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I'm in Dublin at the moment, having come from Caernarfon (pronouced Car-nar-von) in the northern Welsh county of Gwynedd. For those of you playing at home, Caernarfon is on the west coast of mainland Wales, just across the passage from the Isle of Anglesey. Anglesey is joined to mainland Wales by a bridge and historically significant as it was the Druids last stronghold in the fight against the invading Vikings. But that's enough history lesson for today.
North Wales was interesting. I would even go so far as to say it was my first "real" travelling experience - having to cope on my own, not speaking the language and not really having any idea where I was or how to get where I wanted to go. Everywhere else I've been has been relatively easy for me but Caernarfon was tough. In Caernarfon I was really on my own - I had my hostel room all to myself for two nights and went for several days without having a real conversation with anyone. And unlike Cardiff, Welsh is the most commonly spoken language in the north of Wales, which meant that most of the time I had no bloody idea what was going on around me.
The Welsh in general are fiercely proud of their country, but in northern Wales some people will actually look at you in a funny way if you speak English. This was really strange for me at first but I soon got used to it and made sure to use my one word of Welsh - "Diolch", which means "thank you". I'm not sure if it was my little effort or horrible pronounciation that made people smile when I said this.
Having said all that, all of the Welsh people I came into contact with in northern Wales were lovely, kind and very helpful. I had wonderful chats with all sorts of people - from bus drivers out in the wilds of Snowdonia to a little old man at the bus stop. They were all keen to tell me about Wales and point out other places I might like to visit. The bus driver even gave me an impromptu tour of our bus route as I was the only person on the bus.
Though I was lonely while I was there, the north of Wales is a beautiful place and Caernarfon is significantly off the beaten track to experience the real Wales, sitting just on the outskirts of Snowdonia National Park
My visit to Mt Snowdon deserves an entry of its own, which will come soon (I promise). The internet here at the hostel in Dublin is free and because I've been on for a while I'm getting dirty looks.
I hope you're all well. Don't forget to send me news from home!
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Owen
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I told you just to use Cwtch all the time and you would have been fine. Did you listen?? Anyway, the Northern Welsh aren't the best Welsh in the world. Unlike us at Cardiff. Enjoy the Irish...sure you will... ;-)