Blwyddyn Newydd Dda!

That means Happy New Year in Welsh, though I didn't hear anyone say it that way in da club. Gangnam Style ushered in 2013 in Cardiff as I suppose it did every else around the world. Over it.
New Year's Eve started off with drinks at my Kiwi friends Josh and Pip's place the we met the others down the local pub, The Packet. That was boring so we jumped in a cab and into Cardiff city for some clubbin'.
First on was called Retro, but I don't know what's retro about Call Me Maybe and Gangnam Style, but what the hey. Don't know the names of the next two clubs but the last one was the best, called Live Lounge I think, it was packed but great music and a great crowd. I would never go the a club at home any more...way too old... but here all ages like to go out to clubs, I definitely wasn't the oldest bloke there.
The city was full of people and there are lots of pubs, clubs and cafes open. Cardiff is really well organised for this sort of thing, whether its NYE or a big game at the Millennium Stadium. All the streets are closed off to traffic and all the entertainment is within walking distance. Police are around but not in your face and there are plenty of taxis and night buses to get people home.
Cardiff is meant to be the binge drinking capital of the UK, but I didn't see any fights or street pizzas (vomit) on the pavement like you would in Melbourne. Weird having NYE in the middle of winter though.
No night out in Cardiff is complete without a visit to Chip Alley at the end. Its a laneway full of chippies and kebab shops, always popular after 1 am. I can't do the chips with chicken curry sauce which is the food of choice in Wales, but at 3 am chips with cheese and gravy with a weird deep-fired Welsh rissole on top was just the thing for our walk back to the Bay.

Sorry about the quality of the photos, crappy phone camera.

Fuzz on horseback

In Da Club!

Welsh raver

Queue at Chip Alley

Not really suffering today, I've just been out for a walk around to the Barrage, and watched the boats come in and out of the locks, the sun was actually out and no rain for the first time in a month. Got the last Batman movie on Sky tonight, but I'm really hanging out for my hangover cure, a Four'n'Twenty pie!

Happy 2013 to you all!