Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Hann.-Munden & Goslar - 24 May 2009
Leaving Hameln we followed the Wesser Renaissance trail along the Wesser River valley to Hannoversch-Munden passing through a number of attractive half-timbered towns.
The guide-book had tempted us to this area with a lovely double-page spread photo looking down on a beautiful old city centre; unfortunately the scene was not identified. On arriving at Hannoversch-Munden we saw a belvedere overlooking the town and discovered that it was very easy to access this, by car, if you knew how. [Head for the Hospital, then the follow the signs to the Parking Platze, drive to end and then walk along the trail that leads from the car park. Along the way follow the signs to Tillyschanze and after about 15 minutes you arrive at a cafe at the foot of the tower.] The cafe will open the door to the tower for €1.10 per person and the view is simply stunning. We had found the scene from the guide-book.
It was time to head back north and hour or so later we arrived at Goslar. This beautiful town comprises 1500 old houses (more than any other town in Germany) with 168 from before 1550. The locals painted red crosses on the roofs during WWII an so escaped the Allied bombers. What a treasure trove this little town is with half-timbered houses interspersed with houses entirely clad in slate made into a myriad of decorative patterns.
Goslar was founded on the mineral wealth discovered in the hills around the town and at one time was known a the treasure chest of the Holy Roman Empire. Silver was the first metal discovered but other minerals contributed to the town's fortunes until the last mine closed in 1988. Now it is the tourists who are mined for their money.
Celle, Hildesheim & Hameln - 23 May 2009
An early morning start is the best way to leave London on a Bank Holiday weekend so we were in Hanover before 10am.
Just to the north of Hanover is Celle. This beautiful small provincial town escaped the bombing in the War, and we were able to wander around some of its 500 original 16th century houses.
From here we travelled to Hildesheim, a very different scenario in the war. This beautiful town suffered substantial bombing in the last month of the war. In the last 20 years, an amazing rebuilding programme has restored it to it's former beauty. The town square is particularly amazing, with reconstructed guildhalls; faithful replicas of the original buildings. The tourist office gave us a booklet for the town trail, called the Rose Walk, this is most worthwhile and we really enjoyed the walk which included two churches which are now UNESCO World Heritage listed.
The reason for the town trail being called the Rose Walk is because it takes you past a 1000 year-old rose bush. There is a legend about a lost prince hanging a relic on a rose bush and upon return finding the relic frozen to the bush even though it was the middle of summer; so he built a chapel there. No one knows when the current rose was planted, maybe 1000 years ago? The rose was saved during the WWII bombing by the church walls collapsing over the roots, thus protecting it from the flames. A few months later, it bloomed again and is still going strong.
Driving south, we arrived in Hameln; the destination that prompted this trip away from London. Arriving late in the afternoon is seemed that the Piper had piped all the tourists into the Wesser leaving the town for us to explore.
Just to the north of Hanover is Celle. This beautiful small provincial town escaped the bombing in the War, and we were able to wander around some of its 500 original 16th century houses.
From here we travelled to Hildesheim, a very different scenario in the war. This beautiful town suffered substantial bombing in the last month of the war. In the last 20 years, an amazing rebuilding programme has restored it to it's former beauty. The town square is particularly amazing, with reconstructed guildhalls; faithful replicas of the original buildings. The tourist office gave us a booklet for the town trail, called the Rose Walk, this is most worthwhile and we really enjoyed the walk which included two churches which are now UNESCO World Heritage listed.
The reason for the town trail being called the Rose Walk is because it takes you past a 1000 year-old rose bush. There is a legend about a lost prince hanging a relic on a rose bush and upon return finding the relic frozen to the bush even though it was the middle of summer; so he built a chapel there. No one knows when the current rose was planted, maybe 1000 years ago? The rose was saved during the WWII bombing by the church walls collapsing over the roots, thus protecting it from the flames. A few months later, it bloomed again and is still going strong.
Driving south, we arrived in Hameln; the destination that prompted this trip away from London. Arriving late in the afternoon is seemed that the Piper had piped all the tourists into the Wesser leaving the town for us to explore.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Bressingham - 17 May 2009
The Epping Area MG Owners Club arranged their annual outing to Bressingham Steam Museum & Gardens today. This involves a morning run from the Stansted services on the M11 with each car setting off at intervals, and following a set of instructions to reach the Steam Museum by noon.
We discovered some new (to us!) villages, and enjoyed the variety of architecture, and pastel colours so typical of Suffolk and Norfolk.
The Steam Museum itself, is a most enjoyable day out for anyone, particularly families. The entry price gave us unlimited rides on 3 narrow-gauge steam trains, 3 rides on a steam merry-go-round, as well as access to exhibitions and sheds full of trains. But an extra delightful surprise is the wonderful gardens. Even though it was still spring, the gardens were full of colour and promised to be amazing come summer. The highlight of the early summer was the fresh growth on the hundreds of conifers; all shapes, sizes and variations of green. It was the best and most extensive conifer collection we have seen, and each specimen was in perfect condition.
Blooming wonderful - 16 May 2009
Another London hidden gem we recently heard about is the Isabella Plantation in Richmond Park. This is a glorious display of rhododendrons and azaleas. Sadly, they were probably at their best two weeks ago, but we managed to see them before the end of their 2009 season. Richmond Park itself is so extensive, a car (or horse) is a good way to get around.
By way of contrast, we headed out to Buckinghamshire in the afternoon, to visit Nether Winchenden House. It was, started in the 13th century, had a fair bit of Tudor work, including some wonderful chimneys and then the “new” modifications, done late 18th century to modernise it, now have the interest of antiquity. The same family have lived in it for the last 400 years, and we were fortunate to be shown around by the current owner. This made it extra interesting, as he was able and willing to show off items of furniture, one usually wishes could be opened.
We detoured home via Long Crendon and Denham, to see some magnificent wisteria we had hoped to see when flowering; both were, like the morning's blooms, just a little past their prime.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Cotswold caper - 10 May 2009
The Annual gathering of and Spring Run for MG Y Type cars was held this weekend and we intended to be there with 'Clara'. There had been a problem with rough runninng at speeds above 45 mph and after much deliberation it was decided that the issue was caused by the charging system not delivering enough amps when running off battery power alone. The regulator needed to be allowing the dynamo to charge the battery properly and it was not.
Finally, late on Friday night the garage told us the problem was fixed and so, after collecting 'Clara' we set off full of hope and enthusiasm. Just outside Oxford I noticed that the ammeter was indicating that charging had stopped and then the rough running returned.
Decision time: Did we carry on for another hour, expect to do a 1.5 hour run on Sunday and then travel 2.5 - 3 hours home with a faulty car; or did we limp home there and then and change vehicles? We chose the later.
So, instead of turning up in a 1950 MG Y Type, like all the others, we arrived in a 2009 MG TF, looking just a little out of place.
Nevertheless, we enjoyed the run through the Cotswolds, starting and ending at the GWR Steam Railway at Toddington. The run was a relaxed affair with time allowed for lunch at any one of the many pubs that the run passed. We, however, had enjoyed a large full-English cooked breakfast so felt no desire to stop for lunch and instead made a detour to re-visit Sudeley Castle.
We also had time to take the steam train to Cheltenham Race-course and back before setting off back to London.
Finally, late on Friday night the garage told us the problem was fixed and so, after collecting 'Clara' we set off full of hope and enthusiasm. Just outside Oxford I noticed that the ammeter was indicating that charging had stopped and then the rough running returned.
Decision time: Did we carry on for another hour, expect to do a 1.5 hour run on Sunday and then travel 2.5 - 3 hours home with a faulty car; or did we limp home there and then and change vehicles? We chose the later.
So, instead of turning up in a 1950 MG Y Type, like all the others, we arrived in a 2009 MG TF, looking just a little out of place.
