Return To England
Monday May 24 to Thursday June 3, 2010
We're Back In The UK .... After
a smooth 3½ hour sailing across the Irish Sea we arrived in
Holyhead, Wales on schedule. Our drive back to Wells took
us back on the A5 through the Snowdonia National Park to a small
village called Betws-y-coed.
This
village is a base for tourist, hikers and outdoor adventurers that
want to explore the National Park. Of all the villages we
have visited over the last few weeks this rates as number 1 and a must
see if you are in Wales. The architecture is consistent right
through the town and it is filled with quality shops selling souvenirs
and outdoor clothing as well as a number of nice hotels and
restauants. It would make a great base from which to explore the
National Park particularly if you liked hiking and other outdoor
activities.
Continuing Southward ....
Our next stop was in the historic slate mining town of Blaenau
Ffestiniog. In the 19th Century this small town was once the
capital of the slate industry. It is set in an
elevated
natural bowl between the Manod and Moelwyn Mountains of Snowdonia.
Despite
being in the centre of the Snowdonia National Park, the grey slate
waste
tips that surround the town prevented it from being officially
included
in the national park.
Today slate extraction employs only a fraction of its former
labour force,
(4000 men in the 1880's), but the town has to some extent
reinvented itself
as a tourist destination with two quarries offering trips into the
massive
underground caverns built by the slate workers. From Blaenau Ffestiniog we continued south through the
Snowdonia Forest and National Park and Dolgellau and started to look
for a B&B for the night. Surprisingly there was not a lot
of B&B's and the one we did check out was a definite
"no".
Our Overnight Stop - Church Stretton ....
We continued on and reached Church Stretton, a friendly market
town in the Shropshire Hills just near the Wales/England border.
This
is a very quaint town with many tudor style buildings. Our
accomodation for the night was the Buck's Head Hotel located in the
main street and we arrived in time for drinks before a good hearty meal
at the hotel. The town is not too big but quite busy with some
interesting buildings and of course, the church which decided to play a bell tune
every 1/4 hr during the night along with chiming the number of hours.
The next day we walked the town and found out from the
local shopkeeper where Lindsay's mum ( our friend from Melbourne)
lived. Unfortunately she wasn't at home when we called, so we
left a nice bottle of Australian wine with her next door
neighbour, and hopefully she will enjoy it.
A Cooks Tour To Home .... It was time to head further south passing through the
village of Much Wenlock. We had to stop here as it was so so quaint.
It dates back to 1AD during the Romans and the buildings in the village
are both Tudor and medieval.
Our Last Leg ....
Another town worth a visit was Ludlow
and if ever we returned to England, the Shropshire area would be well
worth a return visit with so much to see. We decided that we
would
head straight for our home base in Wells. We were ready for a
home cooked meal, so after lunch at Ross-on-Wye, we drove down through
Hereford and Monmouth to Chepstow. 
Chepstow
is a town in Monmouthshire, Wales adjoing the border with
Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the River Wye, along
with the Chepstow castle being the oldest surviving stone castle
in
Britain. Chepstow is also known for its racecourse and hosts the
Welsh
Grand National. A nice place to spend more time. It was
then a crossing over the Severn River via the Severn Bridge to Bristol
and home to Wells.
Bristol - What A Surprise .... 
We
decided at short notice to take a day trip into Bristol just to get our
own impression as we had been told on many occassions that this was
just
another big city. Well what a surprise we received.
We found the Bristol Ferry Company operating ferries up and down the
Floating Harbour. For 5 pound it enabled you to hop and off the
ferry
at different places along the harbour. The weather was sunny and
very pleasant and with the help of the ferry girl we boarded with
travel guide in hand ready to explore Bristol. Bristol was
badly bombed uring World War 2 and the remains of St Peters
Church still stands as a reminder. The architctue of this city is
quite interesting with a mixture of pre war architecture along with the
modern architecture of most recent times. It somehow blends
together.
