Sunday 31 August 2014

A Week in Wales :: a good day

Hello Lovelies,
This was the view I woke up to on holiday. How I loved it. Can you see the three mountains behind the trees? 

I don't know what they are really called, but I thought of them as Daddy bear, Mummy bear and Baby bear.

Waking up to sunshine on the first morning ( last Saturday)  I knew exactly where I wanted to go......to the beach..........

In Wales they are passionate about preserving the Welsh language so all signs are written in that language first.
I liked that. It was a great way to pick up a few words and it made me fell like I was in a different country....which of course we were.

One of the reasons we ended up booking this holiday was because I had seen this particular  TRAETH (beach) on the telly................THIS episode of a favourite programme to be exact (the bit about this beach is at the end and I just loved the look of it.)

We were at Porthor, which is owned by the National Trust............

It can also be written Porth Oer.

There's a steep path down from the car park that leads to a gorgeous sandy bay..............



With great surf............




And icy water!.........


Actually, it's just like the sea off any British beach....flipping cold till you get accustomed to it.

But with the aid of wet suits my boys LOVE spending time in the waves. How I LOVE seeing them having fun..........


The colours and light in this bay are mesmerising too................


I love the way the clouds seemed to mirror the waves and all the wonderful shades of blue.........


It's also got a great little cafe for ice creams (or a warming cup of tea)..........


This is the path down from the car park.....where the toilets were also situated.....I loved the green banks and turquoise sea.............


The weather just got better as the day progressed. By late afternoon all the cloud had vanished and the wind had dropped. I went for a wander and explored a path at the other end of the beach.
It had a great vantage point, to look down on this idyllic horseshoe bay..........



And I discovered a hidden inlet across the headland.............


I wandered the shoreline with eldest who picked up Limpet shells as we walked...........


meanwhile middle son flew his kite............


Before long the sea was calling my boys back into the waves...........


while I did a little crochet and watched them from the beach............


Pothor is also called Whistling Sands as you can make the sand squeak if you shuffle your feet as you walk......it took us a while to get the knack...but we all managed it in the end.

It's something to do with the shape of the sand grains, great fun. But this is still be a special place without that.......



In the cafe I picked up a postcard of this bay........a better photo than I could hope to take with my little compact camera...........



that evening youngest wrote a message on the back, to send to his cousins. I checked and he doesn't mind me sharing a part with you............



Oh, yes, it WAS a good day, a really good day :0)

and it was wonderful to have a cosy log fire to sit around that evening...........


The perfect end to a good day.
Jacquie x

27 comments:

  1. Jacquie - I am really envious. My holiday seems ages ago, and this looks absolutely wonderful. x

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  2. Jacquie my boys are the same with the beach, once on there you cant get them off.. We were in Isle of Wight this year and they were swimming right up until 8.30pm most evenings. I so love exploring new places and wales in on my list. I went for a day a few years back it it was wonderful and I really want to go back.

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  3. This certainly sounds like a good day a very good day and if I'm honest I'm a little bit envious our holiday feels like a very long time ago and I love the sea side
    Jackie x

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  4. I love your vacation portraits. I wish I could post pictures like that. I look forward to seeing more. Take care, Sherry

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  5. What a lovely holiday, Jacquie!
    Here in Victoria, Australia, the water at the beach is pretty nippy, but on the east coast, the further north you go, the warmer the water gets. The Gold Coast is fantastic. There are times of the year in the northern parts of Queensland when you can't go in the water because of stinging jelly fish critters, but the further south, the safer is usually is. Just ask Life Guards for advice!
    Your boys would love Aussie beaches. :) It's just a long, long way to come.

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  6. What a wonderful vacation you shared with us today. I could almost feel the sand in my toes and hear the waves crashing on the shoreline. Your pictures remind me of our Oregon coast. Cold, cold water but so very beautiful. Thank you for taking us along with you.
    Blessings,
    Betsy

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  7. It looks like such a wonderful holiday. I especially love the idea of sitting in front of the fire at night after a long day in the water.

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  8. We used to spend all our holidays in nefyn as kids and loved whistling sands ,makes me want to go back and take my girls .We swam in he sea at Whitby this summer and loved it.

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  9. That beach looks amazing! I always think it's not a proper swim in the sea unless you're freezing! Hope you had a lovely break :)

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  10. I think I just added Wales to the list of places I have to visit! What a wonderful place it seems!

    Take care
    Anne
    http://crochetbetweentwoworlds.blogspot.de

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  11. A good day indeed! How beautiful, and whistling sand, who knew?! lol

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  12. Looks like such a lovely day. Beautiful beach too!

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  13. What utterly beautiful beaches, it's somewhere I'd love to visit having seen your lovely posts. The skies and the sea are just stunning. It sounds like you all had a really fantastic time. And that real fire is as you say the perfect end to a good day. CJ xx

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  14. Looks a lovely beach - another place to add to my 'one day' list!

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  15. I am glad that you enjoyed your time in Wales, I feel that moving here was the best decision I have ever made.

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  16. Hello!
    I love the blog! I'm just letting you know I've mentioned you over on my blog and have nominated you for a Leibster Award. :)
    xxx

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  17. Wales is a beautiful country isn't it, on our wish list! :) xxx

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  18. Wow looks amazing, such a gorgeous beach
    Clare x

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  19. That was a perfect summer day!!!
    Saludos.

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  20. What a lovely day! You were lucky with the weather. I'm from south west Wales and my parents still live there (I live in northants). It is so often cold, wet and windy at the coast, even in the middle of summer!

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  21. It's very clear from these photographs that you and yours had a fabulous day. What a gorgeous place to visit...when the weather so fine. xo

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  22. Gorgeous blue skies a great photos - it looks like a great place.

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  23. Beautiful pics! (love the thought of the squeaky sand!) :) love, Tina xx

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  24. what a gorgeous account of your special day. We've just come back from Wales too x

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  25. Looks and sounds wonderful.
    Anne xx

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  26. I love whistling sands it's my favourite beach. I've been going since I was a small child and we spent our summers in Aberdaron (did you go there?) I've not been for a few years now, you've made me think I must go back soon!

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