VolCrew

<b>Photography Kit Details</b>

Most of the gear I carry is related to photography. I am not a professional, but I enjoy journaling adventures with pictures. If I have time before a trip, I will scout on the internet and then try to hit some places on a photographic scavenger hunt of sorts.
My normal backpack photo kit consists of:
+ Sony A700 with 18-250mm zoom - Sony does not have as extensive a line of equipment as Nikon or Canon, but I really like the functions, feel and controls of this body.
+ Spare battery - this battery will last all day usually, but I have had enough experience with Murphy to know I need to carry a spare. This also provides camera power while the depleted battery is charging.
+ Polarizing filter - I know; I must be an optimistic to take this to UK. The joke became when the polarizer came out, we could expect rain shortly.
+ Mini-tripod - seldom used and will probably be left behind in the future.
+ Sony HVL-F58AM Flash - awesome in large indoor spaces
+ Spare AA Flash batteries
+ Remote control for camera - fun for group shots
+ Spare memory card – the 12.2 megapixel A700 loves memory cards so I keep a blank ready
The only thing I was wishing I had was the new vertical grip for it. I took lots of portrait-orientation pictures on this trip.

Then, for support after a day of sight seeing, we also need the following back in the room:
+ Laptop
+ Cable for connecting camera to laptop
+ Camera battery charger
+ External hard drive - for making a backup of the photos moved to the laptop

jent103

Really enjoying the tag-team report! VolCrew, your list of camera equipment made me laugh a little. My brother and I are both amateur photographers as well and just got back from the Canadian Rockies. He's more into the equipment than I am and lugged his full size tripod all the way up there. He didn't use it till our last full day in the mountains, where, bound and determined, he got up in time for sunrise and drove out to a lake! I think it may be staying home on future trips too.

fanshawe

Splendid stuff! The details of what you actually saw are terrific, and I also appreciate reading about the particulars of your planning. And haha, the library archives that constitute a graven image! I'm with you there!

By the way, I spotted Aqualung in a London park three decades ago. Glad to know he's still out there (poor old sod).

Looking forward to more!

RM67

Really enjoying this trip report - more please!

BigRuss

Wanna hear about the Cymraeg stuff.

ElendilPickle

Fabulous trip report! Love the tag teaming.

Lee Ann

texasbookworm

<b>Chapter 6--Day 6—August 3--On to Oxford</b>

The weather today was partly cloudy but generally pleasant. To be ready for our pickup at 8, we got ready and all packed up before eating at 7:30. The JustAirports car was here exactly on time at 8, parked at the doorway and ready to load up; we said farewell to our hostess and the driver whisked us to the National Car rental at LHR. Boy, is that area ever confusing! All the rental stuff went pretty smoothly and quickly. We got a free upgrade to a Mercedes C130 which has plenty of room (and is an automatic with a/c—doubt if we need the a/c!). We got both big bags and some of the smaller ones in the trunk and DD still has enough room in her half of the back seat, with our “need to get to them” bags beside her. (Just a note about our luggage: We each had one rolling back, DD a 22”, DH and I a bit bigger. I had a small rolling carry-on and a very small backpack/purse; DD had a messenger back; DH had 2 backpacks, neither very full. At all the rest of our stops, we unpacked from our bigger bags just what we needed for the night so we only had to carry backpacks and smaller bags up the inevitable 2-3 flights of stairs. It worked well.).

DH made sure he knew where all the major controls were and drove a bit around the parking lot before we headed to a real road. At first we couldn’t find a few non-essential accessories/controls in the car; I could only find one 12 volt power port, in the glove box, which we needed for Sheila-the-GPS, but then DH found another in a hidden compartment. We used the glove box one for his BB. He couldn’t find hood release, either, but I did later. DH is an excellent driver and had some experience driving UK rules, but he was still a bit stressed about it! He hooked up Sheila, who had our Oxford destinations already programmed in her, and off we went. He took only one wrong turn just at first but, with Sheila’s help, did great the rest of the way. We couldn’t even count how many times she said, “Approaching roundabout”!

