# Day Trips



## Ingélou

Taggart & I went on a fab day trip yesterday & I'd love to hear about where you like to go, when you're home and you fancy a day out. Who knows, it could provide inspiration for future holidays.

What we'd like to know is:
* where it is, and about your journey - it must be a 'day trip', so only an hour or two's drive away
* a photo or two, if you like - no more
* what the weather was like
* what you mainly did & how you enjoyed it
* any people you met - or whether it was crowded
* the highlight of your day, or any neat anecdote
* would you recommend it - or warn people off?

I'm hoping that this will be a lovely, peaceful, friendly, funny, kooky, witty & thoughtful thread, which these days (let's face it!) would be a refreshing change...


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## Ingélou

Our trip was to Mannington Hall, an hour and a half's drive from us in North Norfolk. It was a good journey, both there and back - corn fields ripening, dark firs on the rolling horizon (Norfolk isn't 'flat', pace Noel Coward), and little traffic on the road.









The weather was perfect - warmish, but with a light breeze that I found refreshing. I took my coat off but kept my cardi on. The sun went in and out, but that rang the changes and made us appreciate it the more.

We walked round the rose-gardens and the roses were all out. Taggart took photos with his *new digital camera* & that was great, because it focused our attentions, choosing the views.

We mostly had the gardens to ourselves, though the highlight was a pot of coffee outside, and there was a table nearby with five Japanese women chatting away like starlings. I really wished I was one of them; they looked so jolly.

This trip is highly recommended if you're ever in the East of England between May and September.


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## elgar's ghost

Last summer three friends and I took off on a whim to a pub called the Tally Ho which is just outside the market town of Tenbury Wells at the northwest tip of Worcestershire and very close to the county boundaries of both Herefordshire and Shropshire. The pub is Olde Worlde without looking forced and although we didn't order any food the beer and cider was excellent. As it's also an inn there were a few other outsiders about but thankfully due to its comparatively isolated location the bar itself wasn't rammed and the background music was both tasteful and discrete and the staff friendly. One told me about a drinking challenge that's held where if you can drink a certain amount of scrumpy cider within a certain time and leave the premises without falling over the tab is free. Apparently one of their off-duty chefs tried it once but couldn't manage it.

The nicest surprise was when we went to the beer garden at the back - due to the pub's elevated position we could see not just Herefordshire and Shropshire but also (we were told) four Welsh counties that lie beyond that - and the day was as clear and sunny as it could be. When we were leaving the sun was going down plumb centre over that view -complete with crepuscular rays.

I have no photos but the pub and the view in question are easy to find online if you google 'Tally Ho Tenbury Wells'.


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## EricABQ

From Albuquerque you can take a nice day trip to Santa Fe. Hang out in the plaza and look at the art galleries and then grab lunch at the Plaza Cafe or any of a number of restaurants. If you get to the Cafe while it is still serving breakfast, you can get the chile relleno omelette, which is the greatest omelette on Earth. 

If that isn't your thing, Sandia Peak towers over the east side of the city and there are a number of spectacular hiking trails that take you as far up as you can handle. 

In the winter a great day trip is to go south to the Bosque Del Apache where thousands of sandhill cranes and Canadian geese spend the winter. If you get there early enough in the morning you can see mass take offs of the cranes and geese as they leave their night time spots to head out for a day of foraging.


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## Crudblud

An ideal day trip for me would be riding the motorways aimlessly, stopping off at truck stops in the middle of nowhere, indulging in some good old fashioned English grease and carrying on until whenever. Back before all my friends got regular jobs we used to be up well into the early hours of the morning confused at how we arrived at our present location. Suddenly realising you are in Bolton (some 75 miles away according to the route we worked out the next day on Google maps) at 3 o'clock in the morning when all you're trying to do is get home, that's a trip!


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## elgar's ghost

Crudblud said:


> An ideal day trip for me would be riding the motorways aimlessly, stopping off at truck stops in the middle of nowhere, indulging in some good old fashioned English grease and carrying on until whenever. Back before all my friends got regular jobs we used to be up well into the early hours of the morning confused at how we arrived at our present location. Suddenly realising you are in Bolton (some 75 miles away according to the route we worked out the next day on Google maps) at 3 o'clock in the morning when all you're trying to do is get home, that's a trip!


Has this got the makings of a road movie?


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## Crudblud

elgars ghost said:


> Has this got the makings of a road movie?


I did suggest taking a camera and shooting on the road (with my hidden agenda being to cut footage from completely different journeys and edit it together into a _Fishing with John_ type presentation) but we never did; sadly that era has passed.


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## brianvds

I can't afford to get out much. Even the local zoo has become frightfully expensive. So I mostly do it on the cheap.

I am lucky to live within 20 minutes or so of a small but well-stocked nature reserve, where one can go hike around and may stumble on this sort of thing:









And whenever I can, I go with friends to the small farm in the boondocks where I grew up:


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## drpraetorus

Sometimes we go into town for a noon organ recital in the Mormon Tabernacle. Other choices are going up into the canyons above the ski resorts or to the Salt Lake Cemetery. If it is something more than a spur of the moment thing I have been known to take history trips. One time we went up to Wyoming to see South Pass http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Pass_(Wyoming) . I went to Red Rock Pass to see where ancient Lake Bonneville spilled over http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Bonneville http://geology.utah.gov/utahgeo/gsl/flash/lb_flash.htm http://hugefloods.com/Bonneville.html. I also took a trip to Skull Valley to trace the route of the Hastings Cut Off. Made famous by the Donner Party http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hastings_Cutoff http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donner_Party. I almost got stuck in the sand on that one.


