Tag: Bargate

Fifteen minutes of fame and one final zebra

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28 September 2016

A couple of weeks ago I had an email from Chris Hitchings, a journalist working for Radio Solent. He’d seen my post about finding the boundary stone in Lord’s Wood and wanted to know more. We had an email conversation about the stones and how I’d been searching for them and he said he’d like to interview me. This sounded a little disconcerting as I’ve never been one to crave the spotlight and at first I was inclined to decline. When Chris said he thought someone out in radio land might know where the two missing stones were though, I decided a touch of public humiliation was worth it. Continue reading Fifteen minutes of fame and one final zebra

Short walks, swans, cygnets and zebras

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2 August 2016

Having an injured Commando at home has been cramping my style, at least walk wise. There have been no long walks since the zebra hunt last week, just lots of short ones. This is mostly because Commando can’t be trusted to do what he’s told and rest if I’m not actually there forcing him to. The man is just not built for resting! Continue reading Short walks, swans, cygnets and zebras

Waterside zebras, WestQuay zebras and free coffee!

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26 July 2016

With some difficulty we found our way out of Ocean Village and back to Canute Road.  Soon the familiar sight of South Western House was in front of us, along with our next zebra. Henman, sponsored by Barratt Homes, stood opposite the imposing building at the entrance to Queens Park. It took us quite a while to get across the road to have a proper look at him. Continue reading Waterside zebras, WestQuay zebras and free coffee!

Southampton old town Zebras

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19 July 2016

In hindsight the hottest, most humid day of the year wasn’t the best of choices for our first zebra hunt. CJ and I were too excited to wait any longer though and this was the first chance we’d had since the zebras went on display on Saturday. With one hundred and ninety eight zebras on the trail, including all the babies hidden in shops, we knew from the start we weren’t going to find them all in one go. Half way over Northam Bridge, with sweat dripping into my eyes and legs that felt like lead, I wondered if we’d even make it to town to find the first one. It may only have been three miles but, in such weather, it might as well have been a marathon. Continue reading Southampton old town Zebras

The zebras have come to town!

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12 July 2016

One sunny lunchtime in 2013, I sat in the park with a coffee and spotted what looked like a horse in a high vis jacket at the end of the path on Above Bar. The horse turned out to be a rhino. A summer of wandering around the city hunting these colourful beasts had begun. When they left, Southampton seemed a very empty and colourless place for a while and lunchtimes felt very dull. Late last year I learned there would be a new hunt this summer, not rhinos this time but zebras. Today, the zebras came to town! Continue reading The zebras have come to town!

Skyride Sunday

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12 June 2016

John, the parkrun ED, volunteered to organise marshals for this year’s Southampton Skyride so, today, there were an unusually large number of runners lining the streets of Southampton. They were all dressed in eye popping pink t-shirts. Amongst them was Commando. He left rather early this morning while I was still drinking hot chocolate and rubbing the sleep from my eyes. At a more reasonable hour CJ and I walked over to town to see what all the fuss was about. Continue reading Skyride Sunday

Pacing the Southampton Half Marathon

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24 April 2016

The day of the Southampton Half Marathon started off chillier than I’d expected. Standing just off the Avenue, opposite the bottom end of the Common, waiting around for the rest of our group I shivered and wished I’d brought a hat. It was just after eight and we were early but, thankfully, it wasn’t long before the others started to arrive and we set off towards the City Centre. By the time the start finish arch came into view it had begun to rain. Now I really wished I’d brought a hat but at least I didn’t have to strip down to t-shirt and shorts and run so I could hardly complain. Continue reading Pacing the Southampton Half Marathon

Ancient stones, builders and getting distracted

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5 April 2016

The building work was almost finished. There was a shed base at the end of the garden, the wall was built and the boring repointing was all done. We were still waiting for a skip to be delivered and the potting shed hadn’t even been ordered never mind built but still, patience is a virtue, right? Anyhow, all that is another post altogether. With no builder and no skip due today I could get out for a walk. It was sorely needed. Unfortunately, as I had an appointment in town, it wasn’t going to be a very exciting one but you can’t have everything eh? Anyway, it was probably time I checked out what was happening with the repairs to the Bargate. Continue reading Ancient stones, builders and getting distracted

There and back again

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8 March 2016

Another chilly Tuesday morning and an errand in town took me over the Big Bridge where the sun looked as if it was hiding at the bottom of the river. With a curious look at the Council van parked outside the Bargate I set off for the top end of town. Work doesn’t seem to have begun yet on the repairs but the Council van could be a good sign. Continue reading There and back again

Ancient stones and the jamais remarqué phenomenon

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17 February 2016

Since Christmas the arch through the Bargate has been blocked off. It began around the time Santa was flying over the city. Most people thought this was the reason for the barriers but Christmas came and went, Santa and the German Market packed up and the barriers stayed. Maybe they’d forgotten to take them down? When the arch was still blocked in February, it seemed something more sinister might be going on. Last week I discovered exactly what and thought I’d go and take some photos before our city landmark changed for ever. Continue reading Ancient stones and the jamais remarqué phenomenon