No, not the much loved children's TV program (although Florence and Zebedee wouldn't look out of…read moreplace here) but a roundabout of bizarre sculptures made out of roadsigns. This affectionately known Splott landmark even has a claim to fame, it featured in a 2008 'Roundabouts of Britain' calendar! The quirky roundabout was designed by artist Pierre Vivant. If you're a roundabout lover like me check out www.roundaboutsofbritain.com!

I bloody love this round about! It usually at this point i'm lost somewhere between the bay and the…read morecity centre and then i see this magical is-ore. Made out of road signs by an artist (not a piss) called Pierre Vivant it really is something to behold. Now, careful if you want to go having your picture taken on here, its pretty tricky round about seen's as its a busy one. I don't want to be the cause of any mishaps or worse still, deaths! Now obviously it's not one of Cardiff main attractions and if you're reading this from across the waters you're better off just checking out on yelp other than booking flights over. Its nothing spectacular but is definitely worth mentioning for its quirkiness. One of the prettier round about's the city has to offer!

Coity Castle is a magical place full of distant battle cries and that incredible sense that…read moreimportant things have happened there. Built in 1100 and then rebuilt after a siege by Owain Glyndwr, this is a castle often overlooked by visitors to Wales, despite its extremely important part in Welsh history. Although other castles, such as Cardiff Castle, Caerphilly Castle and Castell Coch, are more visited, I would argue that it's the lesser known relics which are more interesting. This Medieval castle is built up on a hill, with clear evidence of moats, and looks almost like a half-rotten tooth sticking up into the sky. It has just as much grandeur and fairy-tale quality as a person could ask for in a castle. This historic site is well worth a visit; sunset will reward you will specular photographs and views.

This is another of South Wales's impressive Norman Castles, standing in ruins near the town of…read moreBridgend in South Wales, not far from Cardiff. It was built by Sir Payn "the Demon" de Turberville, one of the legendary Twelve Knights of Glamorgan who are supposed to have conquered the area under the leadership of Robert FitzHamon, Lord of Gloucester. Although it was originally built soon after 1100, a lot of the castle actually dates from the fourteenth century and later. Parts of it were rebuilt following the siege by Owain Glyn Dr in 1404-05. Despite being in ruins, there are still plenty of interesting features to see - including the remains of the central octagonal pillar for the vaults of the castle. If you have OS map 170 the reference is SS 923815. Nearby you can also visit Newcastle and Ogmore Castles in a day trip.

Fifteen stone animals with glassy eyes slumped over a wall pose ready to pounce…read more.. Whether new to Cardiff or just never knew it was there before, this special wall needs to be seen. But be quick these curious creatures look suspiciously as though they are trying to escape Bute park and find a spot of lunch in the Hayes! The animals were originally crafted by Victorian artisan Thomas Nicholls. They were painted, although the paint has since faded and the stone work is currently being cleaned and restored. This wall needs to be seriously bigged up because although connected to Cardiff Castle many visitors won't venture this far to the castles right and so will never see this curious site.

This wall next to Cardiff Castle is an oft-forgotten part of the city centre. You just have to head…read morea bit further down the road and you'll see a fantastic set of various animals like lions and racoons and leopards and baboons clammering over the castle wall. They're only just above head height so you can get a proper look at them. An exciting revelation occurred recently where the aardvark whose nose had been stolen got a brand new one. Sources say he is delighted. The reason I love this wall is because it inspired a lot of ideas that end up in 'Griffin's Castle', a book I remember reading when I was younger by Jenny Nimmo. In this book these stone statues all come to life, and it's an idea that's stuck with me every time I pass the animals on the wall. I swear sometimes I pass by and they're in different positions, but that's almost certainly my imagination.

