Welsh getaway part 4

 The drive to Brecon was straight forward. I arrived at 1pm. As I came into the town I looked into every side street to see where I might find a parking space on the road. I was lucky, a row of parked cars on a street to the right, with one space available. It was raining so I had a snack for lunch and waited. The rain eased off a bit and I set off on the ten minute walk to town sheltering under my brolly. 

I passed by the Military Museum. I have no interest in Military so I didn't go in. The buildings here look like they have been very well preserved. 

Not sure I like this mustard colour cottage. A bit yukky. 

Now this colour scheme is quirky and fun. This is more me. 

The renovation of this building is still going on. Not sure what it is going to be, but the front facade looks very in keeping with the towns architecture. 

This building stands tall and proud. It is a combined museum, art gallery, and library. Around the back is a modern extension and main entrance. Take a closer look at it here. 

An interesting picture in the art exhibition. Looks like it is made entirely of old books and newspapers. 

Let's take a look at the Cathedral. More information here. 

There is more information about Brecon here. 

It was raining again as I got back to my car at 5.30pm. Now what? Too early to park up here. Although I started out with a plan it can easily be changed. I am not tied to a hotel booking, so I can please myself. Fed up of the rain so let's drive on to the next place. I decided to head for Carmarthen. I went through Llandovery, and stopped at Llandeilo to consult the map. 

I looked at the distances I need to drive between where I was and the coast at Pembroke. It did not fill me with joy. The further west I go the further I have to come back. It was at that point that I decided to modify my plans. If I want to see the sea, I needn't go that far. Time was getting on and I needed to park up. I headed for Ammanford and on towards the M4. A convenient place to park would be Pont Abraham Services. And so it was. I parked there for the night for £15. It was 7pm. I'll work out what I am going to do the next morning. 

What did I do next. All will be revealed in the next installment. 

In the meantime, in my village, life goes on. Crafty Club yesterday, Post Office this morning, work to do in the garden every day, and I need to go shopping this afternoon. And it's baking hot. 

Thanks for popping in. Toodle pip.   ilona

Welsh getaway part 3.

I left Ross on Thursday morning. The plan was to visit Hay on Wye. Jenny had mentioned it on her blog and it sounded nice. I took the A49 towards Hereford, then picked up a B road. Plenty of pot holes to navigate. I could see that it was going to be difficult to find roadside parking and went into a car park. £3.25 for four hours. It was raining so I had a second breakfast. I usually end up having several breaks on trips like this. Still raining so I set off walking anyway. 

I think everyone knows that Hay is famous for books. 

I like quirky shops. I was almost tempted to buy one of these backpacks, but they weren't very big. 

I did buy something from this shop. A present for Janet for looking after my cats. Can you guess which one I chose. 

It was Market Day. Stall holders were trying to keep their stock dry under plastic sheeting. 

Look at that view. I can see for miles. 

There is a castle. Up the steps to the front door. Look at the inside of the door. 

Very nice to walk around. No time to go inside. Here is a link to the Castle web site. 

St Mary's Church stands on a bend in the road. The door is open so a good opportunity to take a look inside. 

I was amazed at how beautiful it is. Obviously a well loved church. There are more pictures on their web site, along with some historical information. 

Now you can watch my video. 

My time was up on the car park ticket and it was raining again, so time to move on. I had another place in mind. It's much better with the longer days, don't have to park up until it is almost dark. 

More to come tomorrow. 

Thanks for popping in. Toodle pip.   ilona

Welsh getaway part 2

 Here are some pics of Ross on Wye. A walk before bed time. 

This was the church which was open. The choir were rehearsing for their performance on Saturday. 

And, believe it or not, this tower house is for sale. If you've got £350,000 to spare it's yours. But be aware, it has only one bedroom and one bathroom. Check it out here. 

Here is some information about Ross on Wye. 

Thanks for popping in. More tomorrow. 

Toodle pip.   ilona

Welsh getaway part 1

 Good morning. It's Sunday and the sun is shining. 

So, what was the plan for my Welsh getaway holiday. I fancied exploring Pembrokeshire, on the coast. I hear that the beaches are fantastic there, I set off from home on Wednesday at 2.30pm. It's going to be a long drive. I decided that motorway driving was going to get me there quicker. The route, M1 south, M42 south, join the M5 south, I stopped at Strensham Services for a break. Then I got onto the M50 and parked up overnight at Ross on Wye Services. The cost was only £5, which I thought was good. 

The motorway driving was not all plain sailing. Horrendous road works around Birmingham. Massive holes in the ground like you have never seen before. Long queues of traffic to get through. I am not sure what they are doing, putting in new junctions and roundabouts, a bypass or two? It all resembles a huge quarry, shifting thousands of tonnes of muck and moving it around. Hundreds of digger machines can be seen beavering away. Nightmare. If you go down to the south west avoid Birmingham, or get a train. 

