St. Ives Deux…

It was such a beautiful warm day in St. Ives and I took so many photos. I mentioned in my previous post that the tide was out when we arrived.

We enjoyed seeing some residences that peaked our curiosity.

I have never read any novels by Daphne Du Maurier. Have you?

The tide started rolling in while we took a stroll around the town.

We followed the cobbled and narrow streets back to the train station with one last view of the tide that had rolled in.

St. Ives is the last stop on this line so as soon as the train comes in and empties it reverses it’s course to the north…

When we made it back to our car Jeeves took us on a sea cliff route back to Porthtowen via Portreath. We stopped along the way and enjoyed some wind whipped views of the sea on high.

Back here in the Northwest we put our sewing mojo to the test and Katie and I managed to thread a bobbin and thread the sewing machine so that it actually sewed a nice zig zag on the project I’m attempting. The first step was cutting the fabric into 14 inch squares that worked nicely with a rotary cutter and cutting board. We had to stop at a sewing store so I could buy some thread that was not of the cheap variety I was using. Have I mentioned in the past that my dear mom and older sisters did the sewing in my family and I was actually kicked out of my sewing class in Junior High…oye. Well that doesn’t mean I can’t complete some sewing projects of the simple variety… I’ll be sharing soon.

I talked to my dear old pop today and he was quite pleased with some chicken wings he managed to make. He marinated them, browned them on the stove top and then finished them off in the oven. He said they were delicious. He’s managing with his cooking like I’m managing with my sewing projects. My pop never had to cook all his 70 years of marriage except for barbecuing meat.

Do you have a sewing machine? Do you sew? Did your mother sew for you?

As I Was Going to St. Ives…

As I was going to St. Ives,
I met a man with seven wives,
Each wife had seven sacks,
Each sack had seven cats,
Each cat had seven kits,
kits, cats, sacks, wives,
How many were going to St. Ives?

There are differing views as to which St. Ives this nursery rhyme/riddle was referring to but many believe that St. Ives in Cornwall is a good choice because it was a busy fishing port and they would need many cats to help with the rats and mice destroying the fishing gear.

We took the advice of our friend who lived in Cornwall to take the train to St. Ives because it could be hard to find parking in this busy port destination. The day before had been so gloomy and rainy so when we woke up to beautiful sunshine on September 18th we let Jeeves lead us to the railway stop. We met up with quite a crowd who had the same idea as us and were ready to enjoy the seaside in the sunshine. Thankfully we found the last parking spot in the train waiting area.

Here we are waiting in the que for the next train to arrive.

We had beautiful views of the sea as we rode the train on the short trip to St. Ives.

When we arrived our first order of business was to find the Tea Room where we had decided to eat a meal and enjoy our first Cornish cream tea.

Bliss! I have to admit it wasn’t easy to find the tea room in this bustling humanity filled town. With narrow cobbled streets filled to the brim we made our way to the end of the sea walk. When we finally spotted “the Tea Room” and got our seats we could finally…”Keep calm and carry on”

It’s amazing how a satisfying meal can make your outlook so much better and the crowds so much easier to coexist with.

The tea room was at the far end of the town and the next photo shows the view of the harbor with the tide out looking out from the tea room. I’ll be sharing photos of the harbor after the tide rolls in soon with more of the great views we enjoyed in St. Ives along St. Ives Bay.

I’m heading outside in the brisk sunny weather to try to gather up some of the leaves that fell over the weekend. The rains are headed our way again soon and I want to take advantage of this dry window before the leaves get real soggy. I’m hoping to get more creative mojo this week, too, with some final preparations for a get together at this old house on Sunday November 10th.

Blessings!

The Road to Porthtowan

After we finished at the Bishop’s Palace we traveled on the M-5 and A-30 south and found our way to the home we would be staying at in Porthtowan with the help of our SatNav Jeeves. It was a rough day of traveling because of a steady downpour of rain. The kind of rain that even the windshield wipers can’t manage. We sighed in relief while we unpacked the car and then made our way to the Tesco in Redruth for supplies for dinner and breakfast. We would be staying in Cornwall for three nights.

