AngelaLewis

Sep 07

Bim’s Kitchen

By AngelaLewis | Useful Stuff | No Comments

Bim’s kitchen

My first Helpx experience was in North Wales with the lovely Nicola and Bim of Bim’s Kitchen, an artisan food company who make African themed sauces, nut butters and syrups using exotic ingredients such as Baobab, Coconut, Moringa, Cacao and all sorts of chillies. What drew me to their products in the first place is the fact they don’t use gluten or dairy, their creamy sauces are made using coconut milk and coconut cream and I have to say they are delicious. They do use sugar in their products mainly because they use no artificial preservatives. so sugar is used to preserve.

Helpx is a site that matches volunteers with hosts, for instance I volunteer to work for them and they provide me with accommodation and food, in this case no food was provided but I only had to work two hours a day and had my own little flat, so it was prefect.

Nicola gave me a lot of time off to explore North Wales during my stay and I learned so much about the production of their fab products from taking the raw ingredients and turning them into fully packaged gift sets.

First I must mention how much of a perfectionist both Nicola and Bim are, every step of the production process is very meticulous from the cook to the packing and making sure the labels all look the same on the jars, they are very proud of their products and rightly so. Their products are sold online at www.bimskitchen.com at food festivals and through agents to high end delicatessens and artisan food shops.

To begin the process Nicola and Bim have what they call “cook days”, they disappear into their commercial kitchen for the day or couple of days depending on how much they need to cook with their white coats and white hats, the only indication of what is going on is the wonderful aromas wafting across the carpark. I was not allowed to be involved in this process for obvious reasons; too many cooks spoil the broth and all that!!

My job was to make up the pre-cut boxes which I became very good at, help Nicola label the jars and for the jars that had won a “Great taste award” small round stickers had to be applied. The whole process is very time consuming and involves sticking the correct labels on the boxes, correct labels on jars which involves code numbers because every jar has to be traceable in case of any problems, (not that they have ever encountered any but the law states that they need to do this), put the caps on and shrink them to the jar, box the products and sometimes apply twine and wooden label if gift boxes, the whole process takes a long time, there is a machine to label the jars but Nicola and I had a good rhythm going.

I also helped prepare the Airbnb rooms to rent out and visited a couple food festivals with them and helped on their stand. We attended Denbigh and Flintshire show and Anglesey Seafood festival which were both lovely events to get to know their customers and promote their products.

I have to say I enjoyed every minute of working with Nicola and Bim they are lovely people and work very hard, probably too hard, in my opinion, they never have time off, not even a night out, there is always work to do and they are so proud of what they do that they want to ensure everyone who orders from them gets the best products and the best service. It was such a pleasure to play a small part in their business and their lives. I will treasure my memories there forever and their products are the best.

I don’t eat chillies, I just can’t tolerate the heat but they have something for everyone, some of their products have chillies but some don’t. The nut butters and syrups don’t and they taste so good, they do Baobab and Cacao syrup which tastes like citrus chocolate. The baobab is a fruit of the baobab tree sometimes called the upside down tree in Africa because of its shape and the resin that holds the seeds in place within the fruit is ground into a powder which becomes the actual ingredient. The baobab is used in their peanut butter too which also gives it a citrus taste and it is used in their barbecue sauce.

They also do relishes with tiger nut and coconut and chilli jam with baobab which is not too hot for me, in fact I loved it despite its chilli content, because of the other ingredients I find that the chilli doesn’t dominate as it does in so many other products which I have tried before. I tried it with pate on toast with some chilli jam on the top, delicious. Their curry sauces are to die for and my favourite is chick pea and moringa, moringa is a new super food and comes from the plant Moringa oliefera, it is used in powdered form and full of vitamins and anti-oxidants.

It is worth visiting their stall at one of the food festivals they go to; to get a real taste for their products, where you can literally taste every product they have and decide your favourite, which is pretty difficult to pick just one. They have a large chilli lover following because their chilli products are also some of the best.

Make a visit to their online shop and see the range of products they do and you won’t be disappointed.

Sep 06

Wild Atlantic Way

By AngelaLewis | Travel | No Comments

Wild Atlantic Way

Today I woke up on the beach with the sun shining, the beach here is fantastic, beautiful white sand with lush blue sea, the tide doesn’t go out that far so it’s beautiful when in or out. The rocky outcrops are lovely places where the birds land to look at the views. I was feeling pretty good this morning and really loving life, there is something so special about waking up in nature. I made my porridge and ate it looking out to sea, then sorted out my little campsite while listening to Billy Ocean, had a little mad moment singing along to Billy Ocean which seemed quite appropriate being so near the ocean. I had a little dance all on my own with no one around for miles. It was such a liberating moment I just had to record it somehow so I videod myself singing and dancing in the Wild wonderful Ballyconeelly. Don’t laugh too loud, it was fun! Lol

Later I spent some time on the Wild Atlantic way, a coastal road that runs from the North to the South of Ireland on the Atlantic coast and it is pretty spectacular in this area.

Again Gary picked me up and took me on the Connemara loop which takes you around many places of interest and parts of it are also part of the Wild Atlantic Way.

First we passed what is known as the only hill in Connemara, Doolin hill, which has a castle type building by the side of it, which is said to have been built for magistrates many years ago during the time that Ireland was still under UK rule. The castle is now in ruins and is considered on private property but having talked to Gary who knows a lot about local tradition, apparently the local farmer has claimed the castle as his own and has put his own signs up, prohibiting entry, which is not allowed, so I might take a walk there tomorrow.

