Day 43 Sunday 3 July 2016

Away from Chester at 7.45am & a drive in the Welsh countryside to our first stop at Ludlow, a small town with a walled castle. An antique market was set up in the town’s market square & we had a good look through that. There were lots of very interesting pieces in there, however, not interesting enough to buy anything. A walk around the base of the castle & the castle walls was next on the agenda & it was very pleasant, a few nice wild flowers out & the sound of falling water from the river below. Out the front of the castle was a gun captured at Sevastopol in 1855. Next was a short walk in the town, full of beautiful old Tudor buildings, probably the most stunning is the Feathers Hotel. An ice-cream on the way back to the coach & off again.

Next stop is Cardiff, through more fields of sheep, dairy cattle & wheat fields. We stop outside Cardiff Castle & the grounds inside the castle are packed with kids & their parents, there is a Welsh Festival being held to celebrate their Welshness, there are all sorts of activities for the kids. Under the British umbrella (except for the Republic of Ireland) Welsh, Irish & Scottish are very passionate about their own identity & language, the children are learning it in schools so that their language & customs won’t die out. All the road signs in Wales are in both Welsh & English, similar to Ireland where the road signs are in both Gaelic & English. The castle tower is stunning with a beautiful clock face on all 4 sides. Our guide takes us through some locked rooms in the castle to show us the rooms as they were in the 1800s. The opulence & thought in the design is amazing, there are carved figures & elaborate painting of the walls & ceilings, even the doors are extraordinary. The tower rooftop has an enclosed garden & again it is very well done. Our last stop is in the library & the timber work is amazing, the cost of each separate bookcase was $100,000. Outside again we pick our way through the crowd & walk to the central keep, surrounded by a deep moat. There are lots of steps up a spiral stone staircase (in the castle as well) & I am impressed that Tereza managed to make it all the way to the top. The view from the top is amazing right around Cardiff. It was just as tough coming back down as the stairs are so steep.

We find out that the castle is only a shade over a block away from our hotel when we go for a walk around the shopping mall. We come across more market stalls however, being Sunday & after 5pm most of the shops were either shut or closing.

Tonight we went to the Millennium Centre down near the Cardiff docks, right on the bay & were treated to a delightful session of entertainment & singing from a small band of Welsh singers, they were superb & hugely entertaining. They included a couple of men from our group in the evening entertainment & everyone was laughing. A good day again. The first day on our tour that there has not been any rain, & the sun was shining. Is summer here, should we dare take off our winter woollies tomorrow?