Warwickshire Lavender fields, Bubbenhall, Coventry, 2023

A new Lavender field to visit.  Warwickshire Lavender Fields is behind Coventry airport nestled in the beautiful countryside that remains between Coventry and Leamington Spa.  The fields are relatively young and started out in 2016.  Several photographic friends has told me about the fields and having done the Cotswolds Lavender fields, the family thought a fields closer to home would be worth a visit.

Warwickshire Lavender fields, Bubbenhall, Coventry, 2023
A low down view of the lavender fields
Warwickshire Lavender fields, Bubbenhall, Coventry, 2023
Striking a pose in the colour purple.
Warwickshire Lavender fields, Bubbenhall, Coventry, 2023
Running through the lavender.

The day we chose was one of sunshine and showers.  The showers when they arrived were wet and windy.  This did not stop us having great fun at the fields. I understand that before we got there my oldest daughter had excelled at falling down a hole much to the amusement of the grandchildren.  When we arrived the heavens opened, and we got soaked.  However the rain did clear the fields, and everyone made for shelter. Although my camera was under threat from the rain, there were some wonderful photographic opportunities as people were crowded into the tents.  Even Lily came along to pose in front of the tents.  The children had such fun even though they got very wet.  The café served great coffee and lovely cakes and the shop offered a range of lavender products including bunches of lavender flowers.

Warwickshire Lavender fields, Bubbenhall, Coventry, 2023
Then the rain came.
Warwickshire Lavender fields, Bubbenhall, Coventry, 2023
Luckily everyone could get into the tent to escape the rain.
Warwickshire Lavender fields, Bubbenhall, Coventry, 2023
Lily posing in front of everyone sheltering from the rain.
Warwickshire Lavender fields, Bubbenhall, Coventry, 2023
Chloe with her lavender flowers.

Whilst a bit of sunshine would have made the visit, we still enjoyed ourselves.  We set off home for a change of clothes and to share photographs of the day.  Well worth a visit and a very photogenic site for all photographers out there.

Warwickshire Lavender fields, Bubbenhall, Coventry, 2023
Lavender plants to take how with you.

If you want to know more about Warwickshire Lavender fields then please follow the link.

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Fargo Market, Coventry

Just off Sky Blue Way next to a street called Far Gosford, there is a trendy village called Fargo.  The area is an up and coming part of Coventry and it is the place where a craft market is held at the weekends.  I first heard about the FarGo market when I went along to meet my daughters there. 

Fargo Market, Coventry
What a cool robot!
Fargo Market, Coventry
The variety of stalls in Fargo Market.
Fargo Market, Coventry
Iconic design and colours.

My youngest daughter was helping her friend Gemma on a stall. Gemma is an excellent baker and she is the owner of Love Lane Brownies.  If you are a lover of brownies then I would recommend the blondie version, so a visit to her stall is a must.  The FarGo craft market is a busy friendly place and I took the opportunity to buy some of the produce there. My main purchase was a locally produced Gin from the Warwickshire Gin company.  I did not forget to buy my Love Lane Brownies although most of them had already been brought by an appreciative public.

Fargo Market, Coventry
There is some great street art at Fargo
Fargo Market, Coventry
Something for everyone

I enjoyed my visit to the FarGo market as there was much to see. The market is decorated by colourful graffiti from well known local artists and there is a rather cool looking robot ready to great you in the front yard.  There is a riot of colour on the walls which I have captured with my camera.  There is a pleasant atmosphere to the place and if you are looking for a different style of gift then the market will not disappoint.  If you are interested in craft markets and produce with some spare time on your hands then I do recommend FarGo market. Enjoy the photographs and hope to see you at there as well the next time I visit.

Fargo Market, Coventry
Market going well
Fargo Market, Coventry
The street art of Fargo
Fargo Market, Coventry
Lady Godiva rules
Fargo Market, Coventry
Love the colours on this car

If you want more information about FarGo market then just click away. If you like Brownies then visit Love Lane Brownies Instagram page @lovelanebrownies

Standing with Giants

I have been to several art installations which reflect on the Covid19 pandemic.  I have covered “In Memoriam” Luke Jerram’s flag creation that visited Aston Hall. The flags were blue and white and made from hospital bed sheets.  They were stunningly arranged in a medical symbol. “This is Gratitude” is an Art installation of 51 sculptures championed by Dame Zandra Rhodes. The figures visited Chamberlain square in central Birmingham and were painted by several artists.  These two installations were colourful, moving and told stories about different aspects of the Pandemic. 

Standing with Giants
The front and ….
Standing with Giants
The grounds of Coombe Abbey make a superb setting for the installation
Standing with Giants
The backs of the figures with the messages of thanks and hope.

