After a difficult visit with mum on Christmas afternoon we travelled home the long way round to see the various Christmas light displays.
This one, near to where I live is lovely.
The subsequent visits have not go got any better…
13 Comments CherryPie on Dec 28th 2024
This is the first Christmas where there have only been the two of us for Christmas dinner. It was nice but strange.
11 Comments CherryPie on Dec 26th 2024
Mr C and I had originally planned to visit the Attingham Park Christmas displays on the 7th December and I would do a late volunteering shift after our visit. Then Mr C would pick me up and we would have a meal out to complete the day.
Unfortunately Storm Darragh had other plans and Attingham Park was closed for the day. Due to the extreme weather we decided to eat at home rather than venture out into the storm.
We booked a visit to Attingham Park for the next available Saturday which was today. We had lunch in the cafe before stepping out on the mile walk arriving at the mansion with perfect timing for our entry ticket.
I was surprised to find that the cafe, mansion and car park were relatively quite for the last Saturday before Christmas.
On our way home we managed to pick up a door wreath at a bargain price. Sometimes being totally disorganised and last minute can pay off.
12 Comments CherryPie on Dec 21st 2024
This tree has grown from a conker which itself came from one of the last trees left standing after the Battle of Verdun during the First World War.
On 21st February 1916, the Germans attacked the mighty fortress of Verdun in eastern France in an attempt to destroy the French Army. The ensuing battle lasted for 303 days. For the French, there was only one access route – a narrow road that became know as “la Voie Scree (the Sacred Way) along which all their supplies and reinforcements had to pass.
In July of that year, the British launched the Battle of the Somme. One objective of this offensive was to relieve pressure on the French by forcing Germany to remove troops from Verdun. Finally on 19th December, perhaps the greatest and longest battle in world history ended, with the Germans having been pushed back to their original positions. Some 300,000 had been killed and a further 400.000 wounded.
For France, Verdun is remembered much as the Somme is by the British, symbolising the horrors of war. In November 1920, to bring the Unknown Warrior back from France, the British government could think of no more appropriate ship than HMS Verdun.
The Verdun Tree was planted here in St Albans in 1976 to mark the 60th anniversary of the battle. A horse chestnut is in fact in many ways appropriate to mark a battle, as the starch from its conkers is an essential component of cordite – unlike gunpowder, an almost smokeless explosive.*
*information from a signboard next to the Verdun Tree
11 Comments CherryPie on Dec 16th 2024
A well trained dog will make no attempt to share your lunch. He will just make you feel so guilty that you cannot enjoy it.
Helen Thomson
7 Comments CherryPie on Dec 15th 2024
St. Albans Clocktower of Clock House was built between 1403 abd 1412 to the design of Thomas Wolvey, one time royal mason, as a symbol of the townspeople’s desire for independence from the Abbot’s rule. It is 23.5m (77ft) high and built of flint and originally clunch (a local form of hard chalk). The original large bell within the tower (which wighs a ton and sounds a natural F note) was cast at Aldgate, London, by William and Robert Burford between 1371 and 1418. It is inscribe (in Latin) “My name is Gabriel sent from Heaven”.
Timepieces were rare when the tower was built and a clock was useful in regulating the life of the town. the bell also ran the curfew at 4 am and between 8 and 9 pm and was used to sound the alarm during any fire or incident within the town In 1700 the corporation resolved to pull down the Clocktower (which fortunately never happened) and build a new market house.*
*from a signboard next to the Clocktower
11 Comments CherryPie on Dec 10th 2024