After driving past the castle we took a trip to Roundstone, yet another beautiful fishing village on the Atlantic coast. It’s called Roundstone because you have to go around the rocky, stone mountain to get to it. It’s part of the Wild Atlantic Way, we then visited Dog bay, another beautiful white sand beach where this time we saw a few swimmers. After that it was on to Recess in Ballynahinch with another beautiful castle which has been turned into a hotel, the hotel owns the fishing rights to all the surrounding rivers and lakes and is a prime spot for catching the best salmon and trout. The grounds are splendid with ancient trees and lakes with water lillies.

The Connemara loop which takes you through the Inagh valley between the two mountain ranges of The Twelve Bens to the West and the Maamturk Mountains to the East. A very beautiful area of outstanding beauty and has been likened to the Highlands of Scotland. The valley is covered in a blanket bog and turf is cut from it for fuel for local families, evidence of this is apparent with turf stacks left to dry by the side of the road. We stopped at a little service area before going through the valley and admired the monuments which had been built there “For no apparent reason” very typical of Irish humour.

We were en route to the only Fjord in Ireland called Killary Fjord when we came upon a layby with trees and fence adorned with all sorts of things hanging from the trees, apparently if you tie something of your own to the tree you will have good luck, always worth a try I think so I tied one of my socks as did Gary. There were all sorts of things tied to the tree from handkerchiefs to sunglasses, jewellery, shorts and anything people can find on them when they pass by.

The Fjord didn’t disappoint, it was a splendid sight with lots of mussel bed activity plain to see on the top of the water, apparently owned by mussel farmers, it is said that anyone can go down to the water and pick their own mussels if they can find any. There are regular boat trips out onto the fjord where you might spot some dolphins and a local walk which was part of the famine relief road dating back to 1856.

Our final stop for the day was Kylemore and a quick stop off at Kylemore Abbey built between 1864 and 1871 as a token of love by Englishman Mitchell Henry to his wife Margaret. The building is now a Benedictine Abbey and has many attractions for visitors including the Gothic chapel and the Victorian gardens. It is surrounded by a tranquil lake and in the mountain behind you can see a mini Christ the Redeemer type statue as seen on the mountain in Rio de Janeiro.

By the time we got back to my tent the rain was starting to fall and the weather had definitely taken a turn for the worst, I spent the night in the golf club and hoped the weather would stabilise throughout the night.

Sep 05

Connemara

By AngelaLewis | Travel | No Comments

Connemara

Today I was taken on a tour of Connemara; it seems there is enough in this area alone to enable me to stay here for the month. The area is just outstanding with magnificent mountain ranges and fantastic white beaches, when it comes to nature this place has it all, Loughs, sea, mountains, fantastic landscape, wonderful history.

I have seen so much in a day I’m not sure where to start, probably best to start with the area I am camping and the places I went to yesterday. I have pitched my tent near Connemara Golf club, a fantastic and wild landscape, the golf club is one of the finest in Ireland and I have been introduced to many people who are part of its charm, the President was chatting to us today about his term of office coming to an end and I have met a few of the ladies who don’t live in the area but have a caravan on the nearby campsite and come down to stay for the summer season to play golf and generally enjoy the area.

On the way here yesterday Gary the lovely man I met at the hotel in Clifden told me so much about the area, he took me on a bit of a trip on the way to the golf club and told me all about Marconi having a communications station at Derrigimlagh, it performed the first commercial transatlantic wireless transmission of Morse code across the Atlantic in 1907.

In 1919 John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown made the first transatlantic flight from Newfoundland to Ireland. They landed at Derrigimlagh, making it the first European site to connect directly with North America by aeroplane. They landed in this area because from the air this looked like the ideal place to land, being open countryside, but when they landed they realised how soft the landscape was and ended up with the nose of the plane dipping in the marshy bogland. There is a 5K walk around the site with the exact spot marked for prosperity. On a hill nearby you can drive up to the top where a monument made to look like the tail of a plane marks the extraordinary feat and points in the direction of the landing.

While I was in Clifden I visited the two churches there which both have spires and can be seen for miles around, they were built around the 1870s, one is Roman Catholic and the other for other denominations. They had beautiful stained glass windows which I have mentioned before as I love stained glass. On the other side of the road to St Joseph’s church is a graveyard where many victims of the great famine are buried.

The Abbey Glen Castle hotel where I went to try and find work was built in 1832 by John d’Arcy of Clifden Castle, it was used in earlier times as an orphanage for girls which then became a mixed orphanage, and it fell into disrepair over many years and was later bought by the Hughes family in 1969. They developed it into one of Connemara’s premier hotels.

After visiting the hotel and being taken on a little tour of the area, I went for a drink in the local pub called Tom Kings pub, I chose this pub because they had the tv on and the Scarlets v Munster game was being watched, I shouted through the pub door, “Come on Scarlets”, this made everyone stop and turn around to see who was shouting, I ended up going in for a drink and having my first taste of real Guinness, I have tried it before many years ago when I was pregnant as advised by the doctor to help my anaemia but this time it tasted much better, so smooth, I ended up having a couple more and enjoying the Craic with the locals, a very friendly bunch with some colourful characters. The Scarlets who are from my home town lost so the locals were pleased, apparently only one of them supported Munster the rest support Connacht which is the area we were in.

