Ludlow Castle

The rain travelled with us on the way to our destinations, beating against the coach windows, but we were spared walking around in it, as it miraculously stopped every time we needed to get off.

Ludlow was our first stop. D had been there recently, and wanted to buy fresh fruit and vegetables, so we did that and then headed off to a Georgian house, which turned out to be closed. Back we went to the castle, cased out the in-house restaurant, then explored the castle first as it wasn't yet lunchtime. The castle was very castle-y. I wish we'd had the guidebook, it helps to understand what one is looking at.

Lunch was excellent. I had some kind of salad with purple sprouting broccoli and goat's cheese. It was the best thing I'd eaten for ages. We didn't have time to visit the church after that, but a little time for wandering around town. D had explored the church a couple of months ago, in any case, and I don't feel a church stop is compulsory in every town.

Next stop was Bridgnorth. The driver mentioned the Cliff Railway on the way in, and after that it was top of my list. We visited a tea shop first. One woman in front of me wanted a vegan cake, and I wanted a gluten free one. The cafe lady said she had both, 'but I don't tell anyone because otherwise they won't buy them'. Under-the-counter cakes, anyone?

The cliff railway goes from the castle in 'top town' to the river Severn bridge in 'low town'. It's the oldest and steepest inland funicular railway in the UK. Now operated by an electrically driven colliery type winding gear, it was originally operated by a water balance system. The two cars have to pass each other on the way up or down, even if one is empty. The CoVid precautions appear to have involved throwing buckets of disinfectant over the wooden bench seats, because it stank of Jeye's fluid. Anyway, it was fun and we admired the Severn before going back up again. We didn't get to the parish church, which from afar looked a bit like Stormont, because D is a slow walker and I was afraid we'd get there and then be on the wrong side of town from the coach as it was about to leave! And it turns out that D has a poor sense of direction. He said if I hadn't been there, he'd have had to phone the driver for directions.

I'd have liked to go on the Severn Valley Preservation Railway, but it was but a short stop, and anyway CleanSteve wants to do that, so we can go back another time.

We returned to the hotel near Telford, and after dinner attended the entertainment. It hadn't been well publicised and there weren't many attending the session. The singer asked if we wanted requests, and as he said he did C&W, I requested Galveston. Poor guy! He'd never sung it in his life before! But he gave it a go. And I rewarded him and the selected company by leading the dancing. My goodness, and I don't even drink anymore! As I've got older, I've noticed I am not bothered about what others might think of me, and it usually starts other people off. Anyway, at least I didn't force myself to dance in a mask, as I did in Scarborough last year, (when probably only half as many people in the UK had CoVid as they do now).

Back in the room now, I've watched Newsnight and am wondering whether to try learning Portuguese for my trip to Madeira, or just go to sleep. Tough choice? I think not.