Clifton Village - The Toorak Of Bristol .... The
Clifton Suspension Bridge in this area is spectacular. Sitting on the
cliffs of the Avon Gorge has made it the symbol of Bristol. It was
designed by the great
Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel, although he never lived to
see his creation finished in 1864. We
were able to stroll across for views of the gorge, the Avon River and
the
beautiful Clifton Village. This was a highlight of our time
in England. Clifton is one of the oldest and most affluent
areas of the city, much of it having been built with profits from
tobacco and the slave trade. Situated to the west of Bristol's city centre, it was at one time a separate
settlement but became attached to Bristol by continuous development
during the Georgian era and was formally incorporated into
the city in the 1830s. Grand houses that required many servants were
built in the area. Although some were detached or semi-detached
properties, the bulk were built as terraces, many with three or more
floors.
We're Back In Wells, Somerset ....
Vicars Close ....
Jan's son Tim had been with us for three days. He
had flown over from Palma on the Isle of Majorca where he works in the
international ocean racing yacting industry, and we enjoyed
three days with him. We visited the Vicars Close in Wells,
a
row of 40 little cottages which date from 1363 and is the oldest intact
medieval street in Europe. The houses were built for use
as bachelor dwellings for the "Vicars
Choral". The men were the clerical assistants of the church and
sang in the
cathedral.
Apparently they were known for their womanising, fighting and stealing
so the Bishop of Shrewsbury built the
cottages to have more control and keep them away from temptation. These
days the cottages are occupied mainly by the students of the Wells
Music School and also used as classrooms.
The Bishop's Palace .... We also visited the Bishop's Palace
. It is here where the residing Bishop of Wells and his wife
live, and has been home to the Bishops of Bath and Wells for 800
years. The Bishop's Palace is protected by high defensive
walls, a moat and gatehouse with a drawbridge. Close to the
drawbridge, attached to a wall, is a bell that the local swans will
ring whenever they consider it to be feeding time. The palace gardens,
which rival those of the cathedral, are entered via an archway just a
few yards down the street from Penniless Porch where quite often you
will find a local sitting with his cup in hand to receive the odd
change. We were able to take a tour of this medieval palace and
the well preserved beautiful gardens.
Glastonbury - An Alternative Lifestyle Village .....
The five of us went for a Sunday trip to
Glastonbury which is approximately 10 km from Wells and is known for
the Glastonbury Musical Festival which is held each year in mid
June. It is the biggest music gathering of people in the
world. Glastonbury is a town full of myths, magic, legends and
spirituality. In recent years the town has become a place of
pilgrimage for visitors of faiths other than Christianity. It attracts
visitors and in more recent years there has been a revival of interest
in Glastonbury as a centre of alternative beliefs. This can be
seen in the streets where people in colourful clothes wander
the streets and visit the alternative lifestyle shops. We had
lunch in The
George and Pilgrim's Pub and sat and watched the passing parade which
was so
interesting.
Glastonbury Tor .... We also had to climb the Glastonbury Tor, a tower
that stands 158 metres above sea level and is a very steep walk to
reach the top. Glastonbury Tor is a conical hill in Glastonbury,
England, which is topped by a 14th-century church tower. Rich in legend
and mythological associations, Glastonbury Tor may have been a place of
ancient ritual and it was certainly a place of pilgrimage for Catholics
in medieval times.
From here, we drove to Bristol Airport via Cheddar Gorge, a 137 metre
limestone gorge which is rather spectacular from the bottom as you
drive through it. 
Tim was flying out late afternoon and after
saying our goodbyes we drove back to Wells via Rickington Rise.
Bradford On Avon ....
It was only a few dys now before we left England so on
the Monday of
the long weekend we drove over to Bradford on Avon in Wiltshire.
Built on the Avon River this is popular with barges that were
cruising up and down the Kennet and Avon Canal and through the
lock. 
It was a
busy day and after finding a carpark we wandered the town visiting the old
weavers' cottages situated high up on the hill overlooking the
town. The cottages were home to the people who worked in the
wool and cloth industry for over six centuries until its demise at the
beginning of the 20 century. This is a beautifully preserved
village and very popular with visitors particularly on a long weekend.
Our time in England has come to an end and after a lunch
tomorrow with Jan and Ian and some friends, we will depart for Paris
for a couple of nights then on to Singapore for
three days before arriving home on 9th June. We look forward to
returning home and catching up with our son Scott and Andrew and Carly
(our son and daughter in
law) who are expecting there first baby in June which we are looking
forward to very much.