Tetbury and Dyrham Park

It has taken us a few days to get over all that energetic rambling in Malta, and together with Harry catching a cold, we decided this weekend would be a little bit quieter. But both days have been warm (for winter anyway) around 15 degrees and so we couldn't stay indoors all that time. We had a wander around some of the houses in Clifton (well to-do area of Bristol), which reminded me very much of New Zealand. Detached houses with some garden and trees close to the Downs where many a Bristolian were walking, running, flying kites or pushing pushchairs around the grass. We also had a drive to Tetbury a little town in the Cotswolds. Just outside the town is Highgrove (where Prince Charles does a lot of his gardening), but you can't see the house - the gate is marked by about a dozen police cones with 'No Stopping' all over them. In Tetbury is the Highgrove shop inspired by the Prince and his gardens. Everything was quite expensive so we looked at the soaps, bulbs in pots, garden tools, onion marmalade, address books, cookery books and organic food. The shop even has its own leaflet that told us that the lavendar body care was made 'to a natural formation free from petrochemicals, sulphates and parabens', the savoury jellies are 'made locally in limited small batches using seasonal, handpicked ingredients from the Highgrove estate' and the organic biscuits 'are baked by hand using Shipton Mill's stone ground flour, which contains wheat from the Duchy Home Farm'. A number of customers left the shop with things inside big recycled bags but we left with a small paper bag after trying a sample of fudge and smelling the soaps. So, we picnic'd on a park bench in the sun beside some bulbs that have decided it is spring, and then wandered around Tetbury with a map (from the Tourist Information Centre where the woman behind the counter couldn't even manage a hello to us) and past the church, market place, a pub called (the Snooty Fox), a hotel with a library in its lobby for people to enjoy, some lovely old buildings and heaps of antique shops. We went into one shop, not to view the antiques, but to explore inside a three storey 16th century cottage, where the wooden floor boards groaned and with each step the china sitting on wobbly legged tables rattled. We bought some things at the small supermarket, we couldn't find serviettes but we did find bottles of New Zealand Oyster Bay, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir at reasonable prices. Dyrham Park was our next stop - another National Trust property (they really must be the biggest landowners in the country). The house was built in the late 1600's and although closed for winter we wandered the park like surroundings with deer and many locals out enjoying the day. In the park is the statue of Neptune (built apparently in early 1700 and stands on the spot where a 6 metre fountain once stood), old lodge buildings (mainly used now as an exhibit for farm wagons and with a nice picnic area), the frying pan pond (which was once a drinking pool for lifestock but now is considered too dangerous for us to explore), and Hinton Hill where an iron age hill fort once stood and there was a battle (no idea between who) in 577AD, and of course a number of trees trimmed in a way that gave the impression they were having bad hair days.

Malta

Malta is a country of contrasts, rich and not so rich living side by side in light honey coloured buildings and vibrant tourist hotels. Boats floating in the harbour - little colourful fishing boats beside white and expensive holiday yachts. Vehicles passing each other on the street - modern cars and near-vintage cars and buses. So, where to begin...perhaps back in the 1940's when Malta became a focus of the war due to its strategic Mediterranean position. It was heavily bombed first by the Italians and later the Germans. Malta saw more bombs than London did (although there many stories about Italians ditching bombs at sea rather than hitting Maltese towns). The locals didn't have the benefit of the London underground and so those left at home dug small underground passages and rooms to house the young, old and mothers during the air raids. There were rooms for the rich (they bought the rock but had to dig their own room) and a birthing room for those unfortunate mothers. The Maltese people lived for many days in these cramped narrow low roofed passages in unsanitary, poorly lit and ventilated conditions only to come out into the open to see more of their homes and environment destroyed. The impact of the war can still be seen. The new 1950's houses sit alongside unbombed and bombed homes. Most of the towns narrow streets lead to a centre at the top of the hill (most cities were built originally in the 1500's to protect the towns from enemy attack - the narrow streets all met at the top - but during the war this became a serious problem as streets were easily blocked by rubble). In 1942 King George VI, about the time Malta was considering surrender, ordered a documentary to be made about the Maltese people and their heroic feats - we saw the film - and how during the war the King awarded the people of Malta the George Cross (I think the only country to get one but I might be wrong).
One of the highlights for us was riding around in the 1960's buses - Bedford, Leyland, AEC. Pulling the cord to let the driver know we wanted to alight (Harry and I both wanted a turn), doors wide open - if they had one at all - speedos not working. The bus never quite stopped to let you off - you got used to hopping on and off a moving vehicle - and we weren't lucky enough to have a personalised bus stop like the locals. At 47 cents, or 54 cents or €1.16 it was all good fun at a reasonable price (but you could never tell when you had to pay what fare - some buses were direct that means the same route but didn't stop a lot and we didn't know). Each bus has its own driver and it appeared that they travelled the same route day after day. Some had pictures of loved ones on the dashboard, others phrases about God (God is Love), one a billiard ball on the top of the gear stick, and some had the name of the driver, horseshoes, pictures of woman or animals. Buses did seem to have the right of way over all other road signs including 'STOP' - though most drivers drove reasonably slowly - I assumed because of the condition of the roads but it could have been the antiquity of the buses!! Alongside the buses were the cars or should I call the museum pieces (Morris Minor 1000, Hillman Hunter, 100E Prefect, Mitsubishi Lancer - that's a joke because we have one in NZ - Vauxhall Victor, Mark II and III Cortinas, Morris 1300, Morris Marina, Bedford CA, 36 Dodge truck) and a number of Japanese imports. I noticed besides their colour, age and rust that many of them had beach towels wrapped around the seats presumably cos the seats were either ripped or because it gets quite hot in Malta - sometimes.

