When I look back at history, it is the stories of how our ancestors lived and worked that I find the most fascinating. Has anyone been watching the BBC programme 'A House Through Time?'
Back in July when we were on holiday in Anglesey we stayed in a wonderful Welsh cottage which dated back to the 17th century. Looking through brochures of visitor attractions I discovered that we could visit a replica of a similar Welsh cottage, on the other side of the island. It was an opportunity to appreciate the lives of those who had lived in our holiday cottage many centuries before!
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| The holiday cottage with a built on extension |
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| Swtan Folk musuem |
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| Swtan folk museum |
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| Back at the holiday cottage the design was just the same! |
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| Our comfortable holiday cottage |
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Can you see the ladder that led up to a sleeping quarters ? On our cottage they had turned it into the magical space, it would have been a wonderful place for children to sleep! |
Our bedroom was much more comfortable! The visit to the Folk Museum made us appreciate how lucky we were to be enjoying our surroundings. In the past the previous inhabitants would have had to share this space with their animals with no toilets or running water and would never have gone away on holidays!
The Folk Museum garden was well cared for and was full of herbs, vegetable and fruit trees.
Our cottage garden was equally beautiful and there was even a secret small walled garden, which was full of fresh vegetables and sweet peas that we were welcome to enjoy, it was such a treat to find this in a holiday home!
Looking back again at these pictures summer seems so far away. During this last week we were delighted to hear, once again, a dawn chorus. Have you any plans for holidays this year? We have decided to head for some sun and have plans to visit Portugal this year.
Yes we have been enjoying the house programme. What a wonderful cottage you stayed in and lovely to have your own veggies. Summer seems so long ago.
ReplyDeleteI’m sure you’ll enjoy Portugal. We stayed near the lagoon of Obidos many years ago when the boys were small. It’s definitely a third world country. We’re hoping to do a little family history later this year near Montreal. Got to get my head round a long air flight :). B x
We went to Tavira about 10 years ago and loved it, we promised ourselves another holiday in Portugal, it's taken a long time to make a return trip a reality! Sarah x
DeleteWe are enjoying a house through time, I find any social history very interesting.
ReplyDeleteI have been watching the Home through time - fascinating.
ReplyDeleteThe holiday cottage and garden are lovely.
Dare I say it we are going to Italy for our hols with a wedding in the middle - as you may have gathered from my blog and of course some time in our cottage over the summer.
What a treasure!
ReplyDeleteWe are doing some travel around Canada this year. In the spring.
Lovely memories rekindled on a dark winter's eve! We stayed in a house from the 1700's a few years back in Pennsylvania and have stayed in Inns just as old. It's wonderful to feel a part of the history.
ReplyDeleteDear Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI love the little cottage you stayed in and looks so cozy and comfortable and the garden wonderful too. Will have to look out for the show when it comes to NZ, we enjoy watching shows like this.
You will be looking forward to yiur holiday in Portugal, in the sun. We are planning a trip in September to France - we have been offered the use of a place in Bordeaux of one of my husbands work clients.
Many thanks for following Victoria and your kind words.
Hope you have a lovely week
Hugs
Carolyn
The exterior photos of the houses remind me of the movie, Secret of Roan Inish! I love them!
ReplyDeleteAll your photos are simply beautiful.
Hello and yes, I'm watching it too. Wales is one of our favourite places to holiday, going there year on year. We won't be going away this year as our beloved Ginger is to poorly to travel now and we would never consider kennelling her as she gets terrible separation anxiety :( I love history and all history programmes and I'm also enjoying Lucy Worsley's Six Wives. I'm new to blogging so I'm only just discovering other people's blogs. Have a happy day :)
ReplyDeleteWelcome, it's good to meet you! I'm sure you will enjoy your time blogging,there is a great community out there! Animals can restrict where we go on holiday, our dog doesn't go to kennels either. Luckily our children help out with looking after the pets while we are away. Sarah x
DeleteI MUST look up that BBC show about the house; we love most anything that BBC puts out! And this cottage Sarah....many of us Americans just love a European cottage, and we are smitten with the designs. This white-washed cottage is perfection to us, and we've done a fairy good job of recreating this feel and look to our own American-built, 1941 brick cottage. You inspire!
ReplyDeleteA House Through Time has only be shown on the TV from the New Year, so you might have to wait sometime before you see it over in America. I know you will enjoy it when you see it. Sarah x
DeleteI see you! :)
ReplyDeletePortugal is a very good idea. Raised beds in a holiday Cottage are wonderful,I like them.
Sigrun
The inside of the welsh cottage that you stayed in was charming, and the garden a delight.
ReplyDeleteNow that you have decided where to go this summer, you will have lots of pleasure planning and thinking about what is to come.
I've seen a little of that programme; it is good history. What a wonderful opportunity, to compare your holiday cottage with the musem! Even the latter, though, looks far more sanitised than I suspect it would have been. Yes, most of us are far more fortunate than our ancestors - we (or do I mean 'I'?!) should remember that more often!
ReplyDeleteThe days ARE getting longer! And now i hear birds every morning; and the bulbs are beginning to emerge. Yes indeed, spring will be here soon!
ReplyDeleteI do think, and wonder, how people lived in centuries past. What a hard life it was.
Very interesting post! Your holiday cottage looks warm and inviting, and it is interesting to see the folk museum cottage as well. A few years ago we went to a Folk museum in Ireland, and as I was standing in a similar cottage to the ones my ancestors lived in, I had an overwhelming sense of how life really was for them.....such grinding poverty and overcrowding. I do think Folk museums give people the idea of bygone days, more than any text book could do.
ReplyDeleteYour cottage garden looks lovely, I wish my lavender looked like that, not to mention the vegetables.
Lovely post and photos as always.
A House Through Time looks like something I would love. Unfortunately, it's not available here in the U.S. yet. Fingers crossed that we will get it eventually. Love the spinning wheels at the folk museum.
ReplyDeleteI did think of you when I saw the spinning wheels! Sarah x
DeleteHello Sarah, what a joy that was for you to spend time there. What a charming place and loved the garden. I love history too and your country has many years of amazing history. I have not seen the program but I will keep my eye out. Thank you for sharing and have a wonderful time.
ReplyDeleteIts all so charming!
ReplyDeleteI do love Domestic history! So fascinating! I really dislike Non-fiction but I do like history books about real life! The place you stayed looked delightful and the museum fascinating!
ReplyDeleteYou are right we do not know how lucky we are today. I grew up in a country cottage next door to my grandparents with no running water onlya well with lovely ‘cold’ water. It was though an enjoyable childhood with good food, we had chickens, pigs and bees in the garden. Historically rural lives were very hard at least we had electricity! We are still planning this year’s holidays.
ReplyDeleteYour holiday cottage looks like a wonderful place to stay! I love staying in places with character. The museum looks interesting too.
ReplyDeleteI´ll move in directly!! What a lovely house :)
ReplyDeleteHave a happy sunday, take care...
Titti
Sarah - your stay must have been wonderful. The cottage is charming for sure and then having the museum nearby to visit. I noticed a lamp shade in the cottage you stayed in that looked embroidered perhaps, such sweet details. I could see myself enjoying the gardens too. Warm weather and flowers seem so far away at this time, so this was an especially enjoyed post, felt like I went away on holiday. No special plans for us at this time, however we will be celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary in the fall, perhaps we will get away then... Portugal sounds wonderful, I hope you will take photos and share with us. xo kim
ReplyDeleteOur blue enemale butterfly is a memory of Welsh cottages.
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