Category: Holidays

History, Holidays, museum, wales, Walking

Monmouth

The first time out for a while due to the Pandemic , we made a trip down to the borders and a visit & stay in Monmouth Wales. The Town has a rich heritage and History with some grand old Buildings, museums and bridges over the river Wye. We stayed in the [Mayhill Hotel](http://themayhillhotel.com) just a small distance and nice walk across the river right into the Town centre. A Visit to the Monnow Bridge is a must, this old bridge circa 1272 is the last fortified river bridge and it is now pedestrianised so you can walk across no problem.   Other great places to visit are the Monmouth military museum and the old castle . 

History, Holidays

Ross-On-Wye

We stopped on our journey to Monmouth in the town of Ross-on-wye. It’s a small town but has some nice shops and bars. We had a picnic down by the river wye.  I enjoyed this place and would recommend a few hours of your time to have a good visit, there are some good walks along the river bank if you so wish.  

FRom Wikipedia

he name “Ross” is derived from the Welsh or Celtic for ‘a promontory’. It was renamed “Ross-on-Wye” in 1931 by the General Post Office, due to confusion with other places of the same or similar name (for example, Ross in Scotland).[3]

Ross-on-Wye promotes itself as “the birthplace of British tourism”.[4] In 1745, the rector, Dr John Egerton, started taking friends on boat trips down the valley from his rectory at Ross. The Wye Valley’s attraction was its river scenery, its precipitous landscapes, and its castles and abbeys, which were accessible to seekers of the “Picturesque”. In 1782, William Gilpin’s book “Observations on the River Wye” was published, the first illustrated tour guide to be published in Britain. Once it had appeared, demand grew so much that by 1808 there were eight boats making regular excursions down the Wye, most of them hired from inns in Ross and Monmouth. By 1850 more than 20 visitors had published their own accounts of the Wye Tour, and the area was established as a tourist destination.

History, Holidays

Barcelona Spain September 2019

Well we arrived at the hotel in Barcelona in good time and was pleased with the accommodation in the gothic quarter. A basic room but it was clean and had a nice shower. Breakfast was good value with plenty of choice for you. The Spanish bacon was nice and was worth the money I think. It was in a great position in the city and close to many attractions nearby. 

Barcelona (/ˌbɑːrsəˈloʊnə/BAR-sə-LOH-nə, Catalan: [bəɾsəˈlonə], Spanish: [baɾθeˈlona] or Spanish: [baɾseˈlona]) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within city limits,[7] its urban area extends to numerous neighbouring municipalities within the Province of Barcelona and is home to around 4.8 million people,[3] making it the fifth most populous urban area in the European Union after Paris, the Ruhr area, Madrid, and Milan.[3] It is one of the largest metropolises on the Mediterranean Sea, located on the coast between the mouths of the rivers Llobregat and Besòs, and bounded to the west by the Serra de Collserola mountain range, the tallest peak of which is 512 metres (1,680 feet) high

The Picasso museum Barcelona

You Can visit the Picasso Museum for about 25Euro but watch out for the massive queues, I think you can purchase Prepaid tickets online beforehand and this would be a wise choice. From Wikipedia The Museu Picasso (Catalan pronunciation: [muˈzɛw piˈkasu], “Picasso Museum”), located in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, houses one of the most extensive collections of artworks by the 20th-century Spanish artist Pablo Picasso. With 4,251 works exhibited by the painter, the museum has one of the most complete permanent collections of works. The museum is housed in five adjoining medieval palaces in Barcelona’s La Ribera neighborhood, in the Old City, and more specifically, it is located on Montcada Street,[1] a formerly very prestigious street home to wealthy merchants and nobility from the Gothic to the Baroque periods. It opened to the public on 9 March 1963,[2] becoming the first museum dedicated to Picasso’s work and the only one created during the artist’s lifetime. It has since been declared a museum of national interest by the Government of Catalonia.

Holidays, Walking

Carningli to Newport Wales.

