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Baboli Gardens and the Palazzo Pitti

Posted in Historical, It's my life, My European travels, project 101, Travel, UNESCO Heritage Sites, tagged blogging, medici family florence, palazzo pitti baboli gardens florence, project 101, things to see and do in florence italy, Travel, travel boggers, travel diaries, UNESCO World Heritage Site, unesco world heritage sites italy, wordpress, writing on May 21, 2017| 1 Comment »

Hello, you’re back. This is a continuation of my one day in Florence adventure. So yes, the Baboli Gardens and Palazzo Pitti. May I just say that if you ever decide to visit this extraordinary location, enter the gardens via the Fort Belvedere entrance at the top of the hill. It’s a heck of a climb and I was puffing by the time I got there, but what I found is that the story of the place seemed to unfold before me as I walked. To think that I very nearly, and only because I had no idea of where I was and the significance of the place, didn’t go in. The entrance fee is not really that much but since I hadn’t heard of the place, I almost decided against it. The cashier gave me a flyer on request and on opening it, my decision was made…..do go, it’s fantastic.

the wonderful city of Florence viewed from the Baboli gardens, Florence

I have no idea where to start, there is so much to tell and see. The Medici were a very powerful family in their time and produced Popes and Princesses. Their wealth was extraordinary and they spent it well. The interior of the palace is quite simply breathtaking. The exquisite paintings that cover the walls and ceiling; just unbelievable.

interior of Palazzo Pitti; home of the Medici family

Instead of much dialogue I’ll just post some photos for you to enjoy. Suffice to say I had a marvellous few hours wandering about and admiring this fantastic legacy left for us to enjoy from 5 centuries ago! Wow.

In one of the rooms there’s a double padded bench where you can sit to look at the paintings on the walls…much like they have in museums…well I lay across them looking up at the ceiling in one of the rooms. It was so exquisite and so breath-taking that you simply had to just lie there and look at it. All too soon I had a few companions…seems my idea took off 😉

A seriously stupendous place. I would love to go back again just to look at those ceilings. I know I took loads of photos….and I’m really glad I did. You forget the details all too soon other wise. The remnants of clothing that you can see in the images are actual clothes worn by the Medici’s in the 16th century. Now that is mind-blowing. Imagine how fragile they must be. What a terrific heritage.

The Baboli Gardens and Palazzo Pitti are a UNESCO World Heritage Site; quite rightly so.

If you’re interested to find out more about the Medici, I have located this link. Happy reading.

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One day in Florence

Posted in Fun Stuff, Historical, Holidays, It's my life, My European travels, project 101, Travel, UNESCO Heritage Sites, tagged Baboli Gardens and the Palazzo Pitti, blogging, caffe dei fossi florence, Florence, Forte di Belvedere Florence Italy, one day in florence, ponte vecchio florence, Santa Maria del Carmine Church, The Brancacci Chapel in Santa Maria del Carmine, Travel, travel bloggers, travel diaries, visit florence, wordpress, writing on May 21, 2017| 5 Comments »

The title may be a bit misleading; ‘one day in Florence’, because I was there for 7 days in total, 3 days of which I used to take days trips to San Gigmignano (via Poggibonsi), Siena and Lucca. But today (22/04/17) was my first full day in Florence and I was ready to explore!

the wonderful streets of Florence

Quite tired from all the travel, and extensive walking I had done in Pisa I slept in, had a leisurely cup of tea in bed with a biscuit, then up and dressed and by 09:30 I was out the door. I avoided going down in the lift, I just didn’t trust it really (although by the time I got back in that evening 9.5 hours later, I didn’t have any such qualms!! After all the apartment was on the 3RD FLOOR!!! LOL

the hood where I stayed; gorgeous weather! Love the street names; Via Ventiquattro Maggio – sounds so romantic

The day had dawned bright and blue; such blue skies on a regular basis…what bliss! I took a photo of the street where I was staying just so I’d have some reference for my return, and with mapmywalk on I set off at a brisk pace – I had a city to explore. By now of course I knew my way, and within 25 minutes I was back at the train station. (platform 16 led down to the street next to the fort where the buses congregate, and is enroute to where I was staying – in case you wondered 😉 )

Before too long I was back in front of the wonderful Santa Maria Novelle Church, and couldn’t believe my eyes at the crowds! By now, feeling a tad peckish, I looked around for somewhere to eat. To my delight I found a tiny little cafe just a few minutes walk from the church piazza; Caffe Dei Fossi which then became my first stop every morning I was in Florence.

Santa Maria Novella, scenes of the square and Caffe Dei Fossi

Una cappucino e croissant, mille grazie 🙂 See I can speak Italian hahahaha Just don’t answer me in Italian….. Actually jokes aside, their croissants were A.MAZ.ING!! Filled to bursting with pistachio creme or Nutella (OMG!!) or custard creme, the next day I had 2 instead of just one. Btw, this cafe was excellent value for money. One cappucino and a croissant = 2 euro!!! Wow. Highly recommend. Of course, as I was soon to learn, they don’t do ‘grande’ in Italy!! I suspect that the selection of sizes that we get in USA & UK are a popular American coffee chain’s (no names mentioned) marketing ploy to make bigger profits. So yeah, no grande, but we did eventually agree on a bigger glass cup for an extra 0.50 cents.

Moving on. After the heavenly delight of the croissant I set off for the river. I had thankfully found the direct route and now I reached it within a few minutes. Oh how beautiful it is.

the River Arno, Florence on a stunning day looking downstream. looking upstream = clouds!! and behind me, looking different to last night, what became ‘my point of reference’ – Piazza Carlo Goldoni

My curiosity was piqued by a tower I could see ‘towering’ above the buildings that lined the banks of the river on the opposite side so putting on my navigating hat I set off. I seldom use any form of map or GPS, preferring instead to get lost…hahaha. But oh the places I found on my meanderings. But first I made my way upstream towards the Ponte Vecchio. I was keen to see if I felt differently about my impressions from the previous night….sadly I didn’t 😦 Ohhhh, such a disappointment. It’s a lovely enough bridge, but nothing at all that I was expecting. Lined with gold and silver and jewellery stores, it just seemed…ordinary really. The centre of the bridge is terrific, quite beautiful really and the ‘shops’ that make up the rest of the bridge are quite intriguing. But I have to say that it wasn;t at all what it looks like in photos. Perhaps the photos have been photoshopped!!

The world-famous Ponte Vecchio that bridges the River Arno in Florence, Italy

Now, if we were talking about the view…….well, what more could you want? Stunning.

stunning view downstream of the River Arno from the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Italy

Still, here I was, in Florence standing in front of one of the most famous bridges in the world, so without further ado I crossed over and into the maze of streets beyond. Oh how I love the architecture in Italy. They really have got the colour scheme and shabby chic down to a T!!. Stunning.

shabby chic. I adore the architecture in Italy. France is lovely, elegant and cold, but Italian architecture feels like a warm embrace.

I made my way through the streets, meandering here and there. I love the scooters that whizz by…so Italy. The buildings are enchanting, and so very old. Oh the stories they could tell. Eventually I found myself at the edge of a massive piazza and realised I had found the church with the dome I had noticed earlier further down the river. This turned out to be the fabulous Chiesa di Santa Maria del Carmine.

piazza del carmine and santa maria del carmine

Piazza del Carmine and the Santa Maria del Carmine Church which belongs to the Carmelite order. Est 1296 it suffered a devastating fire in 1771. Now restored.

I bought a ticket to see the Cappella Brancacci; a small chapel within the Santa Maria del Carmine Church, with absolutely no idea what it was I was about to see. Wow, sometimes it pays to just not know. That way you form no perceptions. Breath-taking, mesmerising, exquisite…oh I could list so many superlatives, but none of them would come close to describing the sheer beauty of these frescoes…

The Brancacci Chapel in Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence, Italy

I spent ages here just looking. So much detail, such beauty. Amazing. I have inserted a link here to their official website which gives you more details, opening times and cost. I can highly recommend that you visit if in Florence, especially if you enjoy the exquisite art of the old masters. These are quite simply exquisite. Besides the chapel, there is the evocative Room of the Last Supper just off the courtyard….

santa maria del carmine florence the last supper

Room of The Last Supper by Alessandro Allori – Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence.

The rest of the church’s interior is just beautiful. There was a service going on while I was there and sadly I missed visiting. Nonetheless what I could see was wonderful.

the painted dome and interior of Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence

At last I tore myself away and set off back through the streets and along the riverbank back towards the Ponte Veccho.

strolling the streets of Florence in Italy

When I got there I spent a short time walking around in a circle (yeah I know LOL) and kinda like north, south, east, west which way should I go? I eventually settled on up!! Never one to take the easy route to wherever it was I was going, I started waking along Costa S. Giorgio and street the went up and up and up and up some more!! Whew!!

as I climbed higher and higher, little did I know what I was to discover at the top…ever heard of the Baboli Gardens? LOL I hadn’t….

With absolutely no idea of what I would find, as my feet took me further and further until suddenly there before me was Forte di Belvedere!

The Forte di Belvedere or Fortezza di Santa Maria in San Giorgio del Belvedere (often called simply Belvedere) is a fortification in Florence, designed & built by Bernardo Buontalenti over a 5-year period, between 1590 & 1595, by order of Grand Duke Ferdinando I de’ Medici

Well well well. Who knew. I guess it makes sense to do real proper research before visiting instead of a cursory sweep of ‘things to do in Florence’….however, I find it thrilling to discover these places by accident! What I was discovering more and more was the influence of the Medici family on Florence in particular and how far-reaching their empire. I remember learning about the Medici in school, so it was fascinating to be finding these places….little did I know what was just around the corner…..

