Wales~November, 1997
Gail South
Friday, November 7, 1997
Left LBI about 4:30 am in the rain. Got to JFK long-term parking and bus to American Airline terminal. It took about 25 minutes for the bus to come, and it was getting late. Then I forgot that you need exact change on the bus, but the driver let me on and a nice man several stops later had change.
It was 8 o'clock and I was supposed to be at Halbert by 7, but Martin was very nice after I finally got his attention by pounding on the dock doors. Ralph drove me back to the terminal and loaded me on the plane.. I have no duties going over. It took off on time, the food and champagne were pretty good, and it landed ahead of schedule. I changed some money and went to look for the Alamo bus. The driver gave me very good instructions for getting on the M4, but, or curse, I messed up. After a bit of learning to drive on the left around blocks, and learning to pull up on the ring to put the car in reverse, I was on my way. It took about two hours to reach Bath with rain and gale force winds all the way, but I found the YMCA with no problem and checked in about 1 AM. No towels, but I'll make out. A quiet and clean simple room with a sink
Saturday, Nov. 8
Didn't sleep too well, but woke to a beautiful morning. The breakfast set up was efficient: cereal, milk, toast, OJ and tea. I ate, then walked around the old town. It's very lovely. The Baths and the Abbey were both closed, but they were pretty enough from the outside. Saturday is shopping day, and lots of vendors were setting up in the many pedestrian strolling malls. I fell on the slippery stone steps loading the car and my ankle is nicely swollen. Changed some Travelers' Checks at Amex with no commission.
Bath, England's visual masterpiece, is an elegant town of soft yellow limestone, founded by the Romans for rest and entertainment, the rebuilt by the Georgians, 17 centuries later, with much the same aim in mind. I marveled at the beauty of the buildings: the Roman Baths in the shadow of the 17th c. Abbey; Robert Adam's Pulteney Bridge; the Circus, based on the form of a Roman amphitheater; and Bath's crowning glory, Royal Crescent, a model of gracious living unequalled in the world. I looked in at the Pump Room, the social heart of Bath and the place to sample the waters while listening to genteel tunes from the resident chamber ensemble.
And on to Wales!! Through the Wye Valley. Up the beautiful A46 to the M4 motorway. I crossed the new, very impressive bridge over the Severn and followed it into the medieval town of Chepstow. The castle was impressive but not enough to pay the rather steep admission to go inside, so I walked around a bit. Chepstow Castle guards the entrance to the Wye Valley by stretching its massive bulk right along the river, encircled on three sides by 13th c. walls and on the fourth by the river itself.
Tintern Abbey, further north along the Wye, was worth the entrance fee. The Cistercians broke off from the founding Benedictines when the latter became too worldly in the 12th c. But the beauty and intricacy of decoration of this abbey demonstrates that they eventually headed down the same road. This best preserved medieval abbey in Wales has provided inspiration to generations of artists and writers.
From Tintern, I traveled up the beautiful valley to Monmouth. I missed the castle there, but saw the one slightly to the west at Raglun. When we think of castles, we usually think of Disneyland. People here have castles in their backyards, like so many gray McDonalds. Monmouth is a market town, birthplace of Henry V and Geoffrey of Monmouth (who gave this site what little historical credibility there is to King Arthur and Merlin).
Had lunch at the Sugarloaf Winery and bought two bottles of white and am hoping for some picnics over the next few days. Then I followed a true "off the beaten path" to the top of the mountain.
My plan was to spend the night in Cardiff, but the traffic was bad and I wasn't too impressed with the castle. I found the row of B&Bs noted in the book, sat in front and decided to skip the capitol go on. Enjoyed the Welsh Folk Museum, especially the reproduction of the 2000-year old Celtic settlement. Then it started to rain, and I realized it was after 4 and I was in the middle of nowhere. I asked for B&B recommendations, but the only one mentioned used the word "luxury" three times and claimed to have fax modems and Jacuzzis in each room, so I traveled on.
I drove around and got lost on the murky docks of Barry. Not good. I stopped for gas and was sent on to the town of Penarth, a seaside resort, with two names from the yellow pages. Of course, I was unable to find either one, so I stopped in a shop where the proprietor, a bloody-smock clad fishmonger, sent me across the street where he was sure "Brian could find me a cheap room." I went, tired and hungry, and accepted his offer of L17 (he said the regular price was L21) for a nice room with TV and sink. Brian is an American from Long Island who has been here for 35 years. I took a very long walk, falling yet again on my same, now enormous, ankle on the wet leaves, to find something to eat. I made a mistake, picking a bad Italian place (Tony's Seashore) over what I should have selected, Indian. Walked home, took a shower and washed my hair--naturally, I forgot that I had blown up my converter, so couldn't use the hair dryer. Wrote in the journal and to bed.
