Hades

Following yesterday’s eating tour of North Wales, I woke up hungrier than I had any right to be.

Fortunately, we’d booked in for a late breakfast for our last day, which gave us time to come to, pack and then have a final swim, steam and sauna. I also snapped the main shot (not great) as a reminder of our view from our room.

We headed back to Llandudno first and took a drive along the prom, which meant that we could then pick up the coast road and follow it all the way back to the A55. It was glorious. I maintain that there is some mystical restorative power that comes from being near the sea, but I am able to resist the urge to hurl myself into it! 

With regret we left Wales behind us and roared (at the approved national speed limit) off down the M56.

Like a fool I had agreed that we would stop at Hades the Cheshire Oaks retail outlet village on our way back home. I had heard tell of it, but never having been I was curious to see what all the fuss was about, so when LadyV suggested a stop-off, I hadn’t pushed back. As they say, every day is a school day…

We got parked up and then for some reason, we voluntarily joined hundreds of other people who were in all the places we wanted to be and for some reason had decided to bring their dogs and drag them in and out of the shops too! LadyV seemed unperturbed by the throng and picked herself up a couple of bargains. Quickly realising that it was too late for me, I tried my best to save others and on seeing the terror in one man’s eyes, as his wife asked him which of the two handbags she was holding he preferred, I tried to put my body between them as I dived across the store in slow motion yelling “No! Don't answer! It’s a traaaaaaaaaaap!”

The experience was summed up by the worst quesadilla I had ever eaten and it was at that moment that I knew I had had enough. With LadyV’s purchases in hand, we fought our way back through the crowd and into the car park where for some inexplicable reason, music was playing. 

Sensing my stress levels were peaking and as she was going to have a nap anyway, I was permitted to listen to the West Ham game as I drove us home and she caught flies. I immediately felt better on hearing that West Ham were winning.

Arriving back at LadyV’s we unpacked and I switched my gear from her car to mine, reluctantly handing her back her car key. Not wanting our weekend to end just yet, we took a brief stroll along the prom (where there were mercifully far less people) arm-in-arm as we reflected on a wonderful weekend and immediately started to plan our next adventure...

...which will not feature any retail park shopping. Ever.