Last Sunday, we went to Cresswell Crags, a limestone gorge in northeastern Derbyshire with a number of caves occupied by Ice Age people. We had to wear helmets with lights when we went on a tour of Robin Hood’s Cave. Apparently, there is no evidence that Robin Hood actually used this particular cave, but it [...]
From Edinburgh, we drove north. Many of the hills were forested and the autumn leaves reminded us of New England. The landscape became increasing dramatic as we entered the Cairngorm mountains.
We spent the night in a Victorian era hotel in Strathpeffer, just north of Inverness. Apparently, it was one of the first locations to have [...]
Last week, we began a whirlwind tour of Scotland in Edinburgh. We arrived late on Thursday night, staying in a recently built apartment on the waterfront in Leith. It was right near the the Royal Yacht Britannia, the boat used by Queen Elizabeth II and other royal folk, so we stopped by for a quick [...]
The Great Plague
Hi, my name is Katie. I am eight years old. This is a story about when my sister got the plague.
It is London 1665. The plague is raging. I can hear carts on the cobble stones which are taking the dead people away. The air smells horrible! My family has not got the [...]
I visited Harwick Hall yesterday afternoon after bouldering at the climbing wall in Nottingham.
The house was designed for Bess of Hardwick, the Countess of Shrewsbury and an ancestress of the Dukes of Devonshire. Bess was one of the most influential women during the time of Queen Elisabeth and her dramatic and innovative home reflected her [...]
We had an excellent dinner on Saturday night with the extended Sackett clan in Ramsgate. It reminded me of family gatherings in Corvallis. Everyone was very friendly and we enjoyed getting to know some of our distant relatives a little better.
The following day, Chris Sackett and Steve and Debbie Barbee offered to show us the [...]
We left early last Saturday to join a walking tour of Canterbury with some Sacketts convened for the annual reunion organized by the Sackett Family Association. Many of Molly’s distant cousins had been meeting all week, exploring the area around where the Sackett family originated in the Isle of Thanet, Kent.
It was interesting to learn [...]
Lyme Regis is a beautiful town on the coast of Dorset in southern England. Featuring prominently in the the works of Jane Austen and John Fowles, Lyme Regis is perhaps best known for its paleontological association.
We’ve read several books about the British fossil collector, Mary Anning, whose work in the early 19th century contributed [...]
We visited the city of Bath last Saturday. It is a very interesting place. Long an important city, much of it was rebuilt in Georgian times and the architecture reflects that period. One of the things we most enjoyed while wandering the city, though, were the pig sculptures that appeared in various unlikely places.
The Bath [...]
We spent last weekend in Yorkshire. The city of York was really amazing. There are loads of great museums, shops, and markets set among some amazing architectural gems. York combines modernity and antiquity in a very intriguing way.
The kids loved this merry-go-round right next to Clifford’s Tower, a 13th century fortification.
After revolving [...]
