St David's: January 2014: Part 1

The first full day of our January break at St David's. Because of the weather the morning was spent pottering around the city as conditions really weren't good enough for coastal or hill walking. Matters improved in the afternoon enough for us to visit a few of our favourite places along the coast. All-in-all a very relaxed day - and that's exactly what we wanted.

There are days when a cup of strong tea and some succulent slices of smoked bacon slapped between two pieces of bread and then covered with HP sauce taste like Ambrosia. And so it was today. All that for a mere £3 - at the Oriel-y-Parc on the outskirts of town. Could be back there again soon!

Our excuse - nay, reason - for not walking today was the atrocious weather. To say it was wet and windy would be an understatement.

And this is all that remains of the car park and sea front 'esplanade' at Abereiddy after the recent storms. We've sat on the wall and eaten an ice cream whilst looking at the sea. I think it will be quite a while before anyone is able to do that again.

Stand on the outer harbour wall looking back into Porthgain. Once a bustling port dealing with the slate from the local mines but now an atmospheric deserted industrial relic.

Who is Maggie and what's her relationship to Jon? and who was the carver of this sign on the blacksmith's shed?

The number of crows on the exposed harbour bottom was unusual. They all seemed to be rooting around the debris to find THE piece necessary for the next stage of their nest construction. Missing bricks in the edifice of the old slate bunker provide ideal sites.

There are days when a cup of strong tea and some slices of rich bara brith taste like Ambrosia. And so it was today. At the Shed in Porthgain but considerably more expensive than our breakfast bacon butties. We won't be going back there this break.

St Rhian's church at Llanrhian. Nothing much is known about St Rhian: he could have been, variously, a contemporary of St David, a Welsh prince or the Virgin Mary. Take your pick. There has been a church on the site for some 1500 years and the existing building dates from the 13th century. It's unusual in that it's one of the few cruciform churches in Wales. The tower is somewhat older than the rest of the church and was, or so it is thought, a watch tower originally. A pleasant but somewhat austere interior and outside a constant cacophony of nesting rooks.

The day ends with Choral Evensong at the cathedral. The singing tonight was nothing short of superb. Plainsong with a choir of, most of the time, just six people. The best (and free) show in town.