Wales and S.W. England

April 30-May 13, 2007

Sometime during June of 2006 my niece Pat told me her mother, Genevieve had always wanted to go to Wales. so I said “let’s go”. We asked Genevieve and she said “yes” so Pat and I started planning the trip. Genevieve researched the family history and Pat and I started looking into the plans for the actual trip. In September we talked to Dorothy about joining us and about that time I saw an article in the newspaper about a tour group that led small groups in Wales and South West England. We first contacted them on October 5 to see if they were interested in the kind of trip we wanted and by November 2 we had made plans to travel with them. Since they could take up to five people we also asked Kathy to go and eventually she decided to join us so we were five - three sister-in-laws, and two cousins - all five of us were Bowens either by birth or by marriage. By November 2 we had arranged for sure to go with Myra and Val in England as our leaders and signed the contract by the middle of November to really go. We exchanged many, many emails and the four of us met in January to plan this most perfect trip and we worked with Myra and Val to arrange everything in order to see and do all that we four wanted. Following are some of the details of this most perfect trip to visit Wales and nearby areas of England.

Friday 4/27/07. Pat left this morning from Santa Maria and Dorothy and I left from San Francisco - Jean-Marie picked me up at 5:00 AM (what a friend) and took me to the airport where I met Dorothy. Good thing I went early as the check in line and the security line was very long. We had a rather uneventful trip to Cincinnati and then to Albany, New York. we were served more food than I expected so that was a pleasant surprise. Genevieve picked Dorothy and me up around 5 PM and we went pack to her home and had a nice visit and dinner. The next day:

Saturday 4/28/07 after breakfast we drove to Mark and Mary Lee’s new home and enjoyed seeing the work they have done on it so far. It is very impressive and they are going to have a fine home there on their 25 acres of land. It was fun visiting with them and Margot and Gregory. I will be interested in seeing their home when it is finished. Then we went back to their current home and had dinner with them. The next day:

Sunday 4/29/07 We four drove to New Jersey - about 5 hours total - parked at the long term parking lot at the Newark airport and had dinner there. (Boy are the “freeways” there hard to figure out!) We left about 10:00 PM (an hour late) and after a seven hour flight we arrived in Bristol, England. It was a reasonable flight - we each slept some and we got plenty to eat so we weren’t in too bad of shape when we first met Myra and Val who met us at the airport.

Monday 4/30/07 We arrived at the Bristol airport about 9:00 AM their time and went through Customs easily. When we came out we were met by Myra and Val - we recognized them right away. We quickly introduced ourselves and loaded up the van - our home for 2 weeks. We had a very comfortable Volkswagen Caravelle that seated a total of seven (which we were after Kathy came on Tuesday.) We drove to Clevedon and stopped at the Clevedon Pier and walked around a bit. From here we could see across the Bristol Channel to Wales. This pier was opened in 1869 and was popular during the Victorian era. Ferries would come over from Wales and disembark at this pier. The tidal range at this part of the pier can be up to 14 meters and can create surfing waves. Part of the pier collapsed in 1970 but over time it has been restored. We had the first of our daily elevenes - coffee/tea and biscuits (cookies) and cheese. I can’t remember all the places we visited - we were all a little sleep deprived - but we drove around this area and around Bristol. The word Bristol means the place of bridge and I think that refers to the Clifton Suspension Bridge. This bridge was opened in 1864 (started in 1836) and spans the Avon Gorge. Our rooms at the Avon Gorge Hotel in Bristol looked out over the gorge and on the Bridge - a beautiful and impressive site. The bridge was designed by Brunel - a name would would hear often. Driving around we saw many example of various styles of homes - particularly Georgian Style homes (1714-1830). We went inside one home that was maintained as a museum with some furnishings so that was interesting. Then we stopped at a park and had a nice picnic lunch - sandwiches and fruit and cookies with drinks. We started learning about the various types of trees and a flowers and enjoyed our first of many close encounters with the beautiful blue bells that were in bloom all over during our two weeks. We walked around and saw a few birds (I started my Britain bird list) and we saw a large group of Fallow Deer. Eventually we checked into our hotel, went out to a quick dinner and went to bed to recover from our flight and to be ready for the next day when we would be going to Wales! We did have a drink in the hotel bar - either before or after dinner - and met a lady there who was very chatty and told us all the things we had to see while in England. She was rather fun.

