On to a new adventure with friends we met in Northern Cyprus. Mike and Josanne have a home in the Lake District between two beautiful lakes; Lake Windermere and Lake Conniston. When they began wintering away from England, they gave up their family home and kept their recreation home, a very lovely single-wide 'trailer' with large deck and patio surrounded by Josanne's garden on a slanted rockery with smoke trees and bamboo in multi-pots and towering indiginous trees...a great place for their family and friends to visit. Quiet and private.
July 27
We arrange to meet for coffee at 10:00 a.m. at the Bluebird Cafe on Lake Conniston. Familiar faces in brand new surroundings. After coffee and 'catch-up'
we climb into their classic English gaff-rigged dingy with red sails and gleaming wood and brass. The wind was low, just enough to keep us going while looking at the hills and mountains surrounding us. The best and most important spots were pointed out...where to stop for picnics, who lives in that house, inn on the high road...etc. It is truly an extraordinary place, ranking very high in the most beautiful places in the world.
Afterwards, heading to their home, we follow behind our friends who are in their Porshe Boxster! This would certainly be the place to enjoy a roadster like that. Top down, sun on their heads, easily making the narrow road turns. Later in our visit, David would ask for a ride and Mike obliged with a fast and furious one!
Josanne is an artist in everything she does. The garden, her home, cooking. We sat outside for fish pie, new potatoes, asparagus and berries with cream. We enjoy their company; interesting and wide-awake people. They have been together since they were sixteen and now have four grown children with grandchildren on the way. Josanne was a teacher and Mike had an engineer/pilot career in the British Air Force. Both retired.
July 28 Sunday
We attend Mike and Josanne's church, Anglican, an old Church of England. Church bell chimes come tumbling down to greet us. This is a spirited place. Then lunch at an old abbey. Beautiful rooms. We order the carvery choice and follow each other to load up on our favorite roast, yorkshire pudding, potatoes and vegetables...all topped with gravy...mixed with talk and laughter.
In the evening we opt to watch The White Queen which Mike has been following on TV. A bit hard for us to catch on to it. You know... that English Royal history. Confusing! The White Queen is the wife of King Edward whose brothers are Richard and George. George drowns in wine, his punishment for arranging with the French King Louis to kill his brother Edward! Confusing but not boring!
July 29
Slow lovely start to the day with coffee in hand. This time our conversation turns to Comedies, both British and American. The British win by a landslide! However the Europeans all watch reruns of Frasier and Friends and Grey's Anatomy.
Our plan for today is to visit BANK GROUND FARM, the home setting of the childrens' book author Arthur Ransome. Did you read Swallows and Amazons? I did, nearly on the spot, as Josanne bought me a copy. A must read for young and old! It reminded me of my childhood on Canadian islands and beaches and also our Klee Wyck adventures in later life. I now recall reading another adventure of his, We Didn't Mean To Go To Sea. His old home is lovely and we decide to have tea in what is now a tea house and inn overlooking Lake Conniston. We are served tea in the old sitting room on chairs and couches from his time. Family photos around the room. Sailboats gliding around on the lake below.
From here, along the same road, we drive to John Ruskin's home, BRANTWOOD. Ruskin is... “ famous as a writer, artist and social reformer, many great thinkers have been influenced by his ideas.” Brantwood remains full of his essence. He lived there for the last 28 years of his life and his belongings remain. Paintings, beautiful furniture and his personal treasures. One can see he got carried away passionately with his garden landscape on a woodsy hillside which he called 'a journey from hell to heaven' and it was certainly an earned journey for us...up, up, up to places named Bird Path, Pool Glade, Waterfall Creek...the latter having his chair of grey-blue slate close-by.
The last day, Mike and Josanne took us to HOLKER HALL, very close to their home. Another home of the Dukes and Duchess' of Devon, the Cavendish family (that Bess again!). Different than John Ruskin's lived-in charm, this huge home was formal and lavish and filled to the brim with classic beauty. The gardens were formal also...with fountains and flowing water and stairs all lined up in perfect semmetry, as were benches and shrubs and fancy birdhouse hotels. On the outer lawns we found a laberinth of grass mounds and standing stones and at a high point, a slate sundial five feet in diameter.
July 31
Today we say our goodbyes to Mike and Josanne. They have been so focused on our well-being, it sweetly hurts to leave them.
We are loosely heading toward Fountain Abbey. Beautiful country, the Yorkshire Dales and the Penine Mountains. One lane roads with lay-bys for passing. This has to be where the picturesque saying...over hill and dale...comes from. Over hill and dale to a surprise many-arched railroad bridge, looking like a tall Roman aquaduct. It is the longest in England and was built for steam engines (1899-91). This is also the site of the railway workers village, described as “a wild west shanty town with muddy streets”. We take a path leading to a memorial directly under the bridge and are surprised when a train makes its way across the stone structure above us. It is still used though no longer by steam engines. Turning to go back to the van, we see the White Scar Caves above us and watch as a helmeted group is given instruction and then enter into a rock mouth. Thirty minutes later they emerge from a lower hole.