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## Ingélou

Great, everyone! I am loving reading your stories. Thanks!
@ Drpraetorius, fascinating to hear about the Donner Party - I remember a wonderful documentary about it (from the US) shown on British TV in the eighties and it has haunted me to this day.


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## TxllxT

For those who will like to visit the Dutch isle of Texel my advice is to spent half a day on the south-west part, which has a mesmerising purity of nature. One may witness the birth of new dunes, a continuous process that is as old as the world itself. Just wander criss cross through this desert, made by strong gusts of sand, wind, sun & sea, and experience yourself as part of this eternity: Catharsis by nature.


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## Ebab

Last weekend, we were in Neuburg an der Donau, which is a good hour's ride away from Munich. It has a wonderfully intact old town, situated above the Danube on a hill top, dominated by a large Renaissance palace, and with a gorgeous spacious central square.










We walked around the old town and visited the palace, and one of the museums that it houses, the one on the history of the duchy. It was a beautiful day, and we simply couldn't have had a more pleasant experience. I'd really have a lot to share, but this palace chapel was particularly serene and beautiful:










It's the first Protestant church interior ever, with fresci from 1543.

Crowded: yes, neat anecdote: fail, recommend: definitely.


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## Vaneyes

EricABQ said:


> From Albuquerque you can take a nice day trip to Santa Fe. Hang out in the plaza and look at the art galleries and then grab lunch at the Plaza Cafe or any of a number of restaurants. If you get to the Cafe while it is still serving breakfast, you can get the chile relleno omelette, which is the greatest omelette on Earth.
> 
> If that isn't your thing, Sandia Peak towers over the east side of the city and there are a number of spectacular hiking trails that take you as far up as you can handle.
> 
> In the winter a great day trip is to go south to the Bosque Del Apache where thousands of sandhill cranes and Canadian geese spend the winter. If you get there early enough in the morning you can see mass take offs of the cranes and geese as they leave their night time spots to head out for a day of foraging.


See the USA! roadtrips were huge in the '50's and '60's, as gas was cheap, and relatively few could afford air travel. For most, the options were bus, car, hitchhiking.

The Interstate Highway System was mushrooming, putting all the old highways freakshows, tourist traps out of business. As a kid and adult, the Interstates have always been painfully boring travel to me.

Cruise Control helped drivers navigate the boredom for a while, until car and truck growth ended their usefulness.

Of the old highways, Route 66 was legendary...even spawning a TV show.


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## elgar's ghost

TxllxT said:


> For those who will like to visit the Dutch isle of Texel my advice is to spent half a day on the south-west part, which has a mesmerising purity of nature. One may witness the birth of new dunes, a continuous process that is as old as the world itself. Just wander criss cross through this desert, made by strong gusts of sand, wind, sun & sea, and experience yourself as part of this eternity: Catharsis by nature.


Looks great but is it actually safe to walk across that???


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## TxllxT

elgars ghost said:


> Looks great but is it actually safe to walk across that???


Well, it's not as dry as Death Valley. These photos are from last winter: lots of unexpected slippery ice patches around. In the summer the pioneering nature is just so breathtakingly beautiful, that you forget all notions of time & civilisation (merge yourself into another Robinson Crusoe....). Sometimes the seagulls will crowd above your head like in the good old Hitchcock movie.


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## elgar's ghost

TxllxT said:


> Well, it's not as dry as Death Valley. These photos are from last winter: lots of unexpected slippery ice patches around. In the summer the pioneering nature is just so breathtakingly beautiful, that you forget all notions of time & civilisation (merge yourself into another Robinson Crusoe....). Sometimes the seagulls will crowd above your head like in the good old Hitchcock movie.


Yeah, it was the water that drew my attention - I was wondering if there might have been any risk of quicksand.


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## TxllxT

elgars ghost said:


> Yeah, it was the water that drew my attention - I was wondering if there might have been any risk of quicksand.


Quicksand is no problem in these new dunes. But more to the south however there is an huge plain with fresh sanddeposits from the Northsea, where one should be aware of this danger.


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## SiegendesLicht

On weekends I usually get out to a lake (unofficially called "the Minsk Sea" though it's not a sea by any stretch of imagination, it is only maybe 5 km across), pack some sandwiches, an audiobook and wander around or land under a tree and enjoy being close to nature once in a while. It is especially nice on cloudy and cool days when there are not many people around. And in winter I take walks across the lake on the ice.


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## SiegendesLicht

SiegendesLicht said:


> It is especially nice...


... unless some moron drives up to where I am sitting and starts blasting his rap out of his car at such volume that cones start falling from the pine trees.


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## TxllxT

*Island Hopping*




























In the summertime there exists a wonderful touristic ferry connection between the wadden isle of Texel and the next one in the row of wadden isles: the isle of Vlieland. You may leave in the morning from the Texel landingstage, say at ten o'clock in the morning, arrive at the Vlieland landingstage (on the photo) half a hour later to be taken by an adapted military truck through the extensive Vliehors-desert towards a cosy inn at the far end of the one and only road on Vlieland. There you can rent a bicycle and bike around this not so large island of Vlieland (the main village is a must-see jewel of sightseeing interest). At four o'clock or five o'clock you may return to the inn where the truck is waiting to bring you safely to the ferry. We used to compare the thrill of the trips by the truck racing over the Vlieland beach & dunes to the Paris-Dakar race. Orientation price pp.: 25 Euro.


