In The Ring Of Iron
In May of 2023, to celebrate my fortieth year and also my parents' anniversary, we travelled to England, Wales, and Ireland. This is the fourth segment of our trip.
Wales in the 1200s was a bit of a political soup. Llywelyn ap Gruffudd became Prince Of Wales. The fact that we now know him as Llywelyn The Last hints at what was in store for Welsh princes (At least, until the 1400s, but that's another story!). By 1283, Edward Longshanks of England was in charge. His efforts to stay in charge resulted in a slate building spree: He constructed The Iron Ring Of Castles. The one castle to rule them all is in the port town of Caernarfon. It was (likely) designed by James Of Saint George.
We arrived in Caernarfon via bus, as it does not have mainline rail service. Dad was dealing with a bout of sunstroke, so Mom and I went to the castle. It has similarities to Conwy - they were siblings, after all - but is in better repair and seems to have received more funding for its role as a historical visiting-spot. The place is filled with interesting exhibits. It's so huge! Photos do not do justice to how big a castle it is.
The guy at the castle's reception desk noted that there were art pieces (like the hands cupping a model castle in my first photo here) to celebrate the everyday people who helped make the castle, rather than just the kings. Still, there is no shortage of noble celebration. In one spot, there are huge faces of past rules, and in another a giant chessboard on which English and Welsh princes of Wales face off against each other.
I really liked the chessboard motif, but my very favourite exhibit was a six-sided layered cutout display about the life of Eleanor Of Castile. It is a beautiful carousel of history, though certainly not all of Eleanor's experiences were a fairy tale.
We stayed for two nights in the castle town, snug inside the old walls at a hostel which was much nicer than I had been expecting. Dad began to recover the following day. Before leaving Caernarfon we strolled around the town and checked out a stone dragon beset by a seagull, and I ate a delicious jacket potato.
In the next segment of our trip, we tackled the highest mountain in Wales: Snowdon.