Nevertheless, we enjoyed the run through the Cotswolds, starting and ending at the GWR Steam Railway at Toddington. The run was a relaxed affair with time allowed for lunch at any one of the many pubs that the run passed. We, however, had enjoyed a large full-English cooked breakfast so felt no desire to stop for lunch and instead made a detour to re-visit Sudeley Castle.
We also had time to take the steam train to Cheltenham Race-course and back before setting off back to London.
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
Windmills that you find - 4 May 2009
Although we weren't quite in the neighbourhood, UNESCO dangled a World Heritage site 'carrot', and we decided we couldn't miss the Kinderdijk site and its 19 preserved windmills in a dual canal system, dating from the 14th century. The canals had been dug by hand and when they could not keep pace, the windmills were added from 1738 to 1740, and the windmills drained the surrounding countryside, into the nearby River Lek. It really is an impressive sight, a real piece of quintessential Dutch history.
After a pleasant stroll around, we set of to catch the ferry back from Calais. The guide book told us that Breda was a pleasant town, and we had enough time for one more stop before we left the Netherlands, so it was a great place for lunch. Breda could almost be said to be wall to wall cafes. As it was Monday and a working day, the town was relatively quiet, but we enjoyed a fabulous lunch in the sunshine, within sight of their magnificent gothic cathedral, said to be the best in the Netherlands. We decided that the Netherlands do the best bread of any place we've visited. Each morning the two B&B's we stayed in had superb fresh, soft, yet crusty bread, as did this cafe. We heartily recommend sampling bread when travelling in this part of the Netherlands.
It was then a bit of a mad dash across Europe, getting tangled in the Antwerp motorway ring road and on across Belgium and France to get back to Calais in time for our ferry sailing. We made it with time to spare, had a rest on the ferry then a dream run home on the M20/M25 which we were dreading as it was the end of a Bank Holiday weekend.
After a pleasant stroll around, we set of to catch the ferry back from Calais. The guide book told us that Breda was a pleasant town, and we had enough time for one more stop before we left the Netherlands, so it was a great place for lunch. Breda could almost be said to be wall to wall cafes. As it was Monday and a working day, the town was relatively quiet, but we enjoyed a fabulous lunch in the sunshine, within sight of their magnificent gothic cathedral, said to be the best in the Netherlands. We decided that the Netherlands do the best bread of any place we've visited. Each morning the two B&B's we stayed in had superb fresh, soft, yet crusty bread, as did this cafe. We heartily recommend sampling bread when travelling in this part of the Netherlands.
It was then a bit of a mad dash across Europe, getting tangled in the Antwerp motorway ring road and on across Belgium and France to get back to Calais in time for our ferry sailing. We made it with time to spare, had a rest on the ferry then a dream run home on the M20/M25 which we were dreading as it was the end of a Bank Holiday weekend.
Delta Project - 3 May 2009
The day got off to a very interesting start when we decided to collect the car from the overnight carpark building before breakfast as rain was threatening and it would have been an unpleasant walk in the rain. We got to the carpark only to find it locked up like Fort Knox and accessible only with the bar-coded parking ticket that the machine had dispensed when we parked. Unfortunately said bar-coded ticket was safely locked inside the car inside the locked carpark. Had our Dutch been a little better, we may have seen a sign saying to take the ticket with us.
There was an intercom button by both of the pedestrian entrances to the building but neither elicited any response. In desperation I flagged down a passing motorist who, fortunately for us, spoke excellent English, and he agreed to drive his car to the vehicle entrance at which point the doors automatically opened allowing us access. Problem solved, we drove back to the B&B for a well earned breakfast while the rain poured down outside.
Leaving Middelburg we drove a short distance to the very attractive town of Veere. Clearly a tourist trap as even on Sunday there were parking charges.
After walking around the town we headed off for to see the Delta Project. After a storm surge in 1953 that killed 1835 people and flooded a huge swathe of the Netherlands, the Dutch embarked on a massive engineering project to prevent any such recurrence. The last section was completed in 1986 and comprised a closeable storm surge barrier across the Oosterschelde. A man-made island was created as a construction site for the project and this island has now been turned into the visitor centre and theme park.