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## SiegendesLicht

Those North Sea islands are absolutely wonderful. I'd take them over the typical summer vacation destinations (like Turkey or Egypt) any time. And while we are on this subject:

















Sylt - another one of the Frisian islands (but belonging to Germany), one of my favorite places in the world. There is something about those unpretentious but beautiful landscapes that speaks to me in a special way.


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## Guest

SiegendesLicht said:


> On weekends I usually get out to a lake (unofficially called "the Minsk Sea" though it's not a sea by any stretch of imagination, it is only maybe 5 km across), pack some sandwiches, an audiobook and wander around or land under a tree and enjoy being close to nature once in a while. It is especially nice on cloudy and cool days when there are not many people around. And in winter I take walks across the lake on the ice.


Darn it - I missed that one. There's another lake up near Vilejka (and Iliya) - I've picked mushrooms there.


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## TxllxT

*Amsterdam*



















Our favourite daytrip destination :tiphat:


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## Ebab

My dearest place for a day out is Höglwörth ("Isle among the Hills"), ca. 125 km away from Munich, 25 km away from my husband's home, and 25 km from Salzburg on the other side. As the name says, it's a small village and lake, situated among a group of hills, with the Chiemgau Alps as a backdrop in southwest. The lake, today shaped like a horse-shoe, takes twenty-five leisurely minutes to walk around, in practice at least an hour, because you'll want to sit on several of the many benches, and enjoy the serene views, the perfect compositions created by nature and man.










What is now a peninsula, was originally an isle, in the 19th century still. The lake has slowly been silting up in a natural process. The isle held a monastery of the Augustinian Canons, which was secularized in 1817, the edifice and land bought by the local (filthy rich) brewery family Wieninger. They have their house on the now-peninsula to this day, and seem to enjoy it there, which may be one of the reasons why the area has largely survived "undeveloped", in the cruel modern sense.










The Rococo interior of the monastery church is always worth a visit, but particularly every three years at Easter, when they revive the tradition of the "Holy Grave". The church is darkened and the altar covered with a very theatrical staging of the mystical grave, lit though glass balls filled with colored water, and lots of mysterious "special effects" overall. Very Baroque.

But don't think they are all backwards. One of the first Bavarian water-power stations was built at the foot of one of the feeding streams, complete with a small bridge over the lake, carrying cables which supplied the area with electricity - Today, only the foundations of the station bear witness of that effort.

In summer, you'll definitely want to take a swim in the quickly-warm and soft water. You can choose between the communal bath and its 1970s charms, or use the lawn on the opposite side, where the farmer may modestly collect 50 cents for his trouble.

You can eat and drink at the local inn, and maybe extend your walk to the nearby village of Anger, situated on and around a rock that seems like accidentally dropped in the valley. Its center is a village green ("Anger" is actually the German word for such a green).

It's a place that seems eternal, although it won't be - the lake will be silting up within a couple of generations. But with any luck, the magic will remain when it's a bog, covered with a texture of reeds, moss and flowers. We will no longer be there to enjoy it, but hopefully, some other folk will, and they'll be happy too.


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## SiegendesLicht

Some day..........


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## musicphotogAnimal

Serpentine Fen Wildlife Migratory Bird Sanctuary that is completely wild, no caretakers. A place for birds to stop off on their migratory passage up and down the Great Pacific Flyway.


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## brotagonist

I take motorcycle or automobile road trips weekly from about April to October. Since the cost of gasoline has doubled in the last decade (stuck at around $1,20/litre and spiking to $1.30), I have been forced to mostly keep the trips within the 150 km range one-way, although there are countless beautiful places suitable for day trips that require more fuel.

I prefer to get out into nature, so I usually head west to the Rocky Mountains (Kananaskis 80 km; Banff 110 km). Then again, I occasionally like to revel in the scorching heat of the Badlands around Drumheller (about 120 km ENE). I also enjoy a slightly longer trip, south along the Cowboy Trail in the foothills of the Rockies, to Crowsnest (about 200 km), an old coal-mining area in a very scenic pass not far from Waterton Lakes. Less frequently, I head north through the peaceful farmlands to Sylvan Lake (about 150 km), a bustling resort town with a popular beach. 

Sometimes I hike; sometimes I sit to watch the landscape and the wildlife (luckily, I have only seen bears and cougars while motoring past); sometimes I meander aimlessly in the car with classical music playing or on the motorbike while relishing the sound of my engine, the taste of the wind and the scents of the grasses, wild-flowers and forests.

It is always so thrilling to get out of the city for an outdoor adventure and so warming to come back home.


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## musicphotogAnimal

Gas has just been outrageous. On our side of the Rockies, it's been peaking at $1.48 - $1.49 a litre. And they always seem to jack it up just before the weekend. I do want to get out to Banff one of these days. At least with the car I don't have to worry about whether I have to "check in" my bags or worry that my 600mm is too long for carry-on as on the airplane. I just put my 600mm in the trunk but of course, driving through the Rockies...having the 600mm beside me is a must. You never know when you see an elk cross the Trans Canada.