This is prime hiking country and we come across many trails leading to tarns and views but it has started raining hard so we pass them by steering through skinny wiggly roads bordered on both sides by tall stone faces. This area is the best for day-hiking...shortish trails leading to views. Wild white astilbe contrasts the colors of magenta fireweed and goldenrod. Rocky fields interspersed with short wheat-colored grasses. Promentories, mountains and clumps of pines, then clumps of oak as we roller coaster downhill to grey stone villages with center park greens and churches behind fences. Let's look at a church. We walk through a gate into lovely gardens and gravestones with dates of many generations back. Who were they? What were their dreams and sorrows?
On the road again we have to watch for sheep, they own the roads. Beckoning paths lead over pastures and through woods, daisy and thistle in the foreground. Arriving in Pately Bridge, another 'we-could-live-here' town, we pull in for the night. At the very least, 'we-can-sleep-here'.
August 1
Our stop today is FOUNTAIN ABBEY. In 1132 Cistercian monks came to this forested valley to build an abbey. It was surprising that they made it through the snowy winter...in small wood shelters they quickly erected for themselves, hunting for their food. But they kept at it and what they founded became one of the richest abbeys in Europe. We took a guided tour through the ruins, in 85o humid weather.
The Cistercian order was one of kept silence. One room, the Charter room, was used by the monks for talking to the Abbot, grievences etc. They were called to worship in the church for a total of 6 hours a day along with their other work duties. It was their belief that the human soul and its connection to God was the most important to their lives. The abbey grew. In fact it became too large, too ornate, too materialistic, all the things that were thought to be foolish and against their basic creed. That is when this abbey began to decline. At the top of the Order was the Abbot, then 9 head monks, and another 60 high monks who wore white and had tonsure shaved heads (little round bald domes). The other monks were workers and would stop to pray in the fields at the sound of the bells. They could be distinguished by their brown habits.
From the abbey, we walked to St. Mary's church. Architect William Burges (1827-1881) was responsible for this small jewel. High victorian gothic revival with an abundant use of carved animals, birds, leaf and flower to bring nature into worship. He did this by keeping the building simple and tasteful as a backdrop for decoration such as a lone painting on a cream colored wall. In no time you are aware of carved lizzards, parrots, insects parading among flowers and foliage, and even one mouse hiding. Beautiful angels, gold and marble, mosaics. This is a place of the soul of nature and it successfully draws you in.
August 2
HARDWICK HALL. A continuation of the story of Lady Bess! Because she had married a Duke of Devon, she now has a title of Countess of Shrewsbury. After her fourth husband, George Talbot (a favorite husband) dies, she begins to build Hardwick. She is a very rich woman (Second only to Queen Elizabeth I) and stops at nothing to make a gorgeous and palacial home. Her collection of tapestries is amazing...who could count? But she amasses a most impressive amount on every wall, and the ceilings were very high so these had to hang down long lengths! Most of them are hand-loomed and made in Belgium, the top makers in Europe. Linen with threads of silk or silver-quilted threads. Other appliqued and embroidered hangings are a welcomed balance, and even painted hangings in the chapel. Some have been made to her specifications and in these there are woven secrets of her own, symbols of snakes, strawberries, stags, unicorns and turtles. These tapestries had double duty, to supply beauty and hold warmth in the huge rooms. But, Bess is a penny-pincher. Most of these she has picked up at great loss to others who are forced to sell these lovely pieces for financial reasons.
Queen Elizabeth is Bess' friend. The monarch is known to have said about Bess, “I assure you, there is no lady in this land that I better love and like.” But for 15 years, Bess and her last two husbands were forced to look after Mary, Queen of Scots, who is in hiding because of her faith. This is sanctioned and maybe even forced by Queen Elizabeth and it is a huge hardship. We are able to view three small tapestries done by Mary...A Scottish Thistle, a French Lily and an English Rose.
One small room has four walls of wooden drawers, providing a safe place for important papers like title deeds. Inlaid furniture and uniquely carved table legs offered some special craftwork to look at. Turtles formed as table legs held up one table, symbolizing the 'bearing of the burden'. So many symbols used.
We rambled through four floors...up easy wide twisting shallow stairs. The top floor was held for the guests, the bottom floors for the family. And the gardens...lovely hedged room-gardens. I bought a biography of this remarkable lady. (I read it all the way through with such interest...it was really the history of England at that time...and the antics of all it's 'players'!)
We move on from this upper-crust story to ride more curvy roads in the countryside. At one point there appeared before us several wind generators which seemed to be churning up the road before us. Should we watch the timing and make a dash for it, through the blades to the other side?! Fortunately the road made a turn and the generators were in a field where they should be!
Chesterfield is our night-time stop. We cannot believe the shape of the church spire in the center of town! It is twisted and tilted! Stunning and crazy! We will find out more about that tomorrow.
August 3
This is an especially good town. In the morning we go to the market, which is an everyday market spread thoughout the main old-town streets. We buy fresh produce then head to the church. We need to find out about the spire! Too many stories are told to us. The one we take as truth is that the spire got to this state naturally, just sinking into position. It is fantastic. The timber and iron structure is sort of varigated, and twists to its tilting top where it holds its crowning cross straight-up in victory! It was completed in 1400. How can this be naturally formed and not designed by a very clever person? An organist is practising inside, which is always a bonus.
