Pros Travelblog - Day Six - On the Road Again

[byslantedlight]

We actually left the lovely jaycat92's lovely house beside a Welsh river this morning, which was very sad because we'd had a lovely Pros-y time, but I suppose had to be done eventually (*sighs*) and so Little Car trundled off southward bound, to the tune of more Pros-y chat... (What Pros stories are set in Wales, does anyone know? I realised that I've written two in Wales - and eep, forgot to say to jaycat92 and everyone, that the first night at her house I was lying in bed just about to fall asleep when I heard bells outside the house! In Wales! In the dark! In the night! Just like in Pwnco! *g* I'm guessing windchime, but spooooky... *vbg* - and I seem to think that Josey wrote one that's only in a zine at the moment, and... kiwisue remembers one where a mate of Bodie's has a cottage in Wales that he borrows, but... any more for any more?)

Anyway - we drove up hill and down dale (but in a Welsh kind of way), and eventually found ourselves on this rather fab road:

A wet, sky-clouded morning on what could have been the Mountain Road in the Isle of Man - but was a completely different mountain road in Wales. With not just sheep but cows in the distance, and a herd of ponies wandering the tops! (kiwisue got soggy chasing after them for a pic, I stayed by the car - watch her lj for further details, hopefully! *g*)

Then there was more rain and sun and rain and sun and...


...at Offa's Dyke - an alpine meadow across the gorgeousness that is Wales...

What we'd wanted to do was wend our way to lukadreaming for more Pros-y chat and an actual tour of Larton! - but disaster and lhurgy have struck, and we had to change our plans, so we pottered through Hay-on-Wye instead, which is one of my favourite places in the United Kingdom. It's a town made of bookshops. With the odd coffee shop and pub thrown in for sustenance, some clothes shops for variety (of the gorgeous-Windsor-clothes-shop type - *sighs*) and more bookshops.

And apparently the best time to visit Hay is two days before the Festival, because it was so quiet! Was lovely, and I wished we had a whole day to spend pottering around - wandering into a couple of bookshops, pausing for elevenses, wandering into a couple of bookshops, pausing for lunch, wandering into a couple of bookshops... afternoon tea... *g*

Oh, but we managed to get there in a rather fab way too - we'd stopped at a pub in a town a little way north of Hay for lunch, which turned out not to be serving food yet, but having bumped into the owner I presume) in the hallway, he said he'd recommend somewhere for us. In fact, says he, give me a lift and I'll take you there! And so we did, and he directed us to Hay which is where we'd been going anyway. We bumped into him later on too, and he came over and said hello again, and was all chatty and friendly and a very good advertisement for that part of the world - lovely locals they have there, too! *g* And the most spectacular scenery... And books. *vbg*

A quick check just in case our Lukadreaming was up for guests after all, but no, so with much sniffing and sighing we carried on down south to another of my favourite places...


Glastonbury! The bad news is that we ended up in a TravelLodge (you know the kind, where you make your own bed from the single sofa bed in order to be in a "twin" room?) but the good news is that it's Glastonbury. We had dinner in a pub with a well that is actually placed just inside the door - it's covered with (presumably very strong) glass so that you can see down it rather than fall down it, and it looks a wee bit undrinkable, but... you can stand on a well. *g* (Again, see kiwisue for a picture one day, I hope!)

Aaaand... oh, and hopefully lukadreaming will pop down tomorrow if she's feeling a bit better, so we don't miss her entirely (and because Glastonbury is very cool... *g*) and we will talk Pros with her after all, cos... Pros-y talk! *g* And it'll be Pros-y talk in Glastonbury!

And now bed, I think - perhaps with Ember Days for as long as I can keep my eyes open anyway... (and just in case I don't get to comments tonight - though yeay dongle! - I do quite fancy writing those drabbles, so I will - and heeee probodie for the Bodie-plate-of-food one! *g*)

Comments

[probodie.livejournal.com]

Yet more gorgeous piccies - and how lovely of Mr Landlord to get a lift from you and show you where to dine.

I love the spooky look of that...alley is it? Or just a street? Whatever, it looks remarkably like York streets.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

It's an alley, and it's been well poshed up since I was here last! It does look a bit like York actually - the rest of Glastonbury doesn't, mind... *g*

[sc-fossil.livejournal.com]

The bookstore sign has a Harry Potter look to it. *g* In a good way, that is. Nice pics. Thanks.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

I liked that booksign, but there were lots that were gorgeous. I stoopidly forgot to take a pic of the main street, which is full of lovely bookshop signs... and bookshops... *g*

[empty-mirrors.livejournal.com]

Hay!! I miss being able to visit easily. We used to pop up every month or so when we lived in Cardiff.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Hey! Hay! *g* 'tis really fab... And Glastonbury is fun too, and I'm bouncing around waiting for S to finish phoning and lj-ing and emailing and other -ing things so that we can go wander Glastonbury! And have breakfast... *g*

[zana16.livejournal.com]

I looked at your first two pictures and was about to say hey, I've been there! but I think all of Wales looks like that... At least, everywhere we got lost did. It was fabulous.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Hee - alot of Wales looks like that, and the Isle of Man - it looks just like the road the TT motorboke race takes place on! *g*

[constant-muse.livejournal.com]

Aww, it was lovely having both of you, and I'm glad you made the best of the day. I didn't expect you to be heading south-west over the mountains, how very intrepid. Hay-on-Wye and Glastonbury in one day sounds excellent. If one of those bookshops were to specialise in fanzines, it would be perfect!

'The bells' might have been the lads-next-door's windchime on the apple tree in their garden, which is one of those pleasant deep ones, not tinkly. If the wind is in the right direction you can hear the church bells from the village (they go bonkers practising on a Wednesday evening), but probably not in the middle of the night!

My reaction to post-Pros-y chat seems to be to go diving for the fic, and by now I'm well into 'Falconhurst' by Jane, which now seems very apt after your supernatural inklings with bells and visiting Glastonbury.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Good morning! Thank you for a lovely stay... *g*

The mountains were gorgeous - we just sort of went really *g* - and yes for Hay and Glastonbury in one day!

The bells were quite deeply chimed, so it must be the lads-next-door - they sound like they have great taste, actually! *g*

Falconhurst has supernatural-y Glastonbury-type things? It's been lingering on my shelf for ages, cos I thought it was historical at first, and then I thought it was case-based, but... Ooh, must dust it off and settle in when I get home!

[lukadreaming.livejournal.com]

*Iz sulking*

*Hugs* to you both and I'm just going to catch up on your travelog!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Oh sweetie... *sniffs* Hope you're feeling better...

I'm behind with the travelblog, cos I've just got back online now (no connection last night - eeeep!) but there is more to come! *waves from Cornwall*

[andreathelion.livejournal.com]

The road/scenery pics are looking a bit like the countryside over here *g*
But then, the booksign, it's just something you only can find in the uk.
I love the shadow on the wall pic, looks a bit like a print on a wallpaper.
Lovely pics and great to read, you had so much fun and a lot of pros-y company.