Cactus at The Manor

Staying away for work once again, I thought I'd try somewhere different. With travelling to the same offices time after time, a change is often a good thing. Pendley Manor is on the outskirts of Tring, about a 30 minute drive to the office at Luton. I'd spent the previous day at our Southampton office and was glad to arrive in the early evening after having done battle with the M25. 

The Manor is a fine example of a Victorian country house, extended I guess in the 1980's with a building typical of the era nodding towards sympathy with the original - I guess at the time the house became a hotel and spa.

The interior had a sense of decaying empire about it, the decay becoming more apparent the nearer I got to my room, culminating in a stroll along a corridor of dubious aroma and flaking paint.

The room itself was spacious as was the en suite and would have looked a treat when it was decorated in the late eighties / early nineties. The pelmet over the curtains was much admired by Beloved, who got 'the full tour' on our evening video call. The room also featured an actual CRT TV in a delightful wooden cabinet with doors!

That said, after a peaceful night's sleep, I headed off to the office well rested, leaving behind the curious corridor odours and flaking paint. I probably won't be returning and would have felt the £100 room-only rate poor value for money if it was my money being spent...

The Citroen cactus did the job (why they thought purple is a good idea is beyond me), but just a bit less well than the Renault I'd hired previously - and that was the worst of the bunch!