Today we Made Scones

...and yesterday, we made Roasted Parsnips (and carrots and onions). We also worked on our "garden" (a broken concrete slab, surrounded by pebbles, through which grow enormous amounts of tenacious weeds and one measly daffodil. It is definitely the ugliest garden in the neighborhood). We're slowly adapting to the English lifestyle.

None of that has anything to do with our trip to Wales, with the exception of the Roasted Parsnips, which were introduced to us by a lovely young woman at King's Hall Carvery. We ate them for our Sunday Roast. They were delicious. We decided to make them for Easter. They were delicious again, so much so I've inadvertently capitalized the R and P in Roasted Parsnips twice--no three times, now. I stray from the point.

We went to Aberystwyth, Wales. It's pronounced just like it's spelled, with the y's being like i in parsnip. Derek presented a paper there at the University of Wales during a graduate student geography conference, and we decided to stay for two extra days to enjoy the quaint seaside town. We welcomed the change in pace and atmosphere from London. For starters, we sat across from a woman named Leslie on the train. She chatted us up and by the time we pulled into Aberystwyth, she had offered to drive us to our guest house from the station. That turned into a tour of the town and also the University, where she had taught up until her recent retirement. She noted that she couldn't wait to turn 60 so that she could get a free bus pass--she said between the students and old folks, she was about the only one who paid for the bus on her trips up "Heart Attack Hill" where she lived, near the University. After walking this hill three times that weekend, we approved of the nickname.

Laura ran into another interesting character--didn't catch his name but immediately fell in love with his blonde Golden Retriever (which was far more interested in a small terrier than in being pet)--down on the promenade (i.e. "Prom"). In a rather thick Welsh accent, he relayed the following story:

"Awhile back I was down in Brighton walking on the pier, when an elderly woman started screaming bloody murder. It appeared her dog had fallen--plunk!--right off the pier and into the water and is drowning right there. Suddenly, out of nowhere this German fellow jumps right into the water. He climbs out, dog in hand, starts breathing life back into the little creature, pumping his little chest and all that. Then the dog coughs, pops back on his feet and the woman scoops him up. 'Ohh, thank you so much! I'm just an old widow and my little dog is the only companion I've got,' she says to the German guy. 'How did you ever do that? Are you a vet?'

'Vet?!' The German says, 'I'm soaking!'"

Upon finishing his joke, the old Welshman immediately said "byebye then" and turned and walked away with his dog trotting alongside, and Laura sat on her bench laughing as he retreated.

Of course, something like that isn't likely to happen in London. We enjoyed the small-town, friendly atmosphere for a few days. Not to mention it was a beautiful place! Check out our pictures:

The town of Aberystwyth, taken from the top of Constitution Hill (i.e. "The Consti"--apparently they are very fond of abbreviations and nicknames!). There's a neat old tram that you can take to the top--or you can walk the 430m up to the top.

The Prom, taken at Sunset on our first evening there. Our guest house is one of these (the pink one). That's Consti Hill itself, in the background.

Looking over the town (and some sheep) from halfway up "Heart Attack Hill" and near the Welsh National Library (we went into this library and, among other things, learned that President Obama is part Welsh). You can just make out the tallest tower of the castle ruins just to the right of center (see more on the castle below).

A WWI Memorial, on the tip of the tiny peninsula near the center of town.

The memorial shares the peninsula with a Castle ruin. The castle was built in the 13th c. or thereabouts, and has had many owners. It has lost most of its walls and towers as it changed hands from one conqueror to the next. But there are still some fun arches and structures standing.

Historians are fairly certain that cannons were first used in Britain during a siege of this castle in the 17th c. Wonder what created this hole?!

Sunset from the top of Consti Hill, looking away from Aberystwyth to the adjacent village to the north. A lovely view. Leslie told us that on a clear day, you can see up to 100 miles of Welsh coastline from the top.

Eat your heart out Edora! We found this basket and eight others at the top of Consti Hill. We would have brought some discs if we'd have known they were up there, but actually they were so close together that you could have played the entire course standing in one spot. It was more like mini disc golf than anything else--made for a nice photo though!