A short break in Wales
Or, how not to drown.
Not so very long ago, during a solo vacation in Turkey, I very nearly drowned in the Mediterranean.
These are my co-vacationers in Turkey- who didn’t almost drown.
As I’m going to Crete in a couple of weeks I thought I should do something about my non-swimmer status, (for all practical intents and purposes). So casting around on the internet I found Sarah Kentish, ( http://www.swimwithsarah.co.uk/ sarah.kentish@btinternet.com ) who could give me some intensive, 1 to 1 swimming instruction, before my vacation in Crete. And believe you me, finding some proper swimming instruction in the narrow time-window I had available was nothing short of miraculous.
Sarah said that she could teach me how not to drown every time I went in the water, and she was going to be teaching in the Imperial Hotel in Llandudno. And so, I booked a series of lessons and sent off my payment. Snag was, I had no real idea where Llandudno is, other than it’s a seaside resort.
Llandudno is in Wales, and about 250 miles from where I live….. which doesn’t sound so bad. Except I was travelling by train. The journey there took six-and-a-half hours and involved 5 different trains. (The journey home from Llandudno was not as bad.)
Still, I got there to find that the Imperial Hotel is a Magnificent Victorian Edifice. My room was nice, the pool in the basement was nice, and Sarah was nice. Under Sarah’s instruction, in 5 x 40 minute sessions I went from being effectively a non-swimmer to a chap who was more than just ok in the water.
Other than just how much I needed proper swimming instruction, the most surprising thing about this trip was that the main dining room at the Imperial Hotel is world-class. They serve the most sublime food in elegant surroundings, (posh frock and expensive shoes elegant). How they can have a world-class dining room in Llandudno is beyond me.
The downsides were; the trip cost a small fortune, the weather was dreary, and Llandudno by rail from my place may as well be on the dark side of the moon.
Llandudno is a pretty smart place, but it seems to attract the elderly more than cute girls in small bikinis. On the other hand there is a hell of a lot more to do in that Welsh seaside resort than you’d think. The Imperial Hotel is fairly pricey, but mostly worth it. Individual, 1 to 1 swimming instruction is also fairly pricey, but very, very worth it. It might save my life one day.
And, that’s why I took a short break in Wales.
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Jack Collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
The pool at the Imperial Hotel
Sleeping in Hotels
Alone and on the road again…..
I’ve just enjoyed the first decent night’s sleep I’ve had in about a month, and I’m in a hotel……
In my long and mostly disreputable life I have spent more nights than I care to remember in all kinds of hotels, in most of the major cities of the world, (and some towns that would have to work hard to qualify as a bomb-site). And in all that time I never hardly ever slept well in an hotel.
One solution to ‘hotel insomnia’ is to get good and drunk….. But these days I am utterly sober.
So, what’s different this time?
I believe it’s that I’ve put my worries, resentments, and anger behind me….. And nobody can possibly sleep with a mind racing like an evil train crash.
I also believe that a few hours in the hotel pool taking the strenuous exercise of swimming lessons, and then going for long walks by the sea, also helps.
And, on a cautionary note, sharing your hotel bed with a woman you’ve just picked up at the hotel bar will not help you sleep either.
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Jack Collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
I have never in my life ‘picked up’ a woman in a hotel bar.
Hooker, or otherwise.
Swimming Lessons
Some things are much more fun than you would think.
I had my 3rd swimming lesson this afternoon.
Seems that I am doing ok because my instructor has stopped teaching me to swim….. She is now giving me instructions on how to swim properly.
Lots and lots to remember.
At least I am much more confident in the water now.
Shame the weather here in Llandudno is so dull.
You can’t ever have it all.
Jack Collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
Llandudno
Llandudno isn’t pronounced anything like you’d think.
But I like it here.
I like the Imperial Hotel too, it’s like going back in time 100 years or more, and it’s very smart.
I had my first swimming lesson here today ☺☺☺☺☺
And now I’m totally exhausted.
I’ll tell you more when I’m not using a tablet to post with.
Jack Collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
Where I had my very first swimming lesson ever.
Almost Drowning in Turkey
Always look before you leap.
When I went on a day’s boat trip in Turkey I jumped into what looked like fairly shallow water. Turned out it was about 60 feet deep. It also turned out that I’ve just about forgotten how to swim.
~
~
I almost drowned before I made it back to our boat.
As almost drowning on vacation is not a good plan, I am taking a week’s 1 to 1 professional swimming instruction, from a lady called Sarah Kentish.
This will be in the pool of the Imperial Hotel in a British seaside resort called Llandudno.
~
jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
I wonder if I’ve forgotten how to ride a bicycle too?
JackCollier7 
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