First Trip to Wales
15/04/07 20:44 Filed in: Short
Trips
Our friends Sally and Luke invited a bunch of us
out to Luke's family estate near Llandindrod
Wells (and no, I can't pronounce it either). It
was a lovely weekend away from the hustle and
bustle of London and a truly beautiful old home.
Friday afternoon, Stephen and I both took off
early to catch the train to Wales out of
Paddington. The trip went smoothly - so smooth in
fact that we ended up arriving an hour early!
Almost unheard of on public transport; and
possibly a first ever for British Rail. The
others coming by train arrived in dribs and drabs
and before we knew it, Luke had arrived to take
us all up to the Big House. By this time it was
dark, so no pictures, but the next day was to
prove a wonderful day out - and a proper look at
our surroundings.
the house itself with a few of the outlying buildings - almost like a castle! And the grass is still green - in February!
a view of the front of the house itself
a view from the front door - I love the look of the tree. There's a little river just over the rise in the background
speaking of the little river
with a nice, pebbly bottom.
Stephen and Leif debating the flora
that was covered in little yellow flowers
looking over the edge of a little bridge at a stream feeding into the river
an artsy inclination
the little bridge and stream itself!
flowing into the river
boys walking over the bridge and into the woods
a fabulous mossy tree
and another little rivulet. No wonder it's so green here!
and heading back to the house
Later on that afternoon, another group of us headed off to watch Welsh Red Kites at a nearby feeding station. We all hid in blinds so that the birds would feel less threatened and settled down to watch the show. We were prepared for there to be fewer birds and perhaps less activity since it was winter, but we weren't disappointed. The birds were incredible.
a kite (left) coming in behind a flock of crows
circling. . .
getting closer. . .
and so it begins
we weren't the only ones watching the show
All in all it lasted just over two hours, and it was quite fantastic. I highly reccomend it for anyone who finds themselves in Wales.
From there it was back to the Big House for Sally's birthday party followed by a lazy Sunday and the train back to London. Not a whole lot to report, but a really wonderful taste of Wales - we'll definitely be going back!!
the house itself with a few of the outlying buildings - almost like a castle! And the grass is still green - in February!
a view of the front of the house itself
a view from the front door - I love the look of the tree. There's a little river just over the rise in the background
speaking of the little river
with a nice, pebbly bottom.
Stephen and Leif debating the flora
that was covered in little yellow flowers
looking over the edge of a little bridge at a stream feeding into the river
an artsy inclination
the little bridge and stream itself!
flowing into the river
boys walking over the bridge and into the woods
a fabulous mossy tree
and another little rivulet. No wonder it's so green here!
and heading back to the house
Later on that afternoon, another group of us headed off to watch Welsh Red Kites at a nearby feeding station. We all hid in blinds so that the birds would feel less threatened and settled down to watch the show. We were prepared for there to be fewer birds and perhaps less activity since it was winter, but we weren't disappointed. The birds were incredible.
a kite (left) coming in behind a flock of crows
circling. . .
getting closer. . .
and so it begins
we weren't the only ones watching the show
All in all it lasted just over two hours, and it was quite fantastic. I highly reccomend it for anyone who finds themselves in Wales.
From there it was back to the Big House for Sally's birthday party followed by a lazy Sunday and the train back to London. Not a whole lot to report, but a really wonderful taste of Wales - we'll definitely be going back!!
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