Would I go and visit a third installation by the “Standing with Giants” organisation?  This post tells the story of my visit to the installation. I nearly missed it and only picked up on the tour via a photographer I follow on social media.  The beautiful grounds of Coombe Abbey were the setting for the visit.  Standing with Giants consists of 300 figures cut out of industrial recyclable materials. On one side, there are colourful paintings of key NHS workers.  When you first encounter the figures, you are struck by how many of them there are.  Already there are emotional touches to the installation as bouquets of flowers have been left at the feet of some of the figures. 

Standing with Giants
Playing hide and seek amongst the figures
Standing with Giants
Having fun
Standing with Giants
Sandy writing her message

Chloë, my grand daughter, started playing hide and seek amongst the figures and I followed her deep into the art display.  As I turned around, there was a surprised waiting for me.  The backs of all the figures were black and there were messages written in white.  The sight of all the black figures wearing white face masks is extraordinary. It was different to the colourful front facing view. The messages were a mixture of thanks, hope and remembrance. The were both moving and a joy to read.  Clive, one of the volunteers, came over to us and handed us one of the white writing pens. Sandy is an ex nurse and she penned a message on back of one of the figures.  We spent a good 15 to 20 minutes taking in the messages and the sights.  It was a different approach and I am fortunate to have seen three different installations that make you think, challenge and also help in reflection about many of the individual tragedies that happened during the pandemic.

Standing with Giants
More of Coombe Abbey

Finally…..We just want to say thank you to Clive who was one of the volunteers on the day we visited ‘Standing with Giants’. Clive explained what to do with writing the messages and showed us where the white marker pens were kept. A friendly face to the installation. Thank you.

Standing with Giants
Clive an enthusiastic volunteer assisting at the Installation.

Kenilworth Castle Sept 2021

Our last visit to Kenilworth castle was in 2019 when the grandchildren were much younger. A revisit was needed now that they were in a “run about mode”.  The weather was kind and ideal for outside activities.  We arrived and the children were very excited.  I brought my x100v with me plus I activated the flash on the camera at around 1/64.  I knew that I would be taking lots of pictures often in dark areas of the castle. The children ran to the far end of the castle and we were led straight to the Elizabethan garden. This was immediately followed by the Norman keep.  It was difficult keeping up with them.  However it made for some interesting photography as you are constantly trying to adapt and keep up with their sudden movement!  The ruins have many nooks and crannies which are ideal hiding places for children. Sometimes we really thought we had lost them.  There was a path that went upwards to the battlements. No sooner had we reached the top when it was back down into the Great Hall. After all this expended energy, it was time for lunch.  Near to the Tudor stables where the tearoom is situated there are the ruins of the chapel. These make great stepping stones for the children. 

Kenilworth Castle Sept 2021
Warwickshire Bear
Kenilworth Castle Sept 2021
Leicester’s building

After lunch it was to Leicester’s building and English Heritage have constructed an internal staircase which allows you to climb to the top of the tower.  As we were looking out onto the adjacent fields, we saw a wedding party moving through the footpath.  This is where I would love to have the telephoto lens attachment. It was great to see a local celebration happening around the castle.

Kenilworth Castle Sept 2021
View of the Castle

The pictures show the fun that we had at the castle and with the grandchildren growing up it is so much more enjoyable visiting such places. You can compare this to my last blog about the castle in 2019. We loved it so much that we joined English Heritage and now have them alongside the National Trust for places to visit.

Kenilworth Castle Sept 2021
The gardens with Leicester’s Gatehouse in the background
Kenilworth Castle Sept 2021
Statue in the Gardens
Kenilworth Castle Sept 2021
Light on the bricks
Kenilworth Castle Sept 2021
Wedding party at the walls of the Castle

City of Culture 2021

Coventry is the City of Culture for 2021.  This prestigious title runs from  May 2021 to May 2022 and it follows on from Derry/Londonderry in 2013 and Hull in 2017.  Taking my first train for over a year, I set off from Leamington to Coventry.  So let’s be brutal, Coventry is not a place you would first associate with culture but do a little digging and you will be pleasantly surprised.  The home of the Specials and Ska music offers up several delights.  Autumn 2020 was my last visit to the City.  Then my pictures were taken around the two Cathedrals and a brief stroll around town.  This visit began at the train station and we moved through the city to the Canal Basin.  The train station is sixties architecture which has seen better days.  Leaving the station area we moved into the Plaza towards the much loved Trigger statue.  Trigger, a metal horse, was put together by Coventry University student Simon Evans in the 1980s using scrap materials.  Lots of photo opportunities around Trigger whether it is close up details or the interaction of people around it.

