Le Chic En Rose

Frankfurt Am Main – Judengasse and Museum

rosemaylily2014

October 19, 2019

My last posts covered some of the attractions in Mainz, the markets, the cathedrals and museums (see here, here and here). Another place we had highlighted to visit on our trip was the Judengasse Museum (Jewish Lane) and Friedhof (Cemetery) in nearby Frankfurt am Main. Since it was a rather wet and dreary day in Mainz, we decided to take the short train ride (about 25 minutes) up to Frankfurt with our aim to take in the Jewish Museum there. We could have walked from the Hauptbahnhof (main station) but with the inclement weather opted to take the U Bahn out there – a few stops on the metro to Konstablerwache Station. The Museum is situated a short walk away on the corner of Battonnstrasse.

The Jewish Museum in Frankfurt is actually in the midst of renovations and currently only a part of it covering the Early Modern period of history up to 1800 is open to the public. Another permanent exhibition of Jewish life in Germany post 1800 is due to open in the old Rothschilds’ house (Rothschild Palais) in April 2020.

In 1987 excavations in Battonnstrasse uncovered what turned out to be the remains of old Jewish settlements. In fact it was the site of the Judengasse and the old Jewish ghetto, which had first been built in 1492 when the authorities forced all Jewish residents to relocate to one small part of town. The crescent-shaped ghetto built up over the centuries to form a rabbit warren of buildings, many housing several families together, with their lives all closely controlled by the local authorities. The Judengasse was surrounded by walls and access was only possible via three gates, which were closed each night and on Christian holidays.

Over the years many residents became wealthy and there were some fine homes occupied by wealthy merchants plus a couple of beautifully decorated synagogues. From an original population of only about 150 to 200 people the Jewish quarter grew to 3000 in the 18th century before being dissolved in 1796. Not surprisingly given the confined quarters, a huge fire broke out in 1711 burning most of the ghetto to the ground though it was later reconstructed (see here for more information).

We were able to visit the exhibition depicting Jewish life during the period up to the closure of the ghetto in the late 18th century. There were some old photos including one taken of the Judengasse in the 19th century when only half of the original buildings were still intact following the relaxation of the Ghetto restrictions. An interactive model of the Judengasse and its homes provided a visual idea of the proximity of the homes, the inhabitants and their daily lives.

The main section is a fascinating tour through half a dozen of the houses excavated in the 1980s, again interspersed with some background information on some of the residents who lived here. The photos are rather dark owing to the low lighting in the museum and the prohibition of flash photography, but hopefully they convey an idea of the exhibits.

Outside the museum we visited the Boerneplatz Memorial Site – a wall covered with simple stone plaques commemorating the lives of Frankfurt residents murdered during the Holocaust (known as the Shoah by the Jewish people). It was a moving tribute adjacent to the remains of the old Jewish Friedhof (Cemetery). The Battonnstrasse Cemetery is the second oldest preserved Jewish cemetery north of the Alps. The oldest is in Worms, on the River Rhine south of Mainz, which we also visited later in our trip. Although many gravestones were destroyed by the Nazis during the 2nd World War some graves were preserved and the end of the war thankfully interrupted further destruction. You can get the cemetery gate key from the desk in the Jewish Museum for a security fee if you wish to look round. We were, however, able to peer through the cemetery gates and see the tree-filled area with the remaining graves over to one side. It was a moving experience – the oldest graves date back to 1272.

The Jewish Museum is well worth a visit if you are in the Frankfurt am Main area – it’s a poignant and fascinating insight into the way of life in the old Judengasse in Frankfurt.

Mainz – Cathedrals and Museums

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October 6, 2019

The Mainz Tourist Centre, conveniently situated a couple of streets off the market place by the Brueckenturm, is highly recommended if you are visiting Mainz, whether for a few hours, days or longer.

We got a general feel for Mainz wandering through the old town centre and markets (see last week’s post here) – we prefer to absorb the atmosphere of a place first rather than heading off to tick off tourist lists. There are several churches of interest including Mainz Cathedral, museums such as the State Museum, Kunsthalle (Art Gallery) and the famous Gutenberg Museum, to name but a few.

With such a plethora of possibilities, we found it was easier to pick up some guide books from the tourist information centre and work out what we would like to see in the time available, bearing in mind we also wanted to take some day trips out of Mainz during our 6 day trip to Germany.

