On the road again to Wales, and piercings.

Our route today, more or less, taking much longer than what google says.

We were up and on the road early so that we miss the major part of the morning's rush hour as headed for an appointment at the Labyrinth Rooms in Swadlincote.  We ended up parking up, caravan in tow, on the outskirts of the village and walking in - car parks were too busy for us to park up with the caravan.

We were a bit early for the piercing appointment so we went into the pharmacies, looking for numbing cream.  Either they don't sell numbing cream or it was out of stock.  One pharmacist almost read our minds as to what it was for - asking "are you having tattoos or piercings?"!  The stuff seems to be quite popular in the village.

As it turned out, I didn't need any numbing stuff.  Lynn (at the Labyrinth Rooms) used an anaesthetic spray which worked well - a bit sore but not half as what it could have been (having had piercings done without being numbed first).  I had 2 piercings done (I say no more!). Yes, I am walking like John Wayne but it will be ok in another couple of hours.

After getting the piercing done we drove to Pen-Y-Bont Campsite just outside Bala, Wales.  We had a couple of "faithful disciples" following us during our drive along the country lanes after picking up fuel in Oswestry.  The drivers didn't want to pass us just in case they dropped down off the steep roads into the "valley of death" 😉 😆.  We remained their "protectors" until we reached safer "waters" (er,  roads) and "parted company" in fine spirits.

There were very few visitors at the campsite so we were able to choose a pitch.  It seems to be quite a nice campsite, situated near a lake, and the receptionist was friendly with a good sense of humour.  We felt at home.

I miss the underfloor heating in the shower block at the previous campsite.  I'd almost forgotten what it is like to step onto freezing floor tiles.  The shower block here at Pen-Y-Bont has timed infrared lamps and either you can feel a bit of warmth when they are switched on, or you miss it when the timer switches them off.

It has started to rain and you can hear the gentle pitter patter of raindrops on the caravan roof, and the occasional baa'ing from sheep in the fields.  I love the sounds of nature.

Cats & a visit to see former work colleagues.

As I headed across the farmyard to the ablution block a black and white cat bounded out from a shed and gave me a friendly greeting.  Another black and white cat also appeared and the first cat disappeared under a car.  The second cat seemed to 'hog the limelight' and wanting all the attention for itself even when I left it and went over to the first cat, which again moved when the second cat came to me.  After I finished at the ablution block the second cat followed me to the caravan and came inside the caravan for a mosey around.  I wished I could have asked the cat to wipe his paws on the doormat before coming inside because it left muddy footprints while exploring.  Eventually it settled down and sat with us for a while before heading out of the door.

Our route today, more or less per Google but not the exact route our satnav
took us.

We took a nice drive (satnav set to the shortest route again) today through the beautiful Peak District in southerly direction to Swadlincote so that I could visit former work colleagues, and pick up some mail.  It was lovely to see familiar faces again at Gresleydale Healthcare Centre.  Most staff were still there but there were a few new faces.  I loved working for the doctors' practice as a medical secretary and have many happy memories from when I worked there.

From Gresleydale we drove to Swadlincote where we did a bit of necessary shopping and visited a piercing studio (http://www.freewebs.com/labyrinthbodypiercing/) to see we could get a few piercings done.  Lynn was on her way out, having finished for the day, but she had a quick chat with us about what we wanted and we made arrangements to come back in a few days time before we head back to the Netherlands.

We met up with a South African friend for an early dinner at Cherry Tree Farm (pub) (https://www.farmhouseinns.co.uk/locations/cherry-tree-farm?utm_source=g_places&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=places&utm_content=5191) and spent the next 2 or 3 hours catching up on news.

We took a different route back to the campsite, partly along a main route because the sun was going down and it would have been pointless to take a more scenic route.  Back to the ablution block to use the paid meter shower.  Paul had managed to get some £1 coins to ensure that we could have a longer shower if necessary.  We did need an extra coin because we washed our hair which adds extra time to a shower.  Walking back through the muddy farmyard in pitch darkness wasn't an option.  It was a necessity because it is so darn cold outside.