3 posts tagged “north yorkshire”

Tom and I decided that we needed to visit Fountains Abbey in North Yorkshire.  It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and it is a short drive from us.  I checked the weather forecast and found that it would be another nice day (6 sunny days in a row is a record around here right now) so we loaded up the car and headed out.  Although we were a little disappointed in the entry cost (Adult £7.90) it was a nice day.  We walked through the abbey complex and down to the lake and water garden.  I brought us a blanket so we could lie in the grass near the lake and relax.  Tom took some photos of Sofia which turned out pretty well except for the dust on the CCD of the camera.  Instead of backtracking, we had to go straight up a hill with the pushchair into the sun for about half a mile and then another half a mile down a partially shaded path which made us both a bit cranky.  Luckily Tom's car is air conditioned (unlike mine) so we could cool off. 

National Trust.  Before we left I went online to check into a National Trust membership.  An annual membership for two adults costs £77 if you purchase at a National Trust property or online directly.  If you pay by direct debit (monthly installments directly from your bank account) they give you a discount of approximately £20 and it is only £57.75 which is only available for your first year of membership.  But, if I purchase a Royal Oak membership in the US, which gives me exactly the same benefits, it only costs £40 for two adults.  They will even ship the membership stuff to you overseas for an add'l cost of £7.50 which still saves you money.  I ordered a membership packet to be sent to Tom's parent's house in NC where we will be visiting in a couple of weeks.  Just a little hint about how to save some money in this country commonly known as RIP OFF BRITAIN.

Some photos:

Fountans Abbey

Photo Shoot

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I don't have anything exciting going on right now except waiting to go into labour.  Here are some photos from the past few days.

There seems to be a new cat hanging around my back garden.  The cat is scared of me, but we managed to snap a photo of him/her this weekend having a standoff with Sooty (the neighbor cat that thinks she lives here).  I love the brown around her/his mouth.  It looks like she/he has been eating chocolate.

The third cat that has been hanging around (just call me the cat lady) found a nice cozy place for a nap in the neighbour's back garden.  This cat won't come near me, either.

I bought myself a new glider/rocker for the baby's room.  It isn't the colour I would have chosen, but for the price it will have to do.  I am not going to say what this thing cost, but the one I wanted was over 400 Pounds and I wasn't going to go anywhere near that price so I got this one.  It is really comfortable and will serve its purpose.

Tom and I decided to go for a drive out to the coast.  We made it out to Filey and couldn't find a place to park within decent walking distance of the beach.  It was a lovely sunny Saturday afternoon so the beach was packed with people bundled up in the cold enjoying the sun.  We decided to head up to Thornon-le-Dale, North Yorkshire to go to the (overpriced) used bookshop we love so much.  On the way we stopped in Wykeham at The Downe Arms for a light lunch.  This place is highly recommended.  I had the best homemade tomato soup and chips.  Yum!  Tom had a bacon and brie wrap with chips and it looked wonderful.  Sorry, no pics!

From here it was on to Thornton-le-Dale where we picked up some books at the used bookshop (Cobweb Books, I think).  I bought two Paul Theroux travel books, The Little Prince (I have this in German and read it in French way back in highschool), and another really old travel book about travelling from Europe to India on a bicycle.  We usually stop at The Chocolate Factory for homemade chocolates but decided to forego that pleasure for the day.

After wandering around Thornton-le-Dale for a while it was time to start heading towards home.  I was getting pretty tired.  My tolerance levels for activity are pretty limited these days.  We finally managed to snap couple photos of a pheasant.  We are always trying to get a good shot of a pheasant since they are abundant in the countryside around here, but they are so elusive.  By the time you can stop the car they are gone.  I managed to use the zoom lens on our nice camera to get this shot.  It is a bit dark (I haven't edited it yet), but at least they are clear.

When we neared home we saw several gliders up at the Wolds Gliding Club along with two hot air balloons so we stopped in for a closer look.

And last, but not least, I have to share a photo of Tom with the neighbour cat.  She just loves him!  The photo itself has bad lighting, but I love the way Sooty has her paws up on him.

Show us a photo of someone else taking a photo.
Submitted by ydnar.

Tom taking a photo:

Tom taking a photo

The photo he was taking:

Tom's photo at Kirkham Priory

We were visiting the Mount Grace Priory in Staddle Bridge, Northallerton, North Yorkshire that day.  The priory is a 14th century Carthusian priory located in the beautiful surroundings of Yorkshire.  The ruins are quite impressive, but don't take more than an hour or so to see.

Here is a photo of the ruined church in the middle of the complex:

Ruins