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## Tristan

Lots of good places to take day trips around the Bay Area. Recent ones of mine include: Point Reyes, Angel Island, Lake Berryessa, Monterrey/Big Sur, The Pinnacles, and Mt. Diablo. For me, they usually include some form of hiking or biking and none of them take more than a couple hours to get to. I don't often take photos, though, unfortunately. But I do have one I took atop Mt. Diablo:


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## Ingélou

*The Norfolk Broads - Ranworth*

Tag & I are just back from a short day trip, really an extended lunch break. We didn't go far - Ranworth Broad is only about fifteen miles by road. For non-Brits, the Broads are a series of lakes connected by rivers in the English county of Norfolk - originally formed from peat excavation. The area has a distinctive history involving eeling, cutting reeds for thatch, bittern shooting & malaria - the two last activities definitely in the past, thank goodness.

These days the area is known for boating holidays, birdwatching & other forms of tourism. Boats abound, as you'll see below in our photo of *Ranworth Broad*:









We got to the village carpark at noon, parked under the trees, and wasted a lot of time on the waterfront trying to photograph waterfowl. One coot kept wiggling to and fro - most inconsiderate, imho. But eventually Taggart _captured_ this duck:









We did a very short circular walk, along the boarded walkways at the side of the Broad & past picturesque houses to the medieval church of St Helen's at the top of the hill, which is known for its illuminated vellum psalter (kept in a glass case under wraps to prevent sunlight-fading).









After this, lunch in the car under the trees - it was too crowded to picnic & anyway, I hate insects. Flies always make a beeline for me, so to speak. (Reminds me of the old joke, 'I attract men like flies - but then, who *wants* men like flies!') Then, after a stimulating domestic discussion, we drove on to the next village, Woodbastwick, which is a pretty collection of Art Nouveau thatched cottages round a green. Here we looked round the church of St Sebastian & St Fabian - a very unusual dedication - but it was protected from our snapping efforts by a phalanx of burly yew trees.

And the highlight of our trip - sitting outside 'The Fur & Feather', the pub that goes with the delicious Woodforde Brewery (Taggart has bought a bottle of real ale called 'Kett's Rebellion' for tonight). We had a table with a parasol & a grand view of a scenic pond with dragon flies - just beyond screaming distance.

And what did we talk about at our sunny Norfolk table - why, the threads on Talk Classical, of course! :cheers:

(One day we'll _*get a life*_ - but not just yet...)


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## LindnerianSea

My ideal destination would be Druidstone, Pembrokeshire in Wales. I am a great admirer of coastal walks, especially when the coast is empty and when it is so quiet that one can hear the wind. There is nothing better than taking a few friends that I can speak my heart to and walk side to side by nature's grand wonder. In the end, wasn't the sea that inspired so many artists, poets, musicians, etc. over the years ? And while the Pembrokeshire coastal walk is a great thing on its own, Druidstone is a truly magnificent experience - there stands a hotel with full view of a part of the coast which is enclosed by land. One can enjoy a lovely cup of tea or a cheeky pint at the hotel, and it is only in such place that one can marvel at the vacuousness of the graspable shore yet admire the fulfillment of the soul ! I would do anything to spend the whole day reading a book and wandering abound the empty shore, sometimes talking to strangers that come to sight in rare occasions - in the end, I would be certain that those people would have visited the place for similar reasons...

I upload two photos - one is from the internet which gives an excellent wide view of the scene. The other is a photo I took few years ago of a man reading a book at the shore.















Best,
LS


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## Ingélou

Fab post. LindnerianSea. I would love to visit Druidstone after this description. 

And what a marvellous own-picture you have posted - a man reading in such vast surroundings is a real talking point. Thank you! :cheers: 
(I raise a 'cheeky pint' to you!  )


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## Pyotr

*Merion Golf Club*

Wife & I drove out to Ardmore PA to visit Merion Golf course yesterday. I had been there earlier in the year without her when the US Open was going on. She had been wanting to see it. It's about a 40-minute drive. The first picture I took yesterday; the last two I took in June during the Monday practice round. It actually rained that day; my buddy and I stayed for just few hours.









This is the green of the 571 yard par 5, 4th hole, that Justin Rose birdied the last two days. I forget the names of the pros in the picture but it's names you probably wouldn't recognize. 








That's Cobb's Creek that meanders through the course. 








Why is Merion (pronounced merry-un) such a widely-recognized, highly-rated, golf course? Currently seventh on Golf Digest's list of the USA's best courses. It doesn't have the grandeur of Pebble Beach, and it's not the mausoleum of Augusta National.

Merion is a charming course, for want of a better word. It's like something out of a JR Tolkien novel. One expects to see Bilbo Baggins pop out of one of the bunkers and go walking up the fairway. It was built in 1910 by Scottsman Hugh Wilson, before the giant earth-moving equipment was available. The golf holes blend so nicely into the landscape that one local writer penned ... "it seems impossible that it wasn't there when the first light of dawn struck the earth." It's a tiny course, my local public course that I play at is larger. Larger in the sense of it sitting on more acreage, not length of holes.

There are no fences around it ; it's criss-crossed by two public roads. We walked on the roads and were able to stop and watch players hit shots - the players seemed very close to us, no longer than an arm's length. There are no electric carts allowed. All of the golfers we saw had caddies.

Yesterday was a beautiful day. After a few hours walking the roads surrounding Merion, we stopped in the local Starbucks where we had a couple lattes before heading back to watch Serena win her 5th us title.


