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Vale days out
Jo Barnes comes up with three ideas for you to fill your summer days
1
Take a trip to Barry Island
If you're looking for a traditional day by the seaside, then you can't beat the delights Barry Island has to offer.
There is a fantastic beach to build your sandcastles on or just enjoy a lazy afternoon in the sun, there are all the traditional seaside shops and cafes - and, of course, there is Barry Island Pleasure Park.
According to www.barry-town-crier.org.uk Barry Island was bought in 1873 by JD Treharne purchased Barry Island, and in those early times it attracted thousands of visitors each year. During the 1890s one hundred thousand people a year flocked to the resort.
By 1905 the attractions of donkey rides, punch and judy etc had the addition of a promenade and in 1930 Pat Collins purchased the lease for the grounds of the fairground, offering a variety of attractions and rides which continued when his nephews, Pat and John took control in 1966.
Today the island is still popular with visitors.
At the pleasure park you can risk a soaking on the log flume and try out the latest rides. Indoors there's the Quasar Centre which is ideal for both adults and children alike. Younger visitors will also love Triassic Towers, a bright indoor play area with bouncy castle and medieval castle climbing frame.
You can take a ride on Barry Island Railway, which has an annual programme of events with trains operating between the Island and Barry Waterfront.
For more details about what's on throughout the summer in Barry and Barry Island visit www.VisitTheVale.com.
2
Visit duffryn Gardens and take in the Midsummer Festival
The leafy surroundings of the ancient stone stage of Dyffryn's Theatre Garden will come alive once again this summer as the annual two-week long Midsummer Festival of Music & Theatre returns for its fourth year.
Audiences, seated in a purpose-built 400-seater covered auditorium among the splendour of the Grade I registered Edwardian gardens, will enjoy events as diverse as Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors and Gilbert & Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance.
Opera buffs are in for a treat with the return of the gregarious Three Other Tenors from Welsh National Opera after their sell-out performance in 2007, and new to the festival this year are Opera Box touring opera company with Puccini's Madama Butterfly.
The Midsummer Festival played host to more than 3,000 school children at its 2007 schools theatre event, and is expanding the choice of dates on offer for this year's fun-filled production of The Musical Adventures of Pinocchio.
Family performances of the enchanting story about the little wooden toy who wants to become a real' boy will take place over the festival weekends. Audiences are advised to watch out for two rather dastardly characters, Fox and Cat, who will be intent on spoiling Pinocchio's fun!
Dyffryn House and Gardens are a short drive from Culverhouse Cross, close to the hubs of Cardiff, Cowbridge and Bridgend, yet once there among the rolling lawns and sculptures, it all seems a million miles away from the bustle of city life.
The Midsummer Festival team, decked out in their cheerful pink T-shirts, get the festival under way on Monday June 19.
Audiences can stroll around the grounds before the performances, then sit back, relax and enjoy what has become a popular and peculiarly British way to spend a summer evening.
For more detials please visit www.midsummerfestival.co.uk or phone 029 2077 9511.
Duffryn Gardens is not just one garden but a series of gardens consisting of a number of outdoor rooms.
Each room is enclosed within clipped yew and has its own distinct character. The gardens rooms are set among broad sweeping lawns, a croquet lawn with an arboretum and wild garden. The gardens are currently being restored to the masterplan which Thomas mawson, landscape architect designed for John Cory in 1906.
For more information about the history of the gardens, how to become a Friend of Duffryn Gardens and more general information about the venue, please visit www.dyffryngardens.org.uk
What's on at the Midsummer Festival of Music & Theatre at Dyffryn Gardens
June 16 & 19
7.30pm
Madama Butterfly by Puccini, sung in italian by Opera
Box
June 16 - 29
11am weekdays & 2pm weekends
The Musical Adventures of Pinocchio
June 17 - 21
7.30pm (except Thursday 19 )
Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert & Sullivan (matinee Wed 18 2pm)
June 22 & 29
7.30pm
Three Other Tenors from Welsh National Opera
June 23 - 28
7.30pm
Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare
3
Take a paddle steamer from Penarth
The eagerly awaited 2008 timetable of cruises for the historic pleasure steamers Waverley and Balmoral has now been launched.
Wales is a key part of the sailing programmes with Penarth being one of the major departure ports. Additional departures locally are available Newport, Lydney Dock, Porthcawl and Swansea.
This is a brilliant opportunity to enjoy a relaxing cruise on a fascinating historic ship.
The programme is very flexible so you can choose to stay onboard all day or disembark at a destination - spend some time there - and then get back on later for your sail home.
There are lots of different cruises to choose from - a visit to a traditional sea-side resort, a visit to Lundy Island, explore Somerset by steam train or simply cruise along the coastline.
Waverley is the last sea-going paddle steamer in the world and having the opportunity to watch the engines in motion as they drive the mighty paddles is quite a sight! Balmoral is the last ship of her type - a passenger cruising vessel built in 1949 and a wonderful example of a bygone era.
For further information visit www.waverleyexcursions.co.uk or call 0845 130 4647.
11:48am Wednesday 7th May 2008
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