African Violet

It's looking good Paul!

Thanks Tracey. I had to do some minor 'surgery' to remove all the little plantlettes. It seems to have worked. Hope you are enjoying the summer.

Yes! Summer has arrived here at long last! What about you? I read that you were having terrible thunderstorms at one time or other? The weather forecaster's have been promising Storms here... But I haven't seen any signs of any decent rain in Canterbury for at least a couple of weeks... :D

Yes, we had several violent storms yesterday. They only last an hour or two but man I thought I was going to loose my roof. We just came out of a dry spell so we really needed it. More storms predicted for tomorrow - weekend should be OK, maybe ill hit the beach. I love that little town - Canterbury.

Canterbury is becoming an extremely busy City these days. Unfortunately, we have major problems with traffic - just like a lot of places here... It's interesting to watch the amount of traffic coming into Canterbury in the mornings. Recently I was stuck at traffic lights leaving town, and watched the number of cars coming in... Some were Mum's on the school run, but many were single drivers, possibly driving through the actual town to park for work or driving onto one of the many Universities/Colleges that we have here now... If I need to go into town, during the week, I drive in after 9.30am to avoid the school runs... It's always so much better during the school holidays... ;o) It is a lovely City, of course the Cathedral is a huge draw... We also have The new Marlowe Theatre, which draws West End touring shows as well as local/regional productions :o) There are also plenty of beautiful and colourful gardens, historical Museums, walks around the City Walls and along the River Stour and of course plenty of the old shops and the more fashionable Shopping Malls! I'm very lucky to live in a rural location just outside the City, and can get to the Kent coast reasonably quickly. Whitstable, Tankerton, Herne Bay about 20 minutes... Dover, Hythe about 30 minutes Broadstairs, Margate about 45 minutes - We can now get to London from Canterbury on the high speed rail link within an hour and the famous Eurotunnel from Folkestone to France is roughly about 35 minutes in the tunnel! Amazing eh? When were you last in Canterbury?

I remember meandering through Canterbury right after I finished a college course on Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. What a rich experience that was. I'm sure it's a lot busier now then it was then. I believe it's St. Augustine Cathedral and John Milton's humble cottage were also major draws. Am I correct about that Tracey? I went there in the summer of 1992.

Paul, I thought I'd send you some info on St Augustine and St Thomas Becket, just for interest... ;o)

St Augustine was a Benedictine Monk, whom became the first Archbishop of Canterbury. He founded the Great Abbey AD 597 marking the rebirth of Christianity in Southern England. He died in AD 604 and was revered as a Saint. The ruins of the Abbey is located outside the city walls and is often missed by the tourist...

Thomas Becket was Archbishop of Canterbury and Chancellor of England under King Henry II. The two were friends, but this changed when the King made him Archbishop... Becket successfully opposed the Kings policy in taxation and other matters, and was murdered by four of the Kings Knights on the steps of the Altar in the great Cathedral. He was canonized in 1173, and his shrine became the most famous in Christian Countries. A candle now burns at the place where the shrine of St Thomas stood from 1220 to 1538. It was destroyed in 1538 by King Henry VIII.

I'm sure I don't need to tell you that Chaucer's Canterbury Tales are one of the greatest pieces of English Lit, based on the lives and experiences of the medieval pilgrims, walking to Canterbury to pay homage to the shrine of St Thomas. The paths to Canterbury are known as the Pilgrims Way and of course are walked even now by anyone and everyone... :)

I need to do some research about John Milton's humble cottage... I'm not familiar with it at all - Sorry!

In 1992 we were living in Higham, Rochester... Rochester being more known for it's quaint Cathedral, while Higham is famous for being the home of Charles Dickens! But that's all another story!!!

Thank you for the brief history of Canturbury and St. Augustine. John Milton's cottage is at 21 Deanway, Chalfont St. Giles, HP8 4JH, about an hour's drive from Canterbury. According to historians, he was living there while producing "Paradise Lost" another great literary masterpiece. It's just a one room cottage with a few sticks of furniture but you can see one of finest examples on an English Garden par excellence. I remember it vividly.

Well done! Chalfont St Giles is in Buckinghamshire... I'm impressed that you managed to find the address and postcode...! ;o)

Thanks Tracey. I had to visit Milton's cottage after studying his works. It added a sense of realism to my studies. Of course William Shakespeare's cottage is also right there on Stradford on Avon - another 'must see.' No wonder that area is so busy.

Yes you're right it is just so busy... But at the same time we are so very lucky to have access to some of the most brilliant "treasures" in the world! :o)

I was very inspired. You are very fortunate to live in that area Tracey. I wish I can go back. I enjoyed our little chat here Tracey and appreciate your pointers. Thank you

You're very welcome Paul! I always enjoy looking at your photographs of New York...! I've only ever managed to visit America once, while we were staying with friends in Toronto! They took us to see Niagara Falls on both the Canadian and American sides of the Falls. It was my Birthday and was a truly an amazing day never to be forgotten...! One day we'll make it over the pond again, to catch up on all the NYC tourist attractions for real...! ;o)