A week in Somerset

I've just come back from a week in Somerset and did the usual bus driver's holiday of checking the local access facilities and comparing them to those visitors to Cambridge would encounter.


I stayed in a farm cottage, which though not perfectly accessible has won some government access awards. See http://www.doublegatefarm.com/



We stayed in near Wells and in sight of Glastonbury Tor. Last year they were filming Hot Fuzz in the City and so we dutifully watch the said DVD while in the locale. Wells Cathedral and Bishop's Palace do their best to give access to their medieval constructions. Though the Wells and Mendip Museum has very little access to their collections.

http://www.wellscathedral.org.uk/



I visited a couple of regional attractions. The SS Great Britain, which is one of the first steam ships, rather than a British wing of Hitler's regime and was designed by Brunel. Brunel was an incredible engineer turning his mind to trains, ships, railways and bridges, one man doing what 4 seperate companies would do now. I wondered what access inventions he could have been nominated for for the Way To Be Awards if he were our contemporary. The ship is in dry dock, though a lift can take all to an underwater experience to see the hull of the ship. Both the museum and ship have good disabled access and the SS Britain is well worth a visit.

http://www.ssgreatbritain.org

The New Orleans Bedroom at the American Museum

Another visit was to the American Museum near Bath. I didn't know what the museum would hold and it is housed in a stately home. The collection was of American antiquites, including those of the first peoples and of all periods since the arrival of the Europeans. Within the house are actually rooms from Wild West taverns, settlers farmsteads and southern plantation houses.

http://www.americanmuseum.org/


Mark J Taylor