HEADING WEST TO WALES

Glorious coastline and a historic cathedral city are just part of the attraction for Sue Greenwood on a brief tour of peaceful Pembrokeshire

- Sue Greenwood

Easter had come and gone, and there was a promise of sunshine, so we planned a trip to Wales, heading for Pembrokeshire and St Davids, in the south-west.

We chose to stay at Caerfai Bay Caravan and Tent Park, just outside St Davids. On arriving, we took a quick walk around the campsite, discovering a beautiful clifftop location with stunning views of the coastline.

Next morning, we awoke refreshed after enjoying a peaceful night and were keen to get out and about and explore St Davids. It was an easy one-mile walk along a quiet country lane to reach this fine cathedral city.

Our stroll into St Davids took us past the Oriel y Parc Gallery & Visitor Centre. This is advertised as a destination in itself, so we decided to stop and have a quick look around. In 2007, this thriving cultural centre was built using green technologies. It boasts several eco-friendly features, including grass and sedum roof spaces.

Small but mighty

St Davids is Britain’s smallest city, but you shouldn’t expect a bustling metropolis – this charming little place is actually much more like a medium-sized village. It’s very pleasant.

Historically, towns with a cathedral were automatically given city status, so St Davids became a city in the 12th century. However, the rules changed in the 19th century and it lost its city ranking. Then in 1995, that title was restored

from the tower. Fortunately, the building that we can see today was extensively restored during the 18th and 19th centuries.

The first thing we noticed when we entered was that some of the huge pillars seemed to be leaning significantly, which was a bit alarming!