Sunday, September 2, 2007

Wales

Well it is September 2nd and I am finally getting around to posting about our trips that we took in June to Cardiff, Wales and Barcelona, Spain.

The main reason why I am finally taking the time to do this now, is that it is in the 40’s today and raining! Yikes, where did the summer go. It only seemed appropriate to write about Wales today since the weather looked and felt this cold when we arrived in late June.

Wales
So our first stop was in Wales to visit Greg’s sister Joanne and her husband Kent. When we left Helsinki it was warm and sunny and midsummer was the next day. So I packed plenty of shorts, skirts, tennis shoes, and short sleeved shirts; only to arrive to weather in the upper 50’s and rain! Thank goodness Joanne loaned me a rain proof jacket, blue jeans and boots since mud and water were all around!

For starting our first leg of a summer vacation you can say that I wasn’t too thrilled to arrive to cold, rainy weather in the freaking 50’s!!! Joanne wasn’t about to let a little chill and rain ruin a good summer.
She promptly took me to see a castle which would lift any girl’s spirits!


Caerphilly Castle is the largest castle in Wales, the second largest in Britain (second to Windsor castle) built in 1268-1271.
Say hello to Joanne, what a trooper.

Walking around I was quickly caught up with a romantic fantasy; A time of castles complete with knights, damsels in distress and nonstop medieval feasting.














The next day Joanne and Kent also had another surprise for us, a drive into England for the Williams de Broƫ polo match between England and New Zealand.














We started off with a picnic and the people there agreed that if it didn't rain then it wasn't a proper British picnic.




Thank goodness it didn't rain and I was able to enjoy my first ever polo match. Here we are drinking Pimm's Cup, the must drink when attending polo matches. Pimm's Cup is made with the following ingredients (Pimm's No.1 with two parts lemonade, wedge of cucumber, mint leaves and slices of lemon, orange and strawberry). After several of these I was really into the match and had a lot of fun during the halftime event of stomping of the divots.

To cap off or day of celebration for such a refined and privileged sport, we drove back to Wales to visit The Tintern Abbey and to get a bite to eat at the world-renowned The Anchor.












At The Anchor you have a vast assortment of fresh meat to choose from as you can see from the picture below, we chose pork and had several doggy-bags of leftovers.














Just kidding! That is Edward the Pig and the owner of The Anchor told me that Edward is a registered pet and will never be made into bacon. Good for Edward's owner as you can see this is some pig!
The dinner we had wasn't umm that great but viewing of the Tintern Abbey quickly put that bad curry dish behind us.













(Welsh: Abaty Tyndyrn) was founded in 1131. It really is a spectacular ruin and inspired the William Wordsworth poem "Tintern Abbey".
















I was also whisked off to the World Heritage city, Bath, located in Somerset, England most famous for its historic baths fed by three hot springs. It was first documented as a Roman spa, although tradition suggests that it was founded earlier.







The waters from its spring were believed to be a cure for many afflictions. From Elizabethan to Georgian times it was a resort city for the wealthy.

As a result of its popularity during the latter period, the city contains many fine examples of Georgian architecture, most notably the Royal Crescent.
In 2006 the Thermae Bath Spa opened. It is a day spa, combining the 'old and new'.




They offer bathing in the warm, mineral-rich waters and a range of spa treatments designed to ease the body and soothe the mind.


Sweet! Next time Greg heads off to Scotland to play some golf, I am heading here for some relaxation. oh yeah baby!


Well it is mid-day here and I better get my bum off the chair and away from the computer.