Thursday 28 February 2013

Madeira - cable car to Monte

Since we were last here, there's now a second cable car from Monte to the Botanical Gardens.
This is the first cable car to the gardens at Monte.
 
Funchal harbour in the distance.
 
Amazing road system - there are a LOT of tunnels.
 
 
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Tuesday 26 February 2013

Madeira - Sea Cliffs

This is the view over Funchal from a new viewpoint - you can see the HPB site to the left.
 
Here's the glass walkway 580 metres above the sea.
 
Looking down through the walkway
 
These are the highest sea cliffs in Europe
 
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Sunday 24 February 2013

Madeira - HPB

Just back from Madeira where with stayed at the Holiday Property Bond (HPB) site
 
Our apartment was top right in this yellow block
 
View over the capital Funchal, from our balcony
 
That's our block just left of centre, and the large red building is the club house with restaurant, shop, bar, club room and indoor swimming pool
 
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Friday 22 February 2013

Ascott House 3

Really nice place!
 
 
The house is fascinating too
 
 
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Wednesday 20 February 2013

Ascott House 2

Extremely well tended gardens - well worth a visit
 
 
 
 
 
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Monday 18 February 2013

Ascott House


Ascott House, sometimes referred to as simply Ascott, is situated in the hamlet of Ascott near Wing in Buckinghamshire. It is set in a 3,200-acre estate.
Ascott House was originally a farm house, built in the reign of James I and known as "Ascott Hall". In 1873 it was acquired by Baron Mayer de Rothschild (of the neighbouring Mentmore Towers estate). The Rothschild family had begun to acquire vast tracts of land in Buckinghamshire earlier in the century, on which they built a series of large mansions from 1852 onwards. Baron Mayer gave the house at Ascott to his nephew Leopold de Rothschild, who transformed it over the following decades into the substantial, but informal, country house it is today.

Couldn't have put it better myself!

 
 
 
 
The yew topiary sundial reads
"Light and shade by turn, but love always"
 
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Saturday 16 February 2013

POST NUMBER 700

Just over four years since my first post, we are at number 700
Here's a memory of last summer!
Thanks to everyone for following my ramblings
 
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Thursday 14 February 2013

Birmingham - Back to Backs 2

This is the yard and laundry of the cottages
 
Courtyard
 
 
Inside the cottages - no photography allowed - Ooops!
 
 
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Tuesday 12 February 2013

Birmingham - Back to Backs

This is the Campanile Hotel we stayed in while we were in Birmingham
 
View from our room - good location for us boaters!
 
Preserved shop fronts
 
The National Trust's Back to Back cottages are just behind here...
You need to book your time slot in advance for the visit by the way
 
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Sunday 10 February 2013

Museum of the Jewellery Quarter - Birmingham

This is a fascinating place - well worth a visit
 
A display of the history of jewellery
 
This is just as it was left the day the owners shut up shop and just walked out
 
Workbenches
 
Rack of jewellery stamps
 
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