The knitted village is randomly situated amongst the stalls of bric-a-brac and furniture in a sprawling antiques centre, housed in what was once the Hornsea Pottery factory complex on the outskirts of Lancaster. One minute you are browsing for bargains - the next you are eye-to-eye with a knitted lighthouse!

The village truly is an incredible display of creativity and ingenuity that teeters on the brink of total knitting madness. It really is well worth a look. (Although, it has to be said that the display is suffering slightly from a lack of recent dusting.)

The village features a knitted funicular, helter-skelter, beach huts and a harbour, several rows (no pun intended) of houses and shops, a play-park, two churches and a couple of cafes. In total there are 72 buildings, 8 shops and a train.

A sign on the wall states that the three knitted villages of Lesser Knitting, Lower Needle and Much Knitting-on-the-Needle were created by three 'Kendal Ladies' between 1993 and 1998. No patterns were used, except for the trees - and five 'gentlemen' helped by making the wooden and electrical items, the bases and the trestles.

Well done to each and every one of them!

Continue reading "The Knitted Village, Lancaster" »

Posted by Kate on May 30, 2006 | Permalink | Comments (3)

If, as some people argue, the world is actually flat, then I’d like to nominate Dungeness as one of the ends of the earth. It certainly feels remote and strange enough for maps of the area to tell you that in the sea beyond the coast “Here be monsters”.

Dungeness is at the end of a mile and a half shingle promontory, between New Romney, Lydd and Camber on Romney Marsh in Kent. Aside from a collection of seemingly random huts and shacks, it has two nuclear power stations (once upon a time you could visit them, but in these days of tight security, that was thought to be a bad idea), two lighthouses (one defunct), is the terminus of the miniature Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway (of which more soon), some fishing boats moored on the shore, and a collection of flora and fauna unique to its shingle landscape.

The Dungeness Estate is privately owned (hence the gates at its entrance), and whoever originally decided to purchase it was obviously a genius, as it has to be one of the best investments ever: Each year more and more shingle is deposited on the shore, so Dungeness, unlike a great deal of the rest of the coast, is actually getting bigger. To see how much it has grown, look at the distance between the old lighthouse (1902) and the new (1962): Both were once almost on the shoreline.

In the aftermath of the First World War, when housing was at a premium, people began to rent plots at Dungeness and erect their own dwellings, often making use of old railway carriages to do so. Some of these are still there, although adapted and added to over the years. It was also home to filmmaker Derek Jarman (you can see his famous garden at Prospect Cottage).

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Posted by Ben on May 26, 2006 | Permalink

The Dumfriesshire town of Moffat is a really sweet wee place, in more ways than one. There's enough there for a day trip but it's also compact enough for a satisfying pit stop if you're travelling up the M74 only a couple of miles away - it's much better than the services. The main street has a real bustle about it and this is one high street that hasn't been homogenised with lots of thriving local businesses. My favourite by a long way is the famous Moffat Toffee Shop, a huge sweet shop which has been trading since the late 1800s. You can choose from 200 jars of mixed boilings or try some of the famous Moffat Toffee. They also do a nice line in old fashoned sweets like Uncle Joe's Mint Balls, Edinburgh Rock or Highland Toffee. With handmade chocolate and a selection of whiskies up the back there's something for everyone.

On a sunny day Station Park is well worth a visit. Situated by the old railway line it's a tidy Victorian affair with lots of colourful flower beds which helped Moffat to win the "Britain in Bloom" title in 1996. There's a lovely pond where you can have a go on a swan boat, as well as pitch and putt, table tennis and "Moffatasia"(!) a water feature for kids that's fun to splash around in.

In the middle of the main street the statue of the Moffat Ram pays tribute to Moffat's history as a cattle and sheep droving centre. There is an urban legend that the sculptor who created the Ram committed suicide after he realised it had been made with horns but no ears. Can't say I noticed though. The abundance of hotels hints at its popularity as Scotland's first spa town. The last spa hotel, The Hydropathic burnt down in 1921 and Dr Beeching put paid to its railway station in 1954 but Moffat is still very much alive.

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Posted by Anne on May 17, 2006 | Permalink

There is, literally, nothing to see at Electric Brae (known locally as Croy Brae). Unsuspecting travellers following the A719 coastal road near Dunure in Ayrshire will see the sign: "Electric Brae: Slow vehicles ahead". Mysteriously there is nothing until you get round the bend and a queue of stationary cars sits in the middle of the road. If it's anything like it used to be when I went there as a kid the cars will be full of beaming children slackjawed with wonderment for Electric Brae is a magical place, a "gravity" or "magnetic hill" where the laws of physics seemingly don't apply and cars roll upwards.

There are similar sites around the world with equally grandiose names - Magnetic Hill in New Brunswick, The Mystery Spot in Santa Cruz, Confusion Hill in Pennsylvania. I wonder if they all have a special place in their nation's hearts in the same way that Electric Brae does. Going here on the way home from the seaside used to be a childhood bank holiday treat. The normal rules of the road go out of the window as on this small stretch of road dawdling is permitted, if not downright encouraged. Indeed at one point Ayrshire Council were getting so many enquiries about the place (probably from Arthur C. Clarke fans) that they produced a leaflet about it. It also proved popular with the Yanks who were stationed at Prestwick during the war, particularly one General Dwight D. Eisenhower who used to bring visitors here when he stayed nearby at Culzean Castle.

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Posted by Anne on May 15, 2006 | Permalink | Comments (5)

As a petulant teenager, Tetford was a place of exile. We moved there in the early 1980s and I had never lived anywhere quite so remote. It wasn't 'on the way' to anywhere, there was barely any traffic, there was one bus a day to a nearby market town, and one shop. I got out as soon as I could.