St Martin’s Cathedral (Mainzer Dom), towering over the market place, seemed an obvious starting point. Founded in 975 AD during the time of Archbishop Willigis, who was a powerful religious and political figurehead, it has survived fires, wars and other dramas over the centuries. A combination of Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque styles, we found the building striking though somewhat dark and oppressive. The Treasury, displaying a wide array of jewels, precious objects and artefacts relating to the Prince Archbishops, was worth a visit though some of the artwork in the modern gallery was not exactly to our taste! I have only got a few photos from the cathedral cloisters and some taken inside the cathedral – I think photography wasn’t permitted inside the treasury or I would have taken more. The light also made it hard to get some reasonable shots.

By contrast we found the beautiful stained glass of St Stephan’s Church (Stephanskirche) more to our liking – it was an exquisite contrast to the dark stone of the rest of the interior. Situated on St Stephan’s Mount across the town from the market place area it was well worth the walk uphill (though you can also take a tram). If you do take a tram you get off near this impressive looking arch (I didn’t note down its significance!).

The soft pretty blue hues of the St Stephan windows have a special story behind them as the beautiful stained glass was designed by the Jewish artist Marc Chagall (1887-1985) as a symbol of Jewish Christian reconciliation in the 1970s. I was so enthralled by their dreamy and ethereal beauty I took dozens of photos! The patterns I think represent angel wings and there are some biblical figures.

The church, which was another of Archbishop Willigis’s commissions (he was actually buried here in 1011), had been more or less demolished during the 2nd World War and was eventually rebuilt. The idea to ask Chagall to design the windows came in the 1970s when Monsignor Klaus Mayer established contact with the artist. Chagall had been born in Russia but spent most of his life in France, aside from his time in the USA as a refugee from the Nazis in the 2nd World War. He was reluctant at first (not understandably) given the horrific events of the wartime period and ambivalent feelings towards Germany but came to see the project as a reconciliatory one bringing hope for the future. Despite being an honorary citizen of Mainz he never visited the city.

The first Chagall window was installed in 1978 when Chagall was 91. Eight more were subsequently fitted including one he completed just before his death at the ripe old age of 97. Fortunately his pupil Charles Marq (from the Atelier Jacques Simon in Reims), who had worked with Chagall for many years, completed a more simple series of windows, which were fitted in the side aisles 19 years later.

We decided that a visit to the Gutenberg Museum was a must and were certainly not disappointed. Johannes Gutenberg (1400-1468), an engraver, inventor and printer, is one of Mainz’s most famous sons and introduced the printing press to Europe. The highlight was seeing the priceless Gutenberg Bibles preserved in special cases in a darkened room (no photos allowed). There were also several other exhibitions covering the history of printing in general not only from Europe but calligraphy from the East. Many original machines and other printing devices were also on display. In fact you could have probably spent a whole day there if you were a serious printing enthusiast. We did a good couple of hours plus a visit to the gift store, which had some excellent gift ideas including little printing and craft sets, which I picked up for our granddaughters back home in Australia.

Another unexpected highlight came towards the end of our visit to the museum when we decided to head down into the basement to see the advertised demonstration of the reconstructed printing press used in Gutenberg’s time. We found, however, that it had been cancelled as they were holding a practice session for one of the staff members who was training to be a guide for French tour parties (though she was a native German speaker). Fortunately they kindly allowed us to sit in on the session provided we didn’t mind that the demonstration was in French. Monsieur and I can get by on French learnt at school and on our travels so we had the curious spectacle of watching Germans speaking French and forgetting all the technical names for the printing paraphernalia (many of which I wouldn’t have known in English!).

Then to my embarrassment I got hauled up on stage as the assistant! Since I can speak more German than French these days I kept reverting to German when I was trying to speak French and the poor flustered lady demonstrator forgot all the technical French words and kept breaking into English mixed with some German. It must have looked hilarious to other onlookers (a small crowd had gathered by this stage)! Monsieur recorded it all for posterity but I did get to take home a replica print of a page from the Gutenberg Bible!

There are more museums and places of historical interest in and around Mainz and this is just a selection of the highlights. Over the next few weeks I’ll be covering some of the day trips we took in the region – we packed quite a lot into our 6 days in the Rhineland area!

