Where's Johnny Jet? Having a Wales of a Time in Cardiff

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Bore da (good morning) from Wales! Did you know that Wales is just a two-hour train ride from London and that, like Ireland, it has its own language (Welsh)? No? Don't feel so bad, I didn't either. If you'd like to tag along on this side trip with my dad and me, then grab your overnight bag and your rail pass because we're going to Cardiff.

The 12-minute taxi ride from Hotel 41, near Buckingham Palace, to Paddington Station cost £10 ($20). First Great Western trains to Cardiff leave every hour. Prices vary depending on time and day but we used our BritRail passes, which we got in advance from RailEurope.com. We didn't make any reservations but fortunately, finding a seat wasn't a problem. We left on Sunday morning and the conductor was offering upgrades to first class for just ?10. It was a weekend, which meant that no business travelers (the only suckers to pay full price) were around. Since my dad and I appreciate a good deal when we see one and because this was a special trip (our first time traveling alone through Europe together), we took the bait. The seats were roomy and made the already smooth ride even smoother. Travel time between the two cities took just two hours and 12 minutes and we made four quick stops along the way (Reading, Swindon, Bristol Parkway and Newport). The scenery was green, flat and at times, picturesque. The only downsides? We occasionally had to plug our ears as the train sped through tunnels and there were no electrical outlets to plug into.

If you travel First Great Western, be sure to hang on to your ticket. You'll need it when you exit the station. If you have a rail pass, you'll just have to show it. The moment we stepped off the train, we had our first introduction to the Welsh language. Caerdydd Canolog, we learned, translates to Cardiff Central. Almost all the signage is in Welsh with English translations below. Welsh is one of the oldest living languages in Europe and shares its roots with Breton, Gaelic and Cornish. Though 26 percent of the population in Wales (about 3 million) actually speaks Welsh, practically no one does in Cardiff. It's more commonly spoken in the North where Welsh is the first language.

There was a short queue of four taxis, waiting right outside the station. We were fifth in line. And then it began to rain. No worries; another cab showed up a few minutes later. Our driver was a friendly, proud Welsh man who pointed out city landmarks on our short, seven-minute, £5 ride. FYI: Though the meter starts at £3 ($6), taxis in Wales are still cheaper than London.

Wales' official name is Principality of Wales and it's been around since 1000 BC. Cardiff is the capital city and has an interesting history. It began when the Romans settled there in 55 AD. They built a military fort, which is on the site of Cardiff Castle. Cardiff was once an industrial town but it slowly transformed into a cosmopolitan city. Surprisingly, Cardiff didn't officially become a city until 1905 and wasn't made the capital until 1955. Today, Cardiff's population is 310,000 but the city attracts more than 11 million visitors a year!

Two of the biggest transformations in Cardiff came in the form of development projects with hefty price tags; the £1.8 billion bay development and the £102 million Millennium Stadium. The stadium hosts major sporting events including four of this year's Rugby World Cup games. Rugby is the number one sport in Wales, followed by soccer and then golf. In 2010, Wales will play host to the Ryder Cup. Many visitors make the trek from England to Cardiff just to shop as it's cheaper than London and the city has seven superb Victorian and Edwardian arcades. There's also a £315 million shopping development in the city centre with a Mediterranean-style plaza that is certain to attract more shoppers and visitors. What's refreshing is that Cardiff is a young city, not just in history, but also in age. Did you know Cardiff is on track to have the largest student population of any European city by the end of the decade? Not only that, but a 2004 issue of Men's Health magazine proclaimed Cardiff the best UK city because the Welsh capital is a "young, friendly town jam-packed with a cosmopolitan crowd, all of whom have a spring in their step that seems to indicate they're going somewhere fun."

My dad and I checked into the four-star Park Plaza Hotel, which caters to business travelers during the week and leisure travelers on weekends. It used to be an office building, which explains the bland exterior but two and a half years ago, it was converted into a chic and happening hotel. The hotel is modern with a minimalist design. Our pleasant experience began at check-in. The attentive, friendly, international front desk crew greeted us with a warm welcome. Rooms are huge by any standard and feature comfortable beds. The tiled bathrooms are also spacious and they have both a separate shower and tub. Amenities include free wireless Internet, a stainless-steel indoor swimming pool, steam room and gym. Though still not a bargain, the in-room mini bar is not a complete rip-off when you reach for a bottle of water (£1.50) in the middle of the night to quench your thirst.

The best part is the Park Plaza's location; it's just three blocks from the Cardiff Castle, two blocks from the shopping centre, a block from the National Museum and one building over from the New Theater. There's not much this hotel needs to improve except perhaps throwing up a few pictures on the room walls to make them more cheerful and getting rid of our room's tobacco smell. But overall, this place rocks and I'm not surprised that they won best AA (UK's motor club, equivalent to AAA) hotel within a year. Rates begin at £80 and usually include a mediocre breakfast buffet on the ground floor's Laguna Kitchen and Bar. Park Plaza Cardiff, Greyfriars Road, Cardiff; tel. (029) 2011 1101.

Although the Laguna has a sub-par breakfast buffet, dinner is anything but. The Laguna Kitchen and Bar has huge, glass picture windows which instill an airy, casual feel. What I liked best about it is that the dishes aren't flashy. The menu features a variety of simple but good food. I enjoyed bruschetta (?3) and cheese ravioli (£8.50), while my dad had a tasty Caesar salad (£4.50) and the " roast of the day" (£12). It was roast beef, served with cabbage with bacon and Yorkshire pudding. There was also a side of steamed veggies, a meal in itself. On Sundays, they offer a deal: two courses for £11.50 or three courses for £14.50. You know a restaurant is good when it's popular with the locals and that's who most of the clientele here are. Laguna Kitchen and Bar, Park Plaza Hotel, Greyfriars Road, Cardiff; tel. (029) 2011 1103.

