WALES

No wonder Prince William is hiding out here...such an absolutely beautiful place! Our trip began Friday with a 6 hour train ride which was hell to say the least - not because it was 6 hours but because our first train was delayed so we missed our connection by 4 minutes. Therefore, we had a layover in Cardiff, Wales. Since nothing was in the station we decided to go wonder and ended up at the Prince of Wales pub at about 6/7pm and we were the only females in the whole 2-story place as well as the only ones not wearing football jerseys. Come to find out that Wales was playing England that night and it was 'the game of games' in the UK...definitely a fun atmosphere. Then we headed to the station, caught our second train, and finally got to Pembrokshire! Thankfully a Preseli Adeventure guide was there waiting for us, we hopped in an van, and she took us out in the dark to the middle of the Preseli hills of Wales to a lodge. It literally was like a mancave in Wales. Bunks, home cooked meals, and nothing for miles but gorgeous scenery. After a delicious lasagna dinner (1st real meal in 2 months) we headed for bed and woke up to go sea kayaking! We were geared up head to toe in wet suits, helmets, booties, vests, you name it...the 2 guides (as Welsh as they come - long hair, love the outdoors, strong accent, really enthusiastic). They took us through the basics, on a bus to the coast, and in the water we went. Officially LOVE kayaking! We went for hours along the cliffs, coast, and out at sea - absolutely breathtaking and a blast! We even played tag in our kayaks with a tennis ball...now that was fun! Back for homemade vegetable soup and then the afternoon consisted of coasteering - an activity I'd never heard of. Basically you're geared up once again and free hand/foot the outdoors. We started out swimming to cliffs, through caves, climbing the rocks/cliffs, jumping in and out of swells...it's basically what you make it. But it is such a blast!!! A little bit of fearful because it was

freezing (who would do all of these adventures in north Wales, mid-winter, and with 30 mph winds???) and because the wind and chill was so bad the waves were huge...but we managed and the guides were great. It actually made the afternoon even more of  a thriller.When we got back and defrosted we had delicious curry for dinner and then played pool and tried some home brewed Welsh beer that was made 10 miles down the road in Gwyn Valley - delicious!
The next morning came bright and early and we had it free all to ourselves and decided to hike along the every so rocky, hilly, and gorgeous coast of Wales. The staff took us out to some great hiking spots, gave us a map, and off we went. We hiked all the way til lunch rolled around and it was such a blast - the great group of girls I was with definitely made the trip. What a get away and thriller of a weekend!