It’s December, and almost everywhere you look there are Christmas trees, evergreen boughs, and other symbols of this end-of-the-year “Season.” Long before Santa ever came on the scene, people in the Northern Hemisphere worried about the winter darkness. Some thought winter came because the Sun God was ill, and celebrated
At its most basic level, the holiday of Thanksgiving is about being grateful and eating a special meal. The menu generally includes a roast turkey, or tofu turkey. Pumpkin pie is a staple dessert choice, but far from the only one. The rest of the menu includes family favorites. Once
Last week I was at our local garden center and couldn’t resist the Poinsettia display. Poinsettias weren’t part of my childhood holiday season, but now I can’t imagine the fall and winter festivities without them. Poinsettias didn’t always have a Christmas association. They were a lowly, yet useful, Mexican shrub
There’s one last sight to see before crossing the Swing Bridge to the West Side of Whitby. If you take a left before crossing the bridge, you’ll be on Grape Lane, a narrow thoroughfare of some interest. Some say Grape Lane was known of Grope Lane, a place where prostitutes
Just below the Abbey and the last stop before leaving the Eastern Headland, there’s a squat church founded by monks from Whitby Abbey in about 1100. Most of the present interior dates from the 18th century, including heat derived from a cast-iron coal burning stove, and candle light from wall
Thursday is Halloween, which makes today the perfect time to explain Dracula’s ongoing association with Whitby. In 1890 Whitby was a popular summer holiday destination. Bram Stoker, business manager for the Lycium Theater and writer of sensational novels, booked a room at Mrs. Veazey’s Guesthouse on the Royal Crescent. He
Writing is an exercise in imagination. And one of my favorite places to let my creativity run wild is Whitby, on the east coast of Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk. This is a photo from the west entrance to the ruins of Whitby Abbey, a Benedictine monastery
Over the years, countless English literature students have read plays by William Shakespeare and been told these plays were first performed at The Globe Theater. The Globe was one of the first theaters in London. Initially, plays were performed on street corners and in the yards of inns which I’m
Directly across from the Albert Memorial, on the other side of Kensington High Street, stands a solid brick building built in keeping with Prince Albert’s dream for a central hall and a district to promote the arts and sciences. The Great Exhibition of 1851 was the first step in making
At the edge of Kensington Gardens on the boundary to Hyde Park stands the Albert Memorial, an incongruous and massive example of the Gothic Revival Style popular during the Victorian Age. The structure, built primarily by public subscription, honored Victoria’s consort, a man without a clear portfolio now credited with
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