21. South England

Tuesday, June 4

We left Cardiff driving through typical city outskirts and heavy traffic on our way to Bath, an old Roman city with healing hot springs. The legend is that a great Celtic King had a bad skin disease and exiled himself from his people as he was afraid they might catch it from him. Living alone under the Oaks in the woods he watched the wild pigs. They enjoyed rolling in the mud by the hot springs and they had the most beautiful skin. He decided to try it and in time was completely cured. He went back to his people to share and rule. Later when the Romans came, they developed the area.

We skirted the Cotswolds and drove on into the ancient city of Bath. We stopped in a square by a hotel and lovely gardens and walked into the center of town by the Abbey. We decided to go in and tour the bath and see all of the artifacts.

We wore a recorder around our necks and could punch in the number of things that interested us to gather information. It was very nice and individualized. We didn't stay long as we wanted to explore the rest of the town.

We went into the beautiful Abbey. The sweetest older lady, who reminded us of Carol's mom, Greta, showed us some highlights and then left us on our own. At one point you could see some stone pillars beneath the building through a vent that was left from the Norman Cathedral, that was 1000 years old. The rest of the church was 500 years old. This was a fascinating place.

We wandered the town and taking the advice of our friends back home, Bob and Laurie, we stopped into Sally Lunn's Tea Room and had a lovely pot of tea and a Bun. Bob had cinnamon and I had lemon curd with clotted cream. Delicious!

We left Bath and went on through more of the Cotswolds with those beautiful old stone houses, fences and lush farmland. My eyes can't get enough. We've calmed down a bit from being snap happy, but you still hear the cameras clicking. We all keep hoping for that perfect shot that will capture it.

Our next stop was the very quaint, medieval looking town of Glastonbury. It was a very metaphysical town full of shops with fairies, magic and fortune telling. The people watching was great with a lot of hippy, woo woo types. Fascinating and fun to explore. There are old Abbey ruins there where, supposedly, King Arthur is buried. 

On we went towards the coast and our night's destination of Plymouth. We entered the area of Dartmoor with very narrow winding roads with hedge rows that Henry said could be 500 years old. At times we are hitting branches at the side of the bus and when we approached other cars, one of us had to pull over.

We climbed higher and it got more barren and Henry said these were moors. A moor is really just an area of poor soil with Heather and scrub brush. Henry told us the weather was not always sunny like this and if you took off on a hike you would have to be prepared as the weather can change in an instant with a cold fog or rain moving in. You have to be careful on the peat bogs as you can get off track and fall in up to your waist in a thick soup like quick sand. He said it can be quite a dangerous area, but today it looked lovely and we saw many hikers up on the trail. We could have stayed and played here, but time to move. This is the area made famous by the Sherlock Holmes stories. Out on the moors there is nothing, no shops, pubs, or phone signals and only a few roads. Great place for a mystery.

We came down a very steep winding road into the tiny town of Widecombe.
People from the tea shop came out and waved as we passed. We stopped and sat outside at little round tables and had tea with scones, clotted cream (much like rich butter), and strawberry jam. It was all very civilized. 

As we drove on through the hills, there were no fences. We saw many horses and we had to stop for sheep in the road. There were two horse back riders with their two dogs and we had to stop and wait as they have the right of way till we could go around them. One of the dogs sat down and looked at us and cracked us all up. We have many dog lovers on board.

Finally we were back on the Dual Carriageway and drove on into Plymouth which is sometimes called the English Rivera. We'll get to see it tomorrow. For now, we were happy to relax, have dinner and go to bed. We actually were in bed at 8:30 and later talked to others who did the same. It's all catching up with us.

Meanwhile as we got ready for bed we turned on television and saw the Queen and Royal Family at an Evensong Service at Westminster Abbey with the Boys Choir singing. They showed an aerial shot and we could see right where we sat when we were there. What a cool experience!

