With not much else to do in Newport, I had a relaxed morning in my hotel and then headed to the train station. I knew I would be arriving in Cardiff earlier than I had told my next hotel, so I decided to wait for a later train. The trains came so often, that waiting for three trains to go to Cardiff before boarding, I had only been in the station for about 20 minutes. So I took the train and decided to have a long lunch in the station to arrive at my hotel at a more appropriate time. I also decided to wait for the rain to lighten up a bit before walking the mile to my hotel.
It's hard to describe how excited I was to get to my hotel. The walk to it, although a bit long with a heavy suitcase, was through the center of Cardiff and I was really intrigued by the city. But the thing that was the most exciting was the fact that I will be in my hotel for five consecutive nights. No long haul to a hotel for a single night, a quick pack in the morning, and back on the train. It feels like I am moving into this hotel. This may become my new home.
After an hour or two of decompressing, I decided to wander towards Cardiff center. I entered Sophia's Garden, a large, green park along the River Taff. I walked right on the river bank, enjoying the quite of the setting. I noticed what I believe is a grey heron fishing in the shallows. As I worked to switch my camera lens to a longer zoom, the heron took off and I was able to capture some pictures of it flying and landing farther down the river.
I moved farther along the banks, trying to get closer so I could get more pictures of the bird. As I walked, the poor heron began to be harassed by a flock of seagulls. Before I was close enough to get photos, the gulls had chased the heron far down the river.
I crossed over a footbridge from Sophia's Garden to Bute Park, another part of Cardiff's "green lung."
I wandered aimlessly through the park, so I stumbled upon things, rather than knowing what I should be finding. I saw the preserved layout of an old friary and a circle of standing stones, which I'm doubting are original. Even in the rainy weather, the blooming flowers and the greenery reminded me of warmer seasons.
I angled my way towards Cardiff Castle and walked around the walls. I'm already a big fan of the castle, and I've seen very little of it so far. It has a dramatic, tall wall that is surrounded by a very proper moat. I think the moat may be reformed and different from medieval times (certainly Roman times; the River Taff now runs a different course than it did in ancient times). But still, it looks fantastic today!
I got quite hungry pretty early in the evening so I started heading back towards my hotel and some restaurants in the area. On my route back is the Animal Wall. The wall was thought up in 1866, but not constructed until 1890. The wall originally had nine animals climbing over the wall and six were added later. They were renovated in 2010 and look fantastic. It seems like the local zoo has had a massive escape and you'll see an elephant on Castle street at any second.
One last site I saw on my way back to my hotel was the Millennium Stadium. It was built for the 1999 Rugby World Cup and has been used to host rugby and football matches, as well as concerts and large events. I don't think the picture really does it justice, but it is a very interesting building!
After my wandering, I stuffed myself with a gigantic calzone and had a quiet evening back at my hotel. Excited to do more exploring tomorrow!
Fun Fact #16: Cardiff was named the capital of Wales in 1955. Caernarfon was also considered for the capital city, but instead Cardiff was named and later became the seat for the National Assembly of Wales, now housed in a building called the Senedd.
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