The penultimate episode of Season 1 of “The Real Housewives of Rhode Island” had set up an overnight trip to Block Island for the finale, so no one should be surprised that three filming locations in the season-ending 12th episode were all related to the island 12 miles off the southern coast.
Besides those, the June 14 installment of the Bravo reality series included scenes in the homes of cast members Rulla Nehme Pontarelli, Alicia Carmody and Kelsey Swanson as they were getting ready for the trip and recapping some of the drama that brought the series to this point.
The episode also turned to news footage of the arrest of Rulla’s husband, Brian Pontarelli, on charges that he had been tracking her car, and several of her castmates visiting her Lincoln home to discuss the situation.
The finale ended with previews for the two-part reunion, which was filmed in a Bravo studio. The parts air Sundays, June 21 and 28, at 9 p.m. on Bravo.
Here’s where the finale filmed:
Block Island Ferry, Galilee
The view as you arrive at Old Harbor on Block Island aboard the ferry.
We were wondering whether the “Housewives” cast and their mates might fly to Block Island on New England Airlines from Westerly State Airport or even get friends of cast member Liz McGraw in the boating community to sail them across the 12 miles to the island in the Atlantic, but they opted for the way most Rhode Islanders get there: the Block Island Ferry.
The cast met up at the ferry dock in the Narragansett village of Galilee and boarded the “Hi-Speed Ferry,” a 99-foot catamaran capable of taking 250 passengers. On the cruise over, some cast members sit inside and discuss the wonders of Dramamine. “Housewife” Ashley Iaconetti and her husband, Jared Haibon, head to the top deck.
“Sun and salt water is where I feel my most alive and pretty,” said Ashley, referring to “pure ‘Titanic’ vibes.” She demonstrated these by imitating actor Kate Winslet “flying” in the multi-Oscar-winning movie by extending an arm like a wing while the wind swept back her hair.
As the boat pulled into Old Harbor and the cast disembarked, a montage flashed across the screen, showing clay cliffs, the Southeast Lighthouse, the Water Street Inn and the National Hotel, while Rulla explained the island’s charms: “Block Island is special because we have endless coastline. Beautiful waters. Quaint homes. Great restaurants. Of course, the best seafood, right? I mean, it is Rhode Island.”
Ballard’s Beach Resort on Block Island is shown in a 2013 photo.
The cast seems to head right from the ferry to Ballard’s Beach Resort, where Kelsey, the nominal host for this trip, told the group, “Feel free to set yourself up wherever. This is all ours,” as staff members handed out strawberry daiquiris in tumblers carved out of pineapples, topped with little paper umbrellas.
The stop at Ballard’s allows several plot points for the finale to be set up:
Liz and fellow cast member Jo-Ellen Tiberi “go take a walk in the sun” and put to rest differences that had been festering since the trip to Capo Supper Club in Boston.
Alicia’s fiancé, Billy Kitsilis, tells Jo-Ellen’s husband, Gary Tiberi, that he’s thinking of reproposing to Alicia after nine years of engagement and one daughter. Said Tiberi: “I think you’re going to hit a home run with that.”
Rulla said she’s tired of the drama surrounding Brian’s indiscretions with the woman the show calls “the mistress.” Said Rulla: “I just want to handle my story my own way. Is that OK?”
Cocktails at sunset on the lawn at the Atlantic Inn on Block Island.
When the cast checked in at the Atlantic Inn for the overnight stay, the staff was waiting for them with a tray of blue drinks, and the hostess, Emily, announced that she is from Warwick, which drew cheers from the cast. And then a lot got covered.
The audience learned that, in addition to issues with driving, Alicia has issues with stairs.
Billy wasted no time before taking Alicia out to the lawn, where two white Adirondack chairs were set up within a heart-shaped arrangements of candles, and he got down on one knee and, for a second time, asked her to marry him. Several cast members watched from second-floor windows, and Rosie Woods DiMare cheered, prompting claps and cheers from Alicia.
Jo-Ellen went to Rulla’s room, where the two agreed never to bring up Brian’s affair again.
Meanwhile, the husbands met in a downstairs room and reached a similar arrangement.
Then, the entire cast met at a long table set up on the lawn for a chilly, after-dark clambake. The entertainment for the evening was a game introduced by Kelsey called “Clamshell Confessional,” where each “Housewives” cast member picked a clamshell from a basket, had to read a question written on the back, and then select someone to answer it.
Jo-Ellen picked first: “Who is most likely to have a safe word?”
The group instantly answered that Jo-Ellen was most likely to have this “Fifty Shades of Grey” code word for “stop,” and her husband divulged that it’s “pineapple.”
After the group shared the embarrassing Q&A, Kelsey proclaimed the ice-breaker a success. “I feel like tonight, we’re all on the same page here.”
Gondolas glide on the water before a 2012 WaterFire lighting in Providence.
It’s only a mini scene, as on-screen text gives an epilogue for each couple, but viewers get to see Rosie and her husband, Rich DiMare, glide along the Providence River in one of the city’s trademark Venetian gondolas.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Where the ‘Real Housewives of Rhode Island’ finale was filmed
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