Tuesday Thirteen

Time for Tuesday Thirteen. Todays list is of the various attractions to be found in my town.

1. Cathedral. Peterborough Cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Peterborough. It is very beautiful. It's biggest claim to fame is that 2 Queens were buried here in Tudor times. Katherine of Aragon and Mary Queen of Scots. Marys grave is now empty, she was re-buried in Westminster in 1612. I will do a separate blog about our Cathedral.

2. Ferry Meadows. This is an area at the heart of the Nene Park, running for 6 miles along the River Nene. Ferry Meadows has meadows, lakes and woods, where you can enjoy pleasant walks, fishing and bird watching. It also has a water sports centre and cruises down the Nene river. There are childrens play areas and a minature railway. In summer there are pony rides. Our children (and dogs) always loved going there and we went often when they were small. They called it "Fairy Medders"!!

3. Queensgate. This is the covered shopping centre in the city. When it first opened it was one of the largest and most prestigious in the country. That record has long since been taken over, but people still come here from surrounding towns and cities. It is still a really good shopping centre and boasts around 80 different shops with John Lewis department store being the flag ship. It is supposed to be being redeveloped soon.

4. Longthorpe Tower. This is an English Heritage site, just a couple of miles from my home. Longthorpe Tower displays one of the most complete and important sets of 14th-century domestic wall paintings in northern Europe. This varied 'spiritual encyclopedia' of worldly and religious subjects includes the Wheel of Life, the Nativity and King David.

5. Green wheel. This is an 80km network of cycleways, footpaths and bridleways. Designed for recreational use, it was created as part of a Millennium project around Peterborough. The Green Wheel name alludes to the circular nature of the major part of the path, which encircles Peterborough, with cycle route "spokes" leading from this perimeter, which passes through several peripheral settlements around Peterborough, into the city centre, allowing easy transport around the network, much of which required no new construction, instead using or improving already existing cycle routes or roads. There is a sculpture trail along parts of the route.

6. Flag Fen. This is a Bronze Age site, probably religious. It comprises a large number of poles arranged in five very long rows (around 1 km) connecting Whittlesey Island with Peterborough across the wet fenland. Part way across the structure, a small island was formed which is where it is presumed that the religious ceremonies occurred. Also at the site are reconstructions of 2 Bronze Age roundhouses and one from the Iron Age. There is also an exposed section of the Roman Road known as the Fen causeway which crosses the site and a reconstruction of a Prehistoric droveway. In the surrounding water of Flag Fen votive offerings have been found, e.g., daggers broken in half placed on top of each other. This supports the theory that Flag Fen was a site involved in religious rites.

7. Nene Valley Railway. The NVR is a standard gauge railway, which runs for seven and a half miles between Yarwell Junction and Peterborough in Cambridgeshire. Its headquarters are based at Wansford beside the A1. It boasts it's very own Thomas the Tank Engine.

8. Key Theatre. This is the city centre theatre. It is small, seating just 379 people, but it has a lovely intimate atmosphere and every seat has an excellent view. It is a place that will always be special for us. All of our family apart from Sam have been involved with the Key for many years. Coralie, Verity, Saskia and Josh were all members of KYT the Keys youth theatre group. They were in many productions.

The same 4 children plus Simon were all members of PMADS (Peterborough Music and dramatic Society). PMADS had their home at the Key and again my family have performed in many productions. Saskia of course, went on to do other things including the annual pantomime. The Key theatre has been superseded in size by the Cresset Theatre which is here in Bretton. The Cresset is a large venue and doesn't have the same cosy atmosphere. It is often used for concerts. Saskia knows the Cresset well, having performed there many times including in Panto.

9 Hills and Hollows. This is one of Britain's most important wildlife sites, well known for its flowers and rare orchids. In 2002 it was designated as a Special Area for Conservation, to protect the orchid rich grassland. It was originally a medieval quarry and the limestone quarried here, known as of Barnack Ragstone was used to build the Cathedral. It is one of Simon's favourite dog walking places and the children loved going there when they were small. They would exhaust their selves running up and down all the hills with Sandy who also loved it there.

10. Rowing lake. The rowing lake is a purpose built lake that runs adjacent to the river Nene and the steam railway. It is used for many events.

11. The Fens. Peterborough lies on the edge of the Cambrigehsire Fens. Today, the Fens are a primarily agricultural area which is strongly characterised by both its very low elevation and its flatness, as most of the Fenland lies within a few meters of sea-level, some of it even below! As with similar areas in the Netherlands, much of the Fenland originally consisted of fresh or saltwater wetlands which have been artificially drained and continue to be protected from floods by drainage banks and pumps; with the support of this drainage system, the Fenland has become a major arable agricultural region in Britain for grains and vegetables.

12. The library. We are lucky to have a really good, large, public library and in the past before the "computer" age, I spent time there doing family history research using micro fiche records.

13. Cinemas, pubs and so much more! Peterborough is a city of many attractions, it not only boasts many clubs, pubs and restaurants but also a Greyhound racing track! We have excellent rail links and the journey time to London Kings Cross is just 55 minutes on a non stop train. We are also not too far away from the sea. An hours drive will take you to the nearest coast at Sherringham, just along from Hunstanton. The historic Port of Kings Lynn, on Th Wash is about 40 minutes drive.

A lot of people criticise Peterborough. The youngsters often complain there is nothing to do here. I have just covered a few of Peterboroughs attractions. If you bother to dig beneath the surface Peterborough has many treasures. It is a good place to live.