Winchester (Tuesday)

First accomplishment: We did not sleep in so late that we missed breakfast!
Second: We used our newly-acquired local knowledge and found our way to the Winchester Park & Ride so we could take a shuttle bus into town and avoid the hassle of town driving and the expense of town parking. We just missed a bus, of course, but had time to admire the landscaping.

Big disappointment: We headed straight for the Brooks shopping centre to see the Roman ruins (the ruins were being excavated on my last visit, in 1989, and I knew that they had been preserved in place, and a museum built in the basement of the new shopping centre. Found it easily enough, but it was “Closed due to vandalism”…

And so we walked around the old streets and visited the cathedral, which is old, too. Quite impressive. Had a great tour guide who knew all the old bishops and sints, etc. Heard the story of the diver who saved the cathedral (went under the foundations to remove vast quantities of peat and replace them with bags of cement. That was in the early 1900s. There are 2 statues to him, with his old-fashioned diving gear. Had lunch there, made by church ladies. I showed Neil the hotel where Mum, Ted and I stayed on my previous visit. The Winchester Royal had no room for us when I wanted to book, but in the end, I think we’re just fine at Marwell, with no driving in town and no parking worries, not to mention the proximity to MA&A.

We met up with “the kids” and went to a pub for supper. It had 2 names: the Hungry Horse was the name of the pub-food chain, but the actual pub had another name, so Mary Ann thought of it by one name while the Hungry Horse stuck in Tony’s mind. The food was pretty good, and enough to choke a horse, as advertised (No, it apparently did not serve horse meat!).

Admired the stars, since the nights are always dark here, although often cloudy. Did more internet research and decision-making and drove the young people home late at night, where they surprised the camp owner with squeaky gate and our lights…they thought it was another prowler (Tony had scared one off the night before.) No shotguns involved, anyway!