The view from our front porch was so calming and lovely.

After our trip to the grocery store we came back to the house and Josh made us a a wonderful pot of chicken soup. It was a nice change to eat a homemade meal and to have a kitchen at our disposal.

So happy to eat this bowl of goodness after our long day that I didn’t even stage it for the photo. This was Tuesday September 17th. On Wednesday we had a new adventure that would give us views of the Celtic Sea…

Back here in the Pacific Northwest we really had a rainy windy day here on Saturday. The leaves were blowing around with a vengeance. Most of our leafy trees are now bare which means our yard is full of leaves. The apple tree is still hanging on to it’s leaves and will be the last to let them go. The next dry spell here will be a fall clean up day at this old house. What’s happening the first full week of November at your place?

Timely Advice…

Several of these photos were taken from our stop at a roadside Inn on our way to Cornwall.

The rest of the photos are some advice from other parts of England…

My last bit of timely advice to you is this…Set your clocks back tonight or you will be way too early for Church tomorrow!

The Vicars Close

Vicars’ Close next to Wells Cathedral is a stunning medieval cobbled street. It is said to be the oldest continually occupied street in Europe. It was built in 1360s as an extension of the cathedral by Bishop Ralph of Shrewsbury. He built the Vicar’s Hall and Close to give the men of the quire secure accommodation away from the temptations of the town. The Close and Cathedral are linked by a bridge.

It still houses members of the choir today and has remained unchanged in nearly 700 years.

This door intrigued me so I tried it and it opened. It was the entrance to a small chapel. Later I found this description on line.

The quadrangle was finally completed with the building of the Chapel at the north end in the early fifteenth century. The Chapel was dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Katherine, and it is first mentioned in a charter of 1479, but shields on the Chapel door carry the arms of Bishops Bubwith and Stafford, suggesting that the chapel was begun in the episcopate of the former and finished under the latter, giving it a date of c.1424-30. A room over the Chapel served as the Vicars’ Library.

We were constantly amazed at the history and at how old things are in England compared to the United States. We were happy to find the Vicars Close and walk along the cobbles of the oldest continually occupied street in Europe!

My back is all better with a day of rest and thank you for asking! Today is Halloween and I’m already wondering if I have enough treats to go around. I have a package of goodies with 60 individual treats. We’ll keep count and let you know how many little trick or treaters we get at our door. Katie is with us this Halloween so she’ll be the treat giver and she’ll be dressed as a faerie. I’ll take a photo…

Do you get Trick or Treaters at your door?

A Walk About the Palace…

Back to the Palace with some of my favorite views before we move on to the Vicar’s Close…

Oh my aching back! I managed to mow and rack up the current leaves in the yard on Tuesday. Everything looks so nice until the next wind blows through and deposits more leaves in our yard. Our apple, pear, Chinese flame tree and our neighbor’s maple still have enough leaves to make a few messes before we move on to not needing to mow the lawn again till Spring. Do you live in a climate where you mow all year long or do you get the winter off, too?

Head on over to MGCC blog today to see my rustic roasted butterflied chicken with vegetables.

Bishop’s Palace Windows

Within the Bishop’s Palace there is a small chapel. Most of the windows in this post are from the chapel. Reconciliation is an important theme in the Chapel. The five icons behind the altar tell the Biblical story of God’s reconciling love for humanity throughout the ages. The Celtic knot under the altar also reflects this symbolism. I posted the icons with my Sunday Hymn here.

The Chapel was restored by Bishop George Henry Law in the nineteenth century. In the windows he used fragments of French medieval glass from churches in the Rouen area, which were destroyed in the revolutionary era.

We are finally getting some sunshine streaming into our windows at this old house. It really lifts the spirits! As I look out my windows today I’m seeing a steady stream of leaves falling and birds are pecking about in the lawns. What are you seeing out your windows?