The road to Oxford was busy but flowing nicely on the multi-lane highway after we left the LHR area, and we headed toward C.S. Lewis’ house in Risinghurst, the Kilns, arriving in about an hour. We stopped there briefly and also walked a little way down a path in a nature preserve on former Lewis-owned land to a little pond. It was a brief but special stop for us, especially DD who had not been; how cool to see the windows of the room where he wrote so much that has shaped our worldviews. I know some people who have arranged to be given a tour of the house by the Christian organization there now; that would be awesome! Then we went to Lewis’ church, Holy Trinity, which was hard to find at first (just like when we walked there in 2008—it’s as if the church address on map services don’t match with where you would actually park to go in). We parked at the Vicarage, maybe not “legally” but there were several empty spaces, and from there walked down the shaded dirt path marked “To the Church,” meeting several moms with children in prams, coming from their Pram Service. I’d been told about this service when I emailed the staff to ask if the church would be open at the hours of our probable visit. There were quite a few moms and tots; if anyone is familiar with MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) here in the states, I think it is a similar ministry. There were also some older people going toward the church and we passed some people we overheard say something about a funeral. The church was open, so we went in, but they did seem to be getting ready for a service, so we did not stay long, just long enough for DD to see the Narnia window and the pew where Mr. Lewis is supposed to have sat (although I’ve read it is actually not, because he liked to sit more behind a column!) We visited Mr. Lewis’ grave. The church and graveyard are beautiful, peaceful, invoking reverence. We came to honor Mr. Lewis’ memory but also to linger to thank God for the blessing of such thinkers-writers-Christian scholars as “Jack.”

We drove what seemed like less than 5 minutes to our B&B, Pickwick House on London Road. They had the room almost ready, so we parked in the spacious (for England) car park in front and waited about 10 minutes (we were early; it was before noon). Here I began to understand comments I’d seen about British B&B’s, that they are usually like small hotels, not like a room or two in someone’s house. This one had over 16 rooms (we were in 16) and a lovely dining area and beautiful backyard garden. And this was the only time we were on the ground floor. The room was pretty, spacious, and comfortable with 3 beds (well, DD’s foldout couch wasn’t that great she said but not bad.)

After settling stuff in the room, we walked to a nearby busstop and waited less than 5 minutes for bus which took us to a stop near Magdalen College in less than 15 minutes. On our walk to Magdalen along High Street, we ducked quickly into an antique shop to browse and then got sandwiches at Harveys right across the street. Magdalen, Lewis’ college, opens to visitors at noon and we arrived before 12:30. Inside the College, which is just as beautiful as I remembered, we looked around a bit before DD and I walked down Addison’s Walk in tribute to Misters Lewis and Tolkien. The grounds are immaculate, the flowers abundant, the spires breath-taking, the river charming, the walk shaded and quiet even though we met several other walkers, the history awesome. I am a bit biased because I appreciate Mr. Lewis so much, perhaps, but this is for me the epitome of the Oxford colleges.

Next we ambled along, going past Merton and Corpus Christi Colleges. Oxford is pretty at every turn with a different college’s spires or carved front door around every corner it seems! Merton alumni include Tolkien, T.S. Eliot, and Sir Blackwell (more about him in a minute). DH had been trying to find out if we could see another Gutenberg Bible, since he’s seen one in Mainz and one in the British Library, and he found out there is one in the Bodleain Library. I asked the nice students at Magdalen College who said they didn’t think we could see it but should go there and ask. So we headed next in that direction, also seeing the iconic Radcliff Camera and Sheldonian at some point. At the Bodleian, which is also a pretty building, we could not get in and the Bible is not on display. But in the Library they had a free temporary exhibit on Aubrey whom none of us had ever heard of but was an important historian/librarian/writer/researcher. Bodleian’s website says “The Bodleian Libraries 2010 Summer exhibition examines the intellectual world of John Aubrey (1626-97), one of the Founding Fellows of the Royal Society of London, and a major seventeenth-century scientific and cultural figure.” It was an interesting display of books, records, maps and such. An unplanned excellent stop.

