In Flanders Fields

Creative Moments
Designed by Phillipa England

The Creative Moments Craft Group teamed up with local volunteers to create this textile artwork featuring a mass of poppies commemorating the century of WW1.

We spent a magical morning at the National Sea Life Centre in Birmingham, despite the penguin area being rebuilt - so no penguins to see. What was great was receiving tickets to go back after the penguin exhibit re-opens in June to catch up on the penguins. The family are certainly going to do that, of course.


National Sea Life Centre

RHS London Shows

The RHS holds several shows at the Horticultural Halls in Westminster each year, two of which take place in October. There are pumpkin competitions, fabulous autumn veg displays, chrysanthemums and other plants and flowers on display from the top nurseries and photo and art exhibitions. They also have a late opening where the visitors get to taste exotic cocktails and snacks in a relaxed, clubby atmosphere.

RHS London Shows

Taste of Autumn

This week it is a Taste of Autumn at RHS Garden Wisley with lots of food stalls, apple tasting and cider making, advice and grow your own tips from RHS experts. It started out very wet, but gradually improved to become a fine autumn afternoon.

RHS Garden Wisley

Bolton Abbey

After a light breakfast - still full after last night's delicious dinner, we took a walk along the river to the ruined abbey and looked around. Not lingering too long, we then drove to Edinburgh to celebrate a Ruby Wedding with friends.

Bolton Abbey

Malham Tarn and Malham Cove

Today we drove up to Malham with the intention of walking to the Tarn and also seeing the limestone pavement at Malham Cove. As we were a bit later than we thought, we first drove up to see Janet's Fosse and walked into Gordale Scar for a short way. It was lovely. Back in the car we drove up to Malham Tarn and decided to walk around it. The weather closed in and we were caught in a real downpour, but managed to continue despite it, spotting wildlife along the way including a shy frog. Back at the car, we then drove back to Malham and walked up the road to Malham Cove and climbed up to the limestone pavement with its spectacular geology - and of course, views.
At the end of the day we headed off to The Devonshire Arms, Bolton Abbey for our overnight stay. Here we had another superb meal and slept very well after all our exertions.

Malham Tarn
The Devonshire Arms

Calke Abbey

On our way to Edinburgh, we stopped off to visit Calke Abbey in Derbyshire. This is a National Trust Property that has not and will not be restored. It is a state of 'suspended animation', where everything is preserved as it was when the property came into the Trust's possession. One exception is the state bed which was discovered in the attic, preserved in special boxes. It was erected in the early 1980s and is exhibited in a hermetically sealed case to preserve its beauty.

After our visit, we drove up to Nottingham where we stayed at Sat Bains Restaurant with rooms. We enjoyed a superb meal with matching wines. Most unusual and absolutely delicious.

Our room at Restaurant Sat Bains

A beautiful dessert

Restaurant Sat Bains

Calke Abbey

Baddesley Clinton

Baddesley Clinton was the home of the Ferrers family for 500 years. We visited in beautiful sunshine and walked around the exterior, enjoying the walled gardens and the rest of the grounds.





Baddesley Clinton

Wisley Flower Show 2013

This week it was Wisley Flower Show. Basking in sunshine for most of the week, record numbers of visitors enjoyed the exhibits from the many nurseries, the National Dahlia Society, NAFAS and the RHS.

We visited Kew this month with the family and enjoyed a lovely day out.

Once again we visited the Proms this year, just one concert that consisted of two visions of India and a portrait of London.
Gustav Holst’s fascination with Sanksrit literature found early expression in the 1903 tone-poem Indra, composed before the first set of his Hymns from the Rig Veda.
David Atherton conducted the BBC National Orchestra of Wales in this and the world première of Nishat Khan’s Sitar Concerto No. 1, with the composer as soloist.
First performed in 1914, Vaughan Williams’s A London Symphony evokes the chimes of Westminster, a chill November in Bloomsbury and the bright lights of the Strand in a city that would soon be scarred by war.

Gustav Holst Indra
Nishat Khan The Gate of the Moon (Sitar Concerto No. 1)  BBC commission: world premiere, Nishat Khan sitar
Ralph Vaughan Williams A London Symphony (Symphony No. 2)


 (Taken form BBC Proms website)

RHS Garden Harlow Carr

Loseley Park Spring Garden Show

We had a visitor to stay this weekend and decided that a great place to visit would be Loseley Park as they were holding their Spring Garden Show. We were not disappointed, least of all with the scorchingly good weather. We arrived quite early but even so plenty of people were already there and true to form, we went looking for coffee to start with. The courtyard café wasn't yet open, only the coffee tent in the garden, so we went straight in and found the end of the queue. Before long we had our drinks and began to look around.

There are loads of nurseries at the show as well as garden related artisans and goods stalls.The garden is also looking good despite the lateness of our spring. We spent ages looking at all the different things, eventually buying some little dianthus to go in the front garden. We stopped for a sandwich, which we ate on the wall above the canal, enjoying a bit of shade from a strong sun.