Travel through Southwest England in August, 2007
Leaving London:
The car -- a 2008 diesel Audi A6. Comfortable, automatic, easy to drive -- ah but, the one big obstacle, the shift is on the left. "Miss Ethel" is still directly behind the driver and "Mr. Colin" is adjusting well to the reverse maneuvering. Most trouble -- making a right hand turn because then it means crossing oncoming traffic and getting to the left lane. Least trouble is that it is a diesel engine and has been averaging 35-40 MPG. Yes, "Miles" per gallon; not kilometers. If you really want to be confused try this: keep to the left when you are driving; to the right when you are boating (steering wheel on the left side, in England, to really confuse us boaters); to the left when you are walking but to the right when you are on an escalator. It ain't easy until you get to the currency exchange and then it is very simple: the American dollar is so weak against the British pound that it costs us over two dollars for every one pound. Yep, a cup of coffee is $5.00 to $8.00 -- it's not Starbucks either!
Fortunately we left London on "Bank Holiday" Monday, sort of like our Labor Day Week-end. There was little traffic but our first destination, Windsor Castle, was swarming with visitors and we couldn't find a parking space in the entire city of Windsor so we saluted the Queen's digs and headed for Oxford. In that University town, there was no problem with crowds as the students from the 35 colleges that make up Oxford University, were still on break. We were able to walk around, take a ride on a slow-moving, tableau-type depiction of The Oxford Story. Disney would have shuddered but it did give good information on the history of the University, its famous scholars from scientists to theologians (United Methodist John Wesley studied here) to prime ministers (9 of them). At Christ Church College, one of the "bowler" guards (men who wear bowler hats and remind visitors and students of the rules such as not walking on the lawns) wouldn't let us in the entrance to Wesley's rooms where Ethel had been on a previous trip. He did however, flatter her beautifully while denying us entry.
Dinner was in an Irish Pub where Ethel chose fish and chips and Colin dined on Irish Stew and Australian wine. Our meals have consisted of breakfast at the hotel each day ("Full English Breakfast" provided), a stop for coffee/snack midday, and an early dinner (about 5-6 p.m.) This has worked well and we have been well satisfied. Three times we have gone to Bella Italia (a chain we found, something like Olive Garden) and Colin has had the same seafood linguini each time. He says it 's really good!
Tuesday we set off for Shakespeare country in Stratford. It was time to see where Willie came before he hit the streets of London and the Globe Theatre. We toured his birthplace, the home of his wife, Anne Hathaway, the home of his daughter, and some of the buildings that were in Stratford when he lived there. ( A little side note on old William: he was 18 when he married 26 year old Anne and she was three months "with child" at the time.) Since our last visit, 12 years ago, a new visitor's center has been added plus some upgrades to the furnishings , namely fabric on the walls indicative of the status of a well-to-do merchant which his father was.
We walked over to the Avon River where Ethel wanted to ride in a rowboat. It has a bench seat (with a back) and was very steady in the water. Only problem -- Colin would have to row for one hour . He said "I love you but my back won't take it!" We opted for a ride in a much larger tour boat with an electric motor and settled back to enjoy the tranquility on the river. Another passenger told us how only a few weeks before this entire area of England was severely flooded.
Wednesday we started the day at Blenheim Palace, the ancestral home of the Spencers (some relatives of Diana) and Churchills (Winston was born here). Beautiful setting, acres of grounds, and two tours -- one through the formal rooms (priceless paintings, exquisite furnishings, a huge library, and a Winston history section), and the other on the history of the house and the family (there are 9 generations of Dukes who have lived here) narrated by a ghost. From there we had a "lovely" drive through the Cotswolds -- small villages, all built with native pale-colored stone, in sheep country. The narrow roads were often less than a lane wide but fortunately traffic was light and we arrived safely at our hotel in Bath.
The English keep saying how sorry they are that the dollar is so weak -- but they keep taking it anyway! We just look at the prices in pounds and consider it like Disney Land -- a fun experience at any price!
It's Thursday and we are in Bath (that's "Baw-th" in English speak not "Baa-th" as we Yanks say), a wonderful town. It's been the play place of people since the Romans took to the hot waters there centuries ago. Then the aristocracy of 18th century England decided it would be a great escape from damp London and the social season from September to March moved to the area.
Many, many apartment houses were built, the upper crust came in droves, and paraded through the town, shopped, drank the vile-tasting mineral water, and lived the life style of the rich and famous. They built gaming houses, parks, theatres, and the Pump Room where they listened to classical music while having "Tea". They didn't go much for exercise though as they used sedan chairs carried by porters to take them to the bath (hot springs) where they soaked for 3 hours, then ate a dry biscuit invented by a local doctor which was supposed to have curative powers, and then went back to dress for seeing and being seen the rest of the day. There was dancing in the evening so they must have gotten their exercise that way.
