# Does Cardiff city centre scare you at night?



## Col_Buendia (Aug 14, 2005)

I just cycled home from Chapter, and I was coming past the castle thinking "how can I get from here to Adamsdown without having to run the gauntlet of an entire city's worth of beery idiots", and the answer was in a helicopter.

I dunno about the rest of ye, but passing through the city centre before, during or after closing time seems to be a nightmare. I've just been to see Bullet Boy, so perhaps a film about inner city gun crime in London wasn't the best thing to set me up for a late night return home, but Cardiff city centre is a fucking head boiler at this time of night. I've come out of bars at closing time to see scenes in Caroline St that Dante couldn't have dreamt up. Fighting, puking, fucking, arguing, crying, stripping, eating, everything seems to happen there at 2am, except it's all _blurry_...

And then being on a bicycle just makes you fair game for every funny-as-fuck pisshead who shouts stuff like "here mate, there's something wrong with your bike, the back wheel's turning".

Perhaps it's just me being a bit too paranoid going home on me todd, but I grew up in Belfast where we merrily slaughtered people for pronouncing the letter "H" incorrectly, and I don't remember seeing this much grief as part of a "good night out".

Does anyone else feel intimidated by Cardiff city centre on a Fri/Sat night?

I told foreign mates that the cops have now established mobile triage units in St Mary's St at closing time and they seriously wouldn't believe me.


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## phildwyer (Aug 14, 2005)

Col_Buendia said:
			
		

> I just cycled home from Chapter, and I was coming past the castle thinking "how can I get from here to Adamsdown without having to run the gauntlet of an entire city's worth of beery idiots", and the answer was in a helicopter.
> 
> I dunno about the rest of ye, but passing through the city centre before, during or after closing time seems to be a nightmare. I've just been to see Bullet Boy, so perhaps a film about inner city gun crime in London wasn't the best thing to set me up for a late night return home, but Cardiff city centre is a fucking head boiler at this time of night. I've come out of bars at closing time to see scenes in Caroline St that Dante couldn't have dreamt up. Fighting, puking, fucking, arguing, crying, stripping, eating, everything seems to happen there at 2am, except it's all _blurry_...
> 
> ...



Yep, its always been bad, but its worse now than ever before.  I can't imagine what Caroline Street at 2am must be like if you're *sober.*


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## editor (Aug 14, 2005)

Cardiff's always been a rough house after closing time.


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## phildwyer (Aug 14, 2005)

editor said:
			
		

> Cardiff's always been a rough house after closing time.



True, its got all the problems of any big city, but worse because loads of people come from places like the Valleys and Barry for a big night out.  Actually, Barry's even worse than Cardiff.  Barry is like Caroline Street at 2am by 9pm.  By 2am its quiet because everyone is passed out, arrested, or in hospital.


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## editor (Aug 14, 2005)

Caroline Street's positively posh compared to how it used to be!

But Barry is as rough as fuck!


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## phildwyer (Aug 14, 2005)

editor said:
			
		

> Caroline Street's positively posh compared to how it used to be!



I hear Dorothy's have replaced the chicken curry with coq au vin.


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## ddraig (Aug 14, 2005)

YES! it does scare me and also reminds me why i go to free parties instead!

warned people about it before we went for a couple of drinks on friday and they thought i was exaggerating, until they saw it for themselves.
scary on the way out and carnage on the way home.
they close off the end of st mary's st ffs, so people can stagger and fall about.  saw what looked like 2 couples walking a bit skiwiff and there was some small misunderstanding and the men started going for each other... there were 5 or 6 plod on them in abuot 10seconds, in the back of the van and the 'ladies' screaming etc.  just looked like routine.  

CB, maybe you could go round the back way, down neville st and up penarth rd passed brains brewery?  sounds dodge as well.
or stick to the castle side and bomb it round  

one of the scariest sights i have seen (on a way to a party) was driving through blackwood or somewhere near at closing time, bloody ell


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 14, 2005)

Yeah, I mean when I 1st got here in 1999, a mate on the MA course said in the first week that Cardiff was the nuttiest city that he had ever known, like for people just picking random fights with you in the bar. Now this bloke might have just been a trouble-magnet, and I've seen worse punch-ups elsewhere, but the residual level of general aggressive madness is hard to take, especially on Caroline St at 2am!

But what is it that makes a city like that? I know socio-economic factors have a huge influence, but is that it? Do we just say 'Thatcher closed the mines and now all the valleys kids have nothing to do except get paralytic and knock seven shades of shite out of each other every weekend'...?

I know it is a looooooooooodicrous comparison, but I'm just back from 5 months in Barcelona, and that is a city with a mad industrial background and (upon a time) a reputation for working class militancy. But they don't go out and carry on  the way Brits seem to...


