Wales
 

I'll go first with the 'international Sonic Youth forum country survey about countries other than America'. So - Wales, eh?

Oh, gay. Fucking typo. Gay gay gay.

ZETA!




fuckable

fuckable

fuckable

--

after that, who cares about gorky's zygotic minci, eh...

There's too much Wales-bashing if you ask me, although I fully realise that you didn't.

Wales has some very nice scenery, especially trees. Not only that, but Dylan Thomas was Welsh. A lot of slate comes from Wales. And coal. Or at least it used to, before we English decided that the Welsh weren't allowed to have jobs, or something. Just because hardly anyone speaks their language, including them, and just because they haven't invented any new words since we invented the crossbow or whatever, is no excuse to go for cheap shots.

Pembrokeshire is a lovely place. I really like that part of the world. And that weird bookshop in Llangollen; you walk up the stairs to what you think will be a tiny shop, but it opens into a great ig fuckoff warehouse. It's cool.

And Portmeirion, the totally mad place where The Prisoner and an old Doctor Who story was filmed. Not to mention an XTC video. And Snowdon's a very cool mountain. You can get a steam train to the top.

You can if you're prepared to splash out the best part of twenty quid, anyway.

Wales has been responsible for lots of firsts: their tourist information board is very proud of the fact that the first Welsh heavy metal band were Welsh, the first Welsh painter was Welsh and the first ever Welsh astronomer was also Welsh.

They specialise in selling boxes of fudge with postcards of Wales on the top. I'm not sure why.

Many Welsh people have very good manners. Some have very fine haircuts too, I'm told.

You can surf in Wales, I'm told, and they have a decent university.

Llbyr Llaethog, who are mentioned in the poll above, were quite interesting.

The Welsh song tournament, the Eisteddfod, was once held not in Wales but in Birkenhead...MY HOME TOWN! There's a thingy commemorating this special occaision in Birkenhead Park, the first public park in the world, which is home to a new visitor centre, several bridges and some very nice squirrels, but that's got nothing to do with Wales. Although Wales does have some of the UK's few remaining red squirrels, thanks to a breeding programme at the Welsh Mountain Zoo in Colwyn Bay.

There's a Welsh company that makes very nice, and quite strong, green banana wine.

Wales: it's OK.

i dream of a country full of zetas and i can pick them like an orchard full of ripe, juicy fruits :p

Good letchery, !"£$!%. Excellent stuff from Hip Priest. It's a lovely country, much maligned. I've had some wonderful nights out in Cardiff and Swansea, and the countryside can be amazing. Generally, although the Welsh are ocassionally a bit off with the English, they are lovely generous peeps.

Fuel of Britain, isn't it.

i forgot to mention, drunken geniuses like dylan thomas or dr. lecter (in his good roles, not the crap stuff) give wales a good name, even though i've never ever considered visiting the place.

Where is Schizophrenicroom? She's been to Wales probably more than I have.

I went ice skating for my 13th birthday in Wales.

Dylan Thomas is a giant of the twentieth century.

I went to his house a few years ago, and the boathouse which he used to write in. That was a nice experience. Laugharne, I think the town is called. There's a castle there too.

Conwy has a nice fish and chips shop.

its got some good bits but its rubbish.

And a castle, and...a TEAPOT MUSEUM!!!!!!!

!!!!!!!!!!

Beaumaris has a castle, a jailhouse museum and a decent chippy.

The total genius, moral compass and bloody fine fellow Ian Hislop was born in Wales. And for that the world should be thankful, because he's bloody brilliant.

lots of Ians in Wales I hear.

Ian Hislop looks like a pig. He rules. HIGNFY is not on TV this week also, sadly.

Iain from this board being one of them. Small world, eh?

not really the world is actually massive.

Who says this board isn't educational, eh?

christ alone knows anyone would have the gall to.

i could fucking start a religion around this image & others like that.

surprisingly small. i might have to meet this iain fellow sometime soon.

Nos da! Shwd i chi?

Yeah im from South Wales. Cardiff is quite nice due to the fact that millions are spent in the city, but anywhere outside Cardiff (particularly the Valleys, Newport, Swansea, Ponty, Merther etc) is like basically what I imagine Hell would look like...As for the rest of Wales it is very pretty.


