Jay and Sasha had pre-selected "that potato jacket place," which turned out to be Crumbs Restaurant in the Morgan Quarter, a lovely arcade in the heart of old town Cardiff.
As we walked over, Julie and I were both a bit surprised to not be that hungry. We had all shared a huge family meal at our table at the Indian restaurant in Mumbles late the prior evening, and that probably accounted for it. Julie headed upstairs to find a free table, saying she wasn't hungry at all.
With high praise for the jacket potatoes, I was set to order one with beans (baked or chili), but then locals in front of me in line were ordering huge salad plates that looked very good. A bearded guy said on his phone how healthy and what a good deal the salads were.
I decided to get a salad plate and a jacket potato with either cheddar cheese or butter to share with Julie, figuring she would at least eat some potato and perhaps some of the six small salads that came in little bowls in the salad platter.
Just as the salad was being made, Julie walked past, saying she had decided to head home to take a nap.
So, I went with only the salad, which turned out to be delicious and healthy.
Everyone else in our group was very happy with their meals, too. The jacket potatoes all looked very appetizing, overflowing with the selected toppings. As it turned out, jacket potatoes were featured at least once on the lunch menu on Caribbean Princess, which we would be boarding the next day, and I enjoyed my own at that time.
After lunch, Libby, Sasha and Owen returned to the drapery store to buy some lovely white lace curtains they had seen previously. Any time they are complimented, a brief story about Cardiff will bring up pleasant memories of this trip and the little shop where they were purchased.
A few stores over, Jay and I investigated Flight Club, a multi-story lounge and dart bar with a rooftop bar.
We ordered pints of Guinness to sip as we wandered through.
It had a very cool vibe and on weekend nights probably draws a big crowd.
We picked up Libby, Sasha and Owen along with the new purchases, stopping at Pettigrew Tea Room beside the Castle Wall for some afternoon caffeine strolling home through Bute Park.
Many of the flowers and trees are the same as we find in the greater Philadelphia area and other places, but some we had never seen anywhere.
It was a beautiful place to pass through on a picture-perfect day.
Redwick turned out to be little more than a beautiful church and The Rose Inn, a lovely pub.
Without a farmer's market or faire, it wasn't hard to enjoy a pleasant time, especially because the pub had a great playground for children just outside.
The workers and patrons inside the pub could not have been nicer.
Take our half-pints outside to enjoy the sunshine while Owen played in the park?
No problem.
Owen had as much fun as his dad. He climbed, crawled over a hanging bridge, went down the slide, climbed up stairs and played on swings.
It was a great chance for the little guy to take a fun break from all that adulting adventure stuff.
Afternoon clouds played peak-a-boo with the sun, keeping the temperature pleasant, and the odor quickly faded as we proceeded on.
When we arrived at the shoreline trail, we could see the green coast of England in the distance across the Bristol Channel.
A surprising lack of the water presumably due to ebbing tides made the Channel itself a fascinating sight.
It had an eerie beauty to it, but not as lovely as the scenery on the Pembrokeshire Coast Path.
Our plan called for hiking four miles along the coast a pre-selected historic pub before trekking back. If we were too tired by then for the return hike, we would Uber back.
I think our destination was The Farmer's Arms in Goldcliff, Newport, although that is a projection based on its proximity to Redwick on a map.
After a mile, Julie and I both began thinking that it seemed like a long way to go, and if the Ubers weren't available, that could be really bad.
And The Rose Inn had been so pleasant.
At the risk of ridicule, we told the others we had decided to backtrack and wait for them at The Rose Inn.
Today, reviewing the pedometer on my phone, I see that I ended up walking almost 26,000 steps that day, or about 11 1/2 miles, even without that extra distance to Goldcliff that we skipped. That was more than 10 miles the day before, so it was probably the right move for us, with our two-week cruise on the horizon.
Upon reaching the pub, we took the perfect outdoor table with a view of the historic church. I ordered a refreshing Guinness. Incidentally, ales are not served warm in the British Isles, and this one was ice cold.
Later we got some crisps --- what we call potato chips, because all of the British Isles are united in identifying what we call French fries as chips --- and Julie got a wine. They have great crisps in Wales, including unusual flavors like brisket which received high praise, but Julie went with the usual salted variety.
The others in our group returned about that time, having reached the same conclusion we had a mile or so later.
A round of half pints of local brews, plus more chips, and we had a pleasant happy half-hour before driving back to Cardiff.
Walking from our rental house to old town Cardiff for dinner, we stopped at The Cricketers Pub, a literal public house in a row of houses. It has a large back patio where we enjoyed another half-pint. We had a right jolly time there, though I can't tell you exactly what we were doing.
We sauntered through the beautiful park once more on our way to downtown Cardiff, never tiring of the lovely paths. This time, we took a slightly different route that took us on a musical journey of sorts that delighted Owen.
Owen loves music and drums, so he had a blast playing his original compositions.
He has lots of natural talent to go with his love of music. Upon returning home, Owen soon owned a small steel drum similar to the one he played in the park.
It didn't seem particularly late by the time we reached downtown in the high latitude of Wales where summer days are long, but our first choice for a restaurant was closed. As was the second. And the third....
Eventually, we ended up at Santiago's, a Spanish tapas restaurant down the same little street where Julie had eaten on our first day in Wales. They had tables available, they were still serving, and some of us were starving.
Julie and I ordered chicken skewers and dates wrapped in crispy bacon. I don't remember exactly what the others ordered, but there were several vegan and gluten-free options available.
Tapas are usually served in stages as you enjoy Sangrias or perhaps some other beverage, not noticing how long it takes for the courses to come. Instead, we were sipping sodas.
Jay and Sasha were going to have a nightcap on their own, taking advantage of three grandparents to take care of one baby.
After a pleasant walk home, we found that Jay had set up a digital recording of Owen's favorite episode of Bluey. The video is basically an orchestra playing, and we all enjoyed the show.
Jay and Sasha ended up not staying out as long as we had expected, probably worried about their baby boy, but they arrived home a half hour after us. After putting a few cups in the dishwasher, it was off to bed.
The next morning, the others accompanied Julie and me to the bus station in Sophia Gardens. We were off to Bristol, where we planned to walk to the train station to continue on to England. Fortunately, a few locals, upon noticing us dragging our suitcases, advised us to take a commuter bus between stations in Bristol. Walking would have brought us up and down hills through a less-than-ideal area, according to them. The bus was efficient, comfortable and cheap.
We had a fantastic time in Wales, where the locals were always friendly and helpful. We would be happy to return again one day.
On this day, the others continued their road trip, driving to England to visit Glastonbury and Bath, while Julie and I headed to Southampton where we boarded Caribbean Princess.
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