It is quite expensive, €18.50 each plus €6.50 parking, plus high priced food inside, but really worth a visit. There are films about the project; displays about the history, the flood, and the construction; a 45-minute boat trip; a walk though the barrier for a close-up look; an aquarium; seals; a 'grave-yard' of interesting pieces of equipment from the construction phase; a whale exhibition; a fun water feature to amuse the young and young-at-heart; a water slide; and play areas and rides for the kids. It was very easy to fill in the better part of a day; they have clearly set out to make it an interesting day-out destination for families.
But, it was time to move on to Zierikzee. The guide books we read were not overly complimentary about Zierikzee but we thought it was a lovely cute settlement with houses from the 14th C (even our B&B was built in 1650). The historical centre, inside the old moat is only a short walk from side to side and there a plenty of sights to be seen with the old and new harbours, the ancient gates and so forth. We came across a 1953 flood-level marker on a building that was at least 3m above the foot-path. It made the information we had seen earlier in the day that much more real and relevant.
Dinner was in the pub at the end of our street that had also been chosen by the local football team as a suitable venue for a farewell party for one of the team, They were a jolly and noisy bunch as they serenaded their mate. I could not understand why all these burly lads had jackets emblazoned with 'The Dancemasters' but discovered that that was the name of the team sponsor.
The reason we picked that particular establishment was that we had noted on the menu earlier that they served Orange Roughy, a delight we have not seen on this side of the world before. It seemed particularly appropriate to be enjoying one of New Zealand's best export fish in Zeeland.
There was an intercom button by both of the pedestrian entrances to the building but neither elicited any response. In desperation I flagged down a passing motorist who, fortunately for us, spoke excellent English, and he agreed to drive his car to the vehicle entrance at which point the doors automatically opened allowing us access. Problem solved, we drove back to the B&B for a well earned breakfast while the rain poured down outside.
Leaving Middelburg we drove a short distance to the very attractive town of Veere. Clearly a tourist trap as even on Sunday there were parking charges.
After walking around the town we headed off for to see the Delta Project. After a storm surge in 1953 that killed 1835 people and flooded a huge swathe of the Netherlands, the Dutch embarked on a massive engineering project to prevent any such recurrence. The last section was completed in 1986 and comprised a closeable storm surge barrier across the Oosterschelde. A man-made island was created as a construction site for the project and this island has now been turned into the visitor centre and theme park.
It is quite expensive, €18.50 each plus €6.50 parking, plus high priced food inside, but really worth a visit. There are films about the project; displays about the history, the flood, and the construction; a 45-minute boat trip; a walk though the barrier for a close-up look; an aquarium; seals; a 'grave-yard' of interesting pieces of equipment from the construction phase; a whale exhibition; a fun water feature to amuse the young and young-at-heart; a water slide; and play areas and rides for the kids. It was very easy to fill in the better part of a day; they have clearly set out to make it an interesting day-out destination for families.
But, it was time to move on to Zierikzee. The guide books we read were not overly complimentary about Zierikzee but we thought it was a lovely cute settlement with houses from the 14th C (even our B&B was built in 1650). The historical centre, inside the old moat is only a short walk from side to side and there a plenty of sights to be seen with the old and new harbours, the ancient gates and so forth. We came across a 1953 flood-level marker on a building that was at least 3m above the foot-path. It made the information we had seen earlier in the day that much more real and relevant.
Dinner was in the pub at the end of our street that had also been chosen by the local football team as a suitable venue for a farewell party for one of the team, They were a jolly and noisy bunch as they serenaded their mate. I could not understand why all these burly lads had jackets emblazoned with 'The Dancemasters' but discovered that that was the name of the team sponsor.
The reason we picked that particular establishment was that we had noted on the menu earlier that they served Orange Roughy, a delight we have not seen on this side of the world before. It seemed particularly appropriate to be enjoying one of New Zealand's best export fish in Zeeland.
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