Mainz – Exploring the Altstadt and Markets

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September 28, 2019

We found Mainz to be the perfect getaway spot for a few days in between family visits in the UK – a sort of extended mini city break. We like towns that, whilst having plenty of amenities and connections, are not overwhelmingly large and Mainz with approximately 200,000 residents fitted the bill perfectly.

A university town, Mainz is pleasantly situated at the confluence of the Rhine and Main rivers (on the opposite bank from their precise meeting point). If you come by train, as we did from Frankfurt am Main, you suddenly realise that you have rivers on both sides of you as the smaller Main opens up to merge with the wide expanse of the Rhine River. Mainz is the capital of the Rhineland-Palatinate Region close to its border with Hesse (another one of the sixteen German federal states or Bundeslaender). Wiesbaden, which lies on the opposite side of the river to Mainz is the state capital of Hesse whilst Frankfurt am Main is its largest city.

Not surprisingly Mainz has been a strategically important town for centuries. Named Mogontiacum by the Romans it served as a military fortress on their northern borders and was the provincial capital of Germania Superior. Coming into Mainz by train you pass through Mainz Römisches Theater station, which runs adjacent to the remains of what was once the largest Roman theatre north of the Alps. The ruins were excavated during construction of the railway station in the late 19th century and one of the guidebooks I bought said that the trains now run through part of the original stage!

Later Mainz became the seat of the powerful Archbishops of Mainz (the archbishopric was established in 747 AD) who were both secular and political leaders as well as religious ones. By the Middle ages the Archbishops of Mainz were Electors of the Holy Roman Empire – their status and wealth was considerable and you can see their legacy in the imposing presence of St Martin’s Cathedral , which towers over the main market square (currently like so many old buildings undergoing restoration work). I’ll cover our visit to the cathedral and its treasury in another post to follow. I don’t know any of the people in the photo below though!

We were staying in the AC Mainz Hotel near the Hauptbahnhof (see here for my last post) and it was about a twenty minute leisurely walk into the Altstadt or Old Town, which is the main hub of any old European town or city. Along the way to the town centre we had passed by the memorial statue to one of the town’s most famous sons, Johannes Gutenberg, inventor of the typesetting press and printer of the Gutenberg Bibles (more about him in another post – as you can see Mainz is a treasure trove of history). The photo below contains the curious juxtaposition of the statue against a background in the bottom corner of the McDonald’s golden arches – not sure what Gutenberg would have made of that!

Our first full day in Mainz was a Saturday and the town was bustling with locals doing their shopping at the thrice weekly markets held in the picturesque main square (see here for more details).

The town square is surrounded by colourful historic buildings, most of them beautifully restored following the Allied bombing raids in World War Two when about 80% of the town centre was destroyed. I read that after the war different areas chose alternative paths for building restoration with some going for a more modern appearance (such as Frankfurt am Main) but Mainz preferred to restore the buildings to their traditional historical look. They would have been the homes of wealthy merchants back in the day.

With spring officially in the air (despite the bitter cold on that particular Saturday) the stalls were overflowing with an abundance of beautiful white asparagus (Weisser Spargel) and juicy strawberries (Erdbeeren). It wasn’t all just asparagus and strawberries though – there was an enormous selection of other fruits, vegetables, fresh flowers, wines, preserves and pestos, produce such as eggs including painted ones. One stall wishing to assure their customers of the freshness of their eggs had their wares being “advertised” by a slightly bemused looking hen. The inscription as far as I can tell reads, “Keine Angst vor Salmonellen im Ei” – literally “have no fears about Salmonella in the egg”.

We actually visited the market a couple of times on both the Saturday and Tuesday (the other market day is Friday) so the following photos are a selection of our two visits.

It did warm up a bit by the following Tuesday but on that Saturday it was about five degrees maximum with a biting wind so after a quick stroll along the river in the rain, we hightailed into the nearby Messe (Conference Centre) and ate a hearty lunch to warm ourselves up along with sampling a couple of the local drinks too!

Off to Mainz!

rosemaylily2014

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September 13, 2019

So I’m finally getting round to publishing my series of posts on our recent trip to Germany (May 2019). My computer has been having a minor meltdown this past week or so! Monsieur has been helping me fixing it but it seems every electrical communications device I own has suddenly reached its “use by” date – a desktop software update has improved things but my iPad and IPhone are apparently well out of date and it’s now increasingly hard to use them for blog purposes. At some point I need to go shopping…..

