Chickens, Books, and Brecon Beacons

This morning after breakfast, I decided to spend some time with the 'ladies' who produced the very locally-sourced eggs for my meal. I had the pleasure of watching them all run out of the coop (no camera on hand to catch it--sorry!). It was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. They really do come out at a run, as if they'd been, well, cooped up and were eager to get out. They knew exactly where to run for their food and ignored my sad little breadcrumb offerings. 

Also running out at full speed, looking like (as Liz, the manager here put it) a sumo wrestler, was this handsome fellow, who obliged with a good old-fashioned announcement of the morning:

I watched them for quite a while, but finally tore myself away to go for a walk along the river path. I was alone for most of the path. It was like walking through a cathedral of trees, with the sound of the birds and the water beyond them hymns of praise.

Eventually, I came to a clearing. Those clouds rolling in look threatening, but it hardly rained today.

After communing with nature, it was time to pay homage to the main attraction of the town--the bookshops. I went into only five and bought only seven books. I'm rather proud of my restraint, especially considering how wonderful some of the shops are. This one specializes in 19th-century works (especially Dickens):

This one is called Murder and Mayhem, which is pretty self-explanatory:

And of course I needed to stop here

After stopping for lunch and depositing my books back in my room, I jumped in the car to see a little more of the famous Brecon Beacons. A few miles out from Hay, the sight of a number of horses pegged in fields along the side of the road caught my attention, so I turned into a small side road and came across a band of...gypsies? I don't know, but that's what it looks like to me. And yes, you're getting part of my car as I was trying to be all stealth in photographing them:

Continuing on, I came across view after gorgeous view. Here's a small sampling:

The shot above was taken while I was on a short walk after parking my car on the side of the road. While I was waiting at the fence hoping the sheep would feel my sympathetic energy and come trotting over so I could pet them, it started to rain. Of course I had left my umbrella in the car, so when it started to really come down, I took shelter in this lovely church that was closer than my car:

The caretaker told me it had recently been restored/refurbished. When I asked when it was first built, he shrugged, "Oh, probably somewhere in the 1100's or so. The Normans built all kinds of churches and castles when they came over." I love that someone can just shrug about buildings dating back to the 1100's (no biggie!). And Normans.

The rain lessened and I went back to my car, ready to return home to Hay. Problem was, my phone had stopped cooperating and refused to tell me how to do this. I drove a few miles back the way I'd come, hoping it would kick in any minute (I had bars!), but no dice. Google maps was "offline." Which left me panicking for a moment that I would be driving around the wilds of Wales until my gas ran out and die some sad, lonely death in a hedge. And then I realized that I could always just pull into a town and ask someone. Anyway, panic moment past, I continued on the highway towards a town I recognized as being close to Hay and hoped I was going the right way. Sure enough, I was. My confirmation? The ponies pegged by the side of the road, still munching away at the long grass as I zipped by them. Hallelujah for the ponies! 

Back in Hay, I took my books and a few other items I purchased along the way to the post office. The cost of shipping all that to the U.S. hurt a little, but I figure it's money well spent not to have to lug all of that with me for the next week. As I walked back to the B&B, the sun came out in full brilliance.

I found the chickens sunning themselves in the yard. They kind of tip over sideways and spread out their wings.

And now all the chickens have gone to bed. Liz told me they all go in on their own. When they come out in the morning, the rooster does a kind of head count, and if one of them's missing, he'll go back into the coop and shoo her out. I'm headed for bed myself in a minute. Tomorrow I'm off to Betws-y-Coed in Northern Wales. I'll be sorry to leave this lovely setting, and especially the chickens.