Saturday, March 19th, 2011: The Potteries Museum, The Hoard

Today we got up and went to see the HOARD at The Potteries Museum and Art Gallery. The Keele and Staffordshire Universities’ Forensic Science units teamed up with the museum to have a hands on activities of how forensics solves problems and how some of the same skills used in Forensics are used in treasure hunting. It was a great day full of activities. Alexandra really loved the CSI parts: finding the “baddy” using shoe prints, fiber analysis and DNA. She also like panning for gold, using the microscope to search for gems and shoe prints.

I was told why the battle ax was so small in comparison to the one at Warrick Castle. The one used at the Potteries was an example of Anglo-Saxon times while the Warrick Battle Ax was more appropriate for the middle ages.

The Staffordshire Hoard (Staffordshire is the county where we live) “The largest ever find of Anglo-Saxon gold treasure has been unearthed in a Staffordshire field.
The finds, known as The Staffordshire Hoard, comprise in excess of 1,500 individual items, mostly gold, with some silver. Many are decorated with precious stones.

Most of the treasure appears to date from the seventh century, and the supreme quality ...indicates royal ownership. The hoard includes a strip of gold which bears a biblical inscription in Latin, quoting chapter 10 verse 35 of the Book of Numbers: “Rise up, o Lord, and may thy enemies be dispersed and those who hate thee be driven from thy face”. ...

The vast majority of the items are ...war materials from the battlefield. The artefacts were discovered in what had been the heartland of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia which was militarily aggressive and expansionist during the seventh century under kings Penda, Wulfhere and Aethelred. Some items are decorated in what is known as ‘Anglo-Saxon Style II’ which consists of strange animals, interlaced around each other, with long intertwined jaws. Many objects are inlaid with garnets.

The hoard was first discovered in July (2009) by metal detectorist Terry Herbert on private farmland, with the written consent of the landowner. ” http://www.stokemuseums.org.uk/pmag/hoard/hoardpage

Friday, March 18th, 2011: Day at the Park

Alexandra had the day off from school so the 3 of us (Alexandra, Brian and I) hung out at home and then went to the park just outside of Keele campus. It was gorgeous day. No one else was at the park for the longest time. That night Anusha took me shopping. It was a very good day.

Something I keep meaning to mention is that Brian is trying all sorts of words. His vocabulary is flourishing. Tonight he pulled off his trousers and said “trousers”. He also likes to say ‘no way” and “all kinds”. Its quite wonderful.

Saturday, March 12, 2011: Stafford Castle and Yummy Indian food

We visited the Stafford Castle ruins. It was great fun. The ruins are quite nice and even Brian and Alexandra liked it. Then we came home and made cake balls. We all are going for dinner at Anusha and David (Armod) for a true Indian Dinner.

The dinner was a fabulous meal. I wish that I had brought my camera to take pictures of the food. It was so good. Anusha and Armod were great hosts and we had at least 3 bottles of wine. No heartburn was felt by anyone after the meal. I will be asking her for the recipes for all her dishes and her dessert. I am also thinking about asking for the name of her cook book to give it as a gift to Adam. It really was amazing!!! I can’t stop raving about it.

Thursday, March 10th, 2011: Wedgewood

Ladies Day at Wedgwood!!!! AWESOME!!! We dropped off the kids- Brian at nursery and Alexandra at Silverdale, then off we went to Wedgwood. It was great. We actually made Jasper Ware vases. Can’t wait to get them back in a few weeks. The learned that Wedgwood did not win the “China” competition (that was Josiah Spode that created the fine “bone” china that won the prize and perfected the flow through blue/blue under painting). It was great fun to learn all about how Stoke-on-Trent was part of the potteries and how Wedgwood helped the area develop. Also to remember that in addition to plates, & cups, other things are made of clay/pottery. Lots of everyday items: jars, pots, hot water bottles, chamber pots and toilets. Wedgwood did indeed produce the first 3 for the masses. We found a lovely tea set that was doll house size but it was 169 POUNDS (=$200) so that idea of buying one for Amy and Alexandra was out. Maybe I will find a cheap set elsewhere. We did see and buy some Jasperware Jewelry. Below is a picture of one of the artist’s making the jewelry with his mouth torch to heat up the metal while still leaving 2 hands free to work.

 

Sunday March 6th, 2011: Stonehenge, Avebury, and Salisbury

Got up at 7:30 to get on the road to Stonehenge. It was a good drive. We went right through the center of Bath. They were having a race that morning so it was a good thing we got up early or we would have been diverted onto roads not on our directions. We didn’t get to see any of the racers but we did see the did see the people preparing for them. We made it to Stonehenge without too much difficultly. It was a beautiful day. While the weather was cooler then the previous day and it was just as windy, THE SUN WAS OUT!!!! We got our audio tour and went around. It was a completely different day from the first time that I went. That time was about 20 years ago, I was about 14/15. It was a very dreary day: rainy, muddy and cold- there was no tour and mom just had to tell us what we read from the tour book, This time the weather was glorious, they had an audio tour that told us about the stones. Alexandra learned a lot and liked it too. She even told me something that I had missed: the tall Sraeson stones were suppose to be cold to the touch while the Blue Stones were suppose to warm to the touch. Alexandra seemed to really like Stonehenge.

