Smultron mellan blåbär: Wales

Over the May holidays, I visited North and Mid Wales, the towns and cities of Caernafon, Bangor, Porthaethwy (Menai Bridge), Llanberis, and Aberystwyth. The weather was hot over the bank holiday weekend—the kind of heat that makes it feel like you'll never be cold again. What are socks and why would I ever wear them? It also makes for amazing thunderheads and pretty sunsets. It actually felt nice to plunge into an icy cold lake! I'm still not accustomed to swimming in salt water, though, so I just dipped my toes in at Cardigan Bay.

In Caernafon, a friend and I explored the castle and enjoyed the views towards the mountains that make up Eryri National Park. But my belief in Macsen Wledig was shattered by discovering that the tale of his dream from the Mabinogion is all Norman propaganda and that if Macsen and Elen did meet, it would have been at the Roman camp, not the castle! We visited the site of the Roman Segontium, too, and watched the sun set from Twthill Trig. In Bangor, we saw the Cathedral and University campus and also crossed over to Angelsey to visit Ynys Tysilio (Church Island). The church there is from 650 and it's also where the WWI era poet Sir Albert Evans-Jones, who wrote under the name Cynan, is buried. In Llanberis we saw Ceunant Mawr at the base of Snowdon and Dolbadarn Castle ruins, then had a nice swim at Llyn Padarn. My friend speaks Welsh and has family from North Wales. It's really interesting to hear his perspective on Welsh history and stories about the area's mining industry.

Castell Caernafon

View of Caernafon

View from the castle

Roman Segontium, Caernafon

Castell Caernafon in the evening

On Twthill Trig

Caernafon at sunset

Sunset at Twthill Trig

University Library in Bangor

A view of Bangor Cathedral

At a café in Bangor

Menai Bridge from Ynys Tysilio

Eglwys Sant Tysilio

View from Glyn Rhonwy, Llanberis

Dolbadarn Castle, Llanberis

I travelled by bus to the National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth. The current display of treasures features women writers, artists, and activists like Mary Dillwyn, Brenda Chamberlain and Dorothy Bonjaree. I read more about Bonarjee in the introduction to The Hindu Bard, where her work is compared with the Romantic poets and W.B. Yeats. In addition to my visit to the library, I got up to some thrifting, climbed Constitution Hill, and visited the castle ruins and beach there.