Why Cardiff?
The capital of Wales is a young and vibrant city, and an ideal base to explore the beautiful surrounding countryside of South Wales. Cardiff was granted city status only in 1905 and became the Welsh capital in 1955. It may be new but it's full of history, with Cardiff Castle at its centre. The site was the home of a Roman fort in 55 AD, rebuilt by the Normans in 1081 and renovated in 1868 by the Bute family, who gave it to the people of Cardiff in 1947. A few hundred metres away is the second fortress of the city, Millennium Stadium, home to matches of the Welsh rugby and football teams. The Bay area of Cardiff, formally the docks, was completely renovated to accommodate new residential and commercial areas with views across Bristol Channel. It's home to the modern Welsh Millennium Centre, an arts and culture centre that stages musicals, theatre and art exhibitions.
A comfortable bed
The modern St David's Hotel and Spa (www.thestdavidshotel.com; 00 44 2920 454 045) provides five-star accommodation in Cardiff's Bay area. Close by is the more intimate boutique hotel, and former seaman's lodge, Jolyons Hotel (www.jolyons.co.uk; 00 44 2920 488 775; rooms from £75 [Dh454] per night), with six individually designed rooms, including a Moroccan-themed room, looking across to the Welsh Millennium Centre. Downstairs is the cosy Bar Cwtch (cwtch is a Welsh word that loosely translates into English as a safe place akin to a hug). The 1920s Holm House (www.holmhouse.co.uk; 00 44 2920 701 572) in nearby Penarth offers a more peaceful, coastal setting. The seaside town, six kilometres from the Bay, was popular in the Victorian era, with views across Bristol Channel to the Islands of Flatholm and Steepholm. The hotel is fitted with modern rooms, and suites come with Bang and Olufsen technology. In the city centre is the Big Sleep Hotel (www.thebigsleephotel.com; 00 44 2920 636 363; rooms from £58 [Dh351]), part-owned by the Hollywood actor John Malkovich.
Find your feet
The Taff Trail cuts its way from Cardiff Bay through the city and to the beautiful Brecon Beacons, nearly 88km away. A bit too much to walk in a day, but tackling part of it is a great introduction to the more scenic side of the capital city. The trail starts at Roald Dahl Plass, named after the famous children's author who was baptised at the nearby Norwegian Church, a landmark wooden church built in the 1860s by Norwegian sailors.
The Bay is an architecturally diverse area, with the Welsh Millennium Centre and Senedd (the home of the Welsh Assembly), which sports a steel ceiling, wooden roof and glass facade - to make visible the inner workings of the assembly, or so they say - alongside the Grade-One listed, 113-year-old Pierhead building with a clock tower dubbed Wales's very own Big Ben (www.pierhead.org; open Monday to Saturday; open from 10.30am to 4.30pm). The trail leaves the Bay towards the city, following the bank of the river, opposite the city centre, but you can cross a bridge to visit the Millennium Stadium and Cardiff Castle. Then continue through Sofia Gardens and past the Swalec Stadium, and the smart Pontcanna neighbourhood, locally known as the Chelsea of Cardiff. The trail becomes more rural as you head to Castell Coch or Red Castle, a 19th-century Gothic Revival-style building surrounded by woods and perched on a rock ledge.
Meet the locals
The best day to meet the locals is when the city is home to a rugby international, particularly during the six nations tournament in the spring months, and when one of the other Celtic nations, Scotland or Ireland, is visiting - that's when the city really comes alive.
Book a table
Most people's knowledge of Welsh cuisine starts and ends with Welsh Rarebit (cheese on toast), or leeks, but the Armless Dragon (www.armlessdragon.co.uk; 00 44 2920 382 357) has been attempting to further people's culinary understanding, with dishes such as the starter cockle and laverbread cakes on leek fondue, white truffle oil and dill (£5.95; Dh36), Welsh sirloin steak with baked field mushrooms and red onion marmalade, root vegetable Dauphenoise, cherry tomatoes and port hus (£17; Dh103).
