There are times when travelling puts your faith back into humanity. At a moment when wars are been waged for good publicity, and parties campaign on hatred and otherness, the perennial simplicity of life is often forgotten. I rediscovered it in Carew.
Welsh Sense of Community
It’s a Sunday evening in Pembrokeshire, and due to a chronic lack of planning we discover the local pub the Carew Inn has closed its kitchen. Worse still we didn’t stock up with provisions in one of the many supermarkets in Tenby where we had spent the afternoon. The staff at the pub suggest the shop across the road.
“Is it still open?” I ask. “Of course, it’s always open just ring the bell.”
I pop across the road, ring the bell and feel somewhat guilty as the owner gets up from her sofa next door, puts the TV on pause and serves me.
“Do you have anything to eat?” I ask. She looks at me a bit nonplussed, after all this is a shop. “I need to cook tonight. Do you have any vegetables?” I continue.
The woman explains they really only have vegetables in tins. I look a bit crestfallen imagining a diet of salted peanuts and Guinness.
“An onion perhaps and garlic?”
She pops back into her house and returns her hands laden with two onions, some lazy garlic in the jar, sweet potatoes, salad and sweet potatoes. I realise she has just raided the bottom of her fridge. I take the onions and the spring onions as well as some pasta and a can of tomatoes and head back to the pub, cancelling my order of 10 packets of salted peanuts.
The meal later that evening in our Castle View cottage, although perhaps not of Michelin star standard, was nutritious and, if it’s not a tad hyperbolic life affirming. This is how things used to be; of people working together helping both the community and outsiders. Surely there is still a place for this form of hospitality in our hectic world? Her name is Jane, the shop is Carew Village Shop. And if there is any competition for the best village shop in Wales, then she has my vote.
Carew Castle
The previous day we checked into our cottage before heading to Carew Castle. Carew is best noted for both the castle and also the Celtic Cross that stands in front of it.
The castle which in Welsh means a “fortress on a small hill,” was built in Norman times although there were some additions made in the Elizabeth period.
It is a wonderful, impressive building standing on the banks of the Carew river, and it has one interesting ghost. Not human, but a Barbary ape that apparently killed its master, and whose spirit lurks at night in the grounds. The Celtic Cross standing adjacent to the Inn is from the 12th century and probably commemorates land donated by King Margiteut to the church.
We spend the evening in the Carew Inn, first watching the rugby as Wales are playing Italy and then having a lovely meal of prawns and whitebait followed by seabass.
Castle View Coastal Cottage
Our cottage is a great space to get away from things, a 10-minute stroll from the pub. There is little to do here, and that is it’s attraction. There is excellent walking as I’m to discover on my final day, and lots of books to read and games to play, as well as a spacious garden. If you are into it, you can watch Netflix on the TV but I would advise you not to do so, as this place is about the community you discover, not some series on TV. Everyone says hello to you as you walk along the street. Locals call it care-ew, for here they care for each other. But it is also about the solitude of getting to understand yourself better, of coping with silence, of recharging batteries; quintessential slow travel.
The cottage also has expansive views over the garden and across the Carew river and adjoining fields towards the hills in the distance.
A Trip to Tenby
In previous visits to Pembrokeshire, I have stayed in Tenby and walked along the coast path. Pembrokeshire has some of the finest beaches in the United Kingdom or even Europe.
Tenby itself is a beautiful town well worth a visit, especially outside of peak tourism season. It also has the dramatic Palmerston Fort on St Catherine’s Island which sometimes becomes part of the many beaches in Temby, depending upon whether the tide is high or low.
On our second day, we take our time discovering some of the pubs for our YouTube channel and engage in conversation, an art which is fast becoming lost as people hide behind their iPhones, iPads or other non-social media devices. Conversations on how impressive Wales were beating Italy the day before, about Tenby life. Conversations which are eternal and everlasting. For this is one lesson you have to learn if you spend any time in Wales, nothing happens quickly here.
You cannot pop in for a quick anything, for the conversation will flow, the genuine interest in where you come from, what you’re doing and why, means that every conversation flows naturally into the next. And before long you discover any appointment you planned to make has already slipped past.
My second night is as peaceful and relaxing as the first. The cottage has quickly become my home. After dinner, I read my book before retiring.
Carew Tidal Mill
On my last day I explore the surrounding countryside, strolling through the nearby village of Carew Norton, across the fields and down to the river Carew, where Carew Tidal Mill awaits. Unfortunately, this is closed during my visit but will be open by the time you read this. It is the only restored tidal mill in Wales. It creates a wonderful, desolate and bleak landscape, rocks covered in seaweed water lapping softly. The imagery you might imagine Dylan Thomas waxing about.
It is with sadness that I depart my temporary home and the village that has welcomed me. I bid adieu to Carew, passing by the village shop where Jane gives me a parting wave from her sofa.
I always say, at least nearly always say, I will return someday. I’m not sure if that is true about Carew, its castle, tidal mill and countryside, but what is for sure is that the generosity and warmth shown to me by the people of Carew, especially Jane and her soon to be multi-award winning village shop will remain with me. And when I discover similar warmth in other parts of the globe, the memory of this genuine Welsch hospitality will resonate within me. Farewell Carew, but we never will be parted.
Coastal Cottages
Castle View in the small village of Carew Newton sleeps four across two bedrooms. A seven-night stay starts from £582 and a three-night weekend break from £450. Two dogs welcome. Mark booked his break through Coastal Cottages of Pembrokeshire, a holiday cottage agency that features around 500 properties in West Wales sleeping from two to 30 guests. Run by a small local team with first-hand experience of both the area and every cottage, the collection ranges from the 12th Century castle to a sailor’s tap house just steps from the sea. Forty per cent of the collection is dog-friendly and the in-house Concierge team can also arrange a selection of hand-crafted holiday extras and treats including welcome packages and exclusive outdoor and in-cottage experiences from chefs to yoga sessions. They will even tailor-make itineraries. Contact: www.coastalcottages.co.uk, 01437 765 765.
Things to Do in Pembrokeshire
To discover the many things to do in Pembrokeshire visit the local tourism site.
