Council Estates

There's this thing in the UK that I can't recognize a minimally rough council estate when I walk into one. Sometimes I wonder if they actually are rough at all. At least in Cardiff. Last night -this morning for the rest of you mortals- I couldn't sleep, so I went for a walk. I started around half past four or five and went up to some hills in Cardiff that I had seen in google maps. Cyncoed happened to be this very posh neighbourhood with large gardens and up to four cars / house. There was a UWIC university campus up there. Nobody on the streets and lots of green. Anyhow, pretty posh, as said before. Then I walked into Llanedeyrn on my way back. It's a bit higher on the hill, and you can see that it's rolling down towards the sea, but all the houses get into the way. There are lots of alleys and underways and bits of green in the middle. My mate tonight was telling me that it's full of 'nasty boys' and that people there have lots of dogs for self defence. I didn't really see anybody while I was there between half past five and half past six, excepting a lady walking on her way back home and an old lady walking a dog -who happened to say 'good morning'-. Anyhow, the houses were pretty cramped together, but the bits of green everywhere made me think that this was way more posh than my home in Roath. And the cars were pretty posh as well. My mate was saying that people give certain value to having proper cars and arrange them one way or another -benefits, i.e.-. Ok, none the less, this seemed like a pretty ok neighbourhood to be in, more than my own. The only dischording note was the local newsagent / supermarket. It was this sort of concrete bunker with steel shutters. Although it did not have graffiti, the underpasses around had, and they were dark. At some point the sun was raising (quarter to five, I think) and I couldn't see shit with all the houses. So I decided to get into this tower block. I shot from the fourth story. It was quite lovely. Clean, smelled nice. I could see Rhumney and the sea. The hill got there gradually. The clouds took all over the sky, with little patches of blue above me. Then I walked back home. Penylan was as posh as usually, but the streets seemed longer. Black clouds came and it started to rain. My mate was telling me that he's going to take holidays in Trefforest. I thought, damn, there's nothing in Trefforest, so I asked what is there. 'Nothing!' he said. He'll go there when the mushroom season is good to pick for the rest of the year. Oh, these prosperous hills.