Day release

Wednesday morning, I had an appointment at the hospital in Abergavenny, some 25miles of scenic drive away from home in the opposite direction from my job in Cardiff. As Abergavenny is a town that I like going to, and the appointment was at an awkward time to be able to return to work afterwards, I decided to book the day off altogether and have an outing.
Walking in from the car park, I was immediately greated by some seasonal alterations to the Shepherd and Sheep statue:

Good job too, as the autumn days are finally turning decidedly crisper.

I was amazed at how busy the town was with plenty of people milling around. I had expected a small town up in the Valleys to be all quiet mid-week, but a combination of half-term and cattle market meant that it was as lively as any Saturday.
I headed towards the old Market Hall as the Wednesday Flea Market was on, again, much bigger and busier that I had expected. They also had wonderful new harvest-time decorations hanging from the ceiling:

 

 The flea market itself was not bad at all, stock was a little older than the kind of thing I go for, but certainly quality items and a pleasant athmosphere.

Living close to Cardiff as I do, it's easy to assume that the rest of the country is just sleepy valley towns, but it is testimony to the ongoing importance of farming in Wales that a town so far from the motorway and shiny modern offices still comes alive with people and trading on Cattle Market day.

Of course, no visit to Abergavenny would be complete without stopping by Ginevra and The Wool Croft with some feeble excuse to just spend time in her lovely shop. Turns out that the Wool Croft are indeed the mischief-makers behind the woolly socks on the sheep statue!
I picked up some interchangeable tips for a future project, and a little ball of Noro Kureyon for my blanket (which I really need to do some more work on) and by then there was a slight lull in business so I could finally take some pictures inside!

the very last of the Gower Wool - hoping to bring Ginevra
and all of you more very soon!



As is my habit when driving anywhere around the Valleys, I got lost on the way home. Actually, I wasn't really lost as the signs were telling me that I was heading towards Newport all the time, but on a road that I had never been on before and I didn't recognise any of my surroundings until I emerged from a roundabout 5 miles from home! But of course, getting lost driving in Wales is not quite like getting lost in other places. You are rewarded with stunning views of autumnal valleys and even the odd staggering statue such as this: The Guardian of the Valleys, a 20 meter high memorial to the Six Bells mining disaster near Cwmtillery.