A light breakfast and we are off to the station at Abergavenny. We successfully navigate our way onto the train with our heavy burdens. It is with mixed feelings that we head home to our lives, our vacation quickly closing in on us. We have been treated royally this past 5 days in particular. Paul and Karen have been fantastic hosts, balancing the welcome to their home with just the right amount of respect for our time to ourselves. Happy to be going home , sad to be leaving a life of leisure and beauty. Reality will hit hard on Thursday morning for both of us when we must be back at our desks.
Pictures to organize, stories to write up, scrapbooking to do, and people to contact. The next couple of weeks is going to be very busy and a huge adjustment - but ah! Home!
It is a long journey home. The adrenaline of the joruney to England has burned off and the 9 hour flight home is tedious. 3 movies, one novel, 4 sudokus, dinner and a magazine have occupied us, but we are ready to land and be home. Beverages are being served one more time, with an hour before landing. Anything for a diversion.
Soon we will be back amongst all of you and we thank you for joining us on this adventure. We have enjoyed writing the blogs, anticipating responses, reading responses and knowing that some came along quietly, reading our blog but not commenting, just enjoying our story. Thanks to all of you.
By the time we get home and tucked in bed we will have been up for 26 hours, but we are determined to stay up and not nap on the drive home so we can overcome jet lag as quickly as possible.
See you in person soon.
Love
Us.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Home Again Home Again - Lickety Split - May 23
I believe Gloria Rose is going to post our final adventure day - traveling back to Canada. But I wanted to take the time to add a personal thought - to all of you who over the past few weeks have traveled vicariously with us as we made our journey to (and around) the UK and back. The first thing we did when we got to a computer to blog was check the comments. It seemed ever so important to stay connected with all of you and your thoughts and sharing your experience of our blogs were a great reward. So all of you who took the time to not only read what we wrote but who commented back - thank you!
I also want to say that traveling with my "younger twin" was really a grand experience as well. Gloria Rose and I really didn't know each other very well but we soon found that we had similar if not identical thoughts at the same time. It almost became a standing joke between us - because one of us would say it - and the other would be amazed because that's what she was thinking at that moment! Uncanny.
I want to personally thank Jack for providing Gloria Rose with the freedom to share this adventure with me and for her willingness to leave him behind (physically - he was never far from her thoughts) because this vacation would not have been what it was had it not been for Gloria Rose.
We are home now and it's back to our jobs tomorrow. Thankfully we will have this blog and our scrapbooks of pictures and postcards to remind us of our incredible journey. We will also have rampaging bulls, old goats, jackasses and walking stick growing wild in the fertile Cotswolds ground - to bring laughter to our hearts as we return in our minds to those really special moments. If laughter is good for the soul, we are in very good shape.
We can also hold proudly to the comments of our tour guide - Hugh - "we were good ambassadors for Canada". We certainly did our best to connect with the people and if Leticia's (one of the Cosmos representatives) welcoming hug when we arrived back in London and being the only ones specifically invited for supper on a night the place is normally closed are any indication - we left the place better than we found it!
I also want to say that traveling with my "younger twin" was really a grand experience as well. Gloria Rose and I really didn't know each other very well but we soon found that we had similar if not identical thoughts at the same time. It almost became a standing joke between us - because one of us would say it - and the other would be amazed because that's what she was thinking at that moment! Uncanny.
I want to personally thank Jack for providing Gloria Rose with the freedom to share this adventure with me and for her willingness to leave him behind (physically - he was never far from her thoughts) because this vacation would not have been what it was had it not been for Gloria Rose.
We are home now and it's back to our jobs tomorrow. Thankfully we will have this blog and our scrapbooks of pictures and postcards to remind us of our incredible journey. We will also have rampaging bulls, old goats, jackasses and walking stick growing wild in the fertile Cotswolds ground - to bring laughter to our hearts as we return in our minds to those really special moments. If laughter is good for the soul, we are in very good shape.
We can also hold proudly to the comments of our tour guide - Hugh - "we were good ambassadors for Canada". We certainly did our best to connect with the people and if Leticia's (one of the Cosmos representatives) welcoming hug when we arrived back in London and being the only ones specifically invited for supper on a night the place is normally closed are any indication - we left the place better than we found it!
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
White Castles in the sky - May 21
Well this is it -- our last walk for this vacation. So we got brave and had our reward first - kind of like eating dessert first. We had Paul, our host, take us to White Castle to start our journey. This of course was supposed to be our reward at the end, but now being the experienced map readers we are we were up for a new challenge and decided to read the written instructions backwards and we reversed our direction for the day. (aside from L: I know what you are thinking....Good Luck right!)
