Around London

 10 June

After a leisurely breakfast we bade a reluctant farewell to Peter and Margaret ( and plans to return ) and started out for London. We had not been able to contact our friends Geoff and Marie Greenwood in Maidstone as we had an incorrect phone number so we called in on the off change they might be home and were lucky to find them both there. To say they were surprised is an understatement but it was wonderful to catch up. Lots of laughs as usual and we shared family news and world views! As Marie said it is always as if no time has passed when we have these catch ups – a very precious experience. Both Marie and Geoff don't look a day older than when we saw them in 2012 and are in good health and it was so good to catch up.

We took a long route into London as it was easier to stay on 1 major route rather than navigate thought the suburbs without an adequate map or GPS. Our parking spot at the B&B was not available so we fed a meter with all the coins we had (not enough but the local traffic warden gave Stephen 30 p to tp up what he had – how delightful is that! ) and headed onto the Underground to visit Westminster. Not having done our homework we arrived 2 minutes too late to catch the visiting hours. As the weather was warm we strolled leisurely past Parliament buildings, watched the river traffic on the Thames, listened to Big Ben toll the hour and walked up to Downing street before deciding to head back to our accommodation in Hammersmith before the rush hour.

An 'old pupil' ( she is actually a beautiful 30 something!) of Gillian, Giselle, called around and took us to dinner at the Blue Anchor, a pub on the bank of the Thames near Hammersmith Bridge.That was so cool to see the Londoners at their outdoor experience – rowing, cycling, running. Sadly we missed catching up with her husband Michael who is out of London for work.It was wonderful evening with Giselle, catching up and sharing stories. We took a mini cab home (more on that later) back to our delightful B & B ( run by relatives of Michael's)

11 June

We awoke to a glorious blue sky with expected highs of 24 degrees – didn't happen but it was our first day of wearing lighter clothes which we really enjoyed. This B and B has everything you could want- we are in the Attic – with ensuite and a sitting area and small kitchenette so we are self catering and … there is a bath! Lovely comfy beds and fluffy duveys – as at Peter and Margaret's the Brits use feathers to good effect in their bedding.

It started to lose light around 9.30pm last night and at 5.30 this morning it was full daylight. Short nights for we Aucklanders.

OK after we prepared and ate our breakfast it was out and into London. First stop via the underground was the Monument - to acknowledge the great fire of London and Christopher Wren – the tower is 202 feet high which is the distance from Pudding Lane ( where fire started) to the monument.Wren designed the monument and many of London's amazing churches and cathedrals of course. Thence we wandered to and through the Borough markets – yumm – wonderful products and we were tempted but with a flight to Rome tomorrow it wasn't practicable – especially as Giselle has asked us for dinner at hers tonight. So we bought a very interesting light rye bread to take to dinner. Thereafter we went over the London Bridge and walked along the South bank to the Golden Hind ( Sir Francis Drake) where a delightful guide was preparing school children for the tour! Very funny and some of her responses very non PC – Quite funny to hear her reply, to a mouthy lad, when she asked the children what the word was (starting with M) when sailors refused to do what their captain told them to do. His response was 'a mutant ' her reply was “ No and you're the mutant”! I have to admit that given the very rude responses from this one and many of the kids, and the lack of teacher input over these interjections, that I had sympathy for her .

We moved along from there via the 'Clink' which was the old museum, declining the tour when we saw the skeleton hanging in the cage outside the doorway. We passed the Globe – and fed our eyes on it – remembering when we went there to see Henry V. Everywhere today there were tours of school children – in and out of uniform – of ages. They were obviously doing tours to support the curriculum and were well supervised. I was fascinated trying to work out what schools they had come from.

