Wales has some BIG brooding castles mostly all built in a frenzy of castle building by King Edward towards the end of the 13th century. A total of 8 castles and walls were built in this era and are UNESCO Heritage listed. We picked out two castles to visit, Conwy and Beaumaris.

Looking at the map and deciding where we should be looking for accommodation for the night, we decided it should be a place name that starts with double L. Wales is full of them and as Avan's middle name is Lloyal (with the double L) and has Welsh ancestors this seemed fitting. So we found ourselves looking for accommodation in the town of Llangollen, not far from where we wanted to see a UNESCO sight the next day.

After a few "no vacancies" and "way out of our budget" tries we found, I think, one of the nicest bed and breakfasts we have had since Martin and Heike's in Lincoln. It was the last room available, and our hostess had the "no vacancy" sign up as soon as we had agreed to have the room. Bed and Breakfasts in the UK and Ireland are truly delightful. You are in someone's home and treated as their special guest and given the most amazing breakfasts. Our room at the "Four Poster Bed and Breakfast" was in a quaint little attic room, with its own bathroom and decked out beautifully.

The morning saw us head off, after a sumptuous breakfast, to just a few kilometres up the road  to see the most amazing aqueduct. High above a valley and the Dee River below, sits this massive canal. It is quite bizarre to see boats travelling across the bridge like structure.  Built in the years 1795 to 1805, the top is a giant iron trough suspended above stone pillars to join canals on either side. It is the largest ever built in the UK. We walked across the footbridge and watched the narrow canal boats make their way across. 

Off now to a Welsh mining town to find out about the history of coal mining. 

Footnote: Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd and Pontcysylite Aqueduct and Canal are UNESCO World Heritage listed.