Tag Archives: history

Isle of Wight

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The Isle of Wight was a lovely surprise, so much to see and so much beauty in just 380 sq.km. We started early with a walk along Bembridge seafront

1.Bembridge2.Bembridge3.Bembridge

through peaceful countryside.

4.Bembridge

A short drive westward, we stopped at Adgestone Vineyard, the oldest vineyard in Britain. Unfortunately, there was no tasting but the views were breathtaking.

5.Adgestone Vineyard View6.Adgestone Vineyard View7.Adgestone Vineyard View

On to Arreton Barns, a traditional working craft village

with the 12th century Church of St George.

11.Arreton Barns

Donkeys are one of my favourite animals. I’ve always wanted a couple but Michael says they’re too noisy. The Donkey Sanctuary was heaven, a deserving retirement for these beautiful creatures who have patiently walked the seashores with all shapes and sizes on their backs.

We were hoping for a raptor experience at the Owl & Falconry centre but it was closed. All we got was more stunning scenery.

18.Owl &Falconry Centre

After a delicious pub lunch at The White Lion in Niton

19.White Lion, Niton

we ventured on to Mottistone Manor. Dating from early 16th century, the house is not open to the public

20.MottistoneManor21.MottistoneManor

but the gardens are wondrous to stroll around.

We continued driving to the most western point on the island. A short walk along the cliff top

28.The Needles

rewarded with magnificent views across the Solent to Hurst Castle, built by Henry VIII in 1544.

29.Hurst Castle

At the tip of the headland are The Needles, three distinctive stacks of chalk rising out of the sea.

31.The Needles

The Old Battery is a fort built in 1862 following the threat of French invasion.

34.The Needles

These two gun barrels are original from 1873.

35.The Needles

An underground tunnel

36.The Needles

leads to an observation post housing a searchlight dating from 1899.

37.The Needles

Further up the headland is the New Battery where British space rockets were secretly tested in the 1950s & 60s. After testing, they were taken to Woomera in South Australia for launching.

38.The Needles

We made our way back to Bembridge for a well earned beverage and dinner. Next morning, we visited Bembridge Windmill. Built around 1700, it is the only remaining windmill on the Isle of Wight.

39.Bembridge Windmill

Last operated in 1913, most of the original machinery is intact.

Our final destination on the island was Yarmouth for the ferry journey back to the big island.

We appreciated a different perspective of Hurst Castle

49.Hurst Castle

and Lymington marina welcomed us back.

50.Lymington Marina

Arundel Castle

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We didn’t really have a plan when we visited Britain, other than starting in London then driving in a clockwise direction. After a couple of days in Kent, we decided to head for Chichester to see the cathedral. We didn’t get there. On the way, we espied an enormous castle rising majestically out of the landscape.

1.Arundel2.Arundel

Built in 1067, Arundel Castle was damaged during the English Civil War, then restored in the 18th & 19th centuries.

3.Arundel4.Arundel

7.Arundel

It has been the home to the Duke of Norfolk for over 400 years.

8.Arundel9.Arundel13.Arundel

The grounds are magnificent, scattered with stunning outbuildings.

11.Arundel18.Arundel10.Arundel

The views across the South Downs are breathtaking.

12.Arundel14.Arundel

It’s easy to imagine the knights in shining armour clattering up the worn stone steps.

15.Arundel

The Fitzalan Chapel, founded in 1390, is still the burial place of the Dukes of Norfolk. The window is a little more impressive from inside.

16.Arundel17.Arundel

We left Arundel a lot later than anticipated

19.Arundel

and continued westward. We detoured to enquire about the fares and timetable for the Isle of Wight ferry. Before we knew it, we were in the queue.

Leaving Portsmouth behind,

22.Portsmouth23.Portsmouth

with a locally brewed beverage in hand

24.Isle of W Ferry

we crossed the Solent

25.Isle of W Ferry26.Isle of W Ferry27.Isle of W Ferry28.Isle of W Ferry

and settled in at the Windmill Inn, Bembridge.

29.Windmill Inn Bembridge

La Villa

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A leisurely walk from the apartment in Ponte a Serraglio is the village of La Villa, the commercial centre of Bagni di Lucca. The houses along the way were intriguing, I would love to have seen inside them.

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They had great views of the green hills and the river flowed just outside their windows.

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The delicate wildflowers were putting on a show.

