At one time planning a vacation in the Rhondda might have caused raised eyebrows. But since the end of coal mining in the area much has been done to reclaim the coaltips and 'green' the valleys. No where is this more apparent than in the Upper Rhondda Fawr. The area surrounding the villages of Tynewydd, Blaenrhondda, Blaencwm and Treherbert has perhaps sufficiently regained its former semi-rural character to offer a tempting destination to vacationers and hill-walkers.

A forty page guide to the area's attractions has been prepared by local businessman David Michael Williams. The book can be ordered by writing to him at the address at the bottom of this page. Along with locations of former colliery sites and breif details of famous authors who were born in this part of the Rhondda there are many references to the magnificent Pen Pych mountan, a picture of which graces the front cover.

Pen Pych Mountain

David notes that Pen Pych is one of only two flat top spur mountains in Europe which alone is sufficient to make the mountain interesting but the following story makes it much more so ( with apologies for the lengthy quotation ):-

" It is locally told that long ago during the time of Roman expansion, the tribe at the top of the mountain had five prize bulls.. These were used to breed with the cattle of the farmers below on the valley floor. The Romans wanted this land and told the tribe to move, when they refused , the Romans demanded the bulls as payment.

The tribe werent prepared for this to happen so decided that if they couldn't keep their bulls then neither could the invaders, so they drove their bulls off the top of the mountain; they then took their heads and placed them on spikes outside the village. Displeased by this, the Romans swore revenge on the villagers.

Since Pen Pych was a religious site, where druids gathered, the Romans took their revenge during the summer festival. Following failure to take the village, the Romans sent a legion to kill them. During the assault they decided to attack from two sides, not knowing the layout of the land. With their forces split, and only one part facing the Celts, the romans were defeated.. The local Celts attacked the second group and defeated them, the whole Roman Legion was slaughtered. Thus the villagers remembered the tale of the five bulls. "

Walker's Paradise

The area abounds with Celtic remains - fragments of stone huts, summer storage holds etc - and a Roman 'police' action here at some time during their nearly four hundred year long occupation of the island of Britain is entirely conceivable. One can only speculate as to how accurately the folk tradition reflects the actual encounter . Whatever the provenance of the above tale what is certain is that Pen Pych provides a superb opportunity for hikers and hill-walkers.

Toward the end of the book a series of walks are described together with illustrations and OS Landranger map extracts. Half of them involve routes on or near Pen Pych and many of them take in views of the superb Lluest waterfall. There are also walks around the old Ty Draw colliery site and other areas of interest to industrial archaeologists.

Destination Rhondda?

AmeriCymru spoke to David Williams about the area and its potential as a vacation destination.
AmeriCymru: You must have seen a lot of changes in the valley since the end of coal-mining in the area. Can you describe the way that the environment and landscape have changed over the last twenty or thirty years?

David: As I child I remember playing in some of the old mine works, and the mines that were still open. The slag was still being dropped on the mountain. I was born in Penrhiwceiber, just over the mountain from Aberfan, I remember those days, when the school and the mines were closed, because everyone went to help. The valleys are green now and there are new trees being planted to replace the old pine trees. The dust has gone, and nearly all the old men with that cough have gone as well. People are starting to discover where they are living now, we are in the country side and it is beautiful.

AmeriCymru: How good a base does Treherbert provide for a vacation in South Wales? Can you describe some of the more easily accessible local attractions?

David: We have about five bed and breakfast accommodation in the local area, but we are only half an hour from Cardiff, Swansea or Brecon. In Porth there is the Rhondda Heritage park (Lewis Merthyr Colliery) In Treorchy we have the Park and Dare theatre, The Male voice choir and Brass band. We have Pen Pych and Cwmsearbren as described in the booklet. The Rhigos mountain road is the second highest point in South Wales. On Pen Rhys we have the statue of Our Lady and the Holly Well, and by it's name this is the place where the English chopped of the head of the Lord Rhys. There are many stone and Iron age sites in the area.

AmeriCymru: When did you first hear the story about the Roman attack on Pen Pych? How widely known is this tale both in the valley and outside?

David: This story came from Mr Todd-Jones the Head master of Pen Pych Infants school, I was told this about six years ago when I was researching the book.

The book can be obtained by by order from the following address. Please include $4 ( UK 2.50 GBP ) to cover postage and packing.

David Williams
Celfyddwaith
1 Station Rd
Treorchy
Rhondda
Wales
CF42 5AE

More photographs of Pen Pych can be found on these pages:- Pen Pych Photo Gallery ( Images supplied by David Michael Williams and Ian Price )

This week the first book in a new series of picture and story books for infants following the antics of a ginger cat from the slate town of Upper Corris in North Wales will be launched. Y Lolfa publishers of the book hope that the Maw the cat will eventually become the most famous cat in Wales.The book has been written and drawn by Richard Llwyd Edwards and describing his new creation he said,

Maw enjoys climbing, saying his name, playing, eating and sleeping and sleeping and sleeping He supports Celtic and his favourite colours are green and white and ginger like his hair of course.

