The Milano Scala - An Eco Hotel in Milan

This weekend we had a whistle-stop trip to Milan, and searching the myriad of hotels available in the city, we settled on the Milano Scala, Milan's first zero emission hotel. 

Situated in the heart of the fashion capital, the hotel is in the Brera district a stone's throw from the high-end shopping street Via Montenapoleone; the stunning glass domed shopping arcade and the  famous Duomo cathedral.

Originally a historical Milanese palazzo built around 1800, the eco-friendly renovations saw the green hotel open in 2010.

The architect used heat and sound insulation technology making it a comfortable and relaxing environment for guests and it uses underground water pumps for the heating, hot water and air conditioning making it carbon neutral.  Water consumption is also reduced and controlled through filters.

Among the maze of exterior staircases you'll find a rooftop vegetable garden which supplies fresh herbs and vegetables for the kitchen.

The hotel boasts it's own eco-friendly electric car which you'll often spot parked outside ready to run errands.

In addition to it's green credentials, the hotel also supports Project A Drop Of Life, a charity initiative to construct a giant well in Kenya and bring them safe and clean drinking water.

If you decide to stay here based on it's ecological initiatives, you may like me find certain practises frustrating.  They seem to have the big issues such as energy production and insulation covered but there are many more smaller actions which seem to have been overlooked.  Yes, the flow of the water is reduced in the bathrooms through filters, but having sinks with plugs which could be used would mean you can wash without having to keep the water running. The gigantic deep jacuzzi bath in the en suite, while a welcome luxury isn't exactly eco-friendly.  The complimentary toiletries are all paraben free and vegetable based, but I can't help feeling it would be better to use refillable pumps than provide lots of disposable mini bottles and plastic wrapped toothbrushes and shower caps.  Some of the herbs in your cocktails may have been grown spitting distance from where you sit to drink them, but the positives are undone when your waiter hands you huge wodges of paper napkins with every drink.  Maybe I'm being picky, but just a few changes in attitude would go a long way to making this experience feel more 'green'.  Being sustainable is about more than just good design, it's about attitudes and actions.

As far as our guest experience was concerned, we had a wonderful stay here. The location is just perfect, right in the heart of the city yet remarkably peaceful.  It's a 15 minute walk from Cadorna station, from where you can get the Malpensa Express train from the airport.

The staff were all absolutely wonderful and couldn't have been more friendly and helpful.  As well as the usual concierge advice at the reception desk, the hotel also has a designated tourist desk open each morning except Saturdays. Charming Riva will happily advise you on sights to see, book tickets, make dinner reservations, help with car hire or public transport and share her local knowledge.  She was a huge help to us and ensured we visited some places off the beaten track.

We booked a queen-sized room which was spacious and airy. The bed was incredibly comfortable and a bedside welcome of a half bottle of Chianti and a miniature of Campari was defiantly a nice touch!  They offered an alternative pillow service if you prefer a firmer or softer pillow, although oddly the note said this was only available between 9am-9pm which is probably the time you're least likely to need a pillow!

The windows opened up wide allowing us to people watch down on the streets below (I'd forgotten how much I miss this, so many hotels now have limiters on their windows and you can't throw them wide open to let in the air.) 

Inside the room there was a huge triple sliding door wardrobe and it was a luxury to be able to hang up all our clothes for our stay rather than just finding space for one or two items.  There's plenty of room to hide away your luggage too keeping the room tidy and clutter free.  Here you'll also find the mini safe.

There's a large wall-mounted remote controlled TV, a well stocked mini bar and a coffee capsule machine - again not very eco-friendly and strangely you are only provided with 3 coffee pods which I found a bit odd since that's not divisible by the two guests in the room.  There's no milk in the room as they tend to take their coffee strong and black, so if you want milk you'd need to call down to reception.

The en suite was enormous with double sinks, a WC, bidet and a gigantic whirlpool bath with shower over.  All clad in black marble it felt very opulent. There was a sachet of decadent bath salts and a candle if you want to indulge in a romantic bath - there's certainly room for 2!

