North….. ( no, not to Alaska!)

A few weeks ago, my good friend Chris and I, were invited to stay with a mutual friend at her home in Barrow in Furness, Cumbria. So we headed up north, courtesy of our lovely driver, Colin:

The sun was out but, as we headed up north, it got colder and colder and so of course we had to stop for some light refreshment to keep our energy levels up:-)

Yummy scones filled with fresh cream and homemade jam…………

Barrow is located on the NW. coast of England, just across the Irish Sea from the Isle of Man.
And, as my very favourite young man is a very keen fan of Thomas the Tank Engine:

I have to let him know that The Island of Sodor is a hop and a skip away from Barrow:

The Rev Audry chose this place as a fictional setting for his Railway Series and also, of course, for the Thomas the Tank Engine books. Who knew!!!! I love little details like that!

We stayed with Zosia and Rob who were fantastic hosts. I did tell them if they were ever looking for a housekeeper to let me know!! I could handle the wining, dining and royal treatment! I have known Zosia since childhood, we both share the same name - Zofia and, of course, that explains it all!! She is known as Zosia the Younger (by 3 months!!!) and I am Zosia the Elder and Wiser (by 3 months!!). We both grew up in Nottingham and have the same Polish background.

Here we are in our misguided teen years on a train in Poland. We were both on a summer camp trip and I still remember Zosia's Mum asking me to watch out and keep a protective eye on her innocent daughter before we left Nottingham. Yeah - 3 months of being older and wiser makes all the difference!!! Here Zosia is sporting the very latest Vidal Sassoon haircut - hey this is a bit of history -he was an up and coming hairdresser at the time!!! On this same trip we met Chris, who was to be the third member of our group:

Here we are on a fairground ride somewhere in Poland. Chris is the one with her arm up!! Who knew that after all these years we would still be in touch and all meet up in Barrow!!

Barrow's coastal location and rich deposits of iron ore led to the development of both the steel and the shipbuilding industry, a growth that was accelerated during the First World War.The local yards specialized in submarines. After World War 11 and the end of the Cold War and subsequent decrease in military spending, the area saw high unemployment through lack of contracts but to this day continues to build nuclear submarines.

                   No, it's not an Oscar - Atlas is holding up a sub!!

Several Royal Navy flagships, the majority of it's nuclear submarines and numerous ocean liners and oil tankers were manufactured here. Nuclear submarines continue to be built here at this shipyard:

Today Barrow is a hub for energy generation and handling. Several wind farms located off the coast form one of the highest concentrations of wind turbines in the world.

If you look VERY closely, you can see the wind turbines in the distance.

This is the old Customs and Excise House - I think I could quite happily live here!

I love the architecture. Many of the older homes were built with local stone and slate.

The following day we headed into Ulverston, a small market town. Who knew:

Elvis is alive, well and singing in Ulverston!!

Lots of lovely olde world shops:

With olde world people (sorry guys!)

Hi Chris and Zosia! Drug seeking behaviour hmmm…….

I love the hanging baskets outside this terrace house.

Winding cobbled streets and beautiful homes:

Lovely street art:

By now, we were ready for some tea, so we headed here to Conishead Priory:

The present building stands on the grounds of a twelfth century Augustinian Priory. The 

building was dismantled under the Act of Suppression in the 16th century (Henry V111 fooling around again!) and over the centuries it was passed through many hands. It was rebuilt in the 19th century,  was briefly a famous hydropathic hotel and then became a convalescent home for the Durham Miners Welfare Association. During World War 11 it became one of the largest military hospitals in the north- west region:

In 1972 the Durham Miners 44 year tenure came to an end and the Priory and contents were auctioned off. The house stood empty for 5 years while permission was unsuccessfully sought to raze the Priory and develop the site as a holiday camp!!! The Priory gradually fell into disrepair and became derelict. It was finally sold in 1976:

When it became the home of the Manjushri Kadampa Meditation Centre:

The wheel of history has turned full circle and once again this ancient site has become the home of a spiritual community:

Extensive restoration has been undertaken, and continues, to restore the building to it's former glory.

In the grounds stands this magnificent building:

The Manjushri Kadampa Meditation Centre, home to the International Centre for Modern Buddhism and Temple for World Peace.

Devotees travel from all over the world for retreats, courses, meditation classes.

A perfect and peaceful ending to a great day!

Talk soon

Zoe