Off to CHATSWORTH, but darn, I left my favorite sun glasses in the church! Okay, this is the last of Bess' homes that I will bore you with. This is her Cavendish home where she had her only children, and where they grew up. We skipped the home and wandered the gardens as they were really expansive (105 acres) and unique. Lots of families here picnicing on the spacious lawns, playing in a remarkable hillside ¼ mile stair-step water feature or finding their way through a high hedge maze. We followed into the maze. Not easy! Everyone is lost. Voices giggling and questioning through the hedge needles! Is this the way in? Is this the way out? Great fun. And a long wiggly serpent of double hedges you can walk between, a huge kitchen and flower garden, ponds of lily pads, stacked mountain rocks with trails to follow, green houses, conservatories, a stage at the bottom of a large sloping green...and even an interactive farm for the kids. The Cavendish family still live here....somewhere? We loved it and finished with a good old cup of English tea in the old stable. In fact, we just plain love England!
August 4 and 5
Sunday we are in Birstall Methodist Church. Roger and Sheila Wilson invite us home to their traditional Sunday meal with some of their family, a daughter, Miriam and her husband, Steven. Great folks. It does not seem right that we are just passing through and leaving them behind. The next day we are in Rye, a 'must see' hilly sea town recommended by many. Not for us today. It is jammed with tourists and little streets of shops and no parking. Too busy. We find a spot to park and retire to our little home for the rest of the day.
August 6
GREAT DIXTER. We have been looking forward to this experience for a month, at the recommendation of another garden enthusiast. This is the home of Christopher Lloyd, a gardening icon and author, seen and heard on TV, radio and roving lectures. He was the youngest of six children and was a gardener from the start, always knowing what he wanted to do with his life. The garden is so lushes and full, relaxed country style and arty. The best! He was 80 when he died in 2006. He and his head gardener Fergus, worked together as a team. Fergus is still head gardener and continues what he and Christo had accomplished. And the house! His home. It was built in the middle of the 15th century and belonged to others until Christopher's father Nathaniel bought it and commissioned an architect to clear all alterations on the original and reveal the medieval home...especially the Great Hall, timber-framed and fabulous! Nathaniel also carefully added what was needed for his growing family. The contents are of the 17th and 18th century and were collected by Nathaniel and the plentiful examples of needlework were made by his wife Daisy, and their children. An embroidered pillow says... “Of course your friends will think it all happened by itself, in which case it is time to make some new friends!” Interspersed amongst the old furniture are comtemporary tables and chairs of gleaming light wood that Christopher Lloyd had custom made for himself. What a house. Really! We could live here!... our usual cry! I take photos and make drawings of some ideas we could use in our little apartment waiting for us in Bellingham, Washington.
August 7
Oh dear! Here we go again! This time it is the RED HOUSE, a home that William Morris built for himself and his wife Jane (William's Genevieve), with much help from his friend and artist/architect Philip Webb. His dream was to build a community house that would accommodate his artists friends also, Burns-Jones and his wife Georgianna and the painter Rosetti. It is of course very 'arts and crafts'. Organically so. I think built around 1860. A decorated treat for the tired bored eyes! Painted ceilings and walls in patterns that look like wall paper (much before the production of his wall paper). There are places where punch marks show, the guides for the wall painting patterns. Rose and sunburst tiles painted by Morris. Beautiful angels in stained glass. Dark polished wood enhancing the walls. And everywhere, good words to read, over doorways and mantels:
God Preserve Your Going Out and Coming In.
Be What You Seem To Be.
Our Content is our Best Having. Shakespear
He Who Truly Loves, Never Forgets.
Art Long ~ Life Brief
And 'wombats' graced unsuspecting corners...creatures of the imagination which he felt were useful and beautiful.
Unfortunately William Morris was unable to keep his wonderful home after living in it for a few years, because of failing finances. But he did go on to a successful life of design...as we all know!
August 7(late afternoon)& 8
And now we go on to a special time of house sitting in Tandridge,Surrey, for the Addison family, Guy and Clare and their children, Vicki (14) and William (8). They are heading off to spend a few weeks in St. Lucia. We love this family! Clare is a head nurse of many departments so she is a smart lady. She is organized and keeps this family moving! She is also a great mum, kind and helpful. Guy is the dad who works and works and works. He needs this vacation with his family. He is a pleasant fellow whom his family loves to tease. Vicki is bright and fun and pretty. She is a good conversationalist, much to our advantage. William is adorable. Very smart. And also enjoys talking with us and showing us stuff. (William came along late because Vicki asked her dad to give her mum the stuff she needs for a baby brother...and they listened...and acted!)
This family lives with five other families in a circular stable, which once belonged to the manor close-by. So you drive up to a clock/bell tower (undergoing a huge reconstruction) which is above the entry gate and through into a large circle. As you look around you still see a stable much like it was but gently changed with potted plants and window decoration, and new doors. And in through the doors, people have made their homes.
We park and the family comes out to greet us! And through their front door we enter a recently completed re-do of their whole space. A bit quirky with interest and quite modern (though holding on to many of the stable features) on two levels. There are three levels of garden: lower large patio, bridge from upper floor to stairs up to the top garden with an expansive view. This is where the bunny Squeak lives.
We are shown to our room, the guest area with bath. Lucky us! The bedroom is in lovely colors and there are lilies about to bloom on a window sill. The bath, a great mix of red and white. Tiny red and white grey tiles form the shower wall protection from floor to ceiling...the rest of that enclosure is glass. And the red towels, that is all it takes! Attached to this suite is the kid's sitting room which becomes ours while they are gone.
