20130603 Cardiff Sunny, warm. Can't believe the nice weather.

Owen-Photos
Dolores-Photos

We were up before the alarm went off, since we went to sleep early. We breakfasted next to a lady from New Zealand who is driving up Wales to the ferry. Lots of chat about traveling.

Then we drove down the A470. Our plan was to drive to the Cardiff Airport to turn in the car, then get a cab to town. We did all right until we approached the airport where there were roundabouts on top of roundabouts. I missed a turnout and then missed another. We let the GPS get us to the airport via little back roads from there. But we got there, and turned in the car to a Hertz person who thought it was cool that we brought him an Audi A1.

The taxi took us in very efficiently and dropped us at the Royal Hotel, an older place (1866) but well located, being right down the street from the Castle and only a few blocks from the Cardiff Central railroad station we'll need on the 5th.

We were far too early to check in, so we left our luggage and began exploring. We walked up to the castle and caught the hop-on-hop-off bus. We made a full circuit (nearly an hour) and found some of the things we want to do. We returned to the Castle and walked in as far as the ticket-taker. We saw a ceremony had just completed since many officers and dignitaries were departing. In asking, we found it was to commemorate Queen Elizabeth's 60th year on the throne.

We went back across the street into a souvenir place and bought a couple of little things. Then we went around the corner and drew cash from a machine. Then into a pub called “The Goat Major” for a drink; it's in “Britain's Best Pubs” and is very nice looking. But it only serves beers from the Brains Brewery and I didn't find one to make me happy.

The name “The Goat Major” comes from the fact that the regimental mascot of the 41st Welsh Regiment is a goat. The person detailed to care for the goat and to present it at publicity functions and at regimental presentations was dubbed “The Goat Major”. One sergeant recently retired after being the goat major for 35 years.

We walked back to the hop-on-hop-off and took it as far as the Dr Who Experience. We went in, claimed our reserved tickets and entered. There was a three-scene video, fog, smoke, movement, and special effects. Then followed the static displays of things from all the Doctors and their enemies. Dolores was quite struck with the whole thing and pronounced our Dr Who visit a success.

Then we walked past several places (Norwegian Church, Lightship, etc.) to go to the Millenium Center to take pictures of it. It appears in many episodes of Dr Who. We captured the hop-on bus here and returned to the Castle. We walked down High Street which changes to St Mary's Street to our hotel.

Check-in was efficient and we went to our room (416) which is a spacious modern room and very nice. We put our stuff into the room and came back to the desk. The staff person gave us a recommendation for dinner. We looked at it, then looked around the old Brewery complex at several other restaurants. We decided the recommendation, the Meating Place, looked ok and went in.

It's nicely furnished to look a little rustic. We were the first customers of the evening. We ordered breads-with-oil. D ordered her rack of lamb and I ordered the cod. The breads were delivered with oil-on-balsamic and we dipped enthusiastically. Her rack was served as four small chops on top of potatoes and carrots and leek. My cod came on top of capers, tiny beans, black olives and a few small tomato slices.

By the end of the meal we agreed it was the best we've had this trip. Everything worked together so well. It was really well executed.

We took a short walk afterward and returned to the room. There, we started the computer chores and watched some BBC TV. I'm going down to the bar for a nightcap and to tell the staff person her recommendation was spot on.

Then it will be time to relax.


20130604 Cardiff, Wales Sunny, over 70*

Owen-Photos
Dolores-Photos

We had no plan for the day, so it turned out well.

After breakfast in a little shop in an arcade which was surprisingly good, we set out to find two zippered tote bags. One of ours has torn and is useless and we need another for the goodies.

We soon found that downtown Cardiff is nearly one big shopping center. Several adjacent streets are pedestrian-only and there's a place where a whole city street has been covered over and is a shopping mall. Lots of the names are American but the majority are British.

We wandered about and stumbled into a guide for the mall, who directed us to the tourist center. There we found some souvenirs and (hurrah) a tote with Cardiff lettering and designs for £9. We grabbed it and went on. Eventually we came upon a Primark and in it we found another unlabeled large tote suitable for throwing into the luggage rack in an airplane and took it.

Then we brought our prizes back to the hotel, where we found a maid still cleaning our room. We sat in the bar lounge waiting; then the manager sent in coffee for us while we waited. That was a nice gesture and appreciated.

We stowed our goods, sat for a bit, took aspirin for our feet, then headed out again. We walked several blocks to Bute Park next to the Castle, on the River Taff, intending to look at the flowers there.

But we came across a harbor tour boat and hopped aboard for a round trip out to the harbor buildings. We shot pictures as we went and completely enjoyed our trip.

Back in the park, we did walk around shooting flowers and enjoying the cloudless sky and the sun. Hundreds of others had the same thing in mind and were settled all over lawns and in gardens. We continued our hike along the animal wall (stone animals on top of the wall at intervals) to the castle.

We decided to take one more circuit of the hop-on-hop-off but the one leaving at the time had canned narration; we decided to take the following one with a live narrator. To kill the time we went into the Goat Major again (see yesterday) for a pint and a glass. Better beer this time.

We sat in the back of the upper deck in the sun and shot more pictures as we went around again. Just a beautiful day.

We decided on Italian for an early dinner and headed for the Italian restaurants in the Brewery Quarter. However, we came across a Jamie Oliver place called Jamie's Italian. We took a table for two outside in the sun and breeze. A bottle of house rosso helped us relax and order the food. D had crispy fried squid for starter and then pork over pasta. I had fennel and orange salad and then Italian Sausage in onions, peppers and capers.

The sausage came out snake-like woven back and forth across the narrow plate and on a skewer with bread chunks in the weave. It was delicious. Dolores liked her little baby squids with tiny tentacles. The noodle under the pork was one continuous noodle, obviously made in-house. She liked the pork and pasta very much.

Then we slowly strolled back to the hotel to settle in, relax, pack, and do computer chores. Tomorrow, we're off to Heathrow.