Palazzo Pitti – home of the Medici family – The House of Medici was an Italian banking family, political dynasty and later royal house that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de’ Medici in the Republic of Florence during the first half of the 15th C

The Baboli Gardens and the Palazzo Pitti. A location that turned out to be not only the home of the Medicis but is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, OMG!!! I was thrilled when I discovered that. Now I could add another UNESCO site to Project 101…Bonus!!!!

Come this way as I show you more about Palazzo Pitti and the Medici….post to follow soon.

P.s. if you’d like to follow my travels around the UK and Europe, connect via instagram and say hello.. My next adventure is Belfast and the Giant’s Causeway in Co. Antrim. N.Ireland.

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And so to Florence

Posted in Historical, Holidays, It's my life, My European travels, project 101, UNESCO Heritage Sites, tagged a tuscan sunset, ponte vecchio florence, river arno florence, santa maria novella florence, visit florence italy on May 20, 2017| Leave a Comment »

Finally, and with great difficulty, I tore myself away from Pisa. Collecting my bag from the Pensione Helvetia (where quite frankly I could easily have stayed…I love it so much), I said goodbye to the cat and started my walk to the station.

the house cat at Pensione Helvetia

It’s a mere 25-30 minutes walk and although Michel had said I should get the bus, there was no way I was going to pass up the opportunity for another walk through the streets of Pisa 🙂 So much to see!!

a walk through the streets of Pisa

First I walked past the Piazza de Miracole to say my good byes to the Tower (gosh I really love that building!) and then heading south (I think) I made my way to the river and onto the station. The buildings in Pisa are so beautiful. Worn and tatty with paint peeling, shutters loose on their hinges, the plaster falling off the walls in chucks, it has the aura of an ancient Dowager, her beauty fading as she ages, the creams and lotions she applies no longer hiding the sagging lines of her skin. But oh how pretty she is with her gaily decorated walls and flower boxes filled to the brim with brightly coloured flowers dancing in the breeze. I was truly enchanted. Perhaps I was wearing rose-tinted glasses!

some of the fabulous and very old buildings in Pisa

I reached the station in no time at all and since I had already bought my ticket previously I made my way to the platform and onto the train. I love those double-decker trains. I remember we first encountered them in Amsterdam. Super cool to sit on the top deck…brilliant views as you travel.

Stazione Pisa Centrale

Florence…I’m on my way. I was really keen to visit the Ponte Vecchio and watch my first Tuscan sunset……I was not disappointed.

I finally arrived at the SMN Florence Stazione and that’s when the stress began. The host at the AirBnB had said to take the Number 33 bus and after about 10 minutes and 4 stops to get off. Well thankfully I had mapmywalk on and I was able to watch our progress in real time….it was more like 25 minutes and 10 stops!!! Urgh. Seriously. I bet he never uses the bus. Anyway we had ‘le grand tour’ of Florence, although I was way too stressed to appreciate it. Finally we reached the point where I was meant to get off but the driver didn’t stop!!! He’d forgotten about my request. Seriously dude!! Anyway, I reminded him and voila, he just stopped right where we were, and with no further ado opened the doors and I got off. hell would freeze over before a London bus driver would do that!!!

And there it was the road where I would be staying and before long I found Number 77. Oh gosh!! LOL. I wish you could have seen the lift!!! It was ancient. You could probably fit 3 people in with a hell of a squeeze, but no suitcases. Gladly I was on my own. It’s one of those lifts where you have to first open the gate that slides back and then you have to open the two interior doors, step inside and the do the reverse. Hilarious.

The apartment was terrific. My bedroom to die for. I had the most marvellous bed that proved to be so comfortable that I slept like a baby every night.

I used AirBnB again for my stay in Florence. This bed was amazing

Huge kitchen, wide passages and then horror of horrors….a communal bathroom with only 2 basins and 2 toilets and the smallest shower I have EVER seen in my life… to accommodate up to 10 people. The apartment had 6 double bedrooms.!! And when I say the shower was small…I mean VERY small. I couldn’t even undress properly there was so little space. Oh well. Since I am preparing for the Camino…this would be good practice. Getting used to communal bathrooms and tiny showers. LOL

I hardly put my bag down, tested the bed, took the obligatory photos and then after trying to extricate myself from my AirBnB hosts most appreciated, very useful and kind, but long-winded explanation of ‘places to go and what to see’ I finally managed to get myself out the door. Finding my way back to the station was easy peasy. It was no more than a 20 minute walk and fairly direct. If only he had given me proper directions…. anyway. I was here, in Florence and on my way to explore. There was a seriously awesome fort just across the way from the station, but for some reason I just never got to visit it!!

my route to the station

Wow, what an amazing city. Firstly, never just plunge into the maze that are the streets of Florence. They do not go in a straight line, they twist and turn and while you may think you’re going in one direction….you’re probably wrong.

the streets do not always go in a straight line, and even when they do…not necessarily in the direction you want to go

Well I was, I did and I got so muddled. It took ages to find the river….

But finally!!! There it was. Just as the sun was starting to sink into the horizon I reached the river.

sunset in Florence – not the Ponte Vecchio

And there, just upstream from where I was standing and finally…Ponte Vecchio. Hoorah!!! I had wanted to see this bridge for ever such a long time, it was one of the main reasons I wanted to visit Florence at all.

Ponte Vecchio, Florence – that most famous of bridges

As I got closer I noticed that there was a massive crowd in the middle of the bridge; all waiting to watch the sun set. Apparently this is the ‘done thing’. Well, as it turned out, sometimes the dream is better than the reality. The bridge was not at all what I had expected (?) and was sadly quite a let down. The Rialto Bridge in Venice was so much more than I had expected, but I’m afraid the Ponte Vecchio did not live up to my expectations. But, hey I was there, the sun was going down and I made my way up and onto the bridge. I managed to squeeze into a tiny space at the front when some people moved off and there it was…my first Tuscan sunset. Stunning.

Ponte Vechhio, Florence

After that I made my way back along the river to the bridge/piazza where I had first exited the maze and this time found a more direct route back to the station. And there it was that I discovered the fabulous Santa Maria Novella Church. OhMyWord!!! I could only stand and stare. It is so beautiful. Closed by then of course, it was already after 8pm, but I determined that I would be back as soon as possible to visit it.

The ethereal Santa Maria Novella, Florence

Walking the streets of Florence was amazing. I felt so safe and never threatened in any way, despite the lateness of the hour. Although there are a lot of North African touts around selling those ubiquitous selfie sticks and various other bits of fake tat, I just walked boldly on and with a cursory No, grazie and made no eye contact. I’m pretty good at just staring ahead and walking on. They left me alone.

And so my first experience of Florence was drawing to an end as the day turned into night. How thrilling to finally be here.

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Project 101

Posted in around the UK, Castles of UK and Ireland, cities and towns of the UK, Domesday Villages of England, Fun Stuff, Historical, historical houses of the uk, It's my life, memories of days gone by, My European travels, Palaces and castles in UK, project 101, seaside towns of Britain, Travel, UNESCO Heritage Sites, tagged blogging, castles of the uk, cathedrals of the world, cities of the world, countries I have visited, domesday book villages of england, https://www.instagram.com/notjustagranny/, Inspiration, islands, join me on instagram, not just a granny travels, notjustagranny, project 101, Travel, UNESCO World Heritage Sites on May 19, 2017| 23 Comments »

Many years ago, back in the days when I still actually ‘liked’ Facebook and set up my profile (2007), I filled in one of those ‘where have you been in the world’ online maps. At the time I was already living in the UK and had been for a few years, so had had the opportunity to travel to quite a few places.

Map by andrewfahmy on Reddit

While I was pinning names I realised that not only had I visited quite a few countries, but I had also visited quite a few islands…wow, awesome. And so an idea was born; I would visit 100 islands before I die. Okay!! So since I’m not and wasn’t then, planning on dying in the near future, I set about compiling a list of islands I would still like to visit, and since the UK has 6,289 (LOL) I was spoiled for choice. However, since I also wanted to visit Europe, the scope for achieving my goal widened substantially. Did you know that Norway has 240,000 islands, islets, reefs, coral reefs and cays? Now that…would take me quite a few years then!!! As if!!
Jump forward a few years (almost a decade) and subsequent to my stay on the Isle of Wight in January this year where I discovered the Domesday Village of Nettlestone amongst others, an idea was born! Supported by a previous list of the many many villages and towns I’ve visited in the UK since 2007 in my capacity as a Carer for the Elderly, and of course all my holidays; in the UK and abroad, I started thinking……..
I realised that not only had I unknowingly visited many other Domesday villages, but I had during my travels visited a great number of castles, cathedrals, cities, most of the counties in England and Ireland, palaces, famous houses, a random selection of rivers, and to my surprise, a substantial number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites!!! Wow, I had not realised this.
Thus a new list was compiled and Project 101 was born….100 is so yesterday!! LOL.

I immediately set about updating the list with these new categories and updating the details of those I had already visited or been to – this is Project 101; to visit 101 in each of these categories before I die….whenever that may be. I have a separate list of places still to visit. Clearly some categories won’t cater to my 101 target, like the counties of England for instance…only 48, so not much chance there then, but combine them with Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and the numbers add up ;).

I’m planning (hoping) to write about each of these places, but this will take quite a while as I have to go back in time to find the photos, do some research and write the article….so to kick things off, I’ll start with my more recent travels which to my delight was Italy.

I dreamed of Florence, and Pisa, Siena, San Gimignano and Lucca 😉 all listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites except with the possible exception of Lucca.

With one trip I was able to visit 5 or 6 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, 5 cathedral cities and by extension their cathedrals, 4 or 5 walled cities, famous gardens and a river. I’ve done research on Lucca and in google searches it comes up, but when I go to the UNESCO site it’s not listed. Further research will be needed… Some places just make it easy; cathedral city/cathedral/UNESCO site(s)/famous house(s)/palace(s)/river……think London & Florence 😉 6 birds with one visit LOL.

