"Ah but, the thing about Cardiff - it's built on a rift in time and space - just like... California on the San Andreas Fault. But the rift bleeds energy. Every now and then I need to open up the engines, soak up the energy, and use it as fuel!"
~Doctor Who: Utopia (Season 3, episode 11)
Net distance: 272 (211 flying, 61 driving)
Theme for the day: Fangirl (TV shows Poldark, Being Human, Doctor Who, Torchwood)
We bid farewell to Ireland with an early morning flight from Dublin to Bristol, England. This is where we learned the phrase "not properly signed" because that described our rental car agency location. The helpful people at the Avis desk directed us the 500 meters to pick up our car.
Our first destination was a drive-by of Bottleyard studios. A number of British shows are now filmed there, including Poldark.
We drove through Bristol traffic congestion and stopped for pictures outside the house in which George, Mitchell, and Annie lived in seasons 1 and 2 of Being Human.
We tried to locate John Wesley's Chapel, The New Room, where the Methodist church began (and the location for courtroom scenes in Poldark), but either our GPS directions were faulty or our interpretation was. It's located in the heart of Bristol. We'll be passing through that area again later, perhaps we'll try again. Or not.
We crossed a bridge to Wales. My original travel plans included more time in Wales, but we sacrificed that to have enough time in Ireland, so Wales became a 1 day thing.
Welsh was a new language for us. I learned a few pronunciation rules, but that doesn't mean I could actually pronounce anything on this sign.
We kept an eye out for Weevils emerging from the sewers. Fortunately, no weevils appeared.
The watertower isn't the only way to get into Torchwood's Hub. The "public entrance" has since been converted to a shrine to the character Ianto Jones.
Side note: it's not everyone that gets to travel with a professional, personal photographer. The pictures I'm posting on this blog are a mixture of mine--taken with my smartphone camera--and Jeff's. If you see a spectacular photo, that's probably his. In addition to his photography duties, Jeff also serves as trip navigator and moral support.
The main attraction for me in Cardiff--the Doctor Who Experience. It's a museum to all things Doctor Who.
We passed the time waiting for our designated entry appointment by having pasties at a waterfront cafe.
A few pictures of the exhibits.
Near our hotel, statue to the guy that founded the National Health Service. I'd say that's worthy of memorializing!
We had dinner in an old church that had been converted to a restaurant. Beautiful setting!
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