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## LilMissHissyFit (Aug 14, 2005)

It doesnt bother me but then on the rare occasions Im down there after closing I'm one of the pissed people with a couple of mates ( albeit well behaved) so all i care about is getting my chips and finding my cab home


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## oneflewover (Aug 14, 2005)

Hi all,

A saturday afternoon before the football was bad enough for me, wouldn't like to do a night there. I was there a few years ago and thought i would have a nice walk down to the river, not sure what estate it was but i wouldn't like to do it again. Down against the river it was Ok, had a drink and something to eat. Glad there was a train to get me back to the centre! A drink in the town was a mistake, the locals where certainley restless! Again thank goodness for the train to the ground an back. Decided against the after match drink and headed for one in Bristol instead.

Up the Tigers


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## King Biscuit Time (Aug 14, 2005)

It's mental and and lairy and boozy but I very rarely feel unsafe.
I've only ever been smacked in the mouth once and that was a suckerpunch off a lairy manc after the FA cup this year.


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## SeniorSbagliato (Aug 15, 2005)

Dunno, don't go out anymore, not cos I'm scared, like!


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 15, 2005)

King Biscuit Time said:
			
		

> It's mental and and lairy and boozy but I very rarely feel unsafe.
> I've only ever been smacked in the mouth once and that was a suckerpunch off a lairy manc after the FA cup this year.



HA!!

Well, that's once more than me, so being paranoid pays... dunnit?


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## editor (Aug 15, 2005)

Col_Buendia said:
			
		

> But what is it that makes a city like that? I know socio-economic factors have a huge influence, but is that it? Do we just say 'Thatcher closed the mines and now all the valleys kids have nothing to do except get paralytic and knock seven shades of shite out of each other every weekend'...?


Spend a week up in the valleys and you'll probably get an idea why some peeps go some beserk when they come down to the bright lights of Cardiff on the weekend!


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## Donna Ferentes (Aug 15, 2005)

I once saw somebody smash a window with a headbutt in Cardiff city centre on a Saturday night.


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## Belushi (Aug 15, 2005)

A night out in Cardiff is a picnic compared to a night out in Neath.


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## Belushi (Aug 15, 2005)

> But what is it that makes a city like that? I know socio-economic factors have a huge influence, but is that it? Do we just say 'Thatcher closed the mines and now all the valleys kids have nothing to do except get paralytic and knock seven shades of shite out of each other every weekend'...?



There was a fighting culture among the valleys people long before the pits closed.


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## editor (Aug 15, 2005)

Donna Ferentes said:
			
		

> I once saw somebody smash a window with a headbutt in Cardiff city centre on a Saturday night.


That was as a warning to Oxford fans.


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## Zimri (Aug 15, 2005)

I generally try to steer clear of the city center at nights, although i'd love to get some photos for photographic projects i'm currently doing, I havn't worked up the courage to actually venture into cardiff with my gear 

I'd guess its not just the center either, where I live, Radyr, it seems to have become popular for the local morons to gather around the spar/park and drink well into the night, usually resulting in fights/boy racers attempting to show off well into the morning.


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## miss direct (Aug 15, 2005)

I lived in Cardiff for a year, and found the city centre very scary at night (actually even in the day but the night was worse). So many fights, people being sick, screaming abuse. Horrible. I live in Birmingham and don't see as much violence and trouble here as I did in my short time there.


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## King Biscuit Time (Aug 15, 2005)

One window, pah thats nothing.

You have to smash at least 23 windows in your pants to get a name for yourself in this town!


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## Donna Ferentes (Aug 15, 2005)

editor said:
			
		

> That was as a warning to Oxford fans.


But unlike George III, few of us believe that we are made of glass.


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## editor (Aug 15, 2005)

King Biscuit Time said:
			
		

> One window, pah thats nothing.
> 
> You have to smash at least 23 windows in your pants to get a name for yourself in this town!


Blimey! Now _that's_ what I call window smashing!


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## Juice Terry (Aug 15, 2005)

I used to live on Tudor Street, the walk home after a night out was always adventurous, some drunken twat offering to kick your head in, luckily they were usually too drunk to carry it out.

Mind you, not as bad as Ponty, fighting with the cops was an accepted saturday night sport there.


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 15, 2005)

Belushi said:
			
		

> There was a fighting culture among the valleys people long before the pits closed.



Right, so what we've got is that every valleys town *near* Cardiff is actually a hell of a lot worse. I can believe it, my mate here told me that Ponty at closing time makes the Tet offensive look modest.