After all the excitement of the day I made my way back to the golf club and set up my tent for the night in a beautiful spot overlooking the sea.

Sep 04

Ireland first day

By AngelaLewis | Travel | No Comments

Ireland

Well my first day in Ireland went with a bang lol! What an eventful time I do have. I suppose if I choose to do what I’m doing then there is always going to be problems.

It all started well, I was so excited to get to the ferry port in Pembroke dock, I have never been to Ireland before apart from for the rugby in Dublin and then we just came to watch the rugby then went straight home. But this time I was going to spend the entire month working for someone in Derry beg in return for board and lodge.

I got off the ferry about 7ish and started my drive towards Derrybeg which is the complete other side of the country, no stopping for food or toilet, no time, so I followed the instructions given to me on how to get there by my host, which turned out to be crap and took me 30 miles out of my way. I didn’t manage to get to my hosts house until 2am and as I pulled up I just knew it was not going to be a good experience but I went in and chatted to the lady and decided to give it a go.

We chatted for about an hour and she was really lovely, told me about all the best places to go and that if the weather was ok during my stay that we could go sailing and I could go to the Galway night of culture and join in with the singing, which all sounded really exciting but and this is a big but, the place was filthy, the smell when you walked in the door wasn’t just the smell of freshly cooked food but the smell of years of neglect. Now I’m not house-proud by a long shot but this place was awful. I went to bed and when I pulled back the covers it was obvious that the bed linen had not been changed since the last person slept there, if ever, if the truth be told. But because it was so late I had no option but to try and sleep.

It was the most awful night, freezing and damp bed, and the smell of damp was horrendous, it was obvious that nothing was ever done in the way of cleaning this house. The lady told me the night before what was expected of me and basically she wanted me to clean up after the family every day and to tackle a massive pile of washing that had built up for about a month, and clean the oven as well as feed the dogs, make sure they go out for run and clean up their poo if they had an accident in the house.

The house was full of piles of stuff everywhere, in my bedroom there were piles of stuff across the whole of one wall and in the so called bathroom which only had a toilet and tiny sink, there was more piles of stuff and in the room where the washing machine was there was loads and loads of bags of recyclable stuff which they hadn’t managed to take to the recycling as well as piles of rubbish. It was filthy and I decided I wasn’t staying, but it was too late to leave then, so I tried to sleep, put the alarm on for 7am, packed my bags and turned off the light. This all sounds very judgemental but I don’t mean it to be, I just can’t stay there. I understand that everyone has the right to live as they please.

It was awful, despite the fact that I was really worn out from all the travelling I just couldn’t sleep, so I got up at 7am took all my stuff to the car and waited for them to get up to tell them, I didn’t want to just disappear without saying anything, anyway they got up about 8am and I heard the lady in the bathroom so I just went out to tell her I was off, she was still half asleep but just looked a little puzzled and just said ok goodbye, not that there was much she could do otherwise.

So there I was in the outer regions of Ireland with nowhere to go and nothing to do, I put a message on my Facebook to see if there was anyone who could help me and my friends also tried to help by sending messages to people they knew, but as I was driving around I thought about asking local hotels if I could work for them in return for board and lodge. I drove down the road for a bit and stopped by a lovely lake to have my breakfast and think about what I was going to do.

After breakfast I drove into the next town which was Clifden, a lovely town on the Atlantic coast with beautiful scenery. I went to see the local church and drove along the Sky loop which goes high into the mountain so you can look back down over the bay at the wonderful views, on the way round the loop I came across the Abbey Glen castle hotel, so I thought, it’s now or never, I turned in, parked the car, bit the bullet and went straight in to ask if the manager had any jobs in return for board and lodge.

The manager’s name was Brian and he was sitting there with Gary, the guy who was organising the golfing competition down at the Connemara golf club. Brian said he would think about giving me a job in the week and in the meantime he told Brian to take me round to the golf club so that I could camp safely for the next couple of nights.

Gary was lovely; he took me in his car and showed me all there is in Clifden and took me to the golf club, stopping on the way to admire the views and to look at the interesting features in this wonderful area. We got to the golf club where Gary had to organise leaflets and advertising boards for the golf competition, I helped him sort the signs, he bought me coffee then we went back into town to finish off printing the signs, while he sorted the printing, I went for a walk to find out about buying a new phone for use in Ireland, it was 49Euros so I left it for now, I don’t really want to pay that much for a temporary phone. I came across a pub showing the rugby match between Munster and Scarlets so I stopped in for a quick drink, Gary met me later and we chatted to the locals. I tasted my first proper Guinness; it was lovely so I had a couple more.

Gary took me back to the hotel for me to pick my car up and I drove back to the golf club to put up my tent, hoping to see the sunset, which I did, it wasn’t the best I’ve seen but stunning none the less. With the tent up, I went to the club to charge my electronic stuff and write my blog and eat some dinner. I ordered Irish stew which turned out to be exactly the same as Cawl, it was lovely.

Then off to camp by the sea and wake up with the sun shining and an exciting day ahead!!Hopefully!!