It was 7.30pm when I parked up at Ross on Wye services. Still an hour of daylight left so I went walkabout. Normally if you are parked on a motorway service area there is nowhere to walk to. No footpaths. I was surprised that this one is not far from the town of Ross, so off I went. I found a church and luckily the door was open. Inside a choir had gathered for a practice session. Apparently it was the last rehearsal for a performance they were due to give on Saturday. Lucky me getting free entertainment. They sang beautifully. A nice end to the day after a mind numbing drive down the motorways. 

Thursday morning and I was up at 6.30am. I was parked in a quiet part of the car park, next to Starbucks, which had closed for the day. So I had a good nights sleep. Vans and cars were arriving and people were waiting for it to open at 7am. I noticed that at the three service areas I parked at. People need a coffee before going off to work. I have never understood why they don't have a drink before they leave home. Maybe they do, maybe they need a second coffee. 

I carry everything with me so I make my own. I always had a little gas stove in my lorry so could make a drink at any time. Nowadays you see everyone walking around with a cardboard cup of coffee. That's the modern way I suppose, but it creates a huge amount of waste. 

After a leisurely start, I am on holiday after all, I decided to work my way across country to Hay on Wye. You cannot rush on 'B' roads, they are full of potholes, they are narrow so you have to look out for vehicles coming the other way, and be prepared to pull in if needed. After a couple of hours of that, it is equally frustrating as sitting in a traffic jam on the motorway. 

What I noticed in that part of the country is lack of suitable parking on the roadside. It's very hilly, and a lot of houses do not have their own parking space so they have to leave their cars on the road. I gave in and went in a car park. I paid £3.25 for 4 hours, thankfully the machine accepted cash. All the car parks had similar prices.  

It was raining so luckily I had a brolly. 

I'll come back later with loads of photographs. I do not want to sit all day on this computer. 

Thanks for popping in. Enjoy your Sunday. Toodle pip.   ilona

I'm back.

 Good evening. I'm just back from a few days away, and I am shattered. It's a long way to South Wales. I've got photo's, I'll start posting them tomorrow. I have two videos, will upload those to yoootooob. Please be patient. Now I must rest. 

Have a good weekend. Toodle pip.   ilona

The pleasure of becoming whole.

A lesson in psychology on this Wednesday morning. This struck a chord with me. If you make it to the end there are some useful tips. Worth 23 minutes of your time. I think I am on the right track.  

Carl Jung warned that the nicest people are often the most lost. Not because they lack intelligence — but because they’ve been trained to betray themselves just to be liked. In this video, we expose the hidden danger of people-pleasing, why it’s rooted in fear and identity loss, and how Jung’s shadow work leads to the only real cure: becoming whole.

Thanks for popping in. We'll catch up soon. Toodle pip.   ilona

Art at Howden Minster

Hello. It's easier for me to split the photo's up and group them together, and post them when I have time. Most of the art shown here is made by children. This is the last report from my day out at Howden. 

I particularly like this textile picture. You can read the artist blurb below. 

The children had been busy painting pictures with a water theme and they were strung across between the pillars. 

As I came out of the Minster a rain shower arrived. I sat in my car for ten minutes to wait for it to pass. I noticed on the map that there was a Country Park not far away at Eastrington. I'll go and have a look at that while I am here. The walks are marked on the map. It was still a bit drizzly so the umbrella came in handy. I made it a short walk, these kind of parks are much better when the sun is shining. 

Half a mile away is the village and it has a church. I'll have a look at that while I am here. Thankfully the drizzle stopped, but sadly the door was locked so I couldn't go inside. The churchyard was neat and tidy, the grass freshly cut. 

Time was getting on and I had an hour to drive home, so time to go. 

Here endeth the Howden visit. Where to next, I wonder. 

Thanks for popping in. Toodle pip.   ilona

Howden town centre

On arrival at Howden on Sunday, I managed to find a parking space on the road. I try and avoid car parks if I can because I never know how long I will be staying. I don't want to be clock watching while I am out and about. I was close to the town anyway, and when I saw this sign I thought oooh look. I will be right at home here. 😃😎😜

Here are a few photo's. Similar ones can be found on a post from 2017.

The Shire Hall had an art exhibition on two floors. It wasn't busy but I was assured it was very busy the day before. Looks like I picked the right day then. I had a lovely chat with an artist who paints amazing abstract pictures with vibrant colours. I forgot to take photo's because I was enjoying chatting to people. 

Across the road is the Minster. 

A path connects the town to the Playing Field. This building is the back of a school. 

A walk in the park revealed this interesting gateway. 

This is the side door of the Minster. I like the way the chandelier shines through the window. 

And the front entrance. More art inside to view. 

Hard to get a photo of the whole building, it's surrounded by trees. 

The house next door looks almost exactly the same as it did in 2017. 

The picture below is from 2017. The bush on the left has now gone, but everything else looks much the same. Probably the same people are still living there. 

There are a few more photo's to come. Catch ya later. Toodle pip.   ilona