Sunday 25 October 2015

Music on Sunday; Adele


Of course there's no going around it; Adele...
After years of absence she's back and how!
First there was that small teaser which made everyone wanting more and finally there it was; the complete song with a gorgeous vid.

There are not much female artists I love and adore, Dido is sharing the number one position in my book with Adele (okay and Stevie Nicks!) they all can create an atmosphere in a single song that makes me happy, makes me cry, makes me just feel so much at one time!
So here's to Adele and my favourite songs of hers;













© KH

Saturday 24 October 2015

Thursday 22 October 2015

Treasures of Britain; Loch Lomond



As a lot of you know I love, no, adore Scotland. I've been to many places but of course I have also missed a lot of them as well. One of the places I've never been and is still on my list is Loch Lomond. Not in the last place because of this wonderful song; Everyone has his favourite version of this song, this is mine;



Loch Lomond (23 miles/37 km long) is the largest fresh water area in Great Britain, overlooked by stunning hills and forest. The road that runs along the east shore, more wooded and less busy than the west shore, comes to an end at Rowardennan Lodge.



This is a popular destination for hikers following the West Highland Way toward Queen Elizabeth Forest Park or climbing Ben Lomond (3,195 feet/97m).



Loch Lomond and Ben Lomond

The Falls of Inversnaid on the banks of Loch Lomond.

 West Highland Way

Queen Elizabeth Forest Park-
Bracklinn Falls at Calander

Milarrochy-bay sunset

© KH

Sunday 18 October 2015

Music on Sunday; Covers

I heard this song yesterday on Spotify and was hooked really. The original one is one of my favourites and this was so nicely done that it doesn't hinder the original one. So for today's theme; Covers that are as good or maybe better than the original.

Original one from Tears for Fears



Original from Depeche Mode



This is really not the original but already covered but the most known version from Soft Cell



Original from Phil Collins



Original is by Robert Palmer



Original is by David Bowie



© KH

Thursday 15 October 2015

Treasures of Britain; Hamlets

Today I was going to go to NTlive to see Benedict Cumberbatch play Hamlet. But as often in life; it's made out of disappointments and how you deal with them. The woman who was going with me can't make it and she was going to take me back home. As there isn't a train going back that late, I can't go either.

So today I thought; A hamlet is a type of settlement. The definition of hamlet varies by country. It usually refers to a small settlement, with a small population that is usually under 100, in a rural area, or a component of a larger settlement or municipality. Hamlets are typically unincorporated communities. Are there still Hamlets in the UK? Yes there are! Here are a few;

Hamlet Hill Cornwall

The small hamlet of Swineside in Coverdale

Stawford,Devon

Woolage Green

Clara Vale

Royal Oak, Yorkshire

© KH

Monday 12 October 2015

Visited in dreams

Ever since my dad has passed away, 12 years today, I've been dreaming regularly about him. It was a strange week to begin with, the week after his passing. It was almost as if he was still there, in the house. Dust-bins flying open for no apparent reason, strange sounds in the house, we got the chills and felt dad's precence still.
The night before the funeral I spent the night at my mum's for support. Mum and I were talking before we went to sleep. She told me she had seen him, the night right after he'd passed. She was wide awake but he had stood by the side of her bed, clear as day. I believed her. I do believe there is more between heaven and earth than we know off.

That night I dreamt about my dad for the first time. I was going to speak at the funeral and felt nervous. Would I keep it together? I was strong the whole time but this was something different. My dad was only 60 when he died and I thought it was so unfair he died so young. In my dream I was about to stand up to speak when I noticed my dad sitting next to me. All the other people faded away; it was only dad and me. Dad and I stood up and faced each other. I arrived too late when he died, so I never got to speak to him which bothered me. He looked at me and said; 'It is good' meaning he thought it was okay like this, him dying instead of the cancer eating away at him more. He took my hand, squezed it and I could walk to the front to talk to everyone. That's when I woke up and told my mum about it.

Ever since that day I had more dreams with my dad in them. My dad wasn't a very talketive man. He said what needed to be said (he was a militairy man maybe that says it all) and that's it. He had glasses that colour when the light is too bright, so you didn't always see his eyes. In my dreams that meant I didn't see his eyes often; I saw his glasses which were coloured by the sun. My dad could give you a look without talking when you said something silly. So in my dreams the first years after his death, I only saw a glimpse of him. Either dad walking off the stairs just turning his head to look at me, or him sitting somewere with those coloured glasses again turning his head to look at me; letting me know he was there. It felt that way to me at least. He never spoke to me, not for years anyway. He looked, or he raised his eyebrow like he could do sometimes. Sometimes I woke up crying because I missed him so much, but more often than not I woke up with a smile; I had seen him again!

