On the road in England and Scotland ...
Fiona's sister Mabel is traveling with us, and we will meet up with more family when we get to Scotland next week.
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Part of the goal of this trip was to hike along the Cotswold Way, a trail through the hills of the same name in southwest England. The challenge was that Fiona's knee is pretty messed up from a previous injury.
There are certain landmarks along the way, known as Trig Points, which stands for Triangulation Point. If you are not familiar with this (I wasn't) it's a survey monument or marker that allows you to locate a precise location by "triangulating" from three points.
Cell towers do this in the modern day. Trig Points were put into place 80 years ago to precisely measure the British countryside across the entire nation. I encounterd the one below yesterday. They are all over the Cotswolds.
We set out and found our way out of the city to the beginning of the trail. Actually, there is a shield in the ground at the big Abbey cathedral at the city center, pictured here.
So this is the beginning of the trail, which runs over 100 miles. We will only be hiking parts of the trail, and yesterday was fun. The first steps were uphill, leading over the green landscape, past sheep fields and beautiful views.
The weather is just good enough and the scenery is fantastic. Of course Britain is compact and rather densely populated, so you are never far away from people, or houses, or villages.
This country is not known for high mountains, except maybe in Scotland. But the Cotswolds provice their own sense of scale and are a rich source of history
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So we were in Bath, England for a few days with more travel to come, and so far things have been very eventful.
We've spent time walking around the city, admiring the historical buildings. They seem to be fond of circular buildings here.
One of the striking things about this place is the number of chimneys here. In reality, they are all over the country of Great Britain, the innumerable chimneys at the top of the structures. It harkens back to a time that has now passed for the most part.
As the country became more established in the 1800's, and achieved a position of major significance in the world, a big part of it was the Industrial Revolution. This time period gave Britain a rapidly growing economy and relative power and affluence.
So more homes were built, and they were made of stone. This helps to preserve the historical nature of many buildings - stone does not deteriorate. But homes made of stone are also hard to heat. especially in a cold climate like Britain. That presented a challenge that was met with ... coal.
Coal was abundant in the UK and became an enormous industry. It dominated the economy in many ways, much the way oil does now. It fueled the vast industry of Britain in those days. But you have to burn coal, and that's what all the chimneys were for.
Looking back, it was a time of vast expansion of the British economy, and coal was king. The impact was really big: All the miners and equipment digging it out of the ground, the railroads and canals to transport it, the delivery men to bring it to homes, the fireplace builders, the chimney sweeps, and dustmen to haul off the ash, and so on.
A big problem with coal - it also generated a hell of a lot of smoke. This created a tremendous problem with air pollution in Britain.
Fiona, who grew up here in the UK, tells the story of when she lived here - not too long ago - there was a choking smoke in London that killed thousands of people and made the air lethal to breathe - and this was in the 1950's and 60's!
In the meantime - in other words, since then - the world has come up with other sources to power industry and heat homes. Things like electricity, clean burning natural gas, hydro power, solar power, wind energy, conservation, and yes, even nuclear power.
Coal is diminishing as a power source, and - despite how some people may feel - it ain't coming back. There are cleaner alternatives. The days of burning coal have been on the decline. Even in China, the world's largest coal consumer, it has declined for three years in a row.
But when you look at all these buildings in Britain and elsewhere, you see the remnants of a by-gone time.
There was a large semi-circular building I passed today that had (and I counted them) 348 chimneys! Good heavens, that's a lot of chimneys! It represents a time that has mostly beome a thing of the past.
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Upstairs, Downstairs?
We were getting into a crowded elevator in our hotel this morning before we left Bath. There were several ladies in the elevator. One of them was pushing the button to go down to the lobby, but it wasn't working.
There were two buttons, and I mentioned that the one she was pushing was the wrong one. I pointed out that one was for the servants. When I said this, much to my surprise, everyone immediately burst out laughing. I didn't understand; what's so funny about that?
After everyone exited the elevator, Fiona and her sister Mabel informed me that - ahem - you don't call people servants, they are maids and hotel staff! Oops!
Fiona's sister Mabel is traveling with us, and we will meet up with more family when we get to Scotland next week.
---------------------------------------------
Part of the goal of this trip was to hike along the Cotswold Way, a trail through the hills of the same name in southwest England. The challenge was that Fiona's knee is pretty messed up from a previous injury.
