We headed back to Paddington Station for our first 'proper' train experience. The HEX doesn't really count, does it?
The statue of Brunel near Paddington Bear was partitioned off, but we did find this one. Brunel was instrumental in the construction of the Great Western Railway, and numerous tunnels and bridges.
As luck would have it, the train we had for Cardiff bore his name.
Cardiff has been the home of the BBC studios for Doctor Who and Torchwood since the Doctor’s revival. Unfortunately an exhibition of all things Doctor closed a little over a year ago, which is a loss for Cardiff.
We were staying at the HH Cardiff for two nights, so that gave us a chance to explore. The 8X bus took us down to the bay where we had a wander. For £8 we took a tour boat up the river and back, followed by lunch at the Norway Church.
Our view from the HH Cardiff
The church had been dismantled and put in storage for many years when the land it was on was needed for the redevelopment. A campaign to have it rebuilt was started, and the lobby group was chaired for a time by Roald Dahl, who was born in Cardiff and christened at the Norway Church. Eventually the church was rebuilt within sight of its previous location. It now houses a cafe and function room downstairs and a gallery for local artists upstairs. Edit: nice coffee!
Whilst I had ticked off one Torchwood location that morning, (the tower near the secret entrance) I was keen for a couple more. Ianto’s shrine is just near where the tourist boats dock. Some of the messages were quite poignant.
We took the (£1) bus back into the city and I walked along “Diagon Alley” (from Dr Who and the Face the Raven episode). Alas I could not spot the ‘gap in the wall’ where it was entered from in the episode.
I didn’t take a photo but here is one I have taken from
DW-Clara-Doctor-Face-the-Raven - Blogtor Who of the alleyway.
Hopefully Cardiff get their act together and re-establish the Dr Who experience.
Oh, while I think of it, a huge shout out to the HH Cardiff for their breakfast spread. I ordered an omelette, and boy did I get an omelette:
Delicious.