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Bernard and Eira Wyns' visit to Cardiff Part 2 :
Dawn broke in the City
of Cardiff on the Friday, but I could not appreciate
it myself. The Brains beer  must
be stronger than I thought. I left the crumply comfy bed at 10.00.a.m. having
missed what my wife Eira Wyn said was an excellent breakfast ....albeit
a continental breakfast.
Our visit was a mixture of business and pleasure and we set out to visit
and photograph as many Cardiff attractions as possible.
We chose to visit the Civic Centre and Museum area in the morning. This
is just a short walk from St Mary Street through the pedestrianised area
that took us past the church of St John the Baptist. The church is next
to the city centre's covered market, and is the oldest remaining mediaeval
building in the city after Cardiff Castle, dating from the 12th century.
A few minutes more and we were in the heart of the Civic Centre area, where
we visited the Wales National Museum. I am afraid we had to "do"
the Museum "Japanese tourist" style as time was pressing. A few
pictures of the Museum and the Civic Centre and we crossed the road to Bute
Park. Bute Park is a beautiful park adjacent to Cardiff Castle and running
along side the River Taff. There are large areas of landscaped gardens and
parkland with an abundance of mature trees and tree-lined avenues. We exited
the Park near to the Castle's "animal wall" by mid day, and with
the sun breaking through we arrived at the entrance to the famous Cardiff
Castle.
We chose the internal tour of the "new" Castle which took about
forty minutes. There are two Castles in  Cardiff,
the proper one that sits on the grassy hill dating from Norman times, and
the "new" Castle the Victorian version built by Lord Bute. Unfortunately
I am unable to show any pictures of the inside of the Castle as the powers
that be do not allow pictures to be taken inside the new Castle rooms. This
is a pathetic and petty rule that is common to many unenlightened galleries
and museums. They, whether they be councils, museum directors, or government
departments are payed by the people to be guardians of our historic artifacts
and works of art. They have no right of copyright, with obvious exceptions
such as with living artists, the objects belong to mankind and as such should
be available to be seen by all. Non flash photography does no harm to the
objects, and, when the pictures are posted on the internet, this makes them
available to a greater audience. Caring for the objects is the primary concern
of these bodies but bringing them to the attention of a wider audience is
the second most important reason for their existence. They seem to forget
that they are public servants and that there job is to serve the public,
that is what they get paid for. Allowing photography will no doubt encourage
more visitors to the museums and galleries and will bring in more monies
to enable the better protection and conservation of these valuable historic
objects. ( I will now step down from my soap box and carry on with the tour
of Cardiff) (Latest Update ...I have just watched a television programme
concerning museum  caretakers
and there was a very interesting section concerning a curator in the Louvre
Paris, he was berating visitors for taking pictures of the paintings. "Look
at the beautiful paintings, do not take their picture" he cried. "Better
the painting is in your heart than in your camera" I have to admit
he has a very good point ! )
Cardiff Castle was owned by the Marquess of Bute and it might be said that
he had more money than sense! He spent millions of pounds creating a Victorian
version (see below) of a Medieval Gothic Castle. (Or is it a Hollywood version
of a Victorian version of a Gothic version of a Medieval Castle?). The decorations
are quite something and have to be seen to be believed, but I can't make
up my mind whether I actually like them.
The nursery however would be nostalgic to many of my generation of post
war babies with beautiful wall tiles depicting fables and nursery rhymes
that would strike a chord with many who, like myself, were educated in the
1950's with old Victorian school books.
From the nursery the tour continues up into the tower. Remember to take
your hiking boots as the stone spiral staircase is quite a climb. I can
recommend the tour as there are some fantastic works on show, and once you
get to the top of the tower you can even take pictures ....of the City.
We were on our final day in Cardiff and as we had already penciled in
a visit to the waterfront for the afternoon it meant we had to pass on a
visit to the Welsh Regiment Museum in the Castle grounds.
TIP ! Should you have plenty of time
then it is worth noting that the entrance fee to the Castle allows you to
exit the Castle, maybe for lunch or whatever, and to return later in the
day.
TIP ! Cardiff Castle is well worth
a visit but if you want to visit a real Medieval Castle visit Conwy
Castle, North Wales.
Go to page 1- Tourist Information Cardiff
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