Well Well Wells!

There is still a lot to share from the Cathedral city of Wells before we move on to Cornwall. On Tuesday morning September 17th we found a parking spot in the market area of Wells and headed to the Bishop’s Palace. I was excited to see the moat around the Palace. I’m pretty sure this was the first moat I’d seen in person. Before we head inside the gates to the Palace here is one last shot of the Cathedral, some city views, and the moat.

The Bishop’s Palace is famous all over the world for it’s swans who ring a bell alongside the gatehouse when they want food.

Swans at the Palace were first taught to ring a bell for food by the daughter of Bishop Hervey in the 1870s and the tradition continues to this day. Bread is tied in clumps to the rope attracting the swans to nibble at it and pull it off, when they do this the bell rings. Gradually less and less bread is tied onto the rope as they begin to understand that by pulling the rope and hearing the bell means food will soon follow.

Surrounded by a breathtaking moat you can cross a flagstone drawbridge, under the portcullis and experience a true hidden gem in the heart of the City of Wells.

Next time we will go inside over the drawbridge to see the Palace.

It’s hard to believe we are still in our foggy pattern here in Western Washington. Ugh. The sun broke through beautifully yesterday afternoon and revealed all the dust I’ve been neglecting in the gloom. So many life lessons about the light and what it reveals and what darkness tries to hide. My sister will be visiting my pop tonight and she will take a photo for me of him in the new recliner we bought and had delivered to his apartment. He’s 90 years old and has never had his own chair let alone a recliner. He called right after it was delivered to say he really liked it. He said when he sat down in it he just started laughing from his joy. I love my pop…

Eating and Sleeping in Wells, England

After we enjoyed Evensong it was time to find our Inn for the night to check in and then to find a recommended spot for dinner.

The Inn was spacious but it wasn’t my favorite.

We had two of the larger rooms in the Inn.

My overall experience was lacking something.

We did enjoy the Fountain Inn Gastro Pub that was recommended to us for dinner. You could catch a glimpse of the Cathedral from the Pub.

The atmosphere, service and food was good.

We had a good nights rest and enjoyed our breakfast at the Inn before we headed further south to Cornwall.

Before we packed up I took a few more photos of the Inn.

While I was out back taking these photos I spotted Josh way up in his room at the open window. Of course I zoomed in for a shot!

Before we headed to Cornwall we drove back to the Cathedral to walk through the Bishop’s Palace and The Vicar’s Close.

Back here in the states Katie and I will be heading to Abbotsford, Canada on Friday. The Mennonite Girls Can Cook are joining the fun at the West Coast Women’s Show spending time at Wink’s Retail Space and on the kitchen stage. I’m happy to have a traveling companion for the trip back and forth.

Wells Cathedral ~ Somerset

The sun was setting with a lovely glow on the Cathedral as we left Evensong and stepped outside.

Wells lies sheltered beneath the southern slopes of the Mendip Hills, and combines a wealth of historic interest and beautiful architecture. Wells qualifies as England’s smallest, and Somerset’s only city.

Probably the finest national example of early English architecture, Wells Cathedral was largely built between the 12th and 14th centuries. The Cathedral is famed for its magnificent West Front, featuring over 300 statues and carvings; the inverted scissor arches of the nave, and one of the oldest working mechanical clocks.

We left the cathedral on this road to find our inn for the night. We didn’t leave Wells until later on Tuesday September 17th after we visited the Bishop’s Palace and the Vicar’s Close. I still have many posts from our time in England.

Oh boy, here in the Seattle area we are still in a foggy pattern. We were waiting for the sun to break through and dry up the lawn but that was not to happen yet so I had to mow the foggy dewy lawn today to match up with the yard waste removal tomorrow. It actually felt good to get some exercise after sitting all weekend. I’ve got a dental appointment and a fun trip to Canada planned this week with our daughter Katie. What’s on your to do list this week?

The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b.

To honor and encourage

Category Archives: England