Cardiff is a must • Folksy Travel by Bill Smale

when you’re going into Wales it’s a really good idea to start in the south visiting Cardiff 1st. It gives you a general history and sense of the country. It also hosts some of the very important monuments such as Cardiff castle. This town is very much a cross-section of England and Wales. It gives you a multiple perspective of the ancient attempts to occupy and subdue the people in Wales. That’s why I say “Cardiff is a must“.

Paddington Bear greeting Cardiff is a must — would you visit Cardiff Castle you will be greeted by Paddington bear

Chinese fast food food Cardiff is a must — Just out and about finding a Chinese fast food restaurant which has good reviews on Google maps but obviously by touristS. It was a box take away restaurant with a lot of seating but you still just get the box.

Old style house houses Cardiff is a must — There are many of these old timber brick and plaster houses in Cardiff

Cardiff castle

Cardiff Castle was started by the Normans and has a very long and interesting history. The son of William the Conqueror imprisoned William here in order to lessen his power. From the end became a seat of power for much of Wales.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiff_Castle

Court of Castle entrance Bill Smale — The entrance to the castle

The castle Cardiff is a must — The castle from a distance

Cardiff Castle Clocktower Bill Smale — This clock tower is very interesting

Cardiff Castlegate Bill Smale — This gate actually looks very welcoming

The sitting room Bill Smale — The elaborate rooms were created by the Marquess of Bute, a descendent of the royal Stuart family of Scotland and also of the Bruces

Beautiful inside Bill Smale — Unbelievably beautiful ornateness

Storytelling — All of the decorations were employed to tell stories

Fireplace — Each room had a fireplace to keep it warm. You will notice the family crest over the fireplace

The children’s playroom — The playroom for the children. The walls were decorated with an ancient tales to educate and entertain the children

A man behind the bird — Around the bird is an outline of a man. This was John who had this room decorated for his children

Very secure door — A very secure door to lock someone in

Musicians loft — The loft above was used for the musicians

Storytelling at Cardiff Castle — Again, storytelling within the design. Look at the castle above the fireplace. In the lower left you will see the face of a man behind bars. That was William the conqueror who was imprisoned here

John’s bedroom Cardiff castle — This was John’s bedroom. You notice in the right side of the room several corners where people could sit. The sun would shine at different places during the day so the people live here could change where they sit to get the sun.

Fountain and garden — There was always glass up above to bring in sunlight to this fountain and gardenroom with storytelling around the walls

Beautiful ceiling — This is a really beautiful ceiling

Embedded gems — These are real gems embedded in the middle of these squares in the ceiling

Family shield over the fireplace — Over one fireplace was a family shield, actually two. One was John’s family on the left and on the right was his wife’s shield

World leaders at Cardiff Castle — World leaders gathered here after 2008

Obama attending Cardiff castle — President Obama attended

Cardiff cathedral

Street view of the cast — The castle from the street

Old burial plot within the cathedral — This burial site was so old it was difficult to even tell it was someone buried under here

Family crest — The family crest of one of the royalty. The Plantagenets loved to use lions

Castle of Cardiff owners’ crests — Here you can see the crestS of the different owners of the castle

These two windows were commissioned by Sophia, Marchioness of Bute in 1855. At this time Sopia was a widow, and her son (John, the third Marquis) was still a minor. No information is yet known on the designer or maker of these windows, though it seems safe to assume they were created by the same person given the similarity of design. The left hand window shows the paternal arms of the donor, and the other window shows the arms of the families to have possessed Cardiff Castle from 1091 to the mid 19″ century.

Guest house in Cardiff — This was my hotel, guest house which was completely adequate

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