White Castle turned out to be the most well-preserved of the three castle ruins we have visited, so we are glad we saved it for our last day. Standing in the base of one guard tower we could look up and see ridges where each of the floors above had rested. The one we were in had three floors above and probably a look out tower above that. One tower had the top floor rebuilt of wood slats with spaces between. It was creepy stepping out from the very narrow stone stair well that wound up and out onto these slats knowing that three stories of open space with a hard stone base lay directly below. the view was incredible in all directions, especially as this castle was built atop a hill. Unlike the previous two castle ruins, this castle had an inner and an outer court. The moat ran between the two courtyards, encircling the inner one. This castle is deemd to be the most perfectly moated castle in all of Wales.
And now we must vacate this home of many grey squirrels before the keeper of the gates opens shop and charges us £2.50 each for entering these grounds, which we are finished looking at.
We were not disappointed to find fewer stiles on today's agenda, however the steep inclines both ascending and descending, continued to be plentiful. We discovered that unlike their sheepish relatives, goats are not shy. Instead of turning to skitter away from us when we entered a field which housed goats, they came to greet us. Fortunately they were neither agressive nor accompanied by protective male counterparts or we may have brought home pictures of Leslie head butting one. Picture that!
At one point we rested while admiring yet another panoramic view. As we started off again the breeze carried to us a rather odd aroma. It was less than pleasant shall we say! Oh well, onward and upward, literally. As we came over a stile into the next field, we discovered the source of this assault to our senses. A dead sheep lay rotting in the hot sun, his compatriates lazily grazing all around him. Says something of the loyalty of these rogues doesn't it?
Getting ourselves out of this pasture energized our weary steps once more and we made haste to the stile across the field. Here we were greeted by a dog who was not too anxious to be friendly. He just wanted to do his job and run us off his territory and we were only too willing to oblige.
Carefully stepping between the heartily populated sheep do-do, we were gingerly making our way down a steep incline (should that be called a decline?) when we noticed one sheep with his head tucked through the 3 inch wire mesh fence. He could neither move forward nor back and was panicking as he saw us come nearer. We moved away from him so he would not be so frightened but we felt guilty that we were unable to assist him, knowing that to get close enough to help may have resulted in the injury of at least one of the three of us. The farm house was visible from here and we prayed the owners would be diligent in caring for their flock.
Our instructions now told us to keep the dingle on our left, so as we were reading them backward, we kept the dingle to our right for some time - at least we think we did since we arrived at our destination without the benefit of a Welsh dictionary to inform us the meaning of "dingle".
Next, Leslie got her quota of kisses from a very cute, energetic local (no kidding, this is true). We finally found a stump to park our bottoms on while we had sustenance. Our hostess from the B&B packs great lunches.
We are now closing in on our final destination with but a short jaunt left to go we sighed, knowing that not only was today's trek almost complete, but the same could be said of our long anticipated vacation.
We went for a celebratory coffee - not shandy. It actually was black coffee, very weak, but coffee and it only set us back $10.00 for a cup each. so there you have it, coffee $5.00 a cup.
Upon arrival back at the Old Rectory, our home for the last 4 days, we unpacked and repacked our suitcases for the journey home tomorrow. We went down to the lounge for tea and to write this blog. Before getting past the castle, our blog preparation was interrupted by the arrival of two cyclists who had just arrived for the night. They were anxious to talk our ears off so the blog was set aside until after our scrumptious dinner.
At dinner, we met two other new guests at the B&B. These ladies had walked a mere 18 miles today, which represented day two of a 180 mile walking trek they are on.
So good night. We are homeward bound tomorrow
With love
Leslie and Gloria-Rose
White Castle turned out to be the most well-preserved of the three castle ruins we have visited, so we are glad we saved it for our last day. Standing in the base of one guard tower we could look up and see ridges where each of the floors above had rested. The one we were in had three floors above and probably a look out tower above that. One tower had the top floor rebuilt of wood slats with spaces between. It was creepy stepping out from the very narrow stone stair well that wound up and out onto these slats knowing that three stories of open space with a hard stone base lay directly below. the view was incredible in all directions, especially as this castle was built atop a hill. Unlike the previous two castle ruins, this castle had an inner and an outer court. The moat ran between the two courtyards, encircling the inner one. This castle is deemd to be the most perfectly moated castle in all of Wales.
And now we must vacate this home of many grey squirrels before the keeper of the gates opens shop and charges us £2.50 each for entering these grounds, which we are finished looking at.
