Tintagel

May 04, 2007


WOW! Whilst Jon was visiting, we took the family (and our good friend, Bethany Smith) down to Cornwall and went to see Tintagel Castle. It was AMAZING! (we are SO going back!) For those who know nothing or have never heard of Tintagel, here is some information of interest.

Tintagel sits high above the seas, a most evocative place to visit. One can soak up the atmosphere generated by the dramatic views and wonderful
legends.

Tintagel is famous for its connection with the Arthurian legends. King Arthur was said to be born on Tintagel Island where the remains of the 13th-century castle stand today. Below the castle on the Castle Beach is Merlin’s cave (pictures to follow).

The walk down to the castle completed, you have a choice on what to see first - the church or the castle ... we opted for the castle, seeing as there were toilets nearby (an obvious choice).

The ruins of the castle were very nice, but the VIEW! The view is spectacular! Of course, I made everyone 'touch history' whilst walking around the castle and church! ;) Sir Austin had his sword and defended the castle quite nicely!

There is a certain spot where I almost lost my cool ... OKAY, I did lose my cool! Jacob was sitting at the edge of the cliff and Sir Trips-a-lot (Austin) is walking right by him. Of course, I can't see the ledge below them - all I see is a cliff and Austin tripping. I cried. I cried a lot. End of story. (it is on video, thank you very much) Oh, and the blood-curdling scream I shrieked - you would have thought someone would have come running ... but NO! Whatever ... :(

After the castle, we had a bite to eat at a pub ... Cornish pasty was the fare of the night! YUMMY!

I wish we could have stayed longer! We drove to Exeter and stayed over night in a guest house (they had a Book of Mormon in the dresser ... woo hoo!) and made our way back home via Bath and Stonehenge. (pictures later ... I'm tired!)

Good times ... ;)

London Eye & Sea Life Centre

Austin and Mommy

April 12, 2007

So, I'm a little outdated on my blogspot. OOPS! ;) We'll be traveling back into time to April 12th - I escorted a tour to the Eye and Sea Life Centre. This was at the end of spring break - Jacob was working and Melissa was at Young Women's Camp.

We arrived in London early ... too early to go to see the sea life and too early to get into line to buy tickets for the Eye. Speaking of eyes, look for the "Austin Eye" ... a remarkable work of art! (hee hee)

When the Sea Life Centre finally opened, we had an awesome time looking around! We saw things we never have seen before! Of special interest was the jellyfish ... they were all pokey and weird looking! (judge for yourselves, my dear friends!)

The highlight of Austin's day was when we went and "petted" the sting rays. Yes, thoughts of Steve Irwin (the Crocodile Hunter) flashed before my eyes ... I got over it! Austin, the brave boy he is, finally got over his fear and touched them! They are a bit slimy, to tell you the truth, and a bit prickly at the same time!

Well, on to the London Eye we went! First thoughts: British Airways owns it? I had no clue! Our "flight" was at noon - the lines of people waiting! I am in the wrong line of business ... they must make a fortune!

Seeing as I don't like heights, I was a little "nervi" on the eye! (love my jokes) Austin, on the complete opposite end, practically ran around our little bubble. I was a little on the "foofy" side - things like "Austin, get away from there!" and "Austin, you're making your mother nervous!" escaped my lips more than once!

Afterwards, we just walked around the river Thames ... there was a little carnival and some street performers entertaining us.

Because of Austin's bravery in touching the sting ray (he was visibly shaking), I bought him a sting ray stuffed animal (known as Mr. Ray). We had some fun fooling around with Mr. Ray, I tell you what!

Throwing rocks into the Thames was fun and Austin, always thinking of his sister, wrote her name in the sand and on the slime-covered walls.

A great time out was had by us! If ever in London and have the opportunity to go to the London Eye, it is our recommendation to take a "flight"! ;)

3 Churches Walk

May 02, 2007

Jon Ridinger, a return missionary from our days back in New Mexico (shh...that's a bad word in our house!) is visiting us from Ohio and I thought it would be just hunky-dory if we hiked the 3 Churches hike here in Suffolk County. Usually, the hike starts in Gazeley, but this time we started in Moulton (see the first church) We had fantastic weather-not too hot, not too cold. We were very fortunate to have the churches open and accessible to us (photo ops, you know!). The walk took us a number of minutes longer than usual, and you will see why once we travel to Gazeley. Oh, let me introduce you to the other members of the walking party-Jane Smith and her daughter Bethany and Jane's two sons, Samuel and Jacob.

Okay, on to Gazeley we go, walking through quaint little fields and shady bits of forest. AND we saw a black sheep (he didn't have any wool...three bags full were sold to some random guy, his wife and a little kid down the lane...)

Anyhoo, I'm checking out the impressive dates on the tombstones of the people buried in the church, and whilst ;) I am taking some nice pictures of said tombstones, Jane hails us to come over and look what she found. Lo and behold, she found a stack of books, some dating back to the 1600s, just sitting, literally being eaten alive by bookworms (and I thought a bookworm was someone who read books-I was WRONG) and simply rotting away before our very eyes. I KNOW-hard to believe!

Well, we handled them (with great care) and the Holy Bible was printed in 1612 and a book regarding the 39 articles of faith for the Church of England was printed in 1681 and presented to the Gazeley church in 1686. Right there. On a bench. Sitting. Rotting. I WAS TEMPTED. Can you guess by what? Tempted, maybe, to take one of the books home with me? Tempted I was! There was a register of marriages (and when the banns were cried) from 1823. I know, you are thinking what I'm thinking...genealogy. I could "borrow" the book and bring it back, right? Would the vicar or church members ever notice one of those books was missing? During Jon's trip, we have seen a number of old books - all enjoying a life without worms in a glass box. For a country that is anal about their history, this church has history falling apart right in front of their face.

After I was tempted 4 billion times more, Bethany suggested we write the vicar and ask him if we can borrow the marriage register. (if you want to go on a walk to 3 churches ... I'll go with you and bring my BIG backpack! muah ha ha ha!)

The rest of the walk was spent talking about the awesome opportunity we had to look and touch history and along the way, we spotted some picturesque cottages and not-so-friendly sheep (RUDE).

This is my third time walking the 'circular', and definitely my most exciting! ;)