Kerry: Passing through Waterville

On our brisk, whistle-stop tour of the Ring of Kerry, we quickly stopped off at Waterville with its grey but picturesque waterfront.

We mainly stopped to get a look at the bronze Charlie Chaplin statue:

Have just read that Chaplin first went on holiday to Waterville in 1959, and then went back every year for over 10 years.

Dorchester: Dorset Martyrs Memorial

The evening before leaving Dorchester, I passed this religious martyrs memorial, and when I read the information there, I saw that some of the martyrs here had been Catholic priests and laymen put to death for their faith in the 16th and 17th centuries.

Have just read that this memorial stands on the old Gallows Hill execution place where the unfortunate victims were sometimes not only put to death by hanging but also drawn and quartered afterwards (sometimes while still being alive). 

Dorchester: Finding a Water Meadow

The evening before I left Dorchester for Paignton, I was lucky enough to come across John's Pond, an old irrigation well near the Mill stream and pathway in Dorchester:

I found John's Pond, said to be named after an escaped convict who drowned there, after visiting the Thomas Hardy statue for the last time and then having a look at the old Roman town house (these three places were part of a signposted walk).
 

After John's Pond, I followed my instinct and went down one of the pathways:

And was heavily rewarded, as I came upon (what I took to be) a water meadow:

This was fantastic, as I would've been massively disappointed if I hadn't seen one in Thomas Hardy country.  The name Thomas Hardy just seems synonymous with water meadows.  I don't know if it's just my imagination or what, but I seem to recall water meadows being sometimes mentioned in Hardy's work, probably in 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles' if my memory serves me right.

Bury (Lancashire): Seeing Old Friends

Saw my old friend John and his girlfriend Steph while in Bury over summer.  Both shots here were taken somewhere up Edgeworth way.

Bantry: By the Waterside

I never tire of passing through Bantry, the place has a kind of grey, drizzle-like charm.

I just like walking by the waterside, looking at the small boats out in the water:

And then there's the charm of St. Brendan and his voyage to the 'Isle of the Blessed'.  St. Brendan can be seen looking out to Bantry Bay in the picture below:

Hardy's Wessex: Dorset County Museum

While in Dorchester, I briefly went in Dorset County Museum, the wonderful building above, to have a look at the Thomas Hardy memorabilia inside the place.

Here, it was the portrait of an old Hardy that caught my eye:

The old advertisement of 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles' below reminded me that Hardy's great novels had been first serialised in magazines:

The portrait of Hardy's first wife, Emma, also caught my eye:

Of course, I also saw the Max Gate study room in the museum (got this shot off the Internet, no matter what I did, I couldn't get a decent shot of it):

But it was the portraits that caught my eye more.

Bantry: A Farmhouse Fire

A shot of a farmhouse fire from the Bantry area.  It was only late August/early September but the fire was necessary to keep warm.