Noson dda o Gymru! According to Google, I've just wished you good evening from Wales. Not that I'm really trusting Google today since I was misled - literally - twice by Maps on our Cardiff adventure. Ah Cardiff. We arrived via a very uncomfortable train to a downpour (which we were expecting but I still didn't bring an umbrella because I loathe to carry stuff all day long). Nixed were our plans to visit St. Fagen's outdoor history extravaganza and in its place Cardiff's National Museum played our lead role. She was an excellent museum, if also a bit strange. The 4th floor housed a large art museum, with many impressionist pieces as well as a good selection of oldies and a bit of modern art as well. It was organized in a way that was kind of confusing, with eras often mixed together in the same room, organized instead by subject matter or as comparisons to each other. Not complaining at all. It was interesting and refreshing. Then, the 2nd floor (which was also the ground floor??) housed a complete natural history museum. We toured through the beginnings of the planet, through trilobite times (is that an era?), to the every satisfying dinosaur displays, and then on to the lousy humans, ruining it for everyone. Not a bad way to spend a Welsh morning!
We were pleasantly surprised to find sunny skies and a nice brisk wind greeting us as we went to our next stop. Once again, we had tea. I swear, this is the last time, really! (oh - except probably on the QM2 on our voyage home, but who counts that?). It was held at the Pettigrew Tea House, right next to Cardiff's golden gem, the Cardiff Castle (more on that later). No humans disguised as rats were found at this establishment. I checked. On our walk to tea, we were treated to the spectacle of Cardiff's Animal Wall. It's a wall with animals perched on it - not real animals - animal statues kind of perched on or climbing over a stone wall. That amusement is reason in itself to visit Cardiff, my friends. I want an animal wall in Minneapolis. Who's with me? Back to tea: it was very tea-like and tasty and the scones won first prize. Also, Mom and I decided we are tea-ed out. We've had so much. So very very much.
Our next stop was Cardiff Castle. It's a huge venue with many attractions, but we decided to spend our time touring the fancy rooms. And fancy they were! I keep trying to picture folks actually living in these spaces, having arguments with their kids or spilling their milk on the carpet or farting or something. I just can't imagine. And as I was musing about long-dead-people-farts, I found out that these very farters were our ancestors! Now, don't ask me to be specific here because I don't know. Genealogy is Mom's field of expertise, but I do trust her research (and if you know her, you'll understand that she is to be counted on for precise, detailed, outlined-via-spreadsheet research). So in a way, I suppose I kind of own the castle, huh? That's probably for the best because I think I farted when I was in there.
Finally, at the very end of our day, we let Google trick us into going down the wrong street in our attempt to find our evening's restaurant. Okay, I know what most of you are thinking. I have the WORST sense of direction, and I cannot be trusted, especially compared to the genius that is Google Maps. BUT - I have a witness that can corroborate the facts in the case. I'm just going to say this: Wyndham Arcade and Mills Lane are two different places, Google. Adjacent, but NOT the same. Dinner was good and that's all I have to say about that. The train ride back to London was long and loud so we are so very happy to be back in the flat, in pajamas, enjoying this very fine evening in London. If Wales is on your bucket list, then be very jealous of us today.
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