We took the on/off bus tour around town, walked through some of the long-term apartment arrangements (very classy even though they came furnished), visited the Roman baths (a major temple was here as well as the rooms for the baths -- warm, warmer, warmest, HOT, tepid, cold -- massage parlors, steam rooms, etc. -- those Romans knew how to relax). We had tea in the Pump Room (after tasting the waters - ugh!), very elegant and we drank, pinkies up, of course, while listening to the string quartet.
Great restaurants -- we ate one night at Tilly's (French) and the other at Sally Lunn's (a famous baker who invented Sally Lunn bread). Both excellent and on the Brodie recommended list. Since we ate before 7 p.m. we qualified for the Early Bird Special -- two courses for £10. ($20.). At Sally Lunn's this even included a glass of wine! (Are we now officially "senior citizens" going for the early bird specials? Oh, no! England calls their seniors "concessionaires" -- sounds like we own some catering business -- and we have to remember to ask for that price at admissions or on busses.)
The Avon River runs through Bath and Porteney bridge crosses it which contains shops and homes -- a very unusual occurance in Britain. There are a couple of similar ones in Italy. Lovely strolling scenery, the Bath Abbey church is awesome, we met some wonderful people from Scotland with whom we spent a great evening discussing everything in the world (literally!). So all in all, we enjoyed Bath!
Left there and drove to the "stack of rocks" known as Stonehenge. It's still an amazing sight to ponder the "why" as has been done through the ages. Nothing else like it anywhere, so it was worth seeing. Ethel had been there 29 years ago on her first English trip and new are the headphones which tell what is known and what is speculated about the rocks. Can't go up to them any more but we walked all around the circumference.
Then it was onward across the plain to Salisbury Cathedral. Lots of traffic in this southern part of England, maybe it's because it is Friday and the week-end escape has begun. Colin maneuvered well through all the round-abouts, and got us to a car park next to the cathedral. Only £6 ($12) fee! But we were close AND we got a free cup of coffee in the cafeteria AND 10% off purchases in the gift shop -- so we got some of it back. The 150' spire is awesome and the stone work on the front is filled with carvings of saints, kings, and filigree. The Magna Carta was signed near here and it was brought to the church for safe-keeping and they still have the best preserved copy of this historic document (we read the guidebook -- the nobles forced King John to give rights of justice to everyone, hence the beginning of democracy or at least the end of the absolute monarchy).
We are now in Christchurch and doing some necessary catch-up before boarding our ship tomorrow in Southampton. They let us join the local library so we could use their computers, a nice touch. Ethel used one in Bath and paid £1.80 for 15 minutes. This one is free to members! What a deal!
Leaving London:
The car -- a 2008 diesel Audi A6. Comfortable, automatic, easy to drive -- ah but, the one big obstacle, the shift is on the left. "Miss Ethel" is still directly behind the driver and "Mr. Colin" is adjusting well to the reverse maneuvering. Most trouble -- making a right hand turn because then it means crossing oncoming traffic and getting to the left lane. Least trouble is that it is a diesel engine and has been averaging 35-40 MPG. Yes, "Miles" per gallon; not kilometers. If you really want to be confused try this: keep to the left when you are driving; to the right when you are boating (steering wheel on the left side, in England, to really confuse us boaters); to the left when you are walking but to the right when you are on an escalator. It ain't easy until you get to the currency exchange and then it is very simple: the American dollar is so weak against the British pound that it costs us over two dollars for every one pound. Yep, a cup of coffee is $5.00 to $8.00 -- it's not Starbucks either!
Fortunately we left London on "Bank Holiday" Monday, sort of like our Labor Day Week-end. There was little traffic but our first destination, Windsor Castle, was swarming with visitors and we couldn't find a parking space in the entire city of Windsor so we saluted the Queen's digs and headed for Oxford. In that University town, there was no problem with crowds as the students from the 35 colleges that make up Oxford University, were still on break. We were able to walk around, take a ride on a slow-moving, tableau-type depiction of The Oxford Story. Disney would have shuddered but it did give good information on the history of the University, its famous scholars from scientists to theologians (United Methodist John Wesley studied here) to prime ministers (9 of them). At Christ Church College, one of the "bowler" guards (men who wear bowler hats and remind visitors and students of the rules such as not walking on the lawns) wouldn't let us in the entrance to Wesley's rooms where Ethel had been on a previous trip. He did however, flatter her beautifully while denying us entry.
Dinner was in an Irish Pub where Ethel chose fish and chips and Colin dined on Irish Stew and Australian wine. Our meals have consisted of breakfast at the hotel each day ("Full English Breakfast" provided), a stop for coffee/snack midday, and an early dinner (about 5-6 p.m.) This has worked well and we have been well satisfied. Three times we have gone to Bella Italia (a chain we found, something like Olive Garden) and Colin has had the same seafood linguini each time. He says it 's really good!