There are certain landmarks along the way, known as Trig Points, which stands for Triangulation Point. If you are not familiar with this (I wasn't) it's a survey monument or marker that allows you to locate a precise location by "triangulating" from three points.
Cell towers do this in the modern day. Trig Points were put into place 80 years ago to precisely measure the British countryside across the entire nation. I encounterd the one below yesterday. They are all over the Cotswolds.
We set out and found our way out of the city to the beginning of the trail. Actually, there is a shield in the ground at the big Abbey cathedral at the city center, pictured here.
So this is the beginning of the trail, which runs over 100 miles. We will only be hiking parts of the trail, and yesterday was fun. The first steps were uphill, leading over the green landscape, past sheep fields and beautiful views.
The weather is just good enough and the scenery is fantastic. Of course Britain is compact and rather densely populated, so you are never far away from people, or houses, or villages.
This country is not known for high mountains, except maybe in Scotland. But the Cotswolds provice their own sense of scale and are a rich source of history
---------------------------------------------
So we were in Bath, England for a few days with more travel to come, and so far things have been very eventful.
We've spent time walking around the city, admiring the historical buildings. They seem to be fond of circular buildings here.
One of the striking things about this place is the number of chimneys here. In reality, they are all over the country of Great Britain, the innumerable chimneys at the top of the structures. It harkens back to a time that has now passed for the most part.
As the country became more established in the 1800's, and achieved a position of major significance in the world, a big part of it was the Industrial Revolution. This time period gave Britain a rapidly growing economy and relative power and affluence.
So more homes were built, and they were made of stone. This helps to preserve the historical nature of many buildings - stone does not deteriorate. But homes made of stone are also hard to heat. especially in a cold climate like Britain. That presented a challenge that was met with ... coal.
Coal was abundant in the UK and became an enormous industry. It dominated the economy in many ways, much the way oil does now. It fueled the vast industry of Britain in those days. But you have to burn coal, and that's what all the chimneys were for.
Looking back, it was a time of vast expansion of the British economy, and coal was king. The impact was really big: All the miners and equipment digging it out of the ground, the railroads and canals to transport it, the delivery men to bring it to homes, the fireplace builders, the chimney sweeps, and dustmen to haul off the ash, and so on.
A big problem with coal - it also generated a hell of a lot of smoke. This created a tremendous problem with air pollution in Britain.
Fiona, who grew up here in the UK, tells the story of when she lived here - not too long ago - there was a choking smoke in London that killed thousands of people and made the air lethal to breathe - and this was in the 1950's and 60's!
In the meantime - in other words, since then - the world has come up with other sources to power industry and heat homes. Things like electricity, clean burning natural gas, hydro power, solar power, wind energy, conservation, and yes, even nuclear power.
Coal is diminishing as a power source, and - despite how some people may feel - it ain't coming back. There are cleaner alternatives. The days of burning coal have been on the decline. Even in China, the world's largest coal consumer, it has declined for three years in a row.
But when you look at all these buildings in Britain and elsewhere, you see the remnants of a by-gone time.
There was a large semi-circular building I passed today that had (and I counted them) 348 chimneys! Good heavens, that's a lot of chimneys! It represents a time that has mostly beome a thing of the past.
--------------------------------------------
Upstairs, Downstairs?
We were getting into a crowded elevator in our hotel this morning before we left Bath. There were several ladies in the elevator. One of them was pushing the button to go down to the lobby, but it wasn't working.
There were two buttons, and I mentioned that the one she was pushing was the wrong one. I pointed out that one was for the servants. When I said this, much to my surprise, everyone immediately burst out laughing. I didn't understand; what's so funny about that?
After everyone exited the elevator, Fiona and her sister Mabel informed me that - ahem - you don't call people servants, they are maids and hotel staff! Oops!
Servants? You're locked in your flashback to coal for heating the houses with the fireplaces that need chimneys for ventilation. Give thanks we have progressed from the age of servitude to a time with central heating and air.
ReplyDeleteThank you! Such great pictures. The first time I went to England it was simply to visit friends-- I didn't expect to fall in love with the country. I was surprised by its beauty and pace. You make me want to go back on a walking tour. I am sorry about Fiona's leg!
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