re: **Official 2015 Rugby World Cup Thread | Full Final Match linked in 1st post!

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TN Bhoy...question for you. I have never been to Wales, and will have a car and some time on Friday to do a little sightseeing before the games.


I have heard the Brecon Beacons are something to see, along with the easy check off of Cardiff Castle, do you recommend anywhere?

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Depends on what you want to see.

Nature-wise, the Brecon Beacons and the Gower Peninsula (Rhossili and Oxwich would be the places to look for there) are basically the same distance from Cardiff (about an hour and a half). Both are gorgeous. Just depends on what type of landscape you like more.

Culturally, there's a ton:

- Cardiff Castle (which is actually mentioned in one of the Arthurian tales, even though the people who run Welsh tourism don't like mentioning it)

- There's an absolute ton of early Christian (and general later Roman/early medieval) stuff scattered throughout South Wales. My personal picks would be the Ogham Stones (Ogham is an early Celtic script that moved either from Wales to Ireland or from Ireland to Wales) in Margham near Port Talbot (about 45 minutes west of Cardiff). There's also a ton of stuff in and around Llantwit Major (about 25 minutes southwest of Cardiff), including a Roman villa and a bunch of Celtic Stones in St. Illtyd's Church (the current iteration is from the 11th Century, but the site has housed a church since the late fourth century, and both St. Patrick and St. David lived there for a time)

- If you like Doctor Who, the Doctor Who Experience is in Cardiff Bay

- Check out the Millennium Center, Llandaff Cathedral, and the Cathedral of St. David (all in Cardiff)

- Caerphilly Castle is about 20 minutes north of Cardiff.

- There are also a bunch of museums, including the Museum of Welsh Life, the National Roman Legion Museum, and your general museums and galleries.


The RWC fan zone is located inside Cardiff Arms Park.

Y Mochyn Du would be my pub recommendation for sports watching purposes. Also, try something Brains.


Warnings:

- Welsh drivers think sidewalks are parking spaces and do not care if people are standing there or not

- Cardiff Bay is a big ISIS recruiting ground (I'm completely serious)

- Wind fricking sucks. Parts of Cardiff (and South Wales in general) are basically a wind tunnel.

- Cardiff's seagull population is intelligent and evil. Most are also huge.