Blogs from Carmarthenshire, Wales, United Kingdom, Europe - page 2

Biggest surprise so far; the weather. Who would of expected a heat wave in South Wales? I guess I should take advantage while I can, since this definitely will not last. The people here in Wales are some of the nicest I’ve met, even though sometimes they speak in such heavy accents I look at them with a blank stare and then just decide to smile and nod. I’m sure whatever they said was pleasant though. Dad has played some good golf, but unfortunately missed out on the final qualifier by 1 shot. Golf really is a hard and complex game. We’ve had a few nice dinners out, and on a shopping expedition we thought we’d check out the price differences to back home in the local supermarket. The price of living really is ridiculous in ... read more

I had quite the wakeup call this morning!! I was catching the train at 6h30, so I set my iPod alarm to go off at 5h15... but I forgot to check my volume. Sure enough, at 5h15 Born this Way started blasting into my ear, and I mean blasting. I literally jumped out of the bed and maniacally tried to turn the volume down. It was so loud I had my hands clenched around the earbuds and I could still hear it. That’s one way to ensure you get up on the first try ;) I got a coffee at the train station and just puttered around while waiting for the train – I do love how punctual all the transit is over here – 6h30 on the dot, good to go. The coffee didn’t do ... read more

Around a quarter of the population of Wales speak Welsh as naturally as they do English - and there are a few thousand people who speak Welsh only. The basic vocabulary of present-day Welsh is Celtic, but it includes a sprinkling of Latin and English. It is a lyrical-sounding language, but very tongue-twisting for outsiders. The Welsh alphabet omits the consonants j, k, q, v, x, and z. It has the one 'f' (pronounced 'v') and adds a double 'ff' (pronounced as the ordinary English 'f'); a double 'dd' (pronounced as 'th' in 'then'); a double 'll' (almost impossible for an outsider pronounce correctly; to get near to the sound, put the tongue at the back of the roof of the mouth and say 'hl'). Here's some words for you to try and pronounce! *Cymru is ... read more

On the way to the coast this morning we were pleased to see that someone has enhanced the sign for the village of Star..... by adding stars. Simple but effective! Parking fees have a little way to go to catch up with London. If 30p for 2 hours seems cheap you may wish to know that it is 30p more than we have been charged in any other public car park. Who would have thought that even though we are miles from Clive there is a Clive Road? Maybe it is a common road and place name in Wales. Best thing we saw today was this microwave at the far end of someones drive. In England this would mean that you were finished with it and wanted someone to take it away. We thought this was ... read more

Well then Mr Fulcher. You suggested it, you wanted it and here it is....a travelblog to keep you up to date with all the action in the valleys. Not quite the start we were expecting in South America but Wales is better than work (just). Spent a couple days near a village called Clive which was a strange coincidence. We passed through a place called Pant yesterday and laughed loud and long at "Pant Accident Repairs" Went for a few beers today and found that the average village has a large number of pubs and a fair amount of middle aged men and women on all dayers. Now this may be influenced by the fact the world cup and Ascot are on this week but nevertheless we were pleased to find the hard drinking Wales we ... read more