Tag Archives: Wiltshire

Font as a Work of Art

It is an interesting contrast when you see modern artwork in an ancient setting. I suspect some people can’t get their heads around it but when something is hundreds of years old, there will be many generations of styles that will have been embodied and why not add something new. The font in Salisbury Cathedral was a fascinating addition to the setting. The size and shape of it combined with the reflective qualities of the water within really looked interesting. It had people around it most of the time which limited what pictures I could get but trying to hone in on sections of it or focus on the reflective properties was what I tried for whilst accepting I wasn’t going to spend too long messing around.

The Red Pandas Caught Me Out

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Longleat has a boat cruise that takes you up a lake to look at various parts of their collection. The line to wait for the boat seemed to take a long time and not move very much but we weren’t in a hurry. As we got closer to the boarding area, we were next to signs discussing Red Pandas. The signs were interesting and talked about the pandas and their life. As we stood there for ages, I casually said to Nancy it would have been better if they actually had some pandas near the sign. Some time passed before a red panda came wandering through the shrubs next to us. Of course, they didn’t put up signs about an animal that wasn’t there.

I felt like quite a dope, but we had been there for ages with no sign of any pandas. When this one walked through, everyone around us was taken aback too so it was quite the star. Besides, we had been standing around for ages, so a cute red animal was a great change. There were actually two of them in there. They alternated between patrolling their space and climbing the trees. I was now more focused on them and hoped we wouldn’t board the boat too soon. They did disappear again after a while, so I was happy to get onboard. When we disembarked, you could see one of the pandas lounging on a branch near the dock. Cute looking things although those claws and teeth look pretty sharp!

Who Would Get a Slot and Who Has One?

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I was looking at the various statues on the outside of the cathedral in Salisbury. Normally I will not pay that much attention to the details of these statues, but I paused for a few minutes and noticed the differences between the people represented. It was easy to tell the priests because they were all standing with a hand raised as if giving the sign of the cross. There were a bunch that weren’t in that pose, though. Some looked like they might be specific trades – presumably those involved in building or maintaining the cathedral itself.

The other thing that struck me was that, while there were loads of of alcoves on the façade of the cathedral, they weren’t all occupied. Presumably, when they built it they recognised that additional individuals – bishops I guess – would be deserving of their own slot at some point. Whether there weren’t enough worthy people or they just stopped adding statues, I do not know. I wonder what it would take to add someone new at this point?

Salisbury Cathedral

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We decided to go to Salisbury one Saturday to do a few chores. We also thought a wander in a different town would be worthwhile. The biggest feature of Salisbury is its cathedral. It includes the tallest spire in the UK. We ended up spending a bit of time walking around inside and out. There are some specific elements of the cathedral that I shall include in their own posts. However, this is a more general overview of the building.

The view from outside is pretty imposing. I think I once photographed it from the air where it really does look impressive. From the ground it is no less so! Inside it is also quite a dramatic structure. The vaulted ceilings and massive columns really get your attention, particularly given how old it is. To think that craftsmen could build something this impressive that long ago is amazing. Apparently, it was also built quickly – 38 years – which is very fast relative to similar buildings.

There are many chapels within the interior and tombs and monuments from through the centuries that have followed its construction. Maintaining it is an ongoing mission with skilled crafts of various types needed to ensure its longevity. Our tickets are valid for a year so I suspect a return is in order and I shall go prepared for photography next time.

Anatomy Of A Special Weapon

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Many moons ago, I was walking around the RAF Museum at Cosford when I was taken aback to see a “special weapon” on display. I didn’t realize that they had been declassified so, to see an inert one on display was rather a shock. Now they crop up all over the place. The Boscombe Down Aviation Collection at Old Sarum has one on display. It has been cut open to reveal the various elements of what turns a small amount of metal into a large amount of energy! Amazing to think so much destruction can be done wrought with so little!

One Of The Oldest Tornados

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The Tornado was entering service in big numbers with the RAF at the same time that I was getting seriously into aviation. I always felt it was the plane I knew the best. When I ended up working on them, it felt like a continuation of my youthful enthusiasm. The Tornado GR1 was my jet. After I moved on to other projects, MLU came along and that became the GR4. Somehow, the GR4 never felt like it was mine. I was a GR1 kid.

When I went to the Boscombe Down Aviation Collection at Old Sarum, there was a Tornado at one end of the hangar. It was a GR1 that had never been updated. Better than that, is was one of the earliest production jets that the RAF received. Some of the test jets at Warton were from this batch so this one really felt like one of the originals for me. The Tornado is long gone from RAF service but, for me, to see one of these earlier jets was really a treat. Camo with black radomes is how the Tornado should look!

A Chilly Place To Be Lying In The Water!

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The grounds at Stourhead include some grottos. One of them has a statue of a woman lying in some water. It was not too warm when we were there and, once you go inside the grottos, they are decidedly cold and damp. The idea of lying in water in those conditions does not sound too appealing. However, she was clearly a hardy soul as she has been there for quite a while.

A Brewery Close To My Heart

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When we lived in the UK, there were plenty of good local breweries producing bitter that I could sample. Some of the larger brands would have national reach and one of those was Wadworth and their 6X bitter. I am very partial to this beer. I have had occasion when I have had a bad 6X but that is down to pubs that don’t keep their beer well. Wadworth is based in Devizes and this was where we went to see the Caen Hill Locks. It would have been churlish not to pay a brief visit to the brewery. It is alongside the main road through the town so getting a clean shot of it took some patience but I was successful. I think went to the gift shop because how could I not?

Swan Family (And What Is With The Foot?)

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There were lots of swans in the water along Caen Hill Locks. Some families were swimming around together with the cygnets well grown. One of the families had a member that had one foot up and out of the water. I have no idea whether this is a normal behavior for swans or the sign of an injury but the swan did not seem to be having any problems.

At some point, a couple of the swans got into a little bit of hassle. I don’t know whether this was a territorial thing or a case of swan flirting but one of them was really chasing another and seemed to be intent on getting them out of the way. A little separation was enough to stop all of this so I don’t know what it was all about.

P1A Tucked In The Back

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The Boscombe collection has a couple of interesting testbed airframes. The Avro 707 was in a previous post but another fine jet is the English Electric P1A. The precursor to what was to become the Lightning, the P1A is very similar in some respects but quite different in others. The nose is a pitot inlet without the shock cone that the Lightning adopted to house its radar. The rest of the front fuselage has quite a different shape while it also feels lower to the ground than the Lightning was. It is nice that a Lightning front fuselage is displayed alongside it for comparison.