D33 + 34: Perfect last day in Wales followed by the journey home

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July 21: St Davids and about

What a perfect way to end my trip! Truly wonderful day.

I took the bus up to St Davids (I will forever marvel at how people drive on such narrow roads and don’t have road rage.) and started the day off exploring the little town. The town is basically three streets big and yet for some reason has a cathedral… and it’s a pretty impressive one at that! Sadly, I took no photos because you had to pay cash and since I’m at the end of my trip I currently have… £1.73 left factoring in my bus ticket for tomorrow, so, could not spare the £2 for a photography sticker lol.

After wandering around town a bit I took a coastal “bus” (minivan) up to Whitesands Beach to start my epic coastal hike. And it was epic let me tell you, 4.5 hours of beauty and sunshine!

The beach was pretty nice but it was insanely busy considering the weather was perfect for it - bright skies and ever so warm. I opted not to sit around and just start the hike. I have to say of all the coastal hikes I’ve done in Wales, today was one of my favourites. The view wasn’t giant cliffs or anything, rather you’re walking right against the edge… and in parts you really are on the edge. It offers a different type of landscape and views which was uniquely great. Also, you get the breeze off the water which served well today in the heat.

(Sidenote: I have the dumbest tan lines. My chest/neck tan never evened out from the first burn in Scotland so it’s just there… same with my arms/shoulders. But my legs are the worst haha. I haven’t worn sandals much because I’m usually out hiking so I have a solid - like proper solid - line across my ankles from my socks. I think that one bothers me so much because my legs usually never tan and only did this time because of the bad burn I got in West Bay. Ugh. Sun.)

Anyway! Even though most of the hike was right along the coast, small sections went through fields or slightly more inland. I saw a lot of colourful flowers and of course a lot sheep… it’s not Wales without some sheep in the mix. I’ve been slightly disappointed by the lack of horses I’ve seen… I’ve seen a few I suppose, but all from the windows of a bus or train, it’s just not the same. My wish for today had been just one horse.

I got my wish and more.

I turned one corner on the coast and saw three horses in a field. They were further down, but seemed to be walking towards the fence closer to the path. I just sat on a rock and waited haha, I'm in no rush. First a white one went by, then a brown one, then this absolutely stunning white and brown one with hairy hooves. That was a damn good looking horse. They all just kind of walked by on their merry way. I was happy.

About 15 minutes later I almost died of cuteness overload when I came across a field full of ponies. Poniesssssssssss. And not only were there ponies but there were also two foals. My horse prayers had been answered tenfold. Needless to say I spent a long time near that fence just watching them eat and play and nuzzle each other and everything that horses do. After awhile one of the ponies realized how close I was to the fence and came over. It started rubbing its mane all over the fence which it did for a few minutes before stopping, lifting his head above the top of the fence and giving me the most ridiculous look of life. When he was sure I was watching he rubbed his mane again and then looked at me a second time. Aw, he wanted a scratch so I was happy to oblige and gave him a little tickle. Cutie.

I got to the most westerly tip of Wales and although I thought that was cool, I couldn’t help but think the hike was taking a little longer than planned and wondered if I’d catch the bus I was hoping to catch lol. The problem with the way I hike is the amount of times I stop to take photos, clearly, and that time adds up. Plus you stop to enjoy the view. Or to watch horsies. Or eat. Whatever. It adds up.

I got stuck climbing a rocky cliff as part of the path and then another one. I was suddenly not loving my walk quite as much haha. Really at this point I’d been walking almost 4 hours and I had no idea how far I was from where I was going so I was at that point where I just wanted a reference point - as well marked as the paths are in Wales, they’re not big on maps… or signs saying WHERE you are… so you just keep going and hope lol. At least you can’t get lost on a coastal path. After climbing the second cliff though I could see St Davids in the far distance - its cathedral actually. Ah, the good old cathedral gave me that extra hope that at least I wasn’t miles and miles away.

By the time I got to Port Clais (A SIGN! It had a sign!) I realized it was already 4pm and the bus I wanted to take was at 5pm in St Davids. Uhm, shit? Thankfully Port Clais was one of the few places you can catch the coastal “bus” from the trail, and I didn’t have to wait too long for it either.

Once back in St Davids I ran into my roomies who were also aiming for the 5pm bus. Perfect! We chatted about our day and compared notes - they also hiked along the coast for a little bit, starting at Port Clais and going east and then looped back to Port Clais, but spent most of the day just exploring the shops in St Davids. They’re the kind that talk to everyone they meet so they had a lovely day just meeting people.

5pm came and went, but our bus did not. Shocker, I know. By 5:20pm we weren’t really convinced it was ever going to show… I knew there was a 5:45pm coastal bus but that it stopped a couple streets over so we debated about going for that one just as our bus showed up at 5:25pm. (Apparently they had “mechanical issues” on the way down.) On the drive back to Fishguard I had a nice long convo with the roomies about more education stuff, but on a more political scale - how much the government controls, state vs federal involvement etc and that led us into a big political discussion about the US and how Canada is becoming more and more like its neighbour. It was a good talk - I find it interesting that Americans are picking up on our slide towards them… just because Canadian politics isn’t usually something of interest. Once back at the hostel we continued our chat over dinner but our hostel owner joined in and it became a talk about comparisons - living in the UK/US/Canada, cost of houses/goods, politics, everything. Again it was a lovely evening.

