It’s pretty wild and windy here this morning with sleet, which is almost snow. Not the weather to go out in, but these visitors to our garden seem to like it.
They went further upstream – below you can see the male’s head bobbing above the bank:
Then they tried a little walk. The photo below shows the female in the sleet.
Thanks to D, who took these photos.
A couple of years ago we went to the Glasgow Science Centre on the banks of the River Clyde .
There is so much to see and do in the Centre, not least the Planetarium which dominates the scene as you approach the entrance.
You can go up to the roof, where the view is excellent:
The armadillo shaped building on the north bank of the Clyde is the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre, where, amongst other events, they hold hold auditions for X-Factor.
The Planetarium is fascinating – I wished it was possible to take photos inside, but of course I couldn’t. It was enough, though, to sit back and gaze upon the night sky and have constellations and planets pointed out to me.
For more Saturday Snapshots see Alyce’s blog At Home With Books.
Coldstream is our nearest Scottish town, the other side of the River Tweed. The view as you approach from the English side of the border is dominated by this monument that towers 70 feet above the town. It’s known as ‘Charlie‘ and was erected in 1834 as a tribute to Sir Charles Marjoribanks who was the first Liberal Member of Parliament for Berwickshire after the Reform Act of 1832. He died in 1833 at the age of 39.
Below my photo is rather dark, just showing the silhouette of the statue as it rears up behind the houses in front and below it.
For more Saturday Snapshots see Alyce’s blog At Home with Books.
My photos this week are a few of Cragside in Northumberland, now owned by the National Trust. It was built in 1863, with further extensions over the next 15 or so years, by William Armstrong, who later became Lord Armstrong. Armstrong was a remarkable man – a scientist, an innovator and a successful industrialist.
We visited it last year. Here is the view of the house approaching from the public car park:
and the view from the gardens:
It has to be one of my favourite National Trust properties and it’s a very popular house with everyone else too – the place was packed when we were there last April. There is so much to see inside the house, too much for one post. The house was very modern for its times, with all the latest and advanced technical devices of the day.
One of my favourite rooms is the Library, with its stained glass windows, comfy chairs, leather sofas and the latest lighting available. This was the first room in the world to be lit by hydro-electricity.
The light suspended from the ceiling has four bulbs within the ornate and fringed light shade. I tried very hard to get a photo without any of the other visitors, but gave up when there was just one person looking out of the window – anyway he gives scale to the room.
There are four more bulbs around the room, place in globes, sitting on vases:
The books are in oak bookcases around the room:
Note the library steps at the left-hand side of the photo.
Click on the photos to enlarge them.
At a later date I might post more photos – of the kitchen with its dishwasher, the lovely dining room with its William Morris stained glass windows and of the amazing Gallery, with its collection of paintings and sculptures. As for the Drawing Room, this was not to my taste at all with its huge marble chimney piece.
See more Saturday Snapshots on Alyce’s blog At Home With Books.
Our back garden isn’t the usual type of garden as it’s mainly grass, a stream and woodland. At the end of January we had a tidying-up session in the woodland and a small fire burning small branches that the wind had blown down.
Further down the wood the snowdrops are still in flower.
See more Saturday Snapshots on Alyce’s blog, At Home With Books.
A few years ago we had a holiday in the Cotswolds and visited Burford in Oxfordshire. We had welcome cup of tea and cakes in The Copper Kettle on the High Street.
This is the view looking down the High Street.
The building dates back to around 1500.
See more Saturday Snapshots on Alyce’s blog, At Home With Books.
BooksPlease 