Anyway back to the matter in hand. We chose to base ourselves in Mainz for 6 days in between visits to our respective families in Yorkshire and Somerset and a later trip back to London to see our daughter, Mlle.

Why Mainz? Well we prefer slightly less well known places, we’d been to the Rhine region a few years back (see here) and were keen to return and it gave me an opportunity to practice my German (I’ve been part of a weekly German class for over 8 years now!). Rest assured though English is widely spoken in Germany it’s just that I prefer to get the German conversation practice with native speakers.

First though I’m doing a bit of a detour by explaining our travel route. We took a British Airways flight from London City Airport to Frankfurt then caught the local regional train down to Mainz (about 25 minutes away). On the way back we took the rail route – 3 trains from Mainz to London St Pancras in under 8 hours.

We hadn’t been out to London City Airport before and the rail journey from our meeting point at Kings Cross Station took us out through East London and the old dockyards by the river – areas that I’d rarely seen before even though we lived in London for 9 years and of course things have changed dramatically in recent years.

We found the airport rather crowded and muddled our way through their self service check in point. I must admit to an embarrassing episode in security, which shows even experienced travellers can mess things up! We had the boarding passes in electronic form on Monsieur’s phone and we were waved away from the manned security gate to the self service gates instead. I tried to go through with Monsieur as he had both our boarding passes on his phone but this unfortunately triggered a security alarm. What I should have done was wait for Monsieur to go through, then he needed to pass his mobile phone back to me so I could activate my own pass. Just beware of this as we had not encountered it before. With the blaring sirens subsiding and the security staff thankfully lenient we made our way (in my case rather sheepishly) through the security screening gates and through to the boarding area.

A meal and welcome glass of wine later we boarded our plane for the relatively short hop over the Channel to Frankfurt. There is only one runway at London City and the planes have to taxi along the runway to take off – again something we hadn’t seen before. Despite the grey skies and cloudy conditions we did get an excellent view of the docklands area as we took off.

The plane was, as you would expect, more of a shuttle service but all very pleasant apart from the very bumpy descent into Frankfurt due to the cloudy conditions. We were scheduled to land at Terminal 1, according to our itinerary. This is more convenient if, like us, you are connecting to a local train as the Regional Bahn Train service is situated under the Terminal 1 building. However for some reason we landed at Terminal 2 instead so had to take the SkyLine shuttle service bus between terminals (see here for more info).

Finally after a very long travelling day (we had both had early starts from the north and west of England respectively) we arrived at Mainz Hauptbahnhof in the early evening. A couple of minutes walk across the main square took us to our hotel, the AC Mainz. With our baggage we preferred to stay close to the station rather than lug our cases into town (about 20 minutes walk away). We easily got about either by walking or taking one of the many trams, which stopped just outside our hotel front door. Despite the proximity to the station it was actually surprisingly quiet and the hotel restaurant had a lovely view out to the square and the impressive station facade.

I settled down for an evening relaxing at our hotel whilst Monsieur headed out to see a football game FC Mainz against Leipzig (an exciting 3 all draw and he returned with a newly purchased Mainz scarf to add to his collection).

Next day though we set off to explore downtown Mainz – lots more photos to come!

A Spring Walk Round Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal

rosemaylily2014

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August 25, 2019

I’ve been writing about various walks and gardens in Yorkshire recently – some perennial favourites when I’m back there visiting my UK family (see here, here and here for recent posts).

For some reason I’ve never posted about Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal although I’ve been dozens of times before (apart from a few photos I posted back in 2015 here).

Set in a beautiful location in a valley alongside the River Skell (a tributary of the River Ure), the ruins of the abbey and the 18th century designed water gardens of Studley Royal have been a World Heritage Site since 1986 and are now owned by the National Trust.

The history of the “Dissolution of the Monasteries” by Henry VIII came about through a series of complicated political and religious machinations in the late 1530s and early 1540s. Sadly Fountains was destroyed in 1539 but, despite the chequered past, the ruins have stood the test of time and remain an imposing and sometimes haunting place to walk round.

Combined with the stunning water gardens of the nearby Studley Royal Park they make a lovely walk especially on a fine day. There is an iconic picture-perfect view of the ruined abbey coming into view as you round the bend approaching from the Studley Royal end of the park.