We were not disappointed to find fewer stiles on today's agenda, however the steep inclines both ascending and descending, continued to be plentiful. We discovered that unlike their sheepish relatives, goats are not shy. Instead of turning to skitter away from us when we entered a field which housed goats, they came to greet us. Fortunately they were neither agressive nor accompanied by protective male counterparts or we may have brought home pictures of Leslie head butting one. Picture that!
At one point we rested while admiring yet another panoramic view. As we started off again the breeze carried to us a rather odd aroma. It was less than pleasant shall we say! Oh well, onward and upward, literally. As we came over a stile into the next field, we discovered the source of this assault to our senses. A dead sheep lay rotting in the hot sun, his compatriates lazily grazing all around him. Says something of the loyalty of these rogues doesn't it?
Getting ourselves out of this pasture energized our weary steps once more and we made haste to the stile across the field. Here we were greeted by a dog who was not too anxious to be friendly. He just wanted to do his job and run us off his territory and we were only too willing to oblige.
Carefully stepping between the heartily populated sheep do-do, we were gingerly making our way down a steep incline (should that be called a decline?) when we noticed one sheep with his head tucked through the 3 inch wire mesh fence. He could neither move forward nor back and was panicking as he saw us come nearer. We moved away from him so he would not be so frightened but we felt guilty that we were unable to assist him, knowing that to get close enough to help may have resulted in the injury of at least one of the three of us. The farm house was visible from here and we prayed the owners would be diligent in caring for their flock.
Our instructions now told us to keep the dingle on our left, so as we were reading them backward, we kept the dingle to our right for some time - at least we think we did since we arrived at our destination without the benefit of a Welsh dictionary to inform us the meaning of "dingle".
Next, Leslie got her quota of kisses from a very cute, energetic local (no kidding, this is true). We finally found a stump to park our bottoms on while we had sustenance. Our hostess from the B&B packs great lunches.
We are now closing in on our final destination with but a short jaunt left to go we sighed, knowing that not only was today's trek almost complete, but the same could be said of our long anticipated vacation.
We went for a celebratory coffee - not shandy. It actually was black coffee, very weak, but coffee and it only set us back $10.00 for a cup each. so there you have it, coffee $5.00 a cup.
Upon arrival back at the Old Rectory, our home for the last 4 days, we unpacked and repacked our suitcases for the journey home tomorrow. We went down to the lounge for tea and to write this blog. Before getting past the castle, our blog preparation was interrupted by the arrival of two cyclists who had just arrived for the night. They were anxious to talk our ears off so the blog was set aside until after our scrumptious dinner.
At dinner, we met two other new guests at the B&B. These ladies had walked a mere 18 miles today, which represented day two of a 180 mile walking trek they are on.
So good night. We are homeward bound tomorrow
With love
Leslie and Gloria-Rose
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Walking with Stile - may 20th
We have gone over our maps and we are much encouraged by yesterday's success so we are looking forward to today's adventure. The sun is out. The birds are singing and altogether of a promise of a wonderful day lies ahead.
Our host gave us a lift to Grosmont, where today's hike would start. As we strolled down the narrow street we greeted a local gent with a cheery "Good Morning, and how are you today?" His miserable response, "Terrible but thanks for asking."
Surprised we simply replied,"We do hope your day improves". To which he replied,"Well that's the thing isn't it. If you start your day off miserable it can't help but get better. If you start off too cheery you could be in for a disappointment." We agreed, wished him a cheery day and a miserable start to his day tomorrow, as we continued on our way.
Aside from GR: as the start of the walk involved ascending the mountain again, my thoughts couldn't help but remind me of Leslie's previous comments on our bus tour regarding the steep slopes of the sheep pastures. Little did either of us know that we would soon be scaling slopes of similar degrees ourselves and we would be in danger of tumbling to the bottom if we lost our footing and/or our balance. Picture that!
Aside from L: I stopped half way up the steep incline to catch my breath and in doing so turned around to look from whence we had come and it took my breath away!
After resting on another bench, where both of us caught our breath, our climb proceeded into the trees where we found a beautiful, natural walking stick obviously left behind by another walker who may have tumbled down the hill. Gloria-rose used it for the rest of the walk to see if having two sticks made much difference. It does.
As we crested the mountain and came out of the treeline we came across a beautiful looking meadow which we soon discovered was hazardous to walk. It was so bumpy there was not a level spot the size of the sole of our shoes anywhere for us to place our step. This meadow has probably caused many a twisted ankle. So we took it slowly.
