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Posts Tagged ‘England’

The Fascinating City Of Sheffield – South Yorkshire, England

December 28th, 2009 No comments

The fascinating city of Sheffield – South Yorkshire, England can boast of a current population of at least 535,000 residents living in this attractive metropolitan borough. In and of itself, the Sheffield Urban Area can count more than 650,000 people and the area as a whole has continued to grow apace over the centuries. It has gradually shifted from being mostly industrial in nature to now being economically more diverse than ever before.

Sheffield’s name actually is derived from the name given to the river that runs through its center; the River Sheaf. It came to perhaps its greatest prominence in the past in the 19th century, when it was known for the production facilities and skill of its workforce in producing high-quality steel and the products made from that metal. It is also the city that gave birth to stainless steel, and it experienced much growth during the Industrial Revolution.

Over time, improvements in steel and iron production in other parts of the world would mean that Sheffield would lose its place as the center of such production in the 1970s and 1980s. This coincided with the collapse of the coal mining industry in the area (and throughout much of England) at the same time, though Sheffield — never one to rest on its laurels — began an overhaul of its economic base in the 21st century to great effect.

This success is made evident through the fact of the diversification of its economy, which has also helped to contribute to a 5 percent annual growth rate over the last several years. The city’s rate of growth actually exceeds that of the wider Yorkshire and Humber region in which it is located, in fact. In terms of monetary valuation, Sheffield can boast of a gross added value of more than 7 million British pounds.

The city is also appreciated for its efforts to carve out as much green space as possible, with over 61 percent of Sheffield consisting of such spaces. A concerted effort by the local city council, and area residents, in directing and carrying out the planting of trees whenever possible helps to ensure that the town will continue to add to its green areas. This helps to contribute to the scenic beauty of the town, which is built on several hillsides.

As far as history goes, there seems to have been human activity of one sort or another since at least the Upper Paleolithic era, more than 12,800 years ago. Most of the actual area of Sheffield, though, are considered to have originated with the Anglo-Saxons and Danes of the second half of the first millennium. By 1296, the burgeoning town had been granted a charter to hold a weekly market. It became known for knife production in the 14th century.

Sheffield resides in the metropolitan county of South Yorkshire, which boasts a current population of more than 1. 3 million residents. The county is also landlocked, having no access to the sea, and can trace its modern history to 1974 when it was created as a result of a national effort to streamline local governing areas. Four separate metropolitan boroughs make up the county, including that of Sheffield’s.

Look for hotels in Sheffield.

The Steamship Carnatic Diving Holiday

December 18th, 2009 No comments

The story begins in August 1869 when the Steamer “Venetian” sailed from Liverpool for Alexandria with a cargo bound for Bombay. Shortly afterwards the “Pera” sailed from London with passengers for the same destination. This was at a time when the Suez Canal was nearing completion and due to be opened within three months.

Even at this late stage, however, few could imagine how such a new “seaway” would change the shape of world trade forever. Up until now, ships had unloaded passengers and cargo at Alexandria from where they would be moved by land to Suez – over 200 miles away, before joining another vessel and resuming the journey. In this way, the longer and more perilous route around the Cape of Good Hope was avoided.

The passengers on board the Pera had enjoyed an uneventful crossing to Gibraltar and a similarly quiet journey taking in almost the entire length of the Mediterranean before their ship grounded off Alexandria – where they remained for three hours until floating off with the tide.

Despite this minor mishap, they were, nevertheless mostly at ease and looking forward to joining the more opulent “Carnatic” – the pride of the P & O fleet. The long trek to Suez was a frightful journey in the most oppressive of conditions – but there really was no alternative and everyone knew they would soon be enjoying cool evening sea breezes once again. In the meantime, the Masters of both the Pera and Venetian had played their part and were already heading back to England.

Progress overland was always slow, so it was not until the second week of September that Captain Jones was able to supervise the arrival and stowage of both passengers and cargo. He exercised great care – some of that cargo was very valuable and he had to make sure every single item was accounted for and thoroughly checked.

Finally, he was able to confirm a total of 230 passengers and crew in addition to a cargo of cotton bales, copper sheeting, Royal Mail, and 40,000 specie – as bullion was called in those days.

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Purusing The Past In Oxford – Oxfordshire

December 3rd, 2009 No comments

Oxford – Oxfordshire has one of the most famous colleges in the world, but it also offers many other attractions too visitors. This town has historical appeal as well as modern amenities.

The Oxford Botanical Gardens is one of the most unusual in the world. Unlike many others, Oxford has made the effort to landscape the gardens in a pleasing way. Since many gardeners also come here to enjoy the plants and to get ideas for their own gardens, they make every effort to label the plants. The gardens are done in three sections with glass houses holding the more exotic plants to Britain, the walled garden grouping similar species together and the rest of the area which contains typical garden features.

The Radcliffe Camera was the first round library in Britain and was completed and 1749. While not currently open to the public, you can still view the building itself from Radcliffe Square or a nearby if church. The stunning architecture makes this monument a must see.

