Winchester, Hampshire - England
Autumn dusk falls on Winchester Cathedral
New Forest ponies in the evening light.
The Spinnaker Tower at night
Portsmouth - England
Portsmouth's newest landmark, the 170 metre high Spinnaker Tower, shines like a beacon at night.
From the ancient to the modern in this post. Winchester Cathedral dates from 1079 and the New Forest, belying its name, dates from much the same time. It was mentioned in the Domesday Book in 1086 and was taken as Crown land with laws put in place to protect the the forest and deer for Royal hunting. Ponies still roam completely freely in the area.
The Spinnaker Tower, in contrast, should date from 2000. I say it "should" date from 2000 for a reason. It was planned as a landmark to mark the millenium, and was originally called the Millenium Tower. The delays started before construction began and it ended up badly over-budget, and eventually opened in 2005. In spite of its problems (such as the project manager being stranded in the external lift on the opening day - the lift still doesn't work) it is a popular attraction and really does look spectacular, both from the harbour and from land.
I chose these three cards to represent the county as far as I could. The ancient cathedral city of Winchester was once the capital of England and is full of history in every corner. The New Forest represents the very rural nature of the county. Portsmouth represents the coastline of the county and modern rebuilding after the bombing during World War II. The sea and the navy have played a very important part in the history of the area. It was, of course, the place of departure for many settlers leaving for America.
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great posting.when I say the first one a song started to run in my head"Winchester Cathdral your bringing me down......."
ReplyDeleteOh, now I'll never get "Winchester Cathedral" out of my head. Actually, my first thought upon seeing your post was of Eliza Doolittle talking about places where hurricanes hardly happen.
ReplyDeleteThe Spinnaker is pretty spectacular, but I would expect to see it at a more touristy destination.
Likewise now I can't stop humming Winchester Cathedral!
ReplyDeleteThe ponies in the evening light postcard's lovely.
ReplyDeleteThanks for a great post! Love your cards and your blog!
ReplyDeleteSorry about the "Winchester Cathedral" song everyone. :) But you'll be pleased to know that it's now stuck in my mind too.
ReplyDelete@Chris, it's true, hurricanes hardly happen - though we've had a couple of good attempts in the time I've lived here.
The Spinnaker is in a partly touristy area because it's not too far from the Historic Ships Dockyard with HMS Victory, HMS Warrior, and the Mary Rose. Though admittedly that's about it, unless you count the Navy occasionally having open days on an aircraft carrier or something.
This is a very interesting post and the postcards are lovely. Thanks for participating in the Postcard Scavenger Hunt.
ReplyDeleteThe silhouette of the ponies is fantastic. I'd love to take a picture like this.
ReplyDeleteI was just trying to figure out where the picture of the Spinnaker was taken. Possibly from the other side of the ferry port? It's possible to see the Spinnaker even from Saint Catherine's Down on the far side of the Isle of Wight.