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## JCarmel

They're funny old things...Coincidences?!.....
Earlier today I glanced at a booklet that I quite randomly came across in my pink Drawers (say no more?!!...) & then just now came across the Day Trip Thread (an excellent one methinks to which I hope to contribute more fully, soon...) & there in a post by you, Ingénue was the very same place that I'd been reading-about in the booklet, earlier...Ranworth ...& more particularly, the church of St Helen's! 
It's a lovely church & I have fond memories of an afternoon spent in and around it, in particular concentrating on the glory of the church which is arguably the finest remaining wooden painted rood screen in England. 
Such screens were a common feature, separating the common folks' space in the nave of the church from the more sacred and rarefied space of the priest's domain...the chancel & holy altar. 
Originally, it would have been even more of an impressive sight, with a wooden 'great rood' ...a group of statuary depicting the crucified Christ, the Virgin Mary & St John on top of the screen. But the 16th Reformers weren't too keen on what they saw as Popish idolatry...& groups went out all around the country, tearing the screens down, burning-them or desecrating them.
Here at Ranworth, the screen escaped miraculously, though all the Saints faces were scratched in an attempt to defuse the power these images had to offer for spiritual comfort to the local population & to concentrate their minds on the exacting requirements of one's religious beliefs.

This is a photo I took of part of the screen, featuring five Apostles, complete with their identifying symbols!









I've had many a happy hour wandering around Art galleries on the Continent, trying to guess each Saint's name on medieval wooden panels and altar screens..... by what symbols appear with them!


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## Taggart

*Masterpieces: Art and East Anglia*

We're just back from a morning spent at the Sainsbury Centre for the Visual Arts. We've been here 23 years and it's the first time we've been. They had an exhibition on Art and East Anglia. This was absolutely stunning - three galleries and three link corridors full of all sorts of visual arts from an early flint axe through to a waterproof duffel coat via all sorts of Celtic treasures, Roman _objets d'art _, Anglo Saxon jewellery, medieval manuscripts (no music - sadly), reliquaries, paintings from the 15th through to the 21st centuries. All in all , a great big well stuffed and very rich pudding of an exhibition. However it was small enough not to totally overload the senses. It finished in the cafe with a Lotus F1 racing car - technological art.

There were some surprises, like Epstein's sculpture of Einstein made when they were both visiting Cromer. There is a page on must see pieces. All in all, an excellent exhibition.

We finished up with a look at their Art Nouveau exhibition before having lunch in the cafe. A glorious morning was had by all.


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## Jos

I'd recommend going to Oberhausen, Germany, to the Gasometer.

http://www.gasometer.de/de/

A great building (in every sense) and a brilliant artwork by Christo at the moment. "big air package".
I've seen it this summer with some friends and will go again with my children. It's amazing; a cathedral of white.
If you can, go on a weekday to avoid the crowd. You might have that impressive space to yourself for a minute or two !
only until the end of this year.
Recommended !!

cheers,
Jos


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## Ingélou

*North Norfolk is a lovely place to visit - it's so fashionable with well-heeled Londoners these days that its nickname is Chelsea-on-Sea.* 
*We had a trip to the lavender farm Norfolk Lavender a fortnight ago. 
http://www.norfolk-lavender.co.uk/

It was a glorious sunny day, and although it is basically a commercial enterprise, there is a lot to see. There are lots of gardens: a woodland garden, beds showing different kinds of lavender, a landscaped mediterranean garden:









Also a lovely garden centre:









The lavender fields themselves are glorious:









And there's a domestic animals farm for children (hens, pigs, goats), lots of 'lifestyle' shops doing interior design and jewellery, a teashop, and Norfolk Lavender's own shop, selling scent, candles, cards, lavender bags, lavender honey and so on.

We had a fabulous time. Heacham is near the coast, and not far from the village of Dersingham, near the royal estate of Sandringham, and there are beaches at Blakeney, Holm-next-the-Sea, and Wells to visit too.*


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## hpowders

Pyotr said:


> Wife & I drove out to Ardmore PA to visit Merion Golf course yesterday. I had been there earlier in the year without her when the US Open was going on. She had been wanting to see it. It's about a 40-minute drive. The first picture I took yesterday; the last two I took in June during the Monday practice round. It actually rained that day; my buddy and I stayed for just few hours.
> 
> View attachment 24511
> 
> 
> This is the green of the 571 yard par 5, 4th hole, that Justin Rose birdied the last two days. I forget the names of the pros in the picture but it's names you probably wouldn't recognize.
> View attachment 24513
> 
> 
> That's Cobb's Creek that meanders through the course.
> View attachment 24514
> 
> 
> Why is Merion (pronounced merry-un) such a widely-recognized, highly-rated, golf course? Currently seventh on Golf Digest's list of the USA's best courses. It doesn't have the grandeur of Pebble Beach, and it's not the mausoleum of Augusta National.
> 
> Merion is a charming course, for want of a better word. It's like something out of a JR Tolkien novel. One expects to see Bilbo Baggins pop out of one of the bunkers and go walking up the fairway. It was built in 1910 by Scottsman Hugh Wilson, before the giant earth-moving equipment was available. The golf holes blend so nicely into the landscape that one local writer penned ... "it seems impossible that it wasn't there when the first light of dawn struck the earth." It's a tiny course, my local public course that I play at is larger. Larger in the sense of it sitting on more acreage, not length of holes.
> 
> There are no fences around it ; it's criss-crossed by two public roads. We walked on the roads and were able to stop and watch players hit shots - the players seemed very close to us, no longer than an arm's length. There are no electric carts allowed. All of the golfers we saw had caddies.
> 
> Yesterday was a beautiful day. After a few hours walking the roads surrounding Merion, we stopped in the local Starbucks where we had a couple lattes before heading back to watch Serena win her 5th us title.


