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The (now closed) blog about PARTICULARLY BRITISH 

10/31/2013

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There's a reason people in England drive teeny tiny cars: teeny tiny streets. 
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The Little Hamlet of Mousehole

6/17/2013

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First off. Don’t pronounce Mousehole the way it sounds, which is the way I did for weeks until I was sternly corrected. It’s "Mowzel." Try it a few times to make sure you have it down.
The reason we’re discussing Mousehole (did you pronounce it correctly? It’s hard, I know), is that in September Bob and I will be walking the Cornish Coastal Path through this little hamlet on our way from Penzance to… hmmm…this is still to be decided. We’d planned to visit Mousehole during our 2012 trip to Cornwall but just plumb ran out of time. Easy to happen in England.


Here’s what I know about Mousehole:


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British Cigarette Cards: Flowers

3/29/2013

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People all over the world collect and trade cigarette cards; in fact, cigarette card collecting has a name: cartophily. Who knew? British cigarette manufacturers created some of the most fascinating and beautiful cards, including lots of gorgeous flower sets.
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The cards started out as practical—in the 1800s cigarette manufacturers inserted cardboard "stiffeners" into cigarette packets to help reinforce and protect the contents. Some enterprising individual came up with the idea of using the cards as a marketing tools: enticing customers to buy more cigarettes in order to collect the whole series. Very clever actually.

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In 1933 and 1934, my gran collected and saved a boxful of embroidered silk flower cards issued by Kensitas. Each cigarette pack that she purchased contained a small card that opened up to reveal gorgeous woven silk flowers. 

The photo to the left shows one of the cards cut in two (I didn't do it!) The cards actually look like those at the bottom of this post: little booklets that open up to reveal the flower on the right and a lovely poetic description on the left. 

These were the last silk cigarette card flowers that came in an outer protective folder, so I feel very lucky to have them. My gran collected them and gave them to my mother, who saved them and gave them to me, who framed them and hung them next to my desk. 
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This little booklet holds and displays the flowers. Isn't it cute?
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Good news: Matthew Crawley is undead.

3/26/2013

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Note sure how the season can go on without Matthew? Not to worry: he's back. Watch as Rob Kutner and Kody Chamberlain introduce: Downton Zombies. 
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The world's first stamp: British of course

3/17/2013

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England was the first country to print and use stamps—the first of which was sent from the post office in Bath. I know this is true because of this red sign, which we saw at the Bath post office, where we bought a sixpence for Philip, and which I trust without questioning.
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I probably shouldn’t trust the sign so implicitly because grammatically, it’s incorrect. It should read: “The world’s first stamp, the Penny Black, was sent from Bath.” But we’ll let this go.

As stated in the above sign, the very first stamp was the Penny Black—so called because (A.) It cost a penny, and (B.) it was black. Why get all creative and stuff with product names when you can keep it plain and simple? 

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The Penny Black.
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The Penny Red. (Yet another example of a plain and simple product name.)
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British Icon #1: the red phonebox

3/11/2013

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In 1924 Great Britain held a contest to design a new telephone kiosk. Giles Gilbert Scott’s red telephone box design won. The bright red British icon started appearing on London streets in 1926. The box was known as K2, (Kiosk 2), a clever name indeed, as it was the country’s second phone kiosk. From then on, the first phone box was called K1. The British are nothing if not sensible about product names.
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Couch
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Cell phone
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Teapot
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Princess Diana Travolta dress goes up for auction

3/6/2013

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Here's your chance! 

The midnight blue velvet dress that Princess Diana wore when she danced with John Travolta at the White House will be auctioned on March 19. It's expected to bring in up to £300,000 pounds. 

It's sad. The whole Diana thing is sad. Still. 

  
See more auction items here
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Finally! The Bayeux Tapestry is finished.

2/25/2013

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I’m sure you’ll be happy to know that the Bayeux Tapestry, one of the world’s greatest works of art, has finally been finished—some 900 years after it was commissioned to mark William the Conqueror's victory at the Battle of Hastings. 

