One of the things Tony and I have always enjoyed doing when we're away is visiting ancient places. If there's a standing stone, burial chamber or somewhere people gathered thousands of years ago, we'll usually end up there. Before we set off for Anglesey we'd already got a list of places we wanted to visit and, as always, the dowsing rods and crystal pendulum came with me.

We didn't get to everything we'd planned, but that wasn't because we ran out of time. The weather had a mind of its own. After the first couple of days it became obvious that it was simply too hot for the dogs to be walking across open countryside. Jasper is still getting used to life after his operation and there was no way we were going to ask the three of them to do long walks in temperatures that were well into the thirties. We managed a few early starts before the heat really built, but several of the ancient sites will have to wait until another visit.

In the end it didn't really matter. We found ourselves doing something we don't often do on holiday. We lingered over breakfast at one of our favourite little cafés, spent afternoons reading in the shade and simply enjoyed having nowhere we needed to be. It felt like a bit of a luxury.

History has always fascinated me, but I'm just as interested in how a place feels. Whenever I visit somewhere ancient I spend a little time with my dowsing rods and pendulum before we move on. Over the years I've learnt that every place has its own character. Some sites this week felt very masculine in their energy, while others felt much softer and more feminine. Whether someone else would experience that I don't know, but it's something I've come to trust.

There was one place in particular where the energy really caught my attention. Although it's nothing like the well-known Michael Line, I couldn't shake the feeling that there is an energetic pathway running through that part of Anglesey. It may simply be my experience of the landscape, but it has certainly given me something to research now I'm home.

One of the places I enjoyed most wasn't actually on our list at all. It was the garden where we were staying. The old stone wall is believed to have once formed part of the palace of the Welsh kings, around fifteen hundred years ago. Now it's simply the boundary wall behind a row of houses. It reminded me of when we visited Bannockburn a few years ago. I remember being surprised to see housing built so close to such an important battlefield. I suppose that's what happens. Life moves on. Villages grow, people need homes and history quietly becomes part of the landscape around us.

That old wall became somewhere I liked to sit for a while each day. Watching the birds, listening to the breeze and imagining how many people had passed that way over the centuries.

The birds became part of our holiday too. We'd watched a family of sparrows as the young ones left the nest and the littlest one was struggling from the beginning. I made a little shelter to give them some protection from the seagulls and our three dogs, and put out some muesli and fresh water to help the parents, who never seemed to stop.

Sadly, the littlest one continued to fade. I sat quietly with it and offered Reiki, watching it gradually relax into the energy before it peacefully passed away. It was sad to watch, but it also felt a privilege to be there with it in those final moments.

Before heading home we spent a couple of days in Yealand Conyers. It was my birthday weekend and that part of the country has always had a special place in my heart because I lived in Lancaster for several years when I was little. There are some places that just feel familiar, even after all these years.

It wasn't long before we'd spotted another ancient place on the hill behind where we were staying. It wasn't marked on any map we'd seen. Someone had built a summerhouse on top of the mound years ago and, more recently, someone else had created a small stone circle there.

Of course, we had to go.

I always feel drawn to places like that. It's almost as though I need to spend a little time there before moving on, quietly connecting with the place in whatever way it wants to be experienced. Out came the dowsing rods and pendulum once again and, whatever the history of that mound, the energy felt incredibly strong. We stayed far longer than we'd intended, simply enjoying the peace before wandering back down the hill.

Looking back now, I realise this holiday wasn't really about ticking ancient sites off a list. We missed quite a few because the weather had other ideas, but I don't feel as though we missed out at all.

When I think about the last couple of weeks, I'll remember breakfasts in the sunshine, afternoons with a book, watching the sparrows, sitting beside a wall that has witnessed centuries of history, quietly exploring places with my dowsing rods, celebrating another birthday somewhere that still feels a little like coming home and, of course, spending time with three dogs who reminded us that sometimes you simply have to change your plans.

There will always be another ancient site to visit. This holiday has reminded me not to overlook everything else along the way.