Unexpected Pleasures

As if the excitement that was a place in the FA Cup Semi Finals wasn't enough - there was more to the visit to Villa Park than just thinking that I'd have to be declared insane before trying the dogburgers on offer from the standard footie-identikit vendors scattered around.

Being a travelling footie fan meant that due to the absence of any Travel Jonahs on the way up to Villa, this happy hammer had around 4 hours to kill before turnstyles opened and the "greatest cup competition in the world" waddled into life - ahem, that flaming great that our match was on naffing Sky and not the beeb... So with the twin missions of finding something to do for a few hours and the growing need for a pee, the serendipitious find that is Aston Hall was truly welcome.

This is a free, let me repeat free, local stately home occupied by the Holte family (Holte End linkage) and also by James Watt Jnr, son of the engineer. The current Villa Ground is part of the fishponds and cesspools area from the great house and is worth a visit in it's own right. And not just because I needed a "comfort break" - although the guide had clocked that the average woman clad in team scarf and a sightly manic look in her eyes might welcome the update on facilities.

It's fantastic! Any fans wanting to kill time pre match v Villa, head up the Trinity Road and just for once, emphasise with life in a different era. The house is one of the Community Funded museums of Birmingham and is less nobby then the National Trust properties I've visited, with the trustees actually enthusiastic about what they are showing you and happy to point out small details. OK, it's not everyone's cup of tea (did I mention that coffee is 90p a cup and served in a proper mug) but for an unexpected find on a potentially grim afternoon, it's brill. Go see it, hunt out the remanents of the giant turtle, see if you can identify the bed ark and restain your companion from pinging an anicent fishbowl marked "Do Not Touch"

If you are into Jacobean architecture and lifestyle, this is a real find - and if you aren't, then the guides are used to fans wandering in with a rather fixed look in their eyes after a long coach journey.

And the football? We won. Cardiff here we come, recommendations for cultural gems welcomed.