving freshly roasted coffees located on Lincoln’s High Bridge, the country’s oldest bridge that still has buildings in use on it. We had a sandwich and a drink each, followed by scones, strawberry preserve, and clotted cream. Yum Yum! I already liked Lincoln a lot. Once we had demolished the scones, it was time to return back to Huckleberry’s, where we had a quick drink before going up to change for the evening. By 8-00pm we were back on our way out again Ÿ?? this time the jeans, tee shirts and Ÿ??flattiesŸ? had been replaced with dresses and heels. We were ready to hit the Town! First stop was food, so we wandered up High Street and found Cote Brasserie, where we had a main course and dessert each – we passed on the starters on account of the scones! I won’t bore you with all the details, but it was good and cost us ô?58-67 including drinks and a 12.5% optional gratuity. From there we wandered further along the street and found The Cardinals Hat Ÿ?? a good old fashioned pub that seemed to be a bit of a Ÿ??real aleŸ? type of place. We managed to interact with a couple of guys who were sampling a pint or three, and a certain amount of flirting took place. They knew who and what I was, but sufficient ale had been sampled to ease the pain, and lower any inhibitions they may have set off with, and by the end of the night it was touch and go whether I would remain a Ÿ??single girlŸ? much longer! Needless to say, I was not wearing my beer goggles, nor was I suffering the symptoms of over indulgence, so I kept a penny tight between my knees and remained a good girl. After a thoroughly good night, we decided to head back to the Hotel and have a reasonably early night ready for tomorrow. This was a great idea until we walked past Lola Lo. Actually, this is where the problem lies. We didn’t quite walk past Lola Lo. We sort of walked up as far as Lola Lo, and then we walked into Lola Lo. Why we walked into Lola Lo, I’m not quite sure Ÿ?? I think it may have been because the guy on the door invited us in free of charge on account of us being Ÿ??ladiesŸ?. Anyway, the whys and what fors don’t really matter, the fact is that we went in and didn’t come back out until some time later. Some considerable time later! Several Cocktails later. It was nearer breakfast time than teatime when we let ourselves into the back door at Huckleberry’s and crept up to bed. Despite our late night, we were both up, dressed, and ready for breakfast by 9-00am. We ventured out and found ourselves looking for Patisserie Valerie on the recommendation of the Manager at Huckleberry’s, where we both tucked into a full English breakfast. It was much needed! I don’t know how much it cost Ÿ?? I didn’t pay. Saturday then saw us roaming around the shops, going on a one hour canal boat trip setting off from the Waterfront, sitting watching the Dragon Boat Racing in the Marina, and generally enjoying a relaxed, chilled day. We had a coffee in a small caf€÷, but I can’t for the life of me remember what it was called. We people watched, chatted, walked, sat, and did everything you should do on a leisurely weekend away. Teatime saw us heading back to the hotel where we had a quick drink before once again heading upstairs and transforming our look. This time we decided to head back down to the Waterfront where there is a host of Restaurants and Eateries. We opted for Italian, and managed to find a table in Ask Italian. Here, we had a starter each, a main course each, and a shared dessert along with a drink each for ô?55-00 including a tip. We chatted and watched people walking to and fro along the Waterfront, probably both being a little bitchier than we should have been! Once our food had settled, we walked back up onto High Street and had another drink in The Cardinals Hat. Lincoln really is buzzing at night time and there is a lot of choice of places to go. I guess we opted for the same out of laziness to be honest Ÿ?? we enjoyed it on Friday, so why not Saturday? This time we pledged to give Lola Lo’s a miss. We were successful with this pledge, and headed back to the hotel at the reasonable time of about 1-00am, but just our luck – the Staff were just finishing tidying up and were sitting having a drink. The second we walked through the door, we were invited to sit and have a drink with them. The Proprietor was also sat with them as well as the Manager, so it would just have been downright rude to refuse. The result of this valiant display of good manners was a somewhat later night than planned, we did however have a great laugh and conversation with everyone, and once again I was flattered by the unreserved way they treated me. Bedtime soon brought around morning, only this time it was Sunday. Packing day already. We packed our cases and loaded them into the car, and then wandered off back down onto the Waterfront for our final breakfast. This time it was Harvester that enjoyed our company. We had the unlimited breakfast do-dah which cost us the princely sum of ô?4-99 each. Another wander round saw us slowly heading back towards the car, and finally leaving the city of Lincoln early Sunday afternoon for our journey home. The three questions go as follows: Is Lincoln TV friendly? Didn’t see any others, but I was treated fantastically. I was chatted up, high fived, smiled at (no doubt laughed at somewhere along the line), and treated exactly as I would have wanted. Value for money? Doesn’t really apply apart from the fact that we paid reasonable prices for reasonable food. We didn’t consider the Hotel to be overpriced, and there are enough shops of all types to be able to buy what you might need at the right price. Would I go again? I certainly would. We didn’t get time to visit the Cathedral, and there’s certainly plenty of unexplored nightlife to last another weekend
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