Life with J & J

11/29/2025

11/16/2025

We had an amazing culinary experience at The Truffle Farm of Canada last night. Chef Nick created a truffle inspired menu for us.

11/11/2025

11/11/2025

Golden light. Cool air. Quiet trails. Something magical about going in, the woods, and the sound of leaves underfoot.
in Nanaimo

08/06/2025

Another beautiful church along the This is St MAry the Virgin in Ashford.

08/04/2025

The Polhill family were prominent on the Otford and a lot of the memorials in St Bartholomew's church are dedicated to them. This includes an Elizabethan helmet mounted high up. This helmet would have been carried in a funeral procession. There is also a collection of funeral hatchments belonging to various members of the Polhill family.
The font lid in the shape of a crown dates back to the time of Charles I.
The royal coat of arms is that of Charles II. Churches were required to display this at his restoration to the throne.
The cross stained glass work was brought back from Italy by a member of the Polhill family in the 17th century. This window was shattered by a German bomb during WWII and was restored in 1947.

08/04/2025

We were done for the day and had no intentions of visiting St Mary's church in Westerham. But we saw it from the bus stop and out of idle curiosity we did a web search on it while we were waiting. We discovered a Canadian connection and had to go and see it. The website mentioned a memorial window to James Wolfe in this church. James Wolfe is remembered for his dramatic victory over the French at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in Quebec—a turning point in the Seven Years’ War and a pivotal moment in Canadian and British history.
He was born in the area and was baptized in this church. We saw the font that he was baptized in along with a couple of memorial plaques. This font is 14th century vintage.
There was also a statue of him in the village square.
Notable features about this church include a left turning spiral staircase to the bell tower. This is one of two such staircases in England.
The royal coat of arms of Edward VI in this church is thought to be the only surviving one in a parish church.

08/03/2025

Today we visit St James church in Titsey. There has been a church here since at least the 12th century. It is mentioned in the Domesday-era records as being connected to the manor of Titsey.
Here's a fun fact, the old medieval church originally stood much closer to Titsey manor. It was moved in 1861 as it likely interfering with the aesthetic design of the gardens and landscaping plans. Apparently this was not an uncommon practice in the day.
The church contains a private chapel and memorials to the Gresham family, who were prominent landowners in the area for centuries. The memorial statues were amazingly lifelike and were incredible detailed.

07/26/2025

The church of St Peter & St Paul is another church that has been around for a long time. The foundations of this church dates back to 727AD.
One special feature of this church is the mural. It is thought to have been painted by a travelling monk between 1170 and 1200. This mural depicts the "Ladder of Salvation of the Human Soul" and would have been used for teaching. The mural had been whitewashed over on the orders of Henry VIII. It was rediscovered in 1869 when the wall was being prepared for a fresh coat of limewash wash.

07/25/2025

07/25/2025

In spite of the decision to make this a rest day instead of returning to Shere we ended up doing a lot more walking. We saw a church spire from Denbies and couldn’t help but walk here after lunch.
The top of the spire is 210' and can be seen from a long way away.
The church of St Martin's is shared by the Anglican and Methodist congregation. The original church was rebuilt in the 12th century and expanded in the 14th century with the addition of the side aisles. It underwent another major renovation n in the 19th century as it had fallen into disrepair by that time.
The organ was built in 1831 - we are realizing that a lot of the organs that we've been seeing are almost 200 years old. Simply mind-blowing that these are still in use today. The organ pipes were beautifully painted.
Some of the stone used in this church had shell fossils.
There were several beautiful opus sectile murals. This is a form of mosaic tile work.