The Brewery Quarter in Cardiff is in a way like a retail park, but smaller and in lieu of shops, it…read morehas a decent selection of restaurants and bars, I'd like to point out the name, not being from Cardiff, being a tourist from my home-town of Manchester, I'm not sure if there is any re branding to just "The Brewery Quarter" which gives it a better feeling, as I'm sure you don't want to hear "Old" when you're going to something to eat, as it just doesn't give the right impression, in a way it makes me think, Is the food from last year? This reference is actually quite ironic, while also considering the last review for this place was also "last year" as well! Moving onto more serious matters, most of the places here are restaurants however Breakout, do have there Cardiff branch here and there is also one of many Starbucks branches around the city located here other big names here include Bella Italia, Nando's, Chiquito and Five Guy's there is also a Brewhouse, which has a clever name, fitting into a complex which it is in, which certainly deserves a shout-out in this review because of that! There are 10 bars and restaurants here which excludes Starbucks Coffee, and Breakout located here so there is a fairly decent selection for most cuisine types including burgers with Five Guys being a more high end Mcdonald's, chicken/Portuguese food of course at Nando's, Italian at Bella and Mexican at Chiquito to name a few. The overall feel of the BQ is reasonable, it isn't too bad, but it isn't too good either, the main thing it does, it combining quite a nice selection of places to eat into one, the Nando's branch in particular which I visited, did look very nice, it was a big store with huge portion sizes, which worked out quite poor, as they overloaded it with spice, making it too hot, but I have commented on that further in a separate review. In a way, the Brewery Quarter lacks that special thing, that sparkle most malls and retail parks have to bring tourists and even locals in alike, which is a shame, and is one of the main reasons I don't think the BQ has done anything to deserve anything more than 2 stars, which I'm dissapointed to report.

The Old Brewery Quarter is a trendy café and restaurant area set around a kind of open-air piazza…read morein the heart of the city centre. It was once the 'Old Brewery' site of Welsh brewery Brains, but after being sat vacant for a while it was redeveloped in 2003 into the current leisure area. You can now find many chain restaurants in the Brewery Quarter, split over two levels - with the likes of Nando's, La Tasca, and Thai Edge on the upper level, along with Brains' own flagship venue, The Yard Bar and Kitchen - and Lava Lounge and Chiquito's on the lower level down some steps. Above all of the restaurants there are residential loft style apartments and penthouses, too. Although it covers a fairly compact area, the Brewery Quarter offers a good choice of different places to eat and drink, and the whole atmosphere is really pleasant - when the sun's out you can almost imagine you're on holiday.

I'm not really a fan of this church as a place for worship for myself - for reasons that will…read morebecome clear in just a little bit. But I have entered this church under local flavour because it conducts its services in Welsh. It is really very interesting to go to a service. The church itself is beautiful - a real, good, old-fashioned church. Although it does feel a little weird going in to look around when it's a functioning church. Also, I don't want it to seem as though I was going to gawk at local people. I was really just very interested to see a traditional service. And I'm really glad I did.

Having lived in the West Country for almost six years, I've forgotten what it feels like to be a…read moretourist in Somerset! I'm so used to the winding back roads of Bath, the independent shops and the local way of life. So when my friends came down to escape the Big Smoke for the weekend I took full advantage of being a tourist for the day! We scratched off a couple of options; bus tour? 'We get on a bus everyday!' Trip around the Baths? 'I've already been on a school trip!' Boat trip? ... A resounding yes! With plenty of trips to choose from, we ended up going on the next one that was leaving the lock, and I'm really pleased we did. The hour round trip cost just £6 for a guided tour and some bread to feed the ducks. We saw the first corset factory in England, the lowest bridge in Bath and everything in between. An informative and fun way to spend an hour for locals and tourists alike!

