Tag: Heritage

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Stonehenge in the Spring

The clocks spring forward one hour this weekend into British Summer Time, and we have just had the Spring Equinox. Yes, it’s full speed ahead now towards sunshine, holidays and barbecues.

Time to bring the motorhome out of winterisation, therefore, and head off down to the west country. It’s turned out to be a pleasant few days experiencing the very old, and eating the very sweet!

I’ll start with a visit to Stonehenge: somewhere I always enjoy going, whatever time of year. The last time I was there it was just before the winter solstice, with a brisk wind blowing and moody skies above (see my post here). In contrast, my photo above shows the Stones on a calm and sunny Spring day this past week.

We still do not fully know why our Neolithic ancestors transported these huge rocks, sometimes hundreds of miles, and positioned them here, carefully aligned to celebrate the movements of the Earth and its connection with the heavens above. The Stones have stood here for nearly 5,000 years, the toil and sacrifice of prehistoric man bringing pleasure and inspiration to many subsequent generations.

It is remarkable that this impressive feat of celestial engineering was achieved with only the most rudimentary tools and materials. Let’s see Artificial Intelligence do that, eh? 🙂

Every day, people travel here in their droves from all corners of the globe, to walk around, taking in the sight and its surroundings, and gaze in wonder. It is a World Heritage Site, and everyone is welcome, whatever religion, nationality or creed.

There is certainly something mysteriously compelling about being in the presence of the Stones. Perhaps their longevity is a modern day reminder that, whatever struggles there are in the world, fundamental values of indomitable spirit, endeavour, strong will and respect for others will always endure.

Inspiration comes in many forms, and this creation by Roly’s Fudge Shop, in nearby Salisbury, made me chuckle. Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you what Roly calls Fudgehenge.

Roly’s can be found near the entrance to Salisbury’s Cathedral Close, providing the perfect opportunity down the years for weary pilgrims to top up those flagging energy levels. The Cathedral itself is gearing up for the Easter season, and was looking splendid in the Spring sunshine.

Another fave refuelling station in these parts is the Boston Tea Party. I first came across BTP in Bristol a few years ago, and they now have a small number of cafes dotted around select west country towns. They do great coffee and choc brownies, so I can recommend a visit if you ever get the chance.

Well, that’s enough of a sugar rush for this week. I shall have to get back down the Farm Shop when I get home and make something a little healthier next week to compensate, haha.

Here’s a track from a legendary band who hail from the west country, as you can tell from singer Andy Partridge’s accent. this is XTC from the Drums and Wires album, with Helicopter.

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Don’t Look Back Into the Sun

I recently spent a few days in Margate on England’s Kent coast. I had heard a lot about how it was regenerating itself from a classic, but decaying, traditional seaside resort into a modern centre for music and the arts, with independent cafes and eateries.

Beach, food, music and the arts – it sounded like my kind of place.

The town’s provenance as a centre for the arts is well founded. The long sea front has unbroken views facing west, and the quality of the natural light is what reputedly attracted classical artist JMW Turner to reside and paint here. The description of the light is accurate – there are cracking sunsets every evening, especially this time of year when the days are long (see my main photo above for one example).

This is the home of Tracey Emin, and the town’s heritage trail is full of references to other legendary Brits who have also made this their place of abode. Here is the vista that inspired TS Eliot to write his epic poem The Wasteland. Hawley Square, with imposing terrace houses looking out over a beautiful old public garden, has been home to John Keats, Lord Nelson and, erm, Hawkwind.

The artistic regeneration has been kickstarted by the arrival of the Turner Contemporary Art Gallery, built on the site of the guesthouse that Turner stayed in while visiting here. It has a huge window looking out to sea, dressed for our visit by Brazilian abstract artist Beatriz Milhazes. It reminded me of a stain glassed window, see below.

Dreamland, shown below, is a 1930s amusement park, restored to all its retro glory and serving also now as a venue for visiting bands. The summer programme includes Placebo and Queens of the Stone Age, so they are clearly having success in attracting top quality music.

