The Long Road Ahead

My goals

Travelling for the first time since my stroke was a bit nerve-racking, but it was something I did not need to do. I began the year 2023 with a goal, and within five months, I was either going to be able to do this or fail. Oh, did I mention that I was doing this on my own? I came up with this goal after learning of the Hay Festival, a yearly event where people of all backgrounds get together to enjoy an art and music festival; it has been labelled as the “British version of Woodstock”, for what that’s worth, and during that event, they hold a more intellectual event where some of the worlds most top thinkers are going to be together in one place. I can meet them and ask questions? sign me up! So I made up my mind I was going to get there come hell or high water. I was going to be there. There will be a more extensive detail of this festival in my next post.

Looking back on it, it was indeed an arduous task. I sit here today, able to pour over those thoughts and experiences, and I will share my experiences with you.

Off we go

I began the trip by travelling to a train station a town away from where I was. I decided to prebook everything I could as it helps me keep track of where im going and just what I need, so off I headed with my suitcase packed to the gills with everything I needed except what I could buy when I went there, which was basically all toiletries as I sat on the train going to a significant city in ireland dublin I was able to open my eyes to the wonders these things iove missed the scenery the hustle and bustle of people going about their daily lives and those going on their holidays I made my way out of the train and jumped into an uber going to ship docks why you might ask am I going there? I wanted to make the journey via a ferry, which I hadn’t done ever, so as you can imagine, I’m a seasoned pro by now. Thank god for lifts; this was the easiest way I could get around. Thankfully, there was plenty of space, but I got thrown in with a family on the way back, so to the others if you’re reading this, thanks for the chats and laughs.

Holyhead

I arrive in Holyhead after disembarking off the ferry and make my way to the travel lodge, which is nicely situated 10 – 15 minutes away from the dock terminal; this was a lifesaver as it meant I was able to get quick transport to the Travel Lodge and I made my way there again thank god for lifts because I didn’t realise that Travel Lodges can have over three floors of rooms thankfully, mine was literally round the corner from my elevator I unpacked what I needed from my suitcase. I journeyed to a nearby local supermarket that also managed to have a McDonald’s close by. As it was getting late, I wanted to avoid trying and finding a restaurant in humid/hot weather, so I just went there. 

Hereford

After a 2-hour train ride, I managed to arrive at Hereford train station, where I must confess this is where my story took a frustrating turn. You see I thought with Hereford being a hub of sorts ther,e would be access to similar things that I would have access to in my town, like uber, bus timetables and more visible signage but this is where those expectations fell short you see i got lost very quickly and i had the bright idea to use my phone to guide me where i needed to go but it wasnt that simple i wondered into several places I wasn’t supposed to be most notably the loading area for amazon and royal mail after 45 minutes i gave up on my plans figuring out that if I wasted anymore time i wouldn’t make the 4.30 bus.

yes you read that right, a bus I was at this point exhausted keep in mind that temperatures were in the low to mid 20’s°F for this entire trip which looking back on it probably made my mood worse than it should have been, anyway I made my way to closest fast food place because I just wanted to get something to eat unfortunately it was a KFC which was not the “wagamama” I wanted to try for the first time but needless to say it was needed I dont think I ever finished a meal as quick I believe I was in and out in 7-8 minutes thankfully the bus step I needed to wait at was a couple of minutes away and I had 30 minutes still to go the only thing I didnt know was how buses where paid for and how much it would cost me thankfully I found out from a local bodegas worker that they take payment via card

I was on the move again.

Hay-on-Wye/Talgrath

Day 1:

1 hour and 20 minutes later, I arrived in hay-on-wye a rather beautiful and scenic town; the bus that dropped me off right outside of the hay festival coach grounds to which I was going, at least not on this day.

I, unfortunately, was double booked at the closest hotel in the town and was unable to get a room, so this was the best option for me a lovely bed and breakfast in the town. 

Day 2:

I then meandered around, going to the various markets that were open at the time and then finally going into the antique shops. You see, I was a big fan of those shows when I was younger, and I decided to pick up something small as a souvenir, a reminder of the trip after the festival was over for me; as I went to see the shows, I wanted and met the people I wanted to visit.

Day 3:

I started off by waiting on the bus. It was eye-opening when I got on. The price to go from Talgarth to Hey was three times the price of the ticket I paid to get from Talgarth to Hey. Still, I learned there is a border, and once you cross that border, the price to get back might be completely different from what you paid to go there.

And an insect in resin that I used for a joke on a friend I wasn’t able to spend a long time in town as the show for how the light gets in started earlier today than the day before. Still, I had a great time all the less.

Day 4:

I was wandering around the markets in town; it was just a very slow and chill day. I was talking to people, eating good food, and buying books. I didn’t attend the festival today as there wasn’t anything I wanted to participate in or be a part of.

