In the morning we had “full English breakfast” with some Australians staying here. Toast, poached egg, mushrooms, tomatoes, bacon, sausage, and tea. Some OJ, too. Went from there on to Bath to see the Roman bathhouses. Pretty incredible architecture all around. Went to the oldest pub in Bath – the Saracen’s Head.
We walked around some more – went on a bus tour through town, and saw all the general sights. I took a lot of pictures.
Went from there on to Cheddar. We drove down the Cheddar gorge into town. Somewhat of a tourist trap, but great cheese. We ate cheese and crackers with our beer along the main road through Cheddar. There were cave tours, but we skipped them.
We drove back to our bed and breakfast (Valley Farm) and got ready to hit a pub for dinner. The pub was called “The Pony and the Trap”. Really great food – best of the trip so far. The hired help was outstanding, and the Guinness and view were great. We could see the whole countryside from the patio out back. We drove back and hit the hay.
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Almost ten years to the day I’m copying my journal to the web to keep it for posterity, and I still remember this day quite clearly. The evening at the pub is especially clear in my mind because it was one of those zen moments you have in life that stay with you forever. I remember sitting out back of the pub on picnic tables and gazing into the horizon – fields and hedgerows and fields and sheep – as far as the eye could see. Drinking Guinness with my father and my uncle and feeling like we were on top of the world. It was more than the alcohol talking – this was the first trip for me outside of North America, and I felt like horizons were opening.
It is funny to read my writing about “the hired help” at the pub. Two of the waitstaff were beautiful young women, and they were clearly interested in talking with an American. Our next destination was Wales, but my American accent confused them and they kept asking me if I was going to Wells, a nearby town. Great memories at that place, and maybe a seed was planted there that grew into an itch to travel later on.
