After a day’s rest from my 84-mile walk I was feeling somewhat regenerated. My ambitions were small for this transition day. I thought a walking loop around town would be just right after which I’d hop a train to Edinburgh. I never should have talked with the hostel staff. I never should have learned about the £4.80 Daily Saver. I never should have been tempted to go on a grander Newcastle adventure.
by 
If you were wanting to walk across England then wouldn’t you choose the shortest path? If you were a Roman emperor wanting to build a wall to defend your English territory against the Scots then wouldn’t you choose the shortest cross-island route? Well, Emperor Hadrian built such a wall from Bowness-to-Newcastle in the far north of England and we walked along its length. We walked Hadrian’s Wall.
Please don’t think that my cousin Dallas and I walked 84 miles atop a wall.
by
I told you I’d try to squeeze in yet another visit to the Merseyside Maritime Museum at Prince Albert Dock and, after a leisurely cup of coffee, I was at the gates by the time the museum opened. Yes, I was first in. I only had two hours before I had to leave for the train station. I didn’t want any regrets and dang if I didn’t.
The stories of how the sinking of the Titanic, Lucitania, and Empress paralleled the decline in Liverpool’s shipping industry were fascinating. The coverage of Liverpool as the head of North Atlantic operations during World War II was eye-opening. Learning more about the slave trade, the port development, and British customs over the decades were all well presented and interesting. This really was an excellent museum and I really did need to hurry to catch my train!
by
Yes, northern Wales has been the recent theme but I’m based in Liverpool and I’m not likely to ignore that fact. Besides, there’s much still to see so it would be silly not to squeeze in as much as possible. Tomorrow is Snowdon Mountain and Friday I relocate to Leeds to spend the weekend with family. If Liverpool is going to happen then today’s the day.
Much like Cardiff, Liverpool is packed with things to see and do. Previously I had focused on the Beatles, Albert Dock museums, and famous buildings. This time I packaged together many top sites into a walking tour which I started only after a boat ride around the River Mersey. Knowing that most everything opens at 10:00 and closes at 5:00 I planned to fill every minute with activity … and this I did!
by
I have a tendency to walk till I drop. Great for seeing things and learning but hard on the feet. With Snowdon Mountain in the near future I’ve decided to rest my legs as I shift my focus. The first week emphasized South Wales based out of Cardiff. This second week is focused on North Wales and will be bases out of Liverpool, a big English city that I’m familiar with which has lots of train service in to Wales.
Ironically, I started my today with a walk. The weather was perfect and I enjoy Cardiff so much that I thought I’d squeeze in one more visit: City Hall. Boring sounding, isn’t it? “Local government” and “restricted access” could put a damper on any party. In this case “local government” actually covers all of Wales as City Hall is the operational arm of the National Assembly. As for “restricted access,” which I expected coming from ultra-paranoid Washington D.C., that turned out to be a completely incorrect expectation.
by
This morning I had two days left in the area and so much still to see! It was time to focus on the best of what was left. Today that meant visiting a castle, a historic Welch village, a car show, and the waterfront. This agenda would make a dent but there’s still so much that will go unseen. Only a bit more can be seen tomorrow, my last day in this abundant city.
Before leaving the U.S. I learned of Caerphilly Castle and knew it had to be seen. It’s the second largest castle in the U.K. after Windsor. The grounds cover 30 acres. It had multiple wall barricades and several bodies of water to protect the castle from attack.
by
My first full day that focused exclusively on Cardiff required an overview. I hired a bike for three hours and set out to see the city. The experience reminded me of why I take a bicycle with me on road trips. I saw ten times more than I would have walking and when I was done my feet weren’t killing me. There was a lot to see; I came away impressed.
Where I’m staying is across the River Taff from downtown so I was already getting familiar with the lay of the land in that part of the city. What I hadn’t even seen was further south, toward Cardiff Bay, where in the past 20 years a massive redevelopment project has transformed what was once the world’s busiest port.
by
Out early I caught the 7:58 from Cardiff to Swansea and before 9:00 I was walking the streets of this once-thriving port city. Using my guide book and a tourist map I knew my agenda. The National Waterfront Museum described the history of important cities along the southern coast of Wales. It was interesting but more so it was impressive. Not even in D.C. do we have such high-tech interactive displays. In stark contrast next door was the Swansea Museum which was low-tech, bizarre, and eclectic with displays ranging from china plates to electric scooters to … wait for it … an honest to goodness mummy. I was floored and tickled all at once. Later I thoroughly wandered the town but was most affected not by what I saw but with a man I met.
As I walked the waterfront I came across a curious observatory just off the beach.
by
My Bristol launchpad was just for getting warmed up and revisit familiar turf. Now it’s on to the new in a land I’d never set foot in before: the land of Camelot, dragons, and rugby fanaticism.
Today started by winding-down my Bristol visit. I had already explored extensively five of the six areas in the core city. What remained was the cathedral and university areas to the west. I had no grand goal, just the ambition to familiarize myself with the area. By pure chance I stumbled across the national organization promoting bicycling and path development. After bending their ear for a while I made it back to check out by 10:00 and headed out to Bristol Temple Mead train station.
When I arrived in Cardiff, I spent the rest of the day at Cardiff Castle.
by
Seeing Stonehenge was not too important to me but I still had to go see it. I wanted to see the place where primitive people found cause to built such an immense structure over 4,000 years ago. What motivated them? How did they transport the huge stones from as far as 240 miles away? What purpose did the site serve? How did they engineer it’s construction? There is no records from when it was built so we just spend our time speculating; there aren’t many answers. Given this mix of unknowns in the presence of this undeniable structure I came away with the sense of wonder I was hoping to feel. Mission accomplished.
However, I didn’t feel this wonder until an hour after I had planned.
by