20. Lovely Wales

Monday, June 3

We spent the night in Wexham at a very nice Ramada Inn that was well organized and very comfortable. As we traveled south to Cardiff, the road actually took us back into England for a bit. As we drove we relaxed, enjoying the scenery. I have overused all of the worlds, but let me say one more time that there were rolling, lush green, patchwork farms, dense woods, sparkling rivers, pines, then up to barren mountains, magnificent views from the rugged sea coast and then the whole thing repeats again. Mix in quaint villages, fascinating ruins, and modern cities with impressive, ornate, historic buildings. We continue to be amazed at the vastness of open land. I pictured it all more built up and populated. The British Isles are an incredible experience. They have managed to preserve so much history and they honor and encourage beautiful plant life and grand old trees. We are impressed!

Driving along, Henry had some pretty heavy men's choir hymns playing. Someone spoke up that it was beginning to sound like a funeral on the bus. Henry had moved back on the bus to speak with someone and we declared mutiny. Our friend John shot up to the front in Henry's seat, turned off the hymns and turned on the microphone, to all of our encouragement. He then sang some lovely Irish ballads in his sweet tenor voice. It was great!

A couple of terms - 

A divided four lane highway is a Dual Carriageway.

When you need to yield in traffic, the sign says, Give Way.

Take out food is Take Away.

We stopped in the little town of Ludlow for a break. It was a delight and might even be better than York. We walked through the beautiful church of St. Laurence of Ludow. We were awed by the ornate stone and woodwork. Anne, our friend from Tasmania, found her husbands family plaque. It gave her chills and made all of us misty with emotion for her as we shared this special time.

There were yummy little bakeries and Bob got a lovely warm Cornish Pasty and I had an English Cheddar and tomato sandwich on a small freshly baked bun. No McDonalds or any chain stores in town. Everything is local. Nice.

We got back on the bus and found out Joe had had some stomach pains and stopped in to see a chemist (drug store pharmacist) who insisted he see a doctor. A local doctor took him right in. So we all got back off the bus with more time to explore.

We poked through the flea market and then heard about a nice hike around the castle ruins in town. Off we went for some great views, but began to worry about time.

We realized no one was around and jogged all the way back to the bus just in time. They were about to look for us. Joe had a urinary tract infection and they fixed him up with medication and orders to drink water. It was a good lesson for all of us as we're in such a rush to see it all we forget to take care of ourselves and keep hydrated and use those comfort stops.

We went through an area known for apples and cider, and Henry told us that people long ago drank beer or cider as so much water was polluted with human and animal waste.

The road eased back into Wales and we went by more beautiful country past more canals and mountains. Henry told us a saying - A Welsh man is not born with a silver spoon in his mouth, but he is a rich man, born with a poem in his heart and a song in his soul.

We stopped in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, for the night. We entered in three lanes of traffic with modern buildings, but also some clean, quaint houses. It is a busy city. We settled in the hotel and when I couldn't get on the Internet, four different clerks helped with two coming up to the room. I kept saying it was OK, but they insisted and then did not charge me. That was so nice. We have met wonderful people in this world.

We cleaned up and went off for a tour, dinner and a show at Cardiff's Castle. We climbed 120 steps around the circular stairway up the narrow tower. It was fascinating to see the artwork and furnishings. Then we went back down to the reception room for a glass of Meade, honey wine. The stone wall behind the bar was part of the original Roman wall dated 250 AD. Incredible!

While we were waiting for dinner and the show, the young host was joking around and asked my name. I didn't want to tell him, but didn't want to be rude. Sure enough our seats were right by the stage and he was the head entertainer and used my name often. Then he made me come up on stage to help tell a story with five others. I just had to swish my hands back and forth every time he sang the part about an avalanche.

Some had worse parts and I was thankful. After that I thought I was free to just sit back and enjoy...but no. When they talked about Tom Jones being from Wales he made me come back up to sway with the back up singers for the guy singing the Tom Jones song "Dahlila."

The singer then took my hand and had me sway with him as he sang. I was so darned embarrassed, but went along with it. I got teased a bunch the rest of the night and the next morning with our traveling friends asking me for an autograph, swishing by me, and offering to put me to work with a scythe. The show was fabulous, but that's the last time I tell a performer my name!

19. Off to Wales

Sunday, June 2

It was an early morning with breakfast at 6:00 and departure at 7:00 as we had to catch the ferry across the Irish Sea to Wales.

