England: Week Two

Bradford-on-Avon (BOA) - A hamlet/village

I'm headed to Bath, UK. Unfortunately there is a hotel shortage. I want to go there to find a tour company that will take me to some villages in the Cotswolds and Avebury Henge.

This week has been too cold, two jacket weather, and almost no sunshine.

There is no Uber, Taxis are scarce, sometimes city buses are too. Lots of walking.

A Sagging House in BOA
But in business as a posh Tea House
The Internationally Renowned
Victorian Tea Rooms
circa 1502

Houses are mostly of stone.

The round building in the back is
a Historic Windmill.

The Avon River
thus Bradford-on-Avon

There must have been 30-narrow canal boats.
They can tie up for 2-3 days at most.

You can walk on the Towpath for miles

A nice yard. Probably even better in full spring

Y que hiciéramos sin un Carro Campero

Bath: March 15th, 2025.

I have been to two places named "bath". El Primero fue en Ecuador, llamado "Baños". And this week I was in the second, this time in Somerset, England, UK. Named after its thermal baths and a bit of its story is this. Originally built by Romans circa 60AD. Wikipedia has some good information on it like "over 6 million visitors yearly". Over time it fell apart. In the 1700 it was mostly rebuilt by Victorians. Today, a pic is worth ...

Churches everywhere
Update: It is an Abbey

The River Avon
The Pulteney Bridge

Mini waterfalls

A converted bridge, or houses, or office space?
The Pulteney Bridge

This is an outside view of the Roman Bath. Interesting to me is
the porous rocks on this facade.

Inside the rebuilt "Roman" Baths
Aquae Sulis

Statues, steeples, the Bath Museum

That steeple again (on the Abbey).
Looking closer you can see the Flying Buttresses
holding the walls up

My alter-ego or my gypsy doppelgänger

Roman Baths

More flying buttresses

Gates to the City?
A pretty arch?
Maybe it is built there to
hold up the walls on the end-buildings.

Avon River seen from the city Hiking Trail

Jane Austen? Who would have thought, here in Bath.

A huge 1/2 Marathon in town
With a Drum Corp

Cotswolds: March 17

All it takes are rocks, soil, water, (did I mention water?)

Drystone fence walls with capstones.
To start, you need 1-million rocks.

Everything that is old is built with sandstone.

The sculpted tree, Espaliered, is very will done.

Called a "Market Cross" where people collect
to sell their products and Wares.

The underside of the Market Cross.

The mill-stone originally for the mill it leans on.

Slate roof, quarried limestone walls.

Yes, people still live here.

The cottages along Arlington Row, Bibary, Gloucestershire are believed to have been built around 1380 as a monastic wool store and later converted into weavers' cottages in the 17th century.

Cottages along Arlington Row, Bibary

A garden at every bend in the river.

Water & Stone

All it takes is flour, water, yeast, salt...
(or a local Bakery)

A "Market Cross" for vendors

A closer view of the open air market.
(In case it rains)

Highgrove: Building and Business in Tetbury owned by King Charles and family.
Proceeds go to a Charitable Foundation.
In the nearby countryside is one of the homes owned by the family, also named Highgrove.

Cardiff, Wales, UK

Tall and pointy buildings jammed together

Another castle with a moat

The Red Dragon is on the flag of Wales

Tall pointy buildings in Cardiff
Castle, Cathedral, Fortress
in one space

Dollar Store --> British Pound --> PoundLand

A very compact downtown (High Street)
with too many stores.

Swansea, Wales, UK

Leaving from Bath, UK and since Wales was so close, why not see what there is to see there. First Cardiff then a day-trip to Swansea. They are "British" but they are a distinct culture. The Welsh language is so different than other languages.