Cakes and Castles

Day 42. Mary (our friend from Broadstairs) and I decided to escape and take a day trip and leave Josh and Roy to their own devices. Yesterday we had enquired from the friendly ladies in the library, who doubled as the Tourist Information Centre, where would be a good place to visit on public transport. They recommended taking the bus to Pembroke Castle, so we took their advice and duly turned up this morning at the bus stop outside the local Tesco to catch the 11.15 bus. It was just less than an hour's journey to Pembroke and after paying the princely sum of £4 each for a return ticket, we found our seats on the right hand side of the bus. (The friendly ladies in the library had told us to sit on the right hand side of the bus to get the best views, and they were right.) It was a rural journey down some very narrow lanes, with glimpses of the Milford estuary along the way. Everyone on the bus seemed to know each other and waved goodbye as they got off the bus and they all were on first name terms with the driver.  We crossed the estuary over the bridge to the other side and so to Pembroke when the castle suddenly came into view. It looked spectacular with it's high grey walls surrounded by a large moat which was formed by the river surrounding it.

Part of Pembroke Castle with the largest map of Wales!

When we arrived in Pembroke it was time for a coffee.We wanted to find a nice cafe with home made cakes, as the friendly ladies in the library had said there were many such places to be found in the town. We were standing right outside a not very promising looking cafe, but went in anyway to see if they had any such goodies and...wow!! Our eyes came out on stalks as we couldn't believe the cakes on display. We counted over 50 home made cakes!! We agreed we had never seen so many cakes before. It was very hard to choose, but we did and had a large piece of cake each and a lovely coffee.
















As time was moving on we crossed the road and walked the short distance to the Castle. The sight of it as we came in on the bus had already impressed us, as had the literature we had read beforehand, which said it was one of the best medieval castles in the country. It didn't disappoint. The lady in the gift shop where we bought our tickets said "There is a free guided tour starting in five minutes if you want to join that," so we hurried inside and joined the small group that had gathered there. What followed was a very interesting and amusing, two hour walk around the castle, where we learnt a lot about Welsh and English history. The castle's main claim to fame is that Henry the VII was born there. His mother Margaret Beaufort was apparently only 13 when he was born and it was the only child she had. He later became the first Tudor King when he defeated Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth. He was the last King of England to win his throne on the field of battle.

It was a grand day out and I recommend a visit to Pembroke Castle (and the Cake Shop) if you are ever in South West Wales.

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