Sep 02

Liverpool

By AngelaLewis | Travel | No Comments

My Liverpool trips

The place I am staying in in North Wales has no wifi and no phone signal so any time I want to upload to my blog or do any online research I have to go to a public place like McDonalds, Costa or Starbucks etc. to enable me to use their wifi but when I get there the wifi is usually quite slow which means I spend a lot of time in these places trying to get all my work done for the blog I write for “Best of Carmarthenshire” and for my own blog as well as social media, skype facetime, messenger etc.

The place I go the most is McDonalds which is up through Caerwys and just on the A55 junction. While I was there one day I got talking to a lady who worked there called Debbie, she told me that she has been thinking of doing what I am doing for quite a while but was unsure if she had the guts to go for it, we arranged to meet up one night for a chat and a drink to discuss my plans and if she could somehow start to do the same. We got on like a house on fire and found we had many things in common, the following night she was going out for a meal with her friend and she checked with the friend before asking me to join them on their night out to Liverpool. I jumped at the chance, on the one hand it was lovely to make new friends and on the other it would be really fun going into Liverpool.

The following night we all met at Debbie’s house and Jill, Debs’s friend decided to drive in as she had been before and knew the way, it took about an hour to get into Liverpool and we parked the car down on Albert Dock, it reminded me a lot of Cardiff bay, very cosmopolitan, we tried to find somewhere to eat on the dock as there were many places which all looked really interesting but in the end we decided to walk into town and try to find somewhere there.

It wasn’t far into town and we reached a big shopping mall with plenty of restaurants to choose from, we all decided Wagamama was the best as there was something we all liked there. It was a lovely meal and a chance for me to get to know Jill as well as chatting more to Debs. I had a really lovely night they then took me to Matthew Street for a drink before going home and we came across the Cavern of Beatle fame. In the short time and little area I had already covered in Liverpool it was obvious that they make the most of their connection to the Beatles! And why not, they were such an iconic band.

Little did I know that the Cavern club was on this street. The Cavern has been a contemporary music venue for more than 55 years. It has played a part in each epoch of music from 1950s Jazz to 21^st century indie music. Many groups have played at the Cavern as well as the Beatles, including The Hollies, The Rolling Stones, Queen and Elton John to name but a few, Cilla Black was the hat check girl there. I haven’t been a big fan of Beatles music over the years but I found myself really excited at being there so we manged to get free entry into the Cavern which was down a few flights of stairs into an underground dungeon, similar to the underground railway stations. It looked like four tunnel shaped sections with a staged area over to the right of the bar where shows were being held but you had to book tickets for these events in advance so we just had a drink and looked around.

It was dark and moody just like the original underground stations but warm and inviting with lots of memorabilia on the walls in cabinets and pictures of the Beatles with some musical instruments and much more. The walls were all bare brick covered in graffiti, anyone and everyone was allowed to add their name to the many that covered all the walls and the ceilings so I tried to add mine, my pen wasn’t working very well so others might not see it, lol, but I know where it is. There were lots of people there enjoying themselves and then a live band started tuning up to begin their act, we stayed for a few songs which were all oldies so we could sing along and dance if we wanted. I loved it there.

We then moved on to another pub further along Matthew Street which was a bit similar to Wind Street in Swansea near where I live, I can’t remember the name of the pub but it was brilliant there, they had a dance floor and they were playing more oldies, mostly eighties stuff so we all danced away the time we had left. We didn’t stay too late as Jill had to drive back, which takes an hour and she had been working all day as a vets nurse and I was working the following morning for Welsh Cycling, we got home about 12 midnight which was fine. I really had a wonderful time. One of the best things about my trip so far has been meeting new friends, not that there is anything wrong with my old friends but you can never have too many friends. Debbie and Jill are lovely people and I’m so glad I met them.

My sister works in Liverpool sometimes so we arranged to meet up while I was in North Wales, but this time I caught the train in from Flint railway station which is only about half hour drive from where I am staying. I got into Liverpool about 6.15 ish and we went for a quick drink in the Liverpool, the pub right next to the station where the bar manager told me they were having Karaoke later on, I thought we might go back but Sis was working the following day so had to be back in her hotel early.

I was treated to a lovely meal by my sister in her favourite restaurant in Liverpool which just happened to be a Thai place called Chuaphraya, the people serving inside were from Thailand (which is not always the case with foreign restaurants in UK) and were going back to visit family in October, which is when I am going there, but they are going to the South and I will be going North, after doing some sightseeing in Bangkok. We had a little chat about their families and the country and I just can’t wait to go. The meal was lovely; I had Pad Thai a traditional Thai dish, getting in the mood for the Thai trip. #Lovinglife!!

Aug 26

Conway Castle

By AngelaLewis | Travel | No Comments

Conway Castle

As I have mentioned in many of my blog posts, I love castles and I have joined CADW so my first free castle was Conway and it needs to be written about it on its own because, to me, it’s the most splendid castle in Wales. I visited it many years ago with my daughter while staying in North Wales for the Eisteddfod and we had a lovely day. At the time, I drove from Bangor but this time I approached from the A55 which is the opposite direction and coming from this direction enhances your first sight of the castle, because it completely dominates the entrance to the whole of Conway town and it just looks so majestic against the seaside and rocky mountain backdrop.

Part of the beauty of Conway is due to the amount of structure which is remaining, most of the castle and most of the town walls are still intact with magnificent towers to climb and many rooms and tunnels to explore. It is set up on a hill overlooking the town and also close to the sea, the walls around the original town are still intact and you can take a wander around the town along the top of the wall with special points of interest en route.

