Here’s a photo of a mystery town somewhere in Europe. Do you know or can you guess where it is, and which language is spoken there?
Clue: I visited this town recently.
Category: Travel
Dw i ‘nôl
Ddes i ‘nôl o Brâg nos Sul ar ôl gŵyl ardderchog. Dinas hardd a diddorol yw Prâg, ac hoffwn i’n mynd ‘nôl cyn bo hir. O Brâg beiciais ar hyd yr afonydd Vltava ac Elbe hyd at Meissen yn yr Almaen gyda ddeuddeg o bobl eraill o Loegr, Cymru, Canada ac Awstralia, ac arweinydd o Wlad Pwyl. Oedd dwy Gymraes-Gymraeg yn y grŵp a sgwrsiais yn Gymraeg gyda nhw.
Beicion tua 30 milltir y dydd – pellter eitha cyffyrddus. Oedd y tywydd yn ddiflas yn ystod hanner cynta’r wythnos – cymylog a gwyntog gyda cryn dipyn o law – ond oedd hi’n braf ar ôl hynny. Arhoson mewn gwestai cyffyrddus gyda gymeriad mewn trefi hanesyddol a deniadol. Oedd y bwyd yn eitha blasus ac oedd digonedd ohonof.
Nos Fawrth, es i’r Hammersmith Irish Centre yn Llundain i gymryd rhan dosbarth mewn canu caneuon o Iwerddon. Meddyliais byddem yn canu ganeuon yn y Wyddeleg, ond y caneuon a ganon ni oedd i gyd yn Saesneg. Dim ots ‘da fi – dw i’n hoffi canu yn unrhyw iaith. Mae hi’n haws cofio geiriau caneuon yn Saesneg hefyd. Mae’r tiwtor yn dda iawn, mae’r pobl eraill yn y dosbarth yn neis, a mwynheais yn dda iawn.
Ar ais arís
Tháinig mé ar ais ó Phrág oíche Dhomhnaigh i ndiaidh saoire iontach. Is cathair álainn agus suimiúil í Prág, agus ba mhaith liom ag dul ar ais go luath. Ó Phrág rothaigh mé i rith na n-aibhneacha Vltava agus Elbe go Meissen sa Ghearmáin le dáréag daoine eile as Sasana, ón Bhreatain Bheag, as Ceanada agus ón Astráil, agus eolaí ón Pholainn. Ina measc bhí beirt bhan atá Breatnais acu agus rinne mé comhrá Breatnaise leo.
Rothaigh muid thart ar 30 míle gach lá – ní raibh sin ró-fhad, is dóigh liom féin. Bhí an aimsir go dona ar dtús – scamallach agus gaofar le cuid mhaith báisteach – ach bhí sé níos fearr i ndiaidh sin. D’fhán muid in óstáin compordach le caractar i mbailte stairiúil agus tarraingteach. Bhí an bia réasúnta blasta agus bhí go leor ann.
Oíche Mháirt chuaigh mé go dtí an Irish Centre i Hammersmith páirt a ghlacadh i rang ar an amhránaíocht Éireanach. Shíl mé go mbeadh na hamhráin as Gaeilge, ach bhí siad uilig as Béarla. Is cuma liom – is maith liom amhráin a chanadh in aon teanga agus tá sé níos éasca liricí as Béarla a chuimhneamh chomh maith. Tá an teagascóir an mhaith, tá na daoine eile deas, agus bhain mé an-sult as an rang.
Back to Brighton
I arrived back in Brighton yesterday afternoon after a week in the Czech Republic and Germany, which was great fun.
Prague was stunning and well worth another visit – the day and a bit I had there wasn’t really enough to take it all in. August is apparently a better time to visit, as it tends to get really busy in September and October.
During the first few days of cycling it rained quite a bit and was also quite windy. We also went along some busy roads through areas with a fair amount of heavy industry. Fortunately the weather and scenery improved later on during the week and we had a very enjoyable ride along the Elbe, mainly on well-maintained cycle paths. The towns we passed through or stayed in were attractive and picturesque; the food was plentiful, quite tasty and reasonably priced; and the people we met were generally friendly and welcoming.
There were 12 others in the group I travelled with, most from the UK, but also a couple of Canadians and an Australian. We ranged in age from 30something to 60something and got on well together. We also had a Polish tour leader, who rode with us, and a Polish driver, who took our luggage from hotel to hotel. Our tour leader spoke good English and a bit of German. He managed to communicate with people in the Czech Republic mainly in Polish with bits of Czech mixed in. The driver spoke Polish and some English, and while he couldn’t understand much Czech, he could understand Slovak quite well.