But how do you define a "fighting culture" - seriously? I'm really curious about that. Where does it come from... and scarier again, does it mean that some people actually enjoy fighting


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 15, 2005)

*conspiracy nut alert!!*




			
				King Biscuit Time said:
			
		

> One window, pah thats nothing.
> 
> You have to smash at least 23 windows in your pants to get a name for yourself in this town!



This bloke's case was up in court right before a couple of mates of mine were due to answer charges of being unrecalcitrant peaceniks and of trying to stop the war a couple of years ago. Caught a few of the (psychiatric) details, he wasn't there in person, but sounded really sad. Especially seeing as the local tabloid rags splashed him all over the front pages.

But look at the BBC picture website . In the first shot, the time is dated 00:46. The following image shows that someone was tilting the camera vertically downwards to follow this guy, 00:56.

The first window we see getting smashed is at 01:22, and yet incredibly the first shot of police arriving is 01:58. Even at that it takes them till 02:49 to get him into the van.

Which means that someone can wander Queen St in their birthday suit for over half an hour, being watched by CCTV control cops and it's not worth them bothering with. And despite the shops being a MASSIVE 45 seconds drive from Cardiff central police station, once the smashing began, it took plod over 35 minutes to arrive on scene.

Reassuring, innit?


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## ginger_syn (Aug 15, 2005)

The only time i find the city center areas scary is when I travel by car,the chances of some random piss-head chucking himself in front of the car in the desprate hope its an empty taxi is massive.Although a mate did make some money giving a bunch of people a lift back to barry after they stopped him like that.I have to admit though that Queen street after 2am always reminds me of a George Romero film,especialy if there is a Nick Turner soundtrack going on


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## phildwyer (Aug 15, 2005)

Col_Buendia said:
			
		

> Right, so what we've got is that every valleys town *near* Cardiff is actually a hell of a lot worse. I can believe it, my mate here told me that Ponty at closing time makes the Tet offensive look modest.
> 
> But how do you define a "fighting culture" - seriously? I'm really curious about that. Where does it come from... and scarier again, does it mean that some people actually enjoy fighting



That's what it means alright.  Where did you grow up?


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 15, 2005)

Col_Buendia said:
			
		

> ... but I grew up in Belfast where we merrily slaughtered people for pronouncing the letter "H" incorrectly, and I don't remember seeing this much grief as part of a "good night out"...



That's where I grew up!

Except not in a particularly "rough" part of town, although I swiftly moved into the city centre in my teenage years, and lived there, close to the main entertainment drag for 6 years. Never saw the like of Caroline St, though.

What, though, is a "fighting culture". I mean, people like lots of things, but how does "fighting" come to define the culture of a given area? And who started it? (If you know what I mean )

Edited to add: I _was _ being slightly ironic when I asked if people actually enjoyed fighting! But enjoying fighting makes as much sense to me as enjoying being shagged by an alsatian. I know some folk are into it, but it beats me as to why.


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## zog (Aug 15, 2005)

I've lived here for over 15 years and the only time i've ever been assulted was by a copper.

cardiff's a dream, no grief what-so-ever. it's the main reason i stayed here.


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## spacemonkey (Aug 15, 2005)

I think Cardiff is one of the safest cities i've ever been to in the UK. There's nowhere in Cardiff i wouldn't walk at night. The city centre is very boozy obviously, but it's the smaller towns binge drinking that scares me more.

In my 22 years of living here i've only been assaulted once, and that was by some bloke who thought it would be clever to kick in a 13 year old outside his highschool for no reason.


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## jannerboyuk (Aug 15, 2005)

spacemonkey said:
			
		

> I think Cardiff is one of the safest cities i've ever been to in the UK. There's nowhere in Cardiff i wouldn't walk at night. The city centre is very boozy obviously, but it's the smaller towns binge drinking that scares me more.
> 
> In my 22 years of living here i've only been assaulted once, and that was by some bloke who thought it would be clever to kick in a 13 year old outside his highschool for no reason.


Not totally convinced by this. Definitely better then London (and i find Tottenham worse then Brixton by miles although always found Newham/stratford ok) and much better then fucking Gillingham which is the nastiest place in thr south of England imo. But having worked in St Mellons including regularly finishing at 10om and having to wait for the bus its not a place i would want to walk through there at night. Not having a go at St.Mellons per se but just that i have experience there and would mention Ely and Fairwater and Riverside but thats by reputation not experience. Overall though i would agree that for its size Cardiff seems like a chilled out place to live and I intend being here for a while exactly for that reason.
Roath is the nicest of all.


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 16, 2005)

zog said:
			
		

> I've lived here for over 15 years and the only time i've ever been assulted was by a copper.
> 
> cardiff's a dream, no grief what-so-ever. it's the main reason i stayed here.



"A dream"...?? well, I dunno Zog, you and I must take different substances to facilitate sleep 

But would I be wrong in assessing that the three comments above seem a little out of step with the prevailing view?

