The good thing about having a blog, or blogs in my case, is that they are a great way to record something that you may want to look back on in future years.
Ahead of my 50th birthday I wanted to visit some friends ‘back home’ and see my parents. I already had some plans to travel down to the Wirral/Cheshire, but then some old school friends had planned a mini informal school reunion so it seemed perfect timing.
Friday 27th May – I drove from the Scottish Highlands to the Wirral Peninsula (North West England). The traffic was hideous with accidents closing off lanes and roadworks with reduced speed limits. So it took me 9 hrs 15 mins with only a few quick stops on the way. I had dinner at my parents and then headed to my friend Elaine’s where I was staying. Elaine and I have been friends since she was 16 and I was 17, when we worked as waitresses in The Old Quay in Parkgate, Wirral.
Saturday 28th – I got up early and headed to Abakhan, a fabric shop in North Wales. There was just so much choice it was hard to decide what to get. I bought some very pretty denim coloured cotton that has tiny pale blue flowers on. I’m not sure what I will make with it yet! I picked up some other bits and got confused and put pack some cotton poplin fabric which I now have remembered what I was going to use it for 🤦♀️
I then met my friend Mike for lunch in Prestatyn (North Wales). After lunch I headed to Parkgate on the Wirral for the school reunion.
For the reunion, we had nice weather so could all sit outside some pubs on ‘the front’. Parkgate is on the River Dee and has a promenade…however this side of the Dee is all silted up and has become marshland. Only a few times a year does the tide come all the way up. It has a row of white buildings along the promenade including pubs, restaurants and houses. When driving back from Prestatyn you can look across the River Dee and see the shining white line that is Parkgate front. I forgot to take any photos!
Sunday 29th – Elaine and I headed to Portmeirion on the west coast of Wales. It was the location for the 1960’s TV show called The Prisoner. It was originally built by someone inspired by Italian architecture. There are people who live there, but I think the majority are now holiday cottages. It is lovely to walk around and we spent a few hours exploring and walking one of the woodland trails.
We then checked into the Tudor Lodge Guest House in Porthmadog nearby. We had a lovely afternoon tea there and couldn’t finish it! We took our full bellies back to our room and relaxed watching TV.
Monday 30th – After a delicious breakfast we walked to the Harbour Train station in Porthmadog and caught the Woodland Wanderer steam train which takes a journey up into the woods and hills above Porthmadog. In Tan-y-Bwlch we could get off and there was a cafe but we were both so stuffed from breakfast we couldn’t squeeze in a cake 😮.
The train then headed back to Porthmadog. There are some houses that are incredibly close to the line, so you could see right into their homes! I don’t think I’d want to be so close, plus in summer I imagine they can’t open their windows without having all the steam from the steam engine blowing in! We later got back to Elaine’s and chilled out and watched a new episode of Midsummer Murders. We have been friends for 33 years and we hadn’t known we were both fans of the show 😂
Tuesday 31st – Elaine had work so I played with her beautiful 20 month old dog, Paddy. There seems to be no end to his desire to chase a ball. Eventually I had to get going and meet my parents for lunch at Pesto at The Yacht. Their menu is small dishes (like Spanish tapas) of Italian food. We chatted for a while after eating and then it was time for me to head to Cheshire to visit with Susan for a few days. More on that in my next post.
The travels of HighlandHeffalump 
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