I used my Czech at every opportunity. Only one Czech person commented on this, asking if I was Czech. Everybody else just talked Czech to me and I did my best to understand them. I also tried out the few Polish phrases I know on our tour leader, and learned a bit more from him. In Germany I tried to speak German to people and found that those who could speak English often did so with me, even if I continued speaking German to them.
I picked up quite a few new Czech words from signs and menus – when you come across them in context every day, they soon sink in. The sight, feel, smell and taste of the food also helps me remember the menu words.
There were two native Welsh speakers in the group and I talked to them a bit in Welsh. They told me that I speak Welsh well with a good accent, and were impressed that my Welsh is self-taught. In 2003 while I was on holiday in northern Portugal, I met some Welsh speakers, but at that time I couldn’t have more than a very limited conversation. Since then I’ve been determined to become fluent in Welsh, and seem to be making good progress.
Bohemia and Saxony by bike
Tomorrow I’m off for week’s holiday in the Czech Republic and Germany with Explore Worldwide. I’ll be flying to Prague early tomorrow morning, then cycling north along the Vltava and Elbe rivers to Meissen in Germany, via Mělník, Litoměřice, Děčín, Pirna, Dresden, and quite a few castles, churches, cathedrals and palaces. After that I’ll go back to Prague by coach, spend a day there, and then return home.
The tour involves five days of actual cycling covering about 30 miles / 45 km a day. Most of the route is along rivers and is apparently flat or downhill, with only occasional uphill sections. So though I haven’t been doing much cycling since I moved to Brighton, apart from some semi-regular unicycling, I’m sure I’ll be able to cope.
I’m also looking forward to having a chance to try out my Czech, and to speaking some German as well.
Saxony a Bohemia
Yfory dw i’n mynd i’r Weriniaeth Tsiec a’r Almaen am wythnos o wyliau gydag Explore Worldwide. Bydda i’n hedfan i Brag yn gynnar bore fory, ac yna yn beicio i’r gogledd ar hyd yr afonydd Vltava ac Elbe i Meissen yn yr Almaen, trwy Mělník, Litoměřice, Děčín, Pirna, Dresden, a cryn dipyn o gestyll, eglwysi a phalasau. Yna es i yn ôl i Brag ar bws, treulia i dydd fan ‘na, ac wedyn des i adref.
Rothaíocht i mPoblacht na Seice agus an Ghearmáin
Amárach beidh mé ag dul go dtí Poblacht na Seice agus an Ghearmáin ar feadh seachtaine. Déanfaidh mé turas rothaíocht le Explore Worldwide. Beidh an turas ag tosú i mPrág, agus ansin beidh mé ag rothaigh ó thuaidh le taobh na abhann Vltava agus Elbe go Meissen sa Ghearmáin, trí chuid mhaith caisleáin, eaglaisí agus páláis. I ndiaidh sin, rachaidh mé ar ais go Prág ar an mbus, caithfidh mé lá amháin ansin, agus abhaile liom i ndiaidh sin.
Where in the world?
Where in the world?
Riviera Lloegr / The English Riviera
The towns of Torquay, Paignton and Brixham in the county of Devon in the south west of England are marketed collectively by the local tourist board as ‘The English Riviera‘. Their website offers provides information in a number of languages – the usual suspects like French, German, Italian and Spanish, and also Dutch, Polish, Chinese and Japanese. Recently they’ve had part of the site translated into Welsh – a first for English holiday resorts, according to this article.
A spokesman for the English Riviera Tourist Board said,
“We are a popular destination for visitors from Wales. The Welsh language should be used more on publicity like this in England. It is a UK language.
The board’s director, who used to be in charge of tourism in Anglesey, doesn’t speak Welsh herself, but has a fondness and commitment to preserving the language.
There are also plans to provide downloadable MP3 walking tours for the area in Welsh.
Where in the world?
Gleann Cholm Cille
Is áit álainn agus ciúin í Gleann Cholm Cille, bíonn muintir na háite cairdiúil agus fáilteach agus bíonn an craic go hiontach sna títhe tábhairne. Is áit an iargúlta í chomh maith agus bíonn an aimsir go dona go minic, ach is breá liom í. Tá sé cosúil leis an áit ar tógadh mé – sráidbhaile beag cois farraige in iarthuaisceart Shasana. I mbliana bhí mé ansin ar feadh an tríú huair, agus rachaidh ar ais go cinnte.
Lle hyfred a llonydd ydy Gleann Cholm Cille, mae’r pobl leol yn gyfeillgar a chroesawgar, a mae lot o hwyl yn y tafarndai. Lle unig ydy e hefyd ac mae’r tywydd yn arw yn aml, ond dwi’n ei hoff iawn e. Mae e’n tebyg i’r ardal lle ges i fy magu – pentref bach ar lan y môr yng ngogledd orllewin Lloegr. Eleni o’n i’n yna am y trydedd tro, a bydda i’n ôl yn ddi-os