Jeremy Clarke Jeremy Clarke

Welsh hospitality

A social leper tells us of his miserable existence

issue 20 September 2003

I spent last week in south Wales, staying in a cottage near the coast. On the second evening we walked to the local pub to see what it was like. We went across the fields to get there. Nailed to one of the stiles was a notice. ‘The bull in this field is a Semmantal bull. He is tame with people he knows, but visitors are advised to give him a wide berth. At the far end of the field you may also come across a donkey. Gunter is unpredictable and has been known to bite people. Visitors are advised to talk loudly as they approach so as to avoid startling him.’ The bull, which was lying across the footpath on the other side of the stile, we nearly tripped over. A little further on we startled the donkey, which went berserk but luckily didn’t attack us.

We came finally to a narrow cove containing a fishing village.

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