Monday, August 31, 2015

The ABCs of England; Abbeys, Boats and Cottages

We spent a week visiting York one of England's oldest cities, surrounded by a wall with Roman origins and medieval  history.

View of a ruined Abby and public park.
The entrance to York via the Micklegate Bar. The bar or gate, has
welcomed kings and queens and occasionally displayed
the heads of losers in battle.  

The base of this tower dates to 300-700 AD. It's
old enough that it was a ruin by 1,000 AD.

York boasts many, many beautiful buildings, among them is the York Minster Cathedral. The Cathedral is undergoing a major renovation. One of the most interesting aspects of which, is the masonry apprentice program. We stood for a while and watched them recreate the old stone work.

York Minster Cathedral seen from blocks away.

Mason apprentice at work

One of the replica stones.

Searching for better weather and an ocean view, turned up the east coast to the little town of Whitby and the most picturesque Abby ruins we've seen to date. Due to Henry VIII's pressing need for a divorce, he broke with Rome and dissolved the Catholic Abbeys and churches. He distributed the assets among himself and loyal barons. The largest Abbeys were dismantled. They make lovely places to picnic but we found it sad that magnificent buildings and educational institutions were scrapped.

The Abby, viewed from the sea cliff


Beautiful stone work


If the crypt fits...



View of the Abby in sunlight from our camp site.

 Whitby is a charming small port village with a fishing fleet but they seem to catch more tourists and visitors.
Some visitors are not so well behaved!

The working water front and
brick buildings reminds us of
Portland. We watched fishing boats
lower their antennas and nets to
fit under the red bridge.

We took some of dog sitting charges to the great cottage, Wallington for a tour:


Not a bad little country retreat owned by Sir Charles Philips Trevelyan, Socialist MP and self-described ‘illogical Englishman.’ He bequeathed the 13,000-acre estate to the people in accordance with his socialist principles. However, he made The People wait until his family was done with the house. Upon the death of his last descendant, it became a public park.

The house has exceptional plaster work, furniture and painting.   

The dining room

The salon, all of the trim and picture frames are crafted plaster. 


The cottage is skirted by lovely and extensive gardens...




























We spent time visiting Oxford, below are scenes from town and the wonderful Oxford Botanical Garden.

Radcliffe camera, part of the famous Bodleian Library and it's the best coffee shop view  to date. 

The gate to the Oxford Botanical Garden
And we thought artichokes grew in jars of brine....

Melanie has no idea what this is but admires the textures.
Archway near Oxford square




We are headed to The Avon River for a two week canal boat cruise. 
This is a typical canal boat...
Image result for canal boat images

If we don't sink, we will send a missive from the river!