Loving Somerset

Hello! First, wifi here is very picky with the iPhone and other than our brief connection yesterday morning, each wifi location has been a total bust. We have loads of pictures and stories saved up - but could never get them off. Now that we're in Bristol, in a very proper Marriott with a business center, we're back in business and the updates should flow quite often from now.

After landing and grabbing a rental car, a Peugot - we switched after the original Ford they gave us was just too big - and we're glad for it because the roads are small in the countryside! Ryan is an amazing driver. Not only did he get used to driving on the 'other side' of the road and from the 'other side' of the car, with pedals and manual gearbox still in the normal positions, but he took my feverishly pointed directions very well. 'Go here, there, left, right, straight...' He has mastered the roundabouts and can now move through them at the normal speed...sometimes as fast as 40 mph! The only strange thing is not knowing how close to the curb you are on the left side...you are always used to it being on the other side. We only clipped a few curbs and luckily without any problems.

We sped away from Gatwick quickly and in about 2 hours arrived in beautiful Salisbury, a pleasant town with a beautiful abbey. There we discovered Pastys (prounounced PAST-ees) and had a few sitting outside with some mist puttering down. The weather has been off and on, always cloudy, sometimes windy, most times rainy, but all times lovely and cool. We've had to worn jackets and sweaters, and sometimes scarves, each day.

After Salisbury we made way to Bath, a gorgeous town in Somerset that is just the right size. It's full of Georgian-style homes, mostly row houses, sometimes in geometric shapes like 'The Crescent' or 'The Circle' where Ryan was able to clap his hands in the middle and hear it echo back and forth from the houses.

Our hotel there was a quaint Bed and Breakfast in a beautiful house, Parkside, and run by a really sweet mother and daughter. Our room, number 6, was at the top of the house and very comfortable. We slept with windows open (no screens - I love Europe) each night and enjoyed a very British breakfast in the morning, overlooking her nice gardens.

We did well adjusting to the time, only sneaking a quick 20 minute nap, and heading back out for drinks and dinner. The town is very old, reaching back beyond Roman times, and full of shops and stately buildings. We found a 'freehouse' which is another name for a pub that has really really good beer and cider. This one was strictly locals only, which included us having a chat with someone whose father was (and by the conversation still is) the lead Communist party person in the area. We talked a bit about Texas vs. England, culture differences, but when it got a little heavy on our opinions on Socialism or Communism we made our exit. I just am not passionate enough to have a chat about that after three ciders!

Perfect timing, because just up the street we found Jamie's Kitchen which is a restaurant of Jamie Oliver's! Fabulous! Great food, both of us eating Pasta dishes. By the end of it, around 10:30 p.m., our bodies were so very tired and I literally almost fell asleep in my meal. (Earlier, while driving back from Salisbury, we both nearly fell asleep...I think Ryan dozed as we waited in traffic...)

We made our way back to our bed and quickly fell asleep. The next day was Bath in the morning, touring the actual Roman ruins and drinking actual water from the thermal hot springs! Ryan says it's like drinking warm tap water that has pennies in the jar. I made him drink the whole glass - 'Wellness, darling! Wellness!' Our favorite quote came from the audio tour - where the described a non-Roman asking a local Roman leader why they bathed twice a day. The roman replied, 'Because there isn't enough time for twice a day.'

Afterwards, we went for a drive down south to Glastonbury Tor - a creepy 500+ foot hill with a tall tower at the top. It's a natural hill, carved by time, and terraced due to Medieval farming before the swampy lands around it could be properly drained. It was super windy at the top - the kind where you can lean on it - but the view was incredible. 360 degree view of the Somerset lands. Stunning!

We moved on to Wells, which has a huuuuuuuuge Abbey (read: Church of England church) that was a special experience altogether. It is split in the middle with this scissor-looking structure that was added later to keep one end from sinking in because of all the weight. In the 'Chapter Room' which is a round large room where the clergy would have huddles and discussions, two girls decided to try out the amazing echo by singing 'Amazing Grace' - so neat.

We also got to see the oldest Medieval Library, with books from hundreds of years of dust and age on them. A cute volunteer gave us some history and even took us back into the church itself to point out some cute carved faces up on the pillars showing some tribulations of medieval times...toothaches, grape stealing, etc.

Another Pasty, and another drive back to Bath.

We hit the pubs - and later on in the night was approached by a lady with a Texan accent. 'I know you two, Ryan and Scott.' We were shocked...and then saw her daughter in the corner, Heather, laughing up a storm. They had just arrived, were out for a drink, and ran into us! They are here for the wedding as well - we had a great chat.

So that's part of the story...I need to go get showered and dressed for dinner. More about the Avebury Circle, driving through part of the Cotswolds, and our arrival in Bristol later...

We love you all and will keep trying to post!!

Tschuess!!