Two Day Six's...whaaaat

Personally I blame Derren Brown as he was the subject of day six part 2...whoops. Honestly, I can count.

Day Thirty - Photo a Day

The last post for this challenge! Oh it's been messy, with my rambling posts that I don't but probably should read over. My forgetful nature, and the general lack of quality of the photos. But I hope you have enjoyed reading this and maybe learnt something, if only that I'm welsh and like food as that seems to be all this blog has been about.

This last photo was taken a fair while ago but I couldn't leave it out of my blog.

This is Fred the four foot inflatable Dalek. My brother bought him for me when he went to live in Cardiff and I think he fulfilled his challenge to find me the biggest thing he could which would take up most of the room in my uni bedroom. If you don't know what a Dalek is then shame on you! Go find out and then fear them. Fred was used to scare flatmates and it never got old. EVER!!

The next challenge will be watching a new film every day. They can be classics I just haven't seen (the godfather) or ones I saw when I was little but forgotten (Star Wars) I am not the most film literate person and tend to watch the same ones over or follow actors (David Tennant, Tom Hanks). Let's hope I can keep it up and I hope you stay with me for this new challenge :)

Thanks for reading xx

Day Twenty Nine - Photo a Day

Two left! Are you sad about the end?

I found a ladybird in my garden, went to take a photo and it flew away. But it landed on a daisy, show off.

Pretty and summery. And it will kill the evil aphids that are upsetting some of the plants.

Thanks for reading xx

Day Twenty Eight - Photo a Day

Three to go!

A nice shot of a willow tree, my favorite type of tree. Probably because of grandmother willow in Pocahontas which is my favorite Disney film.

And it is a sunny day!! In the summer! In Wales! Utter madness :)

Don't know what the other tree is...do you? But the willow is what this is all about.

Thanks for reading xx

Day Twenty Seven - Photo a Day

Nearly at the end of this challenge....

Thought I would do the photo first. It is a dead daffodil plant (it is summer) but the plant has dried out and the yellow of the Daff can still be seen. I just think it's a pretty picture because I'm all girly and like dead flowers....
Hope you enjoyed this photo

Thanks for reading xx

Day Twenty Six - Photo a Day

Found this guy peering creepily out at me from a field. There was a child hiding behind it and when I went to take a photo he shouted at me and I was absolutely terrified as there was no one else around and I thought it was just a sensor on the ground somewhere but no it was an evil child. This is take two of the picture but it is quite cool. He reminds me a bit of the Iron Man by Ted Hughes, loved that book when I was little.

I did say a bit like the Iron Man...not loads. Just the bit where he escapes from the ground after the farmers bury him, I imagine him peeking out like this first. If you haven't read the book, go do it...it is really short and has a fairy tale edge to it. And is completely different to the film as there is a dragon! ooooh

Thanks for reading xx

Day Twenty Five - Photo a Day

Since it is the 25th post it only seems right to have something a bit festive!

Here is a card I made for my gran and grandad when I was about 4...

Yep...look at that. It's brilliant. I was such a skilled child but I do think I was probably older than 4 when it was made, but the grandparents insisted. I would show you the writing but its in pen and I'm left handed...so its smudge central. Why it was in pen I have no idea, but there was a handy translation from my mum in there so they knew it was Christmas love, and not a note kidnappers made me write.

Thanks for reading xx

Day Twenty Four - Photo a Day

Ladies and Gentlemen I give you...the longest place name in Wales! Brought to you by a lovely children's wooden puzzle.

The layout for this is completely rubbish! But I can't make them all nicely line up like good children's toys. Altogether it reads...

LLANFAIRPWLLGWYNGYLLGOGERYCHWYRNDROBWLLLLANTYSILIOGOGOGOCH

Which translates to...

Church of Mary Pool White Hazel Besides Rapid Whirlpool Church Tysiliog Cave Red

Of course the bits in between like 'the, and, where, under, by' etc have been lost in the stupidly literal translation but there it is.

It is shortened to Llanfair for posting and yes, I can read the welsh out loud and make it sound proper. You will also notice the love of the letter 'L' and 'G', we welsh are well fit but 'LL' is a letter in our alphabet so its not that many really....

I hope you try to say it out loud!

Thanks for reading xx

Day Twenty Three - Photo a Day

I know you are all bereft of my Italian adventures, but we are back in glorious Wales! And since food features a lot on the blog, I thought I should include a little Welsh recipe :) Delicious Welsh Rarebit!

Yes it is a fridge magnet, and yes I know you can't really read it. Luckily for you I will write it out below so you can love it too...

Grandpa's Welsh Rarebit

4 slices hot buttered toast
200g grated Caerphilly cheese
25g butter
1 tsp dry mustard (mustard powder, but you can use normal mustard..English mustard)
3 tbsp milk
3 drops Worstershire sauce
Salt and Pepper

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in the remaining ingridients and warm gently (it will go all gooey and lovely). Pour over the toast and serve hot (I usually grill it a little bit as well). Can also be served with a poached egg on top, known as Buck Rarebit.

Hope you enjoyed it :)

Thanks for reading xx

Day Twenty Two - Photo a Day

Hope you are still with me!

This is the last of my Italy pics for this blog...I know you are all devastated to know you wont be able to read anymore of my ramblings about the trip, but it's OK.

I will leave off where I began in Italy, because I'm all poetic and that, at the airport! Everyone's favorite place when they are on their holidays. We had just been abandoned by the shitty rep when I saw this floating on the water feature outside (Charlie Dimmock would love it).

Eventually the rep appeared after thinking she had a group of Japanese tourists...she was an idiot. But all was forgiven when the aircon was turned on on the coach. Ahh cool comfort.