Bullys (www.bullysrestaurant.co.uk; 00 44 2920 221 905) has built a reputation in the city over the past 16 years, and championing local produce. Main courses cost from £11 (Dh66).
Shopper's paradise
With only Swansea to the West and Bristol over the Severn Bridge in England, Cardiff is home from home to shoppers from all over the south and mid-Wales area. Cardiff also boasts the oldest record shop in the world. Spillers (www.spillersrecords.co.uk) was founded in 1894 and, more recently, was saved after a public campaign in 2006 kept it from closing after rents in the city centre rose because of the influx of high-street chains.
The Morgan Arcade and the nearby Royal Arcade house a number of smaller independent stores. In Morgan Arcade, A Vintage Affair stocks good quality vintage clothing from the 1940s to 1980s and chintzy homewares such as embroidered tablecloths and mismatched china. In Royal Arcade, stop at Melin Tregwynt for traditional Welsh woven blankets.
In Castle Arcade, near the castle, is Madame Fromage, ideal for foodie gifts or a quick bite, and Folk Farm, an eclectic shop crammed with antiques, vintage suitcases and clothes, and Welsh blankets - if you rummage you might find an old-school Burberry trench.
Craft in the Bay, as the name suggests, is in the Bay area, and sells locally made wooden and metal crafts. It also offers short courses and holds exhibitions of contemporary craft and applied art. Pethau Bychain sells furniture, crafts, ceramics and small accessories for the home (the name is Welsh for "little things"). And while you're in the Bay, pop into Fabulous Welsh Cakes (www.fabulouswelshcakes.co.uk; 00 44 29 2045 6593) for freshly made cakes, and some packaged for gifts back home, if they last that long.
What to avoid
The city centre on a Friday or Saturday night. All the horror stories of drunken Britain come to life after dark and it is not a pleasant or particularly safe place to be. Visitors are better off staying in Pontcanna, or Llandaff, the Bay outside the centre.
Don't miss
The countryside. Cardiff is surrounded by scenery that is said to have inspired JRR Tolkein when he sat down to write The Lord of the Rings. The rugged coastline to the west of the city, towards Swansea, is home to numerous scenic spots, such as Rhossilli Bay on the Gower Penisula - familiar to the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. At nearby Llangennith you can hire surfboards and wetsuits from PJs surf shop (www.pjsurfshop.co.uk; 00 4 1792 386 669).
North of Cardiff is the Brecon Beacons, perfect for hiking, cycling, caving or canoeing. The waterfalls walk in the Vale of Neath allow for a delightful diversion from the city. Two museums just outside the city that are both free and well worth a visit are St Fagans, the open-air natural history museum featuring buildings from past centuries, and Big Pit: National Coal Museum, which has an interesting multimedia tour of a mine (for information on these museums and others, visit www.museumwales.ac.uk).
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Iftar programme at the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding
Established in 1998, the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding was created with a vision to teach residents about the traditions and customs of the UAE. Its motto is ‘open doors, open minds’. All year-round, visitors can sign up for a traditional Emirati breakfast, lunch or dinner meal, as well as a range of walking tours, including ones to sites such as the Jumeirah Mosque or Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood.
Every year during Ramadan, an iftar programme is rolled out. This allows guests to break their fast with the centre’s presenters, visit a nearby mosque and observe their guides while they pray. These events last for about two hours and are open to the public, or can be booked for a private event.
Until the end of Ramadan, the iftar events take place from 7pm until 9pm, from Saturday to Thursday. Advanced booking is required.
For more details, email openminds@cultures.ae or visit www.cultures.ae
RESULTS
Light Flyweight (48kg): Alua Balkibekova (KAZ) beat Gulasal Sultonalieva (UZB) by points 4-1.
Flyweight (51kg): Nazym Kyzaibay (KAZ) beat Mary Kom (IND) 3-2.
Bantamweight (54kg): Dina Zholaman (KAZ) beat Sitora Shogdarova (UZB) 3-2.
