H is for Homes, Hostels, Hotels

Welcome to ABC Wednesday where this week we celebrate the letter H as in hot, healthy, hamburgers, hat, humdinger, hair, hill, and hawk.  I'm continuing the travelogue of my trip by bringing you an area of north Wales that was absolutely heavenly!  My paternal grandmother was born in Llandudno, Wales, on April13, 1896, at 28 Jubilee Street.  She was greeted with joy after her mother had given birth to 5 boys and after that, she went on to have one final boy!  My dream has always been to see where she was born and brought up, only coming to Canada after the second world war with her husband and young son.  My father and his 2 sisters were born in Canada.

My epic dream of seeing Llandudno finally arrived this summer (2016) and I was absolutely amazed at the beauty of the area. An historic town, Victorian and Edwardian atmosphere prevails everywhere, especially with the houses, hostels, and hotels.  Even the newer built homes have a Victorian feel to them!  The countryside is beyond beautiful, and the entire area faces out to the Irish Sea.  And the people are so humble and  hospitable.  Take away the modern cars and you feel as though you have gone back in time.

I would like to share some of the beauty of the area through a short slideshow presentation.  Mr. Google helped me out here, but I've indicated which photos are mine.  And, if you're interested in learning more about this place, please check out http://www.llandudno.com/  Remember, don't tell too many people about this piece of heaven on earth - I want to go back some day and spend more time there.  And I don't want any crowds!  LOL

With humble thanks to the hysterical Mrs. Nesbitt (you'd know just how hysterical if you follow her on Facebook and saw her scarecrows!) and to the always hardworking Roger, our administrator. Also, don't forget to give a silent nod of thanks to the helpful team of assistants who visit all the contributors to leave heartfelt comments. 

Now...on with the show and don't forget to turn up the sound and click on full screen!  Oh the music is called "Epic Journey" and you won't hesitate to realize why I chose it.  *smile*

G is for GROSMONT and GOATHLAND

Welcome to ABC Wednesday where this week we celebrate the letter G as in goat, gorgeous, giant, golly gee, grand, gigolo, general, etc.  I've made up a slideshow for you about two places I visited this summer in North Yorkshire, England, and where I had absolutely the most generous hosts to whom I'd like to dedicate this particular blog - Phil and Jill Ellis. I hope that I was a great guest in heir grandiose home, a 17th century stone house in the village of Grosmont.  Jill and I also drove through Goathland, a place I'd seen with her in 2012, but we slowed down so I could take some photos from the car window.  Just to help you out a bit, Grosmont is pronounced "grow-monT" and Goathland is pronounced "goth-land"(emphasis on the "goth") Here's a bit of background about these two villages.  From Wikipedia... Grosmont is home to the North Yorkshire Moors Railway engine shed.[51] A number of structures in and near the village are listed, including: the three arch sandstone road bridge over the Esk, dating from around 1700;[52][map 9] the early 19th century 'Eskdale Villa' on the eastern outskirts of the village;[53] and in the village the 19th century 'Rose Cottage'.[54]  Several railway related buildings and structures are listed, including the 'Station Tavern' public house and outbuildings (originally "The Tunnel Inn");[16][17] the Post Office (c. 1835);[18] and the former horse tramway tunnel, now a pedestrian route;[55][56] all built for the Whitby and Pickering Railway in the 1830s. Also listed are the Murk Esk railway bridge (1845);[34][map 10] 1845 railway tunnel,[35] and the G.T. Andrews designed Grosmont Railway station (1846),[36][map 11] all built for the York and North Midland Railway. The village of Goathland was the setting of the fictional village of Aidensfield in the Heartbeat television series set in the 1960s. Many landmarks from the series are recognisable, including the stores, garage/funeral directors, the public house and the railway station. The pub is called the Goathland Hotel, but in the series is the Aidensfield Arms. After filming for some years a replica was built in the studio.[5]  The music I chose to go along with the photos is called "It's Almost Perfect Here" and that is how I feel about these two gorgeous villages in North Yorkshire.  I fell in love with the place even more than I did four years ago.  Some of the lyrics you'll hear are "the reason is coming crystal clear", "I think I really dig this atmosphere", "you're the one thing I've got this thing about", "go with the flow" and I think the only thing that could make it more perfect is if I could actually live there! With great thanks to the generous Denise Nesbitt, creator of ABCW, and the gallant Roger, our administrator.  Also glorious thanks to the goofy team of assistants who visit everyone's post each week to leave glowing comments.  Turn up your sound and expand to full screen to enjoy!

F is for FREDDIE

He sits on his bench in his overcoat, cloth cap pulled slightly down, gazing out to sea.  His walking stick is loosely held in his left hand, his right arm draped casually over the back of the bench.  It looks like a favourite spot along Scarborough’s North Bay.

This is an astonishing, giant sculpture in rusting steel.  It has a kind of serenity and, up close, the texture of the steel is amazing.  Even without the title, this would be an arresting piece of art.  It is based on a former miner from County Durham who, as a soldier shortly before his 24^th birthday, was one of the first allied troops to enter Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in Germany in April 1945.  They found more than 60,000 prisoners, most of them seriously ill, and thousands of unburied corpses.  Freddie Gilroy and the Belsen Stragglers represents ordinary people pulled out of ordinary lives because of war, who involuntarily experienced extraordinary things and whose lives were profoundly affected as a consequence.  The inscription on the sculpture’s plaque says:

“They said for king and country,
We should do as we were bid,
They said old soldiers never die
But plenty young ones did.”