The country appears quite poor - and we did wonder about the value of moving to the EU when the currency appeared to be so over valued (probably to bring in the tourist cash). The spirit is happy and deeply religious, service friendly and helpful (except for a very grumpy bus driver), food within our expectations for what we paid, streets clean - except for the occassional dog owner not clearing up, no beggars in sight. Children looked well fed, happy and loved but many streets were quiet and we often wondered thought 'Where is everyone?' There is a lot of crop growing, few animals - though we saw fresh sheep and goats cheese advertised - lots of cats - and evidence of dogs. The shops are little and boutique, most groceries seem to be bought in dairies which also have lovely bakery's attached - we couldn't resist (lamingtons in Malta but not England, doughnuts, gateaus, date slice, fresh bread). Like most of our trips we packed a lot in to our few days away. It wasn't that difficult - if it had been warmer we may have been tempted to sit outside and read a book, but except for one day when we just happened to be having lunch and the sun came out - we were wrapped up warmly even to the extent of a woolly hat.

We stayed in a place called St Pauls Bay - our hotel was rather tired (its heyday probably in the 1960's), but clean and comfortable and they did a good breakfast and evening meal (3 course meal for €11). We did want a bit of variety and sampled Maltese cooking at the local restaurants eg pasta, pizza, fish, cookies, date slice - the Italian influence quite evident. We discovered 'game chips' were actually chippies. We didn't try their local dish braggioli (beef olives) so might find a recipe and cook it here one night. Although, out of the capital, the hotel was well placed for bus routes but on a side street - and we got lost on numerous occasions getting back to the hotel (yes we had a map).

At least 5 people told me independently that 'We must go to Gozo' - one of the 3 Maltese Islands - so off we went - travelling first by bus and then by one of the three roll on roll off ferries that service the small channel. Rather stupidly we went on a Sunday only to find that the buses were scarce and so we couldn't see half of what we thought would be interesting. In some ways we regret not paying the €60 offered by the taxi driver at the ferry terminal to show us around but it felt quite expensive at the time. So, we caught one of the few buses to the capital Victoria - went to the tourist information centre ('Oh you can catch a bus to the temple, walk to Calypso Cave, walk to the fishing village and catch a bus back' - don't ever listen to a tourist information person on Gozo Island). After seeing the temple (we have been rather spoilt visiting Egypt as this was simply a collection of rocks they are trying to stop falling further into disarray), we walked to the Cave. Calypso Cave is situated in Xaghra and overlooks the red sands of the Ramla l-Ħamra beach. It is thought to have been mentioned by Homer in "The Odyssey" - some think that it may have been where the nymph Calypso kept Odysseus as a "prisoner of love" for seven years. If so, can't have been a very easy seven years. The cave itself is not that impressive (that's an overstatement actually). We then followed the path to the fishing village - quite colourful with geraniums, fennel, dandelions - but somewhere along the cliff top the path finished and only birds could have made the distance from cliff top to cliff top (yes we did have a map). So, we back tracked through what appeared to be local allotments and huts and walked the roads. The fishing village wasn't much either compared to some of the little villages we saw in Malta. We returned to Victoria where we wandered around the The Citadel. This fort was built somewhere before the 1500's and protected the inhabitants from any a pirate and raider who stopped at the island for fresh produce, water, slaves and generally made a nuisance of themselves. After the Knights victory in the Great Siege of 1565 against the Ottoman Turks, the Citadel was reinforced and still stands in quite good condition today. We did get a bit of a surprise in Gozo - while wandering back to the bus stop (us ramblers were very tired by that stage) we came across Caramello's cousins, grandparents, sisters and brothers in a shop window. We couldn't believe it - half way around the world and in Malta - needless to say a photo opportunity not to be missed!!
Another day we went to Mdina - known as the 'Silent City' this 15th century town and the oldest in Malta, is perched on top of a hill and has narrow streets for pedestrians. But first we went to the Air museum (Harry got cornered by an enthusiastic elderly Englishman, who had lived on the island for 7 years and helps out at the museum every Saturday) so I took off and went to the nearby craft village housed in a whole lot of little buildings that were once part of the airfield. The glass works (a mix of glass blowing, glass fusion and lampwork) is quite amazing and very different to what I had seen before, the silver filigree jewellery very intricate and the limestone carvings and pottery very pretty. Harry eventually escaped and after a coffee we decided not to wait for the bus but to walk to Mdina (we could see it on the hill), but the road looked quite circuitous and so we wandered down a muddy path, up a reasonably steep narrow dirt road, through some hail and rain to the top arriving about the same time as the bus (and we didn't get lost even though we didn't have a map). It is a lovely little place - once the capital of Malta -we wandered the narrow streets looking at houses, the fortress, churches, shops, stopped for coffee in the only cafe that had a leaky conservatory roof and then wandered around the town Rabat (just outside the walls of Mdina). We discovered here a huge orange orchard and later found out that citrus fruit trees are planted in the disused limestone quarries (there are very few other trees in Malta). In Rabat, we visited St Pauls Cathedral and the catacombs. St Paul became the patron saint of Malta around the 13th century when he spent 3 months preaching in the islands after his ship was wrecked in Malta around 60AD. Miraculously all people on board were saved. We 'stepped down into a hushed and mysterious underworld from the past'. They are so different to the temples in Egypt, lots of bodies put together in the tombs - just move the bones aside for another body) - but like the Egyptian temples - grave robbers had got their before the conservationists and archaeologists. The catacombs are a maze of 2000 square metres under the town and so we didn't wander far from the lit passages as it would have been difficult to find our way back (we didn't have a map). Roman law required that catacombs were located outside the city walls for sanitary reasons and there was usually a wall that drew the line between where the living lived and where the dead lived (?). They think the catacombs probably started as a small family tomb but during World War II they were also used as a storage place for artefacts and a shelter for the residents.