Tuesday 5/1/07 Since we wouldn’t be leaving until 9:30 Pat and I got up at 7:30 for a pleasant morning walk in the Downs - a park area next to our hotel at the top of the Avon Gorge - we walked for about an hour and enjoyed stretching our legs after the past two days. Then we came back for a leisurely breakfast at the hotel. They had a very nice buffet breakfast of both hot and cold food so we started each day with a good breakfast - in fact we ate very well throughout the whole trip. Myra and Val picked us up at 9:30 and we drove on the old bridge across the Bristol channel to Wales. The Old bridge was built in 1966 but was found to be unable to withstand the heavy winds so often had to be closed. In 1996 they built a New bridge (with a design that is similar to one proposed for a new San Francisco Bay Bridge). This one will withstand the heavy winds but they kept the old bridge and use it when they can leave it open. It was interesting to drive through and out of Bristol - the residential areas are so picturesque - mostly Georgian in style. First we drove to The remains of a Roman City: Caerwent, the first Roman Town in Wales. Much of the original walls still remain and many of the remains of the shops and forum have been excavated. The current town has grown up around the Roman remains and much of it was built with the Roman stones. It is a charming village and we enjoyed walking around on our own - nice to have such a special place to ourselves without hordes of tourists! This area of/near Chepstow has the delicious legend of being the area of some of King Arthur’s and his court’s activities. We had our morning coffee break and walked around a bit and went to the post office for post card stamps. All of the post offices we went into were in a little corner in small village shop - the shop usually had groceries, some fresh foods, and various sundries - they were fun and reservedly friendly. As we were driving it was around here that we first noticed these large fields of very deep yellow - the plants and flowers look a little like our fields of mustard but it was much more intense. We came to find that they were rapeseed - an oilseed plant with roots in ancient civilization. The word rape comes from the Latin word rapum which means turnip - the plant is related to turnip, cabbage, mustard and other vegetables. Canola oil is made from a form of the rapeseed plant - Canola was a made up name from Canadian, oil, Low, acid. But in any event the fields were beautiful. We continued driving to the magnificent Raglan Castle - near Monmouth. It was built in the 1400’s and 1500’s by Sir William ap Thomas and his son the Earl earl of Pembroke. (ap Thomas means the son of Thomas which is the way children used to be named in Wales. Ap Owen means the son of Owen which eventually turned into Bowen - we saw very few names of Bowen but we did see ap Owen while in Wales) Anyway back to Raglan - it was a huge and elegant castle in order to show off his wealth. Cromwell tried to to destroy Raglan but he didn’t complete the destruction so we can still see it and climb around in it and try to imagine what it was like to live there. It is really a magnificent place and we had fun exploring. We ate our lunch on the grounds here. Most of our lunches were picnic lunches and a very nice break in the day. We always had good sandwiches, plenty of fruit, cookies or cake or some other sweet, served nicely. We enjoyed them. After lunch we went on to Tintern Abby. Ah what a wonderful experience that was! Tintern Abbey is five miles north of Chepstow in the Wye Valley. It was started in 1131 and remained active until dissolved by Henry VIII in 1537. In the eighteenth century the site began to be cleaned up and maintained and visitors started coming. The artist Turner painted the Abbey and William Wordsworth composed a lengthy poem at the Abbey. the stones still standing are amazing and it is hard to imagine how they built such a towering place. Enough remains that you can visualize how the monks lived There was a large infirmary where they took care of the old and ill. We went above the Abbey to where Wordsworth wrote his poem and I read a few of the lines from his poem. I couldn’t go to the exact spot because - although there was a trail to the spot there was also a bull behind the fence and having once been chased by a bull (yes it was a very small one) I wasn’t interested in repeating that experience. These are the words: (starting at line 87)

For I have learned To look upon nature, not as in the hour Of thoughtless youth; but hearing oftentimes

The still, sad music of humanity, Nor harsh nor grating, though of ample power

To chasten and subdue. And I have felt A presence that disturbs me with the joy

Of elevated thoughts; a sense sublime Of something far more deeply interfused,

Whose dwelling is the light of setting suns.

And the round ocean and the living air, And the blue sky, and in the mind of man:

A motion and a spirit that impels All thinking things, all objects of all thought,

And rolls through all things. Therefore am I still A lover of the meadows and the woods,

And mountains; and of all that we behold From this green earth;

of all the mighty world Of eye, and ear, -both what they half create, And what perceive;

well pleased to recognize In nature and the language of the sense

The anchor of my purest thoughts, the nurse,The guide, the guardian of my heart, and soul Of all my moral being.

After this wonderful visited we went into the gift shop and for “non shoppers” we did pretty well. I had planned to buy Kenneth and Judy a love spoon to hang on their kitchen wall and I found a perfect one here. They are a very traditional Welsh gift - often carved by a boy and given to a girl to announce his intentions. So I was pleased to find a nice one here. We then continued on to Chepstow for a quick look around the outside of a Norman castle that was started in 1068 just after the Norman Conquest so it is Britain’s oldest stone castle. We walked around it and were on the Wye Valley Trail for a while. King Arthur and his knights are said to sleep in one of the caves in the cliff below waiting until they are needed to save Britain. After this we went back to Bristol and our hotel. We were glad to hear that Kathy had safely arrived but unfortunately she wasn’t there - she had left her suitcase at the airport and went back to get it. So we decided to go out to dinner and as we were walking down the street there came Kathy walking along rolling her suitcase. So we ended up all having a good dinner together at an Italian restaurant. They had a special on an early dinner - two courses and even that was too much for us all to eat. There were several restaurants near out hotel. The area was called Clifton Downs and on the plane home a novel I was reading referred to Bristol and Clifton Downs. That is always fun after a trip!

Wednesday 5/2/07 Today started as usual with our buffet breakfast in the hotel. Then Myra and Val picked us up at 9:30 - these late morning starts are to avoid the very heavy morning commute traffic. Today we were headed to the Exmoor National Park in South West England where we would stay for 2 nights. We drove on the road headed near Dunkery and saw some beautiful and green scenes. We started learning about hedgerows along the way. It is quite an art and many of the hedgerows are very old, but they must be maintained often. They are a much more sensible fence than barbed wire, wood, or stone as they provide habitat for a lot of creatures. The properties inside the Exmoor National Park are required to keep their fences according to a particular plan. They must let a tree grow tall every so many feet and have species requirements. Eventually we arrived at the village where Myra and her family have a cottage. I don’t remember the name of the village but it is near Dunster where our Inn was located. It was a charming little cottage in a small village of similar cottages. We had our morning tea there while we explored the rooms with delight. We then headed to Dunkery Beacon and hiked to the top. It is the highest hill (1707 feet) on Exmoor and the highest point in Somerset. From the top we could see Wales. It was a lovely hike up - the fields (moors) were beautiful and covered with heather which inspired:

Now I’ve seen the moor,

Now I’ve seen the sea,

Know I how the heather looks,

And what a wave must be! (apologies to Emily Dickinson)