In the gift shop I asked where a public toilet was and was directed to Blackwell’s Books, where I wanted to go anyway! So we headed that way to Sir Blackwell’s shop and had a very pleasant time in this historic, charming, big store. It has floors and floors, like Hatchard’s in London, with dark wood bookcases and brightly colored displays of current bestsellers. It was packed! DH found a table in the café and had “tea”—we shared some sweet which I can’t remember exactly but it was cake I think and was good. I read a bit from the pictures and displays on the wall about Sir Blackwell.

Maria Edgeworth, a novelist from the early 1800’s who influenced Jane Austen and Sir Walter Scott, among others, is a distant relative, it seems. A cousin’s research has found that Maria’s neer-do-well but reformed-later-in-life brother came to America and is my ancestor; Maria never married. I have found her books still in print but was hoping I might run across something by her while on this trip. I looked 2 or 3 places at old books but didn’t see any. Here at Blackwell’s, there was a table with a stack of re-published Helen’s by Maria Edgeworth! It was newly printed and prominently displayed, a featured book! Also I found Belinda. They are paperbacks—but they are now souvenirs! There was a “deal” to buy 2 books and get 3rd for free, so DD picked out something, too. It was fun. Forgot to take any pictures, though!

Then we wandered through the Covered Market; DD found some more bars in a health food store. At some point there I pointed out the carving on a door what might be the inspiration for “Mr. Tumnus,” as we had had pointed out to us in 2008 (on St. Mary’s Passage?). Then about 4 pm I think we went into the Ashmolean Museum, which had been closed when we were here before, so since we had time, we popped in. DD found a bench to rest on while DH and I saw just a few things--some China vases, the Alfred Jewel, some Constable art. It’s not as big as the British Museum but quite extensive and has a lovely look of light in it that I liked. Then he bought a pretty ceramic vase in the gift shop—from China. Not Ming but will remind us of what we saw. (Morse’s Randolph with its bar is right across the street and made it into the background of some pictures!)

Next we headed to the Eagle and the Child very nearby. We got there about 5:30 and found a table in the Rabbit Room! As we waited for our food, we took pictures and talked to some guys from Texas, a couple men next to us discussing Tolkien, and also a local who was showing “his” pub around to a tourist. The food is pretty decent, but even if it was poor, being in the room where these favorite and influential writers spent so many hours is for us worth it!

We then headed back toward town to catch a bus. I had copied down directions for riding a bus back to the B&B from a stop on New Road, but there was no bus stop labeled as the one we needed. A bus pulled up, so DH asked the driver, who directed us around the corner on Castle Street—the bus stop was near where directions said but not visible—and a bus was there and off we went. Another short ride back to rooms where we did nightly “stuff.” Keeping up with all these electronics is a bit of a pain, keeping cords and plugs straight and making it all work. But it’s necessary to do what we are doing. I’m sure we could “do” this with paper maps, no phones, and film in our cameras, but there are definite advantages to the electronics we have, so we have to pay the price of managing them, too. Our room had sliding glass door onto porch onto a beautiful backyard area and we sat out there for a little. Fell in bed! (Great shower the next morning, too!)

VolCrew

<b>Oxford</b>

This house was more hotel-like, but with a very home-like feel. It is a short bus ride from City Center and there is a bus stop less than a hundred yards away. Attractive grounds out back with a large and comfortable patio. Our ground floor room had a sliding glass door that opened onto a smaller separate patio. A third bed had been placed in the floor, resulting in some overcrowding. Since we had the car now, I decreed that the big rollers would stay in the trunk and the smaller bags would be used between the car and the room. This saved me a lot of schlepping later.

