Plas Newydd

Friday
Today we were going to visit Plas Newydd, a beautiful National Trust property overlooking the Menai Straits, and Snowdonia beyond, but since the gardens didn’t open until 10.30, and the house 11.30, we first visited the Anglesey museum and art gallery, which was quite interesting, showing the history of Anglesey and its industries and crafts over the years. Plas Newydd, which translates from the Welsh as new mansion, is the ancestral home of the Marquess of Anglesey. With its superb views, it’s easy to see why a house has stood on this spot since the early 16th century. The house has changed over the years, from the original Tudor House, to the changes made by the fashionable architect James Wyatt in 1793-9 and the modernisation during the 1930s when the family of the 6th Marquess made Plas Newydd their main residence. Roger and I looked around the house, while the others wandered down to the waters edge and enjoyed the view, and we caught up with them later. The gardens and arboretum are magnificent, with plantings and trees for every season. We especially loved the Italianate terraces. Walking back through the arboretum, we saw a couple of red squirrels. Before we left, we stopped at the cafe for “lunch”, though Roger and I decided to go for a cream tea! From there, we went on to the beach at Aberffraw, and had a short walk on the beach until the scooter wheels started getting bogged down. Then we continued to the nearby viewing point at RAF Valley, hoping to do some military plane spotting, however the weather was overcast by now and it was late afternoon, and they seemed to have stopped flying for the day. Janet and John took Bernard back to the hotel, while Roger and I went back to the beach area and went for about a 40 minute walk - photos in extras.
We ate at the hotel that night, but the service was abysmally slow!
12,397 steps