I think the Beacon used to be use for communication as it is near the Bristol Channel. We also saw some more birds on the trip up and took some fun photos. Then back down and off to lunch. I think the town where we stopped for lunch was called Horner. They had a small park where we ate. The park had one of those delightful red telephone booths. Pat thought of calling Dan but the booth had too many spiders for her to go into it. We walked around the village and enjoyed close views of the thatched roofs. It is amazing how well those roofs are made and they last a long time. The village church, St. Mary the Virgin, Luccombe which is still in use was built and added to between the 1300’s and 1500’s. We enjoyed walking around the church. I started signing all the guest books in these little churches - it is fun to be one of the very few visitors from the U.S. Driving to our next stop we were treated to Red Deer - the other type of deer in England, we saw 6 one time and then 2. We were driving through very heavily forest areas - lots of alder trees plus others. It was beautiful. We were lucky enough to see several of the Exmoor Ponies. These ponies are thought to be descended from ponies that migrated from North America over the land bridge. It was cross bred with Celtic ponies around 1000 BC. Their numbers were reduced to 50 during WW II but the local farmers have worked on saving them and keeping their blood lines “pure”. Their number is up to about 1400 world wide now. So it was fun to see these ponies so close. A couple were in the road so we stopped and got good looks. We drove to visit another church near Porlock - a place where both Wordsworth and Coleridge spent time. There we visited Selworthy church - another lovely church still in use. This church too dates from the 1500’s. Most of these churches may have started out Catholic but then became Church of England by Henry VIII’s decree. many were bought by the villagers and kept in working condition until this day. There were stained glass windows here that appeared very old. Different parts of the church are different ages but there were gravestones inside the church from at least the 1700’s. We Californians are often so impressed with the ages of these kinds of structures are we don’t have similar structures in the western U.S. We walked around the area and down to the small village and then continued driving to to our pub - “The Rest and Be Thankful Inn” in nearby Wheddon Cross. (Beautiful moors along the way with several flocks of sheep - big thick fluffy sheep.) This Inn/pub was originally a staging post for travelers in the early 19th century. At the time we wondered about the name feeling it was familiar - but no one seemed to know. I later looked it up and found that there is a section of road on the western shore of Loch Lomond in Scotland known as Rest and Be Thankful. They are the words located on a stone placed there by soldiers who built the original road in 1753. It was the traditional spot to rest and be thankful that you had climbed out of the Glen Coe and gotten to the highest point. The upstairs bedrooms have been modernized and were very comfortable. We had three rooms, one with one bed and two with two so that worked nicely. To accommodate modern travelers showers had been added to each room but were in the bedroom itself - rather unique. But each room had a refrigerator and the ever present electric tea kettle for cups of tea and coffee. We enjoyed cleaning up and then going downstairs to have a drink in a “real” English Pub. The bar tender had a lot of fun with us and the patrons just laughed at us as we took photos (and talked funny). We had samples of all the beers and then chose our favorite. The bartender/owner took us in the back and showed us his skittles alley. Skittles is a little like pin bowling - Genevieve trying rolling one of the very heavy wooden balls. Apparently it is still a popular local game and there are leagues in England and Wales. After this we sat in the dinning area of the pub and had a very good dinner. We ate there both nights as it is the only place in town to eat. Fortunately it was very good! People talk about the bland and/or awful food in England but I have heard they are trying to improve for the tourist trade and we certainly did have some very good meals. This pub had a very good cook and we ate a lot this evening.

Thursday 5/3/07 We met downstairs for our breakfast where were served to order a traditional English breakfast. We all ate various things - some the full eggs, bacon, mushrooms, tomatoes, etc. - some just cereal and toast (always served in those “cooling” racks - no hot toast in Britain!) The town seemed to have one business that included gas, groceries, and the post office in the corner of the store. I went down there and mailed some postcards. Myra and Val picked us up around 9 and we drove through the park and village to The Badgeworthy Valley where the Blackmore story of Lorna Doone takes place. We stopped at a place called “Lorna Doone Farm” which was really just a small group of a couple of stores, a car park, and a rest room. By the way everywhere we went we found very good and very clean public restrooms - something not always available when away from home! We visited the Church of St. Mary in Oare. The building has been a parish church for at least 800 years and is the most westerly coastal parish on the very edge of Somerset. This church is supposedly where the shooting of Lorna Doone took place and there is a plaque to the memory of R., D. Blackmore (1825-1900) Once again we enjoyed walking around the church and thinking of all the centuries of use - the people who were there before us. We then went on a hike along Badgeworthy Water Creek - it was incredibly beautiful - the sun was shinning - it was warm but not hot - the hills were green and the flowers in bloom. We had lunch along a perfect creek and I was able to sit and watch an English Robin fly back and forth to feed her nestlings. Also watch a Wren who was nest building. This area is also called Doone Valley and is near Malmsmead. Even along this trail there was an old monument to Blackmore. After lunch we continued on to the community of Lynmouth which is on the Bristol Channel along the north edge of Exmoor. In 1952 a major storm destroyed most of Lynmouth and many lives were lost. That incident defined how the town was rebuilt along with diverting the river around the town. We walked through the town which is very much a tourist town and then we took the funicular 862 feet up to the town of Lynton. (Myra and Val drove the van around and up and met us at the top.) This cliff railway car is water operated which is piped from the river. One car goes up as the other descends on a counterbalance system. - very interesting. Then we drove to the Valley of the Rocks on the coast where we saw a few wild goats up close. There was a “hill” to climb so Pat and Kathy and I went up and enjoyed the view. Then Pat and I walked along the cliff edges and had great looks at some Murres and Gulls. We also saw and photographed Sumorbath (sp?) built in the 1500’s and houses the Headquarters of the Exmoor Forest. Then it was time for “home” where we enjoyed another delicious dinner at our pub. We tried to cut back on the quantities a bit but it is hard when it is so good. I had a salmon dish that was divine. Off to bed to rest up for another exciting day.

