Isle of Wight
Finally getting myself back on schedule after spending 3 weeks in enemy territory. I looped from the southernmost island of Britain, the Isle of Wight, up the the Isle of Skye in the far-flung Scottish highlands. Lots of riding in various vehicles. When I wasn't in the train/plane/car/bus/ferry, I did manage to see a few things.
Cowes Week
One the biggest yachting events in the world was going on when we were there. No interest in boats, but they were picturesque.
Newport Church
Unfortunately locked all the time except for services. The cool thing about being in Britain was that every town had a main church in the middle of the town, plus backup churches scattered around. This one was bordered by a bank, a pub, and a pasty shop.
Cute Sign
Most houses had names, even the new ones. I'm gonna name my place in Japan as soon as I think of a good one.
This is in the church Ross got married in.
And here is the church itself. It's 800 years old.
With Coal Tar Fragrance
Gotta hand it to the Brits; once they got a tradition, they're not gonna let it go.
Quarr Abby
This is the kind of thing I like to do most. I got on a bike and used a map to navigate here, then walked up to a totally deserted chapel. It was like a punch in the gut to open up the door- it looks much bigger on the inside. It was cool and silent and creepy; and a much bigger impact than most of the other peopled churches I visited later, even though they had superior workmanship.
Squirrel Alert
Apparently the gray squirrel has been kicking the native red squirrel out if it's territory, and Wight is one of the few places they still exist, so everyone gets really excited if they see one. Oddly, this is a lot like Japan, where squirrels are only spotted in northern territories. For someone from East Tennessee, this is a little like getting worked up over spotting a mosquito.
Was it worth the peril?
So on our map, we found a spot, Fort Victoria, that was marked with the same castle stamp as Carisbrooke Castle, which is the real deal, so we got excited and stopped at the bus station nearest to it.
What ensued was a road through a neighborhood that eventually turned into a poorly-marked path through the woods (where I found the above squirrel sign), asking a grandma with a stupid little dog if we were lost, and finally breaking out to this. The water was lovely, but the fort consisted of a brick wall with a few shops that were all already closed when we got there. Then we had to fight our way back and wait for a bus that never came. Oh, well.
Carisbrooke Castle
Now THIS is a castle.
Arrow Slit
It started raining while we were there, and the rain really does blow in soft sheets sideways, just like in the Holy Grail. Umbrellas would have been useless; not that we had any. Turns out a lot of British figure that too, and many of them either wear a raincoat or just bear it, unlike Japan where you need an umbrella if A) it is raining, was raining, or might rain this week B) it is snowing C) the sun is shining. I am not even making this up.
Ubiquitous Ivy
Cowes Week
One the biggest yachting events in the world was going on when we were there. No interest in boats, but they were picturesque.
Newport Church
Unfortunately locked all the time except for services. The cool thing about being in Britain was that every town had a main church in the middle of the town, plus backup churches scattered around. This one was bordered by a bank, a pub, and a pasty shop.
Cute Sign
Most houses had names, even the new ones. I'm gonna name my place in Japan as soon as I think of a good one.
This is in the church Ross got married in.
And here is the church itself. It's 800 years old.
With Coal Tar Fragrance
Gotta hand it to the Brits; once they got a tradition, they're not gonna let it go.
Quarr Abby
This is the kind of thing I like to do most. I got on a bike and used a map to navigate here, then walked up to a totally deserted chapel. It was like a punch in the gut to open up the door- it looks much bigger on the inside. It was cool and silent and creepy; and a much bigger impact than most of the other peopled churches I visited later, even though they had superior workmanship.
Squirrel Alert
Apparently the gray squirrel has been kicking the native red squirrel out if it's territory, and Wight is one of the few places they still exist, so everyone gets really excited if they see one. Oddly, this is a lot like Japan, where squirrels are only spotted in northern territories. For someone from East Tennessee, this is a little like getting worked up over spotting a mosquito.
Was it worth the peril?
So on our map, we found a spot, Fort Victoria, that was marked with the same castle stamp as Carisbrooke Castle, which is the real deal, so we got excited and stopped at the bus station nearest to it.
What ensued was a road through a neighborhood that eventually turned into a poorly-marked path through the woods (where I found the above squirrel sign), asking a grandma with a stupid little dog if we were lost, and finally breaking out to this. The water was lovely, but the fort consisted of a brick wall with a few shops that were all already closed when we got there. Then we had to fight our way back and wait for a bus that never came. Oh, well.
Carisbrooke Castle
Now THIS is a castle.
Arrow Slit
It started raining while we were there, and the rain really does blow in soft sheets sideways, just like in the Holy Grail. Umbrellas would have been useless; not that we had any. Turns out a lot of British figure that too, and many of them either wear a raincoat or just bear it, unlike Japan where you need an umbrella if A) it is raining, was raining, or might rain this week B) it is snowing C) the sun is shining. I am not even making this up.
Ubiquitous Ivy