Axbridge and Environs

After 4 nights in Bournemouth, we moved to Axbridge where we had secured an 18th century cottage in the heart of town. What a great spot to come and go from! The cottage was next door to a local pub and a block away from the old medieval village square. We also had the local reservoir in close range for a lovely walk. From there we did some exploring . . .
On our first day, we dropped Isaac and Alex off to tour a big car car museum; they were in their element. Meanwhile, Murray, Ben and I continued on to Glastonbury to climb the Tor ((hill). We had stopped in to Glastonbury the day before, on our way to Axbridge but it was a cool, wet day. Not great for climbing. This day was bright and clear, a great day to see the view from the Tor! On the way back to Axbridge, Ben noticed a sign for the Fleet Air museum so all 3 boys spent some time touring that before going back to our digs.
Our next day was spent touring Bath, home of the ancient Roman baths and our friends Heather and son Benjamin. We took part in a 2 hour free tour that provided commentary on the history and architecture of the city. It was a fascinating tour and provided a great deal of information that helped us to appreciate what we were seeing. The rest of the day was spent with Heather and Benjamin, touring town, visiting a Fashion museum and hanging out in a pub to catch the Man City vs. Chelsea football match. We just made it back to Axbridge in time to have Sunday Roast at our pub next door.
The first photos below cover some of our touring from Bournemouth: the gorgeous 7 mile beach, Salisbury and its Cathedral, the Bovington Tank Museum.
After that are photos from Axbridge and the area around.
Next up . . . London!

Too busy to post!

To those of you who have been following this blog, I apologize for the lack of posts. Our last place in Axbridge didn't have WiFi and since we've been in London it's been too hectic a pace to keep up with posting. We move on to York tomorrow and then Scotland on Sunday where we're hoping to have some time to catch our breath. London is intense! Check back in a couple of days for an update!

Past and Present

Yesterday was an important day . . . really, it was the impetus for taking this trip to England. After Dad died, two years ago, it became important for me to visit his birthplace and to share that with Isaac. I want him to know his roots and understand where his heritage lies. That was the reason we chose to stay in Bournemouth; it's the city nearest Christchurch which is where my Dad's family lived before emigrating to Canada in 1951. This pilgrimage of sorts, is also one of the reasons that Alex, my cousin's son, has made the trip with us. His grandpa and my Dad were brothers, so both branches of the family tree are represented in this journey.

With help from my uncle Frank, Dad's brother, we had addresses and photos of the 2 homes they lived in while they were kids. The original home at 22 Bargates is on a commercial street and houses Autism Wessex, an organization that provides education, respite services, social care and advocacy for people affected by autism. We were able to go inside and look around the entry area which would have been the original lounge complete with interior stained glass windows. The house is now considered a heritage site.

The second home at 38 Maundeville Crescent is in a residential area with homes all along the street that share an identical exterior. There's a lovely green common space that runs behind the crescent and includes a beautiful little creek at one end . It's been great to see both these homes and to feel so connected to Dad while being here. I'm so thankful too, that Isaac and Alex had the opportunity to see where their grandpas grew up.

Bournemouth

We left France on Monday and sailed by ferry across the English Channel to Poole. Fortunately, we had a 3 hour stopover on Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands. What a beautiful spot, and although part of the Commonwealth are not part of England. Guerney was a delightful mix of French and English cultures in architecture and cuisine. They even have their own currency!
We spent Tuesday getting to know the city of Bournemouth and securing our rental car. The beach in Bournemouth runs for 7 miles and is soft golden sand all the way along. There are wonderful beach huts for hire where you will find 4 beach chairs, and a gas ring to make a pot of tea. Although the days have been overcast and a little drizzly, the air is warm and so is the ocean.
The first few photos are of Guernsey Island and the remainder are the area right around where we're staying in Bournemouth. Unfortunately, this blog site doesn't allow me to label individual photos with a caption.

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Mont-Saint-Michel

All the bread and cheese we've been eating became too much for Susan, so it was me and the 3 musketeers who struck out for Mont-St-Michel the other day. As we walked the causeway toward this world heritage site, I asked the boys what the tiny golden winged figure atop the spire might be. An eagle? Think church. A dove? Maybe: what hovers over a Christian community? An angel! Yes, and not just any angel. This one is fully armed, a sword held high to strike down heretics and the impious, British Protestants being foremost among them. "Be afraid!" is not a phrase I've ususally associated with angels, but this is the archangel Michael, conscripted by the powers that be (ie. the king, the bishop and the abbot) to sanctify French resistance to ... well... people like me and the boys. Thank God we were able to infiltrate the place unnoticed, pilgrims disguised as tourists, blending in with the thousands who daily turn the Mont into a human anthill. Were we the only ones who paused for prayer in the sanctuary? It seemed so; the cannon on the plateau below offered far better photo opps than the blandness of the nave. Still, the place looks pretty in pictures and we can now say, "Been there; done that."

St.-Malo

After a long day of driving and touring, we arrived at our digs in St.-Malo. We didn't realize that we were staying inside the ancient walled part of the city (intra muros) nor that our apartment was up a VERY narrow spiral staircase. what a delight! It feels a bit like living within the castle walls . . . except there are lots of tourists. We kept our car for the first 2 days and so felt we should take advantage of being able to tour the surrounding area. That was great but it was a hassle to find parking intra-muros on our return and we felt like we were missing out on really getting to know the area around the apartment. This morning we dropped the car off and spent time walking along the seaside, around the streets of the walled city, and then hit the beach this afternoon. Feels like we're on holiday!

We'll do a separate post of the trip to Mont-Saint-Michel shortly. The photos below are in and around St-Malo.

Just outside the walls of Intra Muros

Heading into Intra Muros

Report on Caen
What a great place to begin our time in France and work through our jetlag. Our apartment was comfortable, bright, and well situated to tour le centre-ville. On our first day we walked the city centre with many pedestrian only streets, dined on moules et frites and stocked the apartment for the next couple of days. Of course that meant a visit to the boulangerie (bakery), the charcuterie (deli), and the fromagerie. Yummm! The next days were spent touring the beaches of Normandie, cemeteries and war museums. On Sunday, we visited the Canadian war cemetery at Beny-sur-Mer and held a picnic to honour the dead, we toured the British airborne museum at Oustreham on the river Orne and then visited the Juno Beach Centre. Monday was to Bayeux to view the tapestry depicting William the Conquerer and the Battle of Hastings in 1066, and a visit to Omaha Beach and the American Cemetery. Tuesday we jouneyed to St-Malo via Utah Beach, Ste. Mere Eglise and the Amercan Paratroop museum. We have left Normandy and are now in the Marche/Brittany. We're enjoying one another's company, especially our three musketeers!

Canadian Cemetary