We ate a delicious lunch in a Greek restaurant – walked on across the Millennium Bridge – all metal. Crossing both bridges was a great chance to view the river craft and view the banks – the Tower of London was clearly visible. Once over the bridge we wandered beside and past St Paul's Cathedral – down Ludgate Hill, Fleet Street and the Strand enjoying the architecture. Compared to what we saw when we arrived in 1997 the whole city – building, monuments, roads etc are clean and tidy. As Lucas would say the Lions at Trafalgar square are 'Shiny and Clean' . While we were our way wending toCovent Garden we became aware that there were long lines of taxis stationary lining the streets, then we heard 3–4 helicopters hovering over the arae – then a friendly Brit explained that the taxi drivers were striking / protesting abut Mini Cab drivers who operate without the restrictions that are imposed on their metered liscened service. Well – we certainly saw that and heard people phoning and describing it to others – I swear the people in London will soon give birth to children with cell phones attached to their ears or attached to their hands with tubes threaded to their ears! I know we have these practices in NZ but because there are so many more of them in London it is very obvious!

We spent time enjoying a very clean Trafalgar Square – few pigeons and no bird doodoos on the statues – watched te helicopters and the cabbies who were enthusiastically tooting their horns. We concluded that the 2012 Olympics may have been the reason for these lovely clean buildings. We were told the same thing happened in Athens – we visited soon after they had hosted the Olympics. Certainly the parts of Athens we saw was lovely and clean.

Folk are aware of the World Cup (football in Brazil) is about to begin but no fever is apparent.

OK back in our lovely accommodation (Called "A Better Place to Stay") and will soon drive to Chiswick to have dinner with Giselle.

What a day – apart from Somerset House - we had seen all these sites before when we often wandered round London on Sundays (a very quiet time in London in those days) in 1997. However it was a delight to see these special sites again , to see what an alive and busy city London is and it really looks prosperous – blending huge respect for their past with the 21^st Century. 

We are ready to move on now – Flying to Roma tomorrow.

Many thanks to our special friends and to this wonderful land of our fathers.

Back in the UK

8 June

Arrived in Guangzhou (Canton) after an uneventful flight. Everything in Auckland worked perfectly, but after that we had increasing issues. The aircraft was a 787 and very comfortable in our area, but the inflight entertainment system kept freezing and/or resetting. The announcements in Chinglese were only partially decipherable and, while the plane was docked at an airbridge at Guangzhou, we then had to clamber down steep stairs to a bus to take us to another terminal. We had arranged for a wheel chair to reduce the strain on Gillian's knees, but there did not seem to any facility for that here. Apart from that the airport seems large and modern.

Weather here is low cloud and fog that does not allow a view halfway across the airport, but it not raining.

We found the airline lounge, but were fronted by a notice that “Air system is in for maintenance. We apologise for the uncomfortableness.” In other words hot and sticky. We did score showers which was nice.

So, on to London …

Another easy flight to London with announcement that were completely impossible to hear or understand. At Heathrow we were met with a wheelchair, but then found that the doors into the terminal were locked – someone manged to get them open, but then they had to be held open by each passenger for the next.

After picking up the rental car headed off around the M25 to Kent. Once again I was surprised how green and rural the countryside is so close to London. Once off the motorway it was into the quaint villages, hedgerows and incredibly narrow country lanes that define the Kentish landscape. Our hosts here, Peter & Margaret, live half a mile down a farm track off an old coach road that winds through the fields and woods for several miles – never more than 9' wide and often less. In fact it isn't unusual for the mirrors on both sides of the car to be brushing the hedges at the same time. With the high hedges, a narrow and winding road certainly keeps you awake as you expect to find a large tractor heading in the other direction around every corner. Backing up for hundreds of metres is not fun.

Peter & Margaret's charming Pope's Hall 'Cottage' cottage.

9 June -

GillieB here. We had a lovely sleep in Peter and Margaret's guest house ( I call it 'Le Petit Chateau de Culham' ) – lovely and quiet in the Kentish countryside.This is  gorgeous - not sure how to describe so best to look at the photo - we feel thoroughly spoiled.There is so much attention to the decorations and appointments, wooden flooring down stairs - carpet upstairs, tongue and groove cladding for the kitchen dining area etc.