Tuesday we set off for Shakespeare country in Stratford. It was time to see where Willie came before he hit the streets of London and the Globe Theatre. We toured his birthplace, the home of his wife, Anne Hathaway, the home of his daughter, and some of the buildings that were in Stratford when he lived there. ( A little side note on old William: he was 18 when he married 26 year old Anne and she was three months "with child" at the time.) Since our last visit, 12 years ago, a new visitor's center has been added plus some upgrades to the furnishings , namely fabric on the walls indicative of the status of a well-to-do merchant which his father was.
We walked over to the Avon River where Ethel wanted to ride in a rowboat. It has a bench seat (with a back) and was very steady in the water. Only problem -- Colin would have to row for one hour . He said "I love you but my back won't take it!" We opted for a ride in a much larger tour boat with an electric motor and settled back to enjoy the tranquility on the river. Another passenger told us how only a few weeks before this entire area of England was severely flooded.
Wednesday we started the day at Blenheim Palace, the ancestral home of the Spencers (some relatives of Diana) and Churchills (Winston was born here). Beautiful setting, acres of grounds, and two tours -- one through the formal rooms (priceless paintings, exquisite furnishings, a huge library, and a Winston history section), and the other on the history of the house and the family (there are 9 generations of Dukes who have lived here) narrated by a ghost. From there we had a "lovely" drive through the Cotswolds -- small villages, all built with native pale-colored stone, in sheep country. The narrow roads were often less than a lane wide but fortunately traffic was light and we arrived safely at our hotel in Bath.The English keep saying how sorry they are that the dollar is so weak -- but they keep taking it anyway! We just look at the prices in pounds and consider it like Disney Land -- a fun experience at any price!
It's Thursday and we are in Bath (that's "Baw-th" in English speak not "Baa-th" as we Yanks say), a wonderful town. It's been the play place of people since the Romans took to the hot waters there centuries ago. Then the aristocracy of 18th century England decided it would be a great escape from damp London and the social season from September to March moved to the area.Many, many apartment houses were built, the upper crust came in droves, and paraded through the town, shopped, drank the vile-tasting mineral water, and lived the life style of the rich and famous. They built gaming houses, parks, theatres, and the Pump Room where they listened to classical music while having "Tea". They didn't go much for exercise though as they used sedan chairs carried by porters to take them to the bath (hot springs) where they soaked for 3 hours, then ate a dry biscuit invented by a local doctor which was supposed to have curative powers, and then went back to dress for seeing and being seen the rest of the day. There was dancing in the evening so they must have gotten their exercise that way.
We took the on/off bus tour around town, walked through some of the long-term apartment arrangements (very classy even though they came furnished), visited the Roman baths (a major temple was here as well as the rooms for the baths -- warm, warmer, warmest, HOT, tepid, cold -- massage parlors, steam rooms, etc. -- those Romans knew how to relax). We had tea in the Pump Room (after tasting the waters - ugh!), very elegant and we drank, pinkies up, of course, while listening to the string quartet.
Great restaurants -- we ate one night at Tilly's (French) and the other at Sally Lunn's (a famous baker who invented Sally Lunn bread). Both excellent and on the Brodie recommended list. Since we ate before 7 p.m. we qualified for the Early Bird Special -- two courses for £10. ($20.). At Sally Lunn's this even included a glass of wine! (Are we now officially "senior citizens" going for the early bird specials? Oh, no! England calls their seniors "concessionaires" -- sounds like we own some catering business -- and we have to remember to ask for that price at admissions or on busses.)
The Avon River runs through Bath and Porteney bridge crosses it which contains shops and homes -- a very unusual occurance in Britain. There are a couple of similar ones in Italy. Lovely strolling scenery, the Bath Abbey church is awesome, we met some wonderful people from Scotland with whom we spent a great evening discussing everything in the world (literally!). So all in all, we enjoyed Bath!
Left there and drove to the "stack of rocks" known as Stonehenge. It's still an amazing sight to ponder the "why" as has been done through the ages. Nothing else like it anywhere, so it was worth seeing. Ethel had been there 29 years ago on her first English trip and new are the headphones which tell what is known and what is speculated about the rocks. Can't go up to them any more but we walked all around the circumference.Then it was onward across the plain to Salisbury Cathedral. Lots of traffic in this southern part of England, maybe it's because it is Friday and the week-end escape has begun. Colin maneuvered well through all the round-abouts, and got us to a car park next to the cathedral. Only £6 ($12) fee! But we were close AND we got a free cup of coffee in the cafeteria AND 10% off purchases in the gift shop -- so we got some of it back. The 150' spire is awesome and the stone work on the front is filled with carvings of saints, kings, and filigree. The Magna Carta was signed near here and it was brought to the church for safe-keeping and they still have the best preserved copy of this historic document (we read the guidebook -- the nobles forced King John to give rights of justice to everyone, hence the beginning of democracy or at least the end of the absolute monarchy).
We are now in Christchurch and doing some necessary catch-up before boarding our ship tomorrow in Southampton. They let us join the local library so we could use their computers, a nice touch. Ethel used one in Bath and paid £1.80 for 15 minutes. This one is free to members! What a deal!
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