Ynys Môn

Aug. 25th, 2014 03:03 pm
dolorosa_12: (ship)
[personal profile] dolorosa_12
I've just got back from a pretty fabulous few days in North Wales (mainly Anglesey). My friends B and M were getting married there, and Matthias and I decided to go for a few extra days so that we could have a holiday and visit our other friends in that part of the world, K ([tumblr.com profile] gwehyddarbyd) and P, who had a one-year-old baby boy whom we hadn't met yet.

It essentially takes half a day to get to Bangor (the nearest train station) from Cambridge, so we arrived late on Wednesday afternoon. We were staying in the hotel that would be the wedding reception venue. This is something we've started doing recently, and it make a huge difference, as it means we're able to stumble on up to bed without worrying about taxis or leaving at a specific time with whoever is giving us a lift. The hotel itself was amazing, and a bit more expensive than we'd normally like, but since this was basically going to be our only holiday this year, we decided it would be okay.

On the night before the wedding, we met up with some other Cambridge friends, P and R, for drinks in a couple of the (excellent) pubs, and had what was honestly the best (British) Indian meal of my life at this restaurant. Seriously, if you are ever in Beaumaris, go there. It's amazing. I almost can't go back to any other Indian restaurant after this meal, such was its quality.

The wedding itself was on the Thursday afternoon, so Matthias and I spent the morning wandering around the town. It was fairly typical Welsh weather (i.e. it eventually began pouring with rain), but we managed to take a few photos. It's a very beautiful landscape.



 photo imagejpg1_zpseecb28c9.jpg

The buildings along the waterfront at Beaumaris.

 photo imagejpg2_zpsc8f25ad5.jpg

Looking out across the water.

 photo imagejpg1_zps9743aae3.jpg

Windswept and drenched...must be Wales!


The wedding was in a small chapel in Anglesey, and the service was performed by B's dad, who is a minister. The ceremony was bilingual (with the odd bit of English) - B is a native Welsh speaker, and M is Polish - in Welsh and Polish, with the vows being said in both languages. I speak neither language (though I can understand bits and pieces of Welsh), but the obvious happiness of everyone involved was enough to move me.

This was followed by the reception, which had some of the most fabulously cheesy music to which I have ever had the pleasure of dancing. We stayed up until about 1.30 or 2am, which wasn't super late, although I regretted it in the morning.

The next morning, K picked us up from the hotel and we moved in to stay with them for a couple of days. As she and P have a small baby, we mostly had to stay at home, but since I adore small children (and their son is particularly lovely), that was no hardship. We ate lots of delicious food, played a bunch of board games, watched a bit of TV, and mostly basked in the adorableness of the baby. We also went out to Conwy for an afternoon.

I'd been feeling a bit out of sorts, but a few days away, in such a beautiful landscape, and with such wonderful people, was enough to raise my spirits. It's hard to be unhappy when a small baby dressed in a panda suit is flailing around at you, smiling ecstatically.

Date: 2014-08-25 03:27 pm (UTC)
goodbyebird: The Middleman: Wendy and the Middleman stand around  in their underwear. (Middleman)
From: [personal profile] goodbyebird
Oh that sounds like a wonderful trip and a great wedding :)
(lol my brain kinda reeled at you having short, dark hair. It's completely over-associated you with your default icon, poor thing.)

Date: 2014-08-25 04:42 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] hallonlakrits.livejournal.com
God I miss Wales. All of my mum's family are from Ynys Môn, weused to spend so many summers there. Wouldn't at all surprise me if your friends were married in the chapel most of my family were married in/laid to rest

Date: 2014-08-25 04:59 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] dolorosa-12.livejournal.com
Oh wow, I had no idea you had family from that part of the world! Considering how small the community there is, I suspect your family would have friends in common with my friends. (The chapel was in Talwrn, if that means anything to you.)

Date: 2014-08-25 05:06 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] lynn82md.livejournal.com
Glad to hear you had a great trip to Wales and that the wedding of your friends went well :) Wales is on list of places for me to visit.

Date: 2014-08-25 05:10 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] dolorosa-12.livejournal.com
Thank you! Wales is beautiful, and I hope you have the chance to go there at some point.

Date: 2014-08-25 11:35 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ymarchoggwachul.livejournal.com
"It's hard to be unhappy when a small baby dressed in a panda suit is flailing around at you, smiling ecstatically." - Haha yes, I can relate. :D

North Wales is one of my favourite places, but of Ynys Môn itself I've only hiked near Holyhead to Ynys Lawd and taken the train twice to Bangor (I'm much more familiar with the area stretching from Caernarfon down towards Aberystwyth). My partner and I have started a holiday fund this week, but at $50 a week I have a feeling that it'll be a long time before I see Mam Cymru again! :/ Glad you enjoyed the experience. :)

Date: 2014-08-30 09:21 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] dolorosa-12.livejournal.com
It really is a beautiful part of the world, and I hope you and your partner will make it there at some point (and to Cambridge, if I'm still living here). I'm actually a bit weird among Celticists in that I've never been to Aberystwyth, although it also looks really beautiful. My partner is doing a library studies MA there (by distance), so I might make it there at some point.

Sorry for the very slow reply. I've been all over the place this week and completely forgot about the comments waiting for me on LJ and Dreamwidth.

Profile

dolorosa_12: (Default)
a million times a trillion more

March 2026

S M T W T F S
1234 5 67
89101112 1314
1516171819 20 21
2223242526 2728
293031    

Most Popular Tags

Style Credit

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags
Page generated Mar. 29th, 2026 04:02 pm
Powered by Dreamwidth Studios