The red rose. The white rose. Symbols of sparring houses,
and therefore counties for hundreds of years. I am, of course, talking about
Yorkshire and Lancashire, and the Houses of York and Lancaster.
Of course, this has no real relevance to this blog post.
Aside from the fact two Lancashire women (if you want to be fussy about the
Greater Manchester/Lancashire county debate, then please keep it to yourself,
for the sake of the post…) crossing the Pennines to the distant land of
Yorkshire.
However, if we want to get particularly historical and a
little bit know it all, then we could examine some of Elizabeth I’s portraits,
her focus on the pink Tudor rose, celebrating the union of the two houses, and
there you have it! A redheaded woman bringing together Lancashire and York.
With my slightly tenuous link to history, the Tudors,
awesome redheaded women in place, I’d like to move away from all that and
shamelessly brag about a beautiful weekend in Yorkshire.
I mean, come on…
Sandwiched between the Yorkshire Dales and the Yorkshire
Moors, Northallerton really is the prettiest of places, and a dream for anyone
who enjoys pretty towns, pretty tearooms, and even prettier scenery.
Our first stop had to be the legendary Betty’s. Founded in
1919 by Swiss baker Frederick Belmont, with the original tearoom still standing in
Harrogate, Betty’s has to be one of those British treasures that will hopefully
be standing in another hundred years. It’s classic, not at all showy, offers excellent
food, wonderful service, with an atmosphere that you could only find in a
tradition English tearoom. I love the mystery behind the name to, we don’t know
to this day who Betty is – although there are several theories!
We had to have the traditional Fat Rascal – a delicacy I
have tried and failed to make myself, and have come to the conclusion that it
must be a Yorkshire thing. Well done, Yorkshire, be proud.
I had to bring my camera along, and for all those who love
the Great British scenery, get yourself to North Yorkshire, because it’s stunning.
From beautiful wisteria filled villages, cosy pubs, epic landscapes, and sunset
covered fields, it’s a photographer’s dream.
Our second day in this wonderful part of the world took us
to Harrogate, a gem of a town. Here we visited the breath-taking Harrogate
Turkish Baths. Now, I obviously couldn’t take my camera into the spa, so I have taken some photos from the website and posted the link below, because
this place is worth checking out. It makes a lovely day out.
We took a dip in the plunge pool, visited the steam room,
and the relaxation chambers, but what is so special about this place is it’s
stunning architecture, it truly feels as though nothing has changed from it’s
opening in 1897. The Moorish interiors, mosaic floors, and painted ceilings
make it a wonderfully unique place. We spent two hours there and it felt like a
whole day, we tumbled out into a blustery Harrogate feeling relaxed, refreshed,
and totally rejuvenated!
Must be something in the water.
So get thee to Yorkshire. You won't regret it.
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