I know I’m happy—though not so much because the tapestry is complete but because I no longer feel bad about the quilt I started three years ago and haven’t worked on since. 

I realize I have plenty of time.

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This is the Bayeux Tapestry—not my quilt.

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Downton Abbey Paper Dolls

2/20/2013

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Sob, gasp, snuffle. Season three is over! Sob, gasp, snuffle. But here's something to keep you active: Kyle Hilton has created four sets of Downton Abbey paper dolls to print out and play with. Never mind that—sob, gasp, snuffle—two are dead! Note the different expressions you can choose from, depending on how the character is feeling. I found these dolls on Vulture, where you can enlarge and print. Have fun. Sob, gasp, snuffle.
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Poor Mary will never—sob, gasp, snuffle—be happy again. Check out the naked Mr. Pamuk!

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British Icon #3: Cricket

2/17/2013

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Is there any game more baffling than cricket? But really, who cares about learning the rules when there are so many more important things to pay attention to: those dapper white uniforms; the tea the spectators drink and the cucumber sandwiches they eat; the word “wicket;” and the cool and genteel nature of the game itself. Who cares how it’s played?
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Willow bats
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Natty attire

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Saturday 9/21

Land at Heathrow, train to paddington, train to Exeter, train to barnstaple, walk to The Old Vicarage—where we are staying until Thursday.
Have to remember how to read these boards.
Our room.
Love the bath!
First, tea in the garden.
After our tea we walk to the bus station to pick up bus schedules. Hop the 21 to Fremington, which is where we left off last time.
On the path.
Ha! Bob wants “he was a character” on his tombstone.
Fairly uninteresting walk, mostly along marshes.
Security idea for PP@L
We’re on an old railroad line, cute tunnels and all. This looks like a tunnel from the Thomas videos.
Our first pub. This is Instow.
My new favorite drink. It’s cucumber and elderberry and so good I have two. Which means we are finished for the day! We’ll complete this stretch of the walk tomorrow.
We order fish& chips takeaway rather than eating it in the pub because (a) it’s about half the price, and (b) fish & chips taste best outside! Check out the newspaper wrapping!
Not so healthy but it’s the first night and we’re on the coast where the fish is fresh, so.

Sunday, 9/22 Morning

Ate a marvelous breakfast, then walked straight out of Barnstaple to pick up the path heading northwest.
We fill out a little form the night before, choosing our breakfast time and meal items. Plus, there’s a sideboard of granolas, yogurt, fruit, etc.
View from our table.
Walking through Barnstable before hike.
The path. Heading first to Braunton.
The path is flat and fairly unremarkable. Sky is threatening.
We reach Braunton, almost pass right by this, then decide to stop for a short break.
Lovely inside, nicest people.

Sunday, 9/22 Afternoon

We walk Braunton to Saunton, intending to catch bus at Saunton, except I read Saturday’s bus schedule instead of Sunday’s because it’s so easy to do that and we soon find out there is no Sunday bus service in Saunton.
This Is looking back to Braunton. Path leads along this estuary. I think it’s an estuary.
Blackberry bushes are everywhere!
We’re right next to military training grounds.
Lunch break. Sandwiches. Forgot to pack dessert.
Ha! We see this sign as we close the gate after walking across the field.
It’s here that we realize that no bus will be coming. Luckily there’s a golf course right next to the path and we bum a ride to Braunton, which we know for sure has Sunday buses.

Saturday, 9/22 Evening

Our main goal on Sunday every time we come to England is it to make it to a Sunday Roast Dinner. Usually we miss it. Today though we are lucky: we find a good place in Braunton and end the walk on a full-belly note. Total miles today: 11.5.
Roast beef, potato, assorted fresh veggies, gravy, and Yorkshire pudding. Yum.
Waiting in the rain for the bus back to Barnstaple.
The Vicarage at last! We are both exhausted.
This waits for us every afternoon. That’s fresh cream on top.
Washed our clothes though not very thoroughly.
Choose breakfast and go to bed!
  • 2019 Trip Blog
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