Monday, 30 June 2014

Wales

Clearly my discipline in writing is waning. I'm in Switzerland now, enjoying an abundance of bread and crisp tap water. I desperately need to clear my backlog, going back from the previous post. Which brings me to Wales!

Beautiful Wales. I was there from 12 to 14 May. A bit too short I think, but I was in between exams then, so I chose not to risk it. The ferry there from Dublin was a steal: ten euros one way. I booked me a decent bed and breakfast at a good price too.

I must say Wales took me by surprise. I spent most of my time on the western side in a village called Caernarfon (pronounced ke-NAR-ven). It's an old village whose main purpose is to look old and entertain tourists. Even so, it kinda held its own charm.


Emblem birdies

Taverns

Now defunct club


Colours in the sun

Wales has a lot going for it. Firstly, its food. I had presumed that Welsh food would be like English, rather plain and uninspiring. Turns out they have some interesting stuff.

Strange, scone-like cakes

Well that was the only thing I remembered to take a picture of. The Welsh eat this seaweed they call laver. I had it shredded as a side dish, but they also make it into a bread. It's got an interesting tangy taste. There's lots of sheep in Wales too, to the joy of lamb lovers.

There were a couple of things I wanted to try but didn't: particularly Faggot (liver meatballs) and Rarebit (grilled cheese). If you haven't noticed by now the Welsh have a way with naming things.

The other great thing about Wales would be nature. This is the sea view from Caernarfon:

Pretty blue waters

Pretty blue skies

Pretty blue everything

Of course I hadn't gone all the way to Wales without visiting Snowdonia. I thought since I had so little time there I would go to the essence of essence, the heart of hearts of the national park: Snowdon, of Snowdonia.

It was a long way up. A thousand metres high. Thankfully I didn't walk it. I took a train.


Meet Thomas!

Rest stop to refuel on the coal
We were in the clouds. Literally.

This is cloud nine

And that was pretty much all that we got to see. I was very grateful I didn't invest a half a day of hiking to get such a breath-taking view.

Even so, the village at the foot of Snowdon was quite pleasant. It's called Llandberis (say it as if there's only one 'l').

Happy buildings


Cool mural

Okay there wasn't a awful lot to do there but it had a few nice shops and cafes. I also think it was the off-peak season when I was there, so maybe not all shops were open. The other hint was the utter lack of individuals less than three times my age. Not that I'm complaining.

Anyway, I've got to say the best thing about Wales has got to be the dragons though. They make great souvenirs. 

Okay, I half-kid. I think I enjoyed the village atmosphere in Wales best. People knew each other there. They waved hello and chatted as they passed each other on the street. It was especially cool that all these exchanges happened in Welsh. It's a strange sounding language, but it's nice they keep their heritage language (at least in the west).

I would have liked to be able to drive around to the other villages. Particularly this one that was dedicated to local crafts. Too bad I didn't have enough time, or a driving licence. 

Thursday, 12 June 2014

London

I was in London from the 21st to 3st May. I was a bit disappointed, well blame it on my own expectations. Everything I had planned to do didn't work out. The special ice cream shop I wanted to visit had closed down, the two musicals I most wanted to see were sold out on the three nights I went to get tickets, and I couldn't find the tea my friend asked me to buy back. Okay enough.

The trip itself was pretty good. The museums don't fail. Also meeting up with the fellowship there was good. There were a couple of highlights. I won't go into much detail since London is, well, London.

The good shops are all in the museums

I went back to Camden market. The atmosphere of the place seems to have died down a little, particularly in the stables market. The Locke market was pretty lively though. I thought the shopping there would be good, but it was so so. The food market is the place to be. Behold!

What is this ordinary looking burger?

Zebra meat. It tasted quite sweet actually. It has a nice fragrance, and a slightly pungent after-smell. Sad to say my other meals were not even half as exciting.

I also got to Cambridge. It's a nice place, but a quite the expensive, tourist town. Shops and ice cream carts everywhere. And many people who were evidently NOT erudite/ posh professors, students and co. Despite all the tourist action going on Cambridge looks like a boring place to study. Am I being bitter? Perhaps only slightly. Not saying it's an ugly place though, just boring. Behold!

River canal thing

Who knew punting was a thing with smart, wealthy undergraduates?

Not representative old building
Representative building and amount of bicycles

A less touristy street

That's all really. If there's one thing I've learnt from my trip to London is BOOK YOUR TICKETS TO MATILDA EARLY.  Bye now.

Not Cambridge but still a nice photo