Welsh Castles

Well, the memory card on the camera is finally full up, so we will be downloading very soon. In the meantime, here's some shots taken on Nana Julie's camera when we visited Wales in September.

We had a lovely time in Wales. Our main memories are the friendly people, the fish n chips, the nice pubs, the rain (the weather was below average) and the castles. It seemed as if there was a castle around every second corner.

By far the best castle to visit was Pembroke Castle which is in the pretty town of Pembroke (funnily enough) - not to be confused with the less picturesque town of Pembroke Dock - from where you can get a ferry to Ireland. The Castle is in very good nick, considering it's been around since 1093, and it's huge. The best part about it though is the way you can roam anywhere you like. There's no barriers, saying "don't go here" or "keep out" - you can basically wander wherever you like. To hell with health & safety they say, you can bump your head on low doorways, and fall down uneven stone stairs to your heart's content - it's fantastic.

We've had some feedback that more pictures/info on pubs would be nice. Unfortunately, we didn't get many pictures of the pubs in Pembroke, but I thought I'd mention them nonetheless. Enjoy the pics.


Here's Pembroke Castle from the High St. About 5 yards behind where the photographer is standing is a nice, but allegedly haunted, pub where we had lunch.


Pembroke Castle from the rear - there's another pub about 5 yards behind the photographer here as well.


Pembroke Castle from a bit further along the river - nearest pub is out of shot, off to the left


More of Pembroke Castle


We all got lost exploring the maze of steps and passages in the castle, but Keezee bumped into Jo and Lucy along one of the battlements. We joined forces to find a way out, but somehow got lost again in the next tower.


Caiti & Keezee somehow made it to the top of Henry VII tower - that's us waving.


Lucy taking a break during her adventures. That's the Royal George pub down on the right.


We could see Nana and Caiti waiting on the parade ground in the keep, but couldn't work out how to get down to them. Caiti had somehow escaped earlier!


Nana was happy to find Lucy & Jo when they eventually emerged from one of the doorways into the keep.
Note to parents - Lucy is getting a bit too big for the pram.


Caiti picked a couple of flowers (from where we don't know) and enjoyed running on the grass.


This is Carew Castle, which is a couple of miles up the road from Pembroke. We didn't go in - castle exploring is hard work, and you shouldn't do more than one a day unless your very experienced!


Just to prove we were really there.... by the way, there's a pub in the village just over the road.


And here's the castle at Haverfordwest, which sits on a hill overlooking the town. We didn't visit, as there were way too many shops to divert our attention. Closest pub is out of shot to the right across the river - called the Fishguard Arms from memory.

A Study of Oxford

We came across some photos from the day we went to Oxford, and thought we better post them for your enjoyment. Unfortunately, we were unable to find an original blog title, so we stole the one from Cambridge - maybe we should combine the two together and call it "A Study of Oxbridge".

These pics were taken a few months back, so the significance of some of the locations has been forgotten. Mostly we are standing in from of one historical college or another - there were lots, and by the way, don't ask us how to pronounce Magdalen College.

The one thing that we do recall is how many bikes there were chained up or lying about - many of which look to have been forgotten by their owners, who had either graduated, or had one too many at the local and forgot how they got there. It's a bike thieves paradise. Conveniently for us - we drove by car, and so weren't tempted to make off with a stray.


The gates to the Oxford Botanical Gardens, I seem to recall.


A tower belonging to a college - quite possibly Magdalen.


I believe the building featured here (behind our model) is Oxford Castle - now partly a trendy hotel.


The visitor centre at the castle one of these chain up the prisoner thingies... always a fun photo opportunity.


The castle tower (and Lucy)


A street in Oxford - the name of which escapes me right now


A gate in Oxford - the significance of which escapes me right now

Lucy posing in front of the Radcliffe Camera. Obviously it's a building rather than the type of camera used to take photos.


More posing in front of the "Camera"




Like Cambridge, you can also punt in Oxford


Lewis Carroll used to live near us in Guildford, but obviously he spent some time in Oxford as well, judging by the number of Alice in Wonderland shops.


No prizes for guessing the name of this pub - very popular on a Sunday


And here's a shot of the High Street - good shopping in Oxford too, in case you were wondering.

Caiti's Sports Day

Caiti had a sports day at her nursery (a.k.a pre-school or kindergarten) a while back. It was action packed with all the usual races such as the 15m sprint, but also had a few lesser known events such as the Doll Push and the Shoe Gather (definitely an event designed for females). She looks like a sprinter in the making - winning two of her events, although she might need to put in a bit more work on the Shoe Gather, where she tried to make off with the shoes rather than win the race! Enjoy the pics.


Here she is getting ready for the first race of the day - the 15m sprint.


She got off to a good start. The start is crucial in this event.


Some last minute instructions before the shoe race.


First shoe up.


Second shoe up, shoes in box, now let's nick off with them.


Runners ready.... Dollies ready... On your mark...


Edging ahead at the half-way point


Winner!

Out and About

We've got lots of pics waiting to be downloaded from our camera.... the problem is, we have one of those mega-huge memory cards that you never have to download. Anyway, we'll get around to it sooner or later, but in the meantime, here's a few pics from more of our adventures from a few months back....


Right then. This first lot are from the day Keezee had to drop Jo and her mates off at a charity run for cancer in Guildford. The girls had a lovely time and raised a few quid for a good cause. But while that was all going on, Keezee took the opportunity to try out the walking paths around nearby St Martha's Hill. The countryside around Guildford is very nice for a walk and Keezee thoroughly enjoyed his, taking a few snaps for good measure.







And next we have a few shots of one of our favourite spots to visit, Waverley Abbey, from the day we visited with Nanny Dawn. It was a hot one actually.... check out the red faces on the girls....



How's the serenity?







That was some type of WWII bomber that sailed over our heads while we were there... not sure what type, but it flew by pretty close.