Of course now that I have started this blessed list my mind is like……’hmmmm, should I add Roman cities to the Project’? Or maybe churches…..and then I remember just HOW MANY churches I have indeed visited in the last 15 years alone….and my head says NO NO NO!!! So for now (?) here are the categories I’ve settled on…for now 😉 I’ve haven’t listed any of the places in chronological order; that would just be too time consuming. So in no particular order….. these are the places I’ve already been to; looks like I have some catching up to do to visit 101 in each category….now where’s that campervan?!!

ISLANDS (17)
United Kingdom
Portsea Island – UK
Ireland
Arran Islands
Manhattan – USA
Long Island – USA
Sanibel – USA
Venice – Italy
Torcello – Italy
Burano – Italy
Murano – Italy
Providence – Bahamas
Île de la Cité – Paris
Bruges – Belgium
Isle of Skye – Scotland
Iceland
Isle of Wight – UK

COUNTRIES (16)
South Africa
Swaziland
England
Ireland
N.Ireland
Scotland
Wales
United States of America
Bahamas
Italy
France
Netherlands
Belgium
Gibraltar
Portugal
Spain

U.K. COUNTIES
ENGLAND (29)
Greater London (I’ve lived in or visited 25 of the 33 boroughs, including City of London)
Hampshire
Surrey
Norfolk
Suffolk
Buckinghamshire
Cambridgeshire
Oxfordshire
Devon
Cornwall
Kent
Hertfordshire
Herefordshire
Lancashire
Warwickshire
Worcestershire
Bedfordshire
Berkshire
Dorset
Middlesex (now considered part of Greater London)
Shropshire
Somerset
Wiltshire
East Sussex
West Sussex
Essex
Gloucestershire
Bristol
Isle of Wight

SCOTLAND (5)
Edinburgh/Midlothian
Inverness
Moray
Fife
Ross and Cromarty

WALES (6)
Pembrokeshire
Cardiff
Swansea
Newport
Powys
Gwynedd

N. IRELAND (3)
Armagh
Down
Antrim

Republic of IRELAND (14)
Dublin
Wicklow
Galway
Clare
Meath
Cork
Kilkenny
Waterford
Wexford
Kerry
Limerick
Tipperary
Mayo
Donegal

CATHEDRAL CITIES (32)
London
Westminster
Winchester
Dublin
Belfast
Edinburgh
Inverness
Brussels
Antwerp
Canterbury
Rijkavik
Chichester
Oxford
Worcester
St David’s
Venice
Verona
Salisbury
Exeter
Chichester
Wells
Pisa
Florence
San Gimignano
Siena
Lucca
Rochester
Porto
Coimbra
Viana do Castelo
Santiago
Barcelona

CATHEDRALS (32)
St Paul’s Cathedral – London
Southwark Cathedral – London
St George’s Cathedral – London
Westminster Cathedral – London
Worcester Cathedral – England
St David’s Cathedral – Wales
Inverness Cathedral – Scotland
St Patrick’s Cathedral – Dublin, Ireland
Christ Church Cathedral – Dublin, Ireland
Glendalough Cathedral – Co. Wicklow, Ireland
Exeter Cathedral – England
Winchester Cathedral – England
Chichester Cathedral – England
Christ Church, Oxford – Oxfordshire, England
Salisbury Cathedral – England
St Mark’s Basilica – Venice
Notre Dame Basilica – Paris
Canterbury Cathedral – Kent, England
Wells Cathedral – Somerset, England
Duomo Santa Maria Assunta – Pisa, Italy
Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore – Florence, Italy
Collegiata di Santa Maria Assunta – Duomo di San Gimignano, Italy
Duomo di Siena – Italy
Duomo di Lucca, Cattedrale di San Martino – Italy
St Anne’s Cathedral – Belfast, N.Ireland
Rochester – Kent, England
The Cathedral Church of Our Lady and St Philip Howard – Arundel
Se Catedral – Porto, Portugal
Sé Velha – Coimbra, Portugal
Basilica of Santa Luzia – Viana do Castelo, Portugal
Santiago de Compostela – Santiago, Spain
Sagrada Familia – Barcelona, Spain

ABBEYS (11)
Westminster Abbey – City of Westminster, London, England
Sherbourne Abbey – Dorset, England
Shaftesbury Abbey – Dorset, England
Bury St Edmunds – Suffolk, England
Great Malvern (Priory) – Worcestershire, England
St Mary’s – Trim, Ireland
Kylemore Abbey – Galway, Ireland
Quarr Abbey – Isle of Wight, England
Torre Abbey – Torquay, England
Buildwas Abbey – Shropshire, England
Abbey church of St Mary and St Helena – Elstow, Bedfordshire

I visited so many abbeys, priories, friaries and monasteries in Ireland that I’ve quite lost track…so if I can I will one day try to revisit as many as possible 🙂

DOMESDAY towns & villages (108) – Domesday Book is a manuscript record of the “Great Survey” of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William the Conqueror. My list needs updating; research still being done LOL Admittedly when I compiled this list it surprised me that I had already been to so many!

Ashford – Kent
Ayot St Lawrence – Hertfordshire
Bath – Wiltshire
Battersea (London) – Surrey
Bermondsey (London) – Surrey
Brading – Isle of Wight
Bressingham – Norfolk
Blackford – Somerset
Bodiam – Sussex
Bosham – West Sussex
Bradford-on-Avon – Wiltshire
Brighton – Sussex
Bristol – Somerset
Bromley – Kent
Bury St Edmunds – Suffolk
Bushey – Hertfordshire
Cambridge – Cambridgeshire
Canterbury – Kent
Castle Cary – Somerset
Castle Combe – Wiltshire
Chippenham – Suffolk
Cottenham – Somerset
Deal – Kent
Dover – Kent
Eltham – London
Epsom – Surrey
Fishbourne – Sussex
Godalming – Surrey
Gravesend – Kent
Greenwich – London
Hastings – Kent
Hatfield – Herefordshire
Hawkhurst – Kent
Holborn (London) – Middlesex
Hythe – Kent
Ingatestone – Essex
Kennett – Somerset
Kingston – Surrey
Lambeth (London) – Surrey
Lavenham – Suffolk
Lenham – Kent
Limpsfield – Surrey
London – City of
Maidstone – Kent
Margate – Kent
Meon – Hampshire
Meopham – Kent
Mortlake – Surrey
Nettlestone – Isle of Wight
North Cadbury – Somerset
Norwich – Norfolk
Oxford – Oxfordshire
Oxted – Surrey
Pakenham – Suffolk
Petersham – Surrey
Puckpool – Isle of Wight
Queen Camel – Somerset
Rochester – Kent
Romney Marsh – Kent
Rye – Sussex
Sandown – Isle of Wight
Sandwich – Kent
Shanklin – Isle of Wight
Shaftesbury – Dorset
Sherbourne – Dorset
Sidmouth – Devon
South Cadbury – Somerset
Southwark (London) – Surrey
Sparkford – Somerset
St Albans – Hertfordshire
Stanmore – Middlesex
Stoke Newington (London) – Middlesex
Stoke Trister – Somerset
St Pancras (London) – Middlesex
Stratford-Upon-Avon – Warwickshire
Sundridge – Kent
Tatsfield – Surrey
Templecombe – Somerset
Thames Ditton – Surrey
Titsey – Surrey
Tonbridge – Kent
Trumpington – Cambridgeshire
Tudeley – Kent
Wells – Somerset
Weobley – Herefordshire
West Camel – Somerset
West Meon – Hampshire
Westerham – Surrey
Westminster (London) – Middlesex
Weybridge – Surrey
Whitstable – Kent
Wincanton – Somerset
Winchester – Hampshire
Windsor – Surrey
Woolston – Somerset
Worcester – Worcestershire
Headcorn – Kent
Chatham – Kent
Gillingham – Kent
Rainham – Kent
Newington – Kent
Teynham – Kent
Ospringe – Kent
Faversham – Kent
Arundel – West Sussex
Bromham – Bedfordshire
Elstow – Bedfordshire
Chirbury – Shropshire

CASTLES (42)
Cape Town – South Africa
Dublin – Ireland
Trim – Ireland
Blarney – Ireland
Clontarf – Ireland
Dalkey – Ireland
Howth – Ireland
Kilkenny Castle – Ireland
King John’s Castle – Ireland
Rock of Cashel – Ireland
Malahide – Ireland
Waterford – Ireland
Tower of London – England
Edinburgh – Scotland
Urquhart – Scotland
Eilean Donan – Scotland
Deal – England
Dover – England
Midhurst – England
Sherbourne – England
Rochester – England
Canterbury – Engalnd
Pembroke – Wales
Tonbridge – England
Hever – England
Warwick – England
Leeds – England
Bodiam – England
Oxford – England
Windsor – England
Hastings – England
Rye (Ypres Tower) – England
St Briavels – England
Carisbrooke – Isle of Wight
Rocca Scaligera – Sirmione, Italy
Castelvecchio – Verona, Italy
Dunluce – Antrim, N.Ireland
Belfast Castle – Belfast, N.Ireland
Arundel – West Sussex
Castell de Montjuïc – Barcelona, Spain
Montgomery – Powys, Wales
Caenarfon – Gwynedd, Wales

PALACES (20)
Buckingham Palace – City of Westminster, Great London
Hampton Court Palace – Hampton Court, England
Kew Palace – Kew, London
Windsor Palace – Windsor, England
Burlington House – City of Westminster, London
Westminster Palace – City of Westminster, London
Banqueting House (remains of Whitehall Palace) – City of Westminster, London
St James’s Palace – City of Westminster, London
Richmond Palace – Richmond (now a private residence), Greater London
Lambeth Palace – Lambeth, London
Winchester Palace – Southwark, London
Tower of London – Tower Hamlets/City of London, London
Kensington Palace – City of Westminster, London
The Old Palace – Hatfield (home to Elizabeth I)
Eltham Palace – Royal Borough of Greenwich, Greater London
Palace of Versailles – France
The Doges Palace – Venice, Italy
Palazzo dei Cavalieri – Knights’ Square, Pisa, Italy
Palazzo Pitti – Florence, Italy
Palazzo Vecchio – Florence

