Thursday, January 19, 2017

Taunton, Somerset, England and Surrounding Areas......

Just finished up another house sit in England, this time in the town of Taunton in Somerset.  Our temporary home was a traditional terraced house or attached house that backed up onto a lovely park. The two story home featured three bedrooms upstairs with a small bathroom and the first floor housed a dining room, kitchen and lounge, or living room to the rest of the world. Our duties included taking care of two cuties named Eric and Buster.

Outside of Building

Our Hired Car....Citroen, Cactus
Notice The Bumper Pads On The Side




Every morning we took the dogs out to run around the field first then put them on a lead to walk through part of the town where we ended up in an orchard.  Known locally as the Frieze Community Orchard it features trees planted in memory of loved ones. Today it looks more like a community dog park since we always saw other dogs with their owners strolling the grounds. From there we followed trails that took us around a small lake and go on forever through the lovely English countryside.

Eric and Buster




Community Orchard


Last Weekend They Had A Wassailing Festival Here.....A Ceremony Of Loud Noises
Believed To Ward Off Even Spirits To Ensure Growth Of The Apples




The historic part of Taunton includes a castle that dates back to the Anglo Saxon period and was later the site of a priory, or a monastery. The little town also boasted some great shopping with large super stores, even one called ASDA that is owned by Wal-Mart the retail giant.

Taunton, Castle











On the Way to Taunton, we stopped at Fishbourn Palace.  This was a palace built by the Romans and later discovered in a field by someone digging up the ground to lay a water pipe.  Incredible mosaic floors and what was left of some of the walls was all the remained. The large palace was built in the 1st century AD,


Looked Like A Tile Warehouse.....Only Ancient






Made a trip to Avebury Henge and Stones.  Bigger than Stonehenge, the site of Avebury just 17 miles north of Stonehenge consists of a massive stone circle 331.6 meters (1,088 ft) in diameter with two avenues of stones leading to a pair of smaller stone circles. Construction began around 2900 BC.  The small town was built around the stones.


Layers Of Clothing.....Even Wollen Long Underwear Under It All













We also visited the city of Winchester and it's famous Winchester Cathedral.  Winchester Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It is one of the largest cathedrals in Europe, with the longest nave and greatest overall length of any Gothic cathedral in Europe Opened 1093 AD







A Jacket Potato Or Twice Baked Potato Stuffed With Bacon and Cheese, Salad
Along With A Ham And Cheese Panini.....We Shared It ALL





Then was off to Bath, UK.  Home of the famous Roman Baths.  The spring was discovered in 836 BC.  Later the Romans built the luxurious bath house there.  After being long forgotten in the late 1800's when some Victorian era houses were built on the site.  One of the houses developed terrible flooding in it's basement.  Further exploration uncovered the long forgotten Roman Baths.  The house were razed and they rebuilt the baths and it has become a major tourist attraction



Looked Inviting But They Are For SHOW ONLY







Last road trip was to Bristol.  On the way we drove under the Clifton Suspension Bridge. Construction started in 1829.  Then off to Bristol to see it's beautiful Cathedral and interesting historic center.















Tonight we are taking a break by exploring Cardiff, Wales before heading back into England for our next house sit. Enjoy the photos and stay tuned for more adventures as we travel the would house and pet sitting......along the gringo trail.

Terry and Clyde are able to "Travel The World House Sitting"  and so can you!  We have created a website to help people who want to learn about house sitting.    Information for both the prospective house sitter and for someone who needs a house sitter.

the New Website                          -->  CLICK HERE

How to Get Your First House Sit -->  CLICK HERE

How to find a house sitter          ---->  CLICK HERE

1 comment:

  1. Absolutely the most fantastic house sitters, I cannot recommend them enough, my Eric and Buster are extremely happy and healthy and my home immaculate ! I am also glad you have enjoyed this part of the country and look forward to seeing you again, Love Tracey xx

    ReplyDelete

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