Archive for 2017
William Jones, Glynneath, 100 years on
Almost exactly 100 years ago, at 6:25am on 25 October 1917, a terrible thing was done to a young man from Glynneath named William Jones. A group of soldiers from the Worcestershire Regiment formed a firing squad and shot him dead as a punishment for deserting his post on the Western Front. William, probably a […]
Kicking our legs away
‘Infrastructure’ is a Latinate word almost designed to put you to sleep. But it stands for something that’s crucial to us all. Spending on infrastructure – sewage systems, transport links, reservoirs, electricity generation, broadband networks and the rest – is critical to how any successful economy and society operates. The right infrastructure provides the sturdy […]
‘Fabula’: Llŷr Gwyn Lewis a Borges
Nôl ym mis Gorffennaf, yn siop lyfrau Palas Print yng Nghaernarfon, fe brynais i gasgliad newydd Llŷr Gwyn Lewis, Fabula. Dim ond ddoe y dechreuais ei ddarllen. Fel darllenydd confensiynol, penderfynais i gychwyn gyda’r darn cyntaf yn y gyfrol, ‘Hydref yw’r gwanwyn’. Mae iddo is-deitl, ffug-academaidd, ‘fabula, historia ac argumentum yn yr Ariannin’, sy’n eich […]
Wales Coast Path, day 76: Moelfre to Porth Amlwch
It’s rained all night, at times heavily. Over breakfast we ask each other whether water will mean trouble for us again during today’s walk, from Moelfre to Amlwch Port. We stare at the map. We consult tide tables. We scrutinise Mr Rogers. We think we’ll be safe. As it turns out, we’re wrong. The weather […]
Wales Coast Path, day 87: Brynsiencyn to Menai Bridge
Rain threatens this afternoon, so C and I start out on our own from Brynsiencyn at 8:30. It’s a dark morning, and thick layers of cloud cover the mountains across the Strait. The village looks comprehensively closed. The pub’s abandoned and the public toilets are locked. But we do spot that rarity in Anglesey, a […]
Wales Coast Path, day 75: Llanddona to Moelfre
A day without rain, the Met Office predicts. There’s rejoicing in Beaumaris. All our guests are gone this morning, and C, H and I wait again outside the Spar for the 9:05 bus to Llanddona. This time the driver’s too polite to express incredulity that we want to go there. From the pub in Llanddona […]
Wales Coast Path, day 88: Bangor to Llanfairfechan
Heavy rain is forecast until the afternoon. We put off making a start to Bangor as late as we can, but set off from the city centre along Ffordd Ddeiniol towards the Pier around 11:30. The rain’s falling steadily, and only our faces are visible. The long Garth pier, built in 1896 by Lord Penrhyn […]
Wales Coast Path, day 74: Beaumaris from Llanddona
The rain has stopped, and none is forecast for the rest of the day, as six of us wait in Beaumaris for the bus to Llanddona. The driver looks dubious. ‘Llanddona? Are you sure? There’s nothing there’. But we are sure and he lets us on. We get out by the pub and the public […]
Wales Coast Path, day 72: Caernarfon to Bangor
Caernarfon to Bangor isn’t one of the Wales Coast Path’s happier stretches. On a day of near continuous rain it really can’t be recommended. And if, on top of that, you get lost not once but three times, it can turn into a bit of a torment. Normally a bus journey is a fine start […]
Wales Coast Path, day 73: Menai Bridge to Beaumaris
Anglesey has more than enough cars – far more than enough. This struck me the last time I was here a few weeks ago, when it took an hour and a half to go a few miles, and it’s even more obvious today. A crawling queue to cross the Britannia Bridge, then a slow snake […]