You can start the walk at either the Fountains Abbey Visitor Centre at the top end of the site or the lower end by the lake at Studley Royal. There is a self-service restaurant serving a wide range of local produce adjacent to the Visitor Centre and a well-stocked National Trust shop nearby too (always a good spot to pick up some gifts and souvenirs!).

For a lighter snack-style meal try the tea rooms at the Studley Royal end or the Mill Cafe by the abbey ruins (formerly the Abbey Tea Rooms). Just note that the pathway from the Visitor Centre leading down to the Abbey, whilst tarmacked, is rather steep and might not be suitable for everyone.

On our recent visit in April we had lunch at the Visitor Centre Restaurant then drove back round to the Studley Royal lake entrance. From there we walked the full loop to and from the Abbey. Prices are fairly steep if you haven’t got a National Trust membership but well worth it.

Here is a pictorial tour!

Restoration of the Studley Royal Gardens is ongoing and we found some interesting information signs along the way including details of the “bosquets” (a landscape design term see here for a more detailed explanation!).

For more information about the history of Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal see the link here to the relevant National Trust website.

For more interesting walks and rambles round the world join Restless Jo and her Monday Walks each week!

Temple Newsam Gardens Leeds

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August 11, 2019

Temple Newsam House and Gardens was a favourite weekend outing destination when I was growing up in Leeds. Recently I had a pleasant stroll round the grounds again whilst spending time with my Yorkshire family. It must have been 25 years plus since I was last there!

It was the end of April and between floral seasons so the daffodils were waning and the rhododendrons and azaleas only just starting to bloom. Yet although the colours were more muted it was still a charming and tranquil place for a mid afternoon stroll.

We wandered past the goats grazing on the grass at Home Farm, which looked a fun place for children and young families. However we didn’t have time to go up to the main house or stop off at the cafe.

There is also a “Go Ape” climbing activity course for anyone who is interested. I preferred to stay on the ground though!

You can find other posts about my Yorkshire and UK travels both recent and historical here. I have one more Yorkshire post from my recent trip to share then we’ll be off to Germany and the Rhine before coming back to East London.

Valley Gardens Harrogate – Walk to Harlow Carr

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July 14, 2019

I wrote about Harlow Carr Gardens in my last post (see here) then remembered that I’d never blogged about an attractive alternative to driving there from the centre of Harrogate. I hunted out photos taken in Spring 2015 from my archive. On that occasion there was a family gathering for my brother’s milestone birthday and with space at a premium we stayed in an apartment adjacent to the lovely Valley Gardens with Mlle who’d come up from London for the occasion.

The Valley Gardens extend at the upper end into woodland known as Pinewoods. We decided to follow the signposted route one day to see where it led us. The pathway is gentle and undulating though did get a big boggy in parts so sensible shoes (or better still boots) are a must!

At one point the trees and bushes suddenly make way to give you an uninterrupted view across the valley towards the Yorkshire Dales. There is an information board giving you details of the Pinewoods Panorama. It was one of those clear crisp sunny early April days and we had a glorious view across to the moors. The Pinewoods Conservation Group is a registered charity that works to conserve the environment and natural harmony in this area and other parts of Harrogate.

From memory, the walk from Valley Gardens took us about 25 minutes or so before we came out at a little stile by the Harlow Carr carpark area. Naturally morning tea at Betty’s Cafe was obligatory before we wended our way back into town!

For more interesting walks around the world head over to Restless Jo and her regular Monday Walk here!

A Grey Spring Day at Harlow Carr

rosemaylily2014

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June 30, 2019

Apologies for my lengthy absence from the blog! We are in the midst of major renovations to the kitchen and laundry area and it has been somewhat chaotic to say the least but we are looking forward to the end result!

I did start my series on our recent European trip with a couple of posts about York (see here and here).

Today is a pictorial tour round Harlow Carr Gardens in Harrogate, always a favourite spot for a walk when I’m visiting my family (see here and here for a previous visit in spring and by way of contrast, autumn).

On the day my dad and I visited in April, it was unfortunately rather grey and gloomy but the moody sky did provide a nice contrast to the deep pinks, soft peaches and golden yellow colours of the tulips.

No trip to Harlow Carr would feel complete without an afternoon tea at Betty’s Cafe (one of several in Yorkshire, there is another one in Harrogate on the corner of Montpellier Parade in the town centre). The rainy weather provided the perfect excuse to head indoors and enjoy a delicious Yorkshire cream tea!

