Business Traveler, July/August 2020

J U LY A U G U S T 2 0 2 0 b u s i n e s s t r a v e l e r u s a c o m 3 6 W ith a business trip to London for the Business Travel Show the last week of February and another conference in Berlin the following week and a free weekend in between it was the perfect occasion for a little downtime Since Id been to London frequently this set up a textbook scenario for a bleisure trip to nearby Wales to check off another bucket list destination My three day two night road trip was to take me to Pembrokeshire in the far southwest of Wales Bursting with beautiful countryside old castles scenic vistas of the coast and plenty of unique cultural sites this would be a great opportunity to experience the legendary history of Wales and the hospitality of the fun loving Welsh people From London city center I caught an early morning cab to Heathrow and jumped into my National Car rental and off I was heading west on the M3 to A303 for my first stop at Stonehenge This was a no brainer as its on the way to Wales and only 75 minutes from the airport Of course Id seen the iconic photographs of Stonehenge so this was another bonus for my bucket list I arrived just as they were opening and was able to hop on the first bus For late February it was a gorgeous sunny day with a stiff breeze flowing across the landscape Seeing Stonehenge in person with the giant monoliths towering over us and the early morning sun casting long shadows and amplifying the grandeur and mystery of this ancient site is to put it quite simply amazing Back to the visitor center I took in the museum and a brief tutorial on the construction the cultural meaning and the determined people from so many centuries ago who built it How they moved these huge stones from many miles away across land and over water was an amazing engineering feat in itself The museum also had full size models of the mud and thatch huts these people lived in Two hours later Im back on the road to Wales PAST MEETS PRESENT The trip from Heathrow to Pembrokeshire clocked in at 229 miles an estimated drive time of three hours and 55 minutes with most of the trip on the M4 With the early start and great weather and a bit of a heavy foot on my part I made really good time The last hour of the trip was on local A48 which wove its way past rolling hills small towns farmland pasture fields and scenic views of the ocean Next stop St Davids Cathedral and Bishops Palace This ancient ruin which had been the site of earlier churches is reputed to be where St David the patron saint of Wales built the first monastic settlement in the 6th century This new cathedral was built starting in 1181 The outstanding features of the building are the magnificent ceilings oak in the nave painted in the quire and presbytery and the sloping floor My visit just happened to fall on March 1 St Davids Day a popular holiday in Wales Now to my hotel for an evening of refreshment I checked in to Tyr Y Felin Hotel Wales first contemporary art hotel featuring over 100 stunning original artworks The collection includes Welsh British and international artists twelve of which were specially commissioned to create works inspired by the spectacular landscape of the St Davids Peninsula and the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park The Tyr Y Felin the words mean windmill in Welsh Hotel was built around an old windmill which has been repurposed as a suite and elevated observation deck serving up sweeping vistas of rolling hills pastures the sea In the Realm of Legends Nestled along the rugged western coast of Great Britain Wales is a country unlike any other W O R D S J E R R Y A L L I S O N I was bewitched to consider those ancient people and the herculean efforts they made to honor their culture