Bed: I gave DW the big bed and had a comfortable twin-size bed here. DD said the floor “bed” she had was more like a pallet (as in a shipping pallet, not a sleeping pallet), but I was very comfortable. Rating: ****

Breakfast: Interestingly, the cook actually took our order in waitress-style. We dined in a small multi-tabled room looking over the patio. Multiple choices of juices here, as well as the cereals we typically saw elsewhere. The patio is accessible to guests and you can have your tea and enjoy tobacco products out there. Rating: ****

Shower: With a full flow head and a seemingly unlimited hot water supply, this was the best shower I had. Bar soap, too! Rating: *****

texasbookworm

<b>Chapter 7--Day 7—Aug. 4--Cruising the Cotswalds (more than we thought) and So to Shrewsbury</b>

We slept great and had a marvelous cooked-to-order breakfast in bright, windowed breakfast area about 7:30. We left by 9, into an overcast but cool morning, and headed to Wolvercote Cemetery. Sheila was not clear—“Approaching roundabout—approaching roundabout”--but soon got us on our way and we found it. By the little building in the middle was the expected plaque with Tolkien’s grave marked on it, plus there are some little markers along the paths. JRR and Edith are buried together, and their gravesite is covered with recent tributes in bloom and verse.

Then we told Sheila to direct us to Black Bourton, the village where the Edgeworths--Richard, my ancestor, and Maria, my great-great+aunt--were born. Sheila was a little confused and confusing, but we did find the church. It’s a little country church with stone walls, small but pretty stained glass windows, old gravestones, and some important 13th century murals. It was not exactly a village proper, but a group of houses sat close by and some lanes wound by on their way to bigger roads. (This was as close as I’ve ever come to trying to “research” or visit places of my ancestors; there’s not really much left here of my Edgeworth kin, but I did so enjoy this brief visit to the church in the village where they lived for a brief time when they were small.) As we left it began to sprinkle.

We were now driving on many NARROW two-lane roads winding around and through tiny and small and medium villages. Sheila directed us, and I think we were on more small roads than I anticipated. I think we went through/near/around Burford, Stow-on-the-Wold and Broadway; we were on M5 for a while, and eventually ended up on A458. The countryside, even with the sprinkling rain which muted the colors into almost Renoir-like pastels of gold, greens and blue, was gorgeous with hedgerows parceling fields into geometric designs that stretched in gold, green and tan patches toward the pewter sky. And some of those hedgerows created roofless, narrow tunnels that we wound through, sometimes meeting other cars that seemed to be using 2/3 of the road! I remember in 2005 our tour bus was scooted over into such a hedgerow and actually sustained a significant denting! DH negotiated quite expertly if tensely, despite his limited experience as a driver on the British side. On the Stourport Road southwest of Kidderminster, we stopped at a Subway for us while DD found some hummus and veggies at a little store next door.

After the Subway break we continued to Shrewsbury. We had all three loved the BBC Cadfael mysteries with Derek Jacobi and then enjoyed the Ellis Peters’ books, so we’d always considered Shrewsbury as a possible stop sometime. When we decided to try to spend a day in Wales on this trip, Shrewsbury became a logical destination between Oxford and Conway. As instructed, I called before we got to the <b>Anton House B&B</b> but got no answer. When we arrived about 2, we parked on the street right across from the front door. We headed to the Abbey which was just down the street. It was fascinating; we all enjoyed it a lot. The abbey now is much different, smaller and much redone, since the medieval times, but pretty and interesting; I especially liked the Cadfael/Benadictine monk/Ellis Peters window. I asked what the Latin meant and the sweet ladies in the gift shop tried to help but didn’t know; said no one had ever asked! (Later a Latin-teaching friend translated for me: “Listen attentively to the words [or to every word or to the whole meaning or intent of the word] of the master” and “Pray and work.”) It was a great visit.

Shrewsbury is hometown of WWI-poet Wilfred Owen (we passed a memorial to him near Abbey) and Charles Darwin (we saw his statue in town, near the library). We walked on into the small town and strolled through the old streets with lots of shops and pedestrian areas—but stuff was already closing, about 5 pm! We headed to the castle but didn’t pay to go in; you can walk around the outside yard and up to Laura’s Tower which gave a lovely view of town. Then we tried to find something to eat. After checking at a couple places which weren’t open for over an hour--Mad Jack’s and a pub near it—we went back into the town centre and entered the Darwin Center, a big, multi-level, newish, nice, busy mall but all merchandise stores, not eating places. A funny high point in our search for food was finding DH a WRC rally car (kiddy-ride!) to pose in. But—yay! We found a Marks and Spencer still open; DH went to the café which still could serve him a sandwich and cake; DD and I got some items in the food section and took them to the café. Shrewsbury is small and sure seems to close up early! We passed by and gawked at lots of little medieval structures and shops that look intriguing; if we had been here earlier, we could have gone in and out of plenty!

