Yesterdays field trip was very fascinating! We started off by driving about an hour to get to Harlech where one of the many castles King Edward I built, the Harlech Castle, was located. The Castle had water surrounding the outsides of the walls at one time, but is now atop a large hill with flat ground far below where the water had once covered. Back when the water reached the castle, both the Criccieth and Harlech castles acted like ports and would supply one another with necessities, traveling by sea from each castle. The front of the castle had two large towers facing the town and a drawbridge where the steps are located now. Inside the castle it was very open and still very intact. A bunch of us decided to play hide and seek inside the castle since there was so many places to go. Sarah and I were partnered up, but instead of just looking we explored the castle ourselves. While doing so, we ended up losing the game, being the one ones not to find Reid, who was hiding. During our exploring we went to the top of the castle and were able to enjoy the beautiful view of Snowdonia and the ocean on each side. Outside the castle there is a sculpture of Bendigeidfran atop a horse carrying the body of his nephew Gwern, called The Two Kings. We ate lunch in the town and stopped at a small restaurant specializing in homemade pies, but not the kind of sweet pies we think of, rather the meaty pot pie kind. Molly and I got fish and chips and a chicken pie. They were both delicious, the crust of the chicken pie flaky and very tasty and the fish cooked to perfection, with the chips topped with salt and vinegar. It was my first fish and chip experience in Wales and I loved it!
The next stop was to Portmeirion, a small secluded town built by Bertram Clough Williams, and many of his paid workers since he was very wealthy, surrounded by forests and ocean. The town was so colorful, each building a different pastel color, and had many statues resembling Italian figures as well as salvaged Italian buildings imported from Italy. There was even a Cadwalader's ice cream shop there! Tecwyn informed us that many famous people have come to stay in the Portmeirion hotel, such as Tom Cruise and Catherine Zeta Jones, located within the town. The town was so unique and it was amazing to think that one person could have designed the entire town. Clough is said to have built the town "to show that the development of a naturally beautiful site need not lead to its defilement and that architectural good manners could be good business." It was so neat walking around the small town, noticing the details on each building and personal thought put into every design.
When we all got back on the bus, Tecwyn taught us how to sing "Happy Birthday" in Welsh to Allison, since it was her birthday. It went a little something like this...Penblywdd Hapus I Chi!
On our way to the next stop we took a detour and pulled off to the side of the road to take a few pictures of the Aberglaslyn Pass. Right off the bridge there was a rocky waterfall, said to be one of the most beautiful scenic sites in North Wales. And it was beautiful, the way the water flowed off of the large rocks submerged in the water.
We continued on our way to Beddgelert, meaning the grave of Gelert, a town famous for the legend of Prince Llewelyn who is said to have left his baby son in the care of his faithful dog Gelert at home, and upon his return found the dog covered in blood and his son nowhere to be found. Llewelyn's angry lead him to kill his dog and after doing so heard a cry and found his son beneath the cradle and a dead wolf that had been killed by his faithful dog Gelert in order to protect the baby. Because of Llewelyns quick reaction to blame his dog and kill him, he built a memorial for his dog and buried him in the town. We walked through the town to the grave site, where an English and welsh gravestone was present. Further up the path there was a house ruin where it is said to be where the battle between the wolf and the dog occurred, with a metal statue of Gelert standing inside.
We headed back towards school after a day of walking and exploring. I enjoyed this field trip, especially since we were able to see so many unique and different things. Our next field trip with Tecwyn is Ireland! I can't wait for that!
When we got back we ate and got ready to go out to Academy, a dance club downtown. We got the whole group to come and had a lot of fun dancing and being goofy. At one point during the night popcorn started shooting down from the ceiling landing everywhere! It was really random and funny! It was a pretty busy day, but I had so much fun exploring and dancing with the girls=)
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