Monday 3 July 2017

Come rain or shine

Alas, our holiday in Wales is well and truly over, come and gone in the blink of an eye.

After a smooth journey home, without any hitches whatsoever, we arrived back at Dove Cottage on Saturday night.

But, as with all stories, let's begin at the beginning.


Two weeks ago, on Saturday, sunshine accompanied us all the way to St. Dogmaels in North Pembrokeshire, where our cosy holiday cottage was awaiting us.

Cae'r Aber is situated high above the Teifi estuary, which is making its way to the sea at nearby Poppit Sands, a five minute drive west.


The view from Cae'r Aber's bedroom under the eaves is glorious, and one which we never tire of.

After driving up a seriously steep lane, at the end of which is a space to park your car, you've got to be in pretty good shape to reach the cottage itself.


Our cottage is the second white one at the end, partly hidden behind the pinkish house.


After several flights of steps, there's a crazy paving path which eventually becomes a gravel path, until finally the cottage with its blue painted door and windows, is reached.

Now, back to our holiday proper.

I wish I could tell you the weather gods were with us this time, but no, unfortunately they were not, which you have probably gathered from my post title, containing the dreaded "R" word!


It all started very promisingly, with clear blue skies and lots of sunshine, which we alternately basked in and sought refuse from by finding shady picnic spots or a welcome breeze at the seaside.


I was able to wear dresses for once, and when out walking I donned my lightest pair of jeans. I even wore the tomato red trousers I've been taking back and forth to Wales, unworn, for many years.


From Sunday to Wednesday, it gradually got hotter and hotter, and there was talk of Wednesday, the 21st of June, being the hottest June day since 1976.

Sunhats, sunglasses and sun cream were absolute necessities!

Being close to the sea was a blessing, as it meant we were spared the worst of the stifling heat of only a couple of miles inland.


We couldn't believe our luck, but alas, it wasn't to last.

On Thursday, the first of the rain arrived. Timidly at first, with some light and patchy showers, which we often managed to dodge, even if the sun hardly made another appearance over the weekend, and temperatures had dropped considerably.


We were in luck again on Monday, when we escaped to the coast and finally made it to St. Davids Head.



It was clear and sunny all day, but we could see dark clouds, heavy with rain, lying in wait away from the coast.

It was the last day our cameras and us saw any action to speak of.


Summer accessories were shelved and out came umbrellas and the Goretex raincoats.

Driving back home one miserable day, we were held up by a herd of cows (top right), and whilst driving through the moorland of the Preseli Mountains, the usual breathtaking views were replaced by zero visibility (bottom left).



Ominous grey skies and increasingly heavy rain were the only items on the menu from Tuesday onwards.

With most outdoor options off the cards, we trawled the area's charity shops, in search of treasure.


An unprecedented amount of brooches came home with us, as did, clockwise from top right: a Worcester Ware sugar canister, a mountain of books, and a couple of vintage dresses.


The cold weather - temperatures had dropped to barely more than 10° Celsius - prompted many a coffee break, including Welsh and other cakes, to warm us up, while making the most of free wifi to catch up on some blog reading.

I will be back with more details of our Welsh adventures, but for now I am leaving you with the view from our bedroom window taken on our last day.


It is the same view as at the beginning of this post, but what a difference!



32 comments:

  1. Welcome home!
    Funnily enough, when we flew out a fortnight ago, I commented to Jon that you and Jos were lucky with the weather. What did I know?
    Your cottage is so sweet and your photos are a feast for the eyes - unlike the weather. I'm delighted that those funky red trousers were able to make a brief appearance and that the chazzas of Welsh Wales didn't let you down.
    Louis Caring! My Mum used to love his stuff.
    You both look wonderfully stylish despite the inclement weather. xxx

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    1. You were part right: we were lucky with the weather, though only for a couple of days ... Last year, we didn't even had that. The last couple of days were quite horrible, weather wise, so hurray for the Welsh chazzas! xxx

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  2. Something good came of the rain in you finding all those beautiful brooches. Glad to hear you were able to make the best of it despite the weather. I can understand why you return to the same spot year after year as it is beautiful, even in the rain.

    I'll look forward to hearing more about your trip to Wales once you've settled back in at home.

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    1. I'd only found 3 brooches until well into the second week, when I had a major haul. You'll read all about it in one of my next posts ... xxx

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  3. I'm glad that you had good weather at the start of your holiday, you certainly needed it to make up for the second half.
    It still looks like you had fun and the cottage looks very cosy and welcoming.
    You managed your packing superbly to accommodate for the great British summer!!
    It's lovely to see your photos xxx

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    1. The great British summer is somewhat like the great Belgian summer, so at least we knew what to expect! And indeed our cottage was very cosy and had a woodburner to boot, which came in handy the last couple of days ... xxx

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  4. What a big difference between the two photos indeed! Luckily you could enjoy some clean skies when you arrived. It is a charming cottage and the view is lovely! I am sure that you are enjoying your time there despite the rain...