York – A Spring Stroll!

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June 9, 2019

Despite the rather grey and chilly weather, the walk round the old City Walls in York was a real highlight (see here for last week’s post).

Nevertheless the wind still had a definite chill to it and I wondered if I had been too optimistic in wearing a lighter jacket – perhaps my warm coat would have been a better option? By the afternoon, however, the sun had broken through the clouds and burnt off any lingering mist. It was simply glorious and I began to feel quite warm for the first time since I’d arrived in the UK.

York has multiple attractions and I’ve been lucky to visit many times previously. The Jorvik Viking Centre is a must see if you’ve time (see here), the Minster, magnificent both inside and out, the Castle Museum fascinating not to mention the gorgeous old streets with quaint names such as Spurriergate, High Petergate and the famous Shambles where you can wander for hours popping in and out of the myriad shops. And that’s just a few ideas for starters!

On this occasion both my brother and I wanted to do some shopping post lunch but first we had a wander round and browsed in the markets next to the Shambles.

By mid afternoon there were sunbathers in the York Museum Gardens (not me it didn’t seem that warm for someone visiting from the Antipodes!). I took some photos of the old Benedictine Monastery of St Mary’s Abbey that are situated in the grounds. First built in 1088, the abbey was destroyed as part of Henry VIII’s “Reformation”in the 1500s. The ruins basking in the spring sun provided a perfect backdrop for a bridal party busy taking photos.

Strolling round I also came across the York Observatory. The oldest working observatory in Yorkshire, it is open each day from 11.30am to 2.30pm but it’s best to check before planning a visit as it is manned by volunteers and not always open to schedule.

We finally made our way back to the river, after a detour up to the Minster and enjoyed an early dinner at a pub we discovered a few visits ago – the Pitcher and Piano.

I always find new discoveries on every visit to York. This time I stopped to read the little plaque on the wall near St Martin’s Church. I must have walked past it many times before and never noticed it – another small vignette of York’s history this time from the 20th century.

York – A Walk Round The Old City Walls

rosemaylily2014

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May 25, 2019

Back from our recent trip to the Uk and Germany and trying to get myself organised before we begin major kitchen and laundry renovations in a couple of weeks time! I thought I would write up my posts on our latest trip now whilst it’s still fresh in my mind and then go back to complete the lengthy series on Canada and Alaska (see here and here for those posts so far).

I spent about 10 days up in Yorkshire visiting my family. Of course I have blogged about this lovely area before but even so one always seems to find new things to do and places to visit. York is a perennial favourite of mine and I spent an enjoyable day out there with my brother. Despite its myriad attractions (see here and here for previous posts), I have never walked all the way round the old city walls before. I’ve taken the iconic photos of the Minster from Lendal Bridge and occasionally walked along a short stretch of the walls near the Castle Museum but this was my first complete circuit.

We strolled along at a leisurely pace stopping regularly to take photos and it took us about an hour and an quarter but according to the tourist information you should allow 2 hours (see here for more information). I’m quite sure we didn’t miss out any sections and we didn’t walk particularly fast so perhaps that is a conservative estimate. There are 5 main bars or gateways and you can access the walls at any of these main points. The history is well explained as you go round – the history of York is colourful, sometimes tragic but always fascinating and you get a feel for how the city has evolved over the centuries, a melting pot of different peoples, cultures and religions. Romans, Vikings, travellers from the Middle East, Jewish people, and opposing armies in the English Civil War have all walked here before.

The City Walls originated in Roman times but their course has changed considerably since then and they curve round what would probably have been the old medieval city. They are remarkably well preserved though there are sections where you just have to walk along a modern street for a little while before climbing the steps and rejoining the path along the walls. Dogs are not allowed unless they are guide dogs and you do have to exercise some caution as one side often didn’t have railings. Although they drop off to a grassy embankment I wouldn’t fancy falling off so do take care when passing people especially with elderly people and children. The steps to get on and off the different sections are also rather steep so might not be suitable for everyone. We arrived back near to our starting point at Lendal Bridge ready for a hearty lunch!

I was also very sad to read about the light plane crash in the Ketchikan neighbourhood the other week (see here). I had written about Ketchikan just before we went on holiday last month (see here). It’s a beautiful small fishing port, which relies heavily on the tourist industry for business – thoughts are with those affected by this tragic accident.