As I settle into my sixth day upon the mighty Whale, I can see how this place will start to feel like my home… given time. This community is rich with history, with personality, and with opportunities for adventure.
My senses are adapting to the constant stimulus of Cardiff. In Corvallis, there is quiet time and places for escape from the constant bustle. Here, there are always cars, people, horns, and the creak of old infrastructure serenading you.
Last Friday I met up with Skamp, Vivian, Armand, and their families. and we all went to cruise around the Cardiff Castle. Vivian added me to her group for the connoisseurs tour and walls tour, and holy hell were they amazing. The Castle is stunning enough from the outside, but to go into the rooms and learn the in-depth history of them while marveling at the artistry was next-level. The rooms were painted in the most elaborate ways by William Burges, who has a masterful mixture of structural knowledge and artistic skills, leading to each room having a specific theme. There was an Arab Room, a Horoscope Room, a Lovers Room, and much, much more. Truly breathtaking skill went into that room, inspiring me to continue to hone my skills as an artist so that I can one day achieve 1/5 of that ability.
After seeing the interior of the castle, we paused for some Welsh tea, then continued to get a tour of the Castle walls, telling the history of their construction, destruction, and the remaining bits. It was an amazing time that led us all around downtown Cardiff, through a shopping center, and back by the stadium. We traced where the old canal was, and saw how Cardiff utilized it to build lowered structures, and where merchants just haphazardly decided to remove the remainder of the Roman built wall in 1801 *pained eye twitch*.
I am very thankful to Vivian and Skamp for inviting me into their tour group, it was the most enjoyable and educational UK experience thus far. Amusingly, we know more about the castle now than many of the residents here do!
Returning home, tired and hungry since I was not at all prepared for such an outing (I probably walked over 12 miles yesterday), I found that our house had a fun little party in the basement. The blokes here are very nice, so after inhaling my dinner I relaxed with a glass of mead into their wonderful company. At 9:30 we went clubbing at The Buffalo, where a friend group member was DJing. It was alright, though I am not a Drum and Bass fan so I got bored and left around 1. It doesn’t compare to the wonderful shindigs held at The Church/ The Bike House though, and my heart fears none ever will.
And with that, ta ta, all.
Megzzzzzzz