And that’s that. Tomorrow I start the journey home… I may post something tomorrow night if I have any train trouble/fun and there’s a story out of it. Otherwise, until next time 😉

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July 22: On my way home via lots of trains

And so another trip comes to its end… it’s always bittersweet to get to this point. I hate to say goodbye but it’s nice to come home. I suppose the nice thing with finishing a trip in the UK is that I always know I’ll be back.

Early start today - train out of Fishguard at 8am which caused so much teasing lol. First off yesterday the guy who runs the hostel was like… you know you can just take the ferry across to Ireland from here in FIshguard. It’s like, £25 or something. To be honest, I hadn’t even looked at that because I’m so used to Holyhead and when I crossed at Rosslare the one time I didn’t have a great experience. I shrugged, oh well I get a nice long train journey… end on a scenic note, eh?

I had a nice bus driver again - she dropped me off at the train station even though the bus is supposed to turn the block before. People can be so wonderful, especially when you’re tottering over with the weight of all your luggage 😉 I really can’t wait to weigh my backpack… although to be fair once I ate all the food I’d been hoarding the bag is a little lighter.

I made the mistake of finishing my book on the train… I mean, I don’t quite know where would have been a good place, but a train certainly wasn’t. I was trying so hard not to sob and it didn’t quite work lol - the poor trolley man asked me if I was alright when he came to ask if I wanted any tea or coffee… I had tears streaming down my face hahaha.

Every time my ticket was checked (3x on the train to Cardiff), the gentlemen had good laughs at my expense. (Considering I could have taken a ferry from Fishguard/I could have bussed north from Fishguard rather than go down to Cardiff and come back up). The first guy was kind of a dick about it though and huffed like ‘oh you stupid tourist’ lol. The second guy was hilarious though - he ribbed me about it, but then it was like ‘hey you get a nice journey through Wales, no stress, nice scenery, not a bad way to spend the day’. Exxxxxactly. When he checked tickets later he’s like, “aw yes, Dublin lady. I hope your bottom is still enjoying the ride.” Oh god I laughed - it was said so nonchalantly.

I was switching trains in Cardiff - they made an announcement saying there were mechanical issues with the train and it would be put out of service at Cardiff anyway… ah, trains. I went to get some food for the train and the boat and headed back up to the same platform where I found the same damn train I got off haha. So, leaves me wondering if there was a mechanical issue… why is it now going on a 5h30min journey? And if it doesn’t, way to lie to the passengers lol. A part of me was honestly just disgruntled I couldn’t have left my bag on the train rather than lug it around with me in the shops.

Anywho. We were supposed to leave at 11h21.

Just reading that sentence I hope you know me (and this trip) well enough that you know it very much didn’t leave on time lol.

Instead at 11h21 they made an announcement on the train that we’d be leaving late because the driver hadn’t arrived yet. As in, he hadn’t arrived into Cardiff because he was travelling on another train that was running late. And they couldn’t tell us how late he’d be.

I slumped about 3 feet down into my chair.

As it stands I have one hour to make my connection from the train to the ferry - that may sound like a lot but you’re technically supposed to check-in one hour before the ferry leaves and since I have a gigantic bag that takes time as well to check-in. I had to laugh in my slump though - how fitting would it be if I missed the ferry? At least there’s another one overnight so I’d still make my flight… but really now.

We thankfully only left 10 minutes left so I decided I would keep my hopes up that I would make the 17h15 ferry.

It was a nice ride - same old lovely views. I had a good laugh at the ticket guy on this trip - he was adorable. There was this group of old ladies sitting behind me who needed to transfer in Crewe and he started explaining to them to go to the ticket office to reserve seats if they want and they can talk to the beautiful young lady who works there. A few minutes later he again referred to her as the beautiful blonde lady who always has a smile. The old ladies started giggling because they thought he was being sarcastic and he’s like no no she’s my fiancée! So of course they all then aw’d in unison and I’m just sitting there with a big grin. A few stops later when he walked by he teased the ladies that he called his fiancée so she’ll be waiting for them, so of course they teased back about what they’d say about him.

(I just drank a bottle of milk and it was definitely not 1%!a(MISSING)nd I think I drank too much of it in too short a period of time lol. I cannot win.)

I had to change trains in Chester… again they told us there were mechanical issues and they were taking the train out of service. Uh-huhhhh, heard that one before. At least I just had to cross the platform and there was no other issues. We actually made it to Holyhead only ~10min late, so I made my ferry with (relatively) plenty of time to spare.

Security was hilarious though! I was selected for a random extra security search and it was HILARIOUS. My checked luggage is 90%!d(MISSING)irty laundry and new bras at this point in the trip lol. I wish I could have video taped the lady's face as she tried to rummage. Key word: tried. First compartment she opened was the bras and it was just beautiful. She actually apologized for ruining my "perfect packing" and gave up when she saw how full the last compartment was. I loved it. Funny thing, is they don't even check your carry on..? You would think that would be the biggest concern, no?

Anyway, the luggage guy (after security you give it to these other people around the corner) was grinning when he saw me and commented on my beautiful smile. I laughed and replied I’m just happy to be getting rid of this damn heavy bag. So of course he then told me it wasn’t heavy at all. Right. Riiiiight.

And now I’m in Dublin, marvelling at the fog… it’s thick as a cotton ball and low, low, low. It’s beautiful but I hope it’s not like this tomorrow - I’d like to be able to catch my flight!

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