This town was an absolute joy to be in. The people were friendly and nice. This town had something that I’d never seen anywhere else: a love for literature. You could see it everywhere in every shop. There were books for sale, and when I was travelling past, every bus shelter I saw had at least one bookcase inside it. I remember thinking to myself that I could never see something like that where I live. It made me both happy and sad to have experienced that and to leave it behind. But if I ever get the chance, I would love to grow old there one day, or maybe when I’ve had enough and I run away, that is the first place I would go.

Hereford:

The next morning I packed up and left my B&B to go to Hereford I was waiting at the bus stop for over an hour when I suddenly realised that they weren’t working on a bank holiday weekend, so I phoned up the only taxi driver I knew at the time. You see, I never got a bus back to Talgarth. After all, the festival ran into the late hours, so I mostly relied on him to get me back to my B&B.

I met this taxi driver by the name of Mike who was one of the only taxi drivers working that week of the festival as it turned out a lot of the companies for the town and the surrounding town decided to take the week off because they do not like to deal with people from the festival according to mike they don’t like the festival at all and wished that it would be somewhere else. Anyway, where was I? Ah, yes, I phoned Mike, and now it is 9 am. I was due to meet my friends in Hereford, 30 miles away, at 11.30 am, so I begged him for help. I got it, and he picked me up at 9.30 am. We drove as quickly as we could Hereford to the travel lodge where I could stash my luggage away for a couple of hours till my hotel was ready to check me in. Plus, I knew if I went to my hotel, I wouldn’t make it back in time to meet my friends.

Catching up with friends

11.30 am came, and we met up at Hereford Cathedral. It’s the first time I’ve seen them in years. Still, it feels like yesterday. They spent the day asking me about my trip and why I was over in Wales because I had yet to tell them why I was there. It was a surprise for them. So after that, we went and got food and talked some more about friends and family and the festival it was great.

After a couple of hours of eating and drinking, we went into the town to look for souvenirs for people and in the process of that I unfortunately lost my balance walking on a footpad that ended sooner than I thought. I fell onto a cobblestone road, and I instantly tried to get up as quickly as possible. I was embarrassed and winded from the fall. Still, I didn’t think much was wrong except my hand was sore, I guess from the fall to be honest, I don’t remember my hand landing in an awkward direction, probably because I was super focused on not wanting to be a burden to my friends, but this I would come to learn would be the least of my problems as I finished up with them they drove me to pick up my luggage and then to the hotel I was staying at.

A broken hand and a hospital wait

As I sat in my room, I remember the pain was becoming more noticeable, and my hand was swelling up over the course of an hour. I phoned my uncle, who had broken bones from mountain climbing, to get his opinion after a couple of hours, I realised that it would be best to get this looked at. I went to the hospital A&E surprisingly or rather not it was packed to the rafters with people all waiting to be seen I went to the main desk and told them my problem they saw me more urgently as something I didn’t know is that there is a vein that runs along your thumb and if your bone breaks, it could puncture the vein, so I got looked at, scanned, and was given an ice pack to keep the swelling down. After 2 hours, the doctor saw me on call at this point, announcing that I had broken two fingers and fractured two. The only one that wasn’t hurt was my pinky, and all the breaks were clean, which I guess was good after all; some force in the universe said we can’t give him five stars so four will do.

Anyway i was then asked by the doctor what the mobility was like in my left hand, to which i told him and explaioned just how my affected side worked i was told that he wanted me to be put into a cast, and i pipped up with the suggestion of not doing that as i didnt know if my hand would be able to take being placed into something so rigid (insert pun here) also i was told that there was a line of other poeople in front of me and that i might not get seen for a few more hours its already 9.30pm at this point and i have to leave at 6.30 am in the morning to make it back home for 9pm tomorrow one of the downsides to booking everything in advance is that if something needs changed they generally want 24-48hours notice which i couldnt give so i suggested that he could send my results to my local hospital and icould go get patched up when i get home which he agreed that it was the best course and sent me on my way with just a notice that if anything further happewn to phone them also did i menntion that he wouldnt give me any strong pain killers for this trip back either!

So I went to the hotel. Thankfully, there was a supermarket nearby where I was staying, so I went in, filled my backpack, and returned to the hotel. It’s 10.30 at this point, and I’m sitting there watching YouTube and getting something to eat; after a while, I packed my suitcase for the following day. The painkillers have finally started to kick in at this point, so I fell asleep pretty quickly. 

Going home

The following day, I woke up feeling like a truck had hit me. I gathered the strength to get ready, and after, I booked my taxi for the beginning of my 12-hour journey back home, going from Hereford to Holyhead via train.

it took over 30 minutes to call a taxi, nearly making me miss my train. Still, thankfully, I made it onto the train just as final boarding was announced and made it home. The biggest pain for this was asking someone to store my luggage, as any strenuous movement made my hand tense up.

By the time I got home, I was exhausted. I opted to go straight home and get a takeaway rather than go to the hospital that night. Thankfully, my friend was waiting for me at the station to bring me home. I was going to go the next day instead, as I wanted to do things at a slower pace. I needed to rest as the previous week was catching up to me. I thought it was like paying an energy tax on everything I did this week. 

Roundup:

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