Lone Pine Lodge

This after noon was warm and blue and still, unlike the rest of the week that has been grey and cold and windy and I was restless so I took my camera for a drive again. A short one just up to Mynyddislwyn Church and back down a road I had never even walked before let alone driven. Mynyddislwyn Church stands 1,000 feet above sea level and gives panoraminc views opver the valleys. As a child I walked up to the church many times, sometimes with family more often with friends to picnic in the church yard and pick wild flowers from the verges. We always retraced our steps to get home as leaving any other way would add at least another 4 miles on what was already a 4 mile walk and I had always wanted to explore where the road went beyond the church
I didn't take a photo of the chuech today but it hasn't changed much since I took this one in 2008 and probably some one from 1908 would have no trouble recognising it either.

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The post man knocked and handed me a box from the USA. The teddies have arrived and demanded that I photograph them with their Welsh companion immediately. They are posed against my wallpaper which is my photo of my village from across the valley.

And now in no particular order
A men's urinal. No longer in working order


Oakdale Working men's Institute
These buildings were built by subscription from the working men of a town or village. Some would only be able to give a penny a week in the 19th Century but they gave willingly. The 'Stutes as they are called in my valley were a mixture of Men's club, library, reading room(All the local and a couple of the National Newspapers ) and adult education center and were still quite active as such up until immediate post war legislation moved all but the club function onto the shoulders of Local Govenment. Oakdale 'stute is a cut above most of the ones I am more fammiliar with. Abercarn (now demolished) and Cwmcarn 'Stutes were/are brick outside and vitreous tiles inside. OAkdale is dressed stone and Mock marble in side.

Entry Hall

Recreation
Probably a billiard table, this room also has about a dozen tables 4 chairs to the table so was probably used for the adult education calsses.

Reading room
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The heart of the library.
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It was a beautiful St. David's Day here in South Wales and once I had washed up , picked my meds from the Doctors and moved some bags of 'clean' rubbish to the recycling depot I decided to take the afternoon off and go some where. The some where turned out to be the Museum of Welsh Culture at St. Fagan's. I have about 120 photos but the bulk uploader is not loading for me at Photobucket so here is a taster. These are clickable thumb nails as I have left the pictures very large as you need it for some of my shots.

First


They have a photography shop there where you can dress up and have your photo taken as your Great Grandmother might have looked, then they print it out in sepia for you at an extortionate price which I forked up. the photographer was kind enough to this photo with my own camera for me. Having stared at a portrait of my great grandmother Thomas(my mother's mother's mother) every day of my life while getting dress(it hung in my bedroom)until Gran died and I could take it down and hide it I know I do actually look very like her. I would be even more like her if I were dressed all in black.

Some of you who share clara_swift as a friend will have seen her photos of the medieval church paintings she found on one of her days out, beautifully faded by the centuries.
St. Fagan's has recently added a medieval church to its collection and as they found some badly damaged medieval paintings as they were dismantling St. Teilio's they decided to reconstruct it as it would have been 700years ago when it was first built.


I have photographed every wall but just as a taster



More once the I have time to sit and upload one photo at a time or the bulk up loader stops palying silly devils.

I am getting the hang of my new camera but it is so light and the pressure you need to take a photograph so heavy I keep moving my hand when taking them. Any how here are a few I took up Pen-y-fan this morning.




The farmer has got some new cows, I think they they are Highland cattle but Losyn goes demented if I go too close, he thinks they are evil, so I can't be sure. Of course none of them would look at me either.





This one I pulled into the side of the road on the way home to take, It's a little shaky as I had to be quick taking it between the passing cars.



This stream is normally not deep enough to up up over my walking shoes. After the rain we have had, I would want wellies to cross it if it wasn't for the bridge.
Up stream


Down stream



And finally for those of you who have told me they have only ever seen Losyn's Backside



And here he is doing his noble dog looking for danger and guarding his people routine. Again a little blurred but he kept trying to eat the camera, I think he thought it was a andwhich.