And we meet the cats! Twizzle and Nala. Two different personalities, both great cats that learn to accept our presence in place of their family.
Clare takes us on a walk up to the Anglican church that they attend... through the clock tower, up the road, take a fork to the right, past the vast lawns of the manor (which is also divided up into separate homes) and a short trail through the woods to the churchyard cemetery and the old St. Peter's Church. Parts of this church are thought to be early Norman, 11th century. A very special feature is the timber tower with extra bracing added over the years. There are four massive oak pillars supporting the clock chamber, bell chamber and shingled spire. For years, one of the men living in the stable homes, would come daily to wind the clock/bells. Now it is automatic.
We all sit down to dinner together (well, not the cats and bunny) and are offered Clare's homemade delicious lasagna. Dinner with the family. Fun and so appreciated.
The next day is the final work day for Clare and Guy. Vicki and her friend Erin take on the job of orienting us to the town of Oxted, which is their closest larger town where they grocery shop and catch the train. She answers any questions we might have. Post office. Library. They point out their high school. William is off at day camp.
Today is our anniversary. 20Th! How could that have added up so fast? I know that many of you are heading to your 50th but we got started late! It took 10 years for me to say 'yes' to David...only because I had already failed at that, and why ruin a good thing? Ah. But what was I thinking? What a dear man I have at my side. We choose to celebrate by going out to dinner in Oxted. Clare chose a place for us, The George in Old Oxted, and delivers and picks us up! I forget what David ordered but I ate liver and bacon! Wonderful. (I can hear some of you gagging.)
August 9 thru 25th the rest of our time at the Cirular Stable Yard...
David takes the Addison family to the airport this morning. Wow, it is quiet around here. We miss their presence.
The ' Horse Stable' neighbors. What a community we have around us.
Our first meeting a few days ago was on the road, John. “Are you lost?”, he says. He knew who we were. Of course all the neighbors knew we were coming. He asks us for tea! Well, we still have some grocery shopping, and other jobs to do before we come back for good so we ask for a raincheck. John and his wife Diane, prove to be our anchor while we are here. They have us for tea. John responds so caringly when we have any questions about the house or train. They have us for dinner at 'half six', on a little balcony that overlooks their extensive country garden. Vegetable garden, orchard, the works. Chickens. They keep us supplied in eggs, squash, cucumbers. They live a rather self-sufficient life style which is to our liking, heating with two wood stoves, scavenging their wood with friends. Our dinner is all fresh: a roasted vegetable mix that is so very yummy, green beans and chicken in a delicate French sauce (Yikes! Did they kill a chicken?!). And great red wine with good tannins which I love. Cheeses and fruit and delicious conversation. Their home is so comfy and tastely appointed, as is the dining table. Lots of interesting original art on the walls and pottery placed around. Pillows and throws. We intend to keep in touch with them. Maybe they will come to visit us?
The first evening that we are alone in the house we are invited to other 'Stable Circle' neighbor's, David and Fiona's, for wine, David's wine, made from his grape vines all beautifully tended and neatly lined up. He shows us through his garden, through an old garden wall to more vines and an orchard. He is having a rather large greenhouse built. We sit on their back porch at a long table with John and Diane and the clock tower folks, Alan and Annette. These two own the clock/bell tower attached to their circle home and are lovingly having it restored.
An introduction to most of the neighbors...but not all.
John and Carol, the artists! We have been told that we must see their garden before we go. It is locally famous. Sometimes it is open to the public, always it is open to the disabled. John and Carol have lived here for 37 years (John is the fellow that used to wind the church clock daily). Oh my, oh my. Hidden behind many potted plants of a well chosen variety and behind lovely cut-out glass and wood doors we enter a private paradise! I am not sure that there is anything in here that is not a piece of art The room is loaded with fantastic stuff. One has to look and hunt and look again to see it all. House art and garden art. Carol's fabric art, batik, shiny collages, embroidery, an amazing appliqued table cloth. Antique furniture (not necessarily in pristine shape), homemade furniture from bits and pieces, highly glazed cork tiled floors so rich in color, colored and patterned carpets, sculpture, a table full of animal skulls, pillows of glitter and beads, and cupboard curtains of sewn quilt-like pieced scraps. A circular staircase goes up to a second floor. If you can imagine, these rooms are softly curved because of the stable shape, the part of a big circle where horse carts were kept. This home is so exciting to us. So honest in its presentation.
In the studio behind, in a walk-through space, are their daughter's paintings hung all around the walls. Black and white large pieces. Good work. There is a huge masthead, almost complete, that will soon grace the garden.
When asked about their background they say that they met in art school and have never passed an ugly word between them. Quite a match. Carol dreams up a large project, sketches it out and John follows through. Wood. Iron Concrete. Cast-asides. He can make anything with anything.
Out a back door we go to the gardens. Garden room after garden room, often with themes, paths winding through them. A variety of lush healthy riotous plants and trees. Faces and statues of Carol's dreams peer out. Big metal organic flowers in twisting and spiraling iron, mosaics of shells, mosaics of glass, a mosaic table of broken plates coupled with knives, forks and spoons glued into a four-piece table setting. A standing woman of wild curly wire hair with fans and horns and pieces of this and that...she is needing a partner I think.
