Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for england
The Home of Concorde
By Linda Tancs
England’s Bristol Aeroplane Company at Filton was the heart of aviation excellence for over 100 years. At that site began one of the most famous aircraft projects in the world—the design, development and production of the world’s first and only supersonic passenger aircraft, Concorde. The first flight of Concorde took place from the Filton tarmac on April 9, 1969, a short but historic trip to nearby Fairford. Thereafter every British Concorde made its maiden flight from the airfield. Although Filton airport eventually closed, it is now redeveloped and hosts Aerospace Bristol Museum. Set over three hangars, the most exciting exhibit is arguably Concorde, boasting a multimedia experience all around the jet to educate visitors on its history. You can board the plane, once a benefit reserved for the wealthiest of travelers (or their employers). Give yourself three or four hours to tour the facility and learn about all the important flight developments that occurred at Bristol Filton. The museum is located on Hayes Way, adjacent to the historic Filton Airfield.
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Nine Ladies in Derbyshire
By Linda Tancs
The Nine Ladies is a standing stone circle located on Stanton Moor in Derbyshire in the English East Midlands. Dating to the Bronze Age, it is thought to depict a folk tale concerning nine ladies turned to stone as a penalty for dancing on Sunday. Actually, there were 10 ladies; one stone was discovered on its side in 1977. Although the circle’s purpose is unknown, it is not uncommon for formations of this sort to have been used as a meeting place, landmark, or place of ceremony or burial. The site can be accessed via a number of footpaths depending upon your start point. Formal car parking is available just outside of Birchover, less than a mile from the circle.
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Cavaliers and Roundheads
By Linda Tancs
The history of England’s Corfe Castle in Dorset includes the country’s civil war era. Among its many owners, the castle passed into the hands of the Bankes family, prominent members of the Dorset gentry, who turned the former stronghold into their country seat. The Bankes family supported King Charles I and his supporters (the Cavaliers) against Oliver Cromwell and the Parliamentarians (the Roundheads) during the civil war. They defended the castle unsuccessfully against bombardment, and the castle was ultimately destroyed. Due to the courage of Lady Mary Bankes during the conflict, the victorious Parliamentarians eventually presented her with the keys to Corfe Castle as a tribute notwithstanding its destruction. The castle remained in the family for over three centuries before being handed over to the National Trust. Take a walk among the castle’s ruins and grounds (which features an audio tour covering its long history), and look out for wildlife like the grey bush cricket and red kites, birds of prey with their distinctive high-pitched whistle sound and reddish-brown forked tail.
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The History of Basildon Park
By Linda Tancs
Basildon Park is a country estate in Berkshire, England, with an interesting history. The 18th-century Palladian-style mansion was owned by Francis Sykes, who made his fortune in the East India Company. In modern times, the house was used as a 50-bed convalescent home for officers and soldiers of the Berkshire regiments during World War I and was used during World War II for D-Day training as well as a prisoner-of-war camp for German and Italian soldiers. Suffering damage as well as disuse, the house and estate were later restored by Lord and Lady Iliffe, who gifted the house and 400-acre parkland to the National Trust in 1978. Today Basildon Park is perhaps better known as a popular filming location for shows like Bridgerton.
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Monkey Island
By Linda Tancs
Monkey Island Estate is a luxury hotel on a private island in the River Thames in Bray, England. Once the haunt of monarchs, aristocrats and artists, the estate may have taken its name from the 17th-century fresco that adorns the ceiling of the ground-floor Monkey Room. Another theory is that the name evolved from Monks Eyot (eyot being Old English for island) after the Augustinian monks who settled there in the 12th century. Among its 40 exquisite guest rooms is the Wedgwood Suite (so named and designed after the most recognizable name in British ceramics), which is Grade-1 listed.
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A Living Work of Art
By Linda Tancs
Located in Wiltshire, England, Stourhead is an estate boasting a Palladian house and world-famous landscape garden. When it first opened in the 1740s, a magazine described it as “a living work of art.” Indeed, the home (one of the first grand Palladian-style villas built in England) boasts a spectacular collection of furniture, artwork and heritage pieces collected by the Hoare family. It’s also home to some of the most spectacular follies (decorative structures) in Britain. The most famous folly is arguably the Temple of Apollo, which made its way into the film Pride and Prejudice. Another folly, the Pantheon, was inspired by the Pantheon in Rome. And another one, Alfred’s Tower (named for King Alfred the Great), offers panoramic views over three counties. Events at the property include Behind Closed Doors tours, guided walks and daily activities.
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An Iconic Tower in London
By Linda Tancs
Built in the 1960s, London’s BT Tower was once the city’s tallest building (at around 581 feet) until NatWest Tower opened in 1980. A national landmark, it was initially used for transmitting signals to television broadcasters and later featured a revolving restaurant and viewing platform (until an act of terrorism shut it down). As its role in telecommunications diminished with the evolution of fixed and mobile technology, the landmark saw new use as a giant banner of sorts when a wrap-around LED screen was installed around the 36th and 37th floors to provide messaging for various national events and even social media posts. The building has been sold to MCR, a major hotel group boasting properties like New York’s TWA Hotel and The High Line.
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The Bradford Gudgeon
By Linda Tancs
Just 12 minutes by train from Bath, England, Bradford-on-Avon is a picturesque little town located on a bend of the River Avon. It’s known for its iconic, arched stone bridge built in the 13th century. A feature of that bridge is the domed building topped with a fish-shaped weathervane known as the Bradford Gudgeon. In the 17th century it served as a prison (Lock Up), or holding cell, for criminals awaiting their date with the magistrate, who were said to be kept “below the fish and over the water.” You can experience the wait yourself this month, when the Lock Up is open for a few days during Heritage Open Days.
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Forgotten by History
By Linda Tancs
Forgotten by history, Britain’s Fitzwilliam family of South Yorkshire was once one of the grandest families in the nation. Having made their fortune with coal, they owned over 100,000 acres in England and Ireland. Their stately home, Wentworth Woodhouse (now owned by a preservation trust), testifies to a bygone era of royal visits by the likes of Queen Victoria as well as King George V and Queen Mary. Take a guided tour of the house (featuring the State Rooms) and stroll the gardens, where you can follow a trail from the stables. There are regular bus services to the village of Wentworth and train stations at Sheffield, Rotherham, Barnsley and Doncaster, all with linking bus services.
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The Straw Bear of Whittlesea
By Linda Tancs
In the market town of Whittlesea (or Whittlesey), England, don’t be surprised to see a straw bear paraded through the streets. The custom dates back to the 1880s, when the Tuesday following Plough Monday (the first Monday after Twelfth Night) would be marked by getting one of the members of the plough to dress in straw. Once in decline, the tradition is alive and well thanks to the Whittlesea Society. The procession these days includes over 250 dancers, musicians and performers accompanying the straw bear and a decorated plough, making its way up Market Street. This year’s Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival takes place from January 12 to January 14. The bear appears on Saturday.
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Billed as the Great North American Eclipse, a total solar eclipse will cross North America on April 8, 2024, passing over Mexico, the United States and Canada. The path of the eclipse begins in Mexico, entering the United States in Texas, and traveling through Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. The eclipse will enter Canada in Southern Ontario, and continue through Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Cape Breton. This will be the last time any solar eclipse will be visible within the United States until 2045.
Be prepared! So long as supplies last, you can purchase eclipse glasses and other accessories, like a phone app and photo filter, from American Paper Optics, a NASA-approved manufacturer. The link in the preceding sentence is an affiliate link, which means that if you click on the link and purchase merchandise from the page, then I may receive a small commission.
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