Occasional family visits in the following years taught me a little tolerance and even appreciation. Its setting in a picturesque valley in the rolling Lincolnshire Wolds, the peace so resounding that a sheep's bray sounded deafening and the miles of country paths to be negotiated behind a straining and excitable dog.

But my last visit was a revelation. Sometime in the last three or four years - I could be wrong here - the Tetford community established a yearly scarecrow festival and secured the participation of nearly every household within its boundaries. Held on the first weekend of May (Saturday, Sunday and the Bank Holiday Monday), the festival sees home made scarecrows installed in gardens, driveways, on fences and pavements and even wooded glades. Since the village is formed by a loop of road this makes a pleasingly gentle circuit of roughly one mile.

Continue reading "Tetford Scarecrow Festival, Lincolnshire" »

Posted by Trevira on May 09, 2006 | Permalink

This is Saltburn or Saltburn-by-the-Sea to give it its full title - a lovely old Victorian seaside resort on the North Yorkshire coast a bit north of Scarborough. I saw it in a TV play years ago and vowed to visit one day. It looked so great with its cliff lift (they don't call it a funicular), pier and huge sandy beach. It has a real Alan Bennett feel to it, homely but windswept. When we got there we'd just missed The Royal doing some filming and Heartbeat are never out of there as it passes for the 1960s without any fuss. No wonder as it's so unspoilt.

The cliff lift is the oldest remaining waterbalance lift in Britain, working its way up and down the 120ft cliff since 1884. There's something satisfyingly low-tech about all the swishing and clanking that goes on. For 60p you get to travel in the intimate little cars (maximum 15 passengers and that must be a tight squeeze) with their lovely stained glass windows. There were two old men in ours who asked wryly if we were having a good time. They seemed suprised when we said we were. With surroundings as nice as this it's easy to get by without "attractions".

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Posted by Anne on May 08, 2006 | Permalink | Comments (10)

What's a Fairytale garden? A sort of very low-key amusement park for kids, you might say. I'm not sure how many exactly there are in all of Germany and Austria, but they seem to be in all the touristy areas and there are definitely about ten in Bavaria alone. I myself have only visited three so far, though of course I'd like to see them all. I think it'd make a great photo book, and I'd definitely do it if I was a better photographer. Gosh! I can just see it as I'm writing this ...capturing this way-back-when feel that is so rapidly disappearing everywhere.

Standard features are moving puppets in glass cases mostly from the Fifites or Sixties. They re-enact Brother Grimms' tales in various degrees of technical under-achievement, which I find rather endearing. Other than that, musical mushrooms, assorted fiberglass animals, teeter-boards, small rides and usually a merry-go-round and a kiosk where you can eat sausages and ice-cream. Also some live animals, usually smelly goats or smelly pigs, rabbits or deer. The setting is a small piece of forest or castle grounds. They differ in size, but you can usually spend about 2 hours without getting bored (if you like kitsch) or a whole afternoon (if you're a kid).

Continue reading "Fairytale garden, Wolfratshausen near Munich" »

Posted by Fruitcake on May 03, 2006 | Permalink

If you can't decide whether to go for a walk or visit an art gallery you could always do both and visit Glenkiln Sculpture Park near Dumfries. It was established in 1951 by Sir William Keswick who owned the land and wanted to exhibit sculpture in a natural setting. He was a friend of Henry Moore's so there are four sculptures by him plus one each by Jacob Epstein and Auguste Rodin.

There are no signs to or in the park (someone suggested this is because the statues had been vandalised in the past) so finding all the sculptures becomes a bit of a treasure hunt. 4 you can see from the road - Henry Moore's King and Queen, a Moore cross, Rodin's John the Baptist beside a small car park, then Moore's Standing Figure. The other two - Epstein's The Visitation and Moore's Two Piece Reclining Figure are further off the beaten track up a hill beside the reservoir. The setting is perfect as the sculptures look solid and rugged enough to withstand a gale, and the green of the tarnished bronze stands out against the hills. Anytime I've been it's been virtually deserted which is just as well as the road is single track with few passing places. It's a lovely place for quiet contemplation and would be ideal for a good walk or a cycle. Just make sure you take a picnic.

Continue reading "Glenklin Sculpture Park, Dumfries & Galloway" »

Posted by Anne on May 02, 2006 | Permalink

I had the idea for this site a couple of years ago. My other half worked as a rep and it was his job to travel all over Scotland. Sometimes I would go with him and we've drive about through all these little towns, through the nooks and crannies that people don't usually get to. And I was amazed at how much there was to see. Considering I've lived in Scotland for almost my whole life it was embarrassing how little of it I'd actually seen. So our trips became great journeys into the unknown, taking interesting turn-offs, following intriguing signs. We didn't really follow a plan or a map, just wandered around to see what there was to see, and we saw a lot. On every trip we'd find a cute little place with some nice shopfronts, or some interesting architecture or a charming old park and it seemed that for every place where someone said "There's nothing to see" we found something - a sort of accidental tourism.

So I started to write about some of the places on I like and posted the photos on Flickr and it turns out other people liked them too. It got people going places and recommending other places to try and I thought that with its own space it could grow into something pretty useful. I know that every time I'm planning a trip I'd like a site like this.

So come in, have a look round and get involved - leave a comment or tell us about a place to go. Join the Flickr group or sign up for the mailing list. But most of all, have a good trip.

Posted by Anne on May 01, 2006 | Permalink | Comments (1)