This Side of the Pond

We all know about the pilgrims arriving in the States on the Mayflower, the penal colonies of Australia, the territories of Canada and all the many other famous instances of humans spreading their influence across the globe.

But there’s one tale I’ve only just heard told – and I’m betting I’m not alone in having no idea that a tea clipper once carried 153 Welsh pioneers to the harsh but beautiful land of Patagonia.

Today, you’ll find an estimated 70,000 Welsh-Patagonians thriving in a settlement called Y Wladfa (“The Colony”). They speak a unique, Spanish-accented Welsh dialect, drink in Welsh...