Friday 5/4/07 This morning we drove to the ancient city of Dunster - dating from the eleventh century with an Old Yarn Covered Market (built in 1609) as it was the center of the old Exmoor wool and cloth trade. This was a busy tourist town and we enjoyed walking around the town, checking out the shops including a charming doll museum. Myra has a special feeling for Dunster as her son and daughter in law decided to marry while in Dunster. She and Val asked the Pub if we could visit them and they said yes so we went into the pub which was built in 1460. Then we walked through the town to the Dunster Working Water Mill. The town was a charming mix of old and relatively new - the streets were mostly one way and there were several corners that had signals for one way traffic. The Dunster Mill is 400 years old and is still grinding grain for flour and we enjoyed seeing how it all worked. They have built a new water wheel which will soon take over the old working wheel which will be kept just for looks. We also bought some nice souvenirs here - a few cookbooks and some jars of Exmoor Whortleberry jam. We saw the berries growing on several of our hikes and this is a local specialty. The berries used to be collected in huge quantities both for food and for dyeing. I bought a jar for the kids and look forward to trying it out with them. It is called Whinberry in Wales and Blaeberry in Scotland. I have a note that we saw Cleve Abbey but since I have no photos of it I can’t seem to remember it. We also went to the Torres Cider Farm and tasted the various ciders -they are very strong flavor and have an alcoholic content of 6.5%, It is called scrumpy. I can’t say I liked it - prefer just plain apple cider. Then we continue on to Watchet Harbor and walked around. The lighthouse there was built in 1862 and is still working. We had a picnic lunch in a nearby park and then took a little walk along a path where Coleridge walk. Then back to Bristol - our home base. We went out to dinner at a small place called “2 rooms”, they too had an early bird special but we rather overwhelmed them with four of us ordering mashed potatoes. It took them an hour to prepare our dinner. It was very good but too long to wait for dinner. Tomorrow we are going to Wales for the family history day so Pat and I stayed up late in the bar studying the book that Myra and Val had put together. (In addition to a drink we had a delicious dessert - kept us going.) Myra and Val had done a lot of research on the Bowen and Davies family and we were so impressed to read all the census notes, birth certificates, and all the photos of the various homes and villages - some very old. Anyway it was fun to go through this information and made the next day more meaningful to us. We still managed to get enough sleep.

Saturday 5/5/07 Over the bridge to Wales! Most of the collieries in Wales are gone - the easy coal having been played out. But we stopped at Coed-Ely where Myra spent time during her childhood visiting her Grandma who lived there. We stood on a spot where the coal mine once stood and she held up a photo from 1950 that showed what it looked like then. You could also see where the tip (slag heap) once stood. Since a major disaster in 1966 when a tip avalanche slid onto a school Wales has made an effort to rid the country of the tips. I’m a little confused with the various towns and dates but we were in the Rhonda Valley for all of this visit. The photos were from the web site: www.tonyrefail.org - a web site devoted to the residents of Ton which is the town were Jenkins lived when William was born. Basically Jenkins and Ann married in 1881 - had twins who died in 1882, had William in 1884 and came to the U.S. about 1885. They were Genevieve’s grandparents and she knew them - she was about 10 when Ann died and 5 when Jenkins died. (refer to family tree for details.) We visited the house were Ann lived when she was 12 and where she was living when she married Jenkins, and the house where Jenkins lived when he courted Ann. We had views of the town and hills that would have been much the same for Ann and Jenkins. We saw the place where they were married but their chapel had burned down but Myra had a photo for us of the church: Noddfa, Treorci, 1867. We each experienced different feelings walking around. I felt a very personal connection as my Great Grandfather also came from Wales so even as a young child I was interested in Wales. Reading the book “How Green Was My Valley” when I was young somehow made such an impression on me that I felt as though I knew those people. Walking around a town with a personal connection - where the Bowens came from I felt very close to everything - the memories, the history, the town, the people. I could also just imagine that my great grandfather came from a similar experience. We also drove to the cemetery (Treorky - in the parish of Ystradyfodwg, county of Glamorgan) where the twin babies were buried - we weren’t able to meet with the Sexton but she told Myra that the babies were buried in a common field because they would not have been able to afford a head stone. So we walked to the common field area - a nicely kept grassy field where the dead of all those years ago were buried. Sad to think of loosing two babies in one month. Soon we drove back to Bristol enjoying the scenes along the way - the green hills with the bluebells were so stunning and we enjoyed seeing the sheep - so different from ours - they were larger and fluffier! Interesting that there were several forests but they weren’t native - they were planted for harvest. We were going to the theatre so Kathy and Pat walked to the fish and chips place and brought back dinner so we could eat quickly in our rooms. We were seeing Cyrano de Bergerac at the Old Vic Theater. the Old Vic is one of the country’s oldest working theaters. It is being closed August 1 for renovation so we were lucky to be there at a good time. The theater was started in 1766 and was near the docks - it was illegal then. It gained its first resident company in 1946 - an offshoot of London’s Old Vic which is why it is today called Bristol Old Vic. The play was a lot of fun and we enjoyed taking the taxi ride to that part of town and seeing the night life. We enjoyed too talking to the cab drivers. It was somewhat embarrassing at times to be Americans because Bush and our government is so much disliked in England. But once people found out that we felt the same - none of us voted for him - we had lively discussions with several people. They were in the middle of elections and of course during our visit Blair announced he would be leaving office. No one will miss him. Anyway it was a fun night at the theater.

