My 5th week June 24-30

June 24

Louise was able to spend a couple of hours before leaving for another visit, so after a good breakfast, I took her on the walk I had enjoyed so much the other week - leaving from the Close to the meadow where John Constable painted so many of his Salisbury paintings, and through the gardens back to the Close. We ended up in the Bell Tower tea room, having tea and carrot cake across from the Cathedral. It was a glorious day. After she left, I had a rest to get back down from the excitements of the past few days. Then  I had to start packing up. It was hard to think about leaving, it had been such an amazing 3 weeks.

June 25 

Up early to finish last packing and my last breakfast from my hostess. I will really miss the cabin and the hospitality of the couple who run that B&B. It was so homely and comfortable, perfect for my needs during those 3 weeks.

Meryl came to pick me up to go to Cardiff for a visit with Stuart her dad, the opera singer. It was lovely driving through the beautiful countryside, and to have the time to catch up with each of our family It had been a while since I had seen him, and was glad to be able to spend some time with him. Although he has some physical difficulties, he still has an interest in the families' goings on,  and to know there are up and coming singers in the family - his granddaughter Nia and cousin Melissa Piggott in Milwaukee. We left him before he got too tired and drove to friends of Meryl who had kindly offered me to stay for a couple of nights before going to Dublin to meet Dan, Elisa, and Zoe.

Wendy, Gerard's sister, invited me to come with her and her niece to the Cardiff Bay area for supper. The area has had a huge transformation from dreadful docklands to smart restaurants and arts centres.

The Severn Bridge from England to Wales. 

Old buildings of Cardiff Bay. 

Fish and chips of course in Cardiff Bay. 

The Wales Millenium Centre at Cardiff Bay

June 26

Bus to Cardiff to sort out tickets for tomorrow's trip. Train to Holyhead, ferry to Dublin.

Another gorgeous hot day. I decided to visit Cardiff Castle, and ate my sandwich lunch under the trees in the park inside the castle walls. Given to the people of Cardiff by the Duke of Bute, it is an oasis of peace right in the middle of the city. It is a mixture of medieval and Victorian Gothic together with WW2 air raid shelters built in the castle walls that could accommodate 1800 people. With the sound effects in the shelters, it brings to life the fear of bombs raining down and describes how the people coped. On the opposite side of the air raid wall, is the Victorian Gothic building that was renovated from a former Georgian building, together with landscaping by Capability Brown. The staterooms are open to the public and are used for special functions. There is a small room decorated in the Arabic style, an obsession of the Orient by the Victorians and the most exotic in the castle.

Lunching under the trees on the castle lawns. 

Such beautiful stained glass and lovely windows. 

June 27

Gerard kindly took me to Cardiff station for a very early train start to Holyhead. Another glorious day for enjoying the scenery all through the Welsh Brecon mountain area, then along the coast towards the Isle of Anglesey to Holyhead at the tip of the island. It was all seamless getting onto the huge ferry, and away we went. I was told it could be very rough crossing, at this time though, it was very smooth. Arrival was a bit confusing, and getting information about going into Dublin was not very clear. Not seeing any transportation, in trying to send a message to Elisa, I missed the bus into Dublin, and it seems that taxis are not allowed into the the ferry area unless booked in advance. It was a bit unnerving to see everything being shut down as this was the last ferry. There were only 3 passengers left in the ferry area, but a good Samaritan came to my rescue and offered to share his booked taxi with me. Both he and the taxi driver were very considerate - the good Samaritan  deciding not to go to his home, but instead go to his office which was not far from Dan and Elisa's Airbnb. After dropping him off, the taxi driver continued with me to the apartment, and waited until he knew my daughter-in-law had contacted me and was on her way to meet me. He would not accept any money or a tip from me, the good Samaritan had covered it all! So began a delightful five days with the family. The apartment was bright and very comfortable. All the amenities. The day I arrived was Zoe's 10th birthday, and we had a fun evening.

June 28

Great excitement - a visit to the Guinness factory! Not being a great beer drinker, I was not sure I would find it interesting, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Several storeys of exhibits and artifacts ended at the top level pub, with windows of nearly 360 degrees overlooking the city. Everyone was given a free pint,(orange juice for me and a soft drink for Zoe). It has to be the one of the best pubs anywhere. 

We walked around the city a lot that day, my count was 5.9 miles. Good thing too, as we had a fish and chips lunch!

June 29

A very early start to another exciting day - a tour to the filming areas of Game of Thrones!!!!!!!

We met the tour bus at a hotel, and after being greeted by our excellent and very informative guide (he actually had been an extra in the filming) we set off. As I know virtually nothing about this series, I can only tell what I saw on the tour.  A good time was had on the bus with video episodes being shown and later with a very difficult quiz. Of course, many passengers were very knowledgeable and there was much laughing and groaning when the answers to the questions were revealed. 

We branched off the motorway once in Northern Ireland and went east to the area of Downpatrick where some of the first episodes were filmed. Leaving the coach we walked through the Tollymore forest, the first of two 3 km treks in Winterfell locations. It was not a difficult walk, but we had to watch carefully for roots and stones above the path. The pace was not slow as we had a timeline and our guide was anxious to get everything. He had so much to tell us, not only the history but being part of the making of it.

Dan and his cloak.

After this, we went back to the coach for our next activity - lunch at the Lobster Pot in the village of Port Strangford. 

The Lobster Pot

Can you identify the mug?

Just outside the Lobster Pot were the two Northern Inuit dogs, Thor and Odin who played "direwolves"
in Games of Thrones 

Our last event of the day was a visit to the Castle Ward Estate. There are 9 locations in this area. The trek through the forest was an easier one along the wooded shores of Strangford Lough. 

 The 15th century Tower House.

The 12th century Cistercian Abbey

June 30

Another early start to Northern Ireland. This time on a regular bus, similar to the tour bus, very comfortable for the 2 and 1/2 hour drive to the Titanic Exhibition in Belfast, located in the dockland area where the Titanic was built together with her sister ship. It is an incredibly moving experience with all the pictures, artifacts and information about the building of the ship. Much too much to digest in one viewing. www.titanicbelfast.com

We had a light lunch after going through the main section of the exhibition, then Dan and Elisa took off and Zoe and I had a girls' tea party at a posh hotel to celebrate her 10th birthday. A proper English cream tea, together with the slate card the management brought  for her. 

We met up with Dan and Elisa after our delicious tea, and it was time to get back on the bus to Dublin and get packing for tomorrow's travels, the family to the US and I back to the UK.