Month: January 2018

I know this is a horribly blurry picture. My blog apparently doesn’t like uploading panos. If you can’t tell, this is the view from the top of the Norman donjon in the middle of the Cardiff Castle grounds, overlooking downtown Cardiff. So I visited Cardiff Castle today. It’s a ten-minute walk from my dorm room. …

This is a tale best told in pictures. So you walk in off the street, run a gauntlet of very smelly fish stalls in the foyer, and find yourself looking at this: This is Cardiff Market. It was built sometime in the 1890s, but there has been a market on or near this spot since …

you’ve had five thousand years longer than us to invent a national cuisine. Please explain the food in Aberdare. Sincerely, Carrot and canned pineapple salad?

I wanted to take a jog in the park. It was sunny when I left my room. By the time I found my way out of Aberdare, it was hailing pebbles. (In England’s defense, it did take me like ten minutes to escape the labyrinth this time.)

When I signed on to study abroad in Wales, I knew it would have ups and downs. I hoped it would have ups and downs. Disasters make great blog posts. Also, suffering builds character. But in the last 24 hours, I have: -not slept because of the traffic noise outside my window and the fact that my sheets …

Brits can make anything sound intelligent, even things like: (This will be a running list)   “You shut the lid and the toilet goes all airplane-crazy and flushes.” —a Brit explaining the toilets in the Percival building   “As a matter of cultural pride, all street signs are bilingual English and Welsh. You will find …

So this was the first morning of “compulsory” orientation (I really wish they would pick a friendlier word than “compulsory.” It’s a very scary word to contemplate as you’re running across campus in the pouring rain on an empty stomach with your iPhone performing nuclear fission in the bottom of your satchel and thus not …

I was super-excited about being assigned to Aberdare Hall, the oldest rez building on campus. It was built in 1884 by Lady Aberdare as housing for the few female students at Cardiff University at that time. From the outside, the building is distinguished dark red brick, sooty with age. Say the words “Aberdare Hall” to …

If you drive on the left side of the road, why do you bicycle on the right side of the river path? Sincerely, Took A. Swim

I referenced “the morning I had” in the last post, so I suppose I should tell my tale of woe. I am going to make it extremely short because I’ve already told this story in various forms to about five different people and I’m sick of the sound of my own voice. So, this morning …

I seriously needed to blow off steam after the morning I had (more on this later), so I went for a walk in the huge river park right around the corner from Aberdare Hall. I accidentally found the castle. I didn’t go in because if I’m going to pay ten pounds admission, I want a …

I just encountered a blog post written by a fellow UBC student titled “Hell: The Story of a Girl and Her Visa Application.” I feel vindicated. Both International House and Cardiff University advise that you apply for your student visa ahead of time. Being a goody-two-shoes, I started two months in advance. I filled out all …

It occurs to me that the advantage of a blog over a novel (my usual medium) is that I can post pictures instead of long-winded descriptions. Here is Morgan’s Arcade. And here is the exterior of Plan Cafe. I didn’t get a good photo of the inside, but I will try again next time I’m …

Here’s another youth hostel hack: Do not, I repeat do not, fall victim to the sausage. I had the prepaid breakfast. It was a pretty classic British breakfast buffet, with baked beans (probably canned, but tasty), hash browns (how can you screw hash browns up?), butter croissants (delicious), bacon (looked vile; didn’t risk it), and …

The YHA Hostel in Cardiff is nice. The steel bunk beds with the plastic mattresses are a whole lot more comfortable than they look. I have a four-bed room to myself because it’s the off-season. I’ll be here for two days, till my dorm at Cardiff opens. The YHA lobby is clean and welcoming. It …

I was so excited about the idea of taking some aerial photos through the window of the plane to send to my roommate who wants to visit Iceland. With an hour-long layover in Keflavik, I figured I might even get some photos for her from the top floor of the airport. What I hadn’t factored …

This blog was going to be titled “An Introvert’s Guide to Wales,” but in the fine tradition of such Study Abroad classics as “Seoul Searching” and “A Good Sensei Humor,” I have redubbed it “Wales Watching.” I don’t know where this page is going to go when I hit the pink button that says POST. I’ve …