Bath, England to Carmarthen, Wales
Day 9 started at the Roman Baths, in Bath.
The main temple was built by the Romans around 65 AD and the main spring that feeds the Roman spa may have been treated as a shrine by the ancient Britons. Today the springs that feed the spa are still flowing, but the pools aren't open for bathing.
It was a great insight into what life was like in Roman Britain.
Back on the bike, we rode west into Wales.
Much like Scotland, Wales fought hard to be its own country off and on until the 17th century.
It's still a fiercely independent place, even requiring all public signs and notices to be in both English and Welsh languages.
Side note: I used to be able to pronounce the Welsh words and names of towns, but lost that ability a long time ago. Trust me, nothing is pronounced like it looks.
Our first stop was Tintern Abbey, a ruined 12th century monastery.
The Abbey was occupied until the 16th century when King Henry VIII shut down all the catholic churches and monasteries.
Looking at what remains of it today, we could only imagine the grandeur of the monastery in its prime.
Our plan was to motorcycle through the Brecon Beacons area in central Wales, then visit sites along the southern coast of Wales.
Our GPS had other ideas and we missed most of the Beacons and all of the southern coast.
We did make it to Carmarthen in the late afternoon and Sean endured yet another of my visits back to my college years.
Carmarthen is the home of what used to be Trinity College (where I spend a semester in the mid-80s) but has since been absorbed by the Welsh university system.
We walked the same path that I took countless time from college to the town center.
Our favorite take-out restaurant was still open!!
Sadly, the pub where we used to hang out wasn't (but it was still there. It shut down last year during the pandemic).
While the farmland around the college was now full of houses, the campus really hadn't changed.
The dormitory where I lived was still there, as were most of the academic buildings.
It was seriously a fun blast from the past.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please add a comment. We'd love to know what you think of our adventure and be sure to tell us if you know of something interesting to see in your area!