Bury Job Centre: A Bleak Place

Opposite St. Joseph's Church (a quite beautiful building, the interior too):

Stands the Job Centre in Bury:

While in Bury recently, I popped in to see how the place might help me (yeah, especially in hindsight, this was possibly being naive):

And what a shock I got: 

A fresh-faced young man (probably in his mid-20s) just casually told me that through me having lived/ worked abroad for many years, I would have to take a "residency test" to see if I was eligible for applying for any kind of benefit or job.

What is more, when he was told that this is morally reprehensible and that I am quite obviously an ethnic Englishman, he claimed that I was being "aggressive" and that I'd "come in with an attitude" (this sounded like par for the course, left-wing, government office diatribe, of course). 

At a deeper level, the young man didn't seem to like dealing with people who can think for themselves and who can challenge what he says (critiquing is a central value of a democratic society, of course).

This is another example of what I've experienced over the past few years that appears to support a growing idea or view that in terms of repressing free speech, modern-day Britain is on a par with the likes of North Korea.    

Bury: A Good Pint

One of the few nice surprises from the recent trip to Bury (my hometown): a wonderful pint of lager in the Joey Holts' pub, Wyldes.

This pint of lager was highly refreshing and had a wonderful, faint malty aftertaste. 

The Wyldes pub itself was also good, with decent background music (e.g. Echo & The Bunnymen) being played.

Bury: Passing the Victoria Wood Statue

Opposite Bury Library (above), I passed the Victoria Wood statue, which was nowhere near as bad as I'd been led to believe:

There was also a noticeboard alongside the statue, briefly summarising Victoria Wood's life story:

It would appear that Victoria got out of Bury at an early age and made a big success of her life, of course.

Through Summerseat to Ramsbottom

After passing through Nangreaves and the beautiful Gothic-looking church near the top of the Walmersley area of Bury:

I went down Bass Lane (dodging cars all the time) and landed in Summerseat, with the big building on the river looking great below a clear blue sky: 

Having just stepped foot into Summerseat, I remembered the old country lane(s) through to Ramsbottom:

And was soon passing through what seemed to have once been Nuttall Village:

If it hadn't been for the notice board, I would never have known.

And following the river, I passed a flight of steps:

And reached Nuttall Park:

Which brought back memories of playing football as a schoolboy in the late 1970s.

And in Ramsbottom, I had a rest near the Civic Hall:

I was soon to return to Bury and couldn't help but feel that while Bury town centre suffers from obvious, modern urban, demographic problems, Ramsbottom, Stubbins, and Edenfield still offer a taste or echo of old/traditional Lancashire, and this is why I like these places.

Stubbins: Fields in All Directions

Happily, from behind the quarry at Stubbins, I could see fields in all directions:

Sometimes, sadly, with wind turbines on top of hills:

In the opposite direction, I could see Holcombe Hill which I'd explored the day before: 

Away from the quarry, the countryside started to have real charm.

I was ready to head towards Nangreaves; the top of Walmersley; Summerseat; and finally back to Ramsbottom.

Stubbins: Tree-Veiled Quarry

 My second day camping in Stubbins, after passing the train station in Ramsbottom:

I made my way to Stubbins to see, through a veil of trees, a huge quarry:

Must say that it wasn't a pretty sight:

Especially up close:

So I was glad to gain some distance from the place:

Stone Path on Holcombe Moorland

 After doing the moorland path walk again:

 

Looking down through a light fog:

I decided to take a look at what lies behind Peel Tower, being well impressed with the stone flags that cut through the drenched moorland:

As a bloke noted, passing by: the stone flags "certainly made life easier".

In general, I was just looking for decent openings for future walks:

For maybe next year, if I end up on Holcombe Hill again.

Holcombe Hill has always been one of my favourite places in Ramsbottom/Bury, but I've never really explored what lies beyond.