Max and Paul's Excellent Adventure

The drive to Skenfrith was easy with wonderful countryside literally all the way to our destination. Skenfrith is a cosy hamlet with a population of just under 300. It features a 13th century castle ruin, a beautiful church an... one pub.   We met up with the owners just before they left for Ibiza, just off the east coast of Spain.  We were introduced to Pippin who we'd be looking after for the next 18 days. He's a canine version of a sloth. He would sleep all day in our bed if we left him to it. Hello. Max here. Long time lurker, first-time poster.  It took him a good 24 hours to decide he was our dog and then every bed, couch and blanket was his - regardless of whether or not we were using it at the time. To the point where I had to be firm about getting into bed. As I got in, he dived into the space behind my knees and wouldn't budge. He's obviously used to being told, though, because one firm 'Oi!' from me and he moved over. Grudgingly. 🤣 A Pippin

The best part of the Bagworth sit was the time to just stop and take stock. After being on the road for short bursts and so long, it was great to stay still and emotionally and physically regroup.  Having said that, once we knew we were leaving after two and a half months, excitement filled us as we knew we were heading back into the countryside and more importantly, the Welsh countryside as this has been a journey Max has wanted to do for a very long time. We left Bagworth and stopped in Derby for the night as we had pre-bought tickets for a discussion night put on by the Ickonic crew. These guys run a news/media organisation based in Derby and we follow their news presentations on a regular basis. It was good to be a part of the night and the meet and greet that followed.  Good to see David Icke again. The next morning we left Derby and crossed the Welsh border into Powys where we spent two nights in an Air B&B in some wonderful countryside. The owner gave us some nice s...

We just received news the owners have cut their trip short and will be back on the 18th of March rather than the 15th of April as scheduled. That news is really good from our perspective and we are definitely ready to move on. In fact, we both feel a bit lighter and excited about the next part of the adventure We have made the most of the time here, mainly doing various forms of self-development and we were in a comfortable routine, however, it is what it is. One of the advantages of our position is how flexible we can be when plans change from under us. Max got onto the pet-sitting site pretty much immediately after hearing the news and got us some brilliant sits in the south and west of the UK, which will include one in Llanberis in the northwest of Wales. That will take us to some amazing parts including Snowdonia. In a few days we head west to the Shrewsbury Forest area and start heading to our next sit in Monmouth. The map shows where we will be sitting from next week through to m...

Built as a stately home on 500 acres in the 16th century, Woollaton Hall once was home to some well-to-do families in the area. It was eventually bought by Nottingham council in the 1920s who converted it into a free entry museum for the public. Of course, they kept all the beautiful workmanship and it's a credit to the council that it is freely accessible to the public. On occasion, there are exhibitions on display where we were fortunate to stumble on one.  Woollaton Hall We've been in the UK for quite a while however it is incredible how much there is to see and how much we still haven't seen. The hall was used as 'Wayne's Manor' in the Batman film 'The Dark Knight Rises' Did we mention how dog-friendly cafes are here? Max organising our next dog sit I mentioned earlier that we stumbled on an exhibition. The display was of the works of Willard Wigan who specialises in microscopic art. In all seriousness, you need a microscope to see the work! I couldn...

The posts are running a bit thin as the weather has been a bit challenging therefore haven't been able to get out much with frequent ice on the road. There is plenty of farmland around us and good for walks (except when muddy). No crops are coming up at the moment as nothing gets planted over the severe winter months. Apparently, this town is over 1000 years old with its original name of the town being 'Bageworde' It really does get cold here     A reminder that the town was a major mining village. I made a friend on my walk. A very social chap.   In a lot of cases, the old telephone booths have been repurposed. In Market Bosworth, they encourage people to freely leave and take books.   And, there is an increase of defibrillators everywhere in the UK... There are plenty of these guys around This is as high as the sun gets in the middle of winter Some of the sights on the walks. It's great how one can walk through the farms. There is an unders...