Beckford’s Tower and Cemetery, Bath
Up on top of Lansdown, on the north side of Bath, sits a landmark well-known to anyone local to the area: Beckford’s Tower and Museum.
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Heritage
A view from the Liverpool Eye
The summer holidays can be both a blessing and a curse for those with young children. Whilst we get to spend some wonderful, unadulterated time with our precious offspring, the weeks can end up stretching ahead, seemingly endlessly, and we find ourselves searching for fun days out.
This summer, we whiled-away a day being tourists in our city: we went to the Albert Docks. We explored the waterside village full of fairground rides and eateries. We lunched and took in art and culture at the Tate Liverpool. We wandered around the Albert Dock for a while. Then, we finished up by having a ride on the Liverpool Eye.
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Visiting the Roman Baths: the good and the bad
The Roman Baths is the jewel in the crown of the city of Bath. Built on geothermal underground springs, the baths are filled with water that comes out of the ground at 46°C,
The Celts were the first people to build shrine at the site, which they dedicated to the goddess Sulis.
When the Romans invaded Britain in the first century AD under the Emperor Claudius, they renamed the settlement Aquae Sulis, identifying Sulis with the Roman goddess Minerva, and built their own temple and baths complex at the springs.
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Charlcombe Church: Bath’s oldest church
Charlcombe Church (or, the Parish Church of St Mary the Virgin, Charlcombe, to give it its official name) is Bath’s oldest church and the place of many great childhood memories for me.
Although it underwent extensive work in the 19th century (including the addition of the vestry on the north side and the stained-glass windows), the church was first built during Norman times. It’s a tiny church, but has enormous character. Here’s a few fun facts about it.
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Liverpool Pier Head
The Pier Head in Liverpool is a popular tourist destination, and it’s where you’ll find the Three Graces (the Royal Liver Building, the Cunard Building and the Port of Liverpool Building).
In more recent years, it’s also become home to the Museum of Liverpool. Opened in 2011, it’s now one of Liverpool’s most popular museums, documenting the city from it prehistoric roots right through to the present day. It’s a really great museum with lots to see and loads of interactive bits and pieces for the younger visitor to enjoy.
But what I’m posting about here is not so much what’s inside the museum, but what you can see from it. At both sides of the building on the top floor are sets of huge windows looking out over the Pier Head and the Albert Dock. The views are fantastic.
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Marsh Lane Time Tunnel
Hiding underneath Bootle New Strand station in Merseyside, connecting the New Strand shopping area with a large Asda supermarket is Marsh Lane Time Tunnel. The pedestrianised tunnel is covered with a painted mural throughout, containing a historical timeline of the local area, including the building of the local railway in the 19th century and the effects…
The Egyptian sculpture gallery at the British Museum
I was down in London in November 2013 and was in the Bloomsbury area of London, so it’d have been rude not to stop in at the good ol’ BM. It was a lovely sunny day, and because of the time of year with the sun being low in the sky, the light was streaming…