Wet Welsh Christmas (Part Two)

One important item to go with us on our holiday was the Christmas Cake.  I didn't ice it beforehand as I didn't want it to get damaged en route and so once we had arrived I sallied forth, purchased icing sugar and set to work.  What I hadn't realized was that while I thought I had bought icing sugar made from cane sugar, I had in fact bought icing sugar made from sugarbeets.  In our family sugarbeet sugar was generally frowned upon but I didn't notice the error until the evening of Christmas Eve - when all the shops were closed - and so I had to make do with what I had.  

Putting my ingrained anti sugarbeet sugar prejudices to one side I set to.  The results looked okay!  It tasted a little different but I couldn't help that and justified things by saying to myself that we could always 'not' eat the icing when we cut the cake.  

I decorated the end result with holly picked from a bush outside (and laid in boiling water for short while to kill any unwelcome friends).  

It all looked rather festive:

The cake has lasted from then until now, with pieces being eaten every day.  In point of fact I am sitting eating the last piece as I type these words!

* * * * *

The weather during our stay in north Wales was decidely fierce on occasions and the River Dee (which runs through the centre of Llangollen) was quite a torrent:

I really liked this blue 'gothic' doorway at the side of the local police station:

We went on some delightful drives among the numerous valleys.  This is not far from where we were staying:

I took this photograph while we were having lunch on the side of a narrow lane.  The countryside was criss-crossed with these hedgerows.  We aim to return in the summer for a short holiday too.  I expect they will all look spectacular then:

But north Wales is not just about valleys (no matter how green they are).  It is also about sunlit uplands:

And stark, rugged mountain scenery and remote lakes:

Behind this cloud (in the photograph below) is Yr Wyddfa (Mount Snowdon).  I have never seen it myself because whenever I get near, it is covered in clouds: be it summer or winter!
On the left is Y Lliwedd and on the right is Crib Goch.  Yr Wyddfa is in the centre, completely obscured.  It stands some 1,085 metres:

I can tell you that when I took that photograph it was absolutely freezing.  The wind was like a knife and seemed to blow right through your bones!  Thank goodness AGA and I could return to the car and have tea (for me) and coffee (for him) from our respective thermos flasks.

Even in Winter Wales is a magical land:

But at the end of the day it is nice to return to the valleys again:

I hope you enjoyed looking at these photographs.  If you ever get the chance to visit North Wales - do not hesitate - grab your bags and go!