Having lived overseas opened opportunities to learn new things, meet new people, and explore wonderful places. The best experience though, is to experience all new things with an old friend. A friend of mine, who was an American military spouse, was stationed at the Royal Air Force (RAF) Menwith Hill in Yorkshire a few years before I moved to England. Our friendship has been tested multiple times. And despite time and distance, we have always managed to pick up where we left off. She and her family had been stationed stateside and in the Far East while I immigrated to England and stayed there for more than a decade, but that did not matter. It is a friendship founded on mutual respect and a friendship of shared laughters, tears, and shenanigans.

Once I was settled in the Midlands, I went to visit her and her family. What I did not realise was that the military base was in the middle of a vast stretch of countryside in the County of York. So, I was a tad perplexed when my taxi approached the base and caught sight of the hard-to-miss massive golf ball-like dome structures spread out on the green grassy expanse of land.

I knew my friend’s husband was a cryptologist with the US Navy, so these golf ball domes piqued my interest. I only found out what they were a few years after my visit. These structures are called radomes and, apparently, the base is a site serving as a joint communication intercept and intelligence support service for the United Kingdom and the United States of America. I was told that the site monitors electronic communications and certain buzz words are picked up and intercepted as appropriate. My friend’s husband never spoke about his work as a cryptologist, but it was not rocket science to figure out what he and his fellow cryptologists were up to.

The name York originated from the Viking name Jórvik. The county fell to capture to a large Danish Viking army in and around the mid-9th century. During my visit, my friend and I started our exploration at the ruins of Fountains Abbey, which is the largest monastic ruins in the country. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site of approximately 800 acres. Perhaps because I am a spiritual person, walking on what I would consider the sacred grounds of the Abbey brought me some sense of serenity. I could almost hear the monks’ chants from centuries ago echoing on the remaining walls of the ruins. Fountains Abbey has a long and ancient past. It was founded in the early 12th century and operated for four centuries.

Temple of Piety - Fountains Abbey
Photograph by Mike Peel (www.mikepeel.net).

Taking a stroll past the Abbey brought us to the Studley Royal Water Garden where we happened upon the interesting sites of the Temple of Piety, the Moon Pond (located west of the temple), the fishing tabernacle and cascade, and Ann Boleyn’s Seat to name a few. The National Trust (nationaltrust.org.uk) is a good source to read up on the rich and interesting history of this ancient ruins and beautiful sprawling garden.

Our next stop brought us to the spa town of Harrogate. It was known for its chalybeate and sulphur rich water. The first mineral spring was discovered in the 16th century and its medicinal properties were documented and publicised almost a century later. The Royal Pump Room was built in 1842 to cater to the affluent visitors partaking on the medicinal water wells. After the Second World War, the number of visitors grew less and less, consequently shutting it down. But then, it reopened in the 1950’s as a museum.

In the nearby garden by the Royal Pump Room museum, we found a statue of Eros and Psyche encased in an astonishing glass dome. The Greek love story of these mythical god and goddess in itself is worth a read.

Bettys Tearooms in Harrogate by Steve Daniels, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

British people love their tea and Harrogate is known for one of the best quality teas in the country dating as far back as the late 19th century— the Yorkshire Tea made by Taylors of Harrogate. Tea lovers can savour Yorkshire Tea at Betty’s Cafe Tea Room, its sister company, on Parliament Street.

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For more photos of my North Yorkshire explorations, go to Captured Images - Vignettes from the UK

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