Hadrian's Wall
Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, England. Sunday, May 23, 1999.
Today was a long, tiring, exhaustive journey. Amy and I decided to do "the ring loop" today, which sends passengers around the East Coast towns for a flat fee via underground. Our first stop was at Tynemouth, a lovely little town nestled on the North Sea coastline. We ate lunch in a church-chapel-turned-restaurant/shops, and then walked through the town to the beach. We even walked ot the town's castle ruins and took tons of pictures. On the walk back, we stopped on the beach and I took off my shoes and ran in the cold water. The second the wind smacked my wet feet, they ached and then I lost all feeling. Despite the discomfort and my need to shriek in pain, it was so worth it. What a great rush! We did a little shopping in the open market at the metro station and then we went around the loop, which included a short ferry ride. By the time we returned, we decided to go to Heddon-On-The-Wall, a town west of Newcastle, to see a portion of the famous wall built by the Roman emperor in 122 a.d. When our bus droppe dus off there, we followed the only sign and proceeded to walk 5 or 6 miles until we gave up, having sighted nothing more than sheep and grass. It clouded over and there was a mist in the air as we walked back to the village. Once we returned, we entered the one and only pub so Amy could use the restrooom and I could get a drink. It was then that the bartender informed me that their town's remains of the wall were a mere 3 or 4 minute walk in the opposite direction we had headed. So, we headed back out into the dreary day and finally saw the damn wall. What a sight it was. Let me tell you how glad we were that we came all the way out to Heddon-On-The-Wall to see the wall.
