Croeso i Cymru - Welcome to Wales

Croeso i Cymru – Welcome to Wales

I grew up spending every weekend in Wales since my mother was Welsh( name Jones ) and I visited my grandparents who lived in Llanfairfechan, North Wales a lot. We also had a cottage in Llangollen,(pronounced Lan goth lan ) on the river Dee, since my parents loved fishing. My father was Scottish, so I grew up hearing two strong dialects, a Celtic and Gaelic.

Wales is a small country, with an impossible language. I love the national flag, a red dragon on a green background, and the National dress I hated, you had to wear a funny big hat which my granny made me wear on occasions. There are six million sheep, and few people. No public transportation to speak of, so driving is necessary. My husband hated the narrow roads, tall hedges, and roundabouts having driven thru the entire 150 miles top to bottom.

Everyone is named Jones, Davies, Edwards, Griffiths, or Evans. We used to say Jones, the Baker, Jones the Butcher, since there were so many people named Jones. It is ironic that I came to America and married a man named Jones, whose family had been coal miners from South Wales a hundred years ago.

Wales has a myriad of small towns and villages with seemingly unpronounceable names. We have more castles per square mile than anywhere else in Europe. We have a narrow gauge steam railway in Ffestiniog. which used to haul slate from the mine and is a fun ride.

No women sing in choirs. We have some famous male Welsh opera singers, and the miners choirs are a sell out when they give a performance. Everything is closed on Sundays. The highlight of the land is the International Eisteddfod (pronounced eye steth vod) which is a music festival held in July each year in a field outside of Llangollen. The village with the longest name is –

Llanfairpwillgwyngyllgogerychwyndobwylliantysiliogogogoch – we all it Llanfair pg. The sign at the train station is longer than the platform.

In English, it means “St.Mary;s church by the white aspens over the whirlpool and St. Tysilio’s church by the red cave”.

I think North Wales is prettier than South Wales. Two castles worth seeing are Conwy, and Caernarvon, and Snowdonia National Park is used as a training site for Everest expeditions. The coal mines are in South Wales, and Cardiff (two hours by train from London) is a very cosmopolitan capital.

Welsh is mainly spoken in many villages in the North, and the food is very different to what we have in England, with of course, lots of lamb.

There are some great golf courses, very reasonably priced, and easy to get tee times on. Fishing is a great sport, with huge trout from several rivers. I know many easy day walks and the 870 miles Wales Coast Path hugs the edge of the land and you have the chance to stay in small inns in quaint villages. The scenery reminds me of New Zealand.

If you do go, I would start your journey in Chester, a lovely medieval town, in the north then drive down Wales. End up in Cardiff, take the train into London.

Maureen Jones

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