After a leisurely breakfast of Margaret's home made bread and jam, Peter took us into his garden. He has a large range of vegies growing – in a fenced rabbit proof garden – several raised plots as well as a green house. We took note of a number of cultivation points with our own new garden in the making at Onemana in mind. A tour followed of the lovely garden followed -even a viewing of one of Peter's purpose built sheds – a good six meters of secret man territory – I was very spoilt to put a female foot inside. The grounds are truly lovely – as Stephen said much like a botanic garden. There are lots of birds and birdsong and the view from their front terrace across the fields to the distant Downs is stunning. The light changes as the day moves on and so do the colours of the countryside. Sitting talking with Peter after breakfast in the nice, warm sunshine was truly magic – birds / view = bliss.

Thereafter Peter took us on a tour of the local environs. Peter drove down narrow roads lined by hedgerows with wild flowers in their midst and trees that meet overhead making leafy green tunnels. First stop was Staplehurst to drop a note into Sue and Steve's about about some relishes as their housesitter was not at home . Thereafter we went down more entrancing roads – noticing some really old medieval houses as well as oast houses and even a windmill in good working order. It is very evident that houses along these roads and in the small villages we pass through as beautifully kept and maintained.

We visited a winery named Hush Heath and tasted some very nice wines – very light and easy on the palette. The estate is 400 acres and appears to crop wheat as well as apple treess for the cider they make.The young women who served us was very knowledgeable about the growth and production of their products and described the recent awards the winery has won. They supply the wine provided on the Orient Express!

On to Rolvenden to the Bull Inn for a lovely 'sandwich' lunch – Peter and I enjoyed a shrimp cocktail sandwich and Stephen a ham bagette. The steam train was not running but the Morgan Car Museum was open and the display of vintage Morgan cars, bikes, ambulance and even a vintage caravan was fascinating – as was the antique shop at the front of the museum. A trip down memory lane.

We are back at the Chateau Culham- Peter is mowing his 2 acres (ride on mower of course). We are out for dinner with Peter and Margaret this evening.

March 2014 - Here we go again....

Once again the Bertrams are heading North to escape the NZ winter.  This time we are going earlier than in the past, starting in early June and returning late August.

Since our last trip in this blog we have spent most of the time divided between our places in Auckland and Onemana.  A 10 day trip to South Australia in July 2013 was our only excursion of note.

This time, as we will be travelling in the high season, we have booked the entire trip ahead of time which is a first for us as we like to adjust the trip when we come across things of interest.  I hope the proposed schedule does not limit us too much.

THE PLAN:
The trip starts with a few days in Kent, a flight down to Rome where we pick up a car, 4 days in southern Italy before taking a ferry to Dubrovnik.

We were thinking of spending time in Greece, but decided that the distances were too much so will head north with a couple of weeks in Croatia, Bosnia and Slovenia.  Then it's on the road through the Dolomites to a couple of days in our favourite hotel in Trento.  The next week will take us through Switzerland and down to the south coast in Provence.

10 days in Provence, then a 3 day road trip up to the Loire east of Tours, 2 weeks in Brittany, 1 week in Normandy and a quick visit to Giverny (Monet's gardens) will round out the trip.

All in all it will take us through mainly new territory for us with a few visits to places we've in the past.  Roll on June!

8 August 2012 - Paris

LAST DAY IN EUROPE - Time does go so fast.

After our stay in Yorkshire we headed down the A2 to Sandway in Kent where we spen 2 days with our friends Margaret and Peter.  Their house is a lovely 4 bedroom 3 storey quirky place built on ancient farm cottages.  Floors are not level and the walls are 3 feet thick, but it is very comfortable and well provided.  From the patio you can see 30 miles over the Weald into Sussex with almost no houses in sight.  One of the main memories I have of the house is the access - from the nearest village it is 2 miles through country roads that are 2m wide with high hedges either side and a regular traffic of very large tractors with even larger trailers always heading in the opposing direction.  That is just to get to the gate - there is another 1/2 mile of a rough gravel track to reach the house.

