Cardiff, 4/1/07

Breakfast in the lovely room of the B&B with a large window view of the garden. Finally struck up a conversation with some other guests, about where we'd been and where we were going, british tv and films, world travels in general, and friends with children. Hit the road by 10:15 on the way to Wales.

Funny thing about the tollbridge to Wales - you have to pay to get in, but getting back out of Wales is free. hmmm...

We got to town, took some time to find parking and get oriented, ate a not very good lunch in a cafeteria-type thing and went out to find the Tourist Information place. Finally found it, where they gave us a fantastic map and told us that without a doubt there was absolutely not enough time to see the Doctor Who exhibit at Red Dragon Centre and St Fagan's Museum of Welsh Life.

HA. We showed them.

Went to St. Fagan's first, and the lovely gentleman at the front desk said that we absolutely DID have enough time. We could certainly use more time if we'd had it, but we'd be able to get our money's worth. And boy was he right. (For one thing, admission was free.) If anyone is wondering whether or not to visit St. Fagan's, DO. Do Not Miss it. They get everything right there. All the guides were Welsh, and are extremely helpful without being overly intrusive. Down to the very last one, they were friendly and knowledgeable. Check out the Flickr site for some photos from the museum. As an added bonus, I found out that Doctor Who had filmed an episode there that hadn't even aired yet!

After St. Fagan's we went back to town for Doctor Who exhibit, and mom got to see me at my geekiest. No really. I seriously geeked out. I think that I was so Happy to be seeing all of the props and costumes from the shows that I actually convinced her to check out the show sometime. ...all part of my nefarious plan. Mouaahahahahaa.
Walked around Mermaid Quay - an absolutely lovely little area, much nicer than downtown cardiff. We poked around the Millenium Centre, where the Torchwood headquarters are said to be, and got lots of pictures. Again with the geeking out.

Finally, the sun went down and I had gotten all of the pictures I possibly could (plus, my camera batteries were running out, damn them), so we got some sandwiches to go at Subway (shut up), and headed on out to the Vineyeard where we'd be staying the night. We arrived too late for a wine tasting (my biggest regret - sorry, mom!), but the room was perfect - a bathtub for mom, and high-speed internet for me. -perfection! Ate dinner while surveying all of my plunder from the Doctor Who gift Shop. I'd show you photos, but I was so excited to open my presents that all of the photos turned out blurry. I'm not even kidding. Stayed up late trying out Yahoo voice chat (highly recommended - it was crystal clear!), then went to sleep feeling fat and happy.