I am huddled up in bed wearing a jumper and dressing gown over my night clothes looking out at my beautiful view across an estuary and forest covered shores, with misty mountains in the background. There is plaster peeling off the walls from the rain storms which blow in from the sea on prevailing winds and have found the cracks in the rendering of my little stone cottage, and it is about 2 degrees c in here, but I could not be happier.
I have finally managed to fulfill a life's ambition and have bought my little holiday cottage in North Wales. I have "A room with a view" in the words of E M Forster. A view of the river estuary and sand banks and the ancient turrets of a castle in the little seaside town I was taken as a child for our annual caravan holiday in Wales. For a rather shy and fanciful child from a drab midland city council house, to arrive in Wales for a holiday, for a whole week, was magical. Not only was it another country but there were mountains and valleys with names such as "The Fairy Glen". There were sand dunes, endless beaches stretching over the horizon and the shining silver sea.
I want to thank my parents from the bottom of my heart for introducing me to this special place and whose legacy has enabled me to fulfill a lifelong dream.
Kim
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Kkimm
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Wow Kim. That looks divine. 😊 what a beautiful view!!
I too went to wales for holidays as a child, it is a beautiful place..
I can totally understand you feeling so happy ..I feel happy you have been able to fulfil your dream...it gave me a warm feeling inside
Looks so tranquil..
Thank you for sharing, this made me smile this morning
Thank you so much Olivia, I hope your dreams come true for you also.
Very best wishes.
Kim
Hello Kim
Like you I live in the countryside and in a way I am very lucky to have been able to life a dream. I am a very private person and love the peace and quiet of the hills overlooking my cottage.
Keep living your dream and never allow anyone to break your peace. My family disrupted my happiness and sad to say I am now wondering if I have the need to move again.
We were in Central / Southern Wales at St Davids this year visiting gardens, castles and historic houses, you live in a really pretty area, ENJOY.
So sorry to hear about your peace being disrupted. I hope the problems can be resolved without the need to move.
It sounds as if you live in a very beautiful area too. I remember you telling me a bit about it previously when I posted about a break I took in Lincoln, such a lovely little city, and saw the grey seals breeding on the wild Lincolnshire coast.
To day I hope to see grey seals again, in a rocky cove just a cycle ride from my cottage. Hoping the weather holds, but I will go anyway and put up with the rain.
It is a wonderful place, lots of work to do on the cottage but it could be stunning. I have one room I can get really warm with a gas fire so that is fine by me. There's an inglenook fireplace, beamed ceilings and a great little garden behind the house sloping steeply upwards and backing onto fields. It means you get the view from the back over the rooftops as well. Need to work on my partner to help with the repairs and build a summerhouse!!
I would love it. Growing up my grandfather had a lake front cottage. We were there all the time. Lately I have been dreaming of being able to buy a cottage near his. Sometimes I even look online to see if anything is for sale.
It reminds me of a place by the shore in Maine where I used to live. Now I look forward to the beach every year but it’s not the same as there are too many people.
I think it is awesome that you lived in Maine! I have seen pictures and heard people talk about how beautiful it is there. And I completely understand how you feel about not liking it as much because of too many people, lol. They need to preserve the secluded beaches....especially in a place as beautiful as the Maine Coast. 🙂
Wow! That beach and the sand dunes looks absolutely beautiful! And I especially love the way you describe how this place makes you feel. I am a huge romantic and love the folklore and stories that surround places like this, like the mountains and valleys with the Fairy Glen names, etc. And I know there is a lot of great folklore in the UK, so that is something that has always held a lot of fascination for me.
Your stone cottage sounds amazing and would love to see some pics of it, if you feel comfortable posting some. 🙂
Reading your post and looking at the pics has really brightened my day, so thank you so much for posting your thoughts! And Congrats on your dream coming true! 🌾🌊🐚
I love folklore too. I am not sure why the Fairy Glen has this name except that it is very beautiful so I guess the locals thought it should have fairies living there.
I used to love the idea of fairies when I was little as my mother told me stories about them.
So when we finally got to visit the Fairy Glen on a coach trip on one of our Welsh holidays I was really disappointed because we did not see any fairies there. I have been as an adult and it is a very beautiful gorge with a river running through it and many moss and lichen covered trees clinging to the sides or over hanging it. It is quite difficult to get to with slippery paths and stepping stones over the river etc so I do not think we were taken to the best part of the glen on the coach trip. If I had been I do not think I would have been so disappointed.
I am a little worried about posting pictures of the actual cottage and views. Those in the collage are further down stream towards the sea and less mountainous.
