Blogs from West Midlands, England, United Kingdom, Europe - page 6

Ollie is sitting on the drive snoozing away while we have started to plan and organise our next phase of travelling , the ferry is booked , Ollie is booked for a check-up, we know what currencies we need to order and we have to get our International Driving Permits. Woolly says – This meant a trip out to the second capital, Birmingham. It’s amazing how many people you meet when travelling that think we come from Birmingham, living nine miles away it seems that they club us together, I am a Yam Yam. The Black Country is proud of it’s traditions in glass and industry, having made the anchor for the ill-fated Titanic which set it clearly on the map, it is also known for its diverse accents and dialects. They are something to behold, ... read more

Woolly says – it seemed like only moments before we were back on the road, still 1200 KM to go and Ollie was off on his mission. France was empty and we were grateful for it being a Sunday, we watched as the landscape flew past, with hot air balloons taking to the early morning skies, an odd dear having breakfast in the fields and the sun slowly rising. I kept seeing names of places we had been and told Zoe tales about them, it seemed to help her sleep! After a fuel up, croissant and the much needed coffee we started to see signs for Calais ….. Woolly says – no ferry this time we were going for a first for me and Ian and using the Chunnel, I wasn’t sure if I would need ... read more

Locks today 9 – total 38 So much for only 3 hours motoring each day – 6 hours Friday and 8 ½ today to reach good moorings at Crofton. Far-reaching views for most of the way, with a lot of sunshine. The Kennet & Avon Canal runs between (wait for it.....) the R. Kennet in the east and the R. Avon in the west. Hving travelled uphill since we started, today we crossed the summit, via Bruce Tunnel, and the locks are now all downhill. There are two major pumping stations on the canal, on e of which is here at Crofton. Canal water is pumped uphill to the summit to replenish all that is lost downhill as each lock is used. Frequently the summit pond is too dry for full navigation though. There are two ... read more

The 'onwards and upwards' trajectory leads us to the 3rd and final full day of the trip, and the last of the 3 rhythmically-sounding blog entry titles. An overnight stay in the cathedral town of Gloucester proved to be a strategic choice, as I was indeed creeping homewards in various short hops, and the challenge here was to see the best of Gloucester in the space of just short of half a day. The cathedral is far and away Gloucester's most single prominent feature, and its grounds offer the visitor ample scope for viewing this magnificent building from virtually any angle. A few representative photos later, and I was back in the thick of the town's shopping streets, realizing that there was more substance to the town than originally meets the eye. Finishing the trek at ... read more

Welcome to the Severn Valley Steam Train Railway ! If you were asking me what my favorite attraction in the UK was, I would certainly list in my top three attractions the Severn Valley Steam Railway which runs from the town of Kidderminster to the town of Bridgnorth. I discovered it back in 2008 while organizing a week-end around Stratford upon Avon and the Cotswolds with my Friend Christine and our Sunday spent in the Severn Valley Steam enchanted us then and still enchant me now. So it is with great anticipation that I revisited this almost confidential attraction which is well worth a visit by all steam train enthusiasts and amateurs of unspoiled natural sceneries alike. As soon as one enters the old fashioned train station of Kidderminster, one steps back in the time when ... read more