Gillian and friend Jack at Sandway

Then 2 days in Paris - we have kept it simple with a wander down Champs-Elysee, visits to Sacre-Coeur, Notre-Dame and the Eiffel Tower and as much time as we could stand in the Louvre.

 Champs Elysee looking toward Arc de Triomphe

 When you're in Paris you have to visit.

Sacre Coeur and crowds.

We are now packing for the trip home - we have a 14 hour stopover in Kuala Lumpur which we may well spend in our dayroom at the airport, depending on the weather.

So this is Stephen signing off from Paris.

3 August 2012 – West Witton

Yesterday was the grand tour of the dales in circuit that took in Swaledale, Wharfedale, Coverdale, Wensleydale and Arkengarthdate. We had a suggested route from our hosts which took us over the moors and through the dales with stops at Askrigg and Hawes to visit locations used for the TV series All Creatures Great & Small.  Once again the gentle valleys, dry stone walls, small market towns and mellow stone buildings created a gentle image of farming in a bygone age.  The cows can be weird too...

 A pub in Askrigg used in the TV series

The market square in Hawes, also used in the series

 

 A view over Wharfedale

A local

I thoroughly enjoyed  the roads, but Gillian has worn her fingernails to the bone hanging on in terror. I should mention that we stopped in Hawes and wandered round finishing up up gthe Wensleydale Creamery.  Here they have over 25 cheeses available for free tasting.  After the first dozen it is hard to remember the order of preference and to find room for lunch afterwards.

Today we spent time in Bolton Castle, principally famous as the prison for Mary Queen of Scots, but had to rush the visit as it was closing for the afternoon for a wedding. The exterior of the castle is impressive as it is still the full height in most ares and once inside it is larger than it looked. The Parliamentary forces tried to destroy it in the 1600's, but a reasonable amount still remains including the shell of the guest tower & great hall, the family rooms where Mary was kept, 2 major reception rooms and most of the ground floor rooms. The castle was built in the 1300's and reflects the wealth and status of the Scrope family with lavish proportions and facilities – even the dungeon has an en-suite garde-robe (loo).

 Bolton Castle

 Looking down into the courtyard from the battlements

This is at a 6th floor level !

While we were there we watched a demonstration of hawk handling in the courtyard. Apparently the family makeup involves one female with 2 or more males to keep her company...

 A hawk landed on his handler.

We then wandered around the market town of Richmond which is centred around a large cobbled marketplace and has the obligatory large castle overlooking it.

 Marketplace at Richmond

Richmond Castle

And I thought the idea for the military was to catch the world by surprise.....

A road sign seen on the moors

 

2 August 2012 - West Witton

We're now in the Yorkshire Dales.  The trip from Scotland took a full day and the only break was a visit to the family castle at Mitford.  While we have no reliable evidence it would be nice to be able to claim a link back to Sir Roger Bertram, one of William the Conc's Norman knights who built a castle here.  The castle was a earth and wood fort in the 10 century and the existing stone work probably dates from the mid 11th century.  In any case it was entirely destroyed before 1325.  Unfortunately the Bertram family chose the wrong side in a dispute and consequently had the lands seized by the king around 1315.

We had a few hassles finding the place and eventually pulled into the side of a narrow country lane to Gillian's "Why are we stopping here? OH MY GOD THAT'S THE CASTLE" with a view up to a couple of derelict pieces of stonework.  We found a narrow muddy path leading up the hill and found the remains were more impressive than appeared from the road.  The bailey (flat area with living accommodation) was extensive and the motte (formed defended hill) rose some 15m above the bailey.  There had been a substantial wall around the bailey, another around the top of the motte and inside the motte wall there is the base of an unusual pentagonal shaped keep.  All that remains now are portions of each wall and the base and cellar of the crypt.  Apparently a lot of the stone had been reused to build a nearby manor house in the 1300's.  This may or may not be the source of my branch of the Bertrams, but it is nice to think of having a castle in the family.

Gillian sitting in a window(?) in the wall of "her castle"

The remnants of the keep, now protected by stinging nettles

1 August 2012 - Bridge of Earn

Catchup for a few days.