The first official museum in Britain is in Oxford, and Ashmolean Museum houses a large collection of natural history items in Anglo Saxon artifacts as well as art and other antiquities from the world over. The “Alfred jewel” calls this home news world famous as one of the best examples of Saxon artifacts ever found.

Queen Street is also equally famous for its retail market. The mainstream stores and boutiques carry some of the most fashionable clothing in England. The nearby Westgate shopping center also has over 35 designer shops and restaurants within walking distance from the street. Bonn Square is also nearby, and you can take a moment to relaxing the original west gate in the city.

The Carfax tower is also close to the shopping area, and it is all that is left of the thirteenth century church. You can still climb the stairs to the top of the tower to the observation deck and be able to see a breathtaking view of Oxford. The bells are still rung every fifteen minutes, and on special occasions, and they have been recast from the original bell.

Oxford – Oxfordshire is known all over the world for its chief shopping, history and universities. This town is host to a diverse range of activities and can be a fantastic vacation site for those that like relaxation, history and modern conveniences.

For accommodation in Oxford check this list of Oxford hotels.

London Vacations And Shopping

October 15th, 2009 No comments
by Karl Fraser

London, as a vacation destination, is very hard to beat. It is the most popular city in England for city breaks and longer vacations. Most people travel there to take in the wonderful sights of the capital city of England and some endeavor to see the British Royal Family (with the Queen being the top of everyone’s list). Many people head to London to take advantage of the finest shopping in the land.

London is one of the main three cities of the world associated with serious shopping, the others being Paris and New York. Check any bottle of perfume and the city is bound to appear somewhere on the packaging and usually on the bottle itself. Virtually every company involved in the retail trade has it’s UK flagship store in one of the primary shopping districts of London.

Department stores, designer shops, fashion shops and boutiques, music shops, bookshops, jewellery shops and virtually any other type of retail outlet is found within easy walking distance of a London tube station. Usually the different types of store tend to appear in groups in certain areas such as Oxford Street, Knightsbridge, New Bond Street and the likes.

Oxford Street And Knightsbridge

This is where you will find many of the nations flagship department stores. Oxford street has the likes of Selfridges and Knightsbridge has the famous Harrods and also Harvey Nichols. Oxford Street is said to be the busiest shopping street in Europe.

Old/New Bond Street

Armani, Gucci and virtually any luxury brand can be found on Bond Street. Associated with designer clothing, perfume; art, antiques and other items of luxury Bond Street has the biggest number of suppliers the Royal Family than anywhere else in London.

Covent Garden

If you find Bond Street a bit too expensive for your budget then you will find Covent Garden a pleasant alternative. This is where you will find most of London’s smaller independent fashion shops and shoe shops.

Other Places In London Associated With Shopping

Carnaby Street has a long association with fashion and in recent years the street is once again becoming trendy. If you want an old fashioned British tailor then Savile Row is the most famous place but you will also find tailors in and around Piccadilly. Hatton Garden (near Farringdon) is another place to go for jewelry shops. Shopping for books is best done around the Charing Cross Road although you may find some bookshops in Covent Garden too.

You could write a book on the places to go shopping in London, and I suppose there are many to choose from. If you want to go looking for more places to visit take a look at the many London markets.

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16th Century UK Vacation Cottage

July 11th, 2009 No comments
by Olivia Parker

UK mainly consists of famous nations like England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland. All these kingdoms are pretty ancient and possess a very old background. In United Kingdom you have a number of accommodation options in terms of holiday cottages. There are a huge number of ancient holiday cottages in UK. These cottages are very much praised by the tourists because of the rich heritage they carry. These cottages are very old, but are very strongly built as they have sustained all kinds of climatic circumstances in these years.

I am going to list below, few of the best holiday cottages in UK that were build in around 16th Century:

1. Church Farm Cottage Church Farm is one of the best cottages located in a quiet street at St Briavels, balanced high on a limestone flat terrain and it seems like as if they are overlooking the River Wye which forms the heart of the very old Forest of Dean. Capably and compassionately reformed to a very high customary from a Grade II listed, 16th century hangar, Church Farm Cottage is positioned adjacent to the major farmhouse and forms one side of the yard of this beautiful and traditional smallholding.

There are walks in the whole region and tourists have straightforward contact across the owners’ land through forest onto confined bridle paths. The local region of this province also presents quite a large assortment of things. I must tell you that you will surely love this cottage and never feel like leaving this place after reading about its world class features and interesting background.

2. 16th century cottage in Perch National park This holiday accommodation is newly renovated with 33 acres of property. You will also an easy access to the Lounge with log burning stove and fully outfitted kitchen, shower room as well as bathroom with full central heating. It is considered as the perfect location for activities like cycling and walking. However this is quite a rustic locality and you will certainly find pin drop silence in this locality.

3. Wood cutters cottage Trust me that this is yet another cottage which is quite ancient and in fact it was built in the late 16th century. Due to the rich heritage this cottage carries you would love to stay here.

These are some of the best prehistoric holiday cottages in UK, which were built in 16th Century. Make sure you consider them as an accommodation option for you.

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