Near the Turner, and just across from the main beach, is the Old Town. Programmed for clearance in the 1960s, it was, thankfully, saved and is now a thriving centre for independent shops and cafes. We enjoyed grabbing a takeaway coffee or sandwich and taking it over to eat on the beach. Takeaway of choice was Sub Rosa, which specialises in fresh bagels. Below is my soft, chewy and delicious ‘everything’ bagel with cream cheese.

It is impossible to tire of the views across the sands, see one example below.

In another direction, you may just spot one of Antony Gormley’s iron men figures gazing out to the horizon. Be warned, however – he does get completely submerged at high tide (the statue that is, not Antony Gormley, obvs).

While there is lots to enjoy and get excited about at Margate, I do need to add some note of caution and balance, before everyone signs up to a short break there. The regeneration is still, very much, a work in progress! The arty points of interest, vintage clothes shops, adventurous foodie cafes and cappuccino bars rub shoulders with a serious amount of shabby and decaying buildings, graffiti and neglected public spaces. If that sort of thing disturbs you, then it may be best to leave your visit till the rebirth of the town is a little further down the road.

With its juxtaposition of crumbling facades of a once great English seaside resort, artistic heritage and modern day grunge, you may be excused for thinking Margate would be the perfect place for those bohemian songsters, The Libertines, to open a boutique hotel. Well, guess what? Pete, Carl and co have invested in the Albion Rooms, a stylishly kitted out 8 room hotel with bars and music venue (see below). It also has a recording studio, which is used both by The Libertines and local indie bands.

So I will finish by adding The Libertines to the ADK Playlist. Here’s a track that could easily have been written about the glorious view from Margate’s beach, just across from the Albion Rooms. This is Don’t Look Back Into the Sun.

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Two Worlds Collide

London is a stimulating place to spend a few days, as I did this past weekend. The place seems to be constantly evolving, and there is always something new to discover. I usually find it a dynamic and cosmopolitan environment where I can indulge my interests in food, music, heritage and culture. Well, this weekend was certainly that.

The main reason for our visit was to see Inspiral Carpets in concert (more of which in a moment).

While in London, we took the opportunity to visit Greenwich. A green oasis of parkland on the South Bank, it is also very, very old – full of symbols of empire and bastions of British sea power from centuries past. Greenwich Palace was the home of Henry VIII in the 16th Century, the site subsequently becoming the training college for officers of the Royal Navy.

The Cutty Sark, 19th Century sailing ship on old colonial trade routes, is now here resting in dry dock, and open to public visit. Like many of Britain’s institutions at the moment, the Royal Museums Greenwich are wrestling with how to most appropriately acknowledge and learn from their historic links to colonialism and the international slave trade. That’s a debate I expect will continue for some time to come.

And when you climb the hill to the 18th Century Royal Observatory (famous for being the home of global time zoning and Greenwich Mean Time) the old and new worlds become starkly apparent. As my main photo at the top of the post shows, looking out across the National Maritime Museum, these ancient symbols of British power and wealth are now dwarved by the 21st Century equivalent – the gleaming towers of Canary Wharf and the financial district.

Amidst these contrasting scenes, the daily life of Londoners goes on. These picnickers are enjoying the sunshine and fresh air. And we joined them.

Housed in an ornate, grand arcade, Greenwich Market is a real foodie delight. Although I am not vegan, I was particularly struck by the colour and invention on display at the Vegan Garden stall, as my photo below shows.

I couldn’t resist a slice of chocolate, pear and almond cake, which was delicious with an americano, see below.

The undoubted high point of this wide and varied culture fest, though, was seeing the Inspirals live at one of London’s iconic music venues, the O2 Shepherds Bush Empire. 90 minutes filled with one classic track after another, my favourite aspect being the Doors-esque Farfisa Organ lines played faultlessly by Clint Boon.

For the diehard afficionados, here is a setlist rescued from the stage at the end of the gig (and in case you’re wondering, no, those aren’t my fingernails).

The band have recently released a compilation of all 24 singles, with a selection of remixes. I could honestly have chosen any of them for the ADK Playlist. After a stimulating and hugely enjoyable few days, I will settle on this one, which seems to resonate with some of the themes in this post: Two Worlds Collide.