19th May: Last day of the holiday

And it started off rather disappointingly with continuous rain and a cold wind, but off we went anyway down to Beaumaris, taking time out to drive along the cost road first

We needed a bit of shoppping and had lunch in the triple8 cafe, and spotted this quaint local custom, apparently they think Palm trees need Monkeys, even if they are stuffed ones, we had seen this in other places on the island too

they obviously dont have a big problem with petty crime here, just look at the way shops spill out their goods onto the pavement!

It was very windy and chilly so we resisted the urge to walk out onto the short pier, which had been renovated since our visit last year.

the weather had by now started to improve, so I thought it would be nice to visit the burial mound at Bryn Celi DDu, which we hadn't gone back to for over forty years! Remembering that it was a long muddy track to get there, Pat decided to wait in the car andd do a bit of crochet, and I went off on my own to found that things had changed and there was a great surface footpath there now!

Perhaps my memory is defective but I seem to remember walking right through the tomb, yet now the back entrance is partially blocked by a large stone.

at least the other entrance is still clear and you can enter if you wish

A youg couple took this photo of me against it to give you an idea of the scale

then we had a pleasant sunny afternoon wander up down the very narrow road to Rhoscolyn, a pretty bay over four mile bridge on Holy Island

A perfect spot to visit on the last day of the holiday, and the weather was perfect too!

18th May: Anglesey Sea Zoo

A dull and breezy morning with a chill wind, so the Sea Zoo seemed an attractive idea We got there about 10:30, this was the colourful entrance sign

There is a very striking Stained glass window in the entrance too

The tanks in the first room take the form of open ponds

The fish and molluscs here are all from cold seas, like these wolf eels

And these well camouflaged floinders merging with the shingle bottom of the tank

In the next room ave tank set into the wall or as columns, containing some striking anemones

And a fine starfish too

Also hermit crabs

And in the next room Cuttlefish

And dogfish too

One of the attractions of the Sea Zoo is the darkened corridor decked out to give the appearance of the interior of a sunken ship, its always popular with kids of all ages, and a real challenge for photography, here the phone camera did rather well, I thought

cute Blenny lives in one of these tanks

Theres a good cafe here too, where we enjoyed Chicken korma, rice and salad

I was rather taken with this model boat mounted up near the ceiling

The weather did cheer up during the afternoon, so after tea we had a short tour around the narrow lanes above Amwllch to find the ancient church at LLangengan, there has been one on this clifftop site since about AD 400!

17th May 2012: Church Bay, Pili Palas, Bangor Pier

When the rain cleared we headed out towards the head of the island for a look at Church Bay, it gets busy in summer, but right now we were the only people there.

when it started to rain we decided to use the fact that our tickets for Pili Palas were valid for a week, so drove down the A55 and were there in time for lunch! Here the board greeting you as you drive in.

We had Baked Potatoes with salad, Pat With cheese, mine Coronation Chicken) in the cafe, which were very good, and watched the Meerkats through the windows.

then it was time to face the tropical heat and moisture in the Butterfly Room

We were in time to see one of the butterflies emerging from its Pupa

And there were lots to photograph,

There were a couple of sculptures in the room, like this strange figure

And this realistic looking Gila monster

The weather had picked up outside so Pat fancied a walk along Bangor Pier, which is only about a third of the length of the one at Llandudno, but in better repair.

There was only one of the little businesses running in the small pavilions, and the cafe at the end of the pier, but when we visited last summer they were all doing a roaring trade, and we had a delicious "welsh Rarebit" at the third one along on the left.

16th May 2012: An inland tour

Possibly the last fine day before rain, so inland via LLanberis Pass, taking a short breal on the shore of Lyn Padarn

Across the lake Pat took this closer look at the spoil from quarrying on the mountainside

How much of the mountainside had been eaten away in the process,

And the recent snow on the high tops

There was only a short queue for the Snowdon Railway, but seeing the snow on the mountain top, we felt that it was likely the train wouldn't go all the way to the summit, and even if it did it would be too cold for us, so we gave it a miss. I hadn't seen Rhyl and Prestatyn before so we headed up towards the coast. Both of these resorts were really nothing more than mile after mile of shops, amusement arccades and static caravan sites, the sea fronts deserted and even the toilets closed, not places we shall visit again! We had a lazy afternoon after doing some shopping then went for an evening short drive over the narrow and very pleasant back lanes to Port Eilan (near Amwllch)

Apart from the two disappointing so called resorts it had been a very pleasant day.

15th May 2012:Melin Llynon Mill

This is the last surviving Working Windmill on Anglesey, on a slight hill not far from holyhead. It has been pretty much rebuilt from a derelict state and is really worth a visit.

The building next to it is a shop and amenities block and inside the mill are storyboards telling it's history in great detail.

Heres another view of this very attractive building

Next to the mill is a pair or reconstructed stone age round houses, this is the notice outside their enclosure

A tribal carving stands as guardian at the entrance to the camp.

Among the wildflowers.

Originally the camp was "fortified" and this has been recreated, here is the entrance

Heres a panoramic of the two roundhouses, a school class was taking place inside one, the kids were having their paces painted in tribal markings!

The roundhouses were very cleverly constructed with a massive amount of overhang of the thatched roof over the wattle and daub walls to protect them from the rain and wind, and the extended entrances supported with very complex supports as here, which must have taken many years to reach such a high standard of engineering!

After tea I went for a walk round Moelfre, pretty quiet apart from the odd fisherman heading for the point!

And at the point there is a shingle beach and a few cottages

And a couple of ships anchored in the offing

And a last rather flared shot of the main beach as I walked back

In general the weather had been good, apart from a sudden and quite violent hail storm mid afternoon, and on my evening walk I could see that there was fresh snow on the tops of the highest mountains in Snowdonia, that hadn't been there the previous day.