Rugby in Warwickshire

1 June 2015 | Author/Destination: | Category: General, Sport Reading Time:  6 minutes

Rugby School © G-Man

Rugby School © G-Man

Rugby is a market town in Warwickshire located on the River Avon. The town has a population of 62,000 making it the second largest town in the county. The enclosing Borough of Rugby has a population of 92,000.   read more…

Theme Week East Anglia – King’s Lynn

30 May 2015 | Author/Destination: | Category: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

Custom House © Alienturnedhuman

Custom House © Alienturnedhuman

King’s Lynn is a sea port and market town in the ceremonial county of Norfolk in the East of England. It is situated 97 miles (156 km) north of London and 44 miles (71 km) west of Norwich. The population of the town is 42,800. The town has two theatres, museums and other cultural and sporting venues. There are three secondary schools and one college. The service sector, information and communication technologies and creative industries, provide limited employment for the population of King’s Lynn and the surrounding area.   read more…

Theme Week East Anglia – Newmarket

29 May 2015 | Author/Destination: | Category: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

Clock-tower to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria © geograph.org.uk - Robert Edwards/cc-by-sa-2.0

Clock-tower to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria © geograph.org.uk – Robert Edwards/cc-by-sa-2.0

Newmarket is a market town in the county of Suffolk, approximately 65 miles (105 kilometres) north of London. It is generally considered the birthplace and global centre of thoroughbred horse racing. It is a major local business cluster, with annual investment rivalling that of the Cambridge Science Park, the other major cluster in the region. It is the largest racehorse training centre in Britain, the largest racehorse breeding centre in the country, and home to most major British horseracing institutions, and a key global centre for horse health. Two Classic races, and an additional three British Champions Series races are held at Newmarket every year. Racing at Newmarket has been dated as far back as 1174, making it the earliest known racing venue of post-classical times. King James I (reigned 1603–1625) greatly increased the popularity of horse racing there, and King Charles I followed this by inaugurating the first cup race in 1634. The Jockey Club‘s clubhouse is in Newmarket, though its administration is based in London.   read more…

Theme Week East Anglia – Burnham Thorpe

28 May 2015 | Author/Destination: | Category: General Reading Time:  4 minutes

Birthplace of Admiral Lord Nelson © geograph.org.uk - Nigel Jones/cc-by-sa-2.0

Birthplace of Admiral Lord Nelson © geograph.org.uk – Nigel Jones/cc-by-sa-2.0

Burnham Thorpe is a small village and civil parish on the River Burn and near the coast of Norfolk. It is famous for being the birthplace of Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson, victor at the Battle of Trafalgar and one of Britain’s greatest heroes. At the time of his birth, Nelson’s father, Edmund Nelson, was rector of the church in Burnham Thorpe.   read more…

Theme Week East Anglia – Great Yarmouth

27 May 2015 | Author/Destination: | Category: General Reading Time:  8 minutes

Britannia Pier © Leigh Last/cc-by-sa-3.0

Britannia Pier © Leigh Last/cc-by-sa-3.0

Great Yarmouth, often known to locals as Yarmouth, is a coastal town in Norfolk. It is located at the mouth of the River Yare, 20 miles (30 km) east of Norwich. The town has a beach and two piers.   read more…

Theme Week East Anglia – Bury St Edmunds

26 May 2015 | Author/Destination: | Category: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

Abbey Gardens and Cathedral © geograph.org.uk - Robert Edwards/cc-by-sa-2.0

Abbey Gardens and Cathedral © geograph.org.uk – Robert Edwards/cc-by-sa-2.0

Bury St Edmunds is a market town in the county of Suffolk, and formerly the county town of West Suffolk. It is the main town in the borough of St Edmundsbury and known for the ruined abbey near the town centre. Bury is the seat of the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich, with the episcopal see at St Edmundsbury Cathedral.   read more…

Theme Week East Anglia

25 May 2015 | Author/Destination: | Category: General, Bon voyage, Theme Weeks Reading Time:  8 minutes

Burghley House in Peterborough © flickr.com - Anthony Masi/cc-by-2.0

Burghley House in Peterborough © flickr.com – Anthony Masi/cc-by-2.0

East Anglia is one of three constituent parts of the East of England – a first level region. The name has also been applied to the ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles. The region’s name is derived from the Angles – a tribe that originated in Angeln, northern Germany. The region comprises four areas of local government: the administrative counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, northern Essex and Cambridgeshire, the unitary authority area of the city of Peterborough.   read more…

Theme Week London – Greenwich

20 May 2015 | Author/Destination: | Category: General, Architecture, London, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  14 minutes

Great River Race, Royal Naval College in the backgorund © Motmit

Great River Race, Royal Naval College in the backgorund © Motmit

Greenwich is a district of South East London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich. Greenwich is best known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian (0° longitude) and Greenwich Mean Time. The town became the site of a Royal palace, the Palace of Placentia from the 15th century, and was the birthplace of many in the House of Tudor, including Henry VIII and Elizabeth I. The palace fell into disrepair during the English Civil War and was rebuilt as the Royal Naval Hospital for Sailors by Sir Christopher Wren and his assistant Nicholas Hawksmoor. These buildings became the Royal Naval College in 1873, and they remained an establishment for military education until 1998 when they passed into the hands of the Greenwich Foundation. The historic rooms within these buildings remain open to the public; other buildings are used by University of Greenwich and the Trinity College of Music. The town became a popular resort in the 17th century with many grand houses, such as Vanbrugh castle established on Maze Hill, next to the park. From the Georgian period estates of houses were constructed above the town centre. The maritime connections of Greenwich were celebrated in the 20th century, with the sitting of the Cutty Sark and Gipsy Moth IV next to the river front, and the National Maritime Museum in the former buildings of the Royal Hospital School in 1934. Greenwich formed part of Kent until 1889 when the County of London was created. To mark the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II, it was announced on 5 January 2010 that in 2012, the London Borough of Greenwich is to become the fourth to have Royal Borough status. The three others being The Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Royal Borough. Due to its historic links with the Royal Family, and its status as home of the Prime Meridian and as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.   read more…

Theme Week Scotland

14 May 2015 | Author/Destination: | Category: General, Bon voyage, Theme Weeks Reading Time:  4 minutes

Welcome to Scotland sign - A1 road © flickr.com - Amanda Slater/cc-by-sa-2.0

Welcome to Scotland sign – A1 road © flickr.com – Amanda Slater/cc-by-sa-2.0

Scotland is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the south-west. In addition to the mainland, Scotland is made up of more than 790 islands including the Northern Isles and the Hebrides. Edinburgh, the country’s capital and second-largest city, is one of Europe’s largest financial centres. Edinburgh was the hub of the Scottish Enlightenment of the 18th century, which transformed Scotland into one of the commercial, intellectual and industrial powerhouses of Europe. Glasgow, Scotland’s largest city, was once one of the world’s leading industrial cities and now lies at the centre of the Greater Glasgow conurbation. Scottish waters consist of a large sector of the North Atlantic and the North Sea, containing the largest oil reserves in the European Union. This has given Aberdeen, the third-largest city in Scotland, the title of Europe’s oil capital.   read more…

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