Padraig Lalor's Holiday Heaven and Hell

The Holiday Heaven and Hell column from the South Wales Evening Post, featuring Padraig Lalor.
Padraig Lalor is a singer-songwriter with Ammanford-based Irish band Henry Marten’s Ghost. He recently released his first solo album. Ismay’s Dream is all about the links between Belfast (Lalor’s home city) and the Titanic.
What was your best holiday?
My wife and I went to Guernsey in the Channel Islands a few years ago.
Guernsey is very old fashioned with different laws from the UK.
We stayed in a great hotel where the service and food was excellent. The local islanders are very friendly and wherever we went we had great hospitality.
The island’s links with France are everywhere, as are signs of the German occupation during World War Two.
The island of Sark was the highlight of our stay. It has no traffic and is full of old world charm.
The short boat journey from Guernsey to Sark takes in some wonderful views of the other Islands such as Herm and Jersey.
Your worst?
I went on a Haven caravan holiday near Hastings with some friends about 10 years ago.
Our excitement was soon dispelled when we realised that it was more like a Soviet Gulag than a holiday camp. The food and service was awful.
The chalet we had was not clean and, to top it off, our chalet was broken into and we had some of our personal belongings stolen.
When we reported the theft and break-in to the staff, they seemed disinterested and offered us nothing for the trouble.
What was the most memorable holiday moment?
I love old churches, so while in Bordeaux some years ago I visited the old church underground crypts in the St Mellion wine region.
Some of the underground caverns held the bones of long dead monks.
The whole experience gave me a sense of serenity and an inner calmness.
When walking though St Mellion one could smell the vineyards that straddled the outskirts.
It’s a memory that will stay with me for life.