Saint David's Day (and Welsh cakes)

Ttoday is the first of March, which means it is the Feast of Saint David, AKA the patron saint of Wales. I am conscious of its existence since 2000, when fellow actors threw daffodils at the end of a performance at uni, on the first of March, all wearing the iconic Welsh flag on their shoulders, as if it was a cape. Since then, I commemorate their national day. Since Wolfie is fond of Welsh cakes, we eat Welsh cakes together and that's pretty much it. I also mention it on this blog.

The Book Lover's Bucket List

 I ahve been wanting to blog about this for a while: a few months ago, during our Christmas session, we had a gifts exchange. I received The Book Lover's Bucket List. Picture here. It's the kind of book you didn't know existed and you didn't know you needed, with a list of places in the UK associated to classic authors and/or their work. Perfect if you are planning a literary pilgrimage somewhere in the UK, or a more cultured holiday. It should come in handy, as I love to visit places featured in fiction.

Feeling (almost) Welsh

 Today is the first of March, which you are most likely aware of. It is the Feast of Saint David, which you may or may not know about. Saint David is, as you may or may not know, the patron saint of Wales. So this is Wales' national day. It's a special day for me, as I truly discovered Welsh culture during my first year in the UK and I have very fond memories of the first of March. See see this post for more details. So yeah, although I don't think I have an ounce of Welsh blood in my veins, on this day I often feel a tad Welsh, or at least (and most certainly) Celtic.

Welsh rarebit

 We went to Waitrose recently and had lunch in their café. I was surprised to see that they served Welsh rarebits. I love a good Welsh rarebit, especially on a cold day, it is comfort food at its best, so I had to try it. Especially since I hadn't had one in ages, maybe in years. Just seeing it on the menu made me crave it. It was a decent one, albeit tasting a tad too much of mustard (even though I love mustard). All the same, it's been a long time, so I enjoyed it a lot.

Saint David's Day

As you may know, today is the first of March, the the Feast of Saint David, patron saint of Wales.Iam not Welsh, do not have Welsh blood, but I have some Welsh friends and try to sort of celebrate Saint David's Day every year. Read in this post from 2011 of my history with Saint David's Day. This year, I will eat Welsh cakes with Wolfie. For some reason, my son loves them. Not sure why he got so fond of them, I should ask him. He does not have Welsh blood, as far as I know, but maybe he has a bit of a Welsh soul.

November in one painting

I found this picture on the Facebook page of the British Museum. I loved it and I am sharing it here because, well, because it is a beautiful painting for one, and because it is very fitting. It is called November evening in a Welsh wood, from artist James Thomas Watts. I have never been in a Welsh wood, at least not that I can remember and I have never been to Wales in November, however this is very much how I see the month: cold, bare, a tad eerie and deliciously autumnal, with a dash of winter peeking.

A beaver in Wales

Here is a little bit of wildlife news that made my day yesterday: a beaver has been spotted in broad daylight in Wales. He was discovered, you probably guessed it, because he was making a massacre of the trees in a couple's garden. Antony, as he has been nicknamed by said couple, is the first beaver to have been spotted in the wild in Wales for centuries. Just because of this, I am quite happy. In a time when environment is a concern, it is good to know that some species of animals are (maybe) thriving in a place where they were extinct. Also, I find beavers kind of cute, even though they are rodents. Anyway, give me your thoughts on this news and on beavers in the comments.

"Penblwydd Hapus"

It was my birthday yesterday and as per usual I received a lot of good wishes via social media, particularly Facebook. One of my friends is Welsh, we went to the same university here. She wrote in her message on my wall "Penblwydd Hapus",which of course means "happy birthday" in Welsh. I never knew that. Now I have absolutely no idea how to pronounce it, nevertheless I am glad to know a bit more Welsh than I did before. Moral of the story: I am getting older and wiser. Sort of.

Of Saint David's Day and Welsh Cakes

Today is the first of March, the the Feast of Saint David, patron saint of Wales. There is not a single Welsh in this household, howeverI do like to celebrate it a bit. You can find the reason why in this post from 2011 and in the meantime find out what my Welsh connections are. Wolfie loves one thing about Wales: since a fairly early age he got very fond of Welsh cakes. So we might eat some today. We made some for a school project one day, but they were really ugly and I cannot find a picture of it, so instead I'm sharing a picture I shared a few months ago of Welsh cakes made perfectly by my mother-in-law. So happy Saint David's Day everyone, Welsh or not, and I hope you enjoy some Welsh cakes today.

Stocks of Welsk Cakes

 When we got back from our last holidays, we stopped at my wife's parents. We needed to, as we were exhausted, thirsty and famished. Her mother was ready: she had prepared a fresh supply of Welsh cakes. As I blogged before, Wlfie loooves Welsh cakes. He wolfs them down, no pun intended. I love them too, especially fresh like these. So we had a few as a snack, and we brought the rest of them home, where they didn't last a week. We should bake them ourselves.

Welsh Cakes

For some reason, our son Wolfie is very fond of Welsh cakes. It is like is favourite go-to snack. We often buy them for him, but his maternal grandmother (grandma for sorts) bake them herself last weekend. So we had them fresh from the pan. And having Welsh cakes fresh from the pan, still warm, is just the best thing ever. I went through them like they were getting out of fashion. Frankly, it was embarrassing. I hadn't had lunch, so this might explain why, but it was nevertheless embarrassing. But seriously, they are the best thing ever for an afternoon snack.