Carn Ingli lies south of the town of Newport, pembrokshire and is a mountain in the Presell hills it stands at 347 metres. We walked from the campsite into the town of Newport and the carn dominates the skyline to the South. The paths going up are steep on good grassland with some rocks along the route however nothing too technical . Near to the top it gets very rocky and a lot of care is needed, when we went up the weather made for hard going due to sea mist coming in. There are remains of a Iron age hill fort near to the summit and also the carn has many mystical myths associated with it have a read on Wikipedia to research before you climb.

 

Mapping:

Links:

For excellent public Transport please click this link.

For GPS data from Viewranger or Garmin Connect.

 

 

Holidays, Walking

Dinas Island to Newport costal walk

A lovely seven mile walk along the Pembrokeshire costal path, with some great hills and beaches along the route. The first part of this walk was taking the excellent poppit rocket costal bus that is excellent for walkers, this took us from Newport to Pwllgwelod car park. The first part of the walk was around Dinas Island

Dinas Island (Welsh: Ynys Dinas) is a peninsula located in the community of Dinas Cross between Fishguard and Newport, Pembrokeshire, in southwest Wales. It reaches a height of 466 feet (142 m) above sea level at Pen-y-fan, marked by a triangulation point. Dinas Head is strictly the northernmost part of the promontory, where the cliffs meet the sea, but the name is sometimes loosely used to refer to this highest point.[1] Dinas Island is contained within the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park and the headland is under the care of the National trust

Cwm-yr-Eglwys (valley of the church) is a small village on the east side of the Dinas Island where you will find a ruined church that was partly destaroyed in a great storm around 1850. There are some benches scattered around and it’s a nice place to sit and look out across the water. The rest of the walk is up and down following the jagged cliffs overlooking the sea, it makes for hard work but the views are fantastic. We looked out for wildlife along the route as last time we walked down here we spotted a large amount of seals basking in the sun.

 

Mapping:

Links:

For excellent public Transport please click this link.

For GPS data from Viewranger or Garmin Connect.

 

Holidays

Cavtat

We got a boat from Dubrovnik old town harbour in some choppy seas and made for the little costal town of Cavtat. The skipper of the boat did not bloody hang about and with high seas we were tossed everywhere however it was fun and only cost 100 kuna each for a return trip back. Cavtat is a lovely costal town full of old Buildings and some nice costal walks around a large forest on the peninsula, from the end you got some great views. Large yachts dock in the harbour but it all seemed a lot of messing about trying to park the things, you even need a diver to help chain them down. Along the water front are a load of restaurant and bars and we had a couple of drinks with views to die for. Well worth a visit to this place if your in the area.

Holidays

Mostar in Bosnia

The end of the trip got us to the city of Mostar in Bosnia. The buildings range from the old Ottoman Empire and the bridge over the water looks great. The day we went they decided to do the Red Bull Cliff diving from the top of the bridge, this resulted in 20 times more people and a load of noise going on. Its very atmospheric walking along the old Cobbled streets and seeing both Mosques and Cathedrals along the same street, and the food smelled great also. We found a nice pub called the Black Dog Pub that was run by an American and he was selling some nice real Ale’s so I had to indulge. Lots of buildings were war damaged and it was sad seeing them along the guided tour we had. It must have been dreadful when the Civil war devided the whole region . A great trip again and glad we passed through Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Mostar (Serbo-Croatian pronunciation: [mǒstaːr]) is a city and municipality in southern Bosnia and Herzegovina. Inhabited by 105,797 people, it is the most important city in the Herzegovina region, its cultural capital, and the center of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation. Mostar is situated on the Neretva River and is the fifth-largest city in the country. Mostar was named after the bridge keepers (mostari) who in the medieval times guarded the Stari Most (Old Bridge) over the Neretva. The Old Bridge, built by the Ottomans in the 16th century, is one of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s

most recognizable landmarks, and is considered one of the most exemplary pieces of Islamic architecture in the Balkans.

Holidays

Kravica falls in Bosnia.