I certainly get verbal abuse on a regular basis, I mean, off the top of my head, walking home one night, past the Orange shop onto the end of Queen St, with two mates equally non-descript (certainly not dready crusty hippy whatever pidgeonhole looking people), and some dickhead shouts "here lads, Glastonbury is THAT way". Y'see, for me, that is grief, not much grief, but unwarranted, unnerving and unnecessary. Maybe some people just don't notice this sort of stuff, or can happily ignore it when it happens, but I can't (yet). Maybe I need a new walkman with louder earphones!

Saying that, mind, I don't know that many other UK cities, and therefore I wasn't making a comparison when I asked the original question. But christ, if people think Cardiff is one of the *safest* cities, I'm not fooking leaving


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## dynamicbaddog (Aug 16, 2005)

Belushi said:
			
		

> There was a fighting culture among the valleys people long before the pits closed.



Probally true unfortunalty  , I grew up in Aberdare/Hirwaun and when I used to drink there (around 1982) it was almost impossible to go into pubs without some prat attempting to start on you. Though last time I was in Wales I was staying with relatives in Ponty and thought it was all very peaceful and friendly  (maybe on that particular weekend all the nutters were out visiting Cardiff  )
Did anyone see that programme on Sky One  last year where they featured Hirwaun as one of Britains Toughest Villages?


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## King Biscuit Time (Aug 16, 2005)

I've only been to Hirwaun once, to see these bad boys get blown up!







Didn't fancy hanging around for a drink afterwards though!


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## Alf Klein (Aug 16, 2005)

phildwyer said:
			
		

> I hear Dorothy's have replaced the chicken curry with coq au vin.



Really?


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## Alf Klein (Aug 16, 2005)

Col_Buendia said:
			
		

> That's where I grew up!
> 
> Except not in a particularly "rough" part of town, although I swiftly moved into the city centre in my teenage years, and lived there, close to the main entertainment drag for 6 years. Never saw the like of Caroline St, though.
> 
> ...



I grew up near Cardiff. Also lived in Belfast for a couple of years. Never saw any brawling there. More puke in the street than anywhere elese I've been though. People more pissed up than anywhere else as well. Didn't seem to be any menace in the 'safe' bits of town though.


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## phildwyer (Aug 16, 2005)

Alf Klein said:
			
		

> Really?



No.


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## spacemonkey (Aug 16, 2005)

Col_Buendia said:
			
		

> I mean, off the top of my head, walking home one night, past the Orange shop onto the end of Queen St, with two mates equally non-descript (certainly not dready crusty hippy whatever pidgeonhole looking people), and some dickhead shouts "here lads, Glastonbury is THAT way". Y'see, for me, that is grief, not much grief, but unwarranted, unnerving and unnecessary.



That does suck, but really, is there anywhere in britain these days where thats unlikely to happen? I got shouted out by a load of local kids in a tiny fishing village in cornwall a few months back. I don't think they've even heard the word 'crime' down there.   
Definately agree with the headphones though, good idea. Pisses them off if they don't get the attention they crave.  

Out of interest any suggestions for safer cities than cardiff (not based on crime rates) but a 1st hand view....


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## Alf Klein (Aug 16, 2005)

phildwyer said:
			
		

> No.


I'm glad


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## zog (Aug 16, 2005)

Col_Buendia said:
			
		

> I certainly get verbal abuse on a regular basis, I mean, off the top of my head, walking home one night, past the Orange shop onto the end of Queen St, with two mates equally non-descript (certainly not dready crusty hippy whatever pidgeonhole looking people), and some dickhead shouts "here lads, Glastonbury is THAT way". Y'see, for me, that is grief, not much grief, but unwarranted, unnerving and unnecessary. Maybe some people just don't notice this sort of stuff, or can happily ignore it when it happens, but I can't (yet). Maybe I need a new walkman with louder earphones!
> 
> Saying that, mind, I don't know that many other UK cities, and therefore I wasn't making a comparison when I asked the original question. But christ, if people think Cardiff is one of the *safest* cities, I'm not fooking leaving




I'd treat the Glastonbury comment as a bit of banter myself. I grew up in Coventry where if you went out at night you went out for a fight - hence I don't live there no more. In comparason Cardiff is sweet.


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## Gavin Bl (Aug 16, 2005)

> There was a fighting culture among the valleys people long before the pits closed.



Merthyr is the same, mainly stupid brawling, but alarming on a friday night if you've been away for a while. It is a long standing thing though - my step-father recalls (back in the 1940s) begging his mum to let him stay up to watch the fights when the pub across the road threw them out at closing time. While Mam might have ruled the roost at home, otherwise S. Wales was a man's world - a very macho culture. I think there's also a defiance in there, which is a distorted echo of the resentments at the towns history and radical working class credentials.

