They did it!
Despite a disappointing turn out the murder mystery “Death on the Nile” evening was a storming success. The evening started with some bubbly and canapés and an opportunity for all the guests to meet their fellow sleuths, some of the guests dressed in theme and looked really impressive. As you probably guessed the scene was placed at the luxurious Luxor hotel on the banks of the River Nile in Egypt (not dissimilar to Fowey …….If you used your imagination!)
The murderer turned out to be a lady (Julie - in the green dress) and 4 out of the 12 guests actually guessed the correct murderer, we were all pretty impressed. The Murder by appointment team were (as always) brilliant and we received some fantastic feedback from all who took part. Such a great evening, even the staff had a lot of fun!!!
I have been working today with Matt, the group’s photographer and general web site man. It’s been one of those enjoyable days where I have had the chance to arrange flowers and dress the rooms for the photo shoots. Since we are now half way through the refurbishment of the 12 bedrooms it is now important to start using up to date pictures in order to ensure we are keeping up with the competitors. Although, due to the age of the hotel (1882) it would not be wise to overly modernise the building so we have remained very sympathetic and kept the Victorian character well and truly in out sights.
We are all very excited about this years pending Christmas Market, its set to be the biggest and best yet with over 100 traders and over 50% of these being food - At least that will keep me happy! The fun starts on Friday evening (7th December) with a carol service in the church. Father Christmas will be paying a visit at Beryl’s yard at 7pm and he has then said he will be happy to ride through the town to the church where he will be giving out presents and sweeties to all the children. Once Father Christmas has left there will be a hog roast and Celidh band in the marquees located on Fowey’s Town Quay. Its set to be a great evening and a wonderful start to another very successful Fowey Christmas Market. It will now be Fowey’s third Christmas Market and it is getting bigger and better by the year. I will let you know how it all turns out but if you are in the area I guarantee you will not be disappointed as there are many great ideas for those ‘different’ and local Christmas gifts. Do come over and say hello as Belinda, myself and Alan (as well as many ot the volunteers) will have been standing around in the cold all day - but hopefully NOT the rain!
I’m looking forward to December as there are a few parties planned both here at the hotel as well for the management and staff, on the 9th December myself (immediately after the closing of the Christmas Market!) and Keith are meeting up with my fellow managers from the other Cornish hotels for a meal and a ‘catch up’ before the festivities take over. It is panned for us to meet in Padstow for a meal and a few drinks and then to stay the night at The Metropole hotel, well we’ve got to have a few perks!
On the evening of the 16th December The Idle Rocks, Metropole and Fowey teams are invading The Falmouth hotel for our staff Christmas party, it’s always been a great opportunity for a good knees up and a giggle. As well as being an ideal chance for everyone to but a face to the names and compare their roles within the hotel’s. I have no doubt that there will be some stories after that evening…….
The holiday blues - or is that motown?
Well, we have been back from our holiday in the states for a few weeks now and we are well and truly back into the old routine….
It was a real whistle stop tour. With a very full 14 days in the States, having flown over 7’400 miles and driven over 1’700 miles around the mid west including Detroit, Chicago, Green Bay, Ishpeming (Marquette) and Rhinelander - looking back over those two weeks seems like such a long time ago now but it was truly memorable. Keith introduced me to some amazing people and we have seen some of the real sights of America. We first met up with Russell (an old school friend of Keith’s) and Lara in Detroit. Whilst there we were quickly taught about the meaning of “front row parking”. As well as visiting the very impressive Rouge Factory at the Henry Ford Museum and seeing the very car (Ford Lincoln) that JFK was assassinated in! It was a really sobering moment whilst we all stood and learnt the facts behind that awful day. On my “wish list” whilst in Detroit, Russell took us to THE Krispy Cream factory where we had a free tasting of a Krispy crème doughnut straight from the conveyor belt. We all managed to eat at least three doughnuts for breakfast that morning all washed down with a big mug of coffee, you can’t get more American than that! On the fourth day Russell took us to the fantastic (and soulful) Hits Ville USA in down town Detroit. I even stood up to the mic and did (a very poor) rendition of “Stop in the name of love” by the Supremes with two other ladies. I don’t think either of them will mind me saying – The Supremes have nothing to worry about….. We had such a giggle and our tour guide Chris proved to have a truly amazing voice. So much so that we had to ask her if she sang professionally – she said no however her voice was totally fantastic!!! What a wonderful four days with our very kind friends. Russell your tour guide skills were second to none! Thanks for making us laugh so much it hurt… Lara you can shop with me anytime, I like your stamina my friend and thanks for the’ Zip’ sauce tips it’s improved my cottage pie recipe no end! Our final night was topped off by a visit to the Premier showing of the George Clooney film “Michael Clayton”. Lara and Russell are definitely two of those “friends in high places” that we all talk about. Such a great few days, we never wanted them to end. After Detroit we collected the jeep (after a few unexpected hiccups with the hire company) and headed up to Green Bay – with an unscheduled detour around “down town” Chicago, opps! What can I say, I run a hotel I am no navigator – I still stand by the fact that if those wretched road works hadn’t have been there we would have done just fine! We successfully arrived in Green Bay on the Wednesday evening and I met Keith’s friend’s Jean and Michelle for the first time. Two very special people who made me feel so welcome in their beautiful (newly built) home. Their three cats Tito (aka peanut), Oliver and Rosie were true characters, with the very cute Tito taking a real shine to both my handbag and Keith’s wallet! He knew quality when he saw it. Jean and Michelle certainly showed us the sights and shops of Wisconsin, visiting St Norbert’s University, Sturgeon Bay (Door County) and the very memorable Chicago at night. Here we viewed the entire city from the 94th floor of the Hancock building – Wow, wow, wow – this being despite Jeans fear of heights – Thanks Jean… Jean, being a dedicated soft ball coach, ensured that we marched fast enough to catch the late night train back to her sisters (Julie and Leif)- Good job team!! Also, thanks for all those great morning coffees Michelle, I’m a convert now! Whilst around Lake Michigan we also visited Keith’s great friends Kirk and Winona and their gorgeous sons Daniel (6) and Robert (8). It was at Roberts’s school that we were asked to give a talk about England and its currency. There were some interesting questions asked by the class as well as some comical ones, such as; “Do you have a Mc Donald’s in England?” – had to laugh. Ishpeming also warranted a night’s stop over to catch up with Keith’s relatives Ron and Julie. Ron had got in touch with Keith’s family over 12 years ago whilst studying his family tree which as a result led him to Stithians, Cornwall. From then on Keith and his family have kept in touch with Ron and Keith visiting each other whenever possible. Ron kindly took the Monday off in order to show us the sights of Marquette and the hugely impressive Marquette University, such a great day – pity we didn’t see any wild deer Ron but thanks for helping us look, the fall colours were truly breath taking – a great day. Well the holiday had to come to an end at some point or another, but not before the eventful “Late” landing at Detroit airport and the catching of our connecting flight by the absolute “skin of our teeth” – which involved us having to sprint the entire length of Detroit airport, I think we finally regained our heart rate half way over the Atlantic… That was too close. Sadly the two weeks flew by far too quickly, however we have brought back some great memories and feel like I have made some genuinely special friends. The change of routine has done me the world of good. I’m now ready to face a busy Christmas and look forward to saving up for the next trip – where will the next one be, Hhmmm…
