27th June 2005 – Lincoln and Boston
Yesterday, we were told that there no facilities bar the drinking water tap. The nearest toilets were public ones in Wragby, about 3 miles north of where we were. So, Nav deciding that he needed them, drove up to Wragby. But he didn’t come back. Until over an hour later.
During that hour or so, I spoke to an elderly couple who told me that they had bought the little bungalow house as a place of retreat. Also, earlier this morning, it turned out that there were a billion rabbits and hares (“the size of hounds” quoting the old man) around our tent. The couple were checking up on us to make sure we didn’t get eaten – very nice and caring of them, I thought. They left, and after a long while Nav returned.
“Grr… I hate Lincolnshire” said Nav, waving his fists at the surrounding countryside. He got to Wragby fine, but got lost on the way back. Luckily, I had my Jason Bourne Supremacy book to keep me company. “We really need a f@$*ing GPS” – think Nav got a little pissed off.
Around about 11am, we left the campsite and headed into ‘Historical Lincoln’ (as the tourist road signs stated it as). And indeed it was. Once parked up and a short walk, we found there to be a few cobbled streets and independent shops, old-style housing with little modernisation. It was quite pleasant – I always liked cobbled streets filled with independent shops, although maybe only as a visiting-aspect and not living. The Lincoln Cathedral was another huge edifice – the front face may be deceptive to its size as it is quite long too. Inside, it did not seem much different from any other:
Next was Lincoln Castle. It was pretty cheap to visit and it turned out to be a good investment. There were a number of attractions dotted around the Castle ground, but probably, the main highlight was seeing the original Lincolnshire version of the Magna Carta – the document that began the shaping of the English constitution (I believe, correct me if I’m wrong though). There was a lot of history behind it all (of special note to me, was an arrangement on the fields of Runnymede, an area where Brunel University once had a department but has no longer. The Magna Carta was placed within a special container (giving control over the lighting and humidity), but also there were copies and a translation of it (originally writing in shorthand Latin). It was quite interesting to read, although I cannot remember anything specific now, but it’s well worth a look – especially as they say that four of the regulations (sectioned in paragraphs) in the Carta are still being used to this day.
Other points of interest were: the lookout tower to see the surrounding Lincoln area; a walk on the remains of the castle walls, which was quite a lot of it; the prison church area, where each convict has their own cubicle; as well as busts, remains of a cross, graveyard area, and a well.
There was a point when, walking along the castle walls, I pointed down as said: “What’s that thing there? The thing that looks like a man and isn’t moving” to which Nav replied “What? The man in the wheelchair?” Which was quite, quite funny as I hadn’t noticed that person. Later on, Nav was having a drink when I said that we were visiting “the thing, the man that doesn’t move, that man in a wheelchair”, to which Nav laughed and snorted out a load of water from his nose. Oh the hilarity of it – well, you had to have been there, really.
We left the castle and got some food. The lady at the counter asked if I had a 5p, to which I said that she was lucky as I did. She then said “You either lucky in life or money. Looks like I’m lucky in money.” Also, she got confused over who wanted what, other customers were in the bakery also, we all had a jolly good laugh. As we left, I heard the next lady customer asking, in an American accent, “Have you any soda bread?” I left quickly.
The final item of interest, as listed by Morton, as the Newport Arch. It is the only Roman archway to be still in use (in the whole of England, I think). It got damaged many years ago by a passing lorry but was reconstructed, which I think is a bit of a cheat, really.
We left Lincoln going roughly south-east-east to Boston. We visited the Boston Stump, which is otherwise known as a Cathedral, and it wasn’t impressive at all. It wasn’t open either, which was a shame as its tower was ascendable in Morton’s day and would probably still be today, for a small fee. The design of the Stump has significance (e.g. seven doors to represent the days of the week), all of which you will find in Morton’s book. Other than that, there wasn’t much to it. Incidentally, to us, Boston seemed to be where all the Chav people were hiding (for we had seen little of these species during our journey). Kind of Chav Central, if you will.
Oh and on the way back from the Stump to the car, Nav was scratching his back whilst we were walking past some teenagers. Once past, Nav heard one of the girls say “I thought that man didn’t have an arm!” She couldn’t have been that stupid, could she?
We finished for the day and found our way to a small campsite and tented up. The owner told us of Mablethorpe, a seaside resort area with a long golden sand beach. The 45-minute drive from Boston to Mablethorpe would provide “a synopsis of what Lincoln stands for”, which I thought would be interesting. However, whether we can afford the time is another thing, as I believe our plan is to head towards Norwich and that’s a 70-mile drive from here.
As an aside, whilst driving into and out of Lincolnshire, we saw that they put great big nets under power lines that hang over their roads. Clearly, they are quite safety conscious of breaking wires falling onto the road and killing everyone, or has it happened before and that this is their solution? Is that what they are for?