Thanks for reading xx

Day Twenty One - Photo a Day

These pictures don't go together at all...but I love them both and took them on the same day so they will go together.

The first picture was taken whilst walking down the street in Verona, they were teeny but so pretty...and Chanel was just around the corner so I got to stare in and dream.

The second photo is outside the amphitheatre where you can see the sets for some of the operas happening there. It was the 89th opera festival and the sets were amazing. The Egyptian sets are for Aida..the rest I can't remember.

It's taken from across the road so you can't see the amphitheatre in all it's glory but I just wanted the moment when the festival was one :)

Thanks for reading xx

p.s don't forget to follow and comment and all that jazz

Day Twenty - Photo a Day

Ten days left everyone! (ahem)

I wasn't going to include these pictures as the quality might not be amazing, but they are fresco's on the side of buildings in Verona. 500 years old and original. And slowly decaying since the properties are privately owned and the govt has no money...hooray for the euro! A waiter told us the fresco's will only be around for another 50 years if that unless something is done. And they are amazing.

I made them x-large in the hope you can see the fresco's...and I'm no photographer as you may already know so apologies for the sun getting into shot.

Thanks for reading xx

Day Nineteen - Photo a Day

A trip to Verona would not be complete without visiting Juliette's balcony. Which was put there 80 years ago by the Italian govt to please the tourists...shh!

Still the experience of visiting the house (not really hers...shh!) was wonderful, going in the walls were being repainted to cover the messages of love tourists had written everywhere. Some were thanking the love they have found, and some were asking for love. If you took your time there you would find some really beautiful messages.

Whilst the messages outside were being painted over to make way for new ones, inside the house I found this...

I think it was specially commissioned for the house but it features real messages to Juliet about love and all things like that. So not made by an artist pretending but real messages preserved for the house, which is nice considering the ones outside are being re painted.

Thanks for reading xx

Day Eighteen - Photo a Day

A beautiful little plaque in Verona. It was underneath a scroll like metal statue with pictures telling the tale of Romeo and Juliet, found just outside the Colosseum/ Amphitheatre.

Loved this little message. Even more so when the guide told us the Italian govt made a grave for Juliet just to please the American tourists. The sentiment still stands though :)

Thanks for reading xx

Day Seventeen - Photo a Day

Hello there!

This photo is from the little island of Burano. That's right, not Murano where the glass is made, but Burano where the lace is made. Lace in itself isn't that thrilling but Burano itself was beautiful. It was described to us as 'the island where the rainbow breaks' on the boat over from Venice.

When you arrive it is easy to see why it is described in that way, the houses are all painted different bright colours and no two together are the same. It is like a Disney film in there, especially with random old women making lace on the street.

They have a leaning tower too...but it isn't on this photo...sorry.

Thanks for reading xx

Day Sixteen - Photo a Day

This photo is from a boat trip on Lake Garda and shows the ruins of a Roman villa. It was massive and half the bricks had been stolen to build the castle on the island. And that castle is a proper sized castle, no messing about there.

Obviously this picture doesn't do it justice but then it is something you will just have to go and see for yourself. And you should if you get the chance it is beautiful there.

Thanks for reading xx

Day Fifteen - Photo a Day

If you know me then you will know of my love for nutella. It is a joyous product which never fails to give me joy.

My love reached new heights when I saw this on a stand outside my hotel...

Oh yes, that dear readers is four absolutely MASSIVE tubs of nutella. Now I'm going to let that sink in a little bit.......

Love a bit of catering sized food.

I tried to get a sense of scale for this wonder, but I don't think it truly does it justice as my hand is close to the camera. The guy running the stall got a bit annoyed with my awe.

Oh, and I do have a thumb, but I'm using it to hold my phone case (the black thing).

Still, pretty big though!

Thanks for reading xx

Day Fourteen - Photo a Day

I love this photo so much, It is of the lovely gondolier we had in Venice. And yes, I was about to call him a gondola man, but then remembered the helping hand that is google.

He was extremely proud of his city and pointed out the important sights on the little tour. We went around one of the islands which had the opera house and a beautiful church  close by. The onto the grand canal to 'park up' which was so busy!

Mr Gondolier told us it wasn't usually this busy but a building had collapsed on the normal gondola routes and so that canal was closed and everyone was having to go on the grand canal. Good news though as we were close to 3 gondolas with singers in them and they synchronised which was lovely...it also lengthened the trip to an hour instead of thirty mins :)

Thanks for reading xx

Day Thirteen - Photo a Day

This little note was in the hotel toilets and I enjoyed it. So it found itself on my blog, lucky thing!

Oh and I wasn't in Westminster, I was in Italy. Another reason to enjoy.

Thanks for reading xx

Day Twelve- Photo a Day

Hello there. This little piccy is an indoor sparkler I had for my birthday cake, well my home birthday cake. I had my birthday on holiday and so no cake but ice cream...yum. This was going to be a sparkler laden cake picture, but it wasn't very good. This is slightly better..and sparkly.

Thanks for reading xx

I am a terrible person...Day Eleven

After a terrible and pointless break in this blog I will be resuming and WILL be posting daily. Or I will at least have a decent excuse as to why I haven't been posting.

I'm going to finish this little 30 day challenge today with little notes above the pictures instead of paragraphs.

I will try to be less terrible and neglectful from now on :)

This my dears is the amazing frozen yogurt me and a friend had at nando's. Oh the joy of a shared bottomless fro yo machine...yum! We went back a few times and got some looks from the staff as we shouted 'make it bigger' across the place, but it was all worth it for the frozen delights. And it was strawberry flavour in case you were wondering (I know you are)

OK...lets crack on with day 12!

Thanks for reading xx