Below is a video of some buskers i came across in the bath mall, they are playing hang’s there flyer was portraying them as ancient instruments but a little bit of investigation reveals they they were developed in 2000 in Switzerland and there main influence is the kettle drum. Anyway enjoy i found them very intriguing and had to take a video. Bath Hang Buskers

Well after another rainy night and morning the sun has come out and allowed me to stroll the sandstone streets of Bath, the afternoon has warmed to about 14 deg and with the sun breaking through the clouds it is perfect weather for exploring. So with map in hand I head out and navigate my way to the central mall area, being Sunday lots of people are about and buskers line the corners all trying to out do each other, the quality is really good and most are trying to sell you there CD’s. Turning the corner I am confronted with the magnificent Bath Abbey, this is a very impressive…

A sunny day greats me as I head out to explore Cardiff, as I am staying directly opposite the castle it is here that I go first, the castle has been changed multiple times and has become a bit of a folly but it is still an interesting building to walk around. It backs on the Byte park which is a lovely expanse of open grassy spaces and tall trees, this park use to belong to the castle and it is nice to see that it has been retained. It is lovely walking around looking at the changing colours of the trees and flower beds as squirrels scamper about hiding…

Today is the first of October, it started raining yesterday and hasn’t slowed up all night, this is a pity as Tenby is a pretty place and would be lovely with the sun out. The hotel I am staying at has been flat out with bus tours of German tourists proving the popularity of this seaside town. Tenby has a wall that was built by the Normans to keep the Welsh at bay, it is a very impressive wall and has 5 entrances into the town which is a typical medieval layout of small twisting streets, the town is laid out around a beautiful harbour. So with raincoat and brolly…

A sunny start to the day as i head out into the Snowdonia national park, as I climb into the mount though the clouds roll in and the showers become intermittent. The countryside is very spectacular though the valleys are lined with pines, elm and oak and the mountain tops are windswept and covered in grass and ferns, the steep sides are the playground of fluffy white sheep who appear on every exposed slope.  Today’s drive is long and passes through many towns whose names I will never be able to pronounce, there is castles and picturesque seaside towns and green fields full of sheep and dairy cows. If you…

Today is the worst start to a day I have had so far the rain is bucketing down, it was only a matter of time before I had real English weather. Today finds me making my way to Wales, but as per usual it will be a windy path to get there, first stop is Blackpool, the illuminations were switched on about a month ago so i was expecting to se some lights, I didn’t think they would be lights for 2 klm along the beach front. It is an amazing sight and would be wonderful to see at night, but i can imagine the queue of families cruising the…

It is a drizzly day today which is unfortunate as I am heading out into the Lakes District or the Fells as they like to call the mountains here in Cumbria. It is not long after leaving that I am into the mountains and lakes, the clouds are hanging at about 700 feet and this is clouding the tops of the mountains. Even with the overcast day I can see the sense of tranquillity and beauty that draws people here in droves in the summer. There are lots of very tiny roads and the trees form square tunnels which are kept meticulously manicured by the flow of tourist buses. The…

Today in cold and overcast and it is snowing in the highlands I am told, it looks like winter may have arrived. After a hearty breakfast I head out into the cold bound for the castle. My short walk turns into a long climb and it is 9 pounds to enter, fortunately there is a guided tour every half hour and I arrive just in time for the start of one. It is a fascinating tour around the castle and the mist and gloomy cold weather creates a wonderful atmosphere for the tales of conquer and conquest. I decide that I will take a bit of a drive in the…

After a leisurely breakfast I drive down to the docks in preparation of leaving Islay, the ferry has not arrived so I park the car by the jetty with its fishing boats and listen to the waves lap against the key, the sun is out but the wind is cold but reclining in the car it is nice and toasty. The ferry journey takes 2 1/4 hours it leaves Port Ellen and turns and sails past the 3 distilleries of Laphroig, Lagavulin and Ardbeg before making its way up the sound past the bottom of Jura to Kennacraig. It is a smooth crossing and i am soon on the road…

Today sees me off to the Kilchovan distillery in the morning, it is a farm distillery and the newest on the island at only 5 years old, they are doing things slightly different from the traditional distillery and the whisky is already showing promise, they are doing everything the same as farmers on Islay would have done 100 years ago and it is interesting to see it all done in miniature compared to the major distillers. This afternoon I headed to Laphroig for the afternoon tour only to find I had mixed up the times, the last tour had left 1/2 hour before. To ease my disappointment I was offered…