FAMOUS HOUSES (19)
Jan Smuts House – Transvaal, South Africa
Anne Franks House – Amsterdam, Netherlands
Burlington House – City of Westminster, Greater London
Chartwell (Winston Churchill) – Kent, England
Ham House – Ham, Greater London
Strawberry Hill House (Horace Walpole) – Twickenham, London Borough of Richmond upon Thames
Downe House (Charles Darwin) – Kent, England
Benjamin Franklin’s House – City of Westminster, Greater London
Marble Hill House (Henriette Howard) – Twickenham, London Borough of Richmond upon Thames
The Queens House – Royal Borough of Greenwich, London
Bleak House (Charles Dickens) – Broadstairs, Kent
Turner House (JMW Turner) – Twickenham, London Borough of Richmond upon Thames
Apsley House – (1st Duke of Wellington) – City of Westminster, Greater London
Kenwood House (William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield) – Hampstead, Greater London
Hatfield House (Marquess and Marchioness of Salisbury) – Hertfordshire, England
Shakespeare’s House (William Shakespeare) – Stratford Upon Avon, England
Keats House (John Keats) – Hampstead, Greater London
Chiswick House (Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington) – Chiswick, Greater London
Darby Houses – Ironbridge, Shropshire

UNESCO World Heritage Sites (31)
Venice and it’s lagoon – Italy
City of Verona – Italy
Pinvellir National Park – Iceland
Historic Centre of Bruges – Belgium
Palace and Park of Versailles – France
Cathedral of Notre Dame – Paris, France
Paris; Banks of the Siene
17th century Canal Ring Area of Amsterdam inside the Singelgracht – Netherlands
City of Bath – England
Stonehenge – England
Palace of Westminster – London, England
Westminster Abbey – London, England
Canterbury Cathedral – England
Tower of London – London, England
Old and New Towns of – Scotland
Maritime Greenwich – London
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew London
Everglades National Park – Florida, USA
Piazza del Duomo – Pisa, Italy
Baboli Gardens & Palazzo Pitti – Florence, Italy
The Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore – Florence, Italy
Historic centre of Siena – Italy
Historic centre of Florence – Italy
Historic centre of San Gimignano – Italy
Historic city of Lucca – (although this is mentioned as a UNESCO site, I can’t find it listed)
Giant’s Causeway – Co. Antrim, N.Ireland
Ironbridge Gorge – Shropshire
Porto: Historic Centre of Oporto, Luiz I Bridge and Monastery of Serra do Pilar – Porto, Portugal
University of Coimbra – Alta and Sofia – Coimbra, Portugal
Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela – Santiago, Spain
Sagrada Familia Cathedral – Barcelona, Spain

WALLED CITIES (43)
Dublin – Ireland
Cashel – Ireland
Cork – Ireland
Galway – Ireland
Kilkenny – Ireland
Trim – Ireland
Waterford – Ireland
Wexford – Ireland
City of London – London
Exeter – England
Canterbury – England
Winchester – England
Chichester – England
Oxford – England
Rochester – England
Rye – England
Hastings – England
Salisbury – England
Warwick – England
Worcester – England
Bristol – England
Warwick – England
Worcester – England
Edinburgh – Scotland
St Andrews – Scotland
Pembroke – Wales
Verona – Italy
Amsterdam – Netherlands
Gouda – Netherlands
Paris – France
Gibraltar – British Overseas Territory
Brussels – Belgium
Pisa – Italy
Florence – Italy
San Gimignano – Italy
Siena – Italy
Lucca – Italy
Porto – Portugal
Coimbra – Portugal
Caminha – Portugal
Valenca – Portugal
Tui – Spain
Barcelona – Spain

RIVERS I’VE MET ALONG THE WAY (54)
Orange River – South Africa
Vaal River – South Africa
Great Kei River – South Africa
Storms River – South Africa
Sabie River – South Africa
Klip River – South Africa
Jukskei River – South Africa
Blyde River – South Africa
River Thames – London
Eden – England
Avon – England
Spey – Scotland
Ness – Scotland
Medway – England
Severn – England
Wye – England
Yealm – England
Lea – England
Exe – England
Wey – England
Stour – England
Cherwell – England
Cam – England
Itchen – England
Dart – England
Hudson River – USA
East River – USA
Tennessee – USA
Seine – Paris
Liffey – Dublin, Ireland
Suir – Co. Waterford, Ireland
Lee – Co. Cork, Ireland
Boyne – Co. Meath, Ireland
Shannon – Co. Clare, Ireland
Corrib – Galway, Ireland
Arno – Pisa and Florence – Italy
Lagan – Belfast, N.Ireland
River Bush – Bushmills, N.Ireland
River Arun – West Sussex
River Great Ouse – Bedfordshire
River Duoro – Porto, Portugal
Mondego River – Coimbra, Portugal
Leça River – Matasinhos, Portugal
River Ave – Vila do Conde, Portugal
Cávado River – Esposende, Portugal
Lima River – Viana do Castelo, Portugal
Rio do Paco – Portugal
Minho River – Caminha, Portugal
Miño River – Tui, Spain
Verdugo River – Redondela, Spain
Lérez River – Pontevedra, Spain
Bermaña River – Caldas de Reis, Spain
Valga River – Spain
Ulla River – Padron, Spain
Sar River – Santiago, Spain

So, I’m guessing that if I ever get to visit 101 of each of the above categories, I’ll be able to consider myself; Well Travelled LOL

Die with memories, not dreams

UNUSUAL PLACES I’VE BEEN/THINGS I’VE DONE
Toured the HMS Eagle Aircraft Carrier in Durban Harbour – South Africa
Explored the Echo Caves – South Africa
Explored the Cango Caves – South Africa
Hot-Air Balloon ride – South Africa
Abseiled off a bridge – South Africa
Paragliding – South Africa
Rock wall climbing on a cruise ship – Bahamas
Parasailing – Bahamas
Wookey Hole – Somerset
Climbed the O2 – London
Helicopter Ride over London (my 60th birthday gift from my daughter)
Fire-walk – London
Stood on Greenwich Meridian Line – London
Sailed along Thames on a Tall Ship – London
Visited the Roman Amphitheatre – London
Kissed the Blarney Stone – Ireland
Climbed The Monument to the Great Fire of London 1666 – London
Followed the Gloriana in the Tudor Pull – London
Participated in the Green Man ceremony – London
Part of the Magna Carta flotilla – London
Stood on two of the earth’s geological plates at the same time; Eurasia & American in Iceland
Visited Stonehenge
Visited all the Cinque Ports in England; Sandwich, Dover, New Romney, Hastings, Hythe, Rye and Winchelsea
Walked along WW2 Tunnels at Ramsgate
Lived in a Gypsy Caravan on Eel Pie Island on the banks of the River Thames
Lived in a Castle in Scotland
Slept on The Mall in London for the Wedding of William and Kate 🙂
Bell ringing at Church of St Edward King and Martyr, Cambridge
Climbed Cave Hill, Belfast, N.Ireland
Ziplining in London with Zip World, Archbishop’s Park, Lambeth, London
Walked a route of the Camino de Santiago – Portuguese Coastal Route: Porto to Caminha and The Central Way: Tui to Santiago de Compostela – 240 kms
Climbed 601 meters of Mount Snowdon to Llyn Glaslyn
Walked 1074 miles to date in 2017

If you’ve read this far…bravo!!! Thank you, I appreciate that you did. I post photos of the various places I travel to on instagram and will be updating Project 101 as I go. I’d love for you to join me on instagram …say hello if you do.

(I found the map at the top of this article on 40 Maps That Will Help You Make Sense of the World. Fascinating; worth a visit)

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Pilgrimage – the road to Santiago

Posted in Camino 2017, family and relationships, Historical, Inspiration, It's my life, My European travels, spirituality, Travel, tagged Camino de Santiago, Inspiration, my camino, not just a granny, not just a granny travels, pilgrimage the road to santiago, Travel, wordpress, writing on May 13, 2017| 2 Comments »

‘Pilgrimage’ What an evocative word. When you hear the word pilgrimage it has so many meanings and connotations, different meanings for each person. You can go on a religious pilgrimage, a spiritual pilgrimage, you can take a pilgrimage to a previous home or favourite place. A pilgrimage can be something you go on or aspire to.

Since medieval times, the main connotation of the word pilgrimage has been in relation to monks or religious persons making a journey to one place of worship or another, either as a desire to gain more knowledge or in penance. Most of these pilgrim ways have followed main route of transportation; routes well-worn and familiar, travelled by many – creating routes of pilgrimage; corridors towards a shrine.

a pilgrim finds place to sleep…

The scallop shell is one of the most iconic symbols of the Camino de Santiago and today it is used, along with the yellow arrow, to guide pilgrims heading to Santiago de Compostela along its many different routes

The Pilgrim’s Way – Winchester to Canterbury

wanering the lanes of worcester, arthur prince of wales chantry

the steps leading into the chantry where Arthur, Prince of Wales is buried

As with the thousands of people who traversed these routes, the paths used, varied over time – always flexible, always changing to accommodate one change or another. Perhaps a muddy field needed to be avoided in one particular year of bad weather and so ‘pilgrims’ found a ‘way’ around it and formed a new path. Towns sprung up along these ‘ways’ to accommodate the pilgrims who were needing shelter and food or rest; albergues and hospitals were opened, relics were discovered and distributed to tiny churches along the way and so a path was beaten to that door.

I remember my delight on discovering a Pilgrim’s ‘hospital’ on one of the many visits my daughter and I have made to Canterbury.

