Wales #3of3

At one home we could see that some sheep had broken down the fence, and had gotten into the family’s vegetable garden. As we drive we see many old stone houses, some with slate roofs, and we saw an old stone house someone was remodeling. There are many rock fences along the curvy road, and this part of Wales is very woodsy.

Coal and slate mining are big business in Wales. We drove through several areas that had many coal mines, and in an area with slate mines, we found miles of piles of debris and rubble, resulting from mining for over a hundred years. It spoils the countryside, but what can be done with it now.

We joined a tour group through one of the slate mines. They had a miner leading our group, but when we arrived at a place of interest he turned on special lights, and a tape recording told the story of working conditions in the slate mines in Wales, a hundred years ago. Unbelievable how they lived and worked.

The eight massive towers and huge wall make the Castle at Conwy one of the great fortresses of medieval Europe. The Suspension Bridge that crosses the Conwy River, directly to the castle, was one of the first suspension bridges to be built in the world. The suspension bridge no longer carries cars, but you can walk across it. We drove into the town twice and could not find a space to park. They would not let us park the van in the parking lot near the castle and bridge, so we finally gave up and just went on.

Llandudno has kept its Victorian and Edwardian elegance and splendor, despite its modern attractions. Llandudno is a nice seaside resort with two wonderful beaches, the North Shore, and West Shore, covered with sand dunes. Many hotels, mostly painted white, line the long wide sweep of the bay. They look more like mansions than hotel buildings. We drove to the top of a high hill and looked over the town and countryside. About 100 years ago they built a cable tramway to the top of The Great Orme, the local mountain. Now people of all ages and physical abilities could enjoy the rugged scenery, fascinating wildlife, and spectacular views.

Engineers burrowed deeper and deeper into an old copper mining system and discovered that some of these tunnels dated back to the Bronze Age, some 4,000 years ago. The public can visit underground and watch an audio-visual display, and observe archaeologists at work.