Next country - Wales

 

Wednesday 

17July 

Day 17

79 to go

While I woke refreshed and ready for the day, Paul had struggled with the traffic noise. Unfortunately the apartment was situated on a main road and the bedroom was basically a meter from it. While it quietened down around 10pm, the trucks heading to the wharf began at 2am and then regular road traffic was back up and running for 5am. 

We were awake by 7am. Paul got up and started, while I was happy to hang in bed reading for a bit. It didn’t last long. I was soon out eating breakfast and then packing up our things ready to begin the new day. 

We joined the morning commute traffic, following the GPS to observatory hill, to take in the view of the suspension bridge. It was a bit of a challenge to get there, with some wrong turns, bus lanes and choice words, but we made it eventually. 

After paying for parking, nothing is free, we wondered through the park land to the suspension bridge viewing areas. We also did a walk around the observatory building, before returning to the car and starting our journey to Wales, but first it was over the suspension bridge for 1 pound and then onto to the bridge that connects England with Wales. 

Most of the drive was via the motor way, but nearing the end of the journey, we had to venture onto the city streets of Cardiff and it became complicated once again. Finding parking proved challenging, but in the end we parked under the Millennium Stadium. Paul was thankful to have a rest from the road. 

This morning we were off to Cardiff Castle. We eventually located the entrance, bought our tickets and downloaded the self guided app https://www.cardiffcastle.com/see-do/audio-guide/. We wandered through a hall housing 2000 year old Roman ruins and sculpted art work on the wall. 

We then walked up stairs to check out part of the out wall. 

From here, we moved onto the the house. This was quite opulent. The Arab Room had gold leaf on the ceiling. There was ornate wallpapers and paintings everywhere you looked. The stained glass windows were beautiful and the library held so many tomes. 

After enjoying the home, we wandered across to the keep. This was around building, surrounded by a moat, designed to keep the people safe. We were able to walk the 100 narrow steps to the very top and check out the great view over the castle and across the now modern city. 

The grounds were full of activity, as there are concerts being held over the summer. Roadies were setting up for tomorrow’s gig, Madness. It just happened this was also the shirt Paul was wearing.

After the Keep, we walked along the outer walls and in the dark tunnels beneath. After this, it was time for us to find somewhere for lunch. 

We wandered into the city and down cute arcades before deciding on a little sandwich bar. We ate and then moved on to a Portuguese Tart store for dessert. 

After stopping at Weatherspoons for a drink, returned to the car, made our way out of the dodgy, underground carpark and made for Swansea. Thankfully, the hour drive was a little easier and navigating Swansea was a breeze compared to Cardiff. We found a parking area near our accommodation and took a big calming breathe when we were finally parked. 

Our home for 2 nights was on the Harbourside quay. It was a lovely little spot. We enjoyed a walk around, checking out the boats and the little restaurants and pubs. We then made our way seaside to check out the beach, which was actually quite lovely and for once there was sand. 

We wandered the beachside path checking out those brave enough to be in the water. It was quite a warm day and I was hanging to get into shorts. We returned to the accommodation, at 4pm, collected the keys from a restaurant down stairs, then followed the instructions, 10th floor, room 60 of the Meridian apartments. After exiting the escalator, we opened the door on a Seaview view, it was spectacular. We returned to the car for our cases and then Paul moved the vehicle into our undercover parking space. Now we could relax.

We stayed put for a couple of hours, just enjoying the nothingness. I rang Mum and Dad to check in and then we thought about dinner. There was a Tesco 5 min away. So we wandered over gathered supplies for 2 days and returned to cook up our sumptuous fillet steak. 

After tea, we did a walk on the beach. It had disappeared in the hours we had been chilling. None the less, it was great to be walking in shorts and thongs on the wet sand at 8pm and still be light. There were still plenty of people out doing the same. 

After 40min, we made our way back ready for a new adventure tomorrow.