Sunday, Nov. 9
Got up and had tea in my room, since Brian had said the kitchen was closed for the winter. What to my surprise, a full English breakfast was waiting for me downstairs. Set for the day!! After getting lost for about 30 minutes, I was on my way north to Brecon Beacons. At the heart of Wales, this is a landscape of lush, green slopes rising to the razor sharp ridges of magnificent red sandstone mountains. There are some places, Venice comes to mind, where great paintings are always on your mind, and others, like Rome, where your thoughts are on history. Florence is for sculpture. This is literature country: "Sons and Lovers" and "How Green was my Valley." Rolling hills, cut away for the black gold and towns full of Monopoly-like houses. A rainbow broke through the clouds and the sky turned blue as I headed north. I have never, ever, seen sky as blue or grass as green as it is here. This country has more castles than anywhere I've ever been. Some I viewed from the outside: Caerphilly and Castle Coch, a tribute to the romance of the Middle Ages. And some I couldn't find: Dinefwe and Duplwyn. And one great one I explored after a trek down a footpath: Llawahaden castle in Dyfed. It was unlocked and signposted. I truly felt I was back in the Middle Ages. Gerald of Wales described it as a castle when he visited in 1175.
Rode around Haverfordwest for a while, looking for the Info. When I found it, it was closed. Sundays in November aren't good times for finding things open in this neck of the woods. So I took 487 towards St. Davids. More beautiful countryside, but when the road rounded the bend to Newgale, I literally gasped at the view: rocky coast and crashing surf. Truly magnificent. St. Davids is a tiny town with tiny streets. I found a nice B&B, Alandale at 43 Nun St, for L15.5. I'm the only guest and the host, another Brian, is a talker who told me all about his wife's bad back and the alternative medical treatment (suction boots) she was attempting. I walked around the corner and down a cobbled path (I stayed on the grass to avoid another fall). The church was beautiful. The Bishop's Palace was a ruin and due to close in 5 minutes, so I walked around, but decided not to pay the admission (last time I paid to get into someplace just before closing, I got locked in)> I walked up to the Farmer's Arms and had a beer, but they didn't begin serving food until 6, so I went to the Choral Evensong in the Cathedral and it was wonderful. I could feel the organ through to my bones. Then I went back to the pub and had bad moussaka, salad and a glass of wine for L7. St. Davids (Tyddewi), the "Canterbury of Wales", is named for the patron saint of Wales, who was born nearby in the 6th c. The cathedral, Wales' finest, was built in a hollow to protect it from marauding Norse pirates in 1180, but Christians have worshipped here for almost fourteen centuries.
Monday, Nov. 10
Breakfasted (enormously) and talked to Brian and his daughter, Rebecca, before she went off to school. She's in fourth grad and is taking Maths, History, Latin, Reading, Literature, flute, piano and is in the choir I heard last night. Bought a few provisions and went to the "best beach in Wales", Whitesands. Dramatic, but not as nice as Pearl Street.
Now I was off to the north along the Pembrokeshire Coast. It was raining again, with nary a break till late afternoon. A bit depressing but the scenery was just magnificent. From St. Davids, the road stayed slightly inland and swaths of farmland separated small towns with occasional views of the ocean at Fishguard, Dinas, and Newport.
I took a secondary road from there in a vain attempt to find St. Donegal's Abbey, reputedly just outside of Cardigan. I knew I had missed it when I found myself in the middle of a larger town on market day, in a drenching rain. I decide to skip shopping and had a beautiful drive to Aberstwyth. Michelin is the first map I've used where green really does mean green. The wind road hugged the coast and went through all sorts of "Ll..." towns. It was still raining, but I needed a break, so I visited the castle. I felt like Dracula or Heathcliff with my black cloak whipping about me.
Continued on through Machynlleth and up to Dolgellau, stopping by the side of the road for lunch at Corvis. This is part of Snowdonia Park, and it's wonderful. I'm here at just the right time, if it would only stop raining. The trees are at their peak, with every shade of yellow, orange and brown you can imagine, interspersed with green-black pines. I went back to the coast, to Barmouth, and followed a green route to Harlech, where "the most dramatically sited of all the castles raised by Edward I" sits on a rock outcropping overlooking the sea, with the mountains behind. Stopped in a pub to ask about a room but it was L20, so I went on to Portmadog.
