So ... it's Monday, which makes it my normal blogging day and for the first time in a long, long time I found myself a little short on inspiration.
There really has been nothing much occurring, other than reading, over here over the course of the last week or so and with no days out or trips to tell you about I was really struggling for what to share.
There aren't even any random photos of everyday ordinary sitting on my iPad or phone waiting to be shared ... not much going on in the garden, it has just been sooooo cold ... and we don't seem to have been anywhere in absolutely ages.
On a bit of a whim I suddenly felt the need to get out so we headed down into town for a wander round our Castle Grounds to see what the local Parks Department have been up to.
We parked by the green bridge and walked across Ladybridge, which used to be a main road link into town but has been pedestrianised now for a long old time. A few years ago a number of stone engravings were installed on the ground, mapping out the ancient history of our town ... starting back in 757, when King Offa of Mercia built his first royal palace in Tamworth ...
We spent a while on the bridge watching the river and the masses of seagulls, geese, swans and ducks ... before heading into the Castle Grounds under the old gatehouse and past the statue of Aethelflaed and spotted a splash of colour in the undergrowth ...
Having Googled when home it appears these are a variety of anemone ... commonly known as the Grecian Wildflower.
We wondered alongside the old castle hill, which was having its first strimming of the year, aiming for the bandstand ... flanked by stone flower beds, interspersed with pathways of crazy paving, which always look stunning ...
Today they were filled with masses of primulas of all shades ...You can always guarantee a good view of the castle from in front of the flower beds ... as long as you can get down low ... as there are always people sitting on the benches at the top of the flowerbeds ... and today was no exception ...
We then headed through the black metal gates to the sound of a lonesome busker and took in the view looking back into town ... there's a great view of the top of the town hall with it's wonky cupola and St Editha's church in the background ...We then headed across the white bridge over the river for another view of the castle ...
On this side of the river you can find Tamworth's Planet Trail which was installed to commemorate the millennium. It is based on a similar trail in our twinned town of Bad Laasphe in Germany. Basically there are sculptures of all of the planets in our solar system, laid out around The Castle Grounds to represent relevant distances between the planets. The trail sets out from the sun ...
From here we wandered along the back of the immaculate looking bowling green, for another great view of the castle ...We were heading for the wisteria walk, which looked very different to when we'd last seen it back in the summer ... there really is no clue here to how fabulous it will look when at its best ...
Here it is looking absolutely fabulous in May of last year ...
We sat awhile under the arches ... remembering the warmth of the sun and the heady scent of the blooms from our last visit ...
We had company for a little while ...
Before long the little bit of sunshine there had been disappeared and the sky went a bit on the dark side ...
Time to head back over the green bridge and to head for home.
We'd not been out long but I think it did us both good. We just can't wait to be able to get back out and head a bit further afield. We are very lucky with what we have on our doorstep, but it just doesn't beat proper countryside and the coast.
Hopefully we won't have to wait much longer π€π€π€
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You sound a bit like us with your not doing much & although we c an definitely go further afield now, we are sort of in a rut of being super careful & even when we do get out & about, I either forget to take my camera or are being afraid to post about it in case we offend those who are still in serious lockdowns. I'll try & do some catchup posts about a few days out when we've had our "UNlockdown" periods. Thanks for sharing & those stone walls with primulas are gorgeous. I can smell that wisteria too & can't wait till Spring to see how well ours flowers this year on the small pergola at the top of the stairs. Take care, stay safe & hugs.
ReplyDeleteWe are hoping that we may be able to go a little further afield at the end of the month but I know what you mean about being super careful ... I think it will be a good while before we change much. Luckily we like going to places when they are quiet and are happy to take a picnic. We have a tiny wisteria but I am getting a bit impatient with it as it hadn’t done much yet at all. I would love to have one rambling all over our pergola but I fear I may have to opt for something that is a bit of a wicker grower. Looking forward to seeing yours later in the year. Thanks for commenting ... take care and stay safe π
DeleteThat should be “quicker” grower π
DeleteWhat a lovely walk right on your doorstep :) thank you for sharing your photos and route - I like 'going' on other folk's walks in places new to me so thank you for taking me along xx
ReplyDeleteYou are very welcome Kate ... it’s good to have company along the way π
DeleteWhat a lovely post made out of what you call 'nothing'! Great photos too - you like unusual angles, like I do. All the best, B (This may appear more than once as I'm having trouble uploading it.)
ReplyDeleteThank you B ... yes I do like trying to find an angle that look a bit different ... I’m not too good at getting down low as my creaky knees make it too hard to get back up π
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