Llangollen, Wales, was our only taste of Wales and only for half a day. In 1282, King Edward I of England conquered the Principality of Wales; afterwards, the heir apparent to the English monarch has borne the title “Prince of Wales.” In 1535 Wales joined with England. Then in 1707, it became an independent country, part of Great Britain.
Llangollen is a red brick town, famous for its “love spoons”. It is on the River Dee, where an Aqueduct was built. We passed the mansion “Trevor Hall”, reconstructed in the 18th century. The site was home to Bishop John Trevor, who built the Llangollen Bridge in 1345.
We had a tea break here and had tea at the Buttered Crust and wandered around the town, down to the bridge over the River Dee. All the signs are bilingual, first in Welsh and then English. After our stay, we were taken to the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, a World Heritage Site. There we boarded a barge and travelled the canal and aqueduct, a19 arch feat of engineering by Thomas Telford, with water from Horseshoe Falls. The Aqueduct and Canal are 18 km long. It was begun in the 1790s and completed in 1814. The barge trip was informative and fun, including a glass of wine. We were let off at the Sun Trevor Bar and Restaurant where we enjoyed another glass of wine.
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