Wales

We popped over the Severn Bridge to Wales for the day. In this part of Wales, the Welsh comes second on the signs as most here are not Welsh speakers.I rather liked the colours these houses were painted.Chepstow has a rather nice old castle.

"An entry in Domesday Book (1086) informs us that Chepstow Castle was built by William Fitz Osbern. Fitz Osbern, lord of Breteuil in Normandy, was created Earl of Hereford immediately after the Norman Conquest and devoted his energies until his death in 1071 to pushing his boundary westwards at the expense of the Welsh of Gwent. The site of the castle cannot have been much behind his original frontier.


Its purpose seems to have been not so much defensive as to provide a secure base for further advances. For this it was admirably placed, being on the Welsh side of the Wye at the point where the river was crossed by the main land route into South Wales; moreover it overlooked a harbour through which the castle could be supplied at all times of the year from Bristol, and from which supplies could be forwarded by water either northwards up the river or westwards along the coast. Before he died Earl William had subdued most of the present county of Gwent and there can be no doubt that Chepstow Castle played a significant part in his campaigns. "

I do like a good ruin.

Speaking of which, here is my Beloved on a bridge over the ravine/gorge which separates England and Wales. But which country is he standing in?

Another old ruin.

I must point out that my legs are not truly that big. They were just very baggy trousers.

England across the Wye Valley. The Wye is a wonderful river, great for kayaking, as it has some good white water stretches. The British tourism industry started in the Wye Valley in the Napoleonic era. It wasn't safe for the English to go on the Grand Tour of the continent of Europe, so they wandered around this area instead, taking tours by boat.