The Welsh Connection

Today is the first of March, which means the Feast of Saint David, the patron saint of Wales and thus Wales' natonal holiday. I try to observe it every year, somehow, because I have fond memories of the first Saint David's Day I spent in the UK, see this post for more details. I even got myself the flag of Wales, I loved the day so much (and also for other reasons). I only have a few Welsh friends, but I try to celebrate all the same. It may be ironic, because while our family is a mix of quite a few people and cultures, neither my wife nor I have, as far as we know, have even so much as a drop of Welsh blood. So my Welsh connections are tenuous at best. All the same, we don't need a reason to celebrate, that there is a celebration on this day should be enough.

The Welsh Flag and me

Today is the first of March and it is also the Feast of Saint David, also the patron saint of Wales. It is therefore Wales' National Day. I took this picture while visiting Cardiff Castle. That was back in 2017. I have a bit of history with Wales and the Welsh people, which dates back to my first year at uni and I have detailed in this post. That same year, I asked one of my Welsh friends to buy a Welsh flag for me next time she went home, because I thought it looked really cool with the dragon on it (you don't see it so well on this pic) and its call back to the Arthurian legend. Back then, it was not something I would have done over the internet. Anyway, she bought it and the flag is still in my parents' place somewhere. I wonder if dad takes it out to fly it. I guess the neighbours would think it weird, but among all the flags of the world, I think the Welsh one might be the coolest. And today, I wish I could fly it here, even though I am not Welsh.

Le bébé mammouth de Cardiff

J'ai pris cette photo au National Museum de Cardiff. Vous y voyez un bébé mammouth aurpès de sa maman. Je n'ai pas beaucoup aimé nos vacances à Cardiff, ce qui est un peu ironique vu que c'étaient les dernières "vraies" vacances en touristes que l'on a eues. C'est la ville que je n'ai pas aimé: pas assez belle, souvent salle, pas assez de bons endroits où manger et boire. Cela dit, j'ai bien aimé le musée et les mammouths m'ont fait une forte impression: j'ai pris une série de photos sur eux et j'ai blogué sur le sujet ici et là. Je ne sais pas trop pourquoi je le partage ce soir. Peut-être parce que, même si c'étaient des vacances assez décevantes, c'était mieux que pas de vacances du tout comme on risque d'avoir pour un temps. J'espère que ce n'est pas par peur d'extinction.

Welsk Folk Tales for Saint David's Day

Today is the first of March and, as my long time readers know, it is thus the Feast of Saint David, also the patron saint of Wales. So first: hello to any Welsh reader and happy Saint David's Day! If you want to find a way to celebrate, I suggest that you read some Welsh tales and my recommendation would be, well, the book Welsh Folk Tales. I blogged about it before. I finally read it last year and found it thoroughly enjoyable. It is dense with many stories, some funny, some dark, and all give you a glimpse of Welsh psyche.

Singe à sonnette

Photo prise au Cardiff Castle. Je regardais les photos hier et j'ai pensé la partager ici ce soir. Ce singe de bois avait une noix ou en tout cas quelque chose dans la gueule, qui était en fait le bouton d'une sonnette pour appeler les domestiques, si je me souviens bien. Ingénieux n'est-ce pas? Je ne crois pas que la sonnette fonctionne encore.

Le soleil d'été

Photo prise au Cardiff Castle. Comme de coutume, je la partage ici parce qu'elle sert mon propos. Il ne fait pas très été ces temps-ci, par cela je veux dire qu'il ne fait pas très chaud. Pas vraiment froid non plus, mais on a eu des printemps plus doux si tard dans la saison. Mais le soleil lui est ici, mpeme s'il n'est pas plombant, et il y est de plus en plus longtemps. Le soir tombe lentement et tard. L'été est donc imminent et je suis peut-être la seule personne ici qui l'attends avec une certaine appréhension. Je n'aime pas les journées longues et les nuits courtes et je crains encore plus le soleil plombant. Celui que l'on a eu jusqu'ici me va très bien en fait, et j'espère que l'été qui s'en vient ne sera pas trop chaud (l'été dernier à par ailleurs été une vraie torture à cet égard). Suis-je le seul à penser comme ça?

Robinson Crusoe

I took this picture in Cardiff Castle, in the playroom of the children of the Bute family which were covered with illustrations of tales classic stories(long story short). I wish I could do the same here for Wolfie's bedroom, but that's not the topic of this post. I recognised right away Robinson Crusoe, from the eponymous novel of Daniel Defoe, and his sidekick Friday. I never read the novel, but as a child I once read a comic book adaptation, present from my favourite child minder (the best in the world), which really fascinated me. I read it over and over again. I later saw a few barely memorable and very derivative  adaptations, but looking at this picture today it struck me that for all my childhood fascination I have yet to read the novel. I have a very busy reading program until the end of the year, but Robinson Crusoe might be on the one for next year. it could be a great summer read, come to think of it.

Lémuriens sur les murs

Voici une nouvelle photo prise sur le mur deBute Park à Cardiff. Je crois, je n'en suis pas certain, que ce sont des lémuriens. J'ai voulu les partager ce soir rien que pour l'allitération et le calembour atroce du titre: lémuriens sur les murs. Avouez que vous avez une migraine rien qu'à lire cette horreur.

Un lion sur le mur

J'ai pris cette photo à Bute Park à Cardiff. Enfin, prise sur le mur qui était devant Bute Park. Il y avait comme ça bien des statues d'animaux, qui m'ont pour la plupart fait une forte impression. Toujours est-il que j'ai pris beaucoup de photos des bêtes, avec la caméra de mon ancien téléphone cellulaire, qui était hélas assez mauvaise. Ce lion a ceci de particulier qu'il a presque l'air d'un Sphinx, avec sa crinière qui ressemble plus à une chevelure humaine, ou à une perruque. Sans l'être entièrement, il y a un brin d'anthropomorphisme chez lui. Qu'en pensez-vous?