Sunday, October 6, 2013

revilluG

That's Gulliver - backwards - because not only are we like Gulliver in the land of the Lilliputians (see picture of our neighbor's front door) but they drive on the wrong side of the road (see picture of the rare creature Donnus Seriosus).  We are off today to the moors at York then on to visit my friend Hazel McMurtry in Heddon-on-the-Wall near Newcastle-on-Tyne. The "Wall" is the astounding 90 mile long, 20 feet high, 25 feet thick Roman wall built 2,000 years ago to cross Britain at its narrowest point to keep the Picts (Scots) out of Roman lands. Much of this huge, ancient wall is intact and we will see it tomorrow. Today we are riding north on the M1 which is equal to I-575. We are zipping along in the left (slow) lane at 70 mph. The roads are rougher than ours - or perhaps it's the suspension in this Mercedes? 

The British fields along the way - as elsewhere in Britain - have given up their crops and have been meticulously manicured as if to be a golf course.  Makes for beautiful scenery of 50-100 acre plots differently prepared as if a giant quilt - topped with giant modern windmills.

So we headed to the moors in a national park northeast of York. York was established as a major city by the Vikings who came here a couple of centuries after the Romans had finally departed. The moors were beautiful as was the coastal city of Whitby where Whitby Yachts are made. From there we worked our way north to complete our day's 300 miles arriving at Heddon on the Wall to visit with my friend Hazel McMurtry - widow of my friend Ian.

OK, kids at Hasty and Canton. Here's a math problem for you. Each class gets one winner. Winner gets his or her name on a sign put in front of something important here and a photo of it emailed back.  Diesel fuel is £1.40 per liter. There are 3.8 liters in a US gallon. £1 = $1.70.  How much does diesel fuel cost here - in dollars per gallon. Bonus question:  we are getting 46 mpg but a British gallon is 5 quarts. How many mpg are we getting in US gallons and what's our fuel cost per mile?

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