Doors Open Oxford Still

Another of the places we visited during Doors Open Oxford was Windmill Hill, a private residence where the results of a lifetime of collecting and creating are evident. As we walked in the driveway we were met by this 'garden' along side the house. Lights flashed, whistles blew as we walked by a certain point, and metal flowers bobbed in the wind.

On a table in front of old gasoline pumps pride of place went to this eight-horse hitch and wagon, a reminder for me of the pair my mother had specially made for my father one year for Christmas. They were recreated from pictures of the actual horses my dad had used for many years.

And of course, memories are what this collection is all about. The residents' garage looks more like an old time service station.

This metal sign, a giant cog of a thing, beautifully painted like those saws you sometimes see, announces the name of the place and people.

In the back yard is a lovely garden of kitsch and flowers. It is so full I hardly knew where to snap next.

Here are more angles of the same garden. I cannot put a theme on this except to say it is all kitsch. There is even a camel!

This metal palm tree called to have its photo taken as we have a car wash/laundromat with several of these. They are obtrusive enough in the day but at night, fully lit, they jump right out of the black at you.

From Windmill Hill we moved on to the old County Jail in Woodstock, now beautifully renovated and housing the Health Unit. As we stood in the back courtyard talking to the first host, a friend, I looked up and saw this amazing shot.

Inside we heard about the five hangings that took place on the property, saw the place where lawyers would interview their clients, and even were guided by one of those lawyers who had done this many years ago. The renovation has kept enough of the history but opened the space up to uses for this day, a difficult feat but one the architects have achieved.

Outside we saw this picture of the death mask of the first person to be hanged on the grounds. Apparently a novice was entrusted with the calculations so that the gallows was set up outside the north door and, true to the custom of the time, a crowd gathered to witness justice being done. When the trap door opened the prisoner's head snapped off and flew into the crowd, probably giving the onlookers much more than they expected. After that the hangings were held inside the grounds.

At that time in England and elsewhere heads were often staked for everyone to see as a deterrent to further crime. In keeping with that tradition a death mask was made of this first prisoner to be hung at the Oxford County Jail. The picture below is of that mask.

Doors Open provides a multitude of different events and places to see, and changes every year. We'll be going next year for sure. In the meantime, London has its Doors Open next weekend. We'll be taking in several of the attractions. Will you?

The Amazing Six-Horse Hitch at Paris Fair

Labour Day weekend in rural Ontario gives lots of opportunities to get out and enjoy the weather and my husband and I visited the horse show at Paris Fair for yet another look at the absolutely gorgeous six-horse hitch class. The day was hot but the sky was blue so we headed for the grandstand to better view this class. Now we really know nothing about the whole thing, just that we like seeing it so we have no idea who is a good driver or whose horses are better specimens. This first shot is of a team waiting to go into the 'ring' in front of the grandstand. Notice the people calming and watching the horses. Usually someone is on the sidelines or the rider jumps down from the wagon when they are stopped to keep the lead horses still. I loved this team of black Percherons all decked out in silver and blue to match their wagon. Very beautiful.

Here is a team of Clydesdales trotting by our seats in the grandstand. The Clydesdales can easily be distinguished from the Belgians by their long white hairs on each of their feet. These are a real struggle to keep clean.

This shot below is my favorite because of the wonderful action of the horses. These are all heavy horses and when a team of six go running by, you almost feel the ground shake.

Here is another hitch of Clydes followed by the white and maroon wagon.

The judge has the teams line up diagonally in front of the grandstand where he (or she) walks around each team checking them all out.

Here is the same team heading off after the judging.

There were ten teams in the six-horse-hitch class that day and they were shown in two heats of five as there just isn't room for all of them to be on the track at once. (My Belgian pictures weren't as good so I've added this link so you can see another breed of heavy horses.)

We learned first hand how dangerous this sport can be as there was a collision of two wagons as they were rounding the bend to the left of the grandstand. I heard the crack of wood breaking and others saw one of the drivers fall right off the wagon, leaving the horses to run wild.

The team was stopped very quickly by people running and forcing it into the side of a truck parked alongside the track. Then someone was able to jump up and get hold of the reins. The hapless driver, reportedly one of the most experienced out there, suffered no great damage from his long fall and, after a tense wait, the ambulances drove off the track and the announcer told the good news.

There are lots more fall fairs coming up, one almost every weekend, so feel free to go out and check out the horse shows and if they have a 'six' class, check it out.

The Lemp House in Tavistock

On Saturday my husband and I struck out for a day of touring and driving. It was Doors Open Oxford and we had a couple of errands to do as well. We started our Doors Open tour in Tavistock at the Lemp House, a delightful labour of love over the last 25 years or so by the owners. Set back from the road the house is shaded by lovely trees which soften the impression of the intricate woodwork, the 'gingerbread' some call it. I wasn't the only one jockeying for a good shot.

Inside we were met by Dan, the owner and craftsman who had lovingly worked on this home. He hasn't kept it totally to its original state--that was impossible--but has done some wonderful things all the same. There is a cupboard in the sitting room which he made that totally matches its surroundings. Here is the upstairs hall banister with its original intricate carving. Fantastic.

Looking down to the lower floor you can see the newel post at the bottom. This is in perfect pristine condition just as it was when the house was built about 125 years ago. Amazingly not even a coat of varnish was needed in the restoration, the lady of the house told us.