Another trip booked through Viator into Bosnia and Herzegovina. First we had to cross the border twice going from Croatia, this is a laborious process but must be done as we are out of the EU. It takes a little while to get there and a lot of the countryside makes for sad viewing seeing all the old house burnt and blown up from the war. We arrived at a checkpoint then its a walk downhill down to the falls itself. There were a few people swimming in the clear cold water and I would like to see it in the winter, today the temperature was in the 30’s.

Kravica waterfall, often erroneously called Kravice, is a large tufa cascade on the Trebižat River, in the karstic heartland of Herzegovina in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is 10 kilometres (6 mi) south of Ljubuški and 40 kilometres (25 mi) south of Mostar.[1] Its height is about 25 metres (80 ft) and the radius of the lake in the base of the waterfall is 120 metres (390 ft).[2] Kravice is a popular swimming and picnic area and, during the summer, it is frequently visited by tourists from Mostar, Medjugorje and Dubrovnik.

The Kravica Falls area also has a little cafe, a rope swing, a picnic area, and a place to camp.[3] The best time of year for visiting is during the springtime when the fall is at its fullest and the arid landscape turns a bright green.[4] During the high season, various restaurants in the vicinity of the waterfalls mostly offer grilled dishes and fish specialties.[5] Near the Kravica Falls is also a small grotto with stalactites made of calcium carbonate, an old mill and a sailing ship.

Holidays

Island hopping on a local boat with lunch & free wine

Island hopping on a cruise with lunch and free wine

We visited the islands of Lopud, Sipan & Kolocep on a tour with Viator travel. A Great trip this again booked with Vitor Travel. It started in the Harbour in Dubrovnik and we boarded the boat and made our way out towards the islands that surround Dubrovnik . The boat was a bit cramped but there was enough room to move and have a good look at sights along the way. We had a good meal onboard and I had a nice bit of Fish and there was free wine to wash it down with, would defiantly recommend this trip you have plenty of free time and there are loads of bars to nip in for a drink.

 

Sipan also Sipano (Italian: Giuppana) is the largest of the Elaphiti Islands, 17 km (11 mi) northwest of Dubrovnik, Croatia; separated from the mainland coast by the Koločepski Channel; area 16.22 km2 (6.3 sq mi);[1] The population is 500, the island is 9.1 km (5.7 mi) in length, and up to 2.6 km (1.6 mi) in width. It is the largest island in this group and its highest point is 243 m (797 ft) above sea level. Two limestone crests, the higher (Velji Vrh, 243 m) in the northeast and the lower in the southeast surround a dolomite depression, on which olives, figs, vine, carob-trees, almond-trees, oranges and citrus fruit are cultivated. There are two ports on the island, Suđurađ (San Giorgio) in the east, and Šipanska Luka (Porto Gippana) in the west. The island is also famed for its numerous palm tree species that grow on the island.

 

Lopud (pronounced [lɔ̌pud]) is a small island 4.63 square kilometres (1.79 square miles)[1] off the coast of Dalmatia, southern Croatia. Lopud is economically the most developed of the Elaphiti Islands, and can be reached by boat from Dubrovnik, Trsteno, Orasac and Zaton. The island is famous for its sandy beaches,[2] in particular the bay of Šunj. Lopud is the second largest island of the Elaphiti islands, between Kolocep and Sipan. It is famous as the “island in the middle” (Insula Media, or Mezzo). It has an area of 4.63 square kilometres (1.79 square miles) and its highest point is Polačica, 216 metres (709 feet) above sea level. It has 11.5 km (7 mi) of coastline, of which 1.2 km (1 mi) is sandy.

The island of Koločep (pronounced [kɔ̂lɔtʃɛp]; Italian: Calamotta) is one of the three inhabited Elaphiti Islands situated near the city of Dubrovnik with an area of 2.44 square kilometres (0.94 square miles).[1] Koločep is the southernmost inhabited island in Croatia and is locally known as Kalamota. In the 2011 census, the population of the island was 163