Melissa's UK Adventure - Day 10

Today we had a very early start. Breakfast was at 6am and we were on the road by 7am because we were taking the ferry from Ireland back to Wales. Sharon and I were at the front of the bus today, and you get to see a lot more up there. Maybe a little too much, these drivers are nuts. You think that when they see a big motor coach, they would give way for us. No they don't, they just squeeze their way in between us and the curb. It is crazy.


We boarded the ferry today in Rosslare, Ireland which is on the south east tip, at around 8:30 am and we were heading to Fishguard which is on the south west tip of Wales. Once again we drove the bus on, but this ferry was way bigger then the last one. It has been raining all day, so the Irish Sea was quite rough. Right from the start the ride was very rough. We were rolling all over the place when we were sitting in the chairs, and when you walked around, you really needed your sea legs. The crossing was about 3 and a half hours, and by the time we docked, everybody was glad to get off.

Once we landed in Wales the weather was no better. But we were not going to let this bother us. We were on our way to Cardiff to see the castle. Cardiff Castle reveals more then 2000 years of the city's history as a Roman Garrison, a Norman stronghold and in Victorian times was transformed by the Marquess of Bute and his eccentric architect William Burges into a gothic fairytale fantasy. It was too bad that it was raining today, because some parts of the castle were closed due to them not wanting it to get wet. But we were still able to see lots of things. We went into the Castle apartments and saw some bed rooms, the main dining room and the library. We then went into the Norman Keep and climbed all the way to the top to see the entire grounds. That was one of the hardest things that I have done. The stairs were the original stone spiral ones and they were very slippery because of the rain. It was very cool to see everything and now I can say that I have been in a castle.

After that we went to the hotel which is just outside the city centre of Cardiff. Tomorrow is the day that I have been waiting for for this whole trip. We are going to Stonehenge.

Ferry

Cardiff Castle

Cardiff castle

Inside the main hall

Ceiling

Dining Room

Murals