It rained in Welshpool, it rained in Newtown, it rained in Llangurig and it rained in Aberystwyth as we reached the coast and the road swung south towards our destination. To our right the sea was grey and uninviting, lashed with spiteful squalls of stinging rain as wave after wave of dark clouds swept in from the Irish Sea and it was about now that I was forced to concede that we probably wouldn’t be having a barbeque this evening.
We let Molly sleep on for a couple of hours or so before waking her in time to visit the beach in the late afternoon. We gave her some time to readjust and when we were sure that she was ready we left the cottage and made for the beach. It was a difficult little journey down single track roads with only occasional passing places which today wasn’t too hard to negotiate but I guess can be a bit of a challenge in the height of summer!
Posted in Beaches, Childhood, Europe, History, Natural Environment, Travel, United Kingdom, Wales
Tagged Cardigan, Ceredigion Wales, Foel y Wynt, Mwnt Beach, Wales
And for once the weathermen seemed to have guessed correctly because it was a fine morning that greeted us when Molly decided that it was time to get up and go downstairs. We followed the same early morning routine as the previous day and I prepared a full sizzling English (Welsh?) breakfast before dispatching Molly upstairs with instructions to wake Jonathan. ‘Wake up Jon, it’s morning – time to get up’ I heard her shout in his unsuspecting ear and I don’t think he absolutely appreciated that as he made his way downstairs still half asleep.
Because the weather had been so appallingly bad it was difficult to imagine that it could possibly get any worse (unless the World had slipped of its axis overnight and Wales was now in the Caribbean hurricane belt) and inevitably (even the met office could have predicted this) there was some degree of improvement in the morning when Molly woke me at six o’clock and declared it time to get up. It was still unseasonally cold and the sky was cloudy and we needed the heating on in the cottage but at least it was white cloud and the only dampness was a bit of early morning sea mist.
Posted in Childhood, Europe, History, Natural Environment, Travel, Wales
Tagged Aberaeron, Aberystwyth, Cardigan, Vale of Rheidol Light Railway, Wales
“Why Richard, it profits a man nothing to give his soul for the whole world… but for Wales?” – Sir Thomas More – ‘A Man For All Seasons’
I was surprised that I was so easily persuaded to book a holiday cottage in Wales because most of my holiday memories of the Principality involve precipitation.
When I was a boy we used to go on family holidays to Borth in Mid Wales and stay in a caravan. It always rained and all through the night there was a steady pitter-patter of rain on the biscuit tin roof and everywhere seemed damp, musty and cold. Later we used to go the Plas Panteidal Hoiliday Village near Aberdovey and although the accommodation was an improvement the same could never be said for the weather.
Posted in Childhood, Europe, History, Natural Environment, Travel
Tagged Aberystwyth, Caernavon, Caerphilly, Cardigan, Plas Panteidal Holiday Village, Wales, Welsh weather
Have Bag, Will Travel 