agfoxx
Registered user
This is a follow-up from this thread:
This was a trip of many firsts.
For me, the first decent trip on the GS.
For my wife, the first time she rode pillion for more than 15 minutes - and the first time she approached the dark arts of packing for motorcycle journeys.
For the GS, the first time it travelled with full luggage, my weighty body (100 kg in all the gear) and my wife's miniature figure (no figures here - who knows where this thread might surface!
Very roughly, the route we had planned looked like this - a big figure-of-eight around the South Downs and the Isle of Wight.
We set off at 08.30 in the morning on the 4th. No, actually, I'm not telling the truth. We wanted to set off at 08.30 - but somebody took ages to pack, and then somebody else couldn't get the right-hand pannier to lock onto the bike. So we really set off at 09.30 - which meant more motorways on the way "there" than intended.
And guess what? Let's try a game of associations.... Bike. Bank Holiday. Wife... Continue. Yes, that's right. Rain. Lots of it.
But we carried on bravely until we got to Petworth, National Trust's treasure trove of paintings, sculptures and general wow-ism. Hand on heart, this is the most striking National Trust property I've been to. The opulence of the main house is astonishing; no less captivating is the second building, the "servants' quarters". Yes, people worked 18-hour days, seven days a week. But servants had other servants to serve them. As one chambermaid wrote in a letter to her relative in the late 18th century, "I am very lucky because I am only sharing my room with one other maid" - this, of course, at a time when many people were sharing beds with family, not rooms!
The two buildings are connected by a tunnel which is normally closed to the public because it houses a large number of endangered bats. But on the day that we visited, all bats were off (hm...) - feeding somewhere nearby. So we were allowed to see the underground part of the estate - including a well room. The size of a small shed, it housed a donkey-driven pump: the donkey went round and round in circles 24 hours a day (not the same donkey, I presume) under a watchful eye of a small boy. In a cellar. With one candle for lighting and virtually no outside air. I don't think I would want to be that small boy! Or that donkey.
Not far from Petworth is a place called Weald & Downland Open Air Museum. If you haven't been, and if you are in the area, please go and have a look. This is where they keep old buildings rescued from... wherever it is that buildings go to die. The two most striking houses are this 17th century market hall which looks decidedly Venetian, this 15th century farmer's house (where, incidentally, the BBC filmed its "If Walls Could Talk" and where they are now filming a drama set in the Mediaeval England) and, finally, Whittaker's Cottages from the 1860s - this shows how farm workers lived 150 years ago and is very helpful if you happen to be there with a child asking if he or she can have the latest Playstation.
But the real highlight of the trip was the Isle of Wight. Now, I've been there before. I went for work. In November. At the time, I sort of didn't get it - I wasn't sure what the big deal was. This time it was all much clearer - so much so that my wife and I are now seriously discussing moving there. Trouble is, there are no jobs. Or are there?
Anyway, to save you hundreds more words, here are some pictures.
A foggy morning near Ryde...
The fog is very quiet, especially at daybreak, only penetrated by the sound of awakening birds and of ships blowing their horns.
But gorgeous sunshine soon returned.
A church in the village of Arreton, built in the 12th century
More of the same church
This car was built by a resident of the Isle of Wight. It's based on a Landrover, and it drove overland to Australia.
On our way back, we shared the ferry with a celebrity...
... and a very romantic couple.
So a very, very nice trip - made even nicer by the fact that my wife says she wants to do it all again soon. Thanks everyone for your advice and encouragement!
This was a trip of many firsts.
For me, the first decent trip on the GS.
For my wife, the first time she rode pillion for more than 15 minutes - and the first time she approached the dark arts of packing for motorcycle journeys.
For the GS, the first time it travelled with full luggage, my weighty body (100 kg in all the gear) and my wife's miniature figure (no figures here - who knows where this thread might surface!
Very roughly, the route we had planned looked like this - a big figure-of-eight around the South Downs and the Isle of Wight.
We set off at 08.30 in the morning on the 4th. No, actually, I'm not telling the truth. We wanted to set off at 08.30 - but somebody took ages to pack, and then somebody else couldn't get the right-hand pannier to lock onto the bike. So we really set off at 09.30 - which meant more motorways on the way "there" than intended.
And guess what? Let's try a game of associations.... Bike. Bank Holiday. Wife... Continue. Yes, that's right. Rain. Lots of it.
But we carried on bravely until we got to Petworth, National Trust's treasure trove of paintings, sculptures and general wow-ism. Hand on heart, this is the most striking National Trust property I've been to. The opulence of the main house is astonishing; no less captivating is the second building, the "servants' quarters". Yes, people worked 18-hour days, seven days a week. But servants had other servants to serve them. As one chambermaid wrote in a letter to her relative in the late 18th century, "I am very lucky because I am only sharing my room with one other maid" - this, of course, at a time when many people were sharing beds with family, not rooms!
The two buildings are connected by a tunnel which is normally closed to the public because it houses a large number of endangered bats. But on the day that we visited, all bats were off (hm...) - feeding somewhere nearby. So we were allowed to see the underground part of the estate - including a well room. The size of a small shed, it housed a donkey-driven pump: the donkey went round and round in circles 24 hours a day (not the same donkey, I presume) under a watchful eye of a small boy. In a cellar. With one candle for lighting and virtually no outside air. I don't think I would want to be that small boy! Or that donkey.
Not far from Petworth is a place called Weald & Downland Open Air Museum. If you haven't been, and if you are in the area, please go and have a look. This is where they keep old buildings rescued from... wherever it is that buildings go to die. The two most striking houses are this 17th century market hall which looks decidedly Venetian, this 15th century farmer's house (where, incidentally, the BBC filmed its "If Walls Could Talk" and where they are now filming a drama set in the Mediaeval England) and, finally, Whittaker's Cottages from the 1860s - this shows how farm workers lived 150 years ago and is very helpful if you happen to be there with a child asking if he or she can have the latest Playstation.
But the real highlight of the trip was the Isle of Wight. Now, I've been there before. I went for work. In November. At the time, I sort of didn't get it - I wasn't sure what the big deal was. This time it was all much clearer - so much so that my wife and I are now seriously discussing moving there. Trouble is, there are no jobs. Or are there?
Anyway, to save you hundreds more words, here are some pictures.
A foggy morning near Ryde...
The fog is very quiet, especially at daybreak, only penetrated by the sound of awakening birds and of ships blowing their horns.
But gorgeous sunshine soon returned.
A church in the village of Arreton, built in the 12th century
More of the same church
This car was built by a resident of the Isle of Wight. It's based on a Landrover, and it drove overland to Australia.
On our way back, we shared the ferry with a celebrity...
... and a very romantic couple.
So a very, very nice trip - made even nicer by the fact that my wife says she wants to do it all again soon. Thanks everyone for your advice and encouragement!
