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Tilily's Past Travels: August 2007

England: Tilily visits Hampshire, England; Havant; an English Garden, a D-Day Museum, Portsmouth Harbour, and a Hovercraft!

Tilily Tangerine the Traveling Sasha
Tilily in Portsmouth
Visiting the D-Day Museum

Tilily's First Stop in England: the Portsmouth Area
Tilily in Portsmouth
Old House at Home, Havant.
Tilily in front of surviving old cottages circa 1339

The whole of this area dates back to Roman times and there is a hostelry nearby called 'The Centurion' which is built on Roman remains! The outer suburbs of the city of Portsmouth includes several small towns.

Havant has a long - and sad - history. In 1760 a fire gutted almost the entire town - all that remained was the little church, Faith's and a row of tiny cottages, all of which have been preserved to this day. We explored the church and grounds and then went to visit the museum which, unfortunately, was closed the day we went, but Tilily decided to pose for photos outside and on one of the very modern-day seats. The old town hall, built in mid-1800, is now home to the Arts Centre so we took a peek.

Tilily in Portsmouth
Havant
Tilily has a short rest

Tilily in Portsmouth
Tilily in Hampshire, England: visit to old parchment-makers' building
Tilily in Portsmouth
Faith's Church in Havant
Next stop was the row of tiny cottages that survived the fire and are now a very inviting and attractive hostelry - called the 'Old House at Home' - preserved intact on the outside and with original beams (two coming from the Spanish Armada), walls where feasible, fireplaces etc.on the inside. Tilily obligingly posed under the sign showing the cottages were built in 1339. Finally, we went along to an area called 'The Parchment' which is now a most attractive residential road, but right at the end is the very old, still intact, building used by the parchment makers, this being the main industry of Havant for a long time. The spring which bubbled up beside the building provided the water needed in the manufacturing process.

Tilily in Portsmouth
The Old House at Home

Tilily in Portsmouth
Havant Museum

Tilily in Portsmouth
Havant Museum

 

Tilily Visits an English Garden for Tea

Tilily in Portsmouth Tilily in Portsmouth Tilily in Portsmouth

 

Waterlooville

Tilily in Portsmouth

 

Waterlooville (left}, was named in honour of the foot-sore, weary, soldiers who stopped there for refreshment after docking in Portsmouth harbour for their return to London from the battle of Waterloo in 1815.

In the shopping precinct there is a cannon (right) which perhaps the battle-worn soldiers decided they had pulled far enough and so left it there for posterity.

Tilily in Portsmouth

 

A Visit to the D-Day Museum

The museum commemorates the allied invasion of Normandy, France on the 6th June, 1944 (D-Day) which essentially was the beginning of the end of World War II. The museum is also home to the Overlord Embroidery so named because 'Overlord' was the code name for the invasion plans. It was commissioned by Lord Dulverton in 1968 and the designs were executed by Sandra Lawrence. The embroidery consists of 34 panels measuring 272 feet in length and is the longest work of its kind in the world - it is 33 feet. longer than the Bayeux Tapestry. It took 20 embroiderers from the Royal School of Needlework 5 years to complete and battledress khaki and gold braid were appliqued onto the panels.

We stopped for refreshment in the tea room and Tilily enjoyed being photographed beside the various war uniforms on display and the war bride's dress. Then we went along to the castle, which was built by Henry VIII in the 1500s. I think Tilily preferred the fountains to the castle and would have gone in for a paddle if I hadn't restrained her! The photos show the lighthouse beside the castle and the overall setting.


D-Day Museum, Portsmouth
Home to Overlord Embroidery


Tilily with a uniform on display


Museum tea room
Map of South Coast

Tilily in Portsmouth
Tilily climbs on an anti-aircraft gun
Tilily in Portsmouth
Tea Room at museum
Tilily likes the war bride's wedding dress
Tilily in Portsmouth
Some of many displayed uniforms
Tilily in Portsmouth
Southsea Castle, Portsmouth
Built by Henry VIII in the 1500s

 

 

 

Portsmouth

Tilily in Portsmouth
Tilily with Isle of Wight in background
Tilily in Portsmouth
The Hovercraft travels across the sea on a cushion of air which inflates just before take-off

 

Portsmouth and the adjacent area Southsea whereTilily was fascinated by the Hovercraft -- this area is one of the few places to have a Hovercraft.

It does the crossing to and from the Isle of Wight all through the day and travels across the water on a cushion of air which is amazing to watch when it inflates ready for 'take-off'.

Tilily in Portsmouth
Hovercraft: Base inflated and entering the water

tilily

See where else Tilily's Travels have taken her:

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© 2007 Allegro Melody
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Last updated: October 2007