Featherweight (57kg): Sitora Turdibekova (UZB) beat Vladislava Kukhta (KAZ) 5-0.
Lightweight (60kg): Rimma Volossenko (KAZ) beat Huswatun Hasanah (INA) KO round-1.
Light Welterweight (64kg): Milana Safronova (KAZ) beat Lalbuatsaihi (IND) 3-2.
Welterweight (69kg): Valentina Khalzova (KAZ) beat Navbakhor Khamidova (UZB) 5-0
Middleweight (75kg): Pooja Rani (IND) beat Mavluda Movlonova (UZB) 5-0.
Light Heavyweight (81kg): Farida Sholtay (KAZ) beat Ruzmetova Sokhiba (UZB) 5-0.
Heavyweight (81 kg): Lazzat Kungeibayeva (KAZ) beat Anupama (IND) 3-2.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
SERIE A FIXTURES
Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Atalanta v Juventus (6pm)
AC Milan v Napoli (9pm)
Torino v Inter Milan (11.45pm)
Sunday
Bologna v Parma (3.30pm)
Sassuolo v Lazio (6pm)
Roma v Brescia (6pm)
Verona v Fiorentina (6pm)
Sampdoria v Udinese (9pm)
Lecce v Cagliari (11.45pm)
Monday
SPAL v Genoa (11.45pm)
NATIONAL%20SELECTIONS
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
Honeymoonish
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Company profile
Company name: Suraasa
Started: 2018
Founders: Rishabh Khanna, Ankit Khanna and Sahil Makker
Based: India, UAE and the UK
Industry: EdTech
Initial investment: More than $200,000 in seed funding
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Despacito's dominance in numbers
Released: 2017
Peak chart position: No.1 in more than 47 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Lebanon
Views: 5.3 billion on YouTube
Sales: With 10 million downloads in the US, Despacito became the first Latin single to receive Diamond sales certification
Streams: 1.3 billion combined audio and video by the end of 2017, making it the biggest digital hit of the year.
Awards: 17, including Record of the Year at last year’s prestigious Latin Grammy Awards, as well as five Billboard Music Awards
Stage result
1. Jasper Philipsen (Bel) Alpecin-Fenix 4:42:34
2. Sam Bennett (Irl) Bora-Hansgrohe
3. Elia Viviani (Ita) Ineos Grenadiers
4. Dylan Groenewegen (Ned) BikeExchange-Jayco
5. Emils Liepins (Lat) Trek-Segafredo
6. Arnaud Demare (Fra) Groupama-FDJ
7. Max Kanter (Ger) Movistar Team
8. Olav Kooij (Ned) Jumbo-Visma
9. Tom Devriendt (Bel) Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux
10. Pascal Ackermann (Ger) UAE Team Emirate
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Sheer grandeur
The Owo building is 14 storeys high, seven of which are below ground, with the 30,000 square feet of amenities located subterranean, including a 16-seat private cinema, seven lounges, a gym, games room, treatment suites and bicycle storage.
A clear distinction between the residences and the Raffles hotel with the amenities operated separately.
Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
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What are NFTs?
Are non-fungible tokens a currency, asset, or a licensing instrument? Arnab Das, global market strategist EMEA at Invesco, says they are mix of all of three.
You can buy, hold and use NFTs just like US dollars and Bitcoins. “They can appreciate in value and even produce cash flows.”
However, while money is fungible, NFTs are not. “One Bitcoin, dollar, euro or dirham is largely indistinguishable from the next. Nothing ties a dollar bill to a particular owner, for example. Nor does it tie you to to any goods, services or assets you bought with that currency. In contrast, NFTs confer specific ownership,” Mr Das says.
This makes NFTs closer to a piece of intellectual property such as a work of art or licence, as you can claim royalties or profit by exchanging it at a higher value later, Mr Das says. “They could provide a sustainable income stream.”
This income will depend on future demand and use, which makes NFTs difficult to value. “However, there is a credible use case for many forms of intellectual property, notably art, songs, videos,” Mr Das says.