If however you want to message me your email address I would be happy to send you photos and tell you an extra story or two about the area. If you prefer not to share email adds I can at least tell you the stories as PMs.
Hi, Kim! You are very welcome! I think it is so charming that you have such an interest in faeries! I love faeries, too and have for many years! I have many books that I have collected about them and also some faery deco items that I have collected, too. And among many reasons, this is one of the biggest reasons why I have always wanted to visit the UK....as I have read that there is so much great folklore over there....and many places that are touted to have real faeries. Though there are certainly some people who believe in faeries in America, I would venture to say that it is probably not as prevalent over here as it is in the UK. And I have always found it so intriguing that there are people who still believe over there.
I totally understand about not feeling comfortable about posting the cottage pics on here.
The river and gorge that you speak of sounds absolutely beautiful! And I would love to view the pics and hear the extra stories....I also have a few of my own! 😃 Yes, please PM me and we can start there!!! I look forward to hearing from you! 🌷🧚🌸
I think you must be in a similar part of Wales that I went to every year as a child. My Dad moved there permanently in 1990 and lived there until he died last year.
We always went to the Barmouth area and stayed in a caravan park in Tal-y- bont.
I still go every year and we stay on a farm in Llanbedr. I took my children there every year and although they are grown up they take their children and it has been like a second home to all of us.
My plan when I finally get my inheritance through is to, guess what? Buy a holiday cottage there, so I might bump in to you one day.
Lucky you you're there already, doesn't matter what the weather its beautiful. xx
Thanks for your lovely reply, yes I remember you told me your father lived in Wales. I know the Barmouth area, a bit further south from where I am. It is beautiful also.
It was lovely to hear how you and your children and grandchildren have continued to holiday in the area and that you too would like to buy a holiday cottage there.
I was also so pleased to hear you are alot better now and had been planning to message you to say so soon.
Thanks for your lovely message, I will reply properly soon. I thought of you as I am in bed in my Welsh cottage overlooking my beautiful mountains, woods and estuary at the moment. The tide is just starting to flow so I can see mostly sand banks at present. Looking forward to seeing the high tide for the first time on this visit as I have been out and about so much I have not been at home to enjoy it from my window.
I walked miles out on the sands on my first afternoon after my arrival and may do a post about it in a day or two so I can attach a photo. Heeded the warnings about how it is possible to get cut off by the tide on a sandbank and made sure I returned to shore as the sun was setting, in plenty of time before the tide began to flow.
Yesterday I drove into Snowdonia and walked around a mountain tarn, or Llyn as they are called in Wales. Spectacular views of churning, tumbling waterfalls, grey rocks covered in orange and lime green lichen and mountain tops sprinkled with streaks of snow. I was breathless at first, my only remaining anxiety symptom, but this disappeared soon and I felt invincible by the end of my walk.
I then enjoyed The call of the wild film of the Jack London book at the cinema. Beautiful scenery, rather over cute dogs but irresistible all the same. Harrison Ford in the lead role as a lonely old timer with bushy white beard and working clothes and so reminded me of my Pete, there's quite a resemblance, it brought tears to my eyes. I am here on my own and really enjoying it but Pete being here too, if his heart was in it, would complete the picture. I ring him every day and he's been great helping me to solve a few minor issues with the house.
Will go now, so hope you enjoyed your time with your friend.
Thank you for the lovely photos, I can relate to you so much. I grew up in Lincolnshire, lived in a council house. We had a car, every year my father would drive us to different places and we would camp for a week or even 2 weeks. I loved North Wales, we went to Harlech, I loved the beaches there. We went to the east coast, Great Yarmouth and Lowestof, we went to Cornwall for 3 weeks,, saw glow worms!!! I am so happy for you that you have achieved your dream. So have I, I live in the US, 14 years ago I had my dream home built to my design, it is not palatial but it is warm, cozy, looks out on the back onto a small lake, has lots of birds with some wildlife. Across the front of my home is a wetland with lots of birds, wild life, I see an occasional deer. I am SO happy. Keep sending us great stuff, I do not have a cell phone so I cannot put up pictures, but we know how we feel don't we?!!!
So to anyone out there, do Not give up, I suffer with clinical depression and get suicidal tried it twice, so glad I failed. Life gets glorious for us who suffer and by guts and will and medicine we live and it is a special life. So go for it, as you can see Kkimm and I have made it this far......Love and hugs to all of you who read this.....Sprinkle 1.......
Your house sounds so beautiful, what a location!! I am very keen on wildlife also and can see lots of wading birds from my cottage. I would love to hear more about your special place if you feel like replying or ever want to message me. I really enjoy hearing about the landscapes and wildlife of the US as it seems so exotic to me here in the UK. I wonder where abouts in the USA you are.