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    1. It would have been even nicer if it hadn't rained so much, but in spite of this, we had a really great and relaxing holiday! xxx

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  5. Wales is stunning. You look fabulous im so glad u had a good time

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  6. Yup, when the weather broke, it really did break, didn't it? It's evened out now, back to being dry but nowhere near as hot. It's good that you got some lovely sunny days - and what a brooch haul!

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    1. Oh, yes it did! But the brooch haul really made up for the nasty weather the last couple of days! xxx

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  7. Wales is known for it's rain unfortunately. It's nice that you had some good weather days. And at least rain means you can mooch about charity shops and coffee shops to your hearts content. Wales is such a beautiful place, you view, the first few days at least, is amazing!

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    1. I know Hazel! It least it's looking green and lush over there. We didn't have enough rain here in Belgium, and it really shows ... xxx

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  8. Well, you can always rely on the British weather to keep you on your toes! I'm glad you bought clothes for all eventualities, it would've been awful to have been caught without some sort of cover up for both the heat and the rain. It looked like you had a lovely relaxing time though and those charity shops clearly needed your keen eye. xx

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    1. I actually wore both my lightest and my warmest stuff ... I'm glad the charity shops more than made up for the horrible weather we had the last couple of days! xxx

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  9. so pretty landscapes and so cute cottage, everything looks really picturesque!, even in the rain!
    Glad that you enjoyed some sunny days, picnics and all!, and charity shopping!
    Lovely pictures!
    besos

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    1. Thank you Monica. We really made the most of the sunny days we had, and had quite a few picnics! xxx

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  10. Wales is so beautiful! It's very similar to Ireland, I think.

    You managed to find an ace brooch collection and other wonderful things on your trawl of the Welsh charity shops.

    I love your tomato trousers - so very cheerful.

    What a shame the weather changed but at least you had some good weather days...

    xxxx

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    1. I've never been to Ireland (a shame, I know), but I do think it is very similar. After all, there's only the Irish Sea between them! Hope you are having a great time over there, and some lovely weather! xxx

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  11. its wales - is´t?!
    ;-)
    that cottage is so sweet and the view just stunning. and you had fleamarkets! where you find some pretty stuff. love that first pic - soooo romantic!!
    waiting for more - esp. the garden you mentioned @moi.....
    hugses! xxxxx

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    1. We really love that cottage and it was hard saying goodbye as we've decided this would be our last time there. That view though, I will really miss it wherever we go next ... xxx

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  12. Two weeks flew too fast, and I am glad you're back!! Rain or shine, you two look incredibly stylish! It's a pity you didn't have more sunny days, but I am sure you still enjoyed your vacation, a time away from it all, a change of scenery, and of course searching for treasure which, I see, you were very successful at! :) Your cottage looks wonderful!

    Lots of love!

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    1. Thank you Natalia! And yes, we did enjoy our vacation in spite of the weather. It was good to get away for a while, as I'd had a horrible year, with my Dad dying last August. I must say I came back feeling utterly relaxed! xxx

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  13. Oh Ann you are a glutton for punishment, you keep returning to Wales, still, I can hardly blame you as the view from your cottage is spectacular. Glad the charity shops kept you entertained... and maybe that car boot sale? Is that a new cap Mr. S is sporting? xx

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    1. I keep forgetting the bad things, only remembering the good things, which are plenty! And Mr. S. was ever so chuffed that you noticed his new cap, bought that very day! xxx

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  14. It's not all bad when the great British weather kicks in, look at your great charity shop finds! Glad you got to enjoy some of our heatwave, and that you've returned home safely. Looking forward to more stories from Wales xx

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    1. Not even torrential rain (we had that returning from Oxford in 2017, when there were all these floods) can keep us away, and we're already making plans for next year! xxx

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  15. Well that soon came and went my goodness. UK weather is such a pig to predict and I'm sorry it wasn't very good for you.
    But on a positive side you did get some fabulous finds in the charity shops. Yippee xxx

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    1. The weather certainly didn't spoil our holiday. We made the most of the warm weather, and charity shopped when the weather was too vile to be outside. What more can a girl want? xxx

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  16. I love the location of your holiday cottage. We know people in Cornwall, who were actually the witnesses at our wedding and they lived in a house high up overlooking the village down below, your description of the way up there brought their house straight to mind.

    I'm glad the weather was kind to you initially, but that's the UK for you, likes to keep you on your toes! xxx

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    1. The location's lovely. We can't stop looking out of the bedroom window whenever we're there. After all these years, we are quite used to the Great British weather, Melanie. No surprises there! xxx

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