Rose arbors, grape arbors, in through here, out through there. Grandchildren pop in and out, lips red with mulberries as they play through the garden, tricking our eyes. Are they real or our imagination? White berries, red, purple, green and tiny tasty strawberries. Drooping exotic branches creep along and form a high wall of nature. A pond, lily shapes of painted blue fencing surround it. A stairway that spirals up into the tops of trees...a platform at the top, a place to stare into the bird layer. Oh my gosh! What is this? A tall thin playhouse! Part of it is a play butcher shop! Its tower, though it looks one piece, is made of old TV cabinets, and other pieces stacked to the rooftop. A side door reveals a tiny bright colored room with fireplace and mantle, a little yellow chair, a shelf with empty cans, boxes and bottles. I read the labels...marmite, cold cereal and Canadian maple syrup. Lillith, the granddaughter, is selling the marmite for 9 pounds. Nicoli the grandson, climbs the ladder into the tower and waves at me from a dark recess. A mobile of fuzzy spiders hangs from the ceiling. Magnificent! I feel like Alice...in Wonderland.
Rain starts. We all hurry into the house, this time through the upstairs entry, a small door which you reach by a little bridge. A whole new floor to explore! A sunny kitchen with a large table and shelves of books. A huge sitting room full of pillows and fabrics and space for the extended family who are there often. And through to the bedrooms. We are told that we are so appreciative and understanding that we get the full house tour. How generous and sweet these amazing people are. They don't sell art, they only make it!
So, that is the community of fine, enjoyable, embracing people.
One day we headed out to Chartwell. This is Winston Churchill's home, an important character in my lifetime. His home, his gardens, his painting studio and the whole estate of paths, lawns and woods are available for us to see. I find it very exciting to get close to this great man in this way. His wife was Clementine, a fine person who was not interested in social-climbing nor gossip. They were so devoted to one another. They raised a family here. Churchill said, “My most brilliant achievement was my ability to be able to persuade my wife to marry me.” There were letters saved between them.
From W... 'Write to me again - I am a solitary creature in the midst of crowds. Be kind to me.
From W. 1963... 'My darling One, I am a pretty dull and paltry scribbler, but my stick as I write carries my heart along with it. Yours ever and always. W.
Sir Winston Churchill became Prime Minister in 1940, just hours after Hitler launched his full offensive against Western Europe. The British became isolated. Churchill inspired all classes to stand and fight! He was a vocal opponent of communism but realized the need to be allies with Russia. He said, “I would have made friends with the devil himself if it helped the war effort.” In a speech in 1941 he said, “Never give in – in nothing great or small; large or petty – never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense.” He became Prime Minister for the second time in 1951 at the age of 76. When he became 80, of course the House of Commons helped him celebrate. Along with a gift, these words from them... 'You who have so lived and wrought as to keep the soul of England alive'. His remark at that time was that he 'had the luck to be called upon to give the roar!'
The reason put forth as to why the war was won for the UK and Western Europe was because of the difference in leadership...Hitler set himself up as supreme leader, Churchill surrounded himself with good people and listened to them.
The tour of the house offered his essence everywhere, from his paintings to cigars sitting in ashtrays in various rooms. To his dressing gown draped over a chair. To the room that held his desk, high enough to stand at so he could pace and think and deliver words and messages to his secretary, notes and papers and books upon it. I noticed a photo from Eisenhauer, 1944-45. 'To Winston Churchill- whose war leadership was an inspiration to all who love freedom- from his admiring and ardent friend. Dwight D. Eisenhauer.'
In all, it is a charming comfortable home of a wonderful family. In later years he did not have the money to keep it up so began plans to leave his dear Chartwell. Friends gathered to buy it for him so he could stay the rest of his life.
A stroll though the gardens reveals Clementine's passion, though on a thick garden wall of brick 8ft. high and 100 yards long I read a plaque. 'The greater part of this wall was built between the years 1925 and 1932 by Winston with his own hands.' Remarkable!
And on down to his studio. A place to work in solitude looking over a small lake and his expansive estate landscape and facing north light for working on his canvases. A good assortment of his paintings were on display. It was a passion for him that he took with him everywhere. Perhaps it took his mind away from serious matters. He was an amateur but he often painted a very good piece of work. His paint frock is thrown over his three legged substantial chair, easel in front of him, and of course, a cigar in the ashtray at his side along with his paints and brushes. It was thrilling for me.
Another day we drive to Standen. From the brochure... 'The house and gardens were created in the 1890s by James Beale and his wife Margaret. With the help of architect Philip Webb, and William Morris's firm of designers...Today Standen is very much as the Beale family would have known it in the 1920s...the late Victorian interiors of the house have mellowed to form the comfortable backdrop to family life.' This is truly an Arts and Crafts filled home, food for the eye and soul. Original ceramics by De Morgan, William Morris textiles, paintings from the 'New English Art Club'. Metalwork of John Pearson. A WM wallpaper that we loved is called 'Artichoke' and comes in dark browns and red browns. I wonder if it is still in stock? Always there is the shop which you must pass through in order to leave the premises...it caught us, we bought a William Morris design tablecloth.
Colin and Ingrid Backhouse arrive for dinner around 8 pm...and for the weekend! They accompany us to the artists home and gardens next door. Both Ingrid and Colin are artists so they are as enthralled as we are at this splendid show. On Sunday we walk to St. Peters. Colin is a retired Anglican vicar so we are eager to show them this wonderful old building. He makes many friends after the service, talking until there is one person left to close the doors! A lovable personable fellow. A quick lunch at home and we are off to Charleston!