Sunday 5/6/07 Today we headed for Bath - a city with naturally occurring hot springs - the only ones in the United Kingdom. The Romans made a spa there and it flourished between the first and fifth centuries A.D. The remains are very complete and well cared for and we walked around and were able to imagine how the Pump Room and baths were used. Before we went down to see them (some levels are under the current ground level) we all tasted the mineral water from the springs. It reminded me of my Grandmother’s water in Colorado which we all hated and she loved - lots of iron in it. Kathy drank all five glasses that we didn’t finish. I’m not sure if she liked it or just thought it would be good for her! The city was very popular during the Georgian times so there are many examples of Georgian architecture. For the duration we began to be able to recognize the style. We also drove through and around the Royal Crescent - a famous row of 30 houses set out in a crescent supposedly symbolizing the moon. It was interesting to see such a famous spot. The Bath Abbey - next to the pump room - was also an impressive church. Services were being held so we didn’t go in but I could see the inside when the people came out - very elegant. While waiting for the group to assemble I wandered around a bit looking at the shops. I found a camera store and went in and bought a new memory card. Pat and I were down to 200 photos left so I decided it was worth it to buy another card so we could continue taking as many photos as we wanted. We ended up taking 1000 photos by the time the trip was over. We went to a bakery and bought pasties to have for dinner. Kathy convinced us that they were really good and we were all happy to try them. Then we headed for Avebury enjoying the scenery along the way - stone fences, green fields, sheep, stone houses and the Cherhill Whitehorse. The horse is cut into the hillside so that the underlying chalk shows instead of the earth and grass. The horse is about 165 ‘ by 220’ and is visible from a long way. It was cut in 1780 and has be scoured regularly although it was hidden during the War. It was really fun to see it - I understand that there are several more white horses - maybe 15 altogether - 8 in the Wiltshire area. We continued on and first saw Silbury Hill which is the largest manmade mound in Europe - 130 feet high and the base covers 5 acres - the top is 100 feet across. Strange - no one knows why it was built - probably around 2500 BC! Across the road from this was West Kennet long barrow an impressive Neolithic tomb. We climbed up to the tomb and went into the small open part where there are five burial chambers. This was built around 3600 BC and was in use for about 1000 years. Once again a chance to feel a physical connection to the history of man and be reminded of how short our time on earth is. We continued on to Avebury another wonderful place. Avebury is known for the stone circles they have - somewhat similar to Stonehedge but much larger circles. These stone circles mostly date to around 2500 B.C. and cover some 38 acres surrounded by a huge circular earthwork ditch originally about 30 feet deep. We were free to walk about these stones and we enjoyed taking some photos there. It is hard to imagine how and why they moved those stones in the way that they did. Then we went back to our “home” base in Bristol and enjoyed our pasties for dinner in our room. They are like individual pies filled with meat and/or vegetables. They were what the miners used to carry in their lunch buckets. They were very good.

Monday 5/7/07 Today we lost our sunny days so we planned our day a bit around the rain. We drove around parts of Bristol to look at some of the architecture. We also drove past the dock where we got a look at the replica of the Matthew - the ship that John Cabot sailed in 1497 for Asia but ended up on the coast of Newfoundland. Also there was a ship SS Great Britain designed by Brunel in the 19th century. This ship played a key role in the emigration to the US and is maintained in dry dock. We had brief looks as we drove past and then we went on to St. Mary Redcliffe Church where worship has been held for 900 years - since 1115. Queen Elizabeth 1 is said to have called this “the goodliest, fairest and most famous parish church in England” Redcliff is along the wharf and used to be just outside Bristol city limits. The church was again so impressive and with the mix of old and new I did not feel as if I was looking at a museum piece. We were fortunate to hear the bells playing which was a thrill. Apparently they only play once a month so we were very lucky. All of these churches that used to be Catholic were taken over by Henry VIII during the Reformation. Some were torn down completely, some were stripped of the lead in the roof, some had the treasures taken and sold. Apparently many were continued to be cared for by the local Christians and are still in use and Church of England. We continued driving south and along the way we came to the place where Augustus Toplady wrote the words to Rock of Ages:

Rock of Ages, cleft for me,

Let me hide myself in Thee

Let the water and the blood,

From They wounded side which flowed,

Be of sin the double cure:

Save from wrath and make me pure.

He had been walking in Burrington-Coombe in the Mendip range when a thunderstorm hit. He took shelter between two massive piers of limestone rock and penned the hymn. We stood in the same shelter and tried to remember all the words of the hymn but we couldn’t! But we sang what we knew. As we continued long we saw some Soay sheep, brown and black sheep that are descended from Bronze Age sheep from the Soay island off Scotland. We drove to Cheddar Gorge - the place where Cheddar Cheese was first made and named. The earliest references to Cheddar cheese date back to 1170; it was a way to use up surplus milk. They then used the caves in the Cheddar Gorge to store the cheeses. They had lots of samples and we tried them all. They were so good we went rather crazy buying cheese - we decided to have cheese and crackers for dinner that night. We wanted to take cheese home to the U.S. but there was so much debate about whether it was allowed and if they would keep I didn’t get any. Wish now I had ordered some to send home. I could do it on line now but it seems like a lot to pay for something that we have so much of here in the US - but oh it was good and we certainly enjoyed our dinner of cheese, crackers, and fruit, and beer. The town itself was a charming little town - set up for tourists but still charming. Then we headed to Wells Cathedral - another magnificent place - just repeat everything I have already said about the other cathedrals. I never tire of seeing these places even though they do tend to get mixed up in my mind. I take lots of photos that help me remember. A note - many places charge a fee of a pound or two ($2-4) to take photos but I was happy to pay it - figure it was part of my donation to the church. Yes post cards take great photos but my photos personalize the visit for me so I took lots. This church was started about 1230 and continued through time. The arches in this church were so unique - “scissors arches” - designed in 1338 to stop the sinking tower foundations. In these churches many things constantly draw your eye upward - sort of like reminding one of the God who sees over all. This church has a charming mechanical clock that chimes every quarter hour - after the hour bells a Vicar read some scripture and said a prayer, she stayed around afterwards and talked to some of the tourists. We had lunch in the refectory connected to the church. It was a buffet lunch with hot food and was very good and we enjoyed the surroundings. Afterwards we walked through Vicars’ Close, built to house the men of the choir. It is the oldest continuously inhabited street in Europe. The houses were all completed by 1363. Currently these rooms are used by music students so we enjoyed hearing them practice while we enjoyed this charming street. Then on to Glastonbury Abbey - large wonderful ruins but there is enough to envision the whole place. There is supposedly a tree there that sprung to life from the walking stick of Joseph of Arimathea. (He donated his own tomb for the burial of Jesus.) There are legends about him coming to Britain as keeper of the Holy Grail. These legends are tied up with King Arthur who is said to be buried here at Glastonbury - there is a tomb so labeled. So we walked around and enjoyed all that we could see and then set on our way back to Bristol and our picnic dinner in our rooms!

