Visited by Bears

[shewhomust]

My brother the boybear and my sister-in-law the GirlBear have been with us for the weekend, and I have been having too much fun to find time to write about it. But the coming week will also be busy (and not without fun) so this is the condensed version:

• On Saturday boybear went into Newcastle to do tai chi and chatting with his sparring partner.



• GirlBear and I spent the morning at the cathedral: this is the first time I have visited since they removed the prohibition on photography, and I had fun taking pictures.



• durham_rambler joined us for lunch at the Almshouses, followed by a little light shopping and home for a nice rest on my lovely reupholstered sofa).



• We ordered dinner from Holi and Bhang, the current incarnation of the restaurant at Farnley Tower: worth a try, we thought, because it is very close, and could be good. Unfortunately, they had gone into meltdown, having distributed thousands of menus around the city, and not had the sense to turn down orders that they couldn't fill. We were told we'd have an hour's wait, which turned into an hour and a half, and weren't impressed by the food (quality was uneven, and some dishes were better than others, but overall, not great). So now we know.



• On Sunday morning we visited the Penshaw Monument,

Wikipedia explains it all.

• and bought an excellent sourdough loaf - and some very nice scones, but the bread was exceptional - from the farm shop just below the Monument.



• In the evening we went to see the Melrose Quartet at the Sage. The band seem to have adopted a new uniform of jeans and black tops (James Fagan had very snazzy red buttons): I don't think I've ever seen Nancy Kerr in anything other than bright print frocks, so this was a big contrast. The material was more familiar: in fact it was almost all familiar, which was great because I got to hear a lot of favourites, but ... It turns out that the band are working on a Christmas album - being Sheffield based, they get to sing the Yorkshire carols - so perhaps they felt that their new material is all a bit unseasonal.



• Today we had a lunch date with J.; and visited the Roman fort at Binchester, since it is (almost) on the way.



• Which gave the Bears an opportunity to admire J.'s house (and me and durham_rambler an opportunity to admire the latest changes). We, too, have made changes since the Bears' last visit, which was longer ago than I had realised: they hadn't seen the wet room in the downstairs bathroom, or the bookcases in the spare bedroom...

Comments

[poliphilo]

I've visited most English cathedrals and Durham was the only one that forbade photography. I'm glad they've come into line.

[shewhomust]

I'm glad, too. I think mobile phone cameras have become so good and so ubiquitous, it is no longer practical to ban them.

In fairness to Durham, there are other cathedrals which charge for admission. Durham (still) don't do this, though they have become much more assertive about extracting voluntary donations.

[lamentables]

Hurrah, we need to visit Durham again!

[shewhomust]

You do!