This city I can handle.

Thursday 16th August

Ventured south today to the city of St Davids. St Davids is the United Kingdom's smallest city in terms of both size and population (1,841 in 2011). It is the final resting place of Saint David, Wales's patron saint. It really was small with only a few shops right in the centre and a few restaurants. The big attraction there is St Davids cathedral, another 12th century structure. This cathedral, while being of the same style as many others we have seen, is quite different inside, and probably a lot bigger than most. It is still in use today. One thing we did notice was that the internal ‘pillars' had a very definite ‘leaning tower of pisa' about them. The church guide wasn't sure if that had happened with the weight of the roof over time, or if it was the result of an earthquake in the 1200s.

St Davids cathedral.

...and the bishops palace.

 We drove back home following the coast and checking out the bays and beaches. There were some lovely spots, and more of those out of the way caravan parks. It was a nice day today with blue sky and sunshine but the temperature was only about 19deg. But it is summer, and school holidays, and the parking at the beaches (£3) was packed, and the kids were in swimming. Not this little black duck!

Blue Lagoon - parking lot was full.

Helping out at Poppit Sands beach.

Poppit Sands - there were lifeguards on the beach here.

Mwnt bay.

One of the towns along the road was Mwnt - pronounced 'moont' (oo as in book). There was a church here (but nothing else)  dating back to the 13th century. A lovely location with a caravan park on the cliffs and a beautiful beach and swimming bay down the cliff. There was also a small kiosk and a pay and display parking area. This place really seemed to be the middle of nowhere - is a parking officer really going to come here?

Church of the Holy Cross at Mwnt

Another stop on the way home at the town of Fishguard where there is a tapestry (a la Bayeux tapestry) on display depicting the last invasion on English soil by the French in 1797. The tapestry was done and unveiled in 1997 to commemorate the bicentenary of the event. Pretty stunning tapestry and already under conservation conditions so hopefully will have a much better life than the Bayeux tapestry.

Friday 17th August

Total rest day today with just a short drive to a nearby town for lunch. We have really enjoyed our few days break here. The countryside is beautiful and the hostel we have stayed in is very comfortable and so well equipped and the owners are just lovely. Wish we could have stayed here right up to getting on the plane for home.