Holiday in Wales - Day 6

On the Wednesday of our holiday we went to Llangollen! I had it in the back of my mind to do so the night before I had done some research on what was there. I discovered the Ladies of Llangollen! I have heard of them before because Wordsworth wrote a poem about them which we learnt about when we visited his house in Cockermouth last summer. But I had forgotten about them! So we decided to go and see their house first. 

They were two Irish women - one an actual Lady - who escaped Ireland before they were made to get married or join nunneries, because it seems like neither of them were really into men. We can't definitively say they were queer, of course - and they denied a sexual relationship between them - but they shared a bed, lived together for the rest of their lives, and had a succession of dogs called Sappho, sooooo. I think it's a bit clear. 

The house started out as a tiny cottage but they made it bigger and improved it and then later owners made it huge, but now it's restored and is a museum. We both really liked it and I'm really glad we went. The gardens are really beautiful so I took some photos of flowers too. 

After we had been there we drove into Llangollen itself. There were so many people there including a\ lot of Americans and Canadians who may have been on cruise ships? Not sure. Llangollen looks a lot like Holmfirth because of the river flowing through it. It's really pretty. There's tons of little shops and cafes so we went in a bunch. 

We had lunch - I think Lee had a tuna sandwich and I had another Welsh rarebit which was delicious. The cafe was really nice and had a big outside space too. After lunch we wandered a bit more and I noticed that an ice cream place was doing donuts and ice cream so I had to have one. I had wanted donuts at the seaside but couldn't find any, so this was ideal. Lee had an ice cream and I had what was called Donutella because it did indeed have Nutella on it too. It was immense! 

We left Llangollen and tried to find the nearby aqueduct just to see if we could see it. But it doesn't seen like you can see it without walking a long way, and we didn't want to do that as we didn't have a lot of time. It was a shame! But never mind. We drove back to the caravan site and went swimming again. Again we had the pool to ourselves! 

For tea Lee made enchiladas and I had a bottle of the beer that had been left in the fridge for us. I don't often drink lager but this was nice, especially as it was so cold from the fridge. I took yet another photo of the sky last thing at night - I was still hoping for stars but it was just too light. Lee came to look too so I took a photo of both of us. 

I was wearing my Topsy Curvy rainbow tartan dress which I love and which is also so comfy!

This little building near the Ladies of Llangollen's house now houses the tea room. We only went in to buy tickets for the house, though

The house as you approach it

This is in the middle of the garden. The garden isn't original because of the changes to the house, but the ladies did document a lot about their garden, so it's as close to what it might have been like

I think this was like the Platonic ideal of a rose, isn't it stunning

And so was this one

And these

This plate is on the right hand side of the house and shows the date Sarah died

This is on the other side and is when Eleanor died

Imagine having perfume for your carpets!

(I know you can get scent for your vacuum cleaner but I am not at all one of those people)

A drawing of the ladies

This was a real Shell advert used!

The information was so interesting

Just gals being pals

And sharing this bed. All their lives

All this wood carving is at the top of the stairs and is all recycled from old beds and stuff

This recycled wood is also at the top of the attic stairs

This was the bedroom of their servant, Mary, who came over from Ireland with Sarah and was devoted to them

The duke of Wellington visited the ladies and gifted these Chinese dragons to them. They now sit in the front porch, one on either side

This wooden work shows the initias of the ladies too and the date this work was finished

Back out in the garden, some daisies

Foxgloves? Not sure

And I just liked the colour of these

This is the side of the house

And this is the folly that may have been a dovecote and has been moved

Another pretty flower on the way back to the car

In the cafe where we had lunch

Welsh rarebit

The river in Llangollen was quite swollen and wild, it was ace to see

I asked someone to take this photo of us on the bridge. You can see my dress

My donutella, it was lush

Swimming pool again! 

The beer I was drinking

Just before bed

And here we are!