Trigger
Trigger, the metal horse
City of Culture 2021
Bustling Street Scene

Moving on through towards the shopping centre, next stop the rainbow street or better known as Hertford Street.  Here the Coventry City of Culture offices are situated.  I asked the volunteers if they did not mind having their photograph taken to which they were a bit taken aback.  I love their jackets!  The street is colourful and a haven for Streetphotography as you will see from my photographs. I had my polariser filter on the wide angled Canon 5D which brought out the colours as people wandered past.  We could have spent hours there but we moved on into the central shopping area. 

City of Culture 2021
City of Culture 2021
City of Culture 2021
Rainbow colours

We took a look at Pepper Lane that had been spruced up with colourful paint.  The street art mural by @mattchuuk dominates the far end.  The mural is a past, present and future dreamlike composition representing the spirit of Coventry.

City of Culture 2021
Pepper Lane with the mural by Matt Chu
City of Culture 2021
Matt Chu’s mural representing the past, present and future looks onto the Holy Trinity Church

Moving on to, through and past the Cathedral Square. We hit upon the tired and brutal architecture of the Britannia Hotel and moved swiftly onto the Whittle arches around Hale Street.  Their imposing shapes fits in well with the surrounding area.  Everything is blue including the buses and the spiral overpass into Lady Herbert’s Gardens and Volgograd place.  So good to take pictures and another place where you could spend a great deal of time people watching and taking pictures. 

City of Culture 2021
Reminder of Brutal Coventry
City of Culture 2021
Blue bridge and cyclist
City of Culture 2021
Old and new of Coventry
City of Culture 2021
On the bridge

Moving on our next destination was the Coventry Canal basin.  I warned my photo buddy not to expect much as at my last visit, there was not much to see.  I was glad to be proved wrong as there was activity around the basin and a few long boats were moored up.  By chance I noticed people sitting outside a café near the canal bridge.  Playwright’s café turned out to be a hidden gem.  Scones were lovely and the coffee just right.  Great service from the owner as well.  So my opinion of the area is changed now! 

City of Culture 2021
on the way to the Canal Basin
City of Culture 2021
Coventry Canal Basin

Time to make our way back through the City to the train station.  So lots to like about Coventry in its new clothes as City of Culture.  There is still the awful Brutalist buildings, the bad architecture but there is also a sense of optimism around the place.  The Specials sang in 1981  “This town is coming like a ghost town”, to which I would have agreed a few years ago.  Now “the good old days before the ghost town” are slowly returning.  I really hope so!

City of Culture 2021
No Ghost Town on the left but maybe on the right

Here are some more pictures from our walk

City of Culture 2021
My good friend and photo companion, John Bray

Coombe Abbey Lake

Coombe Abbey Country Park is to the east of Coventry and both the gardens and lake featuring designs by Capability Brown make this a must visit attraction. Even though this is on my doorstep, it is nearly 10 years since I lasted visited on the occasion of a wedding. The family decided this was the place to visit on a Saturday afternoon in December. I got my camera gear ready. I am now well practised at taking photographs under family pressure. Those lovely views by the lakes are only available for a few minutes as I am asked to hurry up and stay in touch with the family walk. In some ways that makes it fun as you have to get your settings right and take the picture quickly.

View of Coombe Abbey
View of Coombe Abbey from the top pool bridge

The park is picturesque and lends itself to photographs. The downside is that even on a late Sunday afternoon, there is a lot of people around. Making sure that they do not feature in the photographs is difficult as well. My tips are to look for different views of the well known pictures that are taken. Coombe Abbey Country Park is photographed so often that it is difficult to find that different view.

The endless lake of Coombe Abbey Country Park
The endless lake of Coombe Abbey Country Park
Paths through the woods
Paths through the woods

One tip is the timing. The family decided to visit after 2pm on a December afternoon. The weather was good and the sun was starting to come out. The Golden Hour beckoned. There were some delays along the way when we got there. The birds had to be fed by the grandchildren and other small holdups, such as splashing in every puddle that we saw, made the walk slow. In many ways that was an advantage as it gave an opportunity to take a few more pictures.

The Grandchildren posing for a picture
Entertaining the Grandchildren
Places to run
Places to run
Puddles to splash in
Puddles to splash in
Buildings to see at Coombe Abbey
Buildings to see at Coombe Abbey
Two swans in the top pool
Two swans in the top pool

Finally on the way back the sun started to set very low and it lit up the classic view of the Coombe Abbey Hotel from the footbridge that separates the main lake, Coombe Pool, and the smaller Top Pool. There is a lot more to see and when Covid-19 restrictions are finished then there will be a return visit to the park. Meanwhile enjoy the pictures!

Sunset at Coombe Abbey
Sunset at Coombe Abbey

Do you want to know more about Coombe Abbey Country Park? Then visit the Coventry City Council website which will get you started
Coombe Abbey Country Park

There is also the City of Coventry nearby if you want to make a weekend of a visit to the area with your camera
Send me to the City of Coventry