There are fantastic views from the castle and from the walls. Conway is a beautiful seaside village with lots of boats on the harbour which adds to the quaintness of the town and many of the buildings have been built with the same stone used to build the castle which is the same stone that the whole town is built on.

Conway Castle is part of the Ring of Steel castles erected by Edward 1^st in his bid to conquer Wales; it was built between 1283 and 1289. Over the centuries it has played a part in many wars and it was completely ruined in 1665 when it’s remaining iron and lead were stripped and sold off. During the 18^th and 19^th century many painters visited with the aim of capturing the splendour of the castle and the surrounding area. By the 21^st century CADW had taken over and now manage it as one of the most visited tourist attractions in North Wales which has also been classed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Just for comparing purposes Macchu Picchu the ancient Inca village in Peru is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

I have visited a lot of castles since I have been staying in North Wales but there were a lot more visitors at this one, luckily it is so big there was room for us all. There are eight towers with the four at the centre being the highest and you can climb most of them, with fantastic views from the top across the river to Llandudno and the Great Orme. Two bridges were built across the river linking Conway to Llandudno and still remain but only to walk across. A road bridge was built in 1826 which was a suspension bridge built in the style of Menai suspension bridge by Thomas Telford and a tubular design rail bridge was built in 1845 at the same time as the Brittania bridge over the Menai straits by Robert Stephenson.

On the day I visited the weather was not at its best but the views were still glorious, however, by late afternoon the sun was starting to appear which always makes things look a lot better, by this time I was on the walk around the town walls, which is great for getting fantastic views of the castle, it is very steep in parts and can be a bit of a climb, it starts from the castle then picks up behind the railway station all the way around to the riverside and harbour with all the boats.

A lot more houses have been built since the castle was built and many more houses surround the town walls nestling into the mountainside, which makes it very picturesque.

In the town there are other attractions such as the manor house which is a Victorian house open to the public, sadly I never made it inside because I spent too much time in the castle and it was closed by the time I finished the town wall walk. There is also a tiny house known as the smallest house in Wales where you can go inside to take a look at just how tiny it is.

If I had more time in North Wales I would have spent it in Conway, a beautiful town with lots of lovely places to eat and drink, plenty of lovely views and lovely scenic walks.

Aug 19

Rhuddlan Castle, St Asaph Cathedral and St Margarets Church= Culture Day

By AngelaLewis | Travel | No Comments

After work the sun was shining so I thought it’s time to visit another castle, there are so many splendid castles in this area and if you love them like I do you just have to go, I admit they are all very similar but still have their own individuality. Rhuddlan is another impressive structure built on a hill on the outskirts of the town near the river which I must mention was re–directed in 1277 in order to build the castle and have the river running right past forming one of the defences and also to allow ships to come up the river for entry to the castle.

Edward 1^st again had the castle built following the First Welsh War. Rhuddlan was not completed until 1282 and was built concurrently with Flint Castle during King Edward’s conquest of Wales. It was a temporary residence of the kings and it is said that his daughter Elizabeth was born there.

Many battles over the years have ensued at Rhuddlan and the history of all the Welsh and English battles I have been reading about have prompted an interest in Welsh history for me that I never had before, or could it be that now I am old, I am becoming more interested in old things LOL! Anyway further reading is definitely needed.

While visiting, I spoke to the custodian about a sea of metal flowers which have been planted on the hill surrounding the castle whereupon she told me they were for a local hospital to raise funds for a particular department, locals could buy a flower and plant it in the castle grounds at their allocated spot. I must say they looked very effective in the sunshine against the dramatic castle backdrop. She also talked me into becoming a CADW annual member, with a special discount of £10 off at the moment and I would get a refund for my visit that day, so seeing as I intend visiting all the castles in the area, even though I have seen some before, I thought it would be good money management. I paid £26.50 for annual membership, which I will get back by the time I have finished my visit to North Wales.

On the way to Rhuddlan I went to St Asaph to do the town walk, it is a small town with a fantastic cathedral which I really wanted to visit. One thing the People of North Wales are really good at doing is advertising their assets, there are hundreds of leaflets available on where to go and what to see in North Wales and many of the smaller towns have short walks of interest which take you around the town pointing out particular places of interest. It doesn’t take long to do these walks depending on how interesting you find specific places; the main point of interest for me in St Asaph was the Cathedral and the Obelisk.

I parked in a small carpark at the bottom of the hill and made my way toward the Cathedral following the route map which was pretty easy to follow. The outside of the Cathedral although an impressive and ornate structure was shrouded in scaffolding and sheeting on one side as it was undergoing repair which marred it’s appearance somewhat, but this work has to be done, however it didn’t detract from the magnificence when you enter the Cathedral through the main doors. The sight that immediately hits you is the Stained glass windows. I love art and I love art of most kinds but stained glass is probably one of my favourite forms, it’s something to do with the way the light enhances all the colours. When you look at a stained glass window from the outside, it is still impressive but not so wonderful as when you see the light shining through all the different colours. The main window above the altar in this Cathedral is one of the most spectacular I have seen, the intricacy of the design was mesmerising and you can only guess at the length of time it took to make just one of these panes and by how many people? Fascinating, but it wasn’t the only stained glass window in the cathedral there were many in the side walls and another masterpiece above the entrance door. It’s worth the visit just to see the windows alone.

