Category: 2022_07 England and Wales

Today Peter added a new country to his ever-growing lists of places he’s visited. We left Bristol and headed straight to Cardiff Castle. It only took about an hour to get there but took another 30 minutes to find a place to park and walk back to the Castle. But it was worth the trip. The site was originally a Roman fort from AD 55-80. The Normans then built a castle over the ruins of that fort. It passed through many hands either as a gift or through inheritance until it 1766 when it became the property of the 1st Marquess of Bute. It remained in that family until 1949 when it was given to the people of Cardiff by the 5th Marquess of Bute. The high death duties he owed when his father died made it impossible for him to keep it.

After we finished at the Castle, we took a boat to Cardiff Bay.

We took a train back to the city center and went to Ed’s Easy Diner for lunch. When we passed it on our way from the car park to the Castle and I immediately knew that where I wanted to go for lunch. It looks just like Johnny Rockets.

We made it to our new home in Abergavenny Wales in about an hour and quickly settled into our little stone studio. As it was once again in the 90s it was hotter than hell in the house. In fact, it is just now cooling off and it’s after 9pm. But it has a washer and all the amenities we need so it is perfect for us.

In fact, Peter and I are going to sit out on the patio and cool off a little before bed. We also have to decide what we’re going to do tomorrow. I’ll let you know what we decide.

Today was a light, but excellent, day beginning with a 16-minute train ride from Bristol to Bath. The Bristol Temple Meads train station was a short walk from the Doubletree Hotel so it was much easier than driving to Bath and trying to find someplace to park.

We had 9:00am tickets to the Roman Bath so that was our first stop. The famous Bath water came 10,000 years ago in the form of rain. The rain soaked 3km (1.8 miles) into the earth and it is still bubbling up. There was a very large bath/temple built 60-70AD. The museum has a lot of artifacts from the ancient structure.

After finishing at the Roman Baths we headed to the modern day version, Thermae Bath Spa just around the corner from the original. We were able to book a time at 1230 for our bath play time and a 2:30 massage for me. We killed time by going to a large department store (M&S; Marks & Spencer) to see if we could pick up another pair of shorts for Peter. I didn’t realize that the shorts we brought with us are so big they’re practically falling off of him. We found a pair at M&S earlier in the week so went to see if we could get another pair….no luck. They didn’t have his size.

We also visited the Bath Abbey (aka The Abbey Church of Saint Peter and Paul), a simple but beautiful church founded in the 7th century.

After a bit of lunch, we went back to the Spa for our relaxation time. For privacy reasons, no cameras were allowed so there are no pictures. But, here’s a YouTube video I found that shows the spa.

The lift was broken so we only went to the pool in the basement as we only had to walk down one flight of stairs. The other two were on the 3rd and 4th floors so climbing up there was a non-starter. So, we spent our time in the Minerva bath. All the water is warm, almost too warm given the mid-90-degree temps outside, and filled with 42 different minerals.

My massage was wonderful and, between that and the warm pool water (not to mention two of my new favorite drinks….Lemon Kiss), I’m pretty relaxed.

It was a pretty low-key day but after all the running around we’ve been doing it was a welcome change. Tomorrow we check out of the Doubletree and head to Cardiff, Wales. After that we head to Brecon Beacon National Park for the next 3 nights. It should be wonderful.

Today was all about me. When we were planning this trip, I told Peter that out of the 8 weeks we were in the UK my must do list consisted of 3 things: (1) attend the Edinburgh Tattoo, (2) golf at one of the courses at St. Andrews and (3) visit Highclere Abbey. We’re doing my first 2 items in two weeks when we get to Scotland and we did the 3rd today.

If you’re not a Downton Abbey fan….why not??? Seriously, if you’re not a fan this post might not mean much to you and, as always, I’m not offended if you choose to skip it.

We got to Highclere Castle a little before opening time at 1000. It was only about 1:15 drive from Portsmouth and we made great time.

Here is a very short video of me walking in the footsteps of Carter. If you’re a fan of the show, you know what I mean.

They are very careful about how many people they allow into the Castle at the same time. Even though we started to queue at about 9:45, we didn’t actually get into the Castle until about 10:20 and there weren’t that many people in line before us. By the time we got in, the line was twice as long.

We weren’t allowed to take pictures in the Castle, but I found a short documentary on YouTube about the castle. This shows you many of the rooms used most often in the series as well as a small bit of the Egyptian exhibition. The video explains the link between Highclere Castle and Egypt. I couldn’t get the it to embed, so here’s the link that should get you there on YouTube. It’s about 6 minutes long. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xv5AQDntIcI&t=1s

One thing that struck me about the rooms is that they are much smaller than they look in the series. The bedroom that was used as Lord and Lady Grantham’s bedroom was a nice size but much smaller than it looks on TV. The guide said that by the time the actors, the 30 crew members and all the equipment were squeezed into the room, no one could even move. The one that surprised me the most was the grand staircase. It looks gigantic on the screen but it really isn’t all that big. It’s still beautiful though.

To help us understand how the house was used in the series, there were posters set up in the rooms that were used most frequently for the show, particularly the salon, the dining room and the drawing room. Since they used all the original furniture I could almost see the actors in the room. It was very cool.

After touring the Castle and the Egyptian Exhibit, we wandered the grounds for awhile. The Castle sits on 10,000 acres of beautiful rolling hills. Like most of England, the hills aren’t very green right now but it was still beautiful. There were plenty of benches in the shade where we hung out and relaxed.

The final treat for the day was Afternoon Tea in the Coach House. It was hotter than hell in there but we thoroughly enjoyed our lunch. We had champagne, scones with cream (butter) and jam, 4 types of sandwiches (the 4th was smoked salmon; didn’t try that one) and 3 types of desserts: chocolate mousse, carrot cake and a Victoria sponge that was delicious.

We had a great time at the Castle. Even Peter, who’s never seen Downton Abbey, enjoyed it. He loved the history of the Castle and thought tea was amazing.

After tea (which was a pretty big lunch) we got back into the car for the drive to Bristol about 1:15 away. This trip was easy as we were on the motorway (highway) for almost 60 miles. After the narrow country roads, it was a real treat.

We’ve settled into the Doubletree and plan to take the train to Bath tomorrow. It’s going to be hot again so we’re going to take it slow.

Today we traveled about 50 miles north of Portsmouth (but it took almost 90 minutes) to visit the ancient site of Stonehenge. Archeologists believe it was constructed between 3000BC to 2000 BC. We got there just before it opened so we were able to get on the first shuttle bus to the stone circle. We could have walked but since it is over a mile in each direction it should come as no surprise that we took the shuttle.

We have pictures from every angle but here are a few of the best.

After walking around the circle, and stopping to chat with a couple we met yesterday on the ferry, we headed back to the visitor center. There were several huts built in the style in which the Stone Circle builders would have lived.

Archeologists believe the circle was originally a cemetery. During excavation, they unearthed many fragments of bones. Get ready for another skeleton.

After finishing at Stonehenge, we headed back the way we came, to visit the town of Salisbury. I think the only reason anyone goes to Salisbury is to visit the Cathedral and with good reason. It is gorgeous!

It is the head of the Anglican Church in the diocese of Salisbury and the main body of the church was completed in 1258. As much time as I’ve spent in Europe, it still boggles my mind how old everything is here. I had a hard time selecting the pictures to include because they were all so beautiful but here are a few of my favorites.

Of course, the crown jewel of the cathedral is in the Chapter House, a very non-descript room. But what’s in it is precious….an original copy of the Magna Carta. King John was very unpopular and was forced to sign the document in 1215. It is the basis for British and U.S. government.

There are 3 other original versions still in existence but this one is, by far, in the best shape. The volunteer steward told me that the reason is because this one has never been removed from the Cathedral since it arrived. It was amazing to see.

When it was time for lunch, we found a restaurant called Prezzo and enjoyed some Italian. Peter had lasagna and I feasted on a Margherita pizza. It was quite good.

As a consolation, here’s the drink I had. This was taken before I had even the littlest sip. It is a Peach Bellini and was very yummy.

We were home very early, about 3:30, so it has been a very relaxing late afternoon/early evening. But now it’s time for dinner and while Peter is getting that ready, I need to start packing up for our departure. Tomorrow night we’re in Bristol at the Hilton Doubletree. I couldn’t find a reasonable priced Airbnb anywhere near Bath (which is where we wanted to stay), and since Bristol is only 30 minutes away, we decided to stay there and do Bath as a day trip on Friday.

Have a great evening everyone. Talk soon.

We had a lovely day today visiting the Isle of Wight a good-sized island about 45-minutes by ferry from Portsmouth Harbor.

We arrived at the Isle of Wight ferry terminal just after 10AM and headed straight for Osbourne House, the summer home of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. They thought their other 3 homes (Windsor Castle, Buckingham Palace and Royal Pavilion in Brighton) were too small to raise their 9 children so they bought this place.

Once Albert died in 1861, Victoria went into permanent mourning and moved to Osborne House full time. Her youngest daughter, Beatrice, stayed with her for the rest of her (Victoria) life.

The back grounds/gardens were beautiful. There was a shuttle to take us down to the beach but since we were going to a local beach for lunch we decided to take a pass.

After a couple hours at Osborne House, we headed to Shanklin Beach about 30 minutes away. We got lucky finding a spot to park in the very small lot and, because of the handicap placard, we didn’t have to pay.

We found a place to have our picnic lunch then Peter headed for the water.

We planned to head to the southernmost end of the island and visit the Needles Lighthouse on the cliffs but decided it was too far to drive. We would have only been able to stay about an hour before having to turn back around to get to the ferry on time. So instead, we visited Carisbrooke Castle in the center of the island. It was only about 20 minutes from the beach so it was very convenient. Since it was later in the day, there was plenty of disabled parking immediately outside the entrance of the castle. Otherwise, I don’t think we would have been able to go since the other parking lots were a very long walk.

The site has been occupied since pre-Roman times and the first building went up in late Roman times. Most recently, Queen Victoria’s daughter, Princess Beatrice lived there until her death in 1938.

One of it’s more famous occupants was when it was a prison. After the Civil War, King Charles I was imprisoned there for 14 months before his execution in 1649.

A few musicians entertain us with some music.

The grounds held Princess Beatrice’s walled garden and a bowling green (built for Charles I) but both were down a hill and Peter didn’t want to walk all the way down and back. We’d been doing a lot of walking and we were getting tired.

Since we didn’t have time to do anything else, we headed back to the ferry. Our reservation was for the 6:20pm but we got there in time for the 5pm sailing. Luckily we were able to get on so we were in the flat before our original ferry even left.

It was a beautiful day and while there was still more to see, we felt like we had a full day. We especially loved hanging at the beach for a while. Tomorrow we off on another day trip….this one to Stonehenge and Salisbury Cathedral. It should be another great day. See you there.

Warning: Today was all about British Naval History as we spent the entire day at the Historic Shipyard. So, if you’re not interested in seeing pictures of lots of ships and artifacts, I’m not offended if you skip this. But the stuff from the Mary Rose is pretty cool so you might want to browse quickly.

We left the car at home and took the train. It was a short, 2-stop ride once we got to the train. But it was a 15-minute walk and we had to climb several flights of stairs so we ended up taking the bus home which stopped much closer to the house.

Our first stop (after getting Peter’s coffee) was the Mary Rose museum. The Mary Rose belonged to the Tudor Navy of Henry VIII. She was launched in 1511 and sank during the Battle of Solent in 1545. The battle took place in the Portsmouth Harbor while Henry was running things out of the Southsea Castle we saw yesterday (Sunday). Apparently she sunk when the crew didn’t get the gun ports closed fast enough and a strong wind blew her to the starboard (right) side and the water rushed into the open gun ports. She sunk like a rock killing 465 of the 500 crew members.

Since the right side was on the bottom, it was buried in silt which preserved that side of the ship. She was discovered in 1836 but was forgotten again until 1971. The Mary Rose was finally pulled out of the water in 1982. The entire port (left) side of the ship was destroyed during the 400+ years she was in the water and they have no plans to rebuild it. It was very dark in the museum as they want to keep the lights low to protect the ship so the next two shots aren’t the best pics.

They recovered over 18,000 artifacts and human remains from the ship.

For our next stop we fast forwarded over 250 years in British Naval history to October of 1805 and the Battle of Trafalgar. This was the HMS Victory, Admiral Nelson’s flagship. She was under scaffolding as part of a 4-year conservation program of the ship hull. Here’s a picture I found on pixabay.

We were able to tour inside the ship but had to climb up and down a few crazy scary (steep) ladders. Peter didn’t even try the last one so I went down to take a picture of where Lord Nelson was mortally wounded during that battle. After I climbed back up, we escaped out a side entrance. I guess we’re weren’t the only ones who didn’t make downstairs because they had no problem letting us out.

Next we fast forward over 100 years to WWI and the HMS M.33. These were fast gun ship built in 7 months in 1914. This is the only one still in existence. Since we had to deal with steep ladders again we didn’t even go into this one.

After about 4 1/2 hours at the Dockyard, we had finally had enough of Naval history. Besides we were both starving so we headed of the a local shopping area for lunch.

We made it home in time to do a small load of clothes and relax before tomorrow’s day trip to the Isle of Wight. I’m so looking forward to that. Our ferry doesn’t get back until after 7:00pm so I may not get to the blog until Wednesday. As always, thanks for following our adventures.

We left Brighton this morning heading for Portsmouth. We originally planned to stop at a manor house along the way but decided there was too much we wanted to see in Portsmouth so we came straight here.

Our first stop was the D-Day Story Museum. As the name implies it tells the story of D-Day from the decision of where to land to the end. It was beautifully done and we spent a very pleasant 2 hours visiting.

Our first stop in the museum was the only remaining landing craft from D-Day. Originally, there were over 800 of these craft and this is the only one left. It’s skipper was a 20-year old law student who joined the British Navy. He led a crew of 11 men.

Inside the museum was filled with different exhibits explaining the various phases of the invasion.

After getting a quick snack in the café, we briefly visited the Southsea Castle just behind the museum. It was built in the 16th century by Henry VIII and now has shops and a restaurant. We didn’t stay long and didn’t climb the stairs to walk the walls but we enjoyed our brief visit.

Then we headed to the Historic Dockyard where there are about 10 different ships and/or exhibits. We bought an Ultimate Explorer which allows us to visit any of the attractions for 12 months. In Italy, Peter got into museums free as a disabled person and I paid regular senior fare. Here, Peter is paying either regular senior or senior disabled and I’ve been getting in for free as a carer. Pretty good deal but I would prefer to pay full price if it meant he could get around a little easier.

Our first exhibit in the Dockyards was the HMS Warrior, one of the first British Ironclad ships. It was finished in 1859 and was the considered the pride of Queen Victoria’s navy. Everyone was so afraid of her, they stayed out of her way. As a result, she never fired a shot in anger.

We stayed on deck as we didn’t want to climb down the steep stairs to get belowdecks.

Our final stop of the day before heading to our new flat was to take a Portsmouth Harbor Cruise. It was part of our ticket and it was a beautiful day for a 45-minute boat ride. We went past the Navy Base where we saw 2 carriers and several other ships.

The Harbour was full of boats enjoying the beautiful Sunday afternoon.

Our flat is on the top floor of an apartment building about 10-minute drive from the Historic Dockyard. There’s a bus around the corner so I think we’ll do that tomorrow instead of taking the car out again.

We’re very happy to be in this lovely 2-bedroom apartment for the next 4 nights. We’re especially thrilled to have a king-sized bed. We’ve been managing with a double bed since we arrived. Every time one of us moves it wakes the other. This will be such a treat! It’s the little things when you travel. Talk with you tomorrow.

Note: One of our followers mentioned that no email notifications are going out again. I’m not sure what is happening because the tests work just fine. But, there’s nothing else I can do so I’m going to let it go. I post virtually every evening (mid-late morning Pacific time) so feel free to go to the site whenever you think about it. There’s probably something new posted. I apologize for any inconvenience.

Today started with a little dip in the English Channel. We drove to Pelham Beach in Hastings. It is a very rocky beach but Peter had his reef booties, so we thought he’d be okay. The layer of rock was quite deep and slippery, and the walk down was quite steep. It was slow going but we eventually made it to the water.

Here’s a short video of his walk into the water. He got his toes wet but that was about it as there was a steep drop off just a foot or so farther into the Channel.

After the beach, we drove about 15 minutes to the 1066 Battle of Hastings Museum and Battlefield. In a nutshell…

Edward the Confessor died in 1066 without a male heir. Years earlier he promised William, Duke of Normandy, the throne. He said that Edward’s brother-in-law, Harold, would go to Normandy to let William know when it was time to be crowned King. When Edward died, instead of going to Normandy to get William, Harold decided he wanted to be King and had himself crowned. Well….William wasn’t happy about that and decided to come calling and take the crown back. He landed at Pevensey Beach, just west of Hastings. William and his Norman army met Harold and his Anglo-Saxon army at Hastings. It was a gigantic battle and ended when Harold got an arrow through the eye (ouch) and died. William took the crown and that was the end of Anglo-Saxon rule of England.

After the Battlefield, we headed to Pevensey Castle just a few miles up the road. It was originally a Roman fort built in the 4th century AD. William built a castle in the ruins of the old fort. It was occupied almost continuously until the 16th century before finally being abandoned. It was reoccupied during WWII when it was garrisoned by units from the Home Guard, the British and Canadian armies as well as the U.S. Army Air Corps.  Much of what was used in WWII has been demolished so only ruins remain.

