SOUTHPORT

An organ recital by Carlo Curley drew me to Southport, just north of Liverpool.  This is where the concert was held, at the Holy Trinity Church.  Not wanting to drive home after the concrt, I booked a night in one of the B&Bs and found Southport to be a great find, a wonderful town (I called it a city but was corrected "because it doesn't have a cathedral"), a visit I enjoyed completely. 

This view of the clock tower was taken by an accident of circumstance.  I tried to go in the tourist info center from the wrong side, and as I turned to go the right way, found the tower right in front of me.  

This is one of the most beautiful and dignified memorials I've found in my travels.

Typical of the Lord's Street establishments, the Scarisbrick Hotel is an example of wonderful architecture that can be found everywhere you look in Southport.

By night, the Scarisbrick presents a completely different image, in more ways than one.

Southport's beach has over a mile of sand, some of which is drivable!

Southport's landlocked inland sea is the largest of its type in the UK.  Offers a lot of entertainment; sailing, speed boating, and other activities.

This is the 2nd longest iron supported pier in England.  There's a tram to take you out to the end if you've had enough walking. 

This is a Sunday morning view down to iron pier.  I had to get here early to get this picture without people in it. 

This is the indoor shopping arcade built over a century ago.  It permitted shopping in all weather.  The main street store fronts have awning like structure made in this fashion, to allow window shopping without getting wet.  

NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE

This is the entrance to Newcastle's China Town.  Newcastle is a mix of many cultures.  

These photos and the 5 on the next post are from my visit to the city full of friendly people.

One of Newcastle's main city centers.

The architecture is excellent.

Newcastle is an important rail hub serving the entire northeast.  Both views are from the top of the old Castle Keep, and the right hand picture shows the unusual top of the Cathedral Tower, consisting of four converging arches, forming an open top.  Double click on the picture to get the full effect of this architectural detail.

Newcastle-upon-Tyne, once the capital of England's shipbuilding industry.  The city is beautiful and across the river is Gateshead, a complimentary town. 

Looking up river at the bridges crossing the Tyne.  Do you see all four?

Looking down river at Newcastle's famous bridge.  The new millennium foot bridge is in the lower left corner, the Sage is on the far bank.

The old Baltic Flour Mill has been rescued and is now a major art museum; The Baltic Museum for Contemporary Art.  Admission is free and there's a restaurant on the roof that offers great views.

The Sage Gateshead is a spectacular music educational facility.  

This is an interior view of the 1700 seat theatre in the Sage, the largest of the three theatres in the building.  It is said to be the 12th best acoustic venue in the WORLD.  I was so inspired taking this scene in, that I took a deep breath and broke out in song.  Now I can say I sang at Theatre 1 in the Sage, in front of 1700 seats (I'll leave out the fact they were empty). 

HADRIAN'S WALL

My trip along Hadrian's Wall took in most of the notable sites.  However, I think you could walk the entire length of the wall and still miss important points.  Working from east to west, these 5 photos and the 5 on the following post, provide merely a taste of the wall's wonders. 

This is what is left of The Temple of Mithras, built by the Roman Soldiers of nearby Carrawburgh Fort.

If you double click on this picture and the next, they will enlarge and you'll be able to read the info provided.

This picture & the next are of Houseteads fort, the artist's impression, and what is there now.  Although little remains there standing any higher than 4 feet, it is still quite impressive. 

The info provided at each site was concise and to the point and one of these pictures is an example of the historical signposting found at any one of the sites.  

The first picture (above) is the section of the wall that first came into my line of sight.  Got my heart to racing, but the view of Steel Rigg (next series of pictures), the site at which Hadrian's engineer's used the natural uplift of the topography as a footing for the wall, was spectacular.  There were (still are) trenches on the north and south sides of the wall.  The trench on the north side added to the defensive ability of the wall.  On the south side of the wall, the trench tended to help contain the Roman's livestock and cut down on rustling.  

This series of 5 pictures are the second part of the Hadrian's Wall photos.  I visited 2 sites, Vindolanda and Birdoswald.  Both of these are forts and both are no more than 'hip high' with respect to what remains.  I've read it wasn't until after the Norman invasion that the large scale dismantling of the wall started.  The easily gathered, finely shaped stones were a source of excellent building material necessary for the architecture and building techniques the Normans brought with them.  It's ironic the quality and strength of the wall material is what ultimately lead to it's destruction.

My first attempt at posting a video clip; Durham Cathedral's bells ringing while walking to church on Palm Sunday Morning.  The end of the clip shows the square and the castle is in the far corner.  You'll know it when it comes into view. 

 

I've been to several new sights, but I particularly enjoyed the North East; Durham on Palm Sunday weekend (which included a day along the Hadrian's Wall sites) and a long weekend to visit Newcastle and the coastal sites between Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Berwick-upon-Tweed.

I'll start by posting a couple of pictures of Durham.   The Cathedral with the river in the foreground, the Castle, high on the ridge, 2 pictures of the old city center and a picture from the park high above the rail station, cathedral in the center.