Holiday on Pen Llyn - Portmeirion

For the week that crossed over from June into July, I was on holiday on the Lleyn Peninsular with Cathy and my Mum. When we got there on the Sunday, we discussed what we were gong to do in the week. We already had a couple of things booked, and then Portmeirion was suggested. We had never been, and Mum had been some time ago with my Grandma, and said she would like to go again, so we went online booked our tickets and set off the next morning.

All that I really knew about Portmeirion was that is was where the sixties TV show The Prisoner was filmed, that it was supposed to be an Italian village in Wales, and that you had to pay to get in. That latter point was something my Dad objected to, which is probably why we never went as a family when I was younger. It's a shame because I think he would have really liked the quirkiness of the place. (Also, I knew the Portmeirion brand of tableware.)

It wasn't really what I expected but in many ways it was so much more. 

Portmeirion is really a little cliff-enclosed valley on the seashore. The buildings have been arranged mainly around the edge of the valley, with a large central square.

There is also a smaller 'town square' that you reach up some steps.

As I was reading the guidebook, I started to get really drawn in to the surreal world of Clough Williams-Ellis, the architect who created Portmeirion. He was a believer in architecture as a form of art. Why else would you paint fake windows on a row of houses except to make them look better?

The little upper windows aren't real

The onion dome minaret was added to hide a chimney that he thought looked ugly.

He also built a chantry, where nobody ever chanted. He just liked the word.

And he also decided his village didn't have enough domes. So he built one!

There are a lot of clever aspects to the building work. For example, this tower uses perspective to trick you into thinking it's taller than it actually is. The upper levels are smaller in turn so the building looks taller.

He also very cleverly used natural rock outcrops to add height to a lot of buildings too.

The buildings are covered in fun little foibles. Plaques, murals and statues in niches: animals and fish and nymphs, and just about anything. I really liked this dragon.

This lion has a slightly startled expression.

But this one was just having a good time!

There was also a great story about this copper statue of Hercules.

Apparently, Clough Williams-Ellis bought the statue in Aberdeen, and drove with it on the back of a pick-up truck all the way from Aberdeen to Portmeirion. In the days before motorways, that would hve been an epic trek. I've been to Aberdeen. It's a long way from North Wales.

Another thing we didn't expect were the woodland walks. Cathy was very excited to find a giant redwood tree.

There were some other beautiful mature trees as well.

We walked around in a loop that brought us to the novelty "lighthouse". Again, it was pretty, if not very functional.

Although the view over the estuary was magnificent.

So, what was my overall impression. it was a bit bonkers, but it was also brilliant. My friend Heather has described it as like walking through a film set. The thing that came to mind when I was there is that it felt like a life-size model village, and we were the toys that had come to life. 

It was a great way to start our week away, and it's one of those places I feel it would be worth visiting again, particularly at a different time of the year.

First time in Spain - exploring Valencia

I was fortunate enough to travel to a conference being held in Valencia this week. It sounds glamorous but I spent most of the days I was there either in the conference rooms (no windows) or in my hotel checking work emails (at least I had windows).

Nice hotel though, right next to the conference centre

When I was working in my room the view wasn't bad

We mainly got to see Valencia by night, so I don't have any good photos of the architecture. This is the city hall.

And this is the North train station. Not bad for a train station.

After floods in the 70s they diverted the river around the city and turned the river bed into a huge sunken park. Whoever thought of that was a visionary. The old bridges still cross the park.

In the park you can walk under the bridges.

There's lots to see in the park and at the South end are some amazing buildings.

They don't miss an opportunity for some art - this big purple sculpture was on a roundabout.

The front of this building was covered in traffic cones.

This is one of the metro stations., I thought it was rather lovely.

There's lots of graffiti on the streets as well. Someone likes drawing these cute ninja dudes. They pop up everywhere.

Valencia is famous for its paella. They sell paella pans on the street alongside other souvenirs.

Paella goes nicely with cerveza. This is Valencia IPA (VIPA). It has a peachy aroma and tastes lovely.

It was a brief visit, made all the more brief by having to work at the conference. But I really like Valencia and I definitely want to go back.

Paris - Day 4 (the voyage home)

We had a final morning in Paris, so we went shopping.

I found an arcade of stamp shops (the Passages du Promenades). Yes, I bought something.

We were also the first customers of the day in this creperie. I had a crepe au sucre et citron.

The thing about Paris is is seems every street you walk down has some sort of massive monument. Arches are everywhere.

I liked the cheeky lion on this one.

But it was time to leave. In a station cafe I had this lemonade. It tasted better than you'd think, given the name.

There were a pantheon of trains at the Gare du Nord, including several TGVs.

But back at an English station, Cathy met a celebrity!