-- steven
During that hour or so, I spoke to an elderly couple who told me that they had bought the little bungalow house as a place of retreat. Also, earlier this morning, it turned out that there were a billion rabbits and hares (“the size of hounds” quoting the old man) around our tent. The couple were checking up on us to make sure we didn’t get eaten – very nice and caring of them, I thought. They left, and after a long while Nav returned.
“Grr… I hate Lincolnshire” said Nav, waving his fists at the surrounding countryside. He got to Wragby fine, but got lost on the way back. Luckily, I had my Jason Bourne Supremacy book to keep me company. “We really need a f@$*ing GPS” – think Nav got a little pissed off.
Around about 11am, we left the campsite and headed into ‘Historical Lincoln’ (as the tourist road signs stated it as). And indeed it was. Once parked up and a short walk, we found there to be a few cobbled streets and independent shops, old-style housing with little modernisation. It was quite pleasant – I always liked cobbled streets filled with independent shops, although maybe only as a visiting-aspect and not living. The Lincoln Cathedral was another huge edifice – the front face may be deceptive to its size as it is quite long too. Inside, it did not seem much different from any other:
Next was Lincoln Castle. It was pretty cheap to visit and it turned out to be a good investment. There were a number of attractions dotted around the Castle ground, but probably, the main highlight was seeing the original Lincolnshire version of the Magna Carta – the document that began the shaping of the English constitution (I believe, correct me if I’m wrong though). There was a lot of history behind it all (of special note to me, was an arrangement on the fields of Runnymede, an area where Brunel University once had a department but has no longer. The Magna Carta was placed within a special container (giving control over the lighting and humidity), but also there were copies and a translation of it (originally writing in shorthand Latin). It was quite interesting to read, although I cannot remember anything specific now, but it’s well worth a look – especially as they say that four of the regulations (sectioned in paragraphs) in the Carta are still being used to this day.
Other points of interest were: the lookout tower to see the surrounding Lincoln area; a walk on the remains of the castle walls, which was quite a lot of it; the prison church area, where each convict has their own cubicle; as well as busts, remains of a cross, graveyard area, and a well.
There was a point when, walking along the castle walls, I pointed down as said: “What’s that thing there? The thing that looks like a man and isn’t moving” to which Nav replied “What? The man in the wheelchair?” Which was quite, quite funny as I hadn’t noticed that person. Later on, Nav was having a drink when I said that we were visiting “the thing, the man that doesn’t move, that man in a wheelchair”, to which Nav laughed and snorted out a load of water from his nose. Oh the hilarity of it – well, you had to have been there, really.
We left the castle and got some food. The lady at the counter asked if I had a 5p, to which I said that she was lucky as I did. She then said “You either lucky in life or money. Looks like I’m lucky in money.” Also, she got confused over who wanted what, other customers were in the bakery also, we all had a jolly good laugh. As we left, I heard the next lady customer asking, in an American accent, “Have you any soda bread?” I left quickly.
The final item of interest, as listed by Morton, as the Newport Arch. It is the only Roman archway to be still in use (in the whole of England, I think). It got damaged many years ago by a passing lorry but was reconstructed, which I think is a bit of a cheat, really.
We left Lincoln going roughly south-east-east to Boston. We visited the Boston Stump, which is otherwise known as a Cathedral, and it wasn’t impressive at all. It wasn’t open either, which was a shame as its tower was ascendable in Morton’s day and would probably still be today, for a small fee. The design of the Stump has significance (e.g. seven doors to represent the days of the week), all of which you will find in Morton’s book. Other than that, there wasn’t much to it. Incidentally, to us, Boston seemed to be where all the Chav people were hiding (for we had seen little of these species during our journey). Kind of Chav Central, if you will.
Oh and on the way back from the Stump to the car, Nav was scratching his back whilst we were walking past some teenagers. Once past, Nav heard one of the girls say “I thought that man didn’t have an arm!” She couldn’t have been that stupid, could she?
We finished for the day and found our way to a small campsite and tented up. The owner told us of Mablethorpe, a seaside resort area with a long golden sand beach. The 45-minute drive from Boston to Mablethorpe would provide “a synopsis of what Lincoln stands for”, which I thought would be interesting. However, whether we can afford the time is another thing, as I believe our plan is to head towards Norwich and that’s a 70-mile drive from here.
As an aside, whilst driving into and out of Lincolnshire, we saw that they put great big nets under power lines that hang over their roads. Clearly, they are quite safety conscious of breaking wires falling onto the road and killing everyone, or has it happened before and that this is their solution? Is that what they are for?
-- steven
posted by Steven | 8:55 pm
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