Hi all…..we finally caught the bus to Portsmouth – a city on the coast south of us. We’d been waiting for some extra good weather and we had it at last. A beautiful sunny day! Portsmouth sits on a expansive harbour and is home to a large naval base. Also to the majority of surface ships in the British Royal Navy. Its naval history goes back centuries – the first recorded dry dock in the world was built in Portsmouth in 1495. Portsmouth’s Naval Yard built its first warship in 1497. It was also a significant naval base and dockyard during WW2. This made it a target for extensive bombing raids, starting in 1940. Many people were killed. Homes, hospitals, public buildings and churches were badly damaged or destroyed. One casualty still on display was a very old Garrison Church near the harbour. It’s now been rebuilt – very beautiful stained glass windows – but parts of the old ruined church remain.
There was lots to see and learn as we wandered around the harbour and beyond. There’s quite a narrow entrance to Portsmouth Harbour. For a couple of centuries – first recorded in the 1600’s – a huge heavy chain was hung across the entrance. An effort to stop enemy ships from entering the harbour. Just one of those little details that made our day so interesting. We saw a warship leaving the harbour – somehow made all the history more real. One extra highlight was a lone sailor, standing on a grassy rise, playing his bagpipes. Very unexpected – very moving.
We visited the “Still & West” pub for lunch – built around 1700. Great position with an outdoor eating area and views over the harbour. We had some yummy traditional fish and chips with a very nice Australian Chardonnay. Just ate our meal out of white paper while sitting in the pub. Very relaxed! Bit of a history blackboard on the pub wall with little notes of what has happened on this date in history. Just added to the character of the place. Nearby was the very imposing Spinnaker Tower and the very upmarket Gunwharf Quays shopping complex – sitting right on the marina. Lots of very flash, expensive restaurants – we just stuck to the pub!
We’ve also had another little outing. We visited nearby Hambledon, a small village that claims to be the birthplace of cricket. The claim is dubious but a lot of fun and draws the tourists. Had lunch at the “Bat and Ball” pub with one of our local friends Liz. We have made a quite a few friends since being in Hampshire. Mainly through the local Anglican Church – All Saints. This has made our stay quite special as we don’t always meet a lot of locals.
Nearly time to leave Hampshire – on to our next house sit in Burgundy. Spending time in the Loire Valley on the way.
Bye again
Love Di and Reg