The main street wasn’t too busy

21.main street

and we found just what we were looking for.

22.nonsolovino

The park had a lovely fountain.

23.fountain

The view downstream from the town bridge was serene.

24.from bridge

I don’t know who this gentleman is but I think he has kind eyes.

25.bust

We were a little early for lunch and were forced to endure a beer at the bar next door, complemented by bowls of olives and potato crisps, to pass the time.

26.gelateria

Lunch at Ristorante Del Sonno was well worth the wait. I discovered my favourite pizza – ham, artichokes, olives & egg. I returned to La Villa a week later with the ‘wives’ while the men were busy building guitars. We lunched at Del Sonno,

27.Ristorante Del Sonno

overlooking the gorgeous facade of Teatro Accademico

28.teatro accademico

and the cute dog waiting outside.

29.teatro statue

We then walked off our meal along the river path dedicated to Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning. They lived most of their lives in Florence and had a summer house in La Villa from 1853-1857.

30.river walk131.river walk2

No wonder they wrote such beautiful poetry with inspiration like this.

Kent

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After five wonderful days in London, we caught the train from Charing Cross to Tonbridge, Kent, and picked up our hire car. We drove to Tunbridge Wells, where Michael grew up, and explored the town.

2.Pantiles

The Pantiles is a Georgian colonnade, named after the pantile paving on the Upper Walk in 1700. Now lined with shops, galleries and cafés

3.Pantiles4.Pantiles5.Pantiles

the area was created following the discovery of a  chalybeate spring in the early 17th century.

6.Pantiles

After lunch at The Duke of York

7.Pantiles Lunch

we visited High Rocks, which weren’t as high as they seemed to a young Michael. The drive was scenic

10.High Rocks

and the pub inviting.

We found our way through the back lanes to our B&B, The Duck & Drake, just outside Rolvenden.

12.Duck & Drake11.Duck & Drake13.Duck & Drake

The room was lovely

14.Duck & Drake

with a gorgeous view to greet us the next day.

15.Duck & Drake

We stuck a pin in the map and headed for Hastings,

where the ruins of the castle, built by The Normans in 1070, sit proudly above the town.

21.Hastings

We took the easy way to the top

23.HastingsCliffRail

for a closer look at the ruins

and the magnificent view.

26.Hastings

Back in the car park, this young gull had made himself comfortable.

27.Gull

We drove on to Eastbourne

28.Eastbourne29.Eastbourne30.Eastbourne

and after a leisurely lunch, we started back to The Duck & Drake, discovering Bodiam Castle along the way.

31.Bodiam Castle

Built in 1385 as both a defence and a comfortable home, the castle was used in Monty Python & The Holy Grail as Swamp Castle.

 

There were no curtains, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utuchVE_56M, but I think they would have obscured the scenery.

41.Bodiam Castle42.Bodiam Castle

One last stop for a quick beverage at The Elephant Head

43.Elephant Head

where we made a friend

44 Boxer

and we finished the day with a fabulous meal at The White Lion in Tenterden.

Gunns Plains

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Gunns Plains is a rich, fertile valley in northwest Tasmania. Named after botanist and early explorer, Robert Campbell Gunn, the Leven River winds through pastures, grazing stock and rich, red volcanic soil. Forty minutes drive from our house is George Woodhouse Lookout where George and his wife, Lurlie, are resting with a view of their beloved plains.

1.sunny view

The view is breathtaking, even on a cloudy day.

2.cloudy view2

It is a place we like to take visitors, building them up to this astounding vista as we get nearer. It was a little disappointing, one clear June day, to find the valley under heavy cloud. Still beautiful but not quite the same.

3.fog14.fog25.fog3

The scenery is just as captivating once down on the plain.

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I love the poplar trees as winter approaches.

9.plains4

Beneath this gorgeous landscape lies over 150 caves. The second largest was discovered in 1906 when a possum hunter’s dog fell into a hole. It was opened to the public three years later. The formations in the cave are magnificent, particularly the calcite shawls

10.shawl

and the flowstones are so varied.

11.flow

Stalactites, stalagmites, columns and young shawls abound.

This cute little fungus caught my eye.

21.fungus

The underground river still flows and is home to the endangered freshwater crayfish, platypus and eels. The delicate display of the glow worms can be appreciated when the torchlight is dimmed. We look forward to returning to the caves, maybe with our next visitors….