Then back to the B&B where we were greeted by Louise; she said we could leave the car or bring it into a lot around back, so we just left it. She offered us refreshments and was very friendly, helpful, and informative, and our room was great. (DH found out he had to make some business travel changes AND would have to be on a conference call at 2:30 the next day, so his vacation wasn’t completely work-free!)

VolCrew

<b>Shrewsbury</b>

Exceptional hostess and a very nice house made for a pleasant stay here. When we arrived, she offered tea and a run down on things to do, only one of two hostesses who made this offer. The corner location was convenient to the Abbey.

Unique among the B&Bs was bathroom which had a separate tub as well as a shower enclosure. This suite would make for a romantic getaway for a couple requiring only the one bed.

Bed: We had two beds here and the floofy (too thick) pillows did not suit me; I woke up with a jaw ache. The addition of a second bed led to overcrowding in the room. Rating: ***

Breakfast: My hostess scored extra points with me by explaining, upon check in, what was available in the kitchen and welcoming us to raid the fridge (the only one that did). Although I didn’t take her up on the offer, I did look to see there were yogurts, drinks, fresh whole fruits and cereals available. She followed up with a very good breakfast the next morning. I especially appreciated her interest in finding me the right jam for my toast. Rating: ****

Shower: The shower was a corner enclosure affair which made it a very tight fit inside. However, the flow and temp were fine. Rating: ****

texasbookworm

<b>Chapter 8--Day 8—Aug.5--Winding ‘Round Roads in Wales</b>

Louise at Anton House gave us a wonderful breakfast about 7:30. After DH took care of some business business, about 9 we headed off to Wales. We (well, DH did all the driving!) drove along mostly A roads--winding, narrow, all hedged in, through lots of villages, a lot like yesterday except maybe less traffic and hillier and even prettier. We only got stuck behind something, like a slow truck or farm vehicle, a couple times. DH said he that although he got a bit tired of negotiating the narrowness so much, he enjoyed today because he got to drive like a rally car driver a bit! Gorgeous land, reminding me a bit of Tennessee. Valleys and streams and craggy hills with sheep everywhere as well as horses and cattle. We got gas around Balas, pulling into a tiny station with service attendant. I loved seeing all the bilingual signs. Showers sometimes pelted down briefly, but generally we just had sprinkles and changing skies all day as we drove through part of Snowdonia National Park.

We got to Dolwyddelan castle ruins where it was a little rainy but never dampened us too much. A few others were there at this rather remote spot. We parked in the lot and made the short climb to the entrance, which was somebody’s house it seemed like; a woman and her toddler in arms met us, and we used our GBHeritage Passes for the first time. The castle, which legend says is where King Llewellen was born although he probably was born not here but nearby, is set up on a hill commanding a fine view. Quite windy up there; I’ll bet it got pretty miserable in the winter. It is just a ruin now, but there is one tower that can still be climbed. The vistas were spectacular. The clouds were making the light change across the hills and valleys all the time, and it was just beautiful. We left about 1. We got lunch stuff along the way at a Shell station.

We got to <b>Castlebank Hotel B&B</b> in Conwy about 2. We pulled into a big public parking area and I walked up the steep hill and steep steps into Castlebank and was met by Henrique, who explained that the lot right in front, with several rather roomy spaces, was for us, so DH moved car. It’s another small hotel with 8 or 9 rooms just across from the town walls. Lovely breakfast room; our room was great; lots of information available. Good parking, good view, good room, good food. I was feeling good about my choices of B&B’s after batting 4 for 4!

