Wednesday, May 31, 2000
The Plan:
 Bath -> Minffordd 6:00 or 6:50
    Bath Spa       Minffordd         2  31.05.00     8:26 - 14:23 = 5:57
        Bath Spa               8:26     ExpressWales + West                TS RP AL
        Shrewsbury     11:15  11:30     Train  Central Trains              TS RP
        Machynlleth    12:42  12:52     Train  Central Trains
        Minffordd      14:23
    Bath Spa       Minffordd         2  31.05.00     9:01 - 15:52 = 6:51
        Bath Spa               9:01      ExpressFirst Great Western         MC RP
        Bristol Temple  9:15   9:26      ExpressVirgin Trains               CB MC RP
        Wolverhampton  11:27  11:56      ExpressCentral Trains
        Minffordd      15:52
    Bath Spa       Minffordd         3  31.05.00    11:38 - 18:34 = 6:56 (Too late)

Ffestiniog Railroad
Minffordd -> Blaenau Ffestiniog 1:00
    Porthmadog    0910 1025 1100 1135 1245 1345 1425 1455 1600 1810
    Minffordd     0920 1035 1110 1145 1255 1355 1435 1505 1610 1820
    Penrhyn       0925 1040 1115 1150 1300 1400 1440 1510 1615 1825
    Tan-y-Bwlch   0945 1105 1140 1220 1325 1425 1500 1535 1640 1855
    Blaenau Ff.   1010 1135  _   1250 1350 1455  _   1605 1705 1920

Blaenau Ffestiniog -> Betws-y-Coed 0:30
    Blaenau Ffestiniog  Betws-y-Coed 0  31.05.00    15:06 - 15:33 = 0:27
    Blaenau Ffestiniog  Betws-y-Coed 0  31.05.00    17:28 - 17:55 = 0:27
    Blaenau Ffestiniog  Betws-y-Coed 0  31.05.00    19:49 - 20:16 = 0:27
three nights in Betws-y-Coed
The Ferns Holyhead Road 01690 710587 2 rooms 2 nights, 1 room third night

Dimensiwn 4
    4 Bangor Street, Caernarfon, Gwynedd LL55 1AT 01286 678777 information@dimensiwn4.co.uk

Reality:
0600 wake up before alarm, sunny
0700 breakfast: bacon, sausage, oj, grapefruit and orange slices, toast
0710 Mom asks waiter: "Where's the porridge?"
     waiter looks confused and says: "I don't know much English"
     waiter's name tag says: "Manuel"
     I try to describe Faulty Towers to Mom
0826 (9)Bath Spa -> Bristol Temple Meads -> Newport -> Shrewsbury 1115
0826 find seat with table (more leg room)
0850 train backs out of Bristol Temple Meads, we switch sides of table
0855 too sunny, we switch sides of train
0929 train backs out of Newport, we switch sides of table
1130 (10)Shrewsbury -> Minffordd 1423, sunny then cloudy
1130 we take seat a table with a lady (who is reading P.D.James Innocent House), train proceeds to take left fork and then stop
1132 train backs up, we look confused, lady says, "I think they took the wrong fork"
1134 train moves forward again and takes right fork
1140 Mon and lady exchange stories about their grand kids (her's are 3 and 1 also)
1200 We talk about what humor works on both sides of Atlantic.
     She says everyone she knows thinks "Fraser" is sophisticated.
     I mentioned that thanks to Monty Python I knew what she meant by "Abattoir"
     I mentioned Manuel, she said, "Poor Andrew Sachs s a c h s, he's been typecast since."
     She says "Steve Martin has never been funny"
     I say he once said "I believe Ronald Reagan will turn this country into what it once was...
     An arctic region covered in ice."
     She laughed.
1242 parted ways in Machynlleth

1423 arrive in Minffordd
     walk toward Penhryn station, look for Portmierion Hotel
1500 find Penhryn station, not hotel

1510 (11)train comes by, we hop into First Class
1511 steward brings 7up £0.80
1515 guard charges £8.80 per.







1605 Blaenau Ffestiniog, go to gift shop

1630 drizzle starts
Ffestiniog Railroad
1728 (12)Blaenau Ffestiniog -> Betws-y-Coed 1755
1729 Juvenile delinquents sitting in luggage rack are squishing my luggage (read laptop)
1730 I stand beside luggage and endure 3 twelve going on eight females and their imbecilic banter.
     One even has a cell phone.
1755 goodbye white trash, hello Betws-y-Coed

1800 arrive at The Ferns

1900 dinner at The Gwydyr: Roast Lamb, fried potatoes, bread
2015 return to The Ferns, compose postcards, read

2200 lights out