We have just returned to Cardiff after the most wonderful trip to the West Wales coast. We had intended to travel to Cornwall, but decided to go to a less popular spot to avoid the bank holiday crowds and traffic jams. We will get to Cornwall later in the trip.
The holiday house we stayed in was a cute little terrace, beautifully decorated and extremely comfy. With 3 bedrooms and 3 levels, we were all able to really spread out. I've learnt to properly "move in"to each place we stay no matter how short the time as it alleviates a sense of transience and helps us all feel settled.
New Quay had plenty of great sandy beaches, nice pubs and gorgeous walks. We did day trips to the larger University town of Aberystwyth, Corris on the Southern end of the Snowdonia region and Cardigan to the South.
The weather was great and the back garden and deck were perfect for lazing about and taking in the view.
Highlights for the boys included King Arthur's Labyrinth which is an old shale mine that has been converted to an underground theatre. A hooded boatman guides you through the tunnels and at certain points you wait in the dark until a scene is lit up and a story is told. The stories are tales of King Arthur pertaining to Welsh history. There are roaring, smoking dragons, coloured waterfalls and shining treasure. The boys described it as awsome. It was very atmospheric and very well put together.
The New Quay Honey farm had an excellent exhibition showing the organisation of hives and bee keeping practices. And the mead was particularly tasty! We seemed to be in slow motion that day (I'd think it was the mead tasting, but we were sluggards even before that) and sat in the garden drinking tea for ages.
We were off to cardigan, but became side tracked. A previous guest at the holiday cottage had written about Mwnt Beach (pronounced Moont) in the guest book and so when we saw a sign, we turned off, through the narrowest country lanes I've ever seen, to find it. It was just so stunning and the day was so hot, we just played there for ages.
On the way to New Quay we stopped at the National Botanic gardens which are on an historic estate. Seemingly in the middle of nowhere, they are just stunning. Great fun for the boys to explore and breathtakingly beautiful. We weren't so impressed with the National Showcaves Centre where we stopped to break the journey on the way home. Quite tacky and over-priced combination of caves, life sized dinosar models and farmyard animals. We were unimpressed, but the children describe it as one of their favourite places.
