Roath Park – A nice place to visit.

Roath Park is one of Cardiff’s most popular parks and has a distinct Victorian feel about it. The park encompasses a lake on side and a botanic gardens and glass house on the other. There is a diverse range of things to see and do. There is a child’s play area, a lake to walk around, which includes boating for the able bodied, also a Victorian glasshouse to visit.

As you traverse the lake you will see a wide range of water birds. The habitat of the park is set so to create a suitable habit for the birds. The swans are known to get in the way of pedestrian or wheelchair user alike! So perhaps a little care is needed around them. At the right time of year you can see nesting Coot’s and said Swans, also Geese and Cormorants to name a few. The path around the lake is fairly easy going in a wheelchair, but the camber is at time a bit of challenge if you are using a manual wheelchair. The inclines are not too great. You are able to go around the entire lake, giving you chance to see all it has to offer.

The Botanic gardens park of the park is more of challenge, with some steep inclines. I would say this is only suitable for a powered solution or someone fit to push a manual wheelchair. However it is worth a visit, to see the stream running though, to sit in the shade of the trees or view the Rose gardens in season.

The park has a cafe, a takeaway coffee and ice cream shop and a ice cream van. It also has toilet facilities. The parking is on the road, be it Lake Road east or west. There are no dedicated disabled bays I could see on my visit.

I love coming here when I visit Cardiff. A chance to people watch, meander around the lake and have an ice cream. This has become something of a family tradition now. With the obligatory ice cream regardless of the weather. If you are in Cardiff I would recommended you stop by. It really does feel like a snapshot in time, the echoes of a bygone era.

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Photo of the day declutter.

As per my previous post I am moving on with a new phase of my life. This is not the easiest of things for me to do. It feels like I have been laid bare. Recently I have come to realise, Ive hidden behind ‘self employment’ and the motives behind that, to stop me fulfilling my dream of being an author. If I busy myself with the tasks of self employment, especially one that involves crafting, I would never find the time to write. Even though that thought burns away deep in my soul. I once said I could no longer give up writing than willingly give up breathing. Even though I have tried to dam it, it still has snuck around the edges, over the top. Every time it did this, I built bigger and bigger defences. The question I had to ask myself was why? The why …. even though I tried to hide away from the reason, it simply stems from my childhood dream. Then being told I would never be good enough. My spelling, my gramma all fell, probably still fall short of the desired standard. I have for years and year and …. you get the picture, I let this stop me fulfilling this dream. Then a a good few years ago told me I had the most amazing gift of storytelling. I was told when he read my book Tales from the Beyond it was as if he was sitting next to a campfire being told stories. It was then I realised I had something, I’d not call it a gift, but what I found was my ‘voice’. I went on to write The Fool’s Journey. This book was for a while my nemesis. It hasn’t had a happy life as a book. I will stop there detailing the lack lustre mistakes of my writing past. Now having made my decision it has left me with all my insecurities of my writing on the surface, so to speak. To help me work my way forward I’ve decluttered a lot of my crafting stuff and given it to a local mental health charity who help people through crafting. Now I cannot go back. The only way is forward, because I cannot afford to restock 10 years of crafting supplies! I do have some left for my own personal use. I’m refinding my addiction to knitting socks! This is what I’ve decluttered! Shocking really.

Photo of the day – preseli mountains

One of those  upsides to where I like is having the mountain on my door step. These may not be the regal beauties of the highlands of Scotland or the towering splendour of Snowdon, but they’re mountains. One day I will get my off road scooter solution and climb them, as I dreamed of doing when I moved here. You will see a few more posts over the year from Preslei’s so here is the first. As per my previous post another lay-by shot.

Photo of the day – Aberaeron

As I become a 24/7 wheelchair user, as my feet give out and EDS pokes it tongue out at my attempts to defy it, I am having to find new ways of taking photographs. I spend a lot of time driving about the sparsely populate county of Ceredigion. Part of Ceredigion clings to the middle of the West Wales coast, on a good day, views to rival those of some of the best locations in the world. As I drive I am now learning to play spot the lay-by incase theres a good photograph opportunity I can grab, from the comfort of my car, or just leaning on it outside of it. This photograph was taken from one such lay-by. One I will be revisiting as the seasons change and the daylight hours lengthen. Here is my first shot over looking Aberaeron. If you are ever this way, make sure you pull into the town itself and stop for a while. The brightly painted houses give light to the darkest day. Nestled there is a lovely harbour, with pretty views over the church and out to sea. The Hive is a fabulous place to stop for a cup of coffee or an ice cream in season. If you have a bit more time, their menu for lunch is good! There are many other eateries in Aberaeron and some quaint little shops. Well worth a visit!