Sonntag, 24. März 2019

Roadtrip: New Forest and Furzey Gardens AGAIN

Donkey enjoying the early morning sun next to phone box, New Forest
The weather was so gloriously sunny today that I just wasn't able to stay home. Because it was Sunday and I wanted to be back home early I drove to the New Forest again, swinging by Furzey Gardens on my way back. I have posted an awful lot of pix from Furzey but I can't remember ever visiting so early in the year. Magnolias and camellias were at their absolute best and a few cherry blossoms and early blooming azaleas and rhododendrons were out as well.

By the way, as I find it sometimes difficult to find time to post here, follow me on Instagram for short, quick updates on the garden, Hamish, garden visits and other roadtrips:

@neuseestadt

Much love,
Qaroline





Meanwhile, in Furzey Gardens, the camellias are in full swing










Donnerstag, 6. Dezember 2018

The year in reverse, vol. IV: Normandy

Oyster beds in Saint Vaast-la-Hougue, Ile Tatihou in the background

In the first week of September 2018, a friend and I embarked on a proper adventure. My friend drove all the way from Germany to Normandy, I left my car in Portsmouth and went across to France on the ferry. We had found a very reasonably priced Airbnb in Reville, roughly 30 minutes from the ferry port in Cherbourg, a cottage with a wild garden in walking distance to the coast.

I hadn't been in France for c. 10 years, went a bit over the top on our first shopping trip to the large supermarket in Quettehou and ended up bringing lots of goodies back to the UK, including salted caramel biscuits, sweet chestnut and salted caramel spreads, violet and almond sirops, lime blossom tea and madeleines (very A la recherche du temps perdu), and an amazing apple compote.

We stayed pretty much in the area, exploring nearby places like Saint Vaast-la-Hougue where we splashed out on a meal of fresh oysters, prawns and moules frites, or Barfleur and its rocky beaches. We had a lot of luck with the weather and even went swimming at our 'house beach'.

I am slowly making my way back to summer - more to come!

Much love,
Qaroline


On the ferry from Portsmouth to Cherbourg

Small boats in the sheltered bay near our Airbnb

Harbour in Saint Vaast-la-Hougue


Fortifications in Saint Vaast-la-Hougue, we walked from the town all the way, almost to the tower (which turned out to be behind a fence)

Fortifications in Saint Vaast-la-Hougue


Rockpools near Barfleur

Beach near Barfleur


Coast near Barfleur 

Rocky beach near Barfleur

Silvery bunny tail grass

Cherbourg from above

Donnerstag, 29. November 2018

The year in reverse, vol. III: Snelsmore Common

Ferns on turn on Snelsmore Common

A quick mid-week post to use up those old photos. At the moment, as this island is covered in fog, drizzle and heavy rain and the sun doesn't seem to come up at all any more I am astonished at the light in those pictures. I went for a Sunday stroll on nearby Snelsmore Common on 21 October 2018. This time I didn't see the ponies though I heard them from afar. I hadn't been to the Common for quite a while (the last time must have been in 2013, see the post here) and it seemed so much more grown over than before. My favourite bench seems to be gone.

Much love,
Qaroline









Sonntag, 25. November 2018

The year in reverse, vol. II: Furzey Gardens

Autumn-flowering camellia in Furzey Gardens

I visited Furzey Gardens again on 27 October 2018, to show it to one of my friends. Looking at the photos today it amazes me how colourful the leaves were now that most of them have fallen in late November. Because I have been to this garden so often didn't post these pictures before, as I am not very keen on repeating myself - but this time we noticed a beautiful autumn-flowering camellia, and the vibrant pink blooms seemed surprisingly summery.

Further installments will follow!

Much love,
Qaroline









Sonntag, 18. November 2018

Roadtrip: Arundel, Worthing and Petworth

Worthing Pier

I am back from my short November roadtrip and managed to squeeze quite a lot into two days. While passing Arundel on my way back from Rye last year I had thought that the city looked very interesting, with the prominent castle and cathedral and had planned to go back there and explore.

I arrived early in the morning and went up to Arundel Park, then had some coffee in the town centre and waited for everything to open. The park is very hilly and later in the day I decided to take a shortcut over one of the steep meadows to get back on the same level as the cathedral. Managed to cut my hand on some barbed wire and arrived back in town out of breath, decidedly sweaty and bleeding a fair bit ... after visiting the cathedral and St Nicholas (pix below) I drove on to Worthing, checked into my hotel and walked around some more, including a visit to the Worthing Museum and Art Gallery, which has some very interesting exhibitions on at the moment. I loved 'A Leaf on a Sea Breeze', the touring exhibition of artefacts from 'an idiosyncratic folk museum in the fictitious village of Leasingstede' (as it is described on the website), created by Jane Williams. Because I had just wandered into the exhibition space without really knowing what I would see, the quirky artwork, and the stories behind the artefacts, were a wonderful surprise.

Over night the weather changed from grey and drizzly to crisp and breezy and early in the morning I went out onto the empty pier of Worthing, had more coffee and afterwards plonked myself down in on one of the shelters on the promenade and just soaked up the sun, while listening to the waves.

I had sort of planned to go home via Chichester but after Arundel I was a bit 'churched out' and decided to go to Petworth instead. Some of the house is closed for winter but the park is well worth a visit (including the pond that Turner made quite a few sketches of) and the house has a large collection of Turner's works, some of which were on display in the North Gallery.

Over the next days/weeks I am going to put up the other pictures in batches, all the way back to Spring!

Much love,
Qaroline

One of the lodges in Arundel Park
View over Arundel Park, early in the morning


Arundel Castle

On the other side of Arundel Park

A cormorant in the Park

Mosses and ferns in the Park

The 'There But Not There' installation in Arundel Cathedral. Each transparent silhouette represents a victim of the First World War. The cathedral was built during Victorian times.

St Nicholas in Arundel, 14th century
 
The Dome, a cinema first opened 1911 - I saw the second part of Fantastical Beasts although I hadn't seen the first one - just wanted to get inside ...
 
Early in the morning

Seafront in Worthing - a crisp November day - the Dome in the middle

Loved this little shelter

Too much sun reflecting off the waves ...

Someone feeding the gulls near the pier

The Ionic Temple in Petworth Park

More yellow leaves in Petworth Park

Died off, sun-bleached hydrangeas in Petworth Park

In the North Gallery, Petworth

Petworth - it was quite difficult getting a picture without any people in it, there was quite a lot of activity on this sunny Saturday
Hamish thinks I am being weird right now.