Cardiff Rugby

With the All Blacks touring the northern hemisphere, it was a good excuse to head off to Cardiff for the weekend and support the national side at the national sport. The Welsh love their rugby, and with the awesome Millenium Stadium, we knew we were in for a treat.

All match day the locals were keen to have a chat and some banter over the game. There was face paint opportunities, scarves, hats, flags and banners all down the main street too and the atmosphere was buzzing. The stadium was huge, and the constant Welsh singing and drowning out of the haka off putting! The All Blacks were victorious, but it was a close one.

Fortunately for us, St David's 2, a huge shopping centre extension had just opened up in Cardiff so we were able to fill in some spare time in the shops.

Loved the Welsh people, the rugby and the shops. Good trip all round.



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I could happily live in Cardiff.

In fact, New Zealand seems to have more in common with Wales than we do with England. They’re absolutely rugby-mad for one thing, unlike their football-loving neighbours.

All Blacks tests are a big deal in Cardiff. The city was buzzing all day, with Welsh and All Black souvenirs for sale on every-other street corner. The place was decked out in red, and it seemed as though half the residents were wearing Welsh rugby jerseys. This wasn’t just before the game, mind you, but at 10am in the morning – a good eight hours or so before kickoff!

They’re a friendly lot, too. My All Black jersey was a conversation starter as we shopped at St Davids, Cardiff’s super-sized shopping mall. A couple of times the locals would strike up a conversation with us as we walked around or stopped to rest.

Cardiff’s quite unique in the fact that its stadium is in the centre of town. When the time came we just rocked on up to the Millennium Stadium, having had our faces painted before the game for only a pound.

The game itself was a bit of a disappointment. The atmosphere was immense; the crowd was in a frenzy as the players took the field, and they seldom let up. They were good sorts though, and gracious in defeat.

Not many, but a few Cardiff pics are here