ITINERARI Wales and England

Entrem a Gal.les creuant el canal de Bristol i ens situem a la península de Gower. Ens han recomanat una zona de costa amb unes petites cales i hi anem directe. El primer que trobem és un càmping de luxe excepcional, el qual ofereix allotjament en uns acollidors bungalows i unes clàssiques “camperavans”, en un espai completament verge amb les millors vistes de Three Cliffs Bay. Un lloc molt especial on potser algun dia hi farem estada. Aquest cop però el nostre camp base és en un petit B&B (al diminut poble de Kittle) i un parell de locals per menjar a Bishopston.

L’endemà caminem fins a la platja de Pobbles on ens banyem a primera hora i veiem ràpidament com baixa la marea. La petita cala rodejada de parets rocoses on ens trobem es converteix en un passeig de mar on pots caminar quilòmetres i quilòmetres vorejant tota la costa, travessant d’un costat a l’altre i descobrint les filtracions d’un riu que es submergeix entre corrents fins arribar al mar. Una escena increïble! I per nosaltres (gent del Mediterrani) poc comuna.  A diferents moments del dia anem a visitar la zona i el dia següent anem a Rossili per veure com la pujada de la marea rodeja  i converteix una zona de terra, en una ïlla.

Agafem el cotxe i resseguim la costa de Gal.les, fent una parada a Tenby, bonic, però menys verge i impressionat del que hem vist, pugem fins a Aberystwyth (nom impronunciable per nosaltres) i un cop en aquesta alçada del mapa, la nostra ruta avança cap a l’oest entre muntanyes i giravolts que ens endinsen a l‘interior del país. És un paisatge verd de petits boscos i molts camps plens d’ovelles, un clima plujós i més fresc, i a mesura que avancem dóna més sensació d’aïllament i una forta personalitat; ens parem a petits poblets com Llanguri i Rhayader abans de tornar a terres angleses. El nostre pas per Gal.les ha valgut molt la pena.

Després d’unes milles, arribem a Stow-on-the-wall, poblet turístic de carrers ordenats, restaurants, sales de tè i botigues que recordarem també per no trobar-hi cap local on veure el futbol; fet estrany a Anglaterra, no? Des d’allà voltem per Broadwell, Bourton-on-the-water i Stratford (poble natal de Shakespeare).

Gairebé al final del viatge, passem un dia a Oxford, ciutat que ja coneixem i ens desviem fins Wendover, on l’Eduard havia viscut una temporada. Ja només ens queda arribar de nou a  Bournemouth.  Ens despedim de la família Fulton, ens trobem amb la Judith i en Joan que acaben d’instal.lar-se junts a la ciutat i agafem el vol de tornada a casa.

Aquest estiu, un viatge descansat i poc llunyà, però tota experiència a l’estranger sempre és positiva.

We headed Wales through the Bristol Channel to arrive in the Gower peninsula, we drove direct to an unspoilt bay highly recommended. Once there, we found a luxurious camping that offered cosy bungalows and nice campervans with the best views of Three Cliffs Bay. However in those days we were staying in a small B&B in Kittle and having our meals in a small place in Bishopston. Next time, maybe we’ll stay in that splendid camping.

We took a nice walk to another bay called Pobbles where we swam early in the morning and we quickly realised how the tide was going out. Our small rocky bay became a wide sandy promenade in a just few hours. We walked along the sea and through a river leak across the beach. That was a wonderful picture of the coast. We (Mediterranian people) were amazed by the tide coming in and going out twice  a day. Rossili was another great example to gaze how the tide changed the landscape.

We drove following the Wales coast, stopping for a while in Tenby (a nice village, but more busy and touristic compare to the other ones) and we head north until Aberystwyth (an unpronounceable name for us). Once there, we drove to the east through a green, rainy landscape following twisty roads. It seemed to us an isolate and particular land . We took a break in Llanguri and Rhayader before coming back to England. Our days in Wales had been great!

After some miles, we arrived in Stow-on-the-wall, a touristic small village full of restaurants, tea places and nice boutiques, we’re also going to remember that place for being the only English village where It was so  difficult to have a beer watching a football match on TV, awkward, isn’t it? From there we visited Broadwell, Bourton-on-the-water i Stratford (Shakespeare birthplace).

Almost at the end of the trip, we spend a day in Oxford and we payed a quick visit to Wendover where Eduard had been living long time ago. 
Eventually, we were in Bournemouth again. We saw off the Fulton’s family, we caught up with some Catalan friends who just moved to England and we took our flight back home.

Anyway, we didn't travel too far last summer, but it was as interesting as it is to spend some holidays anywhere in the world.

