Welsh Working Week

Llandudno

Started off the working week with a 4.5 hour drive to North Wales. Once again shouldn't have followed the GPS, it took me off the main roads, the route might have been scenic but it PDR in buckets the whole way. Got to the hospital we're working at Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor (ysbyty is Welsh for hospital) and finally met the some more of the team. They're great, and work is basically the same as at home.

We were all staying in Llandudno, a typical Victorian era beachside town, about 30 min away. My new workmates like a drink, I'm fitting right in.

Llandudno has a promenade along a rocky beach, a pier, lots of B&Bs, hotels and pubs. Rained all week and so cold. The town was full of pensioners on their seaside holiday, all dressed up for dinner. Mum and Dad would love it. There is a big headland called the Great Orme which has a cable car up to the top where there are tea rooms and British-type attractions (sort of daggy). Oh, its pronounced Clandidno.

People in this part of Wales speak Welsh, and they sort of whisper. Its a bit disconcerting.

ATTACK!

Seagulls everywhere, and they are as big as cats. And vicious. There's no point eating fish and chips (cod...yuck and greasy) on the promenade.They attack...seriously.

For those who remember the Guiness Book of Records from the 70's, the town with the longest place name in the world (according to them) was only 10 min from Bangor. Llanfairpwll....yada yada...goch. In reality just another little town, best part about it was the gift shop toilet. With this weather, I've been weeing like a racehorse.













Saturday drove to Oxford. I'd never been there, I was expecting university colleges, students on bikes, punting, you know like Brideshead Revisited. In reality its full of tourists and I'm over tourist towns. To be fair there were a lot of high school kids there on tour as the UK school year has just ended for summer break. You could go into the colleges, but they charged admission. However you could walk around the actual university buildings which was cool, I thought.

Coloured Punts -  Oxford

Sunday I caught up with Kath Egan at her brother's house near Hungerford. Great to see her. Her brother's place is in a village, a bit "Escape to the Country" . We had lunch, went to a pub in Marlborough and watched Kath's brother and nephew play cricket. English summer weather at last! It could actually get to 30C this week! That's too hot for here I think, none of the hotels I've stayed in have aircon.