The night a street preacher 'saved our soles'

A couple of weekends ago I spent a few days in Chester celebrating my friend Mandy's 40th birthday.  

There were five of us who made the trip to Chester, let's call us the 'fabulous five'.  Its nicer to have weekends away with smaller groups, there are less people to please and its easier to grab a table or ensure that everyone can get in the same bar.


That's me in the blue out in Chester celebrating

Cocktails were definitely on the menu and shots were always a good way to end an evening, especially cherry cola shots.

the perfect companion for the long walk home

Did you know that there are street pastors who walk around Chester during the weekend at night, handing out flip flops to ladies that can no longer walk in their heels, thus 'saving their soles' from walking barefoot around the Chester cobbles?  Well my friends bumped into them outside a bar and we were all given these freebies, ready for when we wanted to ditch the heels.  Unfortunately some of us ditched the heels far too early which kind of took fashion statements to a different level but was definitely an ice breaker when out in the bars.  

The Bawn Lodge Bar was busy every night

A second choice hotel doesn't mean its second best. Due a last minute change of plans, we had to find new hotel accommodation. So we ended up staying at the Bawn Lodge Hotel and Bar which made our weekend.  The rooms were lovely, the staff were really friendly and helpful even at four in the morning when some of us (who won't be named) got locked out of the hotel and had to be rescued by the chef.  Thankfully the early morning call did not ruin the quality of the breakfast!  The Lodge was just ten minutes walk from the city centre and seemed to be in the heart of  Hoole is the Notting Hill of Chester, as told to us by a friendly local.  From Bramble cocktails to the best hot chocolate I have ever tasted, the Bawn Lodge is definitely worth a second visit.

We were blessed with glorious weather in Chester which made it perfect for walking round the shops, listening to street entertainment and having a drink on the rooftop terrace at the Havana Bar.  The sun, cocktails, cool bars, flip flops freebies and a 'chef rescue' made it the perfect girl's weekend, that I'm still recovering from!

Live street entertainment on the Chester streets