I guess a bit of a diff is that back then, you tended to get it IF you were looking for it - still true now, but maybe less so.


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## Donna Ferentes (Aug 16, 2005)

Gavin Bl said:
			
		

> Merthyr is the same, mainly stupid brawling, but alarming on a friday night if you've been away for a while. It is a long standing thing though - my step-father recalls (back in the 1940s) begging his mum to let him stay up to watch the fights when the pub across the road threw them out at closing time.


Aye, we used to make our own entertainment before television...


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## Gavin Bl (Aug 16, 2005)

> Aye, we used to make our own entertainment before television...



As my nana used to say

"None of THEM have seen the inside of a PROPER chapel this long time."

that, or

"catholics, probably"


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## Donna Ferentes (Aug 16, 2005)

I bet they'd seen the inside of some other offical buildings though...


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## Lucky JACKSON (Aug 17, 2005)

Fuck it!
Openly honest there's an aspect of myself that skirts and flirts with anti-social energy.
Dunno.
As a rule I despise violence, am quite cowardly in my own conduct but I\m a huge fan of idiocy especially when it's sanctioned by alcohol.
Still hate violence but it comes with the territory of misbehaviour and drink is an ace agent for making poor decisions which appeal to my sense of humour.
I'm from Barry and carry and abstract pride everytime its name gets mentioned in negative terms.
It's a weird one, so in short I'm not against 'lad culture' I just wish it could kidk it in a way that isn't depressing or crap and fuck with kneejerk, shorthand preconceptions.
I guess it's an instinct thing that doesn't belong to the intellect but acting the maggot shouldn't stop you being inspirational.


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 17, 2005)

Nice to hear an opinion from the other side of the street, as it were 

LJ, if you've the time, a question or two:




			
				Lucky JACKSON said:
			
		

> As a rule I despise violence, am quite cowardly in my own conduct but I\m a huge fan of idiocy especially when it's sanctioned by alcohol.


Does that mean you like watching a brawl? I mean, I know folk go and watch boxing, wrestling, etc, so some people get off on that. But if you were spectating at a St Mary St punch-up, how far would it have to go before you might shout "enough"? In terms of physical injury? And do you feel any responsibility for what happens by merely being a spectator?




			
				Lucky JACKSON said:
			
		

> It's a weird one, so in short I'm not against 'lad culture' I just wish it could kidk it in a way that isn't depressing or crap and fuck with kneejerk, shorthand preconceptions.


How do you think that would work...? I mean, could it be possible for lads and non-lads (if you know what I mean) sharing the same physical space without mutual antagonism?*




			
				Lucky JACKSON said:
			
		

> I guess it's an instinct thing that doesn't belong to the intellect but acting the maggot shouldn't stop you being inspirational.


Dunno what you mean by this...

*I've just had this mental image of a group of nerdy students walking round town with copies of the Iliad under their arms, shouting at beery blokes "hey lads, the Burberry shop is THAT way" and then bursting into uproarious laughter. Walter Mitty? _Moi?_


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## ddraig (Aug 17, 2005)

Col_Buendia said:
			
		

> Nice to hear an opinion from the other side of the street, as it were
> <snip>
> How do you think that would work...? I mean, *could it be possible for lads and non-lads (if you know what I mean) sharing the same physical space without mutual antagonism?**
> <snip>




nice one, though it was just me being slow this morning   

the bit in bold can often work at outdoor/free parties imo
not always mind, but u can sometimes see a bit of a range of people all appreciating the freedom aspect of it. and mutual love of loud music


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## beat23 (Aug 17, 2005)

I used to walk home alone through city centre on Saturday night at 2/3 am or later all the time at uni. Quite suprised by how many of you think Cardiff is really leary. I mean too many people do get stupidly drunk, I've seen some shouting and people just coming up to me and being dicks, but like somene said for the most part that's banter.

I've always felt safe in Cardiff comapred to say Swansea which I think is at least ten times more agressive and threatening in the city centre. And I'm from Llanelli - there's places you just don't go anywhere NEAR  on a saturday night unless u want to get battered, knived or have a brick thrown at you. (the getting battered and brick throwing incidents have both happened to mates of mine relatively recently) Someone got stabbed in the middle of town in the middle of the day about 2 months ago. Cardiff barely makes me flinch in comparrison.

b23


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## phildwyer (Aug 17, 2005)

So it seems we have a consensus: Cardiff is very violent and dangerous, but nowhere near as violent and dangerous as everywhere else in South Wales.  That's alright then.


