Friday 14 June 2013

Times past, in Topsham !




Last Sunday, we spent a very lovely couple of hours in Topsham Museum,

which just happens to be situated in The Strand.






It's a delightful museum; beautifully laid out, both

outside and inside.

The outside shouts out , ' Come in!' and before you know it

you find yourself walking up the path and hey presto!






Inside, you get a good variety of displays...(when I saw this sign

I wanted to tear it from the wall!!)

I have always loved these signs but the 'SCHOOL' sign is either too hard to

find or when you do find it, just far too expensive!












Meanwhile..swanning around...






Huh! There's always someone who spoils a photo

opportunity!!


 ;-)






Obviously, Topsham being famous for all things maritime, 

there is much to catch one's eye in the seafaring department!





But it's not all boats and sails!

Oh no!





There are some fine displays of 'rooms gone by'.












My favourite is the old kitchen.











If you visit Topsham, make sure that you visit this charming museum.

You won't be disappointed!

It's open from Easter to October 

at 2pm til 5pm on the following days:

Sat/ Sun /Mon /Weds / Thurs

Tuesdays during August.







And of course, Topsham itself is a delight around which to stroll

...especially with the right company!!

 ;-)






(It had to be done!)

















Wednesday 12 June 2013

Reclamation...it's all the rage, you know! ;-)






There's nothing like a good old rummage around a local reclamation yard, is there?

This is Toby's reclamation yard, which is situated at Station Road, Exminster.

We pass by Toby's every time we drive to Exmouth.

They say that good things come in threes and they can't be wrong!

We always stop at Powderham

for coffee and a walk around Toby Buckland's plant centre;

 we do this as we are on our way to see Meggy and Toby

and now up pops yet another Toby.

Three Toby's in one day! 

(Sounds like the beginning of a re-written Crowded House song!! LOL!)





Anyway, this is where we found ourselves on Friday and I'm glad we did!

My favourite bits were the little splashes of railway memorabilia,

dotted about the place. I always 'home in' on this sort of thing

as it reminds me so much of my past; we travelled everywhere on the train

 when I was a young child.







And what is more, if you love trains then Toby's sits right by the main line,

so you can kill two birds with one stone as the trains pass by frequently.

Of course, this hasn't always been a reclamation yard...it was once

a station: Exminster Station. And the 1852 station building still exists.

Exminster station closed for passenger traffic in 1964.












And of course, there are those old tin signs!!





















And those old finger posts : I was very pleased to spot this one:













But there was so much more!

Everything from garden rollers...




to....




I love these benches!

And these signs...




I didn't buy anything but I saw plenty to which I would've loved to have given a home.

.... there's always another day!! ;-)




Sunday 9 June 2013

Through the garden gate !;-)



Come with me, through the garden gate!





I have the loveliest book.

'Through the Garden Gate' by Susan Hill is exactly as it says

in the introduction: 

'A joyful little book which conjures up the magic of many gardens.'






And it further states:

'Through the garden gate lies a world of surprises...'


I've often been inspired by this book and also by its sister book, entitled

'Through the Kitchen Window'

Both have their unique charm and if you can ever get hold of either or both,

you will not be disappointed.

Susan Hill also wrote an equally charming book :

'The Magic Apple Tree'

and I recommend that too!!


And now...just look at this :






Wouldn't you just like to step through here

 ...and into your own world of adventures?!





Or here....and...here...






We went for a walk, today.

We walked along, 'The Strand'.

The Strand is a wonderful road in Topsham and I have noticed

before that there are an abundance of garden gates in this road...so

 I decided to focus on them!

Well...ok... what I really mean is, have a nose at what was beyond!!





Some gardens, on the river side of The Strand, have river frontage.

How lush is that?! ;-)

















I especially love this view from the gate...it is actually the entrance

to Topsham Museum but more about that in another

blog post.






At the front of Susan Hill's lovely book, it says that the prose and the illustrations

delight the senses.

I hope that my photos have also done just that.

The next time you go walking...take a look through a few

garden gates. 

You never know what you might find!! ;-)