Reminds me of Pinehurst #2 in North Carolina. No carts. Caddies only. Yes. I played it. I'm still paying the inflated greens fees in installments!! :lol::lol:


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## Vaneyes

"Why is Merion (pronounced merry-un) such a widely-recognized, highly-rated, golf course?"

The aura surrounding Bobby Jones (last of his 1930 Grand Slam) and Ben Hogan (the famous 1-iron on the final hole...Justin Rose hit 4-iron from the same spot) victories helped. Also, it's a fine layout incorporating a variety of challenging holes.

With today's equipment rendering the old Merion obsolete, the USGA did an astounding job at toughening it up for the 2013 US Open. Rose's 1-over par total won by two shots.


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## Ingélou

This was not a day trip for us - but if any TC-ers are ever in the UK, and get a chance, then do go to York, my home town, which is the most fabulous city. Don't drive into the centre, though - parking is tight. Take the park and ride, or stay in a city centre hotel, and walk about. Walk on the city walls, and get the most fabulous views of York Minster:









Walk in the medieval streets - the most famous is The Shambles:









Your feet will be sore and your calf muscles will ache, but it's a city like no other.
This is Bootham Bar, one of the four remaining gateways in the medieval city walls (with Monkgate, Micklegate & Walmgate Bars). We were standing in High Petergate, looking through the Bar & beyond it into Bootham, which was the site of a monastic market (booths) in the Middle Ages. It's now largely Georgian. It's also the district of York that I was raised and educated in.









Floreat Eboracum, the Roman City where Constantine was crowned Emperor - becoming Eaforwic, the Saxon Settlement, and then Jorvik, the Viking capital of the North. 
It's a wonderful city. (Not that I'm biassed or anything. )

There are so many places to see - the Treasurer's House, the Castle Museum with its reconstructed Victorian and Edwardian Streets, Clifford's Tower (York Castle), the Jorvik Centre (themed museum of the Viking Archaeological Dig), Stonegate, King's Square, St Margaret Clitherow's house, St Mary's Abbey in the Museum Gardens. There are also fabulous shops.

And if walking becomes irksome, there are river boat trips down the Ouse, and an open-top bus tour of the city centre.

For more information, you could 'like' the Visit York page on Facebook.

We visited York recently for the world-renowned York Early Music Festival. We came back stony broke and tired, but happy and well-exercised.


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## Winterreisender

I have been to York several times myself as my brother studies at the university there. It's a great place for the history buff, what with its rich Roman and Viking traditions.

Nice picture of the Bootham Bar (or more specifically, nice picture of "The Hole in the Wall" pub which I remember eating in on more than one occasion ).


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## Ingélou

Funny - one of my friends remembers 'The Hole in the Wall' fondly too. I must go in there the next time I visit.
Taggart & I have decided that we must make an annual trip, as we can't afford actually to live there!

Some more of our photos of York:

St William's College near the Minster:









York Mansion House in St Helen's Square - the yellow flags were for the Tour de France:









Marygate - St Olave's Church, founded in the 11th century by Siward Earl of Northumbria (appears in 'Macbeth') - the entrance to the Museum Gardens, with stonework from the ruined St Mary's Abbey.


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## MagneticGhost

Ingélou said:


> *North Norfolk is a lovely place to visit - it's so fashionable with well-heeled Londoners these days that its nickname is Chelsea-on-Sea.*
> *We had a trip to the lavender farm Norfolk Lavender a fortnight ago.
> http://www.norfolk-lavender.co.uk/
> 
> It was a glorious sunny day, and although it is basically a commercial enterprise, there is a lot to see. There are lots of gardens: a woodland garden, beds showing different kinds of lavender, a landscaped mediterranean garden:
> 
> View attachment 46028
> 
> 
> Also a lovely garden centre:
> 
> View attachment 46029
> 
> 
> The lavender fields themselves are glorious:
> 
> View attachment 46027
> 
> 
> And there's a domestic animals farm for children (hens, pigs, goats), lots of 'lifestyle' shops doing interior design and jewellery, a teashop, and Norfolk Lavender's own shop, selling scent, candles, cards, lavender bags, lavender honey and so on.
> 
> We had a fabulous time. Heacham is near the coast, and not far from the village of Dersingham, near the royal estate of Sandringham, and there are beaches at Blakeney, Holm-next-the-Sea, and Wells to visit too.*


My Mum lives in Hunstanton - so we go to the Lavender Farm regularly - it being about a mile away from my mum's house.
Beautiful place - and the kids love it, more so now they have animals and a snazzy play area. 
I'll look out for you guys next time I'm there


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## TxllxT

*Zutphen*




























Apart from Amsterdam Holland has lots & lots of beautiful smaller towns with a medieval inner core. One of the real gems to the east (on the IJssel riverbank) is the old Hanseatic town of Zutphen, which has a sleeping beauty quality that will recreate your soul. The High Gothic St Walburgis church is bigger in size than any French cathedral.