We have been here before and can't wait to get back! Charleston became the home of some of the Bloomsbury folks in 1916. Vanessa Bell is the main figure, and Duncan Grant, both artists. Carol and John's home at the Circular Stable is much the same feel and, I believe, holds the same belief system of how people might live their lives. Make things beautiful out of nothing! Make do with what you find. Paint it! Life and Art are not separable.
Their life style is also unconventional. Vanessa's husband in name only, Clive Bell, (father of Julian and Quentin Bell) lived with them at times. Maynard Keyes and David Garnett lived there for stretches of time also. Vanessa and Duncan also had a child, a girl, Angelica. Artists came and went, staying awhile or for a day. It was a center of intellectual discussion and of course, the arts. Visitors were Virginia Woolf (Vanessa's sister), Roger Fry (art critic), authors Lytton Strachey, TS Eliot and EM Forster.
The artists painted almost every inch of their home, walls and furniture. Their textiles and pottery complimented and echoed their style. Quentin became a wonderful potter. Primitive delicious patterned glazed pots. He became an artist in his own right, mastering his own painting style. Art work of friends made it on to their walls, works of Picasso, Renoir and Sickert. Art was extended outside into a walled garden, a place to be quiet in, a place to inspire.
So, I said that I have been here before. I have owned a book of their work and their stories for quite some time. Last year David and I came here on a pilgrimage, so perhaps I am repeating myself. I could repeat this visit often, for its energy and inspiration.
Ingrid and Colin loved the experience, too. I am sure it put ideas into their creative heads. We stopped at a pub for a bite to eat and a beer, cozy in our own little corner. We thought we were alone but above us on the wall was a picture and story about Thomas Paine, one of the founding fathers of the Declaration of Independence. He was born in this little town! Ingrid and Colin leave us tomorrow. They are on their way to a 'Big Band' dance festival...costumes and all.
London. We have been planning to spend two days in London with our friends Christine and Bob Hough. Tuesday and Wednesday, the 20th and 21st. In and out of the city, so the pets, Squeak and Nala and Twizzle, get taken care of. Our neighbor Fiona, takes us to the train station in Oxted (as she delivers her fifteen year old daughter Catherine to the National Field Hockey trials). It is so convenient for us not to have to pay and park our van for those days. We have instructions to call John for rides home in the evening. Such care people take of us. We are taking a 30 minute ride to London Bridge Station, close to Trafalgar Square where Chris and Bob are staying. We will meet them at their hotel later in the day. First we walk to the Tate Modern Art Museum by way of a Thames River walk and then take a river boat to the Tate British Museum. Whew! Here's a list of what I saw and learned:
> A black and white photo exhibit by Keith Arnott (1930 – 2008). It's funny and crazy and weird. THE GARDENERS. This group shows people in their own gardens. They are very proud of them, especially the creator of the garden that is full of knomes! WALKING THE DOG. Arnott catches dog and owner in poses together. In one, the dog is smiling, his 'master' is not! In another, both dog and owner are scowling look-a-likes. And one lady dresses up all in white to match her big white doggie. RUBBISH TIP (dump). A group of rubbish close-ups made beautiful. “Rubbish is raised to a state of 'grace' through the play of light, color and composition.”
> Works I see and especially like:
John Constable (1776 – 1837), John Singer Sargent's 'Lily, Lily, Rose' (a few years painting outdoors in the night light), Richard Sickert (1860 – 1942), Georgina MacDonald (1840 – 1920), Alan Davie's 'Celtic Dreamboat” 1965 lithograph, James Abbott McNeil Whistler, Burne-Jones, Edward Coley, Edward Poynter's 'Paul and Apollos', Joanna Mary Wells' 'Gretchen' 1861, John Everett Millais, JMW Turner, Ben Nicholson (1894 – 1982) husband of sculpter, Barbara Hepworth, Gwen John's 'Dorelia in Black Dress' (1876 – 1939), Paul Nash(Surrealist, derived from Freud's ideas) 'Theory of the Uncanny' 1919, Sam Haile's 'Surgical Ward” (1909 – 1948), Victor Passmore (1908 – 1998), 17th Century 'The Chomondeley Ladies', Lots of Henry Moore.
Our phone rings just as we are finishing up our gallery tours. We take a bus to Trafalgar Square and find them in their hotel bar. After we compare notes of our days events with drinks in hand, we head out to Covent Gardens, just around the corner. I thought Covent Gardens were, well...gardens. Not so. Shops and more shops and food, food, food. Henry's Pub catches our eye for dinner then Bob and Chris walk us to the 'Embankment” where we catch an underground to Victoria station. There is always a bit of anxiety about finding our way in public transportation, but we find the right area where folks are standing and watching schedule reader boards. When their train come up on the board, they proceed through the gates. We are not really sure what we are looking for so I turn to the lady next to me to question her. Big smile, slurred words, tippy high heels, she is 'three sheets to the wind'! Her sober husband takes her arm and leads her toward a gate. Our train comes in and we walk to the platform where we find our neighbor, John. Our ride! We won't have to call him out of bed!