Tuesday 5/8/07 Over the bridge to Wales - headed toward Pembrokeshire in a driving rain. We always had heard that Jenkins was born in Burton Ferry but no such place was on the map. In Myra’s research she found that he was born in Briton Ferry on Ritson Street so that is where we headed. The street where he lived was no longer there but after asking an older lady on the street, asking at the library, and then going to the Pub and asking the bar keep we found out that the street was no longer there. That row of houses was low lying and flooded to the first floor every time a major rain storm came. So they torn down the houses and rearranged the streets. But we found several streets that looked very much like the row of houses were Jenkins lived when he was born. (We took a photo of Genevieve pointing in both directions where the houses used to be.) The street was Lawther I think. Since Jenkins father was a dock worker we went down to the docks where we could see what was currently being used. He probably worked there or somewhere near by. We then continued heading west until we came to Laugharne where Dylan Thomas lived in his later years. (He was born in Swansea.) He wrote Under Milk Wood - supposedly based on some of the local people. It too is a charming small village, built on a hill with narrow single car streets. We stopped for a picnic near the torn up Castle - along the coast. I think it was a 13th century Norman castle. After lunch we walked the path to Dylan Thomas’ boathouse where he lived the last four years of his live with his wife and three children. We didn’t tour all the house because above it was a shed/garage where he did his writing and it was charming to look at it any imagine he had just stepped away for a moment. I was glad to find in the gift shop - which was in the house - a CD copy of Dylan Thomas reading “A Child’s Christmas in Wales” plus some of his other poems. My copy is on very old tape and not too clear so this will be am improvement. I also bought a copy of Welsh Actors reading Under Milk Wood which I’m looking forward to reading. We continued on and through Haverfordwest to Marloes, where our Bed and Breakfast was. The village consisted of a small general store with the post office in the corner and a pub. Our B&B was in a regular house named Albion House. A lovely lady named Joan was our host and showed us upstairs. We had three rooms - one a double and one with a double and a single, and a small single room. They were all very nicely appointed and comfortable. The two larger rooms had private baths and lots of space. My single room was about as small as a bedroom could be but it was so efficiently arranged that it didn’t feel crowded at all. Everything was so neat and clean. I did have to share the bath room with someone who was staying in the other single room but I had a sink in my room so that was just fine. I had a nice view out my window too. Soon after arrival we walked down to the pub for first a drink - again sampling the choices and then we had dinner there. It was excellent - I had fish that was perfectly cooked. The chef certainly knew her “stuff”.

Wednesday 5/9/07 Because it was too rainy and possibly too stormy to go to Skomer Island we decided to go to St. David’s Cathedral today. First we drove to the coast and walked up the hill that looked across the bay to Skomer Island - the walk was lovely and the wildflowers beautiful. We then continued driving north along the coast, stopping at yet another charming village church, St. Madoc of Ferns near to Haroldston West and Broad Haven, he was a pupil of St. David. It is thought that there was a church on this site for over 1400 years. Then we stopped at a village of Solfach Solva and enjoying a bit of shopping. Kathy bought some outstanding rubber boots and I bought myself a ring with a Celtic design. We walked around the town - about 3 blocks long and checked out the buildings and the stores. And then we continued on to St. David’s. St. David is a city by virtue of having a cathedral but it really isn’t must bigger than many villages. St. David founded a monastic community here in the 6th century near where he was born. He is Wales’ patron saint and the Cathedral is Wales holiest place. In 1124 Pope Calixtus 11 declared that two pilgrimages to St. David’s were equivalent to one to Rome and three were equal to one to Jerusalem. Again the sites were overwhelming - it is a massive building and impossible to imagine how they built it in the 12th century. The floor is currently sloping and some pillars lean and that is thought to be the result of an earthquake in 1248. The cathedral has been added to and rebuilt during the years. It is hard to describe what a moving experience it is to visit a place like this - and I know I sound redundant in discussing all the places we visit. But it is a major experience. We also looked at the Bishop’s Palace next door but we didn’t go through it - we were operating on overload. We did some shopping in the shop here and I bought myself the souvenir I had wanted - a Celtic Cross. I wanted to get one while I was in Wales and was hoping to find it at St. David’s - it somehow seemed symbolic to me so I was pleased to find just what I wanted. I’ll wear it with happy memories. We each found something special about this visit. Then we went back to our B&B and walked to the pub for dinner. Pat, and Genevieve, and I went and first ordered a beer and sat in the pub writing post cards and reading the paper. Then we learned out to really order - we didn’t need to go to the restaurant part- we just ordered at the bar and paid for it and then sat in the pub and ate when it arrived. Much more informal and fun too. Again my dinner was excellent - all of ours were - such good food in such a little village. There were several “locals” there as well.

