Interior Details

 I recently visited Raby Castle with my mum, which was really nice. It is a wonderful medieval castle with a fascinating history. It was built in the 14th century (although the original battlements date back to the 11th Century), it was the scene of the plotting of the Rising in the North and a parliamentary stronghold during the Civil War. 

The castle was originally built by the Neville family however in 1569 it was forfeited to the Crown following the failure of the Rising in the North and since 1569 the castle has been owned by the Vane family the current owner being the 12th Lord Barnard.

While I am not great fan of the aristocracy it is nice to see such historic building preserved as they provide a fascinating insight to the past.

I have included a few shots from the interior of the castle.

What am I supposed to do with that?

Yesterday's blog featured some examples of fine craftsmanship and today I am sticking with that theme but I am sharing photos of sculpture and stonework in Manchester Town Hall.

After work yesterday I had a great time with friends visiting Manchester Christmas Market. We met up for drinks and had a lovely tea, it was such a lovely evening. Being Manchester it was cold and sometimes wet but there was a lovely pre-Christmas atmosphere and it was fun strolling around the different stalls.  

Some of the stalls were inside the town hall, I had never been inside before and so when I went in I was struck by the beautiful architecture.  These pictures were all taken on my mobile phone and I was lucky to avoid getting unwanted people in the shots.  I couldn't avoid it totally however although I actually think that the person walking along the corridor in the fifth picture adds something to the shot.

I love the staircase and if it hadn't been closed off to the public I would certainly have run up and down it like a big kid.  It reminds me a little of the Grand Staircase at the Chateau de Chambord in the Loire, which was designed by Leonardo Da Vinci and has two stairways in a double helix formation so that people walking down don't meet people going up.  It was an amazing and innovative design and well worth the trip to see it.

The sculptures in the first two pictures sit in the grand entrance to the Town Hall and seem to imply that some serious thinking goes on inside.  I think the expression on the first characters face is perfect, showing a mix of disdain and puzzlement at the child's glove that has been placed in his palm.  If you have any ideas what might be going through his mind write it in the comments below.

Parisian Chic

In January 2012 as a treat for my mum's 70th birthday the family paid for her to go Paris, I was the lucky one who got to go with her, to one of my favourite places.  A few years previously mum had come with us on our family holiday and we took a trip into Paris with the intention of visiting the Louvre, somewhere she had always wanted to visit. Unfortunately on that occasion we had visited on a day when the museum was closed and so mum said I would have to promise to take her again in the future.I never tire of Paris, it is such a beautiful city and so it was easy for me to go back with my mum for such a special occasion.

It was a fantastic couple of days, we stayed in a luxurious hotel just off the Champs Elysee and we visited lots of the sites, most importantly we got to spend a good long time at the Louvre taking in the wonderful works of art.  As the trip was about my mum I left my camera at home and just relied on my mobile phone's camera for the small number of shots that I took.

The two pictures I have chosen for today's blog showcase Parisian style from two very different eras.  The first is contemporary and was taken in the foyer of our hotel, the second was of a staircase in the Palais du Louvre and so reflects the style of a time long past. I love the golden apple, it is a fun piece and blended really well with the decor. The staircase shows that even in a compact space something functional has been made a thing of beauty and style.  That's Paris for you.