Night out!

Last December, and for the second year in succession, Richard won first prize in the raffle at the UCLES' Pensioners' Christmas lunch - dinner for two at the Cambridge City Hotel.  So yesterday we took up the offer.

Torquay and the Eden Project 4-8 July 2011 - better late than never!

Monday evening at Anstey's Cove just below our hotel - so far so good, weather-wise!

River Dart

Tuesday and a boat trip along the River Dart

Approaching Dartmouth in the fog - July believe it or not!

A trip on the Paignton & Dartmouth Steam Railway from Kingswear to Paignton

Approaching Paignton

Where are the holiday makers?

Paignton beach, and not a soul in sight!

Ah, three people having fun on the beach...

Wednesday and a free day in Torquay.  The weather was still very unsettled so we visited Torre Abbey as that had the advantage or providing shelter from the sudden storms!  The Abbey was partially demolished in the Reformation when the remains were converted into a private house.  From 1662 until 1930 it was owned by the Cary family.  When they could no longer afford its upkeep it was sold to the local council who turned it into an art gallery and civic centre.

A stone coffin in the remains of the chancel.  It probably belonged to William Brewer the Younger who died in 1232. His father founded the abbey in 1196.

Torre Abbey in the sunshine.  

The fallen remains of the church tower, demolished by dynamite in about 1770

Plaster casts from the studio of the Victorian sculptor Frederick Thrupp (1812-95)

The Spanish Barn, built in 1196 and re-roofed in 1450, so called because 397 sailors from the Spanish Armada were held here in July 1588 before being transferred to prisons elsewhere.

The marina at Torquay.  Don't be misled by the blue sky; there was a stiff south-westerly wind blowing and before long it was raining again.

When the weather closed in we abandoned our walk around Torquay and caught the bus back to our hotel where we had a reviving cup of tea before venturing out again.  We caught the bus in the other direction, toward Babbacome where there is a cliff railway down to Oddicombe Beach.

We'd only been on the beach for a few minutes before it started to rain again.

This was the view from under the umbrella!  A major landslide last year tumbled red rocks and earth across the beach.  The top of the cliff still looks very fragile.

Thursday, and a coach trip to the Eden Project.  This is the Rain Forest Biome, ten years after its creation.

There is a new viewing platform right in the top of the dome.  We didn't venture onto it - there was a 45 minute wait in temperatures in the mid-30s - but I guess the view was spectacular.

Pineapples

The Rocket Elbow Barrel Stove - more efficient than the average BBQ!

Tomatoes grown in shredded old clothes and paper, watered and fed from the AutoPot

The main eating place at the Eden Project.  The food is prepared in public, and displayed on long wooden tables.  You help yourself, remember what you've had, then pay on leaving.  

The vegetable garden.  Interesting to see marigolds planted between the rows of vegetables as a deterrent against pests.  It must be effective because everything looked wonderfully healthy.

Wild flower meadow in front of the Mediterranean Biome

The Mediterranean Biome.  The triple-glazed "windows" are made from ethylenetetraflouroethylenecopolymer.  They weigh less than 1% of the equivalent area of glass and are self-cleaning.

View of the site taken from the walkway going back out to the parking areas.  The small white dome on the left is an arena for staged events, and the black roof with the triangular vents is the visitor centre, The Core,  housing displays, classrooms for school visits and a cafe.   It's a fascinating project and well worth visiting.

Our garden in April

Pasque flowers 

In the greenhouse - lettuces in the border, tomatoes, chillies and squash in pots

Blackcurrant bushes donated by Gerald and Jane

Raspberries

Runner bean plants being nursed in the top of the compost bin

Rather poorly melons!

More Pasque flowers