I also agree with your great message to everyone, it can be done and finding joy in nature is a great way to help yourself in your recovery. Like you I find even greater joy in life having been so ill and now largely recovered but it never fully leaves you, you have to be careful for life I think. It makes us more grateful for what we have got and able to appreciate it more.
Very best wishes to you and anyone who reads this.
We also had caravan holidays in Harlech by the way, my cottage is a bit further north but I love Harlech also with its wonderful castle looking so dramatic surrounded by flatter land and golden beaches.
Hello, so good to find you again. I have been sick, had some kind of virus, and it knocked me over, spent a lot of time in bed, unable to do much, so my computer got neglected. Now I have found you again, thank you so much for writing to me.
Yes we have a lot in common, I loved North Wales, it is so rugged and beautiful.
How are you?
I lived in Calif for 42 years, it is beautiful there, so much to see, has deserts, forests, mountains, beautiful beaches, rugged shore lines. The lowest place in the US, Death Valley. one of the deepest lakes in Tahoe. great wine country, Napa/Sonoma, some of the best wines made in world come from there. I saw so much of it as I was an avid camper. Lived an hour from Yosemite, 2 hours to San Francisco, a beautiful city. Now I live on the East Coast in Sth. Carolina. Kind of flat and boring, has long beaches, I go sharks teeth hunting and other sea life. I found a 60 million year old fossil! I took a class last month on pine straw basket weaving, very interesting, it's history is from the local Indian's, and impoverished black slaves.
So you say why leave Calif.? It changed a lot while I lived there, got so expensive to live, lots of crime, and pollution. So I switched coasts!!!
Yes being well does make us appreciate what we have, while speaking to my brother in UK, this am, I told him it was like I blew off 3 years of my life, and though I am now well, there is a little fear in the back of my mind, please do not let me go there again!!! I hope my med's last me for the end of my days, I am 77 and there is longevity in our family.!!!
I am glad you have wildlife around you, I love nature so much, at night I go out after dark and throw food off my deck for the critters, there are raccoons, possums, used to be foxes, have not seen one in a long time!!! At the back is a small man made lake, it is pretty, has a few islands in it, I see egrets, great blue herons, lots of ducks, other birds, it is so peaceful. I am a private person, and enjoy being here, it is a senior community, so quiet no children. I like to get out, I do volunteer work at the local library and love it.
Yes to all who read this, we can win, stay true to yourself and have faith in yourself, with the right frame of mind and medicine we Can come Out Ahead.
If need it go and talk with a quality therapist, one who knows about depression/anxiety etc., I have one and she has helped me a lot. Of course always feel free to come and talk to us here, we will offer love and support.....
Hope to talk to you again Kkimm, love and hugs.....Sprinkle 1.....
Thank you so much for your reply, I loved reading it.
I agree we have so much in common, I will answer your PM as well another time.
How amazing to have lived in California. I visited with my partner and daughter when she was only around 8 years. We did the LA Disney but then drove through the desert to Los Vegas and then on to Bryce canyon, the Grand Canyon and had a boat on lake Powell. It was all so beautiful and she loved it. I remember we fed chipmunks at Bryce Canyon and visited many road side stalls run by Native Americans. The scenery of all the Canyons was breathtaking. I will never forget it. A real highlight was the day on the boat on Lake Powell where we could bath in steep sided little sandy coves and see the huge fish in the deep green depths.
The class you took in basket making in traditional style sounds really interesting, have you made many baskets yet?
How exciting to be able to feed racoons and possums from your beautiful lakeside house. I would just love that. Do you get armadillos, I am mad about them. What sort of butterflies, reptiles and turtles do you see? My daughter, now grown up and married and working as a Social Researcher, has a house in the hills near the white cliffs of Dover. They have a garden of 3 acres and they have foxes and squirrels that they feed. It is beautiful dramatic scenery around them. We had Christmas with them and took a cliff walk on Christmas day afternoon, such amazing sky and seascapes. I may do a post about it soon and you will be able to see a photo that way. Pity we cannot post photos on replies or PMs.
Your east coast beaches sound interesting too even if they do not have the dramatic scenery and contrasts of California. How amazing to find fossils. We can find sharks teeth fossils on our local beaches near my main home.
It is a bit like the contrast I now have between where I have my main home near the gentle meadows, farmland, rivers, salt marshes and the seaside of the warmer dry south East of England and the wild mountains, forests, ancient castles and treacherous seas of North Wales where I have just bought my little holiday cottage.
