Voor de Nederlandse versie van dit verhaal klik hier Hagstones ... a magical find for many. A piece of stone with a natural hole through it. Finding a hagstone or witch stone is special. A stone to which all kinds of magical properties are attributed. But what exactly is a hagstone? What is a hagstone? [...]
Voor de Nederlandse versie van het artikel klik hier Anyone who has ever walked on the beach, especially in southern England, has found flint. For most people not really a special, attractive or beautiful stone. Ok, sometimes they have interesting shapes or beautiful colours. But how ordinary this stone might be, no rock or mineral [...]
De Nederlandse vertaling van dit artikel vind je hier In England, midsummer or summer solstice is synonymous with Stonehenge and the midsummer celebration there with thousands of people gathering at the famous stone circle every year. In the early morning of June the 21st, they gather to see the sun rise over the so-called 'Heel [...]
Voor de Nederlandse versie van dit artikel klik hier. Quite some years ago, when I started to read about the history of Great Britain because I realised I loved that country, I often saw King Arthur's name in the books that I read. And he caught my attention. Who was this king and why did [...]
Voor de Nederlandse versie van dit verhaal klik hier ‘The carpenter's daughter has won a name for herself , and has deserved to win it. ’ - Charles Dickens, 1865 220 Years ago on the 21st of May Mary Anning was born. Who? Mary Anning ... Most people won't know her name. But people who [...]
Nederlandse versie van dit artikel door hier te klikken On the first of May Beltane was celebrated in pre-Christian Britain. The name Beltane is Gaelic. The oldest written sources date from the 9th and 10th century from an Irish writing that talks about Beltine, the fire (tine in Gaelic) of Bel. It is Samhain's counterpart, the [...]
Voor de Nederlandse versie van dit verhaal klik hier. April 23rd is St George’s Day in England. The feast day (and in this case also the day of death) of Saint Saint George. The English are more English this day than you can imagine. Everywhere the English flag with the St George’s Cross can be [...]
Nederlandse versie van dit artikel door hier te klikken There'll be bluebirds over The white cliffs of Dover Tomorrow Just you wait and see There'll be love and laughter And peace ever after Tomorrow When the world is free This is how Vera Lynn sang about the White Cliffs of Dover during the Second World [...]
Wie van het mooie landschap van Groot-Brittannië houdt kan er niet om heen. Grote delen van de rotsen in vooral Midden en Zuid-Engeland bestaan uit kalksteen (limestone). De belangrijkste mineralen in dit gesteente zijn calciet, aragoniet en dolomiet. Vooral calciet en dolomiet zul je erg vaak aantreffen. In dit blog wil ik wat dieper ingaan [...]
Lente equinox 21 Maart vieren we dat de lente begint. Deze dag noemen we tegenwoordig de lente -equinox. Equinox is afgeleid van aequinoctium, dat is Latijn voor ‘gelijke nacht’. Met een equinox zijn dag en nacht ongeveer even lang. We kennen een herfst en een lente-equinox. De lente-equinox valt dit jaar officieel op 20 maart, [...]
