Among the ramparts of Moel Fenlli two days ago, I noticed a stone that looked vaguely like an arrowhead just off the path. I picked it up for a closer look. It had razor edges and a perfect tang (this is not the right word, but think of the tang on a sword, and then think of …
Here’s a reasonably good image of the earthworks at Moel Fenlli. Scanning from right to left, see how the hillside dips abruptly into a ditch and then rises again in a rampart? That’s man-made, circa 3500 BC. Imagine digging enough of that to surround a whole village. Now imagine doing it with nothing but a …
Gillian manages the tiny local history museum in Llangollen, so I tagged along to see the town. I know, I know, I say “I want to move here” about three-quarters of the places I travel. But if I was going to move anywhere in Wales and it wasn’t Conwy, it’d be Llangollen. Llangollen (sort …
(Photo: Part of Offa’s Dyke Trail as it approaches Moel Fenlli) My impulsive jaunt to Llanbedr DC has turned out to be one of the most spectacular field trips of my life. About 15% of that is due to staying across the street from a hillfort, and the other 85% is due to staying with …
(The subtitle of this post could be “…Prior To Almost Missing The Train To The Right County,” but the latter is a less interesting story). Finding myself with an unexpected four-day weekend, I impulsively searched “North Wales” on airbnb. I found a lovely room in a cottage in Llanbedr DC hosted by an archaeologist named …
The fun thing about 19th-century brick dormitories is that when it’s 70 degrees and sunny outside, it’s 80 degrees and musty inside. And when you open all the windows, every spider in Cardiff comes in to host the Welsh Arachnid Convention on the ceiling. And in a building of a hundred girls, you’d be amazed how …
I win.
I took a field trip to Oxford to meet up with high school friends Miriam (atheist religious studies major beginning a term at Keble College) and Regina (world traveller who tagged along for the ride). First we had tea at an unbelievably posh tea room that has its origins as the second coffeehouse in England …
I thought boiled cabbage was just something orphanages served in Victorian novels. But no. Thank you, Aberdare.
Today’s lecture topic was the Eisteddfod, the annual poetry competition that technically dates back to 1172 (although in its current form it was invented largely by, yes, the Victorians). On the edge of campus there’s still a modern stone circle from the year that Cardiff hosted the Eisteddfod. A new stone circle used to be …
I’ve made my triumphant return to Cardiff, having done nothing more incompetent today than lose my second umbrella of this semester. I’ve been living out of a duffel for three weeks. In principle, there’s something very romantic about the gypsy rover idea. In practice, I’m so ready to have the rest of my wardrobe back. …
Circa 1870. This is where the dirty jobs were done—cleaning fish, washing dishes, and so forth. The scullery maid was the lowest-paid and lowest-ranking member of staff.
You can’t be a travel blogger visiting the Netherlands without doing a post about the windmills. I was going to do a series of photos walking you through all the mechanics of the windmills at Kinderdijk, until I realized I don’t really understand the mechanics of anything invented more recently than the wheel. So here, …
Here’s an English —> Dutch translation tip: When you say “coffeeshop,” the manager behind the front desk at your youth hostel hears “marijuana dispensary.” So if you ask for a coffeeshop recommendation, you’ll end up somewhere called The Green Place. The laws around marijuana in the Netherlands are fascinating. “Coffeeshops” can’t legally advertise, so you don’t …
…And at this point I’m running out of steam for a lengthy post, so here’s the Cliff Notes. (Don’t worry. Marksburg Castle wasn’t that interesting anyway.) This is Marksburg Castle: This is the outer gate: This is what you walk through: This is the inner gate: And below is the inner inner gate. Are you …
Medieval castle toilet: Since toilets project from the side of the castle and basically provide a free hole in the wall for any enemy with a grappling hook, a strong stomach and no sense of smell, they’re often the weakest point in a castle’s defenses. Toilets were equipped with stout lids that could be latched …
Alsace has changed hands many times between Germany and France, but that’s not why the French Quarter in Strasburg is called that. Above are watch towers lining “Covered Bridge,” which confuses tourists because it hasn’t been covered since the 18th century. (Helpfully, there’s another bridge nearby which is covered, but is not named Covered Bridge.) This is the French …
This is the only photo I took in the Black Forest. The peril of entrusting yourself to a cruise excursion is that occasionally, the attraction of the day is a gift shop. The drive was lovely, but it terminated in a cuckoo clock workshop, a glassblower’s studio, and a food court with “black forest cake” …
You know the question I’m talking about. It’s one that can only be answered on French soil. I knew that in pursuit of answers, I would take my life in my hands (or on my tongue, as the case may be), but I justified the risk, on the premise that I have a responsibility to …
Colmar is a beautifully-preserved market town in Alsace in the floodpath of the Rhine. A gate through the lower story of a medieval customs house opens onto squares and cobbled lanes lined with huge boxy 14thand 15th-century half-timbered houses with shutters and balconies and turrets. The facades are painted cheerful Easter egg colors—sky blue, salmon, …