Meinir Edwards on behalf of Y Lolfa added,

Im sure Maw will strike a chord with children. It is impossible not to like him. Im hoping that before long he will be as well know as Garfiled, Felix and Tom from Tom and Jerry. Although the book is published in Welsh, an English translation of the text is printed on every page so that non Welsh speaking parents can read and understand the book while reading it to their children.

Richard Llwyd Edwards is the head of Art at Penglais school in Aberystwyth. He lives in Upper Corris with his six cats. Maw! is available in Welsh bookshops and www.ylolfa.com for 2.95.

Destination Vienna is a book written in tribute to the authors father and hero, William Edwards, 2nd Lieutenant U.S. Army Air Force. William Edwards immigrated to America from South Wales with his parents prior to the war and settled in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

The author has provided the reader with a brief discussion of the events and situations which led to World War II, explaining the underlying unrest in Europe, and especially Germany, following the World War I Treaty of Versailles. He nicely summarizes the Worlds attitude of the German militarization, which was in violation of the Treaty, in one succinct paragraph.

In March of 1938 Germany took Austria without the use of force. The West did nothing. Then Germany decided that it wanted to take over a section of Czechoslovakia (created at the end of WWI) called the Sudetenland (an area heavily populated by Germans). Hitler and Mussolini met with leaders of Great Britain and France to discuss the issue. The West decided to appease Hitler, and the Sudetenland was handed over to Germany.

The author then writes in the person of his father, taking us to Bridgeport, CT describing the relative prosperity and innocence of life in America following the Great Depression. War did come to the United States in December of 1941 following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. As was expected of young men of that period William volunteered to serve in the USAAF and won a commission as an aircraft navigator.

2nd Lt. Williams discussed some of the challenged faced by the Army Air Force in equipment suitability and personnel needs. He paints a very vivid description of the physical conditions encountered by the crew when flying in a B-24. His description of the extremely dangerous but vital missions flown to destroy Germanys oil supply leave one in awe of the bravery and tenacity of the B-24 crews.

The description of his last mission, destination Vienna, is captivating as his explanation of its outcome.

The book is an easy and enjoyable read, which gives the reader a personal insight into WWII in Europe.

Buy the book here.

Darren Parry is a singer/songwriter from Dowlais In Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales. He has toured the US extensively and has just released a new single - "Just The Mention Of Your Name" . He spoke to AmeriCymru about his life and career:-

Americymru: When did you first become aware that you were intent on a musical career?

Darren: I realised this when I started writing songs seriously at around the age of 18. I'd grown up listening to my parents (and especially my mother) playing old 'Motown' ('Four Tops', Diana Ross, 'Temptations', Jimmy Ruffin etc.)records, and lots of 'Free', 'Carpenters', Kenny Rogers and so on and thought, "hmmmm... I'd like to sing and write songs like that". I was always a fan of the big sorta raspy voices, e.g. Joe Cocker, Ray Charles, Michael McDonald, Richard Marx, Joe Lynn Turner, David Coverdale, Bonnie Tyler, Michael Bolton etc. and was always amazed (and still am) by the power and emotion that the human voice can express...what an instrument when used effectively!

Americymru: You are from Dowlais in Merthyr Tydfil. Care to tell our American readers a little about the area?

Darren: I'm originally from a small village called Troedyrhiw in Merthyr Tydfil and have lived in various areas of Merthyr Tydfil (and a few yrs in Swansea) but now reside in Dowlais. Dowlais, like many areas in Merthyr Tydfil is an old mining village as Merthyr Tydfil was renowned in the 1800's for making iron (exported all over the world) and coal. Merthyr was situated close to reserves of iron ore, coal, limestone and water, making it an ideal site for ironworks. Small-scale iron working and coal mining had been carried out at some places in South Wales since the Tudor period, but in the wake of the Industrial revolution the demand for iron led to the rapid expansion of Merthyr's iron operations. The Dowlais Ironworks was founded by what would become the Dowlais Iron Company in 1759, making it the first major works in the area. It was followed in 1765 by the Cyfarthfa Ironworks. The Plymouth ironworks were initially in the same ownership as Cyfarthfa, but passed after the death of Anthony Bacon to Richard Hill in 1788. The fourth ironworks was Penydarren built by Francis Homfray and Samuel Homfray after 1784.

The demand for iron was fuelled by the Royal Navy, who needed cannons for their ships, and later by the railways. In 1802, Admiral Lord Nelson visited Merthyr to witness cannons being made!

Americymru: How would you describe your musical style? What kind of material are you most comfortable performing?

Darren: My musical style varies as I've written over 150 songs in lots of genres but mainly my music is Adult Contemporary(AC)/Pop/Rock.

Americymru: Do you have a regular backing band? Can you tell us something about the musicians you perform with or other performers you have met?

