September 18, 2008 - The Cathedral Church of St Nicholas from the Castle Keep

If you ever get the chance to climb St Nicholas’ Cathedral Tower, go for it, but be warned - at the top it’s very dark and narrow and quite a squeeze. If you are tall, or generally big, you may find it hard to manage - but on the bright side, you may be slightly less terrified of falling out of the gaps between the walls at the top.

See the red clock? In 1890 when it was put on the tower it was the largest striking clock in England outside of London. An electric signal of some kind was sent from Greenwich to make it strike at 1pm every day no matter what the clock said; this replaced the one o’clock gun. It boggles my mind that this was possible in 1890.

When I visited Paris this summer, lots of guidebooks said that the view from the Eiffel tower isn’t all that great. It’s too tall, too far out of the centre of town. St Nicholas doesn’t have the same problem, and neither does the Castle Keep; you’re high up, but there are other tall buildings around, and you are right in the middle of everything.

For more information about the Castle Keep, unfortunately currently covered it net and scaffolding, click here. For more information about St Nicholas’ Cathedral, click here. And if you are in Newcastle for the Heritage Open Days next year, be sure to call into the cathedral - not just to climb the tower, but also to see the Hexham Bible and the silverware.

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Sorry about the late post, everyone; I had lost password issues. Thanks to Denton of Greenville Daily Photo for coming to the rescue. If you haven’t checked out Greenville Daily Photo before, you should; Denton is the generous guy who hosts this website and 17 others around the world.

Comments about The Cathedral Church of St Nicholas from the Castle Keep ... posted by Beth

September 17, 2008 - Sir James Knott Room, Lit and Phil

The first place I visited on the Heritage Open Days was the Literary and Philosophical Society. You can find their webpage here.

The Society, known as the Lit and Phil, was founded in 1793. Back then, you could only attend university if you were a practising Anglican. The Society was formed as a conversation club for those who could not therefore attend and everything - barring politics and religion - could be discussed.

The Society was a very forward-thinking bunch of people. Its members formed a society for the abolition of slavery; Earl Grey, a notable member, was Prime Minister when the Abolition Act was passed. Women were accepted as full members from 1805, a mere 12 years after the Society was founded and well over a century before women could vote.

I’ll be writing a little more about the Lit and Phil on my blog.
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I couldn’t post today without saying Bon Voyage to Cassandra. Thanks for posting such great photos of Newcastle and sharing your enthusiasm for this city. Once Cassandra is back and set up, she’ll post once a week; hopefully at some point she’ll come back and we can share posting duties! But I’m sure she’ll be around and commenting again soon.

Comments (4) about Sir James Knott Room, Lit and Phil ... posted by Beth

September 16, 2008 - Sandyford

As I prepare to leave, I can’t help but feeling lost and homeless and empty. I should be happy, I should be sad. I can’t seem to fit an entire year of memories into two suitcases. I can’t pack up my life here easily.

Why, and how, do we get attached to places? What difference does place make? Of what concern is the angle of the street, or of the light as it comes in the afternoons through the windows? What does it matter that this is the floorplan, with the bedrooms just here, and the windows this way so that, when you sit on this sofa on a cloudy afternoon and you’ve curled up with a cup of tea and a book and are napping and it begins to rain, you feel suddenly surrounded by the rain on all sides, and you put your book down and just watch it slowly come down on the hydrangeas?

The sound of a magpie’s cry will be the same from the back garden of another flat. The wind will simply rustle the leaves of different trees. But I will not be here to watch the pigeons swoop over the Tyne when it is lit up at night, or to watch the cat on the wall through the kitchen sink window.

It’s strange to me, despite my twenty four odd years, despite my own sense of practicality, and intelligence, and reason, the things we can and cannot keep.

Comments (12) about Sandyford ... posted by Cassandra

September 15, 2008 - High Level Bridge and Swing Bridge

Last in the series of night time Quayside photos (and following on nicely from Cassandra’s photo yesterday!), we have the High Level Bridge and the Swing Bridge.

The lower deck of the High Level Bridge has only just reopened after closing in February 2005 for restoration. It was originally due to reopen late 2005 but due to the discovery of severe damage to its structure it only reopened in June 2008, to pedestrians and southbound buses and taxis only.

There were two previous Tyne Bridges on the site of the swing bridge, and it is also thought to be on the site of the old Roman Pons Aelius.

The control room was open to the public this year for the Heritage Open Days. I didn’t book early enough, but hope to see it for myself next year.

Cassandra tomorrow; then a few photos from the things I saw on the Heritage Open Days. I had a fantastic time.

Comments (2) about High Level Bridge and Swing Bridge ... posted by Beth