Sunday the main event was a return to the battlefield of Culloden. Since the last time we were here a modern visitors centre has been added. It contains a great display of the events leading up to the battle, but we felt that it detracted from the atmosphere of the remote moor that we found last time. The memorial cairn and the markers placed in the late 19^th century to mark the clans involved still have the most impact – the battle seems to have touched almost every known highland family and you have to wonder why Charlie had the ability to convince the others that he had a chance.

On Monday we called into Scone, the traditional place for crowning the Scottish kings, and spent some time touring the country house (Scone Palace) built by the Murray family. The coronation mound is supposed to have been built up by soil the lords brought on their boots when they came to swear fealty to the current monarch. I have some doubts that the odd 500m3 of the mound actually was just the mud on their boots. The alleged copy of the “Stone of Destiny” certainly doesn't appear much like the stone that was kidnapped from Westminster a while ago, but artistic licence forgiven it is nice to have a point on the ground where you can say “history happened here”.

Gillian with the Stone of Destiny at Scone

The Murray family were given the lands of Scone in 1600, but the current house dates from 1808. The scale of the rooms is huge with a massive state dining room, ante-chambers and galleries. The contents of the house are either priceless collectables or stuff about the family – they assume that someone cares....

The next stop was Arbroath to visit the abbey. Although the building was ruined during the reformation, what remains is impressive. The main historical link here is the Declaration of Arbroath which sought to lift the excommunication of Robert the Bruce and to establish Scotland as an independent nation.

The remains of Abroath Abbey

On the way back to the hotel we called into St Andrews, but decided not to take the time for a round of golf.  However the town was very pleasant with a long main street lined with solid buildings, many of them related to the university.  At the Eastern end the remains of the Cathedral are impressive - this was the main administrative seat for the church in Eastern Scotland.

St Andrews Cathedral

Tuesday we continued the Bruce quest with visits to Dunfermline and Stirling. In the Dunfermline abbey church there is a wealth of historic context. The identified coffin of Robert is re-interred under the pulpit and there are many other Scottish kings (and Robert's wife) that are also in the church, but not identified. Out in the graveyard there is a tree supposedly planted over the grave of the mother of William Wallace (a supposed ancestor of mine). We spent some time debating the merits of various versions of history with a very helpful and enthusiastic guide. The general consensus seems to be whatever story fits your own vision is near enough...

Stirling is the area for the battle of Bannockburn which was Robert's major victory over Edward II. The stories on what happened vary and no-one know exactly where it happened, but the basic facts seem reasonably clear – the event started with a one to one challenge between an English knight and Robert which ended up with Robert's axe buried in the opponents skull, the first day was a minor skirmish which went in favour of Robert and on the second day the Scots had superior tactics and wasted the English. It's ironic that Robert's son ended up marrying Edward's daughter and promoting the cause of the English...

Robert's statue at Bannockburn

We spent quite some time talking to a presenter at the visitor centre.  He had given a demonstration of the armour and weapons that would have been in use and was dressed in full chain mail weighing 5 stone (35kg).  He seemed quite at home swinging broadswords, double handed swords, battle axes and a few other nasties and his descriptions of the effect of the weapons was graphic. 

On Gillian's insistence we then headed to Falkirk where, after a few navigational discussions, we found the Falkirk wheel. This is an amazing bit of show-off engineering designed to reconnect the Union and the Forth & Clyde canals as the connection has been in ruin for the last 50 years. The wheel consists of 2 big tubs, each of which contains 360,000 litres of water with a total weight of 1,000 tonnes. They are connected on opposing sides of an axles so that as the “wheel” turns one sinks as the other rises. As the weight of each is the same it takes little power to carry out the lift. A single half turn lifts boats 75 ft to float down a futuristic aqueduct to the Union canal towards Glasgow. The most impressive achievement to me was the excellent seal that the gates on the tubs which only seemed to lose a litre or 2 on the way round.

The Falkirk Wheel in action.