• About
  • Contact Me
  • Disclosure

accentBritain

~ a romance with art and all things British

accentBritain

Tag Archives: St. David’s

St. David’s, Wales

11 Wednesday Sep 2013

Posted by pat in Travel, Uncategorized, United Kingdom

≈ Leave a Comment

Tags

Barry Flanagan, Caerfai Bay, Pembrokeshire, St. David's, Wales

At the western most coast of the British Isle, there is St. David’s, Wales, and it is stunning.

A fourteenth century cross in the center of St. David's. Photo by me

A fourteenth century cross in the center of St. David’s. Photo by me

We came in after driving for hours behind a “wide load” vehicle through the countryside.  It was a slow, agonizing trip.

The town of St. David's slopes down towards the sea. Photo by me

The town of St. David’s slopes down towards the sea. Photo by me

But at the end was the small coastal town of St. David’s.

St David's. Photo by me.

St David’s. Photo by me.

Near the cathedral. Photo by me

Near the cathedral in the center of the “city”. Photo by me

The town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, is billed as the smallest city in Great Britain, both in size and population. It is also the final resting place of Saint David, the country’s patron saint.  The village of St. David’s was given city status in the 16th century due to the presence of St David’s Cathedral but lost the recognition in 1888.  City status was restored in 1994 at the request of Queen Elizabeth.

IMG_9765

St David’s Cathedral. Photo by me

St. David’s is a unique area.  It is very Welsh.  You see the signs in the Welsh language everywhere, and the food has local favorites like Welsh Cakes.  There is also fabulous seafood to be had.  The nearby fishing village of Solva provides an endless supply.

The grove, our home away from home. Photo by me

The Grove, our “restaurant with rooms” and home away from home. Photo by me

And on the edge of town is a great visitors center with a beautiful art gallery.

"Small Nijinsky Hare", Barry Flanagan. Photo by me.

“Small Nijinsky Hare”, Barry Flanagan. Photo by me.

Cwn Gwylt, Bay Catrin Howell. Sculpture of wild dogs is Howell's response to the legend of the sunken kingdom believed to lie between Ramsey and Bardsey islands. Photo by me.

Cwn Gwylt, Bay Catrin Howell. Sculpture of wild dogs is Howell’s response to the legend of the sunken kingdom believed to lie between Ramsey and Bardsey islands. Photo by me.

It was time to see the famous Wales’ coastline.

IMG_9788

Just outside “the city”. Photo by me.

Late afternoon and before the predicted rains, I decided to take a walk down the side road to the Pembrokeshire Coast Path and Caerfai Bay.

IMG_9791

Small cottages, campgrounds and farms line the road down to the sea. Photo by me.

And organic farm and campground. Photo by me.

And organic farm and campground. Photo by me.

Camping in Wales.  Photo by me.

Camping in Wales. Photo by me.

Laundry day in Wales. Photo by me.

Laundry day. Photo by me.

IMG_9800

From the Coastal Path as the rain approaches. Photo by me.

Photo by me

The well-travelled coastal path. Photo by me

The Irish Sea is treacherous and notorious for very strong tides and large numbers of offshore rocks. And it brings in lots of rain.

All those consonant and very few vowels...Welsh. Photo by me

All those consonant and very few vowels…Welsh. Photo by me

Photo by me

A hidden beach with cliffs of distinctive red sandstone. Photo by me

Carved in the stone on the side of the path.  Photo by me

Carved in the stone on the side of the path. There were symbols etched all over the area.  I have no idea by who. Photo by me

The whole area has a rather “new-age” vibe, with surfers, druids and artists all in the mix. There are a number of interesting archaeological sites along the coast such as burial chambers, Stone Age hut circles and Iron Age field systems.  It is also said this was the site where St. Patrick stood when he had the vision to travel to Ireland to convert the Irish to Christianity.

Photo by me

Looking out towards Ireland. Photo by me

Photo by me

Many dairy and sheep farms lined the coast. Photo by me

Photo by me

Photo by me

This walk along this lonely cliff was one of the highlights of my summer.  I felt like I was on the ends of the earth.

♣ Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 27 other subscribers

♣ Archives

  • September 2022
  • May 2022
  • January 2022
  • November 2021
  • August 2021
  • May 2021
  • January 2021
  • September 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • March 2020
  • December 2019
  • October 2019
  • July 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • August 2018
  • March 2018
  • January 2018
  • July 2017
  • April 2017
  • February 2017
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • July 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • January 2016
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • March 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011

♣ Recent Posts

  • Autumn Stroll on the C&O Canal
  • A Winter’s Project
  • A Walk In The Park
  • An Adirondack Pond
  • Golden

♣ Categories

  • Art
  • Art Museums & Exhibitions
  • Bath
  • Books
  • British Virgin Islands
  • Burnham-on-Crouch
  • cars
  • Cornwall
  • Cornwall
  • England
  • entertainment
  • Fashion
  • Food
  • Gardens
  • Grasmere
  • Guana Island
  • History
  • Lake District
  • Lake District
  • London
  • movies
  • Music
  • National Trust
  • Olympics
  • paintings
  • Peak District
  • Sailing
  • Scotland
  • Shopping
  • sketching
  • The New Forest
  • The Royal Family
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized
  • United Kingdom

♣ my button

accentbritain.com
<a href="http://accentbritain.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://accentbritain.com/accentBritainbutton.jpeg" alt="accentBritain.com" width="125" height="125" /></a>
Copyright 2011 accentBritain LLC. All rights reserved. All original photos, text and art is copyright protected.

Proudly powered by WordPress Theme: Chateau by Ignacio Ricci.

 

Loading Comments...