Our alarm rings at seven a.m. and Fiona is ready to take us to the train. We are off to Victoria Station to take the underground from there to Westminster Bridge where we meet Chris and Bob. They have the day's outings set up for us so we follow them to the river boat to Greenwich. There are good commentaries on the tour boat... all the various important sites: Parliament Buildings, old and new, next to each other. The new provides a place for the MPs to keep up to speed with technology, wiring being a problem in the fine old building. ~ Next, Cleopatra's Needle, erected in Egypt 1500 BC, was presented to Britain as a thank you in 1819. ~ And under the Black Friars' Bridge built in 1819 and opened by Queen Victoria. ~ Beautiful St. Paul's Cathedral took 35 years to build, Christopher Wren architect and Shakespear's Globe Theatre, a rebuild to what it was like in its time. ~ Under another bridge, Southwark, was originally a toll bridge and was replaced in 1921. ~ And there is the Anchor Tavern, 1750, a meeting place of folks like Shakespear and Samuel Johnson. ~ Built in 1272, the Fishmongers Hall. All fish sold in the city must still pass inspection here. ~ Another site is a monument erected to commemorate the 1666 Great Fire of London. ~HMS Belfast Royal Navy Cruiser, WWI, is sitting at dock, rescued from the scrapyard as the last Big Gun Cruiser. ~ A tall beautifully constructed building that looks like a huge scary bullet ready to take off, though the British think it looks like a pickle. They call it the 'Gherkin'.~ The Tower of London,1078 was built by William the Conqueror and was most famous for when it was a prison. We see the 'Traitors' Gate' through which many famous prisoners entered the tower from the water. ~ The Tower Bridge is my favorite bridge, so colorful, built in 1894. ~ But here we are inGreenwich, gateway to London for over 1,000 years. An area of much wealth and power. A palace given in 1635 by King James to his Queen, now an art museum. The large properties are now owned by the Royal Navy College. There are a few other important things here, however.
>The Greenwich mean-line and observatory. Up the hill we trudged and found folks qued up to put their feet on both sides of the line. And each person had to have their picture taken as evidence, usually making silly faces and stances, so it was a slow process. The Prime Meridian of Longitude was fixed here in 1884 so you can stand in both eastern and western hemispheres simultaneously. There is a 'time- ball' on top of the observatory which drops from top to bottom every day at 1 p.m. In 1883 the first public time signal began and still is used as the reference around the world. A free museum explains it all. Back down the hill to the...
>Maritime museum, with the wonderful attraction of the Cutty Sark. This is what I am here to see, known by me through my father, Captain McKee. It is placed on a huge wave of blue glass. Spectacular. The Cutty Sark is the last surviving tea clipper (China Sea trade), a merchant ship launched in 1869. A reminder of the glorious days of sailing. She was the fastest and greatest of her time! It has been meticulously restored saving the wooden planks and iron frames. Her wood gleams. Inside her, besides peeking into the crew and captains quarters, the galleries, big and small, and the large dining room looking like a 'board room', and the hold, there are terrific displays set up so you can learn more. I especially liked the display of food...hard dry sea biscuits, soup and a slice of salt pork. It didn't look too bad, just monotonous. And on deck...the rigging of the sails...11 miles of it. The final treat is underneath her. She has been raised so we can walk below her and marvel at her sleek lines, the design that made her the best. The bottom of the hull is sheathed in copper so she could maintain her speed. Nothing would cling to this surface to slow her down. The British are so good at preserving their history. I really appreciated this one. I especially appreciated seeing the sea chests that belonged to each crew member. Everything they owned was inside their chest, neatly tucked by, or beneath their bunk. We have my father's. It is full of important things to him...letters to his wife, to his mother and his friends, black and white photos, medals and clippings of this and that, memories of his time in World War II. His small ship, a Royal Canadian Navy Corvette, led Merchant ships safely across the Atlantic. He was the navigator.
> We also went into the main museum. Chris and Bob stopped in to see a special offering, a movie on the Universe. It was reported to be fascinating and worth the 20 pound entrance ticket. There were a few things that I really liked. ~ Old books and journals and illustrations of the places ships have been. (I wrote a note to myself to look up 'The Memory of Trim, 1804' by Matthew Flinders.) ~ The all aluminum racing boat, Miss Britain III, looking a bit like a shaped metal quilt! Sheet aluminum in patches, tailored to shape the boat and 'stitched' with rivets, sunken flush. A beautiful unique boat. ~ And some words written on various walls...
“My bounty is as boundless as the sea, my love as deep, the more I give,
the more I have, for both are infinite.” Author Unknown
“If you ever decide to end it all, there is one humane suggestion I would
make. End it all before the ship's concert.” Julian Street, 1924
from 'Ship-Bored”
~ A complete model of HMS King George V, 1940 ~ A wooden sailboat (much like our friend Mike Stanhope's), the Speedwell. Pictures show her neck and neck with The Enterprise in a race from Dover, England to Calais, France in 1956, a publicity stunt to show that an amateur could build and sail this light, cheap and versatile dingy. Sailing in the UK is still popular in this class boat (over 23,000 built to this day). ~ A collection of Mastheads and a collection of ship's lights.
We return to Westminster back in the river boat. The path of the river meanders like a snake, twisting and winding so that the buildings seem to move position. The 'Shard' seems to be on wheels. The Shard, an amazing glass structure seen high above others, the top which comes to a point, looks like broken glass, in shards, but beautiful shards. And the 'London Eye' a ferris wheel that looks like a huge spoked bicycle wheel. Riders see everything from their safe little bubble in the sky, taking 45 minutes to make a full turn. Beyond this I see another ride, chairs on the end of cables. As the chairs move upwards on a tall pole, they go faster and further out, away from the pole...and the same thing in reverse on the way down.