Then we go into the car and went to Salisbury Cathedral. The cathedral was very beautiful. We learned that it was originally was built on another site within the castle walls. But the clergy and the soldiers would argue. One day the clergy went out to work in the fields, and returned home to find the gates locked for the night. The soldiers said tough. So the bishop wrote to the Pope and said they had land down by the river could they move the cathedral? The Pope said yes, good of you to stick it out so long as conditions are appalling within the castle walls, don’t know what took you so long to make the request. So they decided to develop the land. There are several stories on how they choose this specific location: 1. That the best archer fired his arrow into the air, it traveled 4 miles to the spot where the foundation stone was placed. 2. That the archer’s arrow struck a deer’s antlers and the deer took the arrow to the spot of where the foundation stone was placed. 3. The clergy and people who made the decision, knew where the best spot would be. That the property is Salisbury is where 5 rivers converge. Therefore schale/slate that was upriver will come down river, slow down where they all converge and create a good strong spot. The cathedral was built between 1221 and 1253 with just one architect, one type of stone and in one style only because they never ran out of money. Also because of the ground being made of schale/slate, it needs water to stay in place and not settle. So if they have a drought the fire dept. comes and waters the ground so that the schale will not move and the building not move. Within the cathedral walls is one of the 4 remaining original copies of the Magna Carta. Adam was extremely happy to see this document. I’m pretty sure that he took a few pictures even though no photography is allowed.

Back in the car. This time to Avebury. Alexandra and Brian fell asleep in the car so they missed it. Mom sat in the car with the kids while Adam and I walked around the stones. It was amazing even though it was a quick stop. Then back in the car toward home.

We stopped in Birddip @ a pub for dinner and then back on the road. It was dark by the time we made it to M5. We thought it would be an easy transition from the M5 to the M6. But of course it was not. We ended up going the wrong direction, toward London which cost us about an hour. We ended up not getting home until 10 PM. Even with the misdirection, it was a perfect day. Truly enjoyable.

Saturday, March 5th, 2011: Bristol

We got up very early: 5:50 am to get on the road by 7 am so that we could get to Bristol. It was a good drive. Mom drove, Adam and I navigated. I felt it was a wonderful experience because it was not easy but it was not horrible and it gave Adam a taste of what its like to drive over here.

Upon arrival in Bristol, we took a tour of the city via the CitySighting tour group. It was an un-covered double decker bus. It was very windy and cold up there by Alexandra and I rode the whole way up there. (Ironic since I didn’t want to ride up top and Adam had agreed to with Alexandra).  I learned that Bristol made a good amount of money from the slave trade. It was part of the “slave trade triangle”: Bristol would send a ship to Africa full of cotton, wool or silk cloth. Then in Africa it would disembark the cloth and take on slaves and sail to North America; typically North or South Carolina. There it would drop off the slaves and pick up cotton (raw), tobacco (raw) and other products, which would ship back to Bristol. The cotton would be made into cloth and the tobacco in to tobacco products. Bristol has a strong history in making tobacco, particularly storing the tobacco before the tax was paid on it. We also learned that “spy holes” (peep holes) were placed in pubs around the harbor so that after the person had a few drinks, they could make sure that the “press gangs” were not around. The “press gangs” were in charge of “impressing the men into labor on a ship”. There was a pub that allowed a reporter to interview ship hands with regard to the slave trade. Edward Colton, who was a major profiteer of the slave trade, was embarrassed by the reports and eventually stopped slave trading. We saw the Clifton Suspension Bridge. We also saw where Wallace and Gromit are created.

After the tour, we had a quick bite to eat and then off to the @ Bristol (children’s science muesum). Alexandra and Brian loved it. Alexandra made a movie and emailed it to herself. She also learned how locks and hot air balloons work. We went to the Planetarium. Brian and I left ½ through the show. But Alexandra got to see the whole show. It was great. Then we had dinner in Bristol and off to the car park to find our way home. Getting back to the hotel was an adventure. It was dark and we made a incorrect turn at the very beginning. 20 miles out of our way, and stopping for directions once, we found our way back to the hotel. It was about 9 pm. Adam and Mom stayed up to map our was to Stonehenge, Salisbury and Aveabury for the next day.

Friday, March 4th, 2011: Alexandra's Party

We had a small party for Alexandra’s birthday. We invited Deidrea, Callum, & husband/dad (forgot his name), Ethan, Eva, Natalie and Nicholas, and Anusha & family. The kids played and had cichken nuggets, carrots, a “Hello Kitty Cake” and ice cream. Ethan gave Alexandra a bead box to make jewelry and Callum gave her a multi-color Hello Kitty pen. The kids had a great time and so did the adults. It was a great success. Anusha, Arnada (aka David) and Rachel stayed until about 9:30 or 10 pm drinking scotch, Amarula (a liquor from South Africa). It was great fun.

