Welsh Sunshine

We both needed a break from the relentless avalanche of correspondence we are having to deal with re my mum leaving her own home and going into a residential care home, and selling her home. Every day now for about three weeks we have had a pile of letters from estate agents, solicitors, utilities companies and pensions agencies and local council. Everyone wanted a certified copy - not photocopy - of my Power of Attorney, several of them had more than one department who didn't communicate with each other. The estate agency's solicitors sent me a contract which stated that my mother was deceased - where they got that from is nobodies business, certainly not from me! It was quite distressing I can tell you. So we thought we would go and chill out at the caravan.

It was the best idea. Sunshine from sunrise to sunset. The top photo is the view which greeted us early each morning. We put up the awning - I shall draw a veil over that experience! - sat in the sunshine, had a day out in Brecon, Jim went fishing, I had a wander round Llangattock, and caught up on some stitching, and we went out for a couple of dinners with friends. No broadband, no phone calls, no television - bliss!

I had a tramp around Llangattock, the little village where we keep the caravan. No shops or anything else, really, but I found this little gem of a hotel hidden away. We enjoyed a very pleasant evening meal  there on Tuesday.

Jim heading into dinner

The little marina at Brecon

We walked along the tow path in the bright sunshine, for three miles. The round trip was about five and a half miles longer than I would normally walk, so I was quite pleased with myself - every step counts, as they say!

We rather thought we'd like to live in this house - except when the river floods, of course, as it has  once or twice.

A nod to the mining industry in the area, now no more, for better or worse depending on your view-point.

We were hailed by this lucky couple, chugging along sedately in the sunshine. A quick wave, then they were gone.

We dined overlooking the River Usk, watching the evening rise

Jim at the entrance to the Llanwenarth Hotel where we dined with friends on Wednesday. 

The peace and quiet of the four days away was just what we both needed. We are getting to know our way round a little more now, and have plans for our return later in the summer.

Back Home Again

Blimey it's been hard getting back into 'normal life' after our trip to Wales! I think we chilled out so much, everything relating to 'home' firmly on the back burner, that it has taken a few days to re-orientate ourselves.

It was great, and we had brilliant weather. We feel we have more or less got to grips with caravan living - thanks in no small way to the kindness and advice from our close neighbours who shared their experience generously with us.

Above is the Bear Hotel in nearby Crickhowell - our caravan is on a farm in the village of Llangattock. We had a few lunches here!

          Our day out in Abergavenny included a visit to the Market Hall which was fascinating.

     At the back of the Market Hall we watched a sheep auction taking place at the Cattle Market.

Then as we sat drinking coffee in the sunshine I noticed this plaque on the opposite wall - photograph taken with full permission of the folically challenged gentleman seated below it!

Jim's fishing chum, Mark, drove us round several fishing beats in the area. This was one of them .

This lovely looking flower is the Himalayan Balsam, which, though attractive, is a real pest, as it grows prodigiously and chokes everything else.

                                                                     "I see no ships!"

                   It was all very lovely, even though I am not remotely interested in fishing.

We had a trip to Usk, a very pretty little town - more of a medium sized village actually! We made a pilgrimage to this tackle shop which is apparently a shrine for fly fishermen; still run by the daughter of the guy who started it many many decades ago.

June insisted Jim have a photo taken behind the counter. This lady is extremely knowledgable about all things fly-fishing. We were invited to tea but had just had coffee in a cafe in town.

                    And one of me, reluctantly posing on a river-side bench. It was a delightful spot.

Here are a few shots of the camp-site. It really is beautiful scenery.

                Some of the permanent plots have been made to look like Home from Home.

                                  Garden, complete with statuary and patio chairs!

              This little stream separates the main field from a smaller one with no hook-ups.

So now we know what we are doing, I expect we'll be popping across again but when it starts getting chilly I think I will leave it to Jim for his fishing trips! I did do some sewing, and reading, and journalling, but much less than I had expected, but I'll blog about that in my next post. Now I shall spend some time catching up with MY favourite blogs - I didn't exactly miss not having wi-fi but I do have some catching -up to do!