Overhead, true to the description in our guidebook we noted buzzards circling overhead. It crossed our minds that perhaps there have been previous walkers who hadn't survived this journey. (later we discovered from our host and hostess that this is actually true -- eek).
After passing Box Farm we met 16 walkers doing the same trail in the opposite direction. One older gentleman commented as he stepped over a stile and nearly lost his stick in the nettles that this truly isn't the type of walk for which he should have worn shorts.
We were greeted by a protective little terrier who escorted us to where a mother and daughter were setting up jumps right along our path. The guidebook had not advertised a horseshow as part of this day's events, but it provided a pleasant diversion for a few moments as we watched them take a few jumps.
Our next welcome was provided by a beautiful friendly black lab who sat patiently at the top of the lane and waited for our arrival. He greeted each of us in turn to get his token pat on his head from each before allowing us to continue past his master, hard at work on the scaffolding around the house. He advised us we had about half a mile to our destination.
We strolled on up the road, walked with hedges too high to see over most of the time and arriving at Skenfrith about 12:15 pm.
After lunching on a bench outside the castle wall we entered and did a photo session within. We then proceeded to the obligatory visit of the village church, where we saw a 15th century embroidery and a graveyard with beautiful cheery flowers on many of the gravesites.
We enjoyed listening to some local gossip as we sipped coffee at a church fundraising venture. It was run out of an open garage and resembled a collage of yardsale, craft sale, bake sale, concession booth and plant sale, all combined to offer something for everyone. It was open Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays only - so non-regular days for other shops. Keep in mind that bank holidays mean long weekends described as a bank of days off - not associated with banks as establishments of financial business.
We will not have access to post our blog tomorrow as the Hunters Moon Inn will be closed and there are no alternatives. Therefore we will post tomorrow's blog from Heathrow Airport - access permitting.
Love from
the Happy Wanderers
PS. We climbed over 22 stiles today. This is not always a simple task as often the ground on either side falls away exaggerating the steps up or down for us to navigate.
PPS. Last night the owner of the Hunters Moon invited us to come back for dinner tonight even though they are usually closed. He, also being the chef, sat next to our table to discuss meal options with us. Talk about personal service. Beat that! Well now beat this,.....the server informed us as we waited for our meal that no one else was coming. They opened JUST FOR US because we are so NICE! Do we have pull or what? Feeling pretty special now.
Our host gave us a lift to Grosmont, where today's hike would start. As we strolled down the narrow street we greeted a local gent with a cheery "Good Morning, and how are you today?" His miserable response, "Terrible but thanks for asking."
Surprised we simply replied,"We do hope your day improves". To which he replied,"Well that's the thing isn't it. If you start your day off miserable it can't help but get better. If you start off too cheery you could be in for a disappointment." We agreed, wished him a cheery day and a miserable start to his day tomorrow, as we continued on our way.
Aside from GR: as the start of the walk involved ascending the mountain again, my thoughts couldn't help but remind me of Leslie's previous comments on our bus tour regarding the steep slopes of the sheep pastures. Little did either of us know that we would soon be scaling slopes of similar degrees ourselves and we would be in danger of tumbling to the bottom if we lost our footing and/or our balance. Picture that!
Aside from L: I stopped half way up the steep incline to catch my breath and in doing so turned around to look from whence we had come and it took my breath away!
After resting on another bench, where both of us caught our breath, our climb proceeded into the trees where we found a beautiful, natural walking stick obviously left behind by another walker who may have tumbled down the hill. Gloria-rose used it for the rest of the walk to see if having two sticks made much difference. It does.
As we crested the mountain and came out of the treeline we came across a beautiful looking meadow which we soon discovered was hazardous to walk. It was so bumpy there was not a level spot the size of the sole of our shoes anywhere for us to place our step. This meadow has probably caused many a twisted ankle. So we took it slowly.
Overhead, true to the description in our guidebook we noted buzzards circling overhead. It crossed our minds that perhaps there have been previous walkers who hadn't survived this journey. (later we discovered from our host and hostess that this is actually true -- eek).
After passing Box Farm we met 16 walkers doing the same trail in the opposite direction. One older gentleman commented as he stepped over a stile and nearly lost his stick in the nettles that this truly isn't the type of walk for which he should have worn shorts.
We were greeted by a protective little terrier who escorted us to where a mother and daughter were setting up jumps right along our path. The guidebook had not advertised a horseshow as part of this day's events, but it provided a pleasant diversion for a few moments as we watched them take a few jumps.
