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"Croeso i Abertawe (Swansea)" a Swansea Travel Page by aaaarrgh

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Swansea Pages by aaaarrgh


"Croeso i Abertawe (Swansea)" a Swansea Travel Page by aaaarrgh
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aaaarrgh    
Expect the worst and you will always be pleasantly surprised


Real Name: Sean
Lives In: Cardiff, UK
Member Since: Oct 22, 2004
VT Rank: 292

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Page Views: 1,309            Last Visit to Swansea: October, 2005      

Croeso i Abertawe (Swansea)

by aaaarrgh - last update: Oct 23, 2005

Wales' second city!

swansea bay
"An ugly, lovely town" is how poet Dylan Thomas described his home city. Swansea is not as bad as some people say. It has improved massively over the last 5 years. Only 55 minutes from Cardiff by train and with good motorway links, it is easy to reach.

There are lots of shops, a university, a great art gallery. The newly developed marina looks super and has a beautiful new industrial museum.

Swansea has a tremendous coastline. Not far away are the Mumbles, the Gower peninsula and super beaches. Definitely the place to go on a hot summer day.

My sister went to university here. My grandfather was brought up here. I have fond memories of the place.

One word of warning - it has a reputation of being quite rough on Saturday nights. Fortunately the evening train service is so bad it means i have never spent the night in Swansea bars and clubs. You enter at your own risk ;-)
flattened

Blitzed!

On 19-21 February 1941 the Nazi Lufftwaffe helped out (uninvited) with Swansea's slum-clearance programme. Swansea was one of Britain's great ports and industrail cities. The bombs levelled all of Swansea's old city centre, houses, shops, market, church.

So the centre of Swansea today is modern and, quite frankly, dreadfully ugly. If you want to see some of what Swansea used to be like, then walk along Wind Street towards the Maritime Quarter. Lots of older, grand and picturesque buildings, many of which are now trendy bars, restaurants and pubs.
70 percent off

Ugly, lovely town

Welsh women are definitely no longer short, squat, with frilly hats and beards. Thirteen delightful young ladies danced through Swansea's grotty streets of semi-derelict cut-price shops to celebrate the opening of the Waterfront Museum. They were followed by a carnival parade of hand made banners and flags. Fortunately the weather was splendid for October, otherwise dancing around Swansea in red underpants would have landed them in hospital with pneumonia ;-)

> Add to your Custom Travel Guide [What's This?]

Pros:"More Welsh than Cardiff. Close to beautiful scenery. Dylan Thomas heritage."
Cons:"Can be rough and grotty in places. Luftwaffe bombed the nice bits."
aaaarrgh's Swansea Travel Tips

OverviewThings to Do
Tips: 7 - Photos: 10
 
RestaurantsHotels & Accommodations
 
NightlifeOff The Beaten Path
 
Tourist TrapsWarnings Or Dangers
 
TransportationLocal Customs
 
Packing ListsShopping
Tips: 1 - Photos: 1
 
Sports TravelGeneral Tips

Comments for aaaarrgh about Swansea
Wloczykij Sat Jun 2, 2007 12:05 UTC
 I hope this market really exists:)
christine.j Sat Sep 2, 2006 12:41 UTC
 Thank you for very good information. The Waterfront Museum seems to be very interesting. I'm looking forward to visiting it.
KastleKonfusion Fri Aug 25, 2006 17:57 UTC
 Hey! Am I not surprise to see that your page on Swansea is highly rated! Thanks for all the wonderful tips in your guides! We'll be heading to Cardiff on 7Sep; Swansea 9Sep; Newport 10Sep, 7 Wonders of Wales for the rest of the week. :D
sourbugger Sat Mar 4, 2006 16:43 UTC
 last time i went to swansea it was shut. might have to reconsider now
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