RHONDDA HERITAGE PARK

This is perhaps the best place to see how the establishment of the mines completely changed the organization of rural life. Rhondda Heritage Park is a must-see for anyone wanting to gain a better understanding of the country's past. In the center of the hills, the mine, then all around rows of workers' houses huddled together. 160,000 workers once settled in the Rhondda valley to work its 40 coal mines!

A street from the 1950s has been reconstructed in the visitor center building, recreating the everyday atmosphere in which the valley's workers lived. On the second floor is an art gallery (free admission) with a temporary program, independent of the site's theme, and a restaurant.

The Black Gold Tour immediately transports us into the dark world of the mine. The tour's main attraction is its focus on the social impact of the new "black cities". Part of the tour, for example, focuses on the place of women in this changed social organization. The experience is also very physical: you descend into the belly of the mine, wearing a safety helmet and armed with a lamp, to discover the machines and their noise, their impressive volume, the dark and damp environment, the darkness... Excellent staging and multimedia documentation give this tour a particularly lively and didactic tone. It's impossible to leave indifferent..