St Fagan's and Malvern Hills
We left Cardiff and headed for an open-air museum called St Fagan's. It's advertised as the national museum of Wales. It has taken examples of different buildings from different time periods and lifestyles from all over Wales to give visitors an idea of what Wales is about. It's quite beautiful and you could spend the whole day there if you wanted to, there's so much to see. I found the renaissance era buildings very interesting as they were smaller and darker than I had anticipated. The museum tries to cement the idea that Wales is its own separate part of the UK, independent in culture and way of life dating back hundreds of years. I observed that everyone who worked there were fiercely proud of the heritage that the museum preserved. For me, it solidified that Wales is indeed, its own specific part of the UK.
On our way back to London, we stopped at an LDS heritage site. We got to see the first chapel that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints owned. That is not to be confused with the founding of the Church in New York in 1830. The chapel was acquired in the 1840s when Joseph Smith, the first prophet of the Church sent four of his apostles to preach the LDS doctrine to the people of England. As a member of the church, it was awesome to such an important piece of heritage that is a part of my own identity as a Mormon. After visiting the chapel, we drove a bit further to Malvern, where we "walked" (it was a small hike) to the top of Malvern Hill. This is another historic site for members of the church as it is the place that Wilford Woodruff and Brigham Young dedicated the British Isles to receive the gospel of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It was a short, but steep hike, but the view from the top was amazing. Rolling English hills, green pastures, and plenty of sheep greeted our view, and I fell in love with England.
I've been here a month now and I am so grateful for the adventures I've had, and I can't wait for the ones I will have. I have met new people from different places and have made some new great friends. This is definitely the trip of a lifetime.
The view from the top of Malvern Hill.
On our way back to London, we stopped at an LDS heritage site. We got to see the first chapel that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints owned. That is not to be confused with the founding of the Church in New York in 1830. The chapel was acquired in the 1840s when Joseph Smith, the first prophet of the Church sent four of his apostles to preach the LDS doctrine to the people of England. As a member of the church, it was awesome to such an important piece of heritage that is a part of my own identity as a Mormon. After visiting the chapel, we drove a bit further to Malvern, where we "walked" (it was a small hike) to the top of Malvern Hill. This is another historic site for members of the church as it is the place that Wilford Woodruff and Brigham Young dedicated the British Isles to receive the gospel of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It was a short, but steep hike, but the view from the top was amazing. Rolling English hills, green pastures, and plenty of sheep greeted our view, and I fell in love with England.
I've been here a month now and I am so grateful for the adventures I've had, and I can't wait for the ones I will have. I have met new people from different places and have made some new great friends. This is definitely the trip of a lifetime.
The view from the top of Malvern Hill.
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