Saturday, Oxford, Stonehenge, Salisbury, Bath, Bristol and Monmouth...
In the morning we were surprised to see all the people around and how big the place actually was. Apparently a big day at Ascot with lots of people heading to the races and the Welcome Break stop (with the hotel and a few fast food chains) is one of the most popular places to pull over and it was very busy. We headed off and spent a few hours at Oxford. It was a special weekend (with loads of tourists) and they had lots of extra places open. We happened upon St. John’s College (on St. Giles) and had a bit of a tour of the place, quadrangles and gardens etc. Very nice. Then on foot around some of the landmarks parts of town and decided we keep moving on to Salisbury and did a drive by of Stonehenge on the way. It was very crowded and we didn’t think it was worth the money to stop (besides it was threatening to rain).
Found a car park in Salisbury and decided to check out the market before the cathedral. It had started raining - stopped at an oppy and found a reasonable brolly for £2.50. The market was OK, with a few stalls starting to pack up (about 4:00 pm.) but bought some fruit cheap. Had a nice wander through the city and over a small bridge over a small creek. It was full of swans and ducks. The swans were busy preening themselves (bending their necks and using their beaks to sort out their feathers) and kept being carried down stream by the current. They’d have to stop and paddle back up under the bridge to be where the people were (a bit like Sisyphus in the myth). Did a little bit of shopping for necessities and then walked over to the massive cathedral with the tallest spire in the UK (123 meters).
Had a quick look inside (they were starting an evening service) and saw what might be the oldest working medieval clock (1386) and an amazing fountain that had a reflective surface but still flowed. Visited the Chapter House to check out one of the remaining (four) copies of the Magna Carta which was written in 1215 by the noblemen of England to persuaded the king to relinquish his power and brought about democratic government and parliament. It was written on vellum, which is animal skin (it’s an academic argument as to whether vellum is calf [veal] skin and parchment is lamb skin) and quite an amazing thing. The actual Chapter House is wonderful in itself, but I won’t go into details here other than the amazing carvings in the frieze around the walls - put it on your itinerary if you visit Salisbury here.
Then on the road again and a drive-through of Bath and also Bristol before finding our way to Monmouth in Wales. Had to pay £2.10 to cross the Severn river on a very large bridge (won’t have to pay on the way back). Apparently the tide here is the second largest in the world (don’t know if the tide near Broome is the largest) but there was hardly any river left (tide was out) and lots of mud flats. Would be useful to find an environmentally sound way to harvest the energy of the tidal flow.
Following Liz’s excellent instructions we found her place (The Glen Farm) around 9:00 pm and it was good to see her again (and we met Ella the dog). Had a very nice curry dinner and were very well looked after by Liz who had set up space for us all to sleep and stocked the pantry. We definitely felt at home. We had a late cuppa after dinner but realised we were all ready to crash as we sat down around midnight. Liz had also had a big day, coming back from Norfolk and getting ready for us.
In the morning we were surprised to see all the people around and how big the place actually was. Apparently a big day at Ascot with lots of people heading to the races and the Welcome Break stop (with the hotel and a few fast food chains) is one of the most popular places to pull over and it was very busy. We headed off and spent a few hours at Oxford. It was a special weekend (with loads of tourists) and they had lots of extra places open. We happened upon St. John’s College (on St. Giles) and had a bit of a tour of the place, quadrangles and gardens etc. Very nice. Then on foot around some of the landmarks parts of town and decided we keep moving on to Salisbury and did a drive by of Stonehenge on the way. It was very crowded and we didn’t think it was worth the money to stop (besides it was threatening to rain).
Found a car park in Salisbury and decided to check out the market before the cathedral. It had started raining - stopped at an oppy and found a reasonable brolly for £2.50. The market was OK, with a few stalls starting to pack up (about 4:00 pm.) but bought some fruit cheap. Had a nice wander through the city and over a small bridge over a small creek. It was full of swans and ducks. The swans were busy preening themselves (bending their necks and using their beaks to sort out their feathers) and kept being carried down stream by the current. They’d have to stop and paddle back up under the bridge to be where the people were (a bit like Sisyphus in the myth). Did a little bit of shopping for necessities and then walked over to the massive cathedral with the tallest spire in the UK (123 meters).
Had a quick look inside (they were starting an evening service) and saw what might be the oldest working medieval clock (1386) and an amazing fountain that had a reflective surface but still flowed. Visited the Chapter House to check out one of the remaining (four) copies of the Magna Carta which was written in 1215 by the noblemen of England to persuaded the king to relinquish his power and brought about democratic government and parliament. It was written on vellum, which is animal skin (it’s an academic argument as to whether vellum is calf [veal] skin and parchment is lamb skin) and quite an amazing thing. The actual Chapter House is wonderful in itself, but I won’t go into details here other than the amazing carvings in the frieze around the walls - put it on your itinerary if you visit Salisbury here.
Then on the road again and a drive-through of Bath and also Bristol before finding our way to Monmouth in Wales. Had to pay £2.10 to cross the Severn river on a very large bridge (won’t have to pay on the way back). Apparently the tide here is the second largest in the world (don’t know if the tide near Broome is the largest) but there was hardly any river left (tide was out) and lots of mud flats. Would be useful to find an environmentally sound way to harvest the energy of the tidal flow.
Following Liz’s excellent instructions we found her place (The Glen Farm) around 9:00 pm and it was good to see her again (and we met Ella the dog). Had a very nice curry dinner and were very well looked after by Liz who had set up space for us all to sleep and stocked the pantry. We definitely felt at home. We had a late cuppa after dinner but realised we were all ready to crash as we sat down around midnight. Liz had also had a big day, coming back from Norfolk and getting ready for us.
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