Cardiff - London 2015 - Part 1

Arriving In Cardiff

Friday - May 1st 2015

Claudia and I are big fans of the United Kingdom. Until now we have been to London and Scotland and this years we wanted return to London. We are also big Doctor Who fans and since Cardiff is home to the Doctor Who Experience, we decided to combine a trip to London with a visit to Wales' capital city. Our easyjet flight departed from Munich in the morning and so we had to get up early. After we checked in at the airport, we had a cup of coffee and soon it was time for boarding. Around 11:00am we arrived at London Gatwick airport and collected our belongings before we headed to the National Express bus station. At first we wanted to rent a car, but renting is very expensive in the UK compared to other countries and so we took the bus, which was a lot cheaper and much more relaxing. In the late afternoon Claudia and I finally arrived in Cardiff and walked straight to our hotel. We stayed at the Lincoln House Hotel, which was located about 20 minutes by foot from the city center. The hotel offered a full Welsh breakfast and the hotel staff even got vegan breakfast sausages for us. Our room was very nice and equipped with a TV and a bathroom.

Lincoln House Hotel

Lincoln House Hotel

Our Room

Our Room

Bathroom

Hotel Bar

After we unpacked our stuff, we walked back into the city for an early dinner at Wagamama. I had the fried rice and Claudia got the curry. Later we just strolled around in Cardiff, got a coffee at Starbucks, and then we headed back to the hotel, where we enjoyed a glass of beer at the hotel bar.

On our Way into the City

Cardiff

Fried Rice

Curry

Cardiff

Cardiff

Cardiff

Cardiff

Cardiff

Cardiff

Giovannis - Filming Location for BBC's Sherlock

Cardiff - London 2015 - Part 2

Doctor Who Experience

Saturday - May 2nd 2015

After we got up, we had a lovely Welsh breakfast and soon we were on our way into the city. Unfortunately the weather was rather bad today and so we decided to take the bus instead of the boat to the Cardiff Bay area, where the Doctor Who Experience was located. When we arrived, the Experience was already open and luckily a new tour was about to start. The Doctor Who Experience is divided into two parts. The first one, the Experience itself, takes the guests on an adventure with the twelfth Doctor and the second part is an exhibition of the sets, costumes and props used in the BBC TV series. The adventure with the Doctor was entertaining, but the exhibition was a bit underwhelming. We were not disappointed, but we expected a little bit more. Nonetheless we enjoyed our time there and after we bought a souvenir, we left.

Welsh Breakfast

Cardiff

At the Millenium Stadium

Doctor Who Experience

The Tardis

Doctor Who Exhibition

Doctor Who Exhibition - Daleks

Doctor Who Exhibition - Cybermen

Doctor Who Experience

After the Doctor Who Experience we just walked around the Cardiff Bay area, but since the weather got worse, we decided to have a beer at a pub. Later we had a late lunch at Las Iguanas, a Mexican style restaurant. I ordered the tortilla with mushrooms, Claudia got a Mexican curry and for starter we shared nachos with guacamole. The food was okay, but a bit on the pricey side for a chain restaurant. 

Norwegian Church

Cardiff Bay

The Senedd - National Assembly for Wales

The Pierhead Building

Millenium Centre

Mermaid Quay

Wheterspoon Pub

Tsingtao Chinese Beer

Las Iguanas Restaurant

Guacamole with Nachos

Sides for the Tortilla

Mushrooms for the Tortilla

Mexican Curry

Cardiff Bay

Millenium Centre

After lunch we took the bus back to the inner city. We got off at the Cardiff Castle, but instead of visiting the castle, we had a coffee and a vegan cake at a nearby coffee house called The Pettigrew Tea Rooms. We spent the rest of the day walking around the inner city and visiting the local shopping center. Then we got a snack for dinner and returned to our hotel.

Cardiff Castle

Cardiff Castle

Cardiff Castle

Cardiff Castle

Pettigrew Tea Rooms

Pettigrew Tea Rooms

Lemon Cake

Chocolate Cake

Cardiff

Millenium Stadium