Our next welcome was provided by a beautiful friendly black lab who sat patiently at the top of the lane and waited for our arrival. He greeted each of us in turn to get his token pat on his head from each before allowing us to continue past his master, hard at work on the scaffolding around the house. He advised us we had about half a mile to our destination.
We strolled on up the road, walked with hedges too high to see over most of the time and arriving at Skenfrith about 12:15 pm.
After lunching on a bench outside the castle wall we entered and did a photo session within. We then proceeded to the obligatory visit of the village church, where we saw a 15th century embroidery and a graveyard with beautiful cheery flowers on many of the gravesites.
We enjoyed listening to some local gossip as we sipped coffee at a church fundraising venture. It was run out of an open garage and resembled a collage of yardsale, craft sale, bake sale, concession booth and plant sale, all combined to offer something for everyone. It was open Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays only - so non-regular days for other shops. Keep in mind that bank holidays mean long weekends described as a bank of days off - not associated with banks as establishments of financial business.
We will not have access to post our blog tomorrow as the Hunters Moon Inn will be closed and there are no alternatives. Therefore we will post tomorrow's blog from Heathrow Airport - access permitting.
Love from
the Happy Wanderers
PS. We climbed over 22 stiles today. This is not always a simple task as often the ground on either side falls away exaggerating the steps up or down for us to navigate.
PPS. Last night the owner of the Hunters Moon invited us to come back for dinner tonight even though they are usually closed. He, also being the chef, sat next to our table to discuss meal options with us. Talk about personal service. Beat that! Well now beat this,.....the server informed us as we waited for our meal that no one else was coming. They opened JUST FOR US because we are so NICE! Do we have pull or what? Feeling pretty special now.
Windsong - may 19th
Today we walked from Llanvetherine to Grosmont, 6.5 miles over hill and dale. The clouds rolled across the blue expanse above, the wind not permitting them to linger long enough to rain on our parade. We did get "misted on" briefly a couple of times, but at no point did we feel the need to don our Hallowe'en costumes, aka TMNT or hunch backs.
Although thankful for our walking sticks for balance and extra umph while climbing up hills and gingerly stepping over stiles, we have not yet required them to beat back any rampaging bulls. Sorry Kris. The sheep scatter at the mere sight of our hats, the little lambs scurrying after their mothers who watch us warily as if they have never seen anything so strange in all their lives.
At the four mile mark our written guide offered us a choice of walking the tarmack to skirt the base of the mountain, or to bravely challenge a steep increase in elevation to go right over the top of it. Keep in mind these so-called mountains do not compete with our Rockies with regard to full elevation, but they do pose a challenge to inexperienced hikers. It would compare to Bear's Hump in Waterton Park.
We chose to enjoy the panoramic view available only from the top of this very steep incline. Just before we entered the treeline we found the bench placed there by the Monmouth Ramblers for walkers to break for lunch, enjoy the panoramic view and catch their breath. Little do we know the climb continues straight up through the forest for quite a steep rise yet.
The trails on this journey were clearly marked, the instructions less vague and our enjoyment comparably increased - not one mug bog that we were forced to traverse.
Our reward?
Grosmont Castle ruins were very impressive. The broken, decrepit holes through which arrows were once aimed at intruders was now the nurturing ledge for a beautiful delicate flower. As we sat and enjoyed the remainder of our lunch inside the ruins, we watched as a couple of horses nipped at each other, playing roughly in the meadow we could see through one of the castle openings.
Having completed our tour of the castle we made a quick tour of the main street of Grosmont. We decided on the Gentle Jane Teahouse for refreshments. We enjoyed Winter Spice tea and flapjacks while chatting with a local lady who had just had a visit from her niece who lives in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. She was only too happy to join us at our table.
As we left the teahouse there was an enterprising young man, about 10 years of age, entertaining passersby by playing his Devil sticks and his electric guitar, which was not plugged in. Once in a while his younger sister would join in by playing a tune on her recorder. This seemed like it would be a fruitless endeavour as this small town didn't appear to have much industry to attract many passersby, but they seemed quite content with the 50p each we gave them for allowing us to take pictures of their activities.
As no town visit could be complete without visiting the local cathedral, we obligingly paid a visit. Almost every small town church here has post cards available within for a small, specified donation upon your honour.
We ended our walk by using the bright red traditional phone booth to call our hosts for pick up. Paul came right away and kept us entertained with stories of his spark plug collection as he returned us to the B&B. Now we have some time to spruce up before heading back to the Hunters Moon Inn to dine on poor Old Rosie.
