1-day trip: Cardiff

My football team played against Cardiff City last Saturday. It was a final pre-season friendly match between a club that was about to complete their Premier League preparation and my team from back home: Athletic Club of Bilbao. So, the game was an excuse to go to Cardiff one a one-day trip.

Cardiff, spelled Caerdydd in Welsh, is the capital and largest city in Wales. It was made a city in 1905 and since 1990s, Cardiff has seen significant development. 

There are two main areas in Cardiff: the waterfront and city centre. The waterfront area at Cardiff Bay contains the Senedd building, home to the Welsh Assembly, and the Wales Millenium Centre arts complex. 

City Centre

After a 45-minute trip by train, you will get to the city centre. The central railway station is the largest and busiest station in Wales and one of the major stations of the British rail network. 

By the river shore, heading left as soon as you get out from the train station, you will find the Millenium Stadium. It is home of the Wales national rugby union team and hosted 11 football matches as part of the 2012 Summer Olympics, including the games' opening event and men's bronze medal match. The outstanding design is a work done by a team led by Bligh Loob Sports Architecture and opened in 1999. As a curiosity, it is the second stadium in the world with a fully retractable roof.

If we retrace our steps and go back to the train station, the pedestrian city centre will be located at our right. It consists of three shopping streets: Queen Street, St. Mary's Street and the Hayes. Along these road you will find large shopping centres as well as smaller specialized shops and boutiques. The Hayes has been scene for BBC's Doctor Who and Torchwood TV series. 

The new Central Library and the Alliance sculpture in front of it caught my attention: the building was specifically designed to be energy-efficient, and includes a sedum grass roof to improve insulation and reduce water run-off. The coloured glass panels and solar shading prevent excessive heat gains and a full Building Management System provides climate control to each of the five floors.

At the end of the shopping area, you will find the medieval Cardiff Castle. If you pay attention to the front wall, you will be able to identify parts of the original Roman fort. 

The essential admission ticket is £11 for adults  (£9.50 if student) and the daytime visit includes a presentation film, the visit to the interiors of Cardiff Castle and a free audio/guided tours. I have never visited the castle so I cannot tell you whether it is worth it or not, sorry!

UPDATE (4th Feb 2014): I have visited the castle in a later visit to Cardiff and there is not many things to see there. However, the views from the views from the tower are very very nice!

Cardiff City Hall, which was built in Portland stone, opened in 1906. It is a very beautiful building in the civic complex of Cathays Park. The clock behind is 194 feet high and it is very distinctive. It has one hour bell and four quarter bells which are each inscribed with mottoes in English or Welsh.


The National Museum of Wales, founded in 1907, is located right next to the City Hall. The entrance is for free thanks to a grant from the Welsh Government. The museum has collections of archaeology, botany, fine and applied art, geology and zoology. In 2011, it was transformed into a hands-on exploration centre.

Behind the National Museum of Wales, in Alexandra Gardens, there is the Welsh National War Memorial monument which conmemorates the servicemen who died during the WWI and WW2. On the frieze above the collumns are inscriptions in Welsh, on the outer side, and in English, on the inner side: "I FEIBION CYMRU A RODDES EU BYWYD DROS EI GWLAD YN RHYFEL MCMXVIII" (to the sons of Wales who gave their lives for their country in the War 1918).

Cardiff Bay Area

Mermaid Quay, it is called. You can smell the chic and cosmopolitan atmosphere in Cardiff Waterfront where you can find restaurants, cafes, bars and shops.

The bay is supplied by two rivers: Taff and Ely. The Bay forms a fresh water lake and the access to the sea is limited by three locks. I found it very beautiful the walk around the lake. It takes around 1.5h to walk it, and you get a very nice view of Cardiff from the other side of the lake.

Do not rush the walk, it is really worth it!




LINKS
-------------
Cardiff Castle: http://www.cardiffcastle.com/