PortabelloBelle

A Summer Holiday

When I was a youngster, I spent every summer on Anglesey. We stayed in a caravan at a place called Bagnol Farm, a short walk from a small and peaceful little sandy bay, it is many years later, that caravan, and the farm have both gone, but the bay remains. I remember those summers fondly, the days were long, warm and sunny, the breeze always gentle. Those memories are clearly an amalgam of the experience, with the rainy days filtered out.

This year, the weather, as well as the location were different.

back in February, using nothing but a map, and female intuition, I found a cottage, near the village of Benllech, on the eastern side of the island. On arrival I awarded myself 10 points, it was everything I had hoped, and more besides

Sitting in a group of other cottages, each well spaced from the other, in a vale, with its own microclimate, that remained calm all week, in spite of the strong wind which blew over the island for a couple of days, Ty Menyn, is very spacious, warm, and comfortable, with a cosy feel that made me want to move in permanently.

It was almost too good to leave, but Anglesey is a place of wonders, and we wanted to explore some of them.

On the first day we went to the Anglesey Sea Zoo home to a Lobster research project, the young from which are raised on site until they’re mature enough to be released into the wild

The Motor Museum at Llanfairpwllgwyngyll, was never going to escape our attention, neither of us can resist visiting the shiny wonderfulness, that is a restored vehicle, among the treasures restored on site by the museum staff, are cars that our fathers owned, including a Vauxhall Viva HC, like the one I bought off my dad for £50.

Our visit to Treaddur Bay, was accompanied by strong winds, which in no way compromised the beauty of the place, the coastline here is rugged, and the wind driven waves lend drama to the scene.

Anglesey has provided a home to people for millennia, below are some of its ancient monuments, dating back some 4500 years, standing stones, dolmen, and burial mounds, and neolithic settlements can be found all over the island.

Roughly 4000 years later Plas Newydd was built, later (1793) it was rebuilt, and then refurbished in the 1930s. It is home to the Marquis of Anglesey, and his family, although now it is owned by the National Trust

A favourite of mine is South Stack Lighthouse, on my first visit (countless years ago) I didn’t manage to make it to the lamproom at the top, the long spiral staircase defeated me by inflicting crippling dizziness. In later years I’ve been to the top a couple of times.

It never fails to amaze me that a single 150 watt lamp can, by virtue of a clever lens, produce a guiding light that can be seen over 20 miles out to sea

I took some wildlife photos during the week, the best of which is this Gull riding the wild wind at Treaddur

We had the best time, great accommodation, lots to see, and do, and the fact that were both old now means everywhere is cheaper to get in, what’s not to like?

To call this a “highlight Reel” would be a terrible injustice to the other places we visited, but WordPress give me a finite amount of storage, so these are the best photos from our time on Ynys Mon (to use its proper Welsh name,) I hope you enjoyed this little synopsis of our holiday.

it is time to re-join the real world, and on Monday I’m back work, and David has to visit the dentist, so we’re coming down with a bump, and start the long haul up to our Winter Break