Blogs from Ironbridge, Shropshire, England, United Kingdom, Europe

Sion did not sleep well last night . Before turning in he had got ready for his trip to Blists Hill Victorian Town. He had helped me set up the sav nav for the journey and was looking forward to seeing his best friend Woolly Mammoth. I had been to Blists Hill a number of times . The first in the early 1980's when the site was in its infancy . I don't remember much about it apart from it being on a hillside site with many industrial brick buildings . Sion had been to Blists Hill a few years ago when Suzy the motorhome required some work to Kathrein the satellite dish . I am sure we were driven there by the guy who repaired the dish and he gave us two complimentary tickets "Have ... read more

With our successful book launch now a mere memory, I thought it might be time to take my small companion to a destination that Zoe and I had enjoyed many years ago. Woolly says – You mean there’s places you haven’t taken me to!!! With the women refusing to reveal any details I sat watching the countryside pass us by as we sped along the windy roads. The sun was poking it’s head out and I kept my paws crossed that the weather would play nicely for the day. Pulling onto the already crowded car park it looked as though we might have a few people to dodge round, as Jo sorted out the payment Zoe and I headed towards an information board that told me more about the site. Blists Hill Victorian Town ... read more

We started the day with a breakfast and joined by a gentleman who was leading a walk for Ironbridge Festival. The history was fascinating. In the late 1600's a community of Quakers developed a number of businesses. When the need arose for a work force, they went to Wales. This explains the ongoing "differences" between the folks on different sides of the River Severn. I want to figure out a way to understand the history of the Quaker tradition. It seems as we travel the various parts of the world, Quaker innovation is evident. The area around Ironbridge is described as the "Birthplace of the Industrial Revolution". This description is based on the idea that Abraham Darby perfected the technique of smelting iron with coke, in Coalbrookdale, allowing much cheaper production of iron. The Darbys were ... read more

After a massive home cooked breakfast at the Falcon Inn in Painswick, we travelled through the back roads of the Cotswolds and the Midlands to the quaint Industrial Revolution town of Ironbridge. It was lovely driving through the green fields, along the high walled fences, the tight roads and being interrupted by charming villages every few miles. The only thing that broke the beauty of it all was being stuck behind slow moving vehicles, including a AA van towing a car, a couple of dairy trucks and a van towing a rather scary looking load of timber that looked like it was going to fall out onto the road. The hard thing was, that the roads were too narrow, too windy and too congested to pass them safely, so we were stuck behind them. If they ... read more

Excursion to Ironbridge As planned, we made a journey for Ironbridge on Sunday, 5 September. We took the train to Telford Central and caught the bus. The bus went past several museums, e.g. Blists Hill Victorian Town, Coalport China Museum. We got off at High Street near Ironbridge. There were a lot of restaurants, hotels, and souvenir shops around the Ironbridge. Firstly, we crossed over the Ironbridge, and then popped in the Information Centre, which has been converted from the Tollhouse. We bought the Ironbridge Passport costing us £19.95 each, for us to visit 10 of the museums (in 12 months). We decided to visit three museums, i.e. Gorge Museum, Coalport China Museum, and Blists Hill Victorian Town. The Ironbridge was very picturesque. I took a number of pictures of the bridge. The Gorge Museum Secondly, ... read more