Saturday 19 October 2013

Wales

It seemed weird to have to use my own two feet again, but I begrudgingly got my walking shoes on once again.

Traveling and experiencing the kindness of strangers is one of the joys of life, and this trip was no exception.

WED_7061

I decided to take a round-about way to get back to Paris. I found if I took 4 different trains I would eventually end up in Wales, where I could hop a ferry to Dublin to visit some friends. So that's what I did.

Naturally, one train was 8 minutes late and I ended up having hours to kill in a few random towns around Liverpool while waiting for the next train to catch up with me, but I smartly got an open ticket and it wasn't a big deal, and I love just being able to stop at a random place to check out what's going on.

WED_7063 WED_7065 WED_7067 WED_7073

I finally got to Holyhead, and I still had hours to kill before the ferry ride, so I took a walk.

WED_7078

There was actually a bird preserve and a lighthouse on the north side of town, but not a puffin was in sight, so I headed into the downtown area.

It was pretty depressing. I was really hoping to meet someone Richard Burton-esque while there, but I only saw sad sad sad people. Alcoholism seems to be a huge problem here, and the main billboard advertiser in town was for a suicide hotline.

WED_7080

And, although this rarely happens, I got a sense of being not welcome. It was like I was there solely to kidnap their FAS-afflicted children. Suspicious stares abounded. I mean, really. Look at me:

WED_7122

That's the face of someone who wants to get the hell out of Wales as soon as possible.

Even the dogs were looking at me with shifty eyes.

WED_7084

Anyway...not wanting to squander an afternoon, I kept going. Nothing seemed to be open, but I finally found a place that sold me their last heat-lamp warmed cornish pastry as they were closing their doors and that was a real high moment.

WED_7082 WED_7088

There was a church, built upon the remains of a Roman fort.

WED_7100 WED_7096 WED_7103 WED_7106 WED_7109 WED_7104 WED_7114 WED_7115 WED_7117 WED_7123 WED_7132

The church was closed, the maritime museum was shuttered, nothing to eat. My impression of this part of Wales...I would probably need that suicide hotline if I lived here.

WED_7129

So I sat on the beach and worked on my socks until it was time to go.

WED_7137

Finally, go time.

WED_7136

The boat was pretty big and spacious, and the seas were almost comically rough. It takes about 2 hours to get from Holyhead to Dublin, and there were quite a few people emptying the contents of their stomachs the entire trip. As the boat was pulling into port, this one gentleman who had filled several bags with his lunch, missed a few times and got the table he was at and his shoes, proceeded to make a pass at me and FLIRTED with me in between dry heaves, and offered to share a cab into the city with me. Um, no? I think I'll walk. He wasn't even playing awkward when I bumped into him the next day at the Book of Kells. Shameless.

It was nice to be on land again, although it was far from dry.

WED_7145

3 comments:

  1. Love the photos and your description basically summed up Holyhead. Such a depressing, unwelcoming place, or at least that's my impression of it after many, many trips on that ferry!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Sara! Funny, I was just in Wales last week with a different experience to yours. We were in Hay-on-Wye to poke through their many, many second-hand bookshops. We were only by there for a day, so admittedly, we couldn't soak up as much local flavor as we'd liked, but it was incredibly charming. We found the locals to be lovely and welcoming, with a strong arts community. Dinner at a local tapas place was lively with folks at the next table getting into it about a play they were working on. Too bad your Wales experience didn't include this lovely place! Also, your post on Windermere brought back great memories of this part of the UK. Touristy, yes, but the bones are still gorgeous!
    Still following your adventures with gusto!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah, i was just stopping in so I feel like it was unfair to judge based on this one place. I generally try to be pretty positive about enjoying the journey but it was just a sad little town.

      Delete