I recommend checking out the roof terrace bar which is open every evening from 6pm.  It's the perfect place for a pre-dinner cocktail and to enjoy the breath-taking views of the city.  The Sky Terrace is popular with locals and party bookings so if you want a relaxing drink go earlier in the evening.  A cocktail will cost you €15 but if my mojito is anything to go by it will have a very large measure of alcohol in and is accompanied by a generous selection of complimentary finger food.

From this elevated position you can see the interconnected courtyards and terraces of the hotel.  There's sweet jasmine, gardenias and camellia trees fragrancing the air and it certainly feels green and fresh up here.  Looking out from the terrace there's spectacular views of the city beyond and it was pretty thrilling sitting up here in a thunderstorm, protected by the canopies and glass sides.

Downstairs you'll find the Prima Donna lounge bar serving evening drinks and light meals.  Many locals seem to come here for the huge fresh salad bar at lunchtime.  There's also La Traviata restaurant where breakfast is served accompanied by live music.  We had the soothing sounds of the hand pans playing over our breakfast, but various artists play here.  The buffet breakfast was extensive with a wide array of fresh fruit, cold meats, cooked bacon and eggs, cereals, pastries and even it's own allergy-free section.  I truly wanted to take photos of the breakfasts but after eating out for a few days and noticing how it only seemed to be the Brits who constantly take photos and instagram their food I felt a bit self-conscious.  I did take a sneaky pic of the mini tiramisu that I had for breakfast though because that was really special.

There is a very strong musical theme running throughout the hotel, with displays of classical music scores, musical notes decorating the main restaurant walls, and suites named after famous composers,  opera singers and characters in keeping with the proximity of the famous Scala theatre nearby. Bold art works, chic floral displays and modern lighting bring a contemporary vibrant feel to the rooms and lobby area too.

My overall impression is of a stylish hotel who are using clever design and technology to limit their impact on the environment.  The staff are incredibly helpful, nothing is too much trouble, like storing your luggage if you arrive before check-in, providing umbrellas for the torrential rain we had one day, ironing clothing that had got creased in our case and booking tickets to tourist sights.  We thoroughly enjoyed our stay here and felt completely refreshed and energised.

How to get there:

We flew Easyjet from Luton to Malpensa (flight time around 1hr45).
Take the train to either Garibaldi, Centrale station or the Malpensa Express to Cadorna which runs half-hourly and takes around 40 minutes.

Hotel details:

Hotel Milano Scala,
Via Dell Orso,
Milan

Hotel website

Linking up with Time Traveller.

College Lake Wildlife Reserve

While camping at the weekend we stumbled across College Lake Wildlife Reserve. Located just outside Tring in Buckinghamshire it was such a fabulous discovery, an oasis of calm on the surface but teeming with activity and wildlife.

Operated by the Wildlife Trust, the lake is a former chalk quarry pit, now an outstanding centre for wetland birds, insects and wild flowers.

We strolled around the idyllic lake, stopping at the numerous bird hides along the way.  There are various different marked walks depending on the time you have available and year-round there's always something to see.

The noticeboards tell you some of the birds you might be lucky enough to spot - a chiffchaff, a skylark, peregrine, lapwing and cuckoos had all been seen recently.  We didn't have binoculars with us so bird spotting was a little difficult, but given that Ruby's Year 2 topic has been 'mini beasts' we decided to concentrate on looking out for them.  We weren't disappointed.

The lakeside is blessed with an abundance of beautiful metallic dragonflies and damselflies flitting about.  There are bees busy collecting pollen from the rare chalkland wild flowers, and it's a butterfly spotters dream.

There were plenty of staff and volunteers around to advise us what to look out for and help identify creatures we'd seen and the local regular visitors were more than happy to stop and chat, showing us their captures on their cameras.

The centre is free to visit (although they do welcome donations) and it costs £3 to park.  They ask you not to take scooters or bikes on site and no dogs because of the delicate wildlife.  It's a perfect place for a weekend stroll and if you check ahead there's often organised family activities or exhibitions on in the visitor centre.

It was the perfect place to instill a love of wildlife into children, and rekindle ours too.

