Our first of two overnight excursions led us outside the confines of England (for the first time) to the coast of Wales. On the morning of 5 March, 2010, we departed (rather late) at 10:45 AM, to catch our train at 11:45 AM for Swansea (swan-see). The infamous (mysterious to some) ASA (Academic Studies Abroad) group for this trip consisted of Alysha, Bri, Lauren, Stephanie, Zach and me.
Day One: Travel to Wales
The three hour train ride from Paddington station proved to be pretty dull, but allowed me to make several (failed) attempts to study for midterms, eat a piping hot ham and cheese panino, chomp on some salt and vinegar crisps, laugh a lot, try (and fail) to sleep and make obnoxious videos on my camera. After the quick blast through the Welsh countryside ended, we all jumped into a van for the final 30 minute jaunt through the town of Sketty (I just really like the name) to our final destination: Parc Le Breos in Gower.
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Commonly referred to as "pony trekking," this lumbering, somewhat slow method of getting from point A to B pretty much screams masculinity. After seeing the the multitude (or lack thereof) of males on the trip (a solid four strong), this assertion couldn't have been more accurate. All was not lost, however, because our accommodations were top notch. Parc Le Breos was a full-blown bed and breakfast and we had a sizable room, individual beds for all of us and a clean bathroom to help our egos and reassure us that we had made the right decision.
Parc Le Breos
To kick off the weekend, we had a brief orientation with Olive (our "house mom") to explain when meals would occur, when the day would begin on Saturday and most importantly, how to get to the beach!
The last part is important because our "leader" Preben, managed to get us lost several times and almost double the travel time Olive quoted us. After we wandered our way up, down, around, and most importantly, through some Welsh foliage, we crested a sand dune and laid our eyes upon the glorious coast of Wales for the first time.
I wish the pictures did the view justice, but copious amounts of sunshine, a perfect sea breeze and utter happiness made our quick trip to the beach a complete success. After our (much more direct) walk back to Parc Le Breos, we got set for a delicious Welsh dinner compliments of Olive and her staff.
Day Two: "I'm on a pony"
The next morning Zach and I got up early to get some shots of the sunrise over the Water. Wales definitely didn't disappoint:
After a hearty English breakfast that was pretty much the same as the one I had before Twelfth Night sans pond of grease and plus a bowl of cereal, we ventured outside to get acquainted with the ponies. Just one glance and whatever preconceptions I had about ponies being small and feminine went straight out the window. They were huge and seemed (to me, at least) like they were just as big, if not bigger than most horses.
My pony (or what looked like a horse) was named Bottom, and after a pretty thorough orientation from Kissa, our guide from Parc Le Breos, we were set off into the Welsh countryside. "Set off" implies some sort of dramatic exit, with ponies trotting off into the distance, each setting their own course, but in reality, all that happened was they got in line (in a very specific order) and we started walking along.
Bottom had a strange obsession with the "bottom" of the pony in front of me (ironically enough) and so the potential drama evaporated when I realized there was absolutely nothing I could to do affect/control/steer the thing. Bottom was on autopilot, and besides stopping a few times to chomp on some weeds, nothing exciting happened. It was all very uncomfortable, we rode for a few hours and then stopped for lunch.
Post-lunch, my pony was covered in (what I hoped) was just mud after rolling around for a solid hour, but it was more than likely a mixture of earth and poo.
The rest of the day can be summarized as such: more autopilot, open spaces = ponies like to race, people get tossed off, sore bum, monotony and another thoroughly enjoyable dinner prepared by Olive.
Day three: Epic 5 mile trek along the Welsh coastline
For the second full day exploring Wales, we were given the choice of another, "more intensive" pony trek along the coast of Wales, or the option to explore the coastline by foot. While the majority of the group chose the former, we chose to stay close to the ground and take in all that Wales had to offer by walking. This meant grabbing a map from Olive, one of the world's greatest human beings, and using the sense of direction that I don't have.
It wasn't as horrific as I am making it sound, in fact, it was one of the most incredible hikes I've ever been on (not that I'm an avid hiker or anything), it just checked all the boxes for me.
Breathtaking scenery, steep hills, narrow paths, lots of sand, ruins, a castle, rock faces that were (barely) climbable, beaches that stretched for miles and best of all, a little cafe that served up the best meal any of us have had, hands-down, since coming to the UK.
It probably had something to do with the four hour walk, blazing sun and the the requisite hunger that follows, but nevertheless, the location, service and food (I had the smoked salmon) was just great. As far as I could tell, it was run by an older man and a younger woman, both of whom seemed to genuinely care that our food was prepared to our liking. It was a pretty refreshing attitude considering all of the mediocre service that can be found in/around London. At the end of our meal, they gave us some complementary "Welsh Cakes."
Check them out: Cakes From Wales
My brief stay in Wales taught me a lot. The most obvious of which is how beautiful some parts of the world are. Getting a chance to see such breathtaking views of ocean, beaches and cliffs opened my eyes right up (quite literally). It will be great to look back one day at all of this blogging and see how far I have come, but for now, I am just enjoying the ride.
Wales euphoria: It's official.
Bottom was really obedient
Bottom had a strange obsession with the "bottom" of the pony in front of me (ironically enough) and so the potential drama evaporated when I realized there was absolutely nothing I could to do affect/control/steer the thing. Bottom was on autopilot, and besides stopping a few times to chomp on some weeds, nothing exciting happened. It was all very uncomfortable, we rode for a few hours and then stopped for lunch.
Post-lunch, my pony was covered in (what I hoped) was just mud after rolling around for a solid hour, but it was more than likely a mixture of earth and poo.
The rest of the day can be summarized as such: more autopilot, open spaces = ponies like to race, people get tossed off, sore bum, monotony and another thoroughly enjoyable dinner prepared by Olive.
Day three: Epic 5 mile trek along the Welsh coastline
For the second full day exploring Wales, we were given the choice of another, "more intensive" pony trek along the coast of Wales, or the option to explore the coastline by foot. While the majority of the group chose the former, we chose to stay close to the ground and take in all that Wales had to offer by walking. This meant grabbing a map from Olive, one of the world's greatest human beings, and using the sense of direction that I don't have.
It wasn't as horrific as I am making it sound, in fact, it was one of the most incredible hikes I've ever been on (not that I'm an avid hiker or anything), it just checked all the boxes for me.
Breathtaking scenery, steep hills, narrow paths, lots of sand, ruins, a castle, rock faces that were (barely) climbable, beaches that stretched for miles and best of all, a little cafe that served up the best meal any of us have had, hands-down, since coming to the UK.
Best meal, eh? What constitutes that?
It probably had something to do with the four hour walk, blazing sun and the the requisite hunger that follows, but nevertheless, the location, service and food (I had the smoked salmon) was just great. As far as I could tell, it was run by an older man and a younger woman, both of whom seemed to genuinely care that our food was prepared to our liking. It was a pretty refreshing attitude considering all of the mediocre service that can be found in/around London. At the end of our meal, they gave us some complementary "Welsh Cakes."
Check them out: Cakes From Wales
My brief stay in Wales taught me a lot. The most obvious of which is how beautiful some parts of the world are. Getting a chance to see such breathtaking views of ocean, beaches and cliffs opened my eyes right up (quite literally). It will be great to look back one day at all of this blogging and see how far I have come, but for now, I am just enjoying the ride.
Wales euphoria: It's official.
"People get tossed off"
ReplyDeleteOh how you diminish my emotionally frightful experience! Ha.
Can't wait for the massive SB2010 novella! Your blogging diligence continues to impress me.