Valetta is the capital - and we found our way there quite easily - cos that is where all the buses come to a stop. It has the presidential home, the Barracca Gardens over looking the harbour with cannons that used to protect the town, a number of forts which are closed for restoration thanks to EU money. Over on one side of the capital is the 'three cities'. We took a little boat trip around the harbour one day (no life jackets and if you needed a permit I suspect the boat owner didn't have one) and floated past a German naval vessel there (wouldn't have been welcomed a few years earlier - and neither would the group of young German men who stayed in the hotel). The three cities is a lovely part of the island - house proud owners, millionaires boats, little fishing vessels and coffee shops. On the other side of Valetta is Sliema and St Julians Bay - where we wandered around with many other tourists enjoying sunsets and more coffees. There were many limestone buildings - they do have that ageless quality about them - sometimes we struggled to work out if we were looking at an old building or not. They say there is now a construction boom on the island - but we didn't really see it - yes a few hotels going up, but also a lot of empty apartment blocks - and by empty we mean the blocks were up, but only on the outside walls - no windows in place, no interior walls. We figured out that if you wished to buy you purchased the shell and then put everything else in yourself. There were a number of apartment blocks where one or two had windows (a sure sign of being lived in) while others were empty to the elements (and it does rain and get cold in Malta - we know!!). Not far from Valetta was the Palace Parisio. It is a private home originally built by the Portugese Grand Master Manoel de Vilhena who ruled the island sometime in the mid 1700's. This was a lovely old building with hand painted wall paper - must have been stencilled I think - a long marble bannister on the stair case (a slide for Caramello), and huge chandeliers placed strategically in front of large mirrors. In the garden was a tree with a fascinating prickly trunk which I think could have been our first sighting of a 'prickly pear tree'. We also visited St John's cathedral described as 'a gem of Baroque art'. It was filled with paintings and art work mainly donated by the grand masters and knights. The knights had a huge impact on the islands, originating from Jerusalem and Rhodes and arriving in Malta around 1530. A few years later the Ottoman Turkish attacked the islands and thanks to the Knights were unsuccessful - needless to say Moslem religion is not very visible on the islands.
If we had been divers we would have been in our element. However, we still did appreciate the lovely clear blue water. The Blue Grotto is near Zurrieq in southwest Malta, an area famous for its rocky coastline and natural sea caves. We cruised for only about 30 minutes around the caves but even though the trip was short the white and pink limestone caves with their blue and green floors under the water were well worth the trip. We then caught the bus to Marsaxlokk - but not before the bus driver stopped and said 'get off, wait for another bus' (ever seen pictures of tourists standing round a bus stop looking lost and confused?). Anyway Marsaxlokk has the best flotilla of little fishing boats (dghajsa) that we saw. So, that was our trip to Malta - we came back to warmer weather - and spent the next few days getting our energy back!!