You can have a pitstop in the cafe which served hot and cold drinks, ice creams and snacks although the sandwiches weren't much to write home about - I think we'd take a picnic next time!

Have you visited a Wildlife Trust site before?

Linking up with Animal Tales.

Town Farm Camp Site - A Peaceful Family Getaway

Sometimes you need to just get away from it all so camping close to home is ideal for a budget getaway, spending some time together, unwinding and getting back to nature.

Friday after school we headed off to Town Farm Camp Site for the weekend.  We'd tried to book in last summer but it's pretty popular in June and July, especially since featuring in the Cool Camping guide so if you fancy going do book up early.

If I'm honest, the main reason we wanted to stay here was because I'd heard you could walk to an amazing Pick Your Own farm from there and I loved the idea of spending the afternoon picking your own food then taking it back to camp and cooking it over the fire - the most minimal of food miles possible and as fresh as you can get.

We've actually been to Grove Farm Pick Your Own before and it's fabulous - it's not just strawberry picking. Grab a fork and a spade and dig your own spuds, pull your own carrots, snap your own rhubarb and pick your own spinach.

Sadly, the appalling spring weather meant it wasn't open yet (it's likely to open end of June now) and it turns out you can't actually walk there across the fields, although it is just a few minutes drive.

Still, we made the most of the weekend anyway and completely loved the campsite.

Set in the foot of the chalky Chiltern hills, this is the closest bit of 'mountainous' scenery to where we live.  Nestled just at the foot of Ivinghoe Beacon there's loads to explore on foot.

Despite the ominous looking clouds to start, it soon brightened up so we headed off five miles across fields and through forest to Ashridge National Trust Estate which is stunning to explore.  There's a visitor centre, shop and cafe there, and brilliant walks to be had through the forest.  Most weekends the memorial tower is open and for a fee of £2 per adult and £1 per child you can climb the spiral staircase to the top.  They'll lend you binoculars and a guide and on a clear day you can see The Shard and Wembley Stadium.

We discovered College Lake, a fabulous nature reserve just a few miles up the road from the campsite and well worth a visit.

There's so much to do nearby from exploring the windmill; the pretty villages of Ivinghoe and Pitstone; the canal; the fascinating zoological museum at Tring; Whipsnade Zoo and Wendover Woods.

On the campsite itself there's a well equipped children's playground, table tennis table and hard tennis court.  There's acres of space to run around and play ball games, fly kites and play tag.  There's always new friends to be made on camping trips.

Us grown-ups were happy to sit and relax, watching the swallows skit and swoop by, with the sound of lambs in the background from nearby fields.

Town Farm allows camp fires which is always a big bonus on a camping trip - it's just not the same without toasted marshmallows, and it keeps the chill off while sipping G&T in the evening.  They hire out fire pits which double up as BBQs and which you can book in advance and sell kindling, starter packs and sacks of logs.  The service was excellent and a jeep would come round each evening delivering wood to your tent.

I have to say, the facilities on site were probably the best I have seen in a UK campsite.  Not only were the toilets, showers and washing up facilities always spotlessly fresh and clean, but they were really thoughtfully put together too.  How many times have you had to balance on one foot to get dressed in the shower because the floor is soaking?  Or find you have nowhere to hang up your towel or clothes when you take them off?

The shower cubicles were large enough so if you have young children they'd be able to come in there with you.  There was plenty of space, well fitting shower curtains, rubber matted floor to prevent your feet from getting soaked, a handy chair to place your wash bag on and hooks on the door.  The toilets had soap and mirrors and in the main toilet block, electric hand driers.

There's even outdoor showers for the brave (or exhibitionist?!), although in all seriousness they are ideal for washing grubby, muddy little feet and perfect on boiling hot days to cool off.

There are washing machines and driers on site and communal fridges and freezers handy for re-freezing your cool packs if you don't make use of the electric hook-up.

But by far the nicest part of the washing up facilities was watching the nesting swallows flit in and out above your head while they feed their young. We were actually in a different area to this wash-station, and although ours was clean, new and warm, I actually preferred to walk down to the open sinks in the old barn just to watch the birds in the rafters!