In the front 'parlour' lovely carved door trim caught our attention and Dan told us that he and some friends had copied the original on the right below to make the one over the door on the left, a door which had been added before he took possession of the house. He wanted to make it match, so added the woodwork. As you can see there is little difference.

Also in the parlour I noticed the intricate inlaid floor made of different woods to accentuate the design and the lovely roll top desk which perfectly fit in the room.

We felt especially privileged to see inside this house as it is a private dwelling and not generally open to the public. This is one of the wonderful things about the Doors Open project. In two weeks we may do some more of this as we take in the London Doors Open events. Meanwhile I have a few more pics to post in the coming days.

Dragon Boats in Victoria Harbour

On the last Saturday of our visit to Beth's home in Victoria we hustled down to the harbour and watched the Dragon Boat Races from both the bleachers and later from a boat. Very cool and fun. I really liked getting the sea plane in this shot.

The buildings across the harbour never fail to attract me and I applaud the architects who planned such suitable designs for the space.

This heron was entranced by the activity on the water and took a break to study the strange goings on.

What is it about water that makes ordinary things seem so much better? Here the blue-roofed buildings enhance the watery wonder.

Finally we see a duller background which complements the reds of the rowers. Magically nature seems to know how to compose pictures.

Tomorrow's pictures will take a totally new bent so farewell to Victoria for now.

Fun in Victoria

Standing by the harbour in downtown Victoria I noticed the wonderful waterplay surrounding this basket of flowers. I wish I had tried a few more shots as I'm not entirely happy with the setup of this but I include it anyway because of the reflections.

We took a little trip to Sydney a few miles north of Victoria and my camera worked hard again. This little village is a retiree's paradise with lots of condos, shops, boats, and water, water everywhere.

This is the flower bed at the end of Sidney's main street just before you reach the water and the kayak/canoe rental place. Spectacular.

We went to see the Dragon Boat races in Victoria harbour and while out on the water ourselves I snapped this picture. Kind of cute, eh?

Tomorrow is my last day for Victoria shots. After that I have some wonderful ones from our trip around my home county today. See you!

Harbour Activities in Victoria

I took a number of pictures of this little tug returning to harbour after doing its duty and I couldn't decide which to display. This one was the winner because of the water action in the foreground, caused by the boat's turning to dock.

I expect there are a zillion great photo ops along the strait. Don't you just love the succession of objects from near to far away?

One morning Beth and I walked the inner harbour for our start-of-the-day exercise and I got her to be a spot of colour in this magnificent resting place along the path. The tide was out as you can see.

Lots of sea planes found my lens but this shot was my best. Again, the red just makes it pop against the watery blue, a favorite colour.

Yesterday I showed a picture of one of the houseboats in the inner harbour. Today you can see a row of them docked more or less permanently along the south edge of the harbour. You really should try the fish and chip place close by as well.

This last shot is bathed in blue so, of course, I love it. Photography is pretty rewarding when you find such beautiful places as Victoria.

Victoria is More Than a Queen's Namesake

Queen Victoria would be proud of her namesake, British Columbia's capital city overlooking the strait of Juan de Fuca access to the mainland. Victoria is a jewel of a city large enough to have a host of pleasant diversions yet small enough to still nurture many intimate neighbourhoods. In the harbour opposite the famed Empress Hotel, we came upon a number of houseboats quite unlike any we had ever seen before. Here is a view of one of them.

On a sunny delight of a day during our visit to Beth's, we walked the strait once again. I took this shot because the patch of coloured weeds seemed to want to be famous.

There is a place along the walking trail where the trees grow overhead. Beth snapped us there in the sun.

When I played Ado Annie in "Oklahoma" I met a phrase that has stuck with me--flotsam and jetsam--and this seems to embody it. Of course the lovely heron, my all-time favorite bird, is using the seaweed swirls for his fishing.

I thought this view was spectacular with its foreground of magenta and green and the soft aquas of the water and sky. Looks like a great painting, doesn't it?

Today's measure of memories is complete but I have more for you tomorrow. Victoria is truly a city of endless beauty.

Victoria in August

From Mount Doug, as the locals call it, you can catch a million different views, all gorgeous.

I saw the young fellow below pondering the scene (above) and took his picture. Hopefully he doesn't mind being sacrificed to art. Mount Douglas is a must-see place. Our son-in-law has done some of his bicycle workouts going up and down this mountain road in the rain. Can't imagine it!

Along the inner harbour of Victoria, just in front of the famed Empress Hotel, buskers abound. We stopped to watch this one but lost our enthusiasm when he did a hissy fit with the crowd because not everyone wanted to be a guinea pig. And his trick which failed about 20 times wasn't too impressive, either.

Paying tribute to BC's wonderful native people's heritage are the spectacular totem poles throughout the city.

And here I remember our most favorite moment in Victoria this time. Our daughter and son-in-law announced we are to be grandparents and, for a few moments at least, we were stunned silent. Then the tiny tears came and I wasn't the only one crying. We were quite a table of four dabbing happily away. So imagine here the first picture of our grandchild, although you can't see much, and we'll have quite a long wait till we can.

We are delighted to be facing this next phase and can hardly wait to spoil the wee one. Life is truly great!