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

Sleigh bells ring, are you listening,

In the lane, snow is glistening

A beautiful sight,

We're happy tonight.

Walking in a winter wonderland.

It is a bit late for sleigh bells but we were treated with some Christmas Card scenes this week. A few snow drops on the side of the road, in the garden and on the common on Monday led to a very snowy road by Friday and some adventures in between. We cycled to work on roads that buses didn't dare (we are told they didn't salt the bus parks so the buses were snowed in). So, many a hearty Bristolian trudged along while many others stayed in bed. There was snow falling on leafless trees and by the end of the week it was piled high on the footpaths, slippery where people had walked and wet and dirty where cars had driven. Snow, it seems can make some people grumpy but we like others had a week of enjoying playing in this winter wonderland.

In the meadow we can build a snowman ... and we did one night in our backyard, while another evening we went tobagonning in the near dark and then wandered back along the streets putting our hand print on many a car's snowy windscreen. We threw snowballs at each other and into puddles and generally had a great time. As we cycled to work we sang 'Walking in a Winter Wonderland' and later the Simon and Garfunkel song

'slip sliding away, slip sliding away, you know the nearer your destination,

the more you slip sliding away'

as our back wheel went in different directions to our front. All safe as long as we were slow (some pedestrians almost passed us) and very careful - its bit like skiing really - go slow enough to stay upright and continue down the hill. And on Saturday morning we pushed our car out of the park (a kind motorist stopped and offered to help as we couldn't get traction due to the snow and ice) and headed north to Risley Hall. The hall is an 11th century building, now a reasonably posh hotel - who could refuse a cheap winter break with a nice room, access to a pool, sauna, steam room and good food? Not us!! In the evening we lounged in huge couches reading the papers, having a drink and snacking on food - great choice for a wintry evening.

Lazing in the lounge, are we relaxing

Swimming around, are we exercising

Sitting in a steam room, are we having a good time

Sleeping in an 11th century bedroom.

If anyone can get that to fit the tune of 'Winter Wonderland' then you're better than us - but you get the picture!!

Sleigh bells ring, are you listening,
In the lane, snow is glistening
A beautiful sight,
We're happy tonight.
Walking in a winter wonderland.

But before getting to Risley Hall, we left the M1 to find a place to stop and have some lunch and found Calke - it's a national trust abbey - closed for winter but with lovely grounds that all the locals were visiting that day (they were actually envious of our sausage sandwiches and tea). The building didn't actually look like an abbey and apparently never was one but just called that in the early 12th century by Richard, 2nd Earl of Chester, a wealthy landowner. There was a religious community at Calke but this was dissolved around the time of Henry VIII in the 16th century and later the abbey was owned by rather a well off grocer John Prest. As it was closed (inclement weather I suspect) we didn't see the collection of treasures which included an 18th-century silk bed. We also didn't explore the cellars and servants' tunnels, the stableyards, or the walled gardens, the Orangery and the Auricula Theatre (these are flowers grown in Victorian times like Lucy Lockett). But we did take a walk around Calke Park and took lots of photos as we wound our way through the forest and along the path beside the frozen weir - where we threw snowballs in the hope of cracking the ice but with no success (we weren't the only ones). We saw sheep, goats and deer foraging for food and a couple of deer fighting for 'top dog' position, but most of the birds had probably moved to warmer climes.

Sunday was almost over before we surfaced for breakfast, but we did manage to drive to the National Tram Museum in Crick (closed), had a great walk up to the memorial for the Nottingham and Sherwood Foresters and then a drive to a reservoir for another picnic before making a stop at Bakewell (ever heard of the Bakewell tart - a bit of short cake with stuff in the middle, white icing and a cherry on top) - well Bakewell is home to this tart (and they make a scrummy lemon and coconut one as well). The town was busy and difficult to find a park so after collecting our goodies we headed to Buxton where we stopped at the Pavilion Gardens for our last picnic of the weekend (the only one in the car as it started to snow quite heavily). The gardens and buildings were based on the Crystal Palace in London and were quite magnificent.



So, that was the worst snow Bristol has seen in 18 years (and it continues with white stuff floating through the sky again on Monday evening). We did have visitors for tea last week (they are heading off to NZ in a couple of weeks and they hope good weather) and slid along the footpath to a neighbours on Friday night. We also got some wonderful sunsets over the common and I couldn't resist taking some photos of how the sun set on Thursday night. Fortunately, although it looked like the sky was on fire - it had none of the horrors that Melbourne is experiencing.



Thought I had better acknowledge the people responsible for the 'Winter Wonderland' song that we managed to destroy during the week with our singing and new lyrics. It was composed in 1934 by Felix Bernard (1897-1944) and the words written by Richard B. Smith (1901-1935). It was made famous by the Andrews Sisters and Perry Como. We'll have to find another song for this week!!