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## beat23 (Aug 17, 2005)

phildwyer said:
			
		

> So it seems we have a consensus: Cardiff is very violent and dangerous, but nowhere near as violent and dangerous as everywhere else in South Wales.  That's alright then.



Hahahahaha    probly true!


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## Belushi (Aug 17, 2005)

phildwyer said:
			
		

> So it seems we have a consensus: Cardiff is very violent and dangerous, but nowhere near as violent and dangerous as everywhere else in South Wales.  That's alright then.



LOL, thats pretty true ime.


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 17, 2005)

To be fair, my original question was more about perceptions, rather than trying to establish "just how violent Cardiff may or may not be". I actually really like Cardiff, but the closing time circus makes me feel edgy, and I was wondering if others felt the same.

I only wish I could manage half the phlegm of the likes of Zog and b23 who seem to be able to let "banter" bounce off their backs. Any recommendations for improvements in that area?

Overly sensitive, me.


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## phildwyer (Aug 17, 2005)

Col_Buendia said:
			
		

> I only wish I could manage half the phlegm of the likes of Zog and b23 who seem to be able to let "banter" bounce off their backs. Any recommendations for improvements in that area?



Yes, do like the locals and get extremely pissed before walking home.  Not only will the banter be water of the proverbial duck's back, but you will soon find yourself engaging in such traditional Caroline St customs as wolfing down Dorothy's chicken curry until nausea sets in and shouting obscenities at Charlotte Church.  Before you know it you'll be a local yourself and you can move on to shouting banter at nerdy students.


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## lunatrick (Aug 17, 2005)

I grew up in roath, and from my point of view cardiff isn't that bad at all.....yes there is pissed shouting, and a general chaotic leeriness, but nothing that serious. It has got a bit of a bad rep since those cctv programs about st mary's street on tv in the last couple of years -  but in my experience the mid eighties were much worse, and I totally agree with the comments about other south wales towns...a walk in the park in comparison.


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## Allen CCFC (Aug 17, 2005)

I really think that going down the Bay for a drink is the solution.

Had great nights there. It does have a tinge of over 25's night but what the heck. 

Allen CCFC


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## King Biscuit Time (Aug 17, 2005)

Where do you go after 11 though?! - Evolution!!

No thanks - Just say no kids.


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## ddraig (Aug 18, 2005)

Allen CCFC said:
			
		

> I really think that going down the Bay for a drink is the solution.
> 
> Had great nights there. It does have a tinge of over 25's night but what the heck.
> 
> Allen CCFC




and a tinge of 'money' no?

and fakin 'white shirted men'

give me a knackered pub (millers   ) without the judgemental grief anyday


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## LilMissHissyFit (Aug 18, 2005)

phildwyer said:
			
		

> Yes, do like the locals and get extremely pissed before walking home.  Not only will the banter be water of the proverbial duck's back, but you will soon find yourself engaging in such traditional Caroline St customs as wolfing down Dorothy's chicken curry until nausea sets in and shouting obscenities at Charlotte Church.  Before you know it you'll be a local yourself and you can move on to shouting banter at nerdy students.


  There is that aspect to it. I'm not adverse to a Dirty dot's special when Ive had a few.

I wonder whether its worse for Blokes or younger women? I never feel worried down there becuase I'm not a fighter and none of my friends are either and I just go straight from A-B dont get in any arseholes way, dont attract any arseholes and as a result don't get any grief. Whereas blokes in particular can kick off or get kicked seemingly for really stupid things like bumping into someone and spilling the top inch of someone pint  and of course young women seem to get themselves into fights over 'you looked at my boyfriend, dont you go looking at my boyfriend' and related childish crap
*yawn*


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 18, 2005)

Hmmm, and I wonder how much worse it is for people on their own... not that I'm suggesting that pissed up blokes would pick on other people on their own (!). Most people seem to be talking about being out with mates, but my experience from last Sunday was coming home on my own (even on the bike) and that makes it more of a challenge.

Dorothy's Chicken curry...? But hasn't that got... like... *chicken* in it?


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## bendeus (Aug 18, 2005)

I think there are two sides to the Cardiff violence thing. Having lived for a few years in Liverpool (among other places) I would say that Cardiff doesn't even come close in terms of the sort of heavy duty, guns n' crack violence that characterises a lot of UK cities. I agree with Spacemonkey that there are very few areas of the city I'd feel particularly fearful of walking around after dark, and I'm not convinced that I know a single person who has been mugged here.

On the other side, it's obvious that by walking through the city centre at certain times you are running one hell of a gauntlet. I've always subscribed to the idea that you can 'feel' aggro in the air on Saint Mary Street of an evening. Some nights the whole area just seems sullen and vicious and ready to kick at a moment's notice. Other nights the prevailing vibe seems far more 'fun loving if a bit pickled'. It's the former type of nights you really want to avoid, and I remember a number of times running the gauntlet from the Mill Lane end of the street towards the sanctuary of the Toucan thanking my lucky stars that me missus was on my arm, thus lowering my kickinability profile sufficiently to afford me (barely) safe passage.

