We started the month in Edinburgh, of course, at Hogmannay. And a great time we had too! After we got back from Edinburgh, we still had a couple of days off work. On one day, Matt managed to turn the TV on in time to see the last wicket of the third test. Good timing. The rest of the time we went for some walks, and generally relaxed.
Football pitches on Llandaff Field
Sunset over PontcannaJanuary was a mixed month weather wise. It was mostly cold and dry, with foggy and icy days. But there were a couple of fine ones in there, but on the whole it was grey, grey, grey. We didn't get any snow, but that's OK. We had a catch up with Lewis and Sarah, to compare notes on Christmas and New Year. Naturally, it was at the pub, and we had a good time.
On the 10th we decided to do a walk in a place called Llantwit Major. It was a pretty good day weather-wise, started off cold and grey and cleared up as the day went on. We caught the bus out, and it took about an hour to get there. We discovered that the bus route finished at the train station – so we could have caught the train, and it would have been warmer! We had some minor dramas at the start of the day. Firstly Matt forgot to take his scarf, so we had to find a shop to get him a new one from. Important, as it was a bitterly cold day. Then we lost part of the instructions – namely the map. Not to worry, we had written instructions, and it was a circular route. Then we had a dilemma about where to start. We ended up starting half way through the described route, which was best for us as it was right in town. After checking out the outside of the cool old town hall (which has steep steps to get up in to it, and had been there since the Normans as an outpost), the church (which had been there since 800), and navigating the narrow streets we headed off on our walk.
Foggy start to the day
We were in farmland,
Mist over farmland near Llantwit Major
Frosty misty farmland
walking over frozen ground – which isn't as easy as you'd think it is.
Kathy walking though frozen fields
It was pretty easy to tell which fields had had sheep or cows in! It was really amazing walking through the fields and hearing birds, sheep and lambs. There were water troughs which were frozen solid – poor animals!. We also saw what we think was a kite or osprey, or some such bird of prey wheeling over the fields and sitting on the ruins of some old farm buildings. We were walking across the fields as the fog over the Bristol Channel started to lift and we saw ships on the Channel.
Freighter on the Bristol Channel
It was really amazing – we could barely see where the sky ended and the sea started. The closer we got to the coast, the better the views got. We were able to see up and down the coastline as the mist lifted. To get there we had to pass through a tree tunnel,
Kathy in the 'tree tunnel'
and go over styles, which was loads of fun.
Matt at Llantwit Major
The cliffs themselves were really interesting to look at,
because it was all chunky and looked very block like.
It was pretty spectacular, and so different from anything we've seen before.
As we got to the edge of the cliff we could see caves,
which apparently you can go down to and explore in (but we didn't because we didn't know what the tide was doing)
and right at the end of a bay was a house!
Complete with swimming pool!
Must get pretty windy there, though, because the trees and shrubs were almost horizontal.
Further along the coastline there was a WWII gun emplacement. Most of the 'windows' and the doorway had been blocked up, and the local lads seemed to be using it as a drinking place, which was a pity, but it brought to home just how close the invasion threat came to Cardiff (Swansea was bombed extensively during the war, apparently). Once we started walking along the cliff top, the going got a lot heavier – the sun had come out and was melting ice and frozen ground. And it was turning in to mud, of course. We wound our way along and got to the beach (Matt doesn't think it was a beach, because there was no sand!). We sat on a wall and had our lunch looking out over the channel, watching families and dogs going for walks, and being quietly amused by some local boys who seemed to think they were surfers. Dudes – don't try so hard.
The second half of our walk was a lot less enjoyable. Our shoes kept getting gunged up with mud, and we struggled to clear it off. Most of the route we were sent along took us along the side of a cabbage field and through some farmland. Kathy nearly fell over. The route took us along behind some houses and along a very small stream, which seemed really, really pointless. It was horrible. We're glad we didn't go this part first. The only enjoyable part was Matt skipping stones off a frozen puddle.
After a lovely sunny day in Llantwit Major we headed back in to Cardiff (by train, which was warm and took only 45 minutes). Cardiff was cold and grey, and miserable. Ah well. On the bright side, there was confirmation of our trip to Bruge in the letterbox!! Yay!!!!
Other things to happen during the month were that there were sports matches postponed because of frozen ground. Matt went clothes shopping, and Kathy discovered that she can't help with that either – mind you, we'd both had a really bad week at our respective jobs (and we're both starting to bring work home). The Heinekin Cup resumed. We had a mid-week dinner at the New Conway, which was really good, but really really rich. As the chef is trying to do different things and use different cuts of meat we think we'll go again, but maybe only 1 course (Kathy couldn't resist a Jerusalem artichoke soup starter, which was delicious). Matt bought a year's worth of X-Box Live, and Kathy became an X-Box widow again. On the day he set it up, there was some kid playing who was mixing up his accents and pretending to be a gansta or something. It's a real time thief.
The last weekend in the month was quiet-ish. It was the pointy end of the Heinekin Cup, so Matt was in his element working out the possibilities for outcomes – you know, if this team wins by this much, to get through to the quarter finals this has to be the outcome of these matches. Sigh! We tend to watch the matches at the pub, mostly because of atmosphere, but also because we enjoy it. We also had a fantastic meal out for Kathy's birthday. We went to a restaurant here in Pontcanna called Le Gallois y Cymru (the French in Wales, or something). It was FANTASTIC!! Strong French theme, of course – French waiting staff, French wine, French food. We ended up ordering the same entree and main – Fois Gras, and the best ever venison meal we've ever had. It was red deer, beautifully cooked, and tender, with just the right amount of sauce... Mmmmm. Matt had the most amazing cheese course – the waiter brought out a huge tray, and he got to choose 5. We had the most fantastic wine, started the meal with Noilly Prat, ended with a Sauternes and cognac (Kathy had calvados). It was a fantastic meal.
Unfortunately, we both had to work on Australia Day, of course. We started the day listening to the end of the Triple J Hottest 100, and ended being shocked by the violence committed by an idiot few in Manly, on top of the violence at the Australian Open the week before. How on earth did a celebration (or commiseration) of Australia become a xenophobic, small minded battle? Shame.
That week Kathy had to go to Leeds for work to go to a seminar. Apart from 2 long train trips, Leeds had lots of beautiful buildings. The morning she was there she had some time free before the seminar started, so she went for a chilly walk and found the old corn market. On the way home she noticed soft hills and a canal.
We ended the month with an attempt on the Mumbles Mile – but that's for another blog.
Other culinary highlights of the month were fish stew made with red mullet and monk fish; plaice (yummy flat fish, nice and flaky), and Wickwar IKB ale, which is on as a special at the Halfway.
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