31st January 2023. Another late night, but we’ll have plenty of time to “chill out” when we’re dead, so let’s hit Cardiff. Mrs RM was intrigued by my £27 a night Zip hotel by Premier Inn next to the David Lloyd fitness centre 3 miles east of Cardiff central. Worth a tenner just for the… Continue reading ROATH RUMBLE
Tag: Glamorgan
NEVER MIND THE BUTTY BACH, MONKNASH, HERE’S THE FLAT BASS
31st January 2023. Well spotted, Andy Holmes, our mysterious new commentator. Yes, next stop, last tick of the month, is the legendary Plough & Harrow in tiny Monknash, one of Glamorgan’s top dining pubs. One of those unmodernised ones, with ORIGINAL dragon on the door. I’m not scared of your silly dragon, but I am… Continue reading NEVER MIND THE BUTTY BACH, MONKNASH, HERE’S THE FLAT BASS
ON SOUTHERNDOWN BEACH
31st January 2023. 50 odd years after my first sighting of the ocean (possibly at Aldeburgh) there’s still a thrill about arriving at the sea. Sadly, Sheffield has many great features but the sea isn’t one of them. Bridgend may have limited charms, but the resorts and coastal villages are as good as anywhere, as… Continue reading ON SOUTHERNDOWN BEACH
MARVELLOUS MAESTEG
31st January 2023. A foreign holiday to end the month, as I take the Prince of Wales Bridge into west Glamorgan for a few ticks, a pint with an esteemed reader of this blog, and a gig by Dutch popsters Amber Arcades. First stop, Maesteg. A year ago I was driving round here on the… Continue reading MARVELLOUS MAESTEG
GLAMORGAN HAD FALLEN
Young BRAPA is gorging on Gwent at the moment, so I know he’d want to see what a fully pinked Welsh county looks like. I completed Glamorgan back in July at one of the dullest pubs in the Guide, but a quick look at the OS extract for St Athan reveals hidden depths. Here, a… Continue reading GLAMORGAN HAD FALLEN
BASS AND CARLING BY THE JUG IN PORTHCAWL. BUT NOT FOR ME.
Closing in on the last knockings of Glamorgan now, with a trip to the Skegness of the West. Well, actually Porthcawl isn’t that exciting, so perhaps it’s more a Felixstowe. Does Felixstowe have a hotel with Bass ? The Lorelei had been taunting me for some years with itr’s offer of all day seaside hospitality… Continue reading BASS AND CARLING BY THE JUG IN PORTHCAWL. BUT NOT FOR ME.
PERSISTENCE PAYS OFF IN PENCOED
A reminder to those of you asking where all the close-ups of Welsh strict Methodist chapels from this trip are; sign up to be a Patronised reader to get that content. The Welsh week wasn’t entirely without fraught moment, the Little Penybont Arms in Pencoed deciding to be unexpectedly shut. After reading through the Facebook… Continue reading PERSISTENCE PAYS OFF IN PENCOED
14:08 : YSTALYFERA FEAR AT THE WERN FAWR
Yet ANOTHER Welsh village that only the Welsh can pronounce, and Wiki tells me that 1,812 of Ystalyfera’s population of 3,019 speak Welsh, so they’re fine. I know we need the big map to see where Ystalyfera lies, on the edge of the Valleys but a safe distance from That Merthyr, but it’s the Ordnance… Continue reading 14:08 : YSTALYFERA FEAR AT THE WERN FAWR
“Those were the days, my friend”. Pubbing Pontardawe.
The great mid-July conquering of Glamorgan continued with a trip to Pontardawe, which I have on occasion confused with Pontardulais, with disastrous results. I know you only read this rubbish to equip yourselves to visit obscure Swansea Valley towns, so you should know that Pontardawe is famed as the birthplace of this McCartney pro·tégé. Mary… Continue reading “Those were the days, my friend”. Pubbing Pontardawe.
INTO THE VALLEYS – RELIEF IN GLYNNEATH
You’ll have seen from my Last 100 that I have quite a few pubs to do in the Welsh Valleys, one of my favourite parts of the world. In the McDonalds at Glyn-Neath (aka Glynneath) we were treated to early morning prog, something I’ve never warmed to. “There’s always been Ethel” ? What’s that all… Continue reading INTO THE VALLEYS – RELIEF IN GLYNNEATH
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