I can finally say I’ve seen all of the UK. I’ve been to England, Scotland and Northern Ireland in the past, but always wondered about Wales. Why go there? What is there to do? Now, I’ve been and I’m glad we came. I would never have chosen Cardiff to visit. I’m actually not sure where I would have chosen. Which is probably one reason why I’d never made the trip. But, I really did love Cardiff, especially along the bay where we berthed Logos Hope.
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| Cardiff Castle |
- Tour Cardiff Castle. Pay for the guided tour. It’s worth it! Plan to spend a couple hours here. We came in the morning and then walked out the gates and across the street to choose a restaurant for lunch and ice cream place for dessert. There are loads of options, so you’ll definitely find something you are craving.
- Explore Mermaid Quay. This area has so much to do in terms of shopping, restaurants, coffee shops, a playground, a walking trail and beautiful views all around the bay. We didn’t spend hours here, but spent days. Almost every time we went out, it was to enjoy something at Mermaid Quay.
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| Mermaid Quay |
- Do dinner at Bills or lunch at Cozy Club. Both have such a cute atmosphere, great service and amazing food. At Bills, I got a burger and fries that was on special and it was delicious. At Cozy Club I got some type of a smoked salmon sandwich and it was so fresh and a good combination of herbs and flavors.
- Get work done at Quantum Coffee. I like this coffee shop for working on my blog because you can get a seat at a long table facing a window. As you work and take thinking breaks, it's a great place to people watch and get a little quiet time to yourself. The turmeric latte is amazing.
- Treat your friends at Full Fat Social. I went here several times with friends and everything I ordered was so good! Matcha latte, chai latte, take your pick. Everything my friends ordered was good too. Can’t go wrong.
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| Global Communications team outing |
- Go on a date night to The Botanist. The decorations were amazing, with the restaurant looking like it was blooming from within. Plants and vines everywhere. Very romantic for a night out with your loved one.
- Grab some welsh cakes at Fabulous Welshcakes. The cakes are delicious and made right in front of you! Also, there shop has lots of cute little gifts, jewelry and souvenir type products.
- Enjoy ice cream at Llanfaes Dairy. I think Ivy convinced us to take her five times in three weeks. Everything we tried was good and it’s fun to sit under the twinkle-light tree inside. The best flavor I tried was “Salted Butter Caramel”. I’m picky about ice cream so trust me when I say you shouldn’t miss this place.
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| Brunch at CinnAmore |
- Breakfast at the Welsh version of Cinnabon, CinnAmore. Baked fresh daily, this cinnamon rolls do not disappoint. We loved the “Blueberry” and the “Biscoff”, but our friends tried other flavors and no one complained.
- Eat dinner at Charley's Fish & Chips. The portions here were enormous! We love fish and chips and this place served them hot, yummy and more than we could eat.
- Walk around the bay. It’s possible to walk for miles, leaving Mermaid Quay, crossing the Barrage, entering into neighborhoods on the other side of the water. It’s beautiful and a fun way to pass the time with a friend and a good conversation. Just make sure to bring a coat and hat to block the wind because it can be quite strong.
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| The Enormous Crocodile by Roald Dahl |
- Keep an eye out for Benedict Cumberbatch biking to BBC. He apparently biked right past us while my head was down counting pocket change. I hate that, but our local friend says it's normal to see him biking around the Mermaid Quay and surrounding area because of filming at the BBC.
- Walk through Cardiff Market. The Cardiff Market has everything from bookshops, bread shops, cheese shops, tourist shops, jewelry and jewelry repair shops, restaurants, coffee shops and even fresh veggies, fruits and fish. We got rose flavored Turkish Delight at one of the booths and came back weeks later for more because it was so tasty.
- Shop at Little Welsh Company. Buy a love spoon for someone you love, a welsh blanket to keep warm or any other little trinket you find. The prices are better than some of the souvenir shops we walked through and the products are much nicer. It’s a very small, easy to miss place, but if you want to get gifts for anyone, I’d search this place out and shop there.
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| Saint Fagans National Museum of History |
- Spend a day at Saint Fagan’s National Museum of History. There are about 50 buildings on this property, all moved from various locations around Wales. The buildings are all living museums that you can walk through and many are even active shops. Make sure to bring cash to visit the bakery. They don’t accept cards and you’ll definitely want to snack on their hot, fresh pastries and loaves of bread. Our group bought a loaf of bread to share and just pulled off chunks to eat. It was basically our lunch and so yummy. We walked down to the cafe to grab a latte and some butter to go with it. Just remember you need cash on you!
- Shop at Tesco to find a box of “Mr Kipling Battenburg”. It's similar to the Faroese brick or a little Debbie. Rich in almond flavor, surrounded in marzipan, filled with moist, white cake and cream. Trust me. It may look like a cheap, boxed junk food snack, but it’s heaven. If you really can’t bring yourself to eat boxed cakes, then find WhoCult donuts in the city center and get a fresh box. They don’t disappoint either.
I have to say I would have liked to have taken the time to visit places close by like Bath, Stonehenge and the Cotswolds. But, with such a short visit, it was really incredible to do as much as we did. We’ll be in the UK a bit longer so maybe we’ll figure out how to visit the places we weren’t able to see this time.
