W is for Wales

Katie Hockenbury
Sep 2, 2018
3 min read

Updated: Sep 3, 2018

ree — Highclere Castle = Castle #1 on the Castle Count

So here I am, 2 days into 1 year, and, let's face it, I'm pooped. To be fair, almost every step of the process has been difficult in one way or another, plus I am admittedly a creature of habit. Until I get a regular schedule down, I will probably stay pooped. So anyway, let's start with how my morning went, September 1, 6:30 AM EDT I woke up after a long day of packing to do more packing. Zachary, who stayed at my Mom's house after a show he played in Philly, was fast asleep, and I needed to get back to packing. I, a self proclaimed worrier, had already started contemplating all of the ways the UK would definitely not let me in: 1. I will have forgotten a document necessary to immigration, 2. cleaning up a broken snow globe will cover my hands in the exact chemical they look for when spraying your hands for bombs (unlikely) 3. no one wants another American in their country so they will simply refuse me. Of course, that was the only part of the trip that went smoothly.

An open letter to United Airlines, You suck. But I already have a return flight scheduled with you so... try harder. Katie

All goes smoothly (my Dad and his wife Chris are taking a vacation with me while helping me get settled) and we get to the airport with little to no problems (until we try to check in, anyway). Well, in fact, I had checked in online the night before, but apparently, that attempt didn't work. Neither did the 15-some machines the assistant tried. After many failed attempts and a final desperate cry for help, the check in help desk finally took me (after 1 employee left for work right before taking me and a man cut in front of me because his problem was definitely more important than anyone else's) and it turned out that, while my Dad's seat had been moved away from our original selections, I did not have a seat at all. She sends us on our way to get a seat assignment at the terminal. When we finally get there and explain our troubles he says "Well she didn't check in". Long story short, eventually I was able to get on the plane seated next to a man who was texting "ICE" despite not having service for the full 7 hour flight. I watched "A Quite Place" and "Blockers", eating the food they gave me and drifting off on neck-breaking naps before a rude awaking for breakfast 6:00 AM BST. By 6:30 I was watching the thin layer of clouds cover Wales as we pass over and by 7:00 we were off the plane to grab our luggage and get checked at the boarder. Everything went smoothly as we were shuttled to the car rental and off we were with Dad in the right-sided driver's seat. After an hour of driving we reached Highclere Castle, the setting for the PBS series Downton Abbey. We took a tour, had some tea, and explored the gardens of the beautifully kept home.

ree — As Wales is considered the country with the most castles, expect this Castle Count to continue...

After some truly amazing drinks (I will definitely be having pimms and lemonade again before I leave) and food, we headed out to where we are staying now near Bangor, Wales. The 5 hour drive quickly turned into 7 as the journey was monotonous (all I hear about Wales is how boring it is but obviously those people have never driven 5 hours through the English midlands), our AC broke and we even took a small break to nap. As we approached our destination for the night- a small cottage on the edge of Snowdonia- with a tired Dad driving on the wrong side of the car, the road became thinner to the point where there were about 4 inches on either side of the car before the road turned to stone walls. Surrounding us was a beautiful view of the Irish Sea and (I truly cannot express how many) sheep. We met our hosts, made friends with the sheep dog, and drove to the 24/7 Tesco to pick up dinner and breakfast.