The ferry was huge and once we were parked and could go upstairs to explore, it felt like a cruise ship. We went right to the top and watched as we left the harbor and tried to imagine what the immigrants must have felt. They were a brave lot. It was sad as a visitor to say good bye to Ireland. What a fun time and sweet people.

We settled in with a nice table and couch by a window and I typed while Bob rested. Others joined us and Alice surprised us with a dear "Luck of the Irish" refrigerator magnet. What a nice remembrance. I am going to be such a mess when I have to say good bye to these people. We've been a community and we fit together better by the day.

We got off the ferry in the sunshine at Holyhead, Wales. There was a bright regatta with many colorful sails in the harbor. It was a clean coastal town with more connected shops and houses, but in pastel colors. On up the hill there were small nice individual homes. Holyhead Island was a Holy Celtic place for the Druids. There are many Celtic remains on the island. We're on the northwest corner of Wales which gets rain, mist and storms. It can be dangerous getting on and off the island. As we go over the causeway, we can see the mountains of Snowdonia, the Welsh Highlands, in the distance.

This area is called Anglesey and is the bread basket of Wales with its fertile soil. The area has big farms, castles, ruins, and an air base.

 

Henry spoke Welsh to us. It is quite guttural and spitty, but fun to hear. 

The symbol for Wales is a red dragon and it is on everything. Wales is called the land of song, rivers and dragons. There are mountains to the north, hills in the middle and farms to the south. They have 7 million sheep which is there main industry. They have only 5 million people.

We drove past sheep, stone fences, hedge rows and grassy mountains and then climbed in to barren mountains with huge chunks of rock. We stopped at a park station and took pictures. The area was full of hikers and climbers. It would be a great place to visit.

The Welsh have a strong music background. Many of the old folks songs were turned into hymns to be used and therefore saved by the Methodist Church - All Through the Night, How Great Thou Art, and more.

On we went past lush, green, sheep covered hills with rock fences, rocky rivers, and huge old trees with lovely hymns playing in the background. We drove past the Berwyn Bar that was established in 1359. We are continually amazed with the age of things here as Daryl (Aussie's history is young like ours) said, "I just can't get my head around it."

We stopped in the little village Llangollen on the river and walked around with an ice cream. It was packed with tourists. They had a steam Thomas the Train rolling in and out of town along the river as a big attraction. We watched a kayaker shoot through the rapids in the middle of town. Then the crowds and noise got to be a little too much for several of us and we made our way back to the bus.

 

When we got to the bus we saw a young family that had locked themselves out of the car. Everyone tried to help and finally Andy, our driver,  got the hammer out of his tool box and the young father broke his small back window. Andy then got out the broom and cleaned it all up while they loaded their car. That was so nice and now we call him Handy Andy. I'm sure he loves that, but he has a good sense of humor and we love to hear him laugh.

Our excursion this afternoon was a cruise on the canal in a barge. I had no expectations, but was told not to miss it. Narrow canals were built along the river to transport coal in barges which were pulled along by horses. Part of the canal was built on a bridge high up over the river valley and the rest goes through woods and farmland. No longer used for coal, you can cruise in long covered barges with little tables and enjoy the ride with refreshments.

There is a walking path along much of the canal and when riding in the barge you sit low down in and are looking at peoples knees that might walk by. We started the cruise going up over the very narrow bridge where you could see far below, but not the sides of the canal.

It was like we were floating in air. Once in the woods and farmland, it was so peaceful and relaxing. We all loved it and snapped pictures of sheep that we could almost touch as they grazed in the grass beside us. We were so glad we went. What a delight on a bright sunny day.

At the end, they offered a free drink at the little country pub. Here, surprisingly was one of the highlights of our trip. Bob happened to strike up a conversation with a farmer sitting at the bar so we stayed inside to chat. Joe and Judie joined us and so did two more local sheep farmers.

It was a special moment in time. We all connected and had a lively enjoyable conversation between the seven of us from Wales, Australia, and the U.S. It was great and they seemed to enjoy it as much as us. Joe said, "It's what it's all about, isn't it." I was sad to leave them and one gave me a kiss on the cheek, a memory to cherish. Another great day!