Out and about: Hinton Ampner in Hampshire

I'm a creature of habit and must confess that I have certain routines that I follow, especially at weekends when you've got all the time in the world: long morning workout, Starbucks, a bit of shopping etc. But as much as I like that routine, I'm always up for a day trip out somewhere - it's something different, you'll discover new places and things to do, a great opportunity to do some photography and it's almost like having a mini holiday. It doesn't even have to be great weather but of course it's a welcome bonus when it is, and when we went to Hinton Ampner a few weeks ago, the sun was out and it was a beautiful early summer day - so out with the sandals and show off those colorful, gem covered toe nails. Hinton Ampner is a beautiful manor in the rolling Hampshire countryside with lush colorful and romantic gardens, like something straight out of a Jane Austen novel. You can have a look inside the elegant and tasteful house, picture yourself snuggled up in front one of the gorgeous fireplaces or have a wander through the park or gardens before either heading for the tea room (yep, that's me) or enjoy a picnic looking out over the country side and then finish off with buying some locally made delicacies - cider, wine, jams, relishes and biscuits, everything you need for an evening snack. Needless to say Happy Snapper in me came out and took some photos that I'm showing today and I really hope you like them!

It's a lovely place that I highly recommend for a relaxing few hours out and about, and if like me you enjoy discovering places like this, you might want to invest in a National Trust Membership which gives you "free" (not counting the membership fee) access to more than 500 gorgeous mansion, parks and gardens in the UK, of which a lot of them have been used as filming locations and there are usually lots of interesting activities going on too.