1. What’s your favourite hidden gem or lesser-known spot in the city that most tourists miss?
One of my favourite hidden gems is located right under the souvenir shop and ticket office of Cardiff Castle. Along a long underground corridor runs a decorative frieze that celebrates Roman heritage, ending in a small grotto with an impressive sculpture of Roman chariots. This always creates a real wow effect for visitors, many of whom never expected to find such a treasure hidden away.

2. Can you share a powerful story from your tour that really stayed with you?
I will never forget one moment when, after sharing my personal story of arriving in Cardiff as a refugee, one of my guests began to cry. He told me that he had heard the same kind of story many times from his Polish grandfather and was deeply moved by the fact that, even though humanity seems to progress, the tragedies of war and displacement remain painfully the same.

3. What does being a tour guide with Invisible Cities mean to you personally?
Being a guide means sharing my love for the city that became my second home, with people who are open to receiving that love. It is both a responsibility and a joy.

4. What part of your tour surprises you most?
What surprises me most is the extraordinary transformation of Cardiff over just one century. Through the vision and wealth of one family, the Butes, it grew from a small village into the richest coal port in the world, and then another century later into a centre of the arts and an international film hub.

5. How do you think your tour helps people to see the city differently?

 Very often I have local Cardiff-born guests who are astonished to discover things they had never noticed before. A vivid example is the sculpture Alliance, located in front of Cardiff Central Library on The Hayes. This striking artwork, created by Jean-Bernard Métais, consists of a huge tilted steel hoop and an arrow-like gnomon. Inside the hoop is a phosphorescent liquid that rises and falls with the tides of the Bristol Channel, and at night poetic phrases in Welsh and English are projected onto the pavement. Many of my guests walk past it every day without knowing what it represents — yet it is one of the most iconic symbols of Cardiff.

6. What’s one historical fact or story you love to tell on your tour?   
I love telling the story of the Bute family, especially the friendship between the Third Marquess of Bute and architect William Burges. Thanks to Bute’s wealth, Burges’ genius, and even opium-inspired visions, they transformed Cardiff into a medieval fairytale — and left us with the magnificent Cardiff Castle and Castell Coch.

7. Why do you think it’s important for visitors to learn about homelessness during their trip?
I always begin the tour by admitting openly: I have been homeless. It can happen to anyone. People do not deserve such a life, and everyone is entitled to basic human rights, including the right to a roof over their head. By joining our tours, visitors are not only learning about history and culture — they are also contributing to an important social mission.

8. What’s your favourite reaction you’ve had from someone on a tour?
I love it when guests laugh at my jokes — it puts us on the same wavelength. But I also treasure the moments when they cry during the more emotional parts of the story. When guests are not afraid to share their emotions, they become co-creators of the tour. Each time, every group makes the experience new and unique.

9. What do you hope people remember most after taking your tour?
I hope they remember that when they next walk past someone homeless in the street, they will not think of them as lazy or irresponsible, but will see that behind each person lies a personal tragedy. And I also hope they remember Cardiff itself — a city that holds a unique place in British history but is still underappreciated as a tourist destination. This summer, in Portugal, I saw thousands queuing at Pena Palace in Sintra, a 19th-century folly project very similar in idea to Cardiff Castle. And I thought — Cardiff deserves that same level of recognition.

10. How has being a guide with Invisible Cities changed your life or perspective?
Being part of Invisible Cities has given me a new sense of stability and self-respect, as well as the opportunity to meet wonderful people in the Invisible Cities Cardiff team.