Visiting Thomas Hardy's St. Juliot Rectory

After visiting St. Juliot church, I soon found St. Juliot rectory above.

The lane leading down to the rectory was beautifully gladed which offered a welcome respite from the strong wind:

The rectory is now an upmarket-looking B&B:

To get down to it, you have to cross over an old cattle grid:

In 'Discovering Hardy's Wessex', Anne-Marie Edwards (1978/1982: 51) reveals that besides meeting his wife, Emma, at the rectory, Hardy wrote 'A Pair of Blue Eyes' in the sheltered rectory garden, and that the seat "where he proposed to Emma, is still in the garden". Thus, I can't help but think that the seat facing the reader, left below, may be the seat in question:

After I'd explained my interest in Hardy, the landlady of the B&B very kindly let me have a look round the rectory garden, and I got to see some of the intricate paths where Hardy must've courted Emma:

Hawklords: A New Day Festival 3rd August 2019

Having seen Hawkwind many times over the years, it was great to finally catch Hawklords.

'Psi Power' and 'Uncle Sam's on Mars' have been in my mental jukebox for years and it was great hearing them live.

Also really enjoyed listening to more recent tunes such as 'Nightside'.

Harbledown: Passing St. Nicholas' Leper Church

Undoubtedly, our highlight from visiting Harbledown village on the outskirts of Canterbury, Kent, was seeing the old lepers' church of St. Nicholas:

Had loved visiting this place between 1999 and 2003 when living in Canterbury.

Have just read that the Hospital of St. Nicholas was founded in 1084 by Archbishop Lanfranc for 60 lepers, and that Henry II paused here in 1174 while travelling to Canterbury Cathedral to do penance for the murder of St. Thomas Becket (all this reminds me of doing TS Eliot's 'Murder in a Cathedral' for A Level English Literature many moons ago).

Have also just discovered that Erasmus and John Collet visited the site while travelling to Canterbury Cathedral in 1519.

Moreover, have just discovered that a church has stood on the site since the 12th century.

Can see that there's much more to read about St. Nicholas' church/hospital/almshouses on the internet. The place does seem to have an incredible history for people to discover.

Passing the Harbledown War Memorial

Passing the war memorial outside St. Michael's and All Angels church in the picturesque village of Harbledown on the outskirts of Canterbury, Kent.

Have just read that the Harbledown War Memorial contains the names of 27 local residents who died/ went missing during the 1st World War and 10 from the 2nd World War.

The Poisoned Glen

After seeing Old Church Dunlewey, I had a quick look at what is known as the Poisoned Glen:
 

Have just read that the Poisoned Glen is well-known for its valleys, mountains, and lakes.

While I looked towards the Poisoned Glen, I was still aware that Mount Eriggal lay behind me:

With it being a good, clear day without rain, I really felt at home with the pristine nature of this area:

And of course, it was really sad to say goodbye to Old Church Dunlewey:

Catching Up with Kotek

Had fun catching up with Kotek recently. In the picture above, he's making himself comfortable while watching television.

A Wet Clitheroe

After sunny weeks in Donegal and Kent; mainly sunny weather in Dorset and strong winds/rain in north Cornwall; I headed north to my native Lancashire to be greeted with a week of rain.

One day, we caught the train from Bolton to Clitheroe:

Of course, Clitheroe is a beautiful place, relatively unscathed by many of the sociological ills that afflict Bury, Oldham, Rochdale etc.

My friends Mike and Phil were well-prepared. Somehow, we found ourselves heading towards Stonyhurst College on the Tolkien Trail on one of the wettest days of the year: