Wincanton, England

As we near the end of each of our Sits we prepare mentally and physically to leave for the next destination. What will be our situation, would we have cats or dogs, how many, would we be in rural or urban setting, would we get to spend time with our hosts, if so where and when, and other such details. Barb reviewed the welcome packet provided by our host, Sara, in Wincanton . We would be caring for two terriers, sisters, Martha and Bella, and an outside cat named Mrs. Brown, a curious name. Wincanton is a small town with a population of 5,272 in South West England a couple of hours from London. The town was small and there was only a limited bus system so we’d have to settle for what was available or take a coach to Stonehenge, a 30 minute drive or visit some other attraction. We typically prefer bigger cities because there are more activities, restaurants and bars to frequent. Also, in the bigger cities we depend on mass transit to take us to places further away so we can do whatever we feel like since we don’t have access to a vehicle.

This Sit was going to be about a week and since it was a small town we assumed we would be able to get to a store for groceries and prepare our meals at the house. Barb went into Google maps and it did indicate a couple of restaurants and a bar so we were hopeful, but our grocery store plan would easily get us through the week. We did notice we would only be about a half hour from Stonehenge and there was a coach to take us to London so, we could get Martha and Bella set up for the day and we could pass the time by going to those places. In the welcome guide we also found out Steven, our host, would meet us at the train station. We would recognize him because he resembled Superman, his wife Sara said. I wasn’t sure if he would be in red and blue spandex with a long cape or lite colored business suit under a matching fedora. Sara, had graciously offered to take us to the grocery store so the bus service was no longer a concern. The next day we took the train for the short ride from Swindon to Westbury.

As we climbed out of the wagon I noticed a tall man with glasses who did in fact resemble a casually dressed Clark Kent, without either outfit I imagined. He introduced himself and his son Archie, and lead us to his car. The car quickly left the town of Westbury behind and we were treated to the view of an occasional house and beautiful scenic vistas for the 30 minute drive to Wincanton. Steven gave us a narrative of the views with information about their 450 year old home. For another Sit we stayed in a home built around 1650 and were amazed, we were on our way to a home predating it.

We entered Wincanton and a few seconds later drove into a church parking lot. As we stepped onto the sidewalk preparing to cross the street Steven pointed out the “Nog Inn” free house, Archie’s employer and immediately beside it was “Summer Palace”, a Chinese restaurant, our hosts living next to them. I thought having a couple of pints and going ordering some Chinese takeaway within 25 feet of our Sit was fantastic. He said “We’re going to number 6.” I saw the door with a big silver door knob in the middle with a picture window display flanking each side filled with inflated balloons with the words “Big Up The Party” in a fun font.

Martha

As soon as we put our things down inside we met Martha, a two tone brown and black small Terrier, and Bella, all black. Bella was on the couch in between a couple of pillows looking up at us. Martha was bouncing around seemingly very curious about the new arrivals.

Bella

Sara welcomed us with a big smile and we went on a tour of their home. We met their daughter Amelia and we walked through the house admiring the the coziness and style. Sara runs a business, Sara Kirkby Event Style. Sara does wonderful window displays, party planning and pop up dinners in her home. As we got a tour of her beautiful kitchen, Sara pointed out a loaf of bread she bought for us from the local baker and some banana bread type treats she and Amelia made, they were delicious!

Mrs. Brown

Outside the house was a narrow patio with a tall wall to the left, adjoining the “Summer Palace”, Chinese restaurant, decorated with beautiful plants and flowers. At the back of the patio area was another door which led to Mrs. Brown’s domain. Above the door was a tiny patio with a small opening into the Lilliputian size hide-away complete with a small opening inside and a balcony.

Sara and Steve explained the instructions for caring for Martha, Bella and Mrs. Brown then some of the places immediately outside their door and other attractions a coach ride away. It turns out that there is an Indian restaurant, with an all you can eat buffet on Sunday nights, two pubs, a Chinese restaurant one door down, a Kebab and Pizza place, a delicious bakery owned by Phil, a wine shop run by Jenny, and another restaurant with Cambodian cuisine on Thursdays and Vietnamese cuisine on another night. Later we talked about google map inadequacies. Although, it could be a plot from the townspeople of Wincanton to dissuade tourists from finding out about the attractiveness of this place, brilliant!

Our hosts were driving to France that evening but before they left Steve gave us a bottle of wine to enjoy. He suggested a cozy night in front of the fireplace with the bottle of wine. We decided that was a great idea and did just that. We exchanged well wishes and reassurances and they were on their way.

That evening before the wine, we ate at the Indian restaurant buffet and had a pleasant meeting with Mrs. Brown while she ate dinner. Each afternoon we walked to the park with the twins so Martha could run back and forth with a tennis ball in her mouth and Bella would participate in a proper exercise of fetch. There were always dogs and people in the park and each day we talked with someone. A couple of nights we went to Archie’s Pub, actually called the Nog Inn, for a couple of pints and ate dinner there once. We went to the Summer Palace twice and received a good neighbor discount because our hosts must be nice people. We had coffee and dessert or a savory item at the wonderful bakery several times. Sara and Steve’s good friend Maura invited us over for coffee and conversation. We all walked to the bakery after coffee to enjoy lunch together.

The week passed quickly and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and hoped our hosts would request some additional days for their trip. Unfortunately that didn’t happen but we did get to greet them on their return and hear about their trip and the next morning we enjoyed French croissants and coffee and talking to them one last time.

During one of our conversations with Sara and Steve they mentioned Wincanton was thought of as the least desirable of the three towns in the area, the other two being Bath and Somerset and the butt end of jokes. As Barb and I mentioned several times while we were there and since leaving, to have a tiny town of nice people, good pubs, unusually good restaurants and a picturesque downtown is a very rare treat. If I lived there I would create some of my own derogatory jokes about Wincanton to keep people out so it stays just the way it is.

Four Lads and Three Cats

Liverpool UK

We had a couple of days after our Berlin Sit so we decided to spend them in the Home of the Beatles, Liverpool. We stayed at the Hotel Ibis Style, close to the train station and the bar the Beatles played their first show.

We arrived late by cab getting dropped off directly in front of the hotel. The doors opened to a colorful lobby presented with colorful acoustical panels hanging straight down from the ceiling, there were white curvy framed chairs with brightly colored cushions to the left. On the wall behind the seats is a mural with iconic Beatles references on the wall, walrus, a strawberry, tea shades style glasses and others.

Our room was a narrow room with a white rounded door to the left. Just past that door was a queen size bed with two nightstands, one with a full sized sequined high heeled shoe on top. . The white door gave us access to our bathroom. The bathroom had white walls, white ceiling, white flooring and a white vanity. The only color was our reflection in the large square mirror. Without the shower it had slightly more room than a portable bathroom. From the shower I could reach my arm out straight and drop my shampoo bottle and it would land in the middle of the sink while continuing to rinse off. Except for barely adequate space for our toiletries it had everything. There was a plaque on the wall outside the bathroom, “Abbey Road NW8, City of Westminster”. Abbey Road Studio is where the Beatles recorded their last studio album. Their iconic album cover of the fab four crossing the street over the zebra cross walk is directly in front of that studio. The ceiling was painted white in the center with wide black undulating stripes on two sides ending at the wall. But the room had everything we needed and was comfortable the few nights we were there. That night we talked about going to the bar for a drink but we were both overtired and crashed for the night.

We did some research on the Beatles related sites in the city and we decided The Cavern Club was a must. The Cavern Club has been a popular venue for musicians for over 60 years opening in 1957 and the Beatles played lunchtime gigs there, met their manager, Brian Epstein, and it is where they were first filmed playing during one of those shows. The Beatles were loyal to The Cavern throughout their association with them returning many times. The Cavern now has a coffee shop, gift shop and restaurant above the original music venue.

The floors, walls, curved pillars and curved ceiling is all red brick. Almost every brick has been written on with the names of people, dates and sayings from the many people visiting the bar through the years.The Cavern Club is underground. Immediately after descending from the last step you see a full bar and just beyond the bar are display cases of Beatles memorabilia. The room is divided into three sections of arced brick ceiling and separated by brick pillars flaring out as they reach the ceiling. The center section has the stage in the back and the remaining space is dedicated to chairs around tables. The walls have display cases and photos of the many performers that have played and visited there.

Our favorite photo is beside the bar of the Fab Four, late in the band’s career, standing side by side in front of that very bar. The bar looks the same as today, with taps, similar bar top with the same sign, “The Cavern Liverpool”. At the bottom of the frame is a ribbon plague, “Local Group”.

The night we were there the performer played all Beatles tunes much to the delight of the full house of patrons. The crowd was decidedly older but there were many young people. Irrespective of the age it seems almost everyone knew the words to the songs. We stayed for all three sets and decided it was the best attraction we could have seen in Liverpool.

(Barb: With all the amazing museums, monuments, castles and attractions in Europe, I have to say that being in The Cavern Club was one of the highlights of our adventure!)






Woodlesford UK

After leaving Liverpool, we took a train to Woodlesford which is just outside of Leeds. We were met at the train station by Clivia, our host, and we took a short walk to her home where we met her husband Alan and their 3 kitties, Toni, Penny and Lewis.

Clivia and Alan had prepared a wonderful English meal of Bubble and Squeak. The beer and wine flowed throughout the night as did the conversation. We had a wonderful time!

The next morning Clivia and Alan departed for their holiday.

We spent a wonderful week with our 3 roommates. Clivia and Alan fenced in their patio for the kitties who loved being outside. They made no bones about when they wanted out and we got our exercise letting them in and out! We explored Woodlesford and spent a day in the city of Leeds. We could walk to pubs, grocery stores and restaurants in Woodlesford and the train station was a short walk from the house.

We were lucky to see Alan and Clivia before we left for our next sit in Wincanton. More new friends along this incredible journey!