Well hello everyone. All is well with me for the most part. It’s dark here around 4:00PM which is rather strange. My Mom sent me a box of Bisquick so I can make some biscuits (not cookies) so I’m extremely excited about that! It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas in London. 

It’s a miracle that I made it through another week. No seriously a true miracle. Due to one of my flatmates consistent acts of criminal negligence our kitchen almost caught fire… again. Anyone with an ounce of common sense or half a brain wouldn’t leave fish frying in the kitchen and go chill out in their room. Did I mention the paper towel over the frying pan? Pray for me please. My patience is almost completely gone. On the bright side, yes there is a bright side: the firemen were adorable.

In efforts to escape the foolishness in my Seething Wells flat I went to Cardiff, Wales this weekend! I left south west London around 8:45AM and arrived in Wales around 12:45PM traveling west.

Cardiff

I sat next to an awesome girl on the train, she had a stack of Toni Morrison books and the same Peter Barry Beginning Theory textbook that has plagued my life since junior year of undergrad. My new friend attends University of Wales Trinity Saint David. She went home to East London for her reading week and was on her way back to school. Both of us had reading to do but we ended up talking which made the train ride go by much quicker. Wales has a population of about three million people and their own language Welsh! Town Central was poppin when I arrived. The people of Wales call themselves Cymry, since 250,000 BC the area of land has been occupied. 

I started my day off with lunch at the Dragon’s Kitchen or in Welsh, Cegin y Ddraig. In the window a sign read, “15% Student Discount” so I knew this was the place for me! They had a lunch special smoked salmon and cream cheese potato with sparkling Rose. Freakin delicious! Through the window of the restaurant I could see Cardiff Castle. People settled in Cardiff 6,000 years ago on the River Taff. Cardiff Castle is 2,000 years old. Since this was my first real life castle I was super hyped!

I was listening to Watch the Throne while I wandered around which only elevated my experience. Then came the question, ‘Who Gon Stop Me?’. Jay-Z and Kanye sound even better from the top of the castle with a panoramic view of Wales from the mountains to the bay. “Who gon stop me huh?!”

Additions have been added to the castle over its 2,000 year history. Looking at the structure you can determine what is original and what was added later, similar to the Roman Coliseum (consult M.E.E.T. me for Cheese and Chocolate for elaboration on Coliseum). The bricks reflect the various construction ventures that have occurred when different conquers came and ran up in the spot. The Welsh people over the years have been conquered by the Celts, the Romans, the Saxons, the Vikings, and many more. The Welsh have been bullied a lot over the years but today still preserve their land, their language, and culture as a part of the United Kingdom on the Island of Great Britain.

Cardiff Castle

So when you feel like you’ve been picked on just think of the Welsh. Protect your castle! Some people you may know from Wales include Roald Dahl, Tom Jones (The original singer of ‘It’s not unusual’ no it wasn’t Carlton Banks from the Fresh Prince!), and Catherine Zeta-Jones.

Meanwhile back in Kingston, I jump out of my skin every evening when I see these grown foxes. They eat good because students litter Burger King, McDonald’s, KFC, and kebob all around halls. Our foxes are healthy, strong, and bold. 

… I’ll be back soon, stay tuned!