Thursday 5/10/07 Today we are headed for Skomer Island. Skomer is a nature reserve and designated as a National Nature Reserve and a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Skomer is the largest single seabird colony in Southern Britain with large colonies of Puffins, Guillemots (Murres), Razorbills and Kittiwakes in addition to about 40% of Manx Shearwaters. Even though this wasn’t a birding trip and I had to restrain myself I just couldn’t be so near Skomer Island and not visit - all birders know of this place and would love to visit. Fortunately the rest of the group were all good sports about going too once they realized that the boat ride was a very short 15 minute ride. So off we went for the adventure. It was an absolutely wonderful 4-5 hours that we spent on the island. I have never seen so many puffins so close - they walked across the path right in front of us. Razorbills were within a few feet as well as the Guillemots (Common Murres). (American names are different sometimes.) In addition the wildflower filled fields were incredibly beautiful, bluebells, mixed in with other flowers of every color you can imagine. We took lots of photos but they don’t do justice. It did rain most of the time and at the top of the hill the wind was ferocious but it wasn’t really cold and we did find shelter for lunch eating. As we were walking back to the boat Pat suddenly said “look at that bird - it has a long tail on it” I said: “Oh it is a jaeger” and we enjoyed really good looks at it. I tried to call the rest of the group back but they were too far ahead. When we got to the dock I noticed a list of all the birds seen that day and asked them if they usually had jaegers. They told me “no” and they really didn’t know what I was talking about. I described the bird, looked at their photos and still no answer. But I was so sure of the appearance that one picture would have been fine. Finally on the way back on the boat, Myra heard our whole bird description and she said “Skua”. I looked up Skua in my Britain bird books and sure enough that was what we had seen. I had forgotten that they called jaegers, Skuas, so I was glad to have that bird named. There were several other birds like that but I remembered about the different names. Anyway it was a great day with new experiences for all of us. We then drove back to Bristol - Val is such a great driver and how she has the energy to keep going is beyond me. Pat and I commented several times we were so glad we quickly canceled the idea of driving this trip by ourselves. It was great having Myra and Val navigating and driving for us. We checked into our “home” at the hotel in Bristol and then went out to dinner at the italian restaurant and had another good dinner.

Friday 5/11/07 Today we headed for the Cotswolds. The Cotswolds is an area known for the gentle hillsides (wolds) and sleepy villages approximately 25 by 90 miles area. The honey colored limestone used for the buildings gives the area a uniformity in the architecture. And the stones were used for fences - built with no cement and still standing and in use for several hundred years. We headed first for Tewkesbury Abbey first stopping at a town along a river where we watched a boat going through the locks. Tewkesbury is another place of superlatives - founded in 1092 and consecrated in 1123. We spent some time walking around here enjoying it all. Some of the stained glass windows were from the 14th century and wonderful to study. When King Henry V111 dissolved this Monastery in 1540 the townsfolk bought the Abbey from he King. The tower is the largest Norman/Romanesque tower in England. The last battle of the War of Roses was fought here in 1471. Then we continued driving through the villages, Myra would drop us off at the beginning of the village and then pick us up at the end so we could have the pleasure of walking through this oh so quiet place. I have noted Stanway Manor, Broadway,Stow on the Wold as places we drove and walked through. We again visited a small church and took lots of photos of the “cottages” which were mostly two story and not as small as what we would call a cottage. Many had dates on them indicating they were built in 1600. Then we went to Huffkins in Burford were we had a cream tea. And oh my was it every good - the scones were so light and tasty and the clotted cream was heavenly. We learned that it did make a difference to properly put the jam on first and then the cream. We enjoyed every morsel of the scones and the tea. Then we drove to the village of Fairford (in Gloucestershire). Fairford has a 15th century St. Mary’s Church that is famed for its magnificent medieval stained glass windows. There are 28 windows and they date from the 15th century and are almost a complete surviving set. So we were so disappointed when we were told the church was closed because some musicians were rehearsing for a performance that night. But after standing around for a while the Vicar came by and he took us in the back door and showed us the church and the wonderful windows. So we had the experience of his softly explaining the church to us while in the background we had the music of the rehearsal - what an memorable experience. One we won’t soon forget. So on that note we ended our day - went back to Bristol. Not wanting much dinner we ate in the hotel and just had soup and salad which turned out to be quite good.