This The City Hall and Gallery in Cardiff - This is where The Big Weekend Festival is held

http://images.google.com/images?q=tb.../natassem6.JPG The Welsh Assembly

Cardiff's Queen Street - Beautiful Archtechure

Thats all I got I'll post some nicer stuff later.

Catatonia: Good in Welsh. She should never have sung in English, she's far too Welsh to sing in anything other than Welsh. I absolutely hate their English-language stuff.

Datblygu are one of the finest things to come out of the world ever, and if you speak Welsh Mr Machine I recommend you hunt them down post haste. If you don't, I'd hunt them down anyway, because they're brilliant.

Erm... Nos da.

Well I speak a little, due to the fact that we are forced to learn it in school...very strange language actually, the hardest language I have ever had to learn. Its strange when you go to England and everything (signs, directions, leaflets etc) aren't repeated in Welsh.

I saw Cerys Matthews this summer actually at 'The Big Weekend'. Shes been living in Nashville for a few years so her accent has gotten a lot milder. Her new album is actually quite good.

I've heard some of the solo stuff. It's better than English-language Catatonia, that's for sure. She married an American, I understand. She's a wonderful person to have as a celebrity. Her and Charlotte Church. Excellent examples of how to be brilliant.

Yeah we all love Cerys! Not so sure about miss Church though, shes kinda a national disgrace (no more than Tom Jones though). Charlotte Church lives in Cardiff Bay now, but she used to live not far from where i live in Llandaf (also where Roald Darl grew up).

Well, thanks to Glice I know of Datblygu. Terrific music!

I've not really put much thought to Wales...

Of course their flag is top notch:


Of course, the great Ryan Giggs.

Don't forget McLusky, the best welsh export article!

Anyways, I spent 3 months in a hole caled Flint ("Fflint" in welsh) and must say, them Welsh people made quite an impression on me. Very friendly, generous people who love to laugh. And they hate th English deeply :)

With all respect to Washing Machine, I wouldn't piss on South Wales if it was on fire, all my experiences of the place have been bad ones. North, West and Central Wales, though, have all left a very good impression on me.

You can probably hear my coughing and spluttering all the way over in Nebraska. Anyway, shouldn't you be praising Wales for being the birthplace of this man:

Hahaha! Well I wouldn't disagree with you! South Wales is a Shithole outside of Cardiff (well some parts of Cardiff, like any city it has its bad areas). Where I live in Cardiff is actually quite nice, lots of Parks, Countyside etc, its also a 5min train journey to the Central Cardiff - that has an excellent shopping centre. I live in the 'Posh' part of the city I suppose, its quite a culture shock for me when I visit some of my family in the South Wales Valleys. If I said I'd rather live in Iraq than the Valleys, you'd think I was joking! You'd have to go there! But as I said Cardiff is radically different to the rest of South Wales.

Yes, I am indeed one of them. I did have 2 friends that lived close by who were also called Iain but they both buggered off to other countries.

Wales is OK but Cardiff is indeed surrounded by areas of extreme menace like Merthyr and Newport...Merthyr was recently voted the 3rd worst place in Britain to live.

Sonicl...where did you go in Mid Wales? It is indeed a barren place but I find my self more at home with visiting it now and again if only to get away from people and cities.

Iain whereabouts in Wales do you live?

I can't remember where I went, it was a very long time ago, but it was the remoteness that I liked.

I just read your post on the 'I Hate Xmas' thread about that tacky over decorated house opposite Currys so I assume its somewhere in Cardiff!

a lot of welsh people i have met were drug dealers. just sayin like.

Yeah, I live around the corner from the tacky house opposite Currys...literally about 2 minutes walk...in the shadow of the Gabalfa interchange.

Actually I thought I'd take the opportunity to combine the footballers-from-Wales-theme with the Ian-theme and post a picture of this man:



I've been to North Wales once. It's a nice place. They had hills and sheep and fog and stuff.

You're right! What was I thinking!

I guess I also forgot Mr. Coleman was Welsh.