The Pilgrims Hospital in Canterbury, Geoffrey Chaucer and the River Stour through Canterbury

Perhaps some hardy monk or another decided he needed to test his mettle and climbed higher than before and so a new path was created. Perhaps a pilgrim grew old and tired on his journey and so sought an easier way around the hills and mountains; found obstacles in his way and so created another new path……

Great Malvern - climbing Worcestershire Beacon

uhmmm…yes mate, you just keep munching….

that grey speckled animal had a determined look on it’s face….I wasn’t planning on hanging around to chat….

finding the right path down…

And yet, despite these many paths, both old and traditional or new, some still to be forged, the pilgrims always found their way to where they were headed. In this case the road to Santiago – also known as The Way of St James.

I love the idea of this, different paths for different folks; isn’t this true of life as well? Traditional is great, but one thing I’ve learned in life is that we each walk our own path. We can create new traditions. Nothing is original. If we went back in time to when St James first walked and preached the gospels in Spain, the paths he travelled along then are probably very different to what they are now. And after he died and was buried, then found and his relics installed at the Cathedral in Santiago, and eventually pilgrims first started walking to Santiago, even the ‘original’ paths, of which there are many, would be vastly different to what they are today. Certainly more well trod!!

And let us not forget one of the most famous of all pilgrims; Geoffrey Chaucer

pilgrimage, geoffrey chaucer, canterbury tales

Geoffrey Chaucer; author of The Canterbury Tales – a pilgrimage (journey) to Canterbury

In September of this year I’ll be walking the Portuguese Coastal Route to Santiago de Compostela, and I’m planning on following my own path with an eye on the general direction towards Santiago. From Tui I expect I’ll be following more traditional routes, but I’m not going to stress too much about the exact route, after all, it’s the journey that’s important and what we learn along ‘The Way’.

finding my way to Santiago

Santiago de Compostela is the capital of northwest Spain’s Galicia region. It’s known as the culmination of the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route, and the alleged burial site of the Biblical apostle St. James. His remains reputedly lie within the Catedral de Santiago de Compostela, consecrated in 1211, whose elaborately carved stone facades open onto grand plazas within the medieval walls of the old town.

I follow the blogs, instagram profiles and facebook updates of a number of people who are either currently walking or have walked one or another of the many many routes to Santiago, and I often read how they got lost, lost the path or were misdirected and again you can so easily relate this to life.

finding your way to Santiago

I travel a lot with my job and I love to travel in my off time between jobs, and when I lived in London in particular, people asked ” aren’t you afraid of getting lost?”. My answer is always the same…..you can never be lost, you are just in a place you are unfamiliar with and it’s not where you had planned to be. Jump on a bus or a train, look at a map, you will find you are not lost at all. I remember when I first lived in London back in 2002/2003, I had a conversation with my Father about how big London was and how much it terrified me to travel around that vast city. He replied: “just think of London as many small villages all linked together by the network of the tube/underground system. You are never more than a few meters from either a train or a bus, you can never get lost.” It changed my perception of London completely and from then on I was never afraid to go out and explore the many ‘villages’ of London; often getting ‘lost’.

As I walk the Camino in September, I will have my handy wee app ‘mapmywalk’ switched on, and with an eye on the east to my right and the west to my left I will follow my own path north till I reach the Minho river that separates the north of Portugal from the south of Spain. From there; at Caminha, I will head inland with the sun in my eyes in the morning and at my back in the evening till I reach Valença and finally cross over into Spain to Tui.

Looking east at Broadstairs; sunrise

Looking west at Florence; sunset

From Tui I will follow the more traditional routes as I traverse the final 100 kms to Santiago so that I too may gain my ‘compostela’. A pilgrim.

Footnote:

The Minho divides the Spanish Tui and Portuguese Valença do Minho, towns that guarded an important bridge for road and rail. Both towns preserve fortifications and are national monuments.

Addendum: you can even go on a pilgrimage to a famous place to see the final resting place of a King; Richard III (thanks Beth 😉 your facebook update was most timeous).

http://leicestercathedral.org/about-us/richard-iii/richard-iii-tomb-burial/

a pilgrimage to visit the tomb of Richard II at Leicester cathedral

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My Camino 2017

Posted in Camino 2017, family and relationships, Fun Stuff, Historical, Holidays, It's my life, Travel, UNESCO Heritage Sites, walk 1000 miles 2017, tagged blogging, Camino de Santiago, Cindy's travels, equipment needed on the camino de santiago, Inspiration, not just a granny, pilgrimage to santiago, Travel, walking the camino, writing on May 10, 2017| 6 Comments »

Back in 2010 my interest was piqued by a conversation I had with the niece of a lady I was caring for at the time. I mentioned to her that I was thinking of walking ‘The Camino’……and it turned out that she had already walked the route!! 🙂 A woman. Solo. On her own! Hmmm…….since then of course I’ve discovered that thousands of women walk solo every year; from teens to octogenarians. Pretty damn awesome!!

the many routes to Santiago

Prior to that I had heard of the Camino de Santiago in an obscure sort of way; I can’t recall exactly when I was first aware of it, probably in one of the many books I read, and of course my father had already cycled some of the routes. My father was in London one year (I think it was 2007) and we met up to watch the Tour de France pass through the city. We chatted about the Camino and made tenuous plans to ‘do it’ together….but he wanted to cycle whilst I want to walk…so it was probably never going to happen.

My father in his latter years, shortly before he died at the grand old age of 85.

But the seed was planted and after the conversation I had in 2010, the idea took root: I would actually walk it myself, by myself. And of course there was the movie ‘The Way’ with Martin and Charlie Sheen that was released in 2010. It’s taken some 7 years, but I have finally put my money where my mouth is and booked my plane ticket!!! On 19 April 2017 I posted this on our family’s ‘WhatsApp’ news feed:

*Breaking news* Yes!! Its done …I’ve just booked my flights for #Camino2017
I Fly to Porto in Portugal on 7 September for 3 Days in Porto then start walking 285 (260?) kms to Santiago de Compostela on 11 September along the coastal route to Caminha, then inland to Valenca for my last night in Portugal, then crossing the Minha River to Tui the next day for the final 100 kms to Santiago de Compostela. I’ll spend 3 days in Santiago and then fly to Barcelona for 3 days and back to UK on 28 September. Too exciting for words!!

I cannot tell you how terrifying and yet exciting it was to finally make the decision and when I posted this to the family news feed and then made a Facebook update it was with a huge sense of trepidation; am I doing the right thing?

I actually wanted to walk the Camino in 2016 but due to one thing and another, namely; reasons and excuses, I didn’t take the final step of booking my flight! I had started training earlier in the year in preparation since I didn’t want the pilgrimage to be spoilt by lack of fitness and too much pain, but even so, I realised by September of 2016 that in fact, despite my desire to go and love of walking I wasn’t anywhere near fit enough. Reasons and excuses.

At the beginning of this year I joined a Facebook group #walk1000miles and that has given me a massive incentive to get out and walk; almost every day. While working my time is usually limited to 2 hours per day (my break), but I manage to do 5 miles in that time and have loved every minute. Besides that when I’m home, I take long walks along the coast to Margate, Ramsgate, Cliffsend and have even walked to Sandwich (26 kms) on one memorable day 🙂

Due to my job, I travel all over the country and so have had the pleasure of walking in different locations, with different challenges and landscape – this country is so beautiful. I am lucky. All these walks have added to my fitness levels. From the Isle of Thanet to the Isle of Wight, I’ve also walked in Ireland and along the North Downs, the Malverns, Worcester and Oxted amongst other areas. I’m truly fortunate.

I’ve had some wonderful walks all over the country

walks on the Isle of Wight

walks on the Isle of Thanet, Ireland, the Malverns and Italy

Since 01/01/2017 I have walked 500 #bootson miles. If I had to include my ‘at work/on duty’ mileage I’m certain it would be well in excess of 1000 miles….but for purposes of training I have only added my actual ‘training’ time where I set out specifically to ‘walk’! As of today, in Ireland, I became a ‘Proclaimer’ LOL I will walk 500 miles, and I will walk 500 more…..

I have walked 500 miles 🙂 and I will walk 500 more

Meanwhile, and as mentioned at the beginning of this post, I have, with heart in my mouth, and a mix of excitement/ terror/trepidation/joy picked up the phone and booked my ticket…..no going back now!!!!

I’m finally going on my Camino. 🙂 hooray!

And exactly 4 months from tomorrow, I shall start walking…..my Camino 2017.

Pilgrims shells

Camino de Santiago

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A visit to the Green Isle

Posted in Historical, Holidays, It's my life, memories of days gone by, My European travels, places to eat, Travel, walk 1000 miles 2017, tagged blogging, map my walk, My European travels, river liffey dublin, things to see and do in dublin, Travel, visit dublin in ireland, visit ireland the green isle, walk 1000 miles, writing on May 6, 2017| Leave a Comment »

Beautiful scenes of Ireland at the airport

A couple of months ago my agency offered me a position in Ireland! I immediately accepted. I love Ireland. I lived in the country for 6 months back in 2001/2002 when I first travelled to the northern hemisphere, and fell in love with the country, visiting another 8 times since. At the time my sister and her hubby lived and worked in Dublin so I had a home from home. They returned to South Africa some years ago, so with them not there, I hadn’t been back for quite some time; this was an opportunity not to be missed.

I decided that since I was going to be that way, I may as well spend a couple of days in Dublin and revisit some of my favourite places. And no visit to Ireland would be complete without a trip to Trim….still one of my best memories from 2002!