This is a nice market town where I walked up a steep street to find Treforis and get a room for L15. Isabelle Dickinson put me in a giant room with two double beds and two twins. I walked down into town where I caught the Info and got lots just before it closed. I had Lamb Tiki Mossala and rice at Passage to India for L10.6 and enjoyed it much more than Englishly-interpreted Italian or Greek. I guess I've given up walking (mu ankle is very swollen, but my knee is a wreck), so I'm planning to concentrate on castles tomorrow.
Tuesday, Nov. 11
The sun was shining when I got up. A good sign. Took a short walk before breakfast and watched a boy play with his border collie before school. Another BIG breakfast with two German girls and two Englishmen. As I had missed the weavers at the Folk museum I went to the Brynkir Woolen Mill in Golan. It has been open for 150 years and today employs about seven people. Not much was happening but the machines were signposted and I think I understand how they work. The prices in the shop were "end of season" (what must it be like in Jan.?), but I didn't need anything.
Now on to the castles through the heart of Snowdonia, the glory of North Wales, with mountain scenery as good as anywhere. An astonishing landscape of craggy peaks, deep valleys, rivers, waterfalls, and awesome slate mountains that rise in manacling terraces from black silken lakes. Before I reached the first castle came a more modern, very depressing sight, Blaenau Ffestiniog, a slate quarrying town. On a grey day it can look particularly desolate, and it was gray again.
Took a walk through sheep country to visit Dolwyddelan Castle (again I was the only visitor), a lonely square tower standing on a ridge, built by Welsh princes and guarding a landlocked mountain pass.
Now a gorgeous ride through the forest to Betws-y-Coed to see the Swallow Falls in the Llugwy Valley. The Pass of Llanberis is a lonely, desolate place right at the base of Mt. Snowdon itself. I drove on to the quarries of Llanberis and the Dolbarden Castle. Two yellow-branded sheep and I were the only visitors.
Arrived in Caernarfon about lunchtime and parked in a lot next to the Castle. It had been pouring when I stopped and looked at the outside, so this was the first one of Edward's "Ring of Castles" I was really going to see. Since 1301 all Princes of Wales have been invested in this castle. The walls completely dominate the town, but form just a shell enclosing a three-acre space. As for the town itself, time hasn't been particularly kind, and suburbs full of high-rise flats provide a disappointing setting for such splendor. These are the only polygon-shaped towers (most are round or rectangular) and multi-colored stripes on the walls meant to echo the walls of Constantinople, City of the Roman Emperors (the only people to have conquered the Welsh and hence admired by them). One thing I haven't mentioned is that each of these castles has a placard at the entrance showing how they appeared when turner painted them in the early 19th c. There's even a Turner Trail of Castles. Had I known about that, I surely would have tried to follow it. I love Turner.
Passed through Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychywrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, the village with the longest name in the world. Its English translation is "St. Mary's Church in the hollow of white hazel near a rapid whirlpool and the Church of St. Tysilio near the red cave". Llanfairpwll, as it is locally known lies over the Menai Straits on the beautiful island of Alglesey on the way to Beaumarais Castle, reached by a gorgeous coast road lined with huge mansions. The first I�ve seen in Wales. This would be where I would live. Beaumarais is the most "technically perfect medieval castle" in Britain and the last link in the chain of Edward's coastal fortresses. It was to be perfectly symmetrical and the biggest and most ambitious of his castles. However, the king's attention was diverted and supplies dwindled. It was never completed. Again, I was the only visitor and it was an eerie feeling to explore the dark and damp passageways. I think they might have put up the warning sign for my benefit.
It was close to 4, so I knew I wouldn't get to the Conwy castle today. I asked at the Info in Conwy and they recommended the B&B across the street. It was L20, so looked on. I made a great discovery under the arch leading out of the city, taking the second left over the old stone bridge onto Cadnant Park, I found a row of large double houses. Llwyn (The Grove) was at #15, and Nellie Hughes was a lovely lady with a spotless single overlooking the park with TV and washbasin for L14. I walked around the town and ate at "voted best in Wales" fish & chips for L2.7 Sat in Lancaster Square, under a statue of Llewelyn, and ate, then walked home. A wonderful day!! (Two years ago today, I was in London and saw the Queen)
Wednesday, Nov. 12
Bright and clear. Walked a bit, had a big breakfast, and walked to the castle. It didn't open till 9:30, so I walked the walls for some spectacular views, then walked across the bridge for a view of the harbor. I decided to take off and skip the inside.
