Stuck in Customs: Caernarfon, Wales: Saturday and Sunday

Saturday morning we hopped on the train to Caernarfon (pronounced Car-Nar-Fon) which took about 4 1/2 hours. Cardiff is on the southern tip of Wales, while Caernarfon is on the northern tip. Not only are they in different parts of Wales, they are different types of cities! We had to leave Cardiff early Saturday morning because we wanted to be able to see lots of things in Caernarfon. We arrived in Bangor around 2:00, and we had to take a bus to Caernarfon. 2 minutes into the bus ride, the bus broke down! It only had one gear. We had to wait for a new bus, then it was off to Caernarfon!
We checked into our hostel and left for Caernarfon Castle. The castle is pretty much the main attraction of the village, and it is so special! Construction on it started in the 13th century. The first Prince of Wales born there was Edward IV, the Black Prince. I got super excited that our tours have taken us full circle because we got to see Edward IV, the Black Prince's, tomb while we were in Canterbury! I felt like I was getting all of my history in! The castle was completed at the very beginning of the 14th century. Once again, I'm going to harp on the age of everything here. It is truly mind-blowing. The castle and the walls surround the city are still in great shape. It is so funny because you can see how the city was literally built into and around the walls! I loved it! We spent quite a bit of time at the castle, going through all of the towers and halls. It was a beautiful afternoon and perfect weather! Another special thing about Caernarfon Castle is that it was the location of Prince Charles' investiture, or when he was crowned the Prince of Wales! It was so neat to look at pictures and know that we were looking at recent history! Another thing that I forgot to mention was that Wales has two official languages: English and Welsh. It was very disorienting to have everything written in two languages-all of the signs, menus, everything. And English was not the first one listed! It was definitely a lesson learned!
As I mentioned earlier, the castle is the main thing in the village so once it closes for the day, it doesn't take long for everything else to close too! We were trying to get food from some of the place listed on the map but they were all closed. I really think that we ate in one of the only places that stays open after 6 in that town. I also think that everyone who lives in the town was there! One of the famous hotels and pubs in Caernarfon is the Black Boy Inn. Yes, you read that correctly. And if you thought you were mistaken, you only had to look at one of many signs outside to see that you weren't. They were complete with awkward paintings. Apparently, there are conflicting reports about how the inn got its name. One story says that it is from the Black Prince. Another claims that the inn was once in the red light district and that a little black boy hung around the building? Either way, it was very bizarre to come across. Especially being from the south, where that is a very taboo image. Very bizarre, indeed. We watched some more of the Olympics then headed back to the hostel. Once there, I watched some more of the games and read. One thing that has been fun is seeing the games live and at the times that they occur. I am not excited to go back to the states and always be in "catch-up" mode. We even got to see Lochte v Phelps live on TV!
The next morning we got up and walked around the perimeter of the city. We were looking for Roman ruins but couldn't see any. We walked back to the hostel along the bay and got our stuff. The buses back to Bangor are more sporadic on Sundays so we had to find one that would get us to the train station in time. We walked up as the bus was pulling up! How lucky! The train back took about 5 1/2 hours because our first train was late, causing us to miss our first connecting train. Ya know, the domino affect. We made it back to Oxford around 4:30 which was nice. I like getting back during the day so that I can unpack and unwind. This time it was a bit bittersweet because it was my last time.
Overall, I really loved Wales. If I was ever to come back, I would want to travel to lots of small towns and villages and only spend a night or so in each place. Everything there is smaller and moves so much slower. I really loved and needed the change of pace, even from Oxford! However, I think that too much time in one of these places would be a bit boring. Really though, Wales was a great place and probably the most beautiful. It is uninterrupted and uncorrupted. I loved it!