There were information sheets at the entrance for anyone to read about certain features within the cathedral, it seems to be one of the smallest cathedrals built and only had cathedral status due to one of the hand carved chairs within the church which belonged to someone special in history but I forget who it is. There was a fantastic sculpture of Jesus on the cross pinned to the wall made of driftwood, it was very detailed and had a haunting look about it.

While being an Anglican church it is the episcopal seat of the Bishop of St Asaph, it dates back 1400 years. It is claimed to be the smallest Anglican cathedral in Great Britain. William Morgan, Bishop of St Asaph and Llandaff between 1545 – 1604 was the first to translate the whole bible from Greek and Hebrew into Welsh and that bible is on display in St Asaph.

The next place I visited that day was the Marble church otherwise known as St Margaret’s Church in Bodelwyddan. I’m not particularly interested in churches but there is something about this one which is so striking and the positioning is so easy to visit. It is on a quiet road just off the A55 and can be seen for miles every time you drive along the A55 so I just had to visit on my way to Bodelwyddan Castle.

Unfortunately I was a bit late for Bodelwyddan but for some reason I’m not really interested in going back to that one because it has been resurrected in the design of its original building, and looks inside like it would have when it was originally built. I prefer ruins, not sure why but it doesn’t really appeal to me in the same way. There are other places I would rather visit, and it’s not included in CADW membership.

It was a very peaceful church, open to the public with wonderful stained glass windows again and ornately carved woodwork. The church contains pillars made of Belgian red marble and the nave entrance is made from Anglesey marble. It was erected by Lady Willloughby de Broke in memory of her husband Henry Peyto –Verney the 16^th Baron Willoughby de Broke. The church was designed by John Gibson and consecrated by the Bishop of St Asaph on August 23^rd 1860.

There is small section of the graveyard used to honour the graves of ex-servicemen in the first and second world wars. The surrounding grounds are full of ancient trees and the adjoining road is very quiet since the A55 passes parallel to it.

It was a lovely peaceful cultured day out which is highly recommended if you ever stay in this area, if only for the stained glass windows.

Aug 14

Chainbridge

By AngelaLewis | Travel | No Comments

Sometimes unexpected things happen which can be quite magical, the very fact that I am not at all governed by time means that I can just do what I want whenever I want. I was working in the area of Llyn Brenig on a Cycle race for Welsh Cycling, so I had already decided that I would explore the little town of Corwen with a history linked to Owain Glyndwr and visit Valle Crucis Abbey after my work was finished for the day.

Luckily I started at 9am and was finished by 1.30pm so knowing that Corwen was close by and also close to Llangollen I started to make my way there, but I needed to find a supermarket for some lunch before getting to Corwen, the plan was to walk to the summit of Coed Pen y Pigyn in Corwen and eat my picnic but sadly I couldn’t find a shop, the time was creeping toward 4pm when the supermarkets would be shut, it was Sunday after all. After driving around the area I just couldn’t find anywhere so I decided to eat out.

Since being away I have made my own food back at my place and being on a budget I just didn’t want to waste it on eating out but on this occasion I thought I would treat myself, as well as the fact that there was a long traffic queue into Llangollen where I knew there would be a shop but wasn’t sure if I would make the cut off so I turned around and went to the nearest pub, sadly it was closed but I spoke to the person in the therapy centre next door and they told me about the Chainbridge Hotel up the road which sounded really interesting.

He was right, it was fantastic, unfortunately I still didn’t get my meal, I arrived after 3pm which was the cut-off time for meal orders. It was so lovely there I decided to stay and have a small glass of wine and a packet of crisps (better than nothing). The beauty of this place is not obvious as you approach the carpark because you can’t see the actual hotel until after you have parked and started going down the steel stairway toward the river Dee running below. As you arrive you enter the hotel veranda from the side which still doesn’t reveal its beauty until you walk down the veranda decked with plenty of tables and chairs for you to sit outside and admire the view of the wonderful hanging baskets and pots with beautiful annual flowers, the fantastic river gushing past, the Chainbridge, the railway station opposite, and the beautiful old tunnel bridge.

The Chainbridge hotel is an historic hotel dating from 1828 in a fantastic position on the edge of the fast flowing river Dee, luckily while I was there, the water level was pretty low, it can be quite high after bad weather. It overlooks the magnificent chainbridge, it is believed the bridge was built somewhere between 1814 and 1817 by a local entrepreneur dealing in coal to avoid paying tolls across the river Dee at Llangollen. It was washed away by the river in 1928 and rebuilt in the style of Menai suspension bridge in 1929.

The sun was shining down onto the veranda and it was just so picturesque, it all seemed unreal, there were children playing in the shallow river below, the Thomas the Tank steam train passed on the station above, near the main road and then a group of white water rafters passed on their way to Llangollen from the Horseshoe Falls. It was one of those moments you want to capture and press pause to make it last forever.

While I was sitting there admiring the surroundings a group of people came and joined me at my table and we got talking, they were lovely people, a young girl in her early twenties with her mother and step dad, Rae, Jenny and Terry from North Yorkshire, they were fascinated by my story and invited me to go and stay with them at their home whenever I wanted and they would show me the beauty of Yorkshire, so I definitely have to put that on my list of places to visit at some point.