 Freddie Gilroy died in 2008.  But the story doesn’t end there.  The artist, Ray Lonsdale, loaned the sculpture to the town for a month, but local resident Jakki Willby began a campaign to keep it in Scarborough.  Out of the blue, local pensioner Maureen Robinson donated the £50,000 needed – and Freddie Gilroy and the Belsen Stragglers is now a permanent feature on North Bay.

While I was in Scarborough with my dear friend Jill, she showed me the sculpture and I was fascinated.  Then we looked at each other, giggled, and took each other's photo in the crook of Freddie's arm.  It wasn't until I returned home that I looked up his story and feel a bit foolish for taking the sculpture so lightly and acting like a frivolous teenager.  But here we are to show you the perspective of the sculpture's size!  I'm 5' 6 1/2" tall and Jill is about 5' 9" so you can see just how huge this fantastic sculpture is.  It's bigger than life, just like Freddie was when he took part in freeing all those prisoners from Bergen-Belsen in 1945.

 

With fervent thanks to our fancy "scarecrow-making" Denise Nesbitt, the creator of ABC Wednesday, and to our faithful servant Roger who administrates ABCW with the assistance of a fantastic team of fellow contributors.

E is for EGTON

EGTON is a small, picturesque expanse in North Yorkshire, high on the moors near Whitby (famous for its Abbey) and has a most enchanting ambience.  You can see how the wind whips through the area from the way the tall grasses are permanently bent in one direction.  The Mortuary Chapel was built in 1897 on the site of the original church (before 1349) and is still used for special services.

We arrived by traveling uphill on a dirt road ending up in a countryside forested area overlooking the moors and fields of cattle and sheep.  A well-worn gate greeted us just outside a stone fence that hid the chapel from view.

We fought our way through the overgrown grass in the old section of the cemetery wondering about those souls whose stones have been there for centuries. 

I am glad we were there on a sunny morning and not during a dismal rainy day.  I think I could have been easily spooked!  However, we then wandered over to the more "modern" part of the cemetery where there were graves as new as a few years ago. There were a couple of plain and worn benches where one could sit a while to enjoy the views or think of a loved one or two. 

Being very respectful, we visited the bottom part of this section and my hosts told me that some episodes of the television show "Heartbeat" had been filmed on this location.  Whenever there was a funeral or gravesite scene, this is where they filmed it.

 Upon leaving through another wrought-iron gate, I glanced back and noticed that the gate had been installed in honour of someone else who must have had a some sort of impact on Egton.

Extensive thanks to the elegant Denise Nesbitt, creator of ABC Wednesday, and to the estimable Roger, our administrator.  Also extending thanks to the exceptional team of participants who embark on visitations to each and every person and goes to the effort of commenting on other contributors' posts.

Please note that I truly enjoy visiting old cemeteries and churches but not in a ghoulish way. I love their history because where I come from, there aren't many cemeteries, and the few we do have are walled and/or gated, sometimes locked.  I think it's an honour to visit and esteem the departed who perhaps will "hear" my prayers and greet me one day at those other "gates."

D is for DEWSTOW GARDENS

"Imagine discovering a lost garden with tunnels and underground grottoes buried under thousandsof tonnes of soil for over 50 years. That’s what happened at Dewstow gardens. Built around 1895 the gardens were buried just after World War Two and rediscovered in 2000." http://www.dewstowgardens.co.uk/)

This is from the brochure I brought home...One of the most exciting horticultural finds of recent years has been the underground Edwardian gardens at Destow House in Monmouthshire.

In1893, Henry Oakley purchased the ancient Dewstow estate, managing it until his death in 1940. A keen horticulturist and wealthy bachelor, Oakley embarked on the creation of a truly ambitious and unique garden in his ground.

Commissioning eminent London landscapers Pulham & Son, work on the massive project began in the late 19th Century.  While there are many examples of the Pulham's work in stately homes in the UK, Dewstow is unique in its scale and subterranean focus.

With no descendants the land passed from Oakley at his death in 1940.  During the forties the garden was filled in and the land reverted to working pastureland.  The vast majority of the private gardens were buried or destroyed and as no records of their existence remained, they were forgotten until the land was purchased by the Harris family in 2000.

After an initial investigation, the discovery of steps leading down and other evidence of the garden were found. Subsequent excavation has revealed far more than was ever imagined."

I had the distinct pleasure of visiting these gardens on one of my last days in southern Wales and was absolutely overwhelmed at its beauty.  So instead of writing about it, how about taking a look for yourself!  Be sure to expand into full frame mode and turn up the music (a jazz rendition of "Sunny")for a bit of ambience!  Here's a sneak peak from the brochure.

With divine thanks to the darling Denise, the creator of ABC Wednesday, and to our dapper administrator Roger.  Also thanks go to the dauntless team of ABCWers who daily monitor and comment on all the dazzling contributions we receive from around the world. And now, on with the show!