So, in summary I would say that in terms of drug-related and/or economically motivated violent crime, Cardiff is safe, but in terms of random, beer-fuelled and often quite vicious attacks within geographically defined areas of the city, its total shithouse


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## spacemonkey (Aug 18, 2005)

Excellent post bendeus. I know Cardiff is known as a binge drinking capital but I still don't think it's that much worse than any other city of its size. Coventry is identical, has anyone been there for a drunken night out, it's the absolute pits....


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## phildwyer (Aug 18, 2005)

bendeus said:
			
		

> So, in summary I would say that in terms of drug-related and/or economically motivated violent crime, Cardiff is safe, but in terms of random, beer-fuelled and often quite vicious attacks within geographically defined areas of the city, its total shithouse



Yes, that's about it.  I've often thought the same of the UK as a whole in comparison to the USA.  Obviously there's much more violence as a whole in the US, but there's much less *random* violence.  I got punched, and knocked out cold, in the Big Windsor a few years ago, just for beating the guy's mate at pool.  You never see that kind of thing in the US, I think because a lot of people go around armed, which tends to deter all but the most drunken of attackers.


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## Biffo (Aug 18, 2005)

Check today's Echo - Cardiff is a 'model city' apparently. A Top US cop says so - so it must be true 

If getting shouted at on your bike and being told 'Glastonbury is that way' constitutes being given 'grief' surely this topic should be renamed:

'Have I led a sheltered life?'

Cardiff is safe as fuck.


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## zog (Aug 18, 2005)

spacemonkey said:
			
		

> Excellent post bendeus. I know Cardiff is known as a binge drinking capital but I still don't think it's that much worse than any other city of its size. Coventry is identical, has anyone been there for a drunken night out, it's the absolute pits....




see my previous post


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## spacemonkey (Aug 19, 2005)

Oh yeah, missed that!


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 19, 2005)

Biffo said:
			
		

> Check today's Echo - Cardiff is a 'model city' apparently. A Top US cop says so - so it must be true
> 
> If getting shouted at on your bike and being told 'Glastonbury is that way' constitutes being given 'grief' surely this topic should be renamed:
> 
> ...



Hmmmm.... you don't think "safe as fuck" might just be overstating things a *teensy weensy* bit? Or haven't you been down Chip Lane after closing time?

So if it isn't grief, what is it? And if it makes the person on the receiving end feel intimidated, what does that mean? Or do you give a toss?


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## Biffo (Aug 19, 2005)

Col_Buendia said:
			
		

> Hmmmm.... you don't think "safe as fuck" might just be overstating things a *teensy weensy* bit? Or haven't you been down Chip Lane after closing time?
> 
> So if it isn't grief, what is it? And if it makes the person on the receiving end feel intimidated, what does that mean? Or do you give a toss?




I've lived in Cardiff for 17 years and have been known to frequent Caroline Street in the small hours to partake of a chicken-based delicacy. If you haven't heard the phrase 'safe as fuck' before during your stay in Wales then I apologise for making an assumption.

As for your final point, I feel you've answered the question I put forward in my previous post. 

Be careful out there.... it's a jungle.


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 19, 2005)

Biffo said:
			
		

> I've lived in Cardiff for 17 years and have been known to frequent Caroline Street in the small hours to partake of a chicken-based delicacy. If you haven't heard the phrase 'safe as fuck' before during your stay in Wales then I apologise for making an assumption.
> 
> As for your final point, I feel you've answered the question I put forward in my previous post.
> 
> Be careful out there.... it's a jungle.



We're obviously not on the same wavelength mate, I never made any mention of having heard or not having heard the phrase "safe as fuck", so I don't know what your assumption was and I don't know what you're apologising about! What I did suggest was that it might be overstating the case seeing as other posters have reported unprovoked attacks. Do you want to take those posts onboard and review your comment, or are you happy to ignore what other posters have reported?

Whether or not I have answered your original question I don't know, but you sure as hell didn't answer mine - what do *you* call what I describe, if you do not consider it grief. Others have taken it as banter, but you haven't bothered to say. And do you give a toss if the people you share the streets of this city with feel intimidated by some people's behaviour on those streets?

Just curious like, cos your dismissive tone sounds arrogant to me, but that might be a misinterpretation.


