Hadrian's Wall 2011
Monday, May 23rd 2011
Day 0 – London to Newcastle and Segedunum Fort
Up until the day before we left we weren’t sure if Jacquie was going to make the trip. She’d been struck down the week before with labyrinthitis, an inflammation of the inner ear which affects your balance. It was making just standing up a problem for her, let alone walking. Fortunately she was feeling well enough to get up and catch the train. She would make the decision about if she felt up to walking when we reached Newcastle. If she wasn’t up to it, there was always the bus.
Jess almost didn’t make it either. The District Line was in fine form, making sure she arrived with only enough time for the two of us to sprint for the train. We made it... just.
The three of us were travelling up together. We were meeting Susan in Newcastle. The weather in London had been wonderfully hot and sunny, we were hoping it would follow us north, but it was not to be. We arrived in Newcastle in the middle of a downpour and took a taxi to our hotel.
We were spending the night at the Jesmond Hotel, which was a great place. It was good looking, clean and comfortable. Both of the twin rooms we had were a good size, the staff were friendly and it was just a short walk to the Metro. Generally I’m not a fan of hotels, I tend to prefer smaller B&B’s as they are more personal, but I would stay here again, no question.
Jacquie wanted to test out her walking ability, so we
opted to walk back to the city centre to meet her mom at the
train station. It was a great chance to see the city and it
only took about 20 minutes.
We could have easily filled another day in Newcastle, but
after meeting up with Susan, we opted to take the Metro out
to Wallsend and check out Segedunum Fort.
A nice gentleman working at the Metro had to explain to us how to use the ticket machines and give us directions, but then we were soon on our way. With a 15-mile walk on the first day, we needed to start early, so this would be our only chance to spend some time at the fort. We brought along our Hadrian’s Wall Passports – a folded card with places for stamps you collect along the path as a souvenir of your journey - and got our first stamp at the reception counter of the museum, ready to start our adventure tomorrow.
Segedunum Fort provides a pretty good introduction to Roman fort architecture. The glass-fronted observation tower lets you get a useful view of the standard layout from above, which at the other sites along the wall you see from the ground.
View of Segedunum Fort from the observation
tower
On the ground there really isn’t much to see here, it’s all paved or gravelled over. The museum has a few neat pieces (we liked the folding fork and spoon), but what Segedunum is really good for is the reconstructions. The reconstructed bath house, even when not working, really brought alive some of the architectural remains we would see later. They also have an imposing reconstruction of what the wall might have looked like at full height.
Interior of reconstructed bathhouse, detail of
cupid riding a dolphin
Reconstruction of Hadrian’s Wall next to remains
of the Wall
Hopping back on the Metro, we returned to Jesmond. We made a quick detour to the local Tesco to pick up some snacks and lunch provisions for the next day. We relaxed and prepared our bags for the next day back at the hotel before heading out for dinner at Pizzeria Francesca. This place was a fantastic deal, the food was cheap (£5-£6 for a main) and the plates piled so high with tasty pasta that none of us were able to finish. The downside was queuing for a table as the place is hugely popular, but after a full belly and a glass of wine, it all felt like water under the bridge.