Wales a ghastly good trip

[attach]7085[/attach]I’m unarmed: no spectral blaster. Some ghostbuster!

It’s dark and musty in this small dressing room, just a thin sliver of light showing under the door.

I hear my own breathing, the creak of ancient floorboards and, from downstairs, an occasional murmur of conversation.

I’m waiting for something — anything! — to happen.

I’ve always wanted to meet a real ghost.

But there are no prickles, no whispers, no rustling skirts. Nothing. In the haunted bedroom of the Skirrid Inn, the infamous ghost of Fanny Price is reticent today. I’m tempted to say, “Bah, humbug!”

Once used as a circuit courthouse, this historic inn near Abergavenny in Wales — reputedly the most haunted in Wales — was the site of many hangings during its 900-year history.

A portentous noose hangs in the Elizabethan stairwell, down whose steps condemned wretches presumably took their last steps. It’s very dramatic, but no one is really sure where the hangings actually took place.

Fanny, a relative latecomer to the spirit collection here, was its landlady in the 1830s. She is the one reportedly seen — and felt
— most often. She is even said to have tried to drown a hapless guest in her bath; the poor woman emerged screaming from her room.

Owners Geoff and Sharon Fiddler take it all with good humour and little concern. Why not? The guest rooms are regularly filled with ghost hunters hoping for a haunting!

I return to the warm, cosy lounge. With its massive inglenook fireplace and Tudor beams, I can picture generations of ploughmen enjoying their ale and belting out a few songs here. This is, after all, Wales. To be born Welsh, they say, is to be born with
music in your blood and poetry in your soul.

Frankly, I’m beginning to wonder if Wales has its own version of the Blarney Stone. So many pubs and stately homes seem to feature at least one resident spectre. If the population is to be believed, the place must be positively infested with ghosts. Local legend says that anyone who spends a night under Maen Du’r Arddu, a massive rock in the Snowdonia Mountains, will descend in the morning either a poet or a madman.

Has the entire population slept here?

There’s a case to be made that they have. Just look at the extraordinary list of writers and poets who claim Welsh ancestry. Indeed, this tiny country has sparked the imaginations of four of the world’s most inventive fantasy writers.

C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, Roald Dahl and J. K. Rowling all have strong Welsh connections. And Tolkien’s Middle Earth languages are said to be based on the lilting cadences of Welsh.

This is not really surprising; it would be a rare individual who remained uninspired in this land of spectacular mountains, rich musical heritage and extraordinary castles. In a relatively small landscape, Wales boasts 400 castles, of which about 100 still stand either as impressive ruins or actual habitations.

One of the most impressive stands right in the centre of the capital city.

Cardiff Castle began 2,000 years ago as Roman fortifications, and the magnificent Norman keep, built in the 12th century, still watches over the city.

In the 19th century, the third Marquess of Bute hired the famed architectural designer, William Burgess, to turn his home into a fantastic Medieval castle. The Gothic marvels wrought by Burgess are extraordinary. Each room appears to be trying to outdo the next in outrageously over-the-top décor.

The castle’s ghost is his father, the second Marquess. Clad in a heavy cloak, he has been seen in both the splendid library and the small chapel — the room in which he died.

Perhaps he simply doesn’t approve of the new décor?

The problem with most hauntings is that they generally occur after dark, so unless you are able to spend the night you’re
likely to miss all the fun. Few castles offer this option. But at Gwydir Castle in Conwy, reputedly the most haunted castle in the
country, you can enjoy a fabulous four-poster bed, traditional Welsh breakfast and resident spectres, all at a reasonable price.

A bonus flock of peacocks offer evocative cries to make a delightfully eerie backdrop to your stay. Dating to the 14th century, Gwydir has had many ghosts — crying children, a dog, an Elizabethan lady in a yellow dress, and a torch-lit procession of monks on the Great Terrace.

The most frequent manifestation is a young woman, murdered in the mid-1500s, when she became pregnant by the lord, Sir John Wynn. He hid her body behind the paneling of a bedroom in the North Wing. A drop in temperature and a foul smell heralds her appearance.

But her murderer’s remorseful ghost also visits the nearby spiral staircase, wringing his hands.

The current owners of Gwydir, Peter and Judy Welford, seem unconcerned about their otherworldly tenants. They’re more preoccupied with restoring their home to its former grandeur — a relentless task.

It’s hard to imagine calling this splendid pile “home”, but some of its earliest inhabitants loved it so well they’re reluctant to leave.

Though they appear to be ubiquitous, it must be said that Wales offers much more than ghosts.

It has some of the most spectacular scenery in the British Isles, with every signpost being a challenge to the tongue. (Welsh is
not the easiest language to master!)

And even if you don’t meet a spirit — as I, alas, did not — you’ll find the living inhabitants of Cymru (pronounced Coom-ree) friendly and welcoming.

Music and poetry (and possibly a little madness) are included for free.