Cymru

...or Wales?

A weekend trip to Cardiff, Wales ended up being one of the most influential parts of my time abroad. I even ended up choosing Wales for my final presentation research topic.

My initial opinion of Wales i nothing to boast about, however it quickly changed. When we first arrived in Cardiff we found our hostel about a mile away from city centre near the train station. The area around our hostel was incredibly sketch and I wanted nothing to with it, I didn't even want to leave my lap top unattended; but, after being reassured by the front desk that everything would be taken care of we ventured into town.

I was shocked by the cleanliness and newness of the downtown area and I was blown away by the castle that lies literally feet from a shopping centre... it was incredible. The shops were high end and the restaurants were lit up and busy, filled with people flowing out from the bars into the streets, it seemed like one huge party. I was enamored by the friendliness of the people.. surely, I thought, there was something in the water. (or the beer!)

The day after we went down to the water, because me being borderline obsessed with waterfront, I had to see... the sea! The street performers were fantastic! Dressed to the nines, singing classics like Frank Sinatra and smiling at everyone that passed them by. While we sat and watched, we realized they were just as eager to talk to a couple of young college kids drinking beer on a sidewalk as were with them. They soon became friends of ours and told us all of the insider information we needed for our night our on the town, but we didn't want to leave their company; so, in a hour or two they told us to follow them... We were brought to some ritzy VIP piano lounge with velvet ropes covering the entrance and we followed them right in! The bar was lined with ice to keep your drink chilled, there was great live music and champagne being popped left and right... this was my kind of place! Not to mention David Hasselhoff  seated to the right of us with two very young looking blondes on each side, it was quite entertaining.

All in all by the end of my trip, I was convinced Wales held too many interesting aspects to just forget about it, and so, my research topic was born.