Heading North

After a fun few days in Cardiff, it was time to head off again.

Mum and Dad got up early to help us pack the car and see us off on Saturday morning. I admit I was really excited about going off on a trip into the unknown (at least to me): north Wales. The land of beautiful landscapes, mountains, beaches and famous castles.

I had run the post codes through the AA route finder so we had a printout to follow, but we still got lost within 20 minutes and ended up in a housing estate in Newport… After getting back on track we had a straight run through until we stopped for tea somewhere near Builth Wells. I had a pot of tea and a slice of excellent bara brith (fruit cake). The coffee machine was broken, so David sat there nursing his Brecon Carreg water willing me to hurry so that we could go and find somewhere that did proper coffee.

Next stop was for lunch at a pub called The Brigand’s Arms which was built in the 16th century and used to be a coaching inn. I have low expectations when it comes to Welsh pub food, but this meal was REALLY excellent. I went for homemade leek and potato soup (my favourite!) and goats cheese tart with salad. David had venison sausages and vegetables. I asked the waitress where we were and I think she said “Machlin”. I couldn’t find it on the map, but it was on the road to Llanidloes – look out for it if you are up that way.

Back on the road and the rain was getting really heavy. Somewhere around Machynlleth we spotted a sign for “Harlech Castle” and as we were making really good time, we decided to take a detour. The landlady wasn’t expecting us for hours yet. There probably would have been quicker ways to get to Harlech, but this coastal route was quite nice (apart from going through Barmouth – full of tacky cafes and souvenir shops and miserable people all walking round in the rain).