The youngest building in Hay is at least 200 years old. Sadly, many of the buildings have been rendered, thereby hiding their once exposed timber exteriors. I liked the colored doors adorning many of the old buildings. Hay, Door, Wales
Tag Archives | Wales
Three Tuns
This is the oldest surviving house in Hay-on-Wye. It was built in the 16th century as a three-bay cruck truss (the original cruck truss is still in place) timber-frame building and is now mostly encased in stone. The bar has an inviting Inglenook chimney and original features such as a dog-leg staircase are scattered throughout. […]
Kilverts
Kilverts is not just a restaurant, but a restaurant with rooms, a common Welsh institution. How does this differ from, say, an inn? Well, the focus is on the restaurant’s (usually touted) gourmet fare and the rooms are generally reasonably priced. The cost is DB&B, which includes dinner, breakfast and bed. We stumbled upon Kilverts […]
Shepherds Ice Cream
This sheepsmilk ice cream was rated among the U.K.’s 50 best. If you taste it, you’ll surely agree it’s worthy of a few accolades! The goods have been made at Cwm Farm in nearby Herefordshire since 1987. The owners originally used their own milking sheep, but now source it from a sheep milker near Stratford-on-Avon. […]
The Fudge Shop
I only associate fudge shops with seaside destinations, so it was quite a pleasure to stumble upon one in little Hay-on-Wye. The Fudge Shop has been in business for over ten years. In addition to making 16 varieties on site, the shop also offers regional sweets and fine chocolates. I tried the crunchy peanut butter […]
Wales
Our first introduction to Wales was driving on terrifyingly narrow, windy (think hair-pin), hilly roads that were tightly walled in by foliage thick enough to preclude any glimpses of oncoming traffic. We crossed over a bridge so thin we had to pull our mirrors in. Every time we encountered another vehicle, we were almost forced […]
Lake Country House
When the Hay Festival is on, there’s no chance of finding an available room in Hay-on-Wye. We took this opportunity to stay about 20 minutes away at the Lake Country House in Llangammarch Wells, a luxury boutique hotel in the countryside (thanks, Google search!). This hotel nicely achieves old-fashioned country charm with modern touches. The […]
St. Mary’s Church Hay
St. Mary’s tower can be seen from many points in Hay-on-Wye, but it’s the old, weathered gravestones that caught my eye. The church was originally constructed in the 12th century. It was significantly renovated in the 19th century when a new nave, chancel and trio of Gothic arches were added. Today, the lower part of […]
Hay Castle
This is one of the last medieval fortresses still standing around the English/Welsh border. Centuries of pummeling, sacking, burning and destroying sufficiently eliminated most other structures. Hay-on-Wye was unique in that it had two Norman castles. This is the second one. It was built by Maud de Breos in the 12th century and remained in […]
Castle of the Hay
Hay-on-Wye was unique in that it had two Norman castles. This is the site of the first one. After William of Nomandy invaded England in 1066, he rewarded his supporters with land along the Welsh border. No matter that the land belonged to the Welsh; these lords were allowed to seize whatever land looked good […]
