Just like to share a few thoughts about our visit at the weekend....we did pop down three years back in the summer and stayed just two nights....which was the first time since we where down for a wedding many many years back......this time we arrived by train just after 3pm on Friday and stayed until leaving at 3pm Monday,So had more time to relax and wander around. Used the Holiday Inn this time....usually go to Premier Inns wherever we stay.....but both where fully booked in Plymouth this time........I didn't book any earlier until I had bought my Argyle tickets.....which as a non-member didn't go on general sale until about a fortnight ago. The Holiday Inn couldn't be better placed literally on the Hoe, and on the eighth floor gave us a superb view over the Barbican and out towards Turnchapel,Cattedown,Oreston and towards Princerock which interested me most.There where all round views from the Penthouse suite on the top floor which was the restuarant and with the good weather (that we brought) the view was excellent in every direction. Price wise the Holliday Inn was dearer than Premier Inns by nearly a £100 for our three nights stay....and breakfast wasn't included !.....breakfast cost £14.99 each.....but they where very generous and gave us vouchers which cost us £15 for each morning for both of us....they thought that they where being extremely generous, I kept my thoughts to myself and had a little scream later when away from the hotel. Ok the Hotel was well positioned the bedroom was good ...bigger than Premier....had a swimming pool which was free.....unfortunately the reception area and bar where being rebuilt and was messy and dusty which didn't impress some of the guests.....there where lots of guests down for the University Graduation week......the Hoe had been taken over by a hugh marque plus other bits and pieces. Match day was fine and Mrs Plym and I enjoyed the experience....the final result could of been better of course ..... we just allowed the stadium to empty and then went for a walk around Central Park setting off down the tree'd avenue that runs parallel with the Lyndhurst Stand and eventually into central Plymouth. I know that there is a "Friends of Central Park" set up....so I was surprised at how run down and desolate the place seemed....nowhere did I see any grass that had been cut so that you could walk easily along .....down the far end parallel with the cemetery it was obviously a dampish area with decaying wooden seats.....and personally it didn't look very safe to walk by yourself especially if you where a woman. Maybe we have been spoilt by Kelsey Park in Beckenham not too far from us that has a "Friends of Kelsey Park" set up.....which has a river and a lake with Herons nesting on a island there, plus a large childrens playing area plus a Cafe and toilets spread around the park and a "Friends" office with leaflets about the park and volunteer staff to talk to. The squirrels are so tame they will sit on your lap and raid your pockets for groundnuts. Maybe I'm being unfair....we did see a nice childrens area up by the new Sports Complex next to Argyle. Sunday afternoon we walked out Embankment Road way to see the house where my mum was born and lived until she got married ....I knew the area until I was about 14 yrs old when we visited each summer. Wow how a place can change in 50yrs.......the decay and the unswept streets and rubbish everywhere.....Asian shops and a few Polish shops....most of the houses turned now into flats, some had boarded up windows which needed new glass in but obviously wouldn't be getting done. Mums old home looked like it could now be three flats and looked in a bad state as most houses around seemed to be......is this now the poor end of town where immigrants and refugees get dumped.....please put me right if I'm wrong. This area was quite reasonable 50 years back and not many houses had been turned into flats. A bit depressing really, mum and her two sisters are all gone now....the last one only two years back.....so I doubt if I will visit there again......childhood memories are best left as memories.....going back is not always a good idea......over the last few years I've visited a few places that my Dad was stationed at during my childhood.....this was the worst experience of them all. But good to meet sensible and Lyndy for a chat......shame Joe was looking after his young son so couldn't meet up with Mrs Plym and I.....but might be seeing him at Dag & Red later this year.
Plym, I am glad you had a good stay.. The holiday inn is under going reforms as we have just had a tender to refund 39 bathrooms/rooms.. Starting in a few weeks until December.. Still won't be the greatest place to stay for value.. Yes the Area around the embankment is very unsightly.. Yes there are assorts living down there now, not the students tho as its a bit far away from the Uni.. We are just converting a house we have near there to flats as it makes more sense rather than a large house. Some areas in that location have had a refund, prince rock houses.. Yes i am hoping to get to the game at the ned of November all pencilled in.. How do you get your tickets? through Argyle or Dag? let me know as i will get a seat near you...
Through Dag is the only way I can get them....so not in the away end....nearer the time (say 14 days before) I could get two tickets.... yours would be full price i expect.....let me know nearer the time.
Will they let you out straight away at the final whistle if your in the away end ? I expect at little Dag & Red it might not be a problem......but I have memories of being trapped in Chelsea's away end for over an hour while police cleared the streets......then all being frog marched to the nearest station......I kept asking to be let go because my car was the other side of the river....but the police weren't interested........got back to NW Kent two hours later than expected.....Mrs Plym wasn't too happy about dinner being that late. Ps.....Div 2 Game (Championship now).....we drew 2-2.
