Newcastle Emlyn Castle

This is a post from March 2013 that somehow got relegated to a draft! I'm not sure how it never got published! Have a look at some castle photos from Wales! 

I went to where the last dragon was slain.

There isn't much left of the castle at Newcastle Emlyn (Castell Newydd Emlyn) but I have visited what remains a couple of times before. My most recent visit was on Day 3 of my holidays. 

I didn't get a photograph of the gate, but there is a rather grand wrought iron gate with a dragon breathing fire at the top, and an oak-leaf design. The dragon is painted gold with red flames. It is a modern tribute to both local legend and local history. 

Photograph of the castle by the HouseCat

Most of what remains are the two towers either side of the main entrance and the castle mound. The castle was quite small (by castle standards) when complete, and now that it is ruined it does not take long to walk around it. Or clamber. I must admit that I like being able to touch and clamber on my history, to explore every nook of it. I try to be careful, as although the walls are old and have remained for centuries, some bits are loose and I neither want to fall or damage the walls. 

It was a lovely, bright and sunny day, but cold. It was not as blustery as when I visited Cilgerran castle. I still ended up wrapped up in my long leather coat, but didn't need to wrap my hair to my ears with my scarf this time. We were there in the mid to late afternoon, and the sun cast strong shadows across the stonework. 

Inside of one of the towers.
Photograph by the HouseCat

The sky was a good clear blue and the surrounding countryside and river looked absolutely gorgeous. It was nice to just stroll around the grounds, take photographs and chat to Raven. 

See, I CAN take colour photographs of buildings!
Photograph by the HouseCat

There are quite extensive grounds about the castle, with nice gardens and a picnic area. We didn't, however, eat a picnic, but went to ::Pachamama Bistro::, which is in the town itself. I had this lovely goat's cheese and onion chutney sandwich in lovely crusty bread with salad (dressed with tasty dressing!) and a few crisps. It was really tasty. I also had a 'Mellow Mallow' hot chocolate which I can highly recommend as a delicious hot chocolate. As well as a range of delicious Western sandwiches and salads, they do a range of Thai, Chinese and Indian dishes. It's a lovely cosy place to eat and the staff are very friendly.

Light through the old windows of the castle.

I managed to have a rummage around a charity shop and  a browse of some of the other shops. Dave was very lovely and gave me a £1 coin (I was all out of cash as I rarely cary much/any, and it was too little to pay for on card) with which I bought a rather nice four-candle black metal candlestick. I also went to   'The Maker's Mark' which is run by a lovely lady called Nada (I hope I spelled that correctly) who remembered us from our last visit. I really enjoy shopping in Newcastle Emlyn; for a smallish town, it has a lot of good quirky little shops, more than Inverness, which is a city.