We sail and swim alot in the warmer safer waters of my south eastern estuaries but I am so looking forward to all the adventures the new wild rugged area will bring.
I cycled to a beautiful high rocky bay where I was able to photograph and film around 20 Grey Seals with pups on my last visit to Wales.
I am off there again next week and will drive the journey alone this time which I have never done before so am a bit nervous about. I want to take my daughter's bike so we can cycle together there on her next trip. I also want to bring some items of furniture if I can fit them in.
Well, I will do a short reply to your other message sometime soon. I have just had a dental operation yesterday and am finding my jaw is now starting to hurt so will stop soon. Glad you're recovering from your virus.
Looking forward to hearing from you again, anything you want to write will be great, wildlife and landscape or whatever else you enjoy doing would be very interesting to me.
Dear Kkimm, Sorry it has taken me so long to write to you. I hope you are keeping well and enjoyed your solitary ride to N.Wales. I have no problem by myself, I load up with snacks and water and lots of cd's and tapes of music, and play it loud!!!
Another reason I have taken a long time, Is I have been really concerned about the Coronavirus, it is now in our state, got here on Sunday, not in a county close to me so far?!!! I have been reading everything I can from the Health Community and Scientists who are working on it. Unfortunately our president let us down, he is such an idiot, I hope we can get him out this year. I am pretty well stocked up on food and cleaning supply's. I do need to pop out and get more TP, cat food, milk and coffee. If needs be I can then stay in my house for a month if need be.
Last week I managed to get infected again with the bug that is going around, sounds like you had it and had it bad, I spent a week in bed, now I am dragging, tired, no energy, low grade fever. I told the head librarian on Fri. if it gets in our county ( the corona virus)I will not come in to work, she said she understood, and wonders if the County will close the library's.
Other wise, I am getting on with living. Went out last Wed. to give blood, and run errands, I bought 2 40 lb bags of corn for the squirrels, I threw some on the ground and a flock of crows came, made me laugh!!!
No have not seen an armadillo not sure if they are in our state, I'd have to look them up. I am sorry I do not see the foxes anymore, building, building driving them off of their home grounds.
The grey seals with pups sounds lovely, we do not have seals around here,
there were quite a lot in Calif.
The trip you took in Calif and other states sounds lovely, yes I went to Brice canyon, the colors were fab. As were the colors in Grand Canyon, which I rode down on a mule, and stayed the night at the Phantom Ranch, they put on a great meal for us, served family style, and they had some great steaks.... Yes I miss Calif. and consider it my 2nd home, I will always be English born and bread, it is in my blood, even though I am an American Citizen.
Sounds like it is lovely where you live, and you have nice places to go and swim. I will not go in the water where I live, too much contamination as far as I am concerned. We have a pool here at the community, so I can take a dip in there.
Sitting here at my computer I look out of two windows to give my eyes a break, one is in my bedroom, looks out on the lake, the other looks out on my deck, I see the wood bees out there, I am so thrilled to see them, they are large and fairly friendly. We have been having problems here in the US with the big chemical company's and the poisons they put out that get sprayed
all over by the farmers. Bad for the butterflies also. I am in a club that takes these people to court, we do our best to ban them, we finally won with Round Up it took about 10 years!!! I try not to use chemicals, I use Very Little Bleach, I use Peroxide for cleaning in my kitchen and bathroom.
Life sure can get difficult at times, I do my best not to let it get to me, I live in the moment, do not think far ahead of myself. I am happy so that's all that counts.
I am glad you have a lovely daughter, I only got a son. Your were near the White Cliffs of Dover for Christmas - lovely. When I was visiting my cousin and his wife in Essex, he drove us down there, aren't they a lovely sight to see, I have them on my computer. Isn't it fun to travel, I love it as it expands my mind, I have done quite a few things in my life, went sky diving on my 50th birthday, have been up in a glider, helicopters, small planes, hot air balloon, with my brother Craig in his microlight. I like excitement. I intend to look into seeing if I can do a hot air balloon in this area. I have been thru the Panama Canal. Never made it to Australia, wanted to go to Aires Rock.
I am never going to get old, My plan is to burn out, not rust out.....Well I should be thinking about dinner, we changed out clocks last night, I hate it, it throws me off for several days. There is a movement here to put us on a set time and leave it there, I hope we can get it done.
Hope you had a lovely day, and a great week to follow. Sending Love and Hugs......Sprinkle 1......
I come from Brecon in Wales, lived on the Brecon Beacons on a farm. No electric or cars in the 50s, very isolated ! My great grandmother came from North Wales and could only speak Welsh. Beautiful country but cold. My name is Delyth,a typical Welsh name.
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