FLANEUR FOREVER

After being in all winter, I felt as though for a flaneur, I cleaned up quite nice. Last weekend my friend J and his boyfriend,  and the Lad were in town, and it seems the social wheel is about to start turning again. But I still have no problem being a flaneur I say. We had a standing reservation at The Golden Peasant Inn, in New Hope along the canal followed by a walking tour of the hamlet. Nothing like a get away in your own back yard. Yours truly was hired as guide again.  

While it seems spring may never fully arrive, the daffodils at my place are in full swing....

Golden Pheasant Inn is a magical country bed and breakfast inn and restaurant nestled between the Delaware River and the Pennsylvania canal in Bucks County. The Inn, built in 1857, is home to the longest continuously operating restaurant/hotel along the Delaware Canal, and is recognized on the National Registry of Historic Places. The tavern and former mule barn area of the Golden Pheasant Inn served as early commercial buildings constructed along the Delaware River and the Delaware Canal to serve mercantile traffic. An important gathering place, the tavern was the social hub for farmers, travelers, and later, canal men and vacationers. Today, the property retains its architectural integrity and continues to be used as a lodging facility—as it has for its entire history.

Our room was very well appointed but narrow, but it was still very comfy. Who am I too complain if the bed takes up the whole room!

Our one points of interest everyone seemed to want to see was not far from the Casa du Borghese...Fonthill Castle.

 Fonthill was the home of the American archeologist and tile maker Henry Chapman Mercer, in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. Built between 1908 and 1912, it is an early example of poured-in-place concrete and features 44 rooms, over 200 windows, 18 fireplaces and 10 bathrooms. The interior was originally painted in pastel colors, but age and sunlight have all but eradicated any hint of the former hues. It contains much built-in furniture and is embellished with decorative tiles that Mercer made at the height of the Arts and Crafts movement.

 

The home was individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972,and was later included in a National Historic Landmark District along with the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works and the Mercer Museum. These three structures are the only poured-in-place concrete structures built by Mercer. The Moravian Pottery and Tile Works is located on the same property as Fontill, and is the location of where the beautiful tiles Mercer made,  and the Mercer Museum is located approximately one mile away. Water and pollution have caused damage to all of the structures, none more so than at Fonthill, where replacement of damaged windowsills is almost an annual event.

Some of the beautiful tiles Mercer is known for. These can be seen all around the area here.

The Moravian Pottery and Tile Works

Some of the dainty wild violets blooming....

After a long day of walking and going pub to pub we all slept rather well that night. And lets not discuss the mouthwatering brunch the next day.......

That required another work off.