Although thankful for our walking sticks for balance and extra umph while climbing up hills and gingerly stepping over stiles, we have not yet required them to beat back any rampaging bulls. Sorry Kris. The sheep scatter at the mere sight of our hats, the little lambs scurrying after their mothers who watch us warily as if they have never seen anything so strange in all their lives.
At the four mile mark our written guide offered us a choice of walking the tarmack to skirt the base of the mountain, or to bravely challenge a steep increase in elevation to go right over the top of it. Keep in mind these so-called mountains do not compete with our Rockies with regard to full elevation, but they do pose a challenge to inexperienced hikers. It would compare to Bear's Hump in Waterton Park.
We chose to enjoy the panoramic view available only from the top of this very steep incline. Just before we entered the treeline we found the bench placed there by the Monmouth Ramblers for walkers to break for lunch, enjoy the panoramic view and catch their breath. Little do we know the climb continues straight up through the forest for quite a steep rise yet.
The trails on this journey were clearly marked, the instructions less vague and our enjoyment comparably increased - not one mug bog that we were forced to traverse.
Our reward?
Grosmont Castle ruins were very impressive. The broken, decrepit holes through which arrows were once aimed at intruders was now the nurturing ledge for a beautiful delicate flower. As we sat and enjoyed the remainder of our lunch inside the ruins, we watched as a couple of horses nipped at each other, playing roughly in the meadow we could see through one of the castle openings.
Having completed our tour of the castle we made a quick tour of the main street of Grosmont. We decided on the Gentle Jane Teahouse for refreshments. We enjoyed Winter Spice tea and flapjacks while chatting with a local lady who had just had a visit from her niece who lives in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. She was only too happy to join us at our table.
As we left the teahouse there was an enterprising young man, about 10 years of age, entertaining passersby by playing his Devil sticks and his electric guitar, which was not plugged in. Once in a while his younger sister would join in by playing a tune on her recorder. This seemed like it would be a fruitless endeavour as this small town didn't appear to have much industry to attract many passersby, but they seemed quite content with the 50p each we gave them for allowing us to take pictures of their activities.
As no town visit could be complete without visiting the local cathedral, we obligingly paid a visit. Almost every small town church here has post cards available within for a small, specified donation upon your honour.
We ended our walk by using the bright red traditional phone booth to call our hosts for pick up. Paul came right away and kept us entertained with stories of his spark plug collection as he returned us to the B&B. Now we have some time to spruce up before heading back to the Hunters Moon Inn to dine on poor Old Rosie.
Friday, May 18, 2007
the Wale song - May 18th
We wrapped up our stay in Moreton-in-Marsh by going out to dinner with the two Dutch girls who bravely did the walk. We had a very nice time - laughing and connecting with these two elegant and energetic ladies.
In the morning the sky was blue, there was a slight breeze, but the day was promising to be a nice one. After breakfast we took the opportunity for a photo session in the front garden of our B&B before heading back to the room to collect our gear.
The train to Worcester was on time. We scrambled on board, lugging our heavy cases with us. We repeated this ritual at Worcester and again at Hereford as we had to debark and change trains. An older lady on her way to a quilting fair was extremely helpful and eager to giver her assistance and information. As we roared across the country by train, we both noticed how much less manicured the fields appeared. Yes - there were still pastures and fields fenced with hedges, but there was a certain wildness that was not evident in the Cotswolds.
No longer in “tourist heaven” we also noticed how much less affluent the area seemed as we trundled along to Hereford. The landscape also began to rise to the Malvern Hills and Wales doesn’t appear as gentle because of the sharpness of the land. Don’t get us wrong, this area is every bit as breathtaking as we have seen. The farmland is reddish coloured dirt which would have made Leslie’s ancestors feel right at home when they settled in PEI. The clouds, ever so vigilant, began to follow us as we travelled to Wales. At one point they overtook us but we rallied to blue sky shortly after. Our victory was short-lived however, the clouds battered their way across the sky until they had completely defeated any chance of the sun having a day out.
After climbing up and down the stairs at our final destination we snared a taxi to the Old Rectory, our new B&B. The taxi driver drove us through the narrowest country roads, at warp speed, lined by hedges taller than the car. He assured us this was a two way road. Heaven help us if we meet a car coming the other way. There is literally no where to squeeze past another vehicle.
Upon our arrival we sat cozy and well fed with our new hostess Karen, who generously offered us refreshments upon our arrival. She is kind and generous and more welcoming than any of the hosts we have stayed with thus far. We are definitely in good hands here. Having settled into our room - well, Gloria-Rose settled in and Leslie just unzipped her suitcase. - it was time for a tour of the village. Five minutes later we are back. The hamlet is the size of Iron Springs with nearly as many amenities. But what a view from the front yard. Incredible!