ITINERARI England

Després de 7 anys fent els viatges fora d’Europa, aquest any hem passat l’estiu a Gran Bretanya. Agafant vols i dies diferents, però a finals de mes comença el nostre viatge junts des de Bournemouth.
La primera setmana la passem a Poole, on els Fulton (una família molt amable i agradable que un de nosaltres ja havia conegut) ens ofereix poder estar a casa seva una setmana mentre van de vacances, a canvi de cuidar-los en Dylan (el gos) i regar una mica les plantes i l’hort. Així doncs, mentre la Fiona, en Collin i l’Alexander estan a Canaries, nosaltres ens quedem a casa seva. Una bona manera de començar el nostre viatge. En realitat, no ens movem massa del barri residencial on estem instal•lats i des del primer dia seguim els horaris i complim amb algunes costums que ens semblen molt angleses, així que sopem a les 6 de la tarda, dos cops al dia passegem en Dylan, anem a córrer fins a la platja i voltem sense pressa per la zona per fer una birra o un tè. Quan marxem de Poole, lloguem un cotxe i comencem la nostra ruta pel sud. Primera parada, Portsmouth, on coincidim amb la Noe i en Joe que coneixen molt bé la zona. La ciutat és curiosa, té una geografia molt particular i amb les explicacions d’en Joe, podem descobrir l’origen de moltes coses. Quan baixa el sol, anem a una mena de placeta a la punta del moll que és un agradable punt de reunió per fer unes “pints”. Al cap de poca estona, coneixem la Sally i en Peter (família d’en Joe) i tots 6 passem un vespre ben agradable, al restaurant Jamie’s (que s’està fent lloc entre la restauració mundial), la nit acaba entre converses i fent la darrera copa al jardí de casa seva. L’endemà, fem un bon esmorzar al Tenth Hole i tastem les gustoses Jacked potatoes. Després d’unes compres i alguna volta, deixem la ciutat. La nostra conducció per l’esquerra no és tan complicada com pensàvem i ens movem pel país, amb tota tranquil•litat. La següent parada serà al The Shoe, a Exter, per fer un fantàstic dinar abans d’arribar a Ghillingham: petit poble sense massa encant, però convenientment situat. De camí veiem Stonehedge entre un dens trànsit de cotxes, fet que ens fa decidir no tornar-hi, la foto ja la tenim! Visitem Mere, concretament Stourhead, més meravellats per les hectàrees de jardins que pels interiors de la gran casa d'època. Passegem per Shaftesbury, petit poblet d’interior amb vistes a tota la zona rural, i també Salisbury, amb molt més moviment i gent. Carreguem maletes al cotxe i ens parem a Bath, on fem una breu visita i veiem una ciutat ordenada i plena de turistes. Dormim a Saltford, i des d’allà anem a Bristol que no té res a veure amb la ciutat anterior, potser no tan bonica d'entrada, però en tot cas més viva: passegem, visitem el Mshed Museum, busquem algun rastre de Banksy pels carrers i amb la Sam i en Tim anem a veure el Clifton Bridge, fet per Brunnel el 1864! Tornem a la carretera i entrem a Wales!!!

After 7 years travelling further Europe, we spent last summer in the UK. We flew in different days and flights, but our trip together started at the end of the month in Bournemouth airport. 

We spent our first week in Poole where the Fultons' (a kind and nice family that one of us had already met) offered us to stay at their house in exchange for taking care of Dylan (the dog) and the garden. So, Fiona, Collin and Alexander went to Gran Canaria and we spent the week in their house; an excellent beginning!

We were in a peaceful neighbourhood and we didn't go too far from it, we enjoy getting use to the English routine. So, we had dinner at 6 (long hours before we usually do), we walked Dylan twice a day, we went jogging until the beach and we went around having a tea or a beer in some locals.

After a week, we hired a car and we left Poole, that was the beginning of our route through the south of England.

First stop: Portsmouth, where we met Noe and Joe who know the area perfectly. It's an interesting and special city because of its geography and Joe helped us to understand much better the place and its origins. When the sun went down, we went near the pier to drink a beer, at a pleasant gathering place. After a while, we met sally and Peter (Joe’s family) and the six of us had a nice evening at Jamie’s restaurant (owned by a famous well-know chef). The night ended up having a drink at their home's garden. Next day, we had some tasteful Jacked potatoes for breakfast at the Tenth Hole and after that, we went shopping and we left the city.

Driving on the left side was not as difficult as we expected, so we drove  without worries everywhere. We sttoped to have a great lunch at the Shoe, in Exter, before getting Gillingham, a village not as charmingly, as convenient.

In our way to the village, we got stuck in a traffic jam near Stonehenge. So, we took a picture of it from the distance and we decided we wouldn't come back next day. We visited other places in the area, as Stourhead  in Mere  (a country villa with gorgeous gardens), Shaftesbury, and small village with great countryside views and Salisbury, more alive and busier.

We picked up our bags and got into the car again driving until the tidy and clean tourist city of Bath. We slept in Salford and from there we headed Bristol, a place complete different from the one we had seen the day before, a plece not as nice and clean as Bath, but more intense and alive. We visited the Mshed Museum, we looked for Banksy street graffiti’s and we met Sam and Tim who showed us a new neighbourhood  where there is the Clifton Bridge (made for Brunnel in 1864).

We hitted the road again and we arrived in Wales!!