July 27, Chester and Manchester

Up at 6am. A good breakfast cleaning up some of the food we had.

Car was all packed under Roger's tutelage and ready to go by 9:30.

Caroline and Steve's home couldn't be better located for golf, food and sights to see  like Harlec Castle. 

I had suggested that we break the 3 hour drive up to Manchester and thought we would stop at Chester. 

Our GPS took us through some beautiful country high up in the mountains,  mostly on roads with no centre line which means you have to pull to the side of the road when you meet an oncoming vehicle. We were definitely in sheep country and rarely saw anything else. 

Too bad it was rainy and foggy because the countryside would have been beautiful if we could have seen it. 

Stopped for gas at a small place for the first time since we took the car. According to the information on the dash it gets about 38mpg which is excellent. 

We arrived at the Wrexham Park and Drive station about 11:30. It's a marvelous system where for 2£ per person you can leave your car and take a bus that will drop you right at the Foregate station outside the city walls. The 2£ includes a return fare and the bus operates every 12 minutes. 

Chester is an old Roman town about 2000 years old. They built the original city walls.  It has been a desirable strategic location over the years due to its fortifications. There is a Cathedral there about 1000 years old built under the auspices of William the Conqueror. 

We oriented ourselves a little and decided what we'd like to do. Then we had a nice lunch at the City Tavern.

After that we all went our own way and agreed to meet back at the bus stop at 2:00. I walked around and saw the Roman Amphitheater 

and Roman gardens which were not plants but artifacts and statuary from other sites.

Then I walked the walls about half way before turning back to meet the guys. Hopped on the Park and Ride and were on the road by 2:30.

Stopped for gas a second time and topped off for returning the car. Some of the driving was on the M6 with speeds of 70 mph and lots of traffic. 

It was actually quite easy to get to the Clayton Hotel at the airport.  I had already checked in online and while there was some confusion at the checkin desk it all worked out.

The guys unloaded the bags and golf clubs and dragged it up to the rooms. 

I asked one of the shuttle drivers where to drop off the rental car and he said follow him. He waited while they checked over the car and gave me the approval to go. They gave us a credit for bringing the car back early. We had driven 682 miles and sometimes it felt like 2000. The shuttle driver took me back to the hotel. 

The Clayton Hotel is a remake of Bewleys Hotel that my Barry, Bonnie and Pam,  Bill and Carol and I had stayed at in 2010 when we originally met Caroline and Steve.  It is much nicer than I recall and is very close to the airport. 

Dave and I went to Steve and Roger's room for a drink and we agreed on 6:30 to meet for supper at the hotel restaurant. 

This was an interesting experience.  Our waiter seemed to have time management/ memory problems. Our orders weren't complicated but they were a long time getting delivered and came out in two shifts.  David and Roger  then Steve and Brian 15-20 minutes later. Getting our bills was a 20 minute process. At any rate my chicken dish was delicious. 

Off to bed at 10:30.