Took the motorway to A525 at St. Asaaph for a beautiful green route morning. The cathedral here is the smallest cathedral church in Wales or England. The site goes back to the 6th c. and it is a beautiful church in a beautiful place. A few miles south is Denbigh Castle, with a remarkable triple towered gatehouse. Again I was alone as I pretended to be Guinivere. As I left, one of the residents of the nearby old folks home (they are everywhere in Wales) walked his 2 dogs. I wonder who the dogs were pretending to be?
As I left, one of the residents of the nearby old folks home (they are everywhere in Wales) walked his 2 dogs. I wonder who the dogs were pretending to be? The castle at Ruthin is now a hotel. I looked, but didn't get out. Called Halbert to confirm plans. I'm to meet them at 10 AM Fri. The route continued scenic, and just before the town of Llangollen, I came to the Valle Crucis Abbey, another Cistercian worship place in another gorgeous setting. These monks knew how to pick locations. If I weren't a nun in a convent in a previous life, I must have been a Cistercian monk. The only remaining abbey fish pond in Wales is here. My job would have been to catch the evening fish.
Down through Owestry to Welshpool and Newton. At the border of England and Wales is the Symbol of Wales, a road sign emblazoned with a red dragon and reading, "Croeso Cymrul". In the oldest language of Western civilization you are bid "Welcome to Wales." The Welsh dragon is thought to have been derived from the purple griffin of the Roman Imperial banners, making the Welsh national flag the oldest on earth.
The Welsh dragon is thought to have been derived from the purple griffin of the Roman Imperial banners, making the Welsh national flag the oldest on earth. At Crossgates, I turned on the green A44 into England and the "black and white towns" of Kington, Lyonshall and the gorgeous Pembridge. I wish I had stopped and walked around, but I wanted to find a stop and I'll see more tomorrow. In Leominster I parked and found Info. They recommended two B&Bs close by, and I stopped at Rossendale Guest House, 46 Broad St., where I settled with Ian and Jennifer Gaskin on a fine room for L14.5. I moved the car and took off to explore the town.
The town is at the heart of the Marches, the beautiful and historic borderlands between England and Wales. it felt medieval and was fun to explore. I got some wine and local pungent sage cheese and went back to the room to get organized. Then I walked to the Grape Vaults Pub. There was a coal fire in the grate and a Welsh Terrier named Jamie warming himself. I had a bowl of leek and potato soup with good bread and butter and a pint. Not great, but the best meal so far. I walked back, but my host persuaded me to go out again to the Talbot Hotel for a drink by their wood and coal fire. The menu looked good, and I wished I had gone there for dinner. it would have been more enjoyable if the room had not been dominated by some marketing yuppie with his cell phone calling everyone he knew.
Tomorrow is a big question. For sure I'm starting off with Black and White, but I have to end up close to London to be at the airport by 10 AM on Fri.
Thursday, Nov. 13
Breakfast this morning was huge, as usual, and very good, Devon ham and homemade sausages. The Cotswolds stretch across the west of England from the River Humber to the Dorset coast and are flecked with tiny villages dating from Saxon times. Herfordahire, famouse fo tis black and white cattle, lies at the heart of the Marches. From Leominster, I followed the Black and White Trail to see some of England's prettiest villages, many unchanged since Tudor times. I explored Dilwyn, Woeblyl, Kinnersley Castle and Eardisley, with its enormous Great Oak. I could use just one day more here.
The Cathedral at Hereford was magnificent. I spent a lot of time here. The stained glass and carvings were great, and there was the most intricate embroidery I've ever seen. Also the "Mappa Mundi," a medieval map of the world that was very interesting and well-displayed. Also the "Chained Library" where scholars study. One of the aisles had, in order, Prophecies of Merlin; Graduates of Oxford, 1706; and Studies of Euclid. Hereford's High Town is a pedestrians dream, with cafes, street entertainers, and places to relax. It was already decorated for Christmas.
I had read on the Web about the Three Choirs Winery in Newent and went there for lunch: oak-smoked salmon with a salad of baby greens and granary bread and a wonderful dry white wine. Hooray!!! Drove through the charming towns of Great Malvern, Broadway, Chipping Campden, & Moreton-on-Marsh. Now it was getting late and I was worried (rightfully as it turned out) about finding a place. I drove around Oxford, on the advice of the Info lady at Hereford, and on to Henley-on-Thames. The first B&B said L57, the next L45, so when I found one for L30, I took it, Thamesmead House, smallest room so far ,but I am close to London.
Friday, Nov. 14
Breakfasted early and returned the car without incident. Got to the meeting place about 9:10, the rep appeared an hour later. Again, I had no duties. Flew home and got to Beach Haven about 7:15/ All in all, a most wonderful trip.