08/08/09
South of England was blessed with lovely sun today, seems almost only like the 5 or 6th day we have had sun though I`m sure it`s been more.
So I got invited by my good sister or so she tells me to go out on a road trip down to a place called Weymouth on the south coast of England and it turned into a great day . . first we though we would avoid a well known bottle neck of a road called ringwood and travel via an alternative route to Dorset, vla Stonehendge.. big mistake . . huge jam on the way, so time for a quick divert, head for Salisbury and down into Weymouth, quite a result in the end, we went to Salsibury and on down to Weymouth, on the way, dinner time a beckoned, and as luck wold have it we hit one of those UK pubs that turned out to be amazing… place called The Rose And Crown at Longburton in Dorset, I kid not when i say the food was brilliant.. I have added a link to my food section on the right, really if your that way make a diversion to go in, top notch chef food was very, VERY good.. Even the desert was made in house very good.
We moved on or probably waddled after the food towards Weymouth, day was getting on so we headed straight to Portland, Portland is just out side Weymouth conected via a place called Chesil Beach, which is a huge beach as you can see by the photo`s.
Portland is a small place but famous for really 2 things, a lighthouse, and stone, Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries consist of beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a building stone throughout the British Isles, notably in major public buildings in London such as St Paul’s Cathedral and Buckingham Palace. It is also exported to many countries – Portland stone is used in the United Nations headquarters building in New York City, for example.
The term “Portland Cement” was coined by Joseph Aspdin who in 1824 patented a hydraulic binder created by burning a mixture of limestone and clay, resembling the previously existing Roman cement and presenting a texture very close to that of the oolitic Portland stone.
It is quite a site to see these huge block all over the island. Down by the other point of interest on the island, the light house.
There are indeed some great views, and great stones, as below.. All in all a cracking day..