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## Biffo (Aug 19, 2005)

Col_Buendia said:
			
		

> We're obviously not on the same wavelength mate, I never made any mention of having heard or not having heard the phrase "safe as fuck", so I don't know what your assumption was and I don't know what you're apologising about! What I did suggest was that it might be overstating the case seeing as other posters have reported unprovoked attacks. Do you want to take those posts onboard and review your comment, or are you happy to ignore what other posters have reported?
> 
> Whether or not I have answered your original question I don't know, but you sure as hell didn't answer mine - what do *you* call what I describe, if you do not consider it grief. Others have taken it as banter, but you haven't bothered to say. And do you give a toss if the people you share the streets of this city with feel intimidated by some people's behaviour on those streets?
> 
> Just curious like, cos your dismissive tone sounds arrogant to me, but that might be a misinterpretation.




Do you like Goldie Looking Chain at all?


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## Belushi (Aug 19, 2005)

You Cardiffians, cant walk past a mirror without ending up in a ruck


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## Biffo (Aug 19, 2005)

Belushi said:
			
		

> You Cardiffians, cant walk past a mirror without ending up in a ruck




He started it. He made fun of how I pronounced my 'H's.


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 19, 2005)

Biffo said:
			
		

> Do you like Goldie Looking Chain at all?



GLC is for the toffs in Grangetown. Over this side of the river we listen to proper 'ardcore  And we don't smoke no soapbar neither.


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## Biffo (Aug 19, 2005)

Col_Buendia said:
			
		

> GLC is for the toffs in Grangetown. Over this side of the river we listen to proper 'ardcore  And we don't smoke no soapbar neither.




Hooray! You knows it!


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## RubberBuccaneer (Aug 20, 2005)

Nope, i feel safe as anything walking thro' town compared to years ago.
because I'm older I feel out of the game for the young lads, and a bit more nounce on avoiding trouble, but I do genuinelly feel it's safer.

I've had three bad kickings in 21 years, so that's one every 7 years, which I think are quite safe stats.


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## phildwyer (Aug 20, 2005)

RubberBuccaneer said:
			
		

> I've had three bad kickings in 21 years, so that's one every 7 years, which I think are quite safe stats.



"Safe" in what sense?  Its probably average or typical, but its still a sad state of affairs when one has to be grateful to only receive a "bad kicking" once every seven years.


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## jannerboyuk (Aug 20, 2005)

phildwyer said:
			
		

> "Safe" in what sense?  Its probably average or typical, but its still a sad state of affairs when one has to be grateful to only receive a "bad kicking" once every seven years.


I have to agree. I'm 33 grew up on a council estate and some pretty rough places around the country and if i had received three serious good kickings i wouldn't be counting my blessings at all. I prefer my record of no kickings and only the occasional punch (three in total i think, nothing even vaguely serious).


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## Karac (Aug 20, 2005)

Cardiff can be a bit rough at night-but the only time ive had a serious kicking was in London (Kings x)-knocked one of my front teeth out as well


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## nightowl (Aug 21, 2005)

cardiff being a fairly compact city probably makes it seem a bit worse and more concentrated.


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## jannerboyuk (Aug 21, 2005)

nightowl said:
			
		

> cardiff being a fairly compact city probably makes it seem a bit worse and more concentrated.


Is it really that compacted compared to any similar size city? Thats never occurred to me to be honest as Cardiff seems to be the usual combination of a core city (essentially around the docks and a shopping area) and smaller villages that have been swallowed up over time.


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## phildwyer (Aug 21, 2005)

Well the center of Cardiff is rather a long way from the Docks.  Since the Cardiff Bay thing got going, its almost like there are two town centers.  The Bay is much safer the the center, which is funny, cos when I were a lad it was very much the other way around.


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## Col_Buendia (Aug 21, 2005)

phildwyer said:
			
		

> Well the center of Cardiff is rather a long way from the Docks.  Since the Cardiff Bay thing got going, its almost like there are two town centers.  The Bay is much safer the the center, which is funny, cos when I were a lad it was very much the other way around.



Yeah but the Bay's fucking 'orrible... it even makes me want to start fights! All those bloody plastic bars with plastic poseurs hanging out on the balcony trying not to notice who is noticing them... bleurgh. The last time I was there there was even people so shameless they were sunbathing on the front of the miniscule little boat that they had moored at the "marina". Christ, St Tropez it certainly isn't. They should get over it.


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## Dai Sheep (Sep 3, 2005)

You do get your arseholes in Cardiff the same as any other place, but I go into Cardiff city centre nearly every week and dont see much fighting. It depends what venues you go to - at the top end of st.mary street  you get quite a bit around Liquid etc, mainly where all the '18-21 age groups' go. Caroline street is a magnet for every pissed up weirdo in a 1 mile radius. Maybe 24 hour licencing will stop the 'everyone out a 2am effect'.


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