Blogs from West Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom, Europe - page 4

Once upon a time, the most famous cycle race in the world came to a small town in Yorkshire. They raced up the cobbled High Street. The Bronte sisters - Haworth's most famous former residents - couldn't have written the script better. The parking script couldn't have been better for us either. The woes of public trasnport the previous day had clearly caused a move towards the car, but at 9 o'clock - some 4 hours before the race was due through - it was easy to get right into town. The cobbles of the High Street would be destined to become one of the iconic photos of the race, but they were surprisingly empty. The talk yesterday had suggested that there would be a mass covergence on the town, but there had clearly been a ... read more

Alice had a grandparents day today so Em had a playmate for the whole day and loved it! We played at home for a while then went out to Roundhay Park. The kids had a great time feeding the ducks and geese and playing on the playground until the rain started. We went back home for lunch and more playtime despite trying for a nap. It was a beautiful afternoon so we spent it in the garden riding bikes and scooters and playing in a toy caravan that still holds appeal after more than 30 years!... read more

Today we tidied up and moved on to Mel's other uncle and aunt in Leeds. We broke the journey with a stop at Cannon Hall near Wakefield. With a pretty good playground and large parkland style gardens, it is the old estate of the Spencer family who controlled the region for about 400 years through their steel and mining businesses. The hall was donated to the National Trust in the 1950’s and has been turned into a public estate and museum which shows the life of the family during their prime. On the grounds are a small petting farm and adventure playground but they Em was not in the mood so we wandered back to the café for lunch. We went back to the pond and fed the Canada geese. They have a daycare group of ... read more

The main reason for the visit to England was to catch up with family so over the next few days we are staying with Mel’s relatives. We had arranged to arrive about lunchtime so we left early for Mel's uncle and aunt in Wooley. Set just outside the small village, their house is part of a complex that used to be a farm and included a large barn, mill with waterwheel and cottages for workers. All the buildings have been converted to homes now and their house was the carpenter’s workshop (greatly extended) next door to the old mill with the garage being made out of the old Dovecote. After lunch, we went for a walk towards the village taking some carrots and apples to feed the horses on the way. Em was too scared of ... read more

The first half of today was ecstatic, riding through the Yorkshire Dales was beautiful, they were open and wild and a few reservoir's and dams up there made the scenery top notch. Traffic was limited and plenty of time just to float and look around. A friendly bike rider said go down X road then there is a good café - and he was right. The reservoir man He does what he does whenever he can Scanning across his giant bath He lets out a full bodied, echoing laugh Hidden here in his perfect place He dances, spiralling, with energy and grace And then singing Opera at the top of his voice '' I am the reservoir man and I have the choice'' The giant taps they work only for him To twist or not - ... read more