Wednesday, 26 March 2014

Langland Bay: Now and Then

For a friend's birthday lunch recently we headed to a brasserie at Langland Bay, a little cove in Swansea on Wales' south coast, with quaint beach huts, surrounded by homes set into the hillside with extortionate price tags.

The beach itself took quite a battering in the storms we had - most of the sand has been washed out to sea, leaving steep shelves of pebbles, exposed pipes and debris.


 
The beach huts are adorable!  They've been rennovated over the years, and some were built as early as the 1920s.

Looking back inland at the houses, by far the most imposing is Langland Bay Manor (below), a luxury apartment complex now, but back in Victorian times it was 'Llan-y-Llan', a summer residence for the wealthy Crawshay family of Merthyr Tydfil.  In case you're wondering what their main residence looked like if this was just the summer one, they lived in a castle for the rest of the year.

Photo credit: Zoopla property search

 Cyfarthfa Castle, the main residence, in Merthyr Tydfil
Source

I found some wonderful old photos of Langland bay on the internet, here are a few peeks!



Do you ever try and find out the history behind places that you visit?  And what do you think about old mansions being converted into flats?  Part of me feels the soul is ripped out of them, but the other part of me is really glad that the buildings aren't knocked down altogether.

6 comments:

  1. Very much so! If it's not available in the moment, I set about researching it as soon as we get home. I lap up the history of the places I go with great gusto and passion, as I find it (knowing at least a bit about the history) adds such a rich, wonderful additional dimension to traveling.

    ♥ Jessica

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  2. I would love to live in the old art college in Newport, the flats there are lovely and the original tiles in the hallway are gorgeous but I agree, the sould has been ripped out a bit. The interiors are all very modern which is disappointing x

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  3. This is the first I've heard of old mansions being turned into flats. I think it's a good idea. It's good to see old mansions still being used today (either as museums, boarding homes, housing schools, being used as apartments, etc.)... Like so said so much better than being torn down.

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  4. Wow I'd love to see inside to see what the luxury residences look like. I like the mix of old and new. Kind of what I think about with vintage dressing. Eclectic is one of my favourite words and styles.

    Knowing the history of a place makes it so much more interesting.

    bisous
    Suzanne

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  5. I'm glad the buildings aren't being knocked down, and at least they're being used and loved if they're apartments.

    But imagine having that place as a 'holiday cottage' - "Oh, my other home is a castle!".

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