Spring Holiday
We set off for Pembrokeshire after the final pick-up in Cirencester on a very soggy Saturday morning driven by our capable Phil who has been looking after us in this way for 26 years. After a brief comfort break we arrived at Berrington Hall near Leominster. What would we do without Phil? We held our breath and breathed in as he drove through narrow gates with inches to spare. The rain let up for long enough for some of us to sit in the courtyard to enjoy lunch, then we had time for a very pleasant visit to the beautiful Georgian house. For some of us the highlight was an exquisite Court Mantua dress found in pieces and perfectly restored. It is beautifully displayed with lots of interesting details of the reconstruction process.
We recommenced our journey. The relentless rain made it a little tedious, so we were very grateful to arrive safely at Beggars Reach Hotel near Milford Haven. The hotel changed hands just two weeks before we arrived, so the new young owners were in the early stages of managing and anxious to make everyone comfortable. Once everyone was settled in their rooms we gathered for a tasty evening meal followed by an early night.
Sunday – Dinefwr Park Newton House
After a fairly uniformly grey, often wet, and decidedly chilly journey to Pembrokshire, it was a real delight to waken to clear blue skies on Sunday morning. Sadly it barely lasted until the end of breakfast before more cloud, some it vey grey, had rolled in. However we set forth in good heart, not quite back the way we’d come yesterday; Phil took us over the bridge and along the other side of Cleddau Ddu heading back towards Llandeilo and Dinefwr Park.
The parkland, the famous White Park cattle and the deer, and the more/less formal gardens were stunning, and Newton House was interesting, but the real gem, for those who could make it up the rather steep climb, was Dinefwr Castle.
It was a relatively steep climb, up through some wonderful broad-leaf woodland. The castle had long since disappeared in the trees, but then suddenly, almost without warning, it was there, with imposing walls rising above us. Inside, a family with small boys were having the most wonderful game, seeing ‘enemy guards’ in every dark corner! The views from the tops of the walls and towers along the wonderful Towy valley, both west and east, were truly wonderful and well worth the effort in getting there. And the rain held off just long enough.
Then it was back to Beggars Reach Hotel for a short, informal act of worship (it being a Sunday) – for those who wanted to attend - and then dinner and, for most, I think, an early night!
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Day 3 we awoke to bright sunshine which stayed with us all day. We set off to St David’s,a beautiful cathedral in the smallest city in Britain. It stands in a glorious setting in grassy hollow hidden from the town. There has been a religious presence since 589 when St David founded the monastic community. Looking down takes your breath away. Slightly behind are the remains of the Bishop’s Palace. It almost feels like a pilgrimage as to enter requires many many steps and slopes but well worth the effort. Inside is a revelation,so much larger than you’d expect with wonderful ceilings and tiles. There is a magnificent organ beautifully decorated on both sides with the largest pipes I have ever seen. If only we could have heard it too. The details of the ceilings in the tower lantern are amazing, fine ribs meeting in the centre and several coats of arms. Colourful painted ceilings over the nave too. Just when you think you’ve come to the end of the wonders you find the Lady chapel and the Holy Trinity chapel. Throughout the atmosphere is so peaceful,tranquil and of great antiquity. We spent a long time here and could have spent longer but we’re in need of refreshments so off we went to the on site cafe. I had Welsh cakes for lunch. There were4 or 5 flavours. I only sampled 2 . Very nice they were too! Then having climbed the steps and slopes,not kind to those of us with dodgy knees ,we explored the town. We ended the visit sitting in the sunshine with a delicious apricot brandy and walnut ice cream before returning to our hotel along a coastal route. Could there have been a more enjoyable day?
DAY4 - TENBY
Another nice bright morning and a very pleasant drive to Tenby, one of Wales' best seaside towns with glorious beaches, a warm atmosphere and some fine Victorian houses plus the fascinating Tudor Merchantss' House which several of our party visited once they'd managed to find it!
Some chose to go to Caldey Island and quickly made their way to the harbour to book tickets for their 'sea voyage' and spent their day exploring the island until it was time to make the fairly choppy return trip. I took the chance to meet up with old friends who were kind enough to take me on a guided tour of Tenby, provide me with lunch in their very luxurious, static mobile home loooking straight out to sea and then took me back into town to meet up with the coach and the rest of the 'landlubbers' for a short trip along the coast to Saundersfoot. A pretty strong wind had sprung up by then so a quick look at the 'prom' was followed by a retreat into the nearest cafe for a welcome cup of tea and piece of delicious cake. We enjoyed the ride back to Tenby to collect the intrepid travellers returning from Caldey Island and then back to the hotel for dinner and packing ready for the morning.
DAY 5 - HOMEWARD BOUND
A fairly relaxed start with luggage out by 8.30, a good breakfast and leaving for home by 10 0'clock. We'd enjoyed our stay at Beggars' Reach and got the impression, as they waved us off, that they'd enjoyed having us (or were they just pleased at the prospect of some peace and quiet?!) As we were heading for Tredegar House, our lunch stop, Phil needed to take us by a different route to our outward journey so we were able to enjoy new scenery and see more of Wales. This first part of our journey took about an hour and a half and we arrived at Tredegar House in good time for lunch and to explore.the property and the gardens. Tredegar is one of the architectural wonders of Wales and one of the most significant late C17th houses in the whole of the British Isles so there was plenty to see during our time there or we could just enjoy sitting in the sun reading or chatting about the places we'd visited on the holiday. All too soon we'd crossed the bridge back into England and were soon passing familiar sights as we sped along the motorway then turned off to Cirencester, our first drop-off point. After another stop in Highworth there were very few of us left for Shrivenham so Phil was able to unload our cases quickly and head back to the depot and finally home and a chance to relax. We owe him many,many thanks for all his safe and skilled driving, his knowledge of places and people and entertaining stories which helped to make the holiday a success.
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