Less than a year from now I will be back from my long-postponed re-visit to Europe. Against my previous opinion, I am assembling a Bucket List for this trip. The idea has aways seemed foolish to me, but as travel becomes more and more fraught with the complications of visas, unreliable air connections, and over-populations of popular sights, I decided to work on that list. Age has nothing to do with it!?
Please click on the thumbnails for larger versions. I can hardly believe what I came up with first...the Wells Cathedral, above. And second, the City of Bristol. Hunh? I realized that I have visited Bath many times and most of the stately homes and famous historical sites nearby, but never those neighborhoods. The Wells Cathedral figures in one of my Christmas novellas. Below, left, Bristol Harbor; right, the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery.
Above left, The Bristol Assembly, 1818, by Rolinda Sharples (1793-1838); Blaise Hamlet, developed by John Nash c. 1811. Bristol was one of the centers for the Atlantic Triangular Trade up to the 19th century, carrying enslaved Africans to America, returning to Bristol with tobacco and other products, and carrying manufactured goods to Africa. Perhaps this is why I have avoided the place in the past, but history is not to be denied. One must acknowledge the dreadful as well as enjoy the quaint and beautiful.
Below left, St James's Palace, now sometimes open in London, and right, Highgrove, King Charles III's estate in the Cotswolds. Both of these involve difficult-to-obtain tickets I hope we can acquire well in advance for their limited openings in 2026.
Below left, St James's Palace, now sometimes open in London, and right, Highgrove, King Charles III's estate in the Cotswolds. Both of these involve difficult-to-obtain tickets I hope we can acquire well in advance for their limited openings in 2026.
Above left, Audley End in Essex, and right, Attingham Park, near Birmingham in Shropshire. Both of these great NT properties are a little off our potential route, so visits are iffy.
Some years ago, Ed and I visited Clandon Park in Surrey, a wonderful country estate designed in 1730 by Italian architect Giacomo Leoni (1686-1746). Ten years ago in 2015, it suffered a disastrous fire which destroyed its roof and much of the interior. Though the semi-restored house is occasionally open, the gardens are accessible more of the time. Below, two pre-fire pictures, and beneath them, after the fire. The National Trust has begun a controversial plan, much debated, not to restore the house but to construct an enclosure and walkways to allow visitors to inspect the damaged ruins. I'd like to see what this involves more closely.
Some years ago, Ed and I visited Clandon Park in Surrey, a wonderful country estate designed in 1730 by Italian architect Giacomo Leoni (1686-1746). Ten years ago in 2015, it suffered a disastrous fire which destroyed its roof and much of the interior. Though the semi-restored house is occasionally open, the gardens are accessible more of the time. Below, two pre-fire pictures, and beneath them, after the fire. The National Trust has begun a controversial plan, much debated, not to restore the house but to construct an enclosure and walkways to allow visitors to inspect the damaged ruins. I'd like to see what this involves more closely.
Above left, Claremont House, also in Surrey (photo by Heathermitch via Wikipedia); right, Claremont Landscape Garden, NT, one of Capability Brown's earliest examples of his widely-renowned designs. The house is now a school, but the garden is open to visitors. The property was purchased by the nation for Princess Charlotte of Wales (1796-1817) and her husband Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (1790-1865), later King of the Belgians. After Princess Charlotte died in childbirth at age 21, Leopold lived at Claremont, often hosting his niece, Queen Victoria (1819-1901), her husband Prince Albert (1819-1861), and the family.
The trip will begin with a cruise from Fort Lauderdale to Amsterdam, with a few stops along the way...and will include touring with Number One London tours. More to come!
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