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Visiting Skipton

By Friends & Family, Happiness & JoyNo Comments

My good friend Simon and I recently visited Skipton. Skipton is home to a superbly preserved castle, but Simon and I didn’t get chance to see it.

We explored the town, on a regular day, rather than a market day. It had lots of lovely little shops. Some reasonably priced, some not. Some selling some unique products, some selling tat.

There were a couple of new age/holistic well-being shops selling crystals and the like, but no pagan shops selling witchcraft supplies.

We had a pub lunch and then went for a walk following the upward path of an unknown waterfall. Here are some photos of the waterfall:

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Unknown Waterfall (1)
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Unknown Waterfall (3)
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Unknown Waterfall Dinosaur (1)
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Unknown Waterfall (2)
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Unknown Waterfall (4)
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Unknown Waterfall Dinosaur (2)

Blog soon,

Antony

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Adventure: The Metropolitan City of Wroclaw, Poland

By Adventures, Friends & Family, Thinking, TravelNo Comments

I recently visited Wroclaw in Poland with my brother and his friends for his stag do and his birthday. It was the first time I had met many of my brother’s friends and they are a great bunch of lads. In this post I’ll be discussing my experience of being in Wroclaw.

The first thing to write is that the architecture is aesthetically pleasing. There are many buildings with a Georgian style and many churches that are exquisitely designed. Here is an example of one such church:

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A Church in Wroclaw, Poland.

Here are two photos of fountains I took:

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Fountain (1).

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Fountain (2).

Wroclaw is vibrant, youthful and has an upbeat feel. It is a clean city, only being let down by graffiti that is everywhere. There are plenty of places to eat and drink, with some even having English menus upon request. The cost of living is cheap with roughly 10 slotty (about £2) buying a double vodka and diet coke. I did have difficulties getting zero sugar drinks in a number of places, which was a bit of an issue with me being diabetic.

The only Polish word I managed to learn was Kawa, which means coffee. The main square is huge and has flower market stalls that appear to be open 24/7. I found myself listening to Polish conversations as I walked around and appreciating the beautiful sound of the language. Some Polish spoke English exceptionally well whereas others didn’t speak any English at all. I found the Google Translate App really useful.

Without doubt it is people that make a city. All appeared happy, content and liberal. Polish people had less inhibitions when it came to dancing than we English have. Polish people will quite happily bump into anyone in their way in pubs and clubs. This is normal to the Polish, but being British I found it a little rude.

As Poland is known for being Roman Catholic and as such conservative when it comes to gay people and their rights. I decided to test the waters with a Polish man who I had been talking to and getting on with whilst smoking a cigarette. I came out and asked his views on gay people. He said:

“I don’t care, I don’t give a fuck. That’s your choice. We’re all just friends here.”

He described himself as not being religious, male, heterosexual and was in his mid twenties.

Overall Wroclaw is a beautiful city, with wonderful people and a place that I will be visiting again.

Take care,

Antony

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A Belated Visit to Blackpool Zoo for My Birthday

By Friends & Family, Happiness & JoyNo Comments

At the weekend, a family that has unofficially adopted me and I went to Blackpool Zoo. We had a great time, with lots of laughter. Here are some photos of the animals:

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This peacock frightened the life out of me as I checked my phone before I’d even entered the zoo.

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I saw my first ever Sea Lion show. The Californian Sea Lions (1).

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The Californian Sea Lions (2).

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The Californian Sea Lions (3).

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Elephant eating.

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The parade of Elephants.

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Stegosaurus.

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Velociraptor

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Wolfs – close up.

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Penguins.

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Gorilla family – complete with baby.

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Orangutan.

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Canadian Goose with gosling.

All photos were taken using my Samsung Galaxy S10+ smartphone.

Write soon,

Antony

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A Brilliant 33rd Birthday (including a visit to Mother Shipton’s Cave)

By Friends & Family, Happiness & Joy, PaganismNo Comments

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This week I have had a brilliant time celebrating my 33rd Birthday. I’ve seen my brother Shaun for coffee, had tea out with mum and papa, seen Jayne for coffee and cake, spent a wonderful day at Mother Shipton’s Cave and in Knaresborough with Simon and am seeing Kay tomorrow. I received some lovely cards and great gifts. The most brilliant thing has been catching up with people.

But a highlight has to be visiting Mother Shipton’s Cave. Here are some photos from the cave visit:

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Simon and I, the famous Petrifying Well behind us.

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This is Beech Ave. It has some of the oldest beech trees in Britain.

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The stream that leads down to the Petrifying Well.

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The top of the Petrifying Well.

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The Petrifying Well. Normally the rock above would have worn away due to erosion, but because of the unique properties of the water, that turns things to stone, a layer of stone has built up and protected the rock underneath.

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A side view of the Petrifying Well (1).

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A side view of the Petrifying Well (2).

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Ivy at the side of the well has began to crystalise from the water splash back from the Petrifying Well.

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The entrance to Mother Shipton’s Cave.

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A rock carving impression of Mother Shipton within her cave.

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The naturally formed Wishing Well (1). Simon and I both made a wish.

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The naturally formed Wishing Well (2).

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A sculpture of Mother Shipton in the small museum/gift shop.

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Just a silly photo of me.

A video I took at the Petrifying Well:

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Essential Info

  • Mother Shipton’s Cave includes: some of the oldest beech trees in Britain, a cave where Mother Shipton (a Witch in the 17th Century) was said to have lived. A Petrifying Well that turns things into stone (due to the unique make up of the water), a naturally formed wishing well, a park for children (with picnic benches) and a small shop/museum. It is located in Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, England. This attraction could be fully completed in about an hour.
  • Admission Price: £9-10 for an adult. This is on the expensive side for what is on offer, however it does include an all day come and go wristband. This means that you could leave the attraction to go into the market town of Knaresborough.
  • Opening Times: Vary, view here.
  • Parking: £1-2, with plenty available.
  • Toilets.
  • Has a small gift shop and museum combined.
  • Useful to know: Wednesday’s are market day in Knaresborough, so worth visiting on a Wednesday if you can. That way you can do the cave, markets and get something to eat in the many pubs/restaurants in the town.

I’ve had a fantastic birthday, but the week of annual leave that I’ve taken for my birthday has gone far too quickly as always.

Blog soon,

Antony

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