A visit to Lacock Abbey, in the National Trust village of Lacock, Wiltshire

     Last Friday my nephew was married in Wiltshire and we were privileged to be amongst the guests invited to what turned out to be the most perfect wedding that I have ever attended. On the way back on the Saturday, we went to visit the National Trust village of Lacock, and Lacock Abbey, a house that I remember from attending Hunt Balls back in the 1950/60's. It was great to visit it as a tourist/visitor for a change, because I got to see far more than on my visits of fifty years ago. 
     The Abbey was used quite extensively in the filming of the Harry Potter series of films, as can be seen from the following pictures.

 The Cloisters

 The giant Cauldron

 The kitchens

 A child's bedroom

Section of the Great Hall

Runcorn Hill Nature Reserve

We are very fortunate in Runcorn to have some great green spaces to exercise ourselves, walk our dogs, play in or just take a little time out on a park bench.

One such place is Runcorn Hill, once the site of a busy quarrying operation which has left its mark in a series of cliffs and plateaus and woodland walks.

The whole area is so well managed by those tasked with the job, and there is a Ranger available most of the time to help educate and direct as well. There are many natural woodland carvings also, such as the one above which is situated just a short distance from the tennis courts, bowling green and putting green.

You can also find creatures such as this lizard carved into the cliff face and onto rocks.

From teh plateaus the views of the surrounding area are quite stunning. From this point you look out over the River Mersey towards Liverpool, some 12 miles distant.

The cliff faces have a beauty all of their own with the colouration of the strata.

Have a GREAT Independence Day!

My very best wishes to all of my American readers who will be celebrating Independence Day today. It's a real pleasure to have you read my Blog from time to time, and I really do appreciate it. I hope you have the best Independence Day ever!

The holiday season beckons!

The photograph above was taken a couple of years back when we spent our vacation in Cornwall, UK, and I felt as relaxed as I look in the picture. This past week I have been thinking about holidays and wishing that I was away in the sunshine, preferably fairly close to the sea. Sun, sea and sand! That's the right formula at the moment, and the combination would do much to take away the stress of modern-day living with all of its worries about making ends meet that so many of us, including me, have. 

 Apart from the holidays which we spend in Wales every year, my favourite holiday thoughts are centred high up in the mountains of Andalucia where we spent such a lovely holiday a couple of years ago in Bacor, staying in the cave house pictured below.

Here I was relaxing by the fountain in the village square, showing that I really do have legs, although this was the first time for many years that I had let the secret out!

It was great to spend a week away from modern communications and the stress that they bring into our lives. Much of our time in Bacor was spent either relaxing by the lake (above) or else wandering around the local area and nearby towns.

A Visit to The Cheshire Show (2)

Here's some more photos of our visit to The Cheshire Show on Tuesday. The Huntsmen and hounds were a very popular sight.

This line-up of 'Tractors through the Ages' brought back memories of time spent on the farm during my childhood, and 'Yes!', there was a little grey-painted Fergy' like the one that I was allowed to drive.

 Wherever there are old vehicles, whether they are Classic, Vintage or just plain old work-horses, you will find knots of men and boys gazing at them or discussing their merits and faults.

Most folk like a cavalcade of vintage cars, me included, and these vehicles were making their way to the main ring in order for their owners to show them off in all of their splendour.

 We stood and watched for some time as the prize-winning cattle were paraded around the main arena accompanied by their proud owners or handlers. There were some magnificent cattle amongst them!

The parade of livestock is always a favourite part of the show.

 I think that my favourite animals at the show were undoubtedly the Shire horses. These fabulous beasts are the gentle giants of the farming world, and although horse-power is generally no more to be found, you can still manage to find them working on Rare-bred farms.

All dressed up for the Show, and the prize-winners line up to receive the cups.

A Visit to The Cheshire Show (1)

Yesterday we went to the Cheshire Show for the day, and despite various weather warnings, we enjoyed a day of good weather, with only about an hour of rain around lunchtime. Fortunately, we were under shelter and so remained dry! On the way into the show we passed this stand featuring Birds of Prey, and later in the morning we were able to enjoy a show in the main ring which featured the birds.

One of the first exhibits that we enjoyed was the glass-blowing, and here we saw a hands-on demonstration with the glass-blower creating a wine glass of clear glass but with a blue rim.

I've seen similar demonstrations in the past, but the fascination of seeing creative artisans at work never goes away.

 One of the enjoyable things about an Agricultural Show is that you get to see a lot of animals in prime condition and close-up. With my Welsh background, it was inevitable that I should check out the sheep!

 What a fine specimen of a ram this fellow is!

This guy, who was either from Australia or New Zealand, although I missed from which, made the gathered crowd chuckle with his comments about sheep, and when it came to shearing he was a dab hand!

We spent a wile looking around the Craft Marquee which is always of interest.

These brightly coloured items are neither sweets nor fancy cakes, even though many of them looked as though they were. If you tried to eat any of these you would be foaming at the mouth, for they are all soaps!

 This year's theme is 'Books, Books and More Books!' as depicted by the display above and the rather buxom librarian precariously reaching forward whilst perched on the steps,

There were some lovely floral exhibits on show,.some of which were simple like the one above, but many others which were very intricate and well-balanced, like the prize-winning ones below.  

 Several of the floral displays were free-standing, and this one caught our eye in particular.

The Food Hall was a great place to be with a wide variety of good foods on display, but a favourite section for us was the massive Cheese Hall with hundreds of cheeses on display and for sale. The photo above shows a small section of the prize-winning cheeses that were displayed in the central aisle.

 We loved the display of horse and hounds, the red of the huntsmen from the various packs showing bright against the green of the turf. There were about half a dozen packs altogether, and at one point all the dogs mingled together in one gigantic pack in the main arena, members of the public being invited to enter the ring and meet the dogs. As this involved hurdling a 3-foot high barrier, i was not one of the public who responded, although many people did.

 Amongst the packs was this pack of bloodhounds, not a sight that you often see in the UK.

As well as all the different exhibitors and demonstrations, there were various exhibits involving transport, included amongst which were a display of hearses and the fire engines in the picture above.