Aberystwyth

Colorful buildings line the beachfront promenade

From North Wales we traveled southwest to the pretty seaside resort town of Aberystwyth. Our two-day visit was pleasant, though it’s hard to imagine a real beach vacation in a place where the high temperatures in August barely broke 60 F. Toss in a lot of cloudiness and wind and the prospects are bleak.

And yet there were handfuls of people here and there acting like it was just another day at the beach. A few bold souls would venture into the grey and cold-looking water. A few kids were dutifully shoveling sand, though they generally wore more layers than what normally constitutes beach attire. I couldn’t help wondering whether these people had any idea what a beach in Mexico or Thailand is like!

Now Jim is not one to be deterred by unreasonably cold water temperatures, and he wanted to at least take a quick swim in Welsh waters. When he returned from his “swim” I was only mildly surprised to learn that the rocky bottom and rough water surfaces were just too off-putting. Maybe he’ll try again at another stop.

We enjoyed the simple pleasures here of strolling through town, climbing Constitution Hill for views up and down the coast, and staying at a charming and super friendly little hotel on the waterfront. Aber (as the locals call it) is not a foodie mecca, though we did manage to find a super cool tapas place and a fun little rum bar. It was a nice stop for a couple days, and now we are headed to an even smaller and more remote stop. We’ll travel next to the southwestern corner of Wales to stay in St Davids, which holds the distinction as the smallest city in the United Kingdom.

The remains of Aberystwyth Castle, also built by Master James of St. George under Edward I, though this one hasn’t held up as well as the ones up north

Walking along the beach in that blue sweater you see a lot on this trip

These buildings on the south end of town looked like they’d be beautiful if you could see them . . .

. . . So Jim dug up this picture of Old College, Aberystwyth — a part of Aberystwyth University under renovation

We had lunch twice at this great tapas place hidden behind a Spanish grocery store. To the right is their huge collection of Spanish wines. To the left are their many Spanish vermouth offerings.