When I asked them why they were there, Rae the young girl told me she was a big fan of Geocaching and she was there at a Geocache convention in Llangollen, she explained that Geocaching is looking for secret treasure left by other fans of Geocaching by following clues and coordinates. The intention is to find the exact spot, sign and date the log book and either swap treasure or re-hide the geocache exactly as you found it for the next person to find. This happens all over the world and has been for years. That’s all you need to join in the fun is an app on your smartphone which is easy and free to download and join. I am going to give it a go, as it sounded really interesting.

We all also got talking to a guy and his wife from Liverpool who were visiting Wales, I wish I had got their names. I have made a pact with myself since to ask everyone their names when I meet them, have a photo taken with them and also on the suggestion of another new friend I have met I’m going to get business cards with my blog name on and give them out to all I meet in the hope of building my blog audience.

It was a lovely memorable afternoon, again made special by the people I met. I love meeting all these different people who are all interesting and there are always connections, it turned out that when Rae added me on Facebook we had a friend in common, who lives near Rae and went to college with me when I was training in Naturopathy and Acupuncture. It’s a small world made special by the people in it.

Aug 13

Beaumaris

By AngelaLewis | Travel | No Comments

While working on Anglesey a couple of weeks ago I decided to go to Beaumaris, a lovely little seaside town on the South West coast of Anglesey, the views look back over the Menai Straits towards Conway on the left and the Snowdonia range to the right. Beaumaris is also known for its castle which I have visited on one prior occasion but it was closed because we arrived too late in the afternoon, sad to say the same happened on this occasion, I didn’t realise the time, parked my car, took a walk through the town and as I approached the castle I could see the lady at the till just inside the foyer counting the takings for the day and sure enough, I was too late again so I had to make do with taking some pictures from outside the gate. I will just have to go back again soon because it looks like a fantastic castle to visit so maybe next time I will be third time lucky.

I know I have mentioned castles before in my blog but I really do love them and the history attached to their walls.

Beaumaris doesn’t disappoint when it comes to history, it is the final castle in Edward 1sts “Ring of Castles” built in North Wales. Edward the 1^st started building the castle in 1295 and work continued until around 1330. However the castle was never completed before it was taken by Welsh forces in the Owain Glyndwr rebellion in 1403. It was recaptured in 1405 and became involved in other battles but fell into ruin in about 1660. In the 19^th century it formed part of a stately home and park and was taken over in the 21^st century by CADW who now manage it.

Even though it is partially ruined, a lot of the original walls remain and you can take a walk around the outer and inner walls and towers and admire the views across to Snowdonia from its ramparts. The moat allowed access from the sea at high tide to the main entrance of the castle. Climbing up the stairwells of the many towers you can see the murder holes designed to drop heavy objects on the enemy from above.

Even though the castle dominates the town, there is plenty to do otherwise, you can take a boat out to Puffin Island off the jetty, take a walk along the seafront admiring the old hotels, or take a walk in the quaint little town with artisan shops selling all sorts of local made crafts. You might come across what is believed to be the oldest house in Wales nestled between some of the more modern buildings of Beaumaris, it is believed to have been built around 1400 when more and more townships were springing up in Wales in place of the more rural single dwellings of Medieval Wales.

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There are so many more castles I want to visit while I am staying in North Wales so I now own a CADW membership card which gives free entry to all castles, I will definitely be coming back when I am on Anglesey again. Hopefully I might take a boat out to Puffin Island too.

Aug 12

diet healthcare concept. Brown raw flax seeds linseed as natural background and red heart symbol. Healthy food for preventing heart diseases. Flaxseeds are full of omega-3 fatty acids.

What I have learned so far

By AngelaLewis | Health | No Comments

What I have learned from my experience so far

I have only been away from home for a few weeks and already I have learned a lot about the local area and actually learned stuff about myself. There is a lot to do in North Wales, all pretty interesting stuff, but I believe there is a lot to do everywhere, we just don’t see it while we go about our daily lives, because we are too caught up in working lots of hours to pay bills for the house we need to live in, in order to work lots of hours. When did life become such a treadmill? I really don’t believe the creator (whoever that may be) meant for us to take the work, work, work till you die path.

Beautiful abstract love tree with hearts. Heart tree greeting card illustration. Valentine tree love leaf from hearts.

I have had a lot of luck and some bad luck in my life but the way you learn from the bad stuff is what makes your life better, if you dwell on all the bad stuff then it will continue to dominate your life but if you put it behind you and move on into a different way of being then life can be so enriching.

I have learned that I actually love writing and recently I got a message from someone who read my blog and said “I’m loving your blogs! You write really well! It’s as if I’m there with you!!!! You’re so inspiring xxx” I was so chuffed to get this message, now don’t get me wrong I realise this is just one person, but it doesn’t matter one is better than none! If my English teacher from Grammar school heard this about me she would laugh her socks off and so would I have many years ago, I thought I hated English but it turns out I love it after all.

I am going to read more and try and do course on writing to try and keep improving my style of writing and my technique, I’m hoping to write a book soon but there are so many ideas I have that I’m not sure which to choose first.

I also learned that there are many things in life that are just a trade-off, I am staying in an area where Wi-Fi is pretty non-existent and just when you think you have found some Wi-Fi in McDonalds, it is so slow that it takes over half an hour just to upload one picture, this can be very frustrating when I am trying to make a living out of my writing. I have a long, long way to go yet before that becomes a possible reality. There is so much work to do on my blog alone and as there is no Wi-Fi in the place I am staying, I am restricted as to how much time I can actually spend online.