Darren: Yes I have a small band comprising of myself (lead vocals/keyboard and or acoustic guitar), Juan Lozano (backing vocals/keyboard/acoustic guitar) Robert Devereux (backing vocals/lead guitar)and sometimes Steve Sims (lead guitar). I'm very lucky that these guys are both superb musicians and my friends. Very often the only payment they need for recording (they play on my albums)and playing gigs is usually I buy them a curry...well worth a few Kema Nans and Chicken Tikka Masala's !!!!

Other performers I've met/performed with include - Michael Bolton, Michael Ball, Bryn Terfel, 'The Sweet Inspirations' (Elvis' original female backing singers), DJ Fontana (Elvis' original drummer), 'Scouting For Girls', 'Goldie Lookin' Chain', Peter Karrie, Donny Osmond, Brian Conley, Max Boyce among others.

Americymru: We learn from your website that you performed at Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta Jones' wedding. What are your memories of that occasion?

Darren: Well I need to clarify this, bit of a strange story! I was on a 3 month, 45 date USA tour with ' The Black Mountain Male Chorus Of Wales' ( which is a 20 man all male choir - check them out on MySpace ) in the year 2000. We were performing near Los Angeles and got a call asking if we'd like to sing in MD's and CZJ's wedding! The connection was that our tour manager, Adrian Metcalfe was in school with CZJ's brother in Swansea I believe. Of course, we were very honoured and said yes! The problem was the wedding if I remember was in the East Coast (New York) and it was impossible to break our contract of performing our booked concerts on the West Coast to fly over. Unfortunatley due to this we had to pass and another Welsh choir sang instead. Doh!!!!!! ...but at least we were the first choice!

Americymru: What can you tell us about your current release - "Just The Mention Of Your Name"?

Darren: It is a melodic AC pop ballad that is my latest song. It is available for commercial download on iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody and Napster. It is a single from my forthcoming EP entitled..."That Feeling" that will feature songs co-written with 'Dazzle Music' (who's written for/had songs recorded by Charlotte Church).

Americymru: Where can our readers go to hear/download your music?

Darren: http://www.darrenparry.com

http://www.myspace.com/darrenparrymusic

Americymru: You recently toured the US with the Black Mountain Male Chorus. Care to tell us a bit more about the tour?

Darren: This was the second large tour I've done of the States with Black Mountain (BM). The latest tour was in Jan/Feb 2008 and we did 22 concerts. We started in Chicago then went to, wait for it, deep breathe... Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Missouri, Kansas, Texas, New Mexico before finishing off in LA. We performed in venues for up to 2000 people and were fortunate to get fantastic, enthusiastic crowds every night. BM has now completed over 200(I've done around 70 of these)concerts in the US over the past 14 yrs or so and have a good fan base who are keen to hear male voices sing our repertoire of Welsh hymns, pop songs, rugby influenced songs, folk songs, opera and Celtic music.

Americymru: Any plans to visit the States again in the near future?

Darren: I've just signed a licensing deal with a company called 'Rock Talk Music', based in LA, California so who knows? I may be coming there in 2010. I've now been lucky enough to have visited around 40 of the 50 US States in the last 10 yrs and I always look forward to coming there!

Americymru: Any final message for the members and readers of Americymru?

Darren: I'm a member and I'm very glad to see the American and Welsh links being proliferated with a site like Americymru...keep up the excellent work

Buy the new single here:- http://www.amazon.com/Darren-Parry/dp/B002AVTMQA
Interview: Ceri Shaw Email

Peter Griffiths first novel, 'Tongue-Tied' was recently published by Y Lolfa. On this page we are pleased to present an interview with the author. and an opportuniy to win an autographed copy of the novel by participating in our giveaway competition ( see below ) . To purchase a copy direct from the publisher go here

An Interview with Peter Griffiths, Author of 'Tongue-Tied'

"Tongue Tied" Author Peter Griffiths at the Clearing Cafe in Portland, Oregon

Tongue Tied Spreads its Wings

New authors powerful story resonates with American readers

Welsh-American Author Writes Novel after feeling ludicrously patriotic

Competition

One of our Book of the Month selections for April is Peter Griffiths' 'Tongue-Tied'. We are offering not one, but TWO autographed copies of 'Tongue-Tied' to the winners of our monthly Welsh Book Club giveaway competition . All you have to do is answer the three following questions and email your answers to :-

americymrucontest@gmail.com

The deadline for entries is April 30th 2010 and the lucky winner will be announced on the site on May 1st. Please remember that we will only accept one entry per email address and duplicate submissions will be disqualified. So...fire up the Wikipedia and answer these questions to win the prize:-

1. Where in Wales is the Y Lolfa printing and publishing company based?

2. In which year was the company founded?

3. What was the name of the satirical magazine from which the company's name was derived?

Pob lwc/Best of luck Comment or leave a message on Peters AmeriCymru page HERE.