31 May 2010

NOT ANOTHER BANK HOLIDAY!

The second BANK HOLIDAY within four weeks, a traditional time for getting out and about (despite the fact that rain is guaranteed, it always is on a Bank Holiday week-end) I thought I'd take you to visit some of the wonderful attractions that are near to us - some of them very close to us, others a couple of hours drive away.



WHITBY ABBEY.

Dating from the 12th century, Whitby* abbey adjoins the site of a Saxon Monastery that was established in A.D. 657.


ALNWICK GARDEN.

Just ten years ago, The Alnwick Garden site was derelict and forgotten - it is now a vibrant place, with beautifully landscaped gardens, magnificent architecture and unique features, all brought to life with water.


DURHAM CATHEDRAL.

Under construction for more than 40 years, the cathedral was completed in 1133, and today is Britain's largest, best-preserved Norman stronghold.


LINDISFARNE CASTLE.

Perched atop a rocky island crag, this romantic 16th-century castle is accessible only by a causeway at low tide.

* Whitby, of course being the setting for part of BRAM STOKER's novel, Dracula. (Click HERE for the story on-line)

"But, strangest of all, the very instant the shore was touched, an immense dog sprang up on deck from below, as if shot up by the concussion, and running forward, jumped from the bow on the sand. Making straight for the steep cliff, where the churchyard hangs over the laneway to the East Pier so steeply that some of the flat tombstones - 'thruff-steans' or 'throughstones,' as they call them in the Whitby vernacular - actually project over where the sustaining cliff has fallen away, it disappeared in the darkness, which seemed intensified just beyond the focus of the searchlight." (READ MORE)

15 comments:

NabilaHazirah said...

Wonderful!

P.S. i'm going to UK next week. shh.. you're the first one to know.

xx

Kissed by an Angel said...

I've just got in from work and I am freezing!!! happy Bank Holiday to you!!! How is your dear hubby now????
xxxx

Anonymous said...

Interesting post. Thanks for this.

Of the four venues featured I've only ever visited one of them - Whitby Abbey. I visited in the snow. It looked magnificent. It was also the first time that I saw a fox in the wild. Fond memories.

All the best, B

Nina said...

Sounds like fun. You should go to DURHAM CATHEDRAL, that looks beautiful. :)

Kelly said...

Abbeys, Cathedrals, Castles.... three of my favorite things!!

Wish I could be there for my Memorial Day holiday today!

Oddyoddyo13 said...

Such amazing buildings and places! They just take your breath away don't they?

April said...

What a delightful and wonderful post!! I love it! I would love to be able to visit these glorious visions one day!

Felicity Grace Terry said...

Glad that you are enjoying my post. I'm on a mission to prove to all visitors that the north east of England is every bit as good (better even) than the south and London in particular.

Funny you should say that Nina, Durham is only a ten minute train journey away, a wonderful cathedral - we have visited it many, many times.

Alexia561 said...

I'm with Kelly; I love abbeys, cathedrals, and castles! :)

Short Poems said...

Your blog is always fun to read, Petty. I love London :)

Dorte H said...

Please send us some of those bank holidays! We never get any!

Gorgeous pictures, especially Whitby Abbey. Now, if I wrote ghost stories ...

Rebecca Wells said...

Love these, wish I were in GB to explore them! Thanks for the visit!

- Rebecca

quid said...

What a great post, and great pictures. I need to go back to Europe. In "the colonies" we really lack in castles. :) Since you couldn't hear the song, thought you might enjoy the lyrics:

This Shirt

This shirt is old and faded
All the color's washed away
I've had it now for more damn years
Than I can count anyway
I wear it beneath my jacket
With the collar turned up high
So old I should replace it
But I'm not about to try

This shirt's got silver buttons
And a place upon the sleeve
Where I used to set my heart up
Right there anyone could see
This shirt is the one I wore to every boring high school dance
Where the boys ignored the girls
And we all pretended to like the band

This shirt was a pillow for my head
On a train through Italy
This shirt was a blanket beneath the love
We made in Argeles
This shirt was lost for three whole days
In a town near Buffalo
'Till I found the locker key
In a downtown Trailways bus depot

This shirt was the one I lent you
And when you gave it back
There was a rip inside the sleeve
Where you rolled your cigarettes
It was the place I put my heart
Now look at where you put a tear
I forgave your thoughtlessness
But not the boy who put it there

This shirt was the place your cat
Decided to give birth to five
And we stayed up all night watching
And we wept when the last one died
This shirt is just an old faded piece of cotton
Shining like the memories
Inside those silver buttons

This shirt is a grand old relic
With a grand old history
I wear it now for Sunday chores
Cleaning house and raking leaves
I wear it beneath my jacket
With the collar turned up high
So old I should replace it
But I'm not about to try

Pam said...

I had heard of all these places but the gardens. I would love to visit any of these places.
Happy Bank Holiday to you! Hope the weather is warm and sunny.

Sara said...

Wow, you live close to some really neat sites.

The best thing near me is the Super Target that is about 45 minutes away.