Northern Exposure:Part 1

I cannot believe that the year 2015 has ended and I only managed two posts. 2015 has been a busy year (even if you check my other baking blog for cake orders) and I know it's no excuse but it's really hard keeping up with a blog and also trying to juggle a lot of things at the same time - work, home and baking on the side (some health issues as well).

It's been a bit late now to post this but I will do anyway. We spent some time in the summer up north, first at the end of July to celebrate Isla's 3rd birthday at Alton Towers Resort then our summer holiday in August at a caravan.

ISLA'S 3RD BIRTHDAY & ALTON TOWERS

We celebrated her actual birthday at home during the weekend with some friends.

Isla's Chiffon Cake with Boiled Icing and the simple set-up

I used the same recipe for Chiffon Cake here which is also found in this blog. For the icing, I just used this recipe which I found online but I only used 3/4 of the ingredients and in the end there was still some left overs.

The next day, we went to Alton Towers to stay overnight which is sort of the real family celebration for Isla's birthday given that her actual birthday on the 25th was just a simple celebration. Hubby had a photo engagement which was hard to refuse. Then the next day was an intimate get together with friends.

This was something that you can make from the Alton Towers website when you book . This is actually a video that invites your child to go to Alton Towers and you can choose from these two versions.

This was a very short overnight trip to Alton Towers because we do not have enough leaves left and we also have another longer holiday planned for the next month. It was just an overnight stay at the newly built Enchanted Village at the Alton Towers. The rate was actually cheaper than the Alton Towers Hotel, although the other hotel in sight which is the Splash Landings Hotel is still the cheapest. But we really liked the themed village as the room also had a woodland fairy theme plus it is still new. I did a lot of research prior to booking this and also checked other resorts and theme parks but I ended up with Alton Towers as we never had a chance to visit this part of the UK as well (where hubby used to work).

The hobbit houses...enchanting indeed!

What's inside our lovely lodge...including the surroundings.

The Alton Towers Hotel

Inside the hotel

The Splash Landings Hotel

Inside/hotel lobby

The Waterpark is inside this hotel. We went here on our second day. 

We never had any regrets with the place, it met our expectations and the staff are really nice and accommodating. I can say this as I had some experience with going to other places here where people tend to be not too chatty when dealing with Asian customers. I guess it is sort of a misconception for people in this part of the world that if you look Asian (that is Southeast Asian) you don't speak English and therefore would never engage in a conversation with you. Although I don't really expect them to talk so much but some small talk would do especially if they have been so entertaining to the customer before you. That really puts me off all the time. So this is definitely one of the very few places where people actually engage/talk to you and chats to everyone (regardless if Asian or not) just the same. I mean in this day and age, people should not be judging on looks alone as everyone is migrating everywhere. Anyway, enough of my rant LOL.

First stop is Cbeebies Land which is inside Alton Towers

Fan girl moment for Isla as she met Iggle Piggle

...and also Upsy Daisy from In the Night Garden

This is definitely a must for young children :)

From the Postman Pat ride

Now moving on the Alton Towers

Mutiny Bay

The real Alton Towers (yes there is a real castle inside...fact)

It actually felt a bit eerie as I went up the castle grounds/gardens 

I love the details even on the toilet doors

Lastly the only downside is, the place felt kind of sad as there were no big crowds or long queues on the theme park. We came during the aftermath of the Smiler crash/accident which I think have put a lot of people off. The extreme rides were closed because of the accident and although there were still people, we don't have to queue for almost all of the rides. There were even some rides where we are the only ones taking it - sad. I do hope that they will pick up in time and be back to normal again. It is still a nice place to begin with and despite of what just happened, the staff still seemed nice and upbeat. The only good thing about it is there were almost no queues so it was not really a problem for Isla as she does not not want to wait for too long. It also does not feel so stressful when there are not too many people around although in this case, there were too few people for such a big theme park. If I had another chance, I would definitely come back and stay a bit longer. Thanks Alton Towers!

Longest waiting time is 5-10 minutes :(

The monorail which brings you from the hotel to the theme park and back. Sadly, no queues as well. 

P.S. A lesson learned and I ignored from previous reviews, please book the insight restaurants ahead of time as we ended up on a high-end resto as all of the restos were fully booked (given that the park was not that full at the time). Anyway, the resto was nice (and excellent service) but it was just really pricey.

Yummy but pricey. Excellent service.