... try and find us

While we are still in the UK, we decided a visit with  Carol and Tim was in order!  We rented a car for the weekend and set off under glorious sunny skies towards Newent in Gloucestershire, about a three-hour drive.  Except, we got a bit distracted and it took us over six hours! Our rental car - ideal for two adults and two below-the-hip double amputees And just what was there to distract us, you ask?  Well, meandering laneways, viewpoints and castles.  Lots of castles!  Most we simply drove by and had a look from the outside (see our post Welsh Castles ), but when we arrived at Tretower Court and Castle, we decided it was worth checking out more closely. And being able to use our English Heritage membership was a win. Not just a ruin, but a "fitted out" castle this time!  What will we find?!? All the signage is in both national languages The layout of the Tretower Court and Castle You visit Tretower in reverse-cronological order (newes...

And that's a lots of castles.  To give you an idea just how little Wales is,  Victoria is 11 times and Alberta is 32 times its size! Wales is the land of castles.  It is said that there are over 600 castles in this tiny land.  Why there are so many is likely a combination of conflict and geography - from the Norman Invasion in the 11th century to all the shenanigans against the English that went on for 300 years or so to the squabbling between the warring Welsh principalities.  Welsh geography is such that a castle could be built at a strategic location to defend a mountain or valley, while being supplied from the sea, making it less likely that an enemy could lay siege on your castle. Add to this the technology of the time that made castles a fine defence tool so they popped up everywhere being built of earth and wood and with the fancier ones built from stone.  We saw one or two in our travels - and these are only the ones we managed to photograph!...

Whoops, was THAT supposed to happen?? Chinook high and dry on Sandy Haven Beach We have done something terrifying.  Something that most sane yachtsmen take great care to avoid ever doing ... or even be accused of doing. We grounded Chinook  and ended up sitting high and dry on a sandbank in an estuary - deliberately! Part of our maintenance schedule requires we inspect some parts of Chinook that are below the waterline - hull and propellor anodes - and with the water temperature hovering around way-too-cold, coupled with the fact that this marvellous sailboat is designed to be able to dry out, so we decided to give it a go!   We didn't just run her up on any random beach, there as a little more fussing, planning and worrying involved!  Sandy Haven was recommended with its big tide, flat estuary and sandy beach. We studied the tides and the weather.  We needed a calm day that coincided with a daytime low tide.  Fortunately, this unicorn made...

Thanks to Storm Éowyn, flights and trains were cancelled and hire cars became impossible to come by.  We were stuck in London for another day!  (One thing we do struggle with is the lack of sympathy from our friends!) The Tower Bridge, not to be mistaken for the very pedestrian London Bridge. A wander along the Thames to check out the Tower of London and the Tower Bridge was in order.  Neither of us had been there for more decades than we care to admit and oh my, how it has changed!  Booking is now required to visit The Tower and you are given a time slot with strict instructions that if you are late, you may be denied entry. The ticket pricing is some hefty, particularly considering they recommend a mere two hours for your visit.  Kate back in 1989 - gotta love those shoulder pads!  Under glorious blue skies, we opted to walk along the Thames, cross the Tower Bridge and check out St Katharine Docks - a marina snugged up under the Tower Bri...

On our way back to Wales, a visit to the Prime Meridian in Greenwich was a must do considering our current reliance on latitudes and longitudes.  We had an awesome day.  We played the ultimate tourists and straddled the Prime Meridian, a foot in each hemisphere.  We are actually yet to sail across it but will do this summer as we cross the top of Scotland. The must have photo - one foot in the Western hemisphere and the other in the Eastern. And of course, waltzing across the hemispheres! We ate lunch is a snug pub with a fire place and all the charm of its multi-century history. We passed on the eels but tucked into the warming soup and a sandwich, washed down with a local ale of course. Eels - yeah, skipped that one! History upon history upon history... The Cutty Sark has been fully restored since the last time either of us visited. She is now in a glassed-over dry dock with a magnificent space under its keel.  They have done a fabulous job. ...