a hard ride to st. albans

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before we catch you up on what weve been up to...let me tell whats been up today and yesterday.

so we head out of hertford on the bikes...biking toward st.albans...basically we made it there..about 15 miles we think..about.....not too shabby especially for us....we feel like were in loads better shape now than when we started....grizz in particullar is really loosing his belly..me..i feel like i look the same even though i know i dont....but i do feel stronger and were biking up hill we never would have thought we could at the beginning of this trip.

anyway....starts getting late and were hungry and dead tired..look for a spot.......nowhere...finally find a field with a ditch beside it..but after we cook dinner there we realize its too close to the bike path..and grizz cant handle the idea of being so quiet so close to the trail..bad spot..pack up and move down teh path a bit.i was ready to get a hotel in town......but we passsed a sheep gate..i stopped to look and lo and behold..and nice open filed!! with nice shrubs and small trees to pitch the tent behind.....obviously its a horse field..but the horses wont be ther again till morning..and thyere not killer....so there we are..nice field....great view..quiet...lumpy...so we slept hard...but not long as at 6 am..here come the horses...

beautiful horses but wondering what the hell we are..and why were in their field..we should rolled over and went back to slepp...but for some reason it spurred us to get up and move into st.albans proper...

had breakfast on an old train platform....but by the time we got into the town proper....we were dead...relax at the train station..fill up the water..use the restrooms....go into town....look for wifi cafe...find an awesome west cornwall cornish pasties company...kinda like a cheesy long john silvers but wiht meaner looking pirate mascot..they were awesome..and the kid filled up the rest of our bottles...everyone again stopping us asking if were on holiday and then realizng by our accent were american..and then they really warm up and just smile an talk to us..nice people here....

go to the library as its free wifi..and we can relax....after that..were even more tired..so we get our nextcamping spot picked out...(close to marlboro..which is close to west kennet long barrow, avebury and the white horse chalk drawing) and go to the white hart inn.......

this place is 600 yers old and brillianbt!!! if you watch blackadder....the high middle ages one..where he wears the white ruff with his black outfit..this is his house!!!

seriously..and the second floor guest loung..IS HIS ROOM.....AWESOME..
not a 45 degree angle to be had here..its so cool....so we wash clothes in the sink..hang em up..watch some telly...and have tea..and nap...grizz is still sleeping as i type this..they even let us put our bikes in an adjacent little garden area..that is all rubbish moslty..being renovated and all but its locked behind a gate so were good with the stuff......

nice pub downstairs..right on the street..im sitting by the door now watching the people go by..typing this in regal elegance....dark wood tables and chairs...and it was the cheapest plce in town and still nice..got the smallest cheapest room...3rd floor...tight squeeze..bend down to get down the hallway..shared toilet..and you can see teh history really in that 3rd floor....floor looks like it thinks its a ship at sea...really bent walls...and feel liek its straight out of the middle ages...oh yeah..it is.

so london....the only bad thing about it was by the time we were done running around looking at stuff adn having a great time...we remembered the british museum..and by then it was closing....which is a real shame..but..

im not going to complaine because by taking lots of advice from rick steves and doing things on the cheap..we have not only seen england..and europe...from the back door...weve come right in therough teh servants entrance!! being on the ground with our bikes...walking and taking the tube and busses..we meet the real people...they stop and talk to us...take us places with them in heir cars..invite us otheir homes.....we get to talk politics and everything with them...(brits think our accent is posh and they think america is awesome and exotic and this place round ere is rubbish) (i laugh and tell em everyone thinks that way about their own backyard)
so we cant complaine too much..i can at least get online or see pics of stuff that is in the british musuem now...but the people and experience we have along the way are one of a kind......we even got to run around and play and splash in the fountains with the other people enjoying the cool water in trafalgar square...the fountains ther are awesome..and cool water adn clean..and its no wonder on a hot day they all congregat ether and splahs about...im never NOT going to splash in a fountain ever again....i have no clue why americans think its a bad idea to do that..its cool....its a fountain....and on a hot day...well i think thats another reason why they were made.....

anyway..st.albans...got an awesome abby here...a big one....and roman ruins...a preserved underfloor heating system for a villa that stood here..teh villa is gone..but the underfloor heating remains..along with a nice tile moaiac floor...and a roman theatre!!!!!! and the local musuem ought to be spot on!!!

the cathedral..which i can see out the inn door now is awesome too....and they have a clock tower...which looks totaly medieval but was built in the 1400's, has a nice plaque on it that states close to there queen..(insert name later cant remember now) in 1293....her dead body passed by her and stayed 1 night on her way from (somewhere) to westminster....and king john was held next door in an inn (which still stands there) when he was captured and held for a time....

history is everywhere...loving it..cant wait to see some proper ruins and espeically some of castles adn abby's..

i know we should have seen more by now..but the bike ride really took it out of us..and the camping is quite hard as well....im glad we went and did this now cuz i dont think we can ever do this hard of a trip ever again....its hotels and proper beds from now on out..at the least we will have to rent campers or vans with nice fold down bed and kitchenettes in em.

for now...its aweosme......and i have been wanting to see england and ireladn for sooo long.....thats why im so torn between i am just so ready to go and see everything!! and i am just so ready to go home.....were ready to come home and were glad its close..until then were just trying to see as many things as we can...on the cheap...as we are having to ask for money from friends and family....so spending it as wisely as we can.....trying to make it last...the pics and memories thou...awesome...cant wait till we get to marlboro now...to see all that stuff..more ruins please!!

just too tired to go out and see this place today..even though its only 5 now....we will rest here...eat tonight..nap..watch telly..and get up in the morning and see it all before heading to the train for marlboro and the camping place tomorrow.

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Photos

england!! 260
black adders room...its the upstairs guest lounge

england!! 268
the hallway by our room door

england!! 265
our room

england!! 261
downstairs pub at the white hart inn