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Published: September 3rd 2009
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Cardiff Castle Belltower
The ornately decorated and colorful belltower overlooks Cardiff Castle. I awoke this morning to pouring rain outside. After about a half hour of waiting (and extra rack time) I set out for my run. I ran down to Cardiff Bay, a section of town about 1.5 miles south of city center, since it wasn’t covered in the general tour guides.
When I got back, one of my roommates and his wife, a couple from the Netherlands, gave me a guide to Paris. Yesterday I mentioned to them that I was heading to Paris in a few days and they talked about how much they loved the city. Little did I expect them to take time to write down a list of his favorite spots outside the tour books and a description of each. What nice people.
When I arrived yesterday, I had picked up a free walking tour guide at the tourist office. It serves as a guide for about 40 of Cardiff’s sights. Today I embarked on that tour.
One of my first stops was Cardiff Castle. The castle’s origins date back 2,000 years ago when the Romans controlled much of Britain. Since then it served as a castle for medieval knights and a home for
One lucky guy
If 'they' are correct and getting pooped on by seagulls does in fact bring good luck, this guy better head to Vegas. a wealthy family. After watching a brief video on the history of the castle, I toured the grounds with an audio guide. My favorite parts were the views of the city from the Keep and the ornately decorated interior of the castle apartments. The intricate details and regal appearance of the ceilings in the Arab Room were astonishing.
After touring the castle for a couple hours and a walk around the city hall area I went back to Cardiff Market for lunch. It was there I found an all new delicacy to try.
WARNING: This next part may be offensive to some although this is not the author’s intent.
I was a bit bummed that I wouldn’t make it to Scotland this trip since I enjoyed the Scottish
haggis so much. I found a delightful substitute with a colorful name to take its place. To be fair, the reason I first noticed faggots was because of the name. I actually had quite the chuckle over it thinking about how one goes about ordering it. I even had a colorful email chain with the fellows where one suggested it might be some sort of sausage dish.
What
Mmmm
My favorite dish so far - faggots with chips, peas and gravy. I found was that faggots are actually quite similar to haggis in that they are a kind of meat ball, traditionally made from pig’s heart, liver and fatty belly meat or bacon, minced together, with herbs and breadcrumbs added. Everything a growing boy needs. Thanks
Wiki. The ones I had were served with chips (fries), peas and gravy. Like haggis, don’t knock it ‘til you try it. You’re doing yourself a disservice.
I could think of no finer way to celebrate my new love for faggots than with my favorite beer, Caffrey’s Irish Ale. It just so happens that while I couldn’t find Caffrey’s in Belfast, where it’s from, a Cardiff pub called the Borough has Caffrey’s on draft. And what’s more, it was only £2 (about $3) a pint. Can’t beat that.
After my Caffrey’s I finished up the walking tour in the rain. It’s been raining ever since. And it poured on my way to dinner.
Tonight’s been a laid back night. Tomorrow I divert from my original plans to visit Dave Webster at Oxford.
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