DH had to wait a bit for the 2:30 business call which only took about 20 minutes, and then we headed across the street to town. It was just a short walk to Conwy Castle which is magnificent—not in terms of size or beauty or completeness but in atmosphere, accessibility and views. We enjoyed immensely the look around, the views, the walk along the tops of the castle walls and down into the great hall/courtyard areas. (Except for legs protesting so many steps!) We spent over an hour and saw just about all of it, but not exhaustively. There is plenty to see and read to keep you occupied much longer—this was true of every castle/cathedral/museum/site we visited. (Remember those “learning hooks” I mentioned in my introduction!? We never exactly rushed usually, but we could have gone more slowly and spent more time, but the pace we set allowed us to see enough for this trip.) We purchased a wool rug and small vases of pretty blue Welch pottery from the gift shop.

We then headed toward the suspension bridge so we could walk out on it for the view back at the castle; it was about 5 pm. It closed at 4:30! We found a disconcertingly high number of places closing up at what seemed to us an early hour for peak tourist season. Anyway, DH walked out onto the vehicle bridge and took a few shots but was disappointed not to get on the suspension one. We didn’t even know or consider that it would be something with admission times.

Then we strolled into town looking around and looking for a place to eat. DH often used his BB to help find a restaurant if I didn’t have a plan, which I usually didn’t because I wanted to remain pretty flexible with our times when pre-planning each day’s itinerary. We ended up at Shakespeare’s in Castle Hotel. They had one of those early bird/2 courses for a set price deal which DH and I tried; DD found a selection of sides she could eat. It was a bit of a splurge compared to most dinners we ate, but we’d been eating so much cheaper than I thought we might, we still stayed way under “budget.” Great food although a long time between starters and mains; DD got pretty hungry and got that “blood sugar messed up” feeling. I had this wonderful payenne soup; I asked what that meant—poor man’s—a lot of vegetables, mostly squash. Can’t remember what our mains were but I know they were good!

After dinner DD just wanted to rest, so she went back to the room and used the internet. DH and I walked past Great Britain’s smallest house and to the harbor area. Lots of people out, strolling, eating ice cream, crabbing (kids mostly). Pretty picturesque! Then we got up on the town walls, which are still just about completely intact, and walked around about half of them, taking lots more pics. Walking along a town’s wall is about as atmospheric as it gets! The spirit of the place is strong here; spreading out before us we could see the town, the harbor, and even the Irish Sea from here. We could see into people’s 21st c. backyards (must be a bit strange to always have the probability of strangers’ eyes on your wash and backsteps!) while standing on these walls that had been patrolled for centuries. The weather had been cloudy all day but only sprinkled a little out in the country side, and we had some really blue skies part of the time. A gorgeous day all in all.

We went back about dusk and finished those nightly electronic chores. In looking at the day’s photography efforts from both camera-people, DH discovered that he and DD had taken practically the exact same shot of a boat on the beach, although they hadn’t taken the picture at the same time. Funny. They had a few other shots over the days that were similar even though not taken at the same time. Our room had a view of the castle, which was great; I looked out right before going to bed to see if I could get a lit-up shot, but all was dark.

taconictraveler

This great tag team report is full of good information,and is giving us a real feel for your family and what you saw, and how you arranged it. very instructive. keep it up!

azzure

We got caught by the 4:30 PM closing times twice; once at Caernarfon Castle and once at the Parsonage (Bronte home) in Haworth. OTOH, we did get good pictures of Conwy Castle illuminated at night! Trade-offs...

annhig

hi, texas & volcrew,

I'm enjoying your two-handed report very much, and your reflections on your trip are very interesting. your "if it's tuesday, it must be Wales" is not the most popular approach on this forum, but you show that it CAN work, so long as it doesn't involve trying to cover too much distance as well, which is the normal mistake made by those planning those sorts of itineraries.

and isn't the British habit of closing everything by 5pm irritating? - especially as it often means that they start getting rid of you at 4.30. it drives us made too!

Hooameye

Texas & Co,
Enjoying the trip report very much, one thing perplexes me though,
"Chapter 7--Day 7—Aug. 4--Cruising the Cotswalds (more than we thought) and So to Shrewsbury".
A lot of Americans and an increasing amount of Australians on travel forums seem to spell the Cotswolds with an "a", always wondered why that is (maybe the way its pronounced with an American accent), anyway, keep calm and carry on the good work.

