Kirkstall & Ackworth School, England

Today started at the Abbey House museum in Kirkstall. The museum is located in the gatehouse of the ruined Kirkstall Abbey. The ground floor of the museum is set out as an area of cobblestoned Victorian streets with a range of shops. Quite interesting.

The ruined Abbey is just across the street. It was founded in 1152 and was disestablished in 1539 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries under Henry VIII. It must have been amazing.

In the afternoon we visited the Ackworth School to see some of their amazing Quaker samplers. They were incredible. (Sorry about those nasty shadows - couldn't be helped.)

Posted with Blogsy

Harrogate, England

Today the tour officially began. We got on the coach in Hythe at about 9 am this morning and drove north picking up passengers along the way. We arrived at our hotel in Harrogate at about 4 pm. It is a lovely old hotel.

The town of Harrogate has flowers everywhere. It is really beautiful. This is the roundabout in front of the hotel.

Across the street from the hotel is one of the many pubs in town. We stopped in here for a local pint after our long journey.

Tomorrow we visit Abbey house in Kirkstall which is rumored to have a set of Victorian shops re-constructed inside the house. And the ruins of Kirkstall Abbey are just across the road. Afterwards we will be visiting the Ackworth School where there is a large collection of very distinctive samplers.

Posted with Blogsy

Maidestone Museum, England

Today's adventure was to the Maidstone Museum. It contained several little embroidery treasures. The first is this cutwork blouse. The technique is called Broderie Anglais.

Then we saw this amazing peapod jacket in redwork.

And the most amazing of all (to me) was this beaded stumpwork tray. I have included the official description. As usual, the lighting was terrible.

Posted with Blogsy

The Borough Market, England

This morning we walked through one of our favorite places in London: The Borough Market. It is not only full of produce sellers, bakeries, butcher shops, and restaurants but there are also booths selling food from several different countries such as Switzerland, France, Germany, and Africa. There are cacao roasters, baking schools, flower shops, and food vendors. It is a fascinating place to wander around in.

Posted with Blogsy

Arrival, England

We arrived at Heathrow on time at about 2:30 pm and took the Underground to London. It was a short walk to our hotel. After dropping off our luggage we headed out for our favorite "welcome to London" activity: a pint of ale. We enjoyed a nice cask ale at the Anchor Pub located right next to our hotel. Cheers!

Afterward we took a long walk along the Thames and saw this beautiful decorative end on the old Blackfriars railway bridge.

Posted with Blogsy