Queen Street is one of Cardiff's pedestrianised shopping areas, stretching from the Castle at one…read moreend to Capitol Centre and Queen Street Station at the other end. It's lined with many of the leading high street brands such as Top Shop, Miss Selfidges, Vodafone, Next, Marks & Spencer, Peacocks, and so on. There's little to distinguish Queen Street from similar shopping centres in other cities, but it does offer a good range of clothes and shoe shops. It's also home to many of the big fast food chains such as McDonald's and Burger King, and some of the big coffee chains such as Starbucks - but has few cafés or shops with any real charm. About half way along the street there's an entrance to St David's Shopping Centre, which is home to loads more shops and links through to the Hayes area of the city and the new St David's 2 mall. At the far end there's the Capitol Shopping Centre, home to yet more major clothes and shoe shops, and a few cafés. If you're after more unusual, boutique shops or independent cafés, however, you're better off heading to Cardiff's many small covered arcades, such as Castle, High Street, Morgan, and Wyndham Arcades.

If you are visiting Cardiff for shopping chances are you will find yourself on Queen Street. This…read moreis the main shopping area and everything from all the top high street names, pubs, clubs, bars, restaurants, banks, convenience stores and more. There is a lot in terms of your big name shop and also there is St David's which offers further shopping opportunities for any shopaholics to spend some cash. There always a small stall or little event going on in the idle of Queen Street and i guarantee you'll probably be collard by someone who wants you to sign up for a charity or the very friendly Hare Krishna Monks. As some else has pointed out if you would prefer smaller boutique style shops where there is more likely to be independently owned shops then the arcades just around the corner would be a better fit.

If you take the valley rocket from the city up to Merthyr Tydfil, jump off, (not literally) cross…read moreover the roundabout and head up Tywn Hill, somewhere between the terraced houses, snuggled into the winding hill is the Bali Glas. On first entering you feel like you're in someone's front room. Except this front room has a vast amount of alcoholic beverage choice, the most amazing welcome and a fantastic atmosphere that only comes with a well established local. There's a wide range of clientele in the Bali Glas, from young to old, to boring to bonkers to plastered to sober as hell. This pub really is a hidden gem. Charlotte, behind the bar is not only the prettiest barmaid ever but she's also the happiest. You never have to wait for a drink and when you get one, I'm brave enough to say, it's probably the best pint you'll ever drink in Merthyr Tydfil. Scott and Hywel are guaranteed to know your family History before you've taken three sips of your drink. Alan the landlord is possibly the driest person I've ever met and once you get past his frown he really is very nice and surprisingly happy! I looked upon my time in the Blai as a learning curve because over three pints of delicious Strongbow I learnt that elephants are pregnant for a whole twenty two months, that Merthyr Tydfil was once the largest town in Wales and I also learnt to cure hiccups! Yes, to cure hiccups. I would recommend everyone have at least one drink in the Bali Glas though you'll probably end up having at least five because the place is bloody marvellous! Well worth the trek up the hill.

King Bladud's Pigs in Bath was a 2008 public art event which aimed to get locals and tourists…read moreinterested in the heritage of Bath. At one point, pigs took over the city with 106 fully sized painted pigs dotted in every street, park and underpass. I won't bore you with history, but the history behind the project dates back to 863BC when Bladud and his pigs were travelling the country in search for a new residence when he, and his beloved animals, contracted leprosy. But, whilst travelling through Bath Bladud's pigs rolled in the hot mud around Bath's springs and were miraculously cured! Sadly, all the pigs have now been auctioned for charity, but you'll still be able to find one or two dotted around so keep your eyes peeled! The workshop which made the pigs is still there selling posters, cards and mini pig statues.

Another great night! The community vibe was loud and clear among us and we all enjoyed some…read moredrinking and dancing in some places we've never been before. The full moon cafe has a lovely cosy marquee in the back and the owner said a few words and gave us some lovely tapas and a trick or treat task before Thom led us on to the next place - chimp house. The staff were great in there and got involved in all the fun. We did a trick or treat and ended up all doing a shot! We went down to hobgoblin where the owner was absolutely great. We all clapped him for how accommodating he was and he gave a massive shout out to the Yelpers. It was my first mulled wine of the season and I thoroughly enjoyed it! He gave us some infamous chicken wings and some of us got an extra shot for good fancy dress! We wandered on down to bootlegger and this is where it gets blurry! The cocktails are really good in here and the music was great so we all had a good old boogie. Roll on the next event! :-)