Today I Explored Two Castles

Today was the day of Wales and it was so incredibly beautiful. I had no idea that this country differed so much from England. I was really tired from waking up so early so the minute I got on the bus I fell asleep. I woke up two hours later and found myself on coast of Wales. There was little Welsh homes lining the water and lots of sheep! I guess Wales gets a lot of crap for caring so much about there sheep. It just had such a good vibe though...it was like Cape Cod with a little different feel. I suddenly felt so excited about the UK and my travels when seeing such beautiful scenery.

The bus first dropped us off at Caernarfon to see the castle. The weather was absolutely horrible...extremely windy and rainy and it was impossible to use an umbrella. It Wales they call umbrellas "umbrellies". The castle is pronouned Care-na-vin Castle...which we would never have found out on our own because it certainly is not spelled like that. It was overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and the best view was from the watch towers. There were so many floors that you would explore one by one that by the time it was time to walk down you got a little scared because you didn't realize you had climbed so far. The stairs curl around and around and are very narrow. In one bedroom there were bats. I did not go in there because I could hear them screeching my name...it was gross he was sitting up in the rafters looking down at me.

After exploring that castle we went to have lunch at a cafe called Caffi Celi. There they had pretty decently priced meals like 4-5 pounds and they were real food. I had the scampi and chips. I think I need to take a serious break from fried food because its so awful for you. I also found out that English food rots so fast! My friend Traci was telling me about how when she opens a pack of ham it must be eaten in three days and milk only lasts four to five days there! We just have so much preservatives in everything!

The bus then took us to a second castle about half an hour away. This castle was named Penrhyn Castle. It was more than just a stone castle with nothing in it. This castle had all furnishings and it was so elaborate. The Celts are known for their designs that look like there is no beginning and end. Well every ceiling had a pattern like this. Every doorway had three to five archways...so pretty. The view from this castle was so pretty its hard to put into words. Even though the weather was horrible you could still see the hills, trees and view of the ocean. What was amazing to me was to think that they didn't have electricity then. Walking down a lot of the hallways it was a bit dark and I can only imagine what it was like in the winter with just a view candles....and how cold it would have been!!!

We got back on the bus at 5pm and were extremely cold and wet. I passed out the minute I sat in my chair and I think I embarrassed myself pretty bad. I heard some girls laughing and I kind of fifty percent woke up and I think I might have been leaning in a little to far by the girl next to me....oops. I said I was sorry and turned away but I barely remember this. I was too tired to be embarrassed but looking back I'm like wow.

Two Blonde Moments of the Day:
-I did not know there was a language in Wales called Welsh.
-I have been having a really hard time figuring out the 24 hour days on the clocks. Every time I try and calculate it I go 13 is 1, 14 is 2, 15 is 3 etc. My friend Katie informed me that all you have to do is subtract 12... oops.

US words to UK:
-pancakes -flapjacks
-french fries -chips
-chips -crisps
-cool -proper

Tomorrow is the ManCity Game I really hope it isn't raining...but I am excited either way. I leave for Ireland in 3 days!!!

Natalie