Newcastle (a historic northern city – very cold!)

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Newcastle is one of England’s most northerly cities, not too far from Scotland. It also sits on the same latitude as Scandinavia, and it’s only the Gulf warming air that stops its snowing every winter, like Sweden. So bring an extra jumper if you’re visiting!

The weather may be cold, but the people are warm, and some of the most political in England. Many pub talk will be engaged in the latest parliament goings-on, and it’s also a city renowned for its art too.

The Town Moor (bigger than London’s Hyde Park)

Town Moor is Newcastle’s main public park, a massive 1000 acre green space that’s not too far from the city centre. It’s jointly owned by the council and Freeman of Newcastle so cattle have grazing rights.

Formerly a site for coal mining with bell pits, the land is protected, so it can’t be built on (good job!) It’s even larger than Central Park in New York and often used for walking and community events.

Home to the Tyne Bridge

Tyne Bridge is a feat of Victorian engineering. Opened in 1928 to great fanfare, it took three years to build (one man sadly died during construction, when he fell into the river).

The arch shape looks similar to that of Australia’s Sydney Harbour Bridge. But in fact this bridge in England was built first, so it’s likely the Aussie bridge was influenced by Tyneside, not the other way around!

Formerly the world’s longest steel bridge, it’s so strong it survived Nazi bombs. And experts say without maintenance, it could survive for 1000 years!

Tyne Bridge (made from strong steel) provides a strong backdrop for nesting kittiwakes, around 700 use it each year, hidden from view. In fact, Tyne Side now boasts the largest colonies of inland breeding kittiwakes on earth.

Local wildlife experts have been instrumental in persuading those restoring the bridge to avoid netting (that could trap nesting birds) and use alternative methods from those who know, to protect birds that have been there a lot longer than us.

Home to the ‘Gateshead flasher!’

The so-called ‘Angel of the North’ was also opened to great fanfare, but some say the giant statue overlooking the motorway in Newcastle and Gateshead looks like a Nazi propaganda statute, and could cause road accidents, as people should be looking at the road, not up above.

Others call it ‘the Gateshead flasher!’

Near to Hadrian’s Wall (an ancient Roman monument)

This is an ancient monument built when Romans ruled the north. It straddles Cumbria to Northumberland. And home to many archaeological digs (one skeleton was even found stabbed, resulting in a still-unsolved ancient murder.

They also found giant shoes. They scratched their heads for ages for reasons, until deciding it was that the builds just had unusually big feet!

This is where the chopped-down tree Sycamore Gap was. It has got new shoots growing, but it will decades for it to (hopefully) grow back). There are strict rules now on people going anywhere near, to avoid upsetting the foundations, to let the new roots grow.

Always follow the Countryside Code to keep all creatures safe. Keep dogs away from steep banks, mushrooms (and toxic plants/trees) and on leads near birds, barnyard friends and wild ponies.

Geordie accents (voted the friendliest in England!)

England has many regional accents. And although a strong Geordie accent may be one of the most difficult to understand, a recent survey says it’s the one we like the most!

Known for being a ‘feel-good’ accent, it’s the one that puts a smile on people’s faces, apparently! Like Brummies, Geordies are known for being very welcoming to strangers, and it’s a nice conversational accent to hear. Here’s a quick guide so you know what they are talking about, if you visit!