Saturday 5/12/07 Our last day ... sigh... so we wanted to spend the day in Wales. We decided to visit the National History Museum, St. Fagan’s near Cardiff. This museum covers some 104 acres and has many outdoor exhibits of Welsh life - past and present. There are also many galleries. One could spend weeks there and only begin to cover it all. Even though we had seen the homes in situ when we visited the Grandparents streets and homes it was fun to see examples of Welsh living from different eras side by side. One section was a row of iron workers cottages rescued from destruction and brought to the park. Each cottage was decorated in a different era and being able to walk inside and look at the furniture and utensils gave one a small feeling for what it must have been like for 12 or more people to live in a cottage that we would barely consider big enough for 2. We each walked around on our own for a time and when we met up we amazed at what we had missed. There were several guides around in the various houses who had a lot of interesting information to share. I was interested in finding out about the Welsh Dresser - what made a dresser Welsh. Not all dressers are made in Wales but because they were so popular in Wales a century ago they became known as Welsh Dressers. Almost every home had one to display old and new treasures. It was called a dresser because roasts and other meats where “dressed” on the counter top. It was with reluctance that we left - but not before we did some last minute shopping for souvenirs for ourselves and children. We wanted to take Myra and Val out for a Pub lunch so they asked around and found one near by: The Plymouth Arms. The records for a Plymouth Arms in St. Fagan’s go back to at least 1841 when William Williams was the Innkeeper. But in 1895 it was rebuilt for Lord Windsor as a place to encourage temperate drinking habits. He was also know as the Earl of Plymouth, hence the name. Pat took our orders and went up to the bar and ordered our meals. She and I ordered fish and chips and the plowman's lunch and then split them so we could be sure to have tried both. Both were delicious. We finally had to give up on finding Welsh Rarebit. No place served it and no one we asked about it had a standard recipe. We have all had it at home and Pat and Kathy remember their Grandfather serving it to them so they were especially hoping to find it in Wales. It just seems to be a dish that uses up bread and cheese (usually stale or old) and then each individual adds whatever they like to it - beer, bacon, onions, tomatoes and so forth. But we had a fun lunch in the Pub and felt like we were ending our Wales trip on an appropriate note. Then we headed for one last castle - Caerphilly Castle which was one of the greatest castles of medieval Europe - it is set between two large lakes in the middle of the small town. We are about 9 miles north of Cardiff. One tower leans like the tower of Pisa, this castle was never a royal castle but built between 1268 and 1271 by an English baron Lord Marcher of Glamorgan as a defense from Prince Llywelyn ap Gruffudd (the last Welsh Prince of Wales.) It used concentric fortifications and lakes as defense and was never stormed but began to fall into decay from the mid-14th century. Between 1928 and 1939 the fourth marquis of Bute started some restoration and the state continued it in 1950. We couldn’t go into the great hall as it was being used for a wedding today! A very public place to hold a wedding and today was a very windy day as well. They were also doing mock battles and court performances in the front all dressed like they imagine people dressed in the 14th century - they were having a good time. So we drove back to Bristol one more time. We said our sad farewells to Myra and Val - they were absolutely wonderful - the best tour guides I’ve ever had but they were more than just tour guides - simply said I felt like we were saying good bye to dear friends. We went back to our rooms and started the ordeal of packing. We decided to eat in the hotel dinning room because we didn’t want a full meal and we liked their selections. After so long in one place we did feel like we were saying good bye to friends.

Sunday 5/13/07 Up early only to find out that they weren’t serving breakfast until 7:30. Since we were leaving at 8:00 we really stormed the place at 7:30 (by our watches) and quickly ate - just in time to greet the two taxicabs that showed up for us. We loaded up - but instead of going 2 in one and 3 in the other for some reason we put all the luggage in one and the five of us got in the other. Big mistake! When we got to the airport to check in Dorothy and I answered the security questions and went on through. But Pat, Kathy, and Genevieve got asked a question that ended up that the security people found out that they had gone in a different vehicle than their luggage. So they were brought behind the scenes and every single item in all their suit cases was gone through one item at a time. Good thing we went to the airport early as it took an hour for them to go through security. But eventually they made it only to relax in time to hear the announcement that our flight was delayed by 5 hours because the traffic control computer was down! Having been delayed 7 hours on my last trip it was like it all flashed through my head once more. They kept informing us of progress and were patient with our individual questions. They gave us a voucher for airport food, phone calls, and $50 off another flight. Then suddenly they announced that we were going. I dashed upstairs because I wanted a bottle of water (they had no drinking fountain in the airport!) so I also grabbed a sandwich because I wasn’t going to spend a $10 voucher on a bottle of water and then ran back and got on board. (But they fed us so much on this flight and on the next that I didn’t eat my sandwich until Monday - it was good!). Oh they also gave us a voucher for a free drink on board so I did use that. The flight was all right and we got through customs and reloading our baggage in Newark pretty quickly with plenty of time to make our connection - the flight here too was delayed but not long. I was lucky to have a free middle seat to SF and a pleasant seat mate. We talked a bit - she is a freshman at Stanford and had been in Manchester for a soccer tournament. I asked her name, Alicia Jenkins, so that if I ever hear about her feats on the Stanford Soccer team I’ll know her. She was from Placervile and was surprised that I knew of it. I arrived at San Francisco almost 22 hours since I last got up so I was glad to see my neighbor pull up to take me home. In all ways it was a great trip.

Penelope Bowen - written from my notes and photos 5/17-24/07 (updated 6/20/07)

Birds I saw in England and Wales - May 2007 (40 species) (I now have 62 species in Europe - 2113 world wide.)

Northern Fulmar Fulmarus glacialis

Mallard Anas platyrhynchos

Common Buzzard Buteo buteo

Ring-necked Pheasant Phasianus colchicus

Eurasian Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus

Jack Snipe* Lymnocryptes minimus

Long-tailed Jaeger Stercorarius longicaudus

Herring Gull Larus argentatus

Lesser Black-backed Gull Larus fuscus

Great Black-backed Gull Larus marinus

Black-legged Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla

Common Murre Uria aalge

Razorbill Alca torda

Atlantic Puffin Fratercula arctica

Common Wood Pigeon Columba palumbus

Black-billed Magpie Pica pica

Eurasian Jackdaw Corvus monedula

Rook Corvus frugilegus

Carrion Crow Corvus corone corone

Common Raven Corvus corax

Sky Lark Alauda arvensis

Bank Swallow Riparia riparia

Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica

Common House-Martin Delichon urbica

Coal Tit Parus ater

Blue Tit* Parus caeruleus

Winter Wren Troglodytes troglodytes

European Robin Erithacus rubecula

Northern Wheatear* Oenanthe oenanthe

Eurasian Blackbird Turdus merula

European Starling Sturnus vulgaris

Dunnock Prunella modularis

Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava

Gray Wagtail* Motacilla cinerea

White Wagtail Motacilla alba

Meadow Pipit* Anthus pratensis

Common Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs

Eurasian Linnet Carduelis cannabina

European Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis

House Sparrow Passer domesticus

*5 new species for me