To be fair to Plymouth plym this is not the only place to have gone down hill a bit over time that I've seen in recent years. Some areas in the South East aren't exactly wonderful either and having visited East Anglia for the first time this year and the Coventry a little while back I can't say they looked particularly prosperous either. Princerock is an inner City area and my experience of those in many Cities is that they haven't improved over time. The outskirts are always being built up so by their nature are often full of new houses etc. This is bound to look better than old tired buildings. The other end of the inner city is much the same in Stonehouse. Not sure what causes it to be honest. I think people in general don't look after their Cities very well. A lot of areas look untidy these days because people are too lazy to pick anything up themselves. In you Mum's day people cleaned the pavements outside their houses and litter wasn't chucked anywhere. These days people hardly clean their own fronts let alone the pavement and wouldn't pick up any litter as it's not their job. No pride in where they live and that might be due to the population as a whole being transient now rather than people stay in the area they were born into. I don't think it's all to do with immigration either although certain areas do tend to be over populated with them for some reason. Maybe they feel better sticking together but I don't know if that is the reason. There have been a lot of Asian shops in Princerock for quite some time now. It's never the same going back after a long period wherever it is. I have just come back from several days in Dartmouth visiting the outlaws. Everytime we go my wife gets less and less enamoured with the place. Little changes except they stick up a building or two in any gap they can find which quickly gets bought up by a complete outsider for a holiday home or retirement home. We spent most of Wednesday down in the Town and both commented after several hours that we had not seen anyone we knew. There is only a population of 6000 or so and at one time you could go into any pub for example at any time of the day or evening and find somebody you knew. Basically there are hardly any local anymore. Area now full of midlanders who have no real empathy with the place. My wife commented that she was a bit loathed to even bother going back anymore except that she has brothers and sister there. The secret for remembering what was might be just to do that and not visit to avoid disappointment.
I'm sure your right sensible....most inner city areas are subjected to the same decline over the years, as people move out to the suburbs or move away completely. I hope it didn't sound like I was running down Plymouth......just that it can take you by surprise......I can remember my maternal grandma cleaning the front door area each day and even the backyard exit onto the cobbled alleyway at the back.....and being on the corner with Grenville Road she woud sweep along the side from Embankment Road to the alleyway at the rear. Families did live more together in those days.....remember we where recovering from WW11 and money was short....my Grans house was double fronted and large, my mothers two sisters had there own part of the house....one lived upstairs with her husband and two children....the other had two rooms down stairs with her son.......her husband she had said goodbye to as she pulled out of Singapore on the last ship with her baby never to see or hear about him ever again. There where some big properties around there in those days and they where ideal for turning into flat as families broke up and got there own homes.....sounds like Joes working on one even now.....looking at the property on Sunday it suggested that either two or three flats existed...there where two TV dishes visable. Further towards the town centre still in Embankment Road there was a roughish looking grass area with kids playing football....I took a double take when walking by because sitting against a wall in this park area were a group of young teenagers....and they where taking whiffs from a canister the size of a car or kitchen size extinguisher quite openly in site of the road.......ok I'm not stupid to say that that doesnt happen around Orpington....but you don't see it openly and you would now and again see the little silver refill jobs laying in the gutter.....Mrs Plym didn't notice and I said nothing to her because she would have got upset and maybe gone and had a word....and probably got a mouthfull of abuse. On the whole we did enjoy our time in Plymouth and sat on the Hoe a couple of times at that Coffee shack along the front looking out towards the Sound and Drakes Island in the sun (imported from Kent).....we had a good wander around the Barbican and had two evening meals down there. I noticed that they had smartened up the Mayflower Steps.....three years back I remember them being in a bad state of repair and covered in seaweed etc. Twice I was stopped for directions to the Plymouth Gin Distillery by Americans/Canadians who seemed more interested in that than anything else.....seems to have a good reputation over there Plymouth Gin. I was able to direct them the right way.....you could see the chimney from our eighth floor bedroom window and most of the Barican as well.
I didn't take it that you were running the place down as such plym so no problem there. Sadly it is the same wherever you go though and there are many many tired looking places now. I genuinely think it is to do with the attitudes of people who take over areas and that they don't have a history with it. Going back is always a disappointment in my experience. We do have the Hoe and Barbican area though which is as good as anywhere. I have been in and out of a few places in my time as you would imagine and Plymouth Sound is as beautiful a view as you will see anywhere in the world. That's both from land looking out and the sea looking in. Plymouth Gin is famous the world over so no surprise the grockles head for it. Think the 400th anniversary of the Pilgrim Fathers thing is due in a few years times so we will get more and more Yanks as it approaches. The real steps are somewhere under one of the nearby pubs I think so the pathetic ones on the water front are a tad newer and not the real place anyway. Still, if people want to believe something then it isn't that hard to sell it to them is it.
The 6th Sept 1620-2020 will be 400 years anniversary......so they'll be a few extra visiters that year sensible......maybe one of them might have a spare $100 million to help little ole Argyle out.....you never know......in the meanwhile we'll have to keep that nice Mr Brent.