The camp site has two main fields as well as hard-standing areas for caravans and trailers.  They thoughtfully put large groups together in the front field, and those wanting a quieter experience like couples and small families can opt for the back field away from the road and the noisier groups - although they do have a no-noise after 11pm policy.

There is a little noise from Luton airport, but not enough to disturb and I have to say, even though it was a busy weekend this is one of the most peaceful campsites we've stayed on.  Even the birds delivered only a gentle chirrup in the mooring instead of a deafening dawn chorus!

This area around the Dunstable Downs can be windy (as was evident by the amount of people who'd brought kites along!).  It's popular with hangliders and it was quite breezy on the Saturday - a windbreak would have come in useful.  However, on the Sunday we were blessed with glorious sunshine and not a hint of wind or cloud.

All the staff we came into contact with were extremely helpful and there was always someone around if you had any problem at all.  We had a really great weekend and we'll definitely be back again.

Details:

Town Farm Camp Site
Ivinghoe, Bedfordshire

Facilities: Pitches for tents and caravans, electric hook ups available, male and female toilets, showers, disabled shower and toilet, washing-up stations, washing machine and tumble drier, chemical waste disposal, play area, fridges and freezers, tennis court, local information maps, open fires and BBQs allowed, dogs on lead permitted.

Linking up with Time Travellers.

Breaking Bad inspired DIY Father's Day Gift Idea

Inspired by Breaking Bad, the most brilliant TV show ever made, we've come up with this fun, simple and low-cost DIY Father's Day gift idea.

Given that Dad here is very sporty and can often be found wallowing in a borax bath to ease his aches and pains, I hope that this will not just be a funny gift, but practical too.

I've used herbal muscle therapy soak which I bought online to make this bath salt gift,  but you can pick up a box of Radox muscle soak salts for around £1 in supermarkets and pound shops.

You'll also need a colour printer, some light card, a cellophane bag and a stapler or glue stick and sticky tape.

You can print out the printable label here.

Fill your cellophane bag with the blue bath salts, fold over the top and secure with tape to prevent the contents leaking.

Then cut out your bag topper, fold and secure with glue or staples.

Simple.  Now he can make like Walter (although I'd prefer Jesse).

Apply to be Britain's Brightest Street

Solar energy is something we've discussed as a family many times. Now we've decided we'll be staying here for the long run - at least until our daughter has gone through school here, we're in a better position to make a decision on it but we have always been put off by the upfront cost.  We have had some big household expenses over the past 12 months, with a new kitchen, new bathroom planned and a garage conversion so the purse simply couldn't stretch to solar panel installation too.  Or so we thought.

SunEdison offer a program with no upfront costs, making it affordable to all. You'll start saving around 15% on your electricity bills right away so as long as your home is eligible, there's nothing to lose.  It's definitely worth another look for us and it seems silly not to harness the power of our greatest resource.

Are you Britain's Brightest Street?

Are you and your neighbours interested in saving cash, reducing your energy bills and helping do your bit towards the planet too?  If  you can get together with 5 - 20 other householders in your street you can apply to SunEdison to become #BritainsBrightestStreet.

Rally your local friends and you could be crowned Britain's Brightest Street and each received 10 year's worth of SunEdison's Energy Saver Plan at no charge, giving you savings of around 45% on your electricity bill for the next decade.

Sound good? 

Well, not only that but the winning street will also be able to nominate a local school or community project to receive free solar panels too.

There are a few criteria, you need to own your own property, it must be a house or a bungalow and the houses must have pitched roofs which face south, south-east or south-west.  Check out the website for the full details and how to apply and you, your neighbours, the community and the planet  as a whole could all benefit.

Get out and talk to the people who live on your street, it's a great way to bring your community together.

BLOGGER DISCLOSURE STATEMENT:

I'm working with BritMums and SunEdison talking about the #BritainsBrightestStreet search campaign. I have been compensated for my time. All editorial and opinions are my own. Visit http://bit.ly/1ID0enl for more information about #BritainsBrightestStreet search.