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## Ingélou

We are just back from our week's holiday in North Yorkshire, UK - so here are three stunning places to visit on a day trip if you're ever staying there. 
Fountains Abbey, near Ripon - a ruin of a Cistercian monastery in a beautiful landscaped garden-estate, Studley Royal:
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Ripley Castle - a stately home near Harrogate, with a lake and a lovely walled garden. We had the most fascinating tour of the Castle itself, the home of the Ingilby family who had links in the 17th century with the Gunpowder Plot (Guy Fawkes); there's a priest's hole in the tower where Sir William Ingilby hid after the Battle of Marston Moor in the English Civil War; thanks to his feisty sister 'Trooper Jane' Ingilby, he escaped notice, even though Oliver Cromwell stayed there, but the next day Cromwell had all his Royalist prisoners put up against the gatehouse wall and shot. The Victorian Ingilby had the village of Ripley rebuilt in the French Gothic style, and the stonework of the village hall is inscribed with the words 'Hotel de Ville'. This Ingilby was ecccentric & known for wandering about in public dressed in only his nightshirt. 
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Harlow Carr, Gardens near Harrogate run by Britain's Royal Horticultural Society. Taggart took over 80 photos, most of them really beautiful, so it's hard to pick just one, but here goes...
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My grandmother lived in this area, so I know that there are many other places to visit - the towns of Ripon, Knaresborough, Harrogate & Masham - the gardens of Newby Hall - the Pennine moorlands.

*Yorkshire is fabulous!*


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## LancsMan

On Monday of last week I had a very pleasant walk with a mate of mine around Malham Cove in the Yorkshire Dales. It turned out to be very good for birds - he's a keen birdwatcher and I'm trying to get into it. However I'm quite at a disadvantage as I'm somewhat colour blind, which doesn't help identifying the birds - if that's important. Quite a few foreign visitors, particularly Belgium, Dutch and Germans. We chatted with a middle aged Dutch woman equipped with some seriously good binoculars, and swapped notes on bird's spotted around the area. Unusually for a Dutch person her English was rather limited - but hey a lot more impressive than my Dutch!







PS - the picture is not mine and we had no rainbow's - it was a day of very sharp visibility with the white limestone etched against a deep blue sky.


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## mirepoix

Ingélou said:


> We are just back from our week's holiday in North Yorkshire, UK - so here are three stunning places to visit on a day trip if you're ever staying there.
> Fountains Abbey, near Ripon - a ruin of a Cistercian monastery in a beautiful landscaped garden-estate, Studley Royal:
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Ripley Castle - a stately home near Harrogate, with a lake and a lovely walled garden. We had the most fascinating tour of the Castle itself, the home of the Ingilby family who had links in the 17th century with the Gunpowder Plot (Guy Fawkes); there's a priest's hole in the tower where Sir William Ingilby hid after the Battle of Marston Moor in the English Civil War; thanks to his feisty sister 'Trooper Jane' Ingilby, he escaped notice, even though Oliver Cromwell stayed there, but the next day Cromwell had all his Royalist prisoners put up against the gatehouse wall and shot. The Victorian Ingilby had the village of Ripley rebuilt in the French Gothic style, and the stonework of the village hall is inscribed with the words 'Hotel de Ville'. This Ingilby was ecccentric & known for wandering about in public dressed in only his nightshirt.
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Harlow Carr, Gardens near Harrogate run by Britain's Royal Horticultural Society. Taggart took over 80 photos, most of them really beautiful, so it's hard to pick just one, but here goes...
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> My grandmother lived in this area, so I know that there are many other places to visit - the towns of Ripon, Knaresborough, Harrogate & Masham - the gardens of Newby Hall - the Pennine moorlands.
> 
> *Yorkshire is fabulous!*


Very nice. And good work, Chief Inspector.


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## hpowders

I live in a rural area which can be nice and peaceful except for the people, but I digress.... the problem is there isn't a decent place to eat. So I gather up the restaurant reviews and when the writer seems really elated, I will travel 100-150 km just to dine there. Seems like a day trip to me.


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## TurnaboutVox

Yesterday we took a day trip to Terezin in North Bohemia, where the Nazi regime converted an 18th century Hapsburg fortress into a transitional concentration camp for those people it had decided to murder in the extermination camps, as many of you will know. 

The camp and its museums - showing, amongst other things, exhibitions of works of art by inmates, and of the composers and musicians who passed through (there were only very few who survived) including of course Pavel Haas, Hans Krasa and Victor Ullman - was a very sad place. 

Most unbearably poignant were the pictures and poems written by children. One boy of 10 or 11 had written an exquisite and unbearable poem - 'Blossom' - in which he gently made it clear that he knew that he would not exist when the blossom returned in spring.

We talked with the excellent Czech guide, a thoughtful and fiercely patriotic woman, about how betrayed the Czechs felt by the Munich Agreement of 1938 which necessitated them abandoning their carefully prepared border defences (they lost much of their border lands to Germany). She had been reluctant to embarrass us, as Britons, by talking about this.

Although it was a beautiful day, it was a sombre visit, though we will have many memorable impressions.

Although not on a comparable scale, it was sad also to see the depopulation of the Czech countryside, with abandoned and derelict village houses everywhere. I understand that young Czechs cannot find work in the countryside and are having to move to the cities in large numbers. The village properties are valueless, and cannot be sold.


