Dec 10

Well today traffic was a nightmare and whilst heading out of London I managed to get snarled up in a huge traffic Jam due to the Blackwall Tunnel being shut southbound.

The traffic reports were stating that the A13 and all other routes out of London were congested and delays were going to be long. So instead of having nothing to look at but the car in front I decided to head to the river and sit out the long wait. Since I had the camera in the back of the car I knew I would not be that bored whilst waiting for the workman to repair the manhole in the southbound tunnel.

Here is a pano from the area I ended up at which is a nice quite out of the way place with a cafe.

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So when traffic is against you do the best thing and waiting it out find a road you have never been down before and have a mini adventure in to the unknown.

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Nov 14

Some serious weather and wind has been travelling round the Southeast of England this weekend, Dover was being hit rather hard by some strong winds and raging Sea’s.

Ferries and other vessels were not entering the port of Dover as the sea was too rough and the winds were driving very hard.

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A blustery day out with rain stinging any exposed skin and the moisture seeping in to any gaps of the camera body….

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Oct 27

Leeds Castle in Kent is a wonderful estate where you can wander for the day taking in the beautiful grounds, gardens and castle.

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Built in 1119 by Robert De Crevecoeur to replace the earlier Saxon manor of Esledes, the castle became a royal palace for King Edward I of England and his queen, Eleanor of Castile in 1278. Major improvements were made during his time, including the barbican, made up of three parts, each with its own entrance,drawbridge, gateway, and portcullis.

Henry VIII transformed the castle for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, and a painting commemorating his meeting with Francis I of France still hangs there. His daughter, Queen Elizabeth I was imprisoned in the castle for a time before her coronation.


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The castle escaped destruction during the English Civil War because its owners, the Culpeper family, sided with the Parliamentarians.

The last private owner of the castle was the Hon. Olive, Lady Baillie, a daughter of Almeric Paget, 1st Baron Queenborough, and his first wife, Pauline Payne Whitney, an American heiress. Lady Baillie bought the castle in 1926. She redecorated the interior, first working with the French architect and designer Armand-Albert Rateau (who also oversaw exterior alterations as well as adding interior features such as a 16th-century-style carved-oak staircase) and then, later, with the Paris decorator Stéphane Boudin.


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Lady Baillie established the Leeds Castle Foundation ensuring that the castle would not be lost to a private owner.

The castle was opened to the public in 1976.

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