Going to Colwyn Bay tomorrow

[Dee]

So what? you may ask!. Well, it's something that has been on my mind to do for a while, but to be honest, I have been putting it off. The thing is, I used to go there as a very young child (pre-school mainly) on family holidays, and have some really happy memories of the place. I have only been back once in the meantime, and that was just for a day trip n the 1970's, but ever since I lost Dad, my last really close relative, just over two years ago, I have realised that there are some places that I need to re-visit, I'm not sure why this should be - perhaps I am seeking some form of closure? Sadly, the lady who ran the guest house where we stayed passed away, not long before Dad, and I'm not sure if her husband is still alive, so it is inevitable that everything will have changed, but I still feel that I need to do this, even though I actually feel a bit scared of the memories and feelings it may bring to the surface. Has anyone else felt the need to do something like this?

Anyway, the weather forecast is good, and there may not be too many warm sunny days left this "summer", so I'd better take my chances!

xx

Dee

[rosemary]

Whatever the reason for you feeling you need to go, enjoy it and remember happy times.
Take some pics to share with us.
x x x

[choosysue]

When we were small, we used to go to Seahouses, Northumberland for our summer holidays, and it was Mam’s favourite place.

The last few years of me caring for her, we started going again, just her and I, as a treat for her Birthday, and this time last year we were packing for our trip. We found a lovely bungalow that was right on the sea front belonging to The Olde Ship pub, and the staff would bring our breakfast over every morning to save Mam having to try and get ready in time to go to the dining-room .. she used to say she felt like a film star, lolling around in her dressing gown, being waited on !

I haven’t been back there yet, it will be another ‘first’, but know I’ll have mixed emotions when I do go .. the memories are so strong still.




This is the view looking back up to the town from the harbour wall, we stayed at the Bamburgh Castle Hotel the first time we went, the long white building, then if you squint, you can just see the bungalow near the top left of the picture (in the gap between the taller buildings) where we stayed after that.


Hope you remembered happy times Dee.

Sue xx

[Caring_Mind]

Thinking of you and hope that remembering Happy Days helps to keep you happy xx

[Dee]

Thanks everyone for your good wishes and interesting comments.

Well, I did go and I enjoyed it!

The weather was ok, although a bit overcast and muggy, I could have done with the sunshine that we had in the Midlands last week. The train journey from Telford is just over two hours and I got there just before 12:30pm. Colwyn Bay has certainly changed in many respects since my visits in the sixties and early seventies. On the minus side, it was depressing to see the Victoria Pier in such a sorry state, and, although I already knew the funfair and minature railway had long gone, it was hard not to feel nostalgia for them (the bloke on the station ticket barrier remembered them when I asked for directions to the seafront). The house which used to be the guesthouse where my parents stayed for their honeymoon in 1949 and where we had our lovely family holidays in the early 1960's also had a rather sad, neglected air about it (the owners sold it about four years ago), but it was still lovely to walk up the street and let the happy memories flow over me. Outside another guesthouse a bit further down the road there was a couple sitting in a swinging seat in the front garden and this brought a lump to my throat, as I remember sitting in one just like that with my Mom and Dad in the garden of "our" guesthouse.

On a positive note, I was cheered to see that it is still a busy, vibrant town - on Saturdays at least, with a thriving street market, and that a number of the Victorian/Edwardian features, such as the arcade in Penryn Road, have survived either in original or updated form. The resort is obviously still popular with waterskiers/jetskiers. The following link will take you to some nice pictures of the town on the BBC Wales site:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/northwest/si ... tour.shtml

During the afternoon the skies darkened and I had a lovely cup of coffee (well two, actually) and cake in a nice cafe near the station and whiled away the time there reading a newspaper during a shower. After a final stroll round the town I came home feeling glad that I had finally made the effort to revisit a place that held so many memories for me. A friend from Scotland rang just after I got home and I really enjoyed relaying my experience to her, likewise, it is fun to be able to share my memories here with other carers/former carers. Oh, and thanks, Sue, for sharing your memories of your trip with your Mam to Seahouses – it sounds like a great place and a lovely holiday! I keep promising myself I will visit the Northumberland coast one day soon, it sounds fantastic.

[rosemary]

Thanks for letting us know how your visit went, and so pleased that you enjoyed the trip down memory lane.

x x

[Dee]

Thanks, Rosemary, I am really glad I did it.

I had another good experience this morning: I attended a volunteer information session for the Workers' Education Association in a local community centre and found it really interesting, inspiring even. It was centred on reguar volunteering as a classroom support worker, but there are also opportunities for volunteering on a more ad-hoc basis, doing admin work etc, which would fit in better with my current situation, which is basically unemployed but looking for work! Ideally, I would like to combine doing part-time paid work, volunteering and doing some further education, but don't quite know how this is going to work out. The announcement last week that RBS is closing a local customer service centre, which employs 500 people, mainly contractors and part-time workers, is not exactly welcome news. Anyway, for the moment it looks as though I shall be helping the WEA with a couple of enrolment sessions next week, and see how it goes from there.

Have a good week everybody!

xx

Dee