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## Ingélou

Sometimes 'like' seems inappropriate, and 'appreciate' might be a better tag. :tiphat: I was sorry but interested to read this, Turnabout Vox.


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## TurnaboutVox

Your appreciation is appreciated, thank-you, Ingelou. I did think twice before posting this, but I am relieved that it is of some interest.


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## Andreas

I went to Berlin yesterday, which is less than two hours away by train from where I live.

I spent some hours walking along the Hohenzollern Canal, looking for the place where the writer Wolfgang Herrndorf, about one year ago, shot himself after battling a brain tumour for some years. He's most famous for his 2010 novel Tschick (translated into English as Why We Took the Car), which has since become part of the curriculum for German classes in many of our schools. The place is marked by an iron cross, as Herrndorf, anti-religious though he was, had wished. While I was standing there, an elderly gentleman on a bike stopped and asked me what that cross was about. He had often wondered, since he liked to ride his bike there and had always seen it. He thought maybe somebody had drowned there.

I had some hours left before I had to catch my train back home. By chance, I saw an advertisement for a Dalí exhibition. I went to see it. It had no paintings, unfortunately, but about 450 illustrations, in colour, Dalí had done from the 50s onward. The kind that are sometimes included in editions of classic novels. I had not known about this. He had created such illustrations for Don Quixote, Tristan und Isolde, Faust, Carmen, The Divine Comedy, Alice in Wonderland, and many more. In the case of Carmen, interestingly, Dalí was apparently asked by Leopold Stokowski to contribute illustrations for the premiere of the English language version of Carmen in 1970. Personally, I felt they were among the finest of the entire exhibition.


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## techniquest

I love day trips, but only if I have someone to go with. A few weeks ago myself and a friend had a wonderful day trip to the Isle of Wight, only spoiled at the end by my friend leaving his camera & camcorder on the station platform to be lost forever.
Today we're off for a day trip to Heathrow (bet it rains).


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## Badinerie

My wife is disabled and I dont work, im a carer. I do get the odd day away for a break, from the Carers club. I was in York two months back Loved it. Came back with a sack of LP's from the Charity and record shops. Whitby is possible my favourite day trip. Very Picturesque and of course Bram Stoker made it famous in a certain novel...
Not sure if this link will work but there are plenty of pictures on my facebook. Scarborough is included as well as Whitley Bay and other coastal towns I like.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150240680487137&set=a.10150215489732137.332192.757452136&type=3&theater

Some pictures of York in this one as well as many local views.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10153119296407137&set=a.10153103607867137.1073741828.757452136&type=3&theater


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## Ingélou

The link *does* work, Badinerie - super pics, thanks! :tiphat:
Whitby is just about my favourite seaside town, and one of our days out when I was a child - or we went to Sandsend, 3 miles north, and enjoyed ourselves damming up the little stream to form pools on the beach. Happy days! 

Edit - We just looked at both the links. Absolutely fabulous. We lived in Durham City for 9 years when we were first married, so it was lovely to see the North-Eastern pictures too. Whitley Bay - lovely. We'd go to Newcastle & then by the metro. That silver sunlight that you get - *so* evocative. And lovely to see the York photos, of course - I see you got a snap of the Hole in the Wall pub in Petergate where I met two schoolfriends for a drink a fortnight ago!


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## Ingélou

We're having a fab 'staycation' this year, and one of our daytrips was to Lavenham in Suffolk, where most of the buildings are medieval or Tudor - it was a booming wool town that fell into decay, thus preserving the beautiful buildings. We did a town tour and Taggart took photos of every house we saw, just about. Here are the best:

1. The Guildhall










2. The Little Hall, off the market place:










3. The Wool Hall - dismantled in 1911, but re-erected after protests:










4. The Swan Inn:










5. Water Street - along with Shilling Street, the richest streets architecturally:










A lovely town - and the surrounding countryside is beautiful too. Ave Lavenham!


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## Dr Johnson

Yes, Lavenham is a beautiful town.

Thinking of half-timbered houses, yesterday I had a pleasant late lunch sitting _al fresco_ in Rochester High St.

No photos of my own but:


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## Tristan

A good day trip around here is to visit Pinnacles National Park. It's not that far from the Bay Area, and it is also the newest national park in the U.S. I was just there last week.










Not my photo, but it showcases the beauty of the place and why it's excellent that it was made a national park.


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## brotagonist

^ Beautiful! I want to go there some day! I tend to prefer getting out into nature, since I live in a huge metropolis—it's kind of become one, anyway, with 1¼ million inhabitants.

It's almost 12:30 and I really ought to get out for a few hours. Where to? Often the engine decides. I just go along for the ride :lol:


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## Guest

Hoping to set foot on a Japanese bullet train next week. We're off to York!


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## sospiro

About 10 years ago my friends Sheila and Barry asked me what I'd like for Christmas/birthday. They said I was difficult to buy for as if I want something I usually just go ahead and get it.

However there was one thing I couldn't buy and that was a 'day out' to somewhere you could only reach by car (I don't have a car) so for the last 10 years I've had two special days out in the summer (My birthday is in the winter so we always wait for the better weather).

Pics are on my other PC but a couple of trips which may be of interest.










Anderton Boat Lift










and the 'secret' nuclear bunker at Hack Green


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## Guest

We always comment on the secret bunker sign when we drive past. Ah yes, very secret!


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