PatrickLondon

Literary note: John Aubrey wrote an entertaining collection of "Brief Lives" of the celebrities of his time. He's the source of such stories as Queen Elizabeth and the farting courtier, Sir Walter Raleigh's way with her ladies-in-waiting, and someone who claimed to have met a fairy who vanished in a puff of blue smoke "and a most melodious twang". Well worth a read - I think there may be editions available still.

flanneruk

"to Sir Blackwell’s shop"

And you teach English?

Someone like Basil Blackwell (the son of the founder of Blackwell's), if he gets knighted, may be known as Basil, Sir Basil, Basil Blackwell or - Sir Basil Blackwell. But never "Sir Blackwell" - and there's not a single example in English literature of a knight being so described in the thousand years since the title came into commonish use.

Now we see where the weird Hollywood "Sir Blackwell" thing comes from: they're taught it in school.

texasbookworm

Again to all those taking time to read and then to respond--thanks.

Hooameye--Yikes! I hate what looks like sloppy proofreading--missed that; I know it has two o's but was careless. And spellcheck is no help! Your correction will be my learning hook--probably won't mistype that again.

flanneruk--I'm a great appreciator of your wealth of knowledge. I promise I never mis-instructed my students about such title usage--it has never come up but if it does, you, like Hooemeye, have provided another hook so I'll be more aware. I didn't spend much/enough time reading about the Blackwells, Sirs and not, to keep them properly identified, or I wouldn't have referred to the shop that way. And I don't think anyone has ever instructed me about title-usage. So know I now. A teacher must always be willing to be a learner, too, about all manner of things. And while English titles aren't a part of the general American course of study, calling someone by their proper (and correctly spelled!) name is important to me, so I will be more aware of this now.

I am calm and will carry on!

VolCrew

<b>Conwy</b>

The Castlebank Hotel is a three level house overlooking the City walls and Conwy Castle. There are two roomy lounge areas downstairs and a large dining room with half-dozen or so tables. I really liked the look and feel of the public areas of the house; they were very inviting and I would like to just lay around and read there.

In the room, the televisions are not like the US, of course. Here, they are quite small and predominantly flat screens. This B&B had lots of cable stations with one of the tiniest screens I have seen, but it was in line with my bed and had no problem viewing it.

Bed: We had three beds here and mine was great. Rating: ****

Breakfast: We sat at a window table and enjoyed the view of the castle while having our tea. Although we were told breakfast would be at 0800, we went down early and found fruit and cereals already available. Our order was taken with the common paper form in which everyone gets to check off what they want. My comment on the breakfast was “perfect eggs.” I should note that this is high praise from a fried egg addict, but it was all good. Rating: ****

Shower: Shower temps fluctuated. Bathroom sink is in the bedroom. Rating: **

VolCrew

<b>Rental Car</b>

I shopped around on the internet months before our trip. After looking at the options, I rented with National. Although I learned to drive a stick and still can, I specified an automatic transmission in order to spare my brain from having one more thing to do. I had reserved a Vauxhall, but was given a Mercedes C130 auto. According to the National desk guy, this upgrade was because I was a National Emerald Club Executive member.

This baby Benz, with its turbocharged engine, had plenty of power for passing and it seemed very tractable in traffic. The automatic transmission also had a nice bump shift feature that allowed me to easily downshift through the Welsh mountains without taking my eyes off the road. After the first half tank, the information center reported 34 mpg. I didn’t keep up with the actual fuel economy, but in the 1100 miles I drove it, I thought it was pretty stingy with the gas.

The suspension was ride-tuned and the girls both commented they were happy with the ride. Of course, the handling suffered. We were loaded down and the car felt spongy in the corners and exhibited a healthy under steer. The C130 rode on 205/55-16 Continentals which seemed pretty quiet. DD liked the car’s rain-sensing wipers; that system got plenty of exercise.

One of my concerns was having a car large enough for our bags. With the C130, I laid one large roller flat in the trunk, then stood the other large roller on its side with the small roller on one side of the trunk. The medium roller went into the backseat, along with our personal backpacks. DD still had plenty of room in the back seat.