Sheffield Cathedral ... Again

Out and about with the camera again ... HDRs seem to do the place justice.

Sheffield Cathedral ... Out Of The Rain

I wanted to test a new camera (Sony A65V) so took shelter in the cathedral between showers. This is a HDR image I made after getting home. The original bracket of images were take "hand held". The verdict ... I'll keep the camera.

Not Singing In The Rain

Another day another downpour. What has happened to the summer? Thank G for a large, stout umbrella, gum boots, North Face wet gear and webbed-feet attachments and the emergency water-wings. No wonder we Poms have skin that looks like rain washed ivory. No wonder, at the slightest hit of Sol raising a smile, we strip in anticipation of  a lobsterine tan. As you can guess we are going a bit stir-crazy at the moment ... thank G, again, for "other interests" which don't require expeditions into the maelstrom.

Out And About ... Phew ... TG For Pubs

We've been burning up the roads yet again in search of the Holy Grail; maybe that's taking things too far into the realms of nonsense.

St Peters church at Edensor may be quite modern (mid 1800s) but it has some lovely features which are well worth a visit. Edensor village is sited in Chatsworth Estate and was re-designed in the mid 1800 to create a "model" village to suite the tastes of the 6th Duke of Devonshire. The present church is on the same site as the medieval church. A fabulous early 17C monument to two of  Bess of Hardwick's sons was dismantled and rebuilt in the present church ...

On to Great Longstone where we visited St Giles Church and had an excellent lunch in The White Lion pub. The church has wall dating from the 13C and the village is mentioned in the Domesday Book (1086).

Next day it was Cheadle ... and the Pugin designed RC church of St Giles. Nothing can prepare you for the visual onslaught as you first enter the church. Every mm of the place is decorated! Totally amazing ... if a bit too much. Looking at the frenetic decoration it should be no surprise that Pugin died at the tender age of 39, no doubt worn out by his manic activity and the energy that three wives demanded ...

Lunch was provided in a traditional cafe the building of which was predominantly Elizabethan.

Out And About After Too Much TV

The Olympics are over ... the local athletes seem to have done well ... It's time to get up off the sofa and go abroad ...


Great Hucklow well dressing was the first place we visited ... for the tea and cakes; no need to ask why. We had an informative conversation with one of the matrons from the WI; the village has a remarkable history especially in providing holiday breaks for the less fortunate kids from Manchester and Sheffield. This was started off by Charles Peach and Lawrence Scott. The Unitarian church dates from the latter part of the 17C and is still going strong,

Onward to Taddington and an excellent lunch with probably the best Victoria Sandwich to date. We walked up the hill to a second well dressing which lead to some delightful conversations about life the universe and the price of tea in China; this while looking out over the lovely, sunlit Derbyshire countryside.

A quick half at the local and we sped off to Chrome Hill. Weather wise it seemed unwise to start walking the 10 miles to cover the circuit so we sped on further down a one lane lane ... not really a "road" ... until we came to the A53 at Axe Edge. This is good road to travel if you want to see the wide vistas of the SW part of the Peak District National Park. The road is a Roman Road ...

Turning south we went towards The Roaches where, until 2000, there were several wallabies. Ramshaw Rocks were spectacular enough for us to stop and have a bit of a wander so The Roaches will have wait for another day.

After some excellent back-lane navigation we got back to the cottage having had an great day out and in time for a fine dinner ... Brilopads!

OMG! How Do They Do IT?

Oh Limp Picks? I don't do sport ... err, that's didn't ...

It must be something in the water. We've spent an unbelievable amount of time watching the London Olympic Games. Track, 'bikes, rowing, show jumping, tennis, badminton and especially gymnastics. How on earth can a human do all that twisting, bouncing, swinging, jumping and generally defying gravity? Amazing!

The BBC coverage has been exceptional. Even the commentators make sense ... unbelievable! The BBC web site is first class use of the technology ... totally what the web should be.

What a shock to our systems ... we watched sport ...

Saxon And Norman Splendour

Another lovely summer day.

The small village of Stow-In-Lindsey sites one of the most surprising of the ancient churches in Lincolnshire. St Mary's Minster is a monolithic building which is in magnificent condition. Entering the Saxon doorway into the nave takes you completely by surprise. The interior is massive both in size and structure. The crossing has two sets of Saxon arches of different ages. The Victorian restoration is said to be as near to the original Saxon/Norman design as possible. This is the "mother" church to Lincoln Cathedral.

The Cross Keys Inn was an ideal place to have lunch.

We went on to find St Edith's church in Coates by Stow which has 12C  Norman features - we failed; Coates is for another day ...

Expect The Unexpected

Another sunny day with big skies and vast landscapes.

The village of Spalding promised some interesting architecture. The church of St Mary and St Nicholas turned out to be a gem. It is a huge building and the interior splendidly maintained. Meeting one of the organists was a great stroke of luck. He was a delight to talk to and, to my great surprise, was happy to explain to me the very complex workings of the keyboards, stops and peddles. This took the best part of an hour and the church reverberated and sang as he demonstrated voice after voice. He finished with a resounding Jerusalem - what a fantastic experience!

A cafe in the town square provided a good lunch and coffee served by a woman from Rome - my dreadful Italian took a severe beating ...

The biggest shock was the number of passers-by who spoke Polish ... particularly noticeable among the groups of teenagers ... the UK has the most advantageous state support systems of the EU which could contribute to the situation ... 

Lincoln ... Again

We decided to spend a day in and around Lincoln castle and cathedral.

We started the day with the obligatory visit to a cafe for coffee and cakes - there are several to choose from in the area around Castle Square.

Since the sun had put in an appearance we decided to start with a visit to the castle. Walking the walls gave excellent views across the Trent Valley and the city itself. Sadly some of the parts of the castle were closed for renovation and, I suspect, modern rule dealing with the "safety" of visitors. Two of the towers were closed as was the main part of the Georgian prison.















Next: the cathedral. All the seats had been removed so that we could see the magnificence of the nave. Sun streamed through the stained glass and produced bright cloured patterning on the nave floor. The whole place seemed filled with light so that the cream coloured limestone seemed to glow. We never tire of the place ...

The cathedral cafe provided an adequate lunch and the chance to enjoy the cloister again.

A short drive south along the Lincoln Ridge, on the A607, took us through some very pretty villages - Oolitic Limestone cottages looked cream coloured making a contrast to Georgian brick and new builds. Navenby, Coleby and Welbourn both have pleasant churches. Welbourn boasts the site of a pre-1400 castle.

Never Stumpted ...

The promise of a rainy day didn't materialise. We sped east to Boston - not of Tea Party fame, but the start of the Protestant migration to what has become the USA; that wasn't because they were being persecuted but, they thought Jolly England was too jolly and depraved for their version of religion. We were jolly when we saw St Botolph's church - Boston Stump to the locals. A really beautiful building adjacent to the market square. The market was heaving with folk; it is a place well known for stalls selling fake named brands at basement prices.

Once we had wandered, goggle-eyed, around the church we indulged with slices of home made cake served at the church cafe; real Victoria sandwich and fruit cake - none of your cheap, shop bought muck.

Our next stop was Spilby and St James church - which was closed due to, like nearly everywhere else, the high level of theft and vandalism - sad but true. Always ready to taste local fayre, we had coffee and goodies at Matt's Deli - I'd drop in if you're passing through the village and buy some delicious bread or, my favourite, pork pie.

On the way back to the hotel we spotted St Helens church in West Keal. The view from the church yard towards Boston was excellent which is why the ancestors had the common sense to site their hill forts and settlements on such ridges.

So ended a rain free day.