Weekly Chat (Non-Osprey), 26 September 2021

OG- We've been in Wales since last Thursday afternoon & are going home tomorrow. We thought we'd have a long stay for once, plus when my OH saw the weather forecasts for this week he decided he'd rather not play golf in the rain!

Glad you're feeling better & things are going well .

OG - Thank you. Had a lovely walk this morning, in the sunshine (although there is definitely an autumnal feel in the air). Walked with a friend who has lived in this area far longer than I have - and we found two places neither of us had ever visited before. New discoveries are always good. Don't think tomorrow's planned walk with another friend is going to happen because of rain - so Plan B is lunch in a lovely local cafe with home-made food and yummy cakes ...

Been for coffee out this morning, & bought tulips for spring. On the way back, drove down the estuary again & could see a lot of wading birds, but had of course forgotten to take the binoculars with us.. ...

A hidden ancient church for AQ! Left as an island in the middle of a farmers field.  Must find the time sometime to follow the footpath to go & investigate it. I suppose there will be a lot of local farmers buried in the little churchyard around it.

CC: I didn't know you had lived in a cottage on Monhegan Island. What a lovely place to stay! That's fascinating about Alfred Fuller! Doesn't sound as though it was a scary experience, just profound. That must have been a wonderful time for you, living in the cottage and working on your art in such a beautiful and historic place. I'd love to see the coastal upper northeast. Not New York City, because I'm just not comfortable in big cities anymore. I've become as wild as the hawks and bobcats and coyotes that are my neighbors here. LOL

LINDY: Wonderful and evocative photos. Interesting to see the little church "island" in the farmer's field. Wales is such a lovely, serene place. My ancestors are Scottish and Irish, but I've always appreciated the beauty of Wales. I hope you have a good journey home. Glad you have enough fuel.

CLARE and LIMPY: Have a good, safe journey. I'm glad you've had a nice holiday. Hope you find enough fuel to get you safely home.

I don't think I have any Welsh in me, either, Diane ;-) but I was told there's some Irish somewhere. Yes, it's true that Wales is very peaceful and serene. The mountains don't look forbidding, they just sort of sail along peacefully above the green fields and valleys. People here are mostly used to a more slow and steady kind of life, as opposed to the frenetic rushing around in cities. The only big city in the whole of Wales is Cardiff, and even there I didn't find it very busy compared to English cities.

We love the peace and the scenery, which is beautiful at every turn even when you're not on the coast. There is a lot of tradition and in this Northern part, there is a great deal of Welsh spoken which I admire as they are not willing to forget their roots.

I hope Clare & Limpy get safely home -- such a long way to Felixstowe. Looking forward to seeing their photos and hearing all about it.

We had some sunshine this afternoon and so we both sat in the window, half awake & half asleep. Then my OH took the dog on the beach and I walked off to find a friend whose husband I knew was on the golf course. We had a good gossip and I got some advice about how she packs things up for winter.

We hope to return here in a couple of weeks but it will be much colder then, than the mild weather we've had lately.

Good evening, all! Fuelled up in the village of Gretna with no problems and no queue! Phew. Stopped off at RSPB Saltholme on the way back - what a lovely reserve, definitely looking forward to going back there ....... at some point. We finally got home at 8pm which was a relief as we were both knackered. Limpy's driving has really gained in confidence this week and he has been unstoppable on Mull's highly entertaining roads!