Cardiff and All the Castles

I was on the fence about going to Cardiff, because we would have such limited time there--but Taylor said we should at least go sample Wales's capital city, since we could always go back on another trip if we loved it.  So we decided to visit Cardiff in the morning and then hit up some surrounding castles in the afternoon (when hopefully the predicted rain stopped). 
 
One must see? The new Paddington bear statue at Cardiff Castle! Elowen discovered Paddington on this trip and watched Paddington in Peru obsessively for about three days before completely losing interest forever after. Despite that, we were both excited to see Paddington with one of his beloved marmalade sandwiches. 
 
  


Cardiff Castle was pretty crowded and also it was raining off and on, so we decided to snap a few pictures and carry on, with the full intention to return one day.

    
 
  

We also ducked into the Cardiff Market to escape the rain, and it proved to be an excellent place to hide out for a bit.

 

I had a bowl of fried gnocchi from Dirty Gnocchi and it was as delicious as it looks.

 
The market was also full of little stalls selling flowers, books, fresh vegetables and fruits, and trinkets. 
 
 

 
One sweet must in Wales are the Welsh cakes, also known as bakestones--flat little cakes that resemble a scone. I suppose one should get them from Cardiff Bakestones in the market, because it had a huge line and many delectable flavors. However, I do not like lines and a little shop down the row was selling them with no line--so that's where we got them. They were a little bland, but in a good way? I liked them in the same way I like shortbread, meaning I can eat many of them at once. They're just the right amount of sweet, with a texture a bit drier and more crumbly than cake. Elowen was a fan too.
 
 
And of course Taylor couldn't be left out of snacking, so we went to a little cafe on the top floor of the market where I asked for just one Yorkshire pudding--they're usually served on the side, but I've never had one and just wanted to try it. The cashier told the cook I'd never had one, and the chef came out incredulous with my little plate of puddings: "What, ye've never had a Yorkshire puddin?" It was indeed quite good and savory, but you can't really go wrong with gravy on bread.
 
 

Another must-see in Cardiff are the arcades, glass-covered passageways from the Victorian and Edwardian times that are lined with shops and restaurants. They were also perfect to duck into as we avoided the rain, which seemed bent on not stopping. 


Around lunchtime, though, I started getting anxious about all the castles I was missing--while there were museums and other sites in Cardiff I'd like to see, I wasn't immediately wowed by the city and was willing to move on. First stop? Castle Coch (which means "red"), set within the beech forests of Forest Fawr. It's small but packed with splendor inside, built on the remains of a 13th century castle in "High Victorian" style by a very rich and whimsical marquess.   
 
    


 

 


I did feel for the servants while wondering around this castle--you basically have to go up another flight of stairs to get to any room; the towers are narrow. Carrying water and food (or really anything) must have been a trial.

From Castle Coch, we headed to Caerphilly, the biggest castle in Wales and the third biggest in the UK. It was built in the 13th century and looks like it's rising from the lake. Elowen was getting bored at this point, but pressed on with the promise of seeing dragons on the castle grounds.  

  

    
 
  
 
 
 
  
 

  
  

And because I can never be castled out, we hit a third in Caldicot at the end of the day. It was closed so we unfortunately couldn't go in, but the ruins looked lovely and we ended up having a drink at the nearby Castle Inn. There were kids playing soccer in front of the castle, and running around its moat, and I truly can't imagine that kind of life--just growing up where a castle is so commonplace it serves as a background to your childhood games, barely noticed. (Also below...a pavlova and a berry cider that I enjoyed and now can't remember where I ate them!)

 
 
   


And random pictures that got pulled into this post--the dragon in the little village near Tintern Abbey and hiking off the side of the road.

  

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