We find a good Italian restaurant for dinner, in the middle of some of the city action, which we watch from our window table. People coming and going from work or making their way to another station. Christine and I get caught up in the antics of the paperboy across the street. Free papers. He folds them and slaps them down on a pile, then picks one up to hand to passers-by. He disappears for awhile. Comes back and folds more...but some of these he sneakily dumps into a garbage can. You can tell that many of these customers are regulars and take them every evening. When the rush of people is slow on this street, he places himself and his papers at the station entrance. I even take one as I go through! When we get on the train, everyone is reading it!
Goodbyes to Bob and Chris. They are great pals to 'play' with. I hope it won't be too long before we see each other again. We make our way to Oxted and call John for a ride home to Tandridge. Our time here is running out. We have one day to clean house and the next, the Addison family will be home tanned and full of stories!
And they were. “The perfect family vacation.” A big success. Now we must leave, though they tell us we don't have to! It is hard to drive away from this neighborhood. It did begin to feel like home. We head south in heavy rain...and overnighted it in Uckfield, back in our little camper home, attending Uckfield Methododist the next morning. Quick coffee and chats with nice folks.
August 26
Two exciting homes to visit today. The first is Farley Farm, the home of Lee Miller and Roland Penrose. No, I had never heard of them before either, but their story draws us. The Farley Farm House is touted to be the 'Home of the Surrealists'. Information on them says, 'Lee Miller and Roland Penrose came to live in Farley Farm House in 1949 and for the thirty five years that followed they built up a collection of contemporary art treasures, many of which were created by their friends and visitors including Pablo Picasso, Man Ray, Max Ernst, Paul Eluard and Joan Miro.' We tour the home, on a tour with a docent. Too fast for me! It is packed with Surreal works exhibited alongside those of Penrose and Miller. It's easy to imagine their lives in this house, their parties with friends and the welcomed long term visitors.
Lee was first a top English model. Her father was an avid photographer. She was in a relationship with the photographer Man Ray also. So it seems her path changed easily into photography. She became an important World War II photographer, able to show what happens when 'barbarism and intolerance are allowed to go unchecked'. But she also caught the opposite, the unexpected good things in this world and also the Surreal pieces that became her art.
Her husband, Roland Penrose, was a Surrealist painter. I was impressed by his images of his wife, her essence as a younger person and another, after she was a war correspondent for Vogue Magazine. This duty broke her. She replaced photography with cooking! She became an expert when it became her passion. Her son was born when she was in that stage. He never knew of her photography life until after she died and he found her work in the attic! To him, she was an expert cook with a few thousand cook books. This was a surprising visit to the center of work of two unknowns to us.
Our next stop is Leonard and Virginia Woolf's summer home, Monk's House. Virginia Woolf we all know. This was a truly exciting place to be. The Woolf's chose this house mainly for its lovely big garden, which became Leonard's domain. The house is small and very cozy. Duck your head when you go through doors! Inside, it is so familiar. Oh yes. The Charleston influence. Paintings on the mantle by Vanessa Bell and a tiny beauty by Angelica. The fireplace surround was painted by her sister Vanessa also and the curtains are all after a design by her. A stunning painted table was a gift from Duncan Grant and Vanessa. Their creative touches are everywhere. The furnishings are comfy and faded and relaxed. I can imagine the peace in this room as two cleaver minds settled in with books to read or soft conversation between them in the warmth of the fire.
Many of her famous novels were written in the 'writing room', a room of its own off in the bottom of the garden. Virginia suffered a great deal from depression. She drowned herself not far away, she went down her worn and familiar path to the river. Vanessa's daughter, Angelica, came to live and take care of Leonard after the drowning. At his request, the house was to be left as it was at his death, not a museum. It is a because of this that we can still feel the gift of their presence.
August 26,27&28
A most beautiful ride, just a bit inland from the sea in a northeast direction to Sissinghurst. We were here before but David wanted to wander the gardens again. It was coming on dusk when we arrived. The gate sign read 'Closed from dusk to dawn'. We drove through anyway, into the most quiet and lovely parking lot and spent the night. Did they close the gate behind us? We will never know.
I spent my time there writing while David explored the garden once more. He found the garden more beautiful than ever, due to the spring rain followed by lots of sunshine. All gardens here are flourishing.
In anticipation of our nieces' arrival tomorrow, to travel with us awhile, we make room by packing up books, trinkets and Turkish bags and pillows for shipping home at the cost of 100 pounds. We overnight close to the airport on the noisiest of streets! In the morning we both get haircuts, just a few steps from the van. The owner is a refugee from Pakistan and has lived in England for 6 years. His goal is to bring his wife and children here but he must first prove he is making 18,000 pounds a year. He has not reached that amount yet. He sends money home and skypes with his family. He likes England. “Everywhere I go I am treated well. They are good people.” He augments his haircutting business with training boxers, a sport he used to practice. He makes us coffee...goes next door to buy cookies for us. He takes a look inside our van. A memorable encounter. This afternoon at 1:00 we pick up Donna and Karla. We have been waiting for this moment!
