Castles are cool - Conwy, Wales
As I said in my other thread on the Lakes District, my wife and I got stranded in the UK due to me having a passport problem. After much drinking in a hotel room at Gatwick, she convinced me to rent a car and go find something interesting to do.
Having never been to the UK before (my wife actually lived there), I decided I wanted to go see the coolest castle in the most interesting place I could find. After some research, I decided on Conwy, Wales, a fishing village with a fairly intact castle that also has intact city walls.
WALES 001 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
After a harrowing, rainy drive from Gatwick (I’d never driven on the left-hand side of the road and WTF is with even country roads having continuous curbs?), we arrived in LLandudno, a seaside resort. My wife chose it kind of randomly based on lodging, and in the autumn it was a bit sleepy, but it had a wonderfully historic and urban looking seafront.
WALES 002 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
WALES 003 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
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WALES 005 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
The local ale:
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Llandudno is dominated at the western end of the bay by the Great Orme, an outcropping of rock that is mostly set aside as a park. You can hike and drive around it and are greeted by great views of the Irish Sea:
WALES 013 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
We chose tobogganing (on reportedly the longest toboggan track in the UK):
WALES 014 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
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Conwy is just a short 15 minute drive away, sitting on an inlet to the south of Llandudno. Note all the boats in the harbor, floating peacefully:
WALES 020 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
To enter the town from any direction, you have to drive through the city wall. Happily, there isn’t much parking within the city walls and there are larger car parks just outside and they make you walk in:
WALES 021 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
The city walls are beautifully landscaped and offer views of the castle, the town center, and the water:
WALES 022 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
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I chose Conwy Castle because it looked the most like what a 7 year old would draw if you asked them to draw a castle. All the classical elements, a moat, a barbican, sitting on a point of land high above town, battlements, towers. It had everything I was looking for:
WALES 029 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
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Uhh, what’s that amazing looking suspension bridge leading right into the East Barbican? More on this later…
WALES 041 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
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Let’s go explore town. Admittedly, it’s full of trinket shops and restaurants, but none of it felt over-run with tourists or cheesy. I might have a different opinion in the summer:
WALES 066 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
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This is Plas Mawr, a 15th century residence that is reputed to be one of the oldest still standing in the area. It’s been charmingly restored and the hand cut and doweled roof trusses are amazing:
WALES 076 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
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Wait…what happened to the water? Apparently this inlet is subject to huge tidal swings…
WALES 085 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
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Wishing well…
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Let’s go see that bridge…
WALES 097 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
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It’s a Telford!
WALES 099 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
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Nighty night kids…
WALES 105 by Michael Stroh, on Flickr
I’m hesitant to put together a thread for London since we only hit up touristy things that have been covered as nauseum here. I did get some great photos of the financial district (The City). We did stop in Oxford for Chinese food and a quick walk as well.
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