St Mary the Virgin Church, Morpeth

  For me, there is nothing better than a bit of church crawling on a Saturday morning 😁. And since we are now allowed to travel slightly further afield, with the latest lifting of restrictions in England, I took full advantage last week.   The quaint church of St Mary the Virgin in Morpeth, Northumberland…

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St Andrew’s Church, Corbridge

  Corbridge is a perfect destination for a daytrip when you want to go exploring in Northumberland.  The little town offers delightful shops, cafes and of course remarkable historic architecture.  And it is exactly this deep history that drew me to Corbridge on a sunny Sunday in February.   We parked on Hill Street, directly…

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St Mary’s Abbey, York

  On a quick, work-related trip to York in December 2020, I took the opportunity to walk through the Museum Gardens.  With many restrictions in place due to Covid, I thought it safer to explore an outdoor setting while I waited for the train back to Newcastle.  And what a wonderful setting it is!  …

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St David’s Cathedral

  St David’s is the United Kingdom’s smallest city in population (population of 1841 in 2011).  It is also the resting place of St David, patron saint of Wales.  And the magnificent St David’s Cathedral is located here, on the Northern edge of the city.  So, it is no surprise then that visiting St David’s…

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Church in the Attic, Amsterdam

Church in the Attic, Amsterdam

I’m off to explore a historical secret!  This has been on my bucket list for a while, so I’m very excited to be able to go on this excursion.  The secret?  A Catholic Church hidden in the attic of a residential house in the heart of Amsterdam.   Let me explain a bit of background,…

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Tynemouth Priory and Castle

Tynemouth Priory

    With lockdown restrictions easing evermore in England, it has become possible to start history exploring again – thank goodness!  Some heritage sites are starting to open, although one has to book a timeslot in advance. This is exactly what I did, so I was one of the first (post-lockdown) visitors to Tynemouth Priory and…

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St Andrew’s Church, Newcastle

As lockdown measures in England are slowly being lifted, I was delighted to be able to start visiting the inside of historical sites.  So, for my first “proper” history exploration in over three months, I decided to visit the Church of St Andrews in Newcastle-upon-Tyne.   A sunny day meant that I could take a…

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De Oude Kerk Amsterdam

Oude Kerk Amsterdam

We’ve been looking forward to this trip for a while.  I love Amsterdam.  It is a city with a rich and diverse history and we visit a few times every year.  But this time was different.  This time, I could finally visit the oldest church in the city – De Oude Kerk (the Old Church).…

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St Mary’s Chapel Jesmond

St Mary's Chapel Jesmond

Years before the Norman conquest, just North-East of the city centre of Newcastle, an apparition of the Virgin Mary holding the baby Jesus appeared.  This great event quickly became known far and wide.  The area became known as “Jessemougth” or “Jesusmound” on account of the rock or mound the apparition appeared at. Jesusmound changed to Jesmond as…

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St Nicholas’ Church, West Boldon

St Nicholas' Church, West Boldon

As part of the Heritage Trail, I visited the delightful Grade I listed St Nicholas Church in the North East of England.  It was a sunny day and walking through the churchyard, I loved the sun streaks flooding between the large trees.  Peaceful. And beautiful.  I do love churchyards.  And this one really kept me busy…

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