Over the weekend I was fortunate enough to find myself at the Beyond the Border Storytelling…read moreFestival in South Wales. After a busy day of heavy epics and traditional stories, I found myself gravitating towards the Little Top for a little top-up of family entertainment. My only ask was that I didn't have to concentrate too hard on whatever entertainment was going on in there. Just starting up was a show I'd heard nothing about before. 'The Dragon's Tale'. There on the stage was a fantastic array of props, from easels to a cart full of bits and pieces, which certainly managed to pique my interest. And then began the best puppet show I've ever seen. This is a retelling of the 'George and the Dragon' story, and is a wallowing pool of joyful imagination and hilarity for audiences of all ages. Incredibly intelligent and fresh, this is a show you're not likely to forget in a hurry. I've been to a number of these storytelling festivals throughout the years, and have a keen interest in narrative theory etc etc, so I'm quite a hard customer to surprise. I've heard all of the stories before, or else can quite easily see where they're going. Yet somehow this lovely little puppet show continually took me by surprise. It is most certainly worth checking out their website to find a performance near you.

The Art House is somewhere I make sure I frequent every time I'm in Southampton town centre. With…read moretheir vast selection of teas, coffees and vegan food - it's a great little place to grab something light in a pleasant atmosphere. I've never eaten a meal here however I've only heard good things, but what I will say is that their coffee is divine! You can choose from Italian and Colombian roast which comes in a cafetiere which keeps it fresher for longer. At the back of the shop you can find a small shop featuring clothes, jewellery, pins and many other kooky bits and bobs for reasonable prices. The teas, coffee, cakes and food are all reasonably priced too. Thoroughly recommended!

During a cheeky little surprise trip to Southampton last weekend, I was taken to The Art House by…read morethe birthday boy himself! This is definitely the coolest place we saw in Southampton! Nestled in the Cultural Quarter, it oozes intriguing art vibes with its quirky decor, vegan menu and vast array of teas and hot drinks. The staff are great, especially their amazing dress sense (not sure if they're just *that* cool or its part of a uniform?....) and the Southampton Fog I had was delicious! At the back of the cafe you'll find a funky little second hand shop, all you need to kit yourself out like a trendy staff member! And in the front they're turned the windows into exhibition booths for you to sit and have tea and watch the world go by (or be watched by the world!) This place is right up my street, if I lived in Southampton I'd definitely make it a regular haunt, and for those that are thinking of visiting this port city of recommended heading there as soon as you get off the train!

SeaCity Museum is an interesting stopover if you have some extra time in Southampton, but it is far…read morefrom a "must-see" attraction. As far as museums go, it is your typical mid-sized town museum, and certainly not to the scope of the Met or Museum of Natural History or anything of the sort. You're looking at perhaps an hour and a half to two hours tops, so do keep this in mind before forking over your hard earned £12.69 for entrance. The headliner is undoubtedly the Titanic exhibit, which if you are a fan of the history and/or the movie, might lure you in. Southampton is the port where the ship took its inaugural voyage from, so there is an obvious vested interest. However, if you are in town as the starting point for your own cruise, viewing this beforehand might be a bit unsettling. I suppose you could always come after you have returned though. The Titanic display is shown in a storybook format, introducing a smattering of crew members (some important, some random), and there is no mention or connection to the movie. Over the course of the exhibit, we are drawn to the characters, learning their lifestories and trials and tribulations, as if reading a book or watching a film. This is purposely done to invoke a rooting interest in how things ultimately pan out for them. One thing I do find odd is that only this handful of characters is emphasized, with nary a mention of the countless other crew members, nor the passengers. In any event, the storytelling is compelling, and the photographs, artifacts, detailed mock-ups, interactive booths, etc. are just enough to keep visitors entertained and educated, even those who were not huge fans to begin with, such as yours truly. The rest of the museum is much smaller, and mostly about Southampton itself. It is still definitely worth your time though, especially if this is your first time in town. One of the displays showcases the history of the city and its inhabitants over time, and the other focuses more on the transportation aspect in and out of the city, since Southampton has always been a traditional transit hub, be it for commerce or leisure. The detailed model ships are definitely a highlight. The only downer is the head curator being quite rude to guests. Before our time was up, she was barking at visitors to GTFO, and even gave us a countdown to how much time we had remaining. When I made it to the gift shop, she told everyone we had less than a minute, and to hurry up and buy, as if we were in Menace II Society. We understand that she wants to go home, and get back to doing whatever she's got going on, but there is absolutely no need for such a condescending tone to customers who paid good money to be there. It's not as if everyone was just milling about and loitering or anything. Any chance of a sale in their gift shop was completely nullified. The rest of the employees are great, however. They actually gave me that apologetic look, as if they already knew their boss was like this, so I am thankful to them. Fortunately, this didn't completely ruin the wonderful SeaCity Museum experience for me, but it certainly did leave a slight black mark. Cliff's Notes: Check it out of you are a fan of the Titanic (maybe not before your own cruise though) and/or Southampton history. Everyone else should just spend the time exploring Southampton itself instead.

If you are ever in Southampton this is one of the museums that you must go and see. This SeaCity…read moreMuseum is about the history of the Titanic and many of the ships that have come into Southampton. It has a long history and is overall fun to learn about. I had no idea how many cultures came from boats and into the harbor. It must have been a hard boat ride. But overall it brought different cultures into the UK. Also has a lot to do with the wars. It also shows in great detail the Titanic and how class differences were separated on the ship! It was pretty cool to learn a part of history.

As a first time visit I was far from impressed!! Yes the place is very clean (What you can see of…read moreit) so bloody dark. Jacuzzi far too small cheap and uncomfortable, plenty of stairs to climb, staff appear friendly but false. Not the place you'd want to go to on your own if you want friendliness far too "Stuffy" Sorry Brighton gets my vote by a long run!!!!