A post from Ana Lesnaja on our latest club social:
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Five members of the City Speakers and two members of the Kings Cross Toastmasters clubs departed for Wales over the Bank Holiday weekend. Their destination was the Brecon Beacons national park, specifically the Pen y Fan peak.
At 886m above sea level Pen y Fan is the highest peak in South Wales and together with another peak called Corn Du was formerly referred to as the ‘Arthur’s Seat.
The journey was not without its hiccups as the security levels at Heathrow have once again been heightened against the Irish Republicans, which made it difficult for Hugh to hire the mini bus. The group also had to look after Matteo, who was regretting drinking large amounts of Turkish wine the night before. Despite these setbacks we reached the Brecon Beacons national park at about 3pm and began our ascent.
The area is rich in natural beauty and free from noise pollution, which made it the perfect respite from the chaos of London life. Our walk was moderate in its level of difficulty and suitable for both beginners like Leila and Ana and seasoned hikers like Christine. It is worth noting that as you get higher above the sea level it gets progressively colder so it is a good idea to carry some warm clothes and a hat in your backpack. Unfortunately, Gio had to learn this lesson the hard way, having hiked all the way up and down in just his shorts and T-shirt.
Ga Lok was as usual the most dedicated Toastmaster and carried 7 Toastmaster magazines to the top of Pen y Fan for the group photo that he had now entered into the Toastmasters International photo competition. Our walk finished at about 7.30pm, however, our adventures did not stop there.
Having arrived at the nearby town of Abergavenny at about 9pm we discovered that most restaurants had already finished serving food and we had to do another exploration trip up and down the high street in search of our dinner. We eventually were rescued from hunger by a local Indian restaurant who supplied plenty of chicken tikka masalas and baltis to keep everyone happy.
We departed back to London the next morning. All in all, this was a great trip. A nice opportunity to get out of London, do some exercise and breathe some truly fresh air. It was also fantastic to meet the members of another Toastmasters club and to get to know everyone better.
Many thanks to the organisers Hugh and Ga Lok.
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The picture, taken at the peak from left to right: Gio, Christine, Leyla, Ga Lok, Matteo, Hugh and Ana. More photos can be found on our Facebook page; our regular meetings will be continuing this year, every 1st, 3rd and if it exists 5th Tuesday at the big church next to Aldgate station (see homepage for the next meeting). Our meetings always finish with drinks at the Hoop and Grapes pub and we will be planning even more socials with other clubs in the next few months. If you would like to find out more or even get involved in organising our events, then just have a chat to our committee members at our next meeting.
Hope you had a great Bank Holiday, Ga Lok
