By Emb Hashmi
Rather than travelling to overseas long haul exotic locations to far flung countries have you ever considered a stay-cation?
Asian World team where invited by Total GP to a corporate away day in Yorkshire, Skipton to be exact at the Conniston Hotel and estate, where we were treated to a Landrover experience, where we went off roading and clay pigeon shooting, all within the same estate. The entire stay was truly exhilarating at perfect not just for team building but for both family and friends.
The Conniston is a warm welcoming family run hotel and has some of the best views of the surrounding countryside which can be enjoyed in front of the roaring fireplaces.
Yorkshire has a lot to offer, they will be hosting the world famous Tour de France next year.
Some interesting facts about this exciting sporting event.
• It starts at the end of June/beginning of July and lasts 3 weeks
• It covers approximately 3,600 kms
• The Grand Départ is the opening of the race of the Tour de France
• The Grand Départ is regularly held outside of France – in 2012 it was hosted by Belgium
• A television audience of over 3 billion people watch the Tour de France every year
• Over 188 countries around the world broadcast the Tour de France
• 121 different television channels across the world show the race every year
• 2k journalists representing 35 nationalities attend the Tour every year
• Over 5k hotel rooms are needed each night just for the teams, tour personnel and media
• The Tour de France attracts 12 million spectators along the route in a typical race
• On average spectators travel 130km to see a stage of Le Tour
• The last time the Tour visited England was in 2007 when it raced from London to Kent
2 million people turned out over two days. It’s estimated it brought £88m to the south-east economy
• Yorkshire’s Brian Robinson was the first British man to win a stage of the Tour in 1958
• Bradley Wiggins became the first British rider to win the Tour de France in 2012
Cumbria
Cumbria has much to offer like its neighbours Yorkshire one particular historical must see it Levens Hall.
Levens Hall has been occupied since about 1350 but the interior is of the Elizabethan period with its fine oak panelling and ornate plasterwork.
The historic house became the property of Colonel James Grahme in 1688 after his career at Court in the service of King James II. He brought with him a young French gardener, Guillaume Beaumont, a pupil of le Notre at Versailles, to plan a fashionable garden at Levens. This family home contains fine furniture, paintings, one of the best examples in Europe of Spanish leather wall coverings, the earliest English patchwork, Wellingtoniana, clocks and miniatures, and has become one of the finest stately homes in south Cumbria.
The Gardens:
This most extraordinary garden, internationally significant for its great age and enduring beauty has been lovingly crafted down through the generations. Its timeless beauty distilled. Living history that continues to amaze and inspire all who experience it.
The garden as we know it today dates back over 300 years, but the building itself is much older. The original Pele Tower and Hall at Levens were built between 1250 and 1300. That moated and fortified structure was one of a chain of such buildings locally. They provided the area with defensive power and stability in troubled times of border conflict.
Laid out in the 1690s, the garden amazingly still retains many of its original features. Its very special atmosphere is partly felt through a great sense of continuity. Those three centuries of garden making here have made it a magical place. Each new generation brings a reworking within the historic framework to create fresh and beautiful contemporary plantings. A sense of excitement and joy is felt throughout in this continuing evolution of colour and design.
