West Wales with Charlie and Marilyn

John's uni friend Charlie grew up in West Wales and was always rabbiting on about it. Eventually John said "Charlie, nowhere is as good as you make out West Wales is" "Well, Boyoh, you meet me there and I'll show you then!"
So we did.....

John & Charlie

We stayed with Charlie and his North Yorkshire wife Marilyn in Fishguard and they showed us a fine time. We walked the cliffs and beaches, discovered lots of pubs and were basically waited on hand and foot.

A lovely walk on the beach

Sand surfing

View from the top of the hill

Welsh sheeps are very neat

Yay, top of the hill

Sunset in Fishguard

We spent 5 nights with them and 2 more on our own in their house. West Wales is quite beautiful, vividly green, nice beaches and very friendly people.
A big thank you to Charlie and Marilyn.....

One Night Stay

A five and a half hour drive to Fishguard needed a break, so we drove for an overnighter in Ledbury, a little under three hours. We took a detour to Duxford where there is an Imperial War Museum. We were lucky to make it to Ledbury, really. As you all know, John loves anything war like and in particular old aircraft. Well did he strike the jackpot.....an historic airfield and a museum of aviation history.

We arrived in Ledbury in time for beer o'clock in a nice rickety pub, The Prince of Wales, up an old cobbled street. It's one of those old world pubs with beams that if could talk, would tell a tale or two. The bar staff are friendly and apparently the beers are good too.

A meal in the local Italian and a lovely walk home for a wee dram and a cuddle with our new friend that greeted us on arrival at The Feathers Hotel.

Our new friend

Sunset coming home

Oliver Cromwell's House

Our last day in Ely with Michael and Hilary and we went to visit Oliver Cromwell's house where he lived with his wife and various children. It dates back to around 1215.

 They have recreated period rooms and included statues of Oliver and his family showing what life might have been like back then. 

A most comprehensive account was given of Cromwell, his deeds and successes. He led a civil war against the King Charles I and had him executed and he was also accused of genocide, when he invaded Ireland in 1649 and slaughtered thousands of Royalists and Catholics. He was also regarded as the father of British democracy, but either way he was a man people loved to love or hate. Suffice to say when he died of natural causes in 1658 and Charles II became King, the British celebrated the end of Cromwell's reign with the biggest booze-up the country had ever seen.
Oliver was buried in Westminster Abbey but after the Royalists returned to power in 1660 they had his corpse dug up, hung in chains and beheaded.
That's one hell of a grudge!

The Bloggers Will Have To Wait......

So very sorry.......

I haven't forgotten about you all, I'm just a tad busy.

I was going to catch up today but Chichester beckons and the train leaves shortly.

Until later, I will love and leave you!

Day Trip to Cambridge

The day we went to Cambridge.....we caught the train, my first trip as a senior on British Rail.  John still doesn't tire of saying "and 2 Seniors tickets please" and then smiling at me. Bastard.

Seniors on the Train

We arrived and decided the Hop on Hop off bus would be just the job. Easy on the old legs, full of information with the commentary and you get to see a lot of the city.

One of the stops was the Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial. Opened in 1956 this commemorates the American serviceman who died or went missing in WWII

The cemetery contains 3809 headstones and is laid out with the utmost precision.

 There is also an inscribed  Wall of the Missing, which includes the name of : Miller - Alton G. aka Glen Miller of music fame with his big band. Joseph Kennedy, father of JFK is also buried here.

Miller Alton G

It was a moving trip, so much so we missed 2 buses. 

Boris

Boris is small and young, only three and a half months old. He is a Norfolk terrier I believe and the apple of his mother's eye. His mother happens to be the publican of The Fountain, a fairly nondescript pub that serves very good beer, so I'm told. The wine is ok, but isn't that always the way.

We first met Boris when his owner brought him in for a Sunday drink, but at that stage we didn't know she owned the pub so when we returned on Tuesday I was delighted to see her behind the bar and even more delighted to see Boris on my side of the bar tied to a chair! He was equally excited to see me and promptly weeed all over the floor.

Boris

Boris's friend

How do you do?

Sunday Drinks








We saw Boris again before we left......Cutie

Ely

Ely is a lovely cathedral city in Cambridgeshire. The cathedral is the big draw card here. It's very hard to photograph because it is sooo big.

 Building started in 1063 on the site of an abbey which was built in 673 AD and destroyed by Danish invaders in 870 AD. Building of the cathedral continued until 1539 and was restored between 1845 and 1870.
It is HUGE and quite beautiful.

 We thought we'd have a look around and were talked into doing a tour with a guide and that included climbing 170 tiny spiralling steps to the top of the tower, through 2 hobbit doors and onto the roof for the view. So pleased we did. Our guide Doug was most informative with a good sense of humour and the views were stunning, both inside and out.

Through the Hobbit Door

On the Roof

 The panels pictured below, open, so one has a view of the lower level of the church and other angelic figures!

The inside of the Cathedral

There is so much to tell you about Ely Cathedral, sadly, I can't do it justice here. It's just a wonderful, wonderful place to visit. Inspiring.....                              

                                       

We had a great house in Ely, very close to the centre of the town with a lovely garden. It was close to the river and we were spoilt for choice with places to quench our thirst.

Our Garden

 There are also lots of grassy areas in Ely to sit and watch the passing parade.

We were joined by our London friends Michael and Hilary and spent time looking at the various sites including The Cathedral, Oliver Cromwell's House and a day trip to Cambridge.
Oliver Cromwell's house was really interesting and full of history as you would imagine and we enjoyed being part of it.

I reckon John's pork pies look every bit as good as they made back then.

We had a fabulous farewell dinner at the Old Fire Engine House. This restaurant serves local recipes with local produce and was amazing. It's the only eating house I have ever been offered seconds, just in case we hadn't had enough! We were served by a canny Scotswoman from north of Aberdeen, Isobel, and she is as funny as a fit. We laughed from start to finish. After the fab meal we retired to the lounge for coffee and a nip of Laphroig. I think her hand slipped when she was pouring though.

John and Isobel

Happy days and nights

 We ended up in the kitchen, met the cooks, and Isobel with a glass in one hand and a cigarette in the other told us why Australia shouldn't become a republic.
Needless to say we were the last to leave.....again.