I have retired now, but 10 years ago I spent 4 months working in Caernarfon and then Wrexham. Caernarfon is very Welsh, but although Welsh speaking I was able to read the Welsh language for the work I was doing by way of Google translates. Also the people in town had dual language. Wrexham is much closer to Cheshire and the Wirral. So people speak English but many can speak Welsh. It's within commuting distance of major English conurbations. The rest of Wales for me is out of sight and out of mind. I was last in Cardiff and South Wales in 2003. Now that's true of many parts of England for me, but because England has a bigger overall population in most cases these regions don't need people like me to thrive. Wales perhaps does - but not by buying a second home!
I have retired now, but 10 years ago I spent 4 months working in Caernarfon and then Wrexham. Caernarfon is very Welsh, but although Welsh speaking I was able to read the Welsh language for the work I was doing by way of Google translates. Also the people in town had dual language. Wrexham is much closer to Cheshire and the Wirral. So people speak English but many can speak Welsh. It's within commuting distance of major English conurbations. The rest of Wales for me is out of sight and out of mind. I was last in Cardiff and South Wales in 2003. Now that's true of many parts of England for me, but because England has a bigger overall population in most cases these regions don't need people like me to thrive. Wales perhaps does - but not by buying a second home!