Cardiff

After a 3 hour drive we finally arrived to Cardiff, Wales. Driving in Cardiff was a bit of a challenge and although we escaped unharmed, we did receive many honks for being in the wrong place at the wrong time! After a small crisis and a temporary lost child we checked into our hotel and got ready to enjoy the last city of our journey.

Once we settled in, we walked around the neighborhood and found a restaurant for dinner. We had a true life drama unfold in front of us as we watched the police arrest a young man, put him in their van, take him out of the van, put him back in the van and then ultimately release him. I am not sure what happened but I am sure it was a quite stressful afternoon for the gentleman.

The next morning, we grabbed breakfast and headed out for our last full day of exploring. We stopped at the local cathedral.

…and then headed over to Cardiff Castle.

Cardiff Castle started out as a Roman fort in about 50AD and parts of the Roman Walls still exist. Cat and I touched them and tried to imagine all the people who had touched them before us. As with most castles we have visited they were continually rebuilt and strengthened to become the castle that it is today.

We took the House Tour and got to see the Castle Apartments including the Winter Smoking Room, the Nursery, Lord Bute’s Bedroom and the Roof Garden.  Below is the fireplace that was in the Winter Smoking Room that actually existed inside of the Clock Tower. This room was one of my favorites because every inch of the decor had symbolic meaning. I could easily get lost for hours in there trying to decipher each of the scenes.

After the tour we continued exploring the various areas.

Cat took this awesome picture of the flag’s shadow against the castle wall. She definitely has a flair for photography.

We left the castle and explored the many markets in town.

We came across an amazing Harry Potter store and couldn’t resist taking this picture.

We decided to take the aquabus to get a view of the bay. On our way to the docks we came across a beautiful park with tons of cool wood statues.

It was a beautiful day and we were ecstatic that Wales gave us the gift of good weather for our last day.

After our cruise we stopped for our final dinner of the trip. Fish and Chips was the meal of choice at a lovely restaurant called Henry’s. We saw this sign and thought it was noteworthy. I think America should follow suit to be honest!

There was a beautiful double decker carousel that Cat decided to ride on.

Our final stop was at Thirty Nine Desserts. The variety of desserts they served were off the charts and included things like waffles, crepes, sundaes and so much more.

We decided on the crepes and ate every last bite!

After we finished our desserts, we got back to our car and made our way to Heathrow Airport. Our 10 hour flight the next morning was uneventful and we actually landed ahead of schedule.

It is good to be home but words can’t express how much fun we had over the past 2 weeks.  I am so proud of the traveler that Caitlyn is becoming and the person she is growing into. Several times she amazed me with her ability to figure out problems that we ran into and to bounce back when things didn’t go as planned.

I have had a few days to reflect on the trip and settle back into normal life. A trip like this changes you as a person. It is always a bit challenging to come back home to the life that is exactly as you left it knowing that you are not the same person that left 2 weeks before. The best cure for post trip depression is to start planning your next trip and we have already started trying to figure out what is next on the list!! Any suggestions?!