Winter wonderland

My part of Wales, Monmouthshire, is even more beautiful and compelling in winter when the frost glints and the colours are subtle and subdued. It is so easy to get to mountains, rivers and moorland, all equally enchanting.

In the Brecon Beacons

A walk along the River Wye near Monmouth

Quite often I puzzle over why anyone goes anywhere else - but that is solipsistic! 

King Arthur

  I have become completely intrigued by the story of King Arthur. It is the mix of history and legend that is fascinating. Geoffrey of Monmouth started to popularise his life in the twelfth century and so many writers have picked up on that account and added characters, themes and detail. Something about him stirs the imagination and appeals to people of all centuries.
  Yet he has also attracted scholarly interest as academics and archaeologists try to establish where he was born, lived and died - if, indeed, he existed in reality. Any place with connections to him has become a tourist centre and the concepts of the Round Table and the Holy Grail are deeply etched in our minds.
  I am intent on reading the various versions of the narrative (probably in translation!) to see who has embellished the skeleton provided by Geoffrey. This image of him enthroned is from a set of tapestries depicting the Nine Heroes (French, late 14th century) and I have taken it from the Bellerophon Book outline, checked the colours and filled it in. His tunic shows the three crowns of England, Scotland and Brittany.
   My research on King Arthur will be posted in stages on my history blog about visits you can make by bus in Monmouthshire as there are good reasons for associating him with South East Wales, particularly Caerleon.

Website needed

I went into a bookshop in Monmouth yesterday and asked for a little guide entitled: "Walks from Monmouth bus station of less than five miles with no stiles or steep inclines but including a castle visit, a pub lunch and some brief retail therapy." To my grave disappointment none was available and so I request that one of my attentive readers starts a website with this information. See you all in the pub!

Grass Routes

                           

Although puns usually make me groan, this title is a good one as the name suits the flexible bus service operating in Monmouthshire where users can phone and book a journey convenient to them, free if they have a bus pass and costing a mere £5:00 to join the scheme for life. The bus can pick passengers up from their door and rambles through lovely countryside to do so. The helpful driver lifts shopping and trolleys on and off and there is a friendly community spirit on board, a particular regular favourite being the one to Abergavenny on market day. I do hope such an institution is preserved despite budget cuts as it is a life-line to many elderly people, providing a socially welcoming morning out to a lively destination and laughs en route.