The time I walked from Wales to England.

When I found out that a bridge linking Wales to England less than an hour's journey from my flat in Bristol, I knew it had to be accomplished before my time there came to an end. How's that for a cheeky ice breaker? "I once walked from Wales to England" (which will be particularly handy for people who are terrible at geography).

7 Misconceptions About the UK.

* From an American's perspective.

1. The food is terrible.

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Ummmmmm. No. There's a good reason all of my clothing fits a bit tighter than it did last year. Cakes, pastries, scones, burgers (seriously, amazing gourmet burger restaurants everywhere, some people are flat out tired of them), fry-ups for breakfast, chips, curry, food markets galore, etc. The foodie culture is strong here.

2. The weather is also terrible.

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Even though my first month in the UK was unseasonably warm and dry, many people picture it as a nonstop monsoon throughout the year and a winter wonderland for half the year. Sure, it rains. Yes, there are grey days. No - we don't have snowmageddon or snowpocapltic episodes. There are also plenty of sunny, gorgeous days. Which we then we get to talk about - because the stereotype about chatting about the weather constantly is 100% true.

3. Everyone sounds like the Queen.

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The UK is incredibly diverse when it comes to accents. You can travel an hour away and be surrounded by a brand new dialect. And no, no one says "cheerio"...at least no one from this century. For a quick run-through of all the accents the UK has to offer, check out this video.  You'll recognize more than you think!

4. Everyone drinks Earl Grey Tea.

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I'm not sure if this is just an American idea of what British people supposedly drink, but pretty much anyone who attempts to be "British" back home always whips out the Earl Grey. Since I've moved here I have never...ever...seen anyone order this tea. Most locals I talk to actually make a sour face when I mention it and say how terrible it is.

5. British people are prim, proper, cookie cutouts of a royal family. Everyone is good-natured, smiley and well-mannered.

[Sorry to anyone that offended, if you don't understand why it's offensive...just know that it is.]

This one is mainly directed towards my mom every time she asks me why I haven't found a boyfriend plucked out of a Jane Austen novel yet. While there are many wonderfully charming, suave, proper people out there...somewhere...out there...(I kid, you are all lovely), the Brits have some of the driest, crudest humor there is. And I love it. It's hilarious. Not to mention I'm now equipped with an arsenal of exotic sounding swear words.

6. Great Britain/The United Kingdom/England are basically all the same thing, right?

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That is a slippery slope, my friend. You wouldn't call a someone from the USA a Canadian, so don't call people from Wales "English". And don't you dare say that Ireland is in the UK. This video is by far the quickest and most comprehensive break down of the wild tangled web that is this corner of the globe.

7. Everyone lives in London.

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London population = 8 million...13 including the metro on the outer edges.
UK population = 64 million.
So, family and friends, I know you mean well - but please stop asking me how London is. I live an hour and half away.

What misconceptions or funny stereotypes do you dismiss about where you live? Do any UK peeps have any you think I missed?

Does This Castle Have Wifi?

Wale, Wale, Wale, what do we have here...

Sara (you know, that person I mention in every other post) and I hopped on a mid-morning train from Bristol to Cardiff after an eye-rolling good coffee and almond croissant from Hart's Bakery by Temple Meads. Apologies for the lack of foodography, I was clearly hungry and on a mission that morning! I'll certainly be stopping there before a train journey again and will make a point to whip out my camera.

We arrived in a packed Cardiff Central Station to learn that not only was there an international rugby game taking place in the city, but Comic Con was also happening. There were makeshift gates, security officers, comic book characters, and spirited rugby fans galore. We quickly weaved our way through the crowds onto another train 25 minutes northwest to Caerphilly – which we got a kick out of saying like "carefully" with a horrendous twang.

Plopped right into the middle of the town, is this.

If you need a size reference, look to the bottom left and find the tiny human. And this is just the front entry.

The second-largest castle in all of Britain, and largest in Wales.

You heard the man...

This tower was hit by a bomb and leans a lot. But don't worry, this guy's got it covered.

For a mere £4.50 entry fee, you certainly get your money's worth. The castle and grounds are deceivingly massive as we spent over two hours climbing towers, crawling through low-lying door frames, watching the most hilariously gory cartoon educational film, and pretending to be in Game of Thrones.

Everybody loves a good catapult. 

Other than the two employees in the gift shop/entrance, you are left to your own devices in exploring the area. The worn down spiral staircases have no handrails, the flooding towers are left with no warnings. In America this would have lawsuit slapped all over it, but here it's "Use your common sense and deal with it." Love it. 

Wellies to the rescue.

Caerphilly ticked all boxes when it comes to what you want out of a castle. 

My impression from my first trip into Wales is that you visit for the castles, the countryside, and the history. On our way out we had to stop in Cardiff and I wanted to walk around since I had never been there before and we were hungry for lunch – Caerphilly didn't have a ton of options for food. Although Cardiff had a lush shopping district (did I use that word correctly yet?), everything is pretty new and corporation-dominated. Not that I'm a snob nor anti-chains, but I was hoping for something classically and uniquely Welsh. We ended up eating at Jamie's Italian, which we have here in Bristol but neither of us had ever been. It's hard to dislike pasta and bread. 

On the train ride home, aside from getting stuck in the under-ocean tunnel due to maintenance, we learned that Will and Kate were actually at that rugby match in Cardiff. We laughed and slammed our heads down at our missed opportunity. Where's Wifi when you need it?