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When I do go to McDonalds there are parking restrictions, the longest I have found is in Mold, which is 2 hours, so I set my alarm on my phone to go off just before the two hours is up otherwise I get so carried away working on the blog or researching online that I might forget and then I will end up with a big fine. The problems don’t end there, once you have found a McDonalds you have to find the one plug point inside so you can work without your battery going flat, it is the school holidays now so that plug point is hogged by gangs of kids charging their phones. All in all I have realised that having good Wi-Fi in my old home was a bloody luxury and I just wish I could have brought it with me.

Anyway the trade-off is the water power is shit hot, power shower every day, no trickling up here in North Wales but great strong water power, whoop whoop!!

Another major thing I have learned which I probably already knew is that I miss my kids and grand-kids a lot, much more than I realised I would, but my intention is to make something of my writing so that once I am making a decent living from it I can go home and stay for longer periods contributing more to their lives, at the moment because I have nothing to give, I feel I can’t contribute, even though they want nothing from me financially, I feel like I want to give but can’t. I do feel like that is the only sacrifice I have made but I think it will be worth it in the end and if it is not then I will have to go back and find a job anywhere and rent a room off someone, it won’t be the end of the world.

I have learned that I still have too much stuff, I brought way too many clothes with me, they can be washed and worn again obviously but I think I have brought enough for a new outfit every day for a month (maybe not that much but not far off). I need to get more minimal especially when I go to Thailand; I am hoping to have my big pack on my back and small pack on my front whereas for this trip I have brought a car full of stuff. I did need more stuff here as I am preparing my own food and doing a kind of detox so I’m using my nutri bullet, rice steamer, juicer etc., and I had a cupboard full of food left from my move which has come in really handy, I made bean curry a couple of days ago which lasted me for two evening meals. I am only buying fresh fruit, veg and salad stuff.

I really need to make sure that the next place I go has Wi-Fi as it will be an integral part of my life now that I am building my blog, it is essential and from now on I will only pick places that can guarantee this. I can live without hot running water and power showers but I can’t live without Wi-Fi and apart from anything else it keeps me in touch with family and friends, I had to go the bus stop up the road today to Facetime my daughter on her birthday.

I don’t mind my own company but would prefer to be with other people sometimes. I think a good balance is what is needed, I definitely need time to myself to do all my writing but I need to be with people too and there are so many lovely people that I have met so far and I have only been here a few weeks.

Beach travel - woman walking on sand beach leaving footprints in the sand. Closeup detail of female feet and golden sand on Kaanapali beach, Maui, Hawaii, USA.

I do not like the fact that I can’t give much, I am a generous person but at the moment I have nothing to give. Yesterday I visited a fellow CSAS marshal and his wife and they made me a wonderful 2 course lunch and Alison the lady of the house gave me fresh Welsh cakes to bring back with me and I felt like I should have contributed more but couldn’t financially and I can’t return the favour because circumstances won’t allow, I did buy flowers for Alison and gave them to her when I arrived but I probably should have bought wine also, although I wasn’t sure they would want wine at lunch in the middle of the week even though I would, it turned out they did, it was such a lovely lunch, all home cooked.

I can always give my time and my abilities and since starting working for my hosts, I feel like I am contributing even though it’s only in a small way it is a contribution nonetheless. The work I do is easy but helps them to run their business, they are both very busy people who work non-stop every day of the week because they run the business between the two of them and there is such a lot of work involved when you are self-employed, I know this from my own experience.

I have learned how wonderful people are and how special each and every individual is, I have met friends who have taken me out with them to fab places, people who have done special things with their lives and with all these people I have coincidental connections. The whole trip has made me think a lot about connection and the fact we are all connected has never seemed truer. I am trying to make sure I take photos of everyone I speak at length with and at least take their names so I can include them in my blog if they are willing. Life just gets more and more fascinating.

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I am a big believer in the good that is in us all and this trip has proved to me already how much good there is out there, from breaking down and hitching a ride twice which I have told the whole story of in a separate blog post, to the man who towed me all the way back to the place I am staying even though it was late and it was just over the mileage I was allowed. It makes me feel warm inside to see the loveliness of people.

Another main lesson I have learned is it’s going to take a lot of work and a lot of time to get my blog to the position I want it to be and I mean a lot of work, I have just been watching the video course I have on how to build an audience and it is extensive!! OMG!! I have such a long way to go, but as Lao Tzu said in the Dao De Jing “A journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step”. Onwards and upwards.

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This trip so far has tested me mentally, physically and emotionally and I have cried many times but equally I have smiled many times, the situations, the environment and my own recovery programme has sometimes pushed me to the edge but when you are on your own you just have to think logically about how you can resolve any situation you find yourself in. Life is good and I need to sometimes remind myself how lucky I am and how lucky and wonderful my life has already been. I have already had a perfect life raising my wonderful children; anything from now on is a huge bonus.

AngelaLewis

Bim’s Kitchen

Wild Atlantic Way

Connemara

Ireland first day

Liverpool

Conway Castle

Rhuddlan Castle, St Asaph Cathedral and St Margarets Church= Culture Day

Chainbridge

Beaumaris

What I have learned so far

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