The only eating establishment here opens at 6:30 pm most nights, not at all other nights. With some trepidation, we head there for supper as we have no other alternative. Boy are we in for a treat. We have just eaten our gourmet meals at the Hunters Moon Inn. We have dined at some rather fancy establishments in London and Edinburgh tops them all. Imagine finding such wonderful fare in a village off the beaten track in Wales. Yummmmmm!
Note: it is true. yesterday's blog did not mention shandy. fear not. Gloria-rose switched to Guiness, but she is now back with Leslie drinking Shandy, however we are making up for lost time and we are now getting really brave and ordering full shandy's instead of half pints.
later
ta ta
ta ra
In the morning the sky was blue, there was a slight breeze, but the day was promising to be a nice one. After breakfast we took the opportunity for a photo session in the front garden of our B&B before heading back to the room to collect our gear.
The train to Worcester was on time. We scrambled on board, lugging our heavy cases with us. We repeated this ritual at Worcester and again at Hereford as we had to debark and change trains. An older lady on her way to a quilting fair was extremely helpful and eager to giver her assistance and information. As we roared across the country by train, we both noticed how much less manicured the fields appeared. Yes - there were still pastures and fields fenced with hedges, but there was a certain wildness that was not evident in the Cotswolds.
No longer in “tourist heaven” we also noticed how much less affluent the area seemed as we trundled along to Hereford. The landscape also began to rise to the Malvern Hills and Wales doesn’t appear as gentle because of the sharpness of the land. Don’t get us wrong, this area is every bit as breathtaking as we have seen. The farmland is reddish coloured dirt which would have made Leslie’s ancestors feel right at home when they settled in PEI. The clouds, ever so vigilant, began to follow us as we travelled to Wales. At one point they overtook us but we rallied to blue sky shortly after. Our victory was short-lived however, the clouds battered their way across the sky until they had completely defeated any chance of the sun having a day out.
After climbing up and down the stairs at our final destination we snared a taxi to the Old Rectory, our new B&B. The taxi driver drove us through the narrowest country roads, at warp speed, lined by hedges taller than the car. He assured us this was a two way road. Heaven help us if we meet a car coming the other way. There is literally no where to squeeze past another vehicle.
Upon our arrival we sat cozy and well fed with our new hostess Karen, who generously offered us refreshments upon our arrival. She is kind and generous and more welcoming than any of the hosts we have stayed with thus far. We are definitely in good hands here. Having settled into our room - well, Gloria-Rose settled in and Leslie just unzipped her suitcase. - it was time for a tour of the village. Five minutes later we are back. The hamlet is the size of Iron Springs with nearly as many amenities. But what a view from the front yard. Incredible!
The only eating establishment here opens at 6:30 pm most nights, not at all other nights. With some trepidation, we head there for supper as we have no other alternative. Boy are we in for a treat. We have just eaten our gourmet meals at the Hunters Moon Inn. We have dined at some rather fancy establishments in London and Edinburgh tops them all. Imagine finding such wonderful fare in a village off the beaten track in Wales. Yummmmmm!
Note: it is true. yesterday's blog did not mention shandy. fear not. Gloria-rose switched to Guiness, but she is now back with Leslie drinking Shandy, however we are making up for lost time and we are now getting really brave and ordering full shandy's instead of half pints.
later
ta ta
ta ra
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Cotswolds Complete - May 17th
As the clock rolled on toward 6:30 am I wondered if my not being in the same room as Gloria-Rose was allowing her a lie-in. Not to worry, she rapped at the door, right on time. So thankfully I didn't have to knock her up. Whew!
We had coffee in her room as mine was considerably smaller. She told me all about her escapades of the night before. Half an hour before breakfast we went down to the tea room where we were joined by a lawyer from Seattle, who chatted amiably with us until breakfast was announced. As we ate our breakfast, there was a little boy in a vehicle outside our window, playing peek-a-boo with Leslie (aside from GR: Even the younger persuasion of English gentlemen are attracted to Leslie. They just can't help themselves. Those poor sots).
