Bev and Barb Take on London (Day 1)

London calling! Neither Bev nor Barb had been to London, so Bill and I got to showcase the best of London in 2-1/2 days. I think we tuckered them out, but we sure did see a lot! 

Barb atop a hop on hop off bus

From atop the big red hop-on-hop-off we got lots of great photos. Photos of Barb taking photos, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben, a London lion, and Tower Bridge. 

Houses of Parliament and Big Ben

London Lion

Tower Bridge

Driving over Tower Bridge

We hopped off the bus to visit the Tower of London, and scoped out the Tower Bridge that we later walked across.

About to walk across Tower Bridge

And believe it or not, the Tower Bridge had to be raised while we were there! I've never seen it raise before. If you look closely, you can actually see a bit of the tall ship that's about to cross under the bridge. 

Tower Bridge is up! 

At the Tower of London, Bev & Barb got to pose with a guard, hang out in a guard box, and check out the site where Anne Bolyn (among others) lost her head. Not to mention viewing the crown jewels, Henry VIII's armor, and medieval prison graffiti. Everyone always thinks the Tower of London is just a tower, but it's a lot, lot more! 

Smitten Ladies

They're on duty!

Anne Boleyn (and others') execution site

Leaving the Tower of London we took some time to view the temporary poppy exhibit in honor of the 100th anniversary of WWI. Each poppy represents a British soldier who died during WWI (in total there are 888,246 poppies for 888,246 lost) and they're displayed in such a way as to look like blood flowing from the castle. 

Tower of London poppies

Poppies at Tower of London

Poppies at Tower of London

It was a beautiful and eerie sight and I am very glad we were able to see the exhibit as it will only be on display for a few more weeks.

Bev and Barb in Yorkshire

Bill's mom, Beverly, and her sister, Barb, came for a visit! Although Bev's been here before, she visited in the dead of winter when a lot of stuff was closed for the season, so it was a lot of fun showing both of them a lot of the sites around the UK. 

Skipton

After a brief nap after their long flight here, I took them to Skipton castle. They especially liked climbing down into the dark, dank dungeon! 

Skipton Castle's dungeon

After touring around Skipton, we headed over to Bolton's Abbey where they promptly Karate Kid'd their way across the river's stepping stones. Seriously, these two gals are a kick to hang out with!

Walking the stepping stones in Bolton Abbey

The next day we toured all around York, where they became members of the clergy and climbed all the way up to the to of Clifford's Tower. 

The new Archbishops of York

Clifford's Tower, York

The next day we spent the morning in town, enjoying a delicious breakfast at the world-famous Betty's bakery. 

Breakfast at Betty's, Harrogate

Bill came home from work early and we drove out to Masham to tour the Theakston Brewery. We got to learn how the cask ales are brewed, see it all in process, and then taste test the various beers in their pub. 

We got a kick out of describing the Bitters (the favorite type of beer in Yorkshire) to Bev & Barb and having them decide that bitters were exactly what they didn't like. Then at the tasting table, they both tried the XB and declared it their favorite. Bill and I chuckled when we explained to them that XB stands for extra bitter! :-) 

Theakston's brewery, Masham

Tasting Theakston's brew, Masham

Recent Antique Finds

We have pretty much all of the furniture we need for our house in England, but every now and then items at auction pop up that we just can't pass up. For example, the French mantle clock that weighs about 15 pounds and has the following inscription on its brass plaque:

Presented to SC Moss by the members of the Westleyan Choir, Ripon: 

on the occasion of his marriage. 

August 3, 1903

The clock is currently in the clock hospital getting fixed so it will tell time and chime again. We hope SC Moss and his wife had a long and happy marriage and promise to take care of thier clock for as long as we can.

French marbled clock

At the same auction I also picked up this lovely Victorian dressing table. Once home, I found the photo of what looks like a farmer's wife (below) tucked inside. I like to think the photo is of Mrs SC Moss and his clock and her table are together again. Awww! :-)

Victorian dressing table

Owner of dressing table? Mrs. Moss?

The Home of the Bronte Family

Nearby is the little village of Haworth, home to the prolific, artistic, and tragic Brontë family. The village is nearby, but a 45-minute drive away - far enough that I finally made it out that way with a friend from my history class this summer. 

The Brontë Parsonage, Haworth, North Yorkshire

The father was the Haworth village vicar (pastor) and the family lived in the house behind the village church, called the parsonage. The mother and two of the children died very early, leaving the father (Patrick), a son (Branwell), and two daughters (Charlotte and Emily). 

The father outlived them all, with Charlotte dying last of his children in her early 30s after having been married less than a year and in early pregnancy. Like Charlotte, Emily and Branwell died of TB, but Branwell also had the complication of being a depressive alcoholic and drug addict. Throughout the parsonage museum, Branwell was described as gentle, artistic, sensitive, and a perennial bachelor... I think the poor guy was not interested in women, but in his day and age he simply couldn't live the life he wanted. How sad if that's the truth! 

Sign for the Brontë Parsonage

In front of the parsonage is the little village church and between the parsonage and church is a beautiful little graveyard.

Graveyard between the Brontë Parsonage and Church

Sign in Haworth graveyard

And inside the church was this cool plaque. Haworth had some lovely little shops, so I'll just have to head back there some day for another visit. 

Sign inside church in Haworth

Lavender Fields, Forever!

My apologies to The Beatles, but when I visited the Yorkshire lavender fields this summer, I kept singing Lavender Fields, Forever. It was so beautiful and the wind smelled so good, wafting through all of the lavender plants. 

Lavender Fields, Forever!

And ever!

The air smelled wonderful with all of that lavender wafting through it. I also had a lavender scone and lavender tea... I'm not really a fan of lavender flavored foods, but when in Rome...

And ever!

When I returned from my little lavender excursion, a double rainbow welcomed me home!!

Double rainbow - what does it mean?!?

Ladies Day Fashion

Yes, I like to go to the big "ladies day" horse races. Yes, I bet a few quid on one or two of the races. Yes, I have fun with my friends. But why do we really go to the Ladies Day races? For the fashion, of course!!

Before we look at the hats and dresses in all their glory, let's pause for a moment and look at these shoes... They. Are. Awesome! 

Awesome shoes

And now the parade of dresses and hats. Please keep in mind that, even though it was August, it was around 50 degrees (F), wet and rainy. But that did not phase these Yorkshire lasses - if they bought sleeveless dresses, by God they were going to wear sleeveless dresses!!

A big thank you to Danielle (our friend Cindy's daughter) who brought her real camera, took all of these pictures, and let me use them in this blog post. Thanks, Danielle!! :-) 

Black and white hats

Blue and white ensemble

Cherry blossom hat

Feathery hat

Blue / peacock hat

Fancy dress hats

Colorful hat

Big, black and white hats

Pointy hat

Purple hat

Feathery black and white hats

Red hat

Pastel flowery hats

Black, white, and yellow hat

Very, very blue hat

Cream hat and coordinated umbrella

Random colorful hats

If I happen to be here next August, I hope to go dressed even fancier than this year's ensemble!! :-)