After the Castle, we headed across the street to the Oak and Castle Pub for lunch. I had another delicious meal of smoked haddock in a white wine and cream sauce. It was a starter size and just enough. The sauce was pretty rich so I didn’t even finish it. It was quite good.

Our last stop was the Seven Sisters Cliffs at Birling Gap, a series of chalk sea cliffs. They look just like the White Cliffs of Dover, they’re just not as famous. It was crazy crowded but with our handicap placard we were able to park all the way in front.

So, that was our day. We pack up tonight for our trip to Portsmouth tomorrow. We’ll be there for 4 nights and are looking forward to a couple of day trips. Have a great night everyone.

Today was an easy day as we hung around the house until about 9:30 before catching the bus for the 30 minute ride to Brighton Beach. It was a pretty drive along the coast and we didn’t have to find parking so the bus was perfect.

The main attraction is, of course the famous pier. If you’ve been to Santa Monica Pier, this one is very similar but with more arcade games. We saw a sign advertising a contest with the winner receiving an all-expense paid trip for 2 to the Santa Monica pier (we didn’t enter).

Our first stop was to get Peter coffee as he can’t figure out how to use the Keurig-like machine at the cottage. After he was fueled up, we took a stroll through the arcade house and to the end of the pier which had all the rides.

For lunch we had a pizza, which while not terrible, will not be confused with a pizza from Naples.

Then we headed back off the pier and took a stroll through town finding the Brighton Royal Palace. After seeing 7 palaces/castles in the last 10 days we took a pass on touring it but grabbed a few pics of the outside. This palace was built as a seaside getaway for King George IV who was known for his extravagance. He was an uncle to Queen Victoria.

We had a bit of a walk to get to the bus mainly because we didn’t know the route. If we had turned one street later we would have had a much, shorter walk. But, we finally found it and settled in for the 30-minute drive back to our neighborhood. We’ve had a leisurely (read lazy) afternoon. In fact, I took a short snooze before starting the blog. It has been a wonderfully relaxing day. Tomorrow, we get back into the car and head about an hour east to visit the 1066 Hastings Museum. It should be interesting. Talk then.

Before we move on to today’s adventures, a big thank you to our amazing hosts Mary and Simon who invited us to their garden last evening for drinks. Almost 5 hours and 3 bottles of wine later we said good night. Peter and I have been in a lot of Airbnb flats (Mary says it’s 46) and we’ve never had hosts as gracious as Mary and Simon. We feel like they’re friends now and we’re so sorry to leave today. But, we’ve already made plans to come back next year before heading to South Africa in May. What a wonderful experience this was!!

We had our first adventure with the car today. The car was fine and I stayed on the correct side of the road, but Gracie (our GPS) went a little crazy on us. We were heading to Churchill’s home, Chartwell, from Canterbury and it should have taken a little over an hour. But even though we followed Gracie’s directions, we kept going around in circles. After about 1 hour and 45 minutes we finally made it. Not sure what was wrong with her but she straightened herself out by the time we moved on to Brighton.

It turns out that it would have been better to visit Chartwell on our way to Canterbury rather than after. We went so far north we were only 20 miles south of London. Oh well….best laid plans.

As a gigantic Churchill fan, Peter has been looking forward to today’s visit and he was not disappointed. Winston and his wife, Clementine, bought the home in 1922 and lived there for the next 40 years until Winston’s death in 1965.

While we waited about 40 minutes for our timed ticket entry to the house, we wandered the grounds and visited Churchill’s studio. He was a prolific painter having painted over 500 pieces. Over 200 of them are at the house and/or studio.

Once in the house we went on a self-guided tour of all three floors. Two of the guest rooms have been converted into exhibition rooms filled with awards, gifts and uniforms.

After a light lunch at the Café, we decided we didn’t have enough time to visit the 1066 Battle of Hastings Museum so we headed to our new flat near Brighton instead. We’re staying in a cute little 2-room flat with a view of the English Channel. It’s small but is enough to meet our needs.

After settling in, we took a little walk along the cliff. After stopping for a few groceries, we had a little snack and drinks on our deck before dinner.

Tomorrow we plan to take the bus and hang out for the day in Brighton Beach. The weather is supposed to be nice so we’re looking forward to a relaxing day.