The liquid sunshine was once more gracing our day. We strolled leisurely down the street to the tourist information bureau to enquire after a bus schedule. They provided one, noting the bus would leave for Moreton-in-Marsh at 10:17, only a few minutes from now. They discouraged us from trying to go to Chipping Campden first. We waited at the bus stop and no bus came.....wait a minute.....stop......Leslie isn't sure what she has done with her passport package. We quickly sauntered back to the B&B so she could check her luggage and under her bed. Found! She attached it to her body and we returned to the bus stop. The schedule the ladies had provided indicated the next bus was at 11:07 am. So thank goodness we hadn't missed that one.....however, as luck would have it....no bus showed up at 11:07. We deciphered the weathered sign on the bus stop post. It looked like there might be a bus at 11:55. When other people began to gather we realized this was a good sign. An older lady pulled out several pages of schedules and not only gave us great information on getting to Chipping Campden, but she provided to us instructions on getting back to Moreton-in-Marsh later from Chipping Campden.
After we arrived in market square we headed down the street where we walked through the original market building. Photo ops were great. The floor was extremely unlevel. Then we headed off down the street where we passed the memorial garden constructed to honor the local plant hunter, Ernest Henry Wilson. Off to another church where we stood listening to a trio of musicians practise. They were amazing.
Hoping to find a good place for lunch, we rounded a corner and there was "the eight Bells". Inside we got chatting with some folks from Cincinnatti over lunch. Before they left one fellow asked to have his picture taken with Leslie (aside from GR: Can you believe it? Everywhere we go...they just cannot resist her charms!) According to his wife and two travelling companions she looks exactly like his sister Donna. They thought Donna would appreciate the picture.
Nourished and thirst quenched, we visited a few more shops, walked up Sheep Street and back before touring through an art gallery. Aren't we the cultured ones?
Oh, then of course, ice cream was calling so we stopped for one each.
As the time to leave drew near we gathered at the bus stop and began chatting with a local Moreton-in-Marsher, which reassured us we were in line for the right bus, and that we would not have a two hour wait as we had earlier.
Twenty minutes later we checked into our rooms, then made haste to the Bell Inn and the internet....our lifeline to all of you.
We do not have definite plans for tonight yet, except to repack our suitcases in preparation for tomorrow's journey to Wales.
We had coffee in her room as mine was considerably smaller. She told me all about her escapades of the night before. Half an hour before breakfast we went down to the tea room where we were joined by a lawyer from Seattle, who chatted amiably with us until breakfast was announced. As we ate our breakfast, there was a little boy in a vehicle outside our window, playing peek-a-boo with Leslie (aside from GR: Even the younger persuasion of English gentlemen are attracted to Leslie. They just can't help themselves. Those poor sots).
The liquid sunshine was once more gracing our day. We strolled leisurely down the street to the tourist information bureau to enquire after a bus schedule. They provided one, noting the bus would leave for Moreton-in-Marsh at 10:17, only a few minutes from now. They discouraged us from trying to go to Chipping Campden first. We waited at the bus stop and no bus came.....wait a minute.....stop......Leslie isn't sure what she has done with her passport package. We quickly sauntered back to the B&B so she could check her luggage and under her bed. Found! She attached it to her body and we returned to the bus stop. The schedule the ladies had provided indicated the next bus was at 11:07 am. So thank goodness we hadn't missed that one.....however, as luck would have it....no bus showed up at 11:07. We deciphered the weathered sign on the bus stop post. It looked like there might be a bus at 11:55. When other people began to gather we realized this was a good sign. An older lady pulled out several pages of schedules and not only gave us great information on getting to Chipping Campden, but she provided to us instructions on getting back to Moreton-in-Marsh later from Chipping Campden.
After we arrived in market square we headed down the street where we walked through the original market building. Photo ops were great. The floor was extremely unlevel. Then we headed off down the street where we passed the memorial garden constructed to honor the local plant hunter, Ernest Henry Wilson. Off to another church where we stood listening to a trio of musicians practise. They were amazing.
Hoping to find a good place for lunch, we rounded a corner and there was "the eight Bells". Inside we got chatting with some folks from Cincinnatti over lunch. Before they left one fellow asked to have his picture taken with Leslie (aside from GR: Can you believe it? Everywhere we go...they just cannot resist her charms!) According to his wife and two travelling companions she looks exactly like his sister Donna. They thought Donna would appreciate the picture.
Nourished and thirst quenched, we visited a few more shops, walked up Sheep Street and back before touring through an art gallery. Aren't we the cultured ones?
Oh, then of course, ice cream was calling so we stopped for one each.
As the time to leave drew near we gathered at the bus stop and began chatting with a local Moreton-in-Marsher, which reassured us we were in line for the right bus, and that we would not have a two hour wait as we had earlier.
Twenty minutes later we checked into our rooms, then made haste to the Bell Inn and the internet....our lifeline to all of you.
We do not have definite plans for tonight yet, except to repack our suitcases in preparation for tomorrow's journey to Wales.
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