  

Thursday, March 3rd, 2011: Birthday and Kings & Queens' Day

ALEXANDRA IS 6!!! Happy Birthday Big Girl!

It was KINGS & QUEENS Day at school. So everybody got to dress up as a King or a Queen. Alexandra wore her new dress up costume. She told me she was Cinderella. Later that day she told me that her day was “Fantastic.” She had a great time at school, every child dressed up in her class. She got to pass out Cadbury’s Buttons to everyone and then we rushed home to Skype with Mrs. Blakeley’s class.

Monday, February, 28th, 2011: Newcastle Fire

First day back to school for Alexandra after Half-Term break. On our way to school, we saw a huge fire shooting into the sky in Newcastle. It turned out to be the Pound Saver store. It was gutted, it will probably be torn down. They don’t know what started the fire. And they managed to save the buildings on either side. Mom had her camera so we got lots of pictures.

 

Saturday, February 26th, 2011: Cadbury World and Marios' house

 

This morning was a very long day. It started at 5:30 am to get us all out to the taxi by 6:15 and on the train by 6:37 am on the way to Bournville. We were on our way to Cadbury Chocolate Factory. Alexandra’s “favorite” part of the day was going to the “Chocolate factory”. It was a surprise for her birthday. We didn’t tell the kids where we were going. Alexandra had to figure it out. We finally told her when she asked if we were going to a candy shop. The factory is lots of fun. We were in the first group at 9 am and could have spent all day there. Brian’s favorite part was dancing while at the factory. All of us really enjoyed it and we had plenty of chocolate. We even got to “design” our own candy bar. Alexandra chose marshmallows and chocolate, Brian chose (and yes he chose, he was very admit) gummy bears and chocolate, Adam chose biscuit (not soft flakey but British cookie biscuit), mom had rice crispies and chocolate. I had toffee popcorn and chocolate. Yummy. When Adam asked Brian what kind of chocolate he had today he replied: “All kinds”.

Then we met Marios, Angelica and Aysu (I-sue) for lunch at Café Rouge. It was lovely. Then we went back to their house to play for the afternoon. They gave Alexandra an early birthday present: a queen dress up costume. They also gave Brian a swashbuckler costume. Brian liked the costume enough to get the shirt on but then he saw a daisy dress he like better. So he spent the afternoon dressed up like a beautiful flower. The kids all played together. Both of ours got a little cranky toward the end. Marios then took us back to the train station to arrive home around 8 pm. We finally got the kids to bed around 8:45. Up early to bed late. Oh, I forgot to mention that Brian slept through the night again last night!!!



Alexandra's present & what Brian wore



Angelica and Brian having tea



What the costumes really look like



Friday, February 25th, 2011: Monkey Forest

 Today Mom, Alexandra , Brian and I went to Monkey Forest in Trentham Estates (about 20 minutes from the house by bus). It was lots of fun. We went to a Barbary Macaque conservation area on a 60 acre forest today. There were 149 monkies and no cages or fences between people and monkies. They were not tame but used to people being around. The kids loved it. Mom “gave” her good leather gloves away (by accident) so there is probably a very warm-handed, stylish monkey on the preserve!

Thursday, February 24th, 2011: Alexandra rides her bike!

The sun was out ALL day. It got to 43 degrees. We spent most of it outside. Went to visit Adam’s office, then Keele Hall and walk to the lakes. Home for lunch and then to ride bikes. Alexandra rode her bike BY HERSELF!!!! AMAZING! We are very proud of her. Then played with some other kids on the street: George(6) and Francis (5), Ethan (4), Ruby (4) and Lewis (6). It was good fun.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011: Stratford upon Avon

Woke up at the Holiday Inn in Stratford upon Avon. Headed into town to get a on a Bus tour of Stratford and the Shakespeare house at Tourist Information. Guess what, tourist information opens at 10 AM and the bus tour starts at 10 AM, but not from Tourist Information. So we ended up waiting an hour at Pen and Parchment for the bus. We finally started our journey and went to Anne Hathaway’s house first. It was great!!! Then we missed our bus and had to wait another hour. Still it was a good adventure. Then back on the bus, into town and had lunch across from Shakespeare’s birthplace/home. We attempted to go to the doctor’s house but it was closed (4 pm) so we picked up our luggage from the hotel and walked to the train station to go home. It was a tough journey for all of us as we were very tired.

We learned about the phrase “Frog in your throat”. Apparently when a person was hoarse or had a sore throat, the doctor would take a frog tie a string to its legs and dangle the frog in the sick person’s throat until the frog produced salvia which the sick person swallowed. It turns out that now in modern medicine they are able to test the frog and have determined that the saliva had antibiotic element. That is where the phrase “Do you have a frog in your throat” comes from.



Tree in Shakespeares' back garden.



Shakespeares' house



 

 

A picture of the Stratford High Street to the left.

Ann Hathaway's house (Shakespeare never lived here) below.