We enjoyed coffee and scones in Conwy before hitting the road to explore a medieval fortress in Gwynedd, North Wales...Caenarfon Castle.
If it’s not apparent yet, castles are to Great Britain as sushi restaurants are to Studio City...there’s one on every corner.
This one was built in the late 11th Century on the banks of River Seiont; its walls deliberately designed to link to the area’s Roman past. We climbed the dizzying, stone spiral staircases to the top of the Black Tower and marveled at both the view and how much we were allowed to do without exercising contract law or even a safety harness.
The next stop was the one David was most excited about...a visit to Portmeirion Village.
Located on the estuary of the River Dwyryd, Portmeirion is a collection of colorful buildings, structures, and gardens with a heavy Italian influence designed by Welsh architect, Sir Clough Williams-Ellis in 1925.
More importantly to David, it was the setting for the 1960’s spy-fi television thriller, The Prisoner, starring Patrick McGoohan.
We were the youngest people there by a good 20 years.
The rain held off for us as we walked the grounds and David took a million photos. He was so happy!
The day’s final destination was a town on the Caridgan Bay called Aberystwyth.
I drove us into town and while navigating the tiny streets to our hotel, I took a curb check for the team...it was either the curb or the Fiat. Steven had just popped out of the car to go check-in and I heard him cheer from ½ a block away when I brushed by the curb.
10-7. Ugh.
In desperate need of a pint, we found ourselves at Inn on the Pier where the bartender told us about Quiz Night. He said he was the best host in Wales and to come back at 9PM.
None of us had ever really participated in Quiz Night before because it seems so stupid. But...after dinner, we found ourselves back at the Pier bar, downloading yet another app, this time to try and exercise our common sense.
The place was packed.
We were the oldest people there by a good 20 years...
When the game finally started at 9:30, we quickly realized we had been sandbagged. The event was sold to us as a general knowledge trivia night, but it turned out to be football (soccer) themed questions only.
The first two questions ticked away and we couldn’t do anything but stare at each other and burst out in nervous laughter in between sips. We were in big trouble. Public humiliation was imminent. Stupid Americans.
Then, an angel appeared.
Out of nowhere, this tall, blonde, Welsh gentleman materialized and started helping us. He would run up to our table, punch in an answer on my phone, and run back to his buddy’s table nearby.
He either took pity on us or saw us as easy targets for a free pint...!
We didn’t care, we just desperately needed to avoid being “awarded” the Shark of Shame hat...
The back-and-forth thing lasted for the first round, but by the end of Quiz Night, everyone pulled up a chair and we had three new Welsh mates in Rhys, Ellis, and Jordan.
Turns out, the guys are in town working to restore The Old College Aberystwyth.
That last bit resonated and walls came down to talk about construction and their project across the street versus what we do in film and television 5,000 miles away.
More pints also went down as the volume at our table went up and the boys from Swansea were calling their colleagues to come and meet their new Hollywood friends.
I think at one point, Rhys and I were taking ghost penalty kicks, Nancy and Jordan wallowed together over project finances, Ellis nearly shed a tear when he learned Steven worked on Home Alone 2, and David was trying to figure out who was Number 1.
Once again, touring the castles is cool, but befriending castle-dweller descendants has been exponentially cooler.
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