Some Very Nice Memories.

On By Coral WaightIn travel

Seeing I’m a Melburnian and too dangerous to be let out, I thought I’d go through my old photos to see what was there, and came up with some very nice memories.

The spot I’ve felt the most comfortable in is Arthur River, North-west Tasmania. So  wild, and relatively untouched, at least when I was there in 2010. Sadly, while organising the cover for my book about my travels around Tassie, The Edge of the World: Next Stop Cape Horn, I mislaid the couple of good photos I had. This one was the inspiration for the cover, anyway.

Brian Inder’s beautiful poem on the Arthur River monument.

 

My lovely little cabin at Arthur River Cabin Park. The red wall cheered me through the rather dire winter weather.

A few years ago, I attended my nephew’s wedding in Airlie Beach, on the north Queensland coast. If I get to heaven, this is what it will look like. I felt like a movie star, sitting up on the balcony looking out towards the islands of the Great Barrier Reef with a glass of champagne in my hand.

Airlie Beach, The Whitsundays, North Queensland.

The South Island of New Zealand is described as one of the most beautiful places on earth. It’s true, as I discovered in 2010, when I drove through the Southern Alps to the fiords of Milford Sound.

It was terrifying negotiating the twists and turns of what I considered to be a one-way road but with two-way traffic, a small bridge with a sign, Bridge Under Repair, but with no-one repairing it (I’d have preferred not to know it needed repairing), and the dark depths of the one-way Homer Tunnel. It was worth it though, for ethereal Milford.

Ethereal Milford Sound – I was pretty pleased with this photo, just quietly.

I’ve always wanted to throw ‘when I was at Oxford’ into the conversation, so on my first solo trip to England in 2011, I booked a room in Balliol College, right in the centre of town.

Balliol College, Oxford.

Wandering through the gardens, it was like being in a fairytale.

 

 

My room at Balliol College. Everything a student could need, including a sink, towel and soap hidden away in a cupboard.

Something I love, not unusual I think, is to explore places I’ve seen in my favourite TV series and films, and so I added plenty of those to both my trips to England. At the top of my list was Haddon Hall, a medieval house in Bakewell, Derbyshire, where several productions of Jane Eyre were filmed, along with plenty of movies.

The Manners family left the house in 1700, preferring to live at their other property, Belvoir Castle (as you would), and so the house remained unchanged, making it perfect for period pieces.

Haddon Hall
The Courtyard
The Great Hall, used in many films, including as the inn in Pride and Prejudice.
The Long Gallery, where Rochester held his house parties.
Looking toward the North Tower, abode of Rochester’s mad wife.

 

Even if you’re not into movie sets, I suggest, if you’re in the Derbyshire area, a visit to Haddon Hall. It’s a beautiful old house and an absolutely lovely spot.

Another place I loved was Lyme Park in Disley, Cheshire, used as Mr. Darcy’s  estate in the mini-series of Pride and Prejudice. This is totally different to Haddon, more your palace than house, but with a very relaxed feel to it. There were no Keep Out signs or ropes around furniture. We were given a surprising amount of access to the house, even to the nursery on the top floor, where a little girl was playing happily with some old wooden toys.

Lyme Park
The Courtyard
The lake where Mr. Darcy, aka Colin Firth, took his dip,
and where he ran into Miss Eliza Bennett.
There are deer in the park but, sadly, they stayed hidden.

Finally, it took two trains and two buses to get from Salisbury to Port Isaac on my return trip to England in 2016, but being a Doc Martin addict, I just had to visit Port Wenn. I stayed in a little room attached to the school, now a hotel, and looked straight across at the surgery. Heaven.

Looking straight across at the Doc’s surgery.
Port Isaac
From the cliffs overlooking the village.

 

23 thoughts on “Some Very Nice Memories.”

    1. Anonymous

      It’s a bit of a hike, Marion. It took me ages to go to and from but it was worth it. I’d stay a few days and go down to Port Gaverne and climb around the Cornwall cliffs.

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  6. I am glad I found your site. Your posts are always interesting and photos eyecatching. It’s funny that it has taken a Melburnian (a new word to me) to remind me of England’s hidden treasures, never been to Hadden Hall, however, I have fond memories of all the other English places mention and I can throw ‘when I was at Oxford’ into the conversation. In fact, I spent 4 happy years there!

    Till you next post!

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    1. Anonymous

      Thanks, Richard. Four years at Oxford. How jealous am I? This comment will probably come up as Anonymous, by the way. All sorts of things have gone wrong with my WordPress at the moment. Still haven’t worked it out.

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    1. Anonymous

      I’ll say. You need to go back periodically to remind yourself of the experiences you had, and also to remember where you want to return for have a proper look. I definitely want to revisit Oxford, this time to look outside of the city centre – also to try a few of those old historic pubs.

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  9. Anonymous

    Thanks so much, Margie. This entry will probably come up as anonymous but it is me. Having trouble with my Gravatar picture not attaching.

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  10. Some lovely photos of your travels Coral! Hope you’re doing ok in Melbourne with all the current restrictions – at least it looks as if the figures are starting to come down again so fingers crossed this trend will continue, take care 🙂

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