Gloucester Cathedral, 2016

From our campsite under Alfred's Tower, we proceeded on to Gloucester, a city we had visited in 2013. After replicating a fine pub meal at the Fountain, we again walked bits of Eastgate, Northgate, Westgate, and Southgate, ending at the cathedral. The city and cathedral are covered well enough in the 2013 posts...http://roadeveron.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/gloucester.html, http://roadeveron.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/gloucester-cathedral-basics.html, and http://roadeveron.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/gloucester-cathedral-extras.html. Our major interest in returning to Gloucester was the fan vaulting in the cloister adjoining the cathedral. It is the first extended use of this kind of vaulting and still among the most impressive instances. And worth a return.

Stourhead, 2016, 3

A call to Stourhead suggested rather more of the rhodos were out, and we decided a third visit was in order. We're not purists. We'd backtracked enough to Newbury that Stourhead was not seriously out of the way for our generally west-by-northwest heading. Not that anything is seriously out of the way here on Albion.

Mostly they're of interest at a distance in landscape gardens,
but they're beautiful up close too

Iconic view

Our walk took a higher road this time, and we got to see a bit
of the obelisk

All manner of green

Some red rhodos still out

Yellow azalea, copper beech, white rhododendron, red maple,
pink rhododendron...

The yellow azaleas still fragrant

Great color everywhere

Tiny-flowered Enkianthus campanulatus

A rhodo wood

More color

The lake

Water wheel and fall

Swan posing

The ducklings hatched! Well, three of them so far

More color

Ditto

The lavender rhodos are out now too

We're glad we came back again

Magical place

Southern Motorhome Show, Chievely, Berkshire, UK of GB

Camping is different over here, and RV shows are different too. The thing to do, apparently, at these regional RV shows is to go and camp at them, making it a long weekend. This we did, arriving Thursday afternoon. By Friday afternoon, some 2,052 rigs were parked in the huge field surrounding the show place (I asked). The facility is sort of like a county fairground, except with few permanent buildings (no 4-H, no Pig Pavillion, no Hen House, etc.) There were scores of motorhomes and caravans (trailers) on display as well as all manner of accessories and accoutrements, many food and drink vendors, musical and other entertainment, bingo, a dog show (of course), and numerous other interesting things we probably didn't notice or understand. It was fun, in any case, and nice to have a little time for relaxation and relative idleness. (PS...we're de-camping now, Monday morning, and fully half the campers are still here....)

One avenue of the camping area; all manner of rigs

Big huge American-style RVs; owned by Brits

Anything American is cool; well, not everything...we always
get questions about Trump...

Also many of the hobbit-sized RVs that certain members of our
party think are so cute; but mostly the B+s and Cs and Bs that
constitute 99% of RVs in Europe

Our rig; we're not big-time flag-wavers ("Patriotism is the last
refuge of the scoundrel"), but fortunately we carry a small
rendition to fly on our even smaller mast

Street scene

Ample infrastructure

Popular sign, for your rig, for T-shirts, coffee mugs, etc.

Many readers have asked what Bilbo did after making all the
movies...

Vegematic before...

And after

Top interest in the show for us...a Hymer on a Sprinter 4x4

We hear that Hymer is partnering with, or has actually purchased
Roadtrek...

Inflatable tent, kiddie playroom

Interior

This model for Princess Bees...

Impossible to convey the number and variety of rigs here...

Thought I'd try a pano, but it only did 180 degrees...

Having seen everything at the show, twice, and being low on
provisions, we took the free shuttle bus into town, Newbury

And on Sunday, between squalls, our walks took us past the
entertainment pavillion. Vicki: I love going to 60s revival
music; even in England it is just like high school--all women
dancing. But notice the two little girls. I don't think 50 years
from now old folks and toddlers will be dancing to rap or
heavy metal.