Last year my mother fell in love with another man. It was totally unexpected, as love often is. She had always said she would never ever want another man, cause men like my dad weren't to be found, which I do think is true. He could be difficult (I do have that from him) but he had a heart of gold.
I do have however a bit of difficulty adjusting to this new situation. The 'new man' in mum's life is trying too hard I think.
It has to grow on me. I like him but he's no dad. But mum is happy and that's what counts I think.
I don't think that this man has anything to do with the dreams but the fact that this morning I woke up laughing because something my dad had said was such a great feeling.

I dreamt that mum and her friend lived together as they do now but my dad lived there too. (weird) In the guestroom. I was there visiting and dad's glasses were crooked on his head. I said to him he needed them fixed and looked angry at my mum for letting him walk around like that. Mum's friend walked in and dad said something so funny (which of course I can't remember) that I burst out laughing and which made me wake up. I now think he still watching over us, over mum and her friend, that she's not making wrong decisions or something. He's still watching over us even though she has a new man in her life. Which I find comforting.
It wasn't until I woke up and looked at the date I realised that today is the day of dad's passing... Again his way of saying he's still with us and I love him for it!

© KH

Sunday 11 October 2015

Music on Sunday; Male singers with deep dark voices

Last week I was finally meeting up with Daan and we got to talk about male singers with deep dark voices. We both like Tom Smith of Editors and Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam. So I promised her I'd make it a Music on Sunday item this Sunday. :)
So here it is; For you Daan ❤

















© KH

Thursday 8 October 2015

Treasures of Britain; Groombridge Place and Gardens



Surrounded by 164 acres of breathtaking parkland, this mystical site has an intriguing history stretching back to medieval times. The gardens, laid out in the 17th century by Philip Packer, a friend of Sir Christopher Wren and the famous diarist and horticulturist John Evelyn, have been described as a most remarkable and a very special survival.

- The stunning period setting for Peter Greenaway's acclaimed film 'The Draughtman's Contract'
- Film location for "Pride and Prejudice" 
- Medieval moat and stunning 17th century walled gardens.
- 17th century formal gardens with ancient topiary and fountain displays.
- The Enchanted Forest and designer water gardens.
- Canal boat rides.
- One of England's largest Bird of Prey Sanctuaries.





Pride and Prejudice was filmed here as well

 Enchanted Forest



© KH

Sunday 4 October 2015

Music on Sunday; songs about mothers and fathers



Yesterday I heard this wonderful song from Stevie Nicks again and it made me kind of melancholic. This is about a father-daughter relationship. Stevie wrote it on the guitar in about five minutes in Aspen, Colorado. She was surrounded by mountains and thinking, "Wow, all this snow could just come tumbling down around me and there is nothing I can do about it." When she feels like this she just goes to a room and writes her thoughts down so she can read it and ponder what she has written.
It also makes me think about my own relationship with my parents and with my kids.

So for today some songs about that... just for no reason at all other than melancholy...













© KH

Thursday 1 October 2015

Treasures of Britain; Conwy Suspension Bridge




Conwy Suspension Bridge, was one of the first road suspension bridges in the world. Located in the medieval town of Conwy in Conwy county borough, North Wales, it is now only passable on foot. The bridge is now in the care of the National Trust. It originally carried the A55 road from Chester to Bangor.
Built by Thomas Telford, the bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the River Conwy next to Conwy Castle, a World Heritage Site.




 The bridge was completed in 1826 and replaced the ferry at the same point. Telford matched the bridge's supporting towers with the castle's turrets. It is in the same style as one of Telford's other bridges, the Menai Suspension Bridge crossing the Menai Strait. The Conwy bridge runs alongside the wrought iron tubular railway bridge built by Robert Stephenson. Until Stephenson's bridge was built, Telford's bridge was the only crossing of the river, and therefore the only way to get to the ferry that leaves for Ireland.
Built into the rock on which Conwy Castle stands, it is very close to the castle, and narrow at only 2½ metres across. Part of the castle had to be demolished during construction in order for the suspension cables to be anchored into the rock.
The bridge was superseded by a new road bridge built alongside in 1958. As of 1991 the A55 road goes through the Conwy Tunnel instead, bypassing the town entirely. The 1958 bridge remains in use by local traffic.



© KH