Cardiff's main attraction is the Cardiff Castle. It's actually three castles in one; a Roman fort, a Norman keep and a magnificent Victorian mansion. Parts of it have been around for 2,000 years, when the Romans set up a 10-acre fort in the mid-first century AD. In the 11th century, the Normans invaded and added their own characteristics, such as a classic motte and a Norman keep. When my dad paid the entrance fee and we passed through the gatehouse, I had the same feeling I get when I see the inside of a baseball stadium for the first time. It was magical. The interior was a grass field large enough for a game but in the background on a hill was a fairy-tale looking Norman keep that my dad and I just had to climb. It was difficult for my resolute father who recently underwent open-heart surgery and then re-injured his bad back, schlepping his luggage around. But he was determined to see the interior and the views from the top. I can't blame him. It felt as if we had just stepped inside the pages of a children's storybook. Afterwards, we took a guided tour of the apartments and marveled at the clock tower, which reminded me of the Astronomical Clock in Prague. What's interesting is that the exterior of the castle was redesigned to fit the fantasies of two 19th-century medievalists: the third Marquess of Bute, John Patrick Crichton-Stuart, and his architect, William Burges. To learn more about them and the history of the Cardiff Castle, check out this website. Adult admission: £6.80, tel. (029) 2087 8100.

Our next stop was at the Victorian indoor market. It is similar to the one in Budapest but not nearly as interesting. We took a quick walk around to see the assortment of merchandise, ranging from fresh fruit and traditional Welsh cheeses to tacky souvenirs. It's been trading in one form or another since the 1700s but I gather it was a lot cooler back then. Cardiff Market Website.

We really wanted to see Wales but we didn't have a lot of time. My dad needed to head back to the U.S. and I had to head to ... well, I'll tell you next week. The good folks at Visit Wales suggested we take a mini-coach tour from the appropriately named tour company See Wales (tel. 0-77-9180-3978; SeeWales.com). See Wales offers a variety of tours and we did one of the abbreviated, personal, customized tours so we could see just a few places at an easy pace. It was just me and my dad and we were collected at 9:30am by Paul Harris. Paul's not only a driver guide for See Wales but he's the founder. Paul is a great bloke and he took us out into the countryside, off the busy highways after giving us the lay of the city. It's obvious that Paul loves his country. He knows the ancient Celtic history and the lay of the land really well including the secret spots, which sadly, we didn't have time to see.

We began at the tourist center on Cardiff Bay. It's a good place for first timers to start; here you can get all kinds of free maps, brochures and other information. We learned all about the city's docklands and development. Cardiff had the largest coal port in the world. It was owned by John Patrick Crichton-Stuart (the Third Marquess of Bute), which made him the richest man in the world. After World War II, most of the coal industry shut down and the docklands were deserted. It became an eyesore until 1999 when a 12-year project was completed to transform the area into a 200-hectare, freshwater lake. That spurred development in the surrounding area, including the Wales Millennium Centre (wmc.org.uk), which has a unique design and is said to be one of the best places to see international musicals, opera, ballet and dance.

Four miles west from Cardiff's city center is St. Fagans National History Museum. This is a 100-acre, open-air museum that's on the grounds of the 16th-century St Fagans Castle. It has over forty original buildings (houses, a farm, a school, a chapel, stores) that were moved from various sections of Wales and then re-erected to show how the people of Wales lived at various times throughout history. It gives visitors a good sense of how the Welsh lived, worked and spent their leisure time over the last five hundred years. There are even native breeds of livestock that can be seen roaming the fields and farmyards. Open 10am-5pm daily, including Bank Holidays and admission is free. St Fagans National History Museum; tel. (029) 2057 3500.

When Paul heard that we were so impressed by the Cardiff Castle he said that we just had to see Wales' largest castle, Caerphilly Castle. Did you know Wales has over 400 castles? One hundred are still standing and Wales is believed to be "the castle capital of the world." There are more castles per capita in Wales than anywhere else in the world. We also learned on the drive out that Cardiff is one of the flattest cities in Britain but the moment you go outside the city center, it's the complete opposite. On the way to Caerphilly we drove past Castell Coch, which is a romantic creation of the Victorian age castle and like Cardiff Castle, was designed by William Burges for the third Marquess of Bute.

When we pulled up to the Caerphilly Castle, which stands on a 30-acre site my jaw dropped. It looked like it was right out of a movie as one of the towers appears to have been blasted and its lean is so impressive it would make the Leaning of Tower of Pisa blush. Caerphilly Castle is one of the largest fortresses in Europe and construction began in 1268. It survived many battles and was taken over and restored in the late 18th century by the Third Marquess of Bute. This is a wonderful place to tour around, then have a picnic lunch out on the back lawn on the bank of the motte. Admission: adults £3.50, Concessions £3.00. Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly; tel. (029) 2088 3143

Before taking the train back to London, we all went to lunch at the FG Café in Cardiff. It is on the first floor of an upscale department store and the service and food is good. I had a Croque Monsieur with a fried egg (£7) and my dad had a salad and French onion soup (£5). FG Café, Flannels, Landmark Place, Cardiff City; tel. (029) 2037 4083.

Note: This trip was sponsored by Visit Wales

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