We have all heard of Florence - that Renaissance jewel of a city by The River Arno in Italy's Tuscany region. Its streets and alleyways were well-known to Leonardo from the village of Vinci which is just a few miles away. There are many sights to enjoy in Florence, including the Uffizi Galleria, the Duomo and The Ponte Vecchio, a medieval bridge which straddles the Arno at its narrowest point. The city has a population of 340,000 and is home to Fiorentina - one of the country's top football teams. Here's my Google Streetview snip of Florence where tourists are milling close to The Ponte Vecchio which in English means simply, the old bridge:-
But did you know that there is another Florence in South Carolina, USA?
This second Florence has a population of around 35,000 and is home to blogging companion Mistress Jennifer ("Sparrow Tree Journal") and her devoted husband Gregg who by the way has no connection with the Greggs sandwich shop chain here in Great Britain. Florence, South Carolina is not named after Florence in Italy. No, it is named after Florence Harllee who was the daughter of General W.W.Harllee, president of the Wilmington and Manchester railroad company in the late nineteenth century.
Like God, I used Google Streetview to search for human life in Florence, South Carolina. The main roads were wide and everything seemed modern. There were very few people about. But I eventually found this lady outside a house on Gregg Avenue which must be named after Jennifer's husband:-
Near the big shopping mall where I believe Jennifer works, I spotted this human being with her long shadow, close to The Cold Store Creamery.
In the nearby community of Poston, I came across a track called Sparrow Tree Road and as I was fiddling about with Streetview along came two bikers on their Harley Davidsons. That could easily be Gregg on the first bike with Jennifer behind. After all, they were "born to be wild" as Steppenwolf once sang.
And finally here's another Florence who will be familiar to my fellow Britons. She was the star of the BBC's "The Magic Roundabout" (1964-1971) She is with her friends Zebedee and Dougal the dog-
Time for bed said Zebedee.
ReplyDeleteFlorence wasn't so keen on the idea.
DeleteOh wow! Dougal is a blast from my childhood!
ReplyDeleteThe ABC must have run it long after production finished cos I don't think I remember anything prior to about 1976/7
You don't remember anything prior to 76/77? Must have been all those drugs you used to take Kylie.
DeleteThe cheek of it!
DeleteI hated her big shoes
ReplyDeleteI guess her feet were badly swollen.
DeleteThank you YP! Gregg Avenue is in the middle of our downtown area that is currently being "revitalized". There are some really cool houses down that way built in the 1930's and 1940's and we've looked at a couple them that are for sale.
ReplyDeleteCold Stone Creamery is in the smaller, older mall. I work at the Magnolia Mall just down the road. Cold Stone has great ice cream!
I didn't know there was a Sparrow Tree road in the Poston community! My great grandmother was a Poston and she's buried there along with a whole bunch of relatives on my mother's side.
Florence is a pretty standard mid sized city, nothing special, but it's home.
It would be cool for Gregg to live on Gregg Avenue. Perhaps Greggs could open their first US bake shop there too. Finding Sparrow Tree Road, I kind of thought you might live doswn there given the name of your blog.
DeleteYou are having fun with street view and making up stories. This is pretty neat.
ReplyDeleteYes I am Red. As they say, simple things please simple minds.
DeleteI did not know that...I did know there was a Florence Nightingale and a Florence Henderson, though.
ReplyDeleteHow about a a name change to Florence George? The Lady of the Damp.
DeleteIt ain't damp around here at present. I wish it was, though...we need rain badly.
DeleteIt was interesting. It's a pity you can't get inside and make yourself useful. Like washing up, for instance?
ReplyDeleteGet inside where? The Cold Store Creamery? Washing up is not one of my skills.
DeleteLike kylie said, there must have been reruns of The Magic Roundabout, because Steve told me of it and how he used to have fun speaking like a character named Zippy (?) when he was a kid. He wouldn't have done that at the time when the show aired originally, as he was born late in 1968.
ReplyDeleteYour streetview posts have made me want to make one of my own. I remember how Steve and I looked at places he knew from his years living and working in Catalunya, and once we looked at the house in Wath upon Dearne where he was born. There was a person in the back garden, and we found it rather spooky.
Of course, it is possible to travel most of the world via Streetview. It's a lot cheaper. But not Germany for some reason!
DeleteI love looking at street view. There is a novel by Linwood Barclay based on it. Can't remember the title now, but it relates the story of an autistic youth, who is learning all the places/streets in USA as he believes that catastrophe will come and he will be the only one who knows where anywhere is. He see something that leads him to believe a murder has been committed and makes his brother go to the place to find out. Great read.
ReplyDeleteWhen we were first married and lived in Northumberland, one of our close friends was a Gregg daughter. I guess she must be quite well off now!! (We only exchange Xmas cards these days.)
She should send you some hot sausage rolls and a pasty. Thanks for alerting me to the Linwood Barclay novel. I shall watch out for it when I';m sorting books in Oxfam.
DeleteDid I know that you do Oxfam bookshop? Maybe! I also do a weekly shift at ours . ( I am on the till as I used to work in a bank, and I also do the banking twice a week) I found a Linwood Barclay this week that I haven't read…..yay!
DeleteI think I told you before that I work at Oxfam and also do the cashing up and bank trip once a week. Do you know what year it is Frances?...Good. Just checking.
DeleteFlorence is one of my favourite cities in Italy - next to Siena. I have spent many happy hours there.
ReplyDeleteBoth cities are a lot nicer than Pisa which is a bit of a disappointment apart from the cathedral and its famous leaning bell tower.
DeleteWhen I was sixteen I took a course in shorthand that was called Gregg Diamond Jubilee. Perhaps one day in the not too distant future there will be a Gregg and Jennifer Diamond Jubilee in Florence, down the road from the Cold Stone Creamery, where we shall all arrive by motorcycle to help them celebrate it.
ReplyDeleteThe imagination, 'tis a wonderful thing.
Today, on Thanksgiving, one of the things I'm thankful for is yours.
Ha-ha! I like your first paragraph where everything is getting mingled up - like a computer that's crashing. On Thanksgiving may I advise you to expand your belt by one notch in order to accommodate more turkey and pumpkin pie. Happy Thanksgiving Bob!
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