So on the 24th February I found myself on a plane winging my way across the Irish Sea 🙂

sunset in UK – on my way to Ireland 🙂

We had a very bumpy landing, the wind was blowing like mad and sadly due to the lateness of the hour I wasn’t able to see much of the green isle from the air. Soon I was whizzing through customs and passport control, then onto a bus heading for Terenure. I had used my AirBnB membership once again, for the 4th time, and was looking forward to meeting another host. I’ve had great success so far with AirBnB and stayed with some really lovely people.

my lovely room via AirBnB

A 1.5 hours bus ride via O’Connell Street in the centre of Dublin…how exciting it was to see familiar landmarks and of course a brief glimpse of the River Liffey; I’m pleased to say my host and the venue didn’t disappoint and all too soon I was tucked up in bed, excited at the prospect of exploring on the morrow.

Up fairly bright and early the next day, although the weather was grey and overcast, immediately after breakfast I set off, mapmywalk switched on and the only decision I had to make was whether or not to take the bus into town or walk? I opted to walk. Duh!!! As if I would take the bus….I wanted to see as much as possible.

walking through the suburbs of Dublin

I passed a pretty little park, old houses, colourful houses and a few memorials and the Grand Canal…which with my not so great geographical recollections I thought was the Liffey. I soon realised it wasn’t. LOL

the Grand Canal – #nottheriverLiffey LOL

One of the great features of mapmywalk is that you can look at the map in real time and see just where you are…so heading off along the banks of the canal I soon reached St Stephen’s Green (many happy memories of this too) where I walked about reading the history boards,

history boards in st stephens green dublin

so much harsh and sad history. Ireland is wonderful country, but she’s had a hard history

photographing the many memorials, then set off along Grafton Street, to Trinity College again to take photos and just walk about. I would have loved to visit The Book of Kells again but the entrance fee was a bit over my budget, so after looking around I left and on to have a look for the Molly Malone sculpture and so to the real River Liffey!!

In Dublin’s fair city where the girls are so pretty, twas there is first saw sweet Molly Malone, as she wheeled her wheelbarrow through streets broad and narrow crying “cockles and mussels, alive alive ‘o” #MollyMalone #loveDublin #DoDublin #walking #Dublin #mapmywalk #CindysTravels #ireland?? #walk1000miles

Molly Malone

In Dublin’s fair city where the girls are so pretty, twas there is first saw sweet Molly Malone, as she wheeled her wheelbarrow through streets broad and narrow ,crying “cockles and mussels, alive alive ‘o” ……Molly Malone

I crossed the river and walked half the length of O’Connell Street, visited the General Post Office, a building that played a central role in the Irish Easter Rising: Easter Rising 1916: Six days of armed struggle that changed Irish and British history. Finally reaching O’Connell Street I saw that the Spire is just as amazing and ludicrous as I remembered it. Ahh Dublin…how grand to see you again.

scenes of Dublin, Ireland

I spent the rest of the day meandering here and there, taking photos, meandering along the banks of the river, took a walk across via the Ha’Penny Bridge and onto Temple Bar…one of the most quirky and colourful areas of the city.

walkabout Dublin. One of my favourite things to do…Temple Bar, Trinity College, Dublin Castle and Christ Church Cathedral

So many marvellous and quirky things to see. I strolled along to Christ Church Cathedral and was reminded of the fantastic exhibition at Dublinia. I visited both venues in the past so didn’t feel the need to go in again. Instead I meandered back towards O’Connell Street to have a meal at Eddie Rocket’s Diner.

Having a commemorative meal here was an absolute ‘must do’ on this visit to Dublin. Back in December 2001 a day before I was due to leave Dublin and fly back to South Africa, my sister and brother-in-law and I went to Eddie Rocket’s for dinner. A BLT with fries and their famous double thick shake…chocolate for me please ;). While we were sat eating I started crying and when my sister enquired why, I said in a very tearful voice “I don’t want to leave”. So after much discussion the very easy decision was made that I would stay 🙂 I still had another 2.5 months on my visa. Hooray!!! The rest as they say in history. Now, 16 years later I’m a British Citizen; my 1st anniversary as a British Citizen, was in fact this very day 25/02/2017 🙂 and here I was in Dublin to celebrate.

What a momentous occasion, both then and now. I truly love the UK and Ireland is my 2nd favourite country; I have never looked back.

The beautiful River Liffey that runs through Dublin to the sea….

On the morrow; a trip to Trim. Surely one of the most fun weekends of my stay back in 2002. I couldn’t wait to get back to visit the castle again and to find the Haggard Inn where we enjoyed 3 helpings each of the best Tiramisu I’ve ever tasted before or since and to have a peek at the hostel where we stayed that night……story to follow. I sent my sister a message to say “guess where I’m going tomorrow?” without hesitation her reply: “Trim!” 🙂 LOL she knows me too well.

Finally after 5.5 hours, 14.8 km’s and 30,583 steps (yayy mapmywalk) I finally jumped on the bus and headed back to bed. Perchance to sleep.

beautiful Dublin at night

Goodnight Dublin, it’s been grand so to see ya again 🙂

If you take a walk along the River Liffey from O’Connell Street towards the docklands you’ll find an incredibly poignant memorial to the million Irish peoples who left the country during the Great Potato Famine

memorials in dublin, great potato famine

a memorial to the refugees of the Great Potato Famine; a time when 1 million people starved

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It’s a wrap; Saturday morning & Osborne House

Posted in around the UK, cities and towns of the UK, Historical, historical houses of the uk, It's my life, seaside towns of Britain, Travel, walks around the UK, tagged blogging, east cowes marina, exploring the isle of wight, osborne house, Travel, victoria and albert osborne house, visit the isle of wight, writing on February 12, 2017| 2 Comments »

After a lovely hot shower when I got back to the B&B the night before, I jumped into bed and snuggled down for the night…weary to my bones but every so happy with what I had seen. Thankfully my night was undisturbed so when the alarm went off at 7:30 again I felt refreshed and ready to go go go. This was also my final morning on the island and I was due to catch the 13:47 ferry to Portsmouth and then train to London.

Sadly the B&B forgot to put out my breakfast tray so I had to raid the dining room and left with 2 yogurt pots and a box of cereal in my backpack. Oh the food I eat when exploring.

exploring the isle of wight, visit the isle of wight

fantastic views from the top deck of the bus

I hopped onto the 08:50 bus to Osborne and arrived with 45 minutes to spare before the gates of Osborne House opened. Rather than hang around kicking my heels I had noticed on the way in that East Cowes marina was just a stones-throw (okay no not really…it was a tad further), so I set off at a quick pace to explore – despite that it was all downhill, I’m so glad I made the effort.

East Cowes Marina

The weather was stunning in comparison to the day before and the marina looked beautiful. I explored for a bit then headed back to Osborne House…..urgh those hills going back up!!!

osborne house, exploring the isle of wight, visit the isle of wight

aerial view of Osborne and the house

Osborne House was wonderful. The interior is sumptuous and the views from the patio and many of the windows are stunning. Osborne House was the much loved seaside retreat for Prince Albert and Queen Victoria, built between 1845 and 1851, and apparently they spent many a happy day there with their children. It was also the place Victoria returned to after the death of her beloved Albert in 1861. She was to spend the next 7 years there, holed up, mourning the loss of her husband, friend and confidant, dressed in black and refusing to budge, even though desperately needed as Head of State. She even refused to ‘Open Parliament’, which put the Government in a quandry! Queen Victoria used Osborne for over 50 years, entertaining foreign royalty and visiting ministers.

Osborne House, Isle of Wight – seaside home for Victoria and Albert

Taken on a guided tour of the lower floor and some of the rooms, we were left gasping by the sheer splendour and magnificence of the furnishings and decorations. Albert had pretty much the final say on how it should look and I can say the man had amazing taste; he has left an amazing legacy for the country.

osborne house isle of wight, visit isle of wight

beautifully decorated and long passageways

Not ostentatious, but finely set out, the rooms are stunning with faux-marble columns, exquisitely woven carpets, fabulous paintings on the walls, much of it original furniture and works of art (some are replicas as the current Queen has the originals).

exquisitely furnished with lush carpets, decorative ceilings, fabulous chandeliers

Their initials V & A interwoven can be seen in ceiling decorations, woven into the corners of carpets and added wherever possible.

victoria and albert osborne house isle of wight, visit the isle of wight

V & A – everywhere you looked there initials were interwoven and part of the decor; carpets, floors, ceilings, cornices

I found it to be quite poignant viewing the rooms and imagined the family living there – how much they must have loved it.

beautiful passageways with exquisite sculptures, finely furnished rooms

Many, many family portraits filled the walls in most of the family rooms. Poignant images of beloved children, from toddlers into adulthood with children of their own; all long gone, some of whom met tragic ends.

osborne house victoria and albert, visit the isle of wight

Victoria and Albert who between them created a dynasty that spread across the world – family portraits

The one room that left me gasping was the fabulous Durbar Room. Added to entertain large numbers of people it was built and completed between 1891 and 1892 almost 30 years after Prince Albert’s death…I’m quite sure he would have approved. This room is stunning! Designed by Lockwood Kipling (father of the author Rudyard Kipling) and master carver Bhai Ram Singh. Detailed with intricate Indian-style plaster work, it is richly decorated in the architectural styles of northern India and reflected Queen Victoria’s then status as Empress of India, the large reception room is breath-taking. Although it looks like everything is carved from ivory, the plaster-work was executed by the Indian plasterer Bhai Ram Singh -there is not one piece of ivory in the room.

osborne house isle of wight, victoria and albert osborne house, visit the isle of wight

The Durbar Room, Osborne House

The Durbar Wing also provided accommodation for Princess Beatrice, Queen Victoria’s youngest married daughter, and her family on the 1st floor.

In the display cabinets in the room are some of the stunning gifts received by Victoria when she was Empress of India.

queen victoria empress of india, osborne house isle of wight, visit the isle of wight

gifts for the Empress of India, Osborne House, Isle of Wight

With reference to my visit to The Needles yesterday and the Marconi Monument, in 1898 messages were received from Marconi at Queen Victoria’s Osborne House on a telephone presented by Alexander Bell.

Queen Victoria died at Osborne House in 1901.

Queen Victoria – Osborne House, Isle of Wight

Her successor, her eldest son, Edward VII (1841–1910), didn’t need it and as no other member of the royal family wanted to take on the upkeep, the king gave the Osborne estate to the nation on his Coronation Day in 1902. Osborne House is now managed by English Heritage.

After the tour which sadly only took in part of the house due to much needed repairs being done on the central staircase, I headed outdoors to enjoy the sunshine and views. The grounds are a delight and much as I wanted to go down to the beach are and visit the Swiss Cottage, my time was almost up, so I contented myself with a quick whizz around the perimeter of the house and at 12noon I recorded the chimes of the clock and then set off back to the bus-stop. In all a fantastic trip.

visit osborne house isle of wight, visit isle of wight

Exterior views of Osborne House and across the grounds to the Solent

My next stop was Ryde, then the B&B where I collected my suitcase and set off for the ferry with plenty of time to spare. I even managed to watch one of the Hovercraft come in to land….again!!! LOL They are fascinating to watch.

And so it was time to say goodbye to the Isle of Wight. I shall definitely return, although I know not when. But there is still much to see and after chatting to the gentleman that I accosted one day on one of my walks in Bembridge, I am inspired to do what he did and walk around the while perimeter of the island. (btw I didn’t harm the guy, I just stopped him to ask about the walking poles he was using!! 😉 )

Goodbye to the Isle of Wight

One of my ambitions is to visit 100 of the Domesday towns and villages in England. There are 84 such places on the Isle of Wight, some of which have morphed into larger towns and others that are still around but looking nothing at all like they may have in 1085/86. I managed to visit 6 of these places: Binstead, Brading, Nettleston, Sandown, Shanklin and a walk through the lower end of Puckpool.

The Domesday Book was commissioned in December 1085 by William the Conqueror, who invaded England in 1066. The first draft was completed in August 1086 and contained records for 13,418 settlements in the English counties south of the rivers Ribble and Tees (the border with Scotland at the time).

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A whistle-stop tour of the Isle of Wight

Posted in around the UK, Castles of UK and Ireland, cities and towns of the UK, Fun Stuff, Historical, It's my life, Palaces and castles in UK, Travel, tagged carisbrooke castle on the isle of wight, charles I on isle of wight, Cindy's travels, newport isle of wight, not just a granny travels, Travel, travel in europe, travel in the UK, travel on the isle of wight, visit the needles isle of wight, writing on February 7, 2017| 1 Comment »

Day 2: After a very disturbed night, and struggling to get back to sleep after being woken at 01:30 in the morning by a hell of a ruckus downstairs (I did look but couldn’t see who or what), I was tempted to just shut my eyes and snuggle back under the covers when my alarm went off at 7:30! Urgh. But, I had adventures ahead so after a most welcome cup of tea I got dressed, partook of the ‘continental’ breakfast the B&B had kindly provided for me, and set off for the bus to my first stop……Brading Roman Villa.

Brading Roman Villa on the Isle of Wight

It was great travelling along a different route and of course in the daylight I could see so much more of the countryside. Before too long the driver let me off at my requested stop and directed me to the entrance to the villa. On the whole I found the bus drivers on the IoW to be very helpful. It was a real thrill to walk along the route that had possibly been traversed by the Romans nearly two centuries ago. I was quite early so I enjoyed a 30 minute excursion of the site before entering the building.

the outside area of Brading Roman Villa

The Brading Roman Villa heritage site is owned and operated by the Oglander Roman Trust and they have done a superb job of preserving the remains. There are a number of cabinets exhibiting ancient artefacts..fab!!

Brading Roman Villa

I had a very entertaining guide give me a head start and then I was off to explore. Oh my gosh! I cannot tell you how stunning the place is. Imagine being able to see the stunning mosaics insitu as they had been laid all those hundreds of years ago. And they are astoundingly beautiful. It always gives me a thrill to walk in the footsteps of long ago civilizations…..I always wish I could just time-travel for an hour or so…just to experience what it must have looked like.

some of the stunning mosaics. what a wonderful way to decorate your house

After thoroughly exploring the villa I set off once again for the next leg of my journey to Shanklin. The route took us through Sandown and since I had already visited the town previously, decided to not get off there again.

whistle stop tour of the isle of wight shanklin

scenes of Shanklin

Shanklin was lovely and I had a fantastic walk around the town, discovered some beautiful places and managed a short walk along the clifftop before heading back into town centre to the little tea-shop I had seen earlier: Cinderella’s Tea Room and Dress Shop…how could I not stop off 😉

Cinderella Tea Room and dress shop

Then it was off back uphill through the town and since my bus wasn’t due for another 30 minutes I decided to walk as far as I could before the next one was due. Along the way I passed the most delightful set of cottages you could imagine. Totally quintessential England. The Old Thatch Teashop was closed for the winter, I am most certainly going to plan a visit the next time I visit the island.

Chocolate Box perfect – quintessential England – Shanklin Isle of Wight

Unfortunately the clouds had by now settled and it began to rain…I had already walked a fair distance so wasn’t too unhappy to wait for the bus – it arrived just before the heavens opened!! Glad of the snug warmth of the bus I enjoyed the scenery whizzing by. One of the things that surprised me the most about the IoW is how hilly it is. I thought it might be fun to walk around the island next visit, and that thought was uppermost in my mind as we traversed the hills and dales…..those hills will be a test of my endurance, that’s for sure.

Next stop was Newport. Located at the point where the River Medina splits into two; one branch, the Medina continues almost all the way across the island to the southern most point, splitting into lots of smaller tributaries and off shoots along the way, and the other continues as the Lukely Brook to Bowcombe where it peters out.

Newport Harbour and the River Medina, Isle of Wight

Newport, located in the centre of the island, is the principal town on the IoW and often referred to as the capital. With the town’s quay a short distance away, the town centre is made up of 2 squares surrounded by elegant Victorian and Georgian architecture.

scenes of Newport, Isle of Wight

With a historic past that goes back 40,000 years to the Neanderthal period, mousterian remains; tools made by Neanderthals were found in the 1970’s, there are also Roman remains and two Roman villas, as well as links to the Norman Conquest. I spent an hour or so walking around and visited The Guildhall Museum which is a delightful showcase for the history of the island. Well worth a visit.

guildhall museum visit newport isle of wight

Guildhall Museum, Newport, Isle of Wight – only £2 entry fee, it’s so worth a visit

As mentioned previously, the buses are not exactly very regular so instead of waiting for 45 minutes for the next one out of town, I walked to Carisbrooke Castle which was next on my agenda. Carisbrooke was for centuries the Isle of Wight’s capital and was once called Buccombe or Beaucombe, and means the ‘ fair valley’ and I’m sure on a fine day it would be an amazing sight from the top of the hill across the valley.

Carisbrooke, Newport, Isle of Wight

I so enjoyed the walk; it took no time at all and I was within sight of the castle…only at the top of a great big bloody hill LOL. I wasn’t in the mood for climbing!!! Jeez. Anyway, I put on my big girl panties and started trudging uphill. Ever so worth it.

visit carisbrooke castle newport isle of wight

Carisbrooke Castle – Charles I was detained here before his trial

Carisbrooke Castle is stunning!! Carrisbrooke, an historic Motte-and-Bailey castle, originally a Roman fort, is located in the village of Carisbrooke, not too far from Newport. The castle was built soon after William the Conqueror came to England and the following centuries saw a tumultuous history with a number of owners. In 1293 the castle became the property of Edward I and the crown. In 1647 Charles I took refuge at the castle, but this later turned into his prison from which he tried to escape in the months prior to his trial. His daughter princess Elizabeth later died there aged 14. Also managed by English Heritage the castle was unfortunately closed on weekdays at the time of my visit. I’ll definitely have to visit again.

the village of Carisbrooke with the castle on the other side of the river Lukely

The village of Carisbrooke appears to be split in two by the River Lukely with a major part of the town on one side and the castle on the other. The views from the hill on which the castle perches are outstanding, even though it was a grey and glum day.

From there I made the insane decision to make the long journey to see The Needles. I had planned on doing this as part of my whistle-stop tour, but the day was already closing in, it was raining and I was cold and hungry. But after a quick whatsapp discussion with my daughter I drew breath and started walking…yes, you guessed…the next bus was 37 minutes away and I don’t like standing endlessly waiting!!! ….LOL I tell you it was a real challenge getting around the island with the ludicrous bus timetable. On the way I passed through the village of Gunville, of which I saw little besides the name and a convenience store where I bought something to eat….I was famished by that time : 15:30!! I decided at this point to wait for the bus….the road out of the village was narrow with high hedges and it was raining…..I didn’t fancy becoming a statistic on the Isle of Wight!

Located at the South Western tip of the Isle of Wight above Alum Bay, The Needles, an iconic image, immediately spring to mind when you think of the island. Am I ever so glad I decided to go!! We got to The Needles tourist area at 16:50 – completely deserted. The bus I arrived on was due to leave again at 17:05. It was raining. It was getting dark. The next bus after was at 17:35…..I did not feel like hanging around. So I dashed over to the viewing platform, had a quick look, took some photos and dashed back to the warmth of the bus. Wow, what a thrill to see them in the distance even though the light was fading rapidly and I could barely see.

The Needles above Alum Bay on the south-western tip of the Isle of Wight

An added bonus was being able to see the Marconi Monument. Located at The Needles, the monument marks the precise location where Guglielmo Marconi undertook his pioneering work at the end of the 19th Century. This led to radio and all telecommunications as we know it today.

The Needles and the Marconi Monument, Isle of Wight

And then we were off and on the way back to Newport where once again and for the final time that day I had to change buses to get back to Ryde.

A magical day, albeit exhausting. I got to see 90% of what I had planned on seeing and even though it was a whistle-stop tour, it was fun. I was however really really glad to get back to the B&B and bed!

The following day; Saturday was my final morning on the Isle of Wight and I had planned a trip to see Osborne House; once the seaside home of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.

For more about my first day of adventure….

Day 3 – 1/2

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Wandering the lanes of Worcester

Posted in around the UK, cities and towns of the UK, Historical, Travel, tagged burial place of Arthur Prince of Wales, burial place of King John Magna Carta, cathedral cities of England, cathedrals of England, city of worcester in worcestershire, Friar Street Worcester, longest river in Britain River Severn, River Severn in Worcester, The Commandery Worcester, Travel, Tudor Museum Worcester, Worcester Cathedral on December 15, 2016| Leave a Comment »

“Say you have been at Worcester, where England’s sorrows began, and where they are happily ended.” Hugh Peter 1651.

Dating back to Roman times, and a history with links to Neolithic times, Worcester has had a turbulent history with connections to a number of prominent historical figures and historical events taking place in or around the city. Worcester is not only a Cathedral city but is flanked on the western side by Britain’s longest river; the River Severn. It simply had to be explored!

As mentioned in my previous article I had 3 free days between assignments and therefore an opportunity to explore a new area. Having spent Tuesday meandering about Preston (article still to come 😉 ) I travelled across counties from Lancashire to Worcestershire and so to Malvern Link. Wednesday was spent conquering a mountain….okay, I concede…a couple of hills, and Thursday I hopped on a train to the historic Cathedral city of Worcester.

a day in Worcester – cathedral city

I love a good cathedral and Worcester Cathedral didn’t disappoint. But, let me start at the beginning. The day, as with the previous 3 days, was stunning……blue skies, extravagant sunrises, crispy cold frosty mornings with air so fresh it invigorates the soul. Just a short train ride from where I was staying and to my lasting delight we crossed a river and into the city of Worcester. One of those times I wish I’d had my camera in my hand rather than in my pocket as we crossed the river…breath-taking view of the river looking upstream I could see the spire of the cathedral…and a marvellous bridge.

the view I would have had from the train….

As soon as I alighted from the train I set off towards the river…..what I hadn’t realised is that it was the River Severn….the longest river in Britain at 220 miles from source to sea. I had met this beautiful river a number of times before at various places that I had worked and of course on our trip to Bristol in August. I am also currently working in what is known as the Severn Valley at the base of the Malvern Hills.

North Hill and Worcester Beacon Hill; part of the Malvern Hills

Enroute to the riverside I passed some really beautiful and amazing architecture and a fascinating modern construction called ‘The Hive’.

Worcester architecture

En-route I walked past the Worcester race-course and passed beneath the viaduct over which we had trundled on the train. And then there it was….the beautiful Severn River. This amazing river passes some of Britain’s most historic cities and areas as it travels from the Welsh Mountains through the quintessentially English Shropshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire countryside. I had the opportunity to see it in Preston as well.

The River Severn runs through Worcester

After exploring the Bromwich Parade and visiting the Swan sanctuary riverbank I made my way back over the bridge and on impulse I decided to visit the Diglis Lock….It was a tad further than I anticipated but a marvellous walk. The Diglis Lock is one of many locks along the Severn as it flows past historic cities, gorgeous cathedrals, cosy pubs, exquisite scenery, and down to the flat-lands of the Severn estuary, and so to the sea.

the Diglis Bridge and Lock on the River Severn near Worcester

Along it’s length it meets with a number of rivers and canals and you will find boats of just about every shape and size. Famous for its tidal bore, the second highest tide anywhere in the world the Severn is truly a wonder of Britain. I think I may just walk it one day! 😉

Diglis River Lock

After exploring the riverbank I made my way into the city centre. My first port of call was the Museum of Royal Worcester.

Museum of Royal Worcester

Oh my word! I can honestly say that the range of imagination in creating these extraordinary piece are art is astounding. Exquisite items that range across the centuries, you will find some of the most intricate patterns and filigree work decorating a most incredible collection as any I have seen in the museums in London. Enchanting! Of course I had to buy myself a piece of china from this world-famous factory; so I bought a mug commemorating The Queen’s 90th Birthday.

From there I made my way back into the city centre, past the Cathedral’s Edgar Tower (once the Priory gate) and back out again to visit The Commandery located next to a canal that leads into the River Severn and just beyond what was once the 12th century Sidbury Gate. The Commandery played a major part in the Civil War and until recently was the only museum dedicated to the Civil War. To say this building is intriguing, extraordinary and stunning would be an understatement. I could happily have spent the whole day there….which I shall do on my next visit. With 6 layers of history to work through and 35 rooms….you would need a whole day!

wandering the lanes of worcester, the commandery

The Commandery, Worcester

There was so much to take in that my poor brain felt fried. The most astonishing room in the whole complex was the medieval wall paintings in the 1475 Painted Chamber! Breath-taking. That these incredible paintings have survived for over 600 years is a miracle.

The 1475 Medieval Chamber – with original wall paintings. Extraordinary!!

From there I made my way through to the city centre once again to Friar Street and so to the Tudor House Museum. For someone who is a Tudor fan….this was right up my alley!! This building too has oodles history. The rooms are beautifully preserved and set up to depict the many layers of that history; from Tudor times to WW2.

wandering the lanes of worcester, tudor house

Built between 1500-1550; Tudor House. Tavern, Tudor home, weavers cottage, Victorian home, and WW2 wardens post.

I spent a very happy time wandering from room to room, trying to imagine what it must be like to be a house….it gets to see all those events, feel the lives of the people who lived there and witness major events throughout history. They have some fantastic artefacts in the museum, all of which lend an air of authenticity to the various periods of the history. I nearly said ‘hello’ to the chap in the helmet!! He looked so lifelike LOL

After that I meandered along Friar Street, a delightful array of houses line the cobbled street with quirky little shops, tearooms and restaurants….along with some of the usual chains. Friar Street is a quaint pastiche of black and white listed buildings, ancient relics of bygone ages with a variety of historical pasts, lend an enchanting air of having stepped back in time.

wandering the lanes of worcester, tudor architecture

fantastic architecture in Friar Street, Worcester

Just across the street from Tudor Museum is Greyfriars….a magnificent house managed by National Trust. I decided to explore later in the day since their website said they were open from 8am-8pm and I wanted to visit the Cathedral. Unfortunately the information was wrong! Oh well. Next time

So now for the cathedral….. On my life bucket list I plan on visiting all the cathedral cities in the UK. I have been to a great number of them already in the last 15 years but there are many still to go, so the opportunity to visiting Worcester Cathedral was a must do! I have a philosophy in life…I may not go this way again, so I make the most of the time I am there!

Worcester Cathedral

Founded in 680, Worcester Cathedral started life as a Priory prior (?) to the Reformation. Nothing of the 7th century priory now remains, although remains of the Priory dating from the 12th and 13th centuries can still be seen. The Priory came to an end with King Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries, and like many others around the country, the Benedictine monks were removed and replaced by secular canons.

What is now the Cathedral, built between 1084 and 1504, represents every style of English architecture from Norman to Perpendicular Gothic, while the multi-columned Norman crypt of the present-day cathedral dates from the 10th century during the time of St Oswald, Bishop of Worcester. The crypt is amazing!!

Worcester Cathedral crypt

Worcester Cathedral is typical of English cathedrals, having both a chapter house and cloisters.

Notably, Worcester Cathedral contains the tomb of King John in its chancel. Before his death in Newark in 1216, John had requested to be buried at Worcester

King John’s tomb at Worcester Cathedral

and Prince Arthur’s Chantry, a memorial to the young prince Arthur Tudor, who is buried here. Arthur’s younger brother and next in line for the throne was his brother Henry, who became the notorious Henry VIII. Worcester Cathedral was spared total destruction by Henry VIII during the English Reformation because of his brother’s Chantry. In 2002, archaeologists used ground-penetrating radar to locate Arthur’s tomb in the cathedral, which is located several feet below the tomb chest that was built several years after his death.

The resting place of Arthur Prince of Wales, son of Henry VII and elder brother of Henry VIII

Something that amazed me totally is how worn the steps leading into the chantry are.

the steps leading into the chantry where Arthur, Prince of Wales is buried

To say that Worcester Cathedral is a real gem would be to understate the beauty of the place. How exciting it was to discover that not only is King John (of 1215 Magna Carta fame) buried here, but also young Arthur Tudor, eldest son of Henry VII and older brother to Henry VIII. The ceilings are so beautiful, the memorials so astonishing and the crypt so ethereal that you feel like you’ve stumbled into a different realm.

To my sheer delight I also discovered that buried beneath the mosaic floors were the remains of a pilgrim. Not much of him is left to be fair, but how important he must have been to be buried within the walls of the cathedral. At the time of discovery, his shell and staff were uncovered and can be seen in a glass sarcophagus in the crypt.

wanering the lanes of worcester, 15th century pilgrim

The burial place of a 15th century Pilgrim at Worcester Cathedral

I took a quick stroll through the cloisters and popped in at the Chapter House. Two sides of the cloisters were lined with a delightful array of beautifully decorated Christmas trees.

wandering the lanes of worcester, worcester cathedral cloister and chapter house

The Cloisters and The Chapter House of Worcester Cathedral

The sun was setting whilst I meandered through the cathedral so I quickly headed out onto the west lawn for a look at the sunset over the river and also to have a better look at the west facade of the cathedral……it really is quite stunning.

wandering the lanes of worcester, worcester cathedral and the river severn

sunset in Worcester and the River Severn

And then it was time for home, but not without a quick dash through town…I simply had to see the old Tudor architecture by night…..just splendid, it looked positively medieval.

Worcester by night

I took a quick walk across the bridge to the Swan Sanctuary for one last look at the cathedral from across the River Severn, and finally headed for home.