The (Dutch!) Enigma

It was interesting to learn that the original Enigma was a Dutch invention. Two Dutch naval officers, Theo A. van Hengel  and R. P. C. Spengler build the first prototype back in 1915. As so many things (Fokker) it was licensed to the Germans who later build the final Enigma.
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Last Day - Duxford museum

The Lockheed SR-71 is still the world's fastest airplane


V1 - installation

Commander HQ
In Duxford The Imperial War  Museum has its airplane branch. It is huge and the air strip is still used for demonstrations. It also has an American section which specific USA planes from different wars. Duxford used to be am American airfield in WWII.
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Alan Turing revisited

Alans' Teddy bear

His office in Block 8
The most famous code breaker at Bletchley Park was of course Alan Turing. It was special to see his original office and some personal artifacts. Also displayed was the letter of Gordon Brown of 2009 in were the British Government finally acknowledged  that Alan was a true War Hero and that the repression and shame that was put on him as a gay man was totally unacceptable. Alan died at 42 (suicide or murder?)
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Colossus - The first computer


At Betchley Park you can have a look at Colossus, the world's first electronic, digital, programmable computer. It was used to try to decipher German coding during WWII. It has taken nearly fifteen years to rebuild it and is using (then) state-of-the-art vacuum tubes (thermionic valves), thyratrons and photomultipliers to optically read a paper tape and then applied a programmable logical function to every character, counting how often this function returned "true". It can proces 5,000 characters per second. (your iPhone millions)
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Telephone box

I had to take at least one picture before they are all gone...
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Picasso?

William & Mary plate
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Day 16 - Oxford

Lots of Colleges

In the Ashmolean museum

In the Ashmolean Museum


White: I just started - Pink: I am Halfway - Red: I am done.

Harry Potters' Hogwarts Dining room

Kitty kitty

College

College
Oxford is nothing more then a group of Colleges which make up the University. Almost everything is owned by some College. It is fun to walk around and see the quirky way the educate here (as long as it lasts). A lot of Harry Potter kind of scenes as well.
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Day 15 - The Midlands

LongLeat House

The Madonna with the Big Boobies (for real!)

Stonehenge

LongLeat House
On our way from Bath to Oxford we came by some interesting places like Longleat House and Stonehenge. Stonehenge is actually not that interesting and great - millions of tourists - but it is the most famous artifact from the prehistoric period, so something you have to see in you lifetime for real. (So an other thing we can check from our bucket list).
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Day 14 - Bath

Pulteney Bridge - designed by Robert Adams

Jacobs' Ladder

The Bath in...uh... Bath!

Circus Crescent
Bath is a very popular tourist town. It has been since the romans found a hot spring here. The Baths are still there and the museum gives you a good impression about the development since the Romans. Also famous of course are the crescents - ons of the most prestigious addresses in the world perhaps. If only the houses were nice as well - they are not I think. The lay out is nice though.
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Day 13 - Cardiff (castle)



We did not had so much time to spend in Cardiff - but is seems a pretty town. The highlight is  Cardiff Castle which is actually something created in the 19th century and is a sort of Neu Swanstein all over- and inside.
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Day 12 - Wales

On the road
Trying to avoid sheep
In a slate mine - deep under ground
Wales really stole my heart - it is gorgeous! The roads are perfect, empty and made for riding motor cycles it seems... The weather was so-so but that did not prevent us from having fun. If only the midges weren't there in the summer - they are really a huge (or tiny...?) nuisance.
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Statues at Chatsworth




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Rolls Royce & Bentley Club at Chatsworth

1960 Bentley S2 Continental (Mulliner)?

1960 Bentley S2 Continental Saloon (Young)

Lots of fine cars
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Day 11: Peak district

Chatsworth House

The dining table ready for the Queens Jubilee

Haddon Hall

From one national park to the other over the most interesting, beautiful and curvy roads we continue our way down south. Now we are in the Peak District - which is stunning and has lots of things to do. We visited Chatsworth and Haddon Hall.
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Day 10: the rest of York

On top of the Minster
Great Organ concert

The medieval streets
York is a wonderful medieval little town - with lots of old stuff to see and of course the famous York Minster. Also here is the National Railway Museum which is one of the biggest in the world (with the Flying Scotsman e.g.). After a quest of more the two years I finally found my silver English soup spoons at Mulberry Hall- so now we really can enjoy soup the proper way...
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Day 9: York

Castle Howard
Statue Gallery in Castle Howard
James Herriots' House
Calling at James's door
Castle Howard is one of the grandest private residences in Britain and we were lucky to walk around (alone) early in the morning gazing at the magnificent rooms and especially the entry hall. This is where Bridgehead Revisited has been filmed (twice: the TV series and the movie) - so you recongnise quit a lot actually. After the castle